A former papal ambassador accused of paying for sex with minors has been dismissed from the clerical state. The Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith made the order against Archbishop Jozef Wesolowski, a former apostolic nuncio to the Dominican Republic. The order against Polish-born Wesołowski is thought to be the first such move taken against a Read more
An American bishop has called for child-friendly shelters plus pastoral care and case managers for the thousands of children flooding across the Mexican border. Bishop Mark Seitz of El Paso, Texas, told the House Judiciary Committee on June 25 that violence in their homelands is the root cause of so many children immigrating illegally. Bishop Read more
A nun who challenged Wild West outlaw Billy the Kid could one day be declared a saint by the Catholic Church. Sante Fe Archdiocese has received permission from the Vatican to open the cause of Sr Blandina Segale, who was a Sister of Charity of Cincinnati. Sr Blandina taught poor children in Colorado in the 1870s Read more
An Irish priest has taken a selfie in the pulpit and is using the image to spread the Gospel through social media. Fr Gabriel Egan took the selfie standing in the pulpit at the Redemptorist church at Mount St Alphonsus in Ireland during a solemn Novena. It has been seen by more than 200,000 people, Read more
A Jesuit commentator says that the working document for October’s synod on the family reminds him of the build up to the family synod in 1980. Fr Thomas Reese said “for anyone familiar with the 1980 synod on the family, reading the new [document] fosters a feeling of déjà vu”. The same issues are discussed, the Read more
Filipino Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle has asked his fellow priests to stop bidding their parishioners “good morning” at the start of Mass. In an article posted on the Philippines bishops’ conference website, Cardinal Tagle said saying “the Lord be with you” is already sufficient. “With all due respect, my brother-priests, I do not see the Read more
Respected English financial magazine The Economist has accused Pope Francis of following Soviet Communism founder Vladimir Lenin. In a blog titled “Francis, capitalism and war: The pope’s divisions”, the British weekly accused the Pope of following Lenin in adopting an “ultra radical line” on capitalism. This followed the wide-ranging interview the Pope gave to Spanish Read more
Seattle Archdiocese has agreed to pay $US12.1 million to settle 30 sex abuse claims from former students of schools that were run by the Christian Brothers. One school is still operated by the archdiocese with involvement by the brothers; the other closed in the late 1960s. The most recent cases are nearly 30 years old Read more
A new working document for the upcoming synod on the family has hinted at initiatives to help divorced and remarried Catholics. The 85-page “Instrumentum Laboris” was released by the Vatican on June 26. It was drafted after consultation last year, when a questionnaire about family life was sent to bishops’ conferences. The working document stresses the truth of Church teaching, Read more
In the 1990s, a Vatican congregation consistently discouraged bishops from acting against priests accused of child abuse, an Australian archbishop says. Archbishop Philip Wilson of Adelaide was giving evidence at Sydney hearings by the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse. Archbishop Wilson said the Congregation for Clergy had a history of hindering Read more