The efforts by the bishops of the Anglican Church to ensure that the issue of child poverty is not forgotten is a call to all New Zealanders to take action, says Labour’s Interfaith-Dialogue Spokesperson, Su’a William Sio. “I think the Anglican Church is right on the mark and this Government has to focus on child Read more
The Vatican buys 500 packages of cigarettes a month, according to a new report on its financial affairs. In a letter to Cardinal George Pell, prefect of the Secretariat for the Economy, an official of the Vatican governate reported the purchases. Cardinals serving at the Vatican have been receiving a 20 per cent discount on Read more
Christians across the United States are mobilising after the city of Houston in Texas ordered five pastors to turn over their sermons. Houston’s city attorney issued subpoenas in response to a lawsuit related to the city’s new non-discrimination ordinance. The new law, which has yet to take effect, would, among other things, allow men who Read more
An historic settlement of sex abuse cases will see clergy in two US dioceses required to testify that they don’t know of any unreported abuse in the Church. Clergy in St Paul-Minneapolis archdiocese and Winona diocese will also have to testify that they have committed no abuse themselves. An agreement was reached involving the two Read more
God has been removed from the promise recited by all members of Girl Guiding New Zealand, after more than a century of being mentioned. The move, which took place in April this year, has raised barely a ripple of dissent. “A couple of people have said they liked the old one better, but there’s been Read more
A New Zealand woman accused of destroying a Buddha statue at the ancient Angkor Wat temple complex in Cambodia has admitted doing it because it “didn’t belong” in the temple. Willemijn Vermaat was detained by authorities early last Friday morning but was later released. Cambodian authorities earlier said there was no direct evidence that Ms Read more
A magazine of the militant Islamic group ISIS has called for a war against the Catholic Church. With the headline “The Failed Crusade”, the photo-shopped cover of the latest issue of Dabiq shows a black ISIS flag at St Peter’s Square. The article issues threats against Rome and the Vatican, threatening to “conquer” Rome and Read more
The Vatican’s financial situation was not well understood for years by the committee that was supposed to oversee it. That was what the prefect of the Secretariat for the Economy, Cardinal George Pell, said at a function in Rome last week. Cardinal Pell recalled how he sat for several years on a 15-member committee of Read more
Ten United States seminaries across several denominations will receive a combined US$1.5 million in grants to include science in their studies. The grants were announced by the American Association for the Advancement of Science. Funding has come from the John Templeton Foundation, in an effort to bridge gaps between science and faith. Catholic institutions to Read more