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April 17, 2018
OTTAWA – Canada’s bishops’ conference is pushing back against “inaccuracies” in a proposed Parliamentary motion that will call on them to formally invite Pope Francis to apologize for the Church’s role in residential schools.
MANILA, Philippines – Philippine authorities have arrested, detained and intend to deport a 71-year-old Australian nun for allegedly engaging in illegal political activities.
Twelve Canadian bishops, including Cardinal Thomas Collins of Toronto, are withholding contributions to the Canadian Catholic Organization for Development and Peace following preliminary research that indicates some of the Catholic agency’s partners may be connected to abortion or artificial contraception.
April 18, 2018
VATICAN – Begging Pope Francis to help his son, Alfie, Tom Evans met with the pontiff, pleading for "asylum" in Italy so his seriously ill son may receive care and not be euthanized in England.
The Catholic Church in Iceland is speaking out against a popular proposed law that could land Jewish and Muslim parents in prison for up to six years for circumcising their infant boys.
PAISLEY, Scotland – A Scottish bishop has criticized the BBC for making a film that describes the Eucharist as smelling "like hate."
Hospital chaplains are accustomed to seeing death and terrible illnes. It’s just a byproduct of the job. But there is only so much they can be prepared for.
VATICAN – Naming a child is an important task for parents, because it gives children a sense of identity and belonging to their family and to God, Pope Francis said.
HONG KONG – Catholics in China's Henan province have been warned that venues will be closed if they do not adhere to the revised regulations on religious affairs.
OTTAWA – A motion calling on the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops (CCCB) to invite Pope Francis to apologize for the Catholic Church’s role in abuse at Indian Residential schools failed to get unanimous consent April 18 in the House of Commons.
April 19, 2018
DUBLIN – Pro-life activists have launched a campaign urging citizens to vote no in a forthcoming referendum to remove the Eighth Amendment to the Irish Constitution. That amendment provides legal protection for unborn children "with due regard to the equal right to life of the mother."
VATICAN – Christians must be willing to move where the Spirit leads them and not be benchwarmers on the sidelines of efforts to evangelize, Pope Francis said.
VATICAN – Pope Francis has asked German bishops to come to Rome to discuss pastoral guidelines for possibly allowing some non-Catholics married to Catholics to receive the Eucharist, the German bishops' conference said.
Even in the midst of a heavy ice storm, in the middle of exam season, more than 200 students and community members gathered together April 14 at University of Toronto’s Newman Centre for an Easter retreat.
When I was younger, it wasn’t difficult for me to balance my faith with extra-curricular activities and family obligations.
Pope Francis has long held in esteem the late Cardinal Francois-Xavier Nguyen van Thuan, the archbishop of Saigon who spent 13 years in a communist prison camp, including nine years in solitary confinement.
Why won’t Pope Francis issue a formal apology for the Catholic Church’s role in Canada’s residential school system?
Thanks to generous donors, St. Mary’s University in Calgary was recently able to complete the restoration of our nearly 100-year-old water tower. Built by the Sisters of Providence in 1921, the tower has stood over the Midnapore site for nearly a century, its fortunes waxing and waning — mostly waning — over time.
Here we go again. Development and Peace, an organization created by Canada’s bishops, is back on the hot seat over allegations it failed to properly screen some overseas partners. At least 11 dioceses have withheld funds from the organization after suggestions that several of its partner agencies are offside on issues that include abortion, contraception and gender theory.
April 20, 2018
HOUSTON – Former first lady Barbara Bush "was a model public servant and set a standard for her unwavering and loving devotion to both family and community," said Cardinal Daniel N. DiNardo of Galveston Houston in offering his prayers and "heartfelt condolences" to the Bush family.