"I humbly beg forgiveness for the evil committed by so many Christians against the Indigenous peoples," the pope said. Canada's own government has previously expressed its regret.

Francis was in Canada to apologize, not to preach — which may be why he said relatively little about that country's legalization of euthanasia in 2016.

Rebranded as "medical assistance in dying," or MAID, the formerly taboo practice is now hailed in Canada as both humane medical care and essential to patient autonomy. It enjoys strong support in opinion polls and the full backing of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's federal government.

Still, Francis's church is doctrinally opposed to euthanasia, and he has personally condemned it, so the pope did allude, in one of his public addresses, to "patients who, in place of affection, are administered death."

He could, and should, have said more. Even before Francis's visit, there was evidence euthanasia has problems.

Between 2016 and 2021, Canadian medical personnel administered lethal doses to more than 31,000 people who were usually — but not always — terminally ill.

Since 2019, Canadian law has said that "intolerable" suffering due to "incurable" illness, which could include various chronic disabling conditions, may be sufficient to qualify for a lethal injection.

These permissive standards may be resulting in avoidable death or distress for vulnerable people, and disability rights advocates are expressing concern, as Maria Cheng of the Associated Press reported Aug. 11.

She told the story of 61-year-old Alan Nichols, who requested — and received — euthanasia less than a month after entering a British Columbia hospital in June 2019, suffering from suicidal thoughts, dehydration and malnutrition.

The decision was apparently based on a medical history that included serious but typically non-life-threatening conditions such as depression and hearing loss.

His grief-stricken family has sought explanations as to how doctors could have found their loved one competent to "choose" death much less needful of it.

"Somebody needs to take responsibility so that it never happens to another family," Trish Nichols, Alan's sister-in-law, told Cheng.

The family's inquiries to provincial and federal authorities have so far produced only officials' insistence that Alan met the criteria for physician-assisted death.

Cheng described the case of a man with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, also known as ALS or Lou Gehrig's disease, who felt driven to seek euthanasia because British Columbia officials would not provide him adequate support to live at home.

In a case separately reported by Canadian media this year, a 31-year-old Toronto woman with a disability sought and received approval for euthanasia after what she said was a futile search for safe housing — only to decide to continue living after private parties helped her find an appropriate dwelling.

While the details of these and other instances are difficult for outsiders to parse, and while it is true, as Canadian officials told Cheng, that 65 percent of euthanasia procedures have been performed on cancer patients, the issue's very murkiness and subjectivity is a warning sign.

In this context, any mistake could be irreversible.

Cheng reports that, as compared with the other six countries where euthanasia is legal, Canada's margin for error may be wider.

Canadian patients are not required to exhaust all treatment options before seeking MAID. Canada allows nurse practitioners as well as doctors to end patients' lives.

Another warning sign: Last year, a top United Nations disability rights official wrote to Trudeau advising him that legalizing euthanasia for the non-terminally ill creates an implied negative judgment on "the value or quality of life of persons with disabilities." Continue reading

The apology is only a first step towards reconciliation.

The pilgrimage began Monday, July 25.

The first act on the Canadian "penitential pilgrimage," was the return of two pairs of children's moccasins on 25 July.

"I am sorry," he said.

Cultural destruction

"I ask forgiveness, in particular, for the ways in which many members of the church and of religious communities cooperated, not least through their indifference, in projects of cultural destruction and forced assimilation promoted by the governments of that time, which culminated in the system of residential schools.

"We want to walk together, to pray together and to work together so that the sufferings of the past can lead to a future of justice, healing and reconciliation," said Francis.

"I am here because the first step of my penitential pilgrimage among you is that of again asking forgiveness, of telling you once more that I am deeply sorry," he said.

Saying the Church's actions were "catastrophic," Francis called the Indigenous culture "a treasury of sound customs and teachings centred on concern for others, truthfulness, courage and respect, humility, honesty and practical wisdom".

Christian faith, he said, "tells us that this was a disastrous error, incompatible with the Gospel of Jesus Christ".

