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Church of England gives green light for women bishops LONDON (RNS) The Church of England will proceed with legislation to allow the ordination of women bishops, despite fierce opposition from Anglican traditionalists. After a marathon, 12-hour debate in York, the church’s General Synod on Monday (July 12) rejected calls for further delays in developing a…

VATICAN CITY (RNS) The Vatican recorded a $5.2 million deficit for 2009 as investment in communication and building upgrades offset revenues from donations, according to new figures from the Holy See. The third consecutive deficit was also attributed to a decline in the property market and the global stock market, where the Vatican has significant…

Associated Press – July 12, 2010 JERUSALEM – Archaeologists say a newly discovered clay fragment from the 14th century B.C. is the oldest example of writing ever found in antiquity-rich Jerusalem. Dig director Eilat Mazar of Hebrew University says the 2-centimeter (0.8-inch) long fragment bears an ancient form of writing known as Akkadian wedge script.…

Associated Press – July 12, 2010 BELFAST, Northern Ireland – Police battled Irish nationalists for control of a Belfast road Monday as a day dominated by peaceful Protestant parades across Northern Ireland turned violent when night fell. Riot police in helmets and body armor dragged kicking, flailing protesters from the pavement of Crumlin Road even…

VATICAN CITY (RNS) Pope Benedict XVI on Friday (July 9) appointed the Vatican’s chief financial auditor, Italian Archbishop Velasio De Paolis, to manage the powerful but scandal-scarred Legionaries of Christ order. The decision comes after an eight-month investigation of the order founded in 1941 by disgraced Mexican priest Marcial Maciel Degollado, who died in 2008.…

Associated Press – July 9, 2010 MINNEAPOLIS – A split decision from Presbyterian leaders on two gay-friendly measures guarantees even more debate among the U.S. church’s members on an issue they’ve been divided over for years. Delegates to the Presbyterian church’s convention in Minneapolis voted Thursday for a more liberal policy on gay clergy but…

VATICAN CITY (RNS) The Roman Catholic Church has brokered a historic deal to release 52 political prisoners in Cuba, following three-way talks between Cuban President Raul Castro, Spanish Foreign Secretary Miguel Angel Moratinos and Havana Cardinal Jaime Ortega. “Five prisoners will be released immediately and will be able to travel to Spain accompanied by their…

LONDON (RNS/ENInews) The contentious issue of women bishops will once again be debated by the Church of England’s General Synod when delegates and bishops convene in York on Friday (July 9), years after the issue was first raised. Christina Rees, a campaigner for the ordination of women bishops in the Church of England, told ENInews,…

Associated Press – July 7, 2010 VATICAN CITY – Pope Benedict XVI will soon issue a document outlining the church’s procedures for handling clerical sex abuse cases that will gather the norms now in use and make them permanent and legally binding, a Vatican official and canon lawyer said Tuesday. The “instruction” from the Congregation…

Associated Press – July 6, 2010 LONDON – The Church of England may be on the verge of promoting a gay priest to bishop, a step that would widen the split over sexuality in the global Anglican Communion. If that happens, it would appear to be a significant turnaround for Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams,…
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