It was a busy time for Pope Benedict in Germany. Although not without some criticism and protest, Pope Benedict has received an exuberant welcome from his fellow countrymen. In his opening address the Pope said, “I have not come here primarily to pursue particular political or economic goals, as other statesmen rightly do,” he said, Read more
The leader of the Society of St. Pius X, Superior General, Bishop Bernard Fellay, says the traditionalist group will respond to the Vatican’s offer of reconciliation based upon “the good of the Church and of souls.” He said that the Rosary crusade which the Society is conducting will continue for several more months so that Read more
Though Archbishop Hepworth complained to the Adelaide archdiocese of sexual abuse, the diocesan authorities claim that he did not authorise an official investigation until early this year. The Adelaide Archdiocese has provided a letter to The Advertiser that shows Archbishop Hepworth only signed a request for the investigation in February this year despite receiving a request from Read more
A reference to assisted suicide in a special report on the place of the elderly in society has upset the Catholic Church’s delegation to the United Nations in Geneva which has taken “strong exception” to the reference, although it agrees with other aspects of the report. “We strongly believe that life is a gift that Read more
In an interview with Anthony Gaspari of Zenit the Prefect of the Congregation for the Clergy, Cardinal Mauro Piacenza touches on all the issues that will certainly emerge during the Papal visit to Germany. He comments on women’s ordination, the influence of the Vatican, ecumenism, celibacy and vocations. Is the ordination of women to be considered Read more
New research suggests there are now more practising Muslims in France than practising Catholics. While 64 percent of French people describe themselves as Roman Catholic, only 2.9 percent of the population actually practice the Catholic faith. That compares to 3.8 percent of the population who practice the Muslim faith. The research was carried out by Read more
Two letters have been sent to Senate president John Hogg about Senator Xenophon’s naming of Msgr Ian Dempsey under Parliamentary privilege. A Senate committee will consider the complaints. One of the letters was from Msgr Dempsey and the other from civil libertarian Terry O’Gorman who is urging an investigation into the naming of the priest, Read more
Media reports about the explicit nature of some school sex education programmes have drawn numerous responses and a diversity of opinions, many of them expressed with considerable intensity. The CEO of the The New Zealand Catholic Education Office, Br Pat Lynch, says they are dismayed that some teachers of the national curriculum sex education have taken an extreme approach Read more
Almost everything the public knows about both the Cloyne Report and the Vatican’s response to it has been filtered through the media. The public therefore has a very faulty understanding of both documents and where the truth lies between the Irish Government and the Holy See in this whole affair. For example, most people probably Read more
Fr Jesús Silva, inspired by the 1938 film “Boys Town,” starring Spencer Tracy which he had seen as a child established the ‘Ciudad de los Muchachos’, or ‘Boys Town’, as a response to the problems of poor and neglected children in his native province, Galicia. Father Silva was still a seminarian in 1956 when he came Read more