Church leaders in India's Orissa state have dismissed a report on anti-Christian violence there as "one-sided," "fictitious" and "premeditated." S.C. Mohapatra, the retired judge who investigated last year's violence, said in his interim report that the attacks were not sectarian but rooted in tribal land disputes, UCA News reported on July 7. • A ruling that removes a federal injunction against a parental notification law for minors seeking abortion means "for the first time in decades Illinois will enjoy an entirely reasonable, if minimal, restriction on access to abortion," said Bob Gilligan, executive director of the Catholic Conference of Illinois on July 14. • Episcopal bishops, priests and lay delegates at their church's triennial convention in Anaheim, Calif., voted July 14 to affirm that their church believes the ordination process is open to all the baptized, including gays and lesbians. More than 70 percent of lay and clergy delegates in the church's House of Deputies approved the action according to reports. The move is certain to provoke further conflict within the Anglican Communion, which has been rocked by divisions over this and other issues. • Pope Benedict XVI underwent a procedure under local anesthesia to repair his right wrist on July 17, which he had fractured during the night of July 16-17, his personal physician said in a statement.
News Briefs
Show Comments (
)
Comments are automatically closed two weeks after an article's initial publication. See our comments policy for more.
The latest from america
Working for the protection of people by safeguarding against the crime abuse is an integral expression of Christian faith. The successor of Pope Francis has the task of picking up where he left off and continuing resolutely. How can that be done?
Francis always encouraged me in our attempt to move forward as an ecumenical community and in welcoming young people from different churches who come to Taizé from all over the world. He was the pope, but also a father and a brother to me.
Pope Francis welcomed criticism—as long as it was not made behind his back.
The cardinals have asked Catholics to pray for them and the conclave. What exactly should we be praying for? And should we be scandalized by the intermingling of politics and spirituality?