He said it is painful for him to think of how the values, language and culture of Indigenous communities "was eroded, and that you have continued to pay the price of this."

Reconciliation

After issuing an impassioned apology, Francis gave voice to his vision of reconciliation by visiting an Indigenous Catholic congregation at Sacred Heart Church of the First Peoples congregation in Edmonton.

The church, built in 1913, welcomes Indigenous and non-Indigenous faithful.

"This place is a house for all, open and inclusive, just as the Church should be, for it is the family of the children of God where hospitality and welcome, typical values of the Indigenous culture, are essential," he said.

"A home where everyone should feel welcome, regardless of past experiences and personal life stories.

"It pains me to think that Catholics contributed to policies of assimilation and disenfranchisement that inculcated a sense of inferiority — robbing communities and individuals of their cultural and spiritual identity, severing their roots and fostering prejudicial and discriminatory attitudes.

"And that this was also done in the name of an educational system that was supposedly Christian," Pope Francis said.

"One cannot proclaim God in a way contrary to God himself," the pope said.

"Nothing can ever take away the violation of dignity, the experience of evil, the betrayal of trust" suffered by the students, he said.

Nothing can "take away our own shame as believers."

"That happened because believers became worldly and, rather than fostering reconciliation, they imposed their own cultural models" on the students, he said.

Unfortunately, he said, "this attitude dies hard, also from the religious standpoint".

"Indeed, it may seem easier to force God on people, rather than letting them draw near to God," Pope Francis said. "Yet this never works, because that is not how the Lord operates."

"He does not force us, he does not suppress or overwhelm; instead, he loves, he liberates, he leaves us free. He does not sustain with his Spirit those who dominate others, who confuse the Gospel of our reconciliation with proselytism," the pope said.

"While God presents himself simply and quietly," the pope said, "we always have the temptation to impose him, and to impose ourselves in his name."

Build a positive legacy

Day two of his pilgrimage began with Mass, attended by an estimated 50,000 people.

In the course of the homily, Francis challenged humanity to envision the future.

In addition to being children of a history that needs to be preserved, we are authors of a history yet to be written, the Pope said, noting that we are marked by both light and shadows and by the love we did or did not receive, he said.

He said that while we are the children of parents, it is good to ask ourselves what kind of society we want to build and bequeath to those who came after us.

Later in the day he visited Lac Ste Anne, a famous Catholic pilgrimage site in Canada that holds spiritual significance for the nation's indigenous people.

The pope blessed a bowl of the lake's water, which was brought up to a small wooden structure shaped like a teepee, overlooking the lake.

Francis made the Sign of the Cross towards the four cardinal points, according to Indigenous custom.

The pope prayed by the water's edge in his wheelchair before sprinkling the crowds with the blessed water.

He concluded the day celebrating a Liturgy of the Word at the Shrine of Ste Anne, with a crowd of mostly Indigenous people in attendance, estimated at around 10,000.

Condemnation of old and new colonialism

On day three, Francis travelled to Québec where he met with government authorities.

Speaking with Canada's Prime Minister, Justin Trudeau, Francis criticised the "colonialist mentality" that oppressed Indigenous peoples in the past and continues today, while apologising once more for the role played by the Catholic Church.

"In the past, the colonialist mentality disregarded the concrete life of people and imposed certain predetermined cultural models," he said.

He also warned of modern-day colonialism.

"Yet today too, there are any number of forms of ideological colonisation that clash with the reality of life, stifle the natural attachment of peoples to their values and attempt to uproot their traditions, history and religious ties," he added.

Calling for "the legitimate rights of the native populations and to favour processes of healing and reconciliation between them and the non-indigenous people of the country," Francis labelled the "deplorable system" of residential schools in Canada as an example of "cancel culture".

The Pope reiterated that the Holy See and the local Catholic communities wish to concretely promote the indigenous peoples' rights.

"It is our desire to renew the relationship between the Church and the Indigenous peoples of Canada, a relationship marked both by a love that has borne outstanding fruit and, tragically, deep wounds that we are committed to understanding and healing," he said.

