The manager of a refuge for women rescued from human trafficking and modern slavery has been recognised for her outstanding contribution to the fight against modern slavery.
Karen Anstiss (pictured), manager of Caritas Bakhita House since it opened in June 2015, was presented with an award for best practice in the support of survivors of slavery at the Anti-Slavery Day Awards. The awards were given by The Marsh Christian Trust in partnership with the Human Trafficking Foundation.
Teenage faith crisis
One in four Irish youth are going through a crisis of faith according to a new study on Irish teenagers and young adults’ faith, worries and perceptions of Christianity. The “Finding Faith in Ireland” research, commissioned by Christ in Youth and carried out by Barna Group, showed 70 per cent of Irish youth identified as Christian and 60 per cent as Catholic. Nearly half of those questioned (48 per cent) said they were less spiritual today than when they were 12. Three in 10 practising Christians said they felt church teachings on sexuality were wrong; “minding your own business” is a value many Irish youth have adopted.
Pope Francis has said he is looking forward to visiting Ireland next year. The visit has not yet been formally confirmed by the Vatican but the Irish EU Commissioner for Agriculture and Rural Development, Phil Hogan, revealed details of a conversation he had with the Pope while in Rome. Mr Hogan told the Irish Independent: “It was a short discussion but he confirmed to me that he was coming to Ireland next year and looking forward to it.” The World Meeting of Families is being held in Ireland in August.
The Catholic Church in London is considering contactless collections as one of a number of possible options to make donations easier for parishioners and visitors in an increasingly “cashless” society”. Several Catholic parishes in the Diocese of Westminster have taken up the chance to allow parishioners to donate via text message on their mobile phone. All parishes have had a code made available to enable them to do this and the diocese said a few had already begun using the technology. It comes as the Church of England is trialling contactless collections in an experiment that is now moving into cathedrals. Worshippers at cathedrals including Guildford and Liverpool are to be encouraged to make donations by card instead of putting cash on a collection plate. It is hoped the scheme will lead to an increase in donations, which at cathedrals where entry is free can be as low as 30p per person. A spokeswoman for the Diocese of Westminster told The Tablet: “Now as we move into more of a cashless society, we want to make it easier for parishioners as well as visitors. The diocese is considering contactless collections as one of a number of options for the future.”
Parish to welcome refugees
At least two families of refugees from the Syrian war are to be welcomed by a parish in the Diocese of Shrewsbury. The move, by the Church of Our Lady and St Christopher near Stockport, follows a similar initiative in the neighbouring Diocese of Salford, which has already welcomed a family from Syria. Canon Michael Gannon, parish priest and Vicar General, said he hoped other parishes in the diocese would follow suit. “The whole concept is about creating missionary parishes and responding to the call of Pope Francis to have that missionary call,” he said. “We are very much up for it. I am determined to see this through and I know I am supported here.”
Ex-seminary redevelopment
Plans to make a former Catholic seminary a “dramatic setting for art, performance, learning and debate” are in doubt. St Peter’s Seminary at Cardross is an A-listed modernist “masterpiece” built in 1966 but decommissioned and abandoned 20 years later. Despite more than £4m in funding from the Heritage Lottery Fund and Creative Scotland, redevelopment of the building has now been restricted to two small parts of the structure, the chapel and sanctuary, with the rest of the site “simply consolidated”, according to NVA, the arts organisation behind the project.
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