In Lyon, the Notre-Dame de Fourvière Basilica is embracing the spirit of the 2024 Paris Olympics by inaugurating a temporary chapel dedicated to athletes. According to the Fourvière Foundation, which owns the city's iconic basilica, the chapel was opened to the public on May 2, two days ahead of schedule. The Notre-Dame des Sportifs (Our Lady of Athletes) chapel will be open to all athletes until September 22, two weeks after the end of the Paralympic Games this summer. Notre-Dame des Sportifs incorporated decorative elements from various sports. In an image published by the foundation, the sa ..read more

Hollywood, the USA Gymnastics team, Penn State, the Boy Scouts: Sexual abuse has proved pervasive across institutions. And when it comes to faith groups, no creed, structure, value system or size has seemed immune. Get out of denial mode "We've got to stop saying that could never happen in my church, or my pastor would never do that," said David Pooler. He's a professor of social work at Baylor University who researches clergy-perpetrated sexual abuse of adults. With more victims coming forward and more research done on abuse within religious contexts, the evidence has shown that when sexual a ..read more

In a historic meeting at the Vatican, Pope Francis engaged with senior Anglican bishops, emphasising the importance of unity and dialogue within Christian communities. The meeting, which marked the Anglican primates' first pilgrimage to Rome, focused on shared missions and discussions on differences within the church. Pope Francis began his address by thanking Archbishop Justin Welby for his presence, noting that he "began his service as Archbishop of Canterbury around the same time that I began mine as Bishop of Rome". "Since then" the Pope added, "we have had many occasions to meet, to pray ..read more

Cardinal Robert Sarah, former Prefect of the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments, urged African bishops to defend the unity of faith amidst what he perceives as Western "errors". In his address at the Episcopal Conference of Cameroon on April 9, Cardinal Sarah (pictured) emphasised the pivotal role of the African Church in preserving the Word of God. He contrasted it with what he sees as Western Christians being swayed by misleading notions of enlightenment and modernity. Cardinal Sarah said "At the next session of the Synod, it is vital that the African Bishop ..read more

Today I would like to talk about the virtue of faith. Together with charity and hope, this virtue is described as theologal. The theologal virtues There are three theologal virtues: faith, hope and charity. Why are they theologal? Because they can be lived - this virtue, the three theologal virtues - only thanks to the gift of God. The three theologal virtues are the great gifts that God gives to our moral capacity. Without them, we could be prudent, just, strong and temperate, but we would not have eyes that see even in the dark, we would not have a heart that loves even when it is not loved ..read more

Before culture war issues such as abortion, same-sex marriage, vaccines or pronouns, there was the battle over calendar reform, a battle that shows signs of ending. There is once again renewed hope that ongoing ecumenical dialogue between the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Constantinople and the Roman Catholic Church will resolve an ancient rift. That rift between the two halves of Christianity is over when Easter is celebrated. Striving for unity A decision by the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople, Bartholomew I, (with, one must imagine, the support of the Patriarchate of Alexandria a ..read more

A mother whose infant just missed serious injury in a supermarket trolley is warning other parents to be extra vigilant. She hadn't realised there was a safety strap on the trolley so didn't use it. Her infant was saved from falling out - in the nick of time - by a staff member. Many injuries ACC data shows in the five years since 2019, almost 1,100 claims related to babies or toddlers and shopping trolleys have been made. Over 100 were for children under one-year-old. Older children are also at risk. In 2019 there were: 306 new claims lodged for children under the age of six 21 involving chi ..read more

I will be 80 years old in June. As a young child in the Methodist Church, I was certain I was called to ordained ministry. At Duke University, I majored in religious studies and then served as pastoral assistant and director of religious education in a small church in upstate New York. Then, in the summer of 1967, I went to Tucson to study creative movement expression education at the Tucson Creative Dance Center. Now, where would I go to church? There was time and opportunity to explore. Exploring the options I visited the Methodists, the Presbyterians and the Lutherans, but no particular pla ..read more

The Catholic Church in New Zealand is issuing a call for feedback regarding its role and response in the ongoing Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in Care. Te Ropu Tautoko, the body established to manage the Church's dealings with the Royal Commission, has initiated an anonymous electronic feedback process that is accessible from anywhere in the world. This initiative comes as the commission's activities are set to conclude this June, with Tautoko preparing a comprehensive handover report for the Church leaders. Tautoko is eager to incorporate feedback that represents a diverse range of p ..read more

The White House has awarded Jesuit priest Father Greg Boyle the Presidential Medal of Freedom. Boyle is the founder of Homeboy Industries - a prominent ministry dedicated to rehabilitating gang-affiliated youth. A new ministry Immediately after his 1980 ordination, Boyle set about finding ways to give a second chance to ex-gang members and former prisoners. He was pastor of Dolores Mission, a Catholic church and school that had one of the highest concentrations of gang activity in Los Angeles. Six years later - just after the Los Angeles riots - he extended the ministry and founded Homeboy Ind ..read more