Pope Leo speaks with President Zelensky, calls for humanitarian aid

The Holy See Press Office has announced that Pope Leo XIV and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky spoke over the telephone on Monday, 19 October.

During the conversation, according to a statement, "the Holy Father recalled the grave situation in the city of Oleshky, in the Kherson region, and made reference to the request for a humanitarian ceasefire that he had presented to the President of the Russian Federation".

The Pope also expressed his hope that "co-operation between both parties will allow for the delivery of food and medical aid", as well as for the "voluntary and safe evacuation of the civilian population".

Finally, the Holy Father reaffirmed the Holy See's commitment to promoting dialogue and peace.

Knoxville bishop continues his war on traditional Catholics

When the Bishop of Knoxville, Tennessee, banned the praying of the Prayer to St. Michael the Archangel at the end of Masses in his diocese late last week, he counted another score in his growing campaign to extinguish the faith and practices of devout and Traditional Latin Mass-going Catholics. 

Bishop Mark Beckman is at war with Traditional Latin Mass Catholics, the SSPX, and has now taken on St. Michael the Archangel. 

Beckman banned the TLM

Last year, Beckman limited the celebration of the Traditional Latin Mass (TLM) to just one chapel at a retreat center once a month after previously announcing the suppression of all parish TLMs in the diocese.

Beckman declared at the time that the changes to the Roman liturgy after the Second Vatican Council, as well as Pope Francis’ 2021 motu proprio Traditionis Custodes, which placed sweeping restrictions on the celebration of the TLM, were guided by the Holy Spirit.

Beckman revoked faculties of priest who associated with the SSPX

Earlier this month, Beckman revoked all the faculties of a diocesan priest who has associated himself with the SSPX. 

A strongly worded statement issued by the diocese said that Beckman had withdrawn all faculties, permissions, and authorizations previously granted to Father David Mary Engo for ministry within the diocese. “He is not authorized to exercise public priestly ministry anywhere within the Diocese of Knoxville.”

The statement went on to condemn the presence of the SSPX within his diocese, and in no uncertain terms discouraged Catholics from participation in any of the activities of the SSPX:

Furthermore, the Bishop of Knoxville has not authorized, condoned, or approved the establishment within the Diocese of any priory, mission, chapel, foundation, or other apostolate intended to advance the purposes or ministry of the Society of Saint Pius X.

The faithful are therefore strongly urged not to attend Masses, sacramental celebrations, retreats, conferences, or other religious activities organized or conducted by Fr. David Mary or in connection with this unauthorized ministry, and not to provide material or organizational support for his ministry or the establishment or maintenance of an SSPX apostolate within the Diocese.

Beckman banned Prayer to St. Michael at the end of Masses

In a statement to members of the Knoxville Diocese published on Friday, Beckman lamented that as he has traveled throughout his diocese, he “noticed that in some of our parishes additional prayers, including the Prayer to St. Michael, the ‘Prayer of St. Francis,’ a Prayer to the Holy Spirit, and others have been added regularly to the liturgy – recited together, sometimes before the entrance hymn, or immediately after the dismissal.”

“Having reflected on the importance of celebrating the liturgy in accordance with the mind of the Church, I do not think it appropriate to add additional prayers associated with the celebration of the Mass itself,” wrote Beckman.

“Therefore, I have asked our priests to catechize the people of God as we move away from additional prayers recited together immediately before, during, and immediately after Mass,” said Beckman.

Beckman instead encouraged pastors to find alternative ways to incorporate the Prayer to St. Michael the Archangel “into the devotional lives of our families and communities beyond the celebration of the liturgy.”

Historian: Church failed massively at Abbé Pierre

With a comprehensive monograph, the historian Axelle Brodiez-Dolino has underpinned the extent of the sexual wrongdoings surrounding the priest Abbé Pierre (1912–2007), who was formerly revered as the "father of the homeless". 

In the interview of the newspaper "La Croix" from the weekend, the church leadership attests to her ongoing failure in the desire to sweep the scandals under the carpet and keep damage away from the church.

Your archive study "I must entrust you with a very great secret" (J'ai un très grand secret à vous dire) also deals with childhood traumas of the priest, who grew up with the real name Henri Grouès in a strictly Catholic family in Lyon and apparently had to suffer from sexual assault even during school.

"Relation to sexuality marked by suffering"

"As a child, his relationship with sexuality was marked by suffering and guilt," says Brodiez-Dolino. A traumatizing involvement of his aunt in a murder case is also dealt with in the book. 

The historian speaks for the years after his adolescence of a "progressive increase in perversions."

When France was hit by a cold wave in the winter of 1953/54, Abbé Pierre triggered a nationwide and international wave of aid with aid appeals for the homeless on the radio. 

According to Brodiez-Dolino, the priest then became sexually assaulted several times during a successful trip to the USA. 

Even the highest church authorities, however, were primarily interested in not letting the matter become public.

The historian literally: "In his file in the Vatican, three elements appear, which are equally important in the eyes of Rome: his financial lightness -- he had entrusted the 1954 money to a notorious fraud -- his communist attitude and his sexual aberrations. Reason enough to worry the hierarchy."

According to her account, 1957 was a pivotal year. The Holy Office, the predecessor of today's Vatican religious authority, closed its file in the spring. 

But from autumn, Abbé Pierre was treated for several months in a psychiatric hospital in Switzerland at the instigation of the church leadership and the community he founded Emmaus.

Church archives show that there must have been sexual assaults or even rapes of minors somewhere in the autumn, according to the historian. She now also considers a involvement of the priest in a nationwide sex scandal quite likely, which, however, only flew up in January 1959. 

