The upcoming plenary meeting of the USCCB comes as the Catholic Church is on its way to being, in some ways, a “post-episcopal” Church—no longer a bishops’ Church. That will likely have a dramatic impact on how Catholicism may influence and interact with American social and political values. The situation arises from the precipitous drop Read more
The news is good, bad and ugly for Gen Z Catholics (born in the 1990s and early 2000s) in Australia, as spiritual openness leads young people towards the uncensored whirlwind of TikTok. Young Catholics are left with the two-edged sword of an exciting increase in the exploration of faith amongst peers, mixed with the risks Read more
In our Faith, we have created many names for the second person of the Trinity. They are names that reflect our adoration. Jesus is Christ our Saviour, Redeemer, Lamb of God, Word made Flesh, Prince of Peace, Fountain of all Holiness… Such names are deeply etched on our minds and hearts. If someone mentions “Sacred Read more
Hans Zollner, one of the Catholic Church’s leading figures in the effort to prevent sex abuse, has commended the French Bishops’ Conference (CEF) for revealing that 11 of its members are currently under investigation for such abuse or its cover-up. But the 56-year-old Jesuit priest, who is director of the Institute of Anthropology at the Read more
You may have seen the news: in its attempts to tackle inflation, the Reserve Bank is going to increase unemployment. The idea can even seem to come right from the mouths of experts, including the bank’s governor, Adrian Orr. Speaking recently to an industry conference, he said: “Returning to low inflation will, in the near Read more
Growing secularism among younger people is no secret. A 2019 Pew Research Center Survey of Americans aged 13 to 17 found that only 50 per cent believed religion was an important part of their lives, as opposed to 73 percent of their parents. This trend has caught the attention of the United States Conference of Read more
The image of “the pilgrim People of God” used at the Second Vatican Council (1962-65) was intended to be a biblically-rich vision to replace the vision of the Church as an “unequal hierarchical society” (societas inaequalis hierarchica). Yet few organizations have such hierarchically clear levels. The clue is in the name: the Church claims to Read more
Small island states are losing their patience with big polluting nations as they suffer the devastating impacts of climate change. Without significant movement at the forthcoming COP27 climate talks in Egypt, a pivotal vote at the next UN general assembly meeting, brought by the tiny Pacific islands of Vanuatu, could open the floodgates to international Read more
October 31 was Reformation Day. On that day in 1517 Martin Luther may or may not have nailed his 95 Theses on indulgences to the door of the Wittenberg church. He certainly did send them to the Archbishop of Mainz, thus initiating a movement that became the Protestant Reformation. When I was a schoolboy, I Read more
After years of prayerful waiting, Catholics in Indonesia’s Papua finally have what they want — a bishop from their own ranks. Nearly 70 percent or about 3 million of the total 4.3 million population of this underdeveloped province are Christians. Around 675,000 are Catholics. Additionally, there are around 90,000 Catholics in West Papua out of Read more