Tag Archives: Catholic Church

Pope Francis Strips Anti-LGBTQ American Cardinal Of His Vatican Apartment And Salary For Public “Disunity”

The Associated Press reports: Pope Francis has decided to punish one of his highest-ranking critics, Cardinal Raymond Burke, by revoking his right to a subsidized Vatican apartment and salary in the second such radical action against a conservative American prelate this month. Francis told a meeting of the heads of Vatican offices last week that he was moving against Burke …

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AL Priest Marries Teen After Fleeing To Italy With Her

The Birmingham News reports: The Mobile priest and the 2023 high school graduate with whom he left the country for Europe this summer are now married, according to records filed with Mobile County Probate Court. Alex Crow, 30, and 18-year-old Taylor Victoria Harrison were married last Friday, according to the date on the marriage certificate. Crow and Harrison, a graduate …

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Catholic Hospital System Removes “Metal And Wooden Crucifixes” So That They Can’t Be Used To Beat Staff

Becker’s Hospital Review reports: Hospital Sisters Health System, a Catholic organization based in Springfield, Ill., is removing all wooden and metal crucifixes from its hospitals’ emergency departments and patient rooms. That decision is a response to “the changing healthcare landscape and the general increase in healthcare workers experiencing workplace violence,” according to a Nov. 21 statement the health system shared …

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Ohio Catholic Priest Gets Life On Child Sex Charges

Toledo’s CBS affiliate reports: A former northwest Ohio priest was sentenced Friday, just over three years after he was initially arrested on charges of sex trafficking minors and adults, charges on which he was ultimately found guilty. Michael Zacharias appeared in federal court Friday afternoon, where a judge sentenced him to life in prison on two counts and 20 years …

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DC Archdiocese Sues To Block MD Child Victims Act

Washington DC’s CBS radio affiliate reports: A Maryland law that did away with time limits for legal action by survivors of childhood sexual abuse is being challenged by the Archdiocese of Washington. The Maryland Child Victims Act passed in the state’s General Assembly and went into effect Oct. 1. The bill was a yearslong effort by advocates for survivors who …

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Far-Right Archbishop Rages At “Tyrannical, Cowardly” Pope Francis After Removal Of QAnon Cultist TX Bishop

Far-right Archbishop Carlo Maria Vigano writes: The removal of His Excellency Archbishop Joseph Strickland, especially after the failure to ambush him with the Apostolic Visitation, appears as a cowardly form of authoritarianism, which in no way fits with Bergoglio’s rants about “welcoming” and “inclusiveness.” Seeing the sacrilegious and perverted Marco Rupnik incardinated in the Diocese of Capodistria, or Bishop Michael …

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Pope Francis Fires QAnon/Trump Cultist Texas Bishop

The Associated Press reports: Pope Francis on Saturday forcibly removed from office the bishop of Tyler, Texas, a conservative active on social media who has been a fierce critic of the pontiff and some of his priorities. A one-line statement from the Vatican said Francis had “relieved” Bishop Joseph Strickland of the pastoral governance of Tyler and appointed the bishop …

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Ohio Catholic Church Blew $1.7M On Abortion Issue

The Cincinnati Enquirer reports: Voters who approved Ohio’s Issue 1 Tuesday dealt a blow to Catholic bishops and activists who mounted an unprecedented campaign to stop abortion from becoming a constitutional right in the state. They still lost by a 14-point margin, 57%-43%. The church in Ohio spent more than $1.7 million trying to convince voters to reject the amendment. …

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MD Church To Close After Priest’s Secret Sex Payoff

The Associated Press reports: The Archdiocese of Baltimore will close one of the city’s Catholic churches after its longtime pastor was recently suspended from ministry because he admitted to making a payment several years ago to settle sexual harassment allegations. Last month, Father Paschal Morlino was dismissed from his position at St. Benedict Church in southwest Baltimore, where he served …

