Irish Missionary Union

Bangalore (Agenzia Fides) – At the Assembly of Indian Bishops being held in Bangalore from 1 to 8 February, the issues concerning " prohibited conversions", the limitations of religious freedom and discrimination against Christians are being examined, themes on which the Bishops, a source of Fides says, have launched an intense debate. The discussion was generated by Professor. T. K. Oommen’s report, a Christian sociologist, professor emeritus at the "Jawaharlal Nehru University", who stressed the urgent need to correct the distorted image of the Church "as an entity engaged in the work of religious conversions". This, he remarked, "is a widespread...

Manila (Agenzia Fides) - The Philippine National Red Cross (PNRC) has organized the training for 1 million 800 thousand volunteers to cope with any disaster that might hit the country. The program, called Red Cross 143, prepares groups of 44 volunteers who will be present in each of the 42 000 villages. They will be given all the basic first aid information skills to respond to the consequences of catastrophes, they will also have be able to monitor and assess disasters and weather emergencies in time. "Disasters and natural disasters are recorded everywhere - according to a statement by the...

Vatican City (Agenzia Fides) - The Holy Father Benedict XVI as from February 2, 2012 has Auxiliaries for the archdiocese of Kinshasa (Democratic Republic of Congo) Rev. Fr. Timothée Bodika Mansiyai, P.S.S., Rector of the Seminary of Philosophy in Kinshasa and General Counselor of the Society of Sulpician Fathers, assigning him the titular see of Naiera; and Rev. Sébastien Muyengo Mulombe, of the clergy of Kinshasa, currently a student at the University of Leuven (Belgium), assigning him the titular see of Strathernia. Rev. Fr. Timothée Bodika Mansiyai, a Sulpician, was born on 1 January 1962 in Kinshasa. After his secondary education...

Kampala (Agenzia Fides) - Today, Feb. 3, a new secondary school for 400 children, built with private funds collected primarily through the sale of necklaces made of recycled paper by women with AIDS will be inaugurated in Kampala. This is a new funding formula especially considering that today the subsidies of the nations for the most fragile countries are running out or are becoming increasingly limited. In addition, the 400 students who are now going to school are doing it thanks to the support at a distance, and here too, thanks to a new mechanism of solidarity and development between...

Hong Kong (Agenzia Fides) - In view of Lent and considering the steady increase in recent years of the baptized in the Catholic community in Hong Kong, the local Church has intensified the formation of faith so that the newly baptized can have a solid basis, encouraging the spiritual guidance and pastoral care of the parish. According to reports from the Kong Ko Bao (Chinese version of the diocesan bulletin), last year there were 6,200 of adult and infant baptisms. This number requires an adequate and intensified pastoral commitment on behalf of all the parishes to meet the needs...

Raipur (Agenzia Fides) - His "fault" was to have organized the screening of a film about Jesus with the faithful of his community: this is why the Protestant Pastor Rajendra Masih, 35, who works in Rajnandgaon district in the state of Chhattisgarh (central India) was beaten and injured by a group of radical Hindu extremist organization "Bajrang Dal", accusing him of "fraudulent conversion". The incident, which occurred on January 31 and reported to Fides, shows how "religious intolerance toward Christians is alarming", the Ong "Global Council of Indian Christians" told Fides. The Pastor had chosen to show the film in...

Scripture is like a mirror held up in front of the human race.  We see ourselves depicted.  Of course, the Bible is the story of God revealing himself to us, but it is also a picture of who we are.  Sadness and joy, generosity and selfishness, anger and peace, all human emotions can be found in scripture.  Take today’s first reading from Job.  It is a chillingly accurate description of serious depression.

Children in the UK are not the only kids to experience that Friday feeling when school kicks out. After the weekday regimen, the children of Sarnelli House in Nongkhai, Thailand, many of whom are born with HIV,  are only too keen to unwind and play.  To fit their care around school, the children rise at 5.30am to shower and dress, ready for their 6am anti retroviral medication.

An Australian judge and a canon lawyer, have both said in independent reports,  that Pope Benedict broke canon law and natural justice when he sacked Mgr Bill Morris  from his post as Bishop of Toowomba last May The Queensland Supreme Court judge WJ Carter found that Bishop Morris was denied procedural fairness and natural justice and his

Archbishop Michael Neary, Archbishop of Tuam, has appointed Father Richard Gibbons as the new Parish Priest of Knock in succession to the late Monsignor Joseph Quinn, RIP.  Archbishop Neary said: "the appointment as Parish Priest of Knock is a very demanding position, and one that requires great spiritual, pastoral and administrative skills and sensitivity.  I have every

A scientific  exhibition on "the history of the universe, from the particles which make up the atoms in our bodies to distant galaxies" was announced today by  Fr Jose Gabriel Funes SJ, director of the Vatican Observatory. Fr Funes defined the exhibition as:  "Stories from another world. The universe inside and outside us".

