A historic gathering of orthodox leaders is scheduled to take place on the Greek island of Crete later this week. The Great and Holy Council, as it called in the Orthodox church, would be the first such meeting in over a thousand years. With days to go before the start of that that meeting various ...read more

Saint Mary Magdalene will now be remembered in the Church’s liturgical calendar the same way the twelves apostles and Our Lady are remembered. The Vatican has issued a decree elevating the memorial of her life to a feast, something reserved for important moments in Church history and important people like the apostles and the Blessed ...read more

Here is a sampling of what we’ve been reading across the country this week. Much attention has been focused on Parliament’s attempts to pass Bill C-14 into law before the June 6th deadline set out by the supreme court. Once Parliament sent Bill C-14 to Senate, the media turned their attention to Canada’s senators. Alberta ...read more

CNS photo/Catholic Press Photo This week marks 53 years since St. Pope John XXIII died at the Vatican at age of 81. For most people, the first thing that comes to mind at the mention of the saintly pope’s name is the Second Vatican Council. Yet his pontificate and his priestly ministry left its mark on the ...read more

(CNS photo/Paul Haring) There is a new Franciscan Custodian of the Holy Land. The Order of Friars Minor elected Father Francesco Patton, OFM as the new Custos. He replaces Father Pierbattista Pizzaballa who ended a 12 year term as Custos in April. Father Patton is 53 years old and comes from the Trent region of ...read more

Here is a look at the vast and varied things that we’ve been reading about across the country this week: The Fort McMurray fire is still very much front and centre this week. The WCR has this special report about what its like to fight Alberta wild fires. In Saskatoon, the Prairie Messengers is offering ...read more

Pope Francis will ask the Vatican’s doctrinal congregation to study the issue of women deacons. The pope announced the decision during a question and answer session with participants of the International Union of Superiors General plenary assembly. During a question and answer session with the nearly 900 religious sisters taking part in the meeting, Pope ...read more

Here’s what has been happening across our country this week: In Alberta, the fires in Fort McMurray have wiped out homes and business and caused residents to evacuate en masse. The fires have also impacted churches and parishes in the region. At least one Catholic church is believed to been lost to the fires and ...read more

The Charlemagne Prize was created in 1949 by Dr. Kurt Pfeiffer in Aachen, Germany as a reminder and a call for European unity. The 2016 prize was awarded to Pope Francis this week. In post-war Europe several new organizations and pacts were in development. These organizations and agreements would unify Europe economically and politically. However, ...read more

We know very little about the woman who is described as the apostle of the apostles, so this village helps fill in some background. ...read more