World News
Bishop who brokered gang truce asks public’s trust
SAN SALVADOR (CNS) — Against all odds, as virtually everyone thought that the truce between violent Salvadoran gangs would break at any time, Bishop Fabio Colindres Abarca has proved otherwise. The agreement not only continues but has also led gang leaders to seek an agreement with the government. Yet skepticism reigns. “There are people who […]
Help Christians stay in Mideast, build peace, pope says at audience
VATICAN CITY (CNS) — Just two days before beginning a pastoral journey to the Middle East, Pope Benedict XVI launched an appeal to all Christians in the region to respond to social and political tensions and insecurity by being hopeful, active builders of peace and reconciliation. At the end of his weekly general audience Sept. […]
Swiss bishop’s comments on Church reforms defended by spokesman
WARSAW, Poland (CNS) — A spokesman for the Swiss bishops’ conference defended its newly elected president, Bishop Markus Buchel of Sankt Gallen, after he called for local bishops to have a greater say on Church reforms. “Bishop Buchel has his colleagues’ confidence and his election has nothing to do with his views on such issues,” […]
Vatican hires expert in finance crime to combat money laundering
VATICAN CITY (CNS) — In an effort to comply more fully with international standards against financial criminal activity, the Vatican has hired an outside expert in combating money laundering and financing terrorism. Rene Brulhart, a 40-year-old Swiss international lawyer, started working as a consultant to the Vatican in September on “all matters related to anti-money […]
Misreading of Vatican II led to ‘collapse’ in Marian devotion, studies
VATICAN CITY (CNS) — Devotion to Mary “collapsed” in some parts of the United States after the Second Vatican Council even though the council fathers had upheld her critical place within the Catholic faith, said a leading American expert in Marian studies. The council’s decision to integrate a draft text on Mary into a larger […]
Link between power, abuse in Church, examined by conference
VATICAN CITY (CNS) — The “most tragic wound” of clerical sexual abuse will not heal without a response from the entire Catholic Church — hierarchy and laity together — said the chief Vatican investigator of abuse cases. “I think that slowly, slowly, slowly we are getting toward a response that is truly ecclesial — it’s […]
Family violence kills more than 80,000 Latin American children yearly
LIMA, Peru (CNS) — Ask Maykon Quispe what kind of violence he sees in his hometown of Huancavelica, in the Peruvian Andes, and he thinks of the markets, where kids his age or younger haul sacks and crates. “A lot of kids want to help out their families by earning a little money, but the […]
New wheels: Renault gives pope 2 all-electric vans
VATICAN CITY (CNS) — Thanks to a French automaker and an Italian utility, Pope Benedict XVI now has a pair of all-electric minivans and a series of recharging stations with which to power them. Two custom-made editions of Renault’s Kangoo Maxi Z.E. cars were delivered personally to the pope Sept. 5 at the papal summer […]
Christians must not compromise Christ’s truth, pope says
CASTEL GANDOLFO, Italy (CNS) — Marking the feast of the martyrdom of St. John the Baptist, Pope Benedict XVI said Christians must not bow to the pressure of the powerful who demand a denial of Christ or of the truth He taught. “The truth is the truth and there is no compromise,” the pope said […]
Patriarch says people need to repent for pollution
ISTANBUL (CNS) — Praying for the protection of the environment includes asking God’s forgiveness for the small or serious ways each individual contributes to pollution, said the Ecumenical Orthodox patriarch of Constantinople. , the Istanbul-based spiritual leader of the world’s Orthodox and a longtime promoter of Christian ecology, issued a message on the environment Aug. […]