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Former cathedral now part of China’s World Heritage island

A Catholic Church building is part of a Chinese island’s inclusion on the UNESCO World Heritage list which is being seen by local Catholics as an opportunity for more people to learn about their faith. The former Catholic cathedral of Xiamen Diocese on Gulangyu Island of eastern Fujian province was included by the 41st session […]

Pakistani Catholic family flees following blasphemy allegation

A Catholic family in Pakistan has fled their home fearing attack by local Islamists after their eldest son was arrested on blasphemy charges on July 13. “We left the city same evening the clerics captured him,” Shfaaqt Masih told ucanews.com. “I switched off my phone fearing they will trace my family.” Shfaaqt, whose name Masih […]

Census 2016: Drop in religious affiliation no surprise for Archbishop Coleridge

Archbishop Mark Coleridge believes the latest census data showing a drop in religious affiliation suggests “the young are more interested in unorganised spirituality than organised religion, and that they aren’t as interested in denominations as their forebears were.” Catholicism remains by far the most dominant religion in Australia with more than 5.2 million followers, however […]

Turin Shroud is stained with blood of torture victim, research reveals

New research claims the Shroud of Turin is stained with the blood of a torture victim, supporting the theory that it was used to bury Jesus. The Shroud of Turin in a linen cloth, three meters in length, that bears an image of a man some believe to be Jesus Christ. The cloth is thought […]

Clergy are ‘main obstacle’ to Pope Francis’ agenda: Vatican newspaper

The “main obstacle” Pope Francis faces in implementing his agenda for the Church comes from “closure, if not hostility” from “a good part of the clergy, at levels both high and low,” stated an article in the Vatican’s semi-official newspaper L’Osservatore Romano on the weekend of the end July. Giulio Cirignano, an Italian priest and […]

Germany: 162,000 Catholics left Church, 537 parishes closed in 2016

162,093 Catholics left the Church in Germany during 2016—down from 181,925 in 2015, according to statistics released by the bishops’ conference on July 21. 28.5% of Germans are Catholic and the Catholic population stands at 23,582,000, down from 27,533,000 in 1996. 537 parishes closed in 2016. Over the past two decades, over 3,000 parishes have […]

Nun celebrates Catholic wedding in Canada

Cindy and David had their religious wedding on Saturday, July 22, celebrated by… a woman. The exceptional ceremony took place in a Catholic Church at Lorrainville, 650 km west of Montreal in Canada. In the rural diocese of Rouyn-Norand in the Abitibi-Témiscamingue region, the lack of priests is such that the bishop called on the […]

Feminist group claims responsibility for Mexico bishops bombing

An internet statement claiming to be from a feminist movement says the group was behind July 25 bombing at Mexico’s Catholic Council of Bishops. The homemade device caused little damage. A statement signed by the “Informal Feminist Command for Anti-Authoritarian Action” was posted on Contra Info. The international website says it is maintained by “anarchists, […]