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As an outsider, I can’t help but wonder whether the pope and the USCCB were particularly provoked by Weinandy’s suggestion that Jesus had allowed this controversy in order “to manifest just how weak is the faith of many within the Church, even among too many of her bishops.” Catholics will have to make up their own minds—but I’ll admit I have questions about the faith of Pope Francis, which seems, if not weak, at least different from that of the Catholic tradition. Even before the release of Amoris Laetitia in March 2016, Francis had caused many to question his fidelity...

What Do We Mean by the Communion of Saints? Msgr. Charles Pope • November 16, 2017 • This is the eighth in a series of articles on the Four Last Things: Death, Judgment, Heaven, and Hell.Continuing our series on the Four Last Things, in today’s post we consider an aspect of Heaven called the Communion of Saints. I have discovered that it is frequently misunderstood. Many of you know that I write the weekly “Question and Answer” column for the Our Sunday Visitor newspaper. Every once in a while, someone poses a unique question, one that I had never...

This is so cool!NASCAR driver Johnny Sauter recently won the Jag Metals 350 at Texas Motor Speedway. In a post-race interview, he added a few things you don’t normally hear: “I just thank the Sacred of Jesus and the Blessed Mother. And today is First Friday so we should pray for all the poor souls in purgatory.” (full video below)The Friday Friday devotion he mentioned dates back to the 17th century and is associated with devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus, which he also referenced.This isn’t the first time Sauter has been public about his Catholic faith in post-race interviews. In...

November 17, 2017 Memorial of Saint Elizabeth of Hungary, Religious Reading 1 Wis 13:1-9 All men were by nature foolish who were in ignorance of God,and who from the good things seen did not succeed in knowing him who is,and from studying the works did not discern the artisan;But either fire, or wind, or the swift air,or the circuit of the stars, or the mighty water,or the luminaries of heaven, the governors of the world, they considered gods.Now if out of joy in their beauty they thought them gods,let them know how far more excellent is the Lord than...

White Double MOSES instructed in all the wisdom of the Egyptians, mighty in his words and in his deeds, retired into the desert: Gregory, adorned with the best gifts of birth and nature, brilliant in rhetoric, rich in every science, hid himself from men in the flower of his youth, and hastened to offer to God in solitude the holocaust best pleasing to the Lord. Each was the hope of his race; yet each turned away to lose himself in the contemplation of heavenly mysteries. Meanwhile, the yoke of Pharaoh lay heavy upon Israel; meanwhile, souls were perishing, whom...

I found an interesting German report here which suggests that Cardinal Sarah has failed to respond to Pope Francis' request to publicise his response to statements by the Cardinal on the Internet (as outlined in this post from October 23rd). The post suggests the deadline was discovered by research from Katholischen Nachrichten-Agentur (KNA) but I have not been able to verify this. As the Dom Radio report states, Pope Francis decree "Magnum Principium" specified that the national episcopal conferences are responsible for the translation of liturgical texts. The motu proprio said episcopal conferences need only confirm these translations with Rome....

VATICAN, November 16, 2017 (LifeSiteNews) — One of the main concerns about the Vatican’s frequent conferences on climate change in recent years has been that many of the invited speakers favor population control as a means to protecting the planet. This became patently clear at a Pontifical Academy for Sciences seminar last week when a key speaker said “it’s a little ambitious” to think we can cut the population in half by 2050, but it is “smarter” to cull the number of people first, thereby making the move to renewable energy easier. The November 2-4 conference, hosted at the prestigious...

VATICAN CITY (AP) — Pope Francis on Thursday rebuked those who deny the science behind global warming and urged negotiators at climate talks in Germany to avoid falling prey to such "perverse attitudes" and instead accelerate efforts to curb greenhouse gas emissions. Francis issued a message to the Bonn meeting, which is working to implement the 2015 Paris accord aimed at capping global emissions. In it, Francis called climate change "one of the most worrisome phenomena that humanity is facing." He urged negotiators to take action free of special interests and political or economic pressures, and to instead engage in...

White Double THE SCHOOL which is founded upon the rule of the great Patriarch of the Monks of the West began with St. Gregory the Great. Such was the independent action of the Holy Spirit who guided it that in it women have prophesied as well as men. It is enough to mention St. Hildegarde and St. Gertrude, with whom we may fitly associate St. Mechtilde and St. Frances of Rome. Anyone who has tried modern methods will find, on making acquaintance with these ancient writers, that he is breathing another atmosphere, and is urged onward by a gentle...

What Is Eternal Life? Msgr. Charles Pope • November 15, 2017 • This is the seventh in a series of articles on the Four Last Things: Death, Judgment, Heaven, and Hell.I often think that we haven’t done a very good job of setting forth the doctrine of eternal life. For most people, the concept seems a rather shallow one: that we will live forever. Frankly, many may not consider it all that appealing if the place where we live forever is Heaven. Too often, Heaven is reduced to merely this: a place where I’ll be happy. I’ll have a...

