OTTAWA – Canada’s Catholic bishops are urging the federal government to maintain a clear distinction between palliative care and the practice of euthanasia and assisted suicide so institutions are not forced to become “an accomplice” in causing an intentional death.

Proof that the Church has no shyness about irony is affirmed by news that Canada’s new Catholic hymnal will be unleashed during Lent two years hence.

In the wake of Ontario’s new government repealing its sex education curriculum, students in Catholic school classrooms will continue to be taught in “a manner that that conveys, respects and models Catholic principles to our students, said the head of head of Ontario’s Assembly of Catholic Bishops.

A new English-language hymnal is on the way. The Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops (CCCB) has confirmed publishing plans for Music for Catholic Worship, which should be in stock by Lent 2020.

Canada’s bishops typically are cautious when passing comment on public policy. So they grabbed our attention when, in the first paragraph of a recent press release, the bishops predicted Canada’s new marijuana law will have “disastrous effects” on society.

EDMONTON – Canadian Catholics are about to see the first new national hymnal in more than 20 years — a book that will bring long-cherished hymns into step with modern worship and introduce new works as well.

OTTAWA – The Supreme Court has opened the door for discrimination based on a person’s religious beliefs and moral values, Canadian bishops wrote in a frank rebuttal to a decision by Canada’s highest court.

OTTAWA – The Minister of Indigenous Affairs has asked the Our Lady of Guadalupe Circle, a coalition of Catholic groups, to help government efforts to obtain a papal apology for the Church’s role in residential schools.

OTTAWA – Those on the front lines of reconciliation are hopeful Pope Francis will say what needs to be said at the right time, in spite of the “pressure” that has been put on a papal apology on Canadian soil.

OTTAWA – The NDP has considerably softened a motion to invite Pope Francis to apologize for Indian residential schools after a previous motion failed to get unanimous consent April 18.

Why won’t Pope Francis issue a formal apology for the Catholic Church’s role in Canada’s residential school system? 

OTTAWA – Canada’s bishops’ conference is pushing back against “inaccuracies” in a proposed Parliamentary motion that will call on them to formally invite Pope Francis to apologize for the Church’s role in residential schools. 

The following is the Easter message from Bishop Lionel Gendron, president of the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops.

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VANCOUVER – A Squamish First Nation deacon is looking forward to his chance to bring the concerns of local Indigenous people to Rome.

Jacob Jason Genaille-Dustyhorn isn’t Catholic, but his spiritual roots with the Indigenous community has qualified him as one of only two young people selected by Canadian bishops to represent the country in Rome next month.