The archbishop of York, Dr John Sentamu, has ordered a review of all the files on dead clergy who served in the diocese from 1950 to the present so that an independent investigator can determine whether they may have sexually abused children. The move comes five weeks after the Church of England’s General Synod apologised Read more
A new study shows most Americans view abortion as a moral issue but do not feel as strongly about stem-cell research or in vitro fertilization as moral issues. The Pew Research Center’s Religion & Public Life Project, in a study released August 15, noted that 49 percent of adults consider it morally wrong to have Read more
Muslim groups planned to rally against the Catholic Church when the religious tussle over the Middle Eastern word for god heads back to the legal arena in Malaysia. Syed Hassan Syed Ali, secretary-general of the group Perkasa, said the planned rally was in support of the Home Ministry in its efforts to prohibit non-Muslims from Read more
Pope Francis called for peace and stability in Egypt, saying he continues to pray for the country which has been witnessing violent encounters between security and Muslim Brotherhood loyalists. In a Sunday service, the pope condemned religious extremism, stressing that faith and violence do not conform with each other. “We continue to pray for peace Read more
Giulio Tremonti, a former economy minister in Italy, said he was suing 30-year-old journalist Francesca Immacolata Chaouqui, a member of the new Vatican financial reform panel, over tweets she made claiming he is gay. Tremonti said he was also suing Alessandro Sallustri, editor-in-chief of Il Giornale daily that printed tweets by Chaouqui. Chaouqui has been Read more
The Vatican has reportedly launched an inquiry into the hiring of Francesca Chaouqui, 30, who was appointed as PR officer for a new papal committee set up to overhaul the Vatican’s financial administration in July. Before securing the job, Chaouqui had extensively tweeted about Vatican affairs, often not mincing her words, giving rise to speculation Read more
The Vatican and the Italian government early this week said they could not confirm a media report that abducted Jesuit priest Paolo Dall’Oglio had been executed by his captors. ”We have not received any information about this and we cannot confirm it, the deputy director of the Vatican press office, Ciro Benedettini, told Adnkronos. ”Obviously, Read more
Muslim groups in Sri Lanka agreed on Monday to close a controversial mosque in Colombo that had been the focus of clashes with Buddhist groups and raised concerns about growing religious tensions in the country. Ethnic tensions in Sri Lanka have traditionally occurred between the largely Buddhist majority Sinhalese, who make up around three-quarters of Read more
Pope Francis met with Barcelona football star Lionel Messi and his teammates on the Argentine national soccer squad and Italy’s national team players at the Apostolic Palace in the Vatican early this week. The teams met Wednesday in Rome in a friendly match. The pope told the players to remember they are role models on Read more
A seminary in southern India this week has suspended four of its priests as police continue their investigations into the killing of its rector. “This is to help the investigation, as far I know,” Father A Rayappan, president of St Peter’s Institute, told ucanews.com today. The St Peter’s Pontifical Seminary in Bangalore has suspended spiritual Read more