WASHINGTON - Canon law – the legal rules that guide church operations and decision-making – allows a local bishop to close any parish as long as his decision is made with the best interests of the entire diocese in mind.Read More
VATICAN CITY – A small article in the Vatican’s missionary newsletter, Fides, recently announced the first diocesan-wide meeting of the Kaifeng Diocese in China’s Henan province.Read More
VIENNA – Large reductions in funding for AIDS work around the world are putting at risk the lives of people who depend on faith-based organizations for care, treatment and support, warned Catholic activists and others participating in the XVIII International AIDS Conference.Read More
Just as Sean Costello (CR, June 24) “Veteran displeased with Magliano” was displeased with Tony Magliano’s column, I am displeased with his letter. Contrary to what Costello states, the majority of American taxpayers are weary of our nine years in Afghanistan. Killing innocent civilians and getting ourselves killed and wounded have not as yet produced...Read More
The Liturgy of the Word is composed of readings from sacred Scripture, the Homily, the Creed and the Prayer of the Faithful. The readings are not merely stories of long-ago events. In the readings, God speaks. God’s speech is not like ours; for God to speak is to reveal who God is. God speaks the...Read More
HARTFORD, Conn. – Hartford archdiocesan officials said they were “deeply saddened” by the “profound effect” on a Waterbury parish of the July 6 arrest of its former pastor on charges he stole $1.3 million of the church’s money over a seven-year period.Read More
WASHINGTON – Requiring personnel in military hospitals to perform or participate in abortions would place “a very heavy burden” on those in the armed forces who value human life, Archbishop Timothy P. Broglio of the U.S. Archdiocese for the Military Services told U.S. senators.Read More
VATICAN CITY - In a strongly worded statement, the Vatican expressed surprise and indignation at the way Belgian police carried out a raid on the headquarters of the Belgian Catholic Church in connection with an investigation into alleged priestly sex abuse.Read More
WASHINGTON – The U.S. bishops publicly expressed their “heartfelt prayers and pastoral solidarity with all those affected by the oil that continues to leak into the Gulf of Mexico.”Read More
Last Thursday, the committee formed to create a strategic plan for the future of Catholic schools, the Blue Ribbon Committee on Catholic Schools, issued to me its 56 recommendations for assuring the long-term sustainability and growth of our Catholic school system.Read More