Stories for February 2017

Ordered from most to least recent.

Released Tuesday, Feb. 28

 Michigan priest sues SNAP for defamation
 Pontifical Academy for Life, emptied of members, delays annual assembly
 In interview with homeless magazine, Pope stresses acceptance of refugees
 Medjugorje bishop: reported apparitions are ‘not credible’
 EU bishops’ commission issues social justice recommendations
 Iraq: patriarch blesses giant cross in liberated town
 Anglican leader reflects on papal visit
 US missionary missing in Niger
 Convert to Christianity reportedly tortured in Syria after church publicized baptism
 Prelate decries rising anti-Semitism

Released Monday, Feb. 27

 Melkite Catholic prelates reach agreement, end ‘open rebellion’
 Slovenia gives same-sex couples most legal rights
 Detailed photos capture frescoes in Sistine Chapel
 New monastery in Ireland is first since Reformation
 US bishops welcome Trump’s decision to reverse Obama transgender rule
 President of Pontifical Academy for Life salutes deceased Italian politician who led fight for legal abortion
 Knights of Malta chancellor confirms: former grand master asked for resignation
 Vatican moves eight candidates toward beatification
 Hundreds of Copts in flight from Sinai peninsula after murders, threats
 Report: Pope has eased penalties on some abusive clerics
 SSPX near purchase of headquarters in Rome; rumors swirl of agreement with Vatican
 Pope considering visit to South Sudan
 Pope visits Anglican church in Rome, recalls St. Paul’s humility in face of divisions
 Pope Francis: entrust yourself to the Father rather than to the pursuit of mammon
 Pope deplores discrimination against persons with disabilities
 Pope Francis: be close to couples, announce that marriage is sign of love of Christ and the Church
 Manifest a ‘poor Church with and for the poor,’ Pope tells French bishops’ delegation

Released Friday, Feb. 24

 Pope sees urgent need to protect water supply
 Another Copt murdered; Christians begin to flee Sinai peninsula
 In testimony before abuse commission, Australian prelates split on sacramental seal
 Over 200 parishes have closed in German diocese
 European ecumenical initiatives to have greater focus on theology, witness
 South Sudan’s bishops lament war crimes; ‘this famine is man-made’
 Pro-life cooperation between Orthodox, Catholics in Russia
 USCCB: bishop decries Homeland Security’s memos on border security
 Belgian court: religious freedom includes kosher slaughter of animals

Released Thursday, Feb. 23

 Coptic Christians murdered, Islamic group vows more attacks in Egypt
 Cardinal Burke leaves Guam after taking testimony in abuse trial
 Former Vatican bank officials sentenced for financial misconduct
 Another Catholic aid group involved in condom distribution
 Pope greets Argentine soccer team
 Papal commission on sexual abuse is floundering, members report
 Better an atheist than a hypocritical Catholic, Pope says
 Venezuelan cardinal: Church will not join crisis talks until elections scheduled
 Leading Russian Orthodox official laments persecution, says ‘Islamic terrorism’ does not exist
 Action urged on Planned Parenthood funding
 Border bishops issue statement on immigration
 Pope Francis: the Torah manifests the ‘paternal and visceral love of God’
 Popular movements call for sanctuary, disruption; blast racism, ‘all forms of human hierarchy’
 Vatican newspaper op-ed cautions against advance end-of-life directives

Released Wednesday, Feb. 22

 Vatican calls for adherence to ceasefire in Ukraine
 Cardinal Coccopalmerio insists: no confusion over Amoris Laetitia
 Czech, Slovak prelates cite dangers of immigration surge
 Cardinal Zen fears Vatican will sell out China’s underground Catholics
 Circus troup entertains at papal audience
 Jesuit general: all doctrine is subject to discernment
 Vatican warns against misuse of Pope’s image, Holy See’s symbols
 Pope Francis reflects on creation and hope
 Pamphlets in Congo’s capital call for destruction of churches, schools
 San Diego bishop: ‘we must all become disrupters’
 Egypt: road planned through ancient monastery’s land
 Famine in South Sudan; papal appeal for aid
 Patriarch calls for Lenten prayer for peace in Iraq
 Ghana’s bishops to reconsecrate nation to Sacred Heart

