Pope Francis has stated that the Catholic Church remains “still too Eurocentric” and urges a broader focus on regions like Southeast Asia and Oceania. Speaking at St Peter’s Square on 18 September, the Pope said the Church is “more alive” in areas like Indonesia, Papua New Guinea, East Timor and Singapore. The pontiff emphasised the Read more
Pope Francis concluded his three-day visit to Singapore on Friday with a powerful message of unity. The pope set aside his prepared text during his address and spoke candidly to the audience. Using an analogy, Francis said “All religions are a path trying to reach God”. “They are like different languages in order to arrive Read more
Singapore’s parliament passed a law on Monday that could jail “dangerous” sex offenders and violent criminals indefinitely. The “Sentence for Enhanced Public Protection” (SEPP) aims to keep convicts who show signs that they might re-offend behind bars, even after their jail terms have ended. The legislation will apply to offenders convicted of serious violent or Read more
Authorities said Singapore hanged two drug traffickers on Friday, despite international calls for the city-state to abolish capital punishment. This brings the number of prisoners executed in the last four months to 10. The spate of hangings included, in April, the widely criticised execution of a man with limited cognitive function. It came after Singapore Read more
Singapore is trying a new way to get its residents to stay away from each other. On Friday, the government announced it would start deploying Spot, Boston Dynamics’ famous yellow and black canine robot, at one local park. The four-legged robot “dog” will patrol the area starting this weekend and broadcast a pre-recorded message to Read more
Singapore’s government is often praised, domestically and internationally, for its planning and foresight — and, in the past few months, particularly for its response to the coronavirus pandemic. But recent developments have demonstrated that you can’t have the foresight for things you refuse to see. A sharp increase in COVID-19 cases among the country’s migrant Read more
Coronavirus and the threat of its spreading through populations is resulting in many religious leaders cancelling services and suggesting the faithful follow services online. There will be no masses in Hong Kong before the end of this month, while in Singapore masses have been suspended until further notice. Similarly, the Churches are suspending large public Read more
Problem gambling has led the Catholic Church to urge Singapore’s Government to “continually review” measures to minimise online gambling’s ill effects. The Catholic Church, along with the National Council of Churches in Singapore said it is “deeply concerned” that the Government is sending “confusing and conflicting signals” with the partial lifting of the ban on Read more
Singapore’s Catholic archbishop has expressed the local Church’s “grave concerns” at an upcoming concert by Madonna. In a statement released on February 20, Archbishop William Goh reminded Catholics of their “moral obligation not to support those who denigrate and insult religions . . .”. Archbishop Goh added that “‘pseudo arts that promote sensuality, rebellion, disrespect, Read more