Lent is a time to ask for God’s grace to chip away at hypocrisy, which is seen in the natural human attempt to appear “worthier than we are,” Pope Francis said. “I must appear to be what I am, and that is our work in Lent,” the pope said March 8 during his early morning Read more
As we move into Lent, the Church draws us inexorably towards Jesus’ last days. It is a solemn journey. I used to see the passion as dramatic crime involving evil plotting against an innocent man. Pharisees, Sadducees, Judas, Pilate, Herod, a hysterical crowd, they were all villains. There were a few goodies amongst the baddies Read more
At first sight there may not appear to be a great deal in common between director Ken Loach’s powerful movie, set in Newcastle in England, and the early Marist missions in the Bugey region of France. But while they are separated by 853 miles and 190 years, it is not too fanciful to suggest that Read more
Australians with a modicum of curiosity might well ask what’s been going on. Cardinal George Pell, an Australian who is one of the most senior people in the hierarchy of the Catholic church, was found guilty in December and no one till now has been allowed to know the details of the charges against him, Read more
I can’t be the only Catholic sickened or shocked by this seemingly endless crisis. But if I could speak to the senior bishops gathered in Rome this weekend, I’d say that counsels to simply lift and shift current secular practice are not the answer. Historians are beginning to point out that secular practice to address Read more
News of George Pell’s conviction was a fitting end to a papal summit on child abuse which achieved nothing and began with other cardinals attributing the problem to homosexuals in the priesthood. The reality is that priests abuse small boys not because they are gay but because they have the opportunity. Most are not even Read more
Geoffrey Robertson is a respected authority on the law. However, in putting forth his beliefs about the psychology of paedophile priests, he has ventured outside his area of expertise (“‘Give me the boy at seven’ … look where that led us”, March 2-3.) As a clinical psychologist who has spent over 33 years treating adult Read more
The world now knows Cardinal George Pell was convicted in December of child sexual abuse. Lamentable as that is, the question on many Catholics’ minds is how did he reach such a position of eminence in the Catholic Church? La Croix International’s commentator Eric Hodgens has told the story of his rise in Australia and Read more
Organizers of the recent Vatican “summit” on the protection of minors, and a number of the bishops who attended it, are trying to assure the world that the four-day meeting brought about a “change of heart” in the Church’s leaders, especially those who — up to now — have underestimated the clergy sex abuse crisis. Read more
Having one’s body composted after death and turned into about 1 cubic foot of soil could soon be an option for Washington state residents. The approach, called recomposition, is currently being discussed by lawmakers and, if approved, could become a legal third option for after-death care by 2020. “A lot of people might be reluctant Read more