News

Catholics Worldwide Reach Out to Haiti Catholic relief agencies and parishes worldwide are responding to the devastation in Haiti, which has been battered by four severe hurricanes. Caritas Internationalis, the umbrella organization for 162 national Catholic charity organizations, is seeking $4.3 mi

Indian Court Urged to Protect Christians The Catholic Church in India has petitioned the country’s Supreme Court to protect Christian lives and property in Orissa State. Archbishop Raphael Cheenath of Cuttack-Bhubaneswar told the Asian church news agency UCA News Sept. 2 that the church decide

Houma-Thibodaux Diocese Severely Hit by Storm Archbishop Alfred C. Hughes of New Orleans reported on Sept. 2 that of Louisiana’s seven Catholic dioceses, the Diocese of Houma-Thibodaux was battered the hardest by Hurricane Gustav. Hughes, who rode out the storm at the St. Louis Cathedral recto

No Letup in Anti-Christian Violence in India Catholic educational institutions across India closed Aug. 29 to protest the continuing violence against Christians that has left at least 11 people dead in India’s eastern Orissa State. On Aug. 26 Cardinal Varkey Vithayathil of Ernakulam-Angamaly,

Web Seminar Focuses on Disabled Catholics The 30th anniversary of the U.S. bishops’ pastoral statement on people with disabilities offers an opportunity to acquaint a new generation of bishops and young people with the document’s message, according to speakers at an Aug. 13 “Webina

Anglican Archbishop Calls for Mutual Responsibility The spiritual head of the worldwide Anglican Communion, Archbishop Rowan Williams of Canterbury, called for moratoriums on the blessing of same-sex unions, the ordination of openly gay people and naming bishops for disgruntled Anglicans in other ch

Will World Youth Day Be a Wake-up Call? In what is often seen as one of the most intensely secular nations in the world, Australia received a wake-up call: the faith of the church on public display over the weeklong celebrations of World Youth Day. For young Catholics used to seeing a steady annual

Focolare Members Elect New President Maria Voce, a longtime close collaborator of the late Chiara Lubich, founder of the Focolare movement, has been elected the new president of the movement to foster worldwide unity. Almost 500 delegates from five continents voted nearly unanimously for Voce July 7

Washington Funeral Mass for Tim Russert The presumptive Democratic and Republican presidential nominees were among the scores of mourners at the private funeral Mass on June 18 for the NBC News Washington bureau chief and “Meet the Press” moderator Tim Russert, who died suddenly June 13