Francis observed that the suffering inflicted by the colonising mentality does not heal easy.

"Multiculturalism is fundamental for the cohesiveness of a society as diverse as the dappled colours of the foliage of the maple trees," he said.

"With its universal dimension, its concern for the most vulnerable, its rightful service to human life at every moment of its existence from conception to natural death, is happy to offer its specific contribution," said Francis.

Controversy

Francis's "Penitential Pilgrimage" is not gone without further cultural controversy.

Some members of First Nations in Manitoba say they're angry that Pope Francis was given a headdress as a gift following his apology on Monday for the role members of the Catholic Church played in Canada's residential school system.

After the Pope's apology in Maskwacis, Alberta, Wilton Littlechild who is honorary chief of Ermineskin First Nation presented the pontiff with a headdress.

The Pope wore the regalia over his traditional papal head covering until it was removed shortly after by a member of his staff.

"For them to gift [the Pope] this sacred item was disappointing," said Kevin Tacan, a knowledge keeper and spiritual advisor from Sioux Valley Dakota Nation in western Manitoba.

"It's become a thing to recognise political leadership, and it's not meant to be that way."

Tacan said headdresses are traditionally earned by members who are doing significant work in service of the community.

"[People] have to prove themselves constantly. They have to continue to prove themselves going into the future, that they still deserve to have it."

Others supported the idea of the gift.

Phil Fontaine, a residential school survivor who has served as both national chief of the Assembly of First Nations and grand chief of the Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs, said Littlechild followed protocols in requesting permission to present the headdress.

"He went to the elders. He went to the leadership and requested permission to present that gift. So [it was] entirely consistent with the way they followed their customs and protocol," Fontaine said.

Tacan acknowledges some, like Fontaine, support the gift but he doesn't agree with them.

"I suppose [the Pope is] the leader for them. But I don't believe that the Pope is the leader for the rest of us," he said.

"How do we invite the fox into the chicken coop and say, 'OK, you're the head rooster in here?' It doesn't work that way."

"If somebody has a vision or if the community decides, 'This is a good leader, let's pick him,' they go over and they put a blanket around him, put a headdress on him," he said. "They will decide."

He said medicine men can also decide if someone deserves a headdress.

"He already knows — he got the information from up there," Wakita said.

He doesn't believe many people understand the meaning of the headdress anymore.

"I'm sorry to say that our people, they don't understand the sacredness of this. Not the importance — the sacredness of something that came from the Creator."

Sources

• RNS
• RNS
• Vatican News
• CathNews
• CNA
• CBC

While concerns about liability may be a factor, one significant barrier is theological.

In traditional Catholic theology, the church can act collectively, but as the Body of Christ it cannot sin.

Only members, including leaders, sin.

When Catholics do something good, this may be ascribed to the church. When Catholics harm others, it is the action of individuals.

Pope John Paul II is perceived to have apologised for many church wrongs, but he did not claim the church itself was the agent of sin.

In a highly public "Day of Pardon" in 2000, he asked God's forgiveness for thousands of years' worth of sins committed by members of the church, but not by the church as an institution.

Consider this 2013 statement to the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) by Vancouver Archbishop Michael Miller: "I wish to apologise sincerely and profoundly … for the anguish caused by the deplorable conduct of those Catholics who perpetrated mistreatment of any kind in these residential schools."

Note that he apologised for harm done by individual Catholics, but not by the church itself.

This logic surely shaped Pope Francis' deeply inadequate statement, released this past weekend, about "his closeness to the Canadian people who have been traumatized" by the recent shocking discovery in Kamloops.

The statement places the church as an entity on the side of the shock, but not as the entity responsible for causing it. An actual apology was notably absent.

A church that is sinless by definition is a problematic abstraction, unmoored from history and experience.

Statements premised on this assumption will not speak to the church's deep complicity in a destructive system.

Indeed, unless the church openly and specifically acknowledges its own culpability, why would anyone believe that the church itself may be an active agent in reconciliation?

