The remedy to Church abuse scandals is to ''amputate in order to heal'' a leading member of the Congregation of the Doctrine of the Faith (CDF) has stated.

During a service of reparation for victims of abuse in Rome last weekend, Monsignor Charles J. Scicluna, Promoter for Justice with the CDF offered his own strong assessment of the way forward for the Church, imaging a ''divine surgery'' by which errant priests would be removed rather than offered second chances, for the better of the greater body of the Church.

''How many sins in the Church [happened] because of arrogance, insatiable ambition, abuse of power and injustices committed by those who abuse their ministry to advance their career?'' the monsignor asked.

Msgr Scicluna went on that, in relation to such priests, ''anyone who destroys others through words or deed would have been better off if their misdeeds had caused them to die in secular dress, rather than, through their holy office, being imposed as an example for others in their sins''.

In parallel with this approach of ''divine surgery'' Msgr Scicluna conjured an image of ''preventive medicine'' which he described as solid formation for all future priests so as to thwart any repetition of past scandals.

Beyond such drastic measures, Scicluna also proposed the ''preventive medicine'' of solid formation for future priests, calling on them to be on fire with the faith, making them salt and light for the world.

Italy

Bishops release abuse statistics

For the first time the Conference of Italian Bishops has revealed statistics on the number of clerical abuse cases in the country.

During the bishops' general assembly, Monsignor Mariano Crociata stated that in the last decade, there had been about 100 cases. The monsignor, however, refused to be drawn on the outcome of such cases, or whether they had been reported to police. Italian law does not require bishops to report to police.

While the Italian Church attempts to contain public anger at revelations of abuse, the statistics were released as a 73 year-old priest was arrested for unlawful sex with a 13 year-old boy.

Nevertheless, the bishops have refused to establish a special commission to fully investigate abuse, claiming that Pope Benedict's words on the matter, and his letter to Irish Catholics, act as a sufficient guide for going forward.

2 million visit Turin Shroud

The exposition of the Shroud of Turin has resulted in over two million visitors since April.

Having just closed after its six-week public showing, the Shroud has proved an enduring draw for both the faithful and curious, bringing 2,113,128 people from around the world to its home in Turin Cathedral.

Reacting to the visitor numbers, Cardinal Severino Poletto of Turin said he was delighted and said the mysterious cloth ''gives us the chance to offer faith in a time of confusion and spiritual fog, reconciling in the word of God''.

The shroud will now be returned to its usual spot, out of view, in the left transept of the cathedral.

Korea

Prayers as crisis grows

Catholics on the divided peninsula are being urged to offer prayers for a peaceful resolution to the stand-off between the North and South.

As tensions continued to rise after the North was blamed for the sinking of a South Korean naval vessel with all hands on March 26, Fabiano Choi Hong-jun of the Catholic Lay Apostolate Council of Korea said: ''With Christian faith, we view this as another ordeal on the way toward national reconciliation and we must keep hope. We need to pray for peace and reconciliation.''

Britain

No prosecution in suicide case

A decision not to prosecute a man who assisted his wife's suicide has been attacked by a disabled woman who once considered suicide.

Alison Davis, who now acts as national co-ordinator of the No Less Human group, said the Crown Prosecution Service's failure to proceed against Michael Bateman set a worrying precedent.

''This case makes clear what I suspected when the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) guidelines were first announced, that the killing of disabled or ill people would continue to go unpunished, but that the situation would further threaten the lives of sick and disabled people,'' she said.

Having considered her own act of suicide, Ms Davis explained, she was saved by friends who convinced her that her life still had value.

''I still have extremely severe pain, which is not well controlled, even with morphine,'' Ms Davis explained. ''I changed my mind about wanting to die because my friends helped me, over a long period of time, to realise that my life did have value, and that I could help others despite, or perhaps because, of my own suffering. They were assisted and encouraged by a law that was on the side of life.''

Pro-God

poster row

A campaign to promote belief in God has drawn a record number of complaints to the country's Advertising Standards Authority. The ''There definitely is a God'' bus campaign was formulated by the Christian Party in response to a Richard Dawkins-backed ''no God'' offering previously.

However, the pro-God posters drew the highest number of complaints for any campaign in 2009 and the third highest number in the ASA's history. The anti-God campaign came sixth in the list for most complaints.

The ASA declined to investigate the matter, stating that such ads were outside its remit.

Morocco

Christian expulsions

The country has revealed it has expelled some 100 foreign Christians in recent months on the grounds of proselytism.

Since March, authorities have targeted Christians suspected of proselytising Muslim citizens. Very often, those detained are aid workers.

Ahmed Toufiq, Minister for Religious Endowments and Islamic Affairs, said attempts at conversion ''undermined public order'', and claimed the activities were frequently hidden ''under the guise of other activities''. With a population of nearly 31 million, Morocco has a Christian population of less than one per cent of that number.

Brazil

Priest dies after shooting

A priest has died of wounds he received in a shooting.

Father Rubens de Almeida Goncalves, who was 35, is reported to have been shot in the head when he refused permission to lease his parish hall. Police are investigating the claim.

In a statement, the priest's diocese, Porto Nacional, said: ''Father Rubens died in the full exercise of his priestly ministry, which has always been marked by missionary zeal and faith in the risen Christ. All the communities for which he worked offered their testimony on his passionate commitment to his mission of evangelisation.''