International News

News from outside of Canada.

Williamson told to publicly disavow Holocaust views

February 6, 2009

VATICAN CITY - The Vatican said a traditionalist bishop who has minimized the full extent of the Holocaust must disavow his positions before he will be accepted into full communion with the church. A Vatican statement Feb. 4 said Pope Benedict XVI did not know about the controversial statements by British-born Bishop Richard Williamson when he lifted the excommunication of him and three other traditionalist bishops ordained illicitly in 1988.

Lenten fast brings together love for God, neighbour

February 6, 2009

lent.jpg [images/stories/misc/misc09/lent.jpg]VATICAN CITY - Fasting from food and detaching oneself from material goods during Lent helps believers open their hearts to God and open their hands to the poor, Pope Benedict XVI said. The Lenten fast helps Christians “mortify our egoism and open our hearts to love of God and neighbour,” said the Pope in his message for Lent 2009. The papal message for Lent, which begins Feb. 25 for Latin-rite Catholics, was released Feb. 3 at the Vatican.

Anglicans honour Canadian ecumenist

February 4, 2009

DonBolan.jpg [images/stories/canada_people/canada_people09/DonBolan.jpg]The spiritual head of the worldwide Anglican Communion has honoured a Canadian Catholic priest for his service to ecumenism. Anglican Archbishop Rowan Williams of Canterbury awarded Msgr. Donald Bolen the Cross of St. Augustine in recognition of his work in the field of Anglican-Catholic relations, said a Feb. 3 statement from Lambeth Palace, the archbishop's residence. "Msgr. Bolen has for many years been far more than an able facilitator of Anglican-Roman Catholic dialogue. He has been a friend and colleague whose deep commitment to the possibilities of ecumenical dialogue and our common witness to the truths of the Gospel has been unflagging and inspirational," Williams said in an e-mail sent to Catholic News Service Feb. 4. "This award is a small sign of the regard, affectionate and admiring, in which Don is held and a sign of my personal appreciation of his work and friendship in recent years."

Bishop's Holocaust denial 'gibberish'

January 30, 2009

VATICAN CITY - Remarks made by a traditionalist bishop who denied that millions of Jews were murdered during the Second World War are unacceptable, “foolish” and in no way reflect the position of the Catholic Church, said the Vatican’s top ecumenist and major dialogue partner with the Jews. “Such gibberish is unacceptable,” said German Cardinal Walter Kasper, president of the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity and the Pontifical Commission for Religious Relations with the Jews in an interview with the Italian daily La Repubblica Jan. 26.

Catholic aid agencies expect tough year

January 30, 2009

Caught between the push and pull of more demand for help in poor countries and financial fears squeezing donations in rich countries, the world’s Catholic aid agencies are approaching Lent this year with caution. At a Jan. 14-15 meeting near Amsterdam of the 16 European and North American Catholic agencies that make up CIDSE (a French acronym for International Co-operation for Development and Solidarity), agency heads and bishops discussed how the financial crisis will strain finances.

Pope welcomes election of new Russian patriarch

January 29, 2009

VATICAN CITY - Pope Benedict XVI said he learned "with joy" of the election of Metropolitan Kirill of Smolensk and Kaliningrad — a prelate he has met three times — as the new patriarch of the Russian Orthodox Church. Patriarch-elect Kirill, 62, who had been in charge of ecumenical relations for the Russian Orthodox Church for the past 20 years, was elected patriarch of Moscow Jan. 27 on the first ballot cast by members of the church's local council. He will be enthroned Feb. 1 in Moscow as the successor of Patriarch Alexy II, who died in December after more than 18 years as head of the church.

Pope lifts Lefebvrites excommunications

January 27, 2009

VATICAN CITY - Pope Benedict XVI has lifted the excommunication of four bishops ordained against papal orders in 1988 by the late French Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre. The move was considered a major concession to the archbishop's traditionalist followers. The Vatican said the decree removing the excommunication, signed Jan. 21 and made public three days later, marked an important step toward full communion with the Society of St. Pius X , founded by Lefebvre in 1970. It said some questions remain unresolved with the society, including its future status and that of its priests, and that these issues would be the subject of further talks.

Obama reverses ban on abortion funding

January 26, 2009

WASHINGTON - Pro-life activists quickly denounced U.S. President Barack Obama's Jan. 23 signature on an executive order reversing the Mexico City policy, a move that clears the way for the federal government to provide aid to programs that promote or perform abortion overseas. The Associated Press reported late in the afternoon that Obama signed an executive order reversing the ban that was first instituted by President Ronald Reagan in 1984. Obama signed the order with no fanfare and with no news media in the room, a marked contrast to signings of executive orders earlier in the week.

Pope Benedict joins YouTube generation

January 23, 2009

VATICAN CITY - Pope Benedict XVI asked young Catholics to use their computers, Facebook accounts, blogs and Internet video posts to share with their peers the joy of faith in Christ. And to underline his message, he launched a new Vatican site on YouTube, the world's largest on-line source of videos. "Be sure to announce the Gospel to your contemporaries with enthusiasm," the Pope told young people in his message for the 2009 celebration of World Communications Day.

Spanish judge to investigate Jesuit murders

January 23, 2009

MADRID, Spain - A Spanish judge has decided to open an investigation into the case of 14 members of the Salvadoran army accused of involvement in killing six Jesuit priests and two of their employees in 1989, during El Salvador’s civil war. High Court Judge Eloy Velasco also decided not to try former Salvadoran President Alfredo Cristiani, accused of concealment of the crime, because of insufficient evidence.