Global Church News

• 

  Philippine leaders work to make Black Nazarene ‘Translacion’ safe

  Jan 07, 2021

  The Minor Basilica of the Black Nazarene will only allow 400 people in the church for Masses marking the transfer of the Black Nazarene, but it will offer 15 Masses Jan. 9.

  
• 

  Lebanese man’s decades of research helps great-uncle’s sainthood cause

  Jan 07, 2021

  Fares Melki’s first introduction to his great-uncle was when he asked his grandfather about the picture framed above his grandfather’s bed. That was around 60 years ago, when Melki was 10.

  
• 

  Major Archbishop Shevchuk urges Ukrainians to be courageous

  Jan 07, 2021

  In a message for the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church on the eve of Christmas, Major Archbishop Sviatoslav Schevchuk talks of his hopes for peace in the war-torn nation and of unity in a divided world.

  
• 

  Indonesian Christian leaders offer message of hope

  Jan 07, 2021

  Catholic and Protestant leaders in Indonesia have called on Christians not to lose hope almost a year after the Covid-19 pandemic arrived in the country.

  
• 

  Pandemic puts squeeze on Jakarta's parishes

  Jan 07, 2021

  The COVID-19 pandemic has greatly affected parish life, particularly in Jakarta Archdiocese, with the Indonesian capital recording the highest number of virus cases in the country. This, however, has forced the archdiocese's parishes to be more creative.

  
• 

  Bishop Kazimierz Wielikoselec, a great friend of Kondrusiewicz

  Jan 07, 2021

  The new apostolic administrator of Minks was auxiliary bishop of the diocese of Pinsk and he turned 75 last May. He too is a witness of the "silent" Church of the Soviet years. He attended clandestine seminaries and was a personal friend of the former Metropolitan of Minsk-Mogilev. He kept the faith of several villages alive, touring three Russian provinces to meet and support the faithful. He committed himself to reconstruction, to the fall of communism.

  
• 

  Msgr. Zong Huaide, bishop emeritus of Sanyuan, has died

  Jan 07, 2021

  He was 99 years old, but for the Chinese - who also count 9 months of gestation - he died at 100. He spent 14 years in Shaanxi forced labour camps. Secretly ordained bishop in 1987, he came out of hiding in 1992. In 1997 he met Pope John Paul II. A sweet and dedicated figure, loved by both official and underground Catholics.

  
• 

  Covid-19 health emergency: Jakarta prepares for mass vaccination

  Jan 07, 2021

  Over 70% of intensive care beds occupied nationwide. There is a lack of doctors specialized in treating the disease. Partial lockdown in Java and Bali. The immunization campaign with the Chinese Sinovac will start on 13 January. The first to receive the dose will be President Widodo.

  
• 

  Bangladesh's most popular Catholic pilgrimage hangs in balance

  Jan 06, 2021

  Uncertainty has gripped Bangladesh’s most popular Catholic pilgrimage as church leaders hesitate to hold the annual feast of St. Anthony of Padua amid the Covid-19 pandemic.

  
• 

  Thai churches keep services going as Covid-19 surges

  Jan 06, 2021

  As Thailand introduces tougher restrictions to limit the spread of a second wave of Covid-19, churches are doing their best to keep services going while ensuring the safety of parishioners.