NEWS

{mosimage}In less than a year the church in Prince Edward Island could cut two-thirds of its parishes. Demographic shifts, an overstretched and aging priesthood and financial pressures are driving the diocese of Charlottetown to consider reducing the number of parishes, missions and chapels it is committed to maintaining from 59 to 17.

{mosimage}With the latest calls to resurrect the “right to die,” a leading pro-life proponent reinforced his argument that life needs to be protected from conception until natural death.

{mosimage}TORONTO - There really is a new world order, and Canada has stumbled into a critical role in it, Sen. Romeo Dallaire told a gathering at the University of Toronto as he helped launch the anti-genocide Aegis Trust in Canada Nov. 3.

{mosimage}VATICAN CITY - Interreligious dialogue, peace in the Middle East and the life of Christians living in Saudi Arabia were on the agenda of an historic meeting between Pope Benedict XVI and King Abdullah Aziz of Saudi Arabia.

{mosimage}OTTAWA - A former Quebec justice minister has launched a petition aimed at bringing Pope Benedict XVI to Quebec City for the 2008 International Eucharistic Congress in June.

{mosimage}NEW DELHI - The head of the Pakistani Catholic bishops' conference expressed concern over the imposition of emergency rule that has led to widespread protests and a crackdown by the military regime of Gen. Pervez Musharraf, Pakistan's president.

{mosimage}TORONTO - The Dalai Lama, whose name is Tenzin Gyatso, has a hard enough time convincing people he is a simple, 72-year-old monk and a refugee. That the spiritual leader who embodies both Tibetan culture and Tibetan Buddhism could convince 16,000 who came to see him at the Rogers Centre Halloween evening that he is a man of science and a champion of the secular borders on miraculous.

TORONTO - Our Lady of Mount Carmel Church just got a $1-million facelift. In just under one year art restorer Carlos Nunes and his team has restored the downtown Toronto parish to look as it did in 1908, except for a few new additions reflecting the culture of its Chinese congregation.    

{mosimage}TORONTO - When Jesuit Father Peter Henriot arrived in Zambia 19 years ago life expectancy in the landlocked, southern African country was a rather dismal 52 years. Today Zambians can expect to be dead by 37.

{mosimage}THORNHILL, Ont. - There hasn’t always been a St. Luke’s, but just about. The parish has been there in one form or another ever since Bishop Michael Power decided Upper Canada needed another Catholic church between Toronto and Newmarket in 1844. It cost $1,000 to buy land for the church, rectory and cemetery that began St. Luke’s long history in 1847.