Catholic Culture Overview
Catholic Culture Overview

Stories for July 2021

Ordered from most to least recent.

Released Tuesday, Jul. 27

 Dutch bishop says motu proprio is ‘like a declaration of war’
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 Pope renews criticism of ‘unjust food system’
 Cardinal Marx says he could offer his resignation again
 Vatican financial-scandal trial opens
 Bishops regret move toward legal abortion in Northern Ireland
 Tunisian prelate says president’s seizure of power welcomed by people
 Vatican officials using ‘hookup apps,’ data show
 28 abducted Baptist students freed in Nigeria
 Father Jacques Hamel honored 5 years after he was killed at Mass in terrorist attack
 Australian Catholic hospitals call on government to make vaccinations compulsory for all hospital staff
 Parish vandalized in British Columbia
 Newfoundland archdiocese selling bishop’s residence, other assets to pay abuse survivors
 Colorado bishops issue letter on the Hyde Amendment and other pro-life Congressional policies
 Mississippi’s attorney general, in brief, urges high court to overturn Roe
 Karadima, priest defrocked for sexual abuse, dies in Chile
 Kerala diocese announces financial assistance for families with 5 or more children
 New protests for the failure to appoint Dalit bishops in Tamil Nadu
 Pope laments scandal of children’s hunger

Released Monday, Jul. 26

 US birth rate for 2020 hits record low
 Benedict raps ‘inner contradiction’ in German Church
 Survey shows rapid growth in US Latin-Mass attendance
 Vatican shows $78 million budget deficit, releases report on investments
 Spirituality is crucial to synodality, leading synod official says
 Nun pleads guilty to stealing $830K from California Catholic school
 Priest arrested for disparaging India’s prime minister
 Tokyo archbishop appointed named secretary-general of Asia’s bishops
 New Hampshire bishop denies allegations of sexual abuse
 ‘The world is watching’: Nigerian bishops warn Kanu trial could trigger unrest
 Boston College stands ‘resolute’ amid controversy over vaccine requirement
 Residential school survivors demand Saskatchewan court release ‘in-kind services’ document
 Pope prays for victims of flooding in China and blesses Olympics
 ‘If you share, God will multiply,’ Pope tells pilgrims
 ‘To see, to share, to preserve’: papal homily for 1st World Day of Grandparents and the Elderly

Released Friday, Jul. 23

 Belarus: churches under pressure to support embattled regime
 Pope still recovering from surgery, will not celebrate Mass on Sunday
 Polish bishop cleared after abuse investigation
 Multiple arrests under anti-conversion law in Uttar Pradesh
 Canadian police probing 15 suspicious church fires
 Background: 1st World Day of Grandparents and the Elderly (July 25)
 USCCB issues renewed plea for action on abortion funding
 Cuban-American bishop deplores Communist regime’s actions
 Sisters of Charity deny involvement with Biden town hall at Catholic college
 In Indonesia, bishops support government’s tough anti-Covid restrictions
 Religious and political persecution continue in Turkmenistan
 Oregon senator weighs in on data tracking and former USCCB general secretary
 Cardinal Hummes calls for action on implementing Amazon synod
 Washington’s Cardinal Gregory calls for immigration reform
 New Hampshire bishop accused of abusing teenage boy in 1980s
 Pelosi defends taxpayer-funded abortion while citing Catholic faith; Archbishop Cordileone responds
 ‘Profound sorrow’: Cardinal Burke issues statement on Pope’s restrictions on traditional Latin Mass

Released Thursday, Jul. 22

 Venezuela’s Maduro rips Vatican ‘compendium of hatred’
 Russian Patriarch dedicates new cathedral to Our Lady of Kazan
 Kidnapped sister in Democratic Republic of the Congo is freed
 1st Catholic monastery in Tajikistan
 US bishops express solidarity with Cuban people
 New York Times tech columnist ponders data privacy, resignation of USCCB general secretary
 To Church’s dismay, Veracruz state approves bill decriminalizing abortion
 Pennsylvania high court bars clergy assault case
 Coptic Orthodox church burned down near Vancouver
 US bishops’ petition to preserve Hyde amendment surpasses 130,000 signatures
 Nigeria has lost its soul, bishops tell Buhari
 Congressional testimony highlights China’s persecution of religious believers
 +Father Luigi Martinelli, 66

