Free Republic

Despite their staunch opposition to contraceptives, Philippine Roman Catholic bishops expressed their full support Saturday to Pope Francis' remarks suggesting artificial contraception can be used by women threatened by the Zika virus. The Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines also backed the pope's uncompromising position against abortion, even in cases when a pregnant woman carries an unborn child afflicted with a deformity. "We, your bishops, reiterate church teaching: no matter that the child in the womb may be afflicted with some infirmity or deformity, it can never be moral to bring a deliberate end to human life," Archbishop Socrates Villegas,...

From the canonist Ed Peter’s fine blog In The Light Of The Law. He doesn’t have a combox over there and doesn’t mind if we use his stuff here. DO, however, go over there to his place regularly. Emphases are from Peters, comments mine: Misunderstanding the (alleged) 'Congo contraception' caseEven by the standards of his reign, the presser Pope Francis conducted on his return flight from Mexico has provoked an unusual number of questions. [No kidding. You should see my inbox, too!] I wish to address only one of those here.Preliminarily, I note that the burden is not on the...

In a February 8 interview with one of Italy's most prominent dailies, Corriere Della Serra, Pope Francis praised Italy's leading proponent of abortion - Emma Bonino -- as one of the nation's "forgotten greats," comparing her to great historical figures such as Konrad Adenauer and Robert Schuman. Knowing that his praise of her may be controversial, the Pope said that she offered the best advice to Italy on learning about Africa, and admitted she thinks differently from us. "True, but never mind," he said. "We have to look at people, at what they do." At 27, Bonino had an illegal...

Vatican City, Feb 25, 2016 / 12:04 am (CNA/EWTN News).- For Pope Francis, dialogue with Islam is a core issue. He recently voiced hopes to meet a major Sunni leader: the Grand Imam of al-Azhar Mosque, Ahmed el-Tayeb. "I want to meet him. I know that he would like it," the Pope said during his Feb. 18 in-flight press conference. The Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue, headed by Cardinal Jean-Louis Tauran, is reaching out to al-Azhar Mosque. "We are looking for the way, always through Cardinal Tauran because it is the path, but we will achieve it," Pope Francis said...

Praising A Murderer: Speaking to the Corriere della Sera on February 8th Pope Francis numbered the radical Italian politician Emma Bonino "among the big ones of today's Italy". When the journalist pointed out that Bonino doesn't think like the Church, Francis replied: "Whatever, one has to look at the persons, at what they do." Bonino openly admitted that she performed more than 10,000 illegal abortions during 1975 alone. She would vacuum the unborn child from the womb of the abortive mother with an air pump -- the kind used for bicycle tires -- putting the remains of her victim into...

The Pope's pregnant receptionist has been found dead in her apartment on the outskirts of the city. Miriam Wuolou, a 34-year-old of Eritrean origin, was seven-months pregnant when her body was discovered. She had worked at Pope Francis' home and a priests' guesthouse called Santa Marta for years.

Donald Trump should invite Pope Francis to his presidential inauguration. He helped pave the way for Trump to win the White House. Trump on Saturday won the South Carolina Republican primary, big time, knocking Jeb Bush out of the race. Now everything will fall into place.

In his visit to the U.S.-Mexican border, Pope Francis took the occasion to criticize American capitalism for the suffering of the poor. "In pursuit of profit the capitalists enslave working men and women, compelling them to exchange their precious time for money," the Pope complained. "Though not literally in chains, those forced to labor for their survival are rousted from repose to travel on often difficult and dangerous roads to arrive at an employer's place of exploitation. There they are given tiresome chores by cruel taskmasters. If they fail to perform satisfactorily they may be cast out into the streets."...

Pope Francis has shown his true colors. He’s no friend of America. While visiting Mexico, the pope suggested Donald Trump “is not Christian” for calling for a border wall. The pope, who claims to care about justice for the poor, showed shameful disregard toward vulnerable American citizens – especially blacks – damaged most by the presence of illegal aliens. Trump denounced Francis’ remarks as “disgraceful.” A pope spokesperson, like a snake, tried to soften the words, claiming it wasn’t “a personal attack” and was based on “what he was told” by Mexican officials. Pope Francis, an anti-American socialist, slandered our...

Trump and the Pope: a Right-Wing Populist (Today) Clashing with a Left-Wing Populist By Julio Severo In his recent trip to Mexico, Pope Francis said that that it was not right the Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump's attitude of surrounding the United States with a wall preventing the entry of illegal immigrants. Trump struck back by saying that the supreme leader of Catholics around the world is a shame -- evidently by his leftist stances. Francis does not want a wall surrounding the U.S. and keeping immigrants outside, but the Vatican itself is surrounded 100% by a wall preventing...

