Free Republic

[Catholic Caucus] Cardinal Gracias: "Francis Especially Concerned About Homosexuals"The "pastoral outreach" [meaning: capitulation] to homosexual groups will "not be ignored", even though the working document for the October synod omits the propaganda terms "homosexual", "orientation", or "LGBT", Cardinal Oswald Gracias, 79, of Mumbai, India, told CruxNow.com (13 July).He believes in an "inclusive Church, which means everyone [except Catholics]", adding that Francis has been "particularly concerned" about "people of different sexual orientation".The cardinal has been homosexual activist but in this recent interview he is unusually cautious about normalising homosexuality.He referred to "the global complexity of the Catholic Church": "Our Indian situation,...

Cardinal Hollerich: ‘If women do not feel comfortable in the church, we have failed.’The working document, or instrumentum laboris, for next October’s meeting of the Synod of Bishops is “taking up again” the teaching of the Second Vatican Council on the church by focusing on the missionary responsibility of all the baptized in the synodal church. That is what Cardinal Jean-Claude Hollerich, the relator general for next October’s synod, said in this exclusive interview with America’s Vatican correspondent.He emphasized the importance of the working document’s attention to affirming and promoting the role of women in the church in the 21st...

The case concerned a Russian transgender man whose two foster children were removed from his home on account of his gender identity and transition. The European Court of Human Rights addressed issues under Article 8 regarding family life. The case involved the termination of custody and a foster care agreement of a trans man (and his husband) caring for two minors, due to his diagnosis of “transsexualism” and change of gender identity. The Russian authorities primarily based their decision on the fact that under Russian law it is impossible for same-sex couples to be foster parents. Also, they cited societal...

[Catholic Caucus] How the Gill Foundation funds the undermining of Church moral teachingAmbassador Scott Miller and his “husband” Tim Gill have now apparently shifted their focus to directly challenging Catholic teachings through providing huge grants to New Ways Ministry.Sister Jeannine Gramick, SL, co-founder of New Ways Ministry, and colleagues meet with Pope Francis on October 17, 2023.George Soros’ Open Society Institute is often blamed for providing funding to faux Catholic organizations—like the now-defunct Catholics United and Catholics in Alliance for the Common Good—in an effort to marginalize Catholic teachings on moral issues including abortion and LGBTQ issues. But a more...

[Catholic Caucus] Vatican confirms third study group is looking at issue of ‘female diaconate’Cardinal Mario Grech, a supporter of ‘ordaining’ women to the diaconate, said Pope Francis has tasked the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith of looking into the theme of ‘female deacons.’VATICAN CITY (LifeSiteNews) — It was revealed today that a papally-appointed study group examining the issue of the “female diaconate” is comprised of members of the Congregation (now Dicastery) for the Doctrine of the Faith (CDF).Fielding questions after a Synod on Synodality press conference, Cardinal Mario Grech noted that Pope Francis has tasked the CDF to...

President Biden was in New York Friday for the grand opening of the Stonewall National Monument Visitor Center on the 55th anniversary of the historic riots that birthed America’s gay rights movement. The 81-year-old, still licking his wounds after his abysmal performance during Thursday’s presidential debate with Donald Trump sent shockwaves across the country, was joined by Gov. Kathy Hochul and legendary musician Elton John at the Stonewall Inn in Greenwich Village. The 1969 Stonewall Riots “marked a turning point for civil rights in America and inspired the hearts of millions of people around the world,” Biden said, adding that...

Transgender and nonbinary middle-distance runner Nikki Hiltz ran the second fastest time ever of any American in the women’s 1500-meter race at the U.S. Olympic Trials Sunday, qualifying for the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris. Hiltz, who uses they/them pronouns, charged ahead of Elle St. Pierre and Emily Mackay in the final stretch of the race, finishing with a time of 3:55:33, a trials record. All of the top eight finishers set a new personal best time, according to OutSports. Paris will mark Hiltz’s Olympic debut. In a post-race interview with NBC Sports, Hiltz, 29, said the race had significance...

Bishop Barry Knestout suspended the Latin Mass at Holy Comforter Catholic Church until receiving a renewal from the Vatican, but there are reports that Rome is ready to shut down all Traditional Masses not affiliated with an approved Ecclesia Dei institute. CHARLOTTESVILLE, Virginia (LifeSiteNews) — The bishop of Richmond, Virginia is ending the Traditional Latin Mass in Charlottesville, Virginia, after the two-year permission given by Rome expires this week. Bishop Barry Knestout informed Father Joseph Mary Lukyamuzi, the pastor of Holy Comforter Catholic Church in Charlottesville, that the “dispensation” granted in virtue of Traditionis custodes for the parish to offer...

S.A. McCarthy @pipesmoknpapist S.A. McCarthy is a news writer at The Washington Stand. A Montana judge is striking down a state law defining “sex” as either male or female, claiming that the law violates the Montana State Constitution. In an order issued on Tuesday, Montana District Court Judge Shane Vannatta, the first Montana judge to openly identify as homosexual, declared Senate Bill 458 to be facially unconstitutional according to Montana state law. The legislation, passed by the Legislature in 2023 and signed into law by Gov. Greg Gianforte, a Republican, revised state law to declare: In human beings, there are...

[Catholic Caucus] Belgian court rules against 2 Catholic archbishops for refusing woman to enter training for diaconateCardinal Jozef De Kesel and Archbishop Luc Terlinden have both been ordered to pay more than $1,000 in damages for having ‘discriminated’ against a female pastoral worker by refusing her requests to enroll in a training course for future deacons.A district court in Belgium has ruled that two Catholic archbishops must pay damages of more than $1,000 each for refusing to allow a woman to enter training for the diaconate.In a bizarre case, a district court in Mechelen ruled against Cardinal Jozef De Kesel...

