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The Vatican has excommunicated "various" members of the Army of Mary, including Father Jean-Pierre Mastropietro, seen here in September, 2001, with Sylvie Payeur-Raynauld, a former Catholic nun . A news release from the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops Sept. 12, said, "Despite repeated warnings by the Bishops of Canada, including Cardinal Marc Ouellet, Archbishop of Quebec City, members of the Army of Mary earlier this year participated in ordinations forbidden by and not recognized by the Catholic Church. The actions obliged the Congregation [for the Doctrine of the Faith] to issue the declaration, it states, because of 'the very grave situation' and given there was no "hope of another solution." In March, Ouellet issued a public warning that those responsible for the Army of Mary had excluded themselves from the communion of the Catholic Church, that its particular teachings were false, and its activities not to be frequented or supported by Catholics. The Army of Mary, based in Lac Etchemin, 100 kms south of Quebec City, was founded by Marie-Paul Giguere in 1981. Many of her supporters believe that Giguere, now in her late 80s, is a living reincarnation of the Virgin Mary. She claims to have received visions from God. |
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The Centre Spiri-Maria retreat house in Quebec is operated by the Army of Mary. |
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The Vatican has accepted the resignation of Archbishop Pius Ncube, as Archbishop of Bulawayo, Zimbabwe. He said Sept. 11 that he resigned because of “a state-driven, vicious attack not just on myself, but by proxy on the Catholic Church in Zimbabwe." He added, "In order to spare my fellow Bishops and the body of the Church any further attacks, I decided this was the best course of action.” Ncube, pictured in Ottawa during a speaking tour last year, is alleged to have had an affair with a married woman over the past two years. |
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Two grandmothers from Africa, Darlina Tyawana, left, and Zodwa Ndlovu were among the speakers at a rally on Parliament Hill Sept. 9 aimed at demonstrating solidarity with African grandmothers who are caring for AIDS orphans. "We have buried our own children and we will not raise our grandchildren for the grave," said Mrs. Tyawana. |
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Elizabeth Mataka of Zambia, who succeeded Stephen Lewis as the United Nations Special Envoy for HIV/AIDS in Africa. speaks at a rally on Parliament Hill Sept. 9 aimed at demonstrating solidarity with African grandmothers who are caring for AIDS orphans. She urged Canadians to press for HIV/AIDS prevention and treatment programs and called the pandemic in Africa, "unprecedented." |
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Conservative senator Consiglio Di Nino is setting up a $10,000 award to honour the MP with the most integrity on Parliament Hill. So far, though, hasn't been able to find anybody willing to serve as a juror to select winners for the annual award, the Ottawa Citizen reported. The wealthy senator wants to put up $250,000 of his own money to underwrite the award in the hopes that it will help "elevate the opinion people have of parliamentarians." |