Religion

Pope Opens Door To “Blessing” Same-Sex Marriages

The National Catholic Reporter reports: Pope Francis has expressed openness to Catholic blessings for same-sex couples, under the condition they are not confused with marriage ceremonies for men and women, in what could be a watershed moment for the global Catholic Church. “Pastoral prudence must adequately discern whether there are forms of blessing, requested by one or several people, that …

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Former MI Catholic Priest Guilty In Child Sex Sting

Kalamazoo’s CBS affiliate reports: A former Michigan priest arrested by authorities who posed as a 15-year-old boy on the dating app Grindr has been convicted. Aaron Nowicki, 49, was convicted of child sexually abusive activity on Thursday, according to a news release from Chippewa County Prosecutor Robert L. Stratton. Nowicki resigned from priestly ministry in Jan. 2019 after it was …

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Cardinals Petition Pope Francis To Be More Anti-Gay

The Associated Press reports: Five conservative cardinals from Europe, Asia, Africa and the Americas have challenged Pope Francis to affirm Catholic teaching on homosexuality and female ordination ahead of a big Vatican meeting where such hot-button issues are up for debate. The cardinals on Monday published five questions they submitted to Francis, known as “dubia,” as well as an open …

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Baltimore Archdiocese Files For Bankruptcy Protection

The Washington Post reports: The Catholic Archdiocese of Baltimore filed for bankruptcy protection Friday, less than two days before a new state law takes effect allowing victims of child sexual abuse to sue institutions, no matter how long ago the abuse took place. Federal bankruptcy law halts all lawsuits against an entity that files for bankruptcy. Instead, the legal action …

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New York Pastor Arrested On Child Porn Charges

Long Island’s Newsday reports: A Brentwood pastor was arrested by the Federal Bureau of Investigation Thursday and in charged in federal court with the sexual exploitation of a minor after he allegedly admitted coercing a teenage boy into taking and sending graphic photographs he then shared with others, court records show. Jose Saez Jr., the 28-year-old pastor of Iglesia Cristiana …

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NC Pastor Gets Four Years On Child Porn Charges

WKHY radio reports: An Iredell County pastor has been sentenced to four years in prison after entering a guilty plea on child pornography charges. 66-year-old Tony Ernest Bunton of Statesville, pleaded guilty Monday (September 25) in Iredell County Superior Court to two counts of second-degree sexual exploitation of a minor. By pleading guilty, Bunton admitted that he distributed, transported, exhibited, …

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California County Rescinds “Christian Heritage Month”

The Times Of Israel reports: Two months after proclaiming that July would henceforth be known locally as “American Christian Heritage Month,” the board of supervisors in El Dorado County, California has reversed course. The county’s elected governing body unanimously rescinded the proclamation Tuesday following backlash from local Jews, the American Civil Liberties Union, and others who said it inappropriately advanced …

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Florida Youth Pastor Arrested On Child Sex Charges

Jacksonville’s NBC affiliate reports: Early last month, the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office said it was made aware of allegations of misconduct by a church youth group leader, Gregory Norton. Norton, 58, was accused of sexually molesting a teen that he met through functions at Oak Hill Church: Church of the Nazarene, according to JSO. The incident reportedly happened years earlier at …

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IA Pastor Guilty Of Drugging And Raping Pre-Teen Girl

Des Moines’ CBS affiliate reports: A former Cambridge pastor accused of drugging and sexually abusing a child appeared at the Story County Courthouse Monday morning for a plea hearing and sentencing. Prosecutors say Mark Benson, 69, gave a young girl medicine to make her sleep, then sexually assaulted her several times between 2009 and 2012, when she was between 10 …

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Baptist Youth Pastor Arrested On Child Sex Charges

Charlotte’s ABC affiliate reports: A former church youth leader in South Carolina who was arrested last year for multiple sex crimes against children has been arrested again after another victim spoke out to investigators. William Pinckney Carpenter III was arrested on Monday for criminal sexual conduct with a minor. Last year, Carpenter was arrested for multiple counts of assault with …