The "Affaire des Ballets roses", in which underage girls with drugs are substantively and after choreographed dances then gentlemen of the higher society are fed, cost, among other things, the then parliament speaker André Le Troquer the office.

In a summary document from 1964, the Paris Auxiliary Bishop and later Cardinal Pierre Veuillot writes about the actions of Abbé Pierre: "Young girls are thus drawn for their entire lives."

Strict controls revoked

After the Swiss therapy, according to his biographer Brodiez-Dolino, Abbé Pierre realized that "he wanted to be removed from Emmaus "; this had made him "angry and incredibly energetic again". 

But he was able to escape all the discreet attempts of the French bishops to keep him under control as much as possible – medical care, travel restrictions, constant surveillance – every time.

Until 1964, according to the historian’s finding, Abbé Pierre was still under strict control; after that, the conditions had gradually eased with the change of those responsible – until he had literally disappeared from the church’s field of vision in 1972. 

When he returned to the spotlight in the 1980s, the Church no longer had any influence on him, Brodiez-Dolino reports: "He is too well-known and now exclusively embodies 'Emmaus'."

Until the allegations became known a few years ago, Abbé Pierre was regularly one of the "most popular French people of all time," according to surveys. 

An independent commission of inquiry into its acts of violence (Cevap) is due to present its conclusions in 2027.

Parolin, under scrutiny: the phrase about a "pontificate to be readjusted" and a streak of defeats in the Vatican

The phrase by Cardinal Pietro Parolin about the possibility that Leo XIV might “readjust” his pontificate after the operation continues to spark discussion in Rome. 

Vaticanist Nico Spuntoni devotes an analysis to the controversy in the Sunday edition of Il Giornale on 18 October, arguing that the Secretary of State’s remark “has caused annoyance in the Vatican” and placing it within a series of setbacks Parolin has faced in recent months.

An “unfortunate remark”

Parolin made the comment on Thursday afternoon at an event at the Iraqi embassy to the Holy See. Asked by journalists, he said the Pope would “reajustará su pontificado, si es necesario reajustarlo” once the doctors had given their assessment.

The following day, at the Catholic University, he limited himself to saying that the recovery “is going well” and that he could not “interpret” anything about the Pontiff’s plans. According to Il Giornale, the cardinal later clarified that he was referring to the trip to Latin America.

Spuntoni describes the remark as an “unfortunate remark” and states that, “among prelates and experts,” the judgment of its inopportuneness is “unanimous.” 

The surprise, he adds, was greater because Parolin has a reputation for being prudent. His critics also reproach him, according to the newspaper, for an excessive presence at conferences and the habit of “talking too much to journalists.” 

The words came, moreover, just hours after the first images of the Pope after the operation and his telephone call to Vladimir Putin were released.

Russia, the Domus Paul VI and the deanship

The article lists several episodes in which, in its view, the Secretary of State has come out the loser:

• Russia. At the end of August it was Archbishop Paul Richard Gallagher, whom the newspaper describes as a friend of the Pope, who was sent on the delicate mission to Russia. Parolin had travelled to Moscow in 2017.

• The Domus Paul VI. According to Il Giornale, Parolin opposed the lease of the building, which is to become a hotel, and tried to freeze the operation in February. Leo XIV approved it anyway, citing savings on maintenance.

• The deanship of the College of Cardinals. Last week’s election of Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle as dean closed, according to the newspaper, an aspiration Parolin already had in 2025 and which Francis did not grant. 

  A source cited by Spuntoni claims that Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re conveyed to the cardinal-bishops the preference for “not someone over eighty,” and that Parolin was told he “has too many commitments.”

The “stigma of the defeated” in the conclave

Eighteen months after the conclave, Parolin remains at the head of the Secretariat of State, unlike what happened with his predecessors Angelo Sodano and Tarcisio Bertone. 

But, according to Spuntoni, he carries the “stigma of the defeated in the conclave” and there has never been harmony between him and Leo XIV, although the newspaper stresses that the Pope is not one to humiliate his collaborators.

With the Pontiff already out of the Gemelli, Il Giornale expects a meeting between the two that will clarify what it calls the “rimodulare-gate,” and recalls a similar misunderstanding between Paul VI and Cardinal Giuseppe Siri.

House of Bishops meets with its own vacancies on the agenda

THE cost of long vacancies in sees was among the issues discussed by the House of Bishops at its meeting this week.

The meeting, held from Monday to Wednesday, focused on “discussion of emerging work and matters of common concern across the Church”, a summary provided by Church House, Westminster, said.

This included work being done on episcopal appointments. Bishops noted “the cost of long vacancies and shared experiences of identifying and encouraging candidates for episcopal ministry”. 

Nine sees are currently vacant, and, in recent years, the failure of the Crown Nominations Commission to appoint, the withdrawal of candidates, and suspension of bishops have resulted in suffragan bishops’ serving as acting bishops for longer periods of time.

In the General Synod, members have been raising concerns about the functioning of the system, and the backlog. In 2024, Archbishop Welby spoke of “unprecedented demand in the senior appointments system”.

The meeting this week also received an update on safeguarding, which noted a “significant improvement in safeguarding provision and training over the past 15 years” and “the enormous culture change in the Church during that period”. 

There had been more than 850,000 “instances of people being trained” in the Church of England since 2016, the Bishops heard.

The Bishop of St Edmundsbury & Ipswich, Dr Joanne Grenfell, gave an update on the work being done by the Safeguarding Structures Programme Board.

Also discussed were ways of encouraging those considering a call to ordination; and interfaith relationships in local communities, The Bishops “examined how the Church could work for the common good at a time of increased societal division”.