Released Wednesday, Jul. 21

 Citing Covid, Tokyo archdiocese asks Olympic athletes to stay away from churches
 Private party offered surveillance on suspected priests
 Cardinal Becciu files defamation lawsuits to counter fraud charges
 Indian Jesuits brace for fallout of US pullout in Afghanistan
 Minnesota governor restricts conversion therapy
 California law barring ‘misgendering’ of long-term care residents violates 1st Amendment, court rules
 Traditional Latin Mass movement sows division, Archbishop Di Noia says
 Cardinal Zen defends traditional Latin Mass, criticizes ‘anti-Ratzinger lords of the Vatican’
 Program announced for papal journey to Hungary, Slovakia
 Unmarked graves near residential school included ‘other Roman Catholic faith-goers, indigenous and not,’ First Nations chief says
 Father Martin: ‘Anti-Catholicism is the last acceptable prejudice’
 Beatification cause opened for Neocatechumenal Way co-founder
 Catholics in France divided on Covid vaccine ‘health pass’
 Hundreds of alumni criticize lawsuit against Florida Catholic school
 Catholic university in Cincinnati confirms President Biden town hall as criticism mounts

Released Tuesday, Jul. 20

 USCCB general secretary resigns amid charges of sexual misconduct
 Most US bishops allow Latin Masses to continue
 New Mexico diocese responds to lawmaker barred from Communion
 Germany’s Cardinal Marx apologizes in parish for abuse ‘failures’
 Church of England’s safeguarding blunders could cause more deaths, coroner warns
 US bishops’ migration chairman urges Congress to act after court ruling on DACA
 Irish bishops decry UK ‘amnesty’ for Troubles
 South African cardinal urges prayers for his nation
 2 months after arrest, whereabouts of Chinese bishop, priests unknown
 Federal appeals court again rules against football coach dismissed for on-field prayer
 President Biden issues statement for Eid al-Adha
 Toronto, Calgary Catholics join Saskatchewan in fundraising drive for residential school survivors
 Papal visit to Slovakia comes during important anniversary year for Ruthenian Catholics
 In Australia, March for Life targets ‘voluntary assisted dying’ bill
 Latin American bishops face unrest and division in Cuba, Colombia, and Nicaragua

Released Monday, Jul. 19

 Mob violence closes emergency room of Catholic hospital in India
 Lebanese prelate sees nation as ‘sheep without shepherd’
 Italian bank takeover attempt to figure in Vatican financial trial?
 Bishops respond cautiously to papal directive on Latin Mass
 ‘Compassion is born from contemplation,’ Pope tells pilgrims
 ‘The poor and the excluded are your teachers’: papal message to Franciscans
 Southwest Illinois bishop talks of Catholic Church’s ‘racial divide’
 Woman caught on video destroying statues outside Queens church
 New Mexico lawmaker says bishop denied him Communion
 Los Angeles school district kept millions in Title I funds from Catholic schools, probe finds
 1st-person accounts of religious repression punctuate summit
 Texas bishops: Gov. Abbott, don’t shut down our ministry to care for migrant children
 Papua bishops demand freedom for asylum seekers, 8 years after Australian law
 Save Nigerians from starvation, archbishop urges political leaders
 Cardinal Bo appeals for unity against Covid in Myanmar
 In Delhi, Syro-Malabar Catholics pray amidst the rubble of a demolished church

Released Friday, Jul. 16

 European Court says Russia violated human rights treaty in refusing to register same-sex unions
 Uttar Pradesh wants to impose 2-child limit
 Chhattisgarh: police instructed to monitor Christian missionaries
 Pope Francis restricts celebration of traditional Latin Mass [News/analysis]
 Cuban bishops call for dialogue as island reels from protests
 Pennsylvania bishops lift general dispensation from Sunday Mass obligation
 California cathedral unveils $12.6M shrine to Our Lady of La Vang
 Connecticut diocese files for bankruptcy
 Employer was wrong to fire researcher critical of gender ideology, British tribunal rules
 Pope ‘deeply affected’ by floods in Germany
 Covid takes toll on Catholic clergy in hard-hit countries

Released Thursday, Jul. 15

 Vatican now claims ‘most virtuous’ financial safeguards [News/Analysis]
 National Catholic Reporter calls for mandatory vaccination in Catholic churches, colleges
 Spanish court rules government lacked authority for lockdown
 Baton Rouge diocese: masks mandatory for unvaccinated in Catholic schools
 Investment manager talked Vatican into fraudulent scheme, prosecutor charges
 Coptic Pope sees ‘global powers’ stronger than governments
 Italian con men arrested; pretended to have access to Vatican investments
 Australian priest found guilty of 25 abuse charges
 ‘A teen was accused of abuse inside Vatican City. Powerful church figures helped him become a priest.’
 Last of 5 Catholic hostages freed in Mali
 Parish vandalized in Oregon
 Refusal to receive Covid vaccination is a sin, leading Russian Orthodox official says
 Fire at Michigan parish under investigation
 Papal prayer, blessing for new Franciscan minister general
 Papal prayer for Iraqi hospital fire victims
 Pope pays tribute to Congo’s Cardinal Monsengwo, ‘a great figure’
 VA to offer transgender surgery to veterans
 Cuban-American bishops voice support for protestors
 Bishop chairmen respond to extreme abortion push in appropriations bill

