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CNA Staff, Sep 17, 2024 / 18:45 pm (CNA).

After a string of controversies and disagreements with their local Fort Worth bishop, a group of Carmelite nuns in Arlington, Texas, announced on Saturday that they are associating with the Society of St. Pius X (SSPX), a traditionalist group that is not in full communion with the Catholic Church and has a canonically irregular status.

After making a "unanimous decision," the Discalced Carmelite Nuns of the Monastery of the Most Holy Trinity in Arlington, Texas, said they have "completed the final steps necessary for our monastery to be associated with the Society of St. Pius X, who will henceforth assure our ongoing sacramental life and governance," according to a Sept. 14 announcement on their website. 

Bishop Michael Olson of the Diocese of Fort Worth had offered to reinstate sacramental life at the monastery if the sisters agreed to disassociate themselves from Archbishop Carlo Maria Vigano`, a controversial figure whom the Catholic Church excommunicated this summer for schism following his refusal to submit to the pope or the communion of the Church. 

Olson also offered to provide a priest of the Priestly Fraternity of St. Peter (FSSP) — a group in communion with the Church that is dedicated to the Latin Mass — to offer sacraments for the sisters, provided they also acknowledge Mother Marie of the Incarnation, the prioress of the Carmel of the Most Holy Trinity, as their superior and recognize Olson as their bishop, and remove controversial content from the monastery website.  

Mother Marie is the president of the Association of Christ the King in the United States — an association of Carmelite monasteries that the Vatican tasked with overseeing the monastery in 2023 amid the feud.

Mother Marie of the Incarnation explained in a Sept. 7 statement released by the diocese that she "extended … Bishop Olson's offer of a renewed sacramental life, according to their preferred liturgical form, but with deepest sorrow I report today that none of the sisters have made any response, either to me or to their bishop."

Olson made the offer in a July 26 letter, which Mother Marie said she shared with the sisters the following day.

"Over the past six weeks since they received this offer, the nuns have given no indication that they desire the gift of the sacraments, nor have they shown openness to any dialogue with us," Mother Marie wrote. "In addition to that, they have elected to maintain upon their website certain links and statements which manifest contempt for their bishop and which obscure their claim to being in union with Rome."

Mother Marie asked the faithful of the Diocese of Fort Worth "to redouble your prayer and sacrifice for our beloved sisters of the Carmel of the Most Holy Trinity."

In a statement released on Sept. 17, Olson called the nun's rejection of leadership "scandalous," saying it "is permeated with the odor of schism."  

The monastery also announced that the nuns have reelected Mother Teresa Agnes Gerlach as prioress for a three-year term. Olson had dismissed Gerlach from religious life after she was investigated for alleged sexual misconduct with a priest. 

"Sadly, the deliberate and contumacious actions of Mother Teresa Agnes and the other members of the community have taken them further down the path of disobedience to and disunity with the Church and with their own religious order that they began to embark on so many months ago," Olson said. 

Olson has since clarified that "the attempted elections were illicit and invalid" because they did not follow ecclesiastical law and the constitutions of the Order of Discalced Carmelites.  

Olson has since instructed Catholics not attend the daily Latin Mass at the monastery or offer the nuns any financial support.

"As your bishop I must plead with you … for the good of your souls you do not participate in any sacraments that may be offered at the monastery as such participation will associate you with the scandalous disobedience and disunity of the members of the Arlington Carmel," Olson said.

The sisters said in their statement that in the past few years they have found "much joy and spiritual renewal in the rediscovery of the riches of the immemorial liturgical tradition of the Church," a reference to the Latin Mass, the Roman liturgy that was used prior to the New Order of the Mass promulgated by Vatican II.

"The motto of Pope St. Pius X was: To Restore All Things in Christ," the statement continued. "Such is the case for our community as well, which has prayerfully, over a period of many years, sought to return to the fullness of our Catholic tradition and to restore all things in Christ, in both our liturgical life and in the way we live our Carmelite vocation."

"We share an affinity with the Society of St. Pius X in its emphasis on training holy, dedicated priests, willing to sacrifice all for Christ, which coincides with our own vocation of prayer and sacrifice at the heart of the Church, pouring out our lives for the Church and especially for priests," the nuns continued. 

The late French archbishop Marcel-François Lefebvre formed the SSPX in the 1970s to promote the Latin Mass, but in 1988, he illicitly ordained four bishops without the permission of Pope John Paul II, leading to his excommunication along with the four bishops. Pope Benedict XVI lifted this excommunication in 2009 in the hopes of eventually bringing SSPX back into full communion with the Church, though he explained in a letter that SSPX does not have canonical status and therefore "its ministers do not exercise legitimate ministries in the Church."

SSPX takes issue with the Second Vatican Council, according to its website, which reads: "[SSPX] is governed by the magisterium of the Church, which found its expression in the councils and teaching of the popes, and in light of which the Second Vatican Council and its subsequent popes must be judged, since what was true until 1965 cannot suddenly become wrong."

