1. Why Vatican II Was Necessary, The Council’s many theological and doctrinal accomplishments were crucial to rekindling that radical, Christ-centered faith that would be the source of a revitalized Catholic mission to convert the modern world., By George Weigel, National Catholic Register, October 19, 2022, Opinion
Writing my new book, To Sanctify the World: The Vital Legacy of Vatican II (Basic Books), afforded me the welcome opportunity to dig into the Council’s 16 texts and the many fine commentaries on them.
It also made me ponder why the Council was necessary. That question is often raised today by young Catholics who, unsettled by the excessive ecclesiastical air turbulence over the past decade and generally ill-informed about the pre-conciliar Church, imagine that everything in Catholicism was copacetic until John XXIII made the fatal mistake of summoning an ecumenical council. That, however, was not the view of some quite orthodox Catholic leaders in the decade before Vatican II.
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The Church’s pre-conciliar proclamation and apologetics were strong on logic. But a world become irreligious — not pagan, for paganism had a sense of this world’s englobement in a greater reality, but irreligious, tone-deaf to rumors of angels — was not, in the main, going to be converted by logical demonstrations. It would be converted by holiness, manifest in the lives of those who had become friends of the Lord Jesus Christ and joined themselves to his cause. It would be converted by the Church offering more beauty than the world could manage to create.
Where Catholicism is alive today, and Vatican II well-received and implemented, it is because local Churches have embraced holiness and beauty as evangelical and catechetical pathways toward a Christocentric future.
George Weigel George Weigel is the distinguished senior fellow and William E. Simon Chair in Catholic Studies at the Ethics and Public Policy Center in Washington.
https://www.ncregister.com/commentaries/why-vatican-ii-was-necessary
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2. Catholic bishop criticizes Biden, Republican leaders on immigration, By Stephen Dinan, The Washington Times, October 19, 2022, Pg. A2
The chairman of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ migration committee chastised the Biden administration and red state governors for their handling of immigration and called for all sides to collaborate on better treatment.
Bishop Mario E. Dorsonville, auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese of Washington, said efforts to ship migrants, “and in some cases intentionally deceive them,” are “unbecoming of a moral society.”
He also lashed the Biden administration for its announcement last week that it would expand use of a Trump-era policy to expel migrants at the border with Mexico.
“Neither situation reflects a ‘safe, orderly and humane’ immigration system, but their shared irreverence for human lives is all too common in our present culture,” Mr. Dorsonville said in a new reflection published by the conference.
He said it’s time for a broad immigration deal that would legalize illegal immigrants, expand legal immigration, cut down on detention of those here illegally and address “root causes” of migration.
https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2022/oct/18/catholic-bishop-blasts-biden-gop-governors-over-im/
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3. Vatican lays the groundwork for World Youth Day in Portugal, By Elise Ann Allen, Crux, October 19, 2022
Ahead of next year’s international celebration of World Youth Day – a global gathering that draws thousands of young people together for talks, fellowship, and facetime with the pope – a top Vatican official has praised the creativity of youth and said they ought to be protagonists not only in the event itself, but also the organizational process.
Speaking to delegates attending a preparatory meeting in Fatima, American Cardinal Kevin Farrell, head of the Vatican’s office for Laity, Family and Life, said that the delegates are all members of “a universal church that is on a journey.”
“Pope Francis wants this type of synodal church,” and has spoken of “a synodal youth ministry that is a ‘wonderful polyhedron,’” Farrell said, adding that in this process, “young people themselves are the protagonists of change.”
https://cruxnow.com/vatican/2022/10/vatican-lays-the-groundwork-for-world-youth-day-in-portugal
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4. Pope Francis appoints pro-abortion economist to Pontifical Academy for Life, By Zelda Caldwell, Catholic News Agency, October 18, 2022, 3:00 PM
One of the newest members of the Pontifical Academy for Life appointed by Pope Francis is an outspoken advocate of abortion rights, having recently shared her opposition to the overturning of Roe v. Wade on Twitter.
Italian-American economist Mariana Mazzucato, known for her work promoting the public sector’s role in encouraging innovation, was among seven academics appointed by the pope on Oct. 15 to serve five-year terms with the academy.
In his 2020 book “Let Us Dream: The Path to a Better Future,” Pope Francis described Mazzucato’s work as “thinking that is not ideological, which moves beyond the polarization of free market capitalism and state socialism, and which has at its heart a concern that all of humanity have access to land, lodging, and labor.”
