Church in Costa Rica must pay $100,000 to abuse victim A lower court in Costa Rica ruled that the Catholic Church in the Central American country must pay about $100,000 to a victim of sexual abuse committed by a former priest. The judgment will be appealed. According to a local media report, on August 23…

An Australian court August 24 ruled that a man can sue the Catholic Archdiocese of Melbourne and Cardinal George Pell for nervous shock over the alleged sexual abuse of his late son. The man is the father of a former choirboy, who prosecutors alleged had been abused by Cardinal Pell. His son died from an…

Pope meeting off as patriarch cancels Kazakhstan visit Russian Orthodox Patriarch Kirill, who was expected to meet Pope Francis at the Congress of World and Traditional Religions in Kazakhstan, will not attend the interreligious gathering in September, a senior Russian Orthodox bishop said. Metropolitan Anthony of Volokolamsk, head of external relations for the Russian Orthodox…

Catholic nuns from a missionary order in the Philippines have denounced a criminal charge accusing them of financing terrorism and violating the country’s anti-terrorism law. Ucanews.com reported the nuns from the Rural Missionaries of the Philippines issued a statement August 18 to denounce the criminal charge filed by the Department of Justice. The nuns termed…

Lima, Amid a political crisis in which the president, his wife and members of her family are accused of corruption and taking bribes, Peru’s bishops have called for dialogue and a commitment to uphold democratic institutions. At a news conference August 18, the bishops issued a statement calling for “an urgent and creative solution” in the face…

Francisco Moreno Barrón, the archbishop of Tijuana, Mexico, across the border from metro San Diego in the United States, condemned the 20 attacks carried out in several towns in the state of Baja California. The archbishop issued an August 13 statement regarding the public transportation vehicles set on fire by armed men on the afternoon…

Sri Lankan priest involved in protests granted bail A priest involved in the recent protests in Sri Lanka has been granted bail after being accused of several criminal offenses. Fr Amila Jeewantha Peiris appeared in the Colombo Fort Magistrate’s Court on August 12 and was granted bail thanks to two personal sureties of 500,000 Sri…

A new report from the United Nations on modern slavery provides further documentation of China’s mistreatment of the Uyghur ethnic group, a Muslim minority that according to some human rights groups is suffering genocide. The UN’s Special Rapporteur on contemporary forms of slavery, Dr Tomoya Obokata, wrote that it is “reasonable to conclude” that forced…

At least two Spanish archdioceses have expressed their support for the Church in Nicaragua, which is being persecuted by dictator Daniel Ortega, with messages of solidarity on social media, especially for the Bishop of Matagalpa, Rolando José Álvarez. Spain’s primatial archdiocese of Toledo, said on Twitter  “We entrust the entire Diocese of Matagalpa (to God)…