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September 2013

September 16

Central African Republic conflict risks breakup of country, priest says

September 16, 2013

OXFORD, England - A senior Catholic priest in the Central African Republic has warned of growing clashes between Christians and Muslims, and urged the international community to act "within weeks" to prevent the country's breakup.

Technology: When the device becomes the divide

September 16, 2013

Social technology is a fantastic thing to hold in our hands — a Skype call connects you to overseas companions, a laptop connects you to projects away from home, a phone connects you to friends at all hours of the day. It’s a privilege to be just a call, click or text away. Generation Y is considered the most technologically savvy generation to date because of the rapidly changing trends. Still, there is debate about how much we rely on technology. Some say that it’s a wonderful tool and should be further explored and utilized. Some say it’s getting in the way of the more important things.

Pope assures Rome priests that 'sanctity is stronger than scandals'

September 16, 2013

ROME - Acting in his capacity as bishop of Rome, Pope Francis offered words of encouragement to his diocesan priests, assuring them that recent and current scandals cannot overcome the Church's holiness and urging them to keep their vocations alive through love of God.

September 17

'Terrible loss of life' at Navy Yard shocking and sad, says archbishop

September 17, 2013

WASHINGTON - As military, police and federal investigators searched for answers as to why a lone gunman opened fired Sept. 16 at the Washington Navy Yard, killing 12 people and wounding at least eight more, religious leaders and public officials offered prayers for the victims and their families.

Poles welcome native son John Paul II's sainthood

September 17, 2013

WARSAW, Poland - A larger-than-life model of Blessed John Paul II as a younger man reaches out from the top of the exterior steps that ascend to All Saints Church, Warsaw's largest church.

September 18

Keep Calm and Read Scripture

September 18, 2013

The poster is plastered on walls and sported on T-shirts. The short phrase from the poster has found its way into conversations and catch-phrases around the world. But where did it come from? What does the message refer to?

Ottawa archdiocese sued over abuse of man by a priest, who was his uncle

September 18, 2013

OTTAWA - A 62-year-old man has launched a lawsuit against the Ottawa archdiocese for the childhood sexual abuse of a priest who was also his uncle.

September 19

Secularism gone mad

September 19, 2013

A month ago Canada’s new ambassador for religious freedom called on Iran to stop persecuting followers of the Baha’i faith, the country’s largest religious minority. Citing Canada as a leading defender of religious freedom, Andrew Bennett urged “the regime in Iran to live up to its human rights obligations and to respect the voices, thoughts and beliefs of all Iranians.”

Embittered moralizing, an occupational hazard

September 19, 2013

In a masterful book on grace, Piet Fransen suggests that we can test how well we understand grace by gauging our reaction to this story:

Our time on this Earth should be lived ethically

September 19, 2013

26th Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year C) Sept. 29 (Amos 6:1, 4-7; Psalm 146; 1 Timothy 6:11-16; Luke 16:19-31) There isn’t much of a market for ivory beds today but many other symbols of luxury have taken their place. Amos wrote in the eighth century B.C. and addressed both the Northern kingdom of Israel and the southern kingdom of Judah. His stinging denunciations were meant to awaken the upper classes from their spiritual and moral lethargy.

Quebec’s ‘unjust’ secularism imitates the French model

September 19, 2013

OTTAWA - The proposed Charter of Quebec Values imitates France’s “unjust” imposition of anti-religious secularism, says Canadian constitutional lawyer and religious freedom expert Iain Benson.

40 Days for Life is back on

September 19, 2013

TORONTO - The 40 Days for Life fall vigil in Toronto is on again, just months after the spring campaign was forced to take a hiatus.

A model for success

September 19, 2013

Only in an age permeated with paradox could the victories of the gay rights movement present a model for religious believers in the public square. Yet whether one agrees or disagrees with what gay activists have achieved over the past 40 years, there is no doubt the strategic course they have followed has been wildly successful and worth emulating as a result.

A final word on Msgr. Raby

September 19, 2013

Readers will indulge me, I trust, if I write again about Msgr. Thomas Joseph Raby, whose funeral was held last week in Kingston. It does not seem excessive to spend another week on his memory.

How do you deal with a house divided against itself?

September 19, 2013

It’s something you never want to hear. You’ve believed and clung to something your entire life, something you stake your very existence on. Then someone suggests it’s all bunk, irrelevant, meaningless.

Finding, and living, the faith in bustling Mombasa

September 19, 2013

The Kenyan city of Mombasa is an ancient metropolis that bears the marks of its long history as a melting pot of civilizations, religions, cultures, races and nationalities. It is the gateway to East Africa and the coastal city of choice for many tourists from Asia, Europe and North America.

Pope says focus on morality can obscure Gospel message

September 19, 2013

VATICAN CITY - In a lengthy and wide-ranging interview with one of his Jesuit confreres, Pope Francis spoke with characteristic frankness about the perils of overemphasizing Catholic teaching on sexual and medical ethics; the reasons for his deliberate and consultative governing style; and his highest priority for the church today.

Syrian Christians targeted by outsiders, Syriac Catholic leader says

September 19, 2013

JERUSALEM - Christians in Syria are continuing to be targeted by outside fundamentalist groups who have joined the country's long civil war, said the head of the Syriac Catholic Church in Jerusalem.

Diocese looks at possibly opening cause for Chesterton's sainthood

September 19, 2013

MANCHESTER, England - The bishop of Northampton, England, has appointed a priest to investigate the possibility of opening the cause for sainthood of G.K. Chesterton, a British journalist and author of the early 20th century.

Acapulco Archdiocese opens parishes as relief centers for flood victims

September 19, 2013

MEXICO CITY - The archdiocese of Acapulco has suspended church services and instructed priests to turn their parishes into support centres after torrential rains on one of the busiest weekends of the year left the city cut off from other parts of Mexico.