Dar es Salaam, Tanzania | AFP | At least 20 people in Tanzania were trampled to death at an open-air evangelical Christian church service in the north of the country, officials said on Sunday. Government official Kippi Warioba, District Commissioner in the northern town of Moshi, said he feared the …
Read More »Pope Francis repeats support for celibacy after Benedict outburst
Rome, Italy | AFP | Pope Francis on Monday repeated his support for celibacy after his predecessor pope Benedict XVI urged him not to open the Catholic priesthood up to married men, in a plea that stunned Vatican experts. “The pope’s position on celibacy is well known,” the head of …
Read More »Retired Pope Benedict rejects opening up priesthood to married men
Rome, Italy | AFP | Former pope Benedict XVI has publicly urged his successor Pope Francis not to open the Catholic priesthood up to married men, in a plea that Sunday stunned Vatican experts. The ex-pontiff, who retired in 2013, issued the defence of clerical celibacy in a book …
Read More »Trump hits campaign trail with pitch to evangelicals
Washington, United States | AFP | US President Donald Trump benefited from the fierce support of evangelicals in 2016 and cannot afford to lose those voters if he wants to win a second term in November. So the Republican incumbent is beginning the election year with a pitch to seal …
Read More »Pope Francis ushers in Christmas with message of ‘unconditional love’
Vatican City, Holy See | AFP | Pope Francis ushered in Christmas on Wednesday for the world’s 1.3 billion Catholics with a message of unconditional love, saying “God continues to love us all, even the worst of us”. “You may have mistaken ideas, you may have made a complete …
Read More »In Hiroshima, Pope Francis assails ‘crime’ of nuclear weapons
Nagasaki, Japan | AFP | Pope Francis Sunday described the use of nuclear bombs as “a crime”, as he took his appeal for an end to atomic weapons to Hiroshima in an emotional meeting with survivors. The visit came hours after a highly symbolic stop in the city of Nagasaki, …
Read More »Celebrations as Ugandan-born Priest takes charge of South African Diocese
Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | It was all celebrations this weekend in Wakaliga, a Kampala suburb, the birthplace of Msgr. Joseph Kizito, a Ugandan-priest who has been appointed as the ninth Bishop of Aliwal Catholic Diocese in South Africa. The jubilation has also extended to Rubaga hill, the …
Read More »‘Pope should open priesthood in Amazon to married men’
Vatican City, Holy See | AFP | Catholic bishops gathered at a special Vatican assembly called on Pope Francis Saturday to open the priesthood to married men in the Amazon, as well as giving women a greater role to play and making damaging the environment a sin. The bishops issued a …
Read More »POPE FRANCIS: Every person should have access to adequate food
COMMENT | POPE FRANCIS | The yearly celebration of World Food Day makes us hear the dramatic plea of those of our brothers and sisters who suffer from hunger and malnutrition. Despite efforts made in recent decades, the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development is yet to be implemented in many parts of the world. …
Read More »Indonesia moves to ban sex outside marriage
Jakarta, Indonesia | AFP | Indonesia is set to vote on a plan to outlaw gay and pre-marital sex while beefing up its blasphemy laws in a shakeup fuelled by religious conservatism and slammed by rights groups Thursday. The proposed criminal law overhaul could affect millions in the world’s biggest …
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