Canada Advances on an Anti-Hate Law That Questions Religious Freedom

The Canadian Parliament has approved new legislation against “hate speech” that has generated strong concern among Christian leaders and defenders of religious freedom, due to the risk that it could be used to limit the expression of beliefs based on biblical teaching.

On March 25, the House of Commons gave the green light to Bill C-9 —officially titled Combatting Hate Act— with 186 votes in favor and 137 against, after an accelerated legislative process that reduced the debate time

A penal reform with broad scope

The initiative, presented by the Canadian government in September 2025, seeks to strengthen the criminal response to hate crimes. 

Among other measures, it introduces new offenses in the Criminal Code and expands legal tools to sanction conduct such as intimidation or blocking access to places of worship, schools, or community centers.

The text also more specifically criminalizes the deliberate promotion of hatred against identifiable groups, including the public display of symbols considered terrorist or hateful. 

Additionally, it eliminates the need for prior consent from the Attorney General to initiate proceedings for hate propaganda, with the aim of expediting judicial actions.

According to the Canadian government, the law responds to the increase in phenomena such as antisemitism, Islamophobia, homophobia, and transphobia.

The critical point: the elimination of the religious exemption

However, the aspect that has sparked the most controversy is the suppression of the religious exemption currently provided for in Canadian legislation. Until now, the Criminal Code stipulated that expressing, in good faith, opinions based on religious texts or beliefs did not constitute an offense.

The new wording eliminates that safeguard, which, according to critics of the law, could open the door to certain religious expressions being subject to complaints if interpreted as hate speech.

This change was key to gaining the support of the Bloc Québécois, allowing the Liberal government to gather the necessary majority to approve the text in the House of Commons.

Religious concern

Various religious leaders and pro-life organizations have expressed similar reservations. Among them, Pastor David Cooke warned that the law could create a climate of greater hostility toward believers by facilitating legal actions against those who express traditional teachings on life, family, or morality.

The Catholic bishops of Canada have also voiced their concern, describing the measure as a possible violation of religious freedom.

For his part, Justice Minister Sean Fraser defended the bill and assured that the law will not prevent religious leaders from reading or quoting their sacred texts, emphasizing that the reform includes safeguards to protect freedom of expression in non-criminal contexts.

A broader definition and margin for interpretation

Another relevant element of the text is the introduction of a legal definition of “hate,” intended to clarify when a conduct may constitute an offense. 

However, some critics consider that this definition could be interpreted broadly, especially in sensitive issues where religious convictions and contemporary social debates intersect.

Although the law states that peaceful demonstrations and the communication of information will not be affected, the elimination of the religious exemption raises doubts about the real scope of these guarantees in practice.

The Senate, the final stage of the process

The bill must now be examined by the Senate, where modifications could still be introduced before its final approval. 

However, the composition of the Upper House - with numerous members appointed during Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s term - makes a complex scenario foreseeable for those seeking to halt or nuance the reform.

The outcome in this final body will be decisive in assessing to what extent this reform redefines the limits of freedom of expression and religion in Canada.

Sant Camil, the hospital where Noelia was killed, is owned by a Catholic order

The Hospital Residència Sant Camil, in Sant Pere de Ribes, is a work of religious ownership linked to the Order of the Ministers of the Sick, the well-known Camilian religious order. 

Sant Camil was born as a healthcare infrastructure promoted by this Catholic order on land donated precisely for an assistance work.

The history of the center begins with the donation of land linked to Amanda Sagristà Colomé, widow of Josep Marcer Carbonell, with the purpose of building a residence for the care of needy people. 

On that basis, the Camilians first developed a residence and then a hospital, configuring a healthcare complex that has been united from its origin to the spirituality and assistance mission of the order. 

It was not simply a matter of managing beds or medical services, but of embodying in the healthcare field the charism proper to San Camilo de Lelis: caring for the sick with love, tenderness, and reverence for human life.

Religious ownership and public management

Over time, that reality was legally reorganized. In 2002, the Fundación Hospital Residencia Sant Camil was established, created by the Spanish province of the Camilian Religious to manage the complex. And in 2009, that foundation agreed to transfer the assistance management to the Consorci Sanitari de l’Alt Penedès i Garraf, integrating the hospital into the Catalan public healthcare network. 

That is the scheme that remains in force: Camilian religious ownership and public management by agreement with Catalan healthcare.

We are not dealing with a purely public hospital in which the Church has an accessory pastoral presence. Nor with a center that was once religious and completely ceased to be so. 

What exists is a hospital of religious ownership, articulated through the foundation linked to the Camilians, whose ordinary management was transferred to a public entity. 

The management is public; the work, its root, and its identity remain Camilian.

Camilian continuity: the 50th anniversary

The order itself expressly claims this continuity. On October 18, 2025, on the occasion of the hospital’s 50th anniversary, the Camilian Religious organized, together with the center itself, a celebration with a strong institutional and religious charge. 

The main event was an Eucharist presided over by Mons. Xabier Gómez, bishop of Sant Feliu, in which the Dra. Olga Farré, manager of the hospital; the P. John Le Van, local superior of the Camilian community; and the H. José Carlos Bermejo, provincial superior of the Camilians in Spain and Argentina, participated.

What was said there is impossible to ignore today. José Carlos Bermejo stated that those present were “heirs of the good that others have done,” “of so many hands and hearts that have built this place as a true temple of care.” 

He also remembered the religious who had passed through the Sant Camil community and evoked Amanda Sacristán as donor and promoter of its construction, as well as P. Canet as the first promoter of the project.

Even more significant was the language used to define the nature of the hospital. Bermejo argued that in Sant Camil “every act of care is a liturgy of service, an expression of the Kingdom of God,” and added that the hospital is “a sacred place where life, relief, and tenderness are celebrated every day.” 

He concluded his intervention with the phrase that he identified as the emblem of the place: “more heart in the hands, the wisdom of the heart that sees, discerns, and acts with compassion.”

Bishop Xabier Gómez, for his part, thanked the trajectory of the religious and collaborators of the hospital and encouraged the Camilians to keep their presence alive in Sant Pere de Ribes, “contributing the richness of the charism of tenderness and collaborating in the pastoral care of health and the humanization of care.”

