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by Catherine MARCIANO Agence France Presse VATICAN CITY (AFP) — Catholic bishops gathered at a special Vatican assembly will vote Saturday on whether to recommend to Catholic Church’s Pope Francis to open the priesthood to married men or create female deacons, issues that are taboo for traditionalists. The ballot comes at the close of a three-week “synod” on the Pan-Amazonian region which highlighted the challenges facing the region, from the destruction of the rainforest to […]
Catholic Church’s Pope Francis officially accepted on Thursday the resignation of New York’s Bishop John Jenik, who has been accused of sexually abusing a teenager. Jenik was suspended in 2018 pending a Church investigation into the alleged assault, which reportedly took place in the 1980s while the American was pastor of a Bronx parish. “Although the alleged incidents occurred decades ago, the Lay Review Board has concluded that the evidence is sufficient to find […]
by Allison Jackson, with Valeria Pacheco in Puerto Maldonado, Peru Agence France Presse ITAITUBA, Brazil (AFP) — A shortage of Catholic priests in the Amazon is eroding the church’s influence in the remote region, bishops in Brazil and Peru warn, ahead of a Vatican synod dedicated to the rainforest. Wilmar Santin, one of scores of Brazilian bishops set to attend the October 6-27 gathering, says the church is ceding ground to more nimble Evangelical […]
PARIS, France (AFP) — A commission set up by the French Catholic Church to investigate allegations of child sex abuse by clerics received about 2,000 messages in its first three months, chairman Jean-Marc Sauve said Friday. The independent body, looking into abuse claims dating back to the 1950s, was set up last year in response to a number of scandals that shook the Church in France and worldwide. Composed of 22 legal professionals, doctors, […]
WASHINGTON, D.C. (AFP) — Vice President Mike Pence vowed Thursday to press North Korea to respect freedom of religion, despite the narrow US focus on denuclearization in high-profile summits. Pence made the pledge to a high-level State Department conference on religious freedom, which came weeks after President Donald Trump met North Korean leader Kim Jong Un for the third time and agreed to jumpstart working-level negotiations. “You can be confident, as President Trump continues […]
PARIS, France (AFP) — An independent commission set up by the French Catholic Church to look at allegations of sexual abuse by clerics begins its work on Monday by launching an appeal for witness statements. France’s Catholic bishops set up the commission last year in response to a number of scandals that shook the Church in the country and also worldwide. It now has the task to shed light on sexual abuse committed by […]
WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — Five Americans who say they were sexually molested by Catholic priests filed a lawsuit against the Vatican on Tuesday to compel the church to open its archives and hand over the names and details of abusive clergy. The plaintiffs “were harmed as a result of the Defendant Holy See’s practice and policy of not reporting suspected child abuse to law enforcement officials,” stated the lawsuit filed in US federal […]
by Ella IDE Agence France Presse VATICAN CITY (AFP) — Catholic Church’s Pope Francis on Thursday passed a landmark new measure to oblige those who know about sex abuse in the Catholic Church to report it to their superiors, in a move which could bring countless new cases to light. Every diocese in the world will now be obliged to have a system for the reporting of abuse, under a new law published by […]
by Chris Foley Agence France Presse CHRISTCHURCH, New Zealand (AFP) — The man accused of shooting dead 50 Muslim worshippers in a Christchurch mosque sat impassively Friday as a New Zealand judge ordered him to undergo tests to determine if he is mentally fit to stand trial for murder. Survivors and relatives of those killed in the March 15 attacks packed into a Christchurch courtroom as alleged gunman Brenton Tarrant appeared via audio-visual link […]
CHRISTCHURCH, New Zealand (AFP) — The man accused of attacking two mosques in Christchurch last month will face 50 murder charges when he appears in court on Friday, New Zealand police said. Australian Brenton Tarrant was previously charged with one murder as a holding measure, but police said Thursday that all the deaths and injuries in the March 15 attacks will be reflected in upgraded charges during his next appearance. “The man arrested in […]
by Nina Larson Agence France Presse GENEVA, Switzerland (AFP) — Diplomats and activists on Monday denounced intense Chinese lobbying, pressure and even threats to rein in criticism of Beijing during last month’s session of the UN Human Rights Council. Human Rights Watch (HRW) charged that the Chinese mission in Geneva had sent a letter to a number of missions urging them to stay away from a US-organised event on March 13 about China’s treatment […]
MADRID, Spain (AFP) — Pope Francis said a process of “healing” had started within the Catholic Church in the wake of a pedophilia summit, but acknowledged guilty priests had not been punished. The Argentine pontiff last week issued stringent child abuse legislation for Vatican City employees as part of the Church’s bid to address a wave of sex abuse allegations against priests. In an interview broadcast on Sunday with Spanish TV channel La Sexta, […]
