Stories for December 2022

Ordered from most to least recent.

Released Saturday, Dec. 31

 The spiritual testament of Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI
 Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI dies at 95

Released Friday, Dec. 30

 British woman arrested for praying outside abortion clinic charged with ‘intimidation’
 Beijing’s churches reopen after long Covid lockdown
 Something missing from Biden’s Christmas message?
 Benedict’s condition ‘stationary,’ Vatican reports
 New Ohio law focuses on Zoom-bombing and other disruptions of religious services
 Archaeologists prepare to open ‘tomb of Jesus’ midwife’ to public
 Citing fatigue, French bishop announces 6-month sabbatical
 Prayers and emotion in ailing ex-Pope Benedict’s German home region
 Indian bishop, 2 cardinals face charge in sex assault case
 Bishop, priest freed after months of detention in Eritrea
 Polish archbishop criticizes presidential veto in Christmas sermon
 Indonesian president makes unannounced Christmas visit to cathedral, calls for tolerance
 Kansas parish damaged in attempted burglary
 The Rupnik scandal: leading canonist dissects handling of startling case

Released Thursday, Dec. 29

 Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Jerusalem condemns the storming of its land by Israeli radical group
 Japanese prelate says dialogue, not counter-strike capacity, is key to peace
 Benedict XVI’s condition: serious but stable
 Leading South African bishop, in Christmas message, warns against immorality, overindulgence
 DR Congo cardinal warns of plundering of Church land, calls for voter registration
 Leading UN human rights official meets with Pontiff
 Over 100 priests and religious sisters kidnapped, arrested or killed in 2022
 Citing failing health, Scottish bishop resigns at 71
 Retired Pope’s ailing health raises questions of protocol
 Papal message to Taizé youth: Amid war in Europe, ‘opt for trust in God’
 Lebanon: Catholic schools are in ‘survival mode’
 Restrained Christmas celebrations in Jordan following killing of police official
 Argentine bishops’ conference: Remember poor and exploited children

Released Wednesday, Dec. 28

 Pope suggests celebrating Christmas with St. Francis de Sales
 Pope issues apostolic letter honoring St. Francis de Sales
 Pope asks prayers for ‘very ill’ Benedict XVI
 Massachusetts high court: no state constitutional right to physician-assisted suicide
 Kansas Catholic Conference denounces start of ‘abortion by Zoom call’
 +Ambassador Frank J. Shakespeare, 97
 ‘I saw Archbishop Romero on a stretcher,’ cardinal recalls in book
 $9.5K stolen from Chicago parish
 Pope: Peace begins in every person, in every family, in every city
 ‘God also controls missiles’: Ukrainian bishop speaks of Christmas miracle
 Slovenian culture minister calls on Rupnik to return Preseren Prize
 FDA changes Plan B label, falsely claims drug can’t cause abortions
 In Benin, spread of jihadism is restricting the work of the Church

Released Tuesday, Dec. 27

 Seattle archbishop’s new residence is an insult to the Catholic community, local advocates argue
 Michigan parish, school file suit over state court LGBT decision
 Indiana Catholic college will not recognize pro-abortion student group
 CRS official warns of rising global hunger, hails new US measure
 Cardinal says Rome diocese learned ‘recently’ of Father Rupnik accusations
 New Orthodox Primate of Cyprus elected
 Patriarch Kirill sends Christmas greeting to Pope Francis, Protestant leaders
 Federal court upholds Colorado’s conversion therapy ban
 Catholic bishops in Ethiopia hail peace agreement, urge stakeholders to work ‘diligently’
 Kidnapped Benue priest freed, receiving medical attention
 Leading Australian bishop’s Christmas message: Our love flows only from Prince of Peace
 Bronx priest left $7M fortune to son