They discussed the work being undertaken on the governance and culture of the House of Bishops, after its announcement in June last year, including “any practical changes needed to help increase Standing Committee transparency”.

On the final day, the Bishops discussed the National Funding for Diocesan Ministry Review. This was commissioned last year in response to a Synod motion that called for “early in the next triennium a full debate that will enable Synod to express its view on the approach to disbursing funding, including support for local stipendiary ministry”.

An update provided in July referred to “shared recognition that many of the challenges facing the Church, including clergy numbers, diocesan deficits and parish viability, cannot be meaningfully addressed within short-term funding cycles”.

Pope Leo XIV to resume Wednesday general audience this week, skips Castel Gandolfo

Pope Leo XIV will resume his Wednesday general audience at the Vatican this week. 

But he will skip his usual Monday-evening-through-Tuesday-evening stay at the papal villa of Castel Gandolfo southeast of Rome.

The pontiff returned to the Vatican on Saturday, four days after surgery to remove a cancerous lung nodule. 

The same day, Dr. Stefano Margaritora, who operated on Pope Leo on Oct. 13 at Rome’s Gemelli Hospital, cleared the pope to proceed with his apostolic journey to South America in November.

The next day, Oct. 18, Leo resumed praying the Sunday Angelus from the window of the Apostolic Palace in the Vatican.

“Having overcome this delicate phase, as you know, I will now gradually resume my activities, always with Godʼs help and your prayers,” the pope said in his Angelus address.

Brother surprised that pope’s South America trip will proceed

Louis Prevost, one of Pope Leo XIV’s brothers, expressed surprise in a Sunday interview with Fox News that Margaritora had cleared the pope’s trip.

“I thought maybe theyʼd postpone that,” Prevost said.

Prevost, who is receiving treatment for multiple myeloma, a form of cancer, also expressed surprise that Leo had been diagnosed with lung cancer, which had never occurred in the family.

“He was the first with the lung cancer, which came out of the blue. Nobody else had that in our family that Iʼm aware of,” Prevost said.

Prevost also shared that he and the pope had talked every day during his hospitalization.

“Every time I talked to him or texted him [during his hospitalization], he was answering,” Prevost said. “So, I know other than during the operation and in his brief, quick recovery, he was incommunicado. But since then, almost anytime I reach out to him, he is right there.”

“When we get on the phone or talk, we give each other crap, you know?” Prevost said. “We tell jokes; some are off color.”

Asked how he could give the pope crap, he replied: “You tell him he’s being stupid.”

Former Hampton vicar admits online sex offenses against police decoy posing as 13-year-old

A former Church of England vicar in south-west London has pleaded guilty to sending sexual messages and explicit photographs of himself to an undercover police investigator posing as a 13-year-old girl. 

The Rev. Ben Lovell, 44, former vicar of St Mary’s Church, Hampton, and former Area Dean of Hampton in the Diocese of London, entered his pleas at Wimbledon Magistrates’ Court on Tuesday, Oct. 13, 2026, and was committed to Kingston Crown Court for sentencing.

Prosecutor Ross Davis told the court that Mr. Lovell had contacted the decoy, known as “Isla,” over Snapchat in 2025. “The defendant engaged via social media with the decoy [undercover investigator posing as a child] and the conversation was sexual,” Mr. Davis said. “He also sent indecent images of himself to the decoy. Further inquiries revealed he was the vicar of St Mary’s.”

Mr. Lovell pleaded guilty to two offences. The Daily Mail reported them as one count of engaging in sexual communication with a child and one of causing a child under 13 to watch or look at an image of sexual activity. 

A report by Max Stephens published on Yahoo News described them as sending indecent images of himself to a person under 16 and causing a child under 16 to look at a photograph of sexual activity.

Mr. Davis called it “a high culpability offence as it included solicitation of images and also sexual images were sent and received,” and said Mr. Lovell was likely to receive a sentence of between 18 months and two years in prison. Magistrates said the offences were too serious for their sentencing powers. 

“The offences you have pleaded guilty to are so serious, we will be committing them to Kingston Crown Court at a date that will be confirmed with you,” the chairman of the bench said.

Fred Batstone, for the defence, told the court that Mr. Lovell had no previous convictions and had complied with all bail requirements concerning his children. He said Mr. Lovell, who is married with two daughters, is not living with his family, is not working and has daily supervised contact with his children approved by social services. The court ordered a pre-sentence report and released Mr. Lovell on conditional bail.

In a statement issued by its safeguarding team on Oct. 13, the Diocese of London confirmed the guilty pleas and said the offences “do not relate to his role at St Mary’s, or to any other role, or to his family.” 

The diocese said that when it learned of his arrest in 2025, it worked with statutory agencies “to put safeguarding and risk management measures in place to protect the parish community and to ensure that children, young people and vulnerable adults remained safe.” 

Bail conditions were imposed immediately, and Mr. Lovell “was suspended from ministry, and stepped back from his other responsibilities.”

The diocese said statutory agencies had advised it “on what could be communicated publicly and when, to respect the integrity of the ongoing police investigation,” and added that “the matter remains subject to court process, which should be allowed to conclude fairly and independently.” St Mary’s Hampton has posted a link to the diocesan statement on its website.

Mr. Lovell came to St Mary’s from a curacy at St Paul’s, South Harrow, and was inducted as vicar on June 6, 2017. He became Area Dean of Hampton on April 18, 2023, while remaining vicar. In 2018 he led the parish’s first baptisms by immersion in the River Thames. 

He also served as a director of Hampton School, an independent school, until December 2025, and chaired the board of trustees of the Instanter Learning Trust, which runs St Mary’s Hampton Church of England Primary School.

