Stories for September 2020

Ordered from most to least recent.

Released Friday, Sep. 25

 Pope criticized for ‘masculine’ title of new encyclical
 Louisville archbishop pleads for peace, rejection of violence following Breonna Taylor decision
 Italian mother recalls her son, soon to be beatified
 California monastery escapes wildfire: ‘It’s like the parting of the Red Sea; the fire just went around’
 UN agencies pressure Malawi to liberalize abortion laws
 Immigrants and refugees are ‘essential workers during COVID-19,’ bishop tells US House subcommittee
 EEOC sues Frito-Lay for religious discrimination
 President Trump tells Catholic prayer breakfast ‘all children, born and unborn, have the right to life’
 Asia’s bishops encourage faithful to live with hope during pandemic
 Kenya’s bishops speak out against reproductive health bill
 Caritas: Long-awaited EU Pact on Asylum and Migration falls short
 Municipal approval granted for $10.2M Christian monument in England
 ‘We are on your side,’ leading EU cardinal tells climate strikers
 Background: World Day of Migrants and Refugees
 ‘The cleaning of the stables’: Cardinal Pell welcomes Cardinal Becciu’s resignation, thanks Pope Francis
 Powerful Vatican Cardinal Becciu resigns amid scandal

Released Thursday, Sep. 24

 Euthanasia fast gaining acceptance in Netherlands, cardinal fears
 Cardinal Tagle cleared of Covid
 Trump issues order to protect born-alive abortion victims
 South Sudanese bishop warns against tribalism
 Costa Rican bishops criticize nation’s economic model
 Bible translated into Pazande
 DR Congo bishops call for fair election laws
 Pope to Philippine Catholic schools: Form authentic witnesses to Christ
 Kenyan government approves Catholic TV station operated by bishops
 Displaced persons can be a positive force of change, Vatican cardinal says
 Vatican diplomat criticizes UN Covid resolution
 Pope prays for Covid-struck Cuba
 Pompeo visits Catholic-run refugee center, parish in Brazil
 Macron decries ‘Islamic separatism,’ defends blasphemy
 Vatican silent on the Abraham Accords
 EU bishops urge action to protect asylum seekers
 Papal gratitude to Cardinal Sodano on 70th anniversary of priestly ordination
 Knights of Holy Sepulchre give $3.5M in emergency aid to Holy Land
 China: still no ‘yes’ to Vatican agreement
 US bishops decry new federal executions

Released Wednesday, Sep. 23

 Quebec places tight new restrictions on churches
 Pope Francis emphasizes importance of subsidiarity
 House passes Global Child Thrive Act
 Irish monastery receives canonical visitation; founder resigns
 Pontifical commission discusses impact of lockdowns
 Pelosi ‘misspoke’ about San Francisco Mass attendance, spokesman claims
 Judge killed by mafia 30 years ago is a candidate for sainthood
 Nigeria: ‘We have been left to perish because of our faith’
 Poll shows Biden with 53%-41% lead among Catholics
 National shrine basilica celebrates 100th anniversary
 2 Catholic women judges top short list as possible Supreme Court nominees
 Catholic schools stay open in Wisconsin; court date set over Covid closure order
 Pontifical council, World Council of Churches publish ‘Serving a Wounded World in Interreligious Solidarity’
 ‘Forge new paths,’ leading Italian prelate urges
 In Austria, tougher restrictions at Mass due to rise in Covid infections
 Vatican Secretary of State pays tribute to UN on 75th anniversary

Released Tuesday, Sep. 22

 Vatican issues statement on end-of-life care, condemns euthanasia
 British premier’s son baptized in Catholic cathedral
 Vatican doctrinal chief: ‘everything possible’ done in conflict with Irish dissident priest
 Vatican official named to head Italian health commission
 Colombian bishops decry assassinations
 Ugandan political party under fire for rejecting Catholic candidate
 Archbishop Aymond: How Catholics should approach controversial election issues
 Fort Worth bishop issues pastoral letter on possible invalid baptisms
 Rep. Pelosi says she attended Mass in San Francisco church, despite city health order
 Kaduna bishops decry financial inducements for terrorists
 Lift sanctions against Syria, Caritas urges in peace appeal
 Holy See calls on Belarus government, protestors to reject violence
 USCCB warns against rising chemical abortions, calls for support for Save Moms and Babies Act
 Religious bodies speak out against proposed abortion law in Malawi
 Canadian bishops begin virtual fall meeting
 Salesian: Global missionary efforts have taken a hit in the time of coronavirus
 Accept ‘fair contingent of refugees,’ Austrian bishops urge government
 Pope Francis receives PACE president at private audience
 Pope invites children with autism to thank God, intercede for others