Several Vatican statements in past years have cautioned Catholics against attending SSPX Masses except in serious circumstances, including 1995 and 1998 letters by Monsignor Camille Perl, then-secretary of the Pontifical Commission Ecclesia Dei. 

"The Masses they [SSPX] celebrate are also valid, but it is considered morally illicit for the faithful to participate in these Masses unless they are physically or morally impeded from participating in a Mass celebrated by a Catholic priest in good standing," read the 1995 letter by Perl. 

A 1998 letter by Perl reiterates: "It is precisely because of this schismatic mentality that this pontifical commission has consistently discouraged the faithful from attending Masses celebrated under the aegis of the Society of St. Pius X."

The nuns in April defied a Vatican decree by asking a judge for a restraining order against the parties that the Vatican had tasked with overseeing the monastery, an association of Carmelite monasteries and Olson. The April decree had entrusted the monastery to the Association of Christ the King in the U.S. and its president, Mother Marie. The Vatican instructed the nuns to accept Olson's authority, as they made a statement earlier this year rejecting his authority.

The tensions with Olson followed investigations into the monastery. Olson investigated the Reverend Mother Superior Teresa Agnes Gerlach over alleged sexual misconduct with a priest and she was dismissed from religious life by the bishop. Gerlach allegedly admitted to inappropriate sexual conduct occurring via phone and video chats but later recanted the confession saying she was recovering from surgery and medically unfit at the time she was questioned.

The monastery filed a civil lawsuit in May 2023 against the bishop that was eventually dismissed by a judge. The bishop banned daily Mass and regular confessions at the monastery, which led to the nuns to issue a statement that appeared to reject his authority in governing the monastery. 

The Vatican's letter required the monastery to accept Olson's authority and thanked Olson for his service to the Church. In June 2023, the diocese released two photographs purported to show cannabis products inside the monastery. The monastery attorney denied the allegations, calling them "ridiculous." 

"I invite the faithful of the Diocese of Fort Worth to join me in prayer and sacrifice for the nuns, for the restoration of order at the Arlington Carmel, and for the return to sober obedience and union with the Church by the members of the community," Olson said in his Sept. 17 statement.

This story was updated Sept. 18, 2024, at 11:17 a.m. ET with information on the Sept. 17 statement from Bishop Olson.

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Vatican City, Sep 18, 2024 / 08:54 am (CNA).

Pope Francis on Wednesday said the Catholic Church is "more alive" outside of Europe as he reflected back on his recent apostolic journey to Southeast Asia.

"A first reflection that comes spontaneously after this trip is that in thinking about the Church we are still too Eurocentric, or, as they say, 'Western,'" the pope said in St. Peter's Square on Sept. 18.

"But in reality, the Church is much bigger, much bigger than Rome and Europe … and may I say much more alive in these countries," he added.

In his first general audience since returning from the longest international trip of his pontificate, the pope expressed gratitude to God for his experiences in Indonesia, Papua New Guinea, East Timor, and Singapore Sept. 2–13.

"I thank the Lord who allowed me to do as an elderly pope what I would have liked to do as a young Jesuit," Francis said.

The pope, who turns 88 in December, expressed his enthusiasm for the "missionary, outgoing Church" he encountered on his visit to the four island nations in Asia and Oceania.

In Indonesia, where only 3% of the Muslim-majority country's population is Catholic, Pope Francis said that he encountered "a lively, dynamic Church, capable of living and transmitting the Gospel."

The pope recalled his visit to the grounds of the Istiqlal Mosque, the largest mosque in Southeast Asia, where he signed a joint declaration with Grand Imam Nasaruddin Umar condemning religious-based violence and promoting religious harmony. 

"There, I saw that fraternity is the future, it is the answer to anti-civilization, to the diabolical plots of hatred, war, and also sectarianism," he said.

Pope Francis commented that the missionaries and catechists were the "protagonists" of his visit to Papua New Guinea, where the pope was welcomed by the beating drums of some of the country's Indigenous tribes who have accepted the Catholic faith.

"I rejoiced to be able to stay a while with the missionaries and catechists of today; and I was moved to listen to the young people's songs and music: In them, I saw a new future, without tribal violence, without dependency, without economic or ideological colonialism; a future of fraternity and care for the wondrous natural environment," Francis said.

The pope added that he has "a beautiful memory" from traveling to the remote coastal town of Vanimo, a jungle outpost where he said Argentine missionaries "go into the jungle in search of the most hidden tribes."

Pope Francis said that he experienced the "air of springtime" in East Timor, a small Catholic country that gained its independence from Indonesia in 2002.

He praised the Catholic country for its many large families and many religious vocations.

