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Argentine priest says Benedict wanted Bergoglio as Secretary of State

An Argentine priest who knew Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio of Buenos Aires prior to his election as Pope Francis claims that in 2005, Pope emeritus Benedict XVI offered Bergoglio the position of Secretary of State, effectively the second most important position in the Vatican after the papacy itself, but the future pontiff turned it down.

For 3 months, no girls were born in 132 Indian villages

A northern Indian district has launched an investigation into a region in which the birth rate of baby girls is in dramatic decline. Government data has revealed that among 216 babies born across 132 villages in the last three months, not even one of them was a girl. The district administration of the Uttarkashi region […]

Concern grows as Mother Teresa nun remains in Indian jail

Church activists suspect political interference and sectarian hate in the continued incarceration of a Missionaries of Charity nun who was arrested a year ago accused of child trafficking in eastern India’s Jharkhand State. Sister Concelia Baxla filed a fresh bail application in the state’s High Court on July 12. Her bail was rejected by several […]

Spate of lynching incidents worry church people in India

Church leaders in India have concerns of further civilian unrest after mob attacks killed eight people in three separate incidents over the weekend. In the latest incident on July 20, a group of more than 10 men beat and killed four people, two men and two women, in the Gumla district of Jharkhand State. The […]

Visakhapatnam Police circular on churches irks BJP leaders

A circular from the office of the Visakhapatnam police commissioner asking police stations to take steps to prevent attacks on Christians and churches has led political uproar and protests. The Bharatiya Janata Party leaders objected to the circular’s choice of words. They say the police should not have mentioned any community or place of worship […]

Missionary bishops pray for unity, plead for peace

Missionary bishops and other missionaries from the Syro-Malabar Church working in Northeast India have decided to pray for Peace and Unity in their Mother Church and urge especially other missionaries of the same background to do the same. They have also decided to make an earnest appeal to every section of the Syro-Malabar Church, Hierarchy, […]

Bengaluru observes 800th anniversary of Francis-Sultan encounter

Heads of various religions in Bengaluru have commemorated the 800th anniversary of an encounter between Saint Francis of Assisi and Sultan al-Malik al-Kâmil of Egypt. Although all religions aim at the same holy and spiritual aspects to lead a good life, unfortunately people do not follow even 10 percent of their tenets and teachings,” regretted […]

Supreme Court grants bail to two of “Innocent Seven”

The Supreme Court of India on July 23 granted bail to yet another of seven people, who have been languishing in jail for more than ten years in connection with the murder of a Hindu religious leader in Odisha, eastern India. India’s Supreme Court has ordered the granting of bail to the second of seven […]