Released Monday, Sep. 21

 Changes loom at Vatican: many Curia leaders beyond retirement age
 Question: why has Africa been spared the worst of epidemic
 Virginia bishop sees ‘Pentecost moment’ in response to Covid lockdown
 New Zealand politician warns bishops not to press against euthanasia
 Covid lockdown may be ‘extraordinary means,’ Bishop Paprocki argues
 New Mexico archdiocese ‘appalled’ by Catholic group’s invitation to Attorney General Barr
 Catholic community divided, angry in wake of Wisconsin priest’s video denouncing Democrats
 Pennsylvania Catholic Conference compares Trump, Biden on abortion, 10 other issues
 Archdiocese starts process to name Father Gabriel Richard a saint
 Archbishop Cordileone: San Francisco Mass restrictions ‘mocking God’
 Black sisters urge US Catholics, Church leaders to do more to end racism
 Dissident Irish priest rejects CDF invitation to assent to Catholic teaching
 Leading EU cardinal open to women priests, rues Boris Johnson’s ‘dangerous’ populist tendencies
 Why priests don’t endorse candidates: experts respond to FEC chairman
 Surprise papal donation to struggling poultry workers
 St. Januarius’ blood liquifies in Naples
 Pope encourages Belgian Christian journalists to be sowers of hope
 Medicines, vaccines should be available to world’s poorest, Pope says to pharmacists
 ‘Everything is grace’: Pope reflects on God’s call and recompense

Released Friday, Sep. 18

 US Secretary of State prods Vatican on accord with Beijing
 Top Vatican officials vow to cooperate against corruption
 Churches again close, public Mass suspended in Dublin
 Chinese priest released, but bishop in custody
 Pause to evaluate catechetical programs, Quebec cardinal suggests
 NPR: Biden’s Catholic faith is ‘central to how he sees the world’
 Hong Kong Watch chairman: Vatican is providing China with ‘useful idiots and fellow travelers’
 Fire at Australian cathedral deemed suspicious
 NJ town agrees to let Jewish congregation build worship center after feds sue
 Wellpath sued by EEOC for religious discrimination
 Indian nun testifies in closed session of bishop’s rape trial
 Oklahoma City priest ‘re-ordained’ after learning of invalid baptism
 Some link nuncio’s transfer from India to alleged inaction against bishops on sexual abuse
 ‘Lives will be upended’: US bishops decry federal court decision on TPS
 Pope expresses closeness to sick, elderly priests
 $12M shrine dedicated in Canada
 Archdiocese tells parishioners they must wait for church sale to undo ‘architectural vandalism’
 Cologne cardinal warns German ‘synodal path’ could cause schism

Released Thursday, Sep. 17

 New papal nuncio faces challenges as Belarus blocks archbishop’s return
 Chinese ‘underground’ priest detained, pressed to join ‘official’ Church
 Vatican workers report tensions, morale problems
 Pope calls murdered priest a witness of charity
 Hackers continue cyberattacks against Vatican, Catholic organizations
 Kroger Company sued by EEOC for religious discrimination
 Trial of Catholic lay leader highlights gaps in Church’s sex abuse oversight
 Belize bishop opposes ‘equal opportunities’ gender bill
 Archbishop Cordileone: ‘Believers are being singled out for uniquely punitive treatment’
 Armed man arrested outside Nebraska parish
 Title of Pope’s new encyclical is inclusive, Vatican spokesman says
 Man jailed after destroying historic statue of Jesus at El Paso cathedral
 Survey shows trends in US Catholic voting
 US bishops’ chairman of Hispanic Affairs reflects on Hispanic contributions and leadership in the Church
 Cardinal Tobin: A ‘person in good conscience’ could vote for Biden