The Daily Mail reported that Mr. Lovell is due back in court next month for a pre-sentence report hearing. He will be sentenced at Kingston Crown Court on a date yet to be fixed.

Completion of the work of the Anglican-Roman Catholic International Commission (ARCIC III)

The third Anglican-Roman Catholic International Commission (ARCIC-III) has completed the second and final phase of its work. 

Following the Commission’s previous meeting (Melbourne, Australia, October 2025), an editorial sub-committee worked on completing the Agreed Statement for this phase, sharing drafts of their work with the full commission for comment, in advance of circulating the final draft for approval. 

A plenary meeting of the Commission took place online on 5 October, during which members approved the text of the Agreed Statement, entitled, While They Were Talking and Discussing: Learning to Do Moral Discernment in Communion.

This Agreed Statement is intended to complement the first document published by ARCIC III, Walking Together on the Way: Learning to be the Church – Local, Regional, Universal (2018). 

With the finalisation of this Agreed Statement, ARCIC-III has now completed the task mandated by Pope Benedict XVI and Archbishop Rowan Williams, to study ‘the Church as Communion, local and universal, and how in communion the local and universal Church come to discern right ethical teaching.’

At the end of this second phase of its dialogue, the Commission issued a Communiqué.

Participants in the work of ARCIC-III for the second phase of its work (2019-2026) were:

Anglican Communion

Co-Chair
The Most Revd Philip Freier, Archbishop of Melbourne, Anglican Church of Australia

Members
Dr Moeawa Callaghan, Anglican Church in Aotearoa, New Zealand and Polynesia
The Revd Dr Isaias Ezequiel Chachine, Anglican Church of Southern Africa
The Revd Dr Stewart Clem, The Episcopal Church (2023-2026)
Canon Dr Paula Gooder, Church of England (2019)
The Rt Revd Garth Minott, Church of the Province of the West Indies
The Most Revd Linda Nicholls, Anglican Church of Canada
The Reverend Dr Alexander Ross, Anglican Church of Australia
The Revd Canon Dr Peter Sedgwick, Church in Wales

Consultant
The Rt Revd Christopher Hill KCVO, Church of England

Co-Secretaries
The Ven. Dr William Adam, Anglican Communion Office (2019–2022)
Canon Dr Christopher Wells, Anglican Communion Office (2022–2026)

Staff
The Revd Neil Vigers, Anglican Communion Office
The Ven. Jonathan Gough

 

Catholic Church

Co-Chair
The Most Revd Bernard Longley, Archbishop of Birmingham, England

Members
Sister Margaret Atkins OSA, England (2019-2020)
The Revd Albino Barrera OP, USA
The Revd Paul Béré SJ, Italy
The Most Revd Robert Christian OP, USA (2019)†
Prof. Kristin Colberg, USA
Prof. Sigrid Müller, Austria
Prof. Emmanuel Nathan, Australia
The Revd Prof. Vimal Tirimanna CSsR, Sri Lanka

Consultants
Prof. Paul Murray, England
The Revd Anthony Currer, England (2023-2026)

Co-Secretaries
The Revd Anthony Currer, Dicastery for Promoting Christian Unity (2019–2022)
The Revd Martin Browne OSB, Dicastery for Promoting Christian Unity (2022–2026)

WCC Faith and Order Commission Consultant
Prof. Myriam Wijlens, Germany

‘The Gospel belongs on the streets’: UK church challenges council’s preaching ban

Christians at a church in Essex are fighting in court for the right to share the Gospel on British streets after a city council banned their use of loudspeakers and ordered them to stop warning people about Hell.

Colchester City Council issued a community protection notice, or CPN, through the Safer Colchester Partnership, which it runs, to Clacton’s Bread of Life Community Church, saying people had been alarmed and distressed by its preaching, The Telegraph reported.

The notice accused members of the church of telling passers-by, including children, that they were “going to Hell” and warned of a fine or prosecution if it carried on.

Essex Police and the Safer Colchester Partnership issued the notice in March. It said the church’s amplified preaching in public spaces had made excessive noise and disturbed people and local businesses, and it called the church’s conduct intimidating and harmful to residents’ quality of life.

A CPN is a civil order with legal force, issued under the Anti-social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act 2014, and anyone who breaches it commits a criminal offense. Under this order, no member of the church may use amplification at its weekly outreach in Colchester’s city center.

The church, represented by the group Christian Legal Centre, denied targeting children. It called the notice unprecedented and said it amounted in practice to a ban on preaching religious messages.

Pastor Stephen Clayden, 44, who started the congregation six years ago, said defeat in the appeal could encourage other councils to crack down on street preachers and start checking sermons inside churches.

He called that prospect “a very dark day for the country.”

Clayden said the notice’s ban on “engaging or intimidating behavior” limited the church’s ability to preach “as the Bible tells it.”

The congregation wants to keep preaching unfiltered, as it always has, he said, and its positive message includes warnings of Hell and judgment for people who reject salvation through Christ.

A council spokesman was quoted as saying that the authority had received repeated complaints about conduct that alarmed and distressed people. Officers explained expectations to those involved, he said, and when the complaints continued, the council issued a Community Protection Warning and then the CPN.

The church has appealed, and a magistrates’ court will now decide the case, the spokesman said. Christian Concern, whose legal arm is the Christian Legal Centre (CLC), said the hearings will take place next week, on Oct. 22 and Oct. 29.

On Wednesday, Clayden delivered the petition to Colchester Town Hall. It called for an end to the ban on church outreach in Colchester and drew more than 27,000 signatures.

Preachers now comply with the notice by speaking without microphones. Supporters gathered with the congregation on Colchester High Street, where Clayden preached from the book of Romans and told the crowd, “We’re not using amplification, so abiding by the CPN. But the Gospel belongs on the streets.”

