Author: Catholic Radar An

Pope Francis’ rottweiler: Cardinal Fernández charts new, uncertain course for Vatican’s doctrinal office

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(National Catholic Reporter. Christopher White).

When Pope Francis tapped Cardinal Víctor Manuel Fernández to head the Vatican’s doctrinal office on July 1, 2023, he wasn’t just naming his longtime Argentine theological adviser to one of the church’s most powerful roles. He was also reenvisioning how that department would operate in the modern world and attempting to ensure that his reforms might outlast his own papacy. Accompanying the announcement of Fernández’s appointment in the Vatican’s daily bulletin was a letter articulating that as prefect of the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith, he should actively promote the work of theology and new ways of evangelization rather than replicating past “immoral methods” that sought to control or punish theologians. “The text of the letter that the pope wrote to the new prefect is in some ways an epoch-making event,” Italian theologian Andrea Grillo told the National Catholic Reporter. “It marked the official beginning of a new understanding of the function of the dicastery, moving away from the inquisitorial and censorious styles of the past.”

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Ex-Missionaries of Charity allege culture of abuse and neglect

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(Crux. Elise An Allen).

Almost three decades after her death, Saint Teresa of Kolkata, commonly and affectionately referred to as “Mother Teresa,” remains an international icon of charity and among the most beloved figures in the world, probably the Catholic Church’s most celebrated 20th century personality who wasn’t a pope. Named Time’s “Person of the Year” in 1975, Mother Teresa also founded a religious order, the Missionaries of Charity, which has become one of the Catholic Church’s most celebrated institutions, almost universally hailed for its service to the “poorest of the poor.”

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Bulgaria’s Orthodox Church elects a new patriarch with pro-Russian views

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(AP News).

Bulgaria’s Orthodox Church on Sunday elected Daniil, a 52-year-old metropolitan considered to be pro-Russian, as its new leader in a vote that reflected the divisions in the church and wider society since Russia invaded Ukraine more than two years ago. Growing divisions between pro-Russian and anti-Russian factions within the senior clergy began after some of them attempted to warm relations with the Orthodox Church of Ukraine, which was recognized by the Ecumenical Patriarch in Constantinople in 2019. Russian and most other Orthodox patriarchs refused to accept the designation that formalized a split with the Russian church.mUnlike his late predecessor, who in his last prayers criticized Russia’s aggression in Ukraine, Daniil has taken the side of the Moscow Patriarchy in its dispute with the Ecumenical Patriarch over the independence of Ukraine’s Orthodox Church.

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An insider’s guide to the Vatican’s inner workings

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(National Catholic Reporter. Christopher White).

The antiquated and often secret inner workings of the Vatican’s bureaucracy have been compared to the government of North Korea in its difficulty to make sense of and understand.  That challenge, however, is a bit easier now thanks to a new book penned by a true Vatican insider that has made the complicated web of Vatican operations much more accessible to outsiders. In The Roman Curia: History, Theology, and Organization, just out by Georgetown University Press, Msgr. Anthony Ekpo admits that for centuries, the work of the Vatican’s governance has often perplexed Catholics and non-Catholics alike, leaving some to ask: “Can anything good come from the Roman Curia?”

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Indonesian island set to become an international Catholic pilgrim destination

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(CNA. Kristina Millare).

Flores, Indonesia’s most Catholic island located in East Nusa Tenggara (NTT), is set to become an international pilgrim destination following government support to boost religious tourism. Initial efforts will concentrate on attracting tourists to participate in Semana Santa (Holy Week) celebrations held each year in the Larantuka Diocese as well as the annual festivities organized by the Ruteng Diocese in honor of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary from Aug. 10–15. “Flores Island is famous for its history and Catholic heritage. Flores is also often referred to as Missionary Island; this island has extraordinary potential and attraction for religious tourism, especially through the enculturation of the Catholic Church and the local community’s culture,” stated Sandiaga Salahuddin Uno, Indonesia’s minister for tourism and creative economy, during a webinar held in May organized by the Labuan Bajo Flores Authority Implementing Agency (BPOLBF). 

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Coming Out Is To Be Touched by Jesus’ Hand

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(New Ways Ministry. Gregory Greiten).

Before attending the theater with a friend last March, we enjoyed dinner at the Saint Kate-The Arts Hotel in Milwaukee. As we wandered the lobby, enjoying the art decorating the walls, we stumbled upon an exhibit room entitled, “The Closet.” Taking a peek inside the small room, I lightheartedly said to my friend, “I am going to step back into the closet. Would you take my picture to capture this moment?” As I momentarily stepped into the closet exhibit, my friend snapped the picture. I quickly leaped out of the closet remarking to him, “I spent way too many years of my life locked up in the closet. I don’t ever wish to go back.” After coming out of the closet publicly as a Roman Catholic priest in December 2017, I have finally been able to live authentically and with integrity, no longer being silenced by our Church leaders, but being truthful about who I am. As we end Pride Month, I want to offer love and support to those in the LGBTQ+ community who let their lights shine brightly for others to see, especially to those who may have stepped out of the closet, but also to those who are unable to come out because of the real negative consequences they would have to endure.

