News

• 16 January 2008
  EUROPE/SPAIN - “Recite the Rosary for the Christian family and for Spain”: Campaign in reply to offensive against the family, government imposed compulsory “education to citizenship” and prevailing secularism and relativism Madrid (Agenzia Fides) - Recent controversy between Spain's pro-family organisations and the socialist government, following a crowded Pro-Family rally on 30 December, have given new impulse to a national campaign to pro ...
• 16 January 2008
  ASIA/PHILIPPINES - Catholic missionary in southern Philippines shot dead: sadness and prayers in local mission community Cotabato (Agenzia Fides) - “We are deeply grieved to announce the death of missionary Fr. Jesus Reynaldo Roda, OMI and we ask for prayers for the repose of his soul and for God's consolation for his family and the peop ...
• 16 January 2008
  ASIA/SRI LANKA - Broken treaty, fresh violence, growing numbers of displaced persons Colombo (Agenzia Fides) - Sad to say 2008 threatens to be another year of suffering for Sri Lanka after a government announcement yesterday that the cease fire had been broken, followed by fresh outbreaks violence and gr ...
• 16 January 2008
  ASIA/CHINA - Priests in the province of Guang Xi attend ongoing formation on the Celebration of the Eucharist Guang Xi (Agenzia Fides) - “Rules to observe and what is to be avoided in the celebration of the Eucharist” was the theme of a first meeting in 2008 of ongoing formation for priests. The meeting was attended by 18 pr ...
• 16 January 2008
  AMERICA/CUBA - OCSHA Meeting: Spanish priests on missionary service in America “discuss missionary challenges in the different American countries” Havana (Agenzia Fides) - About 100 priests from Latin America and the United States members of OCSHA (Hispanic-American Priestly Cooperation) have gathered this week for a meeting for Spanish priests on missionary servic ...
• 16 January 2008
  AMERICA/ DOMINICAN REPUBLIC - The local Church heeds the Great Continental Mission call: “good opportunity to give new life to our Church and intensify pastoral animation ” Santo Domingo (Agenzia Fides) - In a Pastoral Letter issued for the feast of Our Lady of Altagracia, the patroness of the country on 21 January, the Bishops of the Dominican Republic offer the people a “word of suppor ...
• 16 January 2008
  ATTI DELLA SANTA SEDE ASIA/INDIA - New Bishop of Nashik appointed Vatican City (Agenzia Fides) - The Holy Father, Pope Benedict XVI, on 16 January 2008, appointed Rev. Felix Anthony Machado of the clergy of Vasai, until now under Secretary of the Pontifical Council for Interreligious D ...
• 16 January 2008
  AFRICA/KENYA - For almost 20 years the Catholic Bishops of Kenya have denounced the exploitation of tribal tension for political ends and have worked to promote social harmony Nairobi (Agenzia Fides)- The violence which has disrupted Kenya in recent weeks did not come unexpected: For almost 20 years the Catholic Bishops of Kenya have warned about the exploitation of ethnic tribal tension for p ...
• 14 January 2008
  VATICAN - Benedict XVI administers the sacrament of Baptism: “at Baptism this tiny human person receives a new life, the life of grace, which enables the child to enter into a personal relationship with the Creator, which will last for ever, for all eternity” Vatican City (Agenzia Fides) - On Sunday 13 January, on the Feast of the Lord's Baptism, Pope Benedict XVI Mass in the Sistine Chapel during which he administered the Sacrament of Baptism to 13 children. In his homily ...
• 14 January 2008
  VATICAN - At the Angelus the Pope says: pray that all Christians “may come to an ever deeper understanding of the gift of Baptism and strive to live it which consistency, bearing witness to the love of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit,”. He also mentioned the International Day Migrants and Refugees Vatican City (Agenzia Fides) - “The entire mission of Christ can be summarised in this: to baptise us in the Holy Spirit, in order to free us from the slavery of death and ‘open us to heaven', give us access to true ...
• 14 January 2008
  VATICAN - Thursday 17 January the Holy Father Pope Benedict XVI will visit the Chapel at Rome's La Sapienza University on the 60th anniversary of its foundation Vatican City (Agenzia Fides) - On Thursday 17 January at midday the Holy Father, Pope Benedict XVI will pay a visit to the Chapel of Rome's La Sapienza University. The programmes includes a meeting with the Chaplains, ...
• 14 January 2008
  EUROPE/SPAIN - “As Catholics we have the right and the duty to defend the authentic family, the basic foundation of every society, today when family values are so threatened and undervalued” said the president of the Forum of Lay Catholics in the diocese of Valencia Valencia (Agenzia Fides) - Some 86 lay associations and movements, representing the Forum of Lay Catholics in the diocese of Valencia, signed the message launched by Cardinal Agustín García-Gasco Archbishop of Valencia ...
• 14 January 2008
  AFRICA/KENYA - Cardinal Njue, Archbishop of Nairobi, strongly condemns tribalism. A missionary says: “people are quietly but resolutely moving away from mixed areas to places where there are people only of their own tribe.” Nairobi (Agenzia Fides) -“This wounded country is still assessing the damage caused by insane violence ” said a missionary in Kenya who asked not to be named for security reasons. “In Nairobi at least in appearanc ...
• 14 January 2008
  AFRICA - What causes people to emigrate from West Africa? Rome (Agenzia Fides) - What stories lie behind the flow of illegal immigrants from Africa to Europe? Mere figures cannot describe the dramas which push growing numbers of Africans to risk their lives in order to reach Eu ...
• 14 January 2008
  ASIA/HONG KONG - At least 2,200 participants at Hong Kong diocesan Marriage Festival to re-launch the value of the Family and Christian marriage in the light of Spe salvi Hong Kong (Agenzia Fides) - “From the Lord we draw hope to face the difficulties of life”: Catholic priests in the diocese of Hong Kong told the faithful on the occasion of “Marriage Festival 2007” organised by ...