The acceleration of world events, and the clear movement away from the Word of God has become alarming, even to those who study the warnings contained within Scripture. Information from all sources about prophetically significant world events is pouring in at unprecedented speed. From the Pope's interference in American politics, to Russia's declaration that we may see the beginnings of the next world war in the Middle East, to the very real and very imminent move toward a cashless society, we are racing toward judgment and an event horizon that will test the faith of even the elect. But we...

Pope Francis on Sunday called for the worldwide abolition of the death penalty, saying the commandment "You shall not kill" was absolute and equally valid for the guilty as for the innocent. Using some of his strongest words ever against capital punishment, he also called on Catholic politicians worldwide to make "a courageous and exemplary gesture" by seeking a moratorium on executions during the Church's current Holy Year, which ends in November. "I appeal to the consciences of those who govern to reach an international consensus to abolish the death penalty," he told tens of thousands of people in St....

I wanted to briefly mention a few observations of discussions about the Holy Father's latest plane interview. 1. Astoundingly, when Catholics raise concerns about Pope Francis suggestion to women that they can use birth control pills and condoms to prevent perfectly healthy babies from being conceived because of a remote chance of birth defects, I am still seeing Catholics claim the press is misinterpreting what is being said. I will not cite the dozens of examples, suffice it to say that the Father has accountability for his own words and actions. His contradiction of Humane Vitae was as clear as...

MIAMI -- Florida politicians have a duty to address the perils of climate change even if they don't believe humans are hastening its grave consequences, Pope Francis' chief adviser on climate change said in an interview with the Miami Herald before addressing a weekend conference on climate, nature and society at St. Thomas University law school. Cardinal Peter Turkson said: "Anybody running for public office who sees the life of the people affected by climate-related disasters" needs to act. That, he said, includes the state's two Republican presidential contenders -- former Gov. Jeb Bush and Sen. Marco Rubio -- who...

The Pope’s ill-considered comments about Donald Trump are of a piece with hysterical overreactions to him and his candidacy in this and other countries. No pope has ever overtly intervened in an American political campaign before. The only known intervention by the Roman Catholic leadership in U.S. elections were in 1936 and 1940. On the former occasion, the ravings of Father Charles E. Coughlin, the mellifluous Canadian-born radio priest, had become so irritating to then-president Franklin D. Roosevelt that Pope Pius XI sent the Vatican secretary of State, Eugenio Cardinal Pacelli (who would succeed the pope as Pius XII in...

FRANKLIN GRAHAM TO POPE: BUILD BRIDGE TO TRUMP Graham, writing on his Facebook page, said: “My advice to the pontiff – reach out and build a bridge to Donald Trump. Who knows where he may be this time next year!

Who would have ever dreamed that the pope would win a primary for Donald Trump — in South Carolina, of all places, the buckle of the Bible Belt. Sure, Trump was probably going to prevail tomorrow anyway. But it’s over now, thanks to Pope Francis and his sanctimonious, tone-deaf statement that “a person who thinks only about building walls, wherever they may be, and not building bridges, is not Christian.” Related Articles Pope Francis flap could boost Donald Trump in South Donald Trump blames Mexican gov’t for Pope Francis’ remarks Bernie Sanders goes on the defense while Hillary Clinton goes...

"There are times that lay Catholics have to step forward to say what we as priests cannot." These were the words spoken to me during a time in my life that I felt called as a Catholic to defend my Catholic Church from an assault from within. That time has come again this week. To do so is never easy. For nearly three years now Catholics have defended Pope Francis as being "taken out of context" or "misunderstood" by the media. We have watched and cringed at what has come out of the Vatican, been ignored by the Vatican, and...

Laura Wilkerson spoke to Senate Judiciary Committee last July on illegal immigration and sanctuary cities. Laura is the mother of Joshua Wilkerson, an 18 year-old Texas teenager who was brutally murdered by an illegal immigrant in 2010. Today Laura Wilkerson, whose son was tortured and murdered by an illegal immigrant, endorsed Donald Trump. Wilkerson, who is a very religious person, said, the pope does not care about her. Breitbart.com reported: In an exclusive telephone interview with Breitbart News, Laura Wilkerson, whose son was tortured to death by an illegal alien, explained why she cast her early ballot today for GOP...

The Vatican spokesman, Father Federico Lombardi, has issued a clarification regarding the Pope's remarks to journalists Thursday, when he said, in answer to a question about Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump, that a person who only thinks of building walls and not about building bridges is no Christian.