Released Wednesday, Jul. 14

 Lay group decries mandatory vaccination at Jesuit university
 Italian senate moves forward on ‘homophobia’ bill despite Vatican concern
 German Catholic Church lost over 220,000 faithful in 2020
 Pope leaves hospital, returns to Vatican
 Retired Buffalo auxiliary bishop named in new abuse lawsuit
 Vancouver archbishop reinstates Sunday Mass obligtation
 Sri Lanka cardinal wants action against former president, prime minster over Easter bombings
 More than 160 unmarked graves found at site of former residential school
 Father Altman removed from ministry by Wisconsin bishop
 Church vandalized in Saskatchewan
 Persecution worsens for Christians in post-coup Myanmar, experts say
 Brazil’s bishops back investigation of country’s Covid vaccine purchases
 EEOC chairwoman unilaterally issues gender guidelines
 Franciscans elect Italian as 121st successor to St. Francis of Assisi
 Archbishop Gomez: continued prayers for Pope’s recovery
 US bishops welcome moratorium on federal executions

Released Tuesday, Jul. 13

 Venezuelan bishops decry human-rights violations
 Olympic athletes will be barred from Catholic churches in Tokyo
 Papal condolences for victims of hospital fire in Iraq
 Cuban police drag priest through streets
 Vatican backs off prediction on Pope’s release from hospital
 Diocese of Rochester: Bankruptcy judge rejects jury-trial motion, insurance settlement
 Amid Catholic opposition, states are legalizing composting of human remains
 Cardinal Tobin, Archbishop Lori urge faithful to petition Congress on Hyde amendment
 Report finds 22% of Americans are Catholic; rise of the religiously unaffiliated slows
 Christian group calls for free election amid rare protests in Cuba
 Boston College faces fury over denied vaccine exemptions
 Catholic Social Services trailer set on fire in Nebraska
 Nun kidnapped in DR Congo
 Descendants of enslaved people join dig on former Jesuit plantation
 Cardinal Cupich writes of ‘underlying spiritual crisis’ in Chicago’s violence
 President Biden’s new LGBTQI+ envoy said Catholic teaching on gender ‘fuels hate’
 USCCB issues action alert on infrastructure legislation

Released Monday, Jul. 12

 Pope’s hospital stay extended
 Appeals court: Chicago parish free to dismiss homosexual music director
 Congo’s Cardinal Monsengwo dead at 81
 Former Vatican finance overseer doubled as consultant to Secretariat of State
 Christians lead pro-democracy rallies in Cuba
 Pope plans to attend UN climate-change conference in November
 Church demolished by authorities in Delhi
 Virginia priest-blogger loses Vatican appeal
 Priest slams ‘pitiful’ lack of Catholic fundraising for residential school survivors
 Catholic church goes up in flames in northern Alberta
 Kidnapped Maiduguri priest regains freedom
 Pope Francis leads Angelus from hospital balcony
 ‘Institute for the Catechism’ aims to overcome modern challenges to effective catechesis
 Pilgrimages to Holy Land resume as Covid restrictions diminish
 Lebanon’s delicate religious balance at risk amid ongoing crisis
 In India, a tribal Christian joins the Modi cabinet
 Family loses appeal in lawsuit over priest’s funeral remarks
 Jihadists attack Christians in Niger
 Pope calls for an end to the spiral of violence in Haiti

Released Friday, Jul. 9

 Pope resuming work after surgery, plans Sunday audience
 Pope, Archbishop of Canterbury note 10th anniversary of South Sudan independence
 Uzbekistan renews restrictions on religious freedom
 Azerbaijan blocks access to monastery
 Polish archbishop, found guilty of negligence, asks for coadjutor
 Christians play leading role in Hong Kong democracy struggle
 Vatican foundation honors Arab prince with humanitarian award
 Federal appeals court: Ban on proselytizing at outdoor market violates free speech rights
 Former Wyoming Catholic College CFO accused of $15M fraud
 UN human rights official ‘deeply saddened and disturbed’ by Father Swamy’s death
 Nearly a year after Beirut blast, Maronite leaders still helping residents
 Pastors often discussed election, pandemic and racism in fall of 2020
 Louisiana Senate declares annual ‘St. Joseph the Worker Day’ statewide
 Arson, vandalism at Los Angeles parish; no injuries
 Another church building burns down in Saskatchewan
 British Columbia bishop calls for patience amid waves of church burnings, vandalism
 Church in Haiti ‘stunned’ by president’s assassination, says bishop
 Christian schools struggle to survive in Pakistan

