Why did they do it? Judas, the Jewish leaders, Pilate — why did they send Jesus to his death?
Governor Pilate was actually not eager to kill Jesus. He did not want to get involved in that religious squabble. Pilate declared three times that he found no guilt in Jesus, but then people were saying, “If you release him, you are not a Friend of Caesar!” When Pilate’s interests were threatened he acted selfishly […]
Good Friday: His Yoke Is Easy and His Burden Is Glorious…
Friedrich von Hügel’s friend was dying, and he told his friend about his young daughter in her last illness. She had been “wonderfully plucky and courageous, ‘grinning and bearing,’ a dear stoic. But then gradually she became, in this too, more and more sensitively Christian. The Cross became, not simply a fact, to bear somehow […]
France is experiencing a boom in Muslim conversions to Christianity…
At a time when concern is growing about the rise of Islam, which is threatening to become the primary religion in historically Catholic countries such as France, a phenomenon of fundamental importance cannot be ignored: the exponential growth in conversions of Muslims to Christianity. Marie-Anne and Nicolas are two such converts from Islam who will […]
Boom in Muslim Conversions to Christianity in France: How Is the Church Responding?
There is exponential growth in conversions of Muslims to Christianity in France. This little-documented phenomenon is forcing dioceses to deploy new pastoral services to better welcome these converts, who often have difficulty integrating into their new Catholic communities.
‘Beyond the edges of humanity’: A Good Friday homily from the frontlines of war
Right there at the cross, in Jesus, our humanity doesn’t fall beyond its edges. Even there, even then, he continues to love. And even in that dense darkness—or loneliness—that he experiences as a human being, he doesn’t let himself forget that he is loved too.
Detroit archbishop’s pastoral: respect biological gender (Detroit Free Press)
In a pastoral letter on “the challenges of gender identity,” Archbishop Allen Vigneron of Detroit has said that in Church institutions, “All documents and records shall reflect the person’s God-given biological sex.” The pastoral calls for compassion for “individuals experiencing gender confusion” but orders that “all ministers of the Church in the Archdiocese of Detroit… […]
Texas bishop tells faithful: resist ‘racist’ border policies (Newsweek)
Bishop Mark Seitz of El Paso, Texas, has called upon the faithful to oppose the state’s efforts to curb illegal immigration. The bishop said state policies were “transparently political” and reflected a “broader, brutal, historical project in Texas to criminalize and police people who migrate.” “People of faith have a duty to resist these racist […]
Ukrainian Orthodox blast Russian Orthodox support for war (UOC (Ukrainian))
The leadership of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (UOC), which has been traditionally tied to Moscow, has reacted strongly against a statement from the Moscow Patriarchate endorsing the Russian offensive in Ukraine. The World Russian People’s Council, an initiative headed by Russian Orthodox Patriarch Kirill, described the war in Ukraine as “the national liberation struggle of […]
Pope composes meditations for Good Friday liturgy (Vatican Press Office)
Pope Francis himself composed the meditations to be used at the Good Friday service in the Roman Coliseum. Each year the Roman Pontiff asks someone to compose the text of the meditations on each of the Stations of the Cross. This year the Pope took up the task himself. The Pope’s meditations—which were made public […]
Top UN court orders Israel to allow access of aid into Gaza facing famine
International pressure mounts on Israel over the killing of thousands of Palestinian civilians in its war against Hamas, as warnings of famine in the besieged strip rise. Read all