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October 14, 2014 The Great Catholic Cave-In That Wasn’t The Times’s wishful thinking notwithstanding, the synod of bishops hasn’t thrown out Church teaching. GEORGE WEIGEL For the better part of a half century, the New York Times, and similarly situated purveyors of news and opinion, have eagerly awaited the Great Catholic Cave-In: that blessed moment when, at long last, the Catholic Church, like many other Christian communities, would concede that the sexual revolution had gotten it right all along and would adjust its teaching and practice to suit. A Times “breaking story” on October 13, under the headline “Vatican Signals...

The second reason the current Synod on the Family will inevitably seem chaotic is the unique situation of the Church in this period of history. In my last installment, I explained that a certain degree of chaos is integral to the synodal process, and in the third and final installment I will explain why the very concept of marriage produces a chaotic response in the modern world. But today let us consider how the Church’s unusual situation leaves the synod fathers fumbling around for solutions they cannot quite grasp. The reason lies in the rather odd condition of the Church...

In a candid interview Monday, Cardinal Raymond Burke voiced the concerns of many of his brothers in the Synod hall and lay Catholic activists throughout the world that the public presentation of the Synod has been manipulated by the organizers in the General Secretariat. He strongly criticized yesterday’s Relatio post disceptationem, or “report after the debate,” which the Catholic lay group Voice of the Family had called a “betrayal,” saying it proposes views that "faithful shepherds ... cannot accept," and betrays an approach that is "not of the Church." He called on Pope Francis to issue a statement defending Catholic...

ROME (CNN) - Under furious assault from conservative Catholics, the Vatican backtracked Tuesday on its surprisingly positive assessment of gays and same-sex relationships. In a report Monday, the Vatican had said that gays and lesbians have "gifts to offer" the Christian community and acknowledged that same-sex couples can give "precious support" to one other. The statement, an interim report from a closely watched meeting of Catholic clergy here, was widely praised by liberals. It is believed be the first time the Vatican has said anything positive about gay relationships. One longtime Vatican journalist called the statement a "pastoral earthquake." But...

... So, the Pope wants full and free debate, and free deliberations... except when he doesn't. And when the secret ballot reveals a conservative majority -- then he interferes against what had been settled beforehand to get what he wants. It is his prerogative, of course, even if it severely contradicts his own words and commitments, and, ultimately, his reliability. http://rorate-caeli.blogspot.com/2014/10/cardinal-burke-pariah-not-for-synod.html#more

Vatican synod: Victory for Pope Francis on gay issues By David Willey BBC News, The Vatican Most of the clerics at the synod support Francis's moderate stance on family matters Halfway through the Vatican synod on the family, Pope Francis has scored a first quiet victory.He has convinced many Catholic Church leaders to moderate their formerly strongly critical language about gay unions, and to admit that homosexuals may have "gifts and qualities to offer".The tone of a preliminary position paper drawn up by about 200 bishops after a week of closed-door discussions shows compassion and understanding not only towards people...

For the better part of a half century, the New York Times, and similarly situated purveyors of news and opinion, have eagerly awaited the Great Catholic Cave-In: that blessed moment when, at long last, the Catholic Church, like many other Christian communities, would concede that the sexual revolution had gotten it right all along and would adjust its teaching and practice to suit. A Times “breaking story” on October 13, under the headline “Vatican Signals More Tolerance Toward Gays and Remarriage,” might have struck the unwary or uninformed (or those equally committed to the Times agenda in these matters) as...

If someone in Germany who is divorced and civilly remarried can receive Communion without being expected to change his lifestyle, why can’t someone in Africa who is “married” to two women do so as well? That’s the question that Cardinal Wilfrid Napier, the archbishop of Durban, South Africa, asked in a recent interview with Catholic News Service. Napier added that a better way forward for the Church than the recommendation made by the German Cardinal Walter Kasper is to recommend the traditional Christian practice of fortitude in the face of suffering; the carrying of the cross. “Jesus didn’t say ‘I...

Meanwhile, even as – as some people claim – there are within the Church those who wish to bring her down. There are – as is patently clear to anyone with a brain – there are outside the Church those who wish to bring her down.Rather, chop off her head.I saw this at Tempi (Italian HERE): La bandiera nera sventola sull’Obelisco di San Pietro: la rivista dello Stato islamico festeggia la “crociata fallita”The black flag waves over the Obelisk of St. Peter: the magazine of the Islamic State celebrates the “failed crusade” The “crociata” in this case refers to the...

First, I have been quietly trying to brace people that this Synod would go well beyond mere “pastoral” approaches and into redefinitions of Doctrine. I felt that clearly the case because, for starters, it is impossible to separate Doctrine – law – from practice. Saying otherwise is like saying we can continue to hold the common definition of murder in criminal courts while excusing all those who commit murder out of a false sense of charity. And what we have going on right now is attempted soul-murder in the first degree. In addition, in reading the tea leaves with the...