Released Tuesday, Feb. 21

 Migrants flooding into Guatemala, heading for US
 South African bishop: no violence against foreigners, but strengthen border controls
 Cardinal Desmond Connell, retired Archbishop of Dublin, dead at 90
 Australian bishop: I too was victim of clerical abuse
 Vatican officials join Egyptian Muslim leaders in conference on combatting extremism
 Pope Francis discusses duties to migrants, refugees
 Cardinal Tobin decries populist racism, xenophobia
 German Catholics, Lutherans to hold ecumenical festival
 Ukrainian Catholic leader recalls Cardinal Slipyj’s heroism
 California bishop praises President Trump’s travel ban
 Parishes looted, abandoned in Congo
 Pope meets with parish children, charity assistants

Released Monday, Feb. 20

 Vancouver archbishop sees ‘lethal crisis’ in drug overdoses
 Prominent French cleric under investigation for abuse
 French law requires pro-life web sites ‘openly state’ opposition to abortion
 Rebel troops destroy Catholic seminary in Democratic Republic of Congo
 Syrian Orthodox Church weighs special synod to address Patriarch’s gesture of respect for Qu’ran
 Norma McCorvey dies: plaintiff in Roe v. Wade case, later a pro-life activist
 Vatican froze over $2 million in suspicious transactions last year
 Cardinal Burke: never asked for resignation of Knights of Malta chancellor
 House hearing on religious liberty in US
 Pope Francis: praying for evildoers is ‘Christian path to holiness’
 Pope prays for victims of violence in Congo, Pakistan, Iraq
 Pope Francis: respond to evil with goodness, love family members who are enemies
 Pope to visit Rome’s Anglican church
 Evangelize with renewed zeal, Pope tells Marians of the Immaculate Conception
 USCCB, CRS urge Secretary Tillerson to support Green Climate Fund, clean-energy investments

Released Friday, Feb. 17

 Egyptian Copt gunned down; Islamic militants suspected
 Denver archdiocese issues caution on blogger’s ‘visions’
 Michael Novak, influential Catholic author and teacher, dead at 83
 Welcome cultural changes, diversity, Pope urges Roman university students
 Pope lashes out at ‘corrupt’ global system, intolerance of foreigners
 Texas bishop: Trump’s executive order on refugees is ‘draconian’
 Pope receives Special Olympics athletes, speaks of joy of sports
 Pope urges prayer for peace, laments arms trafficking
 Iraqi Christian refugees call for quicker resettlement
 Trump administration keeps Obama’s LGBT envoy
 USCCB committee chairmen call on President Trump to protect religious liberty

Released Thursday, Feb. 16

 Venezuelan leftists disrupt Mass, denounce Church involvement in political crisis
 Chaldean patriarchate rejects calls for revenge against ISIS, made by militia groups
 Cardinal Burke asked chancellor of Knights of Malta to resign, order’s interim leader says
 Church in Australia has paid over $200 million to sex-abuse victims
 More essential than ever for Catholic hospitals to maintain distinct identity: Cardinal Burke
 Members of European Parliament condemn Trump’s reinstatement of Mexico City policy
 Pope recalls Saints Cyril and Methodius
 EU bishops’ commission: integrate migrants into a ‘cohesive and welcoming’ society
 South Sudan: bishop demands justice after nun’s murder
 British prelate: ‘safely reduce’ prison population
 Arab bishops discuss migration, other challenges
 Historic cathedral transferred back to Russian Orthodox Church

