Television mogul Oprah Winfrey and actor Matt Damon are among media players believed to have been approached to attend a special meeting at the Vatican. According to an article in the Hollywood Reporter, Pope Francis is “apparently” interested in discussing how the Church is perceived by western media influencers. The Pope also reportedly wants to explore Read more
A member of the Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors says the slow progress in some of its work is because of Vatican culture. Abuse survivor Marie Collins told the Irish Times that the commission has made good progress in some areas, but in others, progress has been “very slow”. “My expectation was that Read more
A nun from the Philippines known for her anti-mining advocacy is to receive a German human rights award. Sr Stella Matutina is this year’s recipient of the Weimar Award for Human Rights. The Benedictine nun will receive 2,500 euros [US$2,730], which she said will help support the advocacy of her organisation. She is secretary-general of the Read more
Orthodox rabbis and the speaker of Israel’s parliament have raised thousands of dollars to help repair a famous Christian Church torched by Jewish vandals. The Church of the Multiplication of the Loaves and Fishes near the Sea of Galilee was set alight on June 18 and anti-Christian graffiti was daubed on its walls. A crowd-funding Read more
Hundreds of tonnes of food from Western nations have been destroyed in Russia as part of campaign ordered by President Vladimir Putin. The destruction has caused an outcry from anti-poverty campaigners who say the food should have been given to the poor A petition against the action on change.org has already attracted more than 300,000 Read more
Pope Francis has said divorced and civilly remarried Catholics are not excommunicated and must not be treated as if they were. At his general audience on August 5, the Pope said such people are “still part of the Church”, even though “their unions are contrary to the sacrament of marriage”. “As these situations especially affect Read more
Vatican clerics are adopting a new sobriety in dress, transport and manners in an attempt to be in step with Pope Francis. Breitbart reported priest-journalist Fr Filippo Di Giacomo saying that these days fewer cardinals show up willingly at fancy restaurants where they might get spotted by paparazzi. “Even the relatives of religious are now Read more
Abuse survivors from Ballarat are outraged that Cardinal George Pell will appear before a royal commission in Melbourne, not in their city. Cardinal Pell had been due to give evidence to the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse at the second stage of the Ballarat hearings in November. However, last week the Read more
Even if intelligent life exists elsewhere in the universe, it is unlikely a second Jesus was sent to save them, a Vatican astronomer says. Astronomers at the Vatican Observatory in Rome have said discoveries of new Earth-like planets have strengthened their belief that there could be life elsewhere in the universe. Fr Jose Funes, director Read more
A UK alarm has been sounded over a trend of bereaved family members, when they move home, seeking to exhume deceased loved ones to stay close to them. Senior Church of England officials have warned that the practice is incompatible with Christian beliefs. The UK’s Ministry of Justice receives 25 applications a week to exhume Read more