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ROME (AP) — A Canadian lawyer who found his vocation caring for AIDS patients in Harlem was elected the grand master of the Knights of Malta on Wednesday, the first non-European and first non-aristocratic head of the ancient lay Catholic order that provides humanitarian aid around the world. John Dunlap, 66, was elected by an absolute majority of 99 voting members of a Knights body known as “the council complete of state.” He immediately informed Pope Francis of his election and was sworn in during a pomp-filled ceremony and procession Wednesday at the Knights’ magnificent villa on Rome’s Aventine hill....

[Catholic Caucus] Defeated Order of Malta Honours the EnemyLieutenant Grand Master Fra' John Dunlap flattered Cardinal Arthur Roche on 13 January by draping the insignia of the Balì Gran Croce di Onore e Devozione of the Order of Malta on him.Roche is Francis' henchman in his fight against the Roman Liturgy.After the macabre show in the Palazzo Magistrale, Roche presided at a Eucharist where he "turned his back" on the audience, a practice de facto forbidden in the Novus Ordo.

Ex–grand chancellor: Pope's reforms are catastrophic for Order of MaltaVATICAN CITY (ChurchMilitant.com) - Knights across the world are considering leaving the Catholic Church because of Pope Francis' reforms, the former grand chancellor of the Sovereign Military Order of Malta revealed. In a confidential letter obtained by Church Militant, Albrecht von Boeselager lamented that many confreres had expressed to him "their great disappointment in the Holy Father — they could no longer regard him as the father he promised to be for the order." Boeselager sent the letter to an elite group of knights after Pope Francis issued a Sept. 3...

Heavy-handed reform acceleratesVATICAN CITY (ChurchMilitant.com) - Pope Francis is revoking the four high offices of the Knights of Malta and instituting a provisional government, effective immediately. The pontiff's latest decree, published on Saturday, comes as the latest installment of what many knights view as papal encroachment upon the sovereign order (formally known as the "Sovereign Military Hospitaller Order of St. John of Jerusalem, of Rhodes and of Malta"). The papal decree approved the order's new constitutional charter and regulations, and dictated the following three major changes: 1. Revocation of the high offices 2. Dissolution of the current Sovereign Council, and...

Letter from Rome: The old order is passing awayThe Church's implosion accelerates as cardinals call for major doctrinal changes and a former pope tries to save a legacy. There was more turbulence in Roman Catholicism this past week -- at least on the Old Continent.A number of recent events verified -- to those who are willing to open their eyes and face reality -- that the Roman Church's ongoing implosion is picking up pace.Here are just a few things that happened when many people were probably not paying attention:- Two cardinals close to Pope Francis publicly called for radical changes...

Order of Malta would be 'subject' of Holy See under new constitutionCenturies of diplomatic independence for the Sovereign Military Order of Malta could come to an end if a new Vatican-drafted constitution for the order is put into effect. The new constitution could see the religious order lose its permanent observer status at the United Nations, and would imperil its bilateral diplomatic ties.The new constitution, which would explicitly define the order as a “subject” of the Holy See, would end nearly a millennia of sovereign independence for the religious order, have sweeping implications for its diplomatic relationships with more than...

SEPTEMBER 11, 1565: Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent dominated the Mediterranean, with intentions of not only invading Sicily, Sardinia, Majorca, and southern Spain, but Rome itself. The only thing standing in his way was the small rocky Island of Malta just south of Sicily, defended by the Knights of Malta. In March of 1565, Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent sent Algerian Admiral Dragut to Malta with 200 ships and 40,000 Muslim soldiers, including 6,500 elite Janissary troops. Dragut stated: "Unless you have smoked out this nest of vipers, you can do no good anywhere." Queen Elizabeth I of England is said to...

Albert von Boeselager, who was forced to resign as chancellor of the Knights of Malta but reinstated by Pope Francis, has blamed American conservatives for the turmoil in the order. Von Boeselager said that conservatives, unhappy with the Pope’s public statements on economic affairs, have provoked conflicts at the Vatican. “There is, for instance, a very powerful, ultra-conservative movement in the US which has links to the Evangelical Churches and to conservative economists, behind which there is a great deal of money,” he said. Von Boeselager linked Cardinal Raymond Burke to the alleged enemies of the Pope, charged that the...

Pope Francis needs to take tougher action against the United States’ most influential Catholic in Rome, Cardinal Raymond “Breitbart” Burke. The renegade cleric is not only undermining Francis’s reformist, compassionate papacy, and gospel teaching as it applies to refugees and Muslims, but the rebel prince of the church is also using his position within the walls of the Vatican to legitimize extremist forces that want to bring down Western liberal democracy, Stephen K. Bannon-style. Simply put, the Vatican is facing a political war between the modernizing Pope Francis and a conservative wing that wants to reassert white Christian dominance. Burke...

