The US Department of Homeland Security has announced the appointment of a new, 25-member faith-based advisory council to assist Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas in finding ways to protect houses of worship. The council consists of Christian, Jewish, Muslim and Sikh clergy plus some law enforcement and nonprofit faith group leaders. The safety of religious congregations has Read more
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Homeland Security appoints a new 25-member security faith advisory council
Thursday, September 22nd, 2022Vatican basilica to serve as screen for new St Peter film
Thursday, September 22nd, 2022For two weeks in October, the facade of St Peter’s Basilica will be the screen for the nighttime showing of a short film about the life, the call and the ministry of St Peter. The eight-minute 3D film, using art from the basilica and from the Vatican Museums, will be projected onto the facade every Read more
Cardinal in Ukraine dodges Russian bullets
Monday, September 19th, 2022
Cardinal Konrad Krajewski and those working with him emerged unscathed after they came under fire on Saturday, near the Ukrainian city of Zaporizhzhia. Krajewski, was sent by Pope Francis to Ukraine to show the pope’s “closeness” to the Ukrainian people. “It would be good if you could go again to Ukraine, to the war zones, Read more
King Charles III pledges to protect all faiths
Monday, September 19th, 2022
King Charles III has pledged to “protect the diversity of our country, including by protecting the space for faith itself”. Speaking to faith leaders at a reception at Buckingham Palace, Charles emphasised his own strong Christian faith. It is a position the new king has long held. As Prince of Wales, he said he wished Read more
Irish Catholic and Protestant leaders recreate Queen’s ‘walk of hope’
Monday, September 19th, 2022
The late Queen’s Diamond Jubilee ‘walk of hope’ between the Anglican and Catholic churches in the Northern Irish town of Enniskillen gave church leaders cause to reflect. The walk of hope was a simple street crossing: from the Protestant St Macartin’s Cathedral to the Catholic St Michael’s Church. It was an uncomplicated act with powerful Read more
Papal critic says Kazakhstan congress a ‘supermarket’ of religions
Monday, September 19th, 2022
One of Pope Francis’ most vocal critics slammed the Congress of Leaders of World and Traditional Religions as a “supermarket” of religions that risks relegating the importance of the Catholic Church as the one true religion. Bishop Athanasius Schneider (pictured), a longtime public critic of the pontiff, said he sees it as both his duty Read more
Asking pope for resolution ‘improper’
Monday, September 19th, 2022
The Vatican said judicial inquiries directed to the pope as a head of state are “improper,” concerning a case filed by a man seeking to hold the Vatican liable for the actions of Guam’s former archbishop, Anthony Apuron. The Vatican comment followed a federal judge ordering the Holy See’s counsel to report on whether Pope Read more
Child poverty lowest on record in US
Monday, September 19th, 2022The year 2021 was an outlier in many respects. Much of the year was characterised by halting steps to return to something resembling normality following the global health emergency declared in 2020 over the coronavirus pandemic. There was a recession that started before COVID-19 throttled the United States and much of the world, but that Read more
France rejects Canada Inuit request to extradite priest accused of sex crimes
Monday, September 19th, 2022A delegation of Canadian Inuits travelled to Paris earlier this month to press France to fulfil a request filed by Canada in August for the extradition of 92-year-old Joannes Rivoire, who lives in the French city of Lyon. Rivoire, who holds both French and Canadian nationality, is accused of sexually abusing young Inuit in the Read more
Kidnapped nun ‘filled with gratitude’ following her safe release in Africa
Monday, September 19th, 2022During nearly five months of captivity in Burkina Faso, Marianite Sister Suellen Tennyson wondered aloud where God was hiding amid her isolation and loneliness. Then, in an instant, she looked down at her feet, where one of her toenails had been battered and bloodied during a harrowing post-kidnapping motorcycle ride deep into the forests of Read more