On Sunday the Vatican published a personal letter Pope Francis wrote to Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew of Constantinople suggesting the leaders' gathering.

That same day Cardinal Kurt Koch — who heads the Dicastery for Promoting Christian Unity — hand-delivered the letter to Patriarch Bartholomew during his visit to Istanbul for the Orthodox Church's patronal feast of St Andrew.

"The now imminent 1,700th anniversary ... will be another opportunity to bear witness to the growing communion that already exists among all who are baptised in the name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit" Francis wrote to Bartholomew.

Reflecting on six decades of Catholic-Orthodox dialogue while looking ahead to future possibilities for unity, Francis was positive.

He acknowledged the progress made since Vatican II's Unitatis Redintegratio decree marked the Catholic Church's official entry into the ecumenical movement 60 years ago.

Koch is firm that efforts toward unity must focus on "the innermost centre of self-revelation in Jesus Christ".

There must be an "ecumenism of blood" he says.

"Christians are not persecuted because they are Catholic, Lutheran or Anglican but because they are Christian."

Building peace in a time of war

While celebrating the "renewed fraternity" which Catholic-Orthodox communities had achieved since Vatican II, Francis also wrote in his letter to Bartholomew that full communion, particularly sharing "the one Eucharistic chalice", remains an unfulfilled goal.

Speaking of contemporary global tensions, Francis pointedly connected ecumenical efforts to peace-building.

"The fraternity lived and the witness given by Christians will also be a message for our world plagued by war and violence" his letter says. He specifically mentioned several war-torn countries by name, including Ukraine, Palestine, Israel and Lebanon.

He also highlighted Orthodox representatives' recent participation in October's Synod on Synodality.

The traditional Catholic-Orthodox exchange of delegations occurs twice a year. Catholic representatives travel to Istanbul for St Andrew's feast on November 30 and Orthodox delegates visit Rome for the feast of Sts Peter and Paul on June 29.

The delegation participated in the Divine Liturgy at the Patriarchal Church of St George, Phanar. It also held discussions with the synodal commission charged with relations with the Catholic Church.

Source

• CNA

They must find ways "to get by" Father Augustine Anwuchie from Nigeria said on July 19.

He was speaking during the latest of a series of digital meetings with theologians and other experts in Africa.

The meetings aim to deepen understanding of the Synod on Synodality 2023 synthesis report.

Better formation needed

Anwuchie said he wants institutions forming future priests to encourage better communication. He decried the "lack of authenticity" in priestly formation in Africa.

"I saw ‘survival mentality' where seminarians, because of how formation is structured, adopt ways to survive around their formators — how to survive around bishops, around Christians and in Christian communities.

"I have been a vice-rector at a seminary and I saw a lack of openness. You see lack of authenticity."

Copying everything that is done in Europe is unnecessary, he said. There are aspects formators in Africa can borrow from other places though.

These include encouraging openness, communication and authenticity with seminarians. Priests who are not formed "to be authentic" find relating to other Christians difficult.

"Instead of becoming men, we continue to live as boys and this is not helping in our pastoral work."

Many major seminaries in Africa neglect aspects of human formation and the expansion of emotional intelligence, he said.

Seminarians are taught what they "ought to do" and how they "ought to behave". They then become reactive to situations, which continues when they become priests, he said.

Crises between clergy and laity in most African parishes stem from having "emotional intelligence" overlooked during their formation.

Connecting with the synod

During the online meeting participants concentrated on the theme "The Revision of Ratio Fundamentalis Institutionis Sacerdotalis in a Missionary Synodal Perspective".

In this they were guided by the December 2015 document of the Vatican Congregation for the Clergy translated as "The Gift of the Priestly Vocation".

Structuring their discussions around present-day seminary formation in Africa, participants considered what does and does not work according to their experiences in different parts of Africa.

Priests overwhelmed

Ugandan-born Sister Dominica Dipio told the online meeting there is a disconnect between seminaries and the life of priests in parishes and communities.

Dipio - a consultor of the Pontifical Council for Culture and university professor - is concerned that many priests do not continue with formation.

It should be ongoing, meeting participants agreed.

Dipio told the online meeting that most priests she meets are overwhelmed and quickly burn out.

"They hardly have time to engage in their own formation, which is supposed to be ongoing" she said.

"I have met priests in retreats who have for years not had the experience of retreat.

"The involvement in mission takes all their time and burns them out" Dipio said.

