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February 2019

February 15

Nigerian priest makes plea for amid violence leading up to elections

February 15, 2019

OTTAWA – The run-up to a general election in Nigeria has triggered concerns about growing violence and an increase in Christian persecution, said the national director of Nigeria’s Pontifical Mission Society.

Mexican shelters feeling asylum pinch with unsafe streets, anxious migrants

February 15, 2019

PIEDRAS NEGRAS, Mexico – Gangs in Honduras first threatened Denia Garcia’s husband six months ago, telling him to join with them or die. Her husband, a police officer, fled to the United States, arriving successfully.

Young missionaries discover rich faith and generosity in Canada’s North

February 15, 2019

EDMONTON – A group of young Catholic missionaries is getting a reality check of what life is like in the North.And they’re bringing their gifts and testimonies to the youth who need it most.

God's Word on Sunday: God builds the roots of our inner strength

February 15, 2019

Sixth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Feb. 17 (Year C) Jeremiah 17:5-8; Psalm 1; 1 Corinthians 15:12, 16-20; Luke 6:17, 20-26

February 17

Action on McCarrick 'clear signal' church will not tolerate abuse, Cardinal DiNardo says

February 17, 2019

WASHINGTON – The Vatican's removal from the priesthood of Theodore E. McCarrick "is a clear signal that abuse will not be tolerated," said the president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops Feb. 16.

McCarrick removed from the priesthood after being found guilty of sex abuse

February 17, 2019

VATICAN – Pope Francis has confirmed the removal from the priesthood of Theodore E. McCarrick, the 88-year-old former cardinal and archbishop of Washington.

February 18

Bracing for impact: A four-per-cent cut would trim $1 billion from Ontario's education budget

February 18, 2019

As Ontario budget consultations wrapped up Feb. 8, Liz Stuart questioned how much of a conversation really took place.

Silence, denial are unacceptable, archbishop says leading up to Vatican summit

February 18, 2019

VATICAN – When presented with an accusation that a priest has sexually abused a child, "whether it's criminal or malicious complicity and a code of silence or whether it is denial" on a very human level, such reactions are no longer tolerable, said the Vatican's top investigator of abuse cases.

Pope Francis lifts suspension imposed on Nicaraguan priest 34 years ago

February 18, 2019

VATICAN – Pope Francis has lifted the canonical penalties imposed 34 years ago on Father Ernesto Cardenal, 94, the Nicaraguan poet and former member of the Sandinista government.

February 19

Religious superiors admit denial, slowness to act against sex abuse

February 19, 2019

VATICAN – Twisted ideas of power and authority in the Catholic Church have contributed to the clerical sexual abuse crisis, leaders of religious orders said, but sometimes the positive "sense of family" in their own communities also made them slow to act.

Duterte's drug war is 'illegal, immoral and anti-poor', Philippine bishop says

February 19, 2019

CALOOCAN, Philippines – A Catholic bishop in the Philippines said his government's controversial war on drugs is really a war against the country's poor.

Father Catfish’s legacy as strong as ever

February 19, 2019

EDMONTON – In life, Fr. Michael Mireau cast a long shadow.

Barefoot and Preaching: The evolution of my love takes many turns

February 19, 2019

Fluffy snow covered the sidewalk when I opened the garage door to leave for work.

Cathy Majtenyi: Health care discussions don’t belong in backroom

February 19, 2019

It was a dramatic scene at Queen’s Park on Jan. 31: NDP Leader Andrea Horwath waving a copy of The Health System Efficiency Act 2019, a leaked bill that would see the Ontario government create a “super agency” to manage the province’s health care system.

Francis Campbell: Church, newspapers look to turn the tide

February 19, 2019

It sometimes seems that you are playing for the losing team.

February 20

Publishing priest-abusers list an 'act of contrition', Oakland bishop says

February 20, 2019

OAKLAND, Calif. – The Diocese of Oakland, which serves two California counties in the East Bay area, published Feb. 18 a list of priests, deacons and religious brothers who have worked in the diocese and been credibly accused of abuse, dating back to the diocese's founding in 1962.

God loves us like no one else on this Earth, Pope Francis says

February 20, 2019

VATICAN – When speaking to God as a father, Christians experience a love that goes beyond human love and affection, which can be unpredictable and mired by selfishness, Pope Francis said.

Covington Catholic student sues Washington Post for $250 million on defamation

February 20, 2019

WASHINGTON – The Catholic high school student at the center of an encounter with a Native American tribal leader in Washington filed a $250 million defamation lawsuit Feb. 19 against The Washington Post claiming the newspaper's coverage of the incident was biased.

Blaming homosexuality for sex abuse of minors is 'absolutely immoral', victims say

February 20, 2019

ROME – People must stop using homosexuals as scapegoats for the sexual abuse of children, two male survivors of abuse by priests told reporters.

Notre Dame rescinds McCarrick's honourary degree

February 20, 2019

SOUTH BEND, Ind., – The University of Notre Dame has rescinded the honorary Doctor of Laws (LL.D.) degree it conferred on former Cardinal Theodore McCarrick in 2008, becoming the latest of a growing number of schools who have rescinded honorary degrees from the defrocked former archbishop.