The Pope and his LGBTQ language were raised – and not in a good way – during an online student forum last Thursday. The forum provided an opportunity for 12 students from across the Asia-Pacific region to speak directly to Francis about their ideas and reflections about their shared social concerns. The Loyola University Chicago-organised Read more
Abortion was one topic New Zealand student Seamus Lohrey quizzed the Pope on during an online forum last Thursday. He was one of 12 students from the Asia-Pacific region who shared young people’s concerns with the Pope during the online “Building Bridges” forum. Organised by Loyola University Chicago, the forum was designed to enable Pope Read more
I am a gay priest who is publicly open about belonging to the L.G.B.T.Q. community. As a gay man, I was shocked and saddened by the Holy Father’s reported use of an offensive slur during a discussion with Italian bishops. While ostensibly justifying a policy of refusing to accept gay men into seminaries, the pope Read more
The Pope offered a global gathering – jokingly described as a ‘conclave of comedians’ – a cheerful welcome and a serious message when they met him at the Vatican last Friday. Pope Francis had invited the 107 comics, stand-up comedians and humorists to the meeting. They included Sister Act star Whoopi Goldberg and big name Read more
“Missionary Message for the Modern World” is the theme of this year’s Australian Catholic Communications Congress from 28 to 30 August in Sydney. The conference, sponsored by the Australian Catholic Bishops Conference, the Australian Catholic Media Council and the Australasian Catholic Press Association, aims to address the evolving challenges and opportunities in sharing the Gospel Read more
The Vatican press office says a document it is releasing about the papacy could have far-reaching consequences for relations between Christian churches. They say the hot-off-the-press document will be released sometime today, New Zealand time. The document Entitled “The Bishop of Rome – Primacy and Synodality in Ecumenical Discussions and Responses to the Encyclical Ut Read more
Catholics must understand financial systems in order to influence fiscal policy positively, says Pope Francis. During a meeting on 3 June with participants of a sustainable finance conference, the Pope emphasised the need for Catholic social teaching to critique, comprehend and improve financial structures. The Church’s social teaching to serve as a “compass” in this Read more
Reports concerning Pope Francis’s homophobic comment keep hitting headlines. Francis reportedly used a homophobic word when he discussed the question of gay candidates for priesthood with Italy’s bishops on May 20. The official Church position is that they should be barred from ministry if they are sexually active. Francis’s word for “sexually active” was reported Read more
The Key So much of Pope Francis’ pastoral teaching is summed up in the very first sentence of the recent Declaration on Human Dignity issued by the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith: Every human person possesses an infinite dignity, inalienably grounded in his or her being, and this dignity prevails in and beyond Read more
Like his predecessors, Pope Francis dedicates his Wednesday general audiences at the Vatican to thematic cycles. He recently devoted 20 audiences (December 2023 to May 2024) to the theme of vices and virtues. “The spiritual life of the Christian is not peaceful, linear and without challenges; on the contrary, Christian life demands constant struggle,” says Read more