She wants bishops to allow priests "to reconnect with God as the centre".

Cape Town's Cardinal Stephen Brislin reminded participants that ongoing priestly formation is a matter each episcopal see and religious order is responsible for.

Seminarians should be involved in the joys and struggles of ordinary people, he said.

Source

• CNA

"Urbi et orbi" means "To the city [of Rome] and to the world." I

t is a special apostolic blessing given by the pope every year on Easter Sunday, Christmas, and other special occasions.

Here is the full text of the pope's blessing:

Dear brothers and sisters: Happy Easter!

Today throughout the world there resounds the message proclaimed 2,000 years ago from Jerusalem: "Jesus of Nazareth, who was crucified, has been raised!" (Mk 16:6).

The Church relives the amazement of the women who went to the tomb at dawn on the first day of the week. The tomb of Jesus had been sealed with a great stone.

Today too, great stones, heavy stones, block the hopes of humanity: the stone of war, the stone of humanitarian crises, the stone of human rights violations, the stone of human trafficking, and other stones as well.

Like the women disciples of Jesus, we ask one another: "Who will roll away the stone for us from the entrance to the tomb?" (cf. Mk 16:3).

This is the amazing discovery of that Easter morning: The stone, the immense stone, was rolled away.

The astonishment of the women is our astonishment as well: The tomb of Jesus is open, and it is empty!

From this, everything begins anew!

A new path leads through that empty tomb: The path that none of us, but God alone, could open: the path of life in the midst of death, the path of peace in the midst of war, the path of reconciliation in the midst of hatred, the path of fraternity in the midst of hostility.

Brothers and sisters, Jesus Christ is risen! He alone has the power to roll away the stones that block the path to life.

He, the living One, is himself that path.

He is the Way: the way that leads to life, the way of peace, reconciliation, and fraternity.

He opens that path, humanly impossible, because he alone takes away the sin of the world and forgives us our sins. For without God's forgiveness, that stone cannot be removed.

Without the forgiveness of sins, there is no overcoming the barriers of prejudice, mutual recrimination, the presumption that we are always right and others wrong.

Only the risen Christ, by granting us the forgiveness of our sins, opens the way for a renewed world.

Jesus alone opens up before us the doors of life, those doors that continually we shut with the wars spreading throughout the world.

Today we want, first and foremost, to turn our eyes to the holy city of Jerusalem, that witnessed the mystery of the passion, death, and resurrection of Jesus, and to all the Christian communities of the Holy Land.

Victims of conflict

My thoughts go especially to the victims of the many conflicts worldwide, beginning with those in Israel and Palestine, and in Ukraine.

May the risen Christ open a path of peace for the war-torn peoples of those regions.

In calling for respect for the principles of international law, I express my hope for a general exchange of all prisoners between Russia and Ukraine: all for the sake of all!

I appeal once again that access to humanitarian aid be ensured to Gaza, and call once more for the prompt release of the hostages seized on 7 October last and for an immediate cease-fire in the Strip.

Let us not allow the current hostilities to continue to have grave repercussions on the civil population, by now at the limit of its endurance, and above all on the children.

How much suffering we see in the eyes of the children: The children in those lands at war have forgotten how to smile!

With those eyes, they ask us: Why? Why all this death? Why all this destruction?

War is always an absurdity, war is always a defeat!

Let us not allow the strengthening winds of war to blow on Europe and the Mediterranean.

Let us not yield to the logic of weapons and rearming. Peace is never made with arms, but with outstretched hands and open hearts.

Brothers and sisters, let us not forget Syria, which for 13 years has suffered from the effects of a long and devastating war.

So many deaths and disappearances, so much poverty and destruction call for a response on the part of everyone, and of the international community.

My thoughts turn today in a special way to Lebanon, which has for some time experienced institutional impasse and a deepening economic and social crisis, now aggravated by the hostilities on its border with Israel.

May the risen Lord console the beloved Lebanese people and sustain the entire country in its vocation to be a land of encounter, coexistence, and pluralism.

I also think in particular of the region of the Western Balkans, where significant steps are being taken toward integration in the European project.

May ethnic, cultural, and confessional differences not be a cause of division but rather a source of enrichment for all of Europe and for the world as a whole.

I likewise encourage the discussions taking place between Armenia and Azerbaijan, so that, with the support of the international community, they can pursue dialogue, assist the displaced, respect the places of worship of the various religious confessions, and arrive as soon as possible at a definitive peace agreement.