Released Wednesday, Feb. 15

 Syrian Orthodox bishops assail Patriarch for reverencing Qu’ran
 Cardinal suggests joint commission to study historical Catholic-Orthodox disputes in Ukraine
 Friar chosen to lead Lenten Retreat for Vatican officials
 Anglican bishop in South Sudan accuses government troops of atrocities
 Venezuela: Pope has offered to meet with leaders to help resolve crisis
 Vatican worried by populism, nationalism, Secretary of State says
 Trump administration has not requested meeting with Pontiff
 Vatican announces awards for Catholic social thought
 Council of Cardinals weighs reorganization of Vatican tribunals
 Cardinal Burke sent to Guam for sex-abuse trial of archbishop
 Pope Francis: indigenous peoples should give informed consent to development projects
 Boast of grace and afflictions, Pope says in reflection on St. Paul and hope
 Kenya’s bishops warn of famine
 Korean missionaries expelled from China
 Increased security at Cologne cathedral
 Valentine’s Day banned in Islamabad
 USCCB urges senators to support Conscience Protection Act

Released Tuesday, Feb. 14

 Russian Orthodox clerics sees joint effort with Catholic Church to help persecuted Christians
 Georgian Orthodox priest accused in plot to poison Patriarch
 Vatican launch for cardinal’s book defending German/Maltese bishops’ reading of Amoris Laetitia
 EU bishops’ commission: ‘preemptive peacebuilding’ should complement defense efforts
 Christian cemetery vandalized in Tunisia
 Leading Russian Orthodox official speaks of Ukrainian Catholics’ ‘enmity and hatred’
 Cardinal Marx welcomes election of Germany’s new president
 Catholic Charities: fundraising campaign to assist migrants, refugees
 USCCB: prelates express solidarity with Middle East’s Christians, other religious minorities

Released Monday, Feb. 13

 Historic church in Holy Land, damaged by arson in 2014, reopens
 Vatican disciplines Peruvian founder of lay movement, bars contact with group
 Cardinal Nichols raps UK restriction on Syrian refugees
 To combat terrorism, reject ‘unfettered pursuit of profit,’ Vatican envoy tells UN
 Jerusalem patriarchate denounces Israeli law on seizure of Palestinian property
 In homily, Pope warns against conflicts within hierarchy
 Australian archbishop decries eugenic approach to abortion
 Pope writes preface for abuse victim’s book
 Statistics show marriages more likely to survive if couples had no other lifetime sexual partners
 Chinese official: underground bishops cannot be recognized
 Council of Cardinals gives Pope Francis a vote of confidence
 Coalition targets jihadist who inspired attack on French priest
 Cardinal: proclaim to young people the beauty of priestly, religious vocations
 USCCB committee chair welcomes court decision blocking Trump executive order
 Pope Francis: the Sermon on the Mount calls us to a ‘higher justice’
 Pope names special Medjugorje envoy

Released Friday, Feb. 10

 Pope sees both promise and danger in health-care industry
 Colombian missionary nun kidnapped in Mali
 Ohio city bans conversion therapy
 Background: World Day of the Sick
 Nigerian bishop decries violence, corruption
 Aleppo described as ‘post-apocalyptic’
 Anti-Defamation League welcomes Pope’s condemnation of anti-Semitism

Released Thursday, Feb. 9

 Europe must ‘rediscover soul,’ Cardinal Bagnasco says
 Israeli seizure of Palestinian land offends against justice, bishop says
 Women bring harmony to family, Pope says
 Financial questions stall momentum of French Catholic presidential candidate
 Catholic schools challenge barren culture and sow hope, Pope says
 Pope lauds Jesuit journal for courageous editorial approach
 Hong Kong cardinal optimistic about accord between Vatican, Beijing
 Pope: troubled by ‘rigid’ religious orders that attract vocations
 Pope deplores anti-Semitism
 Humanitarian crisis in portions of eastern Ukraine
 Pakistan’s parliament outlaws lynching, forced conversion
 USCCB, CRS: action alert on human trafficking legislation
 Morocco: conversion from Islam should not be punished by death
 Pope draws attention to plight of Rohingya Muslims, human trafficking victims
 Samurai beatified in Japan