The website Catholic Culture published on Tuesday links to recent social media posts shared by Mazzucato in which she tweeted and retweeted pro-abortion statements concerning the Supreme Court’s decision to return abortion law to the states.
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Robert P. George, professor of jurisprudence at Princeton University, a Catholic and outspoken advocate for the right to life, told CNA that he is disturbed by the news of the appointment.
“The Pontifical Academy for Life exists to advance the Church’s mission to foster respect for the profound, inherent, and equal dignity of each and every member of the human family, beginning with the precious child in the womb. Either one believes in this mission or one does not. If one does not, then why would one wish to be part of the Pontifical Academy?” George asked.
“And why would someone with appointment authority appoint someone to the academy? I can think of no explanation that is not shocking and scandalous,” George told CNA.
https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/252577/pope-francis-appoints-pro-abortion-economist-to-pontifical-academy-for-life
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5. Biden vows abortion legislation as top priority next year, By Seung Min Kim, Associated Press, October 18, 2022, 4:04 PM
President Joe Biden promised Tuesday that the first bill he sends to Capitol Hill next year will be one that writes abortion protections into law — if Democrats control enough seats in Congress to pass it — as he sought to energize his party’s voters just three weeks ahead of the November midterms.
Twice over, Biden urged people to remember how they felt in late June when the Supreme Court overturned the landmark 1973 Roe v. Wade ruling that legalized abortion, fresh evidence of White House efforts to ensure the issue stays front of mind for Democratic voters this year.
“I want to remind us all how we felt when 50 years of constitutional precedent was overturned,” Biden said in remarks at the Howard Theatre, “the anger, the worry, the disbelief.”
https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/biden-prioritizing-abortion-legislation-ahead-of-midterms/2022/10/18/5f7f2b48-4eed-11ed-ada8-04e6e6bf8b19_story.html
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6. Catholic bishop arrested in Eritrea, Security officers reportedly detained Bishop Fikremariam Hagos Tsalim after he returned from a trip to Europe., By Luke Coppen, The Pillar, October 18, 2022, 10:15 AM
A Catholic bishop was reportedly arrested in the northeast African country of Eritrea on Saturday.
Security officers detained Bishop Fikremariam Hagos Tsalim on Oct. 15 at Asmara International Airport after he returned from a trip to Europe, reported the BBC.
The Vatican-based news agency Agenzia Fides said that the 51-year-old bishop was being held at Adi Abeto prison alongside two priests who were arrested last week.
The reason for the arrests is currently unknown, but relations between the Eritrean government and the Catholic Church have been strained in recent years.
In 2019, the country’s 22 Catholic-run hospitals closed following a government order to transfer ownership to the state. Later that year, the authorities also seized Catholic schools.
The government took the steps after Eritrea’s Catholic bishops issued a pastoral letter calling for greater respect for human rights, including religious freedom.
https://www.pillarcatholic.com/catholic-bishop-arrested-in-eritrea/
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7. S Carolina Senate again rejects abortion ban; bill not dead, By Jeffrey Collins, Associated Press, October 18, 2022, 4:16 PM
South Carolina senators again Tuesday rejected a proposal to ban nearly all abortions in the state but left open a small chance that some compromise could be reached in the less than four weeks the General Assembly has left to meet this year.
The stalemate in the Republican-dominated Legislature hasn’t changed over the past month. The Senate voted 26-17 to insist on its bill keeping South Carolina’s current ban on abortions after cardiac activity is present, which is usually around six weeks.
The House in September insisted on its own version of a full ban on abortions with exceptions only for pregnancies caused by rape or incest, or if the life of the mother was threatened.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/s-carolina-senate-again-rejects-abortion-ban-bill-not-dead/2022/10/18/bf719210-4f1b-11ed-ada8-04e6e6bf8b19_story.html
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8. NC clinics want nurses to offer medication-induced abortions, By Gary D. Robertson, Associated Press, October 17, 2022
With both abortions in North Carolina and the number of out-of-state clinic patients soaring after Roe v. Wade was struck down, judges should permit more trained health professionals to prescribe pills for medication-induced abortions, plaintiffs in a lawsuit wrote on Monday.
Abortion providers, medical workers and an abortion-rights group awaiting trial next year in their 2020 lawsuit challenging many state abortion rules asked a three-judge panel to act now and block a law limiting who can provide such medication from just certain licensed physicians.
https://apnews.com/article/abortion-health-business-lawsuits-north-carolina-f06ea0e9041654d4274e84370fcf2681
__________________________________________________________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. |