The risen Christ

May the risen Christ open a path of hope to all those who in other parts of the world are suffering from violence, conflict, food insecurity, and the effects of climate change.

May the Lord grant consolation to the victims of terrorism in all its forms. Let us pray for all those who have lost their lives and implore the repentance and conversion of the perpetrators of those crimes.

May the risen Lord assist the Haitian people, so that there can soon be an end to the acts of violence, devastation, and bloodshed in that country, and that it can advance on the path to democracy and fraternity.

May Christ grant consolation and strength to the Rohingya, beset by a grave humanitarian crisis, and open a path to reconciliation in Myanmar, torn for years now by internal conflicts, so that every logic of violence may be definitively abandoned.

May the Lord open paths of peace on the African continent, especially for the suffering peoples in Sudan and in the entire region of the Sahel, in the Horn of Africa, in the region of Kivu in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and in the province of Capo Delgado in Mozambique, and bring an end to the prolonged situation of drought, which affects vast areas and provokes famine and hunger.

May the Risen One make the light of his face shine upon migrants and on all those who are passing through a period of economic difficulty, and offer them consolation and hope in their moment of need.

Be of goodwill

May Christ guide all persons of goodwill to unite themselves in solidarity, in order to address together the many challenges that loom over the poorest families in their search for a better life and happiness.

On this day when we celebrate the life given us in the resurrection of the Son, let us remember the infinite love of God for each of us: a love that overcomes every limit and every weakness.

And yet how much the precious gift of life is despised!

How many children cannot even be born? How many die of hunger and are deprived of essential care or are victims of abuse and violence?

How many lives are made objects of trafficking for the increasing commerce in human beings?

This is the day

Brothers and sisters, on the day when Christ has set us free from the slavery of death, I appeal to all who have political responsibilities to spare no efforts in combatting the scourge of human trafficking, by working tirelessly to dismantle the networks of exploitation, and to bring freedom to those who are their victims.

May the Lord comfort their families, above all those who anxiously await news of their loved ones, and ensure them comfort and hope.

May the light of the Resurrection illuminate our minds and convert our hearts, and make us aware of the value of every human life, which must be welcomed, protected, and loved.

A happy Easter to all!

• Pope Francis was elected to the papacy in 2013. He is the first Jesuit and the first Latin American to become pope.

Heidi Crowter says the current legislation discriminates against people with disabilities. It allows abortion up to birth if the foetus has a condition such as Down syndrome.

"I am taking this case to Strasbourg because it is downright discrimination that people with disabilities are treated differently," she says.

Crowter, a 27-year-old mother, has been actively campaigning against the legislation on social media to no avail.

She is preparing to appeal to the ECHR this week because England's Supreme Court refused to hear her case.

Crowter has campaigned for a law change since 2018. It was then she joined a legal challenge brought by a mother whose son has Down syndrome.

She argues the law's message is that people with disabilities are not valued equally and that it violates their human rights.

"In 2023, we live in a society where disabled people are valued equally after birth but not in the womb," she says.

The UK government defends the law as a balance between women's and unborn children's rights.

Abortion is a personal choice and women should have access to safe and legal services, the government argues.

The Court of Appeal ruled last November that the law was not unlawful and did not interfere with the rights of those who live with disabilities.

Growing support for Crowter

Disability-rights groups and pro-life organisations support Crowter's case.

Ross Hendry, CEO of CARE, a Christian charity that advocates for life issues, has this to say:

"It is completely wrong that disability is a ground for abortion up to birth. Would we accept a law allowing babies to be aborted to term based on their sex, or their race? The current approach sends a message that the lives of people with disabilities are worth less than others."

Lynn Murray, spokesperson for Don't Screen Us Out has a daughter with Down syndrome.

"It's inspiring to see that Heidi is now going to be taking her landmark case all the way to ... Strasbourg. As a mother of a 23-year-old daughter who has Down syndrome, I see every day the unique value she brings to our family and the positive impact she has on others around her."

Increasing statistics

There were 3,370 disability-selective abortions in 2021 - a nine percent increase from 3,083 in 2020.

Late-term abortions at 24 weeks' gestation or over where the baby had a disability increased by 20 percent from 229 to 274.

The law

In England, Wales and Scotland, there is a general 24-week time limit for abortion.

If the baby has a disability, including Down syndrome, cleft lip or a club foot, abortion is a egal right up to birth.

