Free Republic

[Catholic Caucus] US Bishops’ Conference Partnering with Heretical Association of PriestsThe heretical Association of US Catholic Priests (AUSCP) announced earlier this year that the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCBP) approached the Association, asking it to host a virtual consultation on the USCCB’s Laity Document. Public materials describe the event as a joint effort between AUSCP and the USCCB, presenting it as a continuation of synodal engagement.The AUSCP has a long history of promoting views in direct conflict with immutable Catholic teachings regarding the ordination of women, human sexual morality, the sacraments and the nature of the priesthood.In the...

[Catholic Caucus] WATCH: Mass celebrated in Rome for Fr. James Martin’s Outreach group, other ‘LGBT pilgrims’ Heterodox Jesuit Father James Martin posted a video on the social media platform X on Thursday showing part of a Mass celebrated for his dissident Outreach organization and other “LGBT Catholic pilgrims” at the Oratory of St. Francis Xavier in Rome on the eve of the Vatican’s official LGBT jubilee pilgrimage.The Mass, which was celebrated by Father Sam Sawyer, S.J., the editor-in-chief of the Jesuit-run America Magazine, at the historic oratory proceeded the Vatican’s ongoing LGBT jubilee pilgrimage, organized by “La Tenda di Gionata”...

[Catholic Caucus] Cardinal McElroy asks Vatican to laicize whistleblower priest claiming DC sex abuse cover-upFr. Michael Briese says Cdl. McElroy never refuted his allegations of abuse cover-ups, instead threatening laicization unless he removed blog posts exposing DC clergy scandals. Cardinal Robert McElroy of Washington, D.C., is seeking to laicize Father Michael Briese, a whistleblower archdiocesan priest, for refusing to take down blog posts detailing allegations that two priests who remain in good standing with the archdiocese, Father Adam Park and Father Carter Griffin, had sexually abused seminarians as well as allegations of a cover-up of the allegations by both McElroy...

[Catholic Caucus] "The Holy Father Received This Morning in Audience... Fr. James Martin, SJ"From today's Bollettino:Il Santo Padre ha ricevuto questa mattina in Udienza:- Em.mo Card. Angelo De Donatis, Penitenziere Maggiore;- Mons. Andrea Ferrante, Incaricato d’Affari a.i. in Myanmar;- S.E. Mons. Francisco Castro Lalupù, Vescovo tit. di Puzia di Bizacena, Ausiliare di Trujillo (Perù);- Padre James Martin, S.I.;- S.E. Mons. Giuseppe Sciacca, Vescovo tit. di Fondi;- Membri dell’Opera San Francesco per i Poveri di Milano;- Em.mo Card. Michael Czerny, S.I., Prefetto del Dicastero per il Servizio dello Sviluppo Umano Integrale. [Source, in Italian] This is how Martin described the audience:...

[Catholic Caucus] Heterodox priests condone immoral sexual behavior at annual retreat: leaked audio'The ideas and teachings floated in this conference are sure to lead souls to Hell,' remarked Michael Hichborn of the Lepanto Institute.A leaked audio recording of a heretical clergy group’s annual meeting reveals that its retreat leader, a theology professor, downplayed or heretically denied the gravity of an array of serious sins, including masturbation, fornication, and receiving Holy Communion while in grave sin.The Lepanto Institute recently shared audio clips from the 2025 annual meeting of the Association of U.S. Catholic Priests (AUSCP), a dissident group that was refused...

[Catholic Caucus] German bishops looking to promote gender ideology in schoolsA 20-page document says Germany's Catholic schools should respect and make more visible students who are 'non-binary' and 'non-heterosexual.' The heretical German bishops are planning to introduce guidelines for Catholic schools promoting radical gender ideology without questioning its horrendous consequences for children.The German Catholic News Agency (KNA) reports that the Catholic bishops, or more precisely, their school commission headed by Bishop Heinrich Timmerevers, are preparing a 20-page document on “sexual diversity” for Catholic schools.The paper says schools should respect and make more visible students who are “non-binary” and “non-heterosexual.” It...

[Catholic Caucus] Toulouse, France, archbishop names rape-convicted priest as chancellorThe archbishop of Toulouse, France, has drawn fierce criticism for appointing a priest previously convicted of raping a 16-year-old boy to serve as diocesan chancellor, sparking outrage from victims’ advocates and the local Catholic community.Archbishop Guy de Kerimel named Father Dominique Spina as chancellor and episcopal delegate for marriages, effective Sept. 1, according to a decree published June 2 on the archdiocese’s website. The appointment became public knowledge on July 7, when the regional newspaper La Dépêche du Midi broke the story.Spina was convicted in 2006 by the Tarbes Court of...

[Catholic Caucus] 90% of German Bishops Deny Catholic Sexual Moral TeachingOn 1 July, German Catholic author Gabriele Kuby told Edward Pentin's Substack.com-account that almost 90% of German bishops support a distorted sexual education that involves teaching children that homosexual acts and gender ideology are normal and acceptable.Two German bishops have recently indicated their support for such indoctrination in Catholic schools.On 20 June, Bishop Peter Kohlgraf of Mainz said that biblical statements about homosexuality should not be read as timeless truths, although morality is timeless.Bishop Heinrich Timmerevers of Dresden-Meissen recently called for a "new" way of thinking concerning the sexual morality...

During the Sede Vacante, the cardinals are responsible for the day-to-day business of the Church. The reins of power are held by the Cardinal Treasurer and three assistants – two are chosen by lot, one is appointed: Cardinal Marx. His work in Rome begins now. Munich Cardinal Reinhard Marx has been participating in the interim leadership of the world Catholic Church since today. The Cardinals present in Rome confirmed him as one of three assistants to Cardinal Treasurer Kevin Farrell in governing the Church during the Sede Vacante, due to his role as co-ordinator of the Council for the Economy....

