Vatican News

Lent is drill practice for our spiritual battle

each day during lent has, traditionally, assigned a church in rome called a “station”. in ancient times the people and clergy would process ...
Fr John Zuhlsdorf

When artists led the Church out of crisis

how catholic art saved the faith by elizabeth lev sophia institute press, 320pp, £15/$19 at the end of last year i visited the mantegna and ...
Francis Phillips

Discovering the hidden Catholic messages in Tudor sacred music

one of the curious features of the first edition of the book of common prayer is its approach to the event of the reformation. of course the...
Francis O’Gorman

Letters & emails

why i will not leave the church sir – i was received into the church, as a convert, in 1980, was ordained deacon in southwark archdiocese in...
The Catholic Herald

Vatican financial reform is in tatters

there is a classic episode of yes minister in which jim hacker is exasperated that a newly built hospital is fully staffed with some 500 adm...
Fr Raymond de Souza

Can you name all 23 Eastern Catholic Churches?

albanian greek catholic church not to be confused with the italo-albanian catholic church, the 4,000 or so members of this byzantine rite co...
The Catholic Herald

When a bishop resigns, the faithful have a right to know why

"transparency" was one of the buzzwords over the four days of february 21-24, during which 190 people gathered in the vatican to discuss chi...
Christopher R. Altieri

The week in quotations

"a great tragedy" pope emeritus benedict xvi on the conflict in ukraine meeting with archbishop shevchuk "the teaching of morals at the greg...
Staff writers

Overlooked story of the week: Cardinals criticise 'Vatican closet' author

what happened? two cardinals have cast doubt on a recent exposé. cardinals gerhard müller and walter kasper criticised the methods of frédér...
Staff writers

The controversies that will define the Amazon synod

now that the abuse summit is over, vatican-watchers are turning their attention to rome’s next big gathering of bishops: the amazon synod. t...
The Catholic Herald