Religious Life, AN African Perspective
The Immaculate Heart Sisters of Africa (IHSA) is a Catholic religious congregation focused on education, evangelization, and empowering vulnerable women and girls, particularly against harmful practices like Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) and child marriages. The cover photo shows a member of the IHSA congregation playing joyfully with children in the Gerald Goldin Memorial Day Care and Nursery School, which they opened in 2022 in Kisarawe, Tanzania.
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POPE: THE NEW YEAR IS ‘A JOURNEY TO BE DISCOVERED
Pope Leo XIV celebrated his first public Mass of 2026 on the Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God, telling believers that Mary has revealed the ‘unarmed and disarming’ face of God.
BY Joseph Tulloch
MAY THE Lord bless you and keep you. May the Lord let his face shine on you and be gracious to you. May the Lord uncover his face to you and bring you peace.” Pope Leo opened the homily at his first Mass of 2026 by reflecting on this blessing from the Book of Numbers. The blessing, he said, was addressed to the people of Israel, who had just been liberated from slavery in Egypt and had been offered a “rebirth,” an “open road toward the future.” In this way, the Pope noted, the day’s liturgy reminds us that “every day can be the beginning of a new life, thanks to God’s generous love, his mercy, and the response of our freedom.” We should thus view the new year, the Pope urged the roughly 5,500 faithful in attendance, as “an open journey to be discovered.”
The day’s liturgy marked both the Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God and the World Day of Peace. In his homily, the Pope explored the tight relationship between the two celebrations. With Mary’s co-operation, he said, God arrived amongst us “naked and defenceless”, a “newborn in a cradle.”
Source: vaticannews.va
CONFLICTS IN ASIA: CATHOLIC COMMUNITIES FOR RECONCILIATION
Amidst high- and low-intensity conflicts that continue to cause death and suffering across the Indian
subcontinent to Southeast Asia, Catholic communities are calling for reconciliation and fraternity.
POPE LEO XIV CREATES NEW CATHOLIC DIOCESE IN MOZAMBIQUE, APPOINTS COMBONI BISHOP AS PIONEER LOCAL ORDINARY
Pope Leo XIV has created the Catholic Diocese of Caia in Mozambique, and appointed Bishop António Manuel Bogaio Constantino, who has been serving as Auxiliary Bishop of the country’s Beira Catholic Archdiocese, as its pioneer Local Ordinary.
SOUTH AFRICA DECLARED GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE A NATIONAL DISASTER. BUT HOW WILL FRONTLINE WORKERS BE KEPT SAFE?
Social workers are often the first to arrive at scenes of gender-based violence and femicide. They often enter unsafe homes without backup or protective equipment
TRADITIONAL HEALERS NEED HUNTERS TO MAKE SAFE, SUSTAINABLE MUTI
Traditional healers often rely on poaching or dodgy markets to obtain medicinal ingredients. Joining hands with the hunting sector is a solution.