Stories for January 2019

Ordered from most to least recent.

Released Friday, Jan. 18

 Italian bishops refine anti-abuse guidelines without victim input
 The Word of God is not an ideology, Pope preaches at weekday Mass
 Canadian humanitarian activist meets with Pope, discusses child soldiers
 Pope, Council of Europe’s leader discuss sexual abuse of minors
 Vatican archbishop writes book on life after death
 Archbishop Lori announces system to report allegations against Baltimore bishops
 With Zimbabwe in turmoil over fuel hikes, archbishop calls for restraint
 Poll: 75% of Americans support ‘substantial’ restrictions on abortion
 Gunman kills estranged wife, wounds daughter at Houston parish
 Vatican releases document on human trafficking
 English bishop says Britain in ‘amazing political mess’ over Brexit
 Vatican newspaper pays tribute to Luigi Sturzo, Italian Popular Party
 Background: Week of Prayer for Christian Unity

Released Thursday, Jan. 17

 Syro-Malabar bishops to take legal action against ‘malicious’ critics
 Croatian bishop faces charges after accidental shooting during hunt
 English cardinal presides at Mass to welcome gay community
 Pontiff thanks Italian police who patrol Vatican
 Pope decries ‘senseless’ terrorist attack in Kenya
 Cardinal Wuerl withdraws as celebrant of Mass for Life
 Cardinal Wuerl apologizes to priests, McCarrick victim, says he forgot he knew about harassment allegations
 4 nuns who protested against rape-accused bishop transferred
 For displaced Kachins in Myanmar, a bloodless Christmas was a bonus
 Philippines: Church leaders in Mindanao ramp up autonomy support
 Iraqi cardinal: ordination of bishop in Mosul is source of joy to local Muslims
 North Sumatra: local Muslims prevent Protestants from entering house-church
 Division among Christians is unjust, Vatican cardinal says
 EU court upholds Germany’s removal of home-schooled children from home
 President Trump pays tribute to religious freedom
 Christians, Muslims in Pakistan recall 800th anniversary of meeting between St. Francis and the sultan
 Leading Peruvian bishop lauds synodality
 ‘Some UN contingents do not protect civilians,’ Central African Republic bishops warn
 Chilean bishop: meeting with Pope France on abuse was ‘frank and fruitful’
 Nigerian nuns continue mission despite abduction fears, mother superior says
 10 years on, victims of India’s anti-Christian violence still denied justice
 You are not forgotten, bishops from abroad tell Christians in Holy Land

Released Wednesday, Jan. 16

 Father Lombardi will chair February meetings on sexual abuse
 Cardinal Kasper: papal critics exploit scandal for their own ends
 Pope, at audience, looks forward to Week of Prayer for Christian Unity
 Theme of Pope’s general audience: ‘Abba, Father’
 Chilean bishops meet with Pope Francis a year after disastrous papal trip
 50 Northeast Jesuits are named as abusers, including some from top-ranked Catholic schools
 Indian prelate questions usefulness of ‘traditional formulations’ of doctrine, ‘strict application of the Law’
 Ecumenical Patriarchate publishes decree recognizing Orthodox Church of Ukraine
 Warsaw’s cardinal laments assassination of Danzig mayor
 Pope expresses ‘concerns pertaining to the Gospel of Jesus Christ which are specific and relevant to Asia’
 Jihadists spread terror in Kenya with attack on Nairobi hotel
 British bishops’ conference highlights prelate’s support of government mental health initiatives
 ‘Readiness is all, if we let ourselves be surprised,’ Vatican newspaper’s new editor writes in editorial
 Ohio governor includes sexual orientation, gender identity in broad state employment nondiscrimination executive order
 Bishops express dismay at court ruling halting moral and religious exemption to HHS mandate

Released Tuesday, Jan. 15

 Vatican decrees move Swiss religious toward canonization, recognize Spanish martyrs
 Study global issues, Pope urges Pontifical Academy for Life
 Texas bishop calls on McCarrick to repent
 Sweden’s cardinal, other Christian leaders pray for converts who are seeking asylum
 No-deal Brexit would harm poorest people in UK, Anglican primate says
 Church in Poland commemorates Day of Judaism
 Pope Francis laments abortion in message to Paris march for life
 India’s bishops devote greater attention to ecology, small Christian communities
 Vatican press office issues statement on Venezuela
 English bishops praise proposed end of imprisonment for many nonviolent offenders
 Church in South Sudan laments continuing violence
 Syrian archbishop sees ‘enormous tension’ in the disputed area between Kurds and Turks
 Catholic Relief Services: Immigration action must consider root causes
 USCCB novena unites over 100,000 faithful in prayer ahead of Roe v. Wade anniversary

