“Have we, the leaders, been able to hear their suffering?” Bishop Marc Stenger of Troyes in north-central France expressed his doubts on Twitter shortly after two priests in other dioceses within the country took their own lives on August 21 and 23. These were two very different situations. In the first case, Father Jacques Amouzou Read more
In her 2004 Pulitzer-Prize winning novel “Gilead,” Marilynne Robinson sketches a portrait of the Rev. John Ames, a small- town pastor in 1950s Iowa who is humble, self-aware, compassionate and devoted to his family and his congregation, and they to him. Americans no longer hold clergy in such high regard, according to a recent poll, Read more
People who threaten priests in the Philippines may attract the wrath of their president. After calling the country’s Catholic bishops “useless fools” who should be “killed,” Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte has now warned anyone against harming priests and prelates. The president made the warning after being told that people close to his family have threatened Read more
Priests in Venezuela are a beacon of hope, providing spiritual solace is soaring as nation teeters on brink of collapse. The South American nation is facing a crippled economy amid falling oil prices, U.S. sanctions, hyperinflation and food shortages, according to a report in a diocesan paper in the United States.Read more
Communion services where a priest is not present must stop says US bishop Robert Vasa. These services are “not consistent with the Instructions from the Holy See,” he told Catholics in his diocese. He pointed to an Instruction from the Congregation for Divine Worship and Discipline of the Sacraments issued in 2004. The Instruction says Read more
Priests were among the thousands of prisoners held at Dachau concentration camp during World War II, permanent deacons and their families were told during the 2018 National Diaconate Conference in New Orleans. The priests came from from 144 dioceses and 25 countries and were about a third of the camp’s total population. Of the around Read more
Catholic priests say they will face jail rather than break the seal of confession to report child sex abuse. The priests are responding to South Australia’s decision to join the Australian Capital Territory (ACT) to create laws to force Catholic priests to break the seal of confession, to report paedophiles to police. The new laws, Read more
Pope Francis is lamenting the haemorrhaging of nuns and priests in Europe. God only knows how many seminaries, monasteries, convents and churches will close because fewer people are being called to lives of religious service, he says. Read more
Christchurch is to be the venue for the fourth national assembly of diocesan priests later this year. These assemblies, an initiative of the New Zealand Catholic Bishops Conference, happen every five years. The three previous national assemblies were in Blenheim (twice) and in Rotorua. Continue reading
The director of Oscar-nominated Lady Bird – an American comedy-drama – is being praised for the way the movie portrays nuns and priests. “It’s in many ways a love letter … to Catholic schools,” Monsignor James Murphy says. He says he is glad to see nuns and priests portrayed in a favourable light in the Read more