"I will never forget the smiles of the children," he said. "In East Timor, I saw the youthfulness of the Church: families, children, young people, many seminarians and aspirants to consecrated life."

Frequently throughout his trip, Pope Francis commended the high birth rates found not only in East Timor but also in Indonesia, saying that such high fertility rates should be an example for other countries around the world. 

On his return flight to Rome, the pope praised East Timor's "culture of life," adding that wealthier countries, including Singapore, could learn from the small country that "children are the future."

Looking back on his final stop in Singapore, the pope remarked that the modern city-state was very different from other countries he visited during his apostolic journey.

"Even in wealthy Singapore there are the 'little ones,' who follow the Gospel and become salt and light, witnesses to a hope greater than what economic gains can guarantee," he added.

Pope Francis reflected on his journey to the four tropical islands on a cloudy fall morning in Rome. The pope was quite animated as he spoke about his travels, frequently making extra comments off the cuff to the crowd. 

He underlined to the crowd that an "apostolic journey" is much different than tourism because "it is a journey to bring the Word of God, to make the Lord known, and also to know the soul of the people."

At the end of the audience, the pope offered a prayer for the victims of the recent severe flooding in Europe and encouraged the local Catholic communities who are working to provide relief to the flooding caused by Storm Boris.

"In these days, heavy torrential rains have hit Central and Eastern Europe causing victims, missing persons, and extensive damage in Austria, Romania, Czech Republic, and Poland, who have to cope with tragic inconveniences caused by the floods. I assure everyone of my closeness, praying for those who have lost their lives and their families," he said.

Pope Francis commented that there were many newly married couples who came to the general audience to receive his blessing for their marriages, with the Holy Father giving a shoutout to two Vatican employees who will be married in Vatican City this weekend.

The pope asked the Virgin Mary's intercession for the newlyweds to have the grace "to accept work and daily crosses as opportunities for growth and purification of your love."

Francis also prayed for the sick, elderly, and disabled present at the general audience.

"May Our Lady of Sorrows, whom we recalled a few days ago in the liturgy, help you, dear sick and elderly people, to grasp in suffering and difficulties the call to make of your existence a mission for the salvation of your brothers and sisters," he said.

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Caracas, Venezuela, Sep 17, 2024 / 17:20 pm (CNA).

"I believe his visit has revived the faith of our people. His visit has caused many of our Catholics to work together," said Cardinal William Goh, archbishop of Singapore, in an interview with Vatican News about Pope Francis' recent visit to the country.

"It's a very rare occasion when all Catholics come together to work side by side. All of them have been very enthusiastic and have felt that it is a great privilege to be part of this entire organizing committee, to plan and work for the success of the papal visit," he added.

For the cardinal, the papal trip will inspire the intention to "build ourselves as one Church," to unite around the figure of the bishop of Rome, and to further promote the message of the Gospel among those who need it most.

It is precisely the quest to bring the good news to all humanity that prompted the pope to visit Asia, Goh explained. An effort to make the Catholic Church "truly a sacrament of the mercy and compassion of Jesus toward others."

"I think that these types of messages, such as reaching out to the marginalized, to the poor, to those who suffer, to the vulnerable, and respecting other religions, the dignity of life, the protection of the family, and young people, respecting young people and encouraging young people to be bold, without forgetting the elderly either, all these messages that the Holy Father constantly speaks about resonate throughout the world, even for us Singaporeans," the cardinal reflected.

Furthermore, he said the country's Catholics are grateful because the pope "has rejuvenated" their faith, which in the long term will imply "a more dynamic and lively desire" for fraternity and to lead others to Jesus.

Importance of the papal trip for all of Asia

"The visit of the Holy Father, not only to Asia, but to the countries with a Catholic majority, has been very important for non-Catholics, so that the world understands the beauty of the Catholic faith," Goh emphasized.

Likewise, he said the Catholic Church is willing to welcome and respect nonbelievers and that the pope seeks to promote "the issue of dialogue, of mutual respect," especially with Asian governments that distrust the Church. This is an attitude that, the cardinal commented, helps them understand that the Church's only mission is to be "ambassadors of the mercy and love of Christ, and that we are here to help people grow" and seek the common good.

"We want peace, we want harmony, and we want people to work together and care about each other," he said.

Finally, Goh indicated that Asia "has much to contribute to the universal Church" through popular piety that "has to be guided by the Church" to purify it, lead it to a greater knowledge of its faith, and finally facilitate that people fall in love with Jesus.

This story was first published by ACI Prensa, CNA's Spanish-language news partner. It has been translated and adapted by CNA.

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Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Sep 17, 2024 / 18:15 pm (CNA).

A virtual campaign event designed to organize Catholic support for Vice President Kamala Harris' 2024 presidential candidacy is set to take place on the evening of Wednesday, Sept. 18. 

