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July 2020

July 13

Arrest made in Florida Catholic church burning

July 13, 2020

ORLANDO, Fla. -- A man crashed his van through the doors of Our Lady Queen of Peace Church in Ocala, Florida, early in the morning July 11 and once inside, the church's pastor said, the man set the interior of the church ablaze and drove off.

Pope Francis 'saddened' by Turkish court ruling to turn Hagia Sophia into mosque

July 13, 2020

VATICAN CITY -- Pope Francis said he was saddened after a Turkish court ruled to revert the iconic Hagia Sophia museum into a mosque.

Fire ravages historic California mission, but community vows to rebuild

July 13, 2020

LOS ANGELES -- The fire that ravaged Mission San Gabriel Arcangel church in the predawn hours of July 11 left behind a haunting scene.

Bishops renew nuclear disarmament call as 1945 bombing anniversary nears

July 13, 2020

WASHINGTON -- Members of a U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops' committee renewed a long-standing call for nuclear disarmament as the 75th anniversary of the atomic bombing of two Japanese cities neared.

Statues of Mary vandalized in weekend of Catholic church attacks

July 13, 2020

Boston police are investigating an arson attack on a statue of the Blessed Virgin Mary Saturday night, the second attack in the U.S. on a statue of the Virgin Mary in two days, and during the same weekend in which two Catholic church fires are being investigated for arson.

July 14

Lead poisoning from Notre Dame fire worse than first thought

July 14, 2020

LIMA, Peru -- When the Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris went up in flames in April 2019, images were made even more dramatic by thick smoke tinged with yellow as the 460 tons of lead on the roof and spire melted.

Campaigns to discredit church preceded '89 Jesuit murders, witness says

July 14, 2020

MEXICO CITY -- An expert witness has testified that the slayings of six Jesuit priests in El Salvador in 1989 was "premeditated" and preceded by campaigns to discredit the Catholic Church and the Society of Jesus.

July 15

Crisis could bring spike in refugee backlog

July 15, 2020

COVID-19 has almost completely choked off the flow of refugees to Canada, which has refugee sponsors worried about the backlog building up as they wait for travel restrictions to ease so they can start again helping new arrivals ease into jobs, apartments and communities.

Statues vandalized at Markham parish

July 15, 2020

York Regional Police are investigating an act of vandalism to statues outside of St. Patrick’s Parish in Markham, Ont.

Charles Lewis: Cardinal sets example of real leadership

July 15, 2020

This column is a shout out to a good man. No one can accuse me of trying to curry favour with him. I do not need a job or need to borrow money.

Speaking Out: Our overlooked COVID heroes

July 15, 2020

Over the last four months, the world has become reacquainted with what’s important in life. For everything we’ve lost, COVID-19 has compelled us to take an introspective look at our priorities and what jobs and provided necessities society on the whole now regard as essential.

Virus exposes online concerns

July 15, 2020

When COVID-19 necessitated the shut down of schools for months, Canadian educators were forced to reinvent their course delivery on the fly.

Cardinal Pell on prison experience: "I knew the Lord was with me"

July 15, 2020

Australian Cardinal George Pell, 79, a former senior adviser to Pope Francis, has broken his silence two months after the country's High Court overturned his conviction for sexual abuse of two teens.

July 16

Editorial: Now, more than ever

July 16, 2020

Over the years, we have heard the pleas of popes and Vatican officials to halt the worldwide production of weapons. In virtually every case, the urgency of the plea has been punctuated by the preface: “Now, more than ever ….”

Readers Speak Out: July 19-26, 2020

July 16, 2020

Call to action Re: Migrant’s death hits community hard (June 28): First, I am deeply grateful to Fr. Peter Ciallella who has tirelessly supported and advocated for the rights of foreign migrant workers in his community.

Vatican releases guide on how leaders must handle abuse allegations

July 16, 2020

VATICAN CITY -- The Vatican's Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith released a 17-page document offering a step-by-step guide for how bishops, religious superiors and canon lawyers are supposed to handle accusations of alleged abuse by clerics against minors.

Choir won’t be silenced

July 16, 2020

Although choir services have been suspended since March due to the coronavirus pandemic, for the students and staff at St. Michael’s Choir School, the music has not been silenced.

Charities need a lifeline to survive crisis

July 16, 2020

OTTAWA -- With the federal government facing an increasing deficit piled up by spending on COVID-19 relief measures, a Christian think tank says Ottawa must do more to help charities survive the effects of the pandemic.

Pilgrims’ best virtue is patience

July 16, 2020

Although the coronavirus upended Jacqueline Maurais’ hopes of travelling to Germany this summer to see the world’s most famous Passion Play, like many faithful Canadians, her plans have not been cancelled but postponed.

Ex-Salvadoran officer says witnesses lied in his trial for Jesuits' murders

July 16, 2020

MEXICO CITY -- Inocente Orlando Montano, the former Salvadoran army colonel accused of participating in "the decision, design or execution of the killings" of six Jesuits in 1989, testified in his Spanish trial that no order was ever given to eliminate the priests.