Pope Francis has accepted the resignation of his ambassador to Britain who has reached the retirement age of 75. The Vatican announced that Archbishop Edward Adams, the Apostolic Nuncio to Great Britain, would be leaving his role, although the Holy See has yet to disclose who his successor will be. Archbishop Adams, born in Philadelphia in the United States, was appointed to his position under three years ago and was the first native English speaker to hold his post in 54 years.
Cardinal Vincent Nichols spoke of the importance of celibacy for priests and Religious in his homily for the annual Mass for Consecrated Life last weekend. Describing celibacy as a calling to live the virtue of chastity, Cardinal Nichols said: “The call to live a celibate life is so much more a searching out of the Kingdom than a pathway of avoidance. We look for ways of generating new life for heaven, giving ourselves entirely to that calling.”
Archbishop Diarmuid Martin of Dublin has said there is no place for dialogue with the “depravity” shown by the criminals behind the recent killing of Drogheda teenager Keane Mulready-Woods. At a Service of Commemoration and Hope in Dublin's inner city, the Archbishop said the horror of 17-year-old’s death showed how those who control the drug world have sunk to the “lowest level of depravity”. He added: “We can only be satisfied when the real leaders are shown up shamed and despised for what they are, and they finish locked up in ignominy.” The Archbishop’s comments come soon after Bishop Michael Router of Armagh offered to mediate between the criminal gangs to try and bring an end to the violence in the town of Drogheda.
Pope Francis has appointed Monsignor Michael F. Crotty of the Diocese of Cloyne as the Apostolic Nuncio to Burkina Faso. Msgr Crotty is an experienced diplomat who has worked for the Holy See’s diplomatic service since 2001. For the past three years he was First Counsellor of the Nunciature in Spain. Prior to that he served as an official of the Vatican’s Secretariat for Relations with States. He previously worked in Iraq, Jordan, Canada and Kenya. The 49-year-old prelate will be elevated to the position of Archbishop of the titular See of Lindisfarne.
Westminster Cathedral celebrated the first “Scripture Road Show” of the Year of the Word in London last week, with six chapels transformed into “Tents of Meeting” dedicated to different aspects of the Bible - including Mary and the Word and Living the Word. Groups including Pax Christi and Walsingham Shrine led Lectio Divina and activities for children. A new artwork, a Byzantine-style mosaic commissioned for the Year of the World, was on display during the roadshow, and will tour the country with it during 2020.
Greyfriars Kirk in Edinburgh has announced a series of events to celebrate its 400th anniversary this year, including a performance of Sir James Macmillan’s Seven Last Words from the Cross on 27 March, during Lent, a Festival of Science, Wisdom and Faith (5-7 June) and a special commission for the Edinburgh Royal Choral Union.
A former home of the writer and philosopher G. K. Chesterton is at risk of demolition and could be bulldozed and replaced with flats. The £1.9 million property in Beaconsfield near London was bought by developers last year, and a planning application to turn it into a block of flats is pending approval. The Catholic apologist and author moved to Beaconsfield in 1909 and lived there until his death in 1937 – first at Over Roads, the property facing demolition, and then across the road at Top Meadow, which is listed.
The Archdiocese of Liverpool is to mark the feast of St Josephine Bakhita, the patron saint of victims of trafficking, with the launch of a new initiative to raise awareness of modern-day slavery. On Friday, the eve of the feast, the Salvation Army was due to help the archdiocese trial a model for a parish meeting focused on trafficking at St Vincent’s church in the city. In March there will be an event at the Anglican cathedral, and in April a walk of witness in the city centre.
Loading ...
