NEWS

VATICAN CITY - In an exceptional move, the Vatican recalled its nuncio to Ireland so that he could participate in meetings aimed at drafting the Vatican's formal response to an Irish government report on clerical sex abuse.

Following the publication July 13 of the so-called Cloyne Report, "and, particularly, after the reactions that followed, the secretary of state has recalled the apostolic nuncio in Ireland, Archbishop Giuseppe Leanza, for consultations," the Vatican said in a statement July 25.

Passionist Father Ciro Benedettini, vice director of the Vatican press office, said recalling the nuncio "denotes the seriousness of the situation, the desire of the Holy See to face it with objectivity and determination, as well as a certain note of surprise and disappointment over some excessive reactions" to the report and its accusations against the Vatican.

The Cloyne Report, which examined how the diocese of Cloyne handled accusations of clerical sexual abuse, said the bishop paid "little or no attention" to child safeguarding as recently as 2008 and that he falsely told the government his diocese was reporting all allegations of abuse to the civil authorities.

The past three years haven’t been easy for the Magnificat Charismatic Prayer Community, but that hasn’t stopped the group from dreaming big.

After losing its spiritual director and half of its members, it might seem like the community would pack it in. But instead, the prayer community is working towards turning its home, Regina Mundi Retreat Centre in Queensville, Ont., into the national shrine of the Divine Mercy.

“Divine Mercy is really the heart of Scripture,” said Fr. Matthew Robbertz, spiritual director of the Magnificat community. “God came to save us, and everything is made of His mercy.”

The Divine Mercy devotion is followed by more than 100 million Catholics worldwide, and it owes much of its popularity to Pope John Paul II. Until he began to spread the word of the devotion, the Divine Mercy was unknown to — or even rejected by — many Catholics. The devotion began with St. Faustina, a Polish nun who lived in the early 1900s. She had many visions of Jesus and Mary, which she described in a diary that would later be published. Her writings, originally widely condemned, would inspire the Divine Mercy devotion, which asks for the mercy of God and the ability to show mercy to others.

DUBLIN — Irish Prime Minister Enda Kenny has accused the Vatican of adopting a "calculated, withering position" on abuse in the wake of a judicial report that accused the Holy See of being "entirely unhelpful" to Irish bishops trying to deal with abuse.

During a July 20 parliamentary debate, Kenny said an independent judicial investigation into the handling of clergy sexual abuse in the diocese of Cloyne "exposes an attempt by the Holy See to frustrate an inquiry in a sovereign, democratic republic as little as three years ago."

"And in doing so, the Cloyne Report excavates the dysfunction, disconnection, elitism and the narcissism that dominate the culture of the Vatican to this day," he said.

The Cloyne Report, published July 13, found that Cloyne Bishop John Magee, a former secretary to three popes, paid "little or no attention" to child safeguarding as recently as 2008. It said he falsely told the government that his diocese was reporting all allegations of clerical child sexual abuse to the civil authorities. It also found that the bishop deliberately misled another inquiry and his own advisers by creating two different accounts — one for the Vatican and the other for diocesan files — of a meeting with a priest-suspect.

Witnessing the courage of Christians helping Jews in Nazi-occupied Holland during the Second World War inspired Canadian social justice pioneer Gerald Vandezande's faith and anti-poverty work.

A co-founder and the first director of the Ottawa-based Citizens for Public Justice, Mr. Vandezande passed away peacefully at his home on July 16. His funeral was held on July 21 at Pine Hills Visitation Centre in Toronto.

For four decades, Mr. Vandezande worked in public policy development and political advocacy. He was awarded the Order of Canada in 2001. His ordepioner citation described him as a “powerful and respected voice for social justice.”

Long-time friend Mark Vander Vennen recalls one of his last conversations with Mr. Vandezande who reminisced about his early influences.

“(The war experience) had a big impact on him. He saw first-hand some extremely courageous things done in resistance to the Nazis by Christians in the name of the Gospel,” said Vander Vennen, executive director of the non-profit Shalem Mental Health Network. “That had a life-long impact on him, including the defense and hiding of Jews.”

OTTAWA — When Bishop-elect Thomas Dowd is ordained to the episcopacy on Sept. 10 as auxiliary bishop of Montreal, he will be the youngest bishop in Canada and the second youngest in the world.

And Dowd, being of a wired, media-savvy generation, posted the July 11 official announcement on Facebook. He was thrilled to see that within five seconds somebody “liked” it.

