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August 7, 2008
Twentieth Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year A) Aug. 17 (Isaiah 56:1, 6-7; Psalm 67; Romans 11:13-15, 29-32; Matthew 15:21-28) A prophetic image from the long distant past can speak to us over and over again.
Editor's note: Below are two commentaries on the meaning of Pope Paul VI's encyclical, Humanae Vitae, which was released 40 years ago this summer, on July 25, 1968. The encyclical, which reaffirmed traditional Catholic teaching against the use of artificial contraception, has long been considered a watershed document in the history of the post Vatican II Catholic Church.
AJAX, Ont. - Candace Chapman's Olympic journey to Beijing began on a soccer field in Ajax when she was just eight years old. She is one of 57 athletes from the Greater Toronto Area at this summer's Olympic Games in Beijing. Her parents Gerard and Margaret say they're proud of their daughter's accomplishments. Aside from being part of the first Canadian women's soccer team to qualify for the Olympics, Chapman played on the Canadian team at last year's FIFA Women's World Cup in China and helped Notre Dame University win an NCAA title while attending the university on a scholarship. The 25-year-old defender and mid-fielder has earned a bachelor's degree in sociology and computer applications at Notre Dame.
August 8, 2008
PICKERING, Ont. - As he accepted the blessing of Jesuits and their friends at the end of a St. Ignatius Day Mass in Pickering, Ont. July 31, Fr. Jim Webb took up a "heroic, humble task" in imitation of the man who founded the Jesuits 474 years ago. Webb officially became the provincial superior for the Jesuits of English Canada, taking over from Fr. Jean-Marc Laporte.
August 10, 2008
TORONTO - Administrative backlogs, a marriage of convenience with the United States and compromised due process in Canada's refugee system have churches taking Canada's government to the Supreme Court and refugee advocates pushing politicians to live up to a law Parliament passed in 2001 and then re-passed this summer. The Canadian Council of Churches, Amnesty International and the Canadian Council for Refugees will challenge Canada's Safe Third Country agreement with the United States at the Supreme Court of Canada.
August 11, 2008
VATICAN CITY-The Anglican Communion's Lambeth Conference began a process for addressing issues that divide Anglicans and pose challenges for dialogue with the Roman Catholic Church, said a Vatican official.
August 12, 2008
TORONTO-Growing up in Japan, Sachiko Yasue never particularly noticed Hiroshima Day. Now living in Toronto, the carnage of Aug. 6, 1945 suddenly seemed very real as she surveyed a photo and art exhibit mounted in Toronto City Hall.
August 13, 2008
BRESSANONE, Italy - Pope Benedict XVI appealed for an immediate end to military operations in Georgia and its breakaway province of South Ossetia.
Twenty-first Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year A) Aug. 24 (Isaiah 22:15, 19-23; Psalm 138; Romans 11:33-36; Matthew 16:13-20) Scandal in high places — nothing new about that, is there? The setting is Jerusalem in the seventh century BC in the court of King Hezekiah. Shebna was a very high ranking official (master of the palace), signified by his possession of the "key of David." This was apparently a symbol of governing authority exercised in the name of the king. Shebna had committed an unnamed offence that dishonoured the name of his master the king. He was bounced from his position and demoted to scribe and Eliakim elevated in his place — end of story.
August 14, 2008
TORONTO - The saga of Catholic Insight's trouble with the Canadian Human Rights Commission is not over. After having a complaint against the small magazine dismissed in early July, it has now learned that it faces a judicial appeal of that decision.
August 18, 2008
CASTEL GANDOLFO, Italy - Heaven is not an abstract idea or an imaginary place, but heaven is God, Pope Benedict XVI said.
August 19, 2008
TORONTO - St. Norbert's Roman Catholic Church has acted as both a spiritual and physical stronghold in the weeks following Toronto's north-end propane storage plant explosion.
August 20, 2008
OTTAWA - The CNEWA Canada is appealing for emergency funds to help families in western Ukraine displaced by floods described as the worst in a century.
August 21, 2008
TORONTO -It was like a “tornado” which killed three people in the church neighbourhood in Lahore, Pakistan, rocked a century-old cathedral and caused hundreds of thousands of dollars in damages to nearby church buildings and schools.
TORONTO - As the Taliban issued an explicit threat against Canadian aid workers and killings of NGO staff reached record levels in Afghanistan, the Canadian Catholic Organization for Development and Peace said it remains committed to its work with women’s groups straddling both sides of the Afghanistan-Pakistan border in the zone of conflict.
August 25, 2008
LAKE FOREST, Calif. - The presumptive presidential nominees of the United States’ two major political parties Aug. 16 tried to define themselves in religious terms on topics ranging from their personal moral failings to how to deal with climate change during a televised forum from Saddleback Church in Lake Forest.
OTTAWA - Dr. Rene Leiva may have to leave his family practice in Ontario if the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario takes away his conscience rights.
QUEBEC CITY - The Knights of Columbus have vowed to continue speaking out against elected government representatives who challenge life from conception to natural death. The Knights made this resolution Aug. 7 at the fraternal order’s 126th annual Supreme Convention in Quebec City Aug. 5-7. Two thousand Knights and their families attended the convention, with Knights from across Canada and the United States, as well as from Mexico, Dominican Republic, Cuba, Guam, Philippines and Poland.
QUEBEC CITY - At its inception in 1882, the Knights of Columbus played an important role in supporting poor Catholic immigrant families in Connecticut. During a difficult social period for Catholics in America, the Knights of Columbus, started by Fr. Michael J. McGivney, offered financial aid benefits and fraternal encouragement in daily life, soon after expanding to Canada in 1897. Over the years, the Knights have grown to include more than 13,000 councils and 1.7 million members throughout the United States, Canada, the Philippines, Mexico, Poland, the Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico, Panama, the Bahamas, the Virgin Islands, Guatemala, Guam and Saipan. And while the order continues to provide Knights and their families with life insurance, the Knights of Columbus have a lot more to offer in today’s society as an organization that raises millions of dollars yearly for charitable causes.
QUEBEC CITY - The Loomis family of Goshen, N.Y., was honoured earlier this month as the Knights of Columbus Family of the Year. The Knights of Columbus awarded the Loomis family the lay order’s International Family of the Year Award during its 126th annual Supreme Convention’s awards ceremony Aug. 7 for best displaying the Knights’ main principles of charity, unity and fraternity.