(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis’ visit to the Swedish city of Lund at the end of October to take part in a joint commemoration of the start of the Reformation will mark the first time that this event has been celebrated in an ecumenical way.The Vatican announced on Monday that the Pope and leaders of the World Lutheran Federation will jointly host the event on October 31st in cooperation with the Church of Sweden and the Catholic diocese of Stockholm.In the past, all major anniversaries of the Reformation have been moments of “conflict and rivalry”, according to Bishop Brian Farrell, Secretary of the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity. He told Philippa Hitchen the event will mark, in a highly symbolic way, the fruits of 50 years of patient dialogue between his Council and the Lutheran World FederationListen Bishop Farrell says the Catholic-Lutheran dialogue has made such significant progress because “we’ve been able to go to the heart...
(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis’ visit to the Swedish city of Lund at the end of October to take part in a joint commemoration of the start of the Reformation will mark the first time that this event has been celebrated in an ecumenical way.
The Vatican announced on Monday that the Pope and leaders of the World Lutheran Federation will jointly host the event on October 31st in cooperation with the Church of Sweden and the Catholic diocese of Stockholm.
In the past, all major anniversaries of the Reformation have been moments of “conflict and rivalry”, according to Bishop Brian Farrell, Secretary of the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity. He told Philippa Hitchen the event will mark, in a highly symbolic way, the fruits of 50 years of patient dialogue between his Council and the Lutheran World Federation
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Bishop Farrell says the Catholic-Lutheran dialogue has made such significant progress because “we’ve been able to go to the heart of the controversies of the 16th century” and at the same time, develop a new understanding, mutual trust and a real capacity to work together on many projects. The event in Lund, he suggests, comes “almost as a signature at the end of these 50 years and an opening of a new phase of positive dialogue with the Protestant world”.
Bishop Farrell says people in the pews are sometimes impatient with the slow progress of theological dialogue, but he adds the “Churches have to be sure that the steps being taken correspond to their innermost treasury of truth”.
Reflecting on the gifts that the Reformation brought to the whole Christian world, Bishop Farrell says it’s clear that Luther was speaking the truth when he protested against the many abuses in the Church, abuses that the Council of Trent then worked to correct. In the struggles and conflicts that followed the Reformation, he says, the two sides hardened in rejection of the other “so that the idea that Luther was right” about certain things was lost.
The pro-life flag from the Pro-Life Flag Project (www.prolifeflag.com). / Credit: Pro-Life Flag Project (www.prolifeflag.com)Toronto, Canada, Apr 25, 2024 / 12:50 pm (CNA).The International Pro-Life Flag will not fly over Toronto Catholic schools this May.Toronto Catholic District School Board (TCDSB) trustees voted against an April 23 motion proposed by trustee Michael Del Grande that the pro-life flag fly outside all schools and the Catholic Education Centre during the month of May, just as the board voted to fly the Pride flag in June.Del Grande's motion was defeated at the April 23 board meeting when only Garry Tanuan supported Del Grande's motion. The eight other board members in attendance and the two student trustees opposed his proposal.Though Del Grande could not muster enough backing from his colleagues, his plan, which would have also directed all TCDSB schools to teach an exclusively pro-life curriculum on May 9, the day of the National March for Life, garnered bois...
null / ShutterstockCNA Staff, Apr 25, 2024 / 10:52 am (CNA).Following a recent Vatican declaration on human dignity, the Catholic bishops of England and Wales condemned medical and social transgenderism while encouraging a "sensitive" response in a pastoral reflection released on Wednesday.The Vatican's doctrinal office came down strongly against gender ideology, stating that "all attempts to obscure reference to the ineliminable sexual difference between man and woman are to be rejected."The Catholic bishops of England and Wales followed the Vatican's lead in their April 24 statement, "Intricately Woven by the Lord," which encouraged rooting pastoral care in "acceptance … of the body as created." "We cannot encourage or give support to reconstructive or drug-based medical intervention that harms the body," they wrote. "Nor can we legitimize or uphold a way of living that is not respectful of the truth and vocation of each man and each woman, called to ...
null / ShutterstockCNA Staff, Apr 25, 2024 / 11:30 am (CNA).Louisiana State Police have obtained a new search warrant to collect documents from the Archdiocese of New Orleans as part of an ongoing investigation into Church abuse in that state.State police spokesman Jacob Pucheu confirmed to CNA on Thursday that the bureau had obtained the warrant as part of its investigation into "numerous complaints of child sexual abuse" leveled at the archdiocese. The inquiry was first launched in 2022, he said."As part of the ongoing investigation, on Monday, April 22, 2024, SVU investigators obtained an additional search warrant to collect information and documents from the Archdiocese of New Orleans," Pucheu told CNA."The archdiocese is cooperating with investigators to fulfill the terms of the search warrant," he said. "This investigation remains ongoing with no further information available at this time."Pucheu declined to directly provide a copy of the warrant, saying that "since it is...
