The German bishops are making their ad limina visit. Every few years diocesan bishops have to go to Rome to meet with offices of the Roman Curia and, usually, the Pope. Pope Francis gave an address to the German bishops that was clear, coherent, well-crafted and, in many respects, stinging. He painted a dire portrait of the Church in Germany.
ROME, November 23, 2015 (LifeSiteNews) — The German bishops, sixty-seven of them, recently visited Rome together for their obligatory Ad Limina visit with the pope from November 16-20. This Ad Limina visit, which is obligatory for all bishops of the world, was of a special importance, inasmuch as the German bishops played an important role during the recent controversial Synod of Bishops on Marriage and the Family in Rome. The German bishops’ last Ad Limina visit was, surprisingly, some nine years ago, instead of the prescribed five years. Unlike previous popes, however, Pope Francis does not meet the bishops individually during such a visit in order to receive an account of the state of their dioceses, but only in smaller…Continue Reading
Australians have always viewed America’s litigious culture with suspicion. Our “no worries mate” approach to life means we tend not to rush off to court at the drop of a hat. So last week when a state government commissioner ruled that the nation’s Catholic bishops may have broken the law in distributing their booklet “Don’t Mess with Marriage” eyebrows were raised. The use of the law to persecute same-sex marriage objectors like florists and wedding cake makers is something that, in the minds of most Australians, happens “only in America.” Despite opinion polls showing strong support for same-sex marriage, very few in Australia have seriously believed change will affect anyone else.
Walking through the posh neighborhood of Embassy Row in October, I stumbled across a scoop: that Washington, D.C.’s Cardinal Donald Wuerl lives in a penthouse atop a mansion priced north of $40 million. That Embassy Row mansion is the Our Lady Queen of the Americas parish. As I approached the mansion, across from the elegant Russian Cultural Center, I wondered if it contained a chapel. Curious, I walked inside. On the first floor, I walked past posters touting open-borders propaganda (“Ten Myths About Immigration” and so on) and saw signs for a leftist outfit called the “Washington English Center,” which offers language and job services to immigrants, legal and illegal.
TASMANIA, Australia, November 13, 2015 (LifeSiteNews) — An Australian Catholic archbishop is facing legal action after recently distributing a pamphlet to local Catholic school children that supported Catholic teaching on marriage being between a man and woman. “Dear Friends, I have received notification from the Office of the Anti-Discrimination Commissioner that a complaint made about me has been viewed as a possible breach of the Anti-Discrimination Act 1998 (Tas),” Archbishop Julian Porteous from the Archdiocese of Hobart in Tasmania posted yesterday to Facebook about the allegations of discrimination against him.
Washington D.C., Nov 10, 2015 / 03:45 pm (CNA/EWTN News).- Our Lady. Blessed Mother. Virgin Mary. Queen of Peace. Theotokos. Handmaid of the Lord. Mother Mary. These are just some of the titles used to describe the young woman to whom an angel appeared some 2,000 years ago with the message that she would conceive and bear the Savior of the World. Mary has very few recorded words in the New Testament, but her worldwide devotion spans across time, cultures and even religions.
Speaking at the Al Smith Dinner on the eve of Veterans Day, former New York City Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg took time from his humorous political remarks to remind guests “there are a lot of places around the world where joking about the government is no laughing matter.” “We really do live in the greatest country in the world, and it’s up to us to preserve and protect our rights by defending them always and everywhere,” Bloomberg said in his keynote address at the 70th annual Alfred E. Smith Memorial Foundation Dinner.
A Catholic bishop in Indiana is calling out a Catholic college for promoting Planned Parenthood and abortion this week. As LifeNews previously reported, Saint Mary’s College, a Catholic school in Notre Dame, Indiana, hosted the large pro-Planned Parenthood display in response to a pro-life display held on campus earlier in October. The pro-Planned Parenthood display involved 1,852 planted in the ground to “represent the non-abortion-related services offered by Planned Parenthood,” according to the Church Militant. The pro-abortion display was a project of the Saint Mary’s Feminists United Student Group. The group organized the display to counter a pro-life display by Students for
BRYAN, TX, November 12, 2015 (LifeSiteNews) – The former Planned Parenthood abortion facility where Abby Johnson once worked as director is now a pro-life haven for women in crisis pregnancy. The facility is now aptly named, “Hope.” It celebrated its grand opening earlier this month. Last year, Hope Pregnancy Center, an affiliate of CareNet, and 40 Days for Life acquired the building where former Planned Parenthood staffer Abby Johnson worked for eight years, before her dramatic
WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court agreed Friday to settle a widespread dispute between the Obama administration and religious non-profits over insurance coverage for birth control, which is sure to elevate issues of religious freedom and reproductive rights in next year’s presidential campaign. The justices agreed to hear a challenge to the Affordable Care Act from seven different non-profit organizations claiming religious objections, marking the second time in three years the so-called “contraceptive mandate” has come before the court — and the fourth time in five years it has faced off against President Obama’s signature health care law.