Free Republic

The Death and Life of Capital PunishmentPrecisely because human life is so cherished by God, because we are created in His image and likeness, capital punishment can be a well-deserved destiny.It would seem Pope Francis had a rather odd answer to the question of whether it would be justified to kill baby Hitler: he wouldn’t kill adult Hitler had he survived the war. If every pope was correct in all his deliberations, there would be no disagreements among them. If a pope preaches something potentially contrary to historical Church teaching, intrigue naturally befalls the error. The truth of yesterday suffers...

Replacing the Cross with a Portrait of XiThe CCP is mandating the removal of thousands of crosses, icons, and sacramentals from Catholic churches and replacing them with portraits of former Chairman Mao Zedong and those of President Xi Jinping.While the Vatican is apparently counting the secret payoffs it receives from the Chinese Communist Party, the CCP is mandating the removal of thousands of crosses, icons, and sacramentals from Catholic churches and replacing them with portraits of former Chairman Mao Zedong and those of President Xi Jinping, which must be affixed above the pulpit and elsewhere. For example, in Anhui Province...

Has Leo gone TOO FAR? Pope Leo calls mosque 'holy place of God'Pope Leo visited a mosque and called it a “holy place of God.” Can you imagine Pope Benedict saying that? Pope Pius XI? The question writes itself: Has the papacy finally gone too far?John-Henry Westen examines a growing pattern that has left traditional Catholics stunned. The same pope who participated in a Pachamama ritual in 1995 now calls a mosque, a place that denies the divinity of Christ, a holy place of God. The same pope who walked a pregnant migrant through an open border symbol at Lampedusa...

Introducing the "Synodal Church" Is synodality really all about "inclusion", "dignity" and other modern trends? What happens to "the Catholic Church" after 2028?Since 2019-2020, during the reign of Bergoglio (‘Pope’ Francis), Catholics were discombobulated with the introduction of a bizarre phrase never before known or heard by the most well-known theologians, historians, and scholars of Catholic theology: The Synod on Synodality. A good general background on the Synod on Synodality, an apt acronym being SoS (Save our Souls), can be found on Wikipedia here. One of the hallmarks of the SoS, which most Catholics seem to miss or want to...

[Catholic Caucus] Pope Leo approved Cardinal Roche’s document supporting Latin Mass restrictions: report A Spanish outlet reported that Pope Leo requested a document affirming Pope Francis’ claim that the Novus Ordo is ‘the sole expression of the lex orandi of the Roman Rite.’Pope Leo XIV supports the Latin Mass-suppressing document Traditionis Custodes and specifically requested Cardinal Arthur Roche’s document on the liturgy backing Traditional Latin Mass (TLM) restrictions, according to a Spanish publication.La Razón reported Sunday that it has been “able to confirm” Cardinal Roche distributed this year’s consistory document on the liturgy “at the request of Leo XIV and,...

Pope Leo XIV meets pro-abortion singer Patti Smith as Vatican official hails ‘shared mission’One of Patti Smith's best known lyrics is, 'Jesus died for somebody's sins, but not mine.'Pope Leo XIV met with the pro-abortion, pro-LGBT punk rock star Patti Smith on Friday morning.Smith, who is originally from Chicago, like Leo, is a singer, songwriter, and poet sometimes known as the “Godmother of Punk” for her influential early role in shaping punk music. Her fame peaked in the late 1970’s with her biggest hit, “Because the Night,” a sensual song that declares the “night belongs to lust.” One of her...

Quo Vadis, Domine? - "Lord, whither goest Thou?": Rome and the Society of Saint Pius XOn June 16th, Pope Leo XIV made a statement outside his residence at Castel Gandolfo concerning the Society of Saint Pius X, which was then preparing to consecrate four bishops without a pontifical mandate. The Pope affirmed that this decision grieved him, while concluding that he intended to press forward. "If they make that choice," he said, "it saddens me deeply, but we must move forward."Move forward toward what?A question immediately arises: in what direction do the Roman authorities wish to lead Catholics as they...

Cardinal Burke: Synodality ‘has to be stopped’ and thoroughly reexaminedCardinal Raymond Burke urged Pope Leo XIV to halt the synodality process, calling it ‘iniquitous’ and observing it lacks definition and historical precedent in the Church. In a wide-ranging interview after Pope Leo XIV’s second extraordinary consistory of cardinals held June 26-27, Cardinal Raymond Burke delivered a forceful critique of the Vatican’s ongoing emphasis on synodality, calling for it to be halted and subjected to rigorous study.“We have to insist that this whole synodality business stop,” the cardinal declared. “And there be a very serious study done of the whole matter...

Why many traditional Catholics believe the SSPX is answering Our Lady’s callOur Lady in Fatima, Akita, La Salette, and Good Success foretold the confusion, division, and moral collapse now visible in the Vatican's standoff with the SSPX.In moments of confusion and division within the Church, many faithful Catholics turn to the messages Our Lady has given over the centuries.These private revelations – approved ones like Fatima, Akita, La Salette, and Good Success – are not articles of faith, but they have offered comfort and warning to generations facing crisis. Today, as tensions between the Vatican and the Society of Saint...

Leo XIV is continuing Pope Francis’ war against traditional CatholicsPope Francis’s 2021 motu proprio ‘Traditionis Custodes’ marked the opening shot in a campaign against Catholic tradition that has only intensified under Pope Leo XIV.Catholics of goodwill see it. The machinations have been well-documented. Popes Francis and Leo have each steered the holy Barque of Peter into a war footing; a war in which the Vatican is the aggressor.It is not a war “against principalities and powers, against the rulers of the world of this darkness, against the spirits of wickedness in the high places” (Ephesians 6). Nor is it a...