Over 40,000 verified reports of online child sexual exploitation were made to The Australian Centre to Counter Child Exploitation (ACCCE) in 2022–23. That’s over 100 reports every day. And these numbers are trending upwards. Cases of sextortion have soared by 400 percent in some states in the last 18 months. Targets and perpetrators Young people Read more
The latest Catholic commotion is over the Vatican’s promotion of an accused abuser priest’s art. Not long ago, the Vatican’s chief spokesman told 350 media professionals that Vatican media would still use art by Fr Marko Ivan Rupnik, 69, currently under investigation for accusations of abusing women religious. Paolo Ruffini, 67, prefect of the Vatican’s Read more
Several former Missionaries of Charity sisters say abuse, neglect, bullying and exploitation are common within the Order. Most say they are not trying to damage the Order St Teresa of Kolkata (Mother Teresa) founded. Rather, they want to help it become the best version of itself. Allegations Power and authority are abused in the Order, Read more
A Vatican review has cleared Cardinal John Dew of an abuse accusation. He is now free to resume public Church activities. After reviewing the complaint dated back to the 1970s, the Vatican decided no further Church inquiry was required. The Vatican’s finding is similar to that of the New Zealand Police, which concluded earlier this Read more
At the Synod on Synodality, the Western media focused on a limited number of hot-button issues — women’s ordination, married priests and blessing of gay couples. But hidden in the synod participants’ 40-page synthesis are some surprising gems that could lead to significant reform in the church. The hidden gems The first is a new Read more
In a significant move, the NZ Catholic bishops are promoting open and informed life discussion through a modernised and broadened document, Te Kahu o te Ora – A Consistent Ethic of Life. The modernisation seeks to fill a twenty-six-year gap and reflect some of the modern challenges. Dr John Kleinsman, director of the NZ Catholic Read more
It was encouraging to see the leaders of the men’s and women’s religious congregations in France this past week call for a re-evaluation of the language they use in their communities, especially in how they describe and address those who – like themselves – hold positions of authority. Their reason for wanting to modify certain Read more
New Zealand’s National Synod Synthesis has been compiled and released to the public. The diocesan documents were synthesised at a national meeting held in Wellington in June. The introduction to the national document says participants throughout the country “spoke positively and with love about the place the Church has in their lives. “They want the Read more
In his new book, “Il Velo del Silenzio” (“Veil of Silence”) Italian journalist and author Salvatore Cernuzio writes of meeting a childhood friend who had joined a cloistered community of nuns. Ten years later, a “tribunal” of older sisters decided she did not have a vocation and sent her packing. Just days earlier, Jesuit Father Read more
“I don’t get it. My husband and I have been in couples counseling for nine years already, but life at home is getting worse,” says a woman to her clergyperson, her fingers fidgeting with her phone. “First, the constant sarcasm, then the silent treatment and not knowing what’s really going on with our finances. When Read more