Pope Francis, at an emotional meeting with migrants, said on Friday he had a responsibility to tell the hard truth about the suffering of refugees, many held in conditions he compared to those in Nazi and Soviet camps. Francis, who has made defence of migrants and refugees a cornerstone of his pontificate, spoke at the Read more
Posts Tagged ‘migrants’
Conservatives and liberals called to link over life issues
Thursday, September 30th, 2021
For Catholics who put their faith first, before anything else, there is one way – above all others – to view the life and death issues facing local communities, the nation and the world: and that is, through the lens of the Gospel and Catholic social teaching! But instead, it clearly appears that more often Read more
The beginning of the end of the Francis papacy
Thursday, July 15th, 2021
Pope Francis seems to be recovering nicely from his July 4 surgery, when the 84-year-old pontiff underwent a three-hour procedure for diverticular stenosis. But even with the best prognosis, age is catching up to Francis. Barring a miracle, he will only be expected to continue as pope for five or six years. We may look Read more
Caritas’ solidarity walking campaign makes strides
Thursday, June 17th, 2021
In four years participants in a Caritas campaign have logged about 600,000km in symbolic solidarity walks with migrants and refugees. The global “Share the Journey” campaign aims to build “bridges of hope between islands separated by fear,” says Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle, president of Caritas Internationalis. Although the campaign has formally ended, its message continues. Read more
Focus on what is necessary rather than pious denials
Thursday, February 25th, 2021
A New Zealand religious leader is calling on members of his congregation to focus on what is necessary for life rather than being caught up with pious denials; particularly during Lent. He says he was cheered by a recent reading at Mass where a group is bewailing the fact that their “good deeds” go unnoticed Read more
Fratelli Tutti – Summary of Francis Encyclical – on the fraternity and social friendship
Monday, October 5th, 2020
Pope Francis Social Encyclical: ‘Fratelli Tutti’ was launched at the Vatican, Sunday 4 October, 2020. The document focuses on fraternity and social friendship as the ways to build a better, more just and peaceful world – with the contribution of all: people and institutions. The official summary follows, with a link to download the full Read more
Fratelli Tutti: Francis explores fraternity and social friendship
Monday, October 5th, 2020
October 4, Pope Francis signed his new encyclical, Fratelli Tutti during a visit to Assisi. The encyclical calls for a new kind of politics and emphasises social friendship as a way to build a more just and peaceful world. It encourages the contribution of all people and institutions and seeks to build a global movement Read more
One thing in New Zealand you can’t get away from – racism
Thursday, December 5th, 2019
A cartoon about the Samoa measles epidemic has led some to ask if much has changed in New Zealand. New Zealand does not have a great track record in its relationship with Samoa: The influenza epidemic killed over 22% of Samoa’s population in 1918, a disease that was introduced to Samoa by sick passengers on board a ship from Read more
Get artistic and creative to show support for migrants and refugees
Monday, September 30th, 2019Calling us to create a ‘culture of encounter,’ Pope Francis asks us to reach out with open arms to migrants and refugees around the world and in our communities. In 2017, the Pontiff launched Caritas’ Share the Journey (STJ) international campaign from St Peter’s Square in Rome. Last Sunday marked the launch of a key Read more
The heartbreak behind our visa backlog
Monday, July 29th, 2019New figures show the government has slashed resident visa numbers to the lowest seen in the last two decades. The decrease in resident numbers in the last year is largely because of delays in processing. “It’s not clear whether that is part of the way they’re bringing the numbers down because they have a target Read more