The Noelia case: the rupture

That context makes the contradiction that has become visible today even more serious. 

Because in that same hospital, presented by its own religious leaders as a “temple of care,” “sacred place,” and space where “life is celebrated every day,” the life of a 25-year-old young woman with post-traumatic depression problems after having suffered multiple rape, Noelia, was taken away.

Noelia was a young woman with a serious psychiatric condition. Her situation demanded precisely the opposite of what finally happened: accompaniment, treatment, containment, and hope. 

However, it was in Sant Camil, a hospital of Catholic religious ownership, where euthanasia was applied to her. She was killed in a center that the Camilians themselves continue to claim as their own work and as an expression of their mission.

A structural incoherence

It is not enough to say that the management is public. That argument may delimit administrative responsibilities, but it does not eliminate the underlying contradiction. 

Because here we are not talking about an order that provides spiritual assistance in a foreign hospital, but about an institution that retains the historical and foundational ownership of the center, that maintains its identity narrative, and that continues to participate in its institutional life.

The question is direct: if Sant Camil is, as the Camilians say, a “sacred place where life is celebrated,” how can it be accepted that euthanasia is practiced in that same place? 

If they remain present, if they celebrate, if they claim the work as their own, can they wash their hands of what happens inside by claiming that the management is public?

The case forces a review of the model. For years, a comfortable separation between religious ownership and public management has been sustained. 

But when that separation results in patients being killed within a Catholic hospital work, it ceases to be a technical issue to become an unsustainable moral contradiction.

The need to rethink the model

If a hospital is of Catholic ownership, it cannot become a place where euthanasia is practiced without a serious breach of coherence occurring. 

And if the agreements signed with the State allow that outcome, those agreements must be reviewed. 

Not to enter into nominalist debates, but to recover a minimum coherence between what an institution says it is and what it allows to happen in its own house.

Caccia questions the UN's reference to 15th-century papal bulls in its resolution on slavery

Archbishop Gabriele Caccia, the new nuncio to the United States and until now the permanent observer of the Holy See to the United Nations, has questioned the approach adopted by the UN in its recent resolution on the transatlantic slave trade, especially due to the reference to papal bulls from the 15th century as part of the system that would have legitimized this practice.

The resolution approved on March 25 by the General Assembly, with 123 votes in favor, 52 abstentions, and three against—United States, Israel, and Argentina—declares the trafficking of Africans as “the most serious crime against humanity” and includes mentions of pontifical documents such as Dum Diversas (1452) and Romanus Pontifex (1455).

The UN places the bulls within the process of legal codification of slavery, stating that they would have authorized the reduction of Africans to “perpetual slavery,” along with colonial laws and commercial regulations of the time.

“A partial narrative,” according to the Holy See

In response to this approach, Caccia warned that the resolution’s focus does not adequately reflect the complexity of the historical context.

“The approach contains a partial narrative that, unfortunately, does not serve the cause of truth,” stated the Vatican representative.

The Holy See maintains that these documents must be understood in their historical and political context, and not as an expression of the Church’s doctrine on human dignity.

The Church’s position on slavery

The archbishop recalled that the Church has condemned slavery at various stages in history, citing documents such as the bull Sicut Dudum by Eugene IV (1435), which already denounced the enslavement of peoples in the Canary Islands, or the teachings of Leo XIII in the 19th century.

In this vein, he reiterated that the Church rejects any form of slavery, including its contemporary manifestations.

Durango goes without processions for the first time in 40 years

Durango’s Holy Week will not take to the streets this year. 

For the first time in four decades, the Vera Cruz Brotherhood has suspended the processions due to the lack of generational replacement, a situation that has been worsening for years.

According to local media, the decision affects a tradition with documented roots since 1435, considered the oldest in Bizkaia.

A centuries-old tradition that is interrupted

The Vera Cruz Brotherhood has been for centuries the axis of Holy Week in the Biscayan municipality. In its contemporary stage, it had managed to remain active during the last decades, but the progressive decline in participants has finally prevented the organization of the processions.

This year’s suspension represents an unprecedented event in the recent memory of the locality.

Lack of replacement and dependence on new participants

Brotherhood officials point out that the crisis is not recent, although on this occasion it has reached a definitive point. In recent years, the continuity of the processions had depended to a large extent on the participation of people from other countries.

As one of its veteran members explains, without the collaboration of people from Ecuador, Colombia, or Senegal, the processions would not have been able to be held during the last decade, due to the scarce local participation.

From the initial impulse to the progressive decline

The modern stage of Holy Week in Durango was marked by the impulse of the priest known as Father Zabala, who promoted the involvement of various groups to sustain the tradition.

For years, the organization relied on groups linked to different regions, which allowed maintaining the activity. However, after his death, participation gradually decreased.

The lack of carriers even led to introducing wheels on the floats about a decade ago, a measure that allowed prolonging the processions, but which has not avoided their current suspension.

Contrast with San Sebastián

The situation in Durango coincides in time with different initiatives in nearby localities. In San Sebastián, for example, the recovery of Holy Week processions has recently been promoted after more than six decades without being held.

According to what the parish priest of the Cathedral of the Good Shepherd, Jon Molina, told Infovaticana, the initiative has managed to gather several hundred participants, which has allowed organizing these events again in the Guipuzcoan capital.

Uncertainty about the future

This year’s suspension raises questions about the continuity of the tradition in Durango. From the brotherhood, the expectation is maintained that in the future the activity can be resumed if sufficient replacement occurs.

Although the processions will not be held, the Good Friday Way of the Cross is scheduled to take place, which will cover the route between Santa Ana and Tabira.

For the moment, Holy Week in Durango will take place without its traditional processional parades, awaiting a possible reactivation in coming years.

'Peace be with you': Joint Holy Week and Easter Message from Archbishops of Armagh

“Peace be with you”, the words spoken by Jesus to his disciples after the resurrection, form the heart of this year’s Easter message from the Church of Ireland and Roman Catholic Archbishops of Armagh.

