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January 9, 2017
SAO PAULO – The more than 100 deaths of inmates since the beginning of the year in Brazilian prisons does not come as a surprise for Father Valdir Joao Silveira, national coordinator of the Brazilian bishops' prison ministry.
VATICAN CITY – The Catholic Church is "very far" from a situation in which the Pope is in need of "fraternal correction" because he has not put the faith and church teaching in danger, said Cardinal Gerhard Muller, prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith.
January 10, 2017
Jesus had authority because He served the people, He was close to persons and He was coherent, as opposed to the doctors of the law who considered themselves princes. These three characteristics of Jesus’ authority were highlighted by Pope Francis in his homily at the morning Mass at the Casa Santa Marta. The Holy Father noted, on the other hand, that the doctors of the law taught with a clericalist authority: they were far distant from the people, and didn’t live what they preached.
ATLANTA – Olga Woltering, a bedrock member of her parish and the Atlanta Cursillo movement and beloved to her family and many friends, was among five people killed in the Jan. 6 shooting at a Florida airport.
VATICAN CITY – On Tuesday the Vatican announced the appointment of Filipino-born Bishop Oscar A. Solis, currently an auxiliary bishop for the Archdiocese of Los Angeles, as the new head of the Diocese of Salt Lake City.
MANAUS, Brazil – After nearly 100 inmates died in gang-related riots at prisons in northern Brazil through Jan. 8, Church officials in the country have recommitted themselves to assisting in the rehabilitation of prisoners and parolees.
January 11, 2017
OTTAWA – Citing concerns about potential unfair treatment, Canada’s Catholic bishops have written to Canada’s Revenue Minister to express disagreement with government policies that classify some religious charitable activities as political.
Despite more than 900 signatures on a student-led petition demanding the reinstatement of Dr. Jerzy Cichocki, St. Michael’s Choir school is standing firm in a decision to fire its long-time conductor of the senior choir.
VATICAN CITY – The overwhelming majority of sainthood causes the past decade have originated in Italy, said the head of the Vatican office responsible for investigating the causes.
LAGOS, Nigeria – The head of the Nigerian bishops' conference urged has urged Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari to stop the evolving culture of brutality and savagery in Nigeria, which he said was unparalleled in its history.
CHARLESTON, S.C. – Jurors unanimously agreed to sentence Dylann Roof to death for killing nine black churchgoers.
OTTAWA – A ceasefire in war-torn Syria has not eased the humanitarian crisis, according to Catholic aid organizations in the region.
ROME – Pope Francis warned thousands of pilgrims to be wary of criminals seeking to sell tickets to his weekly Vatican audience, which is always free.
ROME – More than 500 years after the Jews were expelled from Sicily, a tiny Jewish community will open its first synagogue in the island’s capital city of Palermo.
January 12, 2017
A new and very Catholic concept in elder care has moved from dream to reality with a move-in date projected for the fall of 2018.
Visiting Atlanta’s Martin Luther King Jr. Center for Nonviolent Social Change several years ago, I overheard a small black boy ask his mother: “Why were white people so bad to us?”
VATICAN CITY – A McDonald’s opening in the shadow of St. Peter’s Basilica is to offer free meals to the homeless in a move aimed at defusing controversy over the fast food restaurant.
SALTILLO, Mexico – The Mexican bishops' conference on Tuesday asked authorities to provide more information on the disappearance of a of the Diocese of Saltillo.
VATICAN CITY – Ken Hackett is preparing to wrap up his term as U.S. Ambassador to the Holy See as Donald Trump's presidential inauguration looms next week.
VATICAN CITY – Pope Francis' private audience with Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas this Jan. 14 will be a delicate diplomatic moment for the Holy See.