Free Republic

Pope Francis Weighs In on Trump-Harris Race with Damning Words That May Give Voters a Lot to Think AboutPope Francis, center, didn't support either former President Donald Trump, left, or Vice President Kamala Harris, but he threw out a challenge for votersIn more than a decade since taking over as head of the Catholic Church, Pope Francis has left little doubt about his preferences in American politicsEven in the face of the Democratic Party’s unflinching dogma promoting abortion — a procedure Catholic theology considers equivalent to murder — he has made his distaste for conservatives clear.But in cautiously weighing in...

Catholic Priests from Fujian Mobilized for “Patriotic Education” in XinjiangA delegation led by Bishop Vincent Zhan Silu, a CCP loyalist, went to the region to “see and believe” that all is well there and to preach “patriotism” to local religionists.The law on “patriotic education,” aimed at promoting the most massive domestic propaganda effort in the 21st century, is in force in China since January 1. On January 4, the five authorized religions issued guidelines on how government-controlled religions and clergy are expected to cooperate in this gigantic enterprise.One region where, understandably, “patriotic education” is not highly successful is Xinjiang (which...

[Catholic Caucus] Uncertain Trumpets: Cardinal Cupich and Pope FrancisFrom the Vatican's embrace of a socialist dictator to Cardinal Cupich's scandalous invocation at the Democratic National Convention, we find ourselves without leaders to guide us.Two events of recent days have scandalized me. Both were symbolic gestures and included the exchange of platitudes but also created an ambiguity about the Church’s teaching that is stretched to obfuscation. The first symbolic event was when the pope sent a new nuncio of Venezuela. In case you don’t pay attention to Latin American dictators, there was a presidential election in Venezuela that almost everyone but...

Immigration: The Pope versus the GeneralROME – Amid a spiraling Italian debate over immigration, two personalities increasingly are coming to symbolize the opposing positions. In one corner is Pope Francis, while in the other stands ex-General Roberto Vannucci, increasingly perhaps the country’s single most polarising political figure.Today a member of the European Parliament for Italy’s anti-immigrant Lega party, Vannucci took to his Facebook account on Thursday to reply to Pope Francis, who had used his General Audience the day before to describe rejecting migrants as a “grave sin”.Vannacci’s response didn’t mix words.“With all due respect, the Vatican has always defended...

Pope Francis says deliberately opposing migration ‘is a grave sin’Pope Francis condemned efforts to regulate immigration, stating that those who “systemically” work to “repel migrants” are committing a “grave sin.”Leaving aside his series of catechetical addresses, Pope Francis today used his Wednesday audience to address the topic of immigration. “I would like to pause with you to think about the people who – even at this moment – are crossing seas and deserts to reach a land where they can live in peace and safety,” he opened.‘A grave sin’Using the themes of “seas and deserts,” Francis stated that both seas...

Have You No Decency, Holy Father?Ideology is not the same thing as religion. Most religions, even though often wrong about many things, seek to better the person practicing it; they have similar moral codes, which typically include kindness to those less fortunate and decency toward others. Ideology, on the other hand, cares little for individual persons and focuses completely on the goals of The Cause. Things like kindness and decency are jettisoned in pursuit of those goals. Think of the difference between a Quaker and a Communist: which would you rather have as a neighbor? I bring this up because...

Pope Francis denounces ‘anti-vaxxers,’ calls COVID jab refusal an ‘almost suicidal act of denial’Pope Francis has once again touted the abortion-tainted COVID vaccines, reissuing his condemnation of those who refused to take the shot.U.S. citizens: Demand Congress investigate soaring excess death ratesVATICAN CITY (LifeSiteNews) — Pope Francis has issued fresh condemnation of critics of the abortion-tainted COVID-19 injections, saying that opposition to the shots “distressed” him since “being against the antidote is an almost suicidal act of denial.”Speaking as part of his newly released memoirs, in a series of interviews conducted by journalist Fabio Marchese Ragona, Pope Francis highlighted his...

Israeli foreign minister expects clear, unequivocal condemnation from Vatican over Hamas' attack: reportsIsrael PM says he 'expects the Vatican to come out with a clear and unequivocal condemnation of the murderous terrorist actions'The Times of Israel reported that Cohen told the Holy See’s Secretary for Relations with States Paul Gallagher that the people of Israel "expects the Vatican to come out with a clear and unequivocal condemnation of the murderous terrorist actions.""It is unacceptable that you put out a statement expressing worry primarily for Gazan civilians while Israel is burying 1,300 who were murdered," Cohen said, according to the Foreign...

‘Laudate Deum’: Pope Francis’ ‘Laudato Si’ Companion Piece on the EnvironmentPope Francis’ new apostolic exhortation, Laudate Deum (Praise God), is a personal, impassioned public-policy plea for action on the “climate crisis.” Laudate Deum was issued on Oct. 4, feast of St. Francis of Assisi. Less than 8,000 words in English, it is written in the style of a political manifesto rather than a magisterial document. Given that the original language was Spanish, not Italian, it can be presumed that Pope Francis took a direct hand in its drafting. Pope Francis makes definitive declarations on climate science, predictions about future weather-related...

Pope Francis on Imperialism: Is Russia a Special Case?A month after Pope Francis spoke in favorable terms about Russia’s imperial past, the diplomatic ramifications still reverberate. Last week, the Holy Father received the credentials of the new Russian ambassador, a rather routine encounter, though with a Vatican statement about how friendly the meeting was.A few days later, on Friday, the Holy Father received the Ukrainian ambassador to the Holy See in a private audience, which is absolutely not a routine encounter. Ambassadors to the Holy See get two meetings with the pope, both pro forma — one when they present...