In a joint Easter message, the Irish church primates, Archbishop John McDowell (Church of Ireland) and Archbishop Eamon Martin (Roman Catholic) reflect on Jesus’ first words after the resurrection and how Christ greeted his fearful and grieving followers not with anger, but with reassurance. Showing the wounds of the crucifixion, he offered them comfort, love, and, above all, peace.

They emphasise that this greeting was far more than a customary phrase. Instead, it conveyed a profound hope for healing after suffering, reconciliation after division, and calm in the wake of turmoil.

The message comes at a time when, they note, the world is “overshadowed by conflict in so many places,” pointing in particular to violence across the Middle East and the ongoing war in Ukraine. These conflicts, they say, have led to tens of thousands of deaths, widespread destruction, and the displacement of countless families.

The archbishops add: “Too many people live in fear of what the future holds in store. Hope is hard to find in the rubble of a bombed hospital or school, or in the tears of those whose loved ones have been killed through acts of violence.

“During Holy Week, in Scripture readings and prayer, we reflect on the sufferings of our Lord Jesus Christ, and are reminded of the cruelty of humankind and the power of evil. The cross of Calvary casts a long shadow over the world. Yet the sadness of Good Friday will give way to the joy of Easter morning.

"The Easter story begins “while it was still dark” but is soon bathed in the light of the resurrection. Love defeats hatred. It overcomes the darkness of despair. Nothing should be permitted to rob us of hope that goodness will triumph over evil. This is Easter Hope - the “hope that does not disappoint” (Romans 5:5). We must persevere, therefore, in our prayers and efforts to build lasting peace in the world, always looking to that day when swords will be beaten into ploughshares and spears into pruning hooks.”

"This Holy Week and Easter, let us renew our determination to live in a world where all life is valued, where mutual respect and understanding are treasured, and where peace is a living reality. May the words and actions of all people mirror those of our risen Lord, now and in the days to come – “Peace be with you”.”

Pope Leo XIV to receive Archbishop of Canterbury in Rome next month

Cardinal Kurt Koch, prefect of the Dicastery for Promoting Christian Unity, was among those who prayed with the newly-enthroned Archbishop Mullally at a small service of morning prayer at Canterbury Cathedral.

Pope Leo XIV and Archbishop Mullally exchanged warm letters of greeting around her historic enthronement as the first female Archbishop of Canterbury.

Lambeth Palace confirmed that Archbishop Mullally is to visit Rome from 25-28 April and during the visit she will meet Pope Leo at the Vatican.

Besides Cardinal Koch, those present at the ecumenical morning prayer service included Archbishop of York Stephen Cottrell, Archbishop Flavio Pace, Secretary of the Dicastery for Promoting Christian Unity and Bishop Anthony Ball, director of the Anglican Centre in Rome and the Archbishop of Canterbury’s Representative to the Holy See. Archbishop of Westminster Richard Moth attended the enthronement where he read from the Bible, but was not at the ecumenical service the following morning.

The service marked the 60th anniversary of the Common Declaration of 24 March 1966, the first formal ecumenical statement between Anglican and Roman Catholic Churches.

Following Morning Prayer, Archbishop Sarah and Cardinal Koch prayed together at the site of the martyrdom of St Thomas Becket in the Cathedral Quire, mirroring Pope St John Paul II and Archbishop Robert Runcie’s visit to the site in 1982.

It took place as the Pope and Archbishop of Canterbury exchanged letters on the Archbishop’s installation.

Pope Leo wrote, “With this assurance of God’s abiding presence, I send prayerful greetings to Your Grace on the occasion of your Installation as Archbishop of Canterbury. I know that the office for which you have been chosen is a weighty one, with responsibilities not only in the Diocese of Canterbury, but throughout the Church of England as well as the Anglican Communion as a whole. Moreover, you are commencing these duties at a challenging moment in the history of the Anglican family. In asking the Lord to strengthen you with the gift of wisdom, I pray that you may be guided by the Holy Spirit in serving your communities, and draw inspiration from the example of Mary, the Mother of God.”

He acknowledged that the ecumenical journey had “not always been smooth” and that both their predecessors, Pope Francis and Archbishop Justin Welby, had acknowledged that “new circumstances have presented new disagreements among us”. While not saying explicitly what these new circumstances were, the main and currently insurmountable difficulty to visible unity between the two churches is the ordination of women. The Catholic Church refuses even to countenance the ordination of women deacons though many are pressing for change on this in particular.

Pope Leo continued, “Nevertheless, we have continued to walk together, because differences ‘cannot prevent us from recognising one another as brothers and sisters in Christ by reason of our common baptism’. For my part, I firmly believe that we need to continue to dialogue in truth and love, for it is only in truth and love that we come to know together the grace, mercy and peace of God and thus can offer these precious gifts to the world.”

In response, Archbishop Mullally thanked the Pope for his prayers, and assured him of her own.

“I am deeply grateful for your gracious letter, and for the assurance of your prayers at the time of my installation as Archbishop of Canterbury,” she wrote. “Your words of encouragement, and your invocation of the Holy Spirit’s guidance, are received with profound appreciation.”

She added, “As Archbishop of Canterbury, I too am called to serve as an instrument of communion within the Anglican Communion, and to seek the full and visible unity to which our Lord has called us all.

“I very much look forward to meeting Your Holiness in the near future and to continuing to strengthen the bonds of friendship and our shared commitment.”

Speaking after this service, the Archbishop Mullally said: “Sixty years ago, Pope Paul VI and Archbishop Michael Ramsey set before our Churches a vision of reconciliation grounded in charity, truth, and a shared desire for unity in Christ. Their meeting marked a new beginning in Anglican–Roman Catholic relations, one that continues to bear fruit in dialogue, friendship, and common witness across the world. I give thanks for this shared journey, which continues to grow, not least through the recent state visit of His Majesty The King to Pope Leo XIV in Rome.

