The guidelines, Pastoral Standards and Safe Practices in the Conduct of Ministry, sent to every bishop, secular and religious priest and deacon, set out how to guard against abuse and recognise it when it occurs.

"Our Lord declares that one of the gravest sins is to cause one of his ‘little ones' to stumble, to cause them to lose faith. The sexual abuse of a child or an adult at risk constitutes this gravest of sins," the document states.

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"As one who has been a lifelong champion of the spiritual in everyday life, to promote understanding between faiths, and who has sought to alleviate poverty and disadvantage through his charitable work, the Prince of Wales is particularly qualified to mark the canonisation which will be such a significant and joyful moment for this country," a statement from Clarence House says.

Newman, who lived from 1801 to 1890, was a prominent member of the Oxford Movement in the Anglican church.

This movement advocated reintroducing older practices into worship.

Initially an Anglican priest, Newman converted to Catholicism in 1845.

He became a Catholic priest soon after and was created a cardinal by Leo XIII in 1879.

His hymns, poetry and theology have made a global contribution to the canon of Church.

He was also known for his work with poor communities.

When he died at the age of 89, more than 15,000 people lined the streets of Birmingham for his funeral.

Newman was beatified by Pope Benedict XVI in Birmingham during the pope's 2010 visit to the United Kingdom.

He will be the first English saint since the Forty Martyrs were canonized in 1970, and the first British saint since Scottish St. John Ogilvie in 1976.

Cardinal Vincent Nichols, who is the Archbishop of Westminster and president of the Catholic Bishops' Conference of England and Wales, says he is "delighted" Prince Charles will be at the canonisation ceremony.

"Cardinal Newman's exploration of faith, depth of personal courage, intellectual clarity and cultural sensitivity make him a deeply admired follower of Christ.

"His ministry, especially among the poor, is a permanent sign of the Church's pastoral compassion and a challenge to us all today."

While the Prince of Wales has confirmed his attendance, the British Government has yet to announce who will be representing them at the canonisation.

Source

• The Tablet
• Crux Now
• Image: Catholic World Report

In a move that seemed to put him at odds with the Catholic Church, on November 26 Nichols said, "As a Church we are very committed to the notion of equality so that people are treated the same across all the activities of life."

"The Church holds great store by the value of commitment in relationships and undertakings that people give. Stability in society depends upon the reliability of commitments that people give. That might be in offering to do a job but especially in their relationships with one another. Equality and commitment are both very important and we fully support them."

While also saying he was "very disappointed" with the government's plans to move in the direction of legalising homosexual "marriage," it did not stop Catholics from criticising his initial statement.

Responding to the Catholic criticism, Nichols says he was simply trying to defend the "profound human good" of traditional marriage.

"We've got to find the ways of speaking to people about the positive values of marriage as it's always been understood, while not getting boxed off by somehow being accused of being homophobic," Nichols told CNA.

Nichols clarified that he was not saying marriage and civil relationships were equal.

"We would want to emphasise that civil partnerships actually provide a structure in which people of the same sex who want a lifelong relationship [and] a lifelong partnership can find their place and protection and legal provision."

"The convictions about marriage mean that this is not something that the Church has invented nor the State has invented. And therefore it is not, as it were, at the disposal of the Church nor the State, if you like, to change," he said.

The Church believes that marriage is "part of what is best in human nature," he added.

"I respect the Prime Minister's insistence and emphasis on the importance of equality in relationships and the vital importance of commitment. Those are things that we recognise as very important to the health of society."

"But commitment plus equality does not equal marriage," he said.

"The distinctive nature of marriage is something that is very important to the well-being of society because it is the foundation of family life as we know it and as it experienced by the vast majority of people."

Sources

• Lifesite News
• CNA
• Image: The Guardian

It is the closest a Catholic bishop in England and Wales has come to criticising the Coalition's austerity measures.

Writing in the New Statesman, Dr Rowan Williams questioned the morality of David Cameron's Conservative party's policies on welfare reform.

Dr Williams attacked changes in the National Health Service and education which he said had left people "baffled and indignant".

He labelled Cameron's "Big Society" as "painfully stale" and something that is viewed with "widespread suspicion".

"With remarkable speed, we are being committed to radical, long-term policies for which no one voted. At the very least, there is an understandable anxiety about what democracy means in such a context," Williams wrote.

"The anxiety and anger have to do with the feeling that not enough has been exposed to proper public argument."

On welfare reform, he said there had been "a quiet resurgence of the seductive language of 'deserving' and 'undeserving' poor" combined with a "steady pressure to increase what look like punitive responses to alleged abuses of the system."

"The Government badly needs to hear just how much plain fear there is around."

An angry PM hit back swiftly at Williams claiming that Jesus would back his "Big Society" plans.

Speaking from Ireland, Cameron said he agreed that the Archbishop was free to express his political views and that the Church is entitled to make political interventions.

However the PM also said he profoundly disagrees with many of the views that the Archbishop expressed, ­particularly on issues like debt and welfare and education.

"I don't think it is good or right for people and our country if we just give up on paying down our debt and just pass that down to our children."

"I don't see anything good or even moral in that approach. I don't think it is good or right for us to pay people to stay on welfare, trapped in poverty, when we should be trying to get them a job."

Catholic support of "Big Society" being tested

Archbishop Vincent Nichols of Westminster, the nation's leading Catholic bishop, has praised Cameron for putting marriage and family stability at the centre of policy-making.

Having previously spoken of the "genuine moral agenda" driving the Government's the "Big Society," as an opportunity to build a stronger society, he fears communities hit by the economic downturn will suffer if they don't get support.

Nichols accused the Government of washing its hands of responsibilities to communities and expecting volunteers to fill the gap.

"It is all very well to deliver speeches about the need for greater voluntary activity, but there needs to be some practical solutions," he said.

"At the moment the Big Society is lacking a cutting edge. It has no teeth."

"Devolving greater power to local authorities should not be used as a cloak for masking central cuts," Archbishop Nichols warned.

"It is not sufficient for the Government, in its localism programme, simply to step back from social need and say this is a local issue."

"We're now at a very critical point, with the philosophy of the Big Society getting clearer, but on the other hand the effects of the cuts are becoming real and there's real pressure about what will happen on the ground," said Archbishop Nichols.

Sources

• The Telegraph
• Press Association
• Catholic Herald
• Sky News
• The Guardian
• Image: Mirror