Released Monday, Jan. 14

 Pontifical Household to be reorganized? What that could mean
 Despite Venezuelan bishops’ objection, Pope sends envoy to Maduro inauguration
 Chilean bishops meet with Pontiff to repair ties
 Cardinal Wuerl asks priests for understanding; editorial says he ‘lied’
 Archbishop Vigano calls McCarrick to public repentance
 Report: Papal preacher emphasized basics during retreat for US bishops
 Survey: US Catholics’ faith in clergy is shaken
 McCarrick accuser cooperates with NYC prosecutors on abuse
 Report: Scotland’s dioceses failed to report 126 abuse allegations to police
 Surge in jihadist violence causes 30,000 Nigerians to flee homes
 Vatican launches official athletics team
 Pope Francis writes book preface, praises example of St. John Bosco
 Pope makes surprise visit to Poor Clare monastery
 India’s Latin-rite bishops elect new officers
 Papal address raised crucial issues, Philippine ambassador says
 Live in a manner consistent with your baptism, Pope tells pilgrims
 Pope Francis baptizes 27 infants
 Be attentive to Christ, Pope tells Church historians
 CDF, Asian bishops to discuss challenges to Catholic doctrine
 Pontifical council, World Council of Churches discuss interreligious dialogue

Released Friday, Jan. 11

 20 former Latin American presidents question papal statement on Venezuela
 Veteran journalist decries ‘misleading, irresponsible’ Pennsylvania grand-jury report
 Pope visits nuns in Umbria
 Venezuelan bishops: new presidential term for Maduro is not legitimate
 New team named for Vatican press office
 French cardinal likely to be cleared in abuse cover-up trial
 Despite past denials, DC Cardinal Wuerl knew of sexual misconduct allegations against ex-Cardinal McCarrick and reported them to Vatican
 Unity of Catholics and Orthodox is not utopian thinking, Ukrainian Catholic leader says
 Church officials criticize Brazil’s withdrawal from global migration pact
 Cardinal Cupich reflects on US bishops’ retreat and ‘new ecclesial season’
 DR Congo bishops question presidential election results
 Whoever loves God must also love his brother, Pope preaches at weekday Mass
 Papal message calls on Church in India to bear fruits of faith and charity
 Pope has deep understanding of Africa, ambassador says
 Pope to make apostolic journey to Romania in late spring
 Study: US diocesan foundation assets surge to $9.5 billion
 Church and society gather for funeral of Hong Kong’s bishop
 Bishops from over a dozen nations visiting Holy Land
 Maronite bishops again call for new Lebanese government
 Chaldean priest sees new year of rebirth for Mosul
 Christians concerned about religious freedom if Turkey enters Syria
 Create a border solution and end the government shutdown, US bishops’ committee chairman says

Released Thursday, Jan. 10

 Priest who was secretary to 2 cardinals accused of abuse
 Worldwide threat to missionaries set to worsen, religious warn
 Cardinal Tobin criticizes President Trump’s speech on immigration
 Pakistan: 500 Muslim leaders sign Islamabad Declaration condemning violence in name of Islam
 Cardinal Zen defends the Vatican in choosing Cardinal John Tong as Hong Kong’s apostolic administrator
 In Sri Lanka, no justice for slain Christian journalist 10 years after his murder
 Imam foils deadly attack on church on the eve of Coptic Christmas
 In Istanbul address, Ecumenical Patriarch laments modern slavery
 Comboni sisters attacked in Central African Republic
 Bishops voice concern as DR Congo awaits presidential election results
 Brazilian icon of liberation theology being considered for sainthood
 Maltese bishops appeal to fellow European bishops to help save migrants stranded at sea
 Germany to curb mosque funding from Gulf states
 British Protestant leaders call for ‘more humane system’ for refugees
 French Muslim leaders ‘reassured’ following meeting with Macron
 +Archbishop Giorgio Zur, 88
 As Ecuador debates abortion legalization, bishops call for defense of unborn life
 Brazilian prelate deplores shooting of squatters