Here’s an interesting—and encouraging—trend in public opinion: In 2017, according to the Pew Center, 53 percent of Americans said that a person’s gender is determined by their sex at birth—that is, women start out as girls, and men start out as boys. By 2021, the percentage of sex realists had risen slightly to 56 percent. The following year, it rose four points more. Today, the percentage stands at 65 percent. The share of Americans who hold the classic conservative view of human nature has risen from barely more than half seven years ago to nearly two-thirds today. Progress! In fact,...

[Catholic Caucus] New York Priest Celebrates ‘Pride Mass’ Outside of Gay Monument — on LGBT FlagFather Eric Andrews, Pastor of Saint Paul the Apostle Catholic Church in New York City, celebrates Mass at the Stonewall National Monument surrounded by pride flags. A New York City Catholic church, previously caught up in LGBT controversy, hosted a “Pride Mass” Thursday evening using an altar shrouded with a gay and transgender “pride” flag at a local federal monument with sculptures of two same-sex couples and decorated by dozens of LGBT rainbow flags.The federal monument enshrining a gay bar, The Stonewall Inn, and its...

The pope’s right-hand man is reshaping the church, becoming a targetMost Catholics have little sense of the liberal archbishop behind the Vatican’s pronouncements. But critics of the pope see Víctor Manuel Fernández as Enemy No. 2.“Fernández’s appointment was the most consequential of [Francis’s] pontificate,” said Massimo Faggioli, a Catholic theologian at Villanova University. “After one year of Fernández, we’ve witnessed a series … of frequent, specific, out-of-the-ordinary actions the likes of which have never been observed. And this from a prefect who knows full well that he’s Francis’s own alter ego and enjoys the pope’s complete trust.” ... Senior church...

[Catholic Caucus] Vatican communications prefect: Removing Rupnik art ‘not the Christian response’The prefect of the Vatican’s Dicastery for Communication told a group of Catholic journalists Friday that removing artwork by disgraced religious artist and alleged serial sexual abuser Fr. Marko Rupnik is “not the Christian response.” Paolo Ruffini, prefect of the Vatican’s Dicastery for Communication, speaks at a synod on synodality briefing at the Vatican on Oct. 14, 2023. Screenshot from Vatican News YouTube channel.“I don’t think we have to throw stones, thinking it is the way of healing someone,” said Paolo Ruffini, according to video footage of his remarks...

Archbishop Carlo Maria Vigano has been summoned to the Vatican to be Excommunicated by Red Pope Francis.÷ Archbishop Carlo Vigano, a friend of the faithful and totally dedicated to the church and sharing Jesus Christ in all he does has been notified that he is being summoned to the Vatican.Our friend, Archbishop Vigano has stood up against the destruction of the church, COVID mandates that crushed individual rights worldwide, and stolen elections. He has called out this Pope for his destructive actions against the church and others like China and the World Economic Forum. For this he is being excommunicated...

[Catholic Caucus] Fr. James Martin’s pro-LGBT group publishes article connecting ‘Pride Month’ to Sacred HeartAn 'Outreach' op-ed attempted to argue, in conflict with Catholic teaching, that 'the message of the Sacred Heart of Jesus and the Pride flag seem to me to be highly aligned.'The pro-LGBT advocacy group Outreach, run by Father James Martin, S.J., published an op-ed blasphemously arguing that the sexually immoral agenda of the rainbow “Pride Month” is compatible with the traditional devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus to which Catholics have long dedicated the month of June.READ: Five things you should know about devotion to...

House of Representatives passed a measure on Friday automatically registering men aged 18 to 26 for selective service. It was part of the annual National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), which sets out the U.S. government’s military and national security priorities over the next fiscal year. This year's NDAA authorizes $895.2 billion in military spending, a $9 billion increase from fiscal 2024. While it hasn’t been invoked in over half a century, it’s mandatory for all male U.S. citizens to register for the selective service, also known as the military draft, when they turn 18. Failure to register is classified as...

A federal judge in Louisiana has blocked the Biden administration’s Title IX overhaul for four states, calling the rewrite a “threat to democracy” and an “abuse of power.” U.S. District Court Judge Terry Doughty issued a preliminary injunction Thursday to the Biden administration’s new Title IX rules, which changed the definition of sex to include “gender identity,” which many critics argue will result in the shuttering of sex-specific spaces such as restrooms in schools.“This case demonstrates the abuse of power by executive federal agencies in the rulemaking process,” Doughty wrote. “The separation of powers and system of checks and balances...

The United States has lifted restrictions on providing weapons and training for the high-profile Ukrainian military unit the Azov Brigade. The U.S. State Department confirmed Monday that the unit, which has played a significant role in Ukraine's effort to repel the ongoing invasion launched by Russia in February 2022, could now be trained by U.S. military personnel and use U.S.-provided weapons. The State Department's move reversed a decade-old prohibition imposed on the Azov forces under the Leahy Law, which prohibits the U.S. from supplying weapons or financial assistance "to units of foreign security forces where there is credible information implicating...

The local middle schooler who was barred from wearing an “only two genders” shirt to school has lost his federal appeals case, as his attorneys consider a Supreme Court appeal. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the 1st Circuit in Boston has ruled against Middleboro student -snip Liam, now in 8th grade, last year was banned by school officials from wearing a shirt to school that read, “There are only two genders.” The 7th grader then wore a shirt that stated, “There are censored genders,” and again, he was ordered to take off the shirt. A U.S. district judge previously...