CLC Chief Executive Andrea Williams said councils must not use powers meant for genuine anti-social behavior to shut down lawful Christian outreach or to keep Christians from talking about their faith in public.

At the rally, she said open streets for the Gospel would mean open pulpits too.

The church says the authorities are going after the content of its message.

The petition organizers said the church had received no complaints in more than six years of preaching on Colchester’s streets before the notice, and that it runs a regular food bank collection and has bought warm clothing for people in need. Tony Needs leads the church’s Colchester outreach, the group said.

In May, Nigel Farage, who represents Clacton in Parliament for Reform UK, met Clayden and backed the church. In a Facebook post with a photograph of the meeting, the church thanked him and said the two men had talked about “Jesus, evangelism and the Bible.”

Zurich Reformed Church investigates abuse by vicar

The Reformed Church of the Swiss canton of Zurich has apologised after admitting it failed to investigate reports of sexual assault by a minister properly. The incidents occurred between 1992 and 2006.

The church leadership is said not to have fulfilled its responsibilities towards the women adequately.

The Church Council has offered a sincere apology to the women concerned. An external investigation has revealed that at least ten women were victims of sexual, physical and psychological abuse by a vicar.

It goes on to state that reports of abuse by the same vicar had already led to an internal investigation 20 years ago. “At the time, the accused pre-empted the formal opening of an administrative investigation and resigned,” the Church Council stated. The investigation was subsequently closed.

However, further reports of abuse emerged last year. This is why the Church Council commissioned the expert report. The report concludes that the decision to close the investigation in 2007 was legally correct, as proceedings cannot be brought against individuals who are no longer employed.

Victims urged to come forward

At the same time, the expert report notes that the church leadership did not adequately fulfil its responsibility towards the women affected.

“Although the women affected were heard and offered support as part of the investigations, there was no official conclusion to the proceedings in which the findings of the investigation would have been documented and the confirmed assaults and abuse of power against those affected acknowledged,” wrote the Church Council.

In future, such cases are to be handled differently. Since 2022, the Zurich Regional Church has had a comprehensive protection policy in place. “The Regional Church is doing everything in its power to prevent breaches of boundaries and assaults,” it stated. Victims are encouraged to come forward.

“In particular, the Church Council considers it its duty to learn from the experiences of those affected and to draw conclusions for its own actions. It will record and evaluate findings from reported cases even more systematically,” the Church Council stated.

Among other things, the Church has launched an information page (in German). It explains how the regional church handles reports of breaches of boundaries that occurred some time ago.

Church leader expresses concern over women ‘being murdered in their homes’ in Ireland

The leader of the Irish Catholic Church has expressed his concern over women “being murdered in their homes” in Ireland, and the serious issues of coercive control and domestic violence.

Archbishop Eamon Martin said the home should be a woman’s “most sacred place”.

He said he had raised the issue of violence against women in Rome last week at an international meeting of prelates to discuss marriage and the family.

“Marriage is a beautiful thing, but marriage and the family are extremely fragile at the moment,” Dr Martin said.

Warning that the number of marriages and the number of births are in decline, he said many are challenged and vulnerable due to relationship breakdown, domestic violence and addiction.

Dr Martin was speaking against the backdrop of the National Synodal Assembly, which took place in Gormanston, Co Meath, on Saturday, and drew 300 delegates from across Ireland representing all aspects of the Irish church.

Lay people, priests and bishops met to consider 35 proposals to guide the future of the Catholic Church in Ireland.

One of the outcomes which surprised delegates who the Irish Independent spoke to was the opposition to the establishment of a national office for women to foster greater inclusion.

The electronic voting recorded that just 12pc highly recommended this office for women, another 6pc recommended it, 27pc said it required further discernment, while 55pc did not recommend it.

In contrast, 42pc of delegates highly recommended that there should be ongoing exploration of women’s ministry in the church, including the diaconate. Another 12pc recommended this, 19pc said the matter required further discernment and 27pc did not recommend it.

Irish bishops will meet this week to reflect on the assembly’s outcomes, the culmination of a five-year journey to engage and sound out the Irish faithful on a path for renewal.

Archbishop Martin admitted that some of the assembly’s recommendations could be activated easily and quickly, while others would require greater planning, deployment of resources and personnel.

A strong majority of delegates (67pc) backed the proposal that healing should be a priority for the church. According to delegate Una Allen, “healing needs to be front and centre”.

She said listening to each other’s concerns “may be all very well and good, but now the church needs to act to benefit all those who have been excluded, abused, wounded and hurt”.

In his closing address, Dr Martin referred to significant milestones on the horizon for the Irish church, including the bicentenary of Catholic Emancipation in 2029 and the 16th centenary of the arrival of Saint Patrick and the arrival of Christianity in Ireland in 2032.

As part of preparations for those events, he expressed his personal hope that at some point over the next seven years, Pope Leo would visit Ireland.

“Please God his health will allow for it. It would be great to share with him the progress that we have been making together in rekindling the fire of faith and mission in the hearts of the people on this island,” Dr Martin said.

Muslim prayer at CofE school sparks backlash

A parent, whose child was encouraged to practice Islamic prayer at a Church of England primary school, has sparked furore after reporting the incident to Richard Tice. 

According to The Telegraph, the deputy leader of Reform UK has written to the Archbishop of Canterbury, expressing  “significant concern” on behalf of parents in his Lincolnshire constituency.

The father told Mr Tice that when saying goodnight to his daughter, she told him: “We did prayers to Allah yesterday.” 

He said believed his child had been “coerced, manipulated and cajoled” into the prayer.

