Catholic World News
Stories for week of October 28, 2012
Released Monday, Oct. 29
At least eight people were killed and 100 wounded in a suicide bombing attack on a parish in Kaduna, a city of over 750,000 in north-central Nigeria. The attack was similar to previous attacks...
Archbishop Vincent Nichols of Westminster has called for the removal of the papal knighthood bestowed upon Jimmy Savile in 1990. Saville (1926-2011), an English disc jockey and media personality,...
The aim of the Missionaries of Charity’s apostolate is “to bring souls to God and God to souls,” the order’s superior general emphasized during an October 26 intervention at the Synod of...
Speaking briefly at the Synod of Bishops, the archbishop of San Antonio has proposed the consecration of the world to the Holy Spirit. “We live in a world of great promise but also of great need,...
Calling the 2012 election “a turning point in our country’s history,” Bishop David Ricken urged Catholics of the Diocese of Green Bay to remember “the set of non-negotiables” as they cast their...
Two American auditors at the Synod of Bishops, Carl Anderson and Curtis Martin, offered interventions during the synod’s proceedings on October 26. “The Christian family is essentially...
"The new evangelization applies to the whole of Church life,” Pope Benedict XVI said as he presided at a Mass closing the 13th ordinary assembly of the Synod of Bishops on October 28. In his...
In a final list of 58 propositions submitted to Pope Benedict XVI, the Synod of Bishops on the New Evangelization said that the Church must combat challenges including “at times outright religious...
In brief remarks delivered to the final session of the Synod of Bishops on October 27, Pope Benedict XVI explained his surprise decision to appoint 6 new members to the College of Cardinals. The...
The Vatican has indicated that it has not yet received a formal response from the Society of St. Pius X to an offer of reconciliation, and is willing to wait. The Ecclesia Dei commission, which...
In his annual message for the World Day of Migrants, Pope Benedict XVI writes that the Church affirms the right of people to migrate, “there is a need to reaffirm the right not to emigrate: that is,...
Leaders of the Coptic Orthodox Church cast ballots on October 29 to choose a new leader, replacing Pope Shenouda III, who died in March after leading the Egyptian church for nearly 40 years. Over...
Victoria Reggie Kennedy, the widow of longtime Senator Ted Kennedy, has taken a strong stand in opposition to “Proposition 2,” a statewide ballot initiative that would legalize physician-assisted...
A leading prelate in the Philippines has warned his priest against the practice of simony: offering spiritual goods for sale. “My dear brother priests, the sacraments are not to be celebrated in...
The National Catholic Reporter calls attention to the decision of Bishop Edward Slattery of Tulsa, Oklahoma, to celebrate Mass ad orientem in the city's cathedral. This summer Bishop Slattery...
Three conservative Anglican prelates—two from Nigeria and one from the US—have delined to share communion with their liberal colleagues at a conference in New Zealand. Archbishop Ikechi Nwosu of...
Writing for National Review, Wesley Smith calls attention to the stunning ignorance displayed by New York Times columnist Thomas Friedman in a piece in which Friedman argued that a "pro-life"...
Counselors at government-run agencies have offered Irish women misleading, illegal, and even dangerous advice regarding abortion, the Irish Independent has revealed. An investigation by the...
Released Tuesday, Oct. 30
The president of the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity said in an interview that the Vatican would entertain a hypothetical proposal by Lutherans to establish ecclesial structures...
In a new campaign advertisement, Vice President Joe Biden emphasized that he is a practicing Catholic and said that President Barack Obama’s healthcare initiatives have advanced Catholic social...
The US bishops’ relief and development agency has responded to a recent “coordinated series of attacks, condemning aspects of our work, our partners, professional associations, and even some of our...
In the latest in a series of diocesan newspaper columns on the upcoming election, Bishop Nicholas DiMarzio of Brooklyn lamented the Obama-Biden campaign’s emphasis on abortion and...
Both Vice President Joe Biden and candidate Paul Ryan hold views that are “inconsistent” with Catholic teaching, Bishop Edward Burns of Juneau said in a column that appeared in the city’s daily...
A priest who has served as pastor the same Baltimore parish since 1973 has preached in favor of same-sex marriage, gaining a standing ovation from his parishioners. “I will continue to stand in...
Michelangelo’s famous frescoes on the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel are not being damaged by tourist traffic, the director of the Vatican Museums has assured readers of L’Osservatore Romano. In...
The Vatican newspaper has devoted a series of complimentary articles to the latest James Bond movie. L’Osservatore Romano gives a positive review to Skyfall, saying that the latest incarnation of...
The Church in Venice celebrated the 100th anniversary of the birth of Pope John Paul I with a Mass celebrated by Archbishop Francesco Moraglia at St. Mark’s basilica on October 30, followed by a...
A federal appeals court has upheld key rulings in the bankruptcy case of the Milwaukee archdiocese, allowing two sex-abuse victims to pursue their claims against the archdiocese, while dismissing...
Walter Russell Mead remarks that Hurricane Sandy, which disrupted the lives of millions of Americans this week, is “a reminder of what the world really is like.” While affluent people can usually...
A series of speakers challenged Western relief agencies for their fixation on family-planning efforts, during a conference on bioethics and fertility held at Strathmore University in Nairobi,...
Archbishop Andrzej Dziega of Szczecin-Kamien, Poland, has warned his flock about “the real possibility of spiritual damage” from macabre Halloween celebrations. In a letter that he asked priests...
British schools have given contraceptive injections and implants to more than 900 girls under the legal age of consent, the London Daily Mail reports. Confidentiality rules prohibit school nurses...
