Francis of Assisi is one of the saints in the Catholic calendar honoured by different religions around the world. And with the election of our new Pope, people everywhere are hearing the name Francis now more than ever.

A heavenly joy filled my heart during a Mass last month at Toronto’s Holy Angels Church. My family had arranged our schedules to be there as Fr. Peter Gioppato, the pastor, celebrated 50 years in religious life.

The Kenyan city of Mombasa is an ancient metropolis that bears the marks of its long history as a melting pot of civilizations, religions, cultures, races and nationalities. It is the gateway to East Africa and the coastal city of choice for many tourists from Asia, Europe and North America.

It’s something you never want to hear. You’ve believed and clung to something your entire life, something you stake your very existence on. Then someone suggests it’s all bunk, irrelevant, meaningless.

There is a time for everything and a time for every affair under the heavens. The author of Ecclesiastes could well have been writing a script for my summer.

Firing Line, the PBS public affairs program hosted by the late William F. Buckley, Jr., not only won an Emmy Award (in 1969) but set a broadcasting record as the longest-running television show: 1,504 episodes over 33 years. The last Firing Line was in 1999.

My eldest child, my daughter, graduated with honours from high school this year and is about to head off to university. By the grace of God, her Catholic faith remains intact. In looking back at her school years, I can honestly say that raising a daughter in this culture is among the most difficult tasks I have ever undertaken.

Our kids need, and deserve, better protection from adult online content, MP argues

The summer is normally a time for rest and relaxation. But one question that has been coming to me lately is how can Christians find true rest, serenity of heart from fear, when we face human and natural tragedies.

On June 12, in another of the seemingly inexorable movements in the developed world to normalize euthanasia and assisted suicide, Quebec tabled Bill 52, “An act respecting end-of-life care.” Given that only 16-30 per cent of Canadians have access to comprehensive, quality end-of-life care, according to the Canadian Hospice Palliative Care Association, we ought to receive news of efforts to improve care at this crucially important and vulnerable time for dying persons and their loved ones with universal enthusiasm. But what vision of “end-of-life care” is presented here?