Gloria TV News on the Feast of Sts. Nereus and Achilleus.

The Deep Root of Discouragement

Ireland

On May 10th, archbishop Diarmuid Martin of Dublin has delivered in Dublin a speech that is being hailed as a milestone address on the future of the Church in Ireland. The archbishop spoke about a deep personal discouragement: “We have invested in structures of religious education which despite enormous goodwill are not producing the results that they set out to do” – the archbishop declared: “Our young people are among the most catechized in Europe but among the least evangelized.”

Cardinal Pell Would Be a Big Change

Vatican

Vatican-watcher John Allen writes that an appointment of Cardinal George Pell as prefect of the Congregation for Bishops would mark an important shift in the direction of the Roman Curia. Allen notes several reasons why it would be especially significant. For instance: First, the appointment would be widely seen as a victory for the conservative wing of the Church, since Pell has long been an outspoken voice for conservative positions on virtually every issue in Catholic life. He’s a classic example of “evangelical Catholicism,” meaning that fostering a strong sense of traditional Catholic identity in contrast to secularism is his top concern.

Pilgrimage Towards Heaven

Portugal

Yesterday Pope Benedict XVI has began his 15th apostolic journey. His plane landed at 11 a.m at Portela international airport of Lisbon. On arrival the Holy Father was greeted by Anibal Cavaco Silva, president of the Republic of Portugal, and by Cardinal José da Cruz Policarpo, Patriarch of Lisbon. "I come as a pilgrim to Our Lady of Fatima", said the Pope at the beginning of his address, "invested from on high with the mission of confirming my brothers and sisters as they advance on their own pilgrimage towards heaven".

Irresponsibel Men

Internet

Berenike has published on the blog ‘Exlaodicea’ a very interesting Polish quote about the situation of the family in Haiti. The translation: “Here men rarely marry. When difficulties with work or family obligations such as a child appear, they simply abandon their partners. Here women have to be strong and resourceful. The most important thing is to keep one’s son close, because only he can guarantee relative security in one’s old age. Only, “keeping” him involves a demoralizing pandering. Like a prince, a young man has no obligations. All the work falls to his sisters. And the circle closes. The women remain strong, and the men … irresponsible.”