Catholic News
- President Trump again assails Pope Leo; Pontiff responds that criticism should be truthful (CWN)
Renewing his criticism of Pope Leo XIV, President Donald Trump charged that the Pope “thinks it’s just fine for Iran to have a nuclear weapon”—leading Pope Leo to respond, “If someone criticizes me for proclaiming the Gospel, let him do so truthfully.” - Synod report on doctrinal issues includes testimonies of men civilly married to other men (CWN)
The General Secretariat of the Synod, led by Cardinal Mario Grech, released the sixth of 15 final reports of the study groups established by Pope Francis during the synod on synodality—as well as a portion of another report. - Legionaries' new leader says he wishes to 'move this congregation forward' (CWN)
The new general director of the Legionaries of Christ said in an interview that he wishes “to help the Church with my priesthood to move this congregation forward, because the congregation can also contribute and give much to the Church in evangelization.” - USCCB to FDA: Mothers deserve better than telehealth mifepristone (USCCB)
Amid adjudication of the delivery by mail of the abortion pill mifepristone, the chairman of the US bishops’ Committee on Pro-Life Activities said that “vulnerable mothers in need do not deserve the isolation and danger of telemedicine chemical abortion.” “Instead, we must do better to meet mothers with compassionate, meaningful, and authentic support that enables them and their families to welcome their new children into the world,” Bishop Daniel Thomas of Toledo, Ohio, wrote in a May 4 letter to the acting attorney general and the commissioner of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. “All direct, intended abortions extinguish an innocent human life, and therefore are a grave evil. In the case of mifepristone, we seek to prevent tragedy for both the baby and the mother.” Bishop Thomas called on the FDA to “proceed as expeditiously as possible with its safety review” of mifepristone. Bishop Thomas also noted that the Trump administration has “moved to stay or dismiss three different lawsuits filed by states to challenge the status of the drug.” - Egyptian court fails to grant Easter holiday (ADF International)
An Egyptian court rejected a petition to establish Easter Sunday as a national holiday and ruled that the matter is at the discretion of the prime minister, and not of the judicial system. “The failure to recognize Easter as an official holiday in the country leaves in place conditions that force Egyptian Christians to choose between participating in Easter worship or facing serious civil, professional, and academic penalties,” stated ADF International, which is offering legal support to plaintiffs in the case. The North African nation of 112.9 million (map) is 90% Muslim and 9% Christian (primarily Coptic Orthodox); Islam is the state religion. - Vatican newspaper shines spotlight on Gaza's 'prolonged agony' (CWN)
In the most prominent front-page article in its May 5 edition, L’Osservatore Romano drew attention to the plight of the people of Gaza, where corpses beneath the rubble are fostering massive infestations of rodents and other pests. - Stockholm diocese urges Catholic voters to consider candidates' position on abortion, euthanasia (EWTN News)
The Justice and Peace Commission of the Diocese of Stockholm, Sweden, urged the faithful to consider candidates’ positions on abortion and euthanasia during the upcoming general election. The nation of 10.6 million is 57% Christian (54% Protestant) and 11% Muslim. - Vicariate for Hebrew-speaking Catholics marks 70th anniversary (Vatican News)
The Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem commemorated the 70th anniversary of its Vicariate of Saint James, which ministers to Hebrew-speaking Catholics. “Seventy years is a gift; it is also a responsibility,” said Father Piotr Żelazko, vicar of Saint James since 2021. The task of Hebrew-speaking Catholic communities, he added, is “to remain faithful, attentive and courageous—to listen to the signs of the times, care for the next generation, and continue building bridges of faith, dialogue and compassion.” - Supreme Court allows 1-week resumption of mail delivery of abortion pill (Religion Clause)
Three days after a federal appeals court temporarily halted the delivery by mail of the abortion pill mifepristone, the Supreme Court granted a stay on the decision for one week. The stay, granted by Justice Samuel Alito, allows mail delivery of mifepristone to resume while attorneys for pharmaceutical companies prepare to request a longer stay on the appellate court decision. - DDF publishes 2024 criticism of German bishops' guide for blessing irregular unions (Pillar)
The Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith has released a 2024 letter stating that “Blessings for couples who love one another,” a document then under consideration by the German bishops, violates Fiducia Supplicans, the dicastery’s declaration on the pastoral meaning of blessings. The release of the 2024 letter (translation), written by Cardinal Víctor Manuel Fernández to a German bishop, follows a defense of the German blessing guidelines by Bishop Georg Bätzing of Limburg, the former chairman of the German bishops’ conference, as well as Cardinal Reinhard Marx’s instruction to priests to facilitate blessings of same-sex couples. Fiducia Supplicans states: Within the horizon outlined here appears the possibility of blessings for couples in irregular situations and for couples of the same sex, the form of which should not be fixed ritually by ecclesial authorities to avoid producing confusion with the blessing proper to the Sacrament of Marriage ... One should neither provide for nor promote a ritual for the blessings of couples in an irregular situation. At the same time, one should not prevent or prohibit the Church’s closeness to people in every situation in which they might seek God’s help through a simple blessing. - Melkite bishops denounce Israeli attacks on civilian infrastructure (AP)
The bishops of the Melkite Catholic Church (CNEWA profile), an Eastern Catholic church in full communion with the Holy See, denounced the Israeli destruction of civilian buildings in southern Lebanon. The bishops described the destruction of civilian buildings in the abandoned village of Yaroun as a “deep wound in the national and human conscience.” - Belarus regime denies permission for 3 more priests to remain (Forum 18)
Continuing a trend of recent years, the government of Belarus denied permission to three Polish priests to remain in ministry in the nation. One of the priests has ministered in Belarus since 1990. The Eastern European nