Free Republic

China did not send any delegation to Pope Francis’ funeral, a fact that carries heavy potential consequences and implications in light of the late pope’s efforts to engage with the communist country, according to one Catholic anthropologist. The country’s decision to not send anyone to the April 26 funeral was akin to “a slap to Pope Francis,” wrote Michael Chambon in an April 28 op-ed for Union of Catholic Asia (UCA) News. “From the very beginning of his papacy, Pope Francis showed particular attention to China,” Chambon wrote. He pointed to how Pope Francis often expressed his love for the...

Rome is living these days in an atmosphere of unreality. The sentiment conveyed in the Eternal City, in the midst of the pre-conclave period, is a mixture of bewilderment, discretion, and silence. Francis was gone with a speed that no one expected - not even his own allies - and the sectors most in favor of his pontificate seem to have dissolved away without the capacity of reaction. There are no meetings, no strategy, no slogans. The pontificate is over and “Franciscanism”, if it ever existed as a solid body, has imploded. The College of Cardinals, for its part, presents...

It’s not usual that we see a soccer player score two goals at once. And that’s just what happened in the British Premier League, in the match where champions Liverpool massacred Tottenham Hotspur by 5-1. Dutch forward Cody Gakpo scored Liverpool’s third goal in the final match, and proceeded to reveal his undershirt with the words ‘I belong to Jesus’ were visible to millions watching the match around the world – and even greater ‘goal’. Of course, the United Kingdom being as is, Liverpool is set to be reprimanded by the Football Association (FA) for Gakpo’s actions. The Telegraph reported:...

Alumni of the Illinois-based Trinity Evangelical Divinity School say they are saddened but not necessarily surprised by the announcement earlier this month that the seminary will leave the Chicago area and move over 2,000 miles away to Western Canada amid years of declining enrollment and financial concerns. With historic roots in the northern Chicago suburbs, TEDS entered into a commitment to become the seminary of Trinity Western University in British Columbia, one of the largest Christian universities in Canada, also aligned with the Evangelical Free Church of America.Leaving the campus of Trinity International University in Deerfield, Illinois, the divinity school...

Join together with Fellow FREEPERS to Pray for AMERICA: For those in Authority in Government, Family, Military, Business, Healthcare, Education, Churches, and the Media.'I Urge, then, First of All, that Requests, Prayers, Intercession and Thanksgiving be Made for Everyone: for Kings and All those in Authority that we May Live Peaceful and Quiet Lives in All Godliness and Holiness.' 1 Timothy 2:1-2Religion Forum Threads Labeled [Prayer] are Closed to Debate of Any Kind.Psalm 9:15,16The Heathen Fall into the Pits they have Dug for Others; the Trap they have Set has Snapped on them. The LORD is Famous for the Way...

For the first time in more than 40 years, a new Christian medical school granting MD degrees has opened its doors in the US. A class of 50 students is finishing its inaugural school year now at Belmont University’s Thomas F. Frist, Jr. College of Medicine. That’s 50 future doctors who could be reinforcements for a workforce facing severe shortages. “I call them the fabulous 50,” said Tanu Rana, a microbiologist and immunologist on the new faculty. “I love them dearly, and I’ve really enjoyed every second with them.” A new medical school in general is rare, let alone a...

Join with hundreds of FReepers to pray daily on FR for President Donald TRUMP, Vice President,J.D. Vance, and AMERICA. Praying daily since 2015:I urge, then, first of all, that requests, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for everyone: for kings and all those in authority that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness. ~ 1 Timothy 2:1-2 Religion Forum Threads labeled [Prayer] are closed to debate of any kind. This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us. (I John 5:14)

...The trend that we are seeing is a very positive one. People are seeking tradition...It's a learning lesson for a lot of pastors I talk to. If you are not creating an environment where the people that come to your church can find holiness and meaning and be elevated, you're not doing your job. There was a time in the nineties where people were hungry for a personal encounter with God, and Evangelicalism I think offers that better than some Catholicism circles. Maybe that's to be debated, but times change and needs an appetites change. And I could tell you...

The word, "Cardinal" doesn't go before the first name, it goes before the last name. See, when you call Donald Trump, "President Donald Trump," you're still calling him by his name. You're just adding a title to say what's significant about him. ("Yes, THAT Donald Trump!") You're simply substituting the word, "Mr." It's really grammatically no different than Sheriff John Smith or Coach Harry Brown or Pvt. David Jones. And some day, we'll talk about former president Donald Trump or Sgt. David Jones or retired Gen. Pete Williams. A Cardinal or a Lord will always be a Cardinal or a...

As the Church mourns the passing of Pope Francis, attention turns to the solemn and sacred task that lies ahead: the selection of his successor. That process is called the conclave — an ancient method of discernment that has changed little over the past 800 years. It begins in earnest once the seat of Peter is vacant, whether by death or resignation. The name “conclave” comes from the Latin cum clave, meaning “with a key” — a reference to the tradition of locking the doors during the voting process. The period following a pope’s death is marked by prayer, reflection,...

