When I saw that Pope Francis would participate as a speaker at the Clinton Global Initiative this month, my heart sank.
Frankly, and I say this as a Catholic, former President Bill Clinton is one of the last people I would like Francis to prominently engage with.
Read More
The Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence (SPI), a group of queer “nuns” that regularly mock the Catholic faith, offered their “profound apologies” after a former “probationary” member was arrested in August for masturbating in public.
Clinton Monroe Ellis-Gilmore allegedly exposed himself on Aug. 12 in his truck with the door open, where the Humboldt County Sheriff’s Department in California found him and arrested him, according to a police report obtained by The Daily Wire. Ellis-Gilmore was formerly a member of SPI’s Eureka chapter, who told the Daily Caller News Foundation that the behavior was “not representative of our Order, our values, or the hundreds of individuals who serve as Sisters,” according to a prepared statement.
Read More
Newly revealed teacher-training materials and sworn affidavits show Maryland’s Montgomery County Public Schools misled the federal court hearing a lawsuit by religious families against the district’s no-exemptions policy for gender and sexuality instruction in the English Language Arts curriculum, a national Muslim group claims.
School officials in the affluent suburb bordering Washington, D.C. told a judge last month it rescinded opt-outs and parental notification this spring because of the logistical challenges created by too many families choosing to remove their children from the “Pride storybooks,” which teach children as young as 3 about sex workers, kink, drag, gender transitions and prepubescent same-sex romance.
Read More
Pope Francis is warning about the possible adverse effects of artificial intelligence and the need to monitor the technology in his message for World Day of Peace.
The cautionary message came Tuesday when the Vatican released the theme of the pope’s message for World Day of Peace, which is Sept. 21.
Read More
A Catholic church in Duluth and a school in Minneapolis were vandalized in separate incidents in late July.
St. Charles Borromeo School told families this week that two individuals broke into the school on the evening of Saturday, July 22, creating “an extensive mess that required 700+ hours of clean-up work and is still ongoing.” The school said its clean-up efforts “after this disaster cost thousands of dollars.”
Read More
The Iraqi government called U.S. Ambassador Alina Romanowski to Baghdad after the State Department made critical remarks about the government’s dismissal of a Vatican-appointed bishop, according to Reuters.
Iraqi President Abdul Latif Rashid recently rescinded a decree recognizing Cardinal Louis Sako the head of the Chaldean Catholic church in Iraq and all of its assets, claiming that no other state entity should appoint religious leaders in Iraq, according to Reuters. Rashid called Romanowski to Baghdad Wednesday after State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller said the U.S. was disturbed by the Iraqi government’s decision.
Read More
When the University of Oklahoma softball team showed up for the College World Series last week, reporters expected to hear pride and camaraderie from a squad on the way to winning its third consecutive national championship.
But several star Sooners players startled the press and went viral online by declaring that their joy in Christianity trumped their considerable athletic accomplishments.
Read More
Sister Wilhelmina Lancaster was known for insisting on wearing her traditional habit — even when most of the Oblate Sisters of Providence had adopted more modern garb.
“I am Sister WIL-HEL-MINA,” she would say. “I’ve a HELL of a WILL, and I MEAN it!”
Read More
A Catholic college is raising money to end its affiliation with the federal government and become financially independent, arguing the government has become “hostile to faith,” according to its website.
Belmont Abbey College (BAC), located in North Carolina, is operating a campaign called “Made True” that aims to raise $55 million to cut ties with the federal government and restore its purpose as a faith-based institution, its website reads. The money will “create innovative new financial structures and stewardship programs” with the intent of graduating students without debt as well as create public policy and health science programs that align with the college’s mission.
Read More
The Board of Marymount University unanimously voted on Friday to eliminate ten degree programs in the humanities and social sciences, including English, History, and Theology and Religious Studies.
Founded as the first Catholic college in Virginia in 1950, Marymount is affiliated with the Sacred Heart of Mary and serves approximately 3,500 students in its undergraduate and graduate programs.
Read More
Authorities in the United Kingdom charged a Catholic priest with violating a censorship zone when he silently prayed outside an abortion clinic while holding a sign that said “praying for free speech.”
Father Sean Gough, a pro-life priest stationed in Wolverhampton, England, had also parked his car in the area near the abortion clinic, which is covered by a Public Spaces Protection Order, according to Alliance Defending Freedom International. Authorities also took issue with Gough’s car, which has an “unborn lives matter” bumper sticker on it, ADF said.
