Stories for July 2023

Ordered from most to least recent.

Released Monday, Jul. 31

 Suspended Alabama priest found in Italy with young woman
 India’s Cardinal Gracias: Manipur violence is not religious conflict
 Bolivian prosecutor looks to identify Jesuit superiors in abuse inquiry
 Pope Francis calls on Russia to renew Ukraine grain deal
 Honduran bishop recognizes Eucharistic miracle
 Immigrant Texas priest named US synod delegate says Church must prioritize marginalized
 Vietnamese Catholics welcome Holy See-Hanoi agreement
 Indian Catholic women seek justice for Manipur victims
 Vatican Library, Latin American Rabbinical Seminary launch joint course
 The merchant seeks, finds, and buys the pearl of great price, Pope tells pilgrims
 Pope Francis to travel to Marseille in September
 As crews contain European fires, Pope sounds alarm on climate threat

Released Friday, Jul. 28

 Theologian sees ‘Christological deficiency’ in Synod working document
 Young prelate named to succeed Archbishop Fernandez in Argentina
 Pope recalls 1993 bombing at St. John Lateran
 Syracuse diocese announces $100M bankruptcy settlement
 Final Mass comes for dozens of Catholic parishes across the St. Louis region
 El Paso man arrested in satanic vandalism, burglary of Catholic church
 Missionary discusses situation in Niger following coup
 Poverty leads Burundi’s seminaries to impose admission cap
 Vietnam to have first post-war resident papal representative
 Pope: St. Francis’ Rule is a compass that guides the way
 Vatican briefing on World Youth Day: 333,000 have registered; 1 million expected
 Euphrates becoming ‘the river of hunger,’ Vatican newspaper warns
 Report documents aging of US women religious

Released Thursday, Jul. 27

 Jesuits ‘pass the buck’ on Rupnik discipline
 German bishops meet with Vatican officials on ‘Synodal Path’ plans
 Indian bishop defends priest accused of abuse
 Pope’s monthly prayer intention: for World Youth Day
 Pop culture starting to agree with Catholic teaching on birth control, theologian writes
 Archbishop: Nuclear weapons ‘scary, difficult topic’
 Ukrainian Orthodox priests call for break with Moscow following Russian attack on cathedral
 Papal message to Medjugorje youth festival
 Leading Argentine rabbi pays tribute to Cardinal-designate Fernández
 $33M church to be dedicated at Texas A&M
 Alabama priest abandons assignment, reported to DA
 ‘The Lord is always by your side’: Pope Francis speaks with Melbourne pilgrims
 1 year after papal visit, Canadian bishops take stock
 Jerusalem Patriarch warns of rising attacks on churches by Jewish extremists

Released Wednesday, Jul. 26

 Nicaraguan government freezes priests’ retirement fund
 India’s Catholic hierarchy seen slow to answer abuse complaints
 DC police investigating assault on pro-lifers
 Prosecution seeks 7-year prison term for Cardinal Becciu
 Update on number, status of US diocesan bankruptcies
 Be ‘Marian, missionary, and Claretian,’ Pope tells Claretian sisters
 Pope suppresses 2 Vatican foundations, creates another
 Indian PM Modi finally comments on Manipur violence, archbishop says it is ‘too late’
 Switzerland’s Bishop Bonnemain discusses some of his controversial decisions
 Cardinal Gregory welcomes Emmett Till monument
 Influence of religious orders on Catholic colleges to wane significantly over next 20 years
 New Catholic Charities USA head is laywoman with leadership, philanthropy background
 FBI turns over docs on Catholic ‘extremism’ to Judiciary Committee amid contempt threat
 ‘Tell Congress to maintain critical food security programs in the Farm Bill,’ USCCB urges faithful
 Vatican newspaper draws attention to UN food summit
 Russian attack badly damages Orthodox cathedral in Ukraine
 Number of religious in US expected to fall by nearly half over next decade

Released Tuesday, Jul. 25

 After execution, Oklahoma archbishop calls for end to death penalty
 Swedish cardinal dedicates Europe’s first shrine for persecuted Christians
 New papal podcast encourages youth toward World Youth Day
 New lectionary announced for England, Wales
 DC auxiliary bishop was once undocumented immigrant
 Cuban priest decries state of religious freedom there
 28,000 young people, 60 bishops from US to attend World Youth Day
 Pittsburgh bishop meets with gay Catholics after ‘Pride Mass’ cancellation, aims to ‘pave path’ to greater welcome
 African National Eucharistic Congress ‘sparking hope’ for revival
 Honduran archbishops march against gender ideology

Released Monday, Jul. 24

 Jesuits: Rupnik expelled; Vatican barred further discipline
 Papal peace envoy to visit China next?
 Pope meets head of WHO
 Ugandan prime minister meets Pontiff
 Ghana’s president meets with Pontiff
 Iowa court halts enforcement of new heartbeat law
 Baltimore archbishop issues guidelines for LGBT pastoral accompaniment
 Nigerian bishop testifies before Congress about persecution of Christians
 ‘A long journey’: 1 year after Pope’s apology in Canada
 Cardinal in Mongolia discusses missionary work, hopes for contemplative monastery
 Vatican sets court date for ex-auditor’s $10M wrongful dismissal suit
 Viral video of assault on Christian women stirs fresh outrage in India
 ‘Cultivate patiently what the Lord sows’: papal reflection on the parable of the wheat and the weeds
 Pope at Mass: Grandparents and young ‘grow together’ in fruitful exchange

Released Friday, Jul. 21

 Former Ratzinger/Benedict collaborator rips ‘infamous’ repudiation by Pope Francis
 Pakistani ministry claims 400,000 blasphemy offenses on social media
 Vatican’s top abuse investigators to probe scandal-plagued lay group in Peru
 Russian conscientious objectors jailed for refusing mobilization
 Pope encourages Brazilian base communities to manifest an ‘outgoing’ Church
 Vatican newspaper draws attention to plight of Afghan women
 October Synod of Bishops to be held in Paul VI Audience Hall
 New South Sudanese cardinal says Pope ‘has always seen the hope of our people’
 US bishops warn against proposed change to definition of brain death
 Cardinal-designate Fernández, new DDF prefect, weighs in on German synodal way
 New Los Angeles auxiliary bishop is former Melkite Catholic
 USCCB distributes over $10M from missions collections
 Kenyan bishops decry tax increases
 Arson suspected at Minnesota parish
 Catholic groups condemn Texas report of alleged ‘inhumane’ treatment of migrants, including denying water
 Tanzanian priest killed at parish; attacker slain
 VT coach, a Catholic, fired after conversation about transgender athlete on opposing team

Released Thursday, Jul. 20

 Pope Francis seen pushing to ‘shore up his progressive legacy’
 Orthodox Jewish activists create political tensions in Israel
 US bishops’ leader: Vatican not looking to mediate Ukraine conflict
 Cardinal Becciu again proclaims innocence in Vatican financial trial
 Vatican stresses envoy’s mission as humanitarian effort
 Louisiana legislature overrides veto, passes Stop Harming Our Kids Act
 Citing fatigue, Brazilian archbishop resigns at 65
 Concern lingers among Ukrainians after Vatican’s peace mission to Moscow
 Nigeria prelate wants ‘bandits defeated, kidnappers driven out of business’
 ‘I feel I have arrived home’: former Anglican bishop discusses his journey to the Catholic Church
 House subcommittee chairman: State Department is giving religious freedom violators ‘a pass’
 Pass the Afghan Adjustment Act, USCCB urges
 Bishops condemn brutality against ‘innocent Kenyans,’ urge police to target criminals
 New Ways Ministry welcomes appointment of Cardinals-designate Fernández, Rys
 Vatican newspaper: Time is running out to counter global climate emergency
 Abuse scandal cost US dioceses, religious orders over $200M in 2021-22

