Free Republic

[Catholic Caucus] Bishop: Seminarians Need Safe Place to Explore Sexuality and Integrate ItIn an interview about seminary formation of candidates for priesthood, Bishop Michael Gerber, of Fulda, Germany, supported the idea that gay man can be ordained.Bishop Michael GerberSpeaking with Katholisch.de, a major German Catholic news outlet, Gerber, who is also chairman of the Commission for Vocations and Church Services at the German Bishops’ Conference, was asked about his thoughts on the Italian bishops’ conference plan to admit gay men into priestly formation on a case-by-case basis, just as heterosexual men are assessed. Should the Catholic Church in Germany, which...

[Catholic Caucus] Austrian Church Exhibits Sawed-Up Crucifixes: Heads and Limbs Scattered (Pictures)An art installation entitled "KREUZ : WEG : STATION" was opened on Sunday, March 9, during the Eucharist in the parish church of St Jakob in Villach, Austria.The diocese is overseen by Bishop Josef Marketz of Klagenfurt, who became internationally known this February for inventing an "Episcopal Vicaress".The altar of the church St Jakob is covered with a white cloth. The blasphemies are in the nave (photos from March 11).The object "balance.AKT" shows the crucified Christ without the cross as a tightrope walker balancing on a slackline.An explanatory pamphlet...

[Catholic Caucus] Lawyer for Catholic archbishop accused of blasphemy denies priesthood of ChristMODENA, Italy (LifeSiteNews) – A lawyer for the Archbishop of Modena, the prelate currently under investigation for his part in a blasphemous art exhibit, has denied in court that Jesus Christ was a minister of the Catholic Church and concluded that He could not be an injured party.The second hearing before Modena’s Preliminary Investigations judge, Andrea Scarpa, regarding the charge of vilification for the blasphemous “Gratia Plena” art exhibition in Carpi, took place on March 3. Among the accused are the Archbishop Erio Castellucci and the artist Andrea...

[Catholic Caucus] French Catholics are flocking to the Latin Mass and this archbishop is alarmed by itArchbishop Jordy has not limited himself to merely expressing concerns about the growth of the Traditional Latin Mass; he has also taken concrete measures to limit its spread.In recent years, participation in the Holy Mass in the Archdiocese of Tours has increased significantly. According to statements by Archbishop Vincent Jordy, the president of the Commission for Catechesis and Catechumenate for the French Episcopal Conference, the number of faithful attending Mass in Tours has doubled in four years. However, his observations are not limited to...

[Catholic Caucus] German Bishop Critiques U.S. President’s Anti-LGBTQ+ PolicyThe bishop who is the German bishops conference’s liaison to the queer community has spoken out against President Donald Trump, and his administration’s treatment of LGBTQ+ people.Bishop Ludger Schepers, auxiliary bishop of Essen was alarmed that “Trump is “removing discrimination protection for queer people and no longer recognizes gender minorities at all,” according to Katholisch.de“Every attack on the rights of queer people threatens the rights of all people who do not conform to the narrow ideas of how one should look and behave,” said Schepers.Since being sworn in, Trump has eradicated the...

[Catholic Caucus] Catholics ‘heartbroken’ after Scottish bishop asks thriving traditional order to leave dioceseIt is not known publicly why Bishop McKenzie wants the double order (known also as the Sisters of the Immaculate and St. Maximilian Kolbe and the Friars of the Immaculate and St. Francis) to vacate the large property and leave the Diocese of Dunkeld.DUNDEE, Scotland (LifeSiteNews) — A thriving religious community has been asked to leave Dundee by the new Bishop of DunkeldA group of Marian Franciscans, both friars and nuns, were invited to live in the old Lawside Convent and Diocesan Centre in Dundee by Bishop...

[Catholic Caucus] Argentine Diocese Supports Homosexual March in Opposition to MileiHomosexual groups organised a march in Buenos Aires on February 1 to attack President Javier Milei's speech in Davos where he associated homosexuals with pedophilia and dismantled gender ideology.A second march of homosexual propagandists with the same purpose was organised in Mendoza, 1000 km west of Buenos Aires.Marcelo Colombo, the leader of the decadent Archdiocese of Mendoza, Argentina, promoted and supported this event on January 30. A text of the archdiocese's "Pastoral on Sexual Diversity" attacked pro-family policies as "manifestations of hatred":"Pope Francis invites us to build a Church that...

