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January 15, 2015
ABOARD THE PAPAL FLIGHT FROM COLOMBO, Sri Lanka - Commenting on recent killings by Islamist terrorists at a Paris newspaper, Pope Francis condemned killing in the name of God, but said freedom of expression should be limited by respect for religion and that mockery of faith can be expected to provoke violence.
I’ve spent 25 years in the pro-life movement. I’ve been physically attacked, had soiled underwear pushed in my face, been insulted, speeches picketed, family abused, jobs denied. I’ve also been one of the most public faces of the battle against abortion in media. So I feel a little qualified to pass comment on the issue and its participants.
COLOMBO, SRI LANKA - It happened here again, but this time rather unexpectedly. In 1970 and in 1995, when Blessed Paul VI and St. John Paul II visited Sri Lanka, the president who invited them was no longer in office when they arrived. So it was for Pope Francis’ arrival this week, but more dramatically so.
A friend popped by the other day while I was working on a Sudoku puzzle.
When I was an undergraduate at the University of Toronto, a student tabloid printed on its cover a photo of a statue of the Blessed Virgin Mary with a banana on its head. I was so furious, I remember my rage 20 years later.
MAKOLA, Sri Lanka - When Pope Francis made a surprise visit to a prominent Buddhist temple in Colombo Jan. 14, the head of the Maha Bodhi Society of Sri Lanka reciprocated by showing the Pope historical relics of Buddhas' disciples, normally exposed only for the annual Buddhist feast in May.
VATICAN CITY - Pope Francis named new bishops for Chaldean Catholics in Toronto and Sydney and confirmed the election of a Chaldean priest, who is currently ministering in Detroit, to be a new auxiliary bishop in Baghdad.
VATICAN CITY - The Vatican Press Office has issued a "clarification" to state that Pope Francis was not justifying last week's terrorist attacks in Paris after he told journalists that people who "provoke" can "expect a punch."
January 16, 2015
MANILA, Philippines - Pope Francis did not disappoint hundreds of former street children who were part of a massive campaign to show him one of the centres where they have found safety and love.
When temperatures dropped to -12 degrees Celsius in early January, a homeless man dressed only in a t-shirt and jeans was stuck on the cold streets of downtown Toronto. Vulnerable to the freezing temperature and bitter winds, he sought protection in a bus shelter.
WASHINGTON - Surprising even the people who have been promoting the sainthood cause of Blessed Junipero Serra, Pope Francis announced Jan. 15 that in September, he hopes to canonize the 18th-century Spanish Franciscan who founded a string of missions across Mexico and California.
TORONTO - Pope Francis’ “profound sense of authenticity” is what attracts young people to the pontiff, says Catholic media personality Cheridan Sanders.
TORONTO - One of Canada’s greatest theologians is still publishing more than two years after she died.
MANILA, Philippines - The Gospel has the power to transform society, ensuring justice and care for the poor, but that can happen only if Christians -- beginning with the church's ministers -- allow the Gospel to transform them, Pope Francis said.
MANILA, Philippines - Appealing to the traditional values of Filipino Catholic families, Pope Francis made one of his strongest calls as Pope against movements to recognize same-sex unions as marriage.
MANILA, Philippines - In a nation plagued repeatedly by corruption scandals, Pope Francis urged "everyone, at all levels of society, to reject every form of corruption, which diverts resources from the poor."
January 17, 2015
TORONTO - In a west end Toronto neighbourhood, the 200-year legacy of St. John Bosco lives on.
NAPA, Calif. - It was a good thing for Trinitas Cellars that Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio took the name Pope Francis, and not, say Pope Malbecius.
CANTERBURY, England - British Jews fear a return to the 1930s and question whether they have a long-term future in this country, according to a survey conducted by the Campaign Against Anti-Semitism.
Chris Kyle, often described as the most lethal sniper in U.S. military history, wrote in his autobiography that he prioritized his life in the following order: God, country, family.