Released Wednesday, Feb. 8

 Gallup diocese emerges from bankruptcy
 Cardinals meet with India’s president, discuss kidnapped priest
 Duterte blasts Filipino bishops, says he will ‘go to hell’ to end drug traffic
 Vatican journal article questions authority of ban on female ordination
 Cardinal Marx: no reason for questions on Amoris Laetitia
 Orthodox, Anglican leaders join in call for end to modern slavery
 English bishop sees ‘growing problem’ in discord over Amoris Laetitia, asks prayers
 Pope reflects on link between Christian hope, mutual support
 Ukrainian Catholic leader affirms ‘love and devotedness’ to Pope
 Hungarian government gives grant to Russian churches
 Fight corruption, Romanian Orthodox Church urges
 EU bishops’ commission reiterates position on migration
 Vatican newspaper: the Church is distinct from partisan politics

Released Tuesday, Feb. 7

 Israel OK seizure of Palestinian land for Jewish settlements
 Australian royal commission finds 7% of Catholic priests accused of abuse
 Rome police search for source of posters criticizing Pope
 Chinese official, tied to organ harvesting, invited to Vatican conference
 Pope’s 2017 Lenten message focuses on rich man, Lazarus
 Puerto Rico’s bishops grateful that Obama commuted activist’s sentence; Pope intervened
 Prelate urges Tillerson not to move US embassy to Jerusalem
 Myanmar: 60 Christian churches destroyed since 2011
 Church in Iraq calls for assistance to rebuild towns liberated from ISIS
 Catholic, Lutheran leaders invite Pope Francis to Germany

Released Monday, Feb. 6

 Reformation anniversary is ‘opportunity to take a further step,’ Pope tells German ecumenical group
 In homily, Pope again warns against ‘rigid’ focus on Commandments
 Iraqi prelate: foreign troops, sectarian militias could endanger Iraq’s future
 Vatican unveils Charter for Health Care Workers
 Filipino archbishop resigns after clash with Vatican on reported apparitions
 Trump to meet Pope in May?
 SNAP president resigns, following director, after lawsuit filed against group
 Posters criticizing Pope appear on streets of Rome
 Accord between Holy See, Congo
 Pope appoints special delegate to Sovereign Order of Malta
 Prevent money-centered economy from claiming more victims, Pope tells Focolare
 Pope emphasizes good works in discussing call to be salt, light
 Pope emphasizes: ‘every life is sacred’
 Papal video message for Super Bowl

Released Friday, Feb. 3

 Priests leaving for Europe, African bishop reports
 Pope encourages Nobel laureates to pursue nonviolence
 Vatican Secretary of State signs diplomatic accord with Republic of Congo
 Filipino leader moves to rein in vigilante squads
 Leading Russian Orthodox official hopes Trump’s policies will help persecuted Christians
 Report finds rising hate speech against Christians in Turkey
 Ukraine’s bishops urge prayers for peace
 Sovereign Order of Malta thanks Pope for intervention, sees ‘renewed vigor’
 Cardinal Nichols, Archbishop of Canterbury criticize Trump’s policies
 Mexican bishop: Trump’s economic views contradict Christian faith
 USCCB rues Trump’s decision to retain Obama’s LGBT executive order

Released Thursday, Feb. 2

 Pope’s prayer intention for February 2017
 Rumors in Rome anticipate date in 2017 for accord between Vatican, SSPX
 Iraqi archbishop welcomes Trump order to help religious minorities
 For religious orders, survival is not enough, Pope says
 Trump preparing new executive order to protect religious freedom
 Ukrainian Catholic leader meets with families of slain protestors
 Archbishop of Canterbury: ‘we have failed terribly’ on abuse
 Cardinal Marx lauds Merkel, criticizes populism
 Iraqi archbishop’s US visit postponed because of executive order
 USCCB calls for transparency in mining industry’s transactions with foreign governments
 Papal encouragement for climate movement, religious life

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Gospel Excerpt, Luke 10:33-34, Cycle C: But a Samaritan traveler who came upon him was moved with compassion at the sight. He approached the victim, poured oil and wine over his wounds and bandaged them. Then he lifted him up on his own animal, took him to an inn and cared for him. The

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