Bishop Leo McCartie, the oldest bishop in England and Wales, has died aged 94 with the coronavirus. Bishop McCartie was an auxiliary in Birmingham, the tenth bishop of Northampton, and a priest for over 70 years. He retired in 2001 after 42 years as a bishop.
The head of the Jesuit Refugee Service (JRS UK) has warned in an article for The Tablet that skilled refugees, including doctors and nurses, are being prevented from helping to save lives during the coronavirus pandemic because they are not allowed to work while seeking asylum. Human lives are in limbo, she said, because the pandemic has depleted the workforce that usually handles cases. “A temporary grant of leave to everyone with outstanding applications, and to those without immigration status would solve the problem,” she said.
Bishop Declan Lang, who chairs the Conference’s Department of International Affairs, has welcomed figures that show a continued decrease in the use of the death penalty worldwide. In a statement last week Bishop Lang said the decrease, of five per cent, is encouraging, but he urged the Government to push for global abolition.
The Catholic Union, which represents lay Catholics in public life, has written to the Communities Secretary Robert Jenrick MP calling for more support for the country’s volunteers. The letter calls for volunteers to be recognised as key workers and to receive guidance around using personal protective equipment when supporting vulnerable people, and it notes that individual volunteers need support just as much as the charities and organisations the Government has pledged to help.
The Bishops of Northern Ireland have stepped up their opposition to new regulations on abortion that were introduced by Westminster while the Stormont Assembly was suspended. In a letter to Members of Northern Ireland’s Legislative Assembly, the five bishops call on politicians to reformulate these “extreme Regulations” so that they reflect the position of the majority of the people in Northern Ireland. Northern Ireland’s attorney general John Larkin has said the Northern Ireland Secretary Brandon Lewis exceeded his powers in introducing these new abortion regulations.
The Independent Review Group, set up by the Bishops’ Conference of Scotland to monitor safeguarding, is to continue working during the Covid-19 lockdown. The group, chaired by Baroness Helen Liddell, has not met since the last week of February, following the completion of independent audits of the St Andrews and Edinburgh archdiocese and the Diocese of Galloway, but it has now announced that audit of the Dioceses of Aberdeen and Motherwell will proceed during 2020.
The Bishop of Aberdeen has expressed deep concern at the Scottish government’s decision to allow the despatch of abortion pills by post to women with crisis pregnancies, following either a phone consultation or Skype discussion with a medical professional. Bishop Hugh Gilbert said that the rise of domestic abuse and violence during the lockdown could lead to an increase in coercive abortion. He described the Scottish Government’s decision as “deeply troubling” and called on health officials to ensure that women were informed about all available options and alternatives to termination.
From next week The Catholic Times will be included as a supplement within its sister publication, The Catholic Universe, instead of being published as a separate newspaper. The “difficult decision”, which was announced in the Universe last week, was made in response to the ongoing challenges of publishing during the pandemic, including the closure of parish churches that usually stock the two newspapers.
Also this week it was announced that The Jewish Chronicle has been sold to a consortium headed by Theresa May’s former director of communications. The 179-year old publication went into liquidation earlier this month.
The chief executives of Caritas Social Action Network (CSAN) and the Society of St Vincent de Paul (SVP) have produced a new toolkit to help Catholic parishes and groups develop safe, local responses to people in need during the Covid-19 pandemic. It includes examples of how parishes can offer support to individuals and families. Help could include keeping in touch with a friendly chat on the phone, shopping for food and other essential items, dog walking, help with prayer and advice on how to get involved with other initiatives locally. Elizabeth Palmer, Chief Executive Officer of the SVP, said: “St Vincent de Paul was no stranger to pandemics. Outbursts of the plague ravaged Europe frequently in his lifetime, taking the lives of many whom he loved, but his focus always remained on the service of others.” The toolkit is available at Caritas Social Action Network.
Pax Christi UK and Catholic People’s Weeks both held Zoom prayer gatherings last week to mark Earth Day and “our common home”. Among the symbols of hope Pax Christi members held up to their screens during the meeting were plants, flowers, pebbles and seashells - as well as images of children, grandchildren and beautiful places. The session, led by Pax Christi Director Theresa Alessandro, was attended by 40 people, from various parts of the UK and from Bethlehem and Uruguay. Participants were asked to hold up poster messages about how the $1.8 trillion (US) of military spending globally could be better spent.
The annual Migrants Mass for the migrant communities of Brentwood, Southwark and Westminster Dioceses will be live-streamed this year. The Mass, which is usually attended by around 2000 Catholic migrants from the London area, was due to be held in the diocese of Brentwood. Instead it will be broadcast by the Brentwood Catholic Youth Service at 10.30am on Saturday 2 May.
The first diocesan “e-pilgrimage” to Knock Shrine took place on Sunday and attracted an online congregation of 11,257 for the Mass at the Co Mayo basilica. The Archdiocese of Dublin’s annual pilgrimage to the national shrine was due to take place at the weekend but due to the Covid-19 restrictions, pilgrimage organiser, Rev Gerard Riley, decided to hold a virtual pilgrimage instead. Speaking after the event, Rev Riley, who is a permanent deacon in Dublin, said he was “absolutely delighted with how it went.” The Mass was celebrated by Fr Richard Gibbons, rector of Knock Shrine. The success of Dublin’s e-pilgrimage may pave the way for similar online pilgrimages when Knock’s annual nine-day novena takes place in August. It usually attracts over 100,000 pilgrims.
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