Orthodox Patriarch Bartholomew of Constantinople and representatives of other Orthodox and Anglican churches accompanied Pope Benedict in lighting a candle to launch the Year of St Paul.
[More]
Volunteers refuse WYD powers
Rural Fire Service and State Emergency Service volunteers will not seek "authorised person" status while assisting with WYD in order to avoid "negative interactions with people".
[More]
Vietnam up, US down on WYD numbers
A record number of Vietnamese pilgrims will attend World Youth Day this year but US numbers are down - and 50 Angola pilgrims are stranded in Sydney instead of Adelaide because tour organisers thought the SA capital was only an hour way.
[More]
Celebrate the living spirit: Bishops urge
Australia's bishops have urged Catholics to "celebrate the Living Spirit" to mark Aboriginal and Torres Islander Sunday this weekend.
[More]
Korean priests in Mass protest against US beef
Two hundred South Korean priests have celebrated a street Mass in Seoul to protest an unpopular government decision to resume beef imports from the US.
[More]
Bees for Benedict
Italian scooter manufacturer Piaggio has presented Pope Benedict with two new specially made three wheeled vehicles.
[More]
Feature - Walking away from what they do not know
"People who leave the Church are not leaving because they are rejecting the teachings of John Paul II or Pope Benedict. Most do so because they go to Catholic schools and they think that the kind of warm secular humanism with Christian gloss that they get in Catholic schools is in fact the Catholic faith and it hasn't captured their imagination, their love or their intellect so they are walking away from something that they do not know." - The Catholic Herald
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Featured Website - First Things
First Things is a monthly ecumenical journal concerned with the creation of a "religiously informed public philosophy for the ordering of society." It is published by The Institute on Religion and Public Life in the United States of America.
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Film Review - Kung Fu Panda
Kung Fu Panda is essentially a martial arts comedy and is a total action movie. It has striking effects and action sequences and a particularly impressive concluding fantasy sequence which brings DreamWorks to a new level of technological sophistication. There is a strong cultural feel about the movie and it heavily draws on Chinese culture to bring authenticity to its fantasy. - Peter Sheehan, Australian Catholic Office for Film and Broadcasting
[More]
Opinion - God is without circumference
His challenge was to see the beauty in every face, even when the owner of that face had long given up on it. Surely, that is to love others as Jesus did—Jesus the One who never gives up on us. If we are to love as Jesus loved, we need to be forgiving people. Forgiving people are bridge-builders and reconcilers. - Fr Chris Gleeson, Madonna
[More]
OPINION
Beyond knowledge to wisdomI believe this is one of the crisis points for contemporary Christianity. Put bluntly, its representatives do not seem wise. Yes, those representatives can give you any amount of information, some of them can even speak knowledgeably of Christian teachings. Wisdom is another thing altogether. - Fr Michael Whelan [More] - Aquinas Academy
FEATURE
Connected across bordersIt is time for leaders of nations to see their national interests as connected with the interests of people on the other side of the globe. We have reached the point where human existence is at stake and our destiny is inextricably linked. If we are to overcome this crisis of climate change we need to think beyond the confines of national states. - Just Comment [More] - Edmund Rice Centre
FEATURED CATHOLIC WEBSITE
Catholic Education Diocese of ParramattaReturning to our education theme, we shine the spotlight on arguably the most innovative Catholic education website in the country. In addition to all the standard features of any CEO site, Parramatta's includes some interactive opinion polls and a competition for students to attempt to ''Become the Executive Director for the day''. The site is also well regarded for its RE and curriculum resources.
- www.parra.catholic.edu.au
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Pope condemns torture as affront to humans
Pope John Paul II yesterday condemned torture as an intolerable affront to human dignity, lamenting that reports of abuses "constantly arrive from all continents".
The Holy Father made no mention of any countries or specific cases in his speech to seven new ambassadors to the Holy See.
On 4 June, John Paul is scheduled to meet with President Bush, whose administration is under heavy criticism for the abuse of Iraqi prisoners by the US military at Abu Ghraib prison. Several Vatican cardinals have already assailed the abuse.
In his speech, the pope said that "disturbing news constantly arrives from all continents concerning the human rights situation, showing how men, women and children are tortured and how their dignity is profoundly offended, contrary to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights."
"In this way, all humanity suffers injury and contempt," the pope said, urging that "all men and women of good will" work to ensure that human rights are respected.
"As all human beings are our brothers, we cannot remain quiet in the face of these intolerable abuses," he said.
The pope met with the ambassadors from Suriname, Sir Lanka, Mali, Yemen, Zambia, Nigeria and Tunisia.
SOURCE
Ahead of Visit, Most Swiss Think Pope Should Quit (Reuters 27/5/04)
LINKS
Pope Condemns Torture As Affront to Humans (Associated Press/thestate.com 27/5/04)
Pope says even in times of trial Christians must praise God (Catholic News Service 26/5/04)
God's Judgment Is Hope for Believer, Says John Paul II (Zenit 26/5/04)
John Paul II Turns to a Prayer That Worked in Poland (Zenit 26/5/04)
Last Volkswagen Beetle Goes to Pope (Zenit 26/5/04)
Meeting new envoys, Pope stresses religious freedom (Catholic World News 27/5/04)
Cardinal Law given ceremonial posting in Rome (Catholic World News 27/5/04)
Vatican Appoints Former Boston Archbishop (Associated Press/Las Vegas Sun 27/5/04)
Vatican appoints former Boston archbishop to be head of a Rome basilica (Associated Press/azcentral.com 27/5/04)
Vatican appoints former Boston archbishop head of a Rome basilica (Tuscaloosanews.com 27/5/04)
Pope offers prayers for flood victims in Haiti, Dominican Republic (Catholic News Service 26/5/04)
CRS PROVIDES ASSISTANCE AFTER DEADLY FLOODS IN THE DOMINICAN REPUBLIC AND HAITI (CRS/Reuters Alertnet 26/5/04)
Pope Asks Aid for Flood Victims in Caribbean (Zenit 26/5/04)
Pope expresses grief over Caribbean flood victims (Independent Catholic News 27/5/04)
28 May 2004
