Free Republic

Georg Gänswein in a TV interview denies the latest allegations on the renunciation: “It was a free decision. What has been recently said is invented.” The two Popes theory? “The Pope is one, Ratzinger was pope and has renounced”Benedict XVI’s ninetieth birthday is approaching and monsignor Georg Gänswein, Prefect of the Papal Household and his private secretary, denies all the rumors and recent interviews about alleged pressure that led Joseph Ratzinger to resign. Gänswein was interviewed during Matrix an Italian late night TV show, broadcasted Wednesday, April 5, 2017. The Secretary of the Pope Emeritus responded to questions from Vatican...

, Apr 5, 2017 / 12:10 pm (CNA/EWTN News).- Pope Francis’ envoy to Medjugorje said Wednesday that the site seems to be bearing numerous expressions of faith and vocations. However, he added, the final determination of the apparition’s authenticity remains to be seen.Archbishop Henryk Hoser was sent by the Pope to evaluate the pastoral situation for residents and pilgrims in Medjugorje. He clarified that he was not tasked with anything beyond this scope.“The same as you, I expect a final decision from the commission, and of course the Holy Father Pope Francis,” Archbishop Hoser said at an April 5...

Under Pope Francis, Rome has moved with surprising haste to take concrete steps to bring the Society of St. Pius X  closer to a regularized canonical situation. While SSPX Masses have always been seen as valid (though of questionable liceity), other sacraments offered by priests of the society which require jurisdiction from the local ordinary — specifically Confession and Holy Matrimony — have remained under the shadow of doubt.  (The Society argues that they have “supplied jurisdiction” under a “state of necessity”.)In September of 2015, at the opening of the Jubilee Year of Mercy, Pope Francis granted faculties to all priests of the Society...

People are ‘rejecting [traditional] doctrines as childish fantasies and walking away’Redemptorist priest Fr Tony Flannery has questioned traditional Catholic Church teachings on God, Mary and the Trinity, which he said, “no longer make sense to the modern mind, and are being quietly rejected even by people who still attend church”. Some of these doctrines, he said, “are not scripture based” and come from “a time when there was a very different understanding of the world and of humanity”. Fr Flannery, a founder-member of the Association of Catholic Priests, said science has greatly influenced “the way we look at ourselves and...

Washington D.C., Mar 19, 2017 / 04:21 pm (CNA/EWTN News).- Raymond Arroyo has an impressive resume.He’s a New York Times bestselling author several times over. He’s an award-winning journalist and producer. And his weekly EWTN show, The World Over Live, reaches more than 350 million global households and 500 U.S. radio affiliates.So when Arroyo says his Will Wilder series of books for young readers just might be “the most important work I’ve ever done,” it’s quite a statement.What makes these books so important, in his view? The lifelong impact that they can have on kids.“When an adult reads your...

I had woken up content and looking forward to celebrating Mass in the parish. I sprang from bed, eager to get ready and to arrive early for my appointment with Our Lord and his people.Mass went beautifully.At the end, some women approached me, “Father, could you hear our confessions?”I said yes — there were only three of them — but after I’d finished hearing the confessions of the first three women, I saw more people had gotten in line, and then more and more … until three hours had passed. I was hungry, thirsty and ready for a break.I...

Along with Friday fish-fries, the weekly Stations and giving up something (or doing something more), recent years have brought a new tradition of Lent: the Pope going into overdrive to plug his favorite sacrament. Yet even as The World's Most Coveted Pitchman again devoted the better part of a week this month (and amid the high exposure of his election anniversary, at that) to another round of all-Confession, all-the-time messaging – topped as usual by taking his own turn as a penitent during the season's annual penance service in St Peter's – in at least a hefty chunk of the trenches,...

I very seldom post stuff on religion---too easy to get into arguments, but I think all will appreciate this story. Last week I attended a memorial service for a friend's mother. We had played "Risk" at their house and swam in their pool endlessly as kids. She took her Christianity seriously, and a few minutes into a discussion would likely ask you how you came to know Jesus. She was extremely philanthropic, and one of her biggest giving areas was in what used to be called Campus Crusade for Christ. (It has a different name now). At the end of...

A few days ago, after witnessing blatant hypocrisy by certain members of a particular Caucus in Washington D.C, I decided to start my own Caucus here on Freerepublic. (Please note: This is a "King James Bible Believers Caucus" thread, if you disagree that the KJB is the preserved word of God, this is not the thread for you.) FREE REPUBLIC'S CAUCUS RULES: Who can post? Members of the caucus and those specifically invited. What can be posted? Anything but the beliefs of those who are not members of the caucus. What will be pulled? Reply posts mentioning the beliefs...

Instead of closing parishes because of a shortage of priests, Cardinal Reinhard Marx of Munich has proposed to appoint lay people to administer parishes. Cardinal Marx said that lay-run parishes would provide the German archdiocese with a way of “remaining visible locally” despite the clergy shortage. “The local Church is most significant,” he said. “We would waste a great many opportunities if we were to withdraw from our territorial roots.” Cardinal Marx—who is president of the German bishops’ conference, and a member of the Council of Cardinals advising Pope Francis—said that the Church should explore new ways to involve lay...

