Monthly Archives: October 2013

The attempt to impose abortion on demand via Brussels

Posted on October 26, 2013 by

Earlier this week the European Parliament voted against an attempt to make abortion a ‘human right’ in the EU. So far, so reassuring. But the margin was narrow. And the debate exposed the growing hostility to freedom of conscience for medical … Continue reading →

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Communion for the remarried: Vatican opens door to reform via annulments

Posted on October 23, 2013 by

An important statement by the head of the Vatican’s doctrinal congregation, the CDF, has reaffirmed existing church teaching on not admitting to the Eucharist Catholics who have remarried without first annulling their marriage. But in the article in the Vatican’s … Continue reading →

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Laying Savita to rest

Posted on October 11, 2013 by

This week the official investigation into the death of Savita Halappanavar, the 31-year-old dentist who died of sepsis while 17 weeks pregnant at University Hospital Galway last year, was brought to a close with the publication of the Health Information … Continue reading →

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Francis calls new-style synod to boost the family

Posted on October 9, 2013 by

Pope Francis has convened a Synod of Bishops for October 2014 on the theme of “The Pastoral Challenges of the Family in the Context of Evangelisation.” The decision was taken at the end of a two-day meeting, attended by Francis, of the … Continue reading →

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The mystical moment that is the source of Francis’ boldness and freedom

Posted on October 7, 2013 by

New information has been revealed of an experience in prayer which Pope Francis had shortly after his election, and which helps account for the apparent extraordinary freedom and spontaneity of his papal ministry. The story begins with unreliable evidence. According … Continue reading →

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The curia is not the true object of curial reform

Posted on October 4, 2013 by

“The reform of the Roman Curia is something that almost all cardinals called for in the Congregations preceding the Conclave,” Pope Francis told Latin-American Religious in early June. “I also asked for it.” He went on to say that he could … Continue reading →

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Francis-Scalfari: a model of the ‘culture of encounter’

Posted on October 2, 2013 by

The unscripted papal interview, a thing once unheard of, is fast becoming commonplace. To the first two in July, Globo TV and the papal plane, and last month’s 12,000-word one with Jesuit magazines, can now be added the interview published yesterday in La Repubblica, Italy’s equivalent … Continue reading →

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