“Through ongoing dialogue, including the work of the Anglican–Roman Catholic International Commission and the International Anglican–Roman Catholic Commission on Unity and Mission, we continue to seek that unity in Christ, in whom we find both the source and the fulfilment of our communion. We pray that the Holy Spirit will continue to guide us into all truth, deepen our fellowship, and lead us ever closer to the visible unity for which Christ prayed.”

The letter that Pope Leo XIV sent to the first female leader of the Anglican Church on the day of her “enthronement”

On the occasion of the installation of the Rev. Sarah Mullally as the first female Archbishop of Canterbury (in the Church of England), which took place on Wednesday, March 25, 2026, Pope Leo XIV sent a personal letter. 

The Holy Father congratulates the new Archbishop of Canterbury, reaffirms the value of ecumenical dialogue between Catholics and Anglicans despite the difficulties, and asks God to guide her so that both Churches may continue to bear united witness to Christ before the world. The full text of the letter is provided below: 

To The Most Reverend and Right Honourable Dame Sarah Mullally Archbishop of Canterbury “Grace, mercy, and peace will be with us, from God the Father and from Jesus Christ, the Father’s Son, in truth and love.” (2 Jn 1:3) 

With this assurance of God’s abiding presence, I send prayerful greetings to Your Grace on the occasion of your Installation as Archbishop of Canterbury. I know that the office for which you have been chosen is a weighty one, with responsibilities not only in the Diocese of Canterbury, but throughout the Church of England as well as the Anglican Communion as a whole. 

Moreover, you are commencing these duties at a challenging moment in the history of the Anglican family. In asking the Lord to strengthen you with the gift of wisdom, I pray that you may be guided by the Holy Spirit in serving your communities, and draw inspiration from the example of Mary, the Mother of God. 

Sixty years ago, during their historic encounter in Rome, our predecessors of happy memory, Saint Paul VI and Archbishop Michael Ramsey, committed Catholics and Anglicans to “a new stage in the development of fraternal relations, based upon Christian charity” (Joint Declaration, 24 March 1966). That fresh chapter of respectful openness has borne much fruit over the past six decades and continues to this day. 

On that same occasion, Pope Paul and Archbishop Ramsey also agreed to initiate a theological dialogue. Indeed, the Anglican-Roman Catholic International Commission (ARCIC) has contributed enormously to a growth in mutual understanding since its creation. 

The rewards of this valuable work have set us free to witness together more effectively (cf. International Anglican-Roman Catholic Commission for Unity and Mission, Growing Together in Unity and Mission, 93). This is especially vital given the manifold challenges facing our human family today. I am grateful, therefore, that this important dialogue continues. 

At the same time, we also know that the ecumenical journey has not always been smooth. Despite much progress, our immediate predecessors, Pope Francis and Archbishop Justin Welby, acknowledged frankly that “new circumstances have presented new disagreements among us.” 

Nevertheless, we have continued to walk together, because differences “cannot prevent us from recognizing one another as brothers and sisters in Christ by reason of our common baptism” (Joint Declaration, 5 October 2016). For my part, I firmly believe that we need to continue to dialogue in truth and love, for it is only in truth and love that we come to know together the grace, mercy and peace of God (cf. 2 Jn 1:3), and thus can offer these precious gifts to the world. 

What is more, the unity which Christians seek is never an end in itself, but is directed towards the proclamation of Christ, in order that, as the Lord Jesus himself prayed, “the world may believe” (Jn 17:21). 

In addressing the Primates of the Anglican Communion in 2024, Pope Francis declared that “it would be a scandal if, due to our divisions, we did not fulfil our common vocation to make Christ known” (Address to Primates of the Anglican Communion, 2 May 2024). 

Dear sister, I willingly make these words my own, for it is through the witness of a reconciled, fraternal and united Christian community that the proclamation of the Gospel will resound most clearly (cf. Message for the 2026 World Mission Day, 2). 

With these fraternal sentiments, I invoke upon you the blessings of Almighty God as you take up your high responsibilities. 

May the Holy Spirit come down upon you and make you fruitful in the Lord’s service. 

From the Vatican, 20 March 2026 

Memorial of Saint Cuthbert, Bishop 

LEO PP. XIV

Pope assures Archbishop of Canterbury of dialogue 'in truth and love‘

Pope Leo XIV has sent a message to Sarah Mullally on the occasion of her installation as Archbishop of Canterbury, assuring her of his prayers and invoking “grace, mercy, and peace… in truth and love”.

The installation service, historically known as an enthronement, took place in Canterbury Cathedral on 25 March. In the presence of some 2,000 guests, including the Prince and Princess of Wales, it marks the symbolic start of Dame Sarah's public ministry as the Archbishop of Canterbury.

In his message, the Pope notes that the office entrusted to the new Primate of the Anglican Communion carries significant responsibilities, not only within the Diocese of Canterbury but also across the Church of England and the wider Anglican Communion. He observes that she begins her ministry “at a challenging moment in the history of the Anglican family,” and prays that she may be strengthened with wisdom and guided by the Holy Spirit, drawing inspiration from Mary, the Mother of God.

Recalling the 1966 encounter

The message recalls the historic meeting in 1966 between Pope Paul VI and Archbishop Michael Ramsey, when Catholics and Anglicans committed themselves to “a new stage in the development of fraternal relations, based upon Christian charity.” This commitment, he highlights, has borne fruit over the past sixty years.

In his message, the Pope refers to the work of the Anglican-Roman Catholic International Commission (ARCIC), established following that encounter, stating that it has contributed to greater mutual understanding and has supported a more effective common witness, particularly in the face of contemporary global challenges.

At the same time, he acknowledges that the ecumenical journey has encountered difficulties. He recalls the 2016 Joint Declaration signed by Pope Francis and Justin Welby, which noted that “new circumstances have presented new disagreements.”

These differences, he adds, do not prevent Christians from recognising one another as brothers and sisters in Christ by virtue of their common baptism.

Thus, the Pope expresses his belief that dialogue should continue “in truth and love,” so that Christians may come to know together the grace, mercy and peace of God and offer these to the world.