Released Monday, Dec. 26

 Pope stresses forgiveness on feast of St. Stephen
 Work for solidarity: Cardinal Parolin encourages St. Egidio community
 Homily of Patriarch Pierbattista Pizzaballa for Midnight Mass, Christmas 2022
 Photos: Thousands descend upon Bethlehem to celebrate Christmas
 Cardinal Marx decries Patriarch Kirill’s support of war, weighs in on Synodal Way
 Ecumenical Patriarch expresses support for Ukrainians against Russian aggression
 Major Archbishop thanks Pope for becoming ‘center of universal solidarity’ with Ukraine

Released Sunday, Dec. 25

 Pope Francis: Christmas Message Urbi et Orbi (To the City and the World)

Released Saturday, Dec. 24

 Pope Francis’s Christmas homily: ‘Tonight, God draws near to you because you are important to him’
 Christmas message 2022: Father Francesco Patton, OFM, Custos of the Holy Land

Released Friday, Dec. 23

 Cardinal Krajewski reports suffering of Ukrainians, says Pope’s ‘heart is broken’
 3rd priest in a week kidnapped in Nigeria
 Project: Christmas cards for Jimmy Lai
 Liturgical battles escalating in Syro-Malabar Church
 NY appellate court: Yeshiva University must recognize LGBTQ student group
 Study: Popular German bishop mishandled abuse cases in 1970s
 Egypt’s Catholic schools bolster the vulnerable
 Chaldean Patriarch’s Christmas homily: ‘Christmas teaches us to be agents of peace, charity’
 Prime minister will again invite Pope Francis to visit India
 Alaska archbishop condemns attacks on Catholic parish
 Always trust in the Lord and build peace, Pope tells Vatican employees
 ‘No other options’: journal analyzes Canada’s efficient practice of euthanasia
 Lawmakers in Spain, Scotland approve ‘gender self-identification’ bills for minors
 Build partnership with DR Congo’s bishops to foster democracy, prelate urges Secretary Blinken

Released Thursday, Dec. 22

 Rupnik remains consultor to Roman Curia even after excommunication
 Faith requires constant conversion and change, Pope tells Roman Curia
 Montreal police told not to wear St. Michael badges
 20-year Church abuse probe ends with Msgr. William Lynn’s quiet plea
 Bishops ‘gravely concerned’ over Scottish government’s gender bill
 New York Times profiles ‘the miraculous life and afterlife of Charlene Richard’
 ‘It is so difficult to comfort a mother’s tears,’ Pope tells families of Israelis held captive by Hamas in Gaza
 Wife, son of Ukrainian prisoner of war meet with Pontiff
 Bishops call Congolese people to prayer ahead of papal visit
 Archbishop Broglio, new USCCB president, issues Christmas message
 Pope: Much can be done to stop Third World War fought piecemeal
 Pope St. Paul VI wrote resignation letter in 1965
 European churches’ Christmas message: War is a wound to humanity
 Threatening messages spray-painted on home of pro-life pregnancy center board member
 Church in Ethiopia ‘suffers with its people,’ bishop says
 USCCB unsuccessfully prods Biden administration on death penalty

Released Wednesday, Dec. 21

 Pope rues suffering of Ukrainian children, praises Poland for accepting refugees
 Pope, at audience, concludes series on discernment
 Pope champions role of labor unions
 Music is a path to peace, Pope tells Christmas concert artists
 Pavone is ‘holy priest’ who was ‘canceled,’ Texas bishop says
 Vatican investigator: Father Rupnik and hierarchy’s ‘complicit silence’ ruined victims’ lives
 Two more priests kidnapped in Nigeria
 Italy: Parliamentary inquest eyed for missing ‘Vatican girl’
 ‘60 Minutes’ examines 70th Lourdes miracle
 Archbishop Paglia was ‘constant irritant’ during World Meeting of Families, former Chaput aide charges
 +Bishop Joseph Gao Hongxiao, OFM, 77

