Catholic News
- Christ, the Good Shepherd, loves you and gave His life for you, Pope tells pilgrims (Vatican Press Office)
Jesus, the Good Shepherd, “tells us that we are always infinitely worthy in His eyes,” Pope Francis emphasized during his Regina Caeli address on April 21, the Fourth Sunday of Easter, as he reflected on the day’s Gospel reading (John 10:11-18). The Pope told pilgrims gathered in St. Peter’s Square, “Brothers, sisters, let us ask ourselves: am I able to find the time, every day, to embrace this assurance that gives value to my life? Am I able to find the time for a moment of prayer, of adoration, of praise, to be in the presence of Christ and to let myself be caressed by Him?” “Brother, sister, the Good Shepherd tells us that if you do this, you will rediscover the secret of life: you will remember that He gave His life for you, for me, for all of us,” he continued. “And that for Him, we are all important, each and every one of us.” “May Our Lady help us to find in Jesus what is essential for life,” the Pope concluded. - Pope welcomes Earth Day celebration (Vatican News)
Pope Francis called public attention to the celebration of Earth Day on April 22, with a Twitter statement: Our generation has bequeathed many riches, but we have failed to protect the planet and we are not safeguarding peace. We are called to become artisans and caretakers of our common home, the Earth which is “falling into ruin.” In a report on the Pontiff’s statement, Vatican News called special attention to a UN drive to eliminate single-use plastics, and particularly to the UN Treaty on Plastic Pollution. - Texas Carmelites resist 'unacceptable' Vatican directive (Arlington Carmel)
The Carmelite nuns of the Monastery of the Holy Trinity in Texas have rejected a Vatican directive putting their community under the jurisdiction of a national Carmelite Association, saying that it is “in effect a hostile takeover that we cannot in conscience accept.” The members of the embattled Carmelite community—which has been locked in a dispute with Bishop Michael Olsen of Fort Worth—announced that they would not welcome a visitation by the Carmelite Association of Christ the King. They said that they were “surprised and disappointed” that the Vatican decision was announced without any consultation. The Carmelite community professed its willingness to submit to proper ecclesiastical authority. “An abusive father, however, must be resisted,” they said. - Probe finds no 'malicious intent' in FBI memo on Catholics (CNA)
An investigation by the Justice Department has concluded that no “malicious intent” was evident in a leaked FBI memo suggesting that traditionalist Catholics might be prone to political violence. The internal investigation found that the memo—which was formally retracted after it became public—“failed to adhere to FBI standards.” But the report said that the authors of the memo were not motivated by hostility to the Catholic faith, nor was their report an indication of any “underlying policy direction” against Catholics. - Respect the truth, shun ideology, Pontiff bids historians (Vatican Press Office)
Pope Francis received members of the Pontifical Committee for Historical Sciences on April 20, in commemoration of the 70th anniversary of its founding under Venerable Pius XII. “It is good that you collaborate with others, expanding your scientific and human relations, and avoiding forms of mental and institutional isolation,” Pope Francis told the historians. “I encourage you to maintain this enriching approach, based on constant and attentive listening, free from any ideology—ideologies kill—and respecting the truth.” Contrasting the “civilization of encounter” with “the temptations of self-absorbed individualism and the ideological affirmation of one’s own point of view [that] fuel the incivility of confrontation,” the Pope told the members of the committee that “it is good that you, 70 years after your establishment, bear witness to being able to resist such temptations, living with passion, through study, the regenerative experience of service to unity.” - European bishops' conference backs EU expansion (COMECE)
The Commission of the Bishops’ Conferences of the European Union (COMECE) has issued a statement supporting the expansion of the European Union (EU), while urging further efforts to build a “true European spirit.” At the conclusion of a plenary meeting in Poland, the COMECE leadership said that “Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine and the geopolitical developments in EU’s neighborhood have generated a new momentum for future accessions to the Union.” The commission welcomed the prospect of new countries entering the EU as a “strong message of hope.” However the COMECE statement cautioned that new member-states should adhere to the principles on which the EU was founded—and expressed concern that existing member-states have not reached accord on those principles. The statement read: Despite a solid political and economic integration of the EU member states, it is questionable to what extent a genuine dialogue of national realities, cultures, historical experiences and identities has taken place across European societies. - Priests ordained for Diocese of Rome; Pope absent from ordination Mass (Vatican News)