He said a teacher had shown her a video of Muslims kneeling on prayer mats, before encouraging pupils to “have a go”.

“We all need to do the performing of the prayer,” the teacher allegedly said.

A spokesperson for the Diocesan Board of Education told The Telegraph that kneeling in a manner akin to the prayer was “outside the lesson’s intended approach”.

However, they insisted that it was “not an act of worship, and no child was required to take part”.

They added that the school would “undertake appropriate reflection to ensure future lessons continue to align fully with the intended non‑confessional approach of RE”.

It comes days after another debate on Muslim prayer in public spaces, after an Iftar gathering was held in Trafalgar Square. 

Christian motorist claims insurer asked him to remove 'Jesus loves you' stickers

A UK motorist is considering legal action, after his insurer told him he must remove “Jesus Loves You” stickers from his car. 

Simeon Chandra, 35, was informed by GoSkippy Insurance that his policy could not continue unless he took off handmade stickers bearing the message “Jesus Loves You.”

Christian Concern say  the insurer’s underwriting department had “declined the modification done on the vehicle as per stickers added on the vehicle.” 

Chandra was allegedly instructed to remove the stickers, and provide a dated photograph as proof before his policy could be reinstated.

Chandra said he had contacted GoSkippy in advance to be transparent about the stickers, explaining that they were not for business purposes but simply “to spread a positive message that Jesus loves you.” 

He alleges he was initially told that the stickers would be allowed if he sent photos to the insurer, but was later informed that the policy could not continue unless they were removed.

He claims his emails seeking clarification have gone unanswered.

Mr Chandra said he was "shocked" at the request, telling Christian Concern: "I could have cried. I think people with other messages would not have faced the same situation. 

"The message on my car is very simple: ‘Jesus Loves You.’ It is not abusive, political, hateful or commercial. It is a message of hope... We see all kinds of messages, flags and slogans in public life. But when a Christian puts a peaceful message on his own car, suddenly it appears to become a problem."

MP questions law change that could allow Burnham to advise King on Church appointments

A Catholic MP has questioned plans to change the law to allow Prime Minister Andy Burnham to advise the King on Church of England appointments, saying the government has “more important things” to focus on. 

Sir Edward Leigh made the comments in the House of Commons during discussion of the Church Appointments (Repeal of Discriminatory Provision) Bill.

The proposed legislation would remove historic restrictions preventing Catholics and Jews from advising the King on certain Church of England appointments.

Mr Burnham, who is Catholic, is currently unable to carry out that part of his role because of legislation dating back to 1829. He has transferred the responsibility to the Lord Chancellor in the meantime. 

Sir Edward said he was “not sure that many of us Jews and Catholics have really felt discriminated against since 1829”.

He also questioned how many Catholics and Jews would want to be involved in appointing Anglican bishops, although he suggested they might help increase the number of bishops who “talk about God rather than social issues”.

Responding, the Leader of the House of Commons, Sir Alan Campbell, defended the proposed change, saying the restrictions were outdated.

He said: “The difference is that we have a Catholic Prime Minister, so it is key that nothing gets in the way of him taking part in any deliberations.”

Sir Alan added that he believed the House would be keen to change the legislation.

The bill is due to be debated in the Commons on 21 October. 

Sir Edward also used his contribution to urge the government to make progress on the restoration and renewal of Parliament, warning that further delays would increase costs.

Sir Alan agreed that work needed to move forward, but said he wanted to build consensus among MPs and ensure safeguards were in place, including checks on value for money.

He said there was not yet full agreement on how the restoration should proceed, but added: “The longer we postpone it, the more it costs.”

'Speaking truth in love': Stephen Wang ordained as Bishop of Arundel and Brighton

Rt Rev Stephen Wang has been ordained as the sixth Bishop of Arundel and Brighton.

Roman Catholic bishops and parishioners from across the diocese gathered at Arundel Cathedral for the Mass of Episcopal Ordination on Monday, the day of the Feast of St Philip Howard. 

During his address, Bishop Stephen revealed his episcopal motto will be “speak the truth in love”, from Ephesians 4:15.

He was ordained by Most Rev John Wilson, Archbishop of Southwark. Most Rev Richard Moth, Archbishop of Westminster, and Cardinal Vincent Nichols, Archbishop Emeritus of Westminster, were the co-principal ordaining bishops. Greetings from Pope Leo were given by Archbishop Miguel Maury Buendia, Apostolic Nuncio to Great Britain. 

Having become a priest in 1998, Bishop Stephen most recently served as the Rector of the Venerable English College in Rome, one of only two English and Welsh seminaries training men for the priesthood.

Bishop Stephen is known for his passion for evangelisation. He founded Sycamore, a video-based Catholic faith formation programme now used in parishes, schools and universities around the world to help people explore the Christian faith.

Two of Bishop Stephen’s predecessors in Arundel and Brighton have gone on to become Archbishop of Westminster and President of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of England and Wales: Most Rev Richard Moth, the current president, and His Eminence Cormac Murphy-O'Connor, head of the church from 2000 to 2009.

Speaking ahead of the ceremony, then Bishop-elect Stephen said: “I feel a mixture of gratitude and trepidation; an excitement and curiosity about all that lies ahead; and above all, a sense of peace. I’m grateful to Pope Leo for calling me and putting his trust in me, and to Archbishop Moth for all his care for the Diocese over these years... I am overjoyed at the thought of coming to Arundel & Brighton, getting to know the people, and working together to build God’s Kingdom.”

Bishop Stephen will celebrate a Mass of Welcome for those in the diocese at Worth Abbey, Crawley, on Saturday.