Unity and common witness

Pope Leo XIV writes that the unity sought by Christians is directed toward the proclamation of Christ, recalling the prayer of Jesus, “that the world may believe”. He also cites an address of Pope Francis to Anglican Primates in 2024, which stated that divisions among Christians risk hindering their common vocation to make Christ known.

The witness of a reconciled and united Christian community, he affirms, contributes to the clarity of the proclamation of the Gospel.

The liturgy in Canterbury

The Pope’s message was delivered on Thursday, 26 March in Canterbury Cathedral at the conclusion of a common prayer service presided over by Archbishop Mullally and the Pope’s envoy, Cardinal Kurt Koch, Prefect of the Dicastery for Promoting Christian Unity.

The liturgy marks the 60th anniversary of the 1966 meeting between Pope Paul VI and Archbishop Michael Ramsey. During the celebration, the same kneeler used in the 1982 encounter between Pope John Paul II and Archbishop Robert Runcie was used.

The 2026 Catholic delegation included Archbishop Flavio Pace, Secretary of the Dicastery for Promoting Christian Unity and Father Martin Browne, an official of the Dicastery; Cardinals Vincent Nichols and Timothy Radcliffe; Archbishop Bernard Longley of Birmingham, co-chair of ARCIC; Archbishop Richard Moth of Westminster; Archbishop John Wilson of Southwark; Archbishop Leo William Cushley of Saint Andrews and Edinburgh; Bishop Kenneth Nowakowski of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church in the United Kingdom and the chargé d’affaires of the Apostolic Nunciature in London, Ante Vidović.

Sarah Mullally makes me grateful to be a Catholic (Opinion)

Granted, I was not the most obvious person to appreciate the installation of Sarah Mullally in Canterbury, even though I think her a splendid Christian pastor and indeed, an exemplary Christian. 

Her kind, homely face radiates charity and good will; the simplicity of her speech speaks of sincerity.

But as a bolshie Catholic, it’s not possible to spend long in Canterbury cathedral during this very Anglican celebration without the subversive thought surfacing that this cathedral is, by rights, Catholic, the Reformation being an unfortunate blip in the great scheme of things. 

If Sarah Mullally counts, as she says she does, Thomas Becket as one of her predecessors (which I happen to dispute), isn’t an apology due for those unfortunate events which saw his shrine destroyed and his bones scattered and desecrated courtesy of the founder of the Church of England (CofE)? 

The civilised Anglican answer to this issue is wilful amnesia, but sometimes it becomes hard to stomach.

As well as articulating the claim to be the successor of Becket and St Augustine (sent, let’s remember, to Britain by the pope), the Archbishop also had to declare her assent to the historic formularies of the CofE. The Archbishop of York put it to her that:

The installation did little to restore my regard for the dignity of the Church of England

Led by the Holy Spirit, [the CofE] has borne witness to Christian truth in its historic formularies, the 39 articles of religion, the Book of Common Prayer and the ordering of bishops, priests and deacons. In the declaration you are about to make, will you affirm your loyalty to this inheritance of faith as your inspiration and guidance under God?

And so she did.

But I should be very surprised if she really did believe all the undiluted Protestantism in the 39 articles. I just don’t know in what possible sense she could have read and understood them to square with her own religious sensibility. 

John Henry Newman said that the articles were ‘patient’ of a Catholic interpretation, but that was before the effort to see them that way drove him into the Catholic church.

Another problem to mar my appreciation of the celebration is that I don’t buy women’s orders. I don’t think any of the women cavorting through the cathedral were in fact priests or indeed bishops. 

Mind you, it shouldn’t have mattered in this case, because I don’t buy Anglican orders of any sort (I refer you to that unfortunate blip at the Reformation), so it shouldn’t have made any difference. But to the problems I have with a woman representing the male Christ (gender trumps ethnicity) there is added the difficulty of taking Anglican women clergy seriously. 

I am perfectly used to religious women; I was educated by nuns and so I am susceptible to female holiness where I find it.

Trouble is, none of the women I saw during the installation struck me as in any obvious way holy. Not the doll-like Lutheran bishop, a beautiful blonde with sparkly earrings; not the African women bishops in red lipstick; not the female curate with pink-dyed hair; not the procession of women clergy in makeup, velvet scrunchies and earrings. 

If you want to be taken seriously even as pastors, ladies, eschew the lipstick.

And then there was the insuperable impediment to appreciation of the event that it was presided over by David Monteith, the Dean of Canterbury cathedral. This was a man who radiated self-satisfaction during the ceremony yet was responsible as Dean for the abomination that was the ‘Rave in the Nave’ – as great a desecration of the holiness of the place, you might say, as the Reformers scattering Becket’s bones. 

If Dame Sarah wants to get off to a good start with serious Anglicans, she could simply insist that the deans and chapters of English cathedrals respect the sacred character of their consecrated buildings. 

Threaten them with canon law, maybe?

The installation, in short, did little to restore my regard for the dignity of the Church of England. 

And yet, it is the established Church, and I am one of those who supports its position as the state church, even if it pays a heavy price in terms of intellectual coherence in its efforts to represent a largely secular nation. 

For the purpose of appealing to the widest possible constituency, including those like Prince William who don’t go to church much, Sarah Mullally was a good choice. 

But her installation made this Catholic grateful for the blessings of a male clergy.

Spanish bishops, experts say euthanasia for young Noelia a ‘social defeat,’ ‘collective failure’

The proper response to human suffering should not be to cause death to provide adequate care and closeness to the most vulnerable, the Spanish bishops’ conference said in response to the case of a 25-year-old woman who chose to end her life by euthanasia March 26, despite her father fighting to stop the procedure.

“When life hurts, the response cannot be to shorten the path, but to walk it together. Only in this way can we build a truly just society, where no one feels alone or discarded,” the bishops said in a statement published March 26.  

Case of Noelia Castillo

The statement came in response to the case of Noelia Castillo, a young woman who was granted permission by the Catalan government to end her life in 2024. It was signed by several bishops, including Bishop José Mazuelos Pérez of Canarias, chairman of the conference’s Subcommission for Family and the Defense of Life.

 In an interview with the Spanish television channel Antena3, aired only hours before her death March 26, Castillo said she wanted “to leave in peace already and stop suffering, period.”

