More than 40 priests in the Central African Republic launched a one-day strike to protest the appointment of a new apostolic administrator after an investigation of priests' celibacy led to the resignation of their archbishop, Mgr Pomodimo. The priests from the Archdiocese of Bangui resumed celebrating Mass on May 28 after meeting the previous day and deciding to suspend their pastoral activities.

Pope Benedict XVI accepted the resignation of Archbishop Paulin Pomodimo, 54, following an investigation into priests of his diocese who live more or less openly with women and the children they have fathered. Passionist Father Ciro Benedettini, vice-director of the Vatican press office, said Mgr Pomodimo resigned because of "insurmountable difficulties in running the diocese".

Healthcare for immigrants

In a May 20 letter to members of the US House of Representatives, Bishop William Murphy - writing in his capacity as chairman of the Domestic Justice and Human Development committee for the US Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) - argues that the Federal government should ensure "comprehensive and affordable health care for every person living in the US".

Bishop Murphy writes that individuals' access to comprehensive coverage should not depend on "where they live or where they come from". The Catholic World News commented that those two sentences seem clearly to signal support for coverage that would be extended to people living in the US illegally.

Fight spiritual pollution

Pope Benedict said that just as the human body is threatened by breathing polluted air, the human soul is threatened by images and ideas that glorify violence or the exploitation of others. The Pope was giving a homily on the feast of Pentecost. The Holy Spirit, which was poured out on the disciples at Pentecost and available to every follower of Jesus for all time, is the "healthy air" of love, the Pope said.

Compiled by Fr Joe Borg