Politician who calls Pope ‘imbecile’ and ‘son of a b*’ comes out top in Argentine primariesSÃO PAULO – Catholics in Argentina appear both somewhat startled and also divided by the surprising recent success of a firebrand politician who’s termed the country’s most famous native son, Pope Francis, a “communist,” an “imbecile” and even a “leftist son of a b*.”That politician, Javier Milei, was the big winner of the country’s August 13 primaries, coming in first place with 30 per cent of the vote, ahead of both the major right and left-wing coalitions, and despite lacking a strong party structure of...

Russia: Parolin Apologises for Francis’ Ill-Considered WordsRussian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said on December 15 that Russia had received an apology from the Vatican's Secretary of State over Francis' comments against Chechens and Buryats (en)."This incident is settled," she said, after Francis's claim that Russian soldiers from these two nations where the "cruellest" fighters in Ukraine.

Holy See Asks Missouri Governor to Halt Scheduled ExecutionVATICAN CITY — The Apostolic Nuncio to the United States, Archbishop Christopher Pierre, asked the governor of Missouri on Monday to spare the life of Ernest Johnson, a man sentenced with the death penalty for murdering three people in the 1990s. “In the Holy Father’s name,” Archbishop Pierre wrote to Governor Michael Parson, “I sincerely request the you halt the planned execution of the Mr. Johnson and grant him some appropriate form of clemency.” Archbishop Pierre wrote that the Holy Father’s request is not based on “the facts and circumstances of...

Bergoglio Gleeful About Marxist Takeover in Peru Pedro Castillo, representative of the Marxist-Leninist party Perú Libre, was sworn in as the new president. A sensation for the Andean state that Pope Francis seems to pleased by. (Lima) The political left is taking power in Peru. One of the well-wishers, which would have been astonishing just a few years ago, is the head of the Catholic Church.At the beginning of his pontificate, Pope Francis was referred to as a “sociologist on the papal throne” to draw an analogy to his predecessors: John Paul II (1978–2005) became “the philosopher” and Benedict...

[Catholic Caucus] Pope Francis calls Eucharist ‘bread of sinners’ as USCCB considers denying pro-abort politicians Communion'The Eucharist is not the reward of saints, but the Bread of sinners. This is why he [Christ] exhorts us: ‘Do not be afraid! Take and eat,' Pope Francis said during a Sunday June 6 homily. Next week the US Conference of Catholic Bishops will discuss whether or not a formal punishment should be laid on pro-abortion politicians like President Joe Biden, including barring them from receiving the Eucharist.VATICAN CITY, Italy, June 11, 2021 (LifeSiteNews) – As the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ (USCCB) prepares...

US Bishops try to rein in the Biden administration, but the Vatican is all smilesThe pope has shown that he is willing to sidestep his American bishops to strengthen his relationship with Biden.Pope Francis, left, and John Kerry pose as they meet at the Vatican on May 15, 2021. Kerry, who is President Joe Biden’s special envoy on the climate, met privately with the pope Saturday, afterward calling Francis “a compelling moral authority on the subject of the climate crisis” who has been “ahead of the curve.” (Photo by Vatican Media)WASHINGTON (RNS) — When John Kerry, the White House’s special...

Erdoğan: Mobilize Christians Against IsraelPope meets Iran's envoy after call with Turkey's basilica-seizing rulerVATICAN CITY (ChurchMilitant.com) - Turkey's president Recep Tayyip Erdoğan phoned Pope Francis Monday morning, inciting the pontiff to punish Israel for its "attacks against Palestine" by "mobilizing the Christian world and the international community."Erdoğan's triumphant takeover of Hagia Sophia as a mosque "Israel's attacks concerned not only the Palestinians but all Muslims, all Christians and the entire humanity," Erdoğan, a leading denier of the Armenian Genocide and the prime instigator behind the Islamic takeover of the Hagia Sophia basilica, told Francis. Turkey's Directorate of Communications reported the...

By meeting Cupich, Pope Francis masters speaking without wordsROME – St. Francis of Assisi supposedly said, “Preach always, and, when necessary, use words.” In all honesty, there’s no evidence St. Francis ever said anything like that – but even so, it’s a piece of advice popes long have taken to heart.Over the centuries, popes have always found plenty of ways to speak without using words, especially when words might be inconvenient or hard to take back. Popes speak by gestures, by whom they name to key jobs, by where they put their money and where they chose to travel.Even a...

How the Vatican tried to suppress criticism of the new presidentCardinal Blase Cupich, the ambitious left-wing archbishop of Chicago, must have imagined that Joe Biden's inauguration last week would be a moment to savour. He and a small number of his liberal colleagues, known as 'the Biden bishops', have been working tremendously hard to make sure that, once their candidate was elected, any mention of his radical support for abortion would be sotto voce and preferably inaudible. They thought they'd succeeded. But then things went spectacularly wrong. The president of the US bishops' conference, Archbishop José Gomez of Los Angeles,...

Abortion in Argentina and FrancisComplicit silenceBUENOS AIRES (ChurchMilitant.com) - Just hours after the Feast of the Holy Innocents, the Argentine Congress approved one of the broadest abortion measures in the world.The new law in Pope Francis' native land establishes infanticide ("voluntary pregnancy interruption") as a right at any time during the first 14 weeks of growth, but largely allows the practice throughout all nine months of pregnancy if the "comprehensive health of the gestating person" is at stake. Abortion is thus allowed for girls as young as 14 — without parental consent. Health professionals, furthermore, who refuse to conduct abortions...