Crony Christianity challenges the separation of Church and State. Crony Christianity is the collaborative arrangement between government and Christian faith-based organizations whereby government funds Christian organizations to deliver goods and services that advance the political agenda of the government. Any government. The crisis surrounding the flood of unaccompanied alien children into the U.S. has promoted crony Christianity. It is a variation of the spider’s web of similar arrangements, spun between businesses and government, that we call crony capitalism. The Players The five players in crony Christianity are: (1) the bureaucrats who run ecclesiastically-related organizations; (2) the church laity aligned with...

ROME (CNN) – Using strikingly open language, a new Vatican report says the church should welcome and appreciate gays, and offers a solution for divorced and remarried Catholics who want to receive Communion. “Regarding homosexuals, it went so far as to pose the question whether the church could accept and value their sexual orientation without compromising Catholic doctrine,” said John Thavis, a former Rome bureau chief for Catholic News Service. The Rev. James Martin, an author and Jesuit priest, called the report's language on gays and lesbians "revolutionary." “Homosexuals have gifts and qualities to offer to the Christian community. Are...

Previously, we brought you “7 Words You Didn’t Know Had Christian Origins.” But, of course, Christians have contributed far more than just seven words to our language! So here are seven more words you didn’t know had Christian origins. 1) Goodbye “Goodbye” (also “goodby,” “good bye,” or “good-bye”), comes from the older English term “godbwye,” which is a contraction of “God be with ye.” (“God be with ye” = “godbwye”) The French (adieu) and Spanish (adios) words for parting ways are also related to commending the person to God. [There are 6 more at the link]

Before the October 10 announcement that Malala Yousafzai and Kailash Satyarthi would share this year’s Nobel Peace Prize, many journalists had expected that Pope Francis would take the award. But John Allen of Crux points out that a key member of the Nobel committee has vowed not to name any Pope for the prize. In 2001, Allen recalls, Lutheran Bishop Gunnar Staalseth, a member of the awards committee, stated his public opposition to a Nobel Prize for St. John Paul II. He said that he would block any award for a Roman Pontiff as long as the Catholic Church continued...

Job 11:17,18 Your Life will be Brighter than Sunshine at Noon, And Life's Darkest Hours will Shine like the Dawn. You will Live Secure and Full of Hope; God will Protect you and Give you Rest. You won't be Afraid of your Enemies; Many People will Ask you for Help. But the Wicked will Look Around in Despair And Find that there is No Way to Escape.

SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — Court decisions this week paving the way for same-sex marriage to become legal in dozens of states, including Mormon strongholds like Utah, Idaho and Nevada, have emboldened a growing group of Latter-day Saints who are pushing the conservative church to become more accepting of gay members. The church's stance toward gays has softened considerably since it was one of the leading forces behind California's ban on gay marriage in 2008, but high-ranking leaders have reiterated time and again the faith's opposition to same-sex unions....

New children’s book is a gentle introduction that there is no dog but dog. For nearly two thousand years, religious groups have held a monopoly on how to teach morals to young children. Now Me & Dog, a new children’s book by Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Gene Weingarten and illustrator Eric Shansby—both of The Washington Post—steps into the competitive arena of nighttime reads (6-8 p.m. division) with an atheist lullaby. Cue sincere hand wringing: Won’t somebody please think of the children? The setting for this shameless piece of atheist propaganda (you can quote me on that, religious right) is a walk...

Sticks, Stones, and Broken Bones: The History of Anti-Catholic Violence in the U.S. We do not recall these instances of anti-Catholicism to foster more animosity or violence, but recall them as part of our history, a history that, like so many others, included the targeting of ethnic and religious groups for persecution. From left to right—Bishop John Hughes, New York, 1844; cartoon from Anti-Catholic book published by the Ku Klux Klan, 1926; Burning of St. Augustine Church, Philadelphia, 1844; Fr. James Coyle, Birmingham Alabama, murdered, 1921. You have, no doubt, heard the children’s rhyme: “Sticks and stones may break my bones...

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Washington D.C., Oct 10, 2014 / 01:01 am (CNA/EWTN News).- Following Justice Anthony Kennedy’s stay on a “gay marriage” court decision in Idaho, marriage advocates are imploring the Supreme Court to reject the judicial redefinition of marriage. “Justice Kennedy’s order further demonstrates that the Supreme Court’s decision not to take up the marriage cases earlier this week is far from the final answer on this important issue,” said Kellie Fiedorek of the legal advocacy group Alliance Defending Freedom. The ruling came after the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals struck down marriage laws in Idaho and Nevada on Tuesday, making...