Italy prepares to welcome 600 Ukrainian refugees (Crux) As the war in Ukraine draws near to the one-month mark and the millions of people who have fled are seeking shelter and protection elsewhere in Europe, Italy is currently hosting a generous number of them and is prepared to receive 600 more refugees this week with the help of several NGOs. In total, more than 3.3 million refugees have fled Ukraine since Russia first invaded Feb. 24, according to the United Nations, and some 6.5 million people are internally displaced…
Vatican publishes pope’s schedule for Holy Week (Vatican News) After two years of pandemic restrictions during Holy Week, Pope Francis will once again return to the Colosseum to preside over the Stations of the Cross on Good Friday. The Vatican has published the pope’s schedule for Holy Week and Easter, confirming that he will preside over large liturgical celebrations in St. Peter’s Square for the first time since 2019…
Father Altman remains in the spotlight, will speak at even this summer (La Crosse Tribune) While former La Crosse priest Father James Altman’s future with the Diocese of La Crosse is still under review, his position as a prominent figure for the right has not budged. About eight months after he was removed as pastor of St. James the Less church in La Crosse for political rhetoric and misinformation, Altman has continued to dig in to his messages and be a voice for conservatives…
St. Bernadette relics to tour U.S. (CNS) The relics of St. Bernadette, the Marian visionary of Lourdes, France, will tour the United States for the first time. The visit will begin in South Florida at Our Lady of Lourdes Church in Miami, with a morning welcome Mass April 7. The next day the relics will visit St. Bernadette Church in Hollywood, Florida, then return to Our Lady of Lourdes Church…
Martyrs of El Salvador move closer to canonization (RNS) Forty-five years after a right-wing death squad gunned down the Rev. Rutilio Grande along with two Catholic laymen, Manuel Solórzano and Nelson Lemus, in El Salvador, Jesús Aguilar still vividly remembers the sadness and dread of that day. But as the sun went down on March 12, 1977, Aguilar also remembers thinking life was about to get a lot more difficult…
Proposal: Orthodox bishops should pray with Pope to Mary (National Catholic Register) As Pope Francis prepares to consecrate Russia and Ukraine to the Immaculate Heart of Mary on Friday, a Rome-based theologian has proposed the invitation be extended to all the Orthodox patriarchs and bishops. Father Paul Haffner, a mariologist and scholar of Eastern Orthodoxy, has suggested the participation of the Orthodox on the basis that they “are already in a close bond of communion with Rome but, as we know, they lack unity among themselves in this situation, so this might help heal their rifts, too…”