Released Tuesday, Dec. 20

 Haitian bishops plead for end to violence
 Italian Catholic groups push for ‘disinvestment’ in fossil fuels
 Liechtenstein prelate cancels Mass for parliament after same-sex marriage approval
 English woman arrested on suspicion of prayer outside abortion clinic
 Soccer star Messi promised to make pilgrimage after World Cup win
 French bishop removed from ministry, may face criminal charges
 Fifty Italian priests ‘come out’ as homosexual, decry repression
 Pavone: ‘next Pope can reinstate me’
 Catholic charity lauds King Charles’ meeting with victims of extremism in Nigeria
 British Columbia’s COVID restrictions on worship services upheld
 Prelate calls on US to pressure Nicaragua to free dissident bishop
 Seattle archdiocese purchases $2.4M home for archbishop
 At lighting of Christmas tree in Jerusalem, Orthodox Patriarch says Christians are targeted by Israeli groups
 Pope Francis honors people who care for ‘poorest of the poor’
 Theme of papal preacher’s final Advent sermon: ‘The Gate of Charity’
 Pope returns Greece’s Parthenon sculptures in ecumenical nod
 People oppose violence against crisis pregnancy centers, but most haven’t heard about it
 ‘Descent into hell’: An alleged Rupnik victim speaks out

Released Monday, Dec. 19

 Italian Cardinal Poletto dead at 89
 Vatican decrees more 24 toward beatification
 Young American priests steadily more conservative
 Wars around world bring ‘sad Christmas,’ Pope tells interviewer
 Pope wrote resignation note in case of health impediment
 Pontiff turns 86
 Pope Francis: ‘We must not forget the children of Ukraine’
 Pope at Angelus: ‘God can turn a crisis into a new horizon’
 Papal prayer for Peru amid deepening crisis
 Sri Lanka: Lay Catholics say no to public Christmas celebrations without the truth about the Easter Sunday attacks
 Vatican dismisses Father Frank Pavone from priesthood
 Papal concern over humanitarian situation in South Caucasus
 Jesuit timeline: Rupnik preached Lenten sermon to Curia after he had been found guilty

Released Friday, Dec. 16

 Pope links fight against Covid, quest for peace, in message for World Day of Peace
 Vatican will return fragments of Parthenon to Greece
 Patriarch: ‘Beloved Syria Is suffering’
 Ortega seeking to ‘destroy the Catholic Church in Nicaragua,’ advocates tell Congress
 Priest decries lack of religious freedom in Cuba
 Myanmar junta reduces historic Catholic village to ashes
 Vatican confirms it has apologized to Russian government for Pope’s remarks
 Pope Francis exhorts young people put themselves on the line
 Catholic Charities’ activities are not religious, Wisconsin court rules
 Bethlehem welcomes Christmas tourists after pandemic lull
 Pope praises firefighters’ service, dedication
 Live a life of prayer and thanksgiving, Pope tells seminarians
 At ‘Church City,’ a taste of Catholic life in Qatar

Released Thursday, Dec. 15

 Look at others, not at cell phones, Pope urges Italian youth
 Russia says Pope apologized for criticism on Ukraine
 US publisher accused of bid to profit from Vatican art
 Nicaraguan bishop charged with conspiracy against government
 Pope welcomes new ambassadors to the Holy See
 Journalists contradict allegations of ‘cover up’ against John Paul II before he was Pope
 Crisis of confidence over cardinal shakes Cologne Catholics
 Over 300 abuse allegations to date against Spiritan priests
 Officials at Archdiocese of Montreal meddled in abuse investigations, ombudsman says
 Law firm releases Religious Freedom Index 2022
 Jerusalem bishop assesses situation of Christians there
 In victory for Florida diocese, federal court dismisses hostile work environment claim
 Archbishop Paglia used charity funds to renovate apartment

