Pope Francis has won converts — at least metaphorically — around the globe. His conspicuous humility, kindness, willingness to engage with critics and admirers alike, apparent lack of verbal inhibitions, and relaxed doctrinal orthodoxy make for a big stylistic change from his two predecessors and their combined 25 years as pope. Not everyone is a…
As believers we can not be indifferent to the fact that employers prevent participation in religious workers, especially in large industrial centers – says Mr Henry Kowalczyk, secretary of the parliamentary group of members and supporters of the Light-Life Movement, Catholic Action and the Association of Catholic Families. Today in Parliament held a conference Fri…
The lower house of Santa Fe gave preliminary approval at its meeting today to a bill that sets the mandatory closing on Sundays and national holidays for retail and service companies in the province. The initiative passed with 38 votes in favor and 7 negative, so that the text will be turned now to the…
The governing body of the Catholic Church has moral influence and promotes important values. The past few years have seen cordial but cooling relations between the United States and the Vatican. Since President Obama took office, he has visited the Vatican just once, and the administration has demonstrated little more than a perfunctory interest in…
Although frequently unacknowledged and misunderstood, the relationship between the US and the Holy See can play an important role in soft-power dynamics. During Monday’s Bradley Lecture at AEI, Francis Rooney, former ambassador to the Holy See, illustrated the importance of the Vatican as a force for good, equality, and free enterprise in the diplomatic world,…
Plenty of liberals were thrilled Thursday to hear what they could only assume was Pope Francis’ message to the Republican Party. In an interview with Jesuit magazine La Civilta Cattolica, the Pope said the Church “could fall like a house of cards” if it were to “insist only on issues related to abortion, gay marriage and the…
Pope Francis is a hit. In July, he drew three million people to Mass at Rio de Janeiro’s Copacabana beach. A Pew Research Center poll released this month shows that 79 percent of Catholics have a favorable view of him, compared to only four percent who view him unfavorably. It’s not only Catholics who approve. “Seldom has…
SALT LAKE CITY — The Roman Catholic Church, along with trade unions and small business associations, is working to save Sundays by pushing for a ban on shopping in Italy. Other countries, meanwhile, are already onboard. Religion News Service reports that in an attempt to encourage economic growth, outgoing Italian Prime Minister Mario Monti supported a…
One of the quirks of President Obama is that he appears liberal, but is strikingly pragmatic. This idiosyncrasy may benefit Catholic schools. Obama supports charter schools, even though this view is opposed by teachers’ unions. For those who need a refresher course, charter schools are run by independent agencies, are funded with public dollars, but…
The head of the Council of the Evangelical Church in Germany, Dr Nikolaus Schneider, has said he is hopeful for future Christian unity after meeting Pope Francis at the Vatican. Dr Schneider had been scheduled to meet Pope Benedict XVI during an early April trip to Rome. Instead, he spent about 30 minutes with Pope…
