Church News

MANILA, March 11, 2010 -"The stand of the Church on contraceptives can't be compromised."

This was the statement of Msgr. Pedro Quitorio, Media Director of the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) to a women group insisting that the Church change its stand on condoms.

"If contraceptives are immoral, nothing can change that. If the church teaches it's immoral nothing can change that, not even the vote of the whole country can change that. The Church does not compromise its teachings," he said.

VATICAN, March 12, 2010-- When a priest sees himself as nothing more than a "social agent," he runs the risk of betraying the priesthood itself, says Benedict XVI.

The Pope said this today upon receiving in audience the participants in the International Theological Conference "Fidelity of Christ, Fidelity of the Priest," organized by the Congregation for Clergy.

The two-day event ended today, which was attended by more than 50 bishops and over 500 priests and was organized around the theme of the Year for Priests.

Naga City (3 March 2010) --  Pope Benedict XVI has granted the honorary title "Papal Chaplain" to four priests of the Archdiocese of Caceres which is celebrating 300 years of devotion to Our Lady of Peñafrancia.

Raised to the title of "Papal Chaplain" were Fr. Jeffrey Nelson B. Tria, parish priest of San Francisco Parish, Naga City; Fr. Noe P. Badiola, parish priest of St. Francis of Assisi Parish, Buhi Camarines Sur; Fr. Jose Roberto Z. Carpio, Rector of the Holy Rosary Major Seminary; and Fr. Peter Romeo M. Beriña, Rector of the Holy Rosary Minor Seminary.

MANILA, February 25, 2010-A Special Education (SpEd) Convention attended by teachers, parents, volunteers and organizations advocating persons with disabilities was convoked Saturday.

It was convened by the Episcopal Commission on Health Care (ECHC) of the Catholic Bishops' Conference of the Philippines on February 20, 2010 at the Paco Catholic School in Manila.

The organizers pointed out the urgency of teaching and forming children with special needs at an early age.

Naga City (18 February 2010) -- The Commission on Biblical Apostolate (ComBibliA) headed by Fr. Jose Roberto Carpio held a Biblical Conference and Workshop at the Holy Rosary Major Seminary on February 6, 2010, attended by 70 lectors and catechists of the 16 parishes of the Archdiocese of Caceres and one religious congregation.

MANILA, Feb. 18, 2010-Pope Benedict XVI has appointed Fr. Jose Araneta-Cabantan as the new Bishop of Malaybalay in Bukidnon province.

The bishop-elect succeeds Bishop Honesto Pacana, whose resignation was accepted by the pontiff, upon having reached the age limit of 75.

The priest's appointment was released in the Vatican at high noon Thursday, Rome time. It was announced simultaneously in Manila, at 6 p.m. by the Archbishop Edward Joseph Adams, apostolic nuncio to the Philippines.

MANILA, Feb. 18, 2010- The head of Manila's Catholic Church said condoms are not the answer to the country's fight against HIV and describing as "narrow-minded" the government's response to it.

Gaudencio Cardinal Rosales said condoms will never solve the AIDS epidemic and could make the problem even worse.

Rosales assailed the Department of Health (DOH), saying they are being instrumental to the deterioration of the morals of the society, especially the youth.

VATICAN, Feb. 11, 2010-- The fact that human beings must endure illness, grow old and experience pain in body and spirit is a mystery that all the major religious seek to understand, said speakers at a Vatican conference.

Representatives of various faiths who gathered at the Vatican Feb. 9 to discuss the nature of illness and the care of the sick also agreed that faith and spirituality help people find meaning in human suffering and that faith offers a comfort that physical or medical solutions cannot provide.

MANILA, Feb. 9, 2010-A poll watchdog vowed to keep an eye on the conduct of the country's first ever automated in May to prevent massive fraud.

With the elections barely three months away, the National Movement for Free Elections (Namfrel) said the capabilities of the new system have not been fully established.

"People are understandably nervous that many things could go wrong or that it would simply facilitate wholesale cheating," Namfrel said in a statement released Tuesday.