For all churches, there is a temptation to speak to, but not to take, meaningful action to demonstrate a commitment to make amends and develop structures that promote truly just relationships.

But truthful words are also actions.

An apology is never sufficient, but it certainly is important and necessary.

Catholic theology does develop and the tone can change over time.

One key precedent was set in the 1997 Drancy Declaration by French Catholic Bishops regarding complicity in the Holocaust.

They said that the church itself, not just individuals, failed to educate the consciences of its members, and failed to protest the persecution of Jews.

Their statement also showed that a national conference of bishops can indeed take action to speak definitively about its own past and commitment to a future.

And as further evidence of gradual change: Archbishop Miller, whose 2013 TRC statement is cited above, released a statement shortly after the Kamloops discovery stating that "the Church was unquestionably wrong in implementing a government colonialist policy."

Nevertheless, churches often dwell on distinctions that are only meaningful to insiders. Technical distinctions about jurisdiction involving residential schools, which the church has made in the past, are not irrelevant, but also come across as attempting to control the narrative and deflect responsibility.

For theological reasons, Pope John Paul II did not use the words "sorry" or "apology," but his Day of Pardon actions were reported and judged as if they were apologies.

My advice to the Canadian bishops and to the Pope is to acknowledge what happened. Do not be vague or use a passive voice.

• Name the sins committed by the church as an institution.
• Take responsibility on behalf of the church.
• Commit to future actions and forms of accountability.

Make a public apology in a ritually appropriate and solemn way. Pointing back to previous statements by bishops or religious orders will not be adequate.

The present moment demands more.

Do not ask former students or their families for forgiveness. This can shift the onus and public pressure on survivors to immediately grant it.

Take seriously the many voices calling specifically for an apology.

Recognize you are not in control of how the statement will be received and what further actions you will be called to make.

This very recognition is one of the amends the church needs to make.

A public apology - a real one - is only one step, but in this case, it is essential.

• Jeremy M. Bergen is an associate professor of religious studies and theological studies at Conrad Grebel University College, University of Waterloo. He is the author of Ecclesial Repentance: The Churches Confront Their Sinful Pasts.
• First published by the Globe and Mail. Republished with permission.

Unfortunately, that sounds a lot like Trail of Tears, a series of forced death marches Native American tribes were sent on by the US Government between 1830-1850.

A New Zealand academic, Professor Joanna Kidman, discovered the dress online and posted "I guess it's cool to be ironic about genocide" on Twitter. Twitter produced headlines; Trelise Cooper swiftly apologised.

She shouldn't have.

True, not apologising seems un-Kiwi. Even if you haven't sought to upset someone in person, but find you have, the most polite thing you can do is say sorry, and move on.

That's how we resolve these things person-to-person.

But this is not a person-to-person situation, and it's about more than a fashion faux pas.

Trelise Cooper didn't know about the American Trail of Tears. "The mistake was made out of ignorance," she wrote in her apology. Use of "ignorance" suggests she should have known more about U.S. history.

Why?

The event occurred in another country.

In the US, they're still struggling to teach the topic properly to high school students. We've only just mandated our own curriculum about New Zealand history.

Ignorance implies an uncommon lack of awareness. Not knowing something is quite different.

Had Trelise Cooper released a "Parihaka party" dress, that would be outrageous.

New Zealanders should reasonably be expected to know our own history and racial insensitivity and injustice shouldn't go unchallenged. But everyone can't be expected to know everything.

Once, as a social experiment for television, I spent the day asking random people to name the Leader of the Opposition.

Most had no idea.

Also, intent matters. We know this from disciplining our kids. If Tommy meant to hit Sally, he goes to time out. If he didn't, we'd encourage him to be careful and show compassion, but he isn't reprimanded the same way.

So what was Trelise Cooper guilty of, actually?

She was "guilty" of using a sound-alike phrase that accurately described her own design. The person who found this and made the connection didn't contact the fashion label directly; instead posting derisively on social media, directing others to the perceived slight.

