In Rome, one of Jorge Mario Bergoglio’s first acts as Pope Francis was to call his newsdealer back home in Buenos Aires and cancel his daily delivery. In New York, the Rev. Matt Malone seemed reasonably confident that a similar papal ax would not fall on America, the venerable Jesuit weekly that he edits. “I know for a Read more
Gonzaga University, a Jesuit-run university in Washington state, has refused to recognise the Knights of Columbus as a student organisation because its membership is solely Catholic and solely male. “These criteria are inconsistent with the policy and practice of student organisation recognition at Gonzaga University, as well as the university’s commitment to non-discrimination based on Read more
While everyone agrees that the election of Jorge Mario Bergoglio as Pope Francis is unprecedented in many ways, it is not entirely a surprise. He was runner up to Joseph Ratzinger in the 2005 Conclave that saw him elected as Pope Benedict XVI. Bergoglio is the first Jesuit, first Latin American and first Pope from Read more
An elderly Jesuit priest in the United States has been suspended from his priestly faculties after he joined in a liturgical celebration with a woman who claims to be a Catholic priest. The Jesuit suspended, Father Bill Brennan, 92, said the superior of his religious community in Milwaukee told him the restrictions were at the Read more
As the world’s oldest full-time teacher, Sydney priest Geoffrey Schneider knows a thing or two about how to bring the best out of students. The secret, according to the 99-year-old, is “a mountain of patience”. “If things are going wrong, don’t start shouting. Just proceed quietly and things will settle down eventually,” said Father Schneider, Read more
Syria has expelled an Italian Jesuit priest for his outspoken criticism of the government’s crackdown on a popular uprising. The Rev. Paolo Dall’Oglio has lived in Syria for 30 years, helping to restore a 1,000-year-old monastery that became a center for Muslim and Christian understanding. Dall’Oglio’s departure from Damascus on Saturday was sudden. More than Read more
Commemorations of the sinking of the Titanic 100 years ago will put the spotlight on a young Irish priest whose photographs are some of the only surviving images of life onboard the liner on its first and last voyage. Jesuit Father Frank Browne, 1880-1960, became a prominent documentary photographer and a much-decorated chaplain in the Read more
Italian Jesuit Father Paolo dall’Oglio confirms that he may be expelled from Syria. International news media have reported that the founder of the monastic community at Deir Mar Musa al-Habachi, near Nabak, has been notified by authorities to quit the nation he has called home for 30 years.
Fr. Dall’Oglio is a renowned promoter of dialogue between Christians and Muslims and has been engaged in efforts for internal reconciliation, particularly in the current crisis.
Read the article...Pope Benedict XVI beatified the Catholic Church’s three newest saints during a mass in St. Peter’s Square at the Vatican on Sunday.
One of them, Saint Guido Maria Conforti of Parma was born in 1865 and died in 1931. He was afflicted by epilepsy and sleepwalking and, as a result, was rejected by the Jesuit and Salesian orders.
He eventually became a bishop for the Shrine of Our Lady of the Rosary in Fontanellato, Italy. Then, after rising through the hierarchy of the Italian Church with the approval of Popes Pius X and Benedict XV, he founded the Missionary Union of the Clergy.
Read the article...El Salvador’s Supreme Court has refused to order the detention of five former military officers indicted in Spain for the 1989 slayings of six Jesuit priests during the Central American country’s 1980-1992 civil war.
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