By Claire Creegan NEW YORK—Pope Francis’ scheduled Mass in Uganda in observance of the 50th anniversary of the canonization of the Ugandan Martyrs will help revitalize the faith of one of Africa’s youngest Churches, a local Church official said. In an interview with international Catholic charity Aid to the Church in Need, Msgr. John Baptist Kauta, […]
The daily headlines are filled with stories about the refugee crisis spreading across the globe. Tensions are high as governments assess the security risk of admitting groups of these displaced citizens, and the vetting and screening processes for refugees is under intense scrutiny. A refugee is defined as “a person who flees for refuge or […]
By Oliver Maksan HAVANA, Cuba—The skyline of the suburb of Guiteras, on the outskirts of the Cuban capital, is dominated by grey prefabricated buildings that are crumbling badly, weakened by the moist tropical temperatures. Some 32000 people live in this place that looks like so many others on the island nation. But Guiteras is very […]
By now there’s a good chance you’ve heard of the disturbing study from Princeton economists showing that middle-aged white Americans are the only demographic showing increasing death rates. Only the 45-54 age segment, and only in the United States. Worse yet, the rise in deaths is due to suicide and substance abuse. One of the […]
Last week’s New York Times featured a haunting portrayal of suicide in America. Across the nation, suicide rates are on the rise—particularly among rural adolescents. But, as the article highlights, “suicide is a threat not just to the young. Rates over all rose 7 percent in metropolitan counties from 2004 to 2013, according to the […]
Driving my kids home from school on one of our faster moving country roads, I was stopped short by a dog wandering stupidly around the yellow lines. I couldn’t get out of the car to help because my son has a life-threatening allergy, so my frustration mounted as I realized that, until someone else came […]
The October 26th 2015 edition of LifeNews.com carried an article entitled “Abortionist Caught Saying It Would be a “Great Idea” to Burn Aborted Babies for Energy.”[1] The article attributed the quote to Michigan abortion mill owner, Renee Chelian, at a 2014 conference in San Francisco for the National Abortion Federation (NAF). Chelian owns the Northland Family […]
As refugees are welcomed into neighboring Middle East countries Democrat senators want to make sure abortion in available funded by US taxpayers. Senator Richard Blumenthal drafted a letter to President Obama signed by 27 of his Democrat colleagues asking that the longstanding Helms amendment be gutted. Current law prohibits any US foreign aid be used […]
Suddenly, quite surprisingly, I find myself deep in despair. Despair for my family and friends. Despair for my parish and my Catholic Church. Despair for myself, my work, my apostolate and my health, for my community and my country and my fellow human beings, for my prayer life and my faith and the souls of […]
A new article over at CNS News paints a disturbing picture of the state of religious liberty across the globe. Citing religious persecution as “a leading social justice crisis of our time,” the article outlines the horrific actions being perpetrated against Christians in the Middle East and Africa, and America’s less than robust response to […]
Requesting anonymity, Catholic sources in Nepal have told the international Catholic charity, Aid to the Church in Need, about growing fears within the country’s small Christian population for their future safety in Nepal. In the early hours of Sept. 14, 2015, three Protestant churches were bombed in eastern Nepal where the Christian population is most […]
Fraternal correction is defined as the admonishing of one’s neighbor with the purpose of reforming him, or, if possible, preventing his sinful indulgence in the first place. The very idea of this makes America 2015 ™ cringe, because even to most Christians, those who are responsible for fraternally correcting each other, the concept of evaluating the […]
I have a memory of the day my grandfather died in 1962. My father came home from the hospital where my grandfather was being treated for what we thought was a relatively minor ailment but he unexpectedly died. I was waiting at my grandfather’s house with other family members when my dad came in the door. In […]
Participation in the global community of nations has always required compromises, sometimes uncomfortable ones. How the United States confronts these issues generally depends on the current ideological temperament holding sway in the Oval Office and among the American people in general. One thing any student of foreign affairs quickly learns is that when it comes […]
There is intense discussion currently about changing the U.S. immigration system so that thousands or even millions more people can easily become citizens. Oftentimes underlying this talk is the belief that the U.S. will always be prosperous and poor nations will always be poor, so the only way to help is by letting the poor […]
By Marta Petrosillo ROME—“We Christians are determined to stay on in Syria and continue to give our witness.” Grim-faced and speaking with determination, Chaldean Archbishop Antoine Audo of Aleppo, Syria, addressed media here today. The archbishop commented on the mass exodus of Syrians, spurred on in recent weeks by the welcome shown by some European […]
By Oliver Maksan JERUSALEM—“Welcome to our new reception room;” Sister Agathe offered her visitor a warm greeting. The nun is in charge of finances for the Carmelite Sisters’ convent on the Mount of Olives in Jerusalem. Substantial renovations were just completed. Everything is clean and bright. “The renovations help us to receive guests better, while […]
Earlier this year, His Holiness Pope Francis officially announced a very special jubilee year which he called the Extraordinary Jubilee of Mercy. He designated the dates December 8, 2015, through November 20, 2016, as this year. At the time of this announcement, Pope Francis said, “To be touched with tenderness by His hand and shaped […]
By Eva-Maria Kolmann NEW YORK—“Priests who do not have a calling will not last long here in the Ukraine.” Such, plain and simple, is the verdict of Roman Catholic Bishop Bronislaw Bernacki of Odessa-Simferopol. Soviet-era communism may be long gone, but the local Church is still in rebuilding mode, the prelate said in an interview […]
This link is for the 8th of 12 videos produced by the Center For Medical Progress. This one features baby parts buyer StemExpress Founder and CEO, Cate Dyer, saying they want 50 MORE fetal livers PER WEEK. And as they say, Planned Parenthood is a good source because of their volume of abortions. It is […]
“Judge not, lest ye be judged” is among the most frequently-uttered passages in the Bible, particularly by those who wish to shut down any discussion on some objectively immoral behavior. Even so, this opening verse from Matthew 7:1-3 is also among the Scriptures’ most misrepresented and, consequently, misunderstood passages. As verses 2 and 3 conclude, […]
Amnesty International voted Tuesday to urge the decriminalization of all aspect of the sex trade, and said the new policy was based on input from the World Health Organization and UN Women. The vote follows weeks of intense debate on an issue that has split feminists, celebrities, and experts who warn that prostitution is fueling […]
By Daniel Konstantinovic NEW YORK—August 6, 2015 marks the one-year anniversary of the expulsion from their convent of a group of Dominican sisters who had been serving Christians on Iraq’s Nineveh Plane for many years. That day, ISIS forced the women religious into exile in Erbil, capital of Kurdistan. Discovering that Kurdish militia had fled […]
My brother and I could be rambunctious children. There were times our rowdiness more than made up for the fact there was only two of us. One moment leaps to mind. We were roughly 12 and 9. Our dad had gone out on an errand and we were told to stay quiet while our mom, […]
