Login      Register  
Subscription

Vietnam bans activist priest from travelling abroad

An activist Catholic priest known for his human rights work and campaigns for social justice has been barred from leaving the country for “national security” reasons. “Redemptorist Father John Nguyen Ngoc Nam Phong was stopped at Noi Bai Airport and prevented from travelling to Australia on a study trip as he was checking in on […]

Nepalese Dalits abandon Hindu faith en masse

The Dalits have decided to organize a secret meeting to pray to Jesus, to save them. Conversions and renunciations of the Hindu faith are occurring in the Surkhet district of western Nepal. The Dalits are marginalized because of their caste belonging. And they are tired of suffering serious discrimination and threats. Sanu Nepali, 21, was […]

Pope Francis approves fourth path to sainthood

Pope Francis has approved a fourth pathway to possible sainthood — giving one’s life in a heroic act of loving service to others. In a new apostolic letter, the Pope approved new norms allowing for candidates to be considered for sainthood because of the heroic way they freely risked their lives and died prematurely because […]

Former Manchester United player ordained Catholic priest

A former Manchester United and Northern Ireland star has been ordained a Catholic priest in the Dominican Order. Philip Mulryne made five appearances for United back in the late 1990s after graduating from the club’s academy. He moved on to Norwich in 1999, where he played 135 times for the Canaries in a six-year spell […]

Muslim refugees to US are declining as Christians overtake them

Christians made up the majority of refugees admitted to the U.S. in the first five full months of the Trump administration, reversing a trend that saw Muslims entering the country at higher numbers under President Obama, a new Pew Research report shows. Out of all the refugees who arrived between President Trump’s inauguration and June 30, about […]

Russian Orthodox Church sees sharp rise in seminary admissions

Russia’s Orthodox church has reported a sharp rise in seminary admissions, with the highest numbers ever recorded now training for the priesthood in its 261 eparchies, or dioceses. The Interfax news agency said 1593 ordinands were expected to begin studies this summer, a 19 percent increase from 2016, while a further 827 young men would […]

Protestant churches embrace gluten-free bread for Communion as Vatican reaffirms ban

While the Roman Catholic world digests a Vatican letter confirming the church’s prohi-bition on gluten-free wafers, Protestant churches continue to place orders for a Eucharist that won’t bother the gluten-intolerant. Gluten or no gluten — the difference is theological. Protes-tant churches generally do not subscribe to the doctrine of transubstantiation, which holds that during the […]

‘For every person baptized, the U.S. Church loses six Catholics’

He may be at the helm of one of the most dynamic Roman Catholic parishes in Florida, with the 3,000 families present each weekend at one of the seven masses at Saint Peter’s Church in Deland, but Father Thomas Connery is still worried. “We have many retirees in Florida, so the churches are full but […]