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(Vatican Radio) Caring for millions of migrants on the move, within their own countries or forced to flee their native lands. That’s the mission of the Geneva based International Catholic Migration Commission, or ICMC, founded in 1951 as a response to the massive human displacement caused by the Second World War.The Commission’s new secretary general, Mgr Robert Vitillo was in Rome last week, together with other staff members to present their 2015 annual report focused on the practical assistance, resettlement programmes and policy work carried out, especially in response to the conflicts in the Middle East.To find out more about the kind of support the ICMC provides, particularly to families uprooted by the war in Syria, Philippa Hitchen spoke to operations director, Walter Brill and to senior operations officer Cristina Palazzo….Listen: Brill says the ICMC has been working for many years in Syria, in close collaboration with a local partner, Terre des Ho...
(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis was making a private pilgrimage to the Italian hill town of Assisi on Thursday afternoon to visit the Porziuncola chapel there to mark the 800th anniversary of the "Pardon of Assisi." The Porziuncola is a small chapel housed inside the town’s Basilica of St. Mary of the Angels which St. Francis of Assisi restored and where he founded the Franciscan order at the start of the 13th century.Pope Francis previously visited Assisi on the feast day of the Italian saint, his namesake, on October the 4th, 2013.His visit this year coincides with the 800th anniversary of the “Pardon of Assisi” which is the possibility to receive a plenary indulgence during the first two days of August. The tradition began after the saint received a divine vision and asked God to grant an indulgence to all pilgrims who visit the church.Pope Francis' Schedule:The Pope will arrive in Assisi by helicopter around 3.40 pm and will go to the Basilica...
Washington D.C., Aug 4, 2016 / 03:26 am (CNA).- Although both major 2016 vice presidential nominees were raised Catholic and still profess to be Christians, their public policy records have drawn concern from some members of the faithful.The “free exercise” of religion “is not simply about what you do in Church on Sunday morning,” Deacon Keith Fournier of the Common Good initiative told CNA. “It’s how you exercise that faith in every sector, whether it’s commerce, politics, participation – all of it.”Both major nominees for vice president are baptized Catholics. Virginia Senator Tim Kaine still identifies as a Catholic and was seen at Sunday Mass on July 24 after he was picked by Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton to be her running mate.Indiana Governor Mike Pence, meanwhile, was raised Catholic but identified in 1994 as a “born-again, evangelical Catholic.” He started attending an evangelical megachurch ...
RIO DE JANEIRO (AP) -- The Latest on the Olympics in Rio de Janeiro (all times local):...
CELORON, N.Y. (AP) -- What could be scarier than a statue of Lucille Ball that was so hated it was dubbed "Scary Lucy"? Being the sculptor hired to replace it....
LONDON (AP) -- A man who stabbed an American woman to death and injured five other people in London's Russell Square is a Norwegian of Somali origin, police said Thursday. They said they have found no signs of radicalization as a motive....
INDIANAPOLIS (AP) -- Since his selection as Donald Trump's running mate, Mike Pence has tried to stay focused on winning over conservatives skeptical of the New York billionaire....
Baton Rouge, La., Aug 4, 2016 / 12:52 am (CNA/EWTN News).- A state appeals court in Louisiana reaffirmed that Catholic priests cannot be forced by law to violate the seal of the confessional.According to local news station WBRZ, the court ruled on Friday that Father Jeff Bayh does not have to disclose any discussion that took place during the Sacrament of Confession.Catholic priests are bound to observe the seal of confession and cannot reveal to anyone the contents of a confession or whether a confession took place. Priests who violate the seal are automatically excommunicated.At issue is a civil lawsuit involving a woman who said that in 2008, when she was a minor, she told Fr. Bayhi that she was being abused by a parishioner. The alleged conversation with the priest took place during the Sacrament of Confession. The woman is now in her mid-20s.Louisiana law requires clergy to report sexual abuse. Parts of the law grant an exception when abuse allegations are revealed during confi...
AMMAN, Jordan (AP) -- From a small office in Jordan's capital, two dozen Syrians and Americans talk daily by Skype with activists and civilians on both sides of the conflict in neighboring Syria to get a unique perspective on the civil war and the scope of the suffering....
BELMOPAN, Belize (AP) -- Hurricane Earl has slammed into the coast of the Caribbean nation of Belize with winds of 80 mph (130 kph, bringing with it heavy rain....