The "Catholics for Harris-Walz National Organizing Call," which is open to the public, will be held Wednesday evening from 8 p.m. until 9 p.m. The campaign originally planned to hold the event prior to last month's Democratic National Convention, but it was abruptly canceled. Organizers at the time cited a scheduling conflict as the reason for its cancellation.

"The call will be an opportunity to hear directly from the campaign about our vision, next steps, and how you can get involved and take part in this historic moment," the event's description reads. "We will be joined by special guests and community leaders to discuss the deciding role the Catholic vote will play in the upcoming election."

A coalition of advocacy groups, including Catholics Vote Common Good, is organizing the call in tandem with the campaign. The group is part of the broader Vote Common Good nonprofit, which mobilizes various faith groups in support of progressive candidates.

Catholics Vote Common Good has already been organizing weekly phone banking on behalf of Harris' presidential campaign.

The nonprofit, along with Catholic Democrats, has also relaunched the "Catholics4Kamala" website, which briefly went offline after the original event was canceled. The website does not directly address Harris' strong support for abortion but instead states that "even on the life issue, there is an eerie silence among conservatives about the rise in abortion numbers nationally since the Dobbs decision reversing Roe v. Wade" on its "about" page.

Harris supports codifying the abortion standards set in Roe v. Wade, which would prevent states from passing laws that protect unborn life prior to fetal viability. In the Sept. 12 debate with former president Donald Trump, Harris refused to say whether she supports late-term abortion in the seventh, eighth, and ninth months of pregnancy.

More than 9,000 late-term abortions are performed in the United States annually after the 21st week of pregnancy.

The website states that a Harris presidency "looks forward to the promise of an America that embraces and celebrates our diversity among people of many races, beliefs, and genders — an America that is caring and uplifting for all, seeks to provide the opportunity for everyone to achieve their God-given potential, and brings joy back to our politics."

"Catholics are coming together to support the Harris-Walz ticket because of the threat that a second Trump presidency poses to reverse the progress against global warming, to explode the deficit with more tax cuts, to transform the Justice Department into an instrument for vindictiveness, to abandon Ukraine in its fight for sovereignty, and to hamstring our economy through a massive race-centered deportation operation," the website adds. 

Harris has advocated other positions that are contrary to Catholic teaching, such as gender ideology. As a senator, Harris also pointedly scrutinized judicial nominees for their membership in the Knights of Columbus, a Catholic fraternal organization.

The Trump-Vance campaign launched its Catholics for Trump coalition earlier this month, which emphasizes the defense of religious liberty, traditional values, and the sanctity of human life as priorities.

A Pew poll released last week showed that a slim majority of Catholics supported Trump over Harris with the former president receiving 52% support and the vice president getting 47%. An EWTN News/RealClear poll earlier this month showed Harris with a slight lead among Catholics at 50% of the vote compared with Trump's 43%.

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CNA Staff, Sep 17, 2024 / 18:45 pm (CNA).

After a string of controversies and disagreements with their local Fort Worth bishop, a group of Carmelite nuns in Arlington, Texas, announced on Saturday that they are associating with the Society of St. Pius X (SSPX), a traditionalist group that is not in full communion with the Catholic Church and has a canonically irregular status.

After making a "unanimous decision," the Discalced Carmelite Nuns of the Monastery of the Most Holy Trinity in Arlington, Texas, said they have "completed the final steps necessary for our monastery to be associated with the Society of St. Pius X, who will henceforth assure our ongoing sacramental life and governance," according to a Sept. 14 announcement on their website. 

Bishop Michael Olson of the Diocese of Fort Worth offered to reinstate sacramental life at the monastery if the sisters agreed to disassociate themselves from Archbishop Carlo Maria Vigano`, a controversial figure whom the Catholic Church excommunicated this summer for schism following his refusal to submit to the pope or the communion of the Church. 

Olson also offered to provide a priest of the Priestly Fraternity of St. Peter (FSSP) — a group in communion with the Church that is dedicated to the Latin Mass — to offer sacraments for the sisters, provided they also acknowledge Mother Marie of the Incarnation, the prioress of the Carmel of the Most Holy Trinity, as their superior and recognize Olson as their bishop, and remove controversial content from the monastery website.  

Mother Marie is the president of the Association of Christ the King in the United States — an association of Carmelite monasteries that the Vatican tasked with overseeing the monastery in 2023 amid the feud.

Mother Marie of the Incarnation explained in a Sept. 7 statement released by the diocese that she "extended … Bishop Olson's offer of a renewed sacramental life, according to their preferred liturgical form, but with deepest sorrow I report today that none of the sisters have made any response, either to me or to their bishop."

Olson made the offer in a July 26 letter, which Mother Marie said she shared with the sisters the following day.

"Over the past six weeks since they received this offer, the nuns have given no indication that they desire the gift of the sacraments, nor have they shown openness to any dialogue with us," Mother Marie wrote. "In addition to that, they have elected to maintain upon their website certain links and statements which manifest contempt for their bishop and which obscure their claim to being in union with Rome."

