As a somewhat old-fashioned, traditional type, I welcomed the engaging presence and comment of Dame Lyndsay Freer to my radio and TV during the recent papal conclave. Long before the advent of television, St Thomas Aquinas said, “faith comes from hearing“, and the Catholic Church in New Zealand, once again, at least for a limited Read more
The election of Cardinal Jorge Mario Borgiglio was a surprising outcome, and even if Bergoglio suspected something was up, few others did, including many of the cardinals in the Sistine Chapel with him. “I think it all came together in an extraordinary fashion,” Chicago Cardinal Francis George told the Chicago Tribune. George said Bergoglio’s name Read more
Born in Argentina, Pope Francis is the first Latin American to lead the Roman Catholic Church, as well as the first Jesuit. “It seems my brother cardinals went almost to the end of the world [to choose a pope],” he told the crowd in St Peter’s Square in his first address, a joke which belied Read more
The election of a new pope is always an exciting moment for the Church and the world. After weeks of uncertainty, it seems there is good reason to celebrate the election of Pope Francis I, and to congratulate and offer support to him in the immense task ahead. The excitement of the election of a Read more
In these last lead-up days to the Conclave, some Cardinals have voiced their opinion on the state of the Church and the qualities required in a leader of the Church for the coming years. The point of view of one voting Cardinal which wasn’t expressed in these days, but was reported at the Synod of Read more
I’ve lived for fifteen years in Rome – though not consecutively. But I’ve had the rather unique experience of being in Rome for the passing of four popes: Paul VI, John Paul I, John Paul II and now Benedict XVI. The atmosphere at each of these moments could not be more different. Paul VI’s funeral Read more