Pope appeals for peace in Ukraine (Vatican News) At the conclusion of his weekly General Audience, Pope Francis asked the faithful “to pray for peace in Ukraine, now and throughout this day.” The Holy Father had called for an international day of prayer for peace to be held on 26 January, as Russia amasses troops on along its border with Ukraine. The Pope asked the Lord to “grant that the country may grow in the spirit of brotherhood and that all hurts, fears and divisions will be overcome…”
Pope Francis: The Lord wants us to trust one another (CNA) Pope Francis said on Tuesday that God wants Christians to trust one another, “despite the errors of the past and our mutual wounds,” as he marked the end of the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity. The pope was preaching on Jan. 25 in Rome’s Basilica of St. Paul Outside-the-Walls, which contains the tomb of St. Paul the Apostle, in the presence of Orthodox and Anglican leaders.“On our journey of fellowship, may we never fail to hear [Jesus’] words of encouragement: ‘Do not be afraid’ (Matthew 28:5.10),” he said…
Finland parliament member on trial for calling homosexuality a sin (Reuters) A Finnish Christian democrat MP and former minister of the interior went on trial on Monday for agitation against gay people over comments in which she described homosexuality as a developmental disorder and a sin…
“Now there is no one”: Christian lament in Syria (The New York Times) Communities across the Middle East and North Africa — some of which trace their roots to Christianity’s early days — have been struggling for decades with wars, poverty and persecution. A British government report in 2019 found that Christians in the Middle East and North Africa had fallen to less than 4 percent of the population from more than 20 percent a century ago. The past decade has been particularly brutal as the upheavals have left Christians in parts of Iraq, Syria and beyond under the control of Islamist militants…
German bishops welcome initiative to change Church teaching on sexuality (CNA) German Catholic bishops on Monday welcomed an initiative that is calling for a change in Church teaching on sexuality and gender identity. The initiative titled “#OutInChurch — For a church without fear,” launched on Jan. 24, appealed for the revision of what it described as “defamatory and outdated” expressions of Catholic doctrine, reported CNA Deutsch, CNA’s German-language news partner. In a seven-point list of demands, the organizers wrote: “Defamatory and outdated statements of Church doctrine on sexuality and gender need to be revised on the basis of theological and human-scientific findings…”
Read: Funeral homily for Alice von Hildebrand (CNA) As we join together in prayer at this Requiem Mass for the repose of the soul of our beloved friend and mentor Alice von Hildebrand, known as Lily to her friends, we pray that she who had such deep faith in the truth who is our Lord Jesus Christ, that she who radiated the peace that God bestows on those who love Him, may now see the fulfillment of her hope, sharing in the glory that God bestows on His good and faithful servants who have received the supreme gift of the beatific vision, seeing God face to face…
