Catholic News
- Vatican meeting of parish priests opens with talks by Synod cardinal, Czech theologian (CNS)
Cardinal Mario Grech, Secretary General of the Synod of Bishops, encouraged parish priests to share their stories of “how Jesus is working today in you, in your parishes, in your diocese,” as he opened Parish Priests for the Synod. The international meeting was announced in February amid criticism that parish priests were insufficiently included on the Synod on synodality. “Often it is hard to understand the way in which our stories could be the stories of God,” said Cardinal Grech. “Our parishes are probably far from being the best parish that one could wish for. Our stories are anything but perfect. No wonder we find it difficult to understand, to discern, how our stories are God’s.” Czech theologian Father Tomáš Halík advised the parish priests “not to repeat past methods and old mistakes.” “For more than 100 years, regular prayers, novenas, fasts, Eucharistic adoration and pilgrimages have been held in our part of the world to beg for new priestly and religious vocations,” he said. “However, the number of vocations continues to decline.” Father Halík said that it is as if God were saying that our prayer for vocations “no longer resonates with what I expect for the future. Please do not knock on the door I have closed for you. Instead, boldly and creatively seek the ones I want to open for you.” - Congo attorney general accuses cardinal of 'seditious behavior' (Pillar)
The attorney general of the Democratic Republic of Congo has written that Cardinal Fridolin Ambongo is guilty of “seditious behavior.” The statement by Firmin Mvonde Mambu—made in a letter in which he encouraged prosecution of Cardinal Ambongo—represents a major escalation of a conflict between the government and Cardinal Ambongo, who has been critical of government’s failure to provide security in the war-torn country. Earlier this month he charged that “the Congolese army is in complete chaos.” Cardinal Ambongo, who is a member of the Council of Cardinals and the president of the Symposium of Episcopal Conferences of Africa and Madagascar (SECAM), has taken an increasingly prominent role in the leadership of the Catholic Church in Africa. Last week he emphasized that African prelates are united in their opposition to the blessing of same-sex unions, setting aside the recommendation of the Vatican declaration Fiducia Supplicans. - Pope encourages religious to look to Jesus and the poor, treasure 'diversity in harmony' (Vatican Press Office)
On April 29, Pope Francis received members of two religious institutes that were assembling in Rome for the general chapters. The Pope encouraged members of the Canossian Sons of Charity, founded in 1831, to follow the example of St. Magdalene of Canossa. “When the journey gets difficult, then, do as she did: look at the Crucified Jesus and look at the eyes and wounds of the poor, and you will see that gradually the answers will make way in your hearts with ever greater clarity,” the Pontiff said. The Pope encouraged members of the Montfort Brothers of St. Gabriel, founded by St. Louis-Marie Grignion de Montfort and re-founded by Father Gabriel Deshayes, to treasure diversity in harmony. “The one who makes harmony between diversities is the Holy Spirit, who is the master of harmony,” said the Pope. “Uniformity in a religious institute, in a diocese, in a lay group, kills! Diversity in harmony makes one grow. Do not forget this. Diversity in harmony.” - Mexican bishop abducted, released (AP)
A retired Mexican bishop known for his attempts to mediate between drug cartels was abducted on April 27 and then released. Bishop Salvador Rangel, OFM, 78, retired as bishop of Chilpancingo-Chilapa in 2022. “Considering his poor health, we call firmly but respectfully to those who are holding Bishop Rangel captive to allow him to take the medications he needs in a proper and timely fashion, as an act of humanity,” the Mexican bishops’ conference stated before his release. - Miami archbishop slams Biden for 'unconscionable' deportation of Haitian refugees (CNA)
“What President Biden has done is unconscionable when you think of the fact that he’s deported over 28,000 Haitians back to Haiti in the last three years, at a time when Haiti has been in a political, social, and economic freefall,” said Archbishop Thomas Wenski of Miami. “If a house is on fire, you don’t force people to run back into the burning house.” President Biden and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis “are speaking about them [Haitian refugees] as if they were an invasive species, [when] they’re human beings,” the prelate added. - Sicilian bishops meet with Pontiff, discuss migration, criminality, depopulation (Vatican News (Italian))