If all of this sounds familiar, Trelise Cooper has apologised in the past for putting Native American headdress on runway models. And a couple of months before this brouhaha, Professor Kidman was praising people on Twitter for generating signatures to a petition against what she called the racist sacking of Waikato professors.

One of the subjects of the petition later said that people need to tone it down on Twitter.

All of this is a somewhat mild example of a much bigger problem within the social media and news media eco-system.

We know the script too well: public accusation, amplification, pile-on, apology.

Sadly Cooper's apology doesn't address the fundamental problems with this kind of culture of public shaming I've described.

Yes, it does divert the online heat and headlines away from the target…but in the long term, the cyber rage continues to blaze. Perhaps it's even magnified.

Anger comes from a natural moral desire to end injustice—a righteous indignation. It is right to want to bring an end to racial injustice and for people to not want to perpetuate insensitivity.

But how righteous is it to incinerate someone publicly when you don't know whether they're erring deliberately?

Moral ends aren't justified by immoral means. And trying to embarrass, shame, and terrorise un-knowing people into submission may be the road to clickbait, but it isn't the road to cultural growth and mutual understanding.

Perhaps Professor Kidman could have contacted Trelise Cooper directly before the Twitter maelstrom.

They might have had a private conversation. If that approach doesn't work out, by all means, dial up the mob…

We need more authenticity in our discussions of these issues, not less. And we don't need performances of outrage, or apology.

We can do better.

Let's give the real thing a try.

• Tim Wilson
• First published by the Maxim Institute - republished with permission.

The sign outside Apostolic Faith Church in Springdale, Arkansas, recently read, "Heaven has strict immigration laws, hell has open borders," Read more

The apology took place on the former site of the Otamataha Pa in the Bay of plenty on Saturday, December 1.

The church's apology centres on a piece of land known as the Te Papa Block.

The day began at 9am with two powhiri - the first for an ope from the Kingitanga, led by Kingi Tuheitia's sister, Heeni Katipa - the later one for the Anglican party.

Huikakahu Kawe (Ngati Ranginui) then outlined how things would unfold, and he introduced the historian Dr Alistair Reese whose work underpinned the church apology.

Reese spent 10 minutes giving a background to the events that led to the loss of the land.

The 540-hectare piece of land encompasses modern-day Tauranga's CBD and was purchased in 1838 by the Church Missionary Society (CMS) and had to be used for the "benefit of the native race and the church."

Archbishop Emeritus Sir David Moxon offered a formal apology to Ngati Tapu and Ngaitamarawaho of Tauranga Moana.

"It was not sale in which you could do what you liked," Moxon said. "It was more like a gift."

"Built into this was an understanding that if you changed the purpose of what the land was being used for you must give it back."

In 1867, after the New Zealand Wars, four-fifths of the land was passed over to the colonial government following consistent and increasing pressure, and despite the CMS resisting and protesting the transfer.

The land kept by the Church was sold off a few years later.

Tangata Whenua was not consulted and have long since fought to have the land grievance recognised and acknowledged.

Source

• stuff.co.nz
• nzherald.co.nz
• anglicantaonga.org.nz
• Image: nzherald.co.nz

Members of the congregation told WVIT-TV he also left a note that said, "Pray 4 Me!! Sorry brothers. Save me," and drew a little sad face. Continue reading

The words to heartening songs. An understanding that human worth is inherent, unyoked to public accolades. The power of service over the power of self-gratification.

A kid can pick up some not-so-handy information in Catholic school, too, but let's save that discussion for another essay.

One of the most useful things Catholic school taught me is the fundamental structure of apology.

Whether or not you accept the notion of original sin in its most literal sense — I don't — it's impossible not to notice that we're all born with a powerful inclination for fault and failure.

We lie.

We treat others unkindly.

We nurture wrongheaded notions because they make us feel a little bit better about our imperfect selves.

Roman Catholic catechism calls this tendency "the sinful condition," but here in the 21st century, it's more usefully known as being born a human being.

