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On Easter, Pope Benedict XVI spoke out against both creationism and evolution, or so it looked anyway. About the biblical account of Genesis, he said, "It is not information about the external processes by which the cosmos and man himself came into being." So much for literal creationism. But then he seemed to take a swipe at science, proposing that mankind cannot be just another product of evolution. "It is not the case that in the expanding universe, at a late stage, in some tiny corner of the cosmos, there evolved randomly some species of living being capable of reasoning...

What’s served in Halifax with plenty of mayonnaise and is as popular as the iPad 2? (Popular for a few hours this past Wednesday, that is.) Canadian Twitter users were somewhat perplexed to see the McLobster — sold at McDonald’s restaurants in the Maritimes and New England — mysteriously become a hot topic on the internet. Some U.S. tweeters, thinking it was a new product, wanted to know when it would “launch.” (McDonald’s is famous for tailoring its menu to regional tastes. The Filet-O-Fish was introduced to appeal to Cincinnati-area Roman Catholic diners who abstained from meat on Fridays and...

It is remarkable that anyone who claims to be Reformed let alone a Calvinist would ever countenance the exercise of such corrupt and false piety as is called for by the idolatrous ‘Season of Lent.’ Yet, examples of such absurdities are not hard to find. In obedient submission to the Sacred Scriptures, Calvin taught that nothing may be called true worship or piety which is not first required of us by God in His Word. Let us hear Calvin. 20. Then the superstitious observance of Lent had everywhere prevailed: for both the vulgar imagined that they thereby perform some excellent...

GENEVA, Switzerland--Rediscovered last spring on the antiquities 'grey market,' the apocryphal Gospel of Stephen is rewriting Christian tradition in hundreds of churches around the world. "It gives us a whole new picture of how the angel Gabriel told Mary she'd one day give birth to Jesus Christ," said Father Peter Emmel. Now thousands of faithful, in nearly all Christian denominations, will celebrate the feast of the Biblical 'Enunciation,' in which the Virgin Mother asked Gabriel if he could please repeat his announcement. Christians usually celebrate the angel's declaration on March 25th of each year. The new Enunciation feast will also...

The accusations against Fr. John Corapi have unleashed a firestorm of comments from his devoted followers and those who are not impressed by him. Elizabeth Scalia sums it up here with common sense and compassion. I have nothing much to say about Fr. Corapi himself, except that these things are complicated. Right now everyone should step back, take a deep breath, withhold judgment, and wait to see what happens. I have no opinions at all about Fr. Corapi. All I know is that he is a Catholic media star, is supposed to be a holy man, a great preacher and...

ALL hail Lord Cheesus - the holy apparition that appeared in a pizza. In a purported "miracle'', the face of Jesus Christ has appeared on a three-cheese pizza made at Posh Pizza in New Farm, Brisbane. And the image can be yours to enjoy. The shop, in the city's Fortitude Valley, has put the slice on eBay, and as of this morning bidding was up to $65. All proceeds raised will go to a charity to be decided once the pizza is auctioned. Posh Pizza's Maree Phelan said her pizza oven was seemingly blessed with the presence of Jesus Christ,...

FOLK find God in all manner of places, but retired shipyard worker Hylton Scholfield says he found Jesus in his loo. The grandfather-of-eight says he was stunned to see the face of Christ staring up at him from his bathroom floor, at home in Wallsend, North Tyneside. Others however, have struggled to see the vision, and some have even suggested the face looks more like William Shakespeare. The Sunday Sun thought we would let you decide. While the jury might be out on whether a holy apparition really has appeared on the tile, Hylton certainly isn’t taking any chances. The...

A YOUNG Roman Catholic priest has quit his Scottish parish after fathering a secret child, it was revealed yesterday. Father Piotr Koczorowski, a Polish chaplain based at St Mary’s RC Church in Inverness, mysteriously disappeared in December following a Christmas party. Rumours were rife among parishioners that the 35-year-old, who plays bass in a ­Christian rock band, had become a parent. Last night the Scottish Catholic Church confirmed the bombshell that Fr Koczorowski had left the Church to be with the unnamed mother and child. In a terse statement, a spokesman for the Aberdeen diocese said: “After meeting with Bishop...

Today is April 1, 2011, and therefore April Fool's Day. The question is can Catholics legitimately participate in it without sinning? This is a question which deserves to be addressed because most Catholics do participate, but we must always follow our moral compass, no matter the time of year. The main moral issues brought up in April Fools include lying, and causing harm to others. "Harm" of course can be accomplished in a multitude of ways, and therefore most sins could come under this categorization. First, let's address lying. Often, April Fools jokes involve convincing someone that something which is...

