Catholic News
- Supreme Court splits 4-4 in Oklahoma Catholic charter school case (Religion Clause)
The rare split decision had the effect of upholding an earlier Oklahoma Supreme Court ruling—one that declared that the state’s approval of a Catholic public charter school was in violation of the First Amendment and state law. Because the US Supreme Court’s decision was split, it did not create a national precedent. Justice Amy Coney Barrett recused herself from the case. - 'In Gaza, there is no more time,' Vatican newspaper warns (CWN)
L’Osservatore Romano devoted significant front-page coverage in its May 22 edition to the situation in Gaza. - YouTube drops channel featuring fake sermons of Pope Leo (Aliteia)
YouTube has closed down a channel that was generating fraudulent videos, purporting to be sermons by Pope Leo XIV, generated by artificial intelligence. The “Pope Leo XIV’s Sermons” channel had quickly attracted more than 18,000 subscribers, showing videos in which the Pope’s voice and image were manipulated to produce “sermons” that he had not delivered. YouTube shut down the operation on May 21, citing violations of its policies that bar “spam, deceptive practices, and scams.” - Cardinal Grech stresses synodality in talk to religious superiors (Vatican News)
Cardinal Mario Grech, the secretary-general of the Synod of Bishops, laid heavy stress on the theme of synodality in a talk to the Union of Superiors General of male religious orders. “We want to be a synodal Church, a Church that moves forward,” the cardinal told the assembly. “Pope Leo XIV encourages us to advance on the path of synodality, making fruitful the many seeds planted in the soil of the Church during the 2021–2024 Synodal process.” - Delaware legalized assisted suicide (CNA)
Delaware’s Governor Matt Meyer has signed legislation that will make physician-assisted suicided legal beginning in 2026. Delaware will be the 11th American state to allow assisted suicide, joining . California, Colorado, Hawaii, Maine, Montana, New Jersey, New Mexico, Oregon, Vermont, and Washington. The practice is also legal in the District of Columbia. - Priests murdered in Kenya (Kenya Times)
Father Allois Bett was murdered by suspected bandits in Kenya’s Kerio Valley. The priest was on his way to a church service, the Kenya Times reported. The murder took place on May 22, the day that Bishop Joseph Mbatia of Nyahururu celebrated a funeral Mass for Father John Maina, a priest whose body was found dumped on the side of a road. - North Carolina bishop bars Traditional Mass in parishes (Catholic News Herald)
Bishop Michael Martin of Charlotte, North Carolina, has announced that the celebration of the Traditional Latin Mass (TLM) will be ended in diocesan parishes. Bishop Martin explained that he was completing the implementation of Traditionis Custodes in Charlotte. He said that one new chapel will be established in the diocese where the TLM will be celebrated. The announcement by Bishop Martin deflates the hopes of Traditionalist Catholics that the drive to suppress the Latin Mass would end with the pontificate of Pope Francis. Ironically, the bishop expressed the hope that his new policy would “promote the concord and unity of the Church.” - Vandalism against Catholic churches rising in Germany (CNA)
German government statistics show a 20% rise in the number of attacks on Catholic churches in 2024, along with a similar (22%) increase in the number of violent incidents against all religious communities. - Cardinal McElroy decries killing of Israeli Embassy staff members as 'act of anti-Semitic hatred and murder' (Catholic Standard)
- Michigan man charged with hate crime following vandalism, attack on priest (Port Huron Times Herald)
A Michigan man has been charged with ethnic intimidation, malicious destruction of a building, and institutional desecration after he allegedly threw a rock through the window of a parish in Marysville, Michigan, and attacked a priest during a baptism. The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops has documented over 380 acts of vandalism, arson, and other destruction at parishes and other Catholic sites in the United States since 2020. A tracker from CatholicVote.org lists additional attacks. - Why Anglicans cannot select a new worldwide leader (Premier Christianity)