Age of outrage

We live in the Age of Outrage, a time when any public act of poor judgment is met with public fury. (Remember of the case, of Roseanne Barr's racist tweet?)

That first round of fury is followed swiftly by more fury as new voices defend the pilloried one.

Tweet something stupid, and it must follow as the night the day that Twitter will erupt with partisan howls on every possible side, right on up to the aggrieved tweeter in chief, who is clearly thriving in the Age of Outrage.

Hollow apology

One problem with the electronic whipping post is that people, no matter how patently flawed themselves, are disinclined to allow a flawed but truly remorseful person the room it takes to reform.

A much bigger problem, though, lies with the offenders themselves, whose apologies ring hollow because they almost always involve some variety of self-justification.

To be fair, a social media feed or press release is hardly a window to the soul.

But among the higher profile cases, there is plenty to suggest that almost no one in public life knows what it means to be truly remorseful. Or at least how to express remorse. Continue reading

• Margaret Renkl is a contributing opinion writer for The New York Times.
• Image: YouTube

SNAP admitted allegations against the priests were false. Read more

Sr Eileen Lenihan's call came in Limerick at the first diocesan synod to be held in Ireland in 50 years.

Sr Lenihan said: "The apology that is being called for, perhaps it needs to come from the Church, radically from the Pope down really because the Pope in a way stands for the entire Church history."

There are one hundred proposals before the delegates at the Limerick synod.

Proposals ranged from gender equality and caring for the marginalised, to the increased use of social media by the Church and creating links to other faith groups.

Continue reading

Cardinal Pell was responding to a television interview of abuse victim Julie Stewart, where she was critical of the cardinal's testimony to a previous Victorian inquiry.

Ms Stewart was abused in the confessional in a Melbourne parish by Fr Peter Searson in 1985.

In 1998, when Cardinal Pell was archbishop in Melbourne, he apologised to Ms Stewart for the abuse.

She received A$25,000 in compensation from the church.

But in 2013, Cardinal Pell told a Victorian inquiry: "No conviction was recorded for Searson on sexual misconduct. There might be victims."

Ms Stewart said she was deeply angered by the comment and that response prompted her to go to Australia's child abuse royal commission, which is holding hearings in Melbourne.

"I was absolutely so angry . . . and I thought 'let's get 'em'," Ms Stewart said.

In a statement from the Vatican, a spokesperson for Cardinal Pell said he was very moved by Ms Stewart's courage and openness in giving evidence to the royal commission.

"There is no inconsistency between the evidence provided by the Cardinal at the Victorian parliamentary inquiry and apology provided by Cardinal Pell to Ms Stewart," the statement said.

"The failure of church leaders to address the conduct of Peter Searson and other abusers is shameful and as the evidence at the Victorian parliamentary inquiry illustrates, was one of the main reasons why the cardinal moved so swiftly to establish the Melbourne Response."

Cardinal Pell set up the Melbourne Response to handle abuse complaints in the archdiocese when he became Melbourne archbishop in 1996.

Cardinal Pell told the 2013 Victorian inquiry two police investigations into Fr Searson were inconclusive and the Catholic Education Office was never able to pin anything on him.

Fr Searson, who died in 2009, was never convicted of a sex offence, despite being charged with unlawful assault of an altar boy in 1997 and pleading guilty.

Melbourne archdiocese was accused of dumping a string of paedophile priests, including Fr Searson, on one parish because it was poor.

Sources

• ABC
• The Guardian
• AAP
• Image: ABC

This statement came during his general audience in St Peter's Square on Wednesday.

The Pope said: "Before beginning the catechesis, I would like to ask forgiveness in the name of the Church for the scandals that have happened in this last period both in Rome and at the Vatican. I ask forgiveness."

The Pope's apology came at the beginning of a catechetical reflection that was focused on caring for children.

There has been speculation as to which specific scandals the Pope was apologising for.

Vatican spokesman Fr Federico Lombardi, SJ, Vatican told reporters later, "if the Pope uses a broad and general formula, that is what he intended".