Priest kidnapped last week released

Father John Inalegwu Otache, the priest abducted on 13 October along the Otobi Amejo–Ajegbe road, in the local government area of Ohimini in Benue State, north-central Nigeria, has been released.

“It is with hearts filled with joy and gratitude to God that we announce the release of our priest, the Reverend Father John Inalegwu Otache,” stated a communiqué issued by the Diocese of Otukpo, confirming his release after five days in captivity.

Bishop Michael Ekwoyi Apochi of Otukpo expressed his “sincere appreciation” to the priests, religious and lay faithful of the diocese, as well as to all people of goodwill, for their solidarity and prayers, which, he said, “made the priest’s safe return possible”.

According to statements released to the press by Benue State police authorities, Father Otache was freed by security forces along with five other people. The state police command confirmed the news on Sunday, 18 October.

“Fr John Inalegwu Otache, parish priest of St Margaret’s Parish in Ajegbe-Awume, in the Ohimini Local Government Area, regained his freedom on the evening of 18 October, after five days in captivity,” the authorities said in a statement.

Police spokesperson, Deputy Superintendent Aondogu Orchia told journalists in Makurdi that the kidnapping victims had been rescued by security personnel and taken to Otukpo University Teaching Hospital for medical examinations. 

Some sources also reported that local vigilante groups had taken part in the operation.

Vatican upholds excommunication of US deacon who resigned after son was molested by priest

The Roman Catholic church has upheld the excommunication of a Louisiana deacon who resigned from the clergy after a priest molested his son.

Scott Peyton learned of the decision by the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith (DDF) – the Vatican entity in charge of Catholic clerical discipline – on Friday in a meeting with the bishop of the diocese of Lafayette, J Douglas Deshotel. 

The DDF cited technical grounds in rejecting Peyton’s appeal, saying he had joined an Anglican congregation, “published [that] fact … on social media” and therefore refused to submit to the Catholic pope, who since May 2025 has been Leo XIV.

“This act of joining a separated faith community by its very nature is an act of refusal of submission to the Roman pontiff and a refusal of communion with the members of the church subject to him,” the DDF said in documents shared with the Guardian by canon attorney Dawn Eden Goldstein, who represented Peyton in his appeal against his excommunication.

“It is for this reason that … excommunication is incurred by the very carrying out of the act itself,” the DDF added.

In a joint statement on Sunday, Goldstein said Peyton intends to appeal the DDF’s verdict.

“While I am disappointed, I am not surprised,” Peyton said in the statement, which also clarified that he had since moved on from the Anglican church to a nondenominational congregation. “Apparently, according to Bishop Deshotel, finding a faith community where my family can worship without reliving the trauma endured is a greater scandal to the Diocese of Lafayette than the sexual abuse of a child. I find that deeply troubling.”

In appealing, Peyton argued that “there was no pastoral good to be accomplished” by excommunicating him. He also said his wife and six children felt unwelcome in the Catholic church because of his excommunication, meaning it had “harmed the spiritual lives of eight Catholics” in one fell swoop.

News of Peyton’s excommunication earned international news headlines in March 2024, with many outlets characterizing the situation as a remarkably harsh consequence for a man whose son was sexually abused by a fellow Catholic clergyman.

Meanwhile, Goldstein’s statement said that Deshotel on Friday admitted that the abusive clergyman who preyed on Peyton’s son – the imprisoned Michael Guidry – remained in the Catholic priesthood.

Peyton said he understood Guidry was suspended from being able to publicly minister. He also cited comments Guidry, 83, made at a public hearing where he unsuccessfully requested parole, during which he talked about providing spiritual direction while incarcerated and considering himself to still be a priest.

“That is the scandal,” Peyton said in his statement on Sunday. “That’s the contradiction.”

Peyton in 2012 was ordained into the diocese of Lafayette – about 135 miles (217km) west of New Orleans – as a deacon. (Deacons are largely similar to priests, though the former can be married and the latter cannot.)

In 2018, Guidry confessed to molesting Peyton’s teenage son, Oliver, while they ministered together at St Peter’s church in Morrow, Louisiana.

Authorities arrested Guidry, who ultimately pleaded guilty to abusing Oliver Peyton, an altar server. Guidry was later treated to a farewell lunch by his church – for which the Lafayette diocese was forced to apologize – and received a seven-year prison sentence.

In 2021, Peyton said he, his wife, Letitia, and Oliver secured a $350,000 out-of-court settlement from Lafayette’s diocese. The Peytons went on to become advocates for clergy survivors. And in December 2023, Peyton decided he was no longer a good fit to serve as a Lafayette diocese deacon, resigned and temporarily joined an Anglican congregation, all of which he disclosed on social media.

Deshotel then issued a decree about three months later telling Peyton he was considered to have severed ties with the Catholic church and had been excommunicated with immediate effect.

Pious Catholics view excommunication as the most severe punishment there is, something doled out to essentially shock sinners into rethinking behavior before death condemns them to eternal damnation.

The punishment prevents those who incur it from engaging in certain sacraments, such as holy communion, which is central to the Catholic faith. And Peyton was left to join history’s other Catholic excommunicates including Henry VIII (over a divorce and remarriage), Martin Luther (for initiating the Protestant Reformation) and Napoleon Bonaparte (for annexing to France the Papal States in Italy).

Priest killed by falling crucifix during sermon on fragility of life

A Catholic priest has died after a crucifix fell on him during a livestreamed Mass in Ecuador.

Father Patricio Alfredo Sánchez Molinari was delivering a sermon about the fragility of life at his church in the city of Guayaquil when the wall-mounted cross came loose and struck him.

Emergency services attended the scene, but the parish priest was pronounced dead.