Read More
There’s been a flurry of commentary in Catholic circles since Pope Francis decided to defrock pro-life advocate and priest Frank Pavone. One suggestion I’ve seen from many Catholic writers is that Francis is punishing Pavone because he believes clergymen should not be involved in politics. It’s a laughable argument. Francis is very frequently involved in politics and regularly encourages (leftist) priests in their activism.
Read More
For millions of Christians around the world, the official religious Christmas season kicked off this week with a renewed sense of normalcy – an abundance of colorful lights, parades and processions, family and church gatherings, and even fireworks in some areas.
Many believers in countries where Christians are religious minorities such as China and India are embracing the festivities with new enthusiasm. Early December marks the first time annual public and private advent gatherings have been allowed since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Read More
A man used fire and a sword to attack an Oklahoma Catholic cathedral while school was in session on Wednesday, the school told the Daily Caller News Foundation.
Daniel Edwards, carrying a large ice chest, attempted to break into the cathedral of Holy Family Cathedral School in Tulsa, Oklahoma, while students were outside taking school pictures, the school told the DCNF. Edwards then threw a flaming object into the side of the building and used a sword to attack the school’s front desk attendant when he confronted Edwards.
Read More
Pennsylvania gubernatorial candidate and state Sen. Doug Mastriano warned Monday that President Joe Biden’s administration sought to “intimidate” anyone “on the political opposition” through the arrest of a Catholic, pro-life father last week.
Mastriano referred to the early Friday morning arrest of Mark Houck, whose wife told Life Site News that 25-30 FBI agents entered their home around 7 a.m. with “big, huge rifles” to arrest her husband as their children watched, crying and screaming, from the top of the stairs.
Read More
Around four years prior to preventing a Catholic conservative commentator from speaking on campus, an abortionist from Planned Parenthood spoke at a “workplace inclusion” conference affiliated with the University of St. Thomas.
In April 2018, Dr. Sarah Traxler, the medical director of Planned Parenthood North Central States, which is headquartered in St. Paul, spoke at the 30th annual “Forum on Workplace Inclusion.”
Read More
Some students at Benilde-St. Margaret’s (BSM), a Catholic preparatory school for grades 7-12 in St. Louis Park, are actively working to weave “social justice” themes into the curriculum.
The school’s student newspaper, Knight Errant, published an article last Thursday which stated that social justice is “a key part of Catholic education,” though it did not make a necessary distinction between the historic meaning of the term and its contemporary 21st century meaning.
“BSM has committed to upholding the seven Catholic Social teachings in its strategic plan, and incorporating social justice into the BSM community is an important part of meeting that goal,” the article claims.
Read More
Catholic congressional Democrats are accusing U.S. Catholic bishops of weaponizing the Eucharist against President Joe Biden.
Sixty Catholic Democrats issued a “Statement of Principles” Friday warning U.S. bishops against “the weaponization of the Eucharist.” Signers included Democratic New York Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Connecticut Rep. Rosa DeLauro and New York Rep. Nydia M. Velázquez.
Most of the Democrats who signed the statement appear to publicly support abortion in direct conflict with Catholic Church teaching.
Read More
New rules from the Chinese government indicate that China will exercise control over the appointment of Catholic clergy without any input from the Vatican.
The “Administrative Measures for Religious Clergy,” which will go into effect May 1, clarified that the state-run Chinese Catholic Patriotic Association (CCPA) will select candidates for clergy who will then be “approved and consecrated by the Chinese Catholic Bishops’ Conference.”
Read More
Parents, educators and activists are taking on left-leaning school curriculums in a variety of ways, from speaking out and filing lawsuits to crowdsourcing solutions and creating alternative educational resources.
In California, for example, a group called “Educators for Excellence in Ethnic Studies” has banded together to lobby for the removal of critical race theory from the state’s ethnic studies model curriculum.
Read More
Pro-life leaders heavily criticized President Joe Biden on Friday, the anniversary of Roe v. Wade, after the Catholic president vowed to make Roe v. Wade the law of the land.
“Joe Biden repeatedly insists he is a devout Catholic,” tweeted Live Action founder and President Lila Rose. “He used this claim frequently during his campaign. He just released a statement praising Roe v Wade, but wouldn’t even use the word ‘abortion.’ His deception is disgusting. The violence of what he proudly supports is horrific.”
Read More
Former Vice President Joe Biden blurted out this reality not long ago when he told a black talk-show host that “if you’re for Trump you ain’t black.”