Released Wednesday, Jul. 19

 Papal envoy meets with Biden for talks on Ukraine
 Vatican-China deal seen as failure
 House leader threatens FBI head with contempt citation over targeting Catholics
 Cardinal-designate Pierre denies divisions between US bishops, Pope Francis
 Holy See renews call for ceasefire in Ukraine
 USCCB committee chairman raises concerns about cluster bombs for Ukraine
 English bishop criticizes new immigration law
 Pope visits summer camp for children of Vatican employees
 Cameroon archbishop deplores murder of civilians
 Church vandalized in El Paso
 Argentine priest is Pope’s new personal secretary
 Prosecutor begins closing arguments in Vatican financial trial

Released Tuesday, Jul. 18

 Doctors choosing ‘direct primary care’ to avoid regulatory pressures
 Pope names four auxiliary bishops for Los Angeles
 Archbishop Ganswein given no assignment in German exile
 Abuse report from Focolare leaves many questions unanswered
 Man arrested in attack on St. Elizabeth Ann Seton shrine at Manhattan parish
 Papal visit to Mongolia will thrill tiny Catholic community, cardinal says
 Accused French priest commits suicide
 Cardinal-designate Aguiar discusses planning for World Youth Day
 Archbishop Fernández offers critical assessment of Veritatis Splendor, denies errors in handling abuse allegations
 Bishop Strickland condemns false schism message
 Northern NY diocese files for bankruptcy
 South Sudanese bishop laments continued murders, rapes after peace accord
 Iraq president revokes decree that formally recognized Cardinal Sako as country’s Chaldean Patriarch

Released Monday, Jul. 17

 Alaska reverses ban on altar wine in prisons
 Judge eyes mounting legal fees in Rockville Centre diocese bankruptcy case
 Judge orders investigation of leak in New Orleans abuse case
 Pope’s Ukraine-peace envoy visiting Washington
 Cardinal-designate Pierre reflects on his appointment, discusses Synod
 Machete attack leaves Louisiana priest in critical condition, investigated as possible hate crime
 Indian priest gets bail in conversion case
 Angolan parish desecrated, Blessed Sacrament scattered
 Philippine bishops’ liturgy body clarifies hand posture during Lord’s Prayer
 Vatican grants plenary indulgence for St. Thomas Aquinas jubilee celebrations
 Report: Patriarch to leave Baghdad, lead Chaldean church from Kurdistan
 Federal appeals court upholds Indiana Catholic school’s freedom to choose its leaders
 Papal confirmation of Shanghai bishop appointed in violation of Vatican-China deal
 Pope exhorts young people to live the upcoming World Youth Day ‘intensively’
 Sow generously and tirelessly, Pope tells pilgrims

Released Friday, Jul. 14

 ‘Brain death’ as a legal issue: the debate summarized
 FBI chief: no list of churches to be investigated
 Vatican peace mission on Ukraine flawed by presumption of moral equivalence: Weigel
 US House votes against funding military spending for abortion travel
 Vatican envoy condemns desecration of religious symbols
 New cardinal-designate will resign as worldwide Salesian leader
 Indian Catholics launch protest against state repression
 Bishop Barron criticizes new Portuguese cardinal’s comments on conversion to Christ
 Lay synod member from Canada praises Pope’s method of dialogue, participation
 ‘It’s amazing to see’: trusses for Notre-Dame’s new roof arrive by barge
 700 years after being declared a saint, St. Thomas Aquinas hailed for his contributions to Catholic thought
 Vatican: Seal of confession not violated in ‘Vatican girl’ investigation
 Catholic universities must engage with AI’s development, Vatican cardinal says
 Over-the-counter birth control pill puts women’s health at ‘grave risk,’ USCCB committee chairman warns
 Albany bishop condemns Catholic hospital’s proposal to close maternity ward
 Vatican ‘foreign minister’ acknowledges Ukrainians’ disappointment in Pope Francis in wartime
 Shakers to buy back New Hampshire Marian shrine from religious order
 DR Congo bishops ‘strongly condemn’ murder of opposition party spokesman
 Irish bishops ask parishes to conserve 30% of property for pollinators, biodiversity
 Vatican newspaper draws attention to rising global hunger