The young woman recounted the suffering she endured after her parents separated when she was 13.  Her trials included three instances of sexual assault. In 2022, after the second sexual assault, she tried to commit suicide. 

Although she survived, she was left a paraplegic. 

She needed support, human connection

“She suffered a gang rape and did not receive the psychological support or human connection she needed. A failed suicide attempt left her wheelchair-bound and deepened her suffering,” Elena Postigo, assistant professor of anthropology, ethics and bioethics at the Francisco de Vitoria University in Madrid, said in a March 26 X post.

“Her story exposes the deepest flaws in our system,” Postigo said, calling Castillo “a victim of institutional neglect who left her completely alone in her pain.” The professor lamented that “her request for assistance in dying is presented as an act of freedom, when in reality it expresses the despair of someone who was never welcomed or treated as she deserved.”

Castillo said in her final television interview: “Finally, I can get some rest because I can’t take this family anymore, I can’t take the pain anymore, I can’t take everything that torments me in my head from what I’ve been through.”

Her father’s failed appeal of her decision

Although the process was delayed after Castillo’s father appealed the decision, the Supreme Court of Catalonia and the European Court of Human Rights upheld it, allowing her to proceed.

Castillo died by euthanasia at a facility in Barcelona, Spanish advocacy organization Abogados Cristianos, who helped Castillo’s father in his legal battle, confirmed in a post on X at 7:54 p.m. local time. She was administered life-ending medication.

“We deeply regret her death and denounce that this case highlights serious flaws in the euthanasia law, which does not protect the most vulnerable people,” Abogados Cristianos (Christian Lawyers) said in its statement.

Hopes Noelia’s story will drive change

“We ask politicians to ensure her story serves to drive urgent changes and prevent something like this from happening again,” the organization said, expressing their gratitude to those who “empathized with the family during these very difficult times.”

They said the young woman’s parents “are devastated after years of trying to support her in her rehabilitation.”

In their message published the day before her death, the bishops said Castillo’s situation reflected “an accumulation of personal suffering and institutional shortcomings that challenge all of society.”

Situation ‘demands a deeper look’

“Her situation cannot be interpreted solely in terms of individual autonomy; rather, it demands a deeper look, capable of recognizing the weight of psychological suffering, loneliness, and despair,” the statement read. 

Spain legalized euthanasia in 2021, allowing adults with a terminal illness and those with serious and chronic disabilities to request help to die from the public health care system.

While euthanasia is often justified by supporters of the law for those suffering from terminal and incurable medical conditions, the bishops noted that Castillo was not “facing a terminal illness, but rather deep wounds that demand attention, treatment, and hope.”

‘Breaking the bond of care’

Euthanasia and assisted suicide “are not medical acts” but a deliberate “breaking of the bond of care” that constitutes “a social defeat when presented as a response to human suffering,” the bishops said.

In euthanasia, a doctor administers the lethal medication, while in assisted suicide, the patient self-administers it. 

The Spanish bishops said human dignity should not depend on one’s health or subjective perception of life, and that it has “an intrinsic value that demands to be recognized, protected, and promoted in all circumstances.” 

“Therefore, the truly human response to suffering cannot be to cause death, but to offer closeness, accompaniment, adequate care, and integral support,” the statement said.

Recommitment to ‘culture of care’

Expressing their closeness to Castillo and her family, the Spanish bishops assured them of their prayers and renewed their “commitment to a culture of care that abandons no one.”

“We call upon all of society to strengthen psychological care resources, human accompaniment, and support networks, especially for the most vulnerable people,” the bishops wrote. 

Bioethics professor Postigo said in her viral post: “Human dignity does not depend on suffering, or autonomy understood as self-sufficiency. It stems from the unique value of each person, from their need for connection, care, and love. However, instead of offering genuine compassion, the law ends up legitimizing the surrender of life for those who most need support and hope.”

State needed to offer help to heal, not death

Castillo, the professor emphasized, did not need the Spanish state “to offer her death” but to give back “meaning, help, and the possibility of healing” in her life.

Postigo said what was decided in Castillo’s case — confirmed by a state and international court was “not an act of freedom, but rather a reflection of a profound collective failure.”

“When life is painful, what is truly human is to care, support, and sustain, not to kill.”

French court orders ex-bishop to pay more than €160,000 over 1970s child sex abuse

A Paris court has ordered a former Catholic bishop to pay more than €160,000 in damages to a man who accused him of rape and sexual assault in the 1970s, a ruling seen by Agence France-Presse (AFP) on Thursday, March 26, showed.

Jean-Michel di Falco, 84, was accused of sexual abuse while he was a priest and headmaster of the Saint-Thomas d'Aquin school in Paris between 1972 and 1975.

Prosecutors had dropped a criminal investigation into the allegations of sexual abuse against the now retired bishop because the statute of limitations had passed. But a Paris appeals court ordered di Falco – who refutes any wrongdoing – to pay damages to Pierre-Jean Pages, 65, following a long legal battle after he brought a civil case against the clergyman in 2001.

The court ruled that the civil action was not subject to the same statute of limitations. It "follows from the evidence presented that Mr. di Falco's wrongful conduct of a sexual nature caused Mr. Pages bodily harm, for which he is liable to pay compensation," the court said in its judgment.

Di Falco maintains his "perfect innocence" and would appeal the ruling to France's top court, his lawyer told AFP after the decision. He was "extremely shocked" that the court could suggest that "the moral and psychological support provided by Jean-Michel di Falco to an orphaned boy... could be abnormal or inappropriate," Olivier Baratelli told AFP.

Once one of France's most prominent priests, the former Paris auxiliary bishop was ordered to pay Pages damages, including €10,000 for sexual harm, €70,000 for professional impact and nearly €81,400 for temporary functional impairment.

Di Falco was ordained in 1968 and named a bishop at Paris's Notre Dame Cathedral in 1997. In 2000, he served as a communications consultant to the body advising then-pope John Paul II.