Released Wednesday, Dec. 14

 Rupnik was excommunicated prior to latest abuse complaints, Jesuits acknowledge
 Nearly 40% of Americans believe we live in the ‘end times’
 Beware ‘polite demons,’ Pope tells audience
 Hackers faked evidence against Jesuit in India, firm reports
 Nicaraguan bishop to remain under house arrest
 Omaha archdiocese softens policies on transgender students
 NOVA television special looks at rebuilding of Notre Dame
 Biden signs bill to enshrine same-sex marriage, cites ‘blow against hate’
 Cardinal Zen appeals verdict; new Jimmy Lai trial postponed to 2023
 Pope suggests modest Christmas celebrations, solidarity with Ukraine
 Malawi government draws battle lines against bishops’ conference
 Study examines impact of meatless Fridays on carbon emissions
 4 statues vandalized outside of Pennsylvania church
 In Vatican newspaper, academic urges Pope Francis to ‘get beyond’ Petrine-Marian distinction
 Cardinal Parolin: Europe must recover the ‘spirit of Helsinki’
 The unsung committee shaping the USCCB
 Cardinal Ouellet sues woman who accused him of sexual assault
 ‘Orwellian’: Vatican prosecutor reopens criminal investigation into former auditor
 Chaldean Patriarch invites Christians to fast for peace in Iraq
 Holy Land’s Catholic leaders lament political rhetoric, rising violence

Released Tuesday, Dec. 13

 Catholics in US House voted 89-40 in favor of ‘Respect Marriage’ act
 Justice Department targets pro-lifers; no charges for attacks on pregnancy centers
 Cardinal Parolin sees ‘glimmer of hope’ in Ukraine
 Christian workers must feel at home in Church communities, Pope Francis says
 ‘Be missionaries of peace,’ Pope tells Argentine archdiocese
 Colombian bishops to be ‘permanent companion’ in peace talks
 Washington-based journalist meets with Pontiff
 ‘Co-responsibility beyond inclusion’: Vatican releases video on persons with disabilities
 Papal Twitter account has grown to over 53 million followers
 EU Christian leaders discuss Ukraine, refugees with Czech leader
 Pope at Mass: ‘Our Lady of Guadalupe shows God’s closeness to humanity’
 Dictatorship in Nicaragua prohibits Immaculate Conception procession
 Scotland’s bishops denounce UK Supreme Court buffer zone ruling
 On Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe, US bishops’ migration chairman reaffirms Church’s solidarity with immigrants

Released Monday, Dec. 12

 Pope asks world leaders for clemency before Christmas
 Abuse survivors demand canonical action against leading German bishop
 Pope lauds group for building inclusive communities for visually impaired
 Iraqi Christians, forced out of refugee camp, find shelter in former seminary
 English bishop resigns, citing ‘too great a burden’
 Pope speaks of ‘worrying resurgence’ of anti-Semitism
 Jimmy Lai given 5-year sentence
 Additional abuse allegations against notorious Canadian Jesuit
 Chicago priest Father Pfleger reinstated following latest accusation of sexual abuse
 No comment from Vatican about alleged trial, excommunication of Father Rupnik
 Pope asks children to pray at the crèche for children in Ukraine, other war-torn nations
 ‘Women move mountains,’ Pope says on International Mountain Day
 Papal prayer for peace in South Sudan
 Martyr for chastity beatified in Brazil
 John the Baptist teaches us ‘not to close God within our own mindsets,’ Pope tells pilgrims
 Commission outraged by omission of Nigeria, India from State Dept. religious freedom watchlist

Released Friday, Dec. 9

 Appeals court blocks Biden policy that would have forced doctors’ involvement in ‘gender transition’
 France blocks web site promoting surrogate motherhood
 Nigerian bishop raps slow government response to Pentecost massacre
 Denver archbishop decries anti-Catholic rhetoric in aftermath of nightclub shooting
 US arrests three, charged with involvement in Cameroon violence, kidnapping of cardinal
 Former Jesuit provincial rips lack of transparency in Rupnik case
 Papal meeting with Lviv mayor, blessing for rehab project for people maimed in missile attacks
 Pope urges faithful to entrust and consecrate themselves to Mary
 Pope Francis breaks down and cries while mentioning Ukraine at public prayer
 Michigan church sues state over right to hire staff committed to Catholic teachings
 House passes same-sex marriage bill
 Papal support for Jewish-Catholic project for social justice
 2 more bishops named in class action against Quebec archdiocese
 Niger’s president meets with Pontiff
 Give joyful witness and lobby hard for families, Pope tells Italian groups

