The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops announced about a year ago the start of its 10-year review of Ex corde Ecclesiae, a Vatican document that Pope John Paul II released two decades ago to guide Catholic colleges, sparking questions about institutional autonomy and academic freedom. But the review was designed to take place behind … Continue reading »
Tagged with Vatican …
Historic document on mission issued
Recently, the Vatican, the World Council of Churches and the World Evangelical Alliance issued an historic document on mission, questioning many traditional practices and agreeing on standards of integrity about such issues as coercion, cultural hegemony, and “conversion”. The document is the result of five years of consultations by some 40 experts in ecumenical and … Continue reading »
NEWS: Preparations for the Pope’s Visit to the UK
Ahead of this week’s long awaited visit by Pope Benedict XVI the BBC has published his proposed itinerary. The first papal visit to the UK in 28 years includes a combination of private and public events focused around London, Birmingham and Edinburgh. Despite the ongoing controversy over child abuse allegations against members of the Roman … Continue reading »
NEWS: Illinois Man Sues Pope, Vatican in US Federal Court
Thursday, April 22, an Illinois man filed a federal lawsuit against Pope Benedict XVI and the Vatican. Identified as John Doe 16 in court documents, the man says he was molested as a child by a the late Father Lawrence Murphy, a Wisconsin priest. John Doe 16 accuses the Pope and Vatican of failing to … Continue reading »
NEWS: “All you need is love”: Vatican forgives the Beatles
Against the backdrop of the media furore over sex offenders within the Roman Catholic Church, it has been announced that Pope Benedict XVI has found time to sanction forgiveness for the Beatles. The Vatican’s decision, announced in L’Osservatore Romano, forgives the band for various sins, and even goes as far as ‘lauding them as a … Continue reading »
NEWS: Religion and Coexistence/Existence in the 21st Century
Is the world becoming more religious or more secular? The secularization thesis (religion disappears with the rise of Modernity) has been challenged as the Christian “megachurch” phenomenon continues, radical Islam remains at the fore of public dialogue, and politicians continue to blur the lines between church and state as they invoke various religious aphorisms. Louis … Continue reading »
NEWS: Pope Benedict XVI: Health Worries
The recent news that the Vatican’s traditional Midnight Mass is to have a temporal change, has raised concerns that Pope Benedict XVI may be suffering with poor health. The revised schedule for Christmas Eve will see the pope finish taking mass at midnight, rather than just beginning the service then. The Vatican has denied rumours … Continue reading »
NEWS: American Catholic Nuns Being Investigated?
Nuns in the United States are not what they used to be. Before the Second Vatican Council in the 1960s, most—if not all—nuns lived in convents, wore habits, and worked in traditional jobs, like teaching at Catholic schools. These days, however, you can find many an American nun who does not live in a convent, … Continue reading »
NEWS: The Latest Dan Brown Controversy
Today saw the world premiere of Angels and Demons, based on Dan Brown’s novel of the same name. As with Brown’s previous novel (and film) The Da Vinci Code, much of the film’s action is said to centre on the Roman Catholic religion. Although, Angels and Demons avoids some of the previously controversial material such … Continue reading »
NEWS: Pope Accused of ‘Distorting Science’
The Lancet has this week launched a ‘virulent’ attack on Pope Benedict XVI over his comments in relation to HIV/AIDS. Although the original comments date back to the Pope’s visit to Cameroon on 17 March, they appear to have engendered a high profile debate. In his original speech, Benedict XVI stated that the HIV/AIDS virus … Continue reading »
NEWS: Holocaust Denial and the Vatican
The Pope’s recent decision to pardon the Society of Saint Pius X (SSPX) continues to be met with condemnation, not least by such public figures as the German Chancellor Angela Merkel and Cardinal Karl Lehman of Mainz. Although, the Vatican insists that the Pope’s judgment of clemency was based purely on paternal pity, such a … Continue reading »
NEWS: YouTube and the Pope
The Vatican, and indeed, the Roman Catholic Church are often seen as highly traditional institutions, arguably even staid and far removed from everyday life. In 1995, under Pope John Paul II, these venerable institutions made their first foray into cyberspace with the creation of a website http://www.vatican.va Now, it would seem Pope Benedict XVI has … Continue reading »
NEWS: Pope to Receive Muslim Scholars
Pope Benedict’s highly controversial 2006 Regensburg address, which revealed the heightening tensions between the world’s two largest religious traditions, prompted 271 Muslim scholars to ask for a Muslim-Christian dialogue in a manifesto called A Common Word. Next week twenty-four signatories of the manifesto meet with Pope Benedict and some other high-ranking officials of the Roman … Continue reading »
NEWS: Pontiff Defends WWII Predecessor
Pope Benedict XVI, speaking at the interfaith group meeting (Pave the Way Foundation at Castel Gandolfo) has defended the actions of his predecessor, Pious XII, during World War Two and the Nazi’s annihilation of European Jewry. The speech has been heralded as the strongest Vatican defense of Pius’s role during the holocaust. The Pontiff from … Continue reading »
BOOKS: Stolen Bibles
By Roland Boer Roland Boer is a research fellow at Monash University, and the author of ‘Rescuing the Bible‘. Apart from writing books, he loves to travel by ship when he can and cycle as far and as long as possible. I would like to paint a landscape – the contemporary religious landscape. What does … Continue reading »
