1. American Catholics Shouldn’t Abandon Religious Freedom, By Andrea Picciotti-Bayer, National Review, May 8, 2023, 6:30 AM, Opinion Amovement aimed at politicizing the church in America is gaining ground in conservative Catholic circles. In the past it has flown its flag under a confusing variety of names, including “integralism,” “common-good constitutionalism,” and “post-liberalism.” Now its promoters have attempted to rebrand it as “political Catholicism.” While fuzzy on the details, proponents hope “to order the nation and its state to the natural and divine law, the tranquility of order, precisely because doing so is the best way to protect and shelter the localities in which genuinely human community, imbued with grace, can flourish.” Such a fantastical reordering of American public life poses lots of problems, and not only the proponents’ “lack of street smarts,” as identified recently by Ben Domenech. There is another serious problem: the movement’s incompatibility with the principles of religious freedom. And it is here that opportunistic integralism must face two more reality checks. The first is that their opposition to religious freedom brings them into direct conflict with the teachings of the Catholic Church. The second is that our Constitution specifically protects us from people who think like them. … Catholic Political Thought 101 must be grounded in religious and legal tradition and necessarily include religious freedom on its course syllabus. Any attempt to overlook it will not only undermine our Constitution’s protection of worship and the practice of Christianity in our daily lives; it will also fly in the face of the precious teaching of the Catholic Church, which guides us in our mission to share our faith. https://www.nationalreview.com/2023/05/american-catholics-shouldnt-abandon-religious-freedom/__________________________________________________________ 2. Government allows Catholic hospital to keep sanctuary lamp burning, By John Lavenburg, Crux, May 6, 2023 With a potential lawsuit looming, the federal government has issued a waiver to allow a Catholic hospital in Oklahoma to keep the flame of its long-lit sanctuary candle burning, which, in Catholic tradition, symbolizes the presence of Christ. The Department of Health and Human Services “realized it would be playing with fire in court if it stood by its absurd demand, so it chose wisely,” Lori Windham, vice president and senior counsel at the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty said in a statement. … https://cruxnow.com/church-in-the-usa/2023/05/government-allows-catholic-hospital-to-keep-sanctuary-lamp-burning__________________________________________________________ 3. U.S. ambassador to the Holy See talks about the role of faith in politics, By Tina Dennelly, Catholic News Agency, May 6, 2023, 6:00 AM Growing up, Joe Donnelly wanted to be the center fielder for the New York Yankees. Now he’s the U.S. ambassador to the Holy See. Donnelly, 67, has been the ambassador since 2022. He recently sat down with Colm Flynn of EWTN News In Depth for an interview about his background and political career. He also discussed the war in Ukraine as well as religious persecution in China. … While in Congress, Donnelly was known as a pro-labor, pro-life moderate Democrat who changed his position on marriage in 2013, CNA reported at the time of his nomination as ambassador. He supported some pro-life policies over the years, including restrictions on abortions after 20 weeks and banning taxpayer-funded abortion; he also earned criticism from some pro-life groups for eventually voting against defunding Planned Parenthood in the Senate. … When asked if religious freedom around the world was something that Donnelly, as ambassador, was focused on, Donnelly said it was. “It is actually core to our work,” he responded. “We’ve had a number of representatives from our government come over here to talk to the Vatican about various religious freedom subjects. One in particular met with the Vatican on the situation for the Uyghurs, where they’re in concentration camps in China because of their religious beliefs.” https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/254241/us-ambassador-to-the-holy-see-talks-about-the-role-of-faith-in-politics__________________________________________________________ 4. Nearly 50 Catholic women health workers call for protecting women and the unborn, By Katie Yoder, Our Sunday Visitor, May 5, 2023 Nearly 50 Catholic women in the health profession are emphasizing the dignity of human life after dozens of Catholic women scholars signed an open letter calling for new conversations on “reproductive justice” while claiming that abortion restrictions endanger women. “It is our ethical duty as healthcare professionals — and moral obligation as Catholics — to care for both the mother and her child, to uphold the human dignity of both, and to protect and defend both,” they responded in a new open letter. The letter — coordinated by Mary Hallan FioRito, a fellow at the Ethics and Public Policy Center through the Catholic Women’s Forum — went public Thursday. The signers identified themselves as doctors, physician assistants and nurses who are board-certified in obstetrics and gynecology, family medicine, pediatrics, psychology, neonatology, radiology, maternal-fetal medicine, pediatrics and midwifery. “I signed the letter because I realize that in an era when the culture frantically celebrates inclusion, tolerance and diversity; the one left out consistently is the unborn child,” Grazie Pozo Christie, MD, a diagnostic radiologist and an advisory board member for the Archdiocese of Miami Pregnancy Resource Centers, told Our Sunday Visitor. “This child happens to be my patient, and the patient of the other signatories who work in health care,” she said. “Just as much as the pregnant mother is our patient, so is her child.” … https://www.oursundayvisitor.com/nearly-50-catholic-women-health-workers-call-for-protecting-women-and-the-unborn/__________________________________________________________ 5. The battle for Catholicism’s soul in Germany: An interview with Emeka Ani, By Luke Coppen, The Pillar, May 5, 2023, 2:01 PM, Interview Dr. Emeka Ani is deeply involved in the life of the Catholic Church in Germany. He is the chairman of the country’s Federal Pastoral Council for Catholics with Other Mother Tongues and Rites (BPR), which represents the growing number of Catholics in the country whose mother tongue is not German. He is, in addition, a member of the steering committee of the influential lay Central Committee of German Catholics (ZdK). He was also one of the participants in Germany’s synodal way, the controversial three-year initiative that brought together bishops and lay representatives to discuss far-reaching changes to Church teaching and practice amid a shattering abuse crisis.  The synodal way focused on four areas — power, the priesthood, women in the Church, and sexuality — and culminated in a series of votes that set the local Church on a collision course with the Vatican. In this interview, Dr. Ani reflects on his experience with the synodal way, which formally ended in March with resolutions supporting women deacons, a re-examination of priestly celibacy, lay preaching at Masses, and same-sex blessings. … https://www.pillarcatholic.com/p/the-battle-for-catholicisms-soul__________________________________________________________

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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