Bishop hits out at King Charles for including other religions in Christian holiday messages as Easter looms

In a message to His Majesty, the bishop said: 'You are the Supreme Governor of the Church of England and head of this state, and you're not acting like it'

A bishop has exclusively told GB News about his concerns with the suppression of Christianity, as he called for King Charles to do "more" with defending the faith.

Bishop Ceirion H Dewar sent a letter to His Majesty outlining his worries, which he later published openly, receiving thousands of signatures supporting his message.

Speaking to the People's Channel, Bishop Ceirion shared what he wants to see from the monarch in his role as the Supreme Governor of the Church of England.

He said: "My expectation is you made a vote to protect and defend the protestant form of religion, which in the United Kingdom is increasingly and acceleratingly under attack.

"You need to fulfil your oath, and you need to be far more vocal in your defence of the faith, like Queen Elizabeth II."

The bishop claimed their is growing neglect of Christianity and the rise of Islam in Britain.

He said: "The Government is bringing forward this anti-Muslim hostility tsar and definition, which was non-statutory and therefore not legally binding; they seem to be pushing on everybody as if it were a legal power."

He continued: "I don't believe that Christian churches should be holding Islamic prayers. You certainly won't find a mosque in Britain that will invite Christians to pray or preach.

Bishop Ceirion touched on the King's Easter and Christmas messages, including other religions, while Christianity is not mentioned in the monarch's statements about other religions at their times of worship.

He said: "We're the only religious community where he brings in other faiths into that address. He does not bring Christianity into the address to the Muslim community during Eid or other Islamic celebrations, or the Sikh or the Jewish community; we're the only community where other faiths are brought into.

"Britain is constitutionally a Christian country. We have a state-established church. The faith, the culture, the laws, our institutions in the United Kingdom, the faith that has had a 1000-year relationship with the crown, is increasingly under attack."

The bishop made clear that he is not in any way "attacking other faiths", sharing that he was "delighted" to hear about the King being named patron for the Community Security Trust.

Australian bishop to lead Vatican legal department

Pope Leo XIV appointed the Australian Bishop of Broken Bay Wednesday as head of the Vatican department charged with authoritatively interpreting canon law.

The pope named Bishop Anthony Randazzo as the prefect of the Dicastery for Legislative Texts March 25, the feast of the Annunciation. 

Randazzo succeeds the Italian Archbishop Filippo Iannone, who was appointed as the prefect of the Dicastery for Bishops in September 2025.

The Dicastery for Legislative Texts deals with sensitive questions about the correct understanding of Church law, and has the power to authoritatively interpret canon law in response to questions from dioceses and religious orders around the world.

The dicastery is also responsible for proposing ways to overcome legal gaps and consults with other Vatican dicasteries to ensure that any new documents are in harmony with canon law. It also reviews and approves decrees issued by bishops’ conferences and Eastern Catholic bishops.

Randazzo is the first Australian to lead a Vatican department since 2017, when Cardinal George Pell took leave from his post as prefect of the Secretariat for the Economy to fight abuse charges in his homeland, ultimately clearing his name in 2020. Pell’s term as prefect expired in 2019 and he died in Rome in 2023.

Randazzo, who was promoted to the rank of archbishop with his new appointment, is 59, making him one of the youngest heads of a Vatican department. He could potentially serve under Pope Leo for the next 15 years.

The Australian prelate gained previous Vatican experience when he worked in the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith for five years, from 2004 to 2009.

In addition to leading the Broken Bay diocese from 2019, Randazzo has overseen the Personal Ordinariate of Our Lady of the Southern Cross since 2023. His transfer to Rome means Pope Leo will likely appoint a new apostolic administrator of the Australian body for groups of former Anglicans or a new ordinary, who could be a bishop.

Australian bishops’ conference president Archbishop Timothy Costelloe highlighted Randazzo’s “formation and long experience in canon law,” describing it as “a profound gift to the Church.”

“His expertise and guidance in the area of canon law has been invaluable in the work of the Australian Catholic Bishops Conference,” he commented.

“He understands canon law as a tool to be exercised in the service of the Gospel and the pastoral good of the Church.”

Anthony Randazzo was born in Sydney, New South Wales, on Oct. 7, 1966, to Colin Randazzo and Caterina Di Losa. His mother was originally from the southern Italian island of Lipari. Randazzo was the third of their four children and the only boy.

His parents worked as fruit sellers in the Bankstown suburb of Sydney before moving to the Gold Coast, in the state of Queensland, in 1967. He studied at the Pius XII Provincial Seminary and the University of Queensland before his ordination as a priest of the Brisbane archdiocese on Nov. 29, 1991. He earned canon law qualifications at Rome’s Pontifical Gregorian University.

Following his service as an official of the Vatican’s doctrinal office, Randazzo worked as rector of Holy Spirit Seminary, Queensland.

In 2016, he was named an auxiliary bishop of the Sydney archdiocese. He chose Fiat Voluntas Tua (“Thy Will be Done”) as his motto and was entrusted with the role of episcopal vicar for formation.

As bishop of Broken Bay from 2019, he was responsible for the spiritual welfare of more than 200,000 Catholics in New South Wales.

Randazzo served as a member of the canonical committee of Australia’s landmark Plenary Council, which ended in 2022. The 10 decrees approved by participants were submitted to the Vatican for review. Their approval still appears to be pending in Rome almost four years later.

In a 2020 interview with Catholic Youth Broken Bay, Randazzo said that his favorite color is blue, Philippians is his preferred biblical book, St. Paul his best-loved saint, and that the best piece of advice he has ever received was from an old priest on his deathbed, who told him: “Pray while you can.”

Randazzo was briefly stranded in Dubai at the beginning of March this year, when the Iran war prompted the closure of the local airport as he was travelling from Australia to Rome.

As a result, he was unable to attend in person a meeting of the leaders of personal ordinariates with officials at the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith. He also missed a March 2 meeting between ordinariate leaders and Leo XIV. But he was able to meet with the pope separately March 6, after catching a flight from the Middle East.

Commenting on his appointment, Randazzo said: “I’m profoundly grateful to Pope Leo for the confidence and trust he has placed in me.”