If Crowter wins her case at the ECHR in Strasbourg, it could have implications for all 46 Council of Europe countries as they are bound by its rulings.

Crowter hopes her case will inspire others to stand up for their human rights and dignity.

The ECHR decision is expected to be issued sometime in 2023.

Source

• Catholic News Agency

Cardinal Konrad Krajewski, the pope's almoner, says the charity office is "already stocking up" on thermal shirts for men, women and children.

He is encouraging others to join the thermal shirt initiative by bringing or shipping them to the Dicastery by the beginning of January. Then the shirts will be trucked to Kyiv, Ukraine's capital city.

"The Ukrainian people are experiencing an emergency related not only to the war but also to the lack of electricity and gas, and the very cold winter weather," Krajewski said.

"We can help them this Christmas," he added, "with the gift of thermal shirts, suitable for maintaining body temperature, for men, women, or children."

Thermal shirts help retain heat and maintain body temperature in cold weather. They are usually worn as a base layer under other clothing.

Systematic bombing by Russia has damaged Ukraine's energy infrastructure, and the country's government has warned that the networks will not withstand winter's increased demands.

People in Ukraine are facing freezing weather without electricity, heat, or water, as January, the country's coldest month of the year, approaches.

Temperatures in Kyiv are already below freezing, with a mixture of rain and snow in the near forecast.

Cardinal Krajewski has traveled to Ukraine by truck several times since Russia's invasion in February, bringing food and supplies to be distributed to those in need.

Source

• CNA

Some forms of continuity people seek from religion are "frankly suspect," the president of the German Catholic Bishops' Conference asserts.

Bätzing made the comments during the bishops' plenary assembly in a live-streamed Mass on Tuesday.

In his homily he said "all too surely asserted continuities, ... according to the motto ‘that has always been so; that has always been believed so; what was wrong yesterday cannot be right today' ... are frankly suspect".

The "great images in which God's people spelled out their historical experiences with faith and recognised God's guidance in them," he said.

It is indeed "in our human nature to seek bridges between yesterday and tomorrow, to draw temporal lines and discover meaningful connections — which is often only possible in retrospect," he explained.

"We seek continuity. But the shortest definition of religion is and remains ‘interruption,' as Johann Baptist Metz put it."

Metz was an influential German priest and theologian who died in 2019.

The German bishops' plenary meeting has been overshadowed by two events. One is the recent turbulent meeting of the Synodal Way. The other is the abuse report in the Osnabrück diocese.

The report includes strongly incriminating statements about Bishop Franz-Josef Bode.

Bode has refused to resign, although a report published last week says he mishandled abuse cases.

He has been vice president of the German bishops' conference since 2017 and is the vice president of the German Synodal Way.

Bode has publicly supported women deacons and the idea of developing a Church ceremony for blessing same-sex unions.

At the latest meeting of the Synodal Way, participants voted to change the Church's teaching on a number of related topics, including homosexuality and the ordination of women.

Source

• Catholic News Agency

It was the newly-built Hagia Sophia Church's inaugural celebration.

The weapons landed just 15 meters from where clerics and the congregation were gathered in front of the building.

The attack has been variously attributed to rockets, missiles or armed drones.

The church, which is about 30 miles northwest of Hama, had been built as a replica of Istanbul's Hagia Sophia by Syria's Bashar al-Assad and Russia's Vladimir Putin governments.

It was their response to the Turkish government converting the original Hagia Sophia building into a mosque.

The local Greek Orthodox community would use it as their church. Before the Syrian war, the town had about 20,000 Orthodox Christians.

Syria's state media attributed the attack to "terrorist organisations".

Yohanna X, Greek Orthodox Patriarch of Antioch, in a phone call with the Greek Orthodox Metropolitan Bishop of Hama, condemned the attack.

"Our children in Suqaylabiyah are paying the price of their faith with blood… What happened in Suqaylabiyah is a despicable and reprehensible act of terrorism," he said.

Rebel Islamic militias are fighting with the government and partly control several provinces.

Source

• CNA
• La Croix

Woelki has been facing strong criticism for several months for his responses to allegations of child abuse in the Church.

He chose to take a five-month break from his duties last September after the Vatican report accused him of "major mistakes" in his handling of reports of sexual abuse at the hands of priests.

The Pope will make a decision about Woelki's resignation "in due course".

In the meantime, Woelki is expected to remain in his post.

