hope
A GROUP of five "eminent Church persons" from the World Council of Churches said this week that the cycle of violence in South Africa can only be broken by the creation of an Inclusive "interim government". The group, which is backed by the Vatican, said the interim administration would oversee the introduction of a new democratic system in South Africa.
Child slaves
THE Pontifical Council for the Family convened an international meeting last week in the Thai capital, Bangkok. A statement condemned the sexual exploitation of children through prostitution as a "contemporary form of slavery which exploits and degrades the for profit and preys on those least able to defend themselves". CARDINAL Joseph Bernadin of Chicago, which has been rocked by a child sex abuse scandal of giant proportions, this week outlined new guidelines for dealing with priests accused of abusing children.
Vietnam trip
THE Vatican is planning to send a delegation to Vietnam this autumn to discuss Church life and the appointment of bishops in the country. The team will be headed by Mgr Claudio Celli, a top official of the Vatican Secretariat of State.
Cardinal dies
CARDINAL Jaques Martin, the French prelate who served under six popes, died in Rome this week at the age of 84. He headed the Vatican's Secretariat of State under Pope Pius XII, Pope John XXIII and Pope Paul VI.