Irish (Catholic) bishop praises sermon by Episcopalian bishop that offended TrumpLEICESTER, United Kingdom – An Irish bishop praised an Episcopalian bishop whose homily to U.S. President Donald Trump was called “very ungracious” by the American leader.Auxiliary Bishop Michael Router of the Archdiocese of Armagh was speaking on Feb. 1 at the Shrine of Saint Brigid at her birthplace in Faughart in the Republic of Ireland. Saint Brigid, who lived approximately from 450 to 525, is one of the patron saints of IrelandLast week we watched, with interest, the inauguration of Donald Trump as President of the United States of America,”...

JD Vance defends traditional Catholic teaching on immigration, sparking leftist outrage‘There is something very deranged in the mind of the far left in this country,’ JD Vance said, ‘where I really do think they feel more of a sense of compassion for illegal aliens who have no right to be in this country than they do for their fellow citizens.'Vice President J.D. Vance defended traditional Catholic teaching regarding care for one’s own family and country before foreign immigrants, sparking leftist outrage and debate online.During an interview on Fox News, Vance and host Sean Hannity discussed the fact that left-wing political...

German bishop says ‘we do not have to evangelize’ the world since people can be ‘happy’ without GodGerman Bishop Franz-Josef Overbeck has said that “we do not have to evangelize the whole world” and that people are “happy and content” without God.In a sermon on the Solemnity of Mary, the Mother of God, in the Essen Cathedral, Overbeck said that “we do not have to evangelize the whole world and win them over to a certain form of church life.”“God will find ways to lead those who cannot or do not want to believe in Him onto a good path,”...

[Catholic Caucus] Bishop Strickland’s successor asked for delay on vote banning Communion for pro-abort politiciansBishop Strickland's successor for the Diocese of Tyler, John Gregory Kelly, has a history of siding with heterodox prelates on major issues such as giving Communion to pro-abortion politicians and mass immigration.Bishop Joseph Strickland’s successor for the Diocese of Tyler, Texas, Bishop John Gregory Kelly, has a history of siding with heterodox prelates on major issues such as giving Communion to pro-abortion politicians and mass immigration.In 2021, Kelly, who was tapped to lead the Diocese of Tyler last week, was among the 68 bishops who wanted...

[Catholic Caucus] Vestments for restored Notre-DameThe restoration and reopening of Notre-Dame in Paris was perhaps unthinkable to those who watched the great cathedral burn on April 15, 2019. What has been as beautiful as seeing the cleaned and restored cathedral is the fact that the general public clearly preferred making Notre-Dame look exactly as she was.However, as we have seen before, bishops from the left just can't let beauty stand on its own without doing something to destroy it. While the secular government of France heard the will of the people and heeded their desire for a traditional restoration of...

[Catholic Caucus] Kentucky prelate calls lack of election response from American Church ‘disappointing’In the month or so since former President Donald Trump was elected to occupy the White House for a second term, the majority of American bishops have either not commented on the election publicly, or issued a generic statement about the importance of civility, unity, and democracy.That extends to the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, where – outside of responses to Trump’s stated plan for mass deportations – not much has been said. Bishop John Stowe, in a recent conversation with Crux, said that reality isn’t surprising...

[Catholic Caucus] Italian judge upholds blasphemy case against archbishop, painter of sacrilegious exhibitModena Archbishop Erio Castellucci, painter Andrea Saltini, Father Don Carlo Bellini and a laywoman were charged with contempt under the Italian penal code for vilifying a religion in a place of worship or in a public place through insulting objects.Editor’s note: WARNING – The details of this article are disturbing and scandalizing. LifeSiteNews has chosen not to publish any of the images described.An Italian judge refused to dismiss a case brought against the Archbishop of Modena for outraging the religious feelings of a group of faithful Catholics.Dr. Andrea...

