http://www.freerepublic.com/tag/catholicchurch/ en-us Tue, 30 Sep 2008 15:08:43 GMT Focus Forum 15 http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/2093939/posts As a survivor of Catholic upbringing, former altar boy, choir boy, and after eight years of Catholic elementary school, four years of Catholic high school, four years of Catholic college, and umpteen years of Catholic post-graduate studies, I think I’m entitled to comment on the state of Catholicism today. When I say I’m a survivor, I don’t mean to imply that I survived anything but normal life in Catholic schools. I survived in the sense that I never succumbed to what I can call excessive Catholicity, an embrace of policies antithetical to the best interests of America. Normal Catholic schooling... http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/2093939/posts#comment Tue, 30 Sep 2008 15:08:43 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2083548/posts Dear Bishops, Now Is the Time by David G. Bonagura Jr. 9/16/08 The statements made by Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi and Sen. Joseph Biden on Meet the Press have provided a wonderful, even providential, opportunity to present the Church's teaching on abortion and explain its foundational importance to Catholic moral and political teaching in general. Already many bishops have issued clear and courageous statements correcting Speaker Pelosi and Senator Biden's mistakes, and certainly more will do the same in the coming days. They have succinctly presented the core of the Church's teaching for the benefit of Catholics and... insidecatholic.com http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2083548/posts#comment Tue, 16 Sep 2008 16:16:06 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2079951/posts 26 US Bishops Have Rebuked Pelosi…So Far By Tim Waggoner WASHINGTON, September 10, 2008 (LifeSiteNews.com) - The barrage of criticism from US bishops aimed at House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has been deafening. Yesterday the popular American Papist blog compiled all of the statements, either written or verbal, made by bishops to date, revealing that an unprecedented total of 26 bishops have individually rebuked the Speaker of the House for her claims about Catholic teaching and abortion in addition to a general statement by the Conference of Bishops. On the August 24 episode of Meet the Press, self-proclaimed "ardent and practicing... www.lifesitenews.com http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2079951/posts#comment Thu, 11 Sep 2008 14:37:44 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-religion/2075040/posts Thursday, September 04, 2008 The Speaker's Archbishop Speaks In response to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's recent statements on the church's teaching on abortion, Archbishop George Niederauer of San Francisco -- the top Rep.'s hometown ordinary -- prepared the following column for tomorrow's edition of the archdiocesan weekly, Catholic San Francisco. * * * Last month, in two televised interviews and a subsequent statement released through her office, Nancy Pelosi, Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives and a Catholic residing in the Archdiocese of San Francisco, made remarks that are in serious conflict with the teachings of the Catholic Church... Whispers in the Loggia http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-religion/2075040/posts#comment Fri, 5 Sep 2008 01:53:12 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2070375/posts A mid the cascade of words pouring out of Denver this week, none may have more long-term punch than the bubbly Mile High musings of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi on Sunday's "Meet the Press." Tom Brokaw had asked about Barack Obama saying that deciding when life begins was "above my pay grade." Pelosi showcased the Peter Principle in action. It says that people rise to the level of their incompetence. Her answer showed that the principle has nothing to do with Saint Peter. "I would say that as an ardent, practicing Catholic, this is an issue that I have studied... The Oregonian http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2070375/posts#comment Fri, 29 Aug 2008 06:48:27 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2069568/posts WASHINGTON --Cardinal Justin F. Rigali, chairman of the U.S. Bishops’ Committee on Pro-Life Activities, and Bishop William E. Lori, chairman of the U.S. Bishops’ Committee on Doctrine, have issued the following statement: [[Rigali082708.jpg]]In the course of a “Meet the Press” interview on abortion and other public issues on August 24, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi misrepresented the history and nature of the authentic teaching of the Catholic Church against abortion. In fact, the Catechism of the Catholic Church teaches, "Since the first century the Church has affirmed the moral evil of every procured abortion. This teaching has not changed and remains... California Catholic