During a rally in 2019, Giorgia Meloni, leader of the Brothers of Italy party, quoted G K Chesterton. The English writer, theologian and heavily-mustachioed sage seemed an unlikely choice for the climax of an impassioned oration by a tiny, fiery Italian blonde. But maybe not. Chesterton was known as the “Apostle of common sense”. “Fires will Read more
Flashes of Insight looks at the sexual abuse crisis from the perspective of restorative justice; restoring what, to whom, in what manner and with what effect. This 11 minute Flashes of Insight conversation asks whether the experience for Church ministers is an opportunity for the theology of reconciliation to grow into change. It considers restorative Read more
Sixty percent of the churches in a Catholic diocese in the Netherlands will close within the next five years. Dwindling numbers of churchgoers, volunteers and income are being being blamed. Bishop Jan Hendricks unveiled plans to around 90 parish administrators in the Haarlem-Amsterdam diocese last month. The 450-year old diocese dates back to 1559. It Read more
East Timor’s Catholics reacted with shock as well as expressions of support for revered Bishop Carlos Ximenes Belo following allegations he sexually abused boys decades ago in the Southeast Asian nation. The United Nations and advocacy groups for survivors of clergy sexual abuse are urging Pope Francis to conduct a full inquiry into who knew Read more
Pro-life National MP, Simon O’Connor is facing a re-selection challenge. In June, National Party leader Christopher Luxon denied O’Connor’s right to freedom of speech and freedom of conscience after he told the MP to remove a Facebook post concerning the overturn of Roe v Wade. “Simon O’Connor’s post was taken down because it was causing Read more
The Aotearoa New Zealand Public Media Bill (ANZPM) needs redrafting, says Auckland Catholic diocese’s Justice and Peace Commission. “Initially we saw it as creating a framework to amalgamate RNZ and TVNZ,” says Peter Garrick, a spokesperson for the group. “We had hoped the Bill would strengthen the independence of public broadcasting. Unfortunately, as drafted, the Read more
Last Sunday at Mass, the Parish Priest, a sensible, experienced man, mentioned that next week we’d have First Communion, and increased numbers of people were expected at Mass. Then he smiled and said: ‘We probably won’t see them again the following week, but that’s OK.’ I was pleased to hear that. It is of the Read more
In a speech on July 23, 2022, before the Conservative Political Action Committee, or CPAC, Sen. Ted Cruz introduced himself to the audience with the words, “My name is Ted Cruz and my pronoun is kiss my ass.” In 2019, the Vermont College of Fine Arts appealed to a different group. They replaced the term Read more
The shortest definition of religion is “interruption,” says Bishop Georg Bätzing (pictured). Some forms of continuity people seek from religion are “frankly suspect,” the president of the German Catholic Bishops’ Conference asserts. Bätzing made the comments during the bishops’ plenary assembly in a live-streamed Mass on Tuesday. In his homily he said “all too surely Read more
Preparations for a papal statement rejecting the Doctrine of Discovery are underway. Canada’s Catholic bishops’ conference (CCCB) and Vatican officials are working together on the document. They aim to create a statement rejecting an entire tradition of legal reasoning, said Jonathan Lesarge, CCCB spokesman. It is likely to address core concerns of Indigenous people in Read more