Video footage showed worshippers rushing towards the altar and calling for assistance after Father Sánchez Molinari was struck on his head.

“Father, Father… call an ambulance,” a member of the congregation could be heard shouting. The livestream was subsequently cut off.

The incident took place at Our Lady of Perpetual Help Catholic church on Saturday, about half an hour into Father Sánchez Molinari’s homily. He told worshippers to prioritise their spirituality over distractions such as mobile phones.

He said: “One day, all of us here will also die, and sometimes the time we’ve spent on things doesn’t have as much meaning as the time we spend with God. The quality time we give to God, to our brothers and sisters, to our husbands, wives, children, and family – that time is the best spent.”

Father Sánchez Molinari asked God to bless the congregation and had started another prayer when the large crucifix fell off the wall behind him.

‘Departed to the Father’s House’

The Archdiocese of Guayaquil confirmed the priest’s death in a statement, saying: “We announce that our beloved Father Patricio Alfredo Sánchez Molinari, who served as parish priest of the Perpetual Help church in the Central Vicariate, has departed to the Father’s House to enjoy His presence and His glory.”

The statement also included a prayer for his eternal rest. Father Sánchez Molinari belonged to the Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer, commonly known as the Redemptorists.

German court sees the priesthood as a cover and points to a record compensation in Cologne

The Regional Superior Court of Cologne (Oberlandesgericht) considers that the German archdiocese could be held liable for the sexual abuse committed for years by a priest against a minor who later came under his care as a foster daughter. 

At the hearing held last Thursday, October 15, the judges indicated that compensation between 500,000 and 600,000 euros could be appropriate, although the final decision will not be known until November 26.

According to the German Catholic news agency KNA, the court’s assessment represents a shift from the first-instance ruling, which had dismissed the claim on the grounds that the perpetrator had acted as a private individual and not in the exercise of his priestly ministry.

If the announced amount is confirmed, it would be the largest compensation awarded so far by a German court in a comparable case of sexual abuse within the Catholic Church.

The court questions the archdiocese’s defense

The plaintiff, identified as Melanie F., suffered sexual abuse during her childhood and adolescence, from the late 1970s to the mid-1980s. The perpetrator was a clergyman who initially had a pastoral relationship with her and later took her into his home along with another minor from a children’s home.

The placement was authorized by the then Archbishop of Cologne, Cardinal Joseph Höffner, according to information published by the German public broadcaster WDR.

In July 2025, the Regional Court of Cologne rejected the woman’s claim, ruling that the abuse had occurred in the perpetrator’s private sphere, in his capacity as a foster father, and that civil liability could therefore not be attributed to the archdiocese.

However, the appellate court has questioned that interpretation.

“We believe the judgment requires correction,” said the presiding judge, Ralf-Peter Sossna, during the hearing.

The judges noted that some of the abuse began before the clergyman formally assumed the role of foster father. They also considered it relevant that his position within the Church had facilitated the trust placed in him and the opportunity to take charge of the minors.

According to the Kölner Stadt-Anzeiger newspaper, Sossna described the priestly ministry as an excellent cover used by the perpetrator. The court finds it difficult to imagine that the foster-care arrangement could have taken place under the same conditions if the man had not belonged to the Church.

The perpetrator was dismissed from the clerical state in 2023

The perpetrator was sentenced in February 2022 to twelve years in prison for numerous sexual offenses committed against other minors. The acts suffered by Melanie F. were time-barred under criminal law and were not part of that conviction.

Subsequently, on July 6, 2023, the Archdiocese of Cologne announced that Pope Francis had ordered the convicted man’s dismissal from the clerical state, after Cardinal Rainer Maria Woelki requested the measure in 2022.

At the time, the archbishop expressed satisfaction with Rome’s decision, while acknowledging that the sanction could not repair the suffering caused to the victims.

The archdiocese’s civil liability, however, continued to be the subject of judicial controversy.

In August 2025, following the ruling in favor of the institution, Woelki recalled that, according to the Catholic understanding of the priesthood, a presbyter does not simply cease to be at the service of God and of others when his workday ends.

The archdiocese itself clarified at the time that this theological consideration had not been decisive for the judicial outcome. It also noted that it had waived the statute of limitations defense to allow the case to be examined.

During the appeal hearing on October 15, the archdiocese’s lawyer, Jörn Quadflieg, argued that the attribution of civil liability depended on a legal assessment and that the interpretation previously adopted by the Regional Court could also be considered defensible.

Compensation that could double the 2023 precedent

Melanie F. is claiming at least 830,000 euros for the damages suffered. The court, however, provisionally considers that an amount between 500,000 and 600,000 euros would better align with the criteria applied by German case law.

The panel took into account the duration and severity of the abuse, as well as its consequences for the victim’s life, including two pregnancies and subsequent abortions, according to reports from the hearing.

The plaintiff has already received 360,000 euros through the voluntary recognition benefits system established by the German Catholic Church. The court indicated that this amount must be deducted from any eventual court-awarded compensation, so it would not constitute a new full payment of 500,000 or 600,000 euros.

To date, the largest compensation awarded in a comparable case was the 300,000 euros granted in 2023 by the Regional Court of Cologne to Georg Menne, a former altar boy who suffered numerous abuses by a priest during his childhood.

The victims’ association Eckiger Tisch has welcomed the court’s assessment. Its director, Matthias Katsch, considered that the case could set an important precedent for other victims seeking to claim liability in civil courts.

“We are relieved and pleased with this decision,” Katsch said, thanking the plaintiff for her perseverance throughout the years of litigation.

The ruling scheduled for November 26 will determine whether the archdiocese’s liability is confirmed and what the final amount of compensation will be.