Daily http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2069568/posts#comment Thu, 28 Aug 2008 03:38:36 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2069550/posts DELEWARE, August 26, 2008 (LifeSiteNews.com) - In an interview with Bob Krebs, the Communications Director for the Catholic Diocese of Wilmington, to which Senator Joseph Biden belongs, Krebs confirmed that Biden's Bishop will not permit the Senator even if elected Vice President of the United States of America to speak at Catholic schools. When asked for the Bishop's take on Senator Biden and his stand in favor of abortion, Krebs directed LifeSiteNews.com to Bishop Michael Saltarelli's 2004 statement on 'Catholics in Political Life' which, said Krebs, "very plainly states Bishop's position in this matter." In that document Bishop Saltarelli notes... lifesitenews.com http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2069550/posts#comment Thu, 28 Aug 2008 03:14:44 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2069014/posts WASHINGTON -- When Democrats decided they wouldn't let the GOP be "God's Only Party," they weren't kidding. Thanks to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, none other than St. Augustine has been summoned to Denver. He was resurrected as Pelosi was trying to respond to the question that refuses to die: When does human life begin? This time, it was Tom Brokaw asking on Sunday's "Meet the Press." Citing Barack Obama's recent pass on a similar question -- "At what point does a baby get human rights?" -- Brokaw asked Pelosi what she would say to Obama were he to ask her... townhall.com http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2069014/posts#comment Wed, 27 Aug 2008 13:04:57 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2068247/posts BEIJING — Security agents detained an elderly bishop of an underground Catholic church in northern China hours before the closing of the Olympic Games, a U.S.-based group said Monday. Bishop Julius Jia Zhiguo, 73, of Zhengding, a city in northern Hebei province, was taken by six government officials from his cathedral on Sunday morning, the Cardinal Kung Foundation said in a statement. The independent foundation, which aims to promote the Roman Catholic Church in China, said it did not know where or why Jia was being detained. A woman who answered the phone at the city's public security bureau said... newsmax.com http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2068247/posts#comment Tue, 26 Aug 2008 13:22:57 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-religion/2067681/posts Evangelicals converting to Catholicism has become something of a trend. Many conservative episcopalians caught between a rock and a hard place have opted for a return to Rome. And there are some big names in evangelical theology who have gone over, including the (until just recently) President of the Evangelical Theological Society. Scot MacKnight has just written a piece in the Journal of the Evangelical Theological Society (JETS) trying to figure out why the Roman road has grown more and more popular these days. The Pontificator has written a series of posts on “Bad Reasons Not To Convert To Catholicism”.... Scholasticus http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-religion/2067681/posts#comment Mon, 25 Aug 2008 16:57:47 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/2067635/posts The Speaker of the House in an attempt to demonstrate her omniscience fails miserably. Nancy Pelosi, in an attempt to justify abortion, ties Roe vs Wade with the Catholic Church’s tenet on abortion. This woman has no clue, should keep her mouth shut rather to further demonstrate her ignorance. Stuck On Stupid http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/2067635/posts#comment Mon, 25 Aug 2008 16:01:41 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-religion/2064239/posts San Francisco calls the Catholic Church's teachings hateful, defamatory and insensitive.The liberal 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals will decide whether a scathing anti-Catholic resolution from the San Francisco Board of Supervisors is unconstitutional. The resolution, passed unanimously in 2006, accused the Vatican of operating as a "foreign country" and called the Church's teachings "hateful," "defamatory," "insensitive," "ignorant" and "insulting to all San Franciscans." It was issued in response to the Church's requirement that adoptive children be brought up by families with a mom and dad. "They’re condemning the Catholic Church as 'hateful' and 'harmful,' and that is clearly a... citizenlink.com http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-religion/2064239/posts#comment Tue, 19 Aug 2008 13:41:23 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2059622/posts Mexico City archdiocesan spokesman criticizes pro-abortion campaign for using Bible quotes July 25 -- The spokesman for the Archdiocese of Mexico City, Father Hugo Valdemar, has criticized a campaign recently launched by “Catholics for