Pope Francis received the bishops of Sicily, who were in Rome for their ad limina visit, in an April 29 audience. Bishop Antonino Raspanti of Acireale, president of the Sicilian episcopal conference, said that during the “very cordial” and “very long” meeting, the Pope and the bishops discussed migrants, the Mafia, and corruption. They also discussed “the problem of depopulation, because unfortunately people are leaving our island.” - Court rules insurers must cover gender-change surgery (Washington Post)
A federal court in Virginia has ruled that health-insurance companies must cover the costs of gender-change treatments. Judge Roger Gregory wrote in his judgment that “discriminating on the basis of diagnosis is discriminating on the basis of gender identity and sex.” - Florida permits public school chaplains (Religion Clause)
Gov. Ron DeSantis of Florida has signed into law a bill that authorizes volunteer chaplains at public schools. Under the law, parental consent is required for students to take part in a chaplain’s programs. The law passed the state house and senate by wide margins (89-25 and 78-12). - French prosecutor dismisses charges against priest who opposed homosexuality (CNA)
A French prosecutor has declined to press criminal charges against a prominent Catholic priest who had stirred public outrage with online statements that homosexuality is a “weakness.” Father Matthieu Raffray, a traditionalist priest with a large following, had posted in March encouraging people to fight against homosexual inclinations. The French government’s minister for equality, Aurore Bergé, had encouraged prosecution of the priest for his remarks. But the prosecutor determined that “it does not appear that there is any infraction sufficiently characterized to justify any criminal procedure against him.” - Vatican cardinal pays tribute to St. John Paul II (L'Osservatore Romano (Italian))
Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re, dean of the College of Cardinals, was the principal celebrant at a Mass in St. Peter’s Basilica on April 27 commemorating the tenth anniversary of Pope St. John Paul II’s canonization. Cardinal Angelo Comastri, 80, former Archpriest of Saint Peter’s Basilica (2005-2021), was the homilist. Cardinal Comastri preached that “John Paul II must be given credit for having been a courageous, decisive, and coherent man in the era of great fears, compromises, and programmatic indecision.” He paid tribute to St. John Paul’s Marian devotion, commitment to peace, defense of life and the family, and efforts to introduce young people to the Gospel. “He knew that young people without Christ would never be able to find the meaning of life and would never be able to savor the fascinating truth of love, which is self-giving and not a whim that bends everything and everyone to itself,” said Cardinal Comastri. “The Pope sought out young people, and young people felt he was a friend: a true friend, a sincere friend, a friend who does not compromise to gain an audience, a friend who does not water down the evangelical proposal to become popular.” - Schedule released for papal trip to Verona (Vatican Press Office)
Pope Francis will visit the northern Italian city of Verona on Saturday, May 18. During the morning of his 11-hour visit, the Pope will address priests and religious and meet with young people. He will then chair a meeting, “Arena of Peace: Justice and Peace Embrace.” Around noon, the Pontiff will visit a prison, address prisoners, and have lunch with them. At 3:00 in the afternoon, he will attend Mass in a stadium. - Vandals strike again at Portland, Oregon church (CatholicVote)
Vandals left obscene pro-abortion slogans painted on the front doors of St. Patrick’s Church in Portland, Oregon, on April 28. The same church had been vandalized twice in 2021, with slogans painted on the doors and the sidewalk outside the church. CatholicVote notes that this was the 252nd reported attack on a Catholic church in the US since May 2022. The actual number is undoubtedly much higher, as many Catholic pastors prefer not to report acts of vandalism for fear of inciting further attacks. - German diocese celebrates 'Deacon's Day' for women (Katholisch)