Released Thursday, Dec. 8

 CWN closed for feast of Immaculate Conception

Released Wednesday, Dec. 7

 New Jersey prosecutor drops charges for Red Rose Rescue
 Pope offers advice on confirming decisions prompted by Holy Spirit
 Council of Cardinals discusses COP27, Synod progress, protection of young people
 War is a sign of weakness, Pope tells peace organization
 Albanian president meets with Pontiff
 Pope calls for joint approach to tackle challenges of Mediterranean region
 US State Department cites 12 nations for ‘particularly severe’ violations of religious freedom
 Authentic synodality does not lead to divisions in faith and morals, Assyrian church leader says
 Argentine pastoral team laments treatment of indigenous
 Indonesia bans sex outside marriage as parliament passes sweeping new criminal code
 Vatican appointee given police protection in India
 Dissidents in Russian-allied Belarus question Vatican’s dialogue with authoritarians
 New book collects papal appeals for peace in Ukraine; Pope pens preface
 USCCB committee chair offers prayers, support for Indonesia following earthquake
 Theme of papal preacher’s 1st Advent sermon: faith

Released Tuesday, Dec. 6

 Pope remains silent as Nicaragua’s Ortega steps up offensive against Church
 Canadian Paralympian asks for wheelchair, gets euthanasia offer instead
 Creche set up at European Parliament: a first
 Guam’s archbishop on extended medical leave
 Pope sets new accounting standards for Vatican foundations
 Pontiff receives Jordanian prince active in interfaith dialogue
 NY Yankees owner meets with Pope
 Catholic educators are sent on a common project at the service of humanity, Pope Francis writes
 Confirmed: Jesuits have restricted ministry of prominent member, Father Rupnik
 RCIA quietly renamed OCIA
 Pope: Keep the crèche in Christmas
 US Supreme Court appears sympathetic to Colorado designer who opposes creating same-sex wedding sites
 Myanmar regime bombs cardinal’s home village
 Georgia Supreme Court reinstates heartbeat abortion ban
 French bishops create national canonical criminal tribunal
 USCCB’s ‘welcome circle’ program supports Ukrainian refugees in US

Released Monday, Dec. 5

 Zelensky orders full probe of Ukrainian Orthodox Church
 Investigation clouds legacy of Honduran Cardinal Maradiaga
 Key witness manipulated in Vatican trial?
 Santa Rosa, California diocese to file for bankruptcy
 ‘Synodal way’ architect says political tactics built pressure for change
 Father Rupnik, prominent Jesuit, accused of sexual abuse of nuns
 Pope appeals for end of exclusion, discrimination against persons with disabilities
 Vatican Swiss Guard slayings back in spotlight with new book
 More clergy accused of child sexual abuse in California as important deadline nears
 Supreme Court takes up a web designer’s right to abstain from same-sex weddings
 Bishop chairman responds to Senate vote on the Respect for Marriage Act
 Pope at Angelus: With Jesus, we can always begin anew

Released Friday, Dec. 2

 England and Wales: no longer a Christian majority
 Pope Francis praises Benedict’s ‘hermeneutic of reform’
 Former Colombian guerrilla leader convicted in archbishop’s assassination
 Vatican ‘foreign minister’ urges greater European cooperation
 German Synodal Path founder says goal is ‘pressure’ on Church to change teachings
 Former Anglican cleric withdraws request for Catholic ordination, to continue speaking out
 Pope to visit war-torn African countries soon
 Ukraine imposing restriction on Moscow-allied Orthodox churches
 Retired priest, pastoral assistant slain in Louisiana
 Ukrainian Catholic leader pleads for release of captured priests

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