Milton Martin, 56, of First Pentecostal Church of Chalmette, accused of abuse of girl, now 28, who was member of congregation
Authorities in Louisiana have charged a Pentecostal pastor with sexually molesting a teenage girl who was a member of his church.
Milton O Martin III, 56, faces one charge each of felony carnal knowledge of a juvenile – colloquially referred to as statutory rape – and of indecent behavior with a minor, records obtained by the Guardian show.
Continue reading...Scandal-plagued PwC would determine payout rates under scheme proposed by Catholic Church Insurance in effort to avoid insolvency
The Catholic church insurer wants to establish a scheme that would stave off its own insolvency by paying church bodies only a fraction of the money owed to abuse survivors at rates to be determined by the scandal-plagued consultancy PwC, documents show.
Catholic Church Insurance is facing significant financial turmoil due to the rising volume of abuse claims, estimating it has $381m in liabilities relating to professional standards payouts to various church entities, including dioceses and church-aligned charities.
Continue reading...Anglicans in West Bank say they are ‘utterly perplexed’ by archbishop of Canterbury’s statements on Israel-Hamas war
Palestinian Christians have accused Justin Welby, the archbishop of Canterbury, of “relegating” their plight behind “British domestic political and ecumenical considerations” in his comments on the Israel-Hamas war.
An open letter from Anglican parishioners in the West Bank says they are “utterly perplexed” by Welby’s public statements.
Continue reading...Vatican did not say why Grzegorz Kaszak was resigning, but priest from his diocese faced criminal investigation
The pope has accepted the resignation of a Polish bishop whose diocese has been rocked by reports of a gay orgy involving a male sex worker in a priest’s apartment, as well as previous violent incidents involving his clergy.
The Vatican did not give a reason why Grzegorz Kaszak was resigning as head of the diocese of Sosnowiec, in south-western Poland. At 59, he is several years shy of the normal retirement age of 75.
Continue reading...Intimidating behaviour beside procession of worshippers seen as another sign of victimisation and was condemned by Netanyahu
A video of ultra-Orthodox Jews spitting on the ground beside a procession of foreign Christian worshippers carrying a wooden cross in the holy city of Jerusalem has ignited intense outrage and a flurry of condemnation in the Holy Land.
The spitting incident, which the city’s minority Christian community lamented as the latest in an alarming surge of religiously motivated attacks, drew rare outrage on Tuesday from the Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, and other senior figures.
Continue reading...Pontiff says rescuing those making Mediterranean crossings is a ‘duty of humanity’ on first visit by a pope to Marseille in 500 years
Pope Francis has decried what he called the “fanaticism of indifference” as people risked their lives on dangerous journeys by boat from north Africa to Europe, amid growing political debate over migration.
Opening an overnight visit to Marseille, the pontiff presided over a silent moment of prayer at a memorial dedicated to sailors and people who died at sea, surrounded by faith leaders and migrant rescue organisations from the Mediterranean port city.
Continue reading...Ulma family including unborn child all beatified for their actions to help Jews during second world war
The Vatican has beatified a Polish family of nine – a married couple and their small children – who were executed by the Nazis during the second world war for sheltering Jews.
During a ceremonious mass in the village of Markowa, in south-east Poland, the papal envoy Cardinal Marcello Semeraro read out the Latin formula of the beatification of the Ulma family signed last month by Pope Francis.
Continue reading...Gregory Aymond’s letter contradicts promises made to schools and churches when archdiocese declared bankruptcy in May 2020
Contradicting promises he made when his archdiocese declared bankruptcy in May 2020, New Orleans’s archbishop, Gregory Aymond, told the area’s Catholic churches, schools and other ministries that they will now have to share some of the costs of resolving hundreds of clergy abuse claims.
Aymond’s notice came in a letter on Friday, at the end of a particularly bad news week for his organization. One day earlier, a grand jury in New Orleans indicted the retired archdiocesan priest Lawrence Hecker on charges of aggravated rape, aggravated kidnapping, aggravated crime against nature and theft.
Continue reading...Lawrence Hecker, 91, charged with first-degree rape two months after Guardian report on 1999 statement in which he admitted ‘overtly sexual acts’
A retired Catholic priest from New Orleans who years ago secretly admitted to church leaders that he sexually molested or harassed numerous children is now facing criminal charges.
State prosecutors in New Orleans obtained an indictment charging Lawrence Hecker, 91, on Thursday with aggravated rape, aggravated kidnapping, aggravated crime against nature and theft.
In the US, call or text the Childhelp abuse hotline on 800-422-4453 or visit their website for more resources and to report child abuse or DM for help. For adult survivors of child abuse, help is available at ascasupport.org. In the UK, the NSPCC offers support to children on 0800 1111, and adults concerned about a child on 0808 800 5000. The National Association for People Abused in Childhood (Napac) offers support for adult survivors on 0808 801 0331. In Australia, children, young adults, parents and teachers can contact the Kids Helpline on 1800 55 1800, or Bravehearts on 1800 272 831, and adult survivors can contact Blue Knot Foundation on 1300 657 380. Other sources of help can be found at Child Helplines International
Continue reading...Lawyers say strategy a ‘matter of continuing concern’ after church succeeds in permanently blocking claim by two Indigenous men
Lawyers for two Indigenous abuse survivors have called for reforms to address the “horrendous” Catholic church strategy of seeking to permanently block cases where alleged paedophile priests have died.