Released Wednesday, Jan. 9

 New Hampshire diocese sanctions Feeneyite group
 Construction begins on first Christian church in Turkey built since 1923
 Pope to dissolve Prefecture of Pontifical Household?
 God always answers prayers, Pope reassures audience
 In emotional interview, Opus Dei spokesman said he ‘hated’ how prominent priest’s sexual misconduct case was handled
 Inside one of America’s first Catholic-to-charter school conversions
 USCCB calls for public comments in favor of migrants’ asylum rights in US
 China plans to make Islam ‘compatible with socialism’ as Muslims remain in re-education camps
 +Father Benjamin Henry Miller, SJ, 93
 Pope offers condolences following death of Hong Kong bishop
 Ditch bags, Indonesia’s leading prelate tells Catholics as plastic woes grow
 ‘Devotion is embracing God and others with real love,’ Manila cardinal preaches as 5 million honor Black Nazarene
 Israel’s Christian population on the rise
 German cardinal calls for ‘new journey towards a synodal Church’
 Small actors on global stage applaud Pope’s paean to multilateralism
 New Vatican newspaper editor: ‘Hope for the new year comes through fraternity’
 Pope Francis praises apostolic zeal of Neocatechumenal Way’s founder
 ‘Indifference is opposed to God’s love,’ Pope preaches at weekday Mass
 Pope’s January prayer intention: for youth to follow Mary’s example
 Head of pontifical academy chides Europe’s leaders over migrants stranded at sea
 Vatican official: question of clandestine bishops is important point in discussions with China

Released Tuesday, Jan. 8

 Logo for Pope’s Moroccan visit includes Islamic crescent
 Irish archbishop cautions pro-life protesters
 Pope cites Mother Teresa as model in message for World Day for Sick
 Abuse allegations at famed monastery rock Pope’s native Argentina
 Activists urge Pope to sack some Polish bishops for not reporting sex abuse cases
 Catholic homes destroyed, land expropriated in Ho Chi Minh City
 4 Christians arrested for ‘forced conversions’ in Uttar Pradesh
 India’s bishops begin week-long meeting
 At special Mass, cardinal commemorates 525th anniversary of first Mass in the Americas
 Pakistani archbishop proclaims ‘year of dialogue’
 In West Timor, locals reap benefits of priest’s environmental crusade
 Jesuit Refugee Service says 2018 not easy for refugees
 Ambassador recalls 2018 highlights in US-Holy See relations
 Patriarch Kirill of Moscow issues Christmas message
 Stockholm cardinal: pray for converts to Christianity who face deportation
 German chancellor, president encourage Catholic ‘star singers’ on Epiphany
 Pope sends video message as Coptic Orthodox Church dedicates new cathedral near Cairo
 Dean of diplomatic corps salutes Pope’s ‘tireless commitment to the defense of human dignity’
 Concreteness is the criterion of Christianity, Pope preaches at weekday Mass

Released Monday, Jan. 7

 Islamic leader attends inaugural ceremony at Coptic cathedral
 Cardinal Tong named interim administrator of Hong Kong diocese
 French cardinal goes to trial on charge of concealing abuse
 Constantinople formally recognizes independent Ukrainian Orthodox Church
 Pope decries nationalism in annual address to diplomatic corps
 Vatican accelerating McCarrick investigation?
 L’Osservatore Romano monthly: ‘Give women the place they deserve in the Church’
 Ukrainian Catholic leader issues Christmas pastoral letter
 House votes to repeal pro-life ‘Mexico City policy’
 German cardinal urges change, ‘review’ of celibacy tradition
 ‘Speed aid to abuse survivors,’ Cardinal Dolan writes in op-ed
 House retains chaplain who survived earlier, messy fight
 Colombia: in generalized climate of fear, priest threatened with death by armed group
 Angolan government closes over 1,000 churches
 Russian Orthodox Church creates jurisdictions in Western Europe, Southeast Asia
 Israel’s president pledges government will not infringe on church property
 Nigeria: elect only credible and God-fearing leaders, Lagos archbishop urges
 Turkey’s gift of a mosque sparks fears of ‘neo-Ottomanism’ in Kosovo
 Vatican newspaper draws attention to record global indebtedness
 Announce the true result of the presidential election, Congo’s bishops urge
 Pontifical council organizes ‘100 cribs at the Vatican’
 India: sibling survivors of pogrom choose consecrated life
 Pope issues appeal for migrants stranded aboard rescue ships
 ‘Be illumined by the light of Christ,’ Pope tells pilgrims on feast of Epiphany
 Seek Christ, ‘who came to us not in worldly pomp,’ Pope preaches at Epiphany Mass
 ‘Building Communities of Welcome’ is theme of US bishops’ National Migration Week

