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May 2019

May 14

Martyred Romanian bishops symbolize church's 'resurrection from darkness'

May 14, 2019

WARSAW, Poland - A cardinal incarcerated for 18 years after refusing to abandon his church and a bishop thrown in an unmarked grave after starving to death in an "extermination prison" are among seven communist-era martyrs who will be beatified by Pope Francis during his upcoming visit to Romania.

May 15

Jesus is always ready to help free people from evil, pope says

May 15, 2019

VATICAN CITY -- Christians recognize life's great paradox that so much evil and temptation exist in the world, but that God is always present, too, ready to help and give people the strength to persevere, Pope Francis said.

Court upholds ruling that Ontario doctors must refer for services they oppose

May 15, 2019

An appeals court in Ontario has upheld a College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario requirement that doctors in the province must give referrals for medical services such as assisted dying and abortion that conflict with their moral or religious beliefs.

Success on Asia Bibi case only the beginning

May 15, 2019

The news of Asia Bibi’s arrival in Canada after more than eight years on death row in Pakistan set off celebrations in many corners of the world, but few could compare with the jubilation felt by a group of Canadian volunteers who have fought for years on her behalf.

Vanier’s life a lesson in prayer and patience

May 15, 2019

Fourteen years. That’s how long Jean Vanier said his life was in “a holding pattern.”

Common sense waits in the wings

May 15, 2019

Even those who resisted expansion of gay rights from the mid-1990s to 2011 ultimately conceded the absurdity of the U.S. military’s so-called “don’t ask/don’t tell” policy.

Pro-life leaders applaud passage of bill to ban most abortions in Alabama

May 15, 2019

By passing a bill to ban abortion in nearly all circumstances, the Alabama Legislature has recognized that abortion is "the extinguishing of a unique human life," said the president and CEO of Americans United for Life.

May 16

‘A treasure beyond imagining’: Archdiocese welcomes four new priests at Toronto ordinations

May 16, 2019

“We are called beyond ourselves to the glory of God,” Cardinal Thomas Collins told a packed St. Michael’s Cathedral as he ordained four men to the priesthood on May 11.

Promote 'culture of resurrection,' pope tells Christian Brothers

May 16, 2019

VATICAN CITY -- Like their founder, St. John Baptist de La Salle, the Christian Brothers' must continue their educational mission and restore life to areas where poverty and suffering have taken away the hope of a future, Pope Francis said.

No more silence on abuse

May 16, 2019

Vatican City -- Sweeping new Church laws issued by Pope Francis to protect minors and hold bishops accountable reinforce the message that the days of covering up or ignoring abuse allegations are over, said the Vatican’s top abuse investigator.

Pope allows pilgrimages to Medjugorje

May 16, 2019

Vatican City -- Parishes and dioceses are now allowed to organize official pilgrimages to Medjugorje, Bosnia-Herzegovina, but it must be clear that the Catholic Church has not recognized as authentic the alleged Marian apparitions there.

March brings out voices for life

May 16, 2019

Ottawa -- Despite new logistical challenges and competition from a new march in Toronto, the 22nd National March for Life drew thousands to Parliament Hill May 9 to protest the 50th anniversary of abortion in Canada.

Catholic gap year ideas

May 16, 2019

After graduating high school, most people think they only have two options: college or university. But what about neither?

Speaking Out: I encounter God through others

May 16, 2019

Being a young Catholic often means straddling a line between being part of the secular world and embracing who you fundamentally are in the Divine Plan.

Herman Goodden: No signs of defeat on path of resistance

May 16, 2019

Though my legs and lower vertebrae sympathetically throbbed at the prospect of spending another 16 out of 24 sleep-deprived hours sandwiched into a chartered bus barreling back and forth between London and Ottawa for the National March for Life, I thought it was important to support the largest annual protest in our nation’s capital each year.

Editorial: A big step forward

May 16, 2019

Finally the Vatican seems to recognize that the shame inflicted on the Church by the sex-abuse scandals is as much about bishops who cover up crimes as it is clerics who commit them.

May 17

MP Mark Warawa's final speech a plea for palliative care

May 17, 2019

Mark Warawa, the Conservative MP from Langley-Aldergrove in B.C., is leaving politics as he battles cancer. In his farewell speech to the House of Commons on May 7 — his 69th birthday — Warawa made an impassioned plea for better palliative care in this country. Here is an abridged excerpt from his speech:

Pro-life group ‘goes far too far,’ says bishop

May 17, 2019

Montreal -- Some Quebec bishops have expressed alarm that the main Quebec organizer for the May 9 National March for Life in Ottawa signed a letter accusing Pope Francis of heresy.

Pope Francis chooses theme for World Meeting of Families 2021

May 17, 2019

VATICAN CITY -- Christian family life is a vocation and, when lived with fidelity, it is a path to holiness, said the Vatican Dicastery for Laity, the Family and Life.

Conscientious objection must be respectful, Pope Francis tells health care workers

May 17, 2019

VATICAN CITY -- When doctors, nurses and health care workers conscientiously object to a procedure to protect the life and dignity of their patients, they must do so respectfully, Pope Francis said.