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February 1, 2017
BROOKLYN, N.Y. – Parishioners were distressed after a priest of the Diocese of Brooklyn posted a meme on Facebook that encouraged Trump opponents to commit suicide.
DALLAS, Texas – Citing legal and community changes, the Boy Scouts of America have said self-declared gender identity now determines youth eligibility for its scouting programs. The move could add new difficulties for Catholic sponsors of scout troops trying to adapt to the organization’s relatively new policy on homosexuality.
MANILA, Philippines – The Catholic bishops of the Philippines voiced strong objections to proposals intended to reinstate the death penalty in the country.
DULLES, Va. – While their signs showed their discontent with President Donald Trump's executive memorandum to halt immigration from seven Middle Eastern countries, the protesters at Dulles International Airport conveyed nothing but welcome for the hundreds of travellers who arrived there Jan. 30.
WASHINGTON – The chairmen of three U.S. bishops' committees Jan. 31 expressed solidarity with the Muslim community and expressed deep concern over religious freedom issues they said President Donald Trump's refugee ban raises.
BEIRUT – Many Western nations forget that their countries were built on migrants, said the president of Caritas Internationalis.
VATICAN CITY – The Vatican's doctrinal chief said some bishops are interpreting Pope Francis' document on marriage and family in a way that is not in accordance with Catholic doctrine.
Catholic and other religious voices across Canada are condemning the U.S. exclusion of refugees from seven majority Muslim countries.
Vian Dakhil captured the world’s attention two years ago when she made an impassioned plea to save the Yazidi religious minority from annihilation by the Islamic State group in northern Iraq.
QUEBEC CITY – People of many faiths gathered for a solidarity Mass at Notre-Dame-de-Foy church, next to the mosque belonging to the Quebec Islamic Cultural Centre, where six men were killed by a gunman while they were praying.
ARE YOU A UNIVERSITY OR SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL STUDENT 16 OR OLDER? DO YOU LIKE TO WRITE? DO YOU WANT TO IMPROVE YOUR SKILLS IN A MENTORING PROGRAM LED BY A PROFESSIONAL JOURNALIST? DO YOU WANT TO ENRICH YOUR FAITH?
COLOGNE, Germany – The German bishops have published their own guidelines on Amoris laetitia allowing, in certain cases, for divorced-and-remarried Catholics to receive Communion.
February 2, 2017
ABUJA, Nigeria – For one Catholic bishop in Nigeria, social media and family life are two keys for evangelization and sharing the values of the Catholic Church.
A surprise request during a visit to a Catholic church led to a revelation about love and Christian unity for a Baptist preacher.
Unlike chaotic situations that arise from unpredictable or uncontrollable circumstances, this one was unnecessary and entirely avoidable.
One must wonder whether the rather bizarre clash between the Vatican and the Knights of Malta — a Catholic humanitarian organization with diplomatic ties to more than 100 countries — is really about distributing condoms as part of an aid project.
WASHINGTON – The U.S. bishops are concerned by the Trump administration’s decision to maintain a “troubling” Obama-era executive order that could demand federal contractors violate their religious beliefs on marriage and gender ideology.
This is the third in a series of four columns by Fr. Frank Freitas about prayer and praying. (Here's part 1, part 2 and part 4)
The French novelist and essayist Léon Bloy once made this comment about God’s power in our world: “God seems to have condemned himself until the end of time not to exercise any immediate right of a master over a servant or a king over a subject. We can do what we want. He will defend Himself only by His patience and His beauty.”
On Thursday, Pope Francis celebrated a solemn Mass for the Feast of the Presentation of the Lord, and also commemorated the 21st annual World Day for Consecrated Life.