Cardinal Angelo De Donatis, the Major Penitentiary of the Apostolic Penitentiary, ordained 11 men to the priesthood in St. Peter’s Basilica on April 20. Pope Francis was not present at the ordination Mass. The Pontiff was not ill on the day of the ordinations, but had a full schedule that included seven audiences. Cardinal De Donatis was, until recently, the vicar general of the Diocese of Rome. “I extend my heartfelt greetings to the new priests of the Diocese of Rome, who were ordained yesterday afternoon in St. Peter’s Basilica,” Pope Francis said on April 21, following his Regina Caeli address. “Let us pray for them!” - Vatican breaks silence on Italian abortion controversy (Crux)
Both the Vatican and the Italian bishops’ conference have avoided public comment on a proposal by the Italian government of Prime Minister Georgia Meloni to allow pro-life groups to obtain public funding for counseling women who seek abortion. But Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the Secretary of State, broke the silence on April 20 with a guarded comment to reporters. While declining comment on the “technical details” of the government’s proposal, Cardinal Parolin said that the Church would favor “all those instruments which can help to affirm the fight to life, above all for women who find themselves in difficulty.” That mild comment was interpreted by Italian media outlets as a sign of Vatican support for the government’s proposal. The Vatican has generally kept at arm’s length from the Meloni government, while the Italian bishops have shown some discomfort with the approach taken by the country’s most influential pro-life groups. - Communion, witness, mercy: papal tribute to Pius VII (Vatican Press Office)
Pope Francis received pilgrims from four Italian dioceses on April 20 and paid tribute to the Servant of God Pope Pius VII (1742-1823), who reigned from 1800 to 1823. “I would like to emphasize, thinking of his life, three key values to which he bore witness, essential also for our personal and community journeys: communion—but not Communion, the sacrament, communion in the Church—witness, and mercy,” the Pope said. “Dear brothers and sisters, there are many values recalled to us by the memory of the Servant of God Pius VII: love for truth, unity, dialogue, attention to the least, forgiveness, the tenacious search for peace, and that evangelical astuteness that the Lord recommends to us,” he continued. Meekness, Pope Francis then explained, “does not mean we are stupid, no, no, that is not meekness, no. Meekness, but cunning as the Lord recommends. Simple as the dove but cunning as the snake.” Pius VII was imprisoned and exiled by Napoleon’s forces in 1809 and triumphantly returned to Rome in 1814. He also restored the Society of Jesus in 1814, four decades after the institute’s suppression in 1773. - Integrate prayer, study, fraternity, and mission, Pope tells Seville seminarians (Vatican Press Office)
Pope Francis received seminarians from the Archdiocese of Seville, Spain, on April 20, the day on which he was not present at the ordination of seminarians of his own Diocese of Rome. The “journey of configuration to Jesus the Good Shepherd must be done by taking care of four aspects: spiritual life, study, community life and apostolic activity,” the Pope told the Spanish seminarians. “Everything in the priest—prayer, study, fraternity, mission—must go together,” he continued. “Dear seminarians, make good use of this intense time of formation, with your heart in God, with open hands and a big smile to spread the joy of the Gospel to all those you meet.” - Pakistani bishop laments lack of justice following attacks on 26 churches (Aid to the Church in Need)
Seven months after the burning of 26 churches and attacks on over 100 Christian homes in Jaranwala, Pakistan, the local bishop lamented authorities’ unwillingness to bring the perpetrators to justice. “More than 300 people were arrested [following the attack], but it is unlikely that they will face justice,” said Bishop Joseph Indrias Rehmat of Faisalabad. “Slowly, they have started releasing them. Nobody has been charged.” Islam is the official religion of Pakistan, a South Asian nation of 248 million (map) that is the fifth most populous in the world. 97% of Pakistan’s people are Muslim, 2% are Christian, and 1% are Hindu. - USCCB committee chairman decries new abortion leave-time mandate for employers (USCCB)
