CHENNAI, India (RNS) India’s highest court has ruled that unmarried couples have the right to live together and there is nothing illegal in live-in relationships between consenting adults. “When two adult people want to live together, what is the offense? Living together is a right to life,” a three-judge bench of the Supreme Court in […]

(RNS) To many advocates of reform in the Catholic Church, the election of conservative Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger as pope in April 2005 was a blow to hopes the Vatican would change positions on gender, sexuality, divorce, and the church hierarchy. Yet the result encouraged three prominent reformers who were appointed to a U.S. bishops’ National […]

VATICAN CITY (RNS) Prominent bishops in Europe and North America are rallying behind a beleaguered Pope Benedict XVI, trying to fend off charges that Benedict mishandled cases of clerical sex abuse before becoming pope. “Our earthly shepherd (is) now suffering some of the same unjust accusations, shouts of the mob, and scourging at the pillar, […]

It’s a stormy beginning to Holy Week for the Catholic Church, as it continues to deal with accusations that Pope Benedict XVI failed to punish pedophile priests, or at least remove them from ministry. Protesters took to the streets in London, an Austrian bishop announced an investigation into charges of rape and molestation by Catholic […]

Or, as the Texan said, “What other parts of the matzo do y’all eat?

Or call it ecclesiastical leadership versus the defensive crouch. In his Palm Sunday sermon, the Archbishop of Dublin, who has been the true stand-up guy in the Irish scandal, had this to say: The Church in Dublin is still stung by the horrible abuse which innocent children endured through people who were Christ’s ministers and […]

The Papacy and War against the ‘Saracens’, 795-1216 Normal 0 false false false EN-US X-NONE X-NONE MicrosoftInternetExplorer4 /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:”Table Normal”; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-priority:99; mso-style-qformat:yes; mso-style-parent:””; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin-top:0in; mso-para-margin-right:0in; mso-para-margin-bottom:10.0pt; mso-para-margin-left:0in; line-height:115%; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:12.0pt; font-family:”Times New Roman”,”serif”;} Far be it from me to suggest that the good folks […]

How big a deal is the new tsunami of abuse-and-cover-up charges that is washing over the Catholic Church? In its editorial yesterday, the National Catholic Reporter takes a maximalist position: We now face the largest institutional crisis in centuries, possibly in church history. How this crisis is handled by Benedict, what he says and does, […]

The Ledger: (RNS) To the untrained eye, the graceful lilies that arrive on church altars each year on Easter Sunday (April 4 this year) are a familiar symbol of resurrection and renewal. Like poinsettias on Christmas, it just wouldn’t be Easter without them. Full story.

WASHINGTON (RNS) As Democratic lawmakers reel from violent attacks and threats, religious leaders have issued a “covenant for civility” pledging that they will pray for politicians and model respectful behavior. “The church in the United States can offer a message of hope and reconciliation to a nation that is deeply divided by political and cultural […]

PORTLAND, Ore. (RNS) The number of parents in Oregon opting out of vaccines for their children is on the rise, state public health officials say. In 1992, 1.2 percent of kindergartners went unvaccinated. By last year, the rate had jumped to 4.9 percent — about 2,255 Oregon kindergartners. That so many Oregon parents have rejected […]

(RNS) The pope and the president dominated religion news in the American media last year, according to a new study. The Obama administration’s “faith-based initiative” accounted for three of the top 10 religion-focused stories, while two of the top 10 focused on Pope Benedict XVI. The Pew Research Center’s Project for Excellence in Journalism and […]

VATICAN CITY (RNS) Will Pope Benedict XVI resign? Less than two weeks ago, that question was just a publicity-grabbing ploy by an Irish online bookmaker. Now, following charges that he personally mishandled cases of pedophile priests in Munich and Milwaukee, the idea of Benedict stepping down is actually being taken seriously, at least in some […]

Wayne Sapp, a pastor at Dove World Outreach Center in Gainsville, Fla., is launching what appears to be a one-man crusade against Craig Lowe, who could become the city’s first openly gay mayor. Sapp can pretty much speak for himself on this one (he’s not shy about telling you what he really thinks), but he […]

The NYT dropped another bombshell today, citing a memo that shows future-Pope Benedict XVI was apprised of plans to return a priest accused of molesting children to pastoral work. Earlier this month, a Munich diocesan administrator fell on his sword and took responsibility for transferring the priest, who later molested more children. Memos show that […]