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January 2021

January 22

Tam asks for church aid in bringing end to pandemic

January 22, 2021

The end of our long COVID crisis may be in sight, but until we get there churches and faith leaders still have a job to do, Canada’s chief public health officer Dr. Theresa Tam told over 1,300 faith leaders on a Jan. 20, nationwide Zoom call.

Family, faith help athlete’s hockey journey

January 22, 2021

Eric Ciccolini seems adjusted to the reality of life as a student athlete in the midst of a pandemic.

Leah Perrault: Enough is merely enough: On needing our Saviour

January 22, 2021

“I am enough” is a mantra I’ve carried close to my heart these last few years. Brené Brown taught me about being enough with her meditations on the Gifts of Imperfection. Parenthood forced me to acknowledge both what I cannot do and how to show up imperfectly for my kids. And I have been teetering for the last several weeks on an edge of enough I had not seen before.

January 23

Raising a glass to St. Joseph

January 23, 2021

Pope Francis announced the “Year of St. Joseph” on Dec. 8 to inspire believers of Christ across the globe to venerate the man who “accepted Mary unconditionally,” taught the value of “participating in the work of salvation” and was a tender earthly father to Jesus.

Gerry Turcotte: The best and worst of times

January 23, 2021

An early December editorial cartoon struck a sympathetic chord with me. It depicted a weary Father Time, sitting at a bar and pleading to be relieved of duty early. Enough is enough, his hoary visage seemed to say.

January 24

Mary Wagner and a mother’s influence

January 24, 2021

Jane Wagner remembers the raw emotion she experienced when her daughter Mary Wagner was first arrested in Vancouver in 1999 for her crusades on behalf of the unborn.

God's Word on Sunday: Be attentive to God’s voice guiding us

January 24, 2021

Fourth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Jan. 31 (Year B) Deuteronomy 18:15-20; Psalm 95; 1 Corinthians 7:32-35; Mark 1:21-28 What happens when a great prophetic figure passes from this Earth? Who takes their place and how do people once again hear the voice of God?

January 25

Poet Amanda Gorman is a light to us all, parishioner says

January 25, 2021

WASHINGTON — Long before she burst into the public spotlight delivering her inauguration poem, Amanda Gorman got a standing ovation from fellow parishioners of St. Brigid Church in Los Angeles for reciting a poem she wrote about the parish.

Asylum-seekers along Mexican border putting their hope in Joe Biden

January 25, 2021

MATAMOROS, Mexico — Idalia Reyes remembers the desperation that drove her to seek out smugglers to take her children, unaccompanied, to the United States. Reyes and her children lived in a tent camp along the Rio Grande, where they endured crime, cold snaps and infestations of insects and snakes.

Love is clearest sign of faith, Pope says in homily for Christian unity

January 25, 2021

ROME — Abiding in God's love means nurturing one's relationship with him and with all those whom God loves, Pope Francis wrote in his homily for the conclusion of the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity.

Jailed Jesuit Fr. Swarmy writes of Indians awaiting trial without knowing charges

January 25, 2021

MUMBAI, India — Indian Jesuit Father Stan Swamy marked 100 days in prison with a letter highlighting the cases of poor people languishing in jail who begin their trials without even knowing their criminal charges.

January 26

As resources shrink, Quebec Archdiocese reorganizes parishes for outreach

January 26, 2021

QUEBEC CITY -- The Archdiocese of Quebec announced its intention to reorganize its parishes to focus on local missionary activities. This move comes as human and material resources continue to diminish.

January 27

Speaking Out: Abortion is not the solution

January 27, 2021

I couldn’t help but cry and scream as I saw a baby decapitated, dismembered and disemboweled 10 minutes into watching the movie Unplanned.

Churches again demand Canada join nuclear treaty

January 27, 2021

The Canadian Council of Churches has again called on Canada to sign and ratify the United Nations Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons as the treaty became officially part of international law on Jan. 22.

Charles Lewis: Let’s not fall for ‘bait-and-switch’ politics

January 27, 2021

It is one disaster down and one more to go. The first disaster was, of course, the House of Commons passing Bill C-7 that will make being killed by your friendly doctor a lot easier. Thanks, Justin, for your concern for the health of your fellow Canadians. How progressive.

Violence-stricken Iraq counts on Pope

January 27, 2021

VATICAN CITY -- In the midst of three days of prayer and fasting for peace and an end to the coronavirus pandemic, Iraqi Cardinal Louis Sako, the Baghdad-based patriarch of the Chaldean Catholic Church, said Iraqis still are counting on Pope Francis to visit in March.

January 28

What’s next for Alberta?

January 28, 2021

With the stroke of a pen, U.S. President Joe Biden didn’t just cancel the Keystone XL pipeline. In the eyes of some, he’s cancelled Alberta.

Editorial: Say no to racism

January 28, 2021

It has been 25 years since Canada celebrated its first Black History Month, a good time to take stock of how we, as a nation, have embraced the commitment to end racism.

Readers Speak Out: January 31, 2021

January 28, 2021

Bad fruit Re: Biden poses issues for U.S. bishops (Jan. 17): I am sick and tired of Catholics in general and the leadership in the Church supporting cultural Catholics/Christians.

ShareLife comes up shy in difficult year

January 28, 2021

The Archdiocese of Toronto ultimately fell short of its $13.8-million target for the parish component of its annual ShareLife charitable appeal.