Free Republic

[Catholic Caucus] Austrian bishop appointed by Francis hires homosexual ‘married’ man as personal secretary An Austrian bishop has appointed an openly homosexual and civilly “married” man as his personal secretary.As a report by the blog Novus Ordo Watch revealed, Bishop Johannes Freitag, auxiliary bishop of the Diocese of Graz-Steckau, has hired Domenik Kainzinger-Webern as his private secretary. Freitag was appointed auxiliary bishop of Graz-Steckau on January 31, 2025, by Pope Francis.A picture on Kainzinger-Webern partner’s Instagram profile shows the two of them commemorating their fourth “wedding” anniversary. A picture on the website of Salinenmusik Altaussee documents their ceremony, which took...

VATICAN CITY (Reuters) -Pope Leo urged the world's Catholics to help immigrants in his first major document, which was released on Thursday and invoked one of the late Pope Francis' strongest criticisms of U.S. President Donald Trump's anti-immigration policies.Leo's document, known as an apostolic exhortation, is focused on the needs of the world's poor. It calls for widespread changes to the global market system to address rising inequality and to help people living paycheck-to-paycheck.The 104-page text started as a writing project by Francis, who was unable to complete it before his death in April after 12 years leading the global...

New York City politics has rarely offered voters a clean choice. This year, with Eric Adams out of the mayor’s race, the city faces one of its grimmest dilemmas yet: Andrew Cuomo or Zohran Mamdani. Let’s be clear – this is not an endorsement of Cuomo. The former governor has baggage that most voters can recite from memory. But politics isn’t about picking saints; it’s about survival. And when survival is on the line, sometimes the only responsible thing to do is choose the lesser of two evils. Cuomo may be corrupt, arrogant and heavy-handed. But at least he governs...

[Catholic Caucus] Head of German Bishops demands rainbow flag be hung in German ParliamentRainbow flag at the Bundestag? Julia Klöckner counters Bätzing's criticismBishop Georg Bätzing had said he would have liked to see the rainbow flag at the Bundestag. The President of the Bundestag poses a counter-question.President of the Bundestag Julia Klöckner (CDU) rejects Bishop Georg Bätzing's criticism of the handling of the rainbow flag in the Bundestag. "The bishop's regret is astonishingly selective. Did the Vatican or did all bishoprics raise a rainbow flag on Pride Day?" she asks in the weekly newspaper "Die Zeit."Bätzing, the chairman of the...

Lura Groen is the pastrix of All Saints Lutheran Church in Bowie, MD, and has the distinction of being the grossest clergy we’ve ever written about. She’s claimed that Jesus was trying to SEDUCE the woman at the well, said that there are lesbian angels’ who ‘consensually’ flirt with queer Christian women, and compared the mystery of the Trinity to the luridness of sadomasochism and BDSM. She’s argued that Christians are but one of many ‘brides of Christ’ because the Lord is “poly” and has ‘other lovers’ of different religions and faiths, and has promoted hook-up culture, premarital sex, and...

[Catholic Caucus] German Bishop Opposes Using the Bible to Condemn HomosexualityThe Bishop of Mainz, Germany, has spoken out against using Biblical passages as a reason to oppose homosexuality.Bishop Peter Kohlgraf made his statements during an interview on the television show “SWR Democracy Forum in Hambach Castle,” broadcast by Südwestrundfunk (SWR), a TV channel in western Germany, reported Katholisch.de. Bishop Peter KohlgrafKohlgraf said that one “cannot simply derive timelessly valid, eternal truths” in Biblical passages about homosexuality. The topic of the show was “Taboos in our society – between morality, power, and the media.”“I don’t take a single sentence from the...

[Catholic Caucus] Pro-LGBT Cardinal Hollerich suggests Church should not define sexual morality so ‘narrowly’The Luxembourg cardinal advocated for expanding the Catholic Church's view of sexual morality despite the Catechism defining homosexual acts as 'intrinsically disordered.'A cardinal from Luxembourg suggested that he would change the Catholic Church’s doctrine on sexuality.In a September 6 interview with Austrian outlet Die Furche, Luxembourg Cardinal Jean-Claude Hollerich, S.J. advocated for the Catholic Church to expand their view of sexual morality while also promoting synodality.Hollerich revealed that he “would not define morality — especially sexual morality — as narrowly as the Church does today.”Hollerich alleged that...

