The Vatican COVID-19 Commission says a “tsunami” of humanitarian crises is threatening world peace. These crises have been caused by the coronavirus emergency, conflict and decreased security around the globe, Vatican cardinal , Peter Turkson says. Echoing Pope Francis, Turkson is calling for a global ceasefire during the pandemic. This way, assistance can safely be Read more
A Russian court on Tuesday fined a coronavirus-denying monk who has challenged Kremlin lockdown orders for spreading false information about the pandemic. The court in the Ural Mountains region ordered Father Sergiy to pay 90,000 rubles ($1,250). The 65-year-old monk, who has attracted nationwide attention by urging followers to disobey church leadership and ignore church Read more
Pope Francis has set up a COVID-19 commission to identify what needs to be changed in the wake of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. In his view, the human person is always impacted by crises. Being better or worse after each one, he’s often said, is “up to us.” “The COVID-19 commission is trying to answer Read more
Places of worship in Ireland have been exempted from the country’s indoor gathering restrictions. The relaxation of the rules responds to Archbishop Diarmuid Martin of Dublin’s concerns about the feasibility of enforcing the restrictions. Ireland’s Phase Three set a limit of 50 people for indoor gatherings and 100 people for outdoor gatherings. In Phase Four Read more
Prince Charles has praised the “wonderful work” of religious communities during the coronavirus pandemic. The 71-year-old royal has been “so deeply struck” by the way people have demonstrated “fundamental human compassion and decency” and set differences aside to provide “vital” support to local communities. He said at a virtual multifaith conference hosted by the Commonwealth Read more
The Church in Colombia is likely to be bankrupt by August, the Archbishop of Bogota, Luis José Rueda, says. The financial crisis is a direct result of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, which has caused chaos in Colombia’s healthcare system. Rueda says “three months of zero income and 100 per cent of expenses” will cause diocesan Read more
A major victory for religious liberty has followed a federal court case. The victory occurred in the decision in Soos v. Cuomo. Federal district Judge Gary L. Sharpe has removed religious gatherings from the virtual ghetto in which Governor Cuomo, his Attorney General and New York’s Mayor Bill de Blasio had placed them under Cuomo’s Read more
The coronavirus pandemic has dramatically changed the way people live, both individually and collectively. But has it altered the way we think about the basic fabric of our lives? Not yet. I think it should, though—especially in ways that strengthen the vision of interconnected creation outlined by Pope Francis in Laudato si’. Influenced by literal Read more
Pope Francis is praising heroic medical staff and priests who contributed so greatly, often under difficult circumstances, during the coronavirus (COVID-19) lockdown. Last Saturday he welcomed Italy’s front-line medical and civil protection personnel from the coronavirus-ravaged region of Lombardy to the Vatican to thank them for their selfless work and “heroic” sacrifice. Their example of Read more
At mass on Sunday the Archbishop of Lima, Carlos Castillo, looked out over a cathedral full of faces — none of them alive. The cleric had his church filled with more than 5,000 portraits of those who have died in the pandemic that is spreading across Peru, using his broadcast homily to criticise a health Read more