[Catholic Caucus] Atlanta’s Archbishop Hartmayer Launches LGBTQ+ Commission to Improve UnderstandingThe Archdiocese of Atlanta has formed pastoral commission intended to “better listen to members” of the LGBTQ+ community, according to archdiocesan newspaper The Georgia Bulletin.The archdiocese’s Restorative Justice Ministry will coordinate the LGBTQ+ Pastoral Affairs Commission, saying the advisory commission will be “dedicated to better understanding the realities and pastoral needs of LGBTQ+ Catholics in the Archdiocese of Atlanta.”The Georgia Bulletin published articles about the initiative at the same time as the announcement, including an interview with the founder of a Catholic support group for the families of LGBTQ+ people.Archbishop...

[Catholic Caucus] Liberal Irish archbishop will reportedly help conduct apostolic visitation of FSSPArchbishop Diarmuid Martin is one of two clergy tapped to carry out the Vatican's recently announced apostolic visitation of the FSSP. He has issued a number of public statements that indicate he has a less than orthodox understanding of Church teaching.Vatican journalist Diane Montagna is reporting that Ireland’s Archbishop Emeritus of Dublin, Diarmuid Martin, and France’s Archbishop Emeritus of Tours, Bernard-Nicolas Aubertin, have been tapped to carry out the Vatican’s recently announced apostolic visitation of the Priestly Fraternity of St. Peter (FSSP).Founded in 1988 for priests who want...

[Catholic Caucus] The Deplorable Situation in Fréjus-Toulon: Coercion of Conscience and Contempt of ConstitutionsBishop Touvet’s Persecution of Traditional LiturgistsJean-Pierre MaugendreRenaissance catholiqueOctober 17, 2024At the 3rd Assises de la Tradition, held in Paris on October 12, participants were somewhat stunned to discover the latest developments in Mgr Touvet’s persecution of traditional liturgists in the diocese of Fréjus-Toulon.Bishop Touvet’s abuse of powerWhile some may have believed that Mgr Touvet, appointed in 2023 as Mgr Rey’s coadjutor in the diocese of Fréjus-Toulon, would succeed in maintaining the unity of the diocese, the facts seem to contradict these optimistic prospects. Indeed, while it is...

Cardinal, exorcists have differing takes on ‘cleansing’ ritual performed on Mexican presidentA Mexican cardinal and three priests, two of them exorcists, have differing takes on the “cleansing” ritual that was performed during the inauguration of the country’s new president, Claudia Sheinbaum.Sheinbaum, a candidate of the coalition Let’s Keep Making History — which consists of the political parties National Regeneration Movement (MORENA), Labor Party (PT), and Green Ecologist Party of Mexico (PVEM) — was the winner of the June 2 presidential elections. She assumed office on Oct. 1.Sheinbaum succeeds President Andrés Manuel López Obrador, founder of MORENA who in December 2018...

[Catholic Caucus] St. Louis parishioners appeal Latin Mass cancellation, parish closure to Vatican’s highest courtA co-founder of Save Rome of the West argues that both Traditionis Custodes and its application in fact contradict the spirit of canon law by disregarding the salvation of souls.Parishioners in the Archdiocese of St. Louis appealed to the Vatican’s highest court of canon law to stop the archbishop’s closure of a parish church with a thriving Latin Mass community.St. Barnabas in O’Fallon, Missouri, on the outskirts of metropolitan St. Louis, was a flourishing parish that exclusively offered the Traditional Latin Mass (TLM) when it was...

Heretical German bishop says abortion is a ‘sensitive’ issue, will not participate in March for LifeBishop Stephan Ackermann defended Germany’s abortion regime as leading to ‘societal peace’ despite around 100,000 children killed in abortion every year and criticized strong pro-life advocacy, citing ‘a woman’s right to self determination.’The bishop of Trier has said that he would not participate in the March for Life because abortion is a “sensitive” and complex matter, citing “a woman’s right to self-determination.”In an interview with the German radio station Deutschlandfunk on April 29, Bishop Stephan Ackermann was asked about the recent March for Life in...