The reports leading to Woelki's offers of resignation were both commissioned by him.

In 2019, the Cologne archdiocese commissioned the law firm Westpfahl Spilker Wastl to examine relevant personnel files from 1975 onward.

The aim was to determine "which personal, systemic or structural deficits were responsible in the past for incidents of sexual abuse being covered up or not being punished consistently".

Woelki cited legal reasons for not releasing the information after archdiocesan lawyers raised concerns about "methodological deficiencies" in the study.

He then commissioned criminal law expert Professor Björn Gercke to write a new report.

The 800-page Gercke report examined 236 files in detail with the aim of identifying failures and violations of the law, as well as those responsible for them.

It found hundreds of cases of suspected sexual abuse in the archdiocese between 1975 and 2018. Most victims were under 14 years old.

In a Lenten pastoral letter published on Wednesday, Woelki said "Certainly, I realise that the situation has not become any easier since October last year. A time-out in itself does not solve any problems".

He added that any reconciliation could "only be contemplated, attempted and concretely undertaken in cooperation", not by taking time out from each other.

Source

• CNA
• DW
• Image: DW

Then in November, the French Catholic Academy published a 15-page critique of the report.

The Academy has about 70 members.

"The most serious defects of the CIASE report, in addition to a faulty and contradictory methodology and serious deficiencies in the theological, philosophical and legal fields, concern its recommendations," the Academy claimed.

The Academy's analysis led to a December 9 meeting between Pope Francis and CIASE being cancelled.

Sauvé has now rebutted the Academy's charges in a 50-page response.

"The Catholic Academy was not trying to have a debate and contribute to the truth, but rather to engage in a trial against the accused and in a smear campaign," he said.

"At the end of the careful examination of the analysis ... nothing remains of the very serious criticisms ...".

Offering a nuanced assessment of the figures it presented, the CIASE report said an estimated 216,000 children were abused by priests, deacons, monks, and nuns from 1950 to 2020.

When abuse by other Church workers was included, the report said "the estimated number of child victims rises to 330,000 for the whole of the period".

We cannot ensure "there is no significant bias affecting these estimates," the report explained. Furthermore, "we cannot affirm that the estimates produced are far from the true values".

It said, "as a matter of principle, all statistics derived from a survey are subject to errors ... and all reasoning about quality is done ‘on average' ... there is never a total guarantee, because there is always an error due to sampling and non-response and, at most, it can be said that the estimate is '(very) probably' close to reality".

He said he had called upon expert advisors to confirm the validity of the Independent Commission's working method and results.

"The chosen method is used by all polling institutes and our researchers took precautions to reduce bias," he said.

"Our results are comparable to those of probability surveys conducted on very similar subjects over the last ten years.

"The main risk is that of underestimating the number of victims".

The report identified negligence and institutional failures - these are systemic elements common to any institution that welcomes minors, while some are specific to the Catholic Church.

Sauvé noted the Academy does not accept that the Church has entrusted the subject of pedocriminality in its midst to persons other than clerics.

For the Academy, reparation can be decided only by a court.

This is exactly the opposite of what all the episcopal conferences in the world have decided in terms of reparation for the consequences of abuse.

"The Academy is going against the very clear teachings of the pope himself on priesthood, clericalism, reparation and being self-referential. This is shameful for people who thought they had to denounce us to him."

Source

• CNA
• La Croix
• Image: Dierso.com

The festival strives to embrace, encourage and empower every young person to become the voice of hope and solidarity.

"You, young people, are the architects of the future, signs of hope. And we have great hope in all of you. With you, we want to dream and build a better tomorrow," said Salesians head, Fr Angel Fernandex Artime to potential paricipants.

"With your creativity, you can truly help to change the world. I invite you, come and participate in this festival of short films. This is your festival, come and let us move the world with hope," he said.

Conceived in December 2020 and premiering last week, the first annual Don Bosco Global Film Festival received 1,686 short film submissions from 116 countries.

Chosen by an international jury, the best films were streamed last week in 135 different countries.

The film festival sought short film submissions from filmmakers aged 15 to 30. The films could be in any genre within five categories: One-Minute Short Films, 10-Minute Short Films, One-Minute Animated Shorts, 10-Minute Shorts and Music Videos.

Entrants competed for the top spots in all five categories, which awarded prizes amounting to 100,000 euros. A diverse jury of professional filmmakers from around the world was lined up to judge the films.

