International

Conservative Anglicans split with Church of England over same-sex marriages

Global conservative Anglican leaders withdrew their recognition on April 22 of the Church of England and Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, as its leader, amid disagreements about blessing same-sex couples. The primates announced the move at the fourth Global Anglican Future Conference (GAFCON), which ended this weekend in Rwanda’s capital of Kigali. The Kigali commitment […]

Iranian Christian rights activist wins German prize

A German foundation that supports persecuted Christians honored an Iranian Christian civil rights activist with a prestigious prize for her brave and relentless campaign for human rights despite state oppression. The Stephanus Foundation for Persecuted Christians conferred the Stephanus Prize 2023 on Mary Fatima Mohammadi for her “outstanding courage” and “extra-ordinary selflessness” at a ceremony […]

How Pope Francis changed Eastern Catholic synods

Pope Francis on Monday issued a new motu proprio, a change to canon law impacting the Eastern Catholic Churches of the Catholic communion. The change puts an age limit on the Eastern Catholic bishops who participate in the synods of bishops of Eastern Catholic Churches — restricting the “active voice” of retired Eastern bishops over the age […]

The Holy See at the side of Middle Eastern Christians

As representatives of the Ca-tholic Churches in the Middle East gather in Cyprus, the Prefect of the Dicastery for the Eastern Churches apologises for the role the western Church has histori-cally played in undermining Chri-stians in the region, and pledges the Holy See’s support. “We Westerners bear a heavy responsibility for destabilising the Middle East, […]

Synod: Laymen and laywomen eligible to vote at General Assembly

Neither the nature nor the name is changing—which remains the Synod of Bishops—but the composition of the participants in the October 2023 General Assembly in the Vatican on the theme of synodality is set to change, since a sizeable group of “non-bishop” members will also take part.These 70 individuals will include lay people appointed directly […]

Vote for de Lubac beatification raises Jesuit influence in modern-day Church

In the first week of April the French bishops voted in favour of opening a beatification cause for the late Cardinal Henri de Lubac, a celebrated theologian whose writings influenced not only the Second Vatican Council, but every pope since. De Lubac was one of several Jesuits who were key protagonists in the 1962-65 Second […]

I have forgiven them’-Women kidnapped by Boko Haram met with Pope Francis

Janada Marcus, 22, spent more than a year in Boko Haram captivity. Mariya Joseph, now a teen-ager, was kidnapped by Boko Haram when she was 8 years old. She escaped last August, after more than eight years in captivity. Marcus told The Pillar that meeting the pope – in a trip organized by Aid to […]

Zollner’s resignation and the credibility of papal reform

Zollner, 56, has been one of the best-known faces of Vatican-led reform efforts on child protection for years – he is widely regarded among Church leaders as an honest broker, a candid voice with a singular commitment to initiating and implementing reform efforts. The priest’s resignation from the Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors […]

Indian bishops slam terror attack on tourists in India’s Kashmir

No action taken against police who assaulted Catholic priests in India