Let's cry for Argentina. One default after another, a lesson for populists
Argentina has run the risk of its ninth default, which was avoided at the last minute only by an agreement with creditors. There remains the grave problem of the credibility and holding of public accounts. It is a lesson for Italy: we are not all that different. The Daily Compass speaks with economist Michele Boldrin
Hong Kong: the new law to squash the press
In a spectacular raid, broadcast live on video, a hundred Hong Kong police officers entered the Apple Daily’s headquarters, which has lead the way for the island’s democratic uprisings. The newspaper’s publisher, Catholic entrepreneur Jimmy Lai, was arrested under China’s new National Security Act
Maira and Huma sequestered in Pakistan. The sad fate of Christian child-brides
In Pakistan, the question of Christian child-brides kidnapped by Islamic men has for some time now caused a series of legal disputes. What has happened in the past few years with the case of Asia Bibi is nothing compared to what Maira Shahbaz and Huma Youmus are presently suffering,who are respectively 14 and 15 years old. Their judicial processes could seriously become a precedent for the Asian country and are confirmation of how much Islamic fundamentalists have been able to manipulate existing laws to their favor
A Note condemning do-it-yourself liturgy: but now it must be applied
The Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, in its Responsum of August 6, has clarified that arbitrary sacramental forms are invalid, such as “We baptize you in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit” and that it is necessary to baptize “in an absolute form.” In the attached Doctrinal Note, it recalls that the Sacraments are not subjects of personal taste but are to be administered in fidelity to Christ who instituted them. It is a truly Catholic document that should always be applied
China and the Vatican, two years later there is more persecution
Two years after the signing of the provisional agreement between China and the Holy See, we are still unable to read its contents, but we can evaluate its effects on the life of priests and the faithful. The Asia News Agency has gathered a series of testimonies that demonstrate how the persecution is increasing
If Ocasio-Cortez hurls abuse at the patron saint of lepers...
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez has lashed out against a statue of St. Damien de Veuster, while referring to him as an example of "white supremacism." In reality, the great Belgian missionary went as a volunteer among lepers in Hawaii. And, after 16 years of charitable service, he himself died of leprosy. The words of this rising star among American Democrats confirm that Christianity is under attack.
Communion on the tongue, Benedict XVI clears a path
In 2005 Msgr. Laise wrote to the then-Prefect of the CDF Cardinal Ratzinger to suggest that during the Synod on the Eucharist he should address the topic of the approval of Communion in the hand and propose an examination of conscience for the entire Church. When he became Pope, Benedict XVI directed that during Papal Masses Holy Communion would be administered only on the tongue and kneeling. Laise’s “legacy” is now in the hands of Cardinal Sarah.
Human guinea pigs: legitimate in theory, but not advisable for COVID
Is it licit to allow yourself to get infected? In theory it is, but only under certain conditions concerning the moral purpose of the overall objective, the relationship between any negative (undesired) and positive effects (desired), the state of necessity, and so forth. If the chances of finding an effective vaccine in a short amount of time are very low, then such a risk is unacceptable. This is also because vaccine developers are tempted to burn through the proper stages of development. Meanwhile, there are already effective preventions measures and treatments
Covid: Covered-up in Iran, Overstated in Sweden
Iran has lied about the spread of the Covid epidemic, as Iranian government documents that have been leaked to the press reveal. But the world has not taken any severe measures against the Islamic Republic. At the same time, Sweden, which has been demonized for refusing to go into lockdown, has flattened the curve of new cases.
Hackers lurk in Vatican shadows. Were spies involved in the China-Vatican Agreement?
Recorded Future, a US-based company, reports Chinese hackers (RedDelta) broke into servers at the PIME headquarters and the Holy See’s Study Mission in Hong Kong. Why? To gather information in view of a renewal of the controversial agreement on the appointment of Chinese bishops.
The excuse is Covid as bishop closes down seminary in communion row
Faithful and seminarians of the San Rafael Dioccese have protested the prohibition of receiving Communion on the tongue. After a Rosary was interrupted by police, the local bishop closed the diocese’s model seminary with 39 seminarians and more than 150 families associated with the institution, all active Catholics in a region called the “Vendée of the Andes” where Christianity is lived according to the Benedict Option. This is why it is suspected that the moment was exploited to close a thriving community filled with vocations and one which is "too Catholic" for our times.
Communion in the hand: Bishops attacked John Paul II
After the publication of the Instruction Memoriale Domini, Paul VI was subjected to considerable pressure to extend the indult to distribute Communion on the hand, even John Paul II was criticised. As was the case of the Bishop Battazzi of Ivrea who harshly called out Wojtyla.