In addition, films were awarded cash prizes in categories such as global bests, continental bests and category bests - such as narrative, screenplay, sound design and editing.

In addition, there were individual awards for best actor and actress, best writer and best director.

The festival was organized by the Salesians of Don Bosco, whose aim was to create "a world-class film festival platform to showcase ... young creative filmmaking talents."

Source

• Catholic News Agency
• Image: Salesian Institutions of Higher Education

He repeatedly stressed the Holy Spirit's role in decision-making.

The three-phase synod opens next month with a diocesan phase, which will run until April.

A second, continental phase will take place from September 2022 to March 2023.

The third, universal phase will begin at the Vatican in October 2023 with the Synod of Bishops and will be themed: "For a Synodal Church: Communion, Participation, and Mission."

Synodality, is a concept at the heart of Francis's pontificate.

Some Vatican commentators say the upcoming synod is the most significant Catholic event since the Second Vatican Council in 1962-65.

Speaking to Catholics from the Diocese of Rome of his hopes for the synod, Francis said: "The theme of synodality ... expresses the nature of the Church, its form, its style, its mission.

"And so we speak of a Synodal Church, avoiding, however, to consider that it is just one title among others, a way of thinking about it that foresees alternatives."

This way of thinking isn't simply a "theological opinion" or merely a "personal thought," but rather the blueprint for the Church contained in the Acts of the Apostles, which shows the early Christian community "walking together."

The New Testament shows how the first Christians resolved their seemingly irreconcilable differences by gathering together and listening to each other to make decisions, Francis noted.

Describing how the faith is passed on from one generation to the next, Francis recalled fidelity to tradition does not consist of "the worship of ashes but the preservation of fire."

Earlier this month, the Vatican released a preparatory document and handbook to help dioceses worldwide to take part.

The pope said the initial listening phase was critical because it sought to involve "the totality of the baptized."

"There are many resistances to overcome the image of a Church rigidly distinguished between leaders and subordinates, between those who teach and those who must learn, forgetting that God likes to overturn positions," he commented.

Meditating on the meaning of belonging to the "people of God," Francis said it is not a matter of "exclusivity" but of receiving a gift that comes with the responsibility to witness to God."

The Holy Spirit knows no boundaries and parishes should therefore be open to all and not limit themselves "to considering only those who attend or think like you," he said.

"Allow everyone to enter... Allow yourselves to go out to meet them and allow yourselves to be questioned, let their questions be your questions, allow yourselves to walk together: the Spirit will lead you, trust the Spirit. Do not be afraid to enter into dialogue and allow yourselves to be disturbed by the dialogue: it is the dialogue of salvation."

"I have come here to encourage you ... and to tell you that the Holy Spirit needs you...".

"It will be good for ... the whole Church, which is strengthened ... if it rediscovers that it is a people that wants to walk together, among ourselves and with humanity."

Source

• Catholic News Agency
• Image: SkyNews

The mandate does not provide exemptions for doctors from performing gender-transitioning procedures after a mental health professional's referral. It overrules their opposition to the procedures for medical or conscience reasons.

"Biological identity must remain the basis for treating patients," the association's president Dr. Michael Parker says. The "transgender mandate" interprets unlawful sex discrimination in health care to include discrimination on the basis of self-determined gender identity, he explains.

Parker is concerned that the mandate not only risks patient health and safety, but also mandates that health care providers give up their fundamental right to conscience. "This sets a dangerous precedent with incalculable implications for the ethical practice of medicine," he says.

The Catholic Medical Association is a national network of Catholic doctors and health care workers. Together with the American College of Pediatricians, a national network of pediatrician, representatives say they represent 3,000 doctors and health care workers.

"Forcing doctors to prescribe transition hormones for 13-year-olds or perform life altering surgeries on adolescents is unlawful, unethical, and dangerous," says a Bangert, senior counsel for the two groups.

The lawsuit says that under the mandate, "doctors now face an untenable choice: either act against their medical judgment and deeply held convictions by performing controversial and often medically dangerous gender-transition interventions, or succumb to huge financial penalties, lose participation in Medicaid and other federal funding, and, as a practical matter, lose the ability to practice medicine in virtually any setting."

In US law, sex discrimination in health care is illegal.

Timeline of changes to the mandate

2016: The Obama administration first issued the mandate when it interpreted the health care law's prohibition on sex discrimination to include discrimination against gender identity.