Released Thursday, Jul. 8

 Cardinal Hollerich named relator general for next Synod meeting
 Pope condemns assassination of Haitian leader
 Bishop pleads for aid as thousands displaced by fighting in South Sudan
 Colorado governor signs law granting 3-year window for child sexual abuse lawsuits
 Next Supreme Court term includes case on religious schools; Court declines wedding florist case
 Franciscan sister held hostage in Mali sends new letter to her family
 Vatican issues message for Sea Sunday
 Franciscans open general chapter, focus on diversity, evangelization
 America’s ‘Polish seminary’ announces it will close
 Parents who gave $1.35M sue Florida Catholic school, ask for return of donation
 Mayor of Canadian territory’s capital rips Church, announces he will seek end of property tax exemption
 Statue outside North Carolina basilica restored after vandalism
 Well wishes for the Pope: Vatican highlights messages from Armenian Patriarch, Taiwan’s president
 Pope continues recovery; tests ease fears of infection

Released Wednesday, Jul. 7

 Former Vatican finance official says trial will exonerate him of charges
 Armenian Catholic Synod lacks consensus on new Patriarch
 Irish bishop hits out at ‘political’ decision to ban Holy Communion ceremonies
 Boy Scouts reach $850M agreement with abuse victims
 Bishop outlines hopes for Australian plenary council
 Leading Canadian prelate fuels more anger by saying the Church is being persecuted over residential schools
 State Dept. announces passport changes for ‘non-binary, intersex, and gender non-conforming’ persons
 Freedom of opinion and political correctness: An interview with Cardinal Müller
 Vatican cardinal: Europeans must ‘reawaken consciences’ after abortion vote
 Hindu extremists interrupt church service in Chhattisgarh; pastor detained
 Militia attacks on Iraqi power stations are ‘disastrous,’ Chaldean Patriarch says
 Pope recovering normally, Vatican spokesman says
 Head of British Columbia civil liberties group criticized, defended for ‘burn it all down’ tweet
 Newark archdiocese sells archbishop’s controversial retirement house

Released Tuesday, Jul. 6

 Pope urges Syro-Malabar Catholics toward common liturgy
 Michigan diocese reveals credible evidence against deceased bishop
 Nicaraguan prelates rap government repression
 Sri Lankan cardinal opposes power plant, citing environmental concerns
 Coptic bishop condemns female circumcision
 Ohio enacts conscience protections for medical personnel and institutions
 Saskatchewan bishops revive fundraising campaign for residential school survivors
 Priest kidnapped in Nigeria
 Parish vandalized in California; suspect arrested
 Indigenous leaders call for church arsons in Canada to stop, say fires were likely set by non-indigenous people
 Catholic writer, activist detained for ‘inciting secession’ in China’s Hebei
 Lukashenko threatens Catholic Church over a patriotic song
 USCCB grants $2.5M to Church in Latin America
 Vatican Secretary of State, in Strasbourg, rues Europe’s demographic winter
 Father Stan Swamy, Indian Jesuit, dies following 9 months in prison
 Pope Francis ‘in general good condition’ following colon surgery, to remain in hospital for week
 Chile’s bishops offer prayers, social teaching as constitutional convention begins

Released Monday, Jul. 5

 Vatican prosecutors to try ten in financial scandal
 Group statement begs Pope to protect traditional Mass
 Pope convalescing in hospital after intestinal surgery
 Pope adds Slovakia trip to Hungary visit in September
 Papal appeal for end to violence in Eswatini
 Encounter the incarnate Lord in daily life and be amazed, Pope tells pilgrims
 Papal praise for ‘science for peace’ meeting

Released Friday, Jul. 2

 Iraqi prime minister meets with Pontiff
 Vatican joins campaign against ‘vaccination hesitancy’
 World Meeting of Families to combine diocesan events with Rome focus
 New revelations about Vatican employee in financial scandal
 New York bishop says Pope should repudiate Church support for colonization
 US Catholic schools seek rebound from grim year
 ‘Suspicious fire’ at Canadian cathedral; minor damage
 Historic Denver church vandalized; motive unclear
 US bishops support federal investigation of former residential schools for Native Americans
 Polish archbishop sanctioned by Vatican defends election as mayor
 At least 11 Catholic churches vandalized in Calgary
 Cardinal Sako sees Church in East as model for a renewed synodality
 Pew study: Indians are devout, but religions want to live separately
 President Biden issues executive order on LGBTQ+ diversity in federal workforce
 House appropriators begin repealing federal policies preventing taxpayer funding of abortion
 Pope Francis pays tribute to Vatican newspaper, Pius XII’s magisterium
 Build social friendship, flee from populisms and social enmities, Pope says in video

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