Shrines around the World: Our Lady of Lebanon
Where’s that: In Harissa, near the city of Jounieh. Our Lady’s connection: Our Lady of Lebanon is a symbol of the country’s religious and cultural identity, and...
Gunther Simmermacher
May Relics Be Sold?
Question: Recently, I discovered a relic of St John Bosco, apparently a piece of bone within a reliquary, for sale online by a trader from Cape Town....
Some Famous Benedictines
There have been 17 Benedictine popes — and none of them took the name Benedict. The first of them was Pope St Gregory the Great (590-604). Gregory...
Shrines around the World: Our Lady of Africa, Algeria
Where’s that: Algiers, the capital of mainly Muslim Algeria. Our Lady’s connection: A statue of Mary as a black woman. Our Lady of Africa calls us to...
Leo XIV: The First Pop Age Pope
Dear Reader, With this issue we welcome our new Holy Father, Pope Leo XIV. The long turnaround of printing and distributing The Southern Cross meant that our June...
The Story of the Council of Nicaea
This year marks 1700 years since the first Council of Nicaea was convened. Günther Simmermacher tells the story of how a battle against a heresy gave us...
Why Didn’t Everybody Believe in the Resurrection?
Question: Why was something so amazing like the resurrection of Christ not enough to convert all the people of Jerusalem and beyond, including the Jewish and Roman...
Shrines around the World: Our Lady of Mariazell, Austria
Where’s that? In Styria province, southern Austria. Our Lady’s connection: A miraculous wooden statue. The Marian sanctuary of Mariazell is the national shrine of traditionally Catholic Austria...
Busy Month of Jubilees
Dear Reader, The Church’s busy Jubilee schedule is especially full in June, with eight separate celebrations taking place in Rome. As we do every month, we bring...
Skop, Skiet and Saints
Dear Reader, On May 11, the Church will observe the World Day of Prayer for Vocations. The primary focus of this day is our prayerful desire to...