Fr Lombardi said Francis wanted to reach out to ordinary people who are "disturbed or pained" when they read about scandals caused by "the Church or men of the Church".

Vatican commentator John Thavis wrote in his blog that there were several scandals for the Pope to choose from.

• "The gay official of the Vatican's doctrinal congregation who recently came out with his partner, saying the climate at his workplace was homophobic?"
• "Accusations of sexual impropriety made by a group of Catholics against priests and an official of the Carmelite religious order in Rome? "
• "The resignation of Rome's leftist mayor, Ignazio Marino, following press reports that the Pope was unhappy with the mayor's action on a number of issues?"
• "The accusations of sexual abuse against a Vatican diplomat, who was found dead in his Vatican residence in late August before he could stand trial?"
• "Or this week's leak of a ‘Letter of 13' cardinals to the Pope, contesting the direction and methods of the current synod of bishops on the family, which was followed by a series of confusing denials and clarifications?"

Thavis also said that the Pope's subsequent references to the care of children could suggest that it was a reference to clerical sexual abuse.

But he added that there is also growing concern at the return of the "Vatileaks" syndrome that helped convince Pope Benedict XVI to resign in 2013.

Sources

• National Catholic Reporter
• The Tablet
• Catholic Herald
• John Thavis
• Reuters
• Image: Manila Bulletin

Philip Pavich, 55, and Gilbert Southworth, 46, apologised for their actions and gave money to the Anglican diocese.

On March 21, motion-activated cameras detected their entry into the building.

Police arrested the pair after they were caught leaving the cathedral carrying a lectern.

The two men, from the Waikato, had been in Christchurch on a golf trip.

The public prosecutor told the Christchurch District Court there was no public interest in the men being prosecuted.

Continue reading

This followed an apology to John Ellis in statement by the cardinal that was previously sent to the commission.

Continue reading

Founded in 1976 by a gay man, Frank Worthen, Exodus functioned as a support group for men and women who were struggling with their sexual orientation. Early on it embraced the idea that gays and lesbians could become straight through prayer and counseling.

But the belief in "reparative therapy was one of the things that led to the downfall of this organisation", said its president, Alan Chambers.

He noted that Exodus in recent years had redirected its focus to helping men and women work through their sexual identity.

"I am sorry we promoted sexual orientation change efforts and reparative theories about sexual orientation that stigmatised parents," Chambers said in the apology.

Chambers, who is married to his wife, Leslie, said his core beliefs about sexuality have not changed, and admitted he still wrestles with his own same-sex attraction.

"My beliefs about sex and sexuality and sexual expression are that God created, his original created intent was sexual expression between one man and one woman for one lifetime in the bonds of marriage, and that is the truth I live by," he said.

"But I do believe so many of us who hold to those scriptural beliefs ... have wielded them as a sword so often. We've been involved in a culture war that really, literally, has claimed untold lives, and we've got to be more careful."

The decision to close was announced at Exodus' annual conference, where Chambers said the board had decided to form a new ministry, to be called reducefear.org.

Chambers said there were many influences on his personal decision. Among them, he said, was the interfaith work overseas of the Christian relief group World Vision, which he praised for its co-operation with Muslim, Hindu and Buddhist groups to aid at-risk children.

Sources:

Washington Post

Religion News Service

Christian Post

Image: Christianity Today

Police confronted pilgrims outside the church on May 4, as thousand of Christians arrived for Easter celebrations, according to the Orthodox calendar.

As the police broke up the crowds in the narrow streets, Father Arsanios, the 85-year-old head of the Coptic Church in Ramallah, was beaten and temporarily lost consciousness.

The priest was treated at a local hospital and released, but a video of the incident circulated quickly on the Internet.

According to The Times of Israel, three high-ranking Egyptian diplomats were evicted from the church during the liturgy.

The apology from Israel's deputy foreign minister, Ze'ev Elkin, came after Israel's ambassador in Cairo was summoned by the Egyptian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and given a "strongly worded" complaint.

