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October 2015

October 1

Leaders need political will to combat global warming

October 1, 2015

OTTAWA - World leaders need to exercise some political will to ensure there are binding agreements on climate change, says a Filipino cardinal.

Saskatchewan doctors denied conscience rights

October 1, 2015

SASKATOON - Saskatchewan doctors concerned about their loss of conscience rights are saying they will now be discriminated against for expressing conscience concerns on certain procedures.

Authentic message

October 1, 2015

Pope Francis arrived as a first-time visitor to the United States but by the day his Fiat was heading back to the airport the guest from the Vatican had drawn a roadmap to show his hosts the way.

African bishops fired up in defense of marriage

October 1, 2015

The Synod on the Family begins Oct. 4 and promises to be a rather unpleasant few weeks in the life of the Church.

Quebec day care more apt to produce criminals, study shows

October 1, 2015

OTTAWA - Boys enrolled in Quebec’s universal child-care program are more likely to partake in criminal behaviour than boys from other provinces, a new study has found.

Francis wows America

October 1, 2015

PHILIDELPHIA - Pray for the Pope. It’s the one thing he wants. For six days in America, he asked school children, the president, congressmen, senators, UN diplomats, bishops, a million Mass-goers, the homeless and prisoners all to pray for him.

Silence and indifference to migrant crisis lead to complicity, Pope says

October 1, 2015

VATICAN CITY - Indifference to the crises and tragedies today's migrants and refugees are facing lead to complicity when people remain silent or refuse to act, Pope Francis said.

Joy of the Lord our strength

October 1, 2015

The joy of the Lord is our strength, and in Him we discover who we really are: this was the focus of Pope Francis’ reflection following the readings of the day at Mass in the chapel of the Casa Santa Marta on Thursday morning, the feast of St. Therese of Lisieux. The Holy Father focused especially on the need to cultivate nostalgia – deep yearning – for God in the Christian life.

Family gathering opens eyes to the possibilities

October 1, 2015

PHILADELPHIA - Most of the 500 or so Toronto pilgrims and more than 1,000 Canadians in Philadelphia showed up for the last two days of the papal visit to see the Pope. A smaller, hard core of dedicated family activists and advocates formed part of the 18,000 who attended the week-long World Meeting of Families.

Immigrant Canadians give resounding ‘yes’ to Pope

October 1, 2015

PHILADELPHIA - When Pope Francis pleaded with immigrants to hold on to their traditions and culture, a big “yes” rose in Alicia Ledda’s heart. That’s what she came to Philadelphia to hear.

Ontario teachers still waiting on sex-ed curriculum guidelines

October 1, 2015

TORONTO - With classes well underway, teachers are still awaiting many of the teaching supplements to instruct them on how to teach Ontario’s new sex-ed curriculum through a Catholic lens.

All God’s children deserve to be treated reverence, cardinal tells health care workers

October 1, 2015

TORONTO - Catholic health care workers must always remember that their patients are “a child of God” to be treated with special reverence from beginning to end, Cardinal Thomas Collins told the Catholic Health Association of Ontario.

We see in Jesus’ eyes, God is good

October 1, 2015

God, as I understand Him, is not very well understood. A colleague of mine, now deceased, was fond of saying that. It’s a wise comment.

The value of wisdom

October 1, 2015

28th Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year B) Oct. 11 (Wisdom 7:7-11; Psalm 90; Hebrews 4:12-13; Mark 10:17-30) You must run for your life in the face of a natural disaster. If you could take only your most precious possession, what would it be? Your car or house? Perhaps your financial portfolio or family heirlooms? The author of Wisdom had definite ideas on the matter, and his answer might be surprising to many. All the precious and valuable things in the world pale in comparison to his prize — the gift of wisdom. He heaped up superlatives singing wisdom’s praises and demonstrating how it is superior to everything else, even power, glory, gold and precious stones.

The political Pope Francis can’t help but make it personal

October 1, 2015

PHILADELPHIA - In the 1970s feminist writers had a slogan they wanted to share with the world: “The personal is political.”

Harper called on to help find solution for Palestinan farmers cut off by security wall

October 1, 2015

OTTAWA - Archbishop Paul-André Durocher, in one of his last duties as president of the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops, has asked the prime minister to use his influence with Israel to prevent its security wall from cutting off Palestinian families from their farmland.

Central African archbishop to continue peace mission, despite violence

October 1, 2015

OXFORD, England - An archbishop in the Central African Republic has vowed to continue an interfaith peace mission, after new communal violence left at least 36 dead two months before a planned visit by the Pope.

October 2

Made for more

October 2, 2015

You may be thinking, “Oh another modesty piece? Haven’t we heard enough?” But the reality is that many of us face problems in terms of being modest on a daily basis.

Perform acts of mercy to prep for WYD, says Pope

October 2, 2015

VATICAN CITY - Pope Francis asked the world’s young Catholics to perform spiritual and corporal works of mercy every month in the run-up to World Youth Day next July.

California governor faces final call on right-to-die bill

October 2, 2015

California Gov. Jerry Brown has until midnight Oct. 7 to sign or veto a controversial bill that would legalize physician-assisted dying in the United States’ most populous state.