Because Illinois apparently doesn’t have any more pressing matters of governance to attend to, such as rampant gun crime in the city of Chicago, Governor JB Pritzker recently announced a historic, “first of its kind” “legal hotline that expands access to legal information and support for LGBTQIA+ individuals across Illinois.” Via Illinois Department of Human Services (emphasis added): Governor JB Pritzker announced yesterday the launch of IL Pride Connect, a new statewide resource hub and first of its kind legal hotline that expands access to legal information and support for LGBTQIA+ individuals across Illinois. The Illinois Department of Human Services...

[Catholic Caucus] Italian Bishop: Every Homosexual Has Right To Receive EucharistBishop Francesco Savino of Cassano all’Jonio, the vice president of the Italian Bishops' Conference, will preside over the Eucharist in the Jesuits’ church Il Gesù in Rome for the homosexual pilgrimage to St Peter’s basilica on September 6.Saint Ignatius of Loyola is buried in this church. When asked about this event, Savino told Gionata.org on August 15 that no one is excluded from the Eucharist: "The bread broken on the altar knows no barriers of birth, language, social condition, or life path."And: "The Eucharist is a welcoming womb, not a...

Mexican bishop ‘concelebrates’ Mass with lesbian Anglican in homosexual ‘marriage’ who received EucharistBishop Raúl Vera López hosted lesbian ‘pastor’ Emilie Teresa Smith for a Mass where she whispered the words of consecration, elevated the chalice, and gave the homily in contradiction to Catholic teaching and canon law.Emilie Teresa Smith, Bishop Raúl Vera López ----Fr Raúl Vera López OP/Facebook SALTILLO, Mexico (LifeSiteNews) — A lesbian Anglican “priest” who “married” a woman received the Holy Eucharist after dipping the Host in the Blood of Christ during a recent Mass in Mexico. Throughout the liturgy, she also stood alongside a Catholic prelate and...

[Catholic Caucus] Cardinal of Madrid tells heterodox LGBT conference the Church must promote ‘inclusion’ of homosexualsCardinal José Cobo addressed a letter to a conference of the ‘Global Network of Rainbow Catholics,’ which is led by two homosexuals, and reportedly organized their next ‘world assembly.’MADRID (LifeSiteNews) — Cardinal José Cobo called for greater “inclusion” of Catholics who adopt homosexual and transgender lifestyles at a conference for a heterodox LGBT group.Cobo, who is the current archbishop of Madrid, wrote a letter that was read at the conference in the Spanish capital.“In addition to welcoming others, we must promote a culture of dialogue,...

[Catholic Caucus] Synod-Preacher Radcliffe pays tribute to homosexual relationsThe Dominican priest and spiritual assistant to the Synod of the World, Timothy Radcliffe, has acknowledged homosexual Catholics in permanent relationships. In a contribution to the Vatican newspaper "L'Osservatore Romano", the 79-year-old religious wrote last week that he is on a "synodal path with homosexual Catholics". He stressed that the challenge for homosexuals, as for everyone else, is to learn to express love appropriately, while respecting the dignity of others. "I am convinced of the fundamental wisdom of ecclesiastical doctrine, but I do not yet fully understand how it can be lived...

[Catholic Caucus] Archbishop backtracks after appointing convicted rapist as chancellorThe Archbishop of Toulouse, Archbishop Guy de Kerimel, has backtracked from the controversial appointment of a convicted rapist as diocesan chancellor.On 16 August, Archbishop de Kerimel announced the appointment of a new diocesan chancellor after weeks of criticism over his initial appointment of Fr Dominique Spina.Fr Dominique Spina was convicted in 2005 of the rape of a high-school student in Pau, southwest France, in the Diocese of Bayonne, for offences committed in 1993. The victim came from a troubled family background and believed he had a vocation to the priesthood. Spina...

[Catholic Caucus] New Mexico archbishop reinstates priest who lived in homosexual ‘partnership’ for a decadeDespite a decade in a registered homosexual ‘partnership’ and open LGBT activism, Fr. Steve Rosera now holds key roles under Abp. Wester in Santa Fe, including judgement over annulments.(Lepanto Institute) — Archbishop John Wester, the local ordinary for the Archdiocese of Santa Fe, New Mexico, reinstated the faculties of a priest who spent ten years in San Francisco as a registered “domestic partner” to another man.According to Father Steve Rosera’s official bio, Abp. Wester reinstated him to the priesthood on January 20, 2021. The official Archdiocese...

