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Pope Francis Agrees to Appointments of Two Bishops Chosen by Syro-Malabar Church for India…
By Kristina Millare Vatican City, Aug 30, 2024 / 13:40 pm The Synod of Bishops of the Syro-Malabar Church, an Eastern Catholic rite in full communion with Rome, appointed two new bishops for Changanacherry and Shamshabad in India on Friday. The appointments come after years of internal tensions among Syro-Malabar Church leaders regarding a synodal, unified liturgy of the ancient Oriental Church. In May, Pope Francis warned the Church’s leaders that division comes from the work of “the devil, the divider” and that unity of the Eastern Church with Rome is essential. “Apart from Peter, apart from the major archbishop, there is no Church,” stated the Holy Father in the May meeting with leaders and members of the Syro-Malabar Church at the Vatican. On the July 3 feast day of St. Thomas the Apos...
African Archbishops on Western Nations: ‘They Are Sending Us Missionaries of Evil’…
The West used to send Africa the Gospel. Now, African Church leaders are warning that Western nations and individuals are spreading a far different message throughout the continent, in what they describe as a warped form of proselytization. From Kenya to Cameroon, Ghana to Tanzania, local archbishops tell the Register that Western aid workers, government officials and even tourists are advancing secular understandings of sexuality and the human person that are incompatible not merely with African cultural values, but with the timeless teachings of the Catholic faith. And while aspects of this push are consistent with what Pope Francis has criticized as “ideological colonization,” which involves Western governments pressuring less-developed nations to change public policies, African p...
St. Teresa of Ávila’s Tomb Reopened With 10 Keys After Being Sealed for 110 Years — Her Body Remains Incorrupt…
For 10 years, the tomb of St. Teresa of Avila has been closed. But on the 28th of August, her tomb was opened and revealed that her body is still incorrupt. Her remains are in a silver urn that requires ten keys to open and was last done so in 1914. The black and white photos that were taken that year show that her state is the exact same. The opening of St. Teresa of Avila’s tomb marks the beginning of a study of her relics, which will be carried out by Italian doctors and scientists. It also has the approval of the Vatican, that is, the Pope and the Dicastery for the Causes of Saints. The diocese of Salamanca, Spain, is asking for canonical recognition of these relics, which include the heart and an arm. The purpose is to analyze, preserve and venerate these elements. St. Teresa of...
In Significant Step Forward, China Recognizes Vatican’s 95-Year-Old Non-CCPA Bishop of Tianjin …
Why China’s recognition of an 95-year-old bishop could be a very big deal Skip to content The Holy See announced Tuesday that the Chinese government has recognized an underground mainland bishop as the legitimate leader of his diocese. Bishop Melchior Shi Hongzhen, 95, has led the Diocese of Tianjin since 2019 — having previously been coadjutor of the diocese since 1982. He is believed to be the first Catholic bishop government authorities have recognized who has not formally joined the state-sponsored Chinese Patriotic Catholic Association. Bishop Melchior Shi Hongzhen. Image via ChinaCatholic.cn With the Vatican’s agreement with Beijing on episcopal appointments set for renewal in October, Shi’s recognition by the state has been hailed by some China-watchers as a sign of real progress fo...
Pope Francis Makes Surprise Visit to St. Monica’s Tomb at Basilica of St. Augustine in Rome…
By Courtney Mares Vatican City, Aug 27, 2024 / 12:15 pm Pope Francis made a surprise visit to the Basilica of St. Augustine on Tuesday to pray at the tomb of St. Monica. During his visit to the basilica near Piazza Navona in Rome’s historic center, the pope prayed in the side chapel containing the tomb of St. Monica on her feast day, Aug. 27. St. Monica is honored in the Church for her holy example and dedicated prayerful intercession for her son, St. Augustine, before his conversion. Today Catholics turn to St. Monica as an intercessor for family members who are distant from the Church. She is the patron saint of mothers, wives, widows, difficult marriages, and victims of abuse. Pope Francis visits the Basilica of St. Augustine in Rome on Tuesday, Aug. 27, 2024. Credit: Vatican Media Born...
Pope Francis on Ukraine’s Russian Orthodox Church Ban: ‘Churches Are Not to Be Touched!’…
By Daniel Payne CNA Staff, Aug 26, 2024 / 11:09 am Pope Francis on Sunday sharply denounced the Ukrainian government’s recently enacted ban on Russian Orthodox Church worship, arguing that the faithful should not be barred from worshipping as they please. The new Ukrainian law, which passed the country’s Parliament on Aug. 20, bans the Russian Orthodox Church in Ukrainian territory. The measure comes roughly two-and-a-half years after Russia invaded Ukraine in a major escalation of the two countries’ ongoing conflict. The new law further encourages religious organizations in Ukraine, including the Moscow-aligned Ukrainian Orthodox Church, “to break the existing ties with the Russian state,” according to the parliamentary news agency. In his Angelus address on Sunday, the Holy Father ...
