An Australian nun has fought back against the Philippine government revoking her missionary visa. Sister Patricia Fox has been living in the Philippines for 27 years as a missionary. Sister Fox says the Bureau of Immigration has “no right to define and delimit the scope of our missionary and apostolate works.” The bureau says it Read more
The Vatican will be facilitating a palm oil seminar to be held by Indonesia in the Pontifical University. The seminar, to be held in May, is a response to the European Union’s (EU) proposed ban. Representatives from the EU, multi-national companies using palm oil products, farmers from Indonesia and Malaysia, and religious institutions would be invited to attend. Read more
Rising sea levels could make most Pacific Ocean atolls uninhabitable by the middle of the century — or possibly sooner. The “tipping point” depends on the rate of climate change — and above all the stability of Antarctica. These are the conclusions reached in a recently published study partly funded by the Pentagon’s Strategic Environmental Research and Development Read more
Catholic bishops meeting in Port Moresby say economic development dependent upon fossil fuel-based energy, especially coal, presents an urgent ethical challenge. They say that for too long politicians have defended their lack of action by claiming that legislating for effective industrial change would be ‘political suicide’. The Assembly of the Federation of the Catholic Bishops Read more
Samoa’s Prime Minister Tuilaepa Dr Sa’ilele Malielegaoi says the new tax laws apply to the church ministers individually, not the church as a whole. Documents leaked to the Samoa Observer show that the Congregational Christian Church of Samoa (CCCS) will not observe a law requiring all church ministers to pay income tax. According to the Read more
Father Konstantinus Bahang says the attitude of Christians towards Islam of late has displayed both fear and, increasingly, loathing. He says their fear stems from growing Islamisation in all spheres of life, particularly the economy. “Most of the people who are well-connected and who are prospering are Muslims, while Papuans are getting left out,” said Bahang, Read more
Sister Patricia Fox’s renewable missionary visa, which was due to expire in September 2018, was cancelled on Monday. She has been labelled an “undesirable” foreigner for what the country’s Bureau of Immigration says is “her involvement in partisan political activities.” The 71-year-old Australian nun has 30 days to leave the Philippines. An immigration spokeswoman said Read more
Caritas Aotearoa New Zealand is working with communities affected by Cyclone Gita to provide training and repair kits in a joint programme with Habitat for Humanity. The programme will ensure that communities have the skills necessary to rebuild, said Amelia Ma’afu the acting director of Caritas Tonga. The Support to Self-Recovery programme provides timber, tools, equipment Read more
The graves of 18 Cook Islands World War I ANZACs have been restored and protected from the encroaching sea in Rarotonga. A group of volunteers, including the descendants of the veterans, have spruced up their grave sites by concreting and painting them. They also repaired the headstones, as part of the Nikao Cemetery Restoration Project. Read more
“Who are you? Just because you are a nun? You go back to your country and try to ponder the enormity of your problems,” said Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte. His words were directed at an Australian nun, Sister Patricia Fox, who was detained by immigration authorities last week. “You nun, why don’t you criticise your own government, the Read more