Source: The Economist: THE election of Pope Francis on March 13th was surprising for several reasons. He is the first pope from South America, making him the first non-European since the 8th century. He is also the only pope to take the name Francis—evoking the humility of St Francis of […]
Source: BBC A national inquiry into child sex abuse has opened in the Australian city of Melbourne, with more than 5,000 people expected to provide evidence of “abuse and consequential trauma”. PM Julia Gillard has warned that the commission will unearth “some very uncomfortable truths”. She said that its opening […]
Source: The Economist: ON THE eve of his first Easter Sunday celebration as bishop of Rome, Pope Francis sprang another of his teasing little surprises. As the Shroud of Turin, which is probably the Christian world’s most hotly contested holy relic, was given a rare showing on television, he issued […]
Written and collected by Zia H. Shah MD – Twitter: @ZiahShah1 Today, most of the two billion Christians are celebrating Easter. I am happy for them. I am glad that this celebration reminds them, […]
wikipedia: Council of Nicaea was called by Emperor Constantine in 325 CE in Contantinople (Istanbul) Agenda and procedure: The agenda of the synod included: The Arian question regarding the relationship between God […]
Source: TOI VATICAN CITY: Pope Francis has won over many hearts and minds with his simple style and focus on serving the world’s poorest, but he has devastated traditionalist Catholics who adored his predecessor, Benedict XVI, for restoring much of the traditional pomp to the papacy. Francis’ decision to disregard […]
Jews, Christians mark religious festivals in Holy City Haaretz: This year, Passover and Easter fall during the same week, and Jerusalem is awash with pilgrims and worshipers from both religions. […]
The Huffington Post | By Meredith Bennett-Smith Posted: 03/28/2013 2:51 pm EDT | Updated: 03/28/2013 8:24 pm EDT After decades of speculation, new research suggests that the Shroud of Turin, one of the […]
Global Post: BELFAST, Northern Ireland — Malachi O’Doherty says his nieces and nephews are helpless at funerals. Raised without religion, they are flummoxed by the practices and customs that accompany a Catholic ritual. Though he himself left the church as a teenager in the 1960s, he’s ambivalent about the loss […]
Washington Post: VATICAN CITY — A high-profile Italian Muslim who converted to Catholicism and was baptized by Pope Benedict XVI announced on Monday (March 25) that he will leave the church to protest its soft stance against Islam. Egyptian-born Magdi Cristiano Allam, 61, a prominent journalist and outspoken critic of […]
The Economist: THE election of Pope Francis on March 13th was surprising for several reasons. He is the first pope from South America, making him the first non-European since the 8th century. He is […]
Source: Spiegel. The Catholic Church is out of touch with believers, and risks losing more of the flock if it fails to reform. An important step would be giving national […]
Source: ET The election of the new pope has been the talk of the town and the air is buzzing with excitement everywhere except in Pakistan. PHOTO: REUTERS The last Pope, Benedict XVI, elected at the age of 78, was the oldest person to have been elected as pope since […]
Express Tribune Blogs: By Rohan Emmanuel: The last Pope, Benedict XVI, elected at the age of 78, was the oldest person to have been elected as pope since 1730. In February […]
Daily Telegraph: View this interactive graphic with details of every pope in history, from Saint Peter, the first Bishop of Rome and one of the twelve apostles, to the new […]
Source: Washington Post: ROME — The Vatican vigorously defended Pope Francis on Friday by seeking to discredit accusations that he failed to oppose and may even have collaborated with Argentina’s feared military junta during the so-called “dirty war” against left-wing activists. The Vatican spokesman, the Rev. Federico Lombardi, departed from […]
Source: Asia Times: By Francesco Sisci BEIJING – The names of popes are policy statements on the governance of the Roman Catholic Church, and it is no coincidence that the new pontiff has chosen to call himself Francis, the name of saint of Assisi in the 12th century, but also […]
Source: CNN According to veteran Vatican journalist Marco Politi, the initial traction in the papal vote was not for then-Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio. “From the first leaks we understand that there was a strong candidate,” Politi told CNN’s Christiane Amanpour on Thursday. “The Italian Archbishop of Milan, Scola, who entered […]
Source: CNN (CNN) — Does it matter that the new pope comes from Argentina? It matters greatly, because Argentina shaped the life and the views of Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio, now Pope Francis. Through Francis, Argentina will help shape the church. More than any country in Latin American, Argentina is […]
Venezuela’s ‘Comandante’ Hugo Chavez dies Hugo Chavez, socialist leader of Venezuela, dies after long battle with cancer at the age of 58. By Tracy Connor, Staff Writer, NBC News Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez, the charismatic leftist who dominated his country with sweeping political change and flamboyant speeches, died […]