Pope John Paul I has moved a step closer to sainthood with the recognition of his heroic virtues. Pope Francis on Wednesday authorized the Congregation for the Causes of Saints to promulgate the decree approving his predecessor’s heroic virtues which confers on him the title ‘Venerable’.

November 16, 2017 Thursday of the Thirty-second Week in Ordinary Time Reading 1 Wis 7:22b–8:1 In Wisdom is a spiritintelligent, holy, unique,Manifold, subtle, agile,clear, unstained, certain,Not baneful, loving the good, keen,unhampered, beneficent, kindly,Firm, secure, tranquil,all-powerful, all-seeing,And pervading all spirits,though they be intelligent, pure and very subtle.For Wisdom is mobile beyond all motion,and she penetrates and pervades all things by reason of her purity.For she is an aura of the might of Godand a pure effusion of the glory of the Almighty;therefore nought that is sullied enters into her.For she is the refulgence of eternal light,the spotless mirror of the...

The beatification Mass is set for 4 p.m. on Nov. 18 (tickets are no longer available) and will be broadcast on EWTN.The beloved Fr. Solanus Casey will be beatified on Nov. 18 at Ford Field in Detroit. The beatification Mass, scheduled for 4 p.m., is expected to draw many thousands of Catholics. “The beatification is a remarkable moment in all of our lives and one to celebrate Father Solanus, whose compassion and attribution to miraculous cures have endeared him to those in Detroit and across the world,” said Father Michael Sullivan, Provincial Minister of the Capuchin Franciscan Province of St....

The poster - reading "Christmas blood" - depicts a masked jihadi driving a BMW towards St Peter's BasilicaThe terror group ISIS has made a chilling threat against the Vatican just weeks before tens of thousands of faithful gather there to celebrate Christmas. A pro-ISIS propaganda channel made the threat in a poster depicting a car attack. The poster - reading "Christmas blood" - depicts a masked jihadi driving a BMW towards St Peter's Basilica, where Pope Francis holds mass. An assault rifle and a rucksack are visible on the seat next to the driver, who is using a sat nav...

Do You Desire Heaven? Really? Msgr. Charles Pope • November 14, 2017 • This is the sixth in a series of articles on the Four Last Things: Death, Judgment, Heaven, and Hell.After some sobering reflection on death and judgment over the past several days, it’s finally time to talk about Heaven. Now that is a topic everyone wants to hear about! Yet there is a strange disconnect today. As it becomes easier and easier to satisfy our desire for instant gratification, we find it harder and harder to take the time to ponder a future paradise.Almost no one talks...

November 15, 2017 Wednesday of the Thirty-second Week in Ordinary Time Reading 1 Wis 6:1-11 Hear, O kings, and understand;learn, you magistrates of the earth's expanse!Hearken, you who are in power over the multitudeand lord it over throngs of peoples!Because authority was given you by the Lordand sovereignty by the Most High,who shall probe your works and scrutinize your counsels.Because, though you were ministers of his kingdom, you judged not rightly,and did not keep the law,nor walk according to the will of God,Terribly and swiftly shall he come against you,because judgment is stern for the exalted–For the lowly may...

No apology after San Dimas Catholic church publishes images of gay couples to celebrate Mother's Day The Mother’s Day church bulletin from Holy Name of Mary Catholic Parish in San Dimas, California. Two of the images on page 1, second row from top, include gay couples: two moms with their baby, and two dads with their son.The following is an email we received this week from one of our readers. The links have been verified.California Catholic Daily: Attached you’ll find a copy of a past bulletin (May 14, 2017) from Holy Name of Mary Catholic parish (San Dimas, CA). The...

Fr. Wei Heping, 41, died in mysterious circumstances, his body dumped in a river in Taiyuan (Shanxi). For the police claim he committed suicide. Family members are not allowed to even see the autopsy report. For Card. Zen the Holy See (which "is not necessarily the Pope") seeks a compromise at all costs with the Chinese government, risking "to sell out the faithful Church". Justice and Peace publish a booklet about Fr. Wei, not to forget.Hong Kong (AsiaNews) - Card. Joseph Zen, Emeritus Bishop of Hong Kong, has asked God to save the Holy See "from the brink of the...

Look at the life of Father Casey. Imitate him. Open the door to others. Be a porter to anyone who knocks.Editor's Note: EWTN will air a documentary on Father Casey Nov. 17 and show the beatification live Nov. 18. See times here and watch NCRegister.com for continuing coverage.St. Francis of Assisi initially took the admonition of Christ to “Rebuild my Church” literally, and ever since that time, the order he founded has sought to rebuild — churches, families and lives — with whatever materials they possessed. St. Francis sold all he had and collected stones to rebuild the Portiuncula. Father...

A British Government education watchdog ordered the Holy Ghost Catholic Primary School in London to remove “mother” and “father” in their admission form in order to please “separated, step and gay parents”. The Bishops’ Catholic Education Service, known for accommodating to gay ideology, is now drafting a new form for its 2,230 Catholic schools. The form will only refer to “the family”. Many schools already use “parent 1” and “parent 2”. The Sunday Times cites an expert who called this decision “profoundly undemocratic, illiberal and a capitulation to a form of politically correct fascism”.