Pope Francis has appointed eight cardinals and seven lay people as members of the new Vatican Council for the Economy. The members of the council are from throughout the world, reflecting the universality of the Church. Cardinal Reinhard Marx, Archbishop of Munich and Freising in Germany, is the council’s coordinator. The other cardinal members come Read more
A United States cardinal and several bishops will offer Mass on the US/Mexico border for thousands of migrants who have died there. “The US/Mexico border is our Lampedusa. Migrants in this hemisphere try to reach it, but often die in the attempt,” said Bishop Eusebio Elizondo. Bishop Elizondo chairs the US bishops’ Committee on Migration. Read more
In an interview, Pope Francis has discussed artificial contraception, non-marital civil unions, clergy sex abuse and the role of women in the Church. The wide-ranging interview, marking the first anniversary of Francis’s pontificate, was published in Italy and Argentina. Pope Francis praised Pope Paul VI’s 1968 encyclical “Humanae Vitae”, which prohibited the use of contraception. Read more
Responses to the Vatican’s questions about the family shows Church teaching on sexual morality must change, a German bishop says. Bishop Stephen Ackermann of Trier said the responses show Church teachings in this area are “repressive” and “remote from life” for most Catholics. In a German publication, Bishop Ackermann said it is also no longer Read more
The Pope’s finance chief says the working languages of the Vatican’s new Secretariat for the Economy will be English as well as Italian. Cardinal George Pell said this will mean that the new Vatican department will be able to access the best people from around the world. In late February, Pope Francis announced the secretariat Read more
Malaysia’s highest court has reserved its decision on whether to hear the Catholic Church’s appeal to be able to use the word “Allah”. Hundreds of Muslims demonstrated outside the court shouting “Allahu Akbar” or “God is great”. They also held banners that read: “Want to use ‘Allah’, join Islam. Don’t be ill-mannered”. They dispersed after Read more
Ukrainian Catholic bishops have asked for prayers for peace, but have also defended their nation’s right to self determination. Bishop Bronislaw Bernacki of Odessa-Simferopol, whose diocese includes Crimea, said Catholics believed “every nation has a right to decide about its own future”. He asked Christians worldwide to “fast and pray for peace”. “The Catholic Church Read more
Pope Francis has called for bishops who are genuine pastors and who will argue with God on behalf of their people. He said this in an address to the Vatican’s Congregation of Bishops on February 27. The Pope told the office they should not seek prelates who are mainly concerned with doctrinal matters. Rather the Read more
The head of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church appealed for the unity of his country as Russia effectively took over the Crimea region. In a statement on Feburary 28, Major Archbishop Sviatoslav Shevchuk of Kyiv-Halyc also prayed for the people of Crimea. “The entire family of the UGCC faithful pleads to the compassionate Lord for Read more
Women should be offered leadership roles in pontifical councils, a German cardinal says. In an interview with Italian newspaper Avvenire, Cardinal Walter Kasper said women need to be present at every level of the Church and given positions of full responsibility. Cardinal Kasper, who addressed the world’s cardinals at a consistory last month, criticised “clerical Read more