Choice” for using quotes from the Bible out of context to justify the use of condoms. [[valdemarads.jpg]]The ad campaign launched by CFC in Mexico uses passages from the Song of Songs that have sexual connotations with the phrase, “Love neighbor as yourself. Use a condom,” below each Bible quote. “It’s clear to us that the members of this group are not Catholic, as they are going... California Catholic Daily http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2059622/posts#comment Sun, 10 Aug 2008 22:15:39 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2059617/posts We are in a dark moment in our nation's history with regard to immigrants, refugees, and newcomers to our land,” said Cardinal Roger Mahony in an address he delivered July 28 at the National Migration Conference in Washington, D.C. “The failure of comprehensive immigration reform legislation just over a year ago emboldened some of our elected officials to pursue a punitive approach, using enforcement as both an immigration policy and a political tool,” said the cardinal. California Catholic Daily http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2059617/posts#comment Sun, 10 Aug 2008 22:04:59 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2059611/posts House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-San Francisco, whose longtime support for homosexual rights and abortion has made her the darling of groups like Planned Parenthood, NARAL and the Human Rights Campaign, has once again made it a point to describe herself as “Catholic.” In a Sunday, Aug. 3, interview about her recently published book Know Your Power: A Message to America's Daughters for the C-SPAN network’s “Q&A” program, host Brian Lamb asked Pelosi, “The one word I read several times in your book is the word ‘faith.’ And you wrote, ‘Growing up Catholic had an enormous impact on me -- greater,... California Catholic Daily http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2059611/posts#comment Sun, 10 Aug 2008 21:56:35 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2059606/posts Among the casualties of Oakland’s new Cathedral of Christ the Light is Old St. Mary’s Church, a 155 year-old parish that will close permanently in September. Oakland Bishop Emeritus John Cummins celebrated a special Mass of thanksgiving on July 26 at Old St. Mary’s Church to honor former parishioners, alumni of the old parish school, and all those who had ministered at the parish since its founding in 1858. St. Mary’s parish, however, goes back a few more years. "Oakland's first Catholic chapel was established on this site in 1853," parishioner Grant Ute told the Oakland Tribune. "In the early... California Catholic Daily http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2059606/posts#comment Sun, 10 Aug 2008 21:46:06 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2056113/posts House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) said she, unlike other Catholic politicians who support abortion rights, has not clashed with her church about receiving communion. In an interview on C-SPAN that aired on Sunday, Pelosi was asked about how some church officials have raised objections about whether former presidential contenders -- such as Sen. John Kerry (D-Mass.) and former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani (R) -- should receive communion. Pelosi, a Roman Catholic whose district includes most of San Francisco, said she has not encountered such difficulties in her church. “I think some of it is regional,” she said, “It... The Hill http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2056113/posts#comment Mon, 4 Aug 2008 11:48:20 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2048137/posts LONDON (CNS) -- Catholic officials have applied for permission to exhume the body of a 19th-century cardinal whose cause for sainthood is expected to soon progress to beatification. They want to transfer the remains of Cardinal John Henry Newman from a grave in a small cemetery in the suburbs of Birmingham, England, to a marble sarcophagus in a church in the city where they can be venerated by pilgrims. A July 14 statement said that the Archdiocese of Birmingham was now in direct contact with the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Justice, Sir Suma Chakrabarti, to obtain the necessary... Catholic News Service http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2048137/posts#comment Sat, 19 Jul 2008 20:49:24 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2047553/posts The first time I learned about the practice I was horrified. It was the mid-1990s. The source was Sharon Dunsmore, a nurse in a hospital NICU (Neonatal Intensive Care Unit) who wrote a small booklet about the experience. One day on the job she had been summoned “stat” to the delivery room to deal with an “oops abortion”—a failed abortion in which the baby unexpectedly survived, or, as Dunsmore quoted the pediatrician on the scene, “had the audacity to survive.” The team struggled as to whether to continue intubating the child—now a little boy, not a “fetus”—who clearly was not... Catholic World Report http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2047553/posts#comment Fri, 18 Jul 2008 16:19:41 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-religion/2046493/posts Another step toward the persecution. My emphases and comments.  