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India faces ‘crisis and conflict’ under influence of Hindu nationalist, priest says

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(Crux. Nirmala Carvalho).

A Catholic priest in India says “crisis, conflict and violence are becoming the way of life” in the country, after it suffered a rebuke in the U.S. State Department’s 2023 religious freedom report issued this week. U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said the U.S. government is concerned about the increase in anti-conversion laws, hate speech, demolitions of homes and places of worship of members of minority faith communities in India.

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New Essay Highlights Voices of Queer Catholic Women Celebrating Pride

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(New Ways Ministry. Ariell Watson Simon).

LGBTQ+ Catholics are “the church’s future saints,” says Angela, a woman interviewed in a National Catholic Reporter article that featured the voices of queer Catholic women. Angela says of the LGBTQ+ faithful, “Every voice around them in the church and outside of the church tells them that they don’t really belong ….[T]o be able to ignore that and stay focused on Christ is saintly, I think.”

Reporter Emily Claire Schmitt gathered the stories of queer women who, like Angela, understand and live their sexuality in a variety of ways, showcasing the spectrum of experiences among LGBTQ+ Catholic women. “Without exception,” Schmitt, who is a queer Catholic, concludes, “every woman I spoke with had read the catechism — as well as additional church documents on the subject — and understood that the church does not view sex-same desire as inherently sinful, but considers same-sex acts sinful. However, the women differed on whether or not they accepted this teaching.” Those interviewed include women in queer partnerships, living celibately, and in mixed-orientation marriages.

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Churches in Holy Land denounce ‘coordinated attack’ against Christians by Israeli authorities

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(CNA. Diego López Marina).

In the midst of the Hamas-Israel war in Gaza, the patriarchs and leaders of ancient Christian churches in Jerusalem have signed a joint document in which they denounce that four Israeli municipalities have sought to levy municipal taxes on church properties in violation of “centuries” of historical agreements. The church leaders, including Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, Latin Catholic patriarch of Jerusalem, and Franciscan Father Francesco Patton, custos of the Holy Land, accuse local authorities of launching a “coordinated attack” against the Christian presence in the Holy Land.

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Is LGBT Persons’ Mental Health Improving?

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(National Catholic Register. Jennifer Roback Morse).

The social acceptance of homosexual behavior has greatly increased over the past 30 years. In that time, the United States has changed the definition of marriage, the structures of the military, the curriculum of our public schools and the objectives of our foreign policy. Many people supported these changes because they thought this greater social acceptance would make self-identified gays and lesbians feel better. I propose that we stop and ask: Have these changes actually improved the mental health of the people who were supposed to be helped? No serious researcher in this arena denies that the rates of psychological distress are higher for self-described gay men and lesbian women than for everyone else. The measures that have been studied include substance abuse disorders, affective disorders, anxiety disorders, mood disorders, self-harm, eating disorders and suicidal tendencies. Researchers across the board agree on these basic facts. The only question is why.

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This Pride Month, celebrate Queer Youth of Faith Day

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(National Catholic Reporter. Emma Cieslik).

Sid High wants Beloved Arise — the five-year-old organization dedicated to empowering queer youth of faith — to be available in every school, therapist’s office, mental health website and worship space across the country. With Queer Youth of Faith Day and National Day of Prayer for LGBTQ+ Youth right around the corner on June 30, it seems like a lofty goal, but trans Christian and Beloved Arise youth ambassador High, who organized the first day of prayer with fellow ambassador Sabrina Hodak, argues that this organization is essential suicide prevention for queer young people across the United States. According to a 2009 Statista research study, 47.1% of gay men and 46.5% of lesbian women report growing up in a moderately or somewhat religious environment, and many of these religious spaces and values their families attend and hold influence the queerphobia they encountered at home.

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Bishops’ conference defends funding cuts to justice, peace and development

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(Crux. John Lavenburg).

Days after the U.S. bishops announced layoffs and a reorganization to their Department of Justice, Peace and Human Development, setting off a firestorm in both the media and in Catholic circles, the conference has written a memo to bishops to explain its decision and to announce staff reductions to other departments. The June 28 memo to American bishops, obtained by Crux, states that four of 17 staff within JPHD were let go, as well as three of the six staff members within the Catholic Campaign for Human Development. The memo states that the changes were due to several factors, “mostly related to funding.”

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Vatican demands changes to new Church body in Germany

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(Crux. Elise An Allen).

As part of an ongoing tug of war with the German bishops over the country’s controversial reform path, the Vatican has asked that several changes be made to a new national ecclesial body which curial officials have said has no foundation in Church law. In a June 28 statement after a day-long workday with representatives of the German Episcopal Conference (DBK), the Vatican said the discussion lasted the entire day and “was again characterized by a positive, open and constructive atmosphere.”

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Cardinal urges world help Ukraine so ‘nonsense of war’ stops

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(UCA news. Paulina Guzik).