Mother Marie asked the faithful of the Diocese of Fort Worth "to redouble your prayer and sacrifice for our beloved sisters of the Carmel of the Most Holy Trinity."

The sisters said in their statement that in the past few years they have found "much joy and spiritual renewal in the rediscovery of the riches of the immemorial liturgical tradition of the Church," a reference to the Latin Mass, the Roman liturgy that was used prior to the New Order of the Mass promulgated by Vatican II.

"The motto of Pope St. Pius X was: To Restore All Things in Christ," the statement continued. "Such is the case for our community as well, which has prayerfully, over a period of many years, sought to return to the fullness of our Catholic tradition and to restore all things in Christ, in both our liturgical life and in the way we live our Carmelite vocation."

"We share an affinity with the Society of St. Pius X in its emphasis on training holy, dedicated priests, willing to sacrifice all for Christ, which coincides with our own vocation of prayer and sacrifice at the heart of the Church, pouring out our lives for the Church and especially for priests," the nuns continued. 

The late French archbishop Marcel-François Lefebvre formed the SSPX in the 1970s to promote the Latin Mass, but in 1988, he illicitly ordained four bishops without the permission of Pope John Paul II, leading to his excommunication along with the four bishops. Pope Benedict XVI lifted this excommunication in 2009 in the hopes of eventually bringing SSPX back into full communion with the Church, though he explained in a letter that SSPX does not have canonical status and therefore "its ministers do not exercise legitimate ministries in the Church."

SSPX takes issue with the Second Vatican Council, according to its website, which reads: "[SSPX] is governed by the magisterium of the Church, which found its expression in the councils and teaching of the popes, and in light of which the Second Vatican Council and its subsequent popes must be judged, since what was true until 1965 cannot suddenly become wrong."

The monastery announced that its nuns reelected Mother Teresa Agnes as prioress for a three-year term and shared that their chapel is open for private prayer. The monastery invited "the faithful" to attend daily Latin Mass. 

Several Vatican statements in past years have cautioned Catholics against attending SSPX Masses except in serious circumstances, including 1995 and 1998 letters by Monsignor Camille Perl, then-secretary of the Pontifical Commission Ecclesia Dei. 

"The Masses they [SSPX] celebrate are also valid, but it is considered morally illicit for the faithful to participate in these Masses unless they are physically or morally impeded from participating in a Mass celebrated by a Catholic priest in good standing," read the 1995 letter by Perl. 

A 1998 letter by Perl reiterates: "It is precisely because of this schismatic mentality that this pontifical commission has consistently discouraged the faithful from attending Masses celebrated under the aegis of the Society of St. Pius X."

However, Catholic Answers apologist Jimmy Akin noted the Code of Canon Law permits the Christian faithful to receive Communion in any Catholic rite (Canon 923). 

"The 1962 rite of Mass — which the SSPX uses — is an approved Catholic rite, and therefore the faithful can attend it and receive holy Communion," Akin told CNA.

"The fact it is being celebrated in a canonically irregular situation does not change this," Akin said. "Every time a priest commits a liturgical abuse, it creates a canonically irregular situation. The law does not want the laity to have to judge which canonically irregular situations involve 'too much' of a departure from the law, and so their right to attend and receive holy Communion in any Catholic rite is protected."

The nuns in April defied a Vatican decree by asking a judge for a restraining order against the parties that the Vatican had tasked with overseeing the monastery, an association of Carmelite monasteries and Olson. The April decree had entrusted the monastery to the Association of Christ the King in the U.S. and its president, Mother Marie. The Vatican instructed the nuns to accept Olson's authority, as they made a statement earlier this year rejecting his authority.

The tensions with Olson followed investigations into the monastery. Olson investigated the Reverend Mother Superior Teresa Agnes Gerlach over alleged sexual misconduct with a priest and she was dismissed from religious life by the bishop. Gerlach allegedly admitted to inappropriate sexual conduct occurring via phone and video chats but later recanted the confession saying she was recovering from surgery and medically unfit at the time she was questioned.

The monastery filed a civil lawsuit in May 2023 against the bishop that was eventually dismissed by a judge. The bishop banned daily Mass and regular confessions at the monastery, which led to the nuns to issue a statement that appeared to reject his authority in governing the monastery. 

The Vatican's letter required the monastery to accept Olson's authority and thanked Olson for his service to the Church. In June 2023, the diocese released two photographs purported to show cannabis products inside the monastery. The monastery attorney denied the allegations, calling them "ridiculous." 

Olson said in a Sept. 7 statement that he asks for "continued prayers for the nuns, for Mother Marie, and members of the Association of Christ the King." 

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CNA Staff, Sep 17, 2024 / 14:45 pm (CNA).

