Catholic Culture Liturgical Living
Catholic Culture Liturgical Living

Stories for week of December 10, 2017

Ordered from most to least recent.

Released Saturday, Dec. 16

 Vatican newspaper: funerals are crucial moments in the new evangelization
 Syria missed ‘golden opportunity’ at peace talks, says UN mediator
 FCC repeals net neutrality rules
 Trump says US wants Russia’s help on North Korea
 Resignations and appointments (12/15)
 Papal audiences (12/15)
 Papal preacher devotes 1st Advent sermon to Christ and creation, recalls Teilhard de Chardin (full text)

Released Friday, Dec. 15

 Nigerian prelate urges appointment of new bishop for troubled diocese
 Pope thanks performers for Christmas concert
 Papal preacher delivers first Advent sermon
 Bolivia’s president meets with Pope Francis
 Italian lawmakers back ‘right-to-die’ legislation despite Church opposition
 Priests jailed for caroling in India’s Madhya Pradesh state
 Catholic cardinal named “Swede of the Year’
 Nazareth’s mayor cancels Christmas events to protest Trump embassy move
 Vatican statement responds to Australian Royal Commission
 Australian panel blasts Catholic hierarchy, urges end to celibacy and confessional seal
 Protestant pastor in Indonesia charged with blasphemy
 Indonesian children still in recovery mode 1 year after church bombing
 +Father Andrew Apostoli, 75
 Indian prime minister attacks archbishop over pastoral letter on state election
 How does an astronomer explain the science behind the Christmas phenomenon?
 2 companies reach $7.7M settlement over allegations of selling fetal tissue
 Nigeria: 2 catechists murdered by Boko Haram suicide bomber
 Priest discusses silent missionary witness in Afghanistan
 Mali bishops’ official warns of rising jihadist influence in region
 Post-ISIS, the first Catholic church is reconsecrated on Nineveh Plains
 +Archbishop Alphonsus Penney, 93
 North American Orthodox-Catholic dialogue critiques document on primacy, synodality
 Pope thanks his envoy to UN for promoting Vatican viewpoint
 Pope Francis preaches on God’s tenderness
 Pope Francis meets with evangelical leaders to discuss religious freedom
 Europe’s growing Muslim population
 Resignations and appointments (12/14)
 Papal audiences (12/14)
 Arkansas abortion clinics face suspension over health codes
 Marcus Grodi reflects on 20 years of “The Journey Home”
 Hormonal birth control is linked to a higher risk of suicide, study says
 What big companies oppose a small business’ case for religious freedom?

Released Thursday, Dec. 14

 New ambassadors to Holy See present credentials
 Two Raphael paintings discovered at Vatican Museums
 Belgian bishop who resigned after abuse complaint plans suit against new accuser
 Ousted Vatican bank official seeks explanation for removal
 Author of critical book on Pope says Vatican is anxious to identify him
 Abuse survivor quits papal commission after months of leave
 Vatican preparing to launch new media web site
 Washington March for Life announces location and speakers
 Largely Catholic Asian nation elects Muslim prime minister
 Mexico: 2 dancers murdered while honoring Our Lady of Guadalupe
 Faith amid the flames: California Catholics recount stories of survival
 Belarus: Baptists maltreated, fined for offering religious literature
 Iraqi bishop recalls his abduction, torture in new book
 Shrinking majority of Americans believe that biblical account of birth of Jesus depicts actual events
 UK: ‘draconian’ education act would see local authorities policing homeschoolers
 Zambia’s leading prelate emphasizes traditional teaching on remarriage and the Eucharist
 Hong Kong Bishop declares 2018 ‘Year of Youth’
 Msgr. Luigi Ligutti’s legacy recalled
 India’s coastal archdiocese appeals for help for people hit by cyclone
 Prelate outlines Holy See’s position on current trade-related issues
 US bishops’ marriage initiative announces podcast
 Resignations and appointments (12/13)
 Holding infants (or not) can leave traces on their genes
 Papal audiences (12/13)
 Video of Pope’s 12/13 general audience
 Connecticut: group opposes senator’s bell-ringing for Salvation Army

