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Shun relativism, defend life and marriage, Pope urges European legislators
In a September 8 audience, Pope Benedict called upon members of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe to shun relativism and defend life, marriage, and religious and ...

Vietnam: thousands of Catholics defy government, gather to pray in homes
An estimated 4,000 Vietnamese Catholics in three northwestern provinces are defying local government bans on public religious activities and are gathering to pray in homes. "I am very ...

Sri Lanka: priests, nuns protest proposed constitutional change
Priests and nuns demonstrated in Sri Lanka's capital on September 8 against a proposed constitutional amendment that would abolish presidential term limits, allowing President Mahinda ...

Missionary questions motives of UN report on Congo rapes
A missionary whose name was not reported for safety reasons has questioned the motives behind a United Nations report on over 500 recent rapes by members of armed groups in the eastern ...

Catholic shot in front of church in Pakistan
A Catholic layman in Karachi, Pakistan's largest city, was shot in front of his parish on September 6. It is unclear whether Asghar Bhatti, 61, was deliberately targeted or whether the ...

Church in India marks 'girl-child day' to counter female infanticide
In the western Indian state of Gujarat-- where the ratio is 883 girls for every 1,000 boys-- a man was arrested after throwing his newborn daughter into a gutter on September 2. Narottam ...

US bishops find young, vibrant Church in Ghana
When two US bishops recently visited Ghana, they found that the Church there is characterized by "youthfulness, energy, and a zest for life," said Auxiliary Bishop Martin Holley of ...

Hong Kong cardinal criticizes Vatican congregation, warns of Communist persecution
Communist China continues to persecute bishops who are faithful to the Pope, even when they have received government recognition, the retired bishop of Hong Kong said in an article ...

Qu'ran-burning is 'outrageous' gesture, Vatican says
The Vatican has issued a strong statement condemning the "Burn a Koran Day" organized by a fundamentalist group in Florida. Noting that the observance is scheduled for September 11, ...

Cardinal McCarrick, US bishops' official denounce bigotry against Islam
A cardinal, a US bishops' conference official, and 32 other religious leaders issued a statement on September 7 denouncing "categorically the derision, misinformation and outright bigotry ...

Belgian cardinal admits he should have demanded resignation of abuser-bishop
Belgian Cardinal Godfried Danneels conceded that he had made mistakes in his handling of sex-abuse allegations, and should have demanded the immediate resignation of a bishop who had ...

Pope, at audience, speaks on feminine insights of St. Hildegard of Bingen
At his weekly public audience on September 8, Pope Benedict XVI continued his reflections on the contributions that women have made to Catholic theology, and particularly the influence of ...

Preparing for visit, Pope sends message to United Kingdom
Eight days before his scheduled arrival in the United Kingdom, Pope Benedict XVI released a message to the people of that nation. During his regular public audience on September 8, the ...

US government, military leaders warn against Qur'an burning
A Florida Protestant minister's plan to burn copies of the Qur'an on September 11 has drawn condemnation from US government and military leaders. Rev. Terry Jones of the Dove World ...

Judge rejects Obama administration's request to lift stem-cell funding ban
A federal judge on September 7 rejected the Obama administration's request to lift his temporary ban on federal funding of embryonic stem-cell research. "In this Court's view, a stay ...

Panel of experts recruited to find ways to conserve Sistine Chapel frescoes
The director of the Sistine Chapel has set up a panel of international experts to propose methods of conserving the frescoes in the Sistine Chapel, without restricting access for ...

Sweden recognizes 1st Catholic university since 1400s
In a message published September 7, Pope Benedict expressed his hopes that Sweden's first new Catholic university since the Middle Ages will be characterized by "the illustrious tradition ...

Mozart's music testifies to his faith, Pope says
After a performance of Mozart's Requiem at the papal summer residence on September 7, Pope Benedict XVI said that the work is "an exalted expression of faith." Speaking at the ...

Poverty programs should stress jobs, not 'dole-outs,' Filipino nuns argue
Missionary nuns in the Philippines have denounced an anti-poverty program that provides cash payments to needy families, saying that handouts do not solve the problem of poverty. "The ...

1,500 attend consecration of new parish in China
Two bishops, joined by 40 priests and 1,500 faithful, attended the solemn consecration of the Parish of Jesus the Good Shepherd in the Diocese of Baotou on September 1. Both bishops were ...

Austrian abortion clinic employees caught on tape assaulting pro-lifers
In Vienna, Austria, abortionist Christian Fiala admits hiring people to harass and intimidate pro-lifers outside the clinic. Several physical assaults have been captured on videotape, but ...

'Telemed' abortions being done illegally in Iowa?
An editorial in the Des Moines Register supports the "telemed" abortions that are being performed in Iowa, and says that state laws should be changed to accommodate the practice. As ...

Sri Lankan archbishop draws famous speakers for convention on liturgy
Archbishop Malcom Ranjith of Colombo, Sri Lanka--the former secretary of the Congregation for Divine Worship--has embarked on a determined effort to stimulate reverence for the Eucharist. ...

British TV documentary on Pope will be a 'hachet job,' columnist reports
Having seen an advance screening of a British television documentary on Pope Benedict XVI, columnist Damian Thompson of the Daily Telegraph reports that the show is such a heavy-handed ...

Bishop defends social justice against critics
A Connecticut bishop has defended the concept of social justice against critics who "have been telling Catholics to eliminate the term 'social justice' from any organization that speaks on ...

Author's absurd claim: canon law protects priests from abuse trials
Geoffrey Robertson, a human-rights lawyer and former UN judge, is generating publicity in Great Britain with his argument that the Vatican is using its sovereign status to shield priests ...

Vocations are plentiful for some dioceses, religious communities
Writing for the National Catholic Register, Tim Drake singles out dioceses and religious communities that are reaping a harvest of vocations. A quibble: the title of the story refers to ...

Italian journalist predicts consistory, new cardinals, in November
An Italian journalist covering the Vatican has reported that Pope Benedict XVI will call a consistory for November of this year to raise new members to the College of Cardinals. Marco ...

Pope will use Latin in liturgies during visit to Great Britain
During his visit to Great Britain, Pope Benedict XVI will use Latin in celebrating Mass "to emphasize the universality of the faith and the continuity of the Church," the director of papal ...

Russia's Catholic bishops 'interested in strong Orthodoxy'
Cooperation with the Russian Orthodox Church is necessary for the growth of Catholicism in Russia, according to the secretary general of the Conference of Russian Catholic Bishops. "The ...

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