Facebook is just the tip of the iceberg as far as the future bishop's media savvy goes. He is also a bloggist, and has been for some time. He plans to continue blogging, a hobby he has pursued as a priest at Frdowd.net since 2003. He began the blog because people in the parish he served only saw him on Sundays and wondered what he did during the other days of the week.

“So many amazing things happen as a priest,” he said. “Honestly, it’s a great life. If a person wants to lead a boring life don’t go into the priesthood.

“Here I am experiencing all these blessings. People like to know about them, so I’ll use the blog as a medium,” he said.

CASTEL GANDOLFO, Italy — Pope Benedict XVI urged the international community to deliver urgent humanitarian aid to the drought-stricken Horn of Africa, especially Somalia, where tens of thousands have fled drought and famine.

The Pope, addressing pilgrims at his summer residence outside Rome July 17, said he had been following news of the region's humanitarian catastrophe with "deep concern." UN experts say the prolonged drought, combined with a rise in food prices, have forced many families to make long and often deadly overland treks to reach refugee camps.

DUBLIN — The group that represents Ireland's Catholic priests says the secrecy of Confession must be protected, despite government indications that Confessions would not be exempt from rules on mandatory reporting of child abuse.

"The point is, if there is a law in the land, it has to be followed by everybody. There are no exceptions, there are no exemptions," said Irish Children's Minister Frances Fitzgerald.

Fr. P.J. Madden, spokesman for the Association of Catholic Priests, insisted that the sacramental seal of Confession is "above and beyond all else" and should not be broken even if a penitent confesses to a crime.

Madden said he would strongly urge and appeal to the penitent — whether a priest or anyone else — to confess a crime to the police and have the civil aspect dealt with, but that he did not approve of the idea of reporting what was said.

"If I'm breaking the law then somebody has to find a way to address that for me ... but in my own right as a priest what I understand is the seal of Confession is above and beyond all else," he said.

LIMA, Peru — When Archbishop Pedro Barreto Jimeno of Huancayo first considered the high lead levels in the blood of children living in the Peruvian highland city of La Oroya, he asked himself, "What would Jesus do?"

Five years ago, the U.S.-owned mining company Doe Run was running a minerals smelter complex that was mainly responsible for the poor air quality in the fifth-most polluted city in the world, the archbishop told delegates at an international Latin American bishops' council seminar on extractive industries. The archbishop told delegates he answered his own question by beginning an ultimately successful campaign to close the complex.

Now, as the new president of the Latin American bishops' council department of justice and solidarity, Barreto has a four-year mandate to encourage the Latin American Church to consider and act on the question at the root of his ministry.

During the three-day seminar sponsored by the council, known by its acronym CELAM, 80 Church representatives from Latin America said they would seek dialogue with Canadian, American and European bishops on extractive industries and the mission of the Church and strengthen links with the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace. They also called on northern countries to value the rich Latin American biodiversity that is threatened by extractive industries.

INUVIK, N.W.T. — Pictures tell stories. Stories tell us who we are. For 15-year-old Mary Masazumi the story falls into the category of mystery.

Her father Alfred is dead and there are no family photo albums at home in Fort Good Hope that stretch back into her father’s childhood. Mary hoped to fill that gap pouring through binders of photos from the archives of the diocese of Mackenzie-Fort Smith. The diocese came to Inuvik for the Northern National Event of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada June 28 to July 1 with as many photos of students as could be found. Visitors could take home up to five copies. The photos were the most popular attraction outside the commission hearings.

Masazumi’s father went to school at the Immaculate Conception residential school in Aklavik — at least she thinks it was Aklavik.

“He hasn’t told me about residential school,” she said.

VATICAN CITY — Indian bishops called for unity in the country's fight against terrorism in the wake of three bombs in Mumbai July 13 that left at least 17 people dead and more than 140 injured.

"We believe this is a moment in which the entire nation needs to be united in order to face terrorism with the greatest resolve. United in the spirit of brotherhood, we will be able to overcome the powers that are trying to destabilize our country," said a July 14 statement from the Indian bishops' conference.

The statement, published by the Vatican missionary news agency Fides, condemned the bomb attacks as "shameful acts." The explosions struck three crowded sites in Mumbai almost simultaneously during the evening rush hour. No group immediately claimed responsibility for the attacks.