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(Vatican Radio) Ukraine has put its troops on combat alert along the country's de-facto borders with Crimea and separatist rebels in the east. The move comes amid escalating tensions with Russia and fears of an all-our war between the two neighbours. Russia earlier allegedly mobilized tens of thousands of troops to counter what it called Ukrainian saboteurs trying to enter the Russian-controlled Crimean Peninsula. Kiev claims Moscow is preparing a wider military campaign against Ukraine.Listen to Stefan Bos' report: In a statement obtained by Vatican Radio, Ukraine's Foreign Ministry condemned what it called "another Kremlin-manufactured provocation." The Ministry said it is "particularly concerned about the concentration of Russian weaponry, armaments and military forces" in what it described "as temporarily occupied territories in Crimea and Donbas in eastern Ukraine as well as along the Ukrainian-Russian border."The Ministry added...
(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis visited a refugee centre in Rome housing women rescued from prostitution as part of his ‘Friday of Mercy’ gestures during this Jubilee Year of Mercy.The home is run by the Pope John the 23rd community.During his visit, Pope Francis met 20 women rescued from the sex trade who were trafficked from their countries of origin that included Romania, Albania, Nigeria, Tunisia, Ukraine, and Italy.All of the women were the victims of severe physical abuse during their ordeal and are living under protection. A statement from the Holy See Press office said the Pope’s visit to this refugee centre is another reminder of the need to fight against human trafficking, which the Pope has described as “a crime against humanity” and “an open wound on the body of contemporary society, a scourge upon the body of Christ”.Listen to Devin Watkins' report:
Following nationwide protests, over the weekend by Ethiopia’s Oromo people, the Catholic Bishops of Ethiopia have called for peaceful dialogue as a sure means of resolving differences. AFP news agency reported that up to 50 protestors were killed at the weekend while Amnesty International put the death toll at 97. Other rights groups put the death toll at 104.In their statement, the Ethiopian Catholic Bishops made a passionate plea for peaceful dialogue between the government and parties concerned. Reading the statement to the press, on behalf of other Bishops, Cardinal Berhaneyesus the Metropolitan Archbishop of Ethiopia said that Ethiopia is a country with a long history of peaceful and respectful co-existence. He said the country needs to maintain this positive aspect and encouraged peaceful dialogue in the search for answers. He stressed that chaos could not be the way forward. Chaos, he said, was a hindrance to growth and development.“Ethiopia is on a well-establi...
Vatican City, Aug 12, 2016 / 11:15 am (CNA/EWTN News).- Pope Francis has visited a special community for women freed from prostitution and violent abuse as his latest ‘Mercy Friday’ initiative during the Jubilee.On Aug. 12 he met the 20 women, all of whom have suffered severe physical violence and live under protection, who are cared for at the “Pope John XXIII Community” in Rome. Pope Francis has met with members of the community at the Vatican on several occasions.The women present at the meeting are from all over the world, six being from Romania, four from Albania, seven from Nigeria, and one each from Tunisia, Italy and the Ukraine. The average age of the women is around 30 years.A Vatican communique giving details of the visit stressed that the visit is a concrete sign of the Pope’s repeated criticism of human trafficking, which he has called “a crime against humanity” and “a plague in the contemporary body of humanity, a wound i...
Hollywood, Calif., Aug 12, 2016 / 11:39 am (CNA).- For the first time in nearly 55 years, one of the greatest stories ever told will be retold on the big screen starting Aug. 19, as Paramount and MGM’s “Ben-Hur” — a remake of the 1959 Academy Award-winning classic with Charlton Heston — will introduce a whole new generation to the epic tale of fictional nobleman-turned-slave Judah Ben-Hur and his life-changing interaction with Jesus Christ.And one of the key people behind making this introduction a reality is actress/producer Roma Downey, who knows perhaps as well as anyone the power of introducing people to the right message at the right time.After falling in love with the craft of acting while performing in a high school production of William Shakespeare’s “As You Like It” as a teenager, Downey’s passion for inspiring audiences through great stories led her to Broadway — and later to Hollywood, where her fruitful career a...
IMAGE: CNS photo/Theresa Orozco, St. Louis Review) By Joseph KennyST. LOUIS (CNS) -- Bishop EdwardK. Braxton of Belleville, Illinois, said his background is as an academic, withwritings on theological and pastoral topics, and not as an expert in a fieldrelated to racial matters.But he has become an importantvoice in the Catholic Church on the topic, thanks to his writings.His pastoral letter "The RacialDivide in the United States: A Reflection for the World Day of Peace 2015" wasfollowed early this year by "The Catholic Church and the Black Lives MatterMovement: The Racial Divide in the United States Revisited."The second pastoral was a basisfor his address to the Los Angeles Religious Education Congress and a Lentenreflection at Samford University in Birmingham, Alabama, as well as the Aug. 8talk sponsored by the St. Charles Lwanga Center, the Knights and Ladies ofPeter Claver, and the Peace and Justice Commission of the Archdiocese of St.Louis.After the well-researched yetplain-sp...
IMAGE: CNS photo/Mike Blake, ReutersBy RIO DE JANEIRO (CNS) -- U.S.Olympic gymnast and gold medalist Simone Biles says when she travels, shesometimes takes with her a statue of St. Sebastian, the patron saint ofathletes, and she also carries a rosary her mother gave her.Biles, who won gold in the women's gymnastics all-around competition Aug. 11 and helped lead the U.S. women to a team gold Aug. 9, made thosecomments to Us Weekly. "My mom, Nellie, got me arosary at church. I don't use it to pray before a competition. I'll just praynormally to myself, but I have it there in case," the 19-year-old told themagazine in a July 8 interview.Her remark about herpatron saint was part of a list in an Aug. 9 article about Biles posted bythe magazine online with the headline, "25 Things You Don't Know About Me."Biles' hometown isSpring, Texas, which is in the Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston. The London-basedCatholic Herald described her as "a Sunday Massgoer." Other news accounts saidthat Sund...
BRASILIA, Brazil (AP) -- The three-time defending champion U.S. women's national soccer team won't win an Olympic medal for the first time after being ousted by Sweden on penalties following a 1-1 draw in the quarterfinals on Friday....
NEW YORK (AP) -- Fox News Channel founder Rupert Murdoch on Friday appointed two longtime Fox executives as the new co-presidents of the news network as it restructures after last month's departure of Roger Ailes following sexual harassment allegations....
PHOENIX (AP) -- He is a lanky Hispanic man in his 20s who drives down the darkened streets of poor, predominantly Latino neighborhoods, blending in as he selects his targets. He either fires through an open window or gets out of the car to shoot from close range before driving off....