[Catholic Caucus] Cardinal Gregory - Destroyer of Holy Masses - wanted Homosex Liturgy "without Hesitation"On 27 July, Rev Peter Daly, a retired priest of the Archdiocese of Washington, recalled on NcrOnline.org how Cardinal Wilton Gregory of Washington came to celebrate a homosexual Eucharist on 22 January. The cardinal retired on 6 January.In September 2024, Cardinal Gregory received three homosexual activists: Sister Jeannine Gramick, Frank DeBernardo, and Rev. Daly.Father Daly asked Cardinal Gregory if he would be willing to preside over a "liturgy of reconciliation between the archdiocese and the LGBTQ+ community": "He said yes without hesitation."According to Fr Daly, the...

[Catholic Caucus] Detroit archbishop fires renowned conservative professors from Sacred Heart Seminary'The firing of Ralph Martin and Eduardo Echeverria from Sacred Heart Seminary … is an act of a thin-skinned, petty tyrant,' said Eric Sammons, editor-in-chief of Crisis Magazine.Current and former colleagues and students of conservative Professors Ralph Martin and Eduardo Echeverria were shocked and dismayed to learn on Thursday of their firing from Sacred Heart Seminary (SHS) by Detroit’s progressive new prelate, Archbishop Edward Weisenburger.Last month, Weisenburger came under fire for eliminating nearly all public celebrations of the Traditional Latin Mass (TLM) and prohibiting ad orientem in the Novus...

[Catholic Caucus] Madrid’s cardinal welcomes dissident LGBT group prior to annual gatheringFrom August 21 through 25, the Global Network of Rainbow Catholics will hold its fifth annual meeting to discuss 'the future of LGBTQ+ Catholics.' An international group of dissident “LGBT Catholics” preparing for an annual gathering of similar organizations was received warmly by the cardinal of Madrid this week, although the group advocates against Catholic teaching.From August 21 through 25, the Global Network of Rainbow Catholics (GNRC) will hold its fifth annual meeting. Taking place in Madrid, the event will see groups and individuals gather to discuss “the future...

[Catholic Caucus] San Diego bishop celebrates LGBT ‘All are Welcome’ Mass, allows ‘drag queen’ activist to speakSAN DIEGO (LifeSiteNews) — Auxiliary Bishop Ramón Bejarano recently celebrated St. John the Evangelist Church’s annual “All are Welcome” LGBT “Pride” Mass and allowed “Nicole” Murray-Ramirez, an LGBT “drag queen” activist and longtime San Diego City Commissioner, to speak during the Mass. Bejarano was the celebrant of the July 13 Sunday Mass, which was organized by St. John’s “LGBTQ Ministry” and had the full backing of the Diocese of San Diego under Bishop Michael Pham, one of Pope Leo XIV’s first bishop’s appointments. During...

[Catholic Caucus] German bishop suggests guidelines for blessing same-sex ‘couples,’ divorced and ‘remarried’Bishop Georg Bätzing recommended implementing heretical 'blessings' for 'divorced and remarried couples, couples of all gender identities and sexual orientations.'Bishop Georg Bätzing of Limburg, president of the German Bishops’ Conference (DBK), recommended implementing the conference’s official guidelines for the “blessings” of same-sex “couples,” the divorced and civilly “remarried,” and other irregular unions in his diocese this week.The Diocese of Limburg published Bätzing’s recommendation to implement the heterodox “blessings” in its official diocesan journal on July 9. The bishop’s recommendation follows April announcement from the German Bishops’ Conference and...

[Catholic Caucus] California priest says God is ‘proud’ of ‘LGBT Catholics’ during homily at ‘Family Pride Mass’Father David Andel defended the 'Pride' Mass, saying, 'We wanted LGBTQ Catholics and their families to have a spiritual alternative.'HIGHLAND, California (LifeSiteNews) — Father David Andel told “LGBT Catholics” during a sermon for the Diocese of San Bernardino’s first-ever “Family Pride Mass” last month that God is “proud” of LGBT Catholics and their families.Andel, a priest in the diocese, emphasized during his homily that God loves and is proud of Catholics who identify as LGBT as well as their families for persevering in their...