Released Thursday, Jul. 13

 Alaska prisons bar Catholic Mass
 Jesuit university offers instruction on transgender medicine
 New South Sudanese cardinal faced accusations
 Iowa passes fetal heartbeat abortion ban
 Vatican diplomat calls for climate action to protect small island nations
 By the numbers: Pope Francis and the College of Cardinals
 Abducted Nigerian priest is released
 USCCB committee chairman calls for international advocacy on behalf of imprisoned Nicaraguan bishop
 Ukraine ‘inspires us all to stand in solidarity’ for freedom, says Cardinal Cupich
 Study: Abortion restrictions led to 9,800 more births in Texas over 9 months
 Melkite church to mark 300 years of union with Rome with jubilee
 House Judiciary Committee chairman slams FBI director for refusing to tell Congress who wrote, approved anti-Catholic memo
 Smoking ceremony welcomes Australian bishop to his diocese

Released Wednesday, Jul. 12

 Synod will not change doctrine, Bishop Barron assures
 Ohio woman faces charges for vandalizing pregnancy-help center
 Notre Dame professor sues student newspaper for exposing pro-abortion activism
 Church leaders ignore victims of sexual revolution, Esolen argues
 The ‘lynx’ of Lodz: who is Poland’s new cardinal?
 Archbishop Fernández, new DDF prefect, interfered in judicial investigation, victims’ attorney alleges
 Family accuses Vatican of trying to shift blame in ‘Vatican girl’ case
 US bishops’ migration chairman responds to new family reunification programs
 Priest kidnapped in Nigeria
 Nicaraguan police jail another priest in latest crackdown
 Vatican Secretary of State on peace mission to Armenia, Azerbaijan
 Vatican newspaper draws attention to Israeli organization that assists sick Palestinian children

Released Tuesday, Jul. 11

 Papal praise for St. Thomas Aquinas for 700th anniversary of canonization
 Pro-life advocates regroup after Maine expands abortion access
 Nicaraguan dictatorship confiscates convent of sisters it abducted and expelled
 Ethiopian Orthodox leaders apologize for failures in Tigray War
 ‘We forgive and ask for forgiveness’: Polish, Ukrainian prelates recall 80th anniversary of massacre
 Future Portuguese cardinal on World Youth Day: ‘We don’t want to convert the young people to Christ’
 Marriage formation leaders in US explore Vatican-backed catechumenal model
 Archbishop Fernández, new DDF prefect, admits mistakes in handling abuse allegations

Released Monday, Jul. 10

 US bishops urge Catholic college to continue racial preferences
 Pope hails amateur team sports
 NYPD arrests 2 people following vandalism at Catholic churches in Brooklyn, Queens
 Catholics in Goa threatened by calls to ‘wipe out’ history of Portuguese presence
 Pope urges solidarity with migrants on 10th anniversary of Lampedusa visit
 Former Jesuit pleads guilty to drugging, molesting 17 men
 Prelate denounces President Biden’s decision to send cluster bombs to Ukraine
 USCCB offers biographical information on Synod participants from US, Canada
 Hong Kong’s newly named cardinal wants reconciliation, more hope for young people
 Be amazed by God the Father’s works, Pope tells pilgrims
 Pope names 21 cardinals

