Pope Francis took a risk in inviting an Anglican woman bishop Bishop Jo Bailey Wells to address him and his advisory Council of Cardinals, Wells says. Nonetheless, she hopes the Catholic Church will continue to explore the topic of women’s leadership with “courage”. “I’m aware … that to many such an opportunity feels rare, if Read more
Life as a parish priest is a “Eucharistic adventure” that involves serving God’s people under the guidance of the Holy Spirit, Pope Francis told transitional deacons. It is about living “This is my body, given for you” each day, he wrote, and it requires “a constant attitude, made up of acceptance, compassion, tenderness, a style Read more
Disillusioned by their experiences in Catholicism, some Romans are turning to paganism and finding a connection to their roots through worshipping the gods of antiquity, whom they see as more welcoming than the church. “Rome is pagan,” Pope Francis told members of the Roman clergy during a closed-door meeting January 14, when he urged them Read more
The Church’s strong anti-abuse protocols are enshrined in law says Jesuit priest Hans Zollner, but they are not being universally applied. “More broadly, the norms adopted by Rome indicate the right direction, but we currently have no mechanism to monitor their implementation.” Zollner, director of the Institute of Anthropology at Rome’s Gregorian University, believes the Read more
He’s warned Catholic seminaries against the tendency to turn future priests into “little monsters”. He’s scolded the Church’s presbyters for wearing ornate liturgical vestments that stem from a bygone era, telling them to stop dressing up in “granny’s lace”. And he’s called it a “scandal” to see young priests and seminarians going into the ecclesiastical Read more
Pope Francis has set up study groups to explore various themes that emerged from the Synod on Synodality’s session last October. At the upcoming session, participants will continue to work on the theme “For a Synodal Church: Communion, Participation and Mission”. The pope has also set the dates for the second session which – after Read more
Gilbert Lubega sat in a white plastic chair at his home in Wakiso, a suburb of Uganda’s capital, Kampala. He was contemplating two photos of a young gay female couple kissing and another one of a male gay couple kissing at their wedding ceremony. “These images make me think the world is coming to an Read more
In the eleven years since Pope Francis was elected Bishop of Rome, it’s been a daily exercise as a professional historian and theologian to demonstrate to certain Catholics and others that this pope is indeed Catholic. There’s something quite incredible about that when you think about it. Francis has not turned faithful Catholics into 19th-century Read more
Birds of a feather flock together, says the old English proverb. But when it comes to the Church’s cardinals, is that really the case? More specifically, are all the men who got the red hat from Pope Francis moving with him in the same direction? Recent events suggest yet again that not all of Francis’ Read more
German Cardinal Gerhard Müller (pictured) says attempts to clarify the recent Vatican declaration Fiducia Supplicans (Supplicating Trust) are confusing Catholics. The declaration allows Catholic priests to bless couples – including same-sex couples – who according to church teaching may not marry. The Church needs to return “to the clarity of the word of God” rather Read more