1. U.S. bishops debate Mccarrick report at annual meeting, Views vary on focusing on ex-cardinal’s sins or changes in accountability, By Michelle Boorstein, The Washington Post, November 17, 2020, Pg. A3
One week after a bombshell Vatican report about the rise of now-disgraced ex-cardinal Theodore Mccarrick, U.S. bishops debated its import Monday at their biannual meeting, with some saying it left out the role of money, others saying it shows that the bishop-selection process needs fixing, and still others disagreeing about whether it showed the need — or not — for more lay oversight of top clerics.
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Among the approximately 14 bishops to speak about the report at the conference, there seemed to be disparate opinions Monday as to whether the focus should be on Mccarrick’s sins or on changes they could make to improve accountability.
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The bishops also added to their 2021-2024 agenda the topic of how to best address the coronavirus crisis. The virus’s effects on the church are vast, including harming parish giving — as many Catholic parishes still rely on weekly in-person tithing — and Catholic spiritual life, so rooted in the physical rite of receiving Communion.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/religion/2020/11/16/catholic-bishops-mccarrick-covid-racism/
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2. WVa high court deals setback in state’s Catholic church suit, By Associated Press, November 17, 2020
West Virginia’s attorney general cannot use a consumer protection law to sue a Catholic diocese over sexual abuse allegations, the state’s high court said Monday.
The West Virginia Supreme Court issued its opinion in response to a lawsuit the state filed last year accusing the Wheeling-Charleston diocese of failing to publicly disclose the employment of sexual abusers in its schools and camps. The absence of such disclosure amounted to a violation of a consumer protection law, Attorney General Patrick Morrisey argued. Attorneys for the diocese asked the court to dismiss the suit.
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In its majority opinion, the high court said the law does not apply to services provided by a religious institution.
https://cruxnow.com/church-in-the-usa/2020/11/wva-high-court-deals-setback-in-states-catholic-church-suit/
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3. Marie Stopes changes name over founder’s eugenics ideas, By Associated Press, November 17, 2020, 7:37 AM
One of Britain’s leading family planning organizations is changing its name to distance itself from its founder’s troubling views on eugenics and race.
Marie Stopes International, which provides abortion and contraception services, said that starting Tuesday it will be known as MSI Reproductive Choices.
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Stopes supported eugenics, the now-discredited movement to improve the human race through selective reproduction. She opposed interracial marriage and advocated the sterilization of people considered unfit for parenthood.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/europe/marie-stopes-changes-name-over-founders-eugenics-ideas/2020/11/17/9e75267a-28d1-11eb-9c21-3cc501d0981f_story.html
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4. USCCB elects new General Secretary, committee heads, By Catholic News Agency, November 16, 2020, 4:10 PM
The US Conference of Catholic Bishops at their annual Fall General Assembly on Monday announced election results for several positions at the conference, including chairman positions for several committees.
Monsignor Jeffrey Burrill, STL, who had served as Associate General Secretary for the USCCB since 2016, was selected for a five year term as the conference’s General Secretary Nov. 16.
A priest of the Diocese of La Crosse, Burrill succeeds Monsignor Brian Bransfield, who has served as general secretary since 2016. Burrill earned a licentiate in theology from the Pontifical University of St. Thomas Aquinas in Rome and has served as a formator at the Pontifical North American College.
https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/us-bishops-elect-new-general-secretary-committee-heads-97555
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5. US nuncio to USCCB: To heal society’s wounds, Catholics must be Good Samaritans, By Matt Hadro, Catholic News Agency, November 16, 2020, 2:18 PM
atholics need to be Good Samaritans to those wounded both by the coronavirus pandemic and by social conflict, the papal representative told U.S. bishops at their annual fall meeting on Monday.
If Catholics “want to heal the world” then they must witness to Christ, said Archbishop Christophe Pierre, Apostolic Nuncio to the United States. Pope Francis, the nuncio said, “believes that we should be a Samaritan Church.”
Pierre cited the pope’s recent encyclical Fratelli tutti, which focuses on the parable of the Good Samaritan at length.
https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/us-nuncio-to-heal-societys-wounds-catholics-must-be-good-samaritans-11428
___________________________________________________________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. |