Released Wednesday, Sep. 16

 Cardinal decries Spanish euthanasia bill
 Chinese priest compares Vatican-Beijing accord, concordat with Hitler
 New head for office of Synod of Bishops
 Pope Francis: Become guardians of life and earth with contemplation and care
 New Zealand bishops’ election statement opposes euthanasia, urges cannabis caution
 Campaign names 3 dozen ‘Catholics for Biden’ co-chairs
 Catholic group launches $9.7M campaign against Biden targeting swing-state voters
 Questionable Philippine ‘religious order’ set up orphanage where abuse occurred
 US teens take after their parents religiously
 Bayer to pay $1.6 billion to resolve US claims for Essure birth-control device
 Cardinal Pell: Father Paul Mankowski reminded me of St. Ignatius of Loyola
 Members of National Black Catholic Clergy Caucus say action is needed
 Detroit-area pastor apologizes for priest’s homily comparing BLM to 9/11 terrorists
 Diocese of Charlotte formally opens $20M college seminary as Church membership soars
 Papua New Guinea bishops see many challenges after 45 years of independence
 As release of Pope’s encyclical nears, Vatican spokesman reflects on St. Francis and brotherhood
 Bishop chairmen affirm right to shelter for all, praise proposed HUD regulation on the transgendered homeless

Released Tuesday, Sep. 15

 Taiwan reassured on Vatican-Beijing pact
 Leading Sudanese bishop welcomes peace agreement
 Maronite Patriarch appeals to UN to investigate Beirut explosions
 US Jesuits release document on contemplation and political action
 Manila Cathedral reopens to public after 6 months
 While Australian diocese defends curriculum, Catholics say religious ed plan defies doctrine
 Spanish bishops call for palliative care instead of euthanasia and assisted suicide
 Bishops of California launch yearlong anti-racism initiative
 Environment, other issues beyond abortion are critical in voting, Kentucky bishop says
 Belarusian archbishop’s passport annulled, foreign ministry says
 ‘Come back to me,’ says the Lord: English bishop issues pastoral letter
 2 groups criticize Catholic honor planned for US attorney general
 Prelate asks Catholics in US to pray for Belarus
 Care for the whole patient is essential, Pope says to oncologists

Released Monday, Sep. 14

 Former Salvadoran colonel jailed for 1989 killing of Jesuits
 Vatican ‘foreign minister’ in Belarus for talks on archbishop’s status
 Vatican Secretary of State insists Belarus must allow archbishop’s return
 Milwaukee archbishop reinstates Sunday Mass obligation, warns skipping is grave sin
 Canadian bishops reject priest’s dire prophecies
 Cardinal Tagle tests positive for Covid
 Belarus invites Pope to visit nation
 Co-founder of Franciscan Friars of the Renewal among Chicago’s new auxiliary bishops
 Western Australian legislative committee recommends preserving confessional seal
 ‘Virtual’ Mass never substitutes for in-person participation, Cardinal Sarah tells bishops’ conferences
 ‘We need miracles to overcome this crisis,’ Lebanese priest says
 Leading German bishop ponders Covid’s effects
 Archbishop Warda, other Iraqi Christians denounce BBC documentary for omissions
 United Arab Emirates helps rebuild Catholic church in Mosul
 Pope consoles relatives of 2018 stampede victims
 Contemplation, compassion emphasized in renewed papal appeal for ecology
 Pope Francis calls on protestors to be peaceful, leaders to listen to them
 Papal solidarity for Lésvos fire victims
 Reject resentment, ‘that bothersome fly,’ and forgive, Pope tells pilgrims

Released Friday, Sep. 11

 Filipino priest is gunshot victim
 Archbishop Gänswein hospitalized
 Child’s safety outweighs religious freedom: Australian envoy
 Some Australian priests defying ban on anointing
 Chinese government likely to renew pact with Vatican
 Ex-Cardinal McCarrick had 2nd beach house linked to mysterious debt and unusual history
 New UK survey: 4% of Catholics will not return to church after pandemic
 Australian bishop: ‘Catholic priests cannot break the seal of confession’
 ‘We’re sitting on a powder keg,’ Italian bishop warns after young man beaten to death
 ACLU staff member criticizes Kentucky college for admitting Covington Catholic teen
 Bishops preach against racism on feast of St. Peter Claver
 Syro-Malabar bishops urge dioceses to set up cremation facilities in India
 Federal appeals court upholds Illinois worship exemption from Covid limits
 ‘He was in a rage’: Vandal spends nearly 2 hours destroying exterior of Louisiana Catholic church
 Tabernacle, stolen from Ontario cathedral, found in canal
 Catholic Health Association: All have responsibility to receive Covid vaccine, ‘barring exceptional circumstances’
 Worshippers hold 24/7 vigil at Boston-area church to protest its closing
 Vatican: Catholic schools facing ‘dramatic situation’ amid pandemic
 Green Bay bishop reinstates obligation to attend Sunday Mass
 Bangladesh Catholic hospitals treat Covid patients with Pope’s ventilators
 Former Christianity Today editor to be confirmed a Catholic

