1. Pope Steers Church’s Shift on Abuse, By Francis X. Rocca, The Wall Street Journal, December 14, 2021, pg. A11
Dec. 13, 2021 8:00 AM, After Two Decades, Abuse Crisis Has Humbled the Catholic Church, Scandals over clerical abuse of minors have left the institution poorer and less influential
U.S. bishops have established child-protection measures that the Vatican has encouraged world-wide, and most of the accusations in America are now historical. Yet the crisis continues to take a toll on the church’s standing in the U.S. and beyond.
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In a 2021 survey by the Center for Applied Research in the Apostolate at Georgetown University, 31% of adult U.S. Catholics said the abuse crisis has made them embarrassed to identify themselves as Catholic.
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Moreover, 26% of U.S. Catholics have reduced the amount of money they donate to their parish in response to abuse scandals, shows a 2019 study by the Pew Research Center. The crisis continues to take a toll on the church’s standing in the U.S. and beyond.
https://www.wsj.com/articles/after-two-decades-abuse-crisis-has-humbled-the-catholic-church-11639400404
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2. Vatican fraud trial sees more delay amid procedural errors, By Nicole Winfield, Associated Press, December 14, 2021, 8:28 AM
The Vatican’s big fraud and embezzlement trial, which opened to great fanfare in July, suffered another delay Tuesday as the tribunal postponed any further decisions until prosecutors finish redoing their investigation of four of the original 10 defendants.
The delay means the trial, which had already been proceeding at a snail’s pace even by Italian standards, won’t get off the ground until mid-February at the earliest. Tribunal president Giuseppe Pignatone said that by then he could “finally, hopefully” unify the two branches of the trial and start in earnest.
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After two years of investigation, Vatican prosecutors in July charged 10 people — including a once-powerful cardinal — with a host of financial crimes related to the Holy See’s 350 million-euro investment in a London residential property.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/amid-procedural-errors-vatican-fraud-trial-sees-more-delay/2021/12/14/d00aaffe-5ccc-11ec-b1ef-cb78be717f0e_story.html
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3. Pope says he’ll meet with French sex abuse commission, By Nicole Winfield, Associated Press, December 13, 2021, 2:06 PM
Pope Francis agreed Monday to meet with the commission that published a ground-breaking report into clergy sexual abuse in the French Catholic Church and, separately, expressed “sadness” over the sudden downfall of the archbishop of Paris, according to French bishops who met with him.
Archbishop Éric de Moulins-Beaufort, president of the French Bishops Conference, told reporters that Francis had agreed “in principle” to meet with the independent commission members but that a date had to be found.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/pope-says-hell-meet-with-french-sex-abuse-commission/2021/12/13/b99effde-5c47-11ec-b1ef-cb78be717f0e_story.html
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4. Justices won’t block vaccine mandate for NY health workers, By Associated Press, December 13, 2021, 3:30 PM
The Supreme Court refused Monday to halt a COVID-19 vaccine requirement for health care workers in New York that does not offer an exemption for religious reasons.
The court acted on emergency appeals filed by doctors, nurses and other medical workers who say they are being forced to choose between their jobs and religious beliefs.
As is typical in such appeals, the court did not explain its order, although it has similarly refused to get in the way of vaccine mandates elsewhere.
Justices Neil Gorsuch, Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito dissented. “Now, thousands of New York healthcare workers face the loss of their jobs and eligibility for unemployment benefits,” Gorsuch wrote in a 14-page opinion that Alito joined.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/justices-wont-block-vaccine-mandate-for-ny-health-workers/2021/12/13/0cc4e8f0-5c51-11ec-b1ef-cb78be717f0e_story.html
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5. Catholic pro-democracy figure Jimmy Lai gets jail time for involvement in Hong Kong Tiananmen Square vigil, By Jonah McKeown, Catholic News Agency, December 13, 2021, 3:01 PM
Jimmy Lai, a Catholic and prominent figure in the ongoing pro-democracy movement in Hong Kong, has been sentenced to a 13-month jail sentence for participating in a 2020 vigil commemorating the 1989 Tiananmen Square massacre.
Lai, alongside fellow activists Gwyneth Ho and Chow Hang Tung, received his sentence Dec. 9 for “inciting” and taking part in an “unlawful assembly.”
Lai wrote in a statement read by his lawyer: “[L]et me suffer the punishment of this crime, so I may share the burden and glory of those young men and women who shed their blood [during the 1989 massacre] to proclaim truth, justice and goodness.”
https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/249872/catholic-pro-democracy-figure-jimmy-lai-gets-jail-time-for-involvement-in-hong-kong-tiananmen-square-vigil
___________________________________________________________TCA Media Monitoring provides a snapshot from national newspapers and major Catholic press outlets of coverage regarding significant Catholic Church news and current issues with which the Catholic Church is traditionally or prominently engaged. The opinions and views expressed in the articles do not necessarily reflect the views of The Catholic Association.
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