Conclave

One of my favourite things about public speaking is the conversations that happen at the end of the event. After ideas, emotions and (hopefully) the Spirit whirl around a large room with many hearts, something is distilled between two previous strangers. There is such immense trust in these brief encounters. A story to share. Words of gratitude. Another perspective.

As a newcomer to Vancouver, and in only the second year of my presidency at Corpus Christi and St. Mark’s College, I am still in a stage of wonder, discovering new things every day, about the city and indeed about the colleges themselves.

Before I leave the house, I always check outside to see how many layers of clothes I need on the colder evenings. It did not feel too cold, and so I dressed lightly with only three layers, which were topped off with a hoodie and my omnipresent leather jacket. However, as I approached the downtown area the heavens opened, and I found myself driving through a deluge of rain.

Some months ago in this space, I discussed the relationship between Catholics and Jews. I return to this question in the wake of the brutal, sadistic violence perpetrated by the terrorist organization Hamas against Jewish Israelis on Oct. 7.

A woman standing in a church wearing a white dress and veil is an instantly recognizable image, but for a small yet growing number of Catholic women, the groom that awaits them at the altar is not a nervous young man but Jesus Himself.

A statement to the Synod on Synodality from Cardinal Charles Maung Bo, Archbishop of Yangon, Myanmar and president of the Federation of Asian Bishops

Demotion of God from public ceremonies has officially begun with the Oct. 20 directive that our chaplains can’t use words such as “God,” “Heavenly Father” and “prayer” under the pretext of not wanting to displease a few discontented atheists.

The federal government’s ideological assault on the integrity and traditions of the Canadian Armed Forces chaplaincy is a matter for democratic resolution either by approval (boo! boo!) or, preferably, overturning. 

A new respite centre to be run by the St. Felix Centre in downtown Toronto is facing strong opposition from community stakeholders.

The fate of two Ukrainian Greek Catholic priests remains unknown almost a year after their capture by the Russian National Guard amid Russia‘s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, according to Forum 18, an Oslo, Norway-based news service that covers religious and intellectual freedom violations in several countries.