SCO EXCLUSIVE: Priest who escaped from Al Qaeda in Ira tells the SCO of his ordeal and ACN’s help.
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‘Their reasoning was that if you attack the shepherd, the sheep will disperse’
‘Twice bombs have gone off in front of me, once in my car, once in my church,” Fr Douglas Bazi (above) told me. “I was shot with an AK 47 in the leg and I was kidnapped by Al Qaeda for nine days.” Given that litany the priest was surprisingly positive... read more
You helped set me free from the ISIS, priest tells ACN
Fr Jacques Mourad reveals that his humanitarian work, helped by funding from charities, inspired a friend to plot his escape from kidnap and captivity at the hands of the Islamist terror group
Fr Jacques Mourad has revealed that he escaped from Daesh (ISIS) in Syria with the help of a friend whose family had been helped by the priest’s programme of aid to the poor and disadvantaged. After nearly six months at the hands of the Islamist terror group, Fr Mourad escaped Daesh-held... read more
Holy Father condemns bomb blasts in Turkey
Pope Francis offered a silent prayer last Sunday for the victims of the bombing massacre that killed dozens of people in Ankara, Turkey, the day before. The Holy Father said he received the news with great sorrow and spoke of his pain for those who were killed and wounded in the explosions.
Two suspected suicide bombers targeted a peace rally of pro-Kurdish and labour activists near Ankara’s main train station three weeks before an election, killing at least 95 people and fuelling unease in a country beset by conflict between state forces and Kurdish militants. The Holy Father also said there was sorrow... read more
Synod hears praise for the St Margaret of Scotland Children and Family Care Society
The Synod on the Family today heard of the survival of a thriving and vital Catholic adoption service in Scotland in spite of secular challenges that forced lengthy and expensive legal proceedings.
Archbishop Philip Tartaglia (above), the representative of Scotland’s bishops at this month’s Synod on the Family in Rome, drew on personal experience in his intervention today. Addressing the recommendation ‘that attention be given to the importance of adoption as a means of bringing children who are not being raised by their... read more
Paisley bishop asks for prayers for Pauline Cafferkey, Scottish nurse critically ill with ebola
Bishop John Keenan of Paisley is calling for prayers for the Scottish nurse who is critically ill with late complications from the ebola virus.
“Let’s pray a daily Hail Mary again for nurse Pauline Cafferkey, sick with the effects of the ebola virus, for her to make a speedy and full recovery and for her family to feel the strength of our spiritual support in these trying days for them,” the bishop said today... read more
Vatican encouraged by forecast of beating extreme poverty
A senior Vatican official has said the world is heading towards defeating poverty but much still remains to be done.
Archbishop Bernardito Auza (above), Permanent Observer of the Holy See to the UN, yesterday told the General Assembly that the Vatican was very encouraged by recent global poverty forecasts, ‘which indicate that the number of people living in extreme poverty is expected to fall for the first time below 10... read more
Greater trust in the synod process
One of the four synod presidents speaks of a more ‘open-handed approach’ this year
Greater emphasis on small-group discussions is helping increase trust in the synod process, one of the four synod presidents has said. “I think this time we are aware of and I think the secretary of the synod [Cardinal Lorenzo Baldisseri] is aware that there are these suspicions and, therefore, I think... read more
Cardinal Nichols speaks up at synod for refugee families
Cardinal Vincent Nichols has said the Synod on the Family cannot ignore the impact of the refugee crisis on families.Continue Reading
Cardinal Vincent Nichols has said the Synod on the Family cannot ignore the impact of the refugee crisis on families. “We should have the integrity of the family foremost in our minds,” the Cardinal Archbishop of Westminster said, speaking about the many families who have become separated by the migrant crisis. “They... read more
Catholic Patriarchate of Jerusalem calls for negotiations amid increasing violence
“Once again the flames of despair, fuelled by hate, represent a serious threat in this Holy Land,” Archbishop Fouad Twal says
The Latin-rite Catholic Patriarchate of Jerusalem has called on Palestinians and Israelis to return to the negotiating table amid escalating violence in the region along ethnic and religious grounds, and fears of a new uprising or intifada. Tensions have centred on the contested Holy Site of the Temple Mount or Al-Aqsa mosque... read more
Ecological crisis the focus of Pope’s UN speech
POPE FRANCIS said the ecological crisis threatens the existence of humanity in a wide-ranging speech to the United Nations General Assembly that called for an end to nuclear weapons and for international action to end war, destruction of the environment and associated exclusion of the vulnerable.
In his speech at the UN’s New York headquarters, the Holy Father also praised the recent deal struck over Iran’s nuclear capabilities and stressed the importance of the family. The Pope began by praising the UN’s achievements—‘lights which help to dispel the darkness of the disorder caused by unrestrained ambitions and... read more
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Latest edition
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- Bishop John Keenan of Paisley has urged the prayer campaign for the Scottish nurse who became critically ill with late complications from the ebola virus to continue after doctors said her condition was improving
- Archbishop Leo Cushley told some of Scotland’s future Catholic teachers that they must teach from the heart and pursue personal holiness.
- Warner believes Catholics have lost the sensus fidei.
- Richard Purden discovers the secrets of red-heads from author Jacky Colliss Harvey, and it is not all Celtic roots.
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