Choosing is in the air. At the beginning of the year, the marketers are competing for our money, and gyms and diet programs are poised to pounce on the good intentions that follow Christmas feasts. 

PARIS – A French cardinal took the stand in court Jan. 7, the first day of a civil trial for church officials accused of covering up abuse by a priest.

OTTAWA – The Liberal government has promised to study three new reports on the possible expansion of the euthanasia law to include minors and those who suffer from mental disorders, but advocacy groups warn the government will likely expand the law after the 2019 election.

VANCOUVER – A pilot project launched last year for children with learning disabilities is making waves in the local Catholic school system.

VATICAN – Protecting human dignity and human rights must always be at the heart of any action by world leaders to confront the many humanitarian crises afflicting today's world, Pope Francis said.

Dwelling is a strange concept. It’s a place and it sounds like an action: the relevance to Advent is both. 

VATICAN – Responding to the deaths of tens of thousands of children from AIDS and AIDS-related illnesses, the Vatican brought together physicians and representatives of drug companies and humanitarian agencies to strategize ways to improve care for children and adolescents who are HIV-positive.

The scandal that has erupted at Toronto’s St. Michael’s College School involving bullying and assault allegations has prompted suggestions that a “toxic masculinity” at the all-boys’ school played a role in incidents that have resulted in eight expulsions, six students facing serious charges and one student suspended. It’s also led to some calls to abolish single-sex schools.

There already were a few children in line making a bowl of cereal or waiting for the toaster to pop when Jazmin Torres burst through the basement doors at 7:42 a.m. St. Paul’s Basilica in the Corktown neighbourhood of East Toronto.

VATICAN – The scandal of human trafficking, which affects millions of young people in the world, needs to be included in the Synod of Bishops' final document, one synod father said.

After we are small children, it is rare that we are carried. Perhaps for a joke or dare, a photo-op at a threshold, maybe in the case of injury, or in certain situations in old age? My baby is big enough now I rarely carry his full weight unless he is asleep.

TORONTO – In a prestigious medical journal, doctors from Toronto's Hospital for Sick Children have laid out policies and procedures for administering medically assisted death to children, including scenarios where the parents would not be informed until after the child dies.

PARIS – The French bishops said proposals to extend fertility treatments to lesbian couples and single women would harm society by removing fatherhood from the lives of children.

What is your memory of the time you received your first Holy Communion? 

In the dog days of August, at the height of vacation season, it is tempting to let a few things slide. But not too much. One hundred years ago, The Catholic Register did its summer duty by reminding parents of their own duty when it came to their children. From the July 18, 1918 issue, The Register offers advice that still may apply today.

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