News/Canada
Two proposed bills, the Online Harms Act (Bill C-63) and Bill C-367, have critics suggesting that if passed, they could threaten the freedom to express beliefs and convictions online and in the public square.
Share Lent focuses on farm workers’ rights
By Luke Mandato, The Catholic RegisterDevelopment and Peace - Caritas Canada’s annual Share Lent campaign is in full swing, focusing this year on impacting rural and peasant communities around the world.
Under the theme “Reaping our Rights,” the 2024 campaign is focused on defending all aspects of small-scale farming and agriculture workers’ human rights.
Mail-order abortion pills sourced in Toronto
By Anna FarrowA Canadian non-profit has become a major player in the drive to help women “self-administer abortion at home” through the distribution of abortion pills by mail, all below the radar of Health Canada.
Vatican dicastery overturns St. John’s church closure
By Quinton Amundson, The Catholic RegisterThe Catholics of Portugal Cove-St. Philips, NL, who felt “betrayed” by the Archdiocese of St. John’s closing of Holy Rosary Church in October 2022 have attained a “moral victory” and a potential pathway to reopening their beloved church.
Judge denies MAiD stay on Montreal centre
By Anna FarrowA Quebec Superior Court judge has denied the Archdiocese of Montreal’s request for a stay of the legal obligation placed on a Montreal palliative care centre to offer assisted death to its residents.
Pharmacare’s contraception focus ‘deeply troubling’
By Quinton Amundson, The Catholic RegisterWith the framework of a national pharmacare program launched by the Liberal-NDP coalition, some are finding its initial focus on contraceptives a “deeply troubling” aspect of the deal.
Brian Mulroney’s Catholic faith forged his identity
By Susan KorahWhen Pope (now St.) John Paul II arrived in Ottawa in 1984, the first pontiff to visit this country, greeting him in Ottawa was Canada’s 18th Prime Minister, Brian Mulroney, one of 10 Catholics who have held that office since 1867.
Israeli Jesuit to share a Church view on Gaza war
By Luke Mandato, The Catholic RegisterJesuit Fr. David Neuhaus, himself an Israeli citizen, is hosting a webinar to inform Catholics about the conflict between Israel and Hamas in Gaza which comes on the heals of the broken down ceasefire talks between the parties.
Senate pushes MAiD for mentally ill three years down the road
By Quinton Amundson, The Catholic RegisterMedical assistance in dying (MAiD) access for individuals solely living with a mental illness is officially delayed until March 17, 2027, as the Senate of Canada passed Bill C-62 at third reading Feb. 29.
‘Graphic images’ law challenged
By Anna FarrowA Christian advocacy organization is challenging a St. Catharines city bylaw barring flyers with “graphic images” from being delivered to city homes.
Bridging gap of academics, pastoral ministry
By Lea Karen Kivi, Catholic Register Special“I am here not to fight the Church — I am here to fight for a better Church,” says Professor Mariéle Wulf about her role as director of the Centre for Safeguarding Minors and Vulnerable Persons (CPCS) at Saint. Paul University in Ottawa.