‘Renew Your Hope in Jesus’: Pope Francis Prays for Persecuted Catholics of Nicaragua at Sunday Angelus…
The Pope’s prayer comes just days after the Ortega dictatorship canceled the legal status of 1,500 nonprofit organizations, including hundreds of Catholic organizations, and exiled two more priests to Rome. Pope Francis prayed Sunday for a renewed hope for the people of Nicaragua, where the Catholic Church is experiencing harsh persecution under the regime of President Daniel Ortega. “To the beloved people of Nicaragua: I encourage you to renew your hope in Jesus. Remember that the Holy Spirit always guides history toward higher designs,” Pope Francis said at the end of this Angelus address on Aug. 25. The Pope entrusted Nicaragua to the protection and intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary. “May the Immaculate Virgin protect you in times of trial and make you feel her maternal tenderness...
Opus Dei Prelate Responds to Those Who Consider Group ‘Conservative, Powerful and Secretive’…
By Walter Sánchez Silva Lima Newsroom, Aug 24, 2024 / 08:30 am During his recent trip through Latin America, the prelate of Opus Dei, Monsignor Fernando Ocáriz, gave an interview to the Chilean newspaper El Mercurio, in which he spoke about various topics, such as the role of women, the reform ordered by Pope Francis, and a response to those who consider Opus Dei to be “conservative, powerful and secretive.” “Everyone can have their own opinions and reasons for evaluating reality. If some people perceive it that way, it will be because there is something objective and/or subjective that can cause that impression,” said the third successor of St. Josemaría Escrivá as the head of Opus Dei. “Making the Work [Opus Dei] better known is, in part, the task of each member: to live one’s own vocati...
Sister Wilhelmina Medical Evaluation Finds ‘Lack of Any Detected Features of Decomposition’ of Body and Clothing …
Posted on August 22, 2024 in News Most Reverend Bishop James V. Johnston, Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph, releases results of examination and evaluation by medical experts concerning the remains of Sister Wilhelmina Lancaster, OSB Sister Wilhelmina Lancaster died on May 29, 2019, and was buried within days in a grave on the property of the Benedictines of Mary, Queen of Apostles monastery in Gower, Mo. She was buried without any embalming or other treatment of her body, in a simple unsealed wooden casket. Following the exhumation of the body of Sister Wilhelmina on April 28, 2023, for the purpose of moving her body into the Abbey church for interment, it was discovered that her body did not exhibit signs of decomposition that would normally have occurred after nearly four years of buria...
New Poll Brings Good News: Florida Could Become First State to Defeat Abortion Amendment…
By Peter Pinedo CNA Newsroom, Aug 22, 2024 / 06:30 am Several pro-life leaders have told CNA that defeating the Florida abortion amendment would reverse the momentum in the national abortion fight. A new poll by Mainstreet Research and Florida Atlantic University (FUA) now suggests they could succeed. Since the overturn of Roe v. Wade, abortion amendments like the one on the Florida ballot have passed by wide margins in California, Ohio, Michigan, and Vermont. Nonetheless, pro-life Floridians, including Florida Right to Life and the Florida Conference of Catholic Bishops are determined to put up a fight, in an effort to make Florida the first state to defeat an abortion amendment. What is the Florida abortion amendment? Titled the “Amendment to Limit Government Interference with Abortion” ...
Pope’s Wednesday Audience: Baptism of Christ Marks a Key Moment in Salvation History…
During his weekly General Audience, Pope Francis continues his catechesis series on the Holy Spirit, reflecting this week on Jesus’ Baptism and the Holy Spirit’s anointing of the Son of God. By Deborah Castellano Lubov Jesus’ Baptism marks “a very important moment” of Revelation and of salvation history, noted Pope Francis during his Wednesday General Audience in the Vatican’s Paul VI Hall. As the Pope continued his catechesis on the Holy Spirit, the Holy Father discussed the descent of the Holy Spirit upon Jesus at His baptism in the River Jordan. “It would do us well,” the Holy Father encouraged, “to re-read this Gospel passage.” There, he stressed, the Lord was revealed as the Beloved Son of the Father, and the Lord...
Ortega Dictatorship in Nicaragua Shuts Down 1,500 Nonprofits and Exiles Two More Priests…
By Walter Sánchez Silva ACI Prensa Staff, Aug 20, 2024 / 16:06 pm The dictatorship of President Daniel Ortega and his wife, Vice President Rosario Murillo, in Nicaragua have canceled the legal status of 1,500 nonprofit organizations — also known as nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) — including Caritas of Granada and a large number of Catholic and evangelical associations in addition to exiling two more Catholic priests to Rome. The decision to cancel the 1,500 organizations was announced through ministerial agreement 38-2024-OSFL, published on Aug. 19 in the official government newspaper La Gaceta and signed by the head of the Ministry of the Interior of Nicaragua, María Amelia Coronel Kinloch. The text states that the 1,500 nonprofits “have failed to comply with their obligations” such...