Released Wednesday, Oct. 31
Only 12 men began studies for the priesthood this autumn in Ireland’s 26 dioceses—a record low. “On average, just 50% of men who enter Irish seminaries go on to be ordained,” observes Michael...
A Latin-rite prelate in the Holy Land is warning that Israeli plans to extend its security wall will provide severe economic harm to 58 families in a predominantly Christian village. “If Israel...
Bishop Anthony Taylor of Little Rock said in a recent homily that “some of the moral and social issues to keep in mind this year are, in descending order of what I consider to be their importance...
A priest of the Archdiocese of Indianapolis has discussed his work as an exorcist. “The exorcist is trained to be a skeptic,” said Father Vincent Lambert, who initially makes referrals to a...
Douglas Kmiec, the former law professor and pro-life theorist whose support for Barack Obama in 2008 shocked many of his fellow Catholics, lauded the president in a recent Los Angeles Times...
A Buffalo man has admitted cheating a priest out of over $500,000 between 2001 and July 2012. The priest, now 91, had invested well over the years, according to the district attorney. Richard...
Christian faith is never an entirely private matter, Pope Benedict XVI told his weekly public audience on October 31. "Certainly, the act of faith is an eminently personal act,” the Holy Father...
At the conclusion of his regular public audience on October 31, Pope Benedict XVI voiced his sympathy and promised his prayers to the victims of Hurricane Sandy. Noting the “devastation” that...
Vatican officials are conducting a thorough spending review, looking for ways to cut administrative spending in order to ensure a balanced budget. The Vatican is looking for ways to pare office...
When he made the surprise announcement that he would elevate new cardinals at a consistory on November 24, Pope Benedict XVI upset plans for a meeting of Asian bishops. The Federation of Asian...
Chinese bishops think it unlikely that government officials there will ever respond to the letter written by Pope Benedict XVI to the Church in China in 2007. Last week Cardinal Fernando Filoni,...
Catholic bishops in Germany are weighing an appropriate response to an invitation to join in celebrations marking the 500th anniversary of the Reformation, which will be held in 2017. Bishop...
The Diocese of Antigonish, Nova Scotia, will make the final payment in a settlement with sex-abuse victims this week, marking the end to a bleak period in the history of the Canadian diocese. The...
A Catholic students’ organization in Chad is calling upon the country’s government to reverse the expulsion of Bishop Michael Russo. The government of Chad ordered Bishop Russo to leave the...
A thorough survey of pilgrims visiting the shrine of St. Anthony of Padua has yielded some interesting and unexpected results. The pilgrims at Padua are markedly younger and better educated than...
Released Friday, Nov. 2
A European non-governmental organization has submitted a report to the UN Human Rights Commission documenting incidents of anti-Christian intolerance in Germany. The report by the Observatory on...
At their fall meeting in Baltimore, members of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) will consider whether to approve a brief document inviting Catholics “to return to regular...
Reflecting on the relationship between Church and state and emphasizing religious liberty, the bishops of Pennsylvania have issued a statement on the 2012 elections. “Americans would do well to...
In a brief but impassioned letter that will be read at Masses in the Diocese of Peoria on November 3 and 4, Bishop Daniel Jenky emphasized threats to the Church’s religious liberty and stated that...
In a pre-election letter released on October 31, Bishop Paul Loverde of Arlington discussed grave threats to religious liberty and, quoting the Second Vatican Council, emphasized the “unspeakable...
A delegation of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, led by Bishop Anthony Taylor of Little Rock, has returned from the Middle East and is calling for greater international aid for...
At his midday public audience on November 1, the Feast of All Saints, Pope Benedict XVI remarked that the feast is a reminder of “the double horizon of humanity.” This “double horizon,” the Pope...
For the 2nd time, a federal judge has ruled in favor of a Catholic-owned family business in a lawsuit challenging the Obama administration’s contraceptive mandate. Judge Robert Cleland ruled that...
A Chinese think-tank with close ties to the government has called for a change in the country’s brutal “one-child” policy. "China has paid a huge political and social cost for the policy, as it...
Stonewall, a gay-rights organization in Scotland, has outraged Catholics by naming Cardinal Keith O’Brien as the Bigot of the Year. A spokesman for the Church in Scotland said that the award by...
Most regular churchgoers in the US have not heard explicit political advice from their pastors, a new survey from the Pew Research Center shows. A bare majority of regular churchgoers (52%)...
Administrators of Jerusalem’s Basilica of the Holy Sepulchre owe millions of dollars in unpaid water bills, the city’s water agency charges. Hagihon, the water company that supplies the basilica,...
A Catholic adoption agency representing three English dioceses has lost a 5-year court battle, and now faces a choice between placing children with homosexual couples or ending its adoption...
William Oddie of London's Catholic Herald relays the report that Archbishop Gerhard Müller, the new prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, has been investigating complaints about...
On Tuesday, citizens in 4 American states will vote on proposals that would redefine marriage to allow for homosexual unions. Writing in The Catholic Thing, Austin Ruse points out that to date, when...
The Patriarch of the Maronite Catholic Church has made a strong statement on Lebanon’s political problems, denouncing a movement to boycott the country’s parliament and force the resignation of the...
Jesuit superiors in Uruguay have voiced their “deep regret” that a Jesuit priest there expressed support for legislation allowing legal abortion. The views expressed by Father Jose Ignacio...
A Boston Globe editorial has called for defeat of Proposition 2, a statewide referendum question that would allow for physician-assisted suicide. The Globe, a paper with a strong history of...
A coalition of Catholics dedicated to reform of the US bishops’ anti-poverty program has called upon a Washington, DC group to return a $50,000 grant. The Reform CCHD Now (RCN) coalition argues...
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