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March 2014

March 20

Companions of the Cross make history

March 20, 2014

OTTAWA - The March 19 episcopal ordination of Ottawa Auxiliary Bishop Christian Riesbeck marks a “coming of age” of the Companions of the Cross, an order that is not yet three decades old, says the order’s general superior.

PQ’s star candidate a Harper ally?

March 20, 2014

A friend in Montreal — I’ll call her Sassy Knoll for her love of conspiracy theories — thinks Pierre-Karl Peladeau and Prime Minister Stephen Harper are in league to torpedo the Parti Quebecois’ chances in the crucial April 7 Quebec election.

Pope Francis’ second year the one to watch

March 20, 2014

At the time of writing this column the Church and the world are commemorating the first year of Pope Francis’ pontificate. The bulk of that commemoration is celebratory but that approach is far from unanimous. While they have been relatively quiet about it up until recently, some of the more conservative elements within the Church are clearly unhappy with the Holy Father, with their Holy Father. I say “their” because if even the most reactionary of Catholicism is to mean anything it has to accept papal authority. Roman Catholicism implodes and is irrational without it.

Fr. Georges Lemaître and the Big Bang Theory

March 20, 2014

The Big Bang has captured the scientific and popular mind as the spectacular beginning of the entire universe. There is even an eponymous sitcom which, to judge from what is available on airplanes, might just be the most popular television program ever made.

A nun’s joy can be habit-forming

March 20, 2014

I have noticed a few letters in The Catholic Register critiquing cover photograph of Sr. Helena Burns, apparently because she was photographed in her habit, with a rosary, cheering on the Canadian Olympic hockey team. I find it significant that what raised the letter-writers’ ire was not the accompanying article, but the apparently “stereotypical” photo.

True blindness is one who refuses to see

March 20, 2014

In the blink of an eye, human beings make sweeping judgments about people and situations. We can judge a person’s social class, education, cultural awareness, personality traits and whether we like them or not. First impressions are often useful — who could really operate without them? But the story from Samuel shows us that these outward appearances can be superficial, deceiving and just plain wrong.

The real challenge in creativity

March 20, 2014

There are three kinds of performers. The first, while singing a song or doing a dance, are making love to themselves. The second, while performing, are making love to the audience. The third, while on stage, are making love to the song, to the dance, to the drama itself.

Thousands of rare Vatican manuscripts to go online

March 20, 2014

VATICAN CITY - Thousands of rare manuscripts until now accessible only to scholars at the Vatican will go online over the next four years, thanks to help from a Japanese information technology company.

For Peru's Kukama people, water is more than a drink, missionary finds

March 20, 2014

DOS DE MAYO, Peru - It was a day Father Miguel Angel Cadenas did not expect to see. One after another, government officials stood before several hundred Kukama Indians packed into a sweltering wood-frame room in this tiny riverside village, describing the results of a study of pollution in their communities.

‘Wishful thinking’ fuels speculation on marriage changes

March 20, 2014

OTTAWA - The Catholic Organization for Life and Family (COLF) will continue to focus on the Church’s teaching on marriage in the face of “wishful thinking” it will change.

March 21

St. Michael’s looking to close health-wealth gap

March 21, 2014

TORONTO - A team at St. Michael’s Hospital is working to curb the financial ailments of its low-income patients and help people realize that health is relative to wealth.

Pro-lifers key on Harper’s maternal health summit

March 21, 2014

OTTAWA - Pro-life groups say they will keep a hopeful but watchful eye on an upcoming Toronto summit called by Prime Minister Stephen Harper to address maternal, newborn and child health.

A universal Church

March 21, 2014

Since January I’ve been studying in Singapore. I arrived knowing that the government protected religious freedom, which initially surprised me when I learned about it last year. The country is considered a multi-religious nation where this freedom is enshrined in the constitution. I had thought that because it was located in Asia, there would be stricter government control over religious practice. But being a Catholic in Singapore is no different than practising back in Toronto.

Smartphones give Lent new look

March 21, 2014

WASHINGTON - This is not your parents’ Lent.

Polish-Canadians at WYD

March 21, 2014

Toronto’s St. Casimir’s parish hopes to send 60 to 70 young Polish descendants to their ancestral homeland for World Youth Day from July 26 to 31, 2016, a week that that is set to inspire Catholic youth from around the world in Kraków, Poland.

Before meeting Pope, Vanier talks about joy, tenderness, acceptance

March 21, 2014

VATICAN CITY - On the eve of meeting Pope Francis, Jean Vanier spoke about the importance of joy, tenderness and practical resistance to the "throwaway" culture.

Councillor talks politics to youth

March 21, 2014

TORONTO - Toronto’s next municipal election happens this fall, but voter turnout is typically low among eligible youth.

March 22

Board opening up the trades to girls

March 22, 2014

TORONTO - Sharlyn Barahona always liked working with her hands but never thought of grasping a hammer, wrench or screwdriver professionally, until now.

Noah sparks debate over one of the world’s oldest and most beloved stories

March 22, 2014

NEW YORK - In recent years, Hollywood has made a concerted effort to lure religious audiences to the local cineplex with such films as The Passion of the Christ, Son of God and even dark-horse hits like Facing the Giants. And most of the time, it’s worked.

March 23

Artists, aid agencies work to help vulnerable Syrian refugee children

March 23, 2014

ZAATARI REFUGEE CAMP, Jordan - As Syria's civil war hurtles into its fourth year, hopes of returning home soon seem far off for the 2.5 million refugees sheltering in neighbouring countries, like Jordan. Syrians are soon expected to overtake Afghans as the largest refugee population in the world, according to the United Nations.