[Catholic Caucus] Cardinals tout book on vocations and sexual orientation; Pope Francis writes prefacePope Francis has written the preface to Vocazioni felici: Integrare orientamento sessuale, affetti e relazioni [Happy Vocations: Integrating Sexual Orientation, Affections and Relationships], a new book by Chiara D’Urbano, a psychologist and consultor to the Vatican’s Dicastery for the Clergy.Cardinal Baldassare Reina, Cardinal Lazarus You Heung-sik, and Bishop Michele Di Tolve spoke at the April 9 presentation of the book, according to a statement from the Dicastery for the Clergy. Cardinal Reina is vicar general of His Holiness for Rome and archpriest of the Lateran Basilica; Cardinal...

The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) has filed a lawsuit against the Trump administration, challenging its decision to suspend federal funding for refugee resettlement. The move comes as part of President Donald Trump’s broader effort to realign American priorities—protecting the homeland first, rather than funding programs that facilitate unchecked migration. The lawsuit, filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, names the State Department, the Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration (PRM), and the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) as defendants. USCCB is incorporated as a non-profit and headquartered in the District of...

Rep. Salazar: "I understand Mr. Anzios that you do not agree with the way that Elon Musk has conducted his investigation into USAID - but I do believe you know -coming from the world of television that you are judged by the results not by the process and Musk has discovered things that are completely and absolutely embarrassing ... let's start with Venezuela ... they make it to Ecuador, I mean they're tired and then they encounter that the United States, which is the Beacon of Hope, is offering this program to become a Drag Queen - so I think...

<p>With Trump’s strict immigration policies, the USCCB and its cohorts Catholic Charities and Catholic Social Services collectively stand to lose nearly $2.4 billion over the next four years, a sum that pew collections are unlikely to replace.</p><p>Now, with Donald Trump back in the White House, there are plans for mass deportations.</p>

US Bishops Denounce Trump’s Immigration PlansThe Catholic Church has clear teachings on immigration, but US bishops stand to lose lots of money from mass deportations.Cardinal Blase Cupich of Chicago opposes Trump plan for deportationsAs President-elect Donald Trump is just days away from returning to the White House, American Catholic leaders are denouncing his immigration agenda. Chicago’s powerful Cardinal Blase Cupich warned in a recent interview that U.S. bishops “are going to have to be prophetic and denounce any abuse of human dignity that may occur” as Trump rolls out his mass deportation program. “We are going to be vigilant and...

[Catholic Caucus] With Vatican Approval, Italian Bishops Change Criteria for Gay SeminariansA new directive from the Italian Bishops Conference will allow gay seminary candidates to be assessed in the same way that heterosexual candidates, clearing up two decades worth of confusion caused by ambiguous Vatican statements about gay men and the priesthood. This directive was approved by the Vatican.ANSA Brazil reported that the conference statement said that “an orientation towards celibate life” is what will be required of gay candidates. This is the same requirement which heterosexual candidates must meet. The conference statement continued:“In the formative process, when reference is...

The Bible is pro-transgender, according to guidance promoted by an Anglican campaign group. It claims that “not everyone in the Bible is cisgender” – their gender at birth – and says that biblical stories contain “some clear queer characters”. This argument rests on the treatment of eunuchs in scripture and women taking part in apparently masculine activities in the Bible. The guidance is contained in resources hosted on the website LGBT Faith UK. A link to the document states: “The Bible affirms trans, intersex and queer people.” The text begins by stating: “Not everyone in the Bible is cisgender. Nor...

NEW: Democrat groups release an ad of a young man m*sturbating in an effort to get people to vote for Kamala Harris. The Democratic Party: The party of abortion and p*rn addicts. Progress Action Fund and Defend the Vote have released a $2.5 million ad campaign with the 30-second ad. The ad was called “Republicans Rubbing You the Wrong Way,” with an actor playing a Republican congressman watching the young man rub one out. The ad campaign is being displayed on streaming services in all seven swing states.

[Catholic Culture] When top Vatican officials clash on sex-abuse discipline...In more than 40 years of covering news of the Catholic Church, I have never encountered a Vatican story as wild as this one, nor one that is potentially—I stress, potentially—as revealing about the way the Vatican actually works.First bear in mind that this story involves the sex-abuse scandal: an issue on which any sensible Catholic prelate by now recognizes the importance of getting things right; an issue on which Pope Francis has repeatedly promised transparency and accountability. And yet:A powerful Vatican dicastery overturned the sentence imposed by two ecclesiastical tribunals...

[Catholic Caucus] BREAKING: Cardinals attend Fr James Martin’s LGBT Synod event promoting expression of homosexual ‘love’The LGBT briefing event for members of the Synod on Synodality was hosted by Father James Martin and attended by a number of cardinals.VATICAN CITY (LifeSiteNews) — A number of cardinals and other members of the Synod attended a pro-LGBT event hosted by Fr James Martin S.J. and his Outreach group in Rome today, during which a same-sex “married” man called for “love to be expressed.”“Get to know the real people behind the ‘mask’ who are trying to live a Catholic life,” said Christopher Vella...

he woman at the centre of a controversial performance during the opening ceremony for the Paris 2024 Olympics has been revealed to be a DJ, producer, and self-described 'love activist' called Barbara Butch. Some Christians were vocal about their discomfort over the stunt: a parody of the Last Supper - the famous biblical scene of Jesus Christ and his twelve apostles sharing a last meal before the crucifixion. The artistic interpretation, which included a group of drag queens and a transgender model, as well as French actor and singer Phillippe Katerine, prompted some to accuse organisers of creating a 'woke'...