Released Friday, Jan. 4

 Argentine bishop, now working at Vatican, charged with abuse
 Cardinal Brandmüller: scandal reflects increased homosexual activity
 Egyptian president will attend Coptic Christmas celebration
 14 attorneys-general challenge Trump administration’s HHS mandate relief for Little Sisters of the Poor
 Some Coptic Orthodox Christians support changing date of Christmas celebratoin
 US dioceses have released names of over 1,000 accused priests
 Qatar’s emir funds construction of church in Lebanon
 Vatican initiative aims to help Ukraine’s displaced families
 South African bishops welcome national minimum wage
 In presence of nation’s leaders, Haitian bishop decries corruption, ‘failure of political institutions’
 Papua New Guinea bishops’ official laments treatment of refugees
 7 Christians arrested during Christmas service in Laos
 USCCB president sends message to Pope Francis
 Vatican official: Pope’s letter to US bishops ‘indicates a way forward’
 Address students’ questions about the faith without proselytizing, Ieading Italian prelate tells teachers
 Influential journal: Amazon synod will focus on defending the indigenous against economic exploitation
 Pope writes introduction to work on Jesuit Baroque composer
 UK government orders global review of persecution of Christians
 +Sister Wendy Beckett, 88
 Chicago Tribune, in editorial, calls for resistance to China’s crackdown on religion
 Congo’s bishops delay statement on presidential election results after nationwide Internet cutoff
 India’s Kerala paralyzed by protests after women enter Hindu pilgrimage site

Released Thursday, Jan. 3

 Catholic representation in US Congress remains at 31%
 Irish bishop: pro-abortion politicians ‘out of communion’ with Church
 Vatican was aware of charges against Maciel for decades
 Church credibility damaged by scandal, Cardinal Parolin admits
 Papal message to US bishops: solve scandal but avoid divisions
 Phoenix bishop issues apostolic exhortation on the family
 Pope, ahead of Epiphany: ‘We like the Magi must look up, so that we can see the star’
 CDF: hysterectomy permitted when it is certain that future pregnancy will lead to miscarriage
 Maronite patriarch calls for ‘neutral government of technocrats’ in Lebanon
 Bishop says Christians enjoy ‘complete freedom of worship’ in Iran
 Hong Kong bishop dead at 73
 Nuns in India tell of enduring abuse
 Jerusalem archbishop reflects on political action and the Kingdom of God
 Chaldean patriarch: coexistence in peace and mutual respect is the only solution for Iraq
 Al-Azhar’s grand imam visits Coptic pope for Christmas
 Puerto Rico’s bishops declare 2019 to be extraordinary missionary year
 In Indonesia, strong commitment by the Catholic community to tsunami victims
 4 foreign trips planned for Pope Francis in early 2019
 Italian president, in message to Pope, criticizes nationalism, xenophobia
 Nicaraguan cardinal cancels traditional New Year’s procession

Released Wednesday, Jan. 2

 Leaked Vatican letter challenges Cardinal DiNardo on US bishops’ blocked vote
 US bishops begin week-long retreat
 Theme of Pope’s general audience: the Lord’s Prayer at the center of the Sermon on the Mount
 Patriarch Kirill: Bartholomew no longer the Ecumenical Patriarch of all Orthodoxy
 House churches shuttered in northeastern China
 6 Christians injured in stoning of Christmas service in Myanmar
 Federal court allows Catholic parents to sue Texas school district over hair rules
 Victims accuse Cardinal DiNardo of concealing Iowa sex abuse, call for his resignation
 Nicaraguan cardinal denounces attack on parish
 Vatican Secretary of State, in interview, discusses Christmas visit to Iraq, February abuse summit
 Pope offers prayer, assistance for Indonesian tsunami victims
 Pope Francis reflects on the Holy Family
 Papal prayers for DR Congo elections
 New Asian bishops’ president suggests 5-point roadmap for Church
 ‘Jesus unleashes the power of love,’ Pope preaches at Vespers and Te Deum in thanksgiving for 2018
 Jesus ‘is the Blessing for every person and for the whole human family,’ Pope tells New Year’s pilgrims
 Let Mary gaze upon us, embrace us, and take us by the hand, Pope preaches at New Year’s Mass

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