Mumbai: The Catholic Secular Forum (CSF) on Sunday hailed the appointment of Mumbai's Cardinal Oswald Gracias by Pope Francis as one of his advisors in the Vatican.
Cardinal Gracias, 68, was among the eight high-ranking advisors appointed on Saturday by the new Pope to an advisory council to look into ways of reforming the Vatican bureaucracy.
CSF, a Mumbai-based Catholic NGO, said: "There could be no better person than Cardinal Oswald... he currently also heads the Federation of Asian Bishops Conference and hence speaks not just for the Indian sub-continent but also other countries in the region," CSF general secretary Joseph Dias said.
"Cardinal Oswald's qualifications and experience will stand him in good stead. It is also indicative of the priorities of the new Pope Francis, who is determined to set his house right, in the midst of many controversies and challenges," he added....
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05:27 AM, Apr 15, 2013
Vatican City: India's Oswald Gracias was among eight high-ranking cardinals from around the world who were on Saturday appointed by Pope Francis in an advisory council to look into ways of reforming the Vatican bureaucracy. The council will help the Pope revise the Apostolic Constitution on the Roman Curia Pastor bonus - the Church administration which helps him in the daily governance, the Vatican said in a statement. Pope John...
06:34 PM, Apr 13, 2013
Cardinal George Alencherry said the Church was already open to the reality of electing a pope that was outside Europe. ...
10:25 AM, Mar 17, 2013
A South African cardinal who helped elect Pope Francis this week has told the BBC paedophilia is an illness and not a crime. Cardinal Wilfrid Fox Napier, the Catholic Archbishop of Durban, told BBC Radio 5 on Saturday that paedophilia was a "disorder" that needed to be treated. ...
10:34 PM, Mar 16, 2013
Pope Francis, the former Cardinal Jorge Bergoglio of Argentina, delivered his first blessing to a huge crowd in St Peter's Square on Wednesday night, asking for the prayers of "all men and women of good will" to help him lead the Catholic Church. ...
06:27 AM, Mar 14, 2013
Jorge Mario Bergoglio of Argentina was elected in a surprise choice to be the new leader of the troubled Roman Catholic Church on Wednesday, and said he would take the name Francis I. ...
01:09 AM, Mar 14, 2013
Cardinals elected Jorge Mario Bergoglio of Argentina as the new Pope. The new pontiff has chosen to be called Pope Francis. ...
11:52 PM, Mar 13, 2013
Black smoke billowed from the Sistine Chapel for a second day on Wednesday after a secret conclave of cardinals held two more inconclusive votes for a new Pope to lead the troubled Roman Catholic Church. Following an initial split ballot when they were first shut away amid the chapel's Renaissance splendour on Tuesday evening, the 115 cardinal electors held a first full day of deliberations but many Vatican watchers expected...
10:50 PM, Mar 13, 2013
After a first inconclusive vote, Cardinals began the process of choosing a new pope in earnest on Wednesday, praying for inspiration at the start of the first full day in a conclave to choose a leader to face a major crisis in the Catholic Church. ...
04:00 PM, Mar 13, 2013
Over the past century, no conclave has lasted more than five days and the fastest vote was for Pope Pius XII. Twice prelates from North America missed the vote because they couldn't get to Rome in time, and a Hungarian cardinal sat out two conclaves because he was holed up in the US Embassy in Budapest seeking asylum. ...
05:24 PM, Mar 12, 2013
Roman Catholic Cardinals begin a conclave on Tuesday to elect the Church's 266th pontiff and a successor to Pope Benedict, who abdicated unexpectedly in February. The 115 cardinal electors under the age of 80 prayed for divine help on Tuesday, hours before entering the frescoed Sistine Chapel on Tuesday afternoon. ...
04:37 PM, Mar 12, 2013
Roman Catholic cardinals gather under the gaze of Michelangelo's "Last Judgment" on Tuesday to elect a new pope to tackle the daunting problems facing the 1.2-billion-member Church at one of the most difficult periods in its history. ...
02:58 PM, Mar 12, 2013
Cardinals entered the Sistine Chapel on Tuesday to elect the next pope amid more upheaval and uncertainty than the Catholic Church has seen in decades: There's no front-runner, no indication how long voting will last and no sense that a single man has what it takes to fix the many problems. ...
12:25 PM, Mar 12, 2013
Roman Catholic cardinals gather under the gaze of Michelangelo's "Last Judgment" on Tuesday to elect a new pope to tackle the daunting problems facing the 1.2-billion-member Church. ...
07:10 AM, Mar 12, 2013
Cardinals have gathered for their final day of talks before the conclave to elect the next pope amid debate over whether the Catholic Church needs a manager pope to clean up the Vatican's messy bureaucracy or a pastoral pope who can inspire the faithful and make Catholicism relevant again. ...
05:10 PM, Mar 11, 2013
As the last of the 115 cardinal electors arrived in Rome, speculation has mounted that the cardinals would soon set a date for the start of the conclave to appoint Pope Benedict's successor. ...
11:08 AM, Mar 08, 2013
Vatican officials on Wednesday told cardinals gathered for the election of the next pope to stop speaking to the media, as further indications emerged that a conclave would not start early next week as had been expected. ...
06:15 AM, Mar 07, 2013
Cardinals have gathered in Vatican City to work on a timetable to choose the next pope amidst sex abuse scandals that have resurfaced to haunt the church. ...
09:10 AM, Mar 05, 2013
Cardinals said on Monday they want to talk to Vatican managers about allegations of corruption and cronyism within the top levels of the Catholic Church before they elect the next pope, evidence that a scandal over leaked papal documents is casting a shadow over the conclave and setting up one of the most unpredictable papal elections in recent times. ...
05:06 AM, Mar 05, 2013
reparations for electing Roman Catholicism's new leader begin in earnest on Monday as the College of Cardinals opens daily talks to sketch an identikit for the next pope and ponder who among them might fit it. The idea is to have the new pope elected during next week and officially installed several days later so he can preside over the Holy Week ceremonies starting with Palm Sunday on March 24...
11:25 AM, Mar 04, 2013
