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February 18, 2017
When kids aging out of the child welfare system got together in 2012 to tell the Ontario legislature what they think the system should look like, one of the first things they talked about was how invisible they become — how little the world knows about child protection.
This is Part 2 of our two-part series looking at reforms to Ontario’s child welfare system. Click here to read part 1. We’re all born equal, but we’re born into different circumstances. When the circumstances are worse than just unequal, the rest of us are supposed to do something about it. That’s why we have children’s aid societies.
February 19, 2017
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. – For his silver jubilee as a priest almost a decade ago, Franciscan Father Ed Mundwiller prayed for God to keep calling him beyond the boundaries of his own comfort zone, into places he never thought he would go.
LIMA, Peru – When people wave at members of the pop band Siervas as they drive through the city, the nuns in the musical group know they've arrived on the world stage.
MADRID, Spain – Father Alberto Gaton is the chaplain of a Spanish ship that combats human trafficking by rescuing people in the Mediterranean Sea. In the span of almost 5 months, his team has managed to rescue more than 3,000 people.
February 20, 2017
PARIS – When Americans demonstrated against President Trump’s recent entry ban against citizens of seven mostly Muslim countries, marchers in London, Paris, Berlin and other European cities quickly joined in the protest. The message from across the Atlantic seemed to be “we’re with you.”
NEW ORLEANS, La. – Venerable Henriette DeLille, born a “free woman of color” before the Civil War, had all the makings of a life of relative ease before her.
CHICAGO – The Sharifs were living contentedly in Pakistan when life turned into a nightmare in 2012.
VATICAN CITY – When updating the Catholic Church's medical and bioethical charter, experts decided it wasn't enough to aim the guidelines at health care professionals.
February 22, 2017
VATICAN CITY – While the trial of five people accused of leaking confidential Vatican financial documents captured headlines in 2016, the Vatican City court also continued investigating possible financial crimes, freezing more than $2.1 million in assets deposited at the Vatican bank.
Pope Francis began his homily at daily Mass noting that “We will all be tempted.” He drew inspiration from the First Reading, which recalls that whoever wishes to serve the Lord must prepare for temptations, and the Gospel reading, in which Jesus tells his disciples of his impending death.
VATICAN CITY – The Vatican and one of Islam’s most renowned schools of Sunni thought are joining forces to discuss how they can work together in combating religious extremism that uses God’s name to justify violence.
VATICAN CITY – On Wednesday the Vatican announced plans to monitor with a more careful eye those who print official images of the Pope or the Holy See and sell them for profit, intervening with “appropriate action” when necessary.
WASHINGTON – In two memos published Feb. 20, the Department of Homeland Security outlined guidelines that White House officials said would enhance enforcement of immigration laws inside the country as well as prevent further unauthorized immigration into the U.S.
AGANA, Guam – U.S. Cardinal Raymond L. Burke, accompanied by an official from the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith and three canon lawyers, spent two days in Guam interviewing witnesses and alleged victims in a clerical sexual abuse case against Archbishop Anthony S. Apuron of Agana.
VATICAN CITY – On Wednesday Pope Francis said creation has often suffered because of humanity’s sins and failings, stressing that we must take care of it because as Christians, we see signs of hope in Christ’s Resurrection in nature every day.
PARIS, France – An international group of Catholic physicians is protesting a law passed by France's parliament last week sanctioning pro-life websites that aim to dissuade women from abortion by using “misleading claims.”
A Toronto family had the chance to take centre stage during an audience with Pope Francis at the VI International Forum on Migration and Peace in the Vatican Feb. 21.
VATICAN CITY – Pope Francis appealed for humanitarian assistance to South Sudan where famine threatens the lives of millions of people already suffering due to a three-year civil war.
CAPE TOWN, South Africa – After an outburst of attacks on property owned by foreign nationals in South Africa's capital, Pretoria, and neighboring Johannesburg, the Southern African Catholic Bishops' Conference justice and peace commission called for restraint.