St. Charles priests regularly conduct same-sex baptisms it was revealed this week, as Christening Season gets under way and there is renewed concern about the lead content in water used to perform the rite. Following a surge of infants competing for prime Saturday morning baptism time slots this spring, the frequency of same-sex baptisms has not gone unnoticed. "Last weekend, I baptized Chris, Pat and Sandy, who were all the same sex," said associate pastor Father Mendez. Although the Vatican has taken a strong position opposing same-sex marriage, it has not made a formal determination on the potentially explosive issue...

New York Archbishop Timothy Dolan is again defending the Catholic Church's response to the sex abuse scandal.Appearing on CBS' "60 Minutes," Dolan said he believed the church's reaction to the sex scandal was rigorous and strong. He said the acts themselves and the decades-long cover-up are hard for him to bear or understand."In some ways, I don't want it to be over because this was such a crisis in the Catholic Church that in a way we don't want to get over it to easily. This needs to haunt us," said Dolan. "Those were very powerful moments that you don't...

The Diocese of Scranton and Marywood University refused to host a conservative Catholic speaker this weekend after the organizations determined that he had expressed views at odds with the school's and church's values, they said on Thursday. Michael Voris, who produces television and radio shows about Catholic issues, was scheduled to speak at two events Saturday arranged by a Harveys Lake couple at Marywood and Our Lady of Victory Catholic church in Harveys Lake. After Marywood canceled the event, titled "Living Catholicism Radically," it was to be relocated to the diocese's St. Clare/St. Paul Elementary School before the diocese also...

WHEN his next door neighbour called over the fence and told him Jesus had appeared in his back garden faithful church-goer Ron Sims first thought he was joking. But when the pensioner caught a glimpse of the concrete barbecue his friend had knocked down six years before he couldn't believe his eyes. Mr Sims, 77, of Magpie Bottom Lane in Hanham, said: "When I saw it I just couldn't believe the likeness. "It's such a strong image, it's almost eerie." The image is formed by the remains of concrete blocks Mr Sims used to build an outdoor barbecue when he...

It's well known that cleanliness is up there next to Godliness, but Roisin McCourt wasn't expecting Jesus to pop out of her washing machine load. Dance teacher Ms McCourt was shocked when she saw the unusual brown stain, which shows what seem to be the facial features of a long-haired, bearded man. Ms McCourt, 31, has since been mobbed with requests from believers wishing to make a pilgrimage to see the holy imprint. The Coventry resident said: 'When I took it out I could not believe it. I could see it was Jesus straightaway. I took it to my husband...

The log's owner, Mel Robertson, calls it the 'holy log' and says that she keeps it as a 'lucky charm'. However, she admits that it 'hasn't brought any luck yet', but is hopeful that one day it will. Fingers crossed, Mrs Robertson. The mum of two from Solihull told Metro.co.uk that the face first appeared back in October 2009, but got clearer and clearer as the months went by. She said: 'We had some firewood by the fireplace – at first it looked like a skull and crossbones – but as the months wore on, it just appeared around the...

The 14-16th centuries were times of religious intolerance. Faithful English Protestants fled their beloved England to a safe haven in Reformation-friendly Europe. The recently crowned English Monarch and daughter of Henry VIII, Mary Tudor (1553) reintroduced the authority of the Roman Catholic Church. Mary’s humiliation with the divorce of her parents Henry VIII and Catherine of Aragon and the failed plot of John Dudley to give the throne to Lady Jane Grey shaped Mary’s negative attitude toward Protestants. Almost immediately, the exiles began writing pamphlets and books defending their reformed doctrines. As a direct result, they created a desire among...

Of course, the Saviour’s face has been getting around a fair bit recently. We’ve already availed you of his face’s visit to an MRI scan, to some chicken feathers, Google Maps, a drainpipe, a Marmite lid and a student’s frying pan. Well now it’s the turn of a rocking chair in, appropriately, the City of Angels to host the holy visage. The chair belongs to Lou Balducci, who lives in the Mission Viejo area of Los Angeles, and he was understandably taken aback. ‘When I first saw the image, I didn't know what to think. As I thought about it,...

HANNIBAL, MO. -- This is not a story of the image of the Virgin Mother on a grilled cheese sandwich or Jesus on a tortilla. Hope you’re not disappointed, but I think this is far better. This is the story of a spiritual journey that transformed a beam into a masterpiece, and the spiritual journey of the amateur artist himself. It takes a big leap of faith to go from carving ducks to chiseling the image of the crucified Jesus. It also takes inspiration. And time. In fact, the idea first stirred in Delbert Hayes' imagination a dozen years ago...