New Orleans, Louisiana
Amazon founder gives $15 million to Catholic Charities
The world’s richest man has donated $15 million (£12 million) to three Catholic charities helping the homeless. The donations were among the first grants made by the Day One Fund, a $2 billion charitable fund set up by Amazon founder Jeff Bezos and his wife, Mackenzie Bezos. Catholic Charities of the archdioceses of New Orleans and Miami and the Catholic Community Services of Western Washington were three of the 24 organisations selected. Sister Marjorie Hebert, president and CEO of Catholic Charities in New Orleans, said the grant would “help us meet the needs of so many families experiencing homelessness”.
Bradenton, Florida
Women in legal row over Our Lady of Guadalupe painting
An 85-year-old woman who painted Our Lady of Guadalupe on the front of her mobile home is being threatened with legal action by the owners of the trailer park. Lawyers for Bradenton Tropical Palms sent Mille Francis a legal notice last month giving her 30 days to remove the picture. “They’ll have to kill me first,” she told the Bradenton Herald. “It’s not going anywhere.” She said she painted the image in the hope of encouraging people to pray. “It’s important to remind people to pray every day … we need it so terribly.” The image was painted on a piece of plywood that Francis used to replace a window. Vanguard Property Management said she did not have permission for the painting.
Portland, Oregon
Pope ‘very fond’ of charismatics, says bishop
A bishop appointed to a new Vatican office serving the Catholic Charismatic Renewal has said that Pope Francis has an affinity with the movement. Auxiliary Bishop Peter Smith of Portland, who will represent the United States on the 20-member body known as CHARIS (“Catholic Charismatic Renewal International Service”), told the website Crux: “[The Pope] was initially sceptical of it, but then he saw its impact on the lives of people close to him, and over time he has become very fond of it.” He said the new body was a way to improve communication between the charismatic movement and the Vatican. Last year Pope Francis described the movement as a “current of grace” in a meeting with 50,000 pilgrims marking its 50th anniversary.
Managua, Nicaragua
Priest attacked with acid while hearing Confessions
A 24-year-old Russian citizen has been arrested after acid was thrown at a priest hearing Confessions in Managua’s cathedral (pictured) last week. Fr Mario Guevara was treated for severe burns to his face, arms and shoulders, but is now in a stable condition, the Archdiocese of Managua said. A number of Nicaraguan clergy have faced violence in recent months amid tensions with the government. Cardinal Leopoldo Brenes and Auxiliary Bishop Silvio Baez of Managua were jostled and attacked by a pro-government mob in July. A crackdown on protesters since April has left about 300 people dead.
Talca, Chile
Vatican investigates order after Sisters allege abuse
The vatican has launched an apostolic visitation into a religious order in Chile after half a dozen Sisters alleged sex abuse by visiting priests, and abuse and a cover-up by superiors. The Institute of the Good Samaritan, based in Talco, is dedicated to helping the sick. The allegations were reported in a documentary aired on Televisión Nacional de Chile. The apostolic nunciature announced that the investigators were Sister Rosario Alonso, a Salesian Sister of Don Bosco, and Fr Maurizio Bridio, a Franciscan.
La Plata, Argentina
Archbishop: there is a gay priest lobby
The archbishop emeritus of La Plata has said that some dioceses have a “high” proportion of gay clergy who constitute a “kind of lobby”, even if they are “non-practising”. Archbishop Héctor Aguer made the comment on the Channel 9 television programme Keys for a Better World. He was responding to Pope Francis’s remarks on homosexuality in the priesthood. “In some dioceses, the percentage of homosexual priests is high, and they usually cover [for] each other … they constitute a kind of lobby, even those who are ‘non-practicing’,” the archbishop said. He stepped down as Archbishop of La Plata in June.
London, England
Prince Charles hails Sister who helped Christians flee ISIS
The Prince of Wales has spoken of how moved he was by the testimony of a nun who is helping to rebuild Iraq’s Christian heartland. Speaking at an ecumenical service celebrating Middle East Christians in Westminster Abbey, Prince Charles said he felt “great joy” at meeting Dominican Sister Luma Khudher (pictured), who, as Islamists advanced on Qaraqosh in 2014, “got behind the wheel of a minibus crammed full of her fellow Christians” and drove to safety. He said she and other Iraqi refugees showed the “resilience of humanity” and the “extraordinary power of faith” by returning to rebuild a homeland destroyed by ISIS.
Catania, Italy
Bishop: we will open every church in Italy to migrants
Italy’s bishops are ready to open every church to migrants made homeless by the “Salvini decree”, a Sicilian bishop has said. The new law, named after Matteo Salvini, the minister of the interior, removes legal protections for migrants not deemed to be refugees but unable to return home. Immigration centres have started evicting such migrants. Cardinal Pietro Parolin, secretary of state, criticised the law, saying: “You don’t leave migrants in the street.” Bishop Calogero Peri of Caltagirone, meanwhile, said: “I have already spoken with other bishops: we will open the church doors of every single parish under our control. ”
Newcastle, NSW
Prelate wins appeal
A judge has quashed the conviction of Archbishop Philip Wilson for failing to report abuse allegations to police. The former Archbishop of Adelaide had already served four months’ detention in his sister’s house. Judge Roy Ellis ruled there was a reasonable doubt.
Oman, Algeria
Papal envoy beatifies martyrs of civil war
Nineteen martyrs of Algeria’s civil war have been beatified in the city of Oman. Cardinal Angelo Becciu, prefect of the Vatican’s Congregation for Saints’ Causes, presided at the beatification at Notre Dame de Santa Cruz basilica. Mohammed Issa, Algeria’s religious affairs minister, said it was the first such ceremony in the Muslim world. In a message read at the Mass, Pope Francis said he hoped the event would “draw a great sign of brotherhood in the Algerian sky”. The martyrs included Trappist monks whose story was told in the film Of Gods and Men.
Dar es Salaam, Tanzania
Cardinal: better to refuse aid than accept homosexuality
a cardinal has urged the government of Tanzania to reject any foreign aid that requires complying with Western attitudes to homosexuality. Cardinal Polycarp Pengo, Archbishop of Dar es Salaam, said at a Mass last month: “It is better to die of hunger than to receive aid and be compelled to do things that are contrary to God’s desire.” The World Bank and Denmark both recently withheld aid – the former over the expulsion of pregnant girls from schools, the latter because of “homophobic comments” by a government official. In a recent crackdown, hundreds of people suspected of being gay have been arrested. Homosexual acts are illegal in the country.
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