Released Thursday, Sep. 10

 Pope calls for ‘more human and coordinated’ response to migration
 Catholic health-care worker: axed by Catholic facility for upholding Catholic teaching
 ‘A large outbreak’ at Catholic homeless shelter grows to 61 coronavirus cases
 Visiting Lebanon, Vatican Secretary of State emphasizes: ‘You are not alone’
 Wildfires endanger some Oregon churches
 Priest accused of child sex abuse was allowed at Minnesota Catholic music camp
 Australia: Archbishop sees plenary council as a call to greater fidelity
 Catholics thank drug company for switching to an ethical polio vaccine
 Wisconsin bishop warns of possible canonical penalties against priest for video on Democratic Party
 President Trump, military archbishop speak out against cancellation of Navy contracts with priests
 GOP attacks Harris amid battle for Catholic voters’ support
 Uncertain future faces Catholics in conflict-torn Belarus
 Bishop, former USCCB office heads urge Catholic voters to oppose Trump
 Pope upholds right to education, notwithstanding wars and violence

Released Wednesday, Sep. 9

 Nicaragua expels foreign priests; bishops protest
 Pope takes Covid precautions in resuming public audiences
 Seek common good in emerging from Covid lockdown, Pope urges
 Churches exempt from new restrictions on gatherings in UK
 Queensland passes law to jail priests for not reporting confessions of child sexual abuse
 Human rights advocate: Church in Hong Kong divided as Beijing turns the screw
 Beijing: Foreign teachers must not evangelize
 Pakistani Christian sentenced to death for blasphemy
 Chocó bishops denounce systematic human rights violations
 Bishop chairman calls on Congress, White House to reach a deal on Covid relief
 Iowa Catholic college removes bishop-founder’s statue after revelations of slave ownership
 Buffalo-area parish to sell former school, convent to Muslim organization
 In new book, Pope Francis converses with Slow Food founder
 Tabernacle stolen from Ontario cathedral
 Indiana AG asks court to support religious liberty in case involving Catholic teaching on same-sex marriage
 Navy changes course, says Masses will continue on San Diego-area bases
 Attacks on French churches back to ‘normal’ level after lockdown
 Vatican newspaper publishes response to Atlantic article on Pius XII and the Holocaust
 Only 18 babies with Down syndrome born in Denmark in 2019
 Papal condolences for the death of Cardinal Jaworski

Released Tuesday, Sep. 8

 His own father murdered, archbishop speaks against death penalty
 Lake Charles priest surveys hurricane’s devastation to diocese
 Colombian bishops commemorate ‘peace week’ amid sporadic conflict
 Preparations for World Youth Day resume
 A growing number of Catholic schools are shutting down forever
 Nigerian archbishops condemn gasoline price hike
 Federal appeals court: Ex-music director may sue parish for ‘hostile work environment’
 Ghana bishops’ official: Reject politicians, parties that engage in insults
 Pandemic may have accelerated Europe’s secularization by 10 years, leading EU cardinal says
 Bishops join in efforts to reaffirm black people’s dignity
 New Zealand bishops pay tribute to Catholic social teaching
 Texas bishop endorses Wisconsin priest’s message: ‘You cannot be Catholic and a Democrat’
 Church official: Migration should be ‘voluntary, safe, and regular’
 Leading Swiss bishop rips Vatican document on parishes
 Pope encourages fraternal correction, laments gossip

