If our first instinct is to defend “the church,” have we really learned the lessons of the sexual abuse crisis?
Interreligious Dialogue
Posted inFaith, Vatican Dispatch
Pope Francis joins Muslim leaders in calling for world day of prayer to end the coronavirus
The appeal calls on believers in God worldwide to hold “a day for fasting, prayers, and supplications” on May 14.
Posted inArts & Culture, Books
Review: Abraham Heschel’s life of anguish and hope
Edward K. Kaplan’s book on Abraham Heschel will help readers feel a portion of the anguish Heschel endured in his lifetime. But even in his anguish, Heschel found not just spiritual consolation, but profound hope from his deep faith.
Posted inFaith, News
Pastor apologizes for words ‘hurtful to Muslims’ in homily on immigration
In a homily Father VanDenBroeke gave on Jan. 5, the feast of the Epiphany and, in Minnesota, Immigration Sunday, he acknowledged the complexity of immigration as a political issue and that the Bible challenges Catholics to “welcome strangers.”
Posted inDispatches, Politics & Society
The Jesuit school that serves a predominantly Muslim community in Brussels
Jesuits in Belgium wanted to launch a new school that would reach less-affluent communities, but they were also keenly interested in connecting with “people from different cultural and religious backgrounds.”
Posted inDispatches, Politics & Society
Pastor executed as Boko Haram resurfaces in surge of violent attacks in Nigeria
The pastor’s murder is only the latest attacks in the West African nation. On Jan. 19, Boko Haram insurgents ambushed two separate Nigerian army patrols, killing 17, and slaughtered a bridal party on Dec. 27.
Posted inNews Analysis, Politics & Society
The U.S. killing of Soleimani could have devastating consequences for Iraq’s Christians
Christians have just begun to trickle back to communities that had been devastated first by ISIS then by the Iraqi and U.S. coalition forces that drove out ISIS. Those forces include the Shiite militia that have been targeted by the Trump administration over the last week.
Posted inNews, Politics & Society
Indian cardinal says religion should never be basis for citizenship
As India continued to experience violent protests against a controversial citizenship law, Cardinal Oswald Gracias of Mumbai said citizenship should never be based on a person’s religion.
Posted inNews, Politics & Society
Mideast Catholic patriarchs pray for those suffering, appeal for dialogue
“The wounds of the Islamic State have not been healed yet, together with the ongoing violence, poverty, unemployment and poor services that have pushed thousands of people, especially youth, to demonstrate peacefully, demanding the right to live with dignity and freedom in a stable, secure and strong independent homeland,” Cardinal Louis Sako, patriarch of Chaldean Catholics, said of anti-government protests.
Posted inFaith, News
Pope Francis: Religious fundamentalism is a ‘plague’
“We must beware of fundamentalist groups; each (religion) has their own.”