Free Republic

GENEVA/VATICAN CITY, 11 January 2016 - The Lutheran World Federation (LWF) and the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity (PCPCU) have invited Lutheran churches and Catholic bishops’ conferences across the world to make use of a jointly-developed Common Prayer to prepare commemorations for the 500 years of the Reformation in 2017. In a joint letter today to the Catholic Bishops’ Conferences and to LWF member church bishops, presidents and other leaders, LWF General Secretary Rev. Dr Martin Junge and PCPCU President Kurt Cardinal Koch introduce the Common Prayer for Lutheran-Catholic common commemoration of the Reformation in 2017. The document is...

Is nonconformity and freethinking a mental illness? According to the newest addition of the DSM-IV (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders), it certainly is. The manual identifies a new mental illness called “oppositional defiant disorder” or ODD. Defined as an “ongoing pattern of disobedient, hostile and defiant behavior,” symptoms include questioning authority, negativity, defiance, argumentativeness, and being easily annoyed. - See more at: http://theunboundedspirit.com/nonconformity-and-freethinking-now-considered-mental-illnesses/#sthash.2oD6Hpv1.dpuf

From KTNV in Las Vegas:  Parishioners are terrified after protesters have disturbed Mass at several Catholic churches across the valley.The group, Koosha Las Vegas, includes members who clearly identify themselves as former Muslims turned Christians. They’ve been entering churches during services, shouting at Catholics that they need to repent now or else, and filming the acts and posting them on the internet.The videos make clear the group has been active on the Las Vegas Strip and several other places around the valley; they’re often seen with large signs and megaphones. The difference now is that they’re going into houses...

There is a great deal of confusion over the issue of papal infallibility, which prevents the pope from erring when defining doctrines for the universal Church. Many erroneously believe that the charism would prevent a person raised to the Pontificate from erring when speaking on matters of faith and morals. In reality, the charism of infallibility only prevents the pope from erring in limited circumstances.

Socialist Pope Francis announced today that the world is “near suicide” if no climate change deal is reached this week in Paris. The freewheeling Argentinian also blamed the West for African poverty. 75 million Africans were paid bribes in the last year. – which had nothing to do with the West.

The annual national collection for the Catholic Campaign for Human Development (CCHD) is this weekend. What many Catholics do not realize is that at the very core of the CCHD is a philosophy of revolutionary leftist ideologies. Over the years, the CCHD has been rightly criticized for funding organizations that are themselves promoting contraception, homosexuality, abortion, prostitution, and socialism. But these issues are only symptoms of an overall thrust that is aimed directly at convincing Catholics to fund Marxist revolution in the United States. The intent of this article, while certainly not exhaustive, is to help Catholics understand how the...

...Trump could absolutely win the nomination...the traditional coalition it takes for a Republican to win the White House may have to be reconfigured with Trump as standard-bearer. ...alliance of pro-life Catholics and evangelicals...became the dominant force in the GOP's grassroots... Since Roe...every Republican presidential election victory except one has one thing in common-the GOP won the Catholic vote. The lone exception was in 2000... If Republicans do not run a strong pro-life candidate for president, they don't have enough else in common with Catholic voters to win the Catholic vote. And Trump is not a strong pro-life candidate. Just a...

Keeping up with the vacuity of progressive Leftists is nothing if not exhausting, and the terrorist attacks in Paris have left no shortage of bumbling dissembling among the Leftist elite. Yesterday, Democrat Propaganda Minister and MSNBC host Chris Matthews breathlessly declared: “I don’t think Franklin Roosevelt, as angry as he was at Mussolini, never declared war on the Catholics. Anyway, that would have been a stupid thing to say.” Mr. Matthews is of course referring to those not adhering to the politically correct mantra of ISIS having nothing to do with Islam. Well speaking of stupid things to say,...

St. Francis Borgia priest cleared of wrongdoing in assault allegation CEDARBURG — Pastor Tom Eichenberger said it will take the rest of his life to restore the credibility that was called into question following an accusation that he assaulted a boy while on his first assignment as a young priest. The St. Francis Borgia Catholic Church priest returned to his parish Monday after being cleared of any wrongdoing by a retired police detective and an Archdiocese of Milwaukee review board. “The first words out of my mouth have to be thanks be to God for restoring me to the place...

2015 is drawing to a close, so unless some dark horse comes out of absolutely nowhere, Chris Matthews has a lock on the DisHonor award for the year's worst analogy. On this evening's Hardball, Matthews argued that we shouldn't blame Islam for ISIS terrorist attacks since, after all, FDR, despite despising Mussolini, "never declared war on the Catholics." Just a little difference: Italian fascism had no ideological affinity with Catholicism. To the contrary, it was rooted in notions of the revival of the Roman Empire of the Caesars. In contrast, you can't spell ISIS without "Islamic." To say that we...