In what he said was the most dramatic moment of his eight visits to Ukraine, Cardinal Konrad Krajewski, papal almoner, appealed from a Ternopil cemetery that the world needs to help Ukraine without further delays so that the “nonsense of war” stops. Without mentioning Russia by name, he also said that for those who cause war, “if only someone will go down to his knees and ask for forgiveness, Jesus won’t be tired of our sins. He will forgive everything.” Cardinal Krajewski arrived June 25 in the western city of Lviv, Ukraine, and on June 26, he left for Ternopil at dawn, as he recounted in a voice message sent to OSV News.

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Rupnik artwork must come down, says top US cardinal as he breaks ranks with Rome

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(Catholic Herald).

American Cardinal Sean O’Malley of Boston issued a statement saying he has asked the heads of all offices in the Roman Curia to take down the artwork of a famed priest and artist accused of abusing dozens of adult women. The statement came from the Pontifical Commission for Protecting Minors (PCPM), for which O’Malley serves as President, and said in that capacity, the cardinal has written to the heads of all Vatican departments asking that “pastoral prudence would prevent displaying artwork in a way that could imply either exoneration or a subtle defence” of alleged abusers “or indicate indifference to the pain and suffering of so many victims of abuse.” In his letter to Vatican prefects, dated June 26, O’Malley said, “We must avoid sending a message that the Holy See is oblivious to the psychological distress that so many are suffering.”

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Kenyan bishops condemn killing of anti-tax protesters

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(Crux. Ngala Killian Chimtom).

Catholic bishops in Kenya have expressed disgust at the heavy-handed response of the police to anti-tax protesters that has resulted in several deaths. The Kenyan parliament on Tuesday voted for the controversial 2024/25 Finance Bill that sparked nationwide protests. The proposed law raises taxes on essential items like bread, vegetable oil, and sugar, raises an eco-levy that would apply to most manufactured goods (including items like sanitary towels and diapers), increases banking charges, and imposes higher annual charges on car owners. The tax bill seeks to raise an additional $2.7 billion in taxes, in order to decrease the country’s budget deficit without incurring additional debts.

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Human trafficking is a form of modern slavery in Ireland, bishops say

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(Crux. Charles Collins).

Ireland – north and south – is far from immune from human trafficking, according to the Irish Catholic Bishops’ Conference. Women account for 67 percent of people trafficked into Ireland, and trafficking for sexual exploitation is the most common form of this modern slavery, accounting for 55 percent of victims, followed by labor trafficking at 38 percent, according to a 2023 report by the Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission.

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Cardinal Pizzaballa: We stand by those working for good in this dark night

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(Vatican News. Andrea Tornielli).

“The moment is very painful, we are living through a very long night. But we also know that nights end. It is the time when the Church must work with all those who are willing to do something beautiful and good for everyone…”. Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, passing through Rome, spoke to Vatican Media about the situation in Israel, Gaza, and the West Bank. What is the situation these days in Israel and especially in Gaza? The situation has not changed much compared to the recent past of these last months, with ups and downs. Gaza is now divided between the north and the south, Rafah, and the city of Gaza. There was a period when more humanitarian aid, especially in the north, was coming in. Now it has become a bit complicated again. Meat, for example, is missing. Water is problematic, and let’s say that, in general, the situation remains very deteriorated and it is very difficult to see ways out. It doesn’t seem to me that negotiations are leading to anything and that there is a real desire on the part of the parties to reach a conclusion. And this is what is perceived, also keeping in mind the Lebanon front which is heating up more and more. The prospects are not very encouraging.

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A statement the US bishops should issue – but likely won’t

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(National Catholic Reporter. Mark Rondeau).

It’s time for the Catholic bishops of the United States to begin regaining their lost credibility by taking a courageous stand for democracy before the 2024 election. As former NCR editor Tom Roberts writes in the March 29 issue, “Here in the US, Catholicism is for sale.” The bishops have ceded their teaching authority to a host of well-funded right-wing political groups who have embraced the “Catholic” brand to advance their economic and partisan goals. “Mirroring the civic reality of the moment, extremists have taken over much of the public square in the name of Catholicism,” Roberts writes. “They preach a crimped and narrow church, one that is retributive and rule-bound, willing to contort teachings and tradition in the interest of money and political power.” Let’s take a step back. The bishops last fall again issued their quadrennial election guide, “Forming Consciences for Faithful Citizenship.” The document closely follows those that have gone before, especially since the guide was last approved in 2015. Abortion remains the bishops “preeminent” concern, though this was not always the case in these documents. Democracy is mentioned once in the text, in passing.

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Disability shouldn’t be a ‘boutique interest’ for the Church, experts say

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(Crux. Elise An Allen). ç

Experts who participated in a recent conference on Safeguarding and Disability have said that a broader inclusion and recognition of the belonging of disabled individuals in church life would make abuse prevention easier and is something all faithful must work towards. Speaking to Crux, Anne Masters, who holds a doctorate in disability theology and who gave a presentation during the conference, said “what was interesting was, by bringing in folks with the experience on disability and practice and theology, it opened their eyes.”

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