The instrumental hymns are, (There is a Fountain Filled with Blood) and the chorus of - (God Be With You, Till We Meet Again), both are accompanied with lyrics.

Brilliant News!!! The Holy See has directed that the Texan parish of Our Lady of the Atonement in San Antonio is, with effect from today, part of the Ordinariate of the Chair of S Peter, the American Ordinariate. 'Atonement' was the first (in 1983) of the parishes set up to perpetuate within the Roman Unity groups adhering to their Anglican Liturgy, Spirituality, and theological tradition. It was spectacularly successful, under its dynamic and charismatic Pastor Fr Christopher Phillips. When the Ordinariates were set up, the position of parishes adhering to the 'Anglican Use', but operating as units within ordinary dioceses,...

Archbishop Charles J Scicluna: 'I want to offer a guarantee and reassure all Catholic parents that church schools would not be impoverished if they respect others, but would actually be more authentic'Church schools in Malta will always remain Catholic, with the crucifix on classroom walls, even if they autonomously choose to start offering lessons in Islam and other religions, Malta’s archbishop insisted yesterday. Mons. Charles J. Scicluna was answering questions put to him by MaltaToday, at the end of an event commemorating former Archbishop Joseph Mercieca on the first anniversary since his death. Scicluna said that Church schools should respect...

SAN ANTONIO (ChurchMilitant.com) - In a victory for a Texas parish, the Holy See has approved the admission of Our Lady of Atonement Catholic Church into the Anglican Ordinariate, effective March 21. Our Lady of the Atonement was the nation's first pastoral provision parish, established in 1983, after Pope John Paul II made special provisions for former Anglicans to found Catholic parishes where traditional Anglican liturgy is offered. The Vatican established the North American Ordinariate in 2012, and ordained its first bishop, Steven Lopes, in 2016. The Holy See is now directing that all pastoral provision parishes in the United...

Pope Francis will make a trip to Egypt next month, the Vatican said on Saturday, giving the pontiff another opportunity to promote better relations between Catholics and Muslims. Francis has accepted an invitation to Cairo on April 28-29 from President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, Catholic bishops, the pope of the Coptic church of Alexandria and the country’s highest Islamic authority, Al-Azhar, the Vatican said in a statement. Christians, mostly Orthodox Copts, account for about 10 percent of Egypt’s population, which is overwhelmingly Sunni Muslim. Sectarian violence sometimes erupts over disputes on issues related to church building, religious conversions and interfaith relationships....

Martin Luther, as a herald of the Reformation, exclaimed that the church must be profane. It must move out of the temple and into the world. Luther looked to the Latin roots of the word profane, which comes from pro-fanus (“outside the temple”). If Christ is not relevant outside the church, He is insignificant inside the church. If our faith is bound to the inner chambers of the Christian community, it is at best a disobedient faith and at worst, no faith at all. It was the Pharisees who developed the doctrine of salvation by separation. They were practicing segregationists,...

Christian families and communities that don’t embrace some form of the Benedict Option aren’t going to make it through this time of testing Veteran journalist Rod Dreher has just produced a potent study of what ails America—and is proposing that the best solution may be (as his new book is titled) “The Benedict Option.” As the book’s promotional materials describe it: Now is a time of testing, when believers will learn the difference between shallow optimism and Christian hope. However dark the shadow falling over the West, the light of Christianity need not flicker out. It will not be...

Lord Jesus: We take authority in Your Name Lord over this supposed tax return release of President Trump's tax returns. Lord God, quell the wickedness in high places that we are wrestling with now: shut the mouths of every lie spoken against the President, and may the truth of the motives of those who say they are releasing these supposed tax returns be revealed for all Americans to see. The wicked plans of the NWO Uniparty liars are abhorrent to You, Lord God; we believe they are whom You laugh at in derision in Psalm 2... expose, unveil and reveal...

Catholics must "condemn unequivocally" anti-Muslim prejudice in the United States, including in our own church communities, San Diego Bishop Robert McElroy told a national meeting of Muslims and Catholics Wednesday, March 8. McElroy, co-chair of the West Coast Catholic-Muslim Dialogue of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, was part of a two-day national meeting of three regional dialogue groups at Catholic Theological Union in Chicago March 8-9. Chicago Cardinal Blase Cupich is chair of the national dialogue. In his public remarks, McElroy decried the "intolerable exclusion and marginalization, which both the followers of Islam and Christians are facing in our...

Cardinal Vincent Nichols has congratulated Francis on the fourth anniversary of his electionCardinal Vincent Nichols, the Archbishop of Westminster, has sent a letter of congratulations to Pope Francis on the fourth anniversary of his election as Pope, thanking him for his “steadfast” defence of Church teaching. Cardinal Nichols, president of the bishops’ conference, said he was writing on behalf of Catholics in England and Wales. The cardinal wrote: “We thank God that the Holy Spirit guided the Church in the process of your election and that the same Holy Spirit guides and supports you day by day. We thank God...