Released Friday, Jul. 7

 Nigerian bishops oppose national council on religion
 Painting by Fra Angelico sells for $6.4 million
 New Vatican doctrinal chief once investigated by office he will head
 Vatican announces participants in October Synod of Bishops
 ‘Are you joking?’: new Toronto archbishop discusses appointment, background
 Vatican Secretary of State, leading Ukrainian official speak by phone
 USCCB awarded nearly $2.7M to Church in Africa in 2022
 Nicaraguan cardinal denies reports of Bishop Álvarez’s release
 Ukraine’s Catholic shepherd cries out for justice, healing amid 500 days of Russia’s invasion
 Marian scholars reflect on 50th anniversary of Akita apparitions
 United Methodists lose 20% of US churches over LGBT advocacy
 Vatican releases program, logo, and motto of papal journey to Mongolia
 Vatican newspaper draws attention to Cambridge research on creation of clean, sustainable fuels
 Pope to visit Fátima to implore peace for Ukraine, entire world

Released Thursday, Jul. 6

 Study: Most women don’t want abortion
 Vatican’s financial support for missionary dioceses is waning, leading South African bishop says
 Vatican publishes Pope’s liturgical celebrations for July-August
 Archbishop Fernández, new DDF prefect, defends Heal Me with Your Mouth; publisher removes book from website
 Nicaraguan bishop back in jail after talks stall: local media
 Cardinal Sarah: No synod can invent a ‘female priesthood’
 Presidential contest ‘should not divide us as a nation,’ Zimbabwe’s bishops say
 In their words: untold stories of victims of violence in Nigeria
 Pope Francis hosts Bill Clinton, foundation head Alex Soros
 Dean of Vatican diplomatic corps marks 20 years as ambassador
 Pope appoints bishop to lead Rome’s major seminary

Released Wednesday, Jul. 5

 Vatican commission to collect stories of 21st-century martyrs
 Vatican offers plenary indulgence for World Day for Grandparents
 Papal peace envoy: Ukrainian children are top priority
 Jerusalem Patriarch rips ‘unjustified crimes’ after Israeli attack on West Bank terror cell
 Cathedral vicar removed in Syro-Malabar liturgical dispute
 New DDF prefect open to same-sex blessings
 Archbishop Fernández, new DDF prefect, says he is ‘not qualified’ to handle abuse cases
 Missionaries say ‘shock’ of papal visit to Mongolia a chance to introduce the faith
 USCCB committee chairman welcomes 303 Creative v. Elenis decision
 Catholic leaders say ‘ethnic cleansing’ of Christians unfolding in Indian state
 Bishops ‘deeply concerned’ about human rights violations in Sudan
 Who’s next? The other cardinals Francis will soon have to replace
 Report: Nicaraguan Bishop Rolando Álvarez freed
 Pope, in video, speaks of the transformative power of the Mass

Released Tuesday, Jul. 4

 313,000 have registered for World Youth Day
 Indiana Supreme Court declares law restricting abortion to be constitutional
 Cardinal Dolan asks: Did we go too far with Covid restrictions?
 Caritas, Ethiopian Christian leaders denounce suspension of food aid by US, UN agencies
 Our churches must serve peace, Russian Orthodox leader tells papal envoy
 USCCB committee chairman welcomes Groff v. DeJoy decision
 ‘The Church is near you,’ Cardinal Czerny tells seafarers in Sea Sunday message
 In message to FAO, Pope condemns poverty, inequality, ‘ideological colonization’
 Pope deplores the burning of the Qur’an in Sweden, says freedom of expression cannot justify it
 ‘Let us not tire of praying for peace,’ Pope tells pilgrims

Released Monday, Jul. 3

 Baltimore archdiocese adds 42 names to ‘credibly accused’ list
 French Catholics welcome Macron’s pledge on endangered churches
 Fort Worth bishop ‘grateful’ after Texas court dismisses Carmelite nuns’ lawsuit
 New report analyzes abuse in Community of St. John
 Crosses removed from Australian Catholic hospital following government takeover
 All of the baptized are prophets, Pope emphasizes in Angelus address
 Path to peace lies in truth and charity, Pope says in message
 Franciscan, abducted briefly by jihadists in 2014, to lead Church in Aleppo
 Archbishop Fernández, new DDF prefect, has ‘troubling record’ on abuse, group warns

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