On Wednesday, the church was successful in permanently blocking a claim made by two Indigenous survivors relating to alleged abuse committed by David Joseph Perrett, an Armidale assistant priest and convicted child abuser, whose crimes the church has known about since 1995.
Continue reading...Number of evangelical chaplains has increased in recent years despite majority of Australian defence force personnel not being religious
Defence must recruit secular alternatives to religious chaplains or face increasing risks to its members’ health and wellbeing, according to a former top military recruiter.
Col Phillip Hoglin, now a reservist and military researcher, said the Australian defence force (ADF) is becoming less religious, but has only a handful of secular support officers.
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Continue reading...Christian family accused of desecrating copy of Qur’an, setting off rampage in Faisalabad
Hundreds of Muslim men have attacked a Christian community in eastern Pakistan, vandalising several churches and a cemetery and setting scores of houses on fire, after accusing its members of desecrating a copy of the Qur’an.
Hundreds of people armed with sticks and rocks stormed a predominantly Christian area in Faisalabad on Wednesday. Images on social media showed smoke rising from church buildings and people setting fire to furniture.
Continue reading...Stamp for papers that enabled ‘fast-track’ through purgatory will be on show at a Hampshire priory
A seal matrix used to authenticate medieval indulgences and offer a fast track to heaven in exchange for cash is to go on display at a Hampshire priory after spending 500 years buried in a field.
The small carved mould, dating between 1470 and 1520, was found by a metal detectorist two miles from Mottisfont, an Augustine priory and site of pilgrimage near Romsey, Hampshire, that is now owned by the National Trust.
Continue reading...As violence between the Meitei and Kuki communities continues in north-east India, campaigners criticise the authorities’ reaction and both sides warn of civil war
Manipur is a state in north-east India with a population of more than three million. It has been embroiled in an ethnic conflict since early May, fought between the majority Meitei community and the minority Kuki tribe.
Continue reading...Archbishop of Canterbury says he had a messy childhood due to alcoholism in the family but he loved Jane Williams deeply
The archbishop of Canterbury has paid tribute to his mother, Jane Williams, who has died at 93, saying she had “lived a full human life, with all its ups and downs”.
Justin Welby said it had been “a privilege to be her son. I am the person I am in part because of her love, example and encouragement.”
Continue reading...Patrick Wattigny, former high school chaplain who resigned in 2020, pleads guilty to molesting two minors at school
The former chaplain of a Roman Catholic high school in Louisiana has pleaded guilty to molesting two minors whom he met through his work and was ordered to spend five years in prison.
Patrick Wattigny’s plea and sentence on Wednesday came after both of his victims strongly advocated for a harsher punishment. One victim, who was present, described how Wattigny spent time grooming him in the mid-1990s. The victim said Wattigny told him he could help him gain entry to heaven, then took him to a rectory to fondle his genitals. Wattigny also used his fingers to rape the victim while masturbating.
Continue reading...Stephen Cottrell tells General Synod ‘mistakes have been made’, while sacked safeguarding board member says ‘we did our job too well’
The archbishop of York has said there is a “crisis of safeguarding” within the Church of England after its executive disbanded an independent body on abuse.
Stephen Cottrell told the C of E’s ruling body, the General Synod, on Sunday that “mistakes have been made” and that Jesus would be weeping at the events of recent weeks. “We recognise things have gone wrong,” he said. “This is a watershed moment for us. We can’t get this wrong again.”
Continue reading...Call for high fees to be scrapped as church marriages fall by half in England and Wales between 1999 and 2019
High fees are putting church weddings beyond the reach of many couples and should be scrapped or set at a nominal amount, according to clergy in one of the most deprived areas of England.
Marriage fees, which can be as high as £641, are a contributory factor to the decline in church weddings, they claim. A proposal to be debated this week at the Church of England’s ruling body, the General Synod, calls for fees to be abolished or reduced to a minimal amount “in order to demonstrate the church’s commitment to marriage and pastoral care”.
Continue reading...Archbishop of York tells General Synod that ‘Our Father’ has patriarchal connotations
The archbishop of York has suggested that opening words of the Lord’s Prayer, recited by Christians all over the world for 2,000 years, may be “problematic” because of their patriarchal association.
In his opening address to a meeting of the Church of England’s ruling body, the General Synod, Stephen Cottrell dwelt on the words “Our Father”, the start of the prayer based on Matthew 6:9–13 and Luke 11:2–4 in the New Testament.
Continue reading...‘He understands Julian is suffering and is concerned,’ says Stella Assange after audience with pontiff
Pope Francis has met Stella Assange, the wife of the imprisoned WikiLeaks founder, who said the pope’s gesture in receiving her was evidence of his “ongoing show of support for our family’s plight” and concern over the suffering of her husband, Julian.
After the audience, Stella Assange said Francis had sent a letter to her husband in March 2021, during a particularly difficult period. “He has provided great solace and comfort and we are extremely appreciative for his reaching out to our family in this way,” she told the Associated Press. “He understands that Julian is suffering and is concerned.”
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