The US Equal Employment Opportunity Commission has mandated that employers, including religious employers, grant leave time for abortions. The Pregnant Workers Fairness Act requires employers to offer accommodations such as leave for “pregnancy,” “childbirth,” and “related medical conditions.” In a novel interpretation, the Biden administration has determined that abortion falls under the provisions of the law—even though, as the USCCB noted in earlier comments, senators from both parties said during the legislative debate that the law’s text does not apply to abortion. “The bipartisan Pregnant Workers Fairness Act, as written, is a pro-life law that protects the security and physical health of pregnant mothers and their preborn children,” said Bishop Kevin Rhoades of Fort Wayne-South Bend, Indiana, the chairman of the US bishops’ Committee for Religious Liberty. “It is indefensible for the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission to twist the law in a way that violates the consciences of pro-life employers by making them facilitate abortions.” “No employer should be forced to participate in an employee’s decision to end the life of their child,” he added. - Renewed papal appeal for peace (Vatican Press Office)
At the conclusion of his April 21 Regina Caeli address, Pope Francis renewed his appeal for peace in the Middle East and Ukraine. “t is with concern and also with grief that I am continuing to follow the situation in the Middle East,” he said. “I renew my appeal not to give in to the logic of vengeance and war. May the paths of dialogue and diplomacy, which can do so much, prevail.” “I pray every day for peace in Palestine and Israel, and I hope that these two peoples may stop suffering soon,” he continued. “And let us not forget martyred Ukraine, the martyred Ukraine which suffers so much because of the war.” - Massachusetts politicians to speak at Vatican climate conference (WBUR)
Massachusetts Governor Maura Healey and Boston’s Mayor Michelle Wu are scheduled to speak at a Vatican conference on climate change in May. Both are outspoken advocates of unrestricted legal abortion. Governor Healey was recently the featured speaker at a Boston fundraiser for the Catholic Schools Foundation, which is chaired by Cardinal Sean O’Malley. - Papal tribute to recently deceased missionary (Vatican Press Office)
Pope Francis paid tribute to a 43-year-old Italian missionary priest who died in a traffic accident in Côte d’Ivoire (map). “It is with sorrow that I have received the news of the death, in an accident, of Father Matteo Pettinari, a young missionary of the Consolata in the Ivory Coast,” Pope Francis told pilgrims gathered in St. Peter’s Square on April 20. “He was known as the ‘tireless missionary,’ who left a great testimony of generous service. Let us pray for his soul.” - Abuse victims reject settlement in New York diocesan bankruptcy (Newsday)
A $200-million proposal by the Diocese of Rockville Center to settle sex-abuse claims has been rejected by abuse victims in an overwhelming vote. More than 85% of the abuse plaintiffs voted against the diocesan proposal. A vote of 75% in favor was needed to approve the settlement. The rejection of what the diocese called its “final” offer leaves the bankruptcy case unresolved. The Rockville Center filed for bankruptcy protection in 2020; legal fees in the case are now approaching $100 million. - Georgia senator meets with Pope (Sen. Raphael Warnock)
Pope Francis received Sen. Raphael Warnock (D-GA) on April 20. “He comes out of a kind of theological bent that tends to center the poor,” Sen. Warnock said prior to the meeting. “And we see this in his ministry: the humble ways in which he prostrates himself before the poor, even prisoners, washing their feet. This is the love ethic of Jesus, and I have been inspired by him.” Sen. Warnock added that he was “excited about meeting to talk about their shared interests, such as providing services to the poor and addressing climate change.” The senator, a Baptist pastor, is known for his longstanding abortion advocacy. - Belize prime minister meets with Pontiff (Vatican Press Office)
Pope Francis received Prime Minister Johnny Briceño of Belize in an April 20 audience. “We expressed satisfaction for shared good relations and discussed the commitment of the Holy Church in Belize,” Prime Minister Briceño tweeted. The prime minister then met with Archbishop Paul Richard Gallagher, the Holy See’s Secretary for Relations with States and International Organizations. The parties discussed the Church’s work in education and the care of migrants, current national political issues, and the contribution of the Church and Christian values to the common good, according to the Vatican press office. Belize, a Central American nation of 420,000 (map), is 92% Christian (61% Catholic), 3% Bahāʾī, and 2% Hindu. - More...