The administration required doctors to provide gender-transitioning procedures upon referral. There were no exemptions for doctors' religious or medical objections.

Catholic health care institutions and several states sued. They won an injunction from the mandate in federal court in 2016.

2020: The Trump administration allowed doctors to opt out of the mandate. It re-interpreted the Affordable Care Act's prohibition on sex discrimination.

Two federal courts halted parts of that rule from going into effect.

2021: The Biden administration issued its notice reinstating the mandate.

A federal district court judge granted permanent relief from the mandate for the Catholic hospital network Franciscan Alliance and the Christian Medical and Dental Associations.

The lawsuit seeks a permanent nationwide injunction from the mandate for other health care groups as well.

Source

• Catholic News Agency
• Image: YouTube

"Our concern was not in relation to Fr. David's views themselves, but the manner in which these views have been expressed in the context of our diverse community of people of many faiths," the university says.

Palmer had been named as chaplain to the Catholic community at the University and as Catholic chaplain to Nottingham Trent University.

Nottingham Trent University accepted the appointment. However, after interviewing Palmer, the University of Nottingham wrote to McKinney about concerns regarding the appointment.

It later explained the concerns related to Palmer's social media posts, highlighting one on assisted suicide and another on abortion.

"They referenced a tweet where I had referred to the proposed ‘assisted dying' bill [introduced in Britain's Parliament in May] as a bill to allow the NHS ‘to kill the vulnerable,'" Palmer says.

"I was told it was fine for me to have this opinion, but they were concerned with how I expressed it. When I asked how they would suggest I express it, quite remarkably, they suggested I should call it ‘end of life care,' which is a completely unacceptable policing of religious belief."

Palmer tweeted last week that the university also objected to a second post in which he described abortion as the "slaughter of babies,". His comment was made in the context of the debate over U.S. President Joe Biden's reception of Holy Communion despite backing legal abortion.

Palmer says he defends both posts as reflecting Catholic belief.

He says after the university rejected his placement, the bishop declined to nominate another priest. The university then agreed he could offer Mass on campus on Sundays as a "guest priest."

Stressing that the university supported its Catholic community, a university spokesperson said: "We have no issue with the expression of faith in robust terms, indeed we would expect any chaplain to hold their faith as primary."

"The University of Nottingham remains committed to supporting staff and students of Catholic faith and continuing our 90-year tradition of providing Catholic chaplaincy for them," the spokesperson said.

Tweeting about the issue, Palmer noted that the university does not pay for chaplains. He also said most pastoral work with Catholic students would take place at the Newman House and St. Paul's in Lenton, a parish that includes the university within its boundaries.

Palmer rejects the university's explanation.

They say they have ‘no issue with the expression of faith in robust terms,' but this is precisely what they had an issue with, he says. It appears "diversity only goes so far, certainly not as far as the Catholic chaplain being able to express ‘robustly' mainstream Catholic beliefs."

"The suggestion that they are grateful for the bishop's ‘solution' almost seems to imply that the bishop somehow agrees with the university ‘policing' the expression of Catholic teaching on pro-life issues."

"His ‘solution' was an attempt to ensure that the university didn't end up barring sacramental ministry to the students entirely. It wasn't tacit approval of their behavior."

Source

• Catholic News Agency
• Image: British Council

Bishop Georg Bätzing said it was necessary to respect the "personal decision of conscience" of those seeking to receive Communion.

CNA Deutsch reported that Bätzing responded to a question about a controversial proposal for a "Eucharistic meal fellowship" between Catholics and Protestants.

The proposal was made by the Ecumenical Study Group of Protestant and Catholic Theologians (ÖAK) in a 2019 document entitled "Together at the Lord's Table."

The ÖAK adopted the text under the co-chairmanship of Bätzing and the retired Lutheran Bishop Martin Hein.

Asked how he would respond if a Protestant came to him seeking the Eucharist, he told reporters: "I have no problems with it and I see myself in line with papal documents."

The 59-year-old bishop added that this was already a "practice" in Germany "every Sunday". He said priests in his Diocese of Limburg would not face negative consequences if a case were reported to him.

He underlined that one should not "simply invite everyone."

A general invitation to receive the Eucharist was not permitted. But Bätzing said it was important to show "respect for the personal decision of conscience of the individual" seeking Communion.

"I do not deny Holy Communion to a Protestant if he asks for it," he said.