Bishop James Conley of Lincoln, Nebraska, recently urged Catholics to think about how they could "walk with," pray for, and share the Catholic faith with one person over the next year as part of the ongoing National Eucharistic Revival.

In a Sept. 13 column, Conley encouraged Catholics to learn about the resources provided by the U.S. bishops as part of the program "Walk with One," which offers practical steps to help people share the Catholic faith with one person in their life at a time. 

The "Walk with One" program is part of the current phase of the multiyear National Eucharistic Revival, the Year of Mission. The Eucharistic Revival, which began in 2021, aims to deepen and spread devotion to the Eucharist, the body and blood of Christ.

"Right now, there is someone in your life whom Jesus longs to call to himself. Who is that person? Who is that one person you know who would be much happier and content in life if he or she only knew and loved Jesus in the Eucharist?" Conley wrote. 

"Obviously, not everyone is called to spread the Gospel in foreign lands, or even to go door-to-door in his or her own community. But I think the Lord is asking each of us to step out of our comfort zone and evangelize one-to-one. Who is that one person for you? Who is that one person you can see yourself walking with over the next six months, year, or more?"

Conley encouraged Catholics to go to the Eucharistic Revival website and download the "Simple Guide," which includes four steps: "identify, intercede, connect, invite."

The steps are as follows:

1) Identify: Prayerfully ask God, "Who is that one person you want me to walk with?"

2) Intercede: As soon as you discern who it is, pray like crazy for that person.

3) Connect: Look for ways to walk, hang out, get coffee with this person — and then listen to this person. Let that person tell you his or her joys, hopes, and struggles, and share yours, too.

4) Invite: Follow the promptings of the Holy Spirit and invite the person to something Catholic (adoration, Bible study, Mass, confession, a talk, to pray the rosary, to listen to a podcast, read a book, or watch a powerful movie, etc.). Then talk about it.

"If you're already down that road 'walking with one,' and need the next step, most parishes are just starting up OCIA (Order of Christian Initiation for Adults) classes; invite that person to attend, and go with them. You can even attend without them, to better understand the faith yourself," Conley encouraged. 

Reflecting on the National Eucharistic Congress, the milestone Catholic event that attracted more than 50,000 people to Indianapolis in July, Conley said the "public display of faith, love, devotion, joy, and reverence" shown to Jesus in the Eucharist "will continue to bear fruit for decades to come."

"We know that we have been given an amazing gift in the holy Eucharist. Do we allow ourselves to be amazed at such a wondrous gift? We all — myself included — need to pray for an increase in Eucharistic amazement," the bishop wrote. 

"Whenever we receive a truly awesome gift, we naturally want to share it with others. We want to tell others about the gift. We want them to enjoy the gift, too."

Conley noted that in his homily for the conclusion of the National Eucharistic Congress in Indianapolis on July 21, Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle preached that "the presence of Jesus in the Eucharist is a gift and the fulfillment of his mission."

"The cardinal began his homily by saying, 'Jesus is sent to be given by the Father to others, sent to be a gift. He is not sent just to wander around and enjoy himself. He is sent to be given.' In other words, Jesus fulfills his mission from the Father to save the world from sin by giving his life on the cross, while, at the same time, he gives himself to the world in the holy Eucharist, so that he can remain with us on earth until the end of the world. But he remains with us, to be given away," Conley wrote.

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CNA Staff, Sep 17, 2024 / 15:20 pm (CNA).

A study by the pro-life group Students for Life of America (SFLA) has identified dozens of U.S. Christian colleges and universities, including multiple Catholic institutions, maintaining "some type of relationship" with the abortion industry, including the abortion giant Planned Parenthood. 

SFLA's Demetree Institute for Pro-Life Advancement said in its 2024 Christian Schools Project report that of the 732 Christian schools it investigated, more than 80 were found to have some sort of connection with Planned Parenthood or another abortion provider.

Those connections included "an internship opportunity that recommended or credited work at Planned Parenthood or another local abortion vendor" as well as linking to Planned Parenthood as a "health resource," a "class resource," or a "volunteer opportunity."

The report counted each factor as an "infraction," assigning grades to the schools based on the number of infractions given to each one. Nearly 30%, or 24, received a "F" rating with four or more infractions, while 15 schools received a "D" rating for three infractions, 20 received "C" for two infractions, and 24 received a "B" grade for one infraction. 

Schools were awarded an "A" grade if they had no infractions, while institutions received an A+ rating if they also offered proof of "a relationship with a local, life-affirming pregnancy help center."

Three Catholic institutions — Boston College, Santa Clara University in California, and St. Elizabeth University in New Jersey — received "F" ratings in the report. St. John Fisher University in New York and University of Detroit Mercy in Michigan, meanwhile, received "D" ratings. 

Among the infractions identified by the report include University of Detroit Mercy listing Planned Parenthood as among "research guides" for students studying "women's and gender studies." 

