A prominent bishop in the Brazilian Amazon has said there is marked disappointment in the region over the post-synodal Apostolic Exhortation Querida Amazonia. Erwin Kräutler, the bishop emeritus of Xingu in the Brazilian Amazon, expressed concern that not a word was said about opening up the Sacrament of Holy Orders to married men and ordaining Read more
Lack of prayerful discernment is the reason Pope Francis said no to the Amazon synod’s suggestion that the Catholic Church should allow priests to be married. The question of addressing a priest shortage in the Amazon by ordaining older, mature and married men (viri probati) from local communities was one of the issues raised at Read more
My wife and I, we have four children, all younger than 7. Ours is not a quiet house. A house of screaming and a house of endless snot, it’s also a house of love, grown and multiplied every few years. In a house of little sleep, my hobby these days is simply to sit down; Read more
News of George Pell’s conviction was a fitting end to a papal summit on child abuse which achieved nothing and began with other cardinals attributing the problem to homosexuals in the priesthood. The reality is that priests abuse small boys not because they are gay but because they have the opportunity. Most are not even Read more
Pope Francis this weekend will ordain eleven new priests for the Diocese of Rome. At a Mass in St Peter’s Basilica to celebrate the Fourth Sunday of Easter, otherwise known as “Good Shepherd Sunday,” the pope will also ordain five other men for two different religious orders. But only five of Rome’s 11 new priests Read more
Pope Francis, is, according to Cardinal Walter Kasper – a Swabian formerly responsible for ecumenism – neither a traditionalist nor a liberal – “both of which categories have become rather timeworn and hackneyed” – but rather a radical who wants to advance a revolution of forgiveness. Well, that’s what Christians are kind of for, even Read more
A lonely man whose heart ached for a wife and a home of his own while remaining true to his calling is the tragic portrait which Fr Brian D’Arcy reveals of himself in a powerful new documentary. The controversial Catholic cleric has laid bare his soul in what is a deeply personal and at times Read more
The vast majority of Ireland’s Catholics want married priests and women priests, reports the Independent. The finding is the result of a poll conducted by Ireland’s Association of Catholic priests (ACP) which has one of its founding members silenced and sent to a monastery for a period of reflection. The ACP claim a mandate from mass-goers Read more