The ÖAK document raised concerns at the Vatican. It prompted an intervention by the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith (CDF) in September 2020.

In a letter to Bätzing, the doctrinal congregation emphasized that significant differences in understanding of the Eucharist and ministry remained between Protestants and Catholics.

"The doctrinal differences are still so important that they currently rule out reciprocal participation in the Lord's Supper and the Eucharist," it said.

"The document cannot therefore serve as a guide for an individual decision of conscience about approaching the Eucharist."

The CDF cautioned against any steps towards intercommunion between Catholics and members of the EKD.

Sources

Catholic News Agency

National Catholic Reporter

CathNews New Zealand

Percă has never led his archdiocese in normal times. He was installed as Metropolitan Archbishop of Bucharest in January 2020, shortly before the coronavirus pandemic engulfed Romania.

In a Feb. 21 interview with CNA, Percă acknowledged his first 12 months as archbishop have been "pretty hard."

Archbishop Percă has been unable to introduce a "concrete pastoral program" because of COVID-19 restrictions. He has also been unable to meet as many members of his flock as he would have liked.

Like many Church leaders in Europe, Percă worries that the pandemic will have a long-term impact on Mass attendance.

"At the moment, it is difficult to make a prediction about what the local Church in Bucharest will look like after the coronavirus crisis. The perspective points to a decrease in the presence of believers in churches for liturgical celebrations," he commented.

"I am afraid that the fear caused by the pandemic in different categories of believers will extend over time. They will find it easier to watch the celebrations in their homes, sitting comfortably in their armchairs, than to travel the distance to their churches."

The archbishop is already looking ahead to the post-coronavirus era. He will govern an archdiocese much changed from when he inherited it from Archbishop Ioan Robu, who served from 1983-2019.

"It has often been heard, even since reaching the height of the crisis caused by the coronavirus pandemic, that after this crisis, that the world will no longer be as it was, that we have to be more responsible to those around us and to the environment, that we have to consider solidarity between people as a priority," Percă said.

"I believe that it will be difficult to achieve these ideals in the short term. I think there is the need to form a ‘post-COVID-19' generation that will establish a different kind of relationship between people."

The archbishop added that the Church must work for fundamental cultural change.

"So, I wonder how we can prepare the young generation for the ‘post-COVID-19' period. We need to change the underlying cultural orientation; first of all, we Christians need to do it, by cultivating a very strong sense of responsibility," he reflected.

Sources

Catholic News Agency

Ouellet says a deepened understanding of celibacy is preferable to grabbing at quick solutions to resolve the current lack of priests.

He makes the claim in his newly published book "Friends of the Bridegroom: For a Renewed Vision of Priestly Celibacy."

Ouellet says he is "skeptical" of the proposed idea in the Amazon of ordaining to the priesthood "viri probati" - older, married men.

Without naming names, he says he also knows some in higher positions "in the Roman Curia" who have similar doubts.

"I am not against the fact that there is a debate, but I think at this time of history and of the Church there is a need of reflection…" he says.

"And so, my intervention is to substantiate the debate, to give something substantial to aid discernment.

"I remain skeptical out of convictions and knowledge of the Catholic tradition in the Latin rite, so I think this has to be very much taken care of in the debate".

Ouellet says he remains open to what will happen during the synod.

Ouellet also says he knows Francis has mentioned having no intention to change Church practice on priestly celibacy in the Latin rite.

He has not excluded the possibility of an exception, however.

Ouellet has given Francis two copies of his new book and that Francis is happy he is joining in on the viri probati debate.

He says in writing it, he thought it was a good time to contribute his years of "knowledge, wisdom, and experience" to the Church's discussion of priestly celibacy, and in the particular context of this month's Amazon synod, to the debate on "viri probati."

"I think that priestly celibacy, but also religious consecration, is a powerful witness to the divinity of Jesus Christ and to his call to follow him and to leave everything to be with him, and to do what he asks us to do.

The close link between celibacy and the priesthood "is the fact that the priest is in charge of ... proclaiming and giving the definitive and ultimate Word of God to the world," he says.

"The link between celibacy and the priesthood in the Latin Church comes from the apostles and it has been kept through the centuries despite times of decadence, of difficulties, of refusal...

"It's been always difficult, but it remains an extraordinary witness to the divinity of Christ and to the presence of the Risen Lord among us so that we give him an answer, because he is there, calling us to communion."

Source

• Catholic News Agency
• Image: America Magazine