Vatican City, Feb. 16, 2019: In the first ever such penalty, Pope Francis has defrocked former US cardinal Theodore Edgar McCarrick over soliciting sex in the confessional. McCarrick was found guilty of sexual crimes against minors and adults 50 years ago. Pope Francis decided the ruling, which followed an appealContinue Reading
Matters India reporter Burkina Faso, Feb. 16, 2019: Salesian missionary Fr Antonio Cesar Fernandez was shot dead on 15 February, probably by Jihadists, near the border between Togo and Burkina Faso. Fr Cesar hailing from Spain had spent some 50 years in Africa as a missionary. The Salesian Province MaryContinue Reading
By Rina Chandran Yangon, Feb. 15, 2019: Catholic leaders are lending their support to those protesting a Chinese-backed dam project in Myanmar, adding pressure on the government to cancel the hydro-power dam in the country’s north. Ongoing protests have brought together Catholic priests and nuns with hundreds of protesters inContinue Reading
Budapest, Feb 13 2019: In an effort to encourage Hungarians to have more babies, the prime minister of Hungary has announced that women with four children or more will be exempt from paying income tax for life. In a speech over the weekend, Prime Minister Viktor Orban also promised toContinue Reading
VATICAN CITY, Feb 13, 2019: The Vatican says it is teaming up with Microsoft on an academic prize to promote ethics in artificial intelligence. Pope Francis met privately on Feb 13 with Microsoft President Brad Smith and the head of a Vatican scientific office that promotes Catholic Church positions onContinue Reading
Abu Dhabi, Feb 12, 2019: Thousands of worshippers from across the Middle East and beyond will turn out in celebration as the foundations are laid for the UAE’s first traditional Hindu stone temple. The foundation stones ceremony for the shrine in Abu Dhabi will take place on April 20, launchingContinue Reading
Mexico City, Feb. 12, 2019: At least 152 Catholic priests in Mexico have been suspended in the past nine years for sexual abuse against minors, Mexico’s Archbishop for Monterrey said, prompting a lawyer for alleged victims of abuse to question on Monday the Church’s sincerity. “Some delinquent priests are inContinue Reading
Vatican City, Feb. 9, 2019: An environmental group is asking Pope Francis to abstain from all animal products during Lent, promising a $1 million donation to a charity of his choice if he does so. “Today, Pope Francis, I am asking you to join me in abstaining from all animalContinue Reading
By Matters India Reporter Chittagong, Feb 11, 2019: The end of 500 years of celebration of Christianity in Bangladesh ended with message of harmony among people of all religions on Feb 8. The occasion was to mark the first settlement of Portuguese Catholic merchants in 1518. In the interim meetingContinue Reading
Geneva, Feb. 11, 2019: Geneva residents on February 10 voted for a controversial new “secularism law,” which will among other things ban elected officials and public employees from wearing visible religious symbols. More than 55 percent voters in the Swiss canton backed the law, final results showed, despite warnings thatContinue Reading