Santa Clara University, meanwhile, suggests on its website that its health center will make referrals to Planned Parenthood, while the school last year hosted a symposium examining what it described as "anti-abortion and anti-trans laws."

Overall, 17 Catholic institutions were found to have some connection with Planned Parenthood or to otherwise promote the abortion provider or other abortion resources. 

None of the Catholic schools on the list responded to queries from CNA regarding the report's findings.

The Institute for Pro-Life Advancement said that U.S. Christian schools' support for abortion has "increased annually by 10% since 2022" in the wake of Roe v. Wade's repeal by the U.S. Supreme Court.

The institute noted that a dozen schools "removed ties to the abortion industry after initial contact with researchers in 2024."

The study has been run since 2021, during which "54 total connections [with the abortion industry] have been severed," the report said.

Encouragingly, in the most recent report, "Christian schools earning an 'A+' grade by supporting their local pregnancy help center increased by 32%."

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CNA Newsroom, Sep 16, 2024 / 12:40 pm (CNA).

As the controversial Vatican-China agreement on bishop appointments nears its renewal deadline in October, Pope Francis' recent 12-day apostolic journey through Southeast Asia and Oceania has thrust the Holy See's complex relationship with Beijing into the spotlight.

Regional news outlets, including Singapore's state-affiliated Channel News Asia, have been analyzing the potential implications of improving relations between the Holy See and Beijing. 

The pope's marathon trip, which included stops in Indonesia, Papua New Guinea, Timor-Leste, and Singapore, provided ample opportunity for such speculation.

Channel News reported that analysts say "China has shown a favorable stance toward improving relations with the Vatican as this aligns with its broader strategic goals of enhancing its international reputation and countering negative portrayals from the West."

The Singaporean broadcaster, operated by a state-owned conglomerate in a nation with a large ethnically Chinese population, suggested that "warming ties" could affect the Vatican's long-standing diplomatic relationship with Taiwan. It noted that establishing formal relations with China would necessitate severing ties with Taipei in accordance with Beijing's "One China" policy.

George Yeo, former Singapore foreign minister and ex-member of the Vatican Council for the Economy, told Channel News Asia that even if diplomatic recognition shifts to Beijing, "the Church will still have representation in Taiwan." 

Yeo emphasized that from the Vatican's perspective, such a move would not signal a shift from its "One China" policy but rather a return to its historical presence in mainland China.

A 'dress rehearsal' for a potential visit to Beijing?

Other regional media outlets have also weighed in on the implications of the papal visit for Vatican-China relations. 

Hong Kong's South China Morning Post observed: "The Holy See under Francis has gone out of its way to extend overtures to China."

A Bloomberg commentator, published in the Japan Times, even described the apostolic journey as a "dress rehearsal for a potential visit to Beijing."

La Croix International, a Catholic news website, reported that China's ruling elite had closely watched the trip. Theologian Michel Chambon told La Croix: "Beijing has closely observed Pope Francis' trip in Asia, seeking to assess to what extent Pope Francis could contribute to the balance of power, the common good, and the development of the region."

For his part, Pope Francis reiterated a long-standing desire to visit China during his press conference on Friday's flight back to Rome.

Expressing respect and admiration for the country and its ancient culture, the pope told journalists on Sept. 13: "China, for me, is a dream, that is to say that I would like to visit China." 

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ACI Prensa Staff, Sep 16, 2024 / 13:15 pm (CNA).

Cardinal Víctor Fernández, prefect of the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith, will lead a press conference on the "spiritual experience" of Medjugorje this Thursday, Sept. 19, at the Vatican.

The Vatican Press Office informed that at Thursday's press conference on Medjugorje, which will take place at 11:30 a.m. local time, Fernández will be joined by Monsignor Armando Matteo, who serves as secretary to the dicastery's Doctrinal Section, along with Andrea Tornielli, editorial director of the Dicastery for Communication.

The press conference is scheduled to be broadcast live on Vatican News' YouTube page.

Although no additional details about the event have been released, the press conference is being held within the framework of the new "Norms for Proceeding in the Discernment of Alleged Supernatural Phenomena," published in May by the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith. Since then, the Holy See has issued rulings on various alleged Marian apparitions and devotions.

What's happening in Medjugorje?

The alleged Marian apparitions in Medjugorje (Bosnia-Herzegovina) began on June 24, 1981. Six children were said to have been the recipients of the Virgin's messages, of which three say they continue receiving messages daily.

In January 2014, the then-Congregation — now Dicastery — for the Doctrine of the Faith concluded a report requested by Pope Francis who, in November 2013, stated that the Virgin "is not a chief of the post office who would send messages every day," without specifically mentioning Medjugorje.

Summarizing the content of the report, in 2017 Pope Francis indicated that the initial apparitions are something that "must continue to be investigated" while with regard to "presumed current apparitions, the report has its doubts."

