Islamic State (ISIS/ISIL/IS) militiamen have kidnapped 230 Syrian civilians, including 19 children and 45 women, after invading a village in the province of Homs in central Syria. Among the hostages are 60 Christians, according to the Syrian Observat…
Author: Thomas D. Williams, Ph.D.
Pope Blasts ‘Atrocious, Inhumane and Incomprehensible’ Persecution of Christians
In some of his sharpest language to date, Pope Francis condemned global violence against Christians on Thursday in a letter to the vicar of the Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem, Archbishop Maroun Lahham.
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Second Boat Sinks off Libyan Coast, 381 Refugees Rescued
A boat laden with refugees sank Thursday morning thirty miles off the Libyan coast, just 15 miles from where another vessel had capsized Wednesday. In Wednesday’s incident, at least 25 drowned, while in the more recent shipwreck, all 381 passengers were rescued by the Italian Coast Guard.
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Pope Urges American Catholics to Defend Religious Freedom
In a strongly worded statement to American Catholics, Pope Francis declared that marriage between one man and one woman is “under attack from powerful cultural forces,” and urged Americans to defend “those freedoms upon which your nation was founded,” the cornerstone of which is “religious liberty.” The message from Pope Francis, signed by Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin, was sent to participants in an international conference organized by the Knights of Columbus, which opened Tuesday in Philadelphia. The convention, attended by some 2,000 people, is being held in Philadelphia to prepare for Francis’ visit there next month for the eighth World Meeting of Families. In his message, Francis said that that American Catholics have the duty as responsible citizens “to contribute to a conscious defense of those freedoms on which your nation was founded. The cornerstone of these freedoms is religious liberty.” Religious liberty, the Pope insisted, is
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Pope Tells Divorced and Remarried: There Is a Place for You in the Church
In his weekly audience Wednesday, Pope Francis continued his series of reflections on the family, focusing on the situation of the divorced and remarried and their participation in the life of the Church.
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Nuns Sue TV Network for ‘False’ Depiction of Saint Laura Montoya Upegui
A congregation of Missionary Sisters in Colombia is suing a television network to prevent the airing of a series about its founder and Colombia’s first canonized saint, Sister Laura Montoya Upegui, claiming that it presents a false picture of the saint’s life.
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Pope Francis Ushers in Era of Vatican Austerity
The pontificate of Pope Francis with his emphasis on poverty has resulted in a new tone of austerity in Vatican circles, with clerics avoiding any show of ostentation in favor of a new sobriety in dress, transportation and manners. Francis has put aside official Vatican limousines, wears plain black shoes instead of soft red loafers and sits down to common meals with priests and other clerics in the cafeteria of the Casa Santa Marta, the Vatican residence where he is living. His Vatican spending cuts have affected almost everyone, and even the office in charge of naming saints has been told to lower expenses. A shopkeeper named Luciano Ghezzi who sells clerical wear says that styles have definitely changed in the era of Pope Francis. When the Pope tones down his own dress, he says, “it is natural that everything around him takes on a more sober tone.” “I know
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Nigerian Army Frees 178 Boko Haram Hostages
The Nigerian army announced Sunday night that it succeeded in freeing 178 Boko Haram hostages, including 101 children, captured a commander of the radical Islamist group, and destroyed several rebel camps during a military operation.
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Pope: Spiritual Hunger ‘More Important’ Than Physical Hunger
In his two years as Roman Pontiff, Pope Francis has become known as the Pope of the poor and disenfranchised, but in his Angelus message Sunday he reminded his hearers of the predominance of the spiritual over material life, saying that the universal “hunger for life and eternity” is even more important than a physical hunger for earthly food. Citing the Gospel reading for the day, Francis said that Jesus wishes us to understand that “beyond physical hunger human beings carry in themselves another hunger—all of us have this hunger—a more important hunger, that cannot be satiated by ordinary food.” This hunger, the Pope continued, is “a hunger for life, a hunger for eternity that only He can satisfy, because he is the ‘Bread of Life.’” Francis noted that Jesus does not eliminate concern for the procurement of our daily food, or of anything that can make our lives better.
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Chad Parliament Brings Back Death Penalty for Terrorists
The national parliament of Chad has unanimously approved a rigorous anti-terrorism bill that reintroduces the death penalty just six months after its abolition.
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