American Christians have become a lot more tolerant of homosexuality over the past eight years, according to a landmark study released by the Pew Research Center on Tuesday that showed big gains in acceptance since the last time the study was conducted in 2007. The 2014 Religious Landscape Study, a survey of more than 35,000 Americans, examined a vast array of religious and social issues, including immigration. The study concluded that nearly all major religious groups have become significantly more accepting of homosexuality -- and almost all Christian groups are more accepting than they were in 2007. It holds true...

Drawing on 50 years of national and international dialogue, Lutherans and Catholics together have issued the "Declaration on the Way: Church, Ministry and Eucharist," a unique ecumenical document that marks a pathway toward greater visible unity between Catholics and Lutherans. The October 30 release of the document comes on the eve of the anniversary of Martin Luther's posting the 95 Theses, which sparked the Protestant Reformation. "Pope Francis in his recent visit to the United States emphasized again and again the need for and importance of dialogue. This Declaration on the Way represents in concrete form an opportunity for Lutherans...

Yes, he said it over the phone to his favorite journalist, Italian editor Eugenio Scalfari of La Repubblica, in a conversation on October 28, revealed by the latter in an editorial published this Sunday. There is no reason to doubt its accuracy. We are way past the time of doubting the accuracy of the Scalfari quotes. Not now, that the papal interviews to Scalfari have been published in the Vatican website, that they have been occasionally published by the Vatican publishing house (LEV) itself - for instance, as part of the book to the right. It was a direct quote...

The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) is appealing to the U.S. government to take in 100,000 Syrian refugees by the end of the year, along with an additional 100,000 from other countries. The population of Syrian refugees is overwhelmingly Muslim. In a message distributed via email, the USCCB is encouraging Catholics to submit a letter to their congressional representatives as well as to President Obama urging the government to "protect the lives and dignity of people in Syria, Iraq and in other countries suffering war, persecution and poverty." According to the pre-transcribed letter this is to be accomplished by...

Pope Francis told a Roman Catholic meeting on family issues on Monday that the Church should not be a stuffy "museum of memories" but have the courage to change if that was what God wanted. Francis urged bishops at the start of a three-week gathering, known as a synod, to humbly empty themselves of conventions and prejudices. They should not "point fingers at the others to judge them" or feel superior to those with different ideas. In a passage that appeared to be directed at unbending traditionalists, the pope said bishops should beware the "hardening of some hearts, which despite...

Pope Francis’ unexpected and unscheduled visit to the Little Sisters of the Poor, a convent of elderly nuns fighting ObamaCare’s contraception mandate in the courts, is a clear message shot across the Obama administration’s bow that such religious persecution is not acceptable, backing up the American Catholic Church’s mantra: we will not comply While the lamestream media focuses on the Pope’s seeming alignment on issues such as climate change and immigration reform, the chattering class ignores this ongoing battle over religious liberty.

I've been a Roman Catholic since 1954. I have great respect for Pope Francis. When it comes to matters of faith and morals, what he says, goes. But when it comes to politics and economics, the pope is about as far from infallible as anyone can get. For example, he was in Cuba earlier this week, meeting informally with Fidel Castro and touring the island to say Masses and meet with priests. Apparently the pope was having such a good time he forgot that for more than half a century Cuba has been a rotten communist prison camp and his...

Already trying to have it both ways. If you’re a Democrat who’s considering a run for the Presidency, there’s one thing you should never, ever, do. You can tell any lie and your base will let it slide. You can promote crazy tax schemes, anti-American foreign policy, and you can vow to limit individual liberty. You cannot, however, utter the words “life begins at the moment of conception.” For progressives this is the only unforgivable sin. It’s the third rail of left wing politics. In a word, it is unforgivable. ...And it’s just what Joe Biden has done. According to...

Pope Francis today suggested to reporters during an airborne press conference that he is not a left-winger. “Some people might say some things [I said] sounded slightly more leftish, but that would be a mistake of interpretation,” the Pope said to journalists, according to Time.

In what some are characterizing as a breach of diplomacy, President Obama has invited several prominent critics of Catholic doctrine to his meeting with Pope Francis. Among these controversial invitees are a pro-abortion nun, a transgender woman, a homosexual Episcopal bishop, and two Catholic homosexual activists. The intent of this affront says Press Secretary Josh Earnest “is to make the point that religious doctrine, just like Constitutional law, must evolve to meet evolving social customs and beliefs. High profile leaders like Pope Francis cannot afford to resist these trends if the Church hopes to stay relevant in the 21st century.”...