Not even months into his new pontificate, Pope Francis declared, to a group of young people in Paraguay, “Go out and make a mess.” A puzzling remark from the Successor of St. Peter. As the years of his papacy went on, we witnessed what he meant. Year after year, he kept his promise. And the Church descended into an unprecedented chaos. Recall St. Augustine’s classic definition of peace: the tranquillitas ordinis (the tranquility of order). During Pope Francis’ reign, there was nothing of order and certainly no tranquility. Upheaval followed upheaval; shock gave way to more shock; ambiguity was compounded...

The Vatican has released images of Pope Francis being laid out in an open coffin ahead of the Confirmation of the Death of the Pontiff ceremony. Francis died Monday after suffering a stroke that led to irreversible heart failure following a weeks-long hospitalization with pneumonia. He was 88. The pontiff’s body had been placed in the coffin late Monday, with Cardinal Kevin Farrell, the Vatican camerlengo — the “chamberlain” who essentially acts as head of the Vatican between the end of a papacy and the start of the next — reading the official declaration of death aloud in an intimate...

As you’ve likely heard by now, Pope Francis has died. The 88-year-old progressive Pope had been battling pneumonia and passed away just one day after Easter. Many viewed Francis as “Obama’s Pope,” a nickname he got thanks to long-running rumors that Obama played a role in replacing traditionalist Pope Benedict with the more liberal Francis. And let’s be honest—after the Wikileaks Podesta/DNC dump exposed the Dem Party’s obsession with infiltrating the Catholic Church, those rumors didn’t seem so far-fetched. These tweets from 2016 are a reminder of the backlash: We now know that Dems created fake Catholic groups to try...

Eternal and Just Lord, You raise up leaders in every age, and permit even flawed vessels to bear great weight. Receive the soul of Your servant, Jorge Mario Bergoglio, who walked a path both revered and contested, and whose words shaped many, though not all in peace. In the quiet where truth stands uncloaked, may he now see clearly what once was dim. Where zeal was misplaced, may Your mercy abound. Where compassion blurred boundaries, may Your justice now restore what was unsettled. For those he shepherded, and those he unsettled— for every soul stirred by his charge— let Your...

Sydney Johnston grew up in a nondenominational Christian household — but now the Upper West Side millennial is a devout Catholic. “There’s just something so beautiful and transcendent about the rituals and the ancient history in the Catholic Mass that’s been preserved,” Johnston, 30, told The Post. “The church really communicates a degree of reverence that I didn’t find in the more liberal, laissez-faire approach of nondenominational churches.” Confirmed in December 2024 at the Church of Notre Dame in Morningside Heights, Johnston is one of a growing number of young people turning to the Catholic Church from other denominations, religions...

Their critics call them MAGA Catholics. Others label them as traditionalists — even fundamentalists. What is certain is that conservative or “faithful” Catholics, as they often prefer to be known, seem to be everywhere right now — from the new candidate for America’s ambassador to the Holy See to holding dinners and prayers services at Mar-A-Lago. This small but fervent wave of new conservative Catholicism is exploding nationwide — more visible than ever as they celebrate their resurrection victory this Easter Sunday.

The Christian crowdfunding platform GiveSendGo has staunchly defended its decision to host a fundraising campaign for the family of Karmelo Anthony, a 17-year-old Texas teenager charged with the murder of fellow student Austin Metcalf. The fundraiser, which has raised nearly $500,000, has sparked significant controversy, with critics arguing it violates the platform’s policies against campaigns that financially benefit individuals accused of violent crimes. Despite the backlash, GiveSendGo’s founders remain firm, emphasizing their commitment to due process and the presumption of innocence. On April 2, 2025, Karmelo Anthony, a senior at Frisco Centennial High School, allegedly stabbed 17-year-old Austin Metcalf, a...

Muslims Threaten to Sue Spain in Strasbourg Over Holy Week Processions, Claim They “Offend Islam”A group of British Muslims of Iranian origin, led by Anjem Choudary, is threatening to file a lawsuit before the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg.They allege that Spain’s traditional Holy Week processions are an “offense to Islam” and to the Prophet Muhammad, demanding their immediate ban.The Muslim group intends to sue Spain in Strasbourg over these Catholic processions, with Choudary arguing that these religious events, rooted in Catholic tradition since 1978, are a “provocation” against Muslims.“It’s an offense to the thousands of Muslims forced...

Beyond etymology, Good Friday can be called “good” because of the results of Christ’s death on the cross. Jesus’ sacrifice was a demonstration of God’s love for us (Romans 5:8). Through Jesus’ death, we can have peace with God: “While we were God’s enemies, we were reconciled to him through the death of his Son” (Romans 5:10). As 1 Peter 3:18 says, “Christ suffered for our sins once for all time. He never sinned, but he died for sinners to bring you safely home to God” (NLT).

A federal judge ruled this week that the US Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) may not force Catholic employers to accommodate abortion and IVF or to abide by Biden-era LGBT “anti-discrimination” rules. The Diocese of Bismarck, North Dakota, and the Catholic Benefits Association (CBA) had sued over the regulations last year, arguing their enforcement under the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act violated the religious freedom rights of Catholic groups.“The US District Court for the District of North Dakota entered judgment Wednesday,” according to Bloomberg Law, “a day after Judge Daniel M. Traynor ruled that EEOC’s regulations under the Pregnant Workers Fairness...