Pope Francis says the devil is behind the sex abuse crisis. He is alive and well and “working overtime” to undermine the Church. Francis is asking all Catholics for their help in driving Satan away. “The Church must be saved from the attacks of the malign one, the great accuser, and at the same time Read more
Two Chinese bishops attending the youth synod, warmly welcomed by Pope Francis, are full of praise for the provisional agreement between the Vatican and the Chinese government. In welcoming Bishops John Baptist Yang Xiaoting and Joseph Guo Jincai to the synod, Francis wept, saying: “The communion of the entire episcopate with the successor of Peter Read more
Pope Francis warned youth attending the synod in Rome not to be taken in by populist ideologies that exclude others. Populisms that make us see the other, the foreigner, as evil, as an enemy to be pushed away are to be avoided he said. “Today populisms are fashionable, which have nothing to do with the Read more
The Vatican archives containing Archbishop Theodore McCarrick’s files are to be reviewed, says Pope Francis. A statement Francis has released from the Vatican says he has decided to combine the results of an investigation into McCarrick begun last year with a new, “thorough study” of all the documentation about him contained in the Vatican archives. Read more
Through the Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development, Pope Francis has, in a first emergency phase, sent a contribution of $100,000 to disaster relief in Indonesia. The Vatican press reported that this sum is intended to be “an immediate expression of the feeling of spiritual closeness and fatherly encouragement from the Holy Father towards the Read more
US Catholics’ confidence in Pope Francis’s ability to handle the sex abuse crisis besetting the Church is down by a two-to-one margin, according to a new Pew Research Center survey. The survey results released this week show: 30% of American Catholic adults say Francis is doing an “excellent” or a “good” job addressing the issue Read more
Networks, not division will be the theme for the next Communications Day, Pope Francis says. Christians must do more to make sure the media, especially social networks, are places of dialogue and respect for others. Communicaitons should not provide a means of highlighting differences and increasing divisions, Francis’s new prefect of the Dicastery for Communication, Read more
Pope Francis has defrocked (laicised) Chilean child sexual abuser, Fernando Karadima. Juan Carlos Cruz, who is one of Karadima’s abuse survivors, is grateful for Francis’s decision. In a statement on Twitter, he called Karadima “a criminal who has ruined so many people’s lives with his abuse” and offered thanks to Francis, saying he hoped survivors Read more
Archbishop Carlo Maria Viganò has written a second letter to the Vatican about former US cardinal Theodore McCarrick. This one condemns the Vatican for not responding to his first letter of 22 August. In that, he claimed Pope Francis and other senior Church leaders covered up allegations of McCarrick’s abusive behaviour, and that Francis not only Read more
A ‘permanent catechumenate’ for marriage formation is needed, Pope Francis told a gathering organised by Diocese of Rome and the Roman Rota. The Rota is the Church’s highest appellate court which handles marriage nullity cases. A permanent catechumenate would guide couples beyond their marriage in preparation and celebration, into the first year of their life Read more