But as Judge Amy Coney Barrett is finding out this week, the idea of blacks as political property on the liberal plantation isn’t limited to blacks — it also includes women. (And, for that matter, Hispanics and gays.)
Read More
Cardinal Raymond Burke said Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden, who describes himself as a “devout Catholic,” is “not a Catholic in good standing” and “should not approach to receive Holy Communion.”
In an interview with Catholic Action for Faith and Family released last week, Burke said he doesn’t intend to endorse any political candidate, but simply wants to state that “a Catholic may not support abortion in any shape or form because it is one of the most grievous sins against human life, and has always been considered to be intrinsically evil and therefore to in any way support the act is a mortal sin.”
Read More
President Donald Trump promised Wednesday that neither the Navy nor the Department of Defense will cancel contracts with Catholic priests allowing serving military members.
“The United States Navy, or the Department of Defense, will NOT be cancelling its contract with Catholic Priests who serve our men and women in the Armed Forces so well, and with such great compassion & skill,” the president tweeted Wednesday morning, tagging the Archbishop of New York, Cardinal Timothy Dolan. “This will no longer be even a point of discussion!”
Read More
Mass was celebrated Sunday on the grounds of a historic Catholic church in Southern California that had been heavily damaged by fire a day earlier.
The blaze early Saturday destroyed the rooftop and most of the interior of San Gabriel Mission, which was undergoing renovation to mark its upcoming 250th anniversary celebration.
Read More
A fire early Saturday destroyed the rooftop and most of the interior of a Catholic church in California that was undergoing renovation to mark its upcoming 250th anniversary celebration.
Fire alarms at the San Gabriel Mission rang around 4 a.m. When firefighters arrived, they saw smoke rising from the wooden rooftop in one corner of the historic structure, San Gabriel Fire Capt. Paul Negrete said.
Read More
The U.S. Supreme Court said Tuesday that states can’t cut religious schools out of programs that send public money to private education in a 5-4 ruling.
Hailed as a victory for religious freedom, the justices upheld a Montana scholarship program that allows state tax credits for private schooling in which almost all the recipients attend religious schools.
Read More
Multiple videos recorded after a Saturday prayer vigil in St. Louis appear to show Black Lives Matter agitators assaulting Catholics who participated in the event.
“Yesterday, while praying for peace and unity in our city and the protection of the St. Louis statue, Black Lives Matter protesters started to harass, berate, and assault the Catholics that were peacefully praying. We did nothing in retaliation,” Conor Martin, a candidate for Bedford Township Republican committeeman, claimed on Twitter.
Read More
In a video expressing solidarity with the Black Lives Matter movement last week, the CEO of Catholic Charities of Eastern Washington denounced his own church and charitable organization as “racist.”
“In America, racism is no longer a question. But rather, it’s the toxic water in which we all swim,” said Rob McCann, president and CEO of the Spokane-based nonprofit. “My Catholic Church and my Catholic Charities organization is racist.”
Read More
Gov. Tim Walz announced Saturday that he would lift his restrictions on religious services and allow all places of worship to open for larger groups beginning Wednesday.
Read More
Archbishop Bernard Hebda urged clergy in the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis to “abstain from voting” in Minnesota’s March 3 presidential primary.
Read More
The Minnesota Catholic Conference, the self-described “public policy voice of the Catholic Church in Minnesota,” is asking Minnesota Catholics to thank their U.S. Senators for supporting “The American Dream and Promise Act of 2019.”
Read More
University of St. Thomas alumni is circulating a letter to the school’s administration demanding a “required course for all students” examining the “history of white supremacy” and “anti-racist curriculum.”
Read More
by Tim Pearce and Joshua Gill The Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris is still standing after suffering extensive damage from a fire that consumed its roof Monday, but the building’s main structure is still in danger, according to one expert. “It’s wonderful that what has survived, survived,” professional architect…
Read More
Leaders of the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis are doubling-down on their support of a bill that would provide driver’s licenses to people in the country illegally. Under House File 1500, a person would not be “required to demonstrate United States citizenship or lawful presence in the United States…
Read More
Rep. Betty McCollum (D-MN-04), a Catholic, has a rating of 100 percent from the pro-choice organization NARAL, and a corresponding zero percent from National Right to Life. According to the Catholic League for Religious and Civil Liberty, McCollum has voted with pro-choice causes 100 percent of the time. Between 2015…
Read More