Lord Sacks was able to get a hearing from those who otherwise consider themselves closed to biblical wisdom.

The homilist at the funeral Mass for Fr Paul Mankowski remark­ed upon “three things that were important” to the late Jesuit – his fam­ily, the Society of Jesus and St John Fisher. This last, the preacher suggest­ed, was a fitting devotion, for Mank­owski, like the martyr bishop, “was extremely learned, especially in biblical languages and

There is a story about Pope St John XXIII when he was Patriarch of Venice that, as the Italians say, if it’s not true, it ought to be. At a formal dinner in the patriarchal palace, Cardinal Angelo Roncalli was being hectored by a guest for his continuing solicitude for a fallen priest. He gave

The history of the Church is written in the blood of the martyrs. Amongst that white-robed army the class of 1945 wrote some bold lines. As the coronavirus put paid to many of the 75th anniversary commemorations of the end of World War II, an ancillary consequence was that some of the most inspiring Catholic

In the aftermath of the collapsed criminal case against Cardinal George Pell, the Australian Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sex Abuse released its redacted findings concerning the cardinal. The findings unwittingly drew attention to a serious consequence of the sexual abuse crisis, namely the loss of credibility of bishops, even among priests. The

There was a minor flap recently when the Vatican directory, Annuario Pontifico, was released with a new layout for the pages on Pope Francis. In previous years, the papal name was followed by the title, Bishop of Rome, and then a series of other titles, of which the most prominent was “Vicar of Jesus Christ”.

It was time for the singers. And in devastated Italy, post-Pavarotti, that could only mean Andrea Bocelli. Hence the grace-filled moment that took place this Easter, at a sacred music concert in the empty Duomo. Since the mid-1980s, when Bob Geldof gave us Band Aid to raise funds for the Ethiopian famine, any calamity of

It may have been a sign of papal favour - but it also helps to balance an increasingly elderly leadership class

The comfort of history – uniquely evoked by a Queen who lived through so much of it – is that what might seem difficult, or even impossible, has already been accomplished

The Holy See expressed ’utmost respect’ for the Australian justice system. That could only create confusion

The coronavirus pandemic has deprived Catholics the world over of much of their Lenten liturgical life. During Holy Week that deprivation will be felt all the more acutely, as priests prepare to celebrate the most sacred days of the year in empty churches. Holy Week during the pandemic will carry a perennial liturgical dynamic to

The pandemic Urbi et Orbi was a signal moment – perhaps the signature moment – in the pontificate of Pope Francis. Before last Friday evening, in the judgment of every news editor, every summary of the pontificate and every obituary would have begun with the “Who am I to judge?” airborne press conference. After that