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Baltimore Archdiocese Lists Treasure Chest Of Baubles In Bankruptcy Filing: Gold, Diamonds, Emeralds, Pearls

The Baltimore Sun reports: Diamonds and emeralds, marble busts and oil paintings, sterling silver flatware and an ivory crucifix — these are just some of the things the Archdiocese of Baltimore possesses in its treasure chest of valuables. The items, including rings, precious gemstones, gold and silver chains, and antique furniture, were disclosed as part of the archdiocese’s most recent …

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Buffalo Diocese Offers $100M To Settle Abuse Claims

Buffalo’s ABC affiliate reports: The Diocese of Buffalo claimed it will offer $100 million to settle child sex abuse lawsuits and is considering the sale of the Catholic Center, the former Christ the King Seminary campus and other real estate, according to documents filed in its federal bankruptcy case Monday. However, lawyers representing child sexual abuse survivors say the preliminary …

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Bishop Resigns Over Priest’s “Gay Orgy With Prostitute”

The National Catholic Reporter reports: The pope on Oct. 24 accepted the resignation of a Polish bishop whose diocese has been rocked for weeks by reports of a gay orgy involving a male prostitute in a priest’s apartment. The Vatican didn’t give a reason for why Bishop Grzegorz Kaszak was resigning as head of the diocese of Sosnowiec, in southwestern …

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Cops: Catholic Priest Molested Girl Undergoing Chemo

The Cleveland Plain Dealer reports: A local Catholic priest called Westlake Police Department to report “a disturbing incident” involving Luis Jesus Barajas, 76, who was visiting the area and performing spiritual ceremonies in Spanish for Hispanic residents in the area. Barajas was driven to a home in Westlake on Oct. 10 to bless a 15-year-old girl who is undergoing chemotherapy. …

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PA Catholic Priest Pleads Guilty To Child Sex Charges

The National Catholic Reporter reports: Fr. Armand D. Garcia appeared in a Philadelphia courtroom Oct. 23 to plead guilty to corruption of a minor and unlawful contact with a minor. He will be sentenced in January 2024. The abuse took place while Garcia was a parochial vicar at Immaculate Heart of Mary Parish in Philadelphia from 2014-2017. The priest had …

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MD Priest Fired Over Secret Sexual Abuse Settlement

The Baltimore Banner reports: The Archdiocese of Baltimore has dismissed the Rev. Paschal Morlino, the celebrated “urban monk” of Southwest Baltimore who led St. Benedict Church for decades, following the recent disclosure that he paid $200,000 to quietly settle allegations of fraud and sexual assault. Morlino’s abrupt removal as pastor of St. Benedict’s was announced Saturday to parishioners, and it …

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Pennsylvania Priest Arrested On 31 Child Porn Counts

The Johnstown Tribune-Democrat reports: A priest who was placed on leave by the Roman Catholic Diocese of Altoona-Johnstown in 2017 due to a claim of abusing a minor being made against him was arrested on child pornography charges earlier this week. The Rev. Anthony Petracca Jr., 67, from Allegheny Township, Blair County, faces 31 felony counts of possession of child …

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Philippine Drag Queen Arrested After Dressing As Jesus

CNN reports: A drag queen who dressed as Jesus Christ and performed a rock rendition of The Lord’s Prayer has been arrested in the Philippines under the country’s obscenity laws, sparking a fierce debate about free speech and protections for members of the LGBTQ community. Amadeus Fernando Pagente, 33, whose drag name is Pura Luka Vega and who uses the …

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Fox Regular Priest: The Pope’s Stance On Blessing Gay Marriages Puts “Souls At Risk Of Eternal Damnation”

“Pope Francis, in response to the cardinals’ question about whether same-sex unions could be blessed by the church allowed that ‘pastoral prudence’ might find such blessings permissible, as long as they are distinguished from marriage. The problem with blessing homosexual unions is not only that this looks like the church is blessing a ‘same-sex marriage.’ This practice asks God to …

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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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