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October 2013

October 10

The Do Not Call List? It just doesn’t work

October 10, 2013

Are you ever pestered by annoying telemarketers trying to sell you things you don’t want? Have you registered your phone numbers on the Do Not Call List and still the calls keep coming?

My October is dedicated to the rosary

October 10, 2013

I don’t know if you read the same Catholic blogs I do, but I can tell you that mine have been in a tizzy over Pope Francis’ interviews by Fr. Spadaro of La Civiltá Cattolica and by 89-year-old Eugenio Scalfari of La Repubblica. Both interviews had startling elements, elements made more startling by mistakes in translation and, it turns out, the fact that Scalfari did not record his interview but relied on his memory for a reconstruction.

Groups applaud as B.C. appeals court rejects assisted suicide

October 10, 2013

OTTAWA - The Euthanasia Prevention Coalition (EPC) and Evangelical Fellowship of Canada (EFC) are applauding a B.C. Court of Appeal decision upholding Canada’s prohibition against assisted suicide.

October 11

Keep God by our side

October 11, 2013

OTTAWA - Lost in recent debate to make Canada’s national anthem more inclusive of women is a call from a national secular organization to remove any reference to God from “O Canada.”

Giving thanks for hand-me-downs

October 11, 2013

I consider myself very blessed to own abundant, diverse clothing. The reason I have so many items is that about 60 per cent of them are hand-me-downs.

Yonge Street Mission sold

October 11, 2013

TORONTO - After more than a century of serving the poor in the heart of the city, the Yonge Street Mission will be selling its flagship Toronto location in the hope of expanding its outreach and ministry to street- involved youth.

Pope declares medieval mystic a saint, advances seven other causes

October 11, 2013

VATICAN CITY - Pope Francis advanced the sainthood causes of seven men and women, including a Canadian and an English founder of two religious orders for women.

October 12

St. Joseph’s turns 150

October 12, 2013

TORONTO - One of Toronto’s oldest Catholic schools, St. Joseph Catholic Elementary School, is celebrating a century and a half of shaping the lives of the children of Leslieville in the city’s east end.

Pope meets Rome Jews, commemorates deportations to Auschwitz

October 12, 2013

VATICAN CITY - At a meeting with members of Rome's Jewish community, Pope Francis denounced anti-Semitism and recalled the 1943 deportation of more than 1,000 of the city's Jews to the most notorious Nazi death camp -- an incident that has proven a major source of tension between the papacy and Jewish leaders.

October 13

Pope opening Church to new possibilities

October 13, 2013

Catholics may be getting used to a Pope who says the unexpected. “Who am I to judge?” “The court is the leprosy of the papacy.” “Proselytism is solemn nonsense.” “How I would like a Church that is poor and for the poor.”

Melkite archbishop in Lebanon leads outreach to Syrian refugees

October 13, 2013

LARNACA, Cyprus - Melkite Archbishop Issam Darwich of Zahleh and Furzol, Lebanon, knows what it's like to be a stranger in strange land.

October 14

German bishops' conference investigating multimillion building project

October 14, 2013

VATICAN CITY - The president of the German bishops' conference said he is following with "great attention and great concern" the case of a bishop accused of making false statements in court and under fire for allegedly spending close to $40 million in renovations and new construction on his residence and diocesan offices.

At least 13 dead as boat carrying pilgrims capsizes in Amazon

October 14, 2013

SAO PAULO - At least 13 people died and five were reported missing after a boat carrying devotees of Our Lady of Nazareth capsized in the Amazon River.

Malaysian court rules Catholic newspaper cannot use 'Allah'

October 14, 2013

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia - A Malaysian court said a Catholic newspaper may not use the word "Allah" to refer to God in its Malay-language edition.

October 15

Education, not just a classroom thing

October 15, 2013

As a member of the Ontario College of Teachers (OCT), I value education. When people ask why I’m not working toward teaching in a classroom, I usually answer, “I love education, but the classroom isn’t where I’m called to.” A main reason for that is I see education everywhere, and we often neglect other places of learning. There are some things that the classroom cannot capture on its own.

St. John's Bible illuminates the Word of God

October 15, 2013

TORONTO - Often it is said that the devil is in the details, but when it comes to the illuminated St. John's Bible it is God's word in the details.

Quebec crucifix not a museum piece, bishops say

October 15, 2013

QUEBEC CITY - Quebec’s Catholic bishops say that the province's legislator's should treat the crucifix hanging in the National Assembly with due respect and not treat it as a museum piece.

Quebec nun declared venerable by Pope

October 15, 2013

Pope Francis has declared the short, productive life of Marie Elisabeth Turgeon heroic, bringing her one step closer to joining Canada’s list of saints.

Outgoing Vatican secretary of state stresses continuity between popes

October 15, 2013

VATICAN CITY - Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone, who as Vatican secretary of state drew rising criticism for failures of the Vatican bureaucracy he oversaw, stepped down Oct. 15 with a speech praising the pontificate of retired Pope Benedict XVI and stressing its continuity with that of Pope Francis.

Church leaders assess damage after strong quake in central Philippines

October 15, 2013

BOHOL, Philippines - Bishop Leonardo Medroso of Tagbilaran said the church in central Philippines was still assessing damage after a magnitude 7.1 earthquake left dozens dead.