San Francisco priest tells flock: COVID is real, but news reports are ‘largely unreal’ (SFist.com) This week we learned of the landmark Saints Peter and Paul Church in North Beach allowing a wedding mass to go on with 100 guests earlier this month, and now we get a church newsletter from a controversial figure at another SF church, Father Joseph Illo, who is trying to preach the gospel that people shouldn’t be living in fear of COVID-19…
Bishops fear Scotland’s hate crime law could criminalize Bible and Catechism (CNA) Catholic bishops have said that proposed hate crime legislation in Scotland could criminalize the Bible and the Catechism of the Catholic Church. In a statement issued July 29, the bishops argued that the Scottish Government’s new Hate Crime and Public Order Bill could lead to censorship of Catholic teaching…
Anti-Christian violence on the rise in India (UCANews.com) Two women were raped and killed among six Christians murdered for their faith in India in the first half of this year, according to a newly released report.Three others — two Christian women and a 10-year-old girl — were raped for their refusal to give up their new faith, said the half-yearly report released on July 28 by Persecution Relief, a Christian group.Persecution Relief, an ecumenical body that records Christians’ persecution in India, said its data shows “a very grim picture” of religious freedom in Hindu-majority India…
Caritas warns of rise in human trafficking during pandemic (CNS) As governments and world leaders struggle to contain the coronavirus pandemic, they must also work harder to protect victims of human trafficking, said the Vatican-based international network of Catholic charities…
