Catholic parishes disproportionately closed in poor, Black and Latino neighbourhoods in the US
United States RNS While the number of US Catholics is increasing, the total number of Catholic parishes nationwide declined nine per cent between 1970 and 2020, according to a new report by Georgetown University’s Center for Applied Research in the Apostolate. In 10 of the 11 dioceses studied, those closures are disproportionately happening in Black […]
‘Trinity’s Triumph’: A new film, written by New Jersey priest, humanises Catholic clergy
While reductive narratives depict priests as perfect heroes or evil villains, said writer and producer Stephen Fichter, truth is more complicated. KATHRYN POST, of Religion News Service, reports…
Essay: The Catholic Church needs married priests now
US Catholic commentator THOMAS REESE, in an article first published on Religion News Service, says that at the Last Supper, Jesus said, ‘”Do this in memory of me”. He did not say, “Be celibate”…
Essay: Nicaragua released imprisoned priests, but repression is unlikely to relent – and the Catholic Church remains a target
In an article first published on The Conversation, KAI M THALER looks at recent events in Nicaragua against the backdrop of a years-long, wide-ranging crackdown on Catholic church clergy and groups…
Nicaragua expels Catholic Bishop Alvarez, priests amid crackdown
San Jose, Costa Rica Reuters Nicaragua said it expelled 19 clergymen to the Vatican on Sunday, including Catholic Bishop Rolando Alvarez, a prominent critic of President Daniel Ortega. Bishop Isidoro Mora, 15 priests and two seminarians who were detained in Nicaragua were also expelled. Rolando Alvarez, Bishop of the Diocese of Matagalpa and a critic […]
Nicaragua arrests four more priests, intensifies crackdown on Catholic Church
San Jose, Costa RicaReuters Nicaraguan police detained four more priests early on Saturday, bringing the total number to 12 over the past three days, according to a high-ranking member of the Catholic Church with knowledge of the matter and local media. Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega, who has governed the Central American country since 2007, has […]
Arrests of Catholic priests in Nicaragua tick up as dragnet intensifies
San JoseReuters Nicaraguan police on Friday arrested two more Catholic priests, bringing the number of clergymen detained this week to at least eight, according to two sources close to the church and opposition groups in exile. The sources, who declined to be named for fear of arrest, said the two priests were taken into custody […]
Nicaragua sends Catholic priests to Rome after talks with Vatican
Reuters Nicaragua sent a dozen Catholic priests who had been “processed” by judicial authorities to Rome on Wednesday, the government said, the latest action, a critic said, in a government crackdown on the church. President Daniel Ortega has at times accused Catholic church leaders of seeking to overthrow his government, while judicial authorities have arrested […]
Catholic priests in Nicaragua sentenced to decade behind bars
Managua, Nicaragua Reuters A Nicaraguan judge sentenced four Catholic priests to 10-year prison terms on Monday, after they were charged with “treason” and “spreading false news,” amid what rights groups call a growing clampdown on critics of President Daniel Ortega. Two Catholic seminarians studying for the priesthood were also sentenced to a decade behind bars […]
Spain’s ombudsman set to lead probe into Catholic Church abuses
Madrid, SpainReuters Spain’s parliament on Thursday overwhelmingly approved the creation of an independent commission led by the country’s ombudsman to investigate suspected sexual abuse of minors by Catholic priests. The commission would be a significant step for Spain, where abuse allegations are only now gaining traction years after similar scandals rocked the United States, Ireland […]