Pope Francis’ reform of the Knights of Malta could gut the very “heart” of the Order and up-end its 900-year-old constitution. Members of the Order who spoke to LifeSiteNews under condition of anonymity say such drastic fears have been stoked by the Pope’s unprecedented intervention in the Order in the last month. Pope Francis has appointed Archbishop Giovanni Angelo Becciu as his special delegate to the Knights of Malta and entrusted him the task of reforming the lay Order’s religious branch of professed Knights, called the “First Class,” who take vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience. Members of the Order...

<p>VATICAN CITY (AP) — Conservative criticism of Pope Francis intensified Saturday after his intervention in the Knights of Malta order, with posters appearing around Rome citing his actions against conservative Catholics and asking: "Where's your mercy?"</p> <p>The posters appeared on the same day that Francis cemented his authority over the Knights by naming a top Vatican archbishop, Angelo Becciu, to be his special delegate to the ancient aristocratic order.</p>

...The Register understands from sources inside the Order that just a “handful” of members voted to reject the resignation, and that the Holy See applied “very strong and direct pressure” on the Sovereign Council to accept Fra’ Festing stepping down as it was unsure that a majority would vote in favor... The news of the vote has been greeted with dismay by some within in the Order as well as in the Holy See. One member told the Register he feared the sovereign Order, founded in the 11th century at the time of the First Crusade, “is finished”...

A campaign of lies and misdirection is being waged against Cardinal Burke and the Grand Master of the Knights of Malta. Be sure to listen to this week's podcast to understand what's REALLY going on.

In 1565, Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent dominated the Mediterranean, with intentions of not only taking Sicily, Sardinia, Majorca, and southern Spain, but Rome itself. The only thing standing in his way was the small rocky island of Malta just south of Sicily, defended by the Knights of Malta. In March of 1565, Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent sent Algerian Admiral Dragut to Malta with 200 ships and 40,000 Muslim soldiers, including 6,500 elite Janissary troops. .... Queen Elizabeth I of England is said to have remarked: "If the Turks should prevail against the Isle of Malta, it is uncertain what further...

KNIGHTS OF MALTA MARK OVER 900 YEARS OF SERVICE TO CHURCH EWTN NEWS 09/02/2013 Following centuries of humanitarian service and, at times, military combat, the Knights of Malta have begun commemorations of their 900th anniversary that include a large solemn procession to the tomb of St. Peter Feb. 9. “This is a very special anniversary and over 4,000 of the Order’s members and volunteers are expected to arrive from all corners of the world,” Albrecht Boeselager, Grand Hospitaller of the Knights of Malta, told Vatican Radio. He said the anniversary observance will help the knights “thank happily the Lord for...

Former Mayor of D.C. Anthony Williams Washington D.C., Mar 25, 2009 / 02:25 pm (CNA).- Despite extreme positions on abortion and same-sex “marriage,” the Washington Post reports that Anthony Williams, a former mayor of Washington D.C., is being considered for membership in the Knights of Malta. However, Dr. Joseph Metz, an officer of the Order of Malta American Association, told CNA that anyone who does not agree with Church teachings will be denied admission. The Knights of Malta, who earned their name by operating on the Island of Malta for hundreds of years, were created “to care for and...

ROME, February 2, 2006 (LifeSiteNews.com) - The Knights of Malta have officially notified LifeSiteNews that Terry McAuliffe will never be admitted to the Order of Malta on account of his pro-abortion stand and public repudiation of the Catholic Church's teachings on the sanctity of life. On Monday, McAuliffe made a brazen boast on the Hugh Hewitt show that not only could he be "pro-choice" and "Catholic", but said he was also invited to join the famous Knights of Malta. The Knights initially disbelieved reports that pro-abortion McAuliffe was joining their Order, but after examining the facts re-informed LifeSiteNews that the...

No matter where in the Body of Christ you happen to find yourself, every now and then your church's leadership will go Episcopalian on you: Terry McAuliffe, unapologetic defender of partial birth abortion, is about to be honored for his selfless devotion to and efforts on behalf of the Catholic Faith by being admitted to the Knights of Malta. Once again, those laboring in the trenches to uphold the Gospel are about to take a shiv between the shoulderblades. Once again, the unfaithful get front row seats while the laborers in the vineyard are told to shut up. This is...