The Vatican may make “spiritual abuse” a formalized crime in Church law, rather than merely an aggravating circumstance of other crimes. The Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith is forming a working group with the Dicastery for Legislative Texts with “the task of analyzing this possibility and presenting concrete proposals” on the matter, according to a paper from the doctrine office dated Nov. 22 and posted online this week.
Vatican
Secretary General of the World Islamic League in the Vatican
Pope Francis received the Secretary General of the World Islamic League, Muhammad al-Issa, at the Vatican, at 9 am on September 20, 2017, before the Pope’s Wednesday general audience.
Rome: Korean Interfaith Pilgrimage
Religious leaders are called to practice “a style of peace, with words that differentiate themselves from the narrative of fear and with gestures that oppose the rhetoric of hatred,” Pope Francis told the Korean Council of Religious Leaders, September 2, 2017, in the Vatican.
Vatican to Host Workshop on Health of People and Planet
The Pontifical Academy of Sciences (PAS) will host a workshop November 2-4, 2017 to discuss the relationship between climate change, pollution and people. The event will take place at The Academy’s headquarters are in the Casina Pio IV, in Vatican City.
The Vatican, Black Holes, and the Big Bang
What happens if you fall into a Black Hole? What happened in the early Big Bang? What is the ultimate destiny of the cosmos? These and other questions will be at the center of discussions at a scientific workshop on “Black Holes, Gravitational Waves and Space-Time Singularities” which will be held from May 9-12 at the Vatican Observatory in Castel Gandolfo. Among the 35 invited participants, are renowned scientists such as the 1999 Nobel Laureate in Physics, Gerald ‘t Hooft; 1988 Wolf Prize co-winner Roger Penrose; and cosmologists George Ellis, Renata Kallosh and Andrei Linde and Joe Silk.
Vatican and Myanmar Establish Diplomatic Relations
The Vatican and the Republic of the Union of Myanmar (Burma) are establishing bilateral diplomatic relations, announced a statement by the Holy See Press Office. Pope Francis received the Foreign Minister of Myanmar, Aung San Suu Kyi, in a private audience the morning of Thursday, May 4, 2017.
Vatican’s Message for Buddhist Feast of Vesakh
Here is the message from the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue, to Buddhists on their feast of Vesakh. The English-language message was released by the Vatican on April 22, 2017. The Message is titled: Christians and Buddhists: Walking Together on the Path of Nonviolence
Vatican: Pope’s Address to Australian Global Foundation
Pope Francis gave one address to an Australian foundation in Rome on Saturday 14 January. Pope Francis spoke to participants of the ‘Round Table’ of the Global Foundation in Rome. According to its website, launched in Melbourne, Australia, in 1998, the Global Foundation, a not-for-profit organisation, was born when some of Australia’s leading citizens wished to confront the challenges and opportunities presented by an emerging world. The global network brings together influential global figures focused on serving the longer-term public good and backed by private sector and philanthropic sponsors and a diverse membership base.
Church Clarifies Teaching on Cremation
On 25 October, the Vatican Congregation for the Faith gave an instruction on Cremation. The instruction, Ad resurgendum cum Christo emphasises that ashes should be put in a sacred place, not transformed into jewellery or other commemorative memorabilia.
Victoria: Lecture on Future of Jewish-Catholic relations
The Ecumenical and Interfaith Commission would like to invite you to a public lecture, “Nothing substantively new“? … The latest Vatican document “The gifts and calling of God are irrevocable” and the Future of Jewish-Catholic relations at East Melbourne on 30 October.
Pope Francis meets top Egyptian cleric at Vatican, ending five-year freeze in relations
Pope Francis has met the grand imam of Egypt’s highest Islamic authority, Al-Azhar, looking to heal Vatican relations with the influential centre of Sunni Muslim learning after dialogue was frozen five years ago. The 1,000-year-old mosque and university centre cut contacts with the Vatican in 2011 over what it said were repeated insults towards Islam from Francis’s predecessor, Pope Benedict.
Holy See to United Nations: Religious Authorities Have to Be the Leaders in Stopping Terrorism
The Permanant Observer of the Vatican to the United Nations gives account of recent terrorism and the role of religious leaders in countering terrorism. The recent Marrakesh Declaration is cited as example of efforts by religious leaders to repudiate, refute and rebut erroneous presentations of religious teachings which seek to recuit those symapthetic to false interpretations of religious teachings.