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
The archbishop of Wellington Cardinal John Dew said consideration must be given to the Covid-19 level 4 regulations when practising pastoral care. He said there is a need to be pastorally close to the sick person and their family but not risk further virus transmission. “The regulations around movement are to absolutely minimise the possibility Read more
Pope Francis has made a key appointment that signals he wants a pastoral voice to be involved in the selection of bishops. The Pope has appointed Chicago’s Archbishop Blase Cupich to the Congregation for Bishops. Archbishop Cupich replaces the late Cardinal Francis George on the congregation. Continue reading
Pope Francis, on his recent tour of Mexico and the United States, said priests and bishops must be servants of the people. They should not regard their calling as a career in which to seek advancement and notice. As he spoke, a bishop who personified this ideal was dying, in far-off Christchurch, New Zealand. Bishop Barry Jones was Read more
An Australian archbishop has called for a new pastoral creativity, not an all-or-nothing approach, to families in situations the Church sees as problematic. Speaking a news conference at the synod on the family, Archbishop Mark Coleridge of Brisbane said he was concerned an “all-or-nothing” approach tended to dominate discussions before and, at times, during the Read more
Urging the hierarchy to be more pastoral than administrative, Pope Francis has said bishops should ask whether they and their priests are serving “the People of God as a whole” rather than “the Church as an organisation”. The Pope was speaking in Rio de Janeiro to the co-ordinating committee of the Latin American Bishops’ Council Read more
The Archbishop of Suva, Peter Chong, says the church is faced with a dual commitment and faithfulness. The church has to be faithful to the church’s scripture, tradition, and teachings while at the same time being faithful when attending to the questions, problems and needs of the community. He argues this dual commitment can be Read more