Pope Francis has seemed to back parents who smack their children, providing the child’s “dignity” is maintained. He made the remarks during his weekly general audience at the Vatican on February 4, which was devoted to the role of fathers in the family. The Pope outlined the traits of a good father, as someone who Read more
Three-parent babies could be at greater risk of cancer and premature aging, and would have to be monitored all their lives. These were among the warnings sounded before the United Kingdom’s House of Commons passed a new law permitting their creation. The new regulations enable genetic processes to fight the transmission of mitochondrial diseases, such Read more
A leading campaigner of the cause of Archbishop Oscar Romero believes the slain prelate was a martyr of the church of the Second Vatican Council. The postulator of the archbishop’s cause, Archbishop Vincenzo Paglia, said that Romero’s killers wanted “to strike the Church that flowed from the Second Vatican Council”. On February 3, Pope Francis Read more
A group representing hundreds of priests has asked the United States Catholic bishops to start dialogue towards the ordination of married men to the priesthood. The Association of US Catholic Priests, which represents about 1000 mostly Vatican II-era priests, wrote to the bishops last month. According to an article in the National Catholic Reporter, the Read more
A new Vatican document has expressed a negative view of elective cosmetic surgery for women. An “outline document”, produced by a panel of female consultants to the Pontifical Council for Culture, comes ahead of an upcoming assembly devoted to women’s issues. The document, titled Women’s Cultures: Equality and Difference, warns that procedures such as facelifts Read more
A transgender man from Spain, described by a priest as the devil’s daughter, has had a private meeting with Pope Francis at the Vatican. According to reports in a Spanish newspaper, Diego Neria Lejarraga and his fiancé met Pope Francis at the Pope’s residence on January 24. Mr Neria, 48, wrote to Pope Francis last year, Read more
Parishes in Dublin in Ireland are determining for themselves how they discuss family issues ahead the synod in October. The Irish Times reported an invitation by Archbishop Diarmuid Martin to priests and parishioners to hold meetings on the subject. In a letter to priests and parishes, Archbishop Martin stated that Pope Francis wants Catholics around the Read more
Pope Francis has said he wished that all marriage annulment processes could be free of charge. In an address to the Roman Rota in January, the Pope said: “The sacraments are free. The sacraments give us grace. “And a matrimonial process pertains to the sacrament of matrimony. How I wish that all processes were free.” Read more
The Archbishop of Canterbury says some sermons he has heard amounted to “moral claptrap” about being nicer to each other. Preaching at an evensong service in New York in January, Archbishop Welby said Jesus’ life “challenges every assumption” about society. “He does not permit us to accept a society in which the weak are excluded Read more
What began with Vatican criticism of the “secular mentality” and feminism of US sisters has ended in a Vatican report full of praise. The report on the apostolic visitation of religious women in the United States, released Wednesday, thanks them for their selfless work caring for the poor and promising to value more their “feminine genius”. Read more