A group of nearly 14,900 French mayors has said it will not perform “gay marriages”, even if lawmakers go ahead with plans to legalise the practice. A spokesman for the group said some of the mayors “would resign if the law is adopted”, while others “have said they will refuse” to perform marriage ceremonies for Read more
The suggestion the Pope could marry two men was too rich for one complainant. But A Fouhy, who argued the Powershop advertisement featuring the former Pope Benedict XVI marrying two men was offensive to Catholics, has been told by the Advertising Standards Authority it has no grounds to proceed with his complaint. Mr Fouhy argued Read more
Government officials have backed off plans to delete the terms “bride” and “bridegroom” from marriage certificates if Parliament votes tomorrow to legalise gay marriage. Internal Affairs spokesman Michael Mead said the department had reconsidered an early draft which would have used only the gender-neutral heading “Particulars of parties to marriage” on the marriage certificate, and Read more
The superior of the Society of St Pius X has told his followers that no progress has been made in achieving a canonical reconciliation with the Holy See. In a letter to SSPX members, Bishop Bernard Fellay said negotiations with the Holy See in 2012 put the society in “a delicate position”. He said the Read more
Vocations to religious orders in England and Wales have risen for the third year in a row, and this year has seen a noticeable increase in the number of men joining. The rise in men and women entering religious orders is across a wide variety of different orders, some of which have not had novices Read more
Life has become so dangerous for Christians in Syria that they face the choice of trying to leave — in itself a difficult course of action — or being killed. That’s the view of the Maronite archbishop of Damascus, Archbishop Samir Nassar, who says defenceless civilians, both Christians and Muslims, are being killed each day by Read more
A refugee organisation says it’s turning away truck loads of baby gear after an appeal for donations for the children of the Afghan interpreters arriving in New Zealand this month, went viral on social media. Ninety six Afghan refugees, including 21 children under the age of four, will stay at the Mangere refugee resettlement centre Read more
Fears that more same-sex couples will want to adopt if the Marriage (Definition of Marriage) Amendment Bill goes ahead are unfounded, according to Child, Youth and Family. Out of 250 to 300 currently approved adoptive parents, only a handful are same-sex couples and this is unlikely to change significantly with any law change. Same-sex couples Read more
The words “bride” and “bridegroom” will disappear from official marriage forms if Parliament votes, as expected, on Wednesday to legalise same-sex marriages. A departmental briefing paper to the select committee that considered the bill said marriage forms would have to be changed if it passed. “This includes, for example, changing the headings on the notice-of-intended-marriage Read more
When Catholics marry someone of a different religion they will face extra challenges — and Church leaders must learn how to help them meet the challenges of these mixed marriages, a Vatican official says. The secretary of the Pontifical Council for the Family, Bishop Jean Laffitte, was commenting on a research project conducted by the Read more