WelCom August 2020 In preparation for this country’s general election every three years, the New Zealand Catholic Bishops issue a statement to encourage Catholics in Aotearoa to make a difference through a considered vote, formed in the light of the Gospel. At this year’s general election in September, voters are also being asked to vote on two […]
WelCom August 2020 Michael Fitzsimons A large-scale religious painting by one of Australia’s most renowned abstract painters has been gifted to the Mission Estate Winery in Hawke’s Bay. The painting, entitled Study for a crucifixion, was done by Dick Watkins in 1991, measuring 152 x 244 cms. The painting is a gift from Australian-based art collector James […]
WelCom August 2020 Assisi summit to focus on Pope’s challenge to ‘pathological’ economy From Evangelii Gaudium to Laudato si’, Pope Francis has called for a new economic model that puts the human person at the centre and reduces unjust inequalities. A major summit scheduled for November in Assisi, the birthplace of St Francis, will showcase Pope Francis’ […]
WelCom August 2020 Pope Francis believes the human person is not immune to crises but is always impacted by them. Being better or worse after each one, he’s often said, is ‘up to us’. With that in mind, the Vatican’s Covid-19 coronavirus crisis task force is identifying what needs to be changed. ‘The Covid-19 Vatican commission is […]
WelCom August 2020 The Vatican has released new guidelines for bishops and other senior church officials on how to deal with clerical child sex abuse claims after Pope Francis called for the procedures to be laid out step-by-step. On July 16, the Vatican’s Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith published Vademecum (Handbook), a 20-page […]
WelCom August 2020 The head of the Catholic Church in Fiji has made an apology for the behaviour of Catholic priests, religious and teachers who allegedly abused Fijian children. Archbishop Peter Loy Chong was responding to a news report on TVNZ by Pacific correspondent, Barbara Dreaver. For the last year, 1 NEWS has been investigating […]
WelCom August 2020 The President of the French Bishops’ Conference says it is not hard to imagine a time when women would be included in the College of Cardinals. Speaking in an interview in French magazine, Noosphère, Archbishop Eric de Moulins-Beaufort said ‘nothing prevents them from holding many more important functions in the workings of […]
WelCom August 2020 Pope Francis has expressed his sadness at the decision of Mr Erdogan, President of Turkey, to re-convert Hagia Sophia from a museum to a mosque again. The Pope’s comments came after a call from the World Council of Churches for Mr Erdogan to reverse his decision, which they said would sow division. […]
WelCom August 2020 The Marian Shrine at Lourdes has hosted the first ever online world pilgrimage on the anniversary of the final apparition to St Bernadette Soubirous in the mid-19th century. Healthcare measures put in place as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic have meant that only a very limited number of pilgrims can attend […]
WelCom August 2020 The Notre Dame Cathedral spire will be rebuilt as a replica of the one destroyed in the fire at the cathedral last year, President Emmanuel Macron of France has announced. Macron’s government had previously initiated an architectural competition to submit a variety of innovative suggestions for the restoration. The possibility of a […]