More than 95 delegates from Australia, New Zealand, Asia and North America gathered in Brisbane this month for the 57th Annual Canon Law Conference where they discussed key challenges and developments in canon law. Hosted by the Canon Law Society of Australia and New Zealand, the four-day event aimed to equip attendees with tools to 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
Cardinal Gianfranco Ghirlanda, a prominent figure in Church law, has vehemently denied any role in the reported changes to the papal election process, According to The Pillar and The Remnant websites Cardinal Ghirlanda (pictured), an important advisor to Pope Francis, had been tasked by the pope with drafting revisions to the conclave. Ghirlanda called the Read more
A National Tribunal Service has been established to ensure that Canon or church law is applied consistently and impartially throughout the Church in England and Wales. It will be based in the Bishops’ Conference headquarters in London and have one of two penal tribunals in Liverpool. At a Mass on Saturday, November 4, Cardinal Vincent Read more
Eighty canon lawyers and lay delegates met in Christchurch from 4 to 7 September for the 56th annual Canon Law Society of Australia and NZ conference. Annual Conference assist canonists in their ministry by providing continuous professional development. People working in the Canon Law field came from Oceania, Great Britain and Ireland, Canada, the US Read more
Firebrand Texas Bishop Joseph Strickland, who has been subject to a Vatican investigation over his leadership style and right-wing comments on social media, has recently vowed not to resign or “voluntarily abandon” his diocese, even if Pope Francis asks him to do so. But the Catholic Church’s Code of Canon Law leaves Strickland little to Read more
As AI proponents aim to make inroads for language learning models in communities around the world, developers this month announced an AI project they say could be a “game changer for the Church.” The developers of Magisterium AI trained an AI robot on a database of 456 Church documents. These include: Scripture the Catechism of Read more
A prayer service in the form of a purification rite was performed at St. Peter’s Basilica after a man desecrated the main altar. Startled witnesses, on Friday, New Zealand time, say the man stripped off his clothes, leapt onto the high altar in the centre of the church, and stood naked apart from his shoes Read more
The Vatican, Friday, announced Cardinal John Dew’s resignation as Archbishop of Wellington last Friday. Dew (pictured right) explains “Canon law requires that bishops offer their resignation to the Holy Father when they reach 75 years of age, and yesterday I reached that age.” Pope Francis has accepted his resignation. “It is with sadness that I Read more
US Cardinal Robert McElroy is a heretic, hints a US Catholic bishop in an essay called ‘Imagining a Heretical Cardinal’. In his ‘First Things’ magazine article, conservative prelate and canon lawyer Thomas Paprocki (pictured) cites an unnamed cardinal’s views on how the Church should minister to LGBTQ people and divorced and remarried Catholics. While he Read more