Cardinal Rainer Maria Woelki (pictured), the Archbishop of Cologne, has announced his intention to take legal action after investigators on June 27 searched his residence and other buildings belonging to the Archdiocese of Cologne. The search operation involved approximately 30 police officers and four state prosecutors. According to KNA news agency, the cardinal’s lawyer, Bjoern Read more
The Irish Catholic Bishops’ Conference has urged parishes across Ireland to dedicate 30% of their church grounds for biodiversity and pollinators so grounds can be enjoyed “in perpetuity by the whole community.” The initiative aims to protect local biodiversity, raise awareness about global conservation efforts and emphasise the role of people of faith in safeguarding Read more
Pope Francis said on Friday there was no apparent end in sight to the Ukraine war as his peace envoy, Cardinal Matteo Zuppi, wrapped up three days of talks in Moscow. “The tragic reality of this war that seems to have no end, demands of everyone a common creative effort to imagine and forge paths Read more
Portugal’s upcoming World Youth Day is turning out to be an enormous blessing for some young convicts. The government has declared a one-year pardon for prisoners under the age of 30, if they’re serving sentences of up to eight years. The amnesty was declared to mark World Youth Day, which Lisbon will host next month. Read more
A plan to introduce assisted suicide to teens in Australia has Sydney’s Catholic archbishop sounding the alarm. The ACT Labor-Greens government’s proposal to allow teenagers as young as 14 to access voluntary assisted dying could see assisted suicide become available to “anyone that wants it”, says Archbishop Anthony Fisher (pictured). Every jurisdiction that has introduced Read more
Pope Francis has appointed a like-minded Argentinian to lead the doctrine office at the Holy See. The Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith is one of the Vatican’s most influential departments. Known as an influential papal theological adviser, Archbishop Victor Manuel Fernandez will take up his appointment in September this year. That’s just a Read more
New liturgical furnishings have been chosen for Notre-Dame de Paris, the world-famous gothic cathedral in the French capital that’s currently being refurbished after almost being destroyed in a 2019 fire. The furnishings include a semi-circle altar rising from a three-step base, a designer bishop’s chair, a sleek ambo, and a stylised tabernacle – all in Read more
Former Roman Catholic Cardinal Theodore McCarrick is not competent to stand trial on charges accusing him of sexually assaulting a teenage boy in Massachusetts decades ago, an expert for the prosecution says, raising doubts about the future of the criminal case against the 92-year-old. This week, prosecutors disclosed their expert’s findings to the judge, who Read more
A judge in Texas has ruled that a district court does not have jurisdiction to hear a lawsuit brought by a monastery of Carmelite nuns against Bishop Michael Olson of the Diocese of Fort Worth. The decision, handed down on Friday, June 30, ruled that the nuns’ suit is “dismissed for want of subject-matter jurisdiction.” Read more
The Catholic church in Germany revealed it’s been losing followers like never before. More than half a million people decided to renounce their membership in 2022. According to the German Bishops’ Conference in Bonn, 522,821 people left the church last year. The number was way more than the forecasts made by the institution. In 2021, Read more