German Cardinal Walter Brandmüller, widely seen as a key opponent of Pope Francis, has penned a rare essay openly criticizing the upcoming Synod of Bishops on the Amazon, saying the official preparatory document breaks with Catholic teaching. According to Brandmüller’s essay, the synod’s recently-published preparatory document “burdens the Synod of Bishops, and finally the Pope, Read more
World
Pope praises Trump meeting with North Korean leader
Monday, July 1st, 2019In what is being dubbed a “surprising development,” U.S. President Donald Trump Sunday became the first American commander-in-chief to set foot in North Korea, at the invitation of Kim Jong Un. According to Pope Francis, speaking shortly after the meeting, it was an example of the “culture of encounter.” “In the last few hours we Read more
Pope’s migrant drowning anguish
Thursday, June 27th, 2019
Photos of a migrant father and young daughter who drowned while trying to cross the Rio Grande from Mexico to enter the United States without legal permission have struck the hearts of many world leaders. The photos show the bodies of Oscar Alberto Martinez Ramirez and his 23-month-old daughter Valeria, who were fleeing from El Read more
Retired bishop replaces Cardinal Barbarin in Lyon
Thursday, June 27th, 2019
Pope Francis has handed the leadership of the Archdiocese of Lyon to a retired bishop after removing Cardinal Philippe Barbarin from the post. Bishop Michel Dubost, 77, now has executive responsibility for governing Lyon, whose archbishop is traditionally known as the “Primate of the Gauls”. He has been appointed as administrator “sede plena et ad Read more
Only a new theology can save the Church
Thursday, June 27th, 2019
One of Germany’s new bishops is calling for a “new theology” as an urgent response to revelations of the clerical abuse of power. “We still haven’t fully realised that the crisis of confidence is charging into the Church’s timberwork with unmitigated force,” Bishop Heiner Wilmer says. He has already drawn criticism from the establishment when, Read more
US nun not welcome at Australian Catholic Conference
Thursday, June 27th, 2019
A well-known American nun, feminist and scholar has been sent an email which she claims tells her not to come to the Catholic education conference she was to have spoken at in Australia next year. The email says the Archbishop of Melbourne, Peter Comensoli, had not endorsed 83-year old Sister Joan Chittister’s invitation. No reason Read more
Jesuits plan to appeal archbishop’s decision
Thursday, June 27th, 2019
Jesuits in the US Midwest plan to appeal a decree that removed a Catholic school’s status because the school’s administrators refused to terminate a teacher in a same-sex marriage. Father Brian Paulson, provincial of the Midwest Province of Jesuits, said the order “will appeal [Archbishop Charles Thompson’s] decision through the formal appeal process established in Read more
Indian court acquits Catholic priest accused of rape
Thursday, June 27th, 2019A court in central India has acquitted a Catholic priest accused of raping a woman in his presbytery after it could not find any merit in the charges filed almost a year ago. A trial court in Bhopal, the capital of Madhya Pradesh state, acquitted 52-year-old Bhopal archdiocesan Father George Jacob on June 21. The Read more
Evangelicals pledge tens of millions to reelect Trump
Thursday, June 27th, 2019Evangelical Christian leaders are promising to pour millions of dollars into President Donald Trump’s reelection campaign. While the politician has continually acted decidedly not Christ-like while in office, his willingness to enact their social agenda in exchange for campaign dollars and votes has won him their continued backing. The Faith and Freedom Coalition has announced Read more