International News

News from outside of Canada.

When Ukrainian women hit bottom, Walnut House works to lift them up

December 11, 2016

LVIV, Ukraine – Olia Kareva is 46. She spent five years in jail for the crime she has not committed.

Iraqi Christians in U.S. pray to reunite with family at Christmas

December 11, 2016

CHICAGO – On a recent overcast Sunday morning in northwest Chicago, the pews of the small wood-paneled St. Ephrem Chaldean Catholic Church were filled to overflowing. Among the rows of Massgoers sat Firaz Rassam and her sisters.

How the Catholic Church could help the political crisis in Congo

December 10, 2016

KINSHASA, Democratic Republic of Congo – In late September, Pope Francis met with the controversial president of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Joseph Kabila.

Despite distance, Iraqi Christians keep the Christmas spirit alive

December 10, 2016

ISTANBUL – Sami Dankha, his three brothers and their families used to kick off Christmas celebrations by attending a packed Christmas Eve Mass at St. Thomas Church in Baghdad. Wearing brand new clothes and sporting fresh haircuts, they would spend the night chatting, singing and eating pacha, a dish made from sheep's head that Iraqis consider a delicacy and a staple of Christmas.

Mideast Christians, especially those displaced, face mounting challenges

December 9, 2016

WASHINGTON – As Christians in the Middle East look back on 2016, they wonder if there will be much to celebrate amid mounting challenges, particularly for those displaced by conflicts in Iraq and Syria.

Solving Mideast crisis, bringing peace to region decades away, speaker says

December 9, 2016

VILLANOVA, Pa. – Consensus about the Middle East and its long-simmering tensions might seem hard to come by, but a dozen international scholars, government officials and leaders of nongovernmental organizations found a few points of agreement during a meeting at Villanova University.

Pope Francis names new archbishop of Krakow, Poland

December 9, 2016

KRAKOW, Poland – Archbishop Marek Jedraszweski has been named the new shepherd of Poland's Krakow archdiocese by Pope Francis, following the retirement of Cardinal Stanislaw Dziwisz.

Assisted suicide remains illegal in South Africa after court ruling

December 9, 2016

PRETORIA, South Africa – While countries around the world such as Canada, Germany and Japan have passed legislation to legalize physician assisted suicide, one has ruled to reject it: South Africa.

Pope's Homily: Priests are called to console, not heap obligations on people

December 9, 2016

VATICAN CITY – Priests are called to be mediators between God and God's people, offering their time and their very lives in service; they are not God's "intermediaries" or functionaries, who go to work to get paid or, worse, enter the priesthood in search of status, Pope Francis said.

Venezuelan bishops condemn murder of 12 youths by government agents

December 9, 2016

CARACAS, Venezuela – The Venezuelan bishops' justice and peace commission on Tuesday repudiated the murders of 12 young men by an operation of the Liberation of the People, a government security team meant to combat crime and homicide.