Pope Francis on Tuesday named a bishop in his own image, Cardinal Matteo Zuppi, as the new head of the Italian bishops conference, as the Italian Catholic Church comes under mounting pressure to confront its legacy of clerical sexual abuse with an independent inquiry. Francis’ widely expected choice was announced during the second day of Read more
News Shorts
Brisbane school under fire over strict rules for students’ formal dresses
Thursday, June 2nd, 2022A Catholic girls’ school in Brisbane has been accused of sexualising teenage girls by forcing them to have their formal dresses approved by the school. In an email sent to parents ahead of last weekend’s formal, Mary MacKillop College requested photographs of every dress so they could be vetted, according to The Courier-Mail. “The HOHs Read more
Chinese bishop remains in detention one year on
Monday, May 30th, 2022A Vatican-approved Chinese bishop remains in detention more than one year after his arrest for allegedly violating the communist country’s repressive regulations on religious affairs. Bishop Joseph Zhang Weizhu of Xinxiang in Henan province was arrested on May 21 last year. His arrest came a day after police arrested 10 priests and an unknown number Read more
$200m mental health boost is ‘small bikkies’ for a system in crisis
Monday, May 30th, 2022Mental health initiatives have been allocated just over $200 million in Budget 2022, but it will not be enough to relieve pressure on a system facing rising numbers of people in psychological distress, says the head of the Mental Health Foundation. Shaun Robinson, the foundation’s chief executive, says any new investment is welcome in a Read more
Syria’s economy so bad many people don’t have one meal a day, nun says
Monday, May 30th, 2022The war in Syria is mostly over, and not a house was unaffected, said a nun based there. But now, the economy is so bad that people look back on the war and say, “at least then we had some food to eat, and we could feed our children.” Sister Annie Demerjian, delegation councillor for Read more
St Patrick’s School Taupō student donates unworn catwalk creation to school
Monday, May 30th, 2022A young artist from St Patrick’s School Taupō who made an incredible cork outfit for a twice-cancelled event has now outgrown her creation. In 2019, Lucy Stapleton, then aged 9, came second in her age group with her coffee capsule outfit made for the Lake Taupō Hospice fundraiser Creative Catwalk. Collecting the coffee capsules turned Read more
Church in Africa partners with pan-African communications group for public relations support
Monday, May 30th, 2022APO Group, Africa’s leading communications consultancy, has expressed its willingness to partner with the Catholic Church on the continent to ensure greater cohesion to the Church’s pastoral communications’ strategy. The statement dated May 26, given in the Vatican, noted that, “the leading Pan-African communications consultancy and press release distribution service, and the Symposium of Episcopal Read more
Vanuatu declares a climate emergency
Monday, May 30th, 2022Vanuatu has become the first Pacific Small Island Developing State to declare it is facing a climate emergency. In a Twitter post, the leader of the opposition Ralph Regenvanu announced parliament passed a 17-point resolution declaring a climate emergency on Friday. Mr Regenvanu said under Point 1 of the resolution, “The Parliament declares that a Read more
40,000 people take part in Italy’s March for Life
Thursday, May 26th, 2022Tens of thousands of people took part in Italy’s national March for Life in Rome on Saturday. About 40,000 people participated in the “Choose Life” rally on May 21, the Italian daily newspaper La Repubblica reported. “We are here to reaffirm the right of children to come into the world. They do not get to Read more
Pope dispenses miracle requirement for sainthood
Thursday, May 26th, 2022
CathNews, 11 April, reported the path to sainthood of missionary Mother Meri Hōhepa Suzanne Aubert had been delayed; a Vatican medical council concluded recently that a potential miracle attributed to her can be explained by medical science. This week, Pope Francis cleared the way for the canonisation of Blessed Giovanni Battista Scalabrini, founder of the Read more