Essay: The legacy of a decade of Pope Francis
US Catholic commentator THOMAS REESE, in an article first published on Religion News Service, says Pope Francis has opened windows that are difficult to close…
US report: Catholic clergy’s unquestioned – and uneducated – power spurs abuse
United StatesRNS A new report based on interviews with some 300 Catholic priests, nuns and laypeople concludes that clergy aren’t adequately prepared to wield the power they exercise and need more education on questions of sex and gender. The report, Beyond Bad Apples: Understanding Clericalism as a Structural Problem & Cultivating Strategies for Change, released […]
Essay: Catholics’ reports on the state of the church are in. Here’s what they have to say
In an article published on Religion News Service, PHYLLIS ZAGANO, senior research associate-in-residence and adjunct professor of religion at Hofstra University in the US, looks at what Pope Francis’ effort to “take the pulse” of the Catholic Church has found…
In reforming the priesthood, Pope Francis insists on middle ground
Vatican CityRNS With broad strokes and a balancing act, Pope Francis weighed in on the polarising tensions in the Catholic Church concerning the future of the priesthood. While upholding priestly celibacy as “a gift”, the Pope distanced himself from the “perversion” of rigidity while speaking at a Vatican conference on Thursday. As Catholic bishops and […]
Vatican novelty to start New Year as Pope urges adoption
Rome, ItalyAP Pope Francis called Wednesday for simplified adoption procedures and urged couples to have more children as he presided over his first general audience of the New Year with a novel supporting cast that emphasised his call for a less-clericalised Catholic Church. For the first time, a layman and a nun provided the English […]
In private meeting, Pope Francis opens up about his faith after his election
Vatican CityRNS During informal conversations with Jesuit clergy in Africa, Pope Francis opened up about his spirituality after being made pope – and criticised clericalism in the Catholic Church for its fixation on sex rather than equity and integrity. “One dimension of clericalism is the exclusive moral fixation on the sixth commandment [which in the […]