While the Catholic Church selected a new Roman Pontiff in less than 3 weeks, the worldwide Anglican community has been without a leader since the Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, resigned in January. An explanation of the incredibly complicated system by which a new Archbishop of Canterbury is selected, and the series of disputes and gaffes that have delayed the process for months. - Connecticut diocese emerges from bankruptcy (Diocese of Norwich)
A federal bankruptcy court has confirmed the Diocese of Norwich’s bankruptcy plan, four years after the Connecticut diocese filed for bankruptcy. The plan establishes a $31-million settlement fund from property sales, insurance, and other contributions. “Our hope is that this settlement provides a fair measure of compensation and an opportunity for healing,” said Bishop Reidy, who was installed as bishop last month. “We offer our sincere prayers for all [abuse] survivors and remain steadfast in our commitment to ensure that such abuse can never happen again.” - 30% of Americans consult astrology, tarot cards, or fortune tellers (Pew Research Center)
29% of Catholics “say they believe in astrology,” according to the Pew Research Center. “Hispanic Catholics, Black Protestants and adults who say their religion is ‘nothing in particular’ are among the most likely to say they believe that consulting a fortune teller, tarot cards or astrology gives them helpful insights.” “Women ages 18 to 49 are especially likely to express belief (43%)” in astrology, the Pew report continued. “LGBT adults are much more likely than adults who are not LGBT to believe in astrology (43% vs. 26%).” The Catechism of the Catholic Church teaches: Consulting horoscopes, astrology, palm reading, interpretation of omens and lots, the phenomena of clairvoyance, and recourse to mediums all conceal a desire for power over time, history, and, in the last analysis, other human beings, as well as a wish to conciliate hidden powers. They contradict the honor, respect, and loving fear that we owe to God alone. - Celebratory Mass held in Basilica of the Holy Sepulchre, in thanksgiving for Pope Leo's election (Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem)
- Bipartisan support for legislation to speed renewal of visas for priests, ministers (CatholicVote)
Lawmakers from both major American political parties have joined in sponsoring new legislation that would help foreign-born clerics renew their visas. The Religious Workforce Protection Act is designed to relieve an enormous backlog of visa applications, which has forced many foreign-born priests and ministers to leave the US while waiting for the renewal of their visas. - Four German bishops refuse involvement in Synodal Committee (Die Tagespost)
Four German Catholic bishops have announced that they will not participate in the work of a Synodal Committee that has been established by the episcopal conference despite opposition from the Vatican. Cardinal Rainer Woelki of Cologne, and Bishops Gregor Maria Hanke of Eichstatt, Rudolf Voderholzer of Regensburg, and Stefan Oster of Passau joined in a statement that the proposed committee “cannot claim any ecclesiastical competence” over the Church in Germany, and will have no authority to direct diocesan bishops “to adopte new forms of leadership or new approaches in teaching and morality.” - Pope Leo, Curial cardinals recall Pope Francis, 1 month after his death (Vatican News)
- Vatican diplomat welcomes WHO pandemic agreement, emphasizes health care is human right (CWN)
Addressing the 78th World Health Assembly, a leading Vatican diplomat said on May 21 that “the right to health is a fundamental human right, based on the inherent God given dignity of every person,” and that “health care is not a privilege for the few, but a right for all.” - Vatican News warns against fraudulent video of Pope Leo (Vatican News)
The Vatican News service has warned that a video circulating on the internet, which appears to show Pope Leo XIV praising President Ibrahim Traoré of Burkina Faso, is actually a fraud. The 36-minute video, which purports to show a speech by the Pontiff praising the African leader, was generated with the help of artificial intelligence. - Cardinal Kasper says Pope Benedict, Cardinal Sarah blocked change on celibacy (CWN)
Cardinal Walter Kasper has suggested that Pope Francis was prepared to ease the discipline of priestly celibacy, but decided against the move after a book published by Pope Benedict XVI and Cardinal Robert Sarah rallied opposition to the change. - More...