Free Republic

The Vatican called pro-choice California Gov. Jerry Brown a leader who defends the “dignity and freedom of each person” in a tweet lauding the governor’s climate change crusade. Earlier this month Brown patted himself on the back for a two-week European climate change tour that included the Vatican, according to Life Site News. In his Vatican address, Brown spoke of brainwashing people in order to convince them of man-made climate change. Brown called for “…not just a light rinse,” but rather, “We need a total, I might say, ‘brainwashing.’

How can Pope Francis lend himself in any activity with the man who will make the Free West the end of an era? Hard to tell which was really worse, the caricature of Pope Francis as the world’s newest superhero in the ‘Pope Francis: The Encyclical’ mock video, or the picture of him on Drudge with the wind having blown the pellegrina of his robe over his head. Some would say the picture on Drudge, which would have been seen by far more people than the video. Either way the pontiff came off as looking stupid in his role as...

Pope Francis says that global warming is a fact and that a new global political authority is necessary in order to save humanity from utter disaster. The new encyclical that was scheduled to be released on Thursday has been leaked, and it is being reported that this new global political authority that Pope Francis envisions would be in charge of “the reduction of pollution and the development of poor countries and regions”. The funny thing is that this sounds very much in line with the new sustainable development agenda that is going to be launched at the United Nations in...

"Rare is the leader who makes us want to be better people." President Obama added his voice to Time's list of "The 100 Most Influential People" by penning a tribute to Pope Francis. By implication, Obama associated himself with the pontiff and ultimately to Jesus. Obama called the pope "a moral leader in word and deed," equating Francis's message of inclusion with Jesus's "essence." Sprinkled within this panegyric was Obama's own familiar refrain heard throughout his presidency: "alleviate poverty…reduce inequality…open new doors of opportunity and visions of possibility for everyone." Obama's social agenda is nothing he has kept secret. Nor...

When Jeb Bush stepped up this month to declare illegal immigration “an act of love,” he provoked precisely the conservative pile-on you’d expect. The right’s favorite crabby uncle, Charles Krauthammer, dourly pronounced the comments “bizarre.”. Rep. Raul Labrador accused Jebbie of pandering. Noted intellectual Donald Trump declared Bush’s thinking “ridiculous” and “dangerous.” And God help anyone who ventured onto sites like RedState.com. Most perfectly, fake-winger Stephen Colbert eulogized, “He will be missed.” In the midst of all the huffing and grumping, it was easy to miss the smaller, quieter sounds of satisfaction emanating from some of Bush’s fellow Catholics, particularly...

Sentiments Conveyed in Letter of Papal Greeting to Knights’ International Convention Greeting(SAN ANTONIO) – Pope Francis praised the charitable works of the Knights of Columbus and encouraged the organization to defend the sanctity of marriage, the dignity of life, the beauty and truth of human sexuality, and the rights of believers.The pope’s sentiments are contained in a letter of greeting to the Knights’ 131st annual convention, now taking place in San Antonio.The letter, which was sent by Vatican Secretary of State Tarcisio Cardinal Bertone on behalf of Pope Francis, expressed the Pope’s “esteem for the ideals of faith and fraternity...

Being neither a Catholic nor a religious scholar, I'm in no position to offer opinions on the Roman Catholic Church or its doctrine. Yet it seems to me that conservatives might learn a thing or two from Pope Francis when it comes to messaging and tone. The pope, it is widely reported, has "recast the Catholic Church's image" by focusing on its "inviting, merciful aspects" -- even "shocking," as The Washington Post put it -- to a planeload of reporters in an impromptu interview last week. Regarding homosexuality, he asserted, "Who am I to judge?" Well, OK, that's not exactly...

Pope Francis sends a kiss to someone in the crowd at the May 8, 2013 general audience in St. Peter's Square. Credit: Stephen Driscoll/CNA. Vatican City, May 14, 2013 / 08:01 am (CNA/EWTN News).- Christians who buy into Satan’s temptation to live selfishly get swindled, while those who live life as a “gift” to others are immersed in love and the Church community, Pope Francis said. “And, we must say, with Satan the payback is rotten. He always rips us off, always!” the Pope emphasized as he contrasted the kind of selfish living that the devil promotes with the...

Cardinal Jorge Bergoglio, now Pope Francis, is known to LifeSiteNews readers as a valiant defender of life and family. In terms of homosexual ‘marriage’, Cardinal Bergoglio fought valiantly to have the law in Argentina continue to protect the traditional family. In July 2009, he called on the priests of the Archdiocese of Buenos Aires to bring the faithful to an upcoming protest against homosexual "marriage." "Let's not be naive, we're not talking about a simple political battle; it is a destructive pretension against the plan of God," wrote Cardinal Bergoglio in a letter sent to the monasteries of Buenos Aires....

BACKGROUND: Jorge Mario Bergoglio, SJ (born December 17, 1936) is the current pope of the Roman Catholic Church, elected on March 13, 2013, and taking the regnal name of Francis I. Prior to his election, he served as an Argentine cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church. He has served as the Archbishop of Buenos Aires since 1998. He was elevated to the cardinalate in 2001. He was elevated to Pope in March 2013. Jorge Bergoglio was born in Buenos Aires, one of the five children of an Italian railway worker and his wife. After studying at the seminary in Villa...