Free Republic

[Catholic Caucus] Will Leo weigh in on France's criminal chancellor?Only the pope can overrule the Archbishop of Toulouse. Will he do it?A French archbishop is standing by his decision to appoint as chancellor a priest who was convicted of raping a 16-year-old boy, and who spent four years in prison for the offense While Archbishop Guy de Kerimel of Toulouse argues that appointing the priest to a prominent archdiocesan position is an act of mercy, Catholics in France and the U.S. seem skeptical, with some asking why Fr. Dominique Spina is eligible for any diocesan assignment at all.And as the...

[Catholic Caucus] Italian MP Criticises Francis, Repeats Words of BishopsRoberto Vannacci, 56, a former general in the Italian army and a member of the European Parliament for the League, has criticised statements made by Pope Francis during the opening of a Holy Door in Rebibbia, a huge prison complex in Rome.After his visit, Francis spoke to journalists saying that "the inmates are good people" and that "any of us can make a mistake".Vannacci told AffariItaliani.it that he would have expected Francis to say similar kind words for the victims of crime.According to him, there is rarely a word for them,...

[Catholic Caucus] Is There Really Hope for JudasThese last few Maundy Thursdays, my feed has been populated by various musings presenting Judas as a pitiable figure who may not be in hell after all. I thought it rather diabolical that a day of sympathy for our Lord is now turning into a day of sympathy for His betrayer. But as I considered this transformation or, rather, deformation, I saw that sympathy for Judas is about far more. It is about the redefinition of divine mercy. This year’s reconsideration of Judas was sparked at least in part by an article at...

Christ, Divine Judge & Just Destroyer: True vs. False Mercy Introduction by M. Matt: Left on its own, Tradition will reconquer the entire Catholic world. I am pleased to present the following sermon as Exhibit A. This sermon was presented by a diocesan priest whom I had never met but recently encountered while on the road. The reality is that, no matter where I travel, I encounter priests and congregations of faithful who are keeping the "old faith" regardless of what is happening in Rome. What follows is a sermon on the doctrine of mercy that may be the best...

[Catholic Caucus] Bp. Strickland: Mercy without repentance is ‘fake’ and presumptuousOn this week’s episode of The Bishop Strickland Show, Bishop Joseph Strickland reacts to an article by Msgr. Charles Pope in the National Catholic Register that discusses eight common errors present in the modern Church. Strickland began the show commenting that Pope’s remarks demonstrated “revealed truth plus natural law and common sense,” focusing on the first two errors listed in the article.Regarding the first error, that mercy can be given without repentance, Strickland said that “mercy without reference to repentance” is a way to deny the existence of sin. Commenting...