Pope Francis’s exhortation “Amoris Laetitia; On Love in the Family,” which is scheduled to be released on April 8, will be a call to “dialogue,” according to a “reading guide” released by the Vatican. The guide, issued by the Vatican’s office for the Synod of Bishops, says that the exhortation will be “first and foremost Read more
New rules have been made for the way the Methodist, Anglican and Catholic Churches in New Zealand work towards Christian unity. Cardinal John Dew attended the Forum for National Dialogue for Christian Unity, where the rules were formally accepted. A celebration of prayer followed afterwards. Continue reading
Pope Francis has hailed the “courage” shown by United States bishops in facing up to the clergy sex abuse crisis. Speaking to about 400 bishops in Washington, DC, on September 23, the Pope said the bishops had regained the authority and trust which was demanded of them. He also praised the bishops for being ready Read more
Asian theologians have been taken to task by one of their own for being locked into a classical Western moral theology framework. Sri Lankan Redemptorist Fr Vimal Tirimanna told the first pan-Asian conference of Catholic moral theologians, held in Bangalore, India, last month, that fresh approaches are required. Theologians have failed to take seriously indications Read more
Dublin’s archbishop is worried that some Catholics are retreating from dialogue with the present into the false security of imaginary better times. In a speech, Archbishop Dairmuid Martin said while the Church in Ireland would never be what it was 20 or even 10 years ago, things were improving. “But the moment I say that Read more
Religious leaders risk fuelling extremism by pretending that all faiths are basically the same, the Archbishop of Canterbury has warned. The Telegraph reported Archbishop Justin Welby saying faith leaders seemed desperate to hide behind “bland” and “anaemic” statements about what they have in common. This is instead of facing up to the “profound differences” between Read more
The French government has proposed a plan for dialogue with Muslims which is based on a model it uses to liaise with the Catholic Church. The plan would promote an Islam “faithful to the values of the republic”. The official council of French Muslims has been unable to deal with the challenges presented by Islamist Read more
Pope Francis said while dialogue with the Islamic State may seem a long way off, he would never close the door. Admitting dialogue with the likes of the Islamic State may seem impossible, the Holy Father replied, “I never count anything as lost. Never. Never close the door. It’s difficult, you could say almost impossible, but the Read more
Emeritus Pope Benedict XVI has warned against relativistic ideas of religious truth as being “lethal to faith”. The retired pontiff sent a written message of 1800 words to Rome’s Pontifical Urbanian University, where a lecture hall was recently dedicated to him. “The risen Lord instructed his apostles, and through them his disciples in all ages, Read more
255. The Synod Fathers spoke of the importance of respect for religious freedom, viewed as a fundamental human right.[202]This includes “the freedom to choose the religion which one judges to be true and to manifest one’s beliefs in public”.[203] A healthy pluralism, one which genuinely respects differences and values them as such, does not entail Read more