Evangelization has many faces say, Father Mike Mahoney, the parish priest of South Westland. Franz Josef is part of the parish, and there are over 200 people there who have lost their jobs because there are no longer any foreign tourists. Many of these migrant workers cannot go home because there are no flights. In Read more
A major victory for religious liberty has followed a federal court case. The victory occurred in the decision in Soos v. Cuomo. Federal district Judge Gary L. Sharpe has removed religious gatherings from the virtual ghetto in which Governor Cuomo, his Attorney General and New York’s Mayor Bill de Blasio had placed them under Cuomo’s Read more
The coronavirus pandemic has dramatically changed the way people live, both individually and collectively. But has it altered the way we think about the basic fabric of our lives? Not yet. I think it should, though—especially in ways that strengthen the vision of interconnected creation outlined by Pope Francis in Laudato si’. Influenced by literal Read more
Pope Francis is praising heroic medical staff and priests who contributed so greatly, often under difficult circumstances, during the coronavirus (COVID-19) lockdown. Last Saturday he welcomed Italy’s front-line medical and civil protection personnel from the coronavirus-ravaged region of Lombardy to the Vatican to thank them for their selfless work and “heroic” sacrifice. Their example of Read more
Anyone who tuned into the broadcast version a Two Cents Worth podcast last week may be forgiven for thinking they had tuned in to a church service. It began with a recitation of the first part of the Our Father. But Two Cents worth is advertised as being “Stories that make sense of business and Read more
The other day I went to get a haircut after the last 2 months in lockdown (I didn’t trust the others in my ‘bubble’ to give me a haircut!). As I entered the shop to see my old friend and barber, I noticed – further along the street – the blanket-covered body of someone sleeping Read more
Thousands of migrant workers caught out in New Zealand by the spread of Covid-19 have found themselves in challenging circumstances. On Sunday, the Catholic bishops of New Zealand want Catholic communities to reflect on the plight of these migrant workers. 21 June, is the annual Day of Prayer for Refugees and Migrants and the theme Read more
At mass on Sunday the Archbishop of Lima, Carlos Castillo, looked out over a cathedral full of faces — none of them alive. The cleric had his church filled with more than 5,000 portraits of those who have died in the pandemic that is spreading across Peru, using his broadcast homily to criticise a health Read more
An evangelical Argentinian pastor has reopened his church as “the worship bar” with bar tables and pastors dressed as waiters with Bibles on their trays. His reason for the mock service? The government is allowing bars and restaurants to reopen after being closed for several weeks due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic but a ban Read more
President Trump praised former papal nuncio Archbishop Carlo Viganò in a tweet last week. “So honored by Archbishop Viganò’s incredible letter to me. I hope everyone, religious or not, reads it!” Trump tweeted, linking to a letter which the controversial former papal nuncio addressed to him on Sunday. With that tweet, Trump introduced Viganò to Read more