The late Cardinal John O’Connor of New York often said women who had abortions were “invincibly ignorant” — they did not understand what they were doing. He blamed the bishops for not teaching convincingly. The question of abortion may be decided politically, but the real test is if morality is taught. The Supreme Court’s decision Read more
Despite advanced age and questionable health, Pope Francis keeps up a busy schedule of activities that looks to get even busier. The past several weeks surely have been extremely frustrating for Pope Francis. First of all, his tireless and ever more urgent appeals for an end to the fighting in Ukraine, which began in late Read more
An image has been occurring to me of boats that have become unmoored. They end up on the rocks, or colliding with one another. There are features of our Western world’s culture that seem to fit the image. Important aspects of our lives seem to have become disconnected from what gives them meaning. If this Read more
Recently, a handful of American Catholic bishops have issued statements questioning whether anyone who supports abortion rights should be receiving Communion, and journalists immediately pounced: Will President Joe Biden, they wanted to know, be denied Communion by the U.S. bishops’ conference because of his pro-choice position on abortion? Journalists, here’s your answer: This is a Read more
Same-sex adoption, religious freedoms and child-abuse petitions are before Parliament at the moment. Reforming law in relation to hate speech offences is also on the agenda. If the hate speech law passes, offenders will face a larger maximum sentence than if they were found guilty of rioting, assaulting a child or providing explosives to commit Read more
Once upon a time, Arthur Miller said, “A good newspaper, I suppose, is a nation talking to itself.” These days, many media outlets are talking only to segments of the population. For the New Zealand media, 2021 has been a year of cancellations. Finance minister Grant Robertson cancelled his weekly MagicTalk interview slot with Peter Read more
Not only is the United States a divided country, but the Catholic Church in the U.S. is as divided as the nation. And the presidential election drove home that point. According to a PBS report in CathNews, VoteCast declared that 50 percent of Catholics backed Trump, while 49 percent voted for Biden. Many Catholics, like Read more
Fiji’s archbishop, Peter Loy Chong, says the church has a role in politics. People who think mixing religion with politics is wrong are ‘in denial’, he suggests. Loy Chong – who is the head of the Catholic Church in Fiji – was chief guest the opposition National Federation Party (NFP) Annual General Meeting in Suva Read more
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
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