The Catholic Church in the Diocese of Westminster is set to feature in a new series of three films to be shown on BBC 4 Television in February and March 2012. Produced by documentary film maker Richard Alwyn, 'Catholics' goes behind the headlines to explore what it is like to be Catholic  today. Each of the three films - one about men, one about

John de Britto was the son of rich and influential parents at the court of Lisbon, Portugal in the 17th century. As a child, he had fallen seriously ill, and his mother prayed to St Francis Xavier for his recovery. Little John recovered, but then to the dismay of his parents, he determined to follow the great missionary saint in every respect: he joined the Jesuits, and volunteered to work in India, as his saintly predecessor had. John’s field of work was south India, or what is today Tamil Nadu. His labours were mainly pastoral – he preached, catechised, built and...

A controversial Muslim author has branded the City of Joy a “city of cowards,” after her book launch at the International Kolkata Book Fair was cancelled following threats from Islamic extremists. The seventh part of Taslima Nasrin’s autobiography, Nirbasan, (Exile) was slated to be launched on February 1. Following the cancellation the book was launched elsewhere by Nabarun Bhattacharya, son of feminist author and social activist Mahasweta Devi. The decision to cancel the launch by the Publishers and Booksellers Guild was a violation of basic human rights, Bhattacharya said. Responding to the criticism, the secretary of the guild said threats had been received from...

Sự bùng nổ trong hoạt động kinh doanh dạy tư đã thu hút sự chú ý của Tòa án Tối cao Bangladesh và bị các nhà giáo dục của Giáo hội một trận chỉ trích mạnh mẽ. Hiện nay trên cả nước có khoảng 50.000 trung tâm luyện thi, riêng tại thủ đô Dhaka có 20.000 trung tâm. Nhiều trung tâm chỉ mới mở gần đây. Lo ngại trước diễn biến này, Tòa án Tối cao Bangladesh yêu cầu Bộ Giáo dục điều tra sự việc. Báo cáo điều tra chỉ trích thậm tệ tiêu chuẩn tại hầu hết các trung tâm...

A labor rights group today issued a statement calling on police and military personnel not to get involved in labor issues. The Coalition of Civil Society for Labor Rights, which includes the Commission for Ecumenical and Interreligious Affairs at the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Indonesia said their involvement could pose a threat to democracy. “The involvement of the police and military in labor issues is a setback of the … [political] reformation process, which has not yet been completed, and also a threat to civil supremacy and democracy,” the statement said. The statement added that police and military involvement also led...

It is a mistake to think that we must be engaged in prayer if we are to meet the Lord. We can meet him and serve him at every moment of our lives. Peter’s mother-in-law knew this. When she encountered the saving power of God, she did the right thing. She got on with her everyday life.

The mother of a suspected terrorist leader killed in an air strike Thursday asked Philippine and Malaysian authorities Friday to bring her long-lost son’s body to Malaysia for burial. There is just one problem: The military has not recovered a single body from the site and relied only on “intelligence” for the confirmation of 15 alleged terrorists they killed. Aminah Abdul Aziz, 64, who lives in Kampung Jeram Masjid in Bakri, said she was shocked to learn of the death of son Zulkifli Bin Hir, also known as Marwan, alleged leader of the international terrorist group Jamaah Islamiyah, who had a US$5...

Activists in Syria have said that more than 200 people have been killed in shelling by Syrian forces in the city of Homs.

A week-long cold snap across Europe in which temperatures plunged to new lows has now claimed more than 220 lives.

At least 105 people have been killed by shelling in the city of Homs in Syria, according to reports.

Around 700 people attended a protest against education cutbacks in Bantry, Co Cork.

64% of Iarnród Éireann's InterCity fares will increase from tomorrow following changes to the fare structure

SIPTU has referred issues around a controversial HSE-funded account to the Garda Fraud Squad, according to correspondence published on the website of the Public Accounts Committee.

More demonstrations are expected in Moscow on Saturday as part of ongoing protest against fraud in December's parliamentary elections in Russia.

The Libyan authorities are being urged to investigate the death of a former ambassador who, it is believed, was tortured in custody.

A cardboard cut-out version of the founder of Iran's Islamic revolution is mocked online after touring Tehran.

Severe flooding is threatening parts of New South Wales and Queensland in eastern Australia, with towns cut off and thousands of residents evacuated.

Protesters have gathered on the streets of Egypt's capital Cairo amid calls for more rallies over the deaths of 74 fans at a football match on Wednesday.

The oldest woman in Cuba and possibly the world celebrates her 127th birthday this week.