The leaders of the Christian churches in the Holy Land had issued a statement which said: "We, the Heads of Churches in Jerusalem, watched with sorrowful hearts the horrific scenes of the brutal treatment of our clergy, people and pilgrims in the Old City of Jerusalem during Holy Saturday [in the Julian calendar] last week.

"A day of joy and celebration was turned to great sorrow and pain for some of our faithful because they were ill-treated by some Israeli policemen who were present around the gates of the Old City and passages that lead to the Holy Sepulchre."

The heads of churches also condemned all "measures and violations of Christians' rights to worship in their churches and Holy Sites" and urged the Israeli authorities to allow "full access to the Holy Sites during Holy Week of both church calendars".

Following a directive from the Assembly of Catholic Ordinaries of the Holy Land, within two years all Eastern Catholics and the Latin Patriarchate in the Holy Land will officially adopt the Julian calendar date for Easter.

Sources:

CNEWA

AsiaNews

Image: CNEWA

In a submission presented to regional leaders at the Pacific Conference of Churches 10th General Assembly in Honiara, the Solomon Islands this week the Church acknowledged that it has had a part in damaging communities by importing alien cultures into the region.

"At times the church has acted in collaboration with political and economic powers, undermining healthy Pacific economic systems that valued creation and people," the submission said.

"It has sometimes treated people in ways that do not reflect their inherent dignity in Jesus Christ and has not taken opportunities offered by Pacific countries to learn how to be more thoroughly Christian."

Source

Island Business

Cardinal O'Brien had been the most senior Catholic in Britain until his resignation was accepted by Pope Benedict XVI on February 18 after three priests and a former priest accused him of "inappropriate acts" in the 1980s.

These allegations were made to the papal nuncio in London and later published in The Observer newspaper.

The 74-year-old former archbishop of St Andrews and Edinburgh apologised to those he had offended, to the Catholic Church and to the people of Scotland.

After the cardinal's resignation was accepted, further allegations were published by The Scotsman newspaper, which said another priest had complained last October about his "inappropriate behaviour" in 2001.

The Scotsman said the priest was believed to have written directly to Rome because he did not think he could trust the Church hierarchy in Scotland to handle the matter.

The report said news of this complaint spread inside the Church and then the other four men felt the confidence to come forward with their complaints.

The paper said the October complaint led to the Vatican contacting Cardinal O'Brien and a "deal" being brokered by Cardinal Marc Ouellet of Quebec City for the departure of the leader of Scotland's Catholics.

In recent years Cardinal O'Brien had been a strong critic of same-sex relationships, saying they were "demonstrably harmful to the medical, emotional and spiritual wellbeing of those involved".

Archbishop Philip Tartaglia of Glasgow, who has been appointed apostolic administrator of St Andrews and Edinburgh until a new archbishop is chosen, has said the archdiocese is in a "state of shock for the loss of its shepherd".

Sources:

The Guardian

The Scotsman

Keith O'Brien (Wikipedia)

Image: The Guardian

"By any standards it was a cruel, pitiless Ireland, distinctly lacking in a quality of mercy," Kenny said, as dozens of former Magdalenes watched tearfully from parliament's public gallery overhead.

Kenny told lawmakers his government has appointed a senior judge to recommend an aid programme for the approximately 1000 women still living from the residential workhouses, and pledged government funding for a national memorial.

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In his keynote address during celebrations to mark the province's 2nd Appointed Day, Philip highlighted the significant contribution of Malaitans toward nation-building since the colonial era.

For this reason, Philip said Malaita is an "integral part of Solomon Islands and as the most populous province, its manpower resource is an important asset to our nation".

"Malaita's contribution to our nation building and national unity must be acknowledged by all our other provinces, and as your prime minister, may I on behalf of the…government and people of this nation apologize to you Premier, and people of Malaita for any hurt and hate that have been committed against you and our people of Malaita in the past," Philip said.

He described development of Malaita province as "Mission Possible," adding that his government is prepared to implement a number of projects to kick start development in the province.

Source

• Marianas Variety
• Image: The Australian