Cardinal Walter Kasper (pictured), a retired member of the German Curia, has advocated for reevaluating the tasks assigned to the College of Cardinals. Speaking at a lecture in Salzburg, Kasper highlighted the need for adaptation amidst ongoing synodal changes and decentralisation within the Church. He suggested revitalising the early Church tradition of provincial and plenary Read more
Without the Eucharist, it seems obvious: There is no Catholic Church. It feeds us as a community of believers and transforms us into the body of Christ active in the world today. But according to Catholic theology, we cannot have the Eucharist without priests. Sadly, in many parts of the world there is a Eucharistic Read more
The results of a national survey of Catholic priests released by The Catholic Project on Nov. 7 revealed an interesting dynamic in U.S. Catholic life. In the terminology used in the survey questions, young U.S. Catholic priests tend to be theologically traditional and politically conservative, particularly compared to older priests. Meanwhile, U.S. Catholics as a Read more
It’s no secret that the Roman Catholic Church is deeply divided right now, perhaps as much as it’s ever been in the six decades since the end of the Second Vatican Council (1962-65). The fractures are most obvious on social media where even priests, bishops and cardinals preach from cyber pulpits all along the theological Read more
We are now just a few months away from the October 2023 assembly of the Synod on the “synodal process”. A second assembly is scheduled for October 2024. Both will be held at the Vatican. The working document for this first assembly is to be unveiled to the press on June 20 and the names Read more
Cardinal Walter Kasper says the German way forward on its “synodal path” has failed. Kasper, who is the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity’s President Emeritus, points to the Second Vatican Council’s path in synodal fellowship. The Church would have a future only if it continued on that path – a path that the German Read more
Pope Francis told a gathering of Jesuit editors that restorationist Catholics, particularly in the United States, are “gagging” the Church’s modernising reforms. Nevertheless, he insisted that there was no turning back. Francis said the refusal to accept the reforms of the Second Vatican Council is the major problem facing the Church today. “In the European Read more
As of Monday, private Masses and Masses said in Latin won’t be as freely available at St Peter’s Basilica as they have been. The Vatican’s Secretariat of State – which deals with the general affairs of the church – has forbidden Masses to be said by a priest by himself at the basilica. It also Read more
The Archbishop of Paris has announced Saint-Merry Pastoral Center, the city’s most progressive Catholic parish is to close on March 1. The announcement has been greeted with disbelief, sadness and anger by the parish community. They launched an online “appeal” to keep the centre open. In the first 48 hours, more than 2,000 people had Read more
Attacks against Pope Francis are “a fight between those who want the church dreamed of by the Second Vatican Council and those who do not want this,” says the Superior General of the Jesuits. Commenting on various issues where the Pope is currently under attack from his critics, Arturo Sosa SJ says there is no Read more