SAN FRANCISCO – Look past the “inflammatory rhetoric” of the immigration debate to the root of the issue, urged Jesuit Father Stephen Privett, president of the University of San Francisco, in a Feb. 27 lecture at St. Rita Parish in Fairfax. “We will never resolve the issue of immigration if we do not address its...Read More
As friends of Miki Hill, the president of Catholic Family EXPO, Kelly and David Updike had annually circled her event on their summer schedules.Read More
Though Father Joseph G. Bochenek finds everlasting solace in his Catholic faith, the 62-year-old pastor of St. Brigid, Canton, has discovered the four hours of karate he studies each week keeps him nimble and in top form. A fan of Eastern disciplines, Father Bochenek joins 20 other disciples in a basement martial arts studio in...Read More
This past August, an Associated Press-Univision poll found that “younger Latinos, as well as those who speak more English than Spanish, are much less likely to identify as Catholics than older Hispanics who mostly speak Spanish.” The article affirmed a highly visible reality among our Latino youths across the country. However, seeing the data was...Read More
COLOGNE, Germany – Remarks made by German bishops during a recent visit to the West Bank have caused a storm of reaction from Jewish leaders in Germany. The Central Council of Jews in Germany and the Israeli Embassy responded angrily to comments by Bishop Gregor Hanke of Eichstaett, who compared the situation of Palestinians in...Read More
LONDON – In a personal meeting with five victims of clerical sexual abuse, Pope Benedict XVI expressed his “deep sorrow and shame” over their suffering and promised the church would do “all in its power” to investigate cases of abuse and safeguard the young.Read More
SYDNEY, Australia – Australia has taken charge of the World Youth Day cross and Marian icon, symbols of the world’s largest youth event which have traveled tens of thousands of miles around the world. The cross and icon left Madagascar in February for Korea, where Australia’s stewardship began and will continue until the end of...Read More
ABOARD THE PAPAL FLIGHT TO SCOTLAND – En route to Great Britain for a four-day visit, Pope Benedict XVI offered a strongly worded analysis of the priestly sex abuse crisis, saying the church was not vigilant enough or fast enough in responding to the problem.Read More
LONDON – A British Catholic aid agency has demanded that charges are dropped against a British activist who was arrested in Angola. Sarah Wykes, who works for the nongovernmental organization Global Witness, was taken from her hotel Feb. 18 by armed police in the oil-rich province of Cabinda and imprisoned amid accusations of espionage. She...Read More
WASHINGTON – After a quarter-century as head of an organization working to change the Catholic Church’s stand on abortion, Frances Kissling is stepping down as president of Catholics for a Free Choice. Ms. Kissling and others describe Catholics for a Free Choice, which supports legal abortion, as a “church reform group.”Read More