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MS Pastor Guilty Of Sex Crimes Against Autistic Child

Jackson’s NBC affiliate reports: A former longtime music teacher and preacher from Rankin County has been convicted of a sex crime. District Attorney Bubba Bramlett announced Thursday that Samuel Lamar Taylor, 52, was convicted of one count of sexual battery and one count of gratification of lust. On August 23, 2022, the Richland Police Department received a call from Richland …

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Texas Baptist Pastor Gets 70 Months For Child Porn

The Austin Statesman reports: A former Round Rock pastor was sentenced to 70 months in prison and 10 years probation for an enhanced charge of possession of child pornography, according to a news release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office of the Western District of Texas. David Lloyd Walther, 57, was a pastor of Faith Baptist Church in Round Rock when …

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Kansas Pastor Arrested On Child Rape Charges

Coffeyville’s KGGS reports: William Keith Dodd, the former pastor of Lewark Church of God, has been charged with two counts of rape of a minor. His first appearance in Montgomery County Court was Friday. Court documents say Dodd allegedly raped a 12 or 13 year old two times between January 1st and September 11th of this year. He was arrested …

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Tennessee Pastor Arrested On Child Rape Charges

Murfreesboro’s WGNS reports: An evangelist who calls the Blackman area home is facing a slew of charges that revolve around the rape of a child. Benjamin Garlick was taken into custody under a sealed indictment that was handed down by a Rutherford County Grand Jury. Prior to Garlick’s arrest, he led church services in Texas, Tennessee, Florida, Alabama and Arkansas, …

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WA Youth Pastor Gets 14 Months For Child Rape

The Everett Herald reports: A former youth pastor convicted of sexually assaulting a 15-year-old girl at his Arlington church was sentenced Tuesday to 14 months in prison. Following a brief bench trial in April, a judge found Kendal Kippen, 27, guilty of third-degree rape of a child Tuesday. In 2017 and 2018, the Stanwood man worked at Jake’s House Church, …

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FL Pastor Sentenced To 60 Years On Child Sex Charges

From the Justice Department: Jason R. Moore, 43, of Milton, Florida, was sentenced to sixty years in federal prison after previously pleading guilty to two counts of “Illicit Sexual Conduct in Foreign Places.” The sentence was announced by Jason R. Coody, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Florida. Moore engaged in “Illicit Sexual Conduct in Foreign Places” from …

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DeSantis Claims Trump Isn’t “Buddy-Buddy” With Putin

The Hill reports: Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) defended former President Trump’s policy on Russia on Sunday, after praise from Russian President Vladimir Putin spurred criticism from others in the GOP. “The idea that Trump is some type of lackey for Putin — that’s just false,” DeSantis said told Howard Kurtz on Fox News’ “MediaBuzz”. “He had a very, very …

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Letter Shows Pope Pius XII Was Told About Holocaust

The New York Times reports: A letter found among the private papers of Pope Pius XII suggests that the Holy See was told in 1942 that up to 6,000 people, “above all Poles and Jews,” were being killed in furnaces every day at Belzec, a Nazi death camp in Poland. Though news of the atrocities being perpetrated by Hitler was …

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MS Baptist Leader Charged With Producing Child Porn

Gulfport’s Fox affiliate reports: A worship leader from Saucier has arrested on federal charges of producing child pornography. 33-year-old Tyler Selby appeared in U.S. District Court in Gulfport on Tuesday before Judge Robert Myers for an initial hearing. Selby was identified by the National Crime Agency in the United Kingdom as a person who produced child porn. Selby was identified …

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CA Catholic Priest Arrested On Child Porn Charges

Los Angeles’s ABC affiliate reports: A priest with the Archdiocese of Los Angeles has been charged with possession of child pornography, according to the Ventura County District Attorney’s Office. Rodolfo Martinez-Guevara, 38, of Long Beach, allegedly possessed more than 600 images of child sexual abuse material, including pictures and videos of minors under 12, officials said. Martinez-Guevara is a member …

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