FAITH UNDER FIREMajor U.S. city officially condemns Catholic ChurchInstructs members to defy ‘Holy Office of Inquisition’ Posted: July 15, 2008 San Francisco’s Golden Gate Bridge A San Francisco city and county board resolution that officially labeled the Catholic church’s moral teachings on homosexuality as "insulting to all San Franciscans," "hateful," "defamatory," "insensitive" and "ignorant" will be challenged tomorrow in court for violating the Constitution’s prohibition of government hostility toward religion.Resolution 168-08, passed unanimously by the City and County of San Francisco Board of Supervisors two years ago, also accused the Vatican... WDTPRS http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-religion/2046493/posts#comment Wed, 16 Jul 2008 19:46:18 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2044759/posts SYDNEY, Australia -- Pope Benedict XVI arrived in Australia on Sunday, saying he wants to use his visit to raise awareness about global warming and address the crisis of clergy sexual abuse. Benedict suggested to reporters on the flight from the Vatican that he would express regret about abuse by priests, though victims' groups are demanding he go further and make a direct formal apology. The clergy abuse scandal is a serious note in the pope's 10-day visit to Australia, his first, during which he will join the World Youth Day festival that has attracted more than 200,000 people. Benedict,... newsmax.com http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2044759/posts#comment Sun, 13 Jul 2008 12:39:09 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2044757/posts SYDNEY, Australia -- Pope Benedict XVI arrived in Australia on Sunday, saying he wants to use his visit to raise awareness about global warming and address the crisis of clergy sexual abuse. Benedict suggested to reporters on the flight from the Vatican that he would express regret about abuse by priests, though victims' groups are demanding he go further and make a direct formal apology. The clergy abuse scandal is a serious note in the pope's 10-day visit to Australia, his first, during which he will join the World Youth Day festival that has attracted more than 200,000 people. Benedict,... newsmax.com http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2044757/posts#comment Sun, 13 Jul 2008 12:36:28 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2044416/posts Yesterday, Catholic League president Bill Donohue issued a news release calling attention to the plea that Paul Zachary Myers made on his blog: he solicited the Communion Host for the express purpose of desecrating it. Donohue now responds to the reaction he has received from the University of Minnesota Morris professor, as well as others: “Myers went on Houston radio station KPFT last night saying that Bill Donohue has ‘declared a fatwa’ against him. He should know better—I don’t need others to do the fighting for me. I’m quite good at it myself. But he’d better be careful what he... Catholic League http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2044416/posts#comment Sat, 12 Jul 2008 14:24:24 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2037942/posts Ben D. Kennedy of MaidOfHeaven.com sends letter to Minneapolis St. Joan of Arc Church rebuking them for dishonoring the name of Saint Joan of Arc. Issued By: MaidOfHeaven.com Jun 26, 2008 18:06:34 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE PRLog (Press Release) – Jun 26, 2008 – In a letter sent to St. Joan of Arc Church in Minneapolis author Ben D. Kennedy rebukes the church for dishonoring and disgracing the name of Saint Joan of Arc, the person for which the church is named. Joan of Arc is renowned in history as being one of the purest humans to ever live having dedicated... PRLog (Press Release) http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2037942/posts#comment Sat, 28 Jun 2008 23:39:48 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-religion/2035397/posts  Church Authority In Scripture The source & nature of Church authority is one of the major issues that beginning Catholics have to examine and come to terms with. The Catholic Church makes an amazing claim: it teaches, governs, and sanctifies with the authority of Christ himself. Catholics believe that this gift of Church authority is one of the jewels that Christ has given to us as an aid to our salvation. Keep three things in mind: There is a large amount of evidence in Scripture to support the Catholic Church's claim to authority, as well as from early Church history.... Beginning Catholic http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-religion/2035397/posts#comment Tue, 24 Jun 2008 02:01:31 GMT