“During my time as bishop of the Diocese of Broken Bay, the clergy and faithful have been a true joy in my episcopal ministry. I remain forever grateful to God, who entrusted me with the care of His flock.”

“I will remain in Broken Bay for the next three months as apostolic administrator before moving to Rome to begin my new role.”

“Please pray for me as I undertake this new challenge and please be assured of my prayers for you.”

Pope Leo appoints Bishop Wilmer, president of the German Bishops’ Conference, to Münster

Pope Leo XIV appointed Bishop Heinrich Wilmer, S.C.J., as bishop of Münster, Germany’s most populous diocese.

A proponent of changes to Catholic teaching on sexual morality, Bishop Wilmer was once rumored to be under serious consideration for appointment as prefect of the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith. 

He was elected chairman of the German Bishops’ Conference last month.

The appointment of the Münster bishop is governed by the Prussian Concordat (1929). The Pillar explained:

Under the concordat, members of the cathedral chapter compile a list of candidates that is submitted to the Vatican via the nuncio. After the Vatican sends back a list of three names, the cathedral chapter’s 16 voting members choose the next Bishop of Münster.

A rare insight into the election of a Pope (Opinion)

The election of a pope is one of the most secret elections in the Catholic Church. 

As the College of Cardinals gather into the Sistine Chapel surrounded by a plethora of terms and conditions, rafts of regulations around what to do and what not to do are ringing in their ears. 

Every possible effort is made to ensure that what is regarded as an exercise in finding out who God wants to be the next pope is shrouded in mystery and respect for the holy process. 

Anything and everything that can possibly be done to keep secret the most secret of electoral procedures is not left undone.

That said cardinals talk before and during and after a conclave. And while, during the election, information about how it’s progressing is impossible to decipher, once it’s over the cardinals spill the Vatican beans and all, or almost all, is revealed in forensic detail. 

The story of the conclave is then pieced together bit by bit and a year or so later, seasoned vaticanistas paint the full picture in a few usually best-selling books.

If you, dear reader, picture yourself in that role, anxious to get the full detail of how and why the votes mounted as they did in last year’s conclave that elected Pope Leo, then you need to get your hands on two books out this month: The Election of Pope Leo XIV: The Last Surprise of Pope Francis by Gerard O’Connell and Elisabetta Piqué and American Hope: What Pope Leo Means for the Church and the World by Christopher Lamb. 

Alternatively, if you’d prefer an analytical guided tour of the gist of those two books you can read a stunning account by Austen Ivereigh in the March 7 issue of The Tablet entitled Secrets of the Conclave. 

Or, if you want an even shorter account you will find it in the 600 or so words that make up the remainder of this column. So hold on to your hat!

We often accuse the Vatican - and by extension the Catholic Church - of being incapable of organising anything. But, in this instance, that’s not the case. 

It took the Anglican Church eleven months to elect Sarah Mullally as Archbishop of Canterbury – she will be formally installed this week – but the Catholic Church had a new pope done and dusted in three weeks and the last three conclaves were over in 48 hours!

The trick is what happens before the conclave in the discussions that build the beginning of a clear consensus. If the consensus is matched by the presence of an obvious candidate, what Ivereigh calls ‘the carousel of news, leaks and rumours’ begins to reveal ‘the mind of the Church’.

While the cardinals swear an oath ‘of absolute and perpetual secrecy’ before they enter the Sistine Chapel, and are faithful to not disclosing what happens behind closed doors, they’ll share the atmosphere, their feelings and what Ivereigh calls ‘some choice anecdotes’, for example like the moment Cardinal Prevost put his head in his hands when he knew he had been elected. 

The presumption of many is that the ballot tallies are part of the oath but some cardinals give themselves a moment of grace as they take the view that the tallies should be part of the historical record.

In March 2013, when Francis I was elected pope 115 cardinals voted with 77 votes needed for election. The 2013 election seemed to be a two-horse race between Cardinal Bergoglio (Francis) and Cardinal Scola of Madrid. 

But a later publication based on a revelation by a cardinal elector revealed that Cardinal Marc Quellet, from the Vatican Curia, was a third candidate in contention. 

However the election came down to a tussle between Bergoglio and Scola with Scola ahead on the first ballot 30/26, but Bergoglio consistently moving ahead in the later rounds by 45/38, 56/41, 67/32 and, in the final round, by 85/20.

In the last conclave in 2025, 133 cardinals were voting with 89 votes needed for election. For this ballot there were no exact votes shared afterwards by co-operating cardinals but the picture is clear in the two books (mentioned above). 

In the first vote, the three cardinals in contention – Pietro Parolin (Italy), Peter Erdo (Hungry) and Robert Prevost (American) – each scored between 20 to 30, with Erdo in a narrow lead. 

In the second ballot, Prevost moved into the lead, Parolin came second and Erdo, third. 

In the third vote, Parolin versus Prevost, Parolin picked up Erdo’s votes and Prevost held his. 

And in the fourth and final vote, Prevost swept past Parolin with 108 votes to 89.

Apart from the historic election of the first North American pope, the 2025 conclave was significant in that it was the second election in succession of a Latin Americann pope after two previous elections of two European popes – John Paul II (1978) and Benedict (2005). 

An interesting question is how did the centre of influence in the Catholic Church move from Europe to Latin (South) America in less than 50 years?

Two issues seem significant. 

One is that as the number of cardinals increased, the number of European cardinals (especially Italian) decreased. 

Two, the Church tired of the failure to introduce the reforms of the Second Vatican Council and in less than a generation decided to replace the old, rich, tired, drifting Church represented by John Paul and Benedict’s pontificates with a more reformist Church driven by a combination of European reformers and a Latin American focus on a pastoral Church of the poor. 

Though in 2025 Parolin was the favourite he wasn’t acceptable in that he wasn’t like Francis.

The hunger for change represented by the election of Francis and Leo has now placed the Latin American Church – described by Ivereigh as ‘a united body and brimming with joy and confidence’ – in the ascendant and, hopefully, powering the People’s Church with its focus on serving the poor for generations to come.