Released Wednesday, Dec. 13

 Irish legislative committee proposes legalizing abortion
 Papal message lauds work of Populorum Progressio Foundation
 Maronite Patriarch: Trump’s move of embassy to Jerusalem damages peace prospects
 ‘Underground’ Chinese Bishop Mattias Yu Chengxin, labor-camp survivor, dead at 89
 Council of Cardinals hears plan for reorganization of Vatican communications
 Sunday rest, worship are focus of Pope’s public audience
 Tajikistan: Protestant pastor receives 3-year sentence for singing ‘extremist songs’ in church
 Renewed violence against Nigerian Christian farmers
 El Salvadoran poet wins world prize for mystical poetry
 Italy tells the story of its Jewish people in new museum
 Saudi crown prince buys da Vinci painting of Christ for $450M
 USCCB president: pray for California fire victims, firefighters
 Pope Francis: crisis and foreign debt impoverish Latin America
 Defend Latin America’s diversity from ‘ideological colonization,’ Pope preaches on Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe
 Melkite patriarch reconsecrates cathedral altar in Homs
 Pope’s Twitter account marks 5 years
 China’s Communist party tolerates Santa, but clamps down on Jesus
 Catholic leaders call for ‘repentance and atonement’ between North Korea and South Korea
 South Korea president says anti-missile system will not be ‘invasive’ of China’s security
 Vatican conference highlights role of laity in addressing modern challenges
 French President Macron calls for ‘much stronger mobilization’ on climate
 UN: 4,500 civilians killed, wounded in Somalia since 2016
 Patriarchate calls on Israelis, Palestinians to reach agreement on Jerusalem
 Russia’s Putin: US decision on Jerusalem is destabilizing Middle East
 Facing student pressure, Georgetown continues contraception coverage in insurance plans
 Bishop Henry criticizes removal of God, parents from education

Released Tuesday, Dec. 12

 Cardinal Pell faces March hearing on abuse charges
 Cardinal Kasper: debate on Amoris Laetitia should be ended
 Bermuda restores traditional definition of marriage
 Australian archbishop urges calm as same-sex marriage moves forward
 Mexican diocese may alter Mass times at Christmas to avoid violence
 DC archdiocese loses case on Christmas ads for city buses; will appeal
 Bishop Morlino explains policy on funerals for active homosexuals
 Archbishop challenges Malawi’s leaders on abortion law
 97 years later, the largest Catholic church in America is finally finished
 After 40 years, priest who used to be in KKK apologizes to couple he targeted in cross burning
 30 pro-life leaders sign pledge to uphold Catholic doctrine
 Pope Francis: leave behind bitterness, be consoled by God
 Updated program released for Pope’s trip to Chile, Peru
 Vatican’s Populorum Progressio Foundation turns 25, has granted $41M to 4300 projects
 Pope issues message for 2018 World Day of the Sick
 Resignations and appointments (12/11)
 Council of Cardinals holding 22nd meeting
 Vatican issues new statement on Jerusalem
 Catholic Charities USA: advocate on behalf of DACA on Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe
 Advance final tax reform bill only if it meets key moral concerns, says prelate
 NY archdiocese pays over $40M to 189 abuse victims
 New York Port Authority attack: Akayed Ullah inspired by ISIS
 World leaders, high security at Paris climate summit
 In one corner of Afghanistan, America is beating Islamic State
 EU’s Federica Mogherini rebuffs Netanyahu on Jerusalem
 Leading European bishops: respect status quo of Jerusalem

Released Monday, Dec. 11

 Incoming Polish prime minister hopes to “re-Christianize the EU”
 New study shows contraceptive use heightens breast-cancer risk
 Ukrainian Orthodox Patriarch ready to talk with Moscow, but insists on autonomy
 In Cameroon, English- and French-speaking bishops differ on ethnic violence
 Ex-priest who counseled abusers is found guilty of 1960 murder
 Medjugorje pilgrimages now allowed, says papal delegate
 Pope questions translation of the Lord’s Prayer
 Advent is time of purification, Pope Francis says during Angelus address
 Pope Francis appeals for nuclear disarmament and climate change action
 Resignations and appointments (12/9)
 Papal audiences (12/9)
 Prelates comment on religious freedom of Colorado baker in Supreme Court case
 Pope prays for Rome, recalls Ratisbonne’s conversion in traditional homage to Immaculate Mary
 Vatican foreign minister calls for dialogue, commitment to human rights in order to promote peace, security
 Resignations and appointments (12/8)
 The Blessed Virgin is full of grace and all-beautiful, Pope says on Feast of Immaculate Conception
 Moneyval offers mixed assessment of Holy See’s efforts to combat money laundering
 Papal praise for Italian children’s choir
 Resignations and appointments (12/7)
 Papal audiences (12/7)
 Pope calls for ecumenical cooperation to help Asia’s less fortunate

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