Papal prophecies

Re: Biden poses issues for U.S. bishops (Jan. 17):

Following Michael Swan’s interesting article related to the challenge for U.S. bishops, I’m suggesting to look closer to prophetic statements from two great popes:

Move ahead

Re: Editorial (Dec. 13):

Strange how our current political leaders can keep trying to ram through dubious legislation such as Bills C-7 and C-6 to hasten more suicides and threaten parents, yet this long-awaited bill to bring Canadian law in line with the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous People continues to face more long delays, and another three years to simply “create a plan” to align the law with the rights passed by the UN 13 years ago. 

Follow science

While most churches, synagogues and temples have followed the COVID-19 guidelines of Dr. Bonnie Henry there have been several faith communities in B.C. (and the U.S, including Trump with his rallies) who have repudiated these directives, maintaining their God-given and constitutional right to meet face to face. 

No evidence

Re: Mass is essential to our Catholic life (Dec. 9):

Charles Lewis rightly says that the “Mass is essential” to Catholics but that the Ontario government doesn’t understand this. The government recently demonstrated this when it tried to stop COVID spread by forcing Toronto churches to close. No evidence was offered to justify the action. Ironically, just a few weeks prior Premier Doug Ford said that churches had done a “great job” of preventing infection.

The students from Sudbury, Ont.’s Marymount Academy have let Canadian military serving overseas that they aren’t forgotten this Christmas season.

There is one sure sign that Christmas is around at The Catholic Register — the sudden surge of mail into the office on deadline day for the our annual children’s Christmas drawing contest.

Legal opening

Re: Liberals to implement UN’s Indigenous rights declaration (Dec. 3):

The Trudeau government’s vow to implement Bill C-15, legislation based on the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP), is certainly a welcome move in that it will inject the full colour and spirit of that document into the Canadian legal system. At its core, the declaration expresses the uniqueness of Indigenous cultures, their ties to the land itself, their spirituality and the necessity of preserving their right to self-determination; this is necessary for their survival and undoing the harm of colonization and racism.

The following is the Christmas message from Archbishop Richard Gagnon, president of Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops and Archbishop of Winnipeg: