Cardinal Raymond Burke will preside over Radio Maria's annual Rosary Rally of reparation to the Immaculate Heart of Mary on Sept. 5.
"Cardinal Burke will be the principal celebrant at Holy Mass in the Church of Our Lady, Keizersgracht 218, Amsterdam. Later that afternoon, he will lead a prayer service and give an inspiring talk at the Vondelpark," Radio Maria's website states. The event takes place every year as a fulfillment of the request of Our Lady of Fatima to pray for a spirit of conversion in society.
Centenary of first Catholic Mass in Norway celebrated
In celebration of 100 years since the first Catholic Mass in Norway, Bishop Erik Varden of Trondheim presided over a solemn Mass in Longyearbyen.
The Mass took place at Svalbard Church on Aug. 30, and was widely attended by members of the Catholic community, as well as nonprofit organizations and representatives of the Lutheran Church of Norway, according to a Vatican News report on Aug. 31.
"For the sake of bringing Jesus' sacrifice concretely to Svalbard, Bishop Smit came here in 1926 and celebrated the first Catholic Mass on the archipelago," Varden said during his homily. "In gratitude for the grace God has poured out on Svalbard through a hundred years, we will faithfully take responsibility for that grace."
Scottish sisters to stand trial over historic child abuse charges
In Scotland, five Sisters of Nazareth nuns aged between 67 and 84 have been indicted to stand trial. They are accused of multiple abuse charges against several children following a preliminary hearing that took place at the High Court in Glasgow on Monday.
Marie Docherty, 84, Mary Broderick, 83, Margaret McLafferty, 67, Kathleen McLean, 76, and Mary Doyle, 80, were named on an indictment, which contains 108 charges.
The indictment includes allegations that children were punched, struck, kicked, force-fed, forced to stand while wearing soiled bedding or clothing. The alleged crimes are said to have taken place mainly at Nazareth House locations in Aberdeen and Bonnyrigg, Midlothian, between 1965 and 1982.
The accused have previously entered pleas of not guilty.
A further preliminary hearing is scheduled for Jan. 22, 2027, and the court has provisionally set aside eight weeks for a trial starting on March 30, 2027, in Glasgow.
'Safeguarding Sunday' in Australia to operate under theme 'Love Protects'
Catholics across Australia will observe "Safeguarding Sunday" on Sept. 13 under the theme, "Love Protects" in honor of victims of abuse within the Church.
"'Love Protects' reminds us that genuine love is demonstrated through action," Bishop Greg Bennet, chair of the Bishops Commission for Professional Standards and Safeguarding in Australia, said in a Sept. 4 press release. "Safeguarding is an essential part of our mission and ministry. It calls each of us to be attentive, accountable, and committed to ensuring that every person can participate in the life of the Church safely and with confidence."
New leader for Melkite Catholics in Argentina
Lebanese priest Jean Abou Charouche has been appointed by Pope Leo XIV to lead the Melkite Greek Catholic community in Argentina as apostolic exarch and has been raised to the rank of bishop, ACI MENA, EWTN News' Arabic-language sister service, reported on Aug. 31.
The Melkite exarchate in Argentina serves about 345,000 faithful.
Born near Beirut in 1972, Abou Charouche was ordained a priest in 1998 and has devoted much of his ministry to preparing future priests and religious. He later moved to Argentina, becoming pastor of St. George Cathedral in Córdoba in 2015. Since 2023, he has already been overseeing the country's Melkite Catholic community as apostolic administrator.
Pro-life groups protest 'International Safe Abortion Day' celebration in Belfast
Christian and pro-life groups have called on the Belfast City Council to cancel plans to illuminate the city in observance of "International Safe Abortion Day."
"The strength of this open letter comes from the breadth of organizations standing together. Catholic, Protestant, evangelical, pro-life, pregnancy-support, and Christian community groups have united to send Belfast City Council a clear and respectful message: City Hall is not a billboard for abortion," Bernadette Smyth, director of the Precious Life, the largest pro-life group in Northern Ireland, said in a press release Sept. 1.
The letter came ahead of Belfast City Hall's 11-3 vote to approve the measure on Sept. 2.
Ivory Coast cardinal decries illegal gold mining
Ignace Cardinal Bessi Dogbo of the Ivory Coast's Catholic Archdiocese of Abidjan has denounced the devastating environmental consequences of illegal gold mining, calling for stronger state action to protect the country's natural resources and its people, ACI Africa, EWTN News' sister service in Africa, reported Sept. 3.
In his homily during the Mass of the 2026 World Day of Prayer for the Care of Creation, the cardinal reflected on the ecological vision of Pope Francis' encyclical, Laudato Si', warning against the destruction of land and waterways caused by the pursuit of gold.
He also challenged what he described as the excessive attachment to money that fuels the exploitation of creation.
"Gold that kills is not gold. Illegal gold mining that kills human beings is worse than idolatry. It is beyond words," Dogbo said, condemning mining activities that "soil the water," destroy the environment, and transform rivers into "polluted wastelands."
UK government warns against assisted suicide in latest assessment
An updated assessment from the UK government has found that "poverty, poor care, and abuse" could lead to "disproportionate numbers of ethnic minority people" seeking to end their lives via assisted suicide.
The latest assessment, released Aug. 29, comes as the government increased its central estimate of annual assisted deaths from 2,183 to 3,502, according to an Aug. 29 press release from Right To Life UK.
UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham has called for extensive healthcare reforms to take place before the passage of legislation on assisted dying.
"Personally, I think there's something that needs to happen first, and that's the fixing of the funding of palliative care and social care," Burnham said on July 29. "I think it is very challenging to introduce that wider debate in a context of people not receiving that care and having the peace of mind about that care."
Patrick J. Passmore contributed to this report.