Seven women led a Liturgy of the Word in the cathedral of Speyerer, Germany, as the diocese observed “Deacon’s Day.” The service—which also featured a female clown—was part of a nationwide observation, as lay groups campaign for the ordination of women. - Priest stole from parish, spent $40K on mobile phone games, police say (Philadelphia Inquirer)
Father Lawrence Kozak, a priest of the Archdiocese of Philadelphia, has been arrested and charged with the theft of over $40,000 of parish funds for personal expenses, principally cell phone games. The priest was placed on leave in 2022 after a parish accountant found “an astronomical amount of Apple transactions” on the parish credit card. Father Kozak, 51, was ordained to the priesthood in 2004. - Cardinal Parolin rips EU vote on abortion (Crux)
Cardinal Pietro Parolin expressed profound concern about the European Union vote to embrace a “right” to abortion, during an interview with the Italian daily Avvenire. “When life is attacked in such a radical way, you truly have to ask what kind of future we want to build,” said the Vatican Secretary of State. On a more positive note, Cardinal Parolin reported “great movement” in negotiations to secure the release of prisoners in the Ukraine war. He said that the negotiating mission of Cardinal Matteo Zuppi, who has put top priority on the release of children, is likely to continue. - Like Venice, people are beautiful, fragile, Pope says during journey to city (CNS)
Pope Francis made a brief apostolic journey to Venice on April 28, during which he met with prisoners, artists, and young people before preaching a homily at Mass and delivering his Sunday Regina Caeli address. “We can bring the fruits of the Gospel into the reality we inhabit: fruits of justice and peace, fruits of solidarity and mutual care; carefully-made choices to preserve our environmental and human heritage,” he preached during Mass. “We need our Christian communities, neighborhoods and cities to become welcoming, inclusive and hospitable places,” During his Regina Caeli address, he prayed for peace in Haiti and said he was thinking of “beleaguered Ukraine, Palestine and Israel, of the Rohingya and the many populations who suffer because of war and violence.” - Director of US bishops' troubled CCHD program resigns (Pillar)
Ralph McCloud, the director of the Catholic Campaign for Human Development (CCHD), has resigned, amid reports that the program has severe financial troubles. The CCHD—the official anti-poverty program of the US bishops’ conference—has been plagued for years by persistent revelations that the programs has made grants to organizations that oppose Catholic moral teachings. Despite repeated assurances from the US bishops’ conference that the program does not support anti-Catholic organizations, each year’s list of grants provokes new controversies. The Pillar reports that the CCHD has more recently encountered a budgetary crisis because, according to one unnamed source, “it’s been giving out more in grants than it takes in.” - Biden administration forbids disclosure of out-of-state abortions to law enforcement (Religion Clause)
Amending health privacy regulations, the Biden administration has prohibited disclosure of information about out-of-state abortions to law enforcement officials and others who are conducting a “criminal, civil, or administrative investigation” into acts that are illegal in their own state. - Africa is united on Fiducia Supplicans, cardinal says (ACI Africa)
“The Church in Africa is united in communion” regarding the Vatican declaration Fiducia Supplicans, Cardinal Fridolin Ambongo said at a press conference last week. “This is the reason why we shall no longer talk about Fiducia Supplicans,” the cardinal said. “It has been buried.” Cardinal Ambongo—who is the president of the president of the Symposium of Episcopal Conferences of Africa and Madagascar (SECAM) and a member of the College of Cardinals—gave his endorsement to a recent talk in which another leading African prelate, Cardinal Robert Sarah, had urged Church leaders in Africa to maintain the unity of the faith, applauding African bishops for their “firm opposition to Fiducia Supplicans.” - Canonization soon for Pier Giorgio Frassati? (National Catholic Register)
The prefect of the Dicastery for the Causes of Saints says that the canonization of Blessed Pier Giorgio Frassati is “on the horizon.” Cardinal Marcello Semararo told an Italian Catholic Action audience that the canonization of the Italian layman, who died in 1925 at the age of only 24, is “in sight for the coming Jubilee Year 2025.” - More...