Released Monday, Sep. 7

 Holy See, Burkina Faso enter into new accord
 Priest sues Nebraska diocese, claims false abuse charge
 Argentine prelate sees ‘double standard’ in Mass attendance restrictions
 Armed groups dominate Central African Republic, bishops lament
 Expert sees ‘little fruit’ from Vatican-China accord
 Cardinal Marian Jaworski dead at 94
 Mozambique: kidnapped nuns released after three weeks
 Bishop-elect resigns before consecration after abuse charges
 Haitian bishop decries ‘bribe’ from government in advance of elections
 Vatican announces topic of Pope’s 3rd encyclical
 Christian persecution increased globally after Covid
 Papal condolences on the death of Cardinal Simonis
 Sudan agrees with rebels to remove Islam as state religion
 San Marino’s leaders meet with Pontiff
 Toronto priest plagiarized when ghostwriting for Cardinal Ouellet: new book
 Pope’s governance style embodies St. Ignatius’ discernment, influential editor writes
 Bishop: ‘The Church must proclaim the truth’ on new French abortion law
 Argentine archbishop laments ‘double standard’ as numbers allowed at Mass reduced
 Venezuelan religious brother does funerals alone in Peru cemetery amid virus
 Abducted Jesuit was ‘in love with Islam, believing in Jesus’
 Infanticide OK with 90% of NICU docs and nurses in Belgian survey
 Exiled Belarusian archbishop was previously removed from Moscow position
 Navy cancels Masses at San Diego-area bases while other religious services continue
 Now is the time for ecological conversion and creativity in building a new economy, Pope says in message

Released Friday, Sep. 4

 Cardinal Bo issues 10-point election appeal
 Merkel, leading German bishop discuss pandemic
 Churches may be sued for hostile work environment, federal judge rules
 Trump administration asks Supreme Court to reinstate abortion pill rule
 Holy See, in letter to Australian bishops, affirms inviolability of Confession
 European bishops issue appeal on behalf of archbishop’s return to Belarus
 Refrain from saying that voting for Biden is a mortal sin, Father Martin advises priests
 Vatican Secretary of State addresses European scientists on humanity, environment, and technology
 Late Dutch cardinal tried to hold Church together during turbulent times
 Conversion of humanity necessary to heal the earth, Pope tells ecological experts
 Philippine bishops encourage participation in Season of Creation
 US bishops announce emergency collection for natural disasters

Released Thursday, Sep. 3

 German bishop raps ‘synodal way’ statement on women’s role
 Denver priest faces discipline for telling faithful to ignore emergency orders
 Kenyan bishops: close down abortion clinics
 Kenya’s religious leaders call for accountability in the use of Covid funds
 Women take to pulpits in German diocese
 Another Pakistani Christian accused of blasphemy
 Hindu-led inquiry blames Indian Christians for lynching of Hindu priests
 Comrade Duch, the only Khmer Rouge leader to have asked for forgiveness, has died
 Judge issues blistering injunction against federal coronavirus aid rule for private schools
 Texas renews court effort to ban dismemberment abortion
 Continuity in particularity: Cardinal Parolin, in new book, looks at Pope Francis, Benedict XVI
 Polish bishops concerned by rise in acts of desecration
 Belarusian bishops appeal for blocked archbishop’s safe return
 Zimbabwean bishops hope their criticism of government stirs national dialogue
 US bishops issue Labor Day statement: ‘Rebuilding a Dignified Post-COVID World’
 Pope issues extraordinary appeal for Lebanon, asks all to pray and fast on September 4
 Theme of Pope’s general audience: Solidarity and the virtue of faith

Released Wednesday, Sep. 2

 Planned Parenthood’s election-year campaign to promote abortion
 Hong Kong cardinal: priests must ‘watch our language’
 Benedictine monks leaving historic English abbey
 German bishops decry demonstration against lockdown
 Judge denies request that would have allowed 3 Christian schools to reopen in Oregon
 In Lebanon, Christians defy land-grabbers
 Israeli archeologists unearth 1300-year-old church near Mount of Transfiguration
 Pope doesn’t have a ‘Stalinist plan’ for Church reform, Vatican official says
 Wisconsin bishops to announce end of dispensation from Sunday Mass
 In Victoria, assisted suicide deaths explode
 In Oregon, 2 health care workers dismissed after objecting to immoral procedures
 As historic Christchurch Cathedral demolished, city leaders ask bishop to save interior items
 Catholic schools look to win over families facing virtual classrooms
 ‘We are squeezing out the planet’s goods,’ Pope warns in video
 In Chiapas, Catholic community split over ‘amicable agreement’ for 1997 massacre
 Pope gets first copy of Italian Missal translation
 ‘It definitely is segregation’: Philly parishioners at historic black parish want priest removed
 US bishops call for prayer, simpler lifestyle as part of ‘ecological conversion’

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