On that same occasion, the Holy Father pointed out "people go there and convert. People encounter God, change their lives." This isn't a result of "magic," he said, but is a valid spiritual and pastoral fact that "can't be ignored."  

Earlier that same year, the pontiff had appointed Bishop Henryk Hoser as "special envoy" to Medjugorje. When he died in 2021, he was replaced by Monsignor Aldo Cavalli.

Since May 2019, Pope Francis has officially authorized the organization of pilgrimages to Medjugorje while cautioning that such pilgrimages should avoid "creating confusion or ambiguity under the doctrinal aspect."

In recent years, including 2020, 2021, 2022, and 2023, Pope Francis has also sent messages to youth festivals held at Medjugorje.

This story was first published by ACI Prensa, CNA's Spanish-language news partner. It has been translated and adapted by CNA.

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CNA Staff, Sep 16, 2024 / 13:50 pm (CNA).

Edward Slattery, the bishop emeritus of the Diocese of Tulsa and Eastern Oklahoma, passed away at age 84 on Friday following a series of debilitating strokes, diocesan officials said.

"Bishop Slattery was a man of deep faith who knew that death would bring him to his Lord," Tulsa and Eastern Oklahoma Bishop David Konderla said in a Saturday statement. "I was blessed to follow in his footsteps in the diocese and will remember him with fondness and prayer."

Apostolic Nuncio Archbishop Peter Wells, who grew up in Oklahoma and was ordained a priest in the Diocese of Tulsa in 1991, shared that he was "deeply saddened" by Slattery's passing.

"Bishop Slattery will be fondly remembered for his many initiatives in the diocese, his compassion for the poor, and his profound spiritual guidance," Wells said on Saturday. 

"Our heartfelt condolences go out to all those mourning his loss, particularly his family, Bishop David Konderla, the clergy, religious, and faithful of the Diocese of Tulsa. May he rest in peace." 

Slattery was born in Chicago on Aug. 11, 1940, the grandson of Irish immigrants on the maternal and paternal sides of the family. He was the second of seven children, and his family lived in a small apartment with no air conditioning and only one bathroom, according to Tulsa World. 

Slattery was raised Catholic and felt called to the priesthood at a young age. After graduating from Quigley Preparatory Seminary in Chicago, Slattery earned a bachelor of arts and master of divinity, both from St. Mary of the Lake Seminary in Mundelein, Illinois. 

He was ordained a priest on April 26, 1966, for the Archdiocese of Chicago, where he served as an associate pastor at St. Jude the Apostle Parish in South Holland until 1971 while obtaining a second master's degree from Loyola University Chicago. 

He served as the vice president of the Catholic Church Extension Society, a funding agency for American home missions, from 1971–1976, and subsequently as president until 1994. 

During his time with the extension society, Slattery was the associate pastor of St. Rose of Lima, an inner-city Hispanic parish on the South Side of Chicago beginning in 1973, and was pastor from 1976 to 1989. 

He was ordained as a bishop on Jan. 6, 1994, by Pope John Paul II and subsequently installed as the Tulsa bishop on Jan. 12. 

As bishop, Slattery oversaw the expansion of Catholic Charities of Eastern Oklahoma in the early 2000s and helped establish an endowment-based tuition assistance program for Catholic families in need in 1999.

He also oversaw a large-scale fundraising effort that raised $17.5 million for the diocese's 25th anniversary in 1998. Slattery worked with the Benedictines to found a new monastery in rural northeastern Oklahoma in the late 1990s and founded the Pastoral Studies Institute in Tulsa. 

"For many years I have appreciated Bishop Slattery as a friend and brother bishop," said Archbishop Paul Coakley of Oklahoma City. "He welcomed me warmly when I arrived in Oklahoma in 2011 and always encouraged my ministry here. I have appreciated the pastoral leadership he provided in the Diocese of Tulsa and nationally through the work of Catholic Extension, which he guided before coming to Oklahoma."

Pope Francis in 2016 accepted Slattery's resignation, which he submitted at the age of 75 as required by canon law. Slattery continued to serve as bishop emeritus after his resignation until his death last week.

In 2002, Slattery apologized for reinstating Father Kenneth Lewis to ministry in 1995 following allegations against Lewis of sexual misconduct toward young boys. Slattery returned the priest to active ministry after Lewis received psychiatric treatment, a decision Slattery later said he would not have made had he had further information. Lewis himself would eventually be accused again of sexual abuse of a boy in 2001; he would ultimately plead guilty to a felony in connection with that abuse and be sentenced to seven years in prison.

Slattery is survived by his four sisters and one brother. His funeral is set to take place at 9 a.m. on Saturday, Sept. 28, at Holy Family Cathedral in Tulsa. 

"I give thanks to God for [Slattery's] many years of faithful service as a priest and bishop, especially his two decades of dedication to the Diocese of Tulsa," Wells said.

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