I first met Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger in 1994 when I was researching my book “Inside the Vatican: The Politics and Organization of the Catholic Church.” I was getting ready to leave Rome and he was one of the last and most important interviews for the book. Because of illness, he had to cancel our first Read more
As if the COVID-19 pandemic has not been testing enough, modern life has never seemed more difficult than it does at present. We are bombarded on all sides by masses of information, misinformation, expert opinions, and the relentless, strident voices of social media browbeating us into accepting the dogmatic conclusions of leading influencers. Amongst the Read more
By now we should have adjusted to the idea and talk of a synodal Church and the meeting of a Synod of Bishops to discuss synodality. Pope Francis dropped the proposal out of the blue, really, last October, although he had been hinting at the notion for years. We have a date and place, critical Read more
It was a little over five years ago when one of us, we are not sure who (the origin story remains disputed, and given it was set in a bar over drinks, it is likely to remain unresolved), uttered the words that everyone in media has at least thought to themselves in the past 10 Read more
Dear Pope Francis, ‘The purpose of the Synod, and therefore of this consultation, is not to produce documents, but to plant dreams, draw forth prophecies and visions, allow hope to flourish, inspire trust, bind up wounds, weave together relationships, awaken a dawn of hope, learn from one another, create a bright resourcefulness that will enlightened Read more
Father Jean-Luc Gebelin leads a cluster of parishes in a large rural area of the Diocese of Nîmes in Southern France. He explained to Mélinée Le Priol how he embraced a more collaborative view of ministry and being Church through the parish missions carried out by visiting religious order priests. La Croix: Your parish extends Read more
Over the past week, Australians have heard Scott Morrison make several explicit references to his faith. Given Morrison has placed his faith front and centre of his public persona, it is helpful to try to understand how he perceives his faith and how it might intersect with his job as prime minister. For me, Morrison’s Read more
We live in a world where, sadly, abusive behaviour is rife. Whether it be physical, sexual, emotional, psychological, or any other form of abuse, it needs to be called out at every level. It is usually perpetrated by men against women, precisely because they can. Physical strength, the male combative nature and patriarchal cultures all Read more
The so-called Safe Areas Bill will have its second reading in Parliament today. (Written on 15 February) It’s a brazen attack on freedom of speech and the right to protest, made more offensive by the fact that some of the MPs who support it cut their political teeth exercising that same right. The Bill, sponsored Read more
Some people today define “grace” as “God’s riches at Christ’s expense.” Others gloss it as “unconditional gift” or “undeserved favour.” Still others prefer to see it as God’s favourable disposition toward his people. However, the word grace in the New Testament (Greek charis) simply means “gift.” The content of the gift is determined by its Read more