News/International
![Shown is a screen shot of the WikiLeaks display of the U.S. Embassy to the Vatican cable titled “’Green’ Pope supports U.S. path forward from Copenhagen.” (CNS) wikileaks](/images/stories/international/international10/wikileaks.jpg)
The cables, released Dec. 10-12, touched on a wide range of issues, from the Vatican’s efforts to deal with leftist governments in Latin America to its recent moves to welcome disaffected Anglicans into the Catholic Church.
As cardinal, Pope Benedict sought swift action against abusive priests
By John Thavis, Catholic News Service![Pope Benedict XVI Pope Benedict XVI](/images/stories/PopeBenedictXVI/popeBenedict1.jpg)
The letter, written by then-Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger when he was head of the Vatican’s doctrinal congregation, expressed concern that the normal process for dealing with such priests — which typically involved a request for dispensation from priestly obligations — took too long and was seen more as a favour than a punishment. Eventually, with Ratzinger’s involvement, the penal procedures were simplified and sanctions were strengthened. But in 1988, the cardinal’s suggestion of a “more rapid and simplified penal process” was rebuffed by the Vatican’s canon law experts.
Colleagues recall four churchwomen slain 30 years ago in El Salvador
By Laura Dodson, Catholic News ServiceMELBOURNE, Fla. - Dec. 2 marks the 30th anniversary of the martyrdom of Ursuline Sister Dorothy Kazel, lay missionary Jean Donovan and Maryknoll Sisters Maura Clarke and Ita Ford, the four churchwomen of El Salvador who were savagely brutalized and killed for spreading the good news and teaching people to read and pray.
“I can’t say this to anybody because they wouldn’t understand,” Kazel wrote to her former missionary partner, Sr. Martha Owen, in October 1980. “I want you to explain why I have to stay.”
Cardinal calls for campaign to end Christian persecution
By Cindy Wooden Catholic News Service![A destroyed Catholic church on the Indonesian island of Lombok Jan. 18, 2010. Thousands of angry Indonesian Muslims went on an anti-Christian rampage destroying at least 10 churches and burning shops(CNS photo from Reuters) Burnt church](/images/stories/international/international10/church.jpg)
Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone told the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe Dec. 1, "It has been widely documented that Christians are the most persecuted and discriminated against religious group. More than 200 million of them, belonging to different confessions, find themselves in difficulty because of legal and cultural structures."
Into the 'Light': Pope Benedict comes into clearer focus in new book
By John Thavis, Catholic News Service![Light of the world](/images/stories/books/1586176064.jpg)
The book's interviewer, German journalist Peter Seewald, recalled a public appearance one winter day when the Pope donned the "camauro," a red velvet cap trimmed with ermine that was last worn by Pope John XXIII. Seewald suggested this was one of those subtle signals that marked a return to the old ways of the Church.
Sometimes condom use is lesser evil, says Pope
By John Thavis, Catholic News Service![This is the cover of 'Light of the World: The Pope, the Church, and the Sign of the Times' by Pope Benedict XVI. In the book, which was to be released Nov. 23, the pope said the use of condoms may be a sign of moral responsibility in some specific situat ions when the intention is to reduce the risk of AIDS. Light of the world](/images/stories/books/1586176064.jpg)
The Pope addressed the issue in the book-length interview, Light of the World: The Pope, the Church and the Signs of the Times. He indicated that condom use in a heterosexual relation is a lesser evil than transmitting disease.
South Korean priests criticize North Korean shelling
By Catholic News Service![Smoke rises from South Korean Yeonpyeong Island after being hit by dozens of artillery shells fired by North Korea Nov. 23, in this picture taken by a South Korean tourist. South Korea says two marines have been killed and 16 others injured in the bombardment of the South Korean island near the countries' disputed western sea border. (CNS photo/Yonhap, Reuters) korea](/images/stories/international/international10/korea.jpg)
"The relationship between the North and the South worsened under the current South Korean government," Fr. John Kim Yong-hwan, chancellor of Incheon, which covers Yeonpyeong Island, told the Asian church news agency UCA News. "The South Korean government should introduce dialogue and embrace the North."
Cambodian Catholics plan special Mass for victims of bridge stampede
By Catholic News Service![People gather outside a hospital Nov. 23 after a festival stampede in Phnom Penh. Rescuers trawled a muddy river for more bodies and Cambodia prepared for a day of mourning following the Nov. 22 stampede that left at least 375 dead and hundreds injured. (CNS photo/Chor Sokunthea, Reuters) cambodia stampede](/images/stories/international/international10/cambodia.jpg)
The chaos Nov. 22 that killed more than 375 people and injured at least 755 was seen as the biggest tragedy for Cambodians since the Pol Pot regime, said Prime Minister Hun Sen. The government announced it will give five million riel ($1,230) to each family of the dead for transporting the bodies. It also scheduled Nov. 25 as a national day of mourning.
In new book, pope addresses sex abuse, condoms, possible resignation
By John Thavis, Catholic News ServiceROME (CNS) -- Pope Benedict XVI's book-length interview is certain to spark global attention, and not only for his comments suggesting that condom use might be acceptable in some circumstances.
In the 219-page book, "Light of the World: The Pope, the Church and the Signs of the Times," the German pontiff spoke candidly on the clerical sex abuse scandal, relations with Islam, papal resignation and the "threatening catastrophe" facing humanity.
Haiti death toll from cholera nears 1,000
By Michael Swan, The Catholic Register![Almost all the students at St. Antoine’s School in Port-au-Prince live in tent camps. Health officials fear cholera will spread quickly in the camps. The students are required to wash their hands before picking up their school lunches, supplied by Development and Peace funding. (Photo by Michael Swan) Haiti girls school](/images/stories/international/international10/schoolwash.jpg)
As of Nov. 15 the official death toll was 917 and it is not expected to peak for a number of weeks yet.
Symptoms of cholera, a water-borne infectious disease, include diarrhea, vomiting and fever. Untreated, the resulting dehydration is fatal.
U.S. must ensure Iraqi Christians safety
By Catholic News Service![A man grieves during a Nov. 2 funeral for victims of an attack in Baghdad, Iraq. U.S. Cardinal Francis George has urged the U.S. government to “re-double” efforts to protect Iraq’s religious minorities. (CNS photo/Thaier al-Sudani, Reuters) iraq funeral](/images/stories/international/international10/iraqfuneral.jpg)
“To meet its moral obligations to the Iraqi people, it is critically important that the United States take additional steps now to help Iraq protect its citizens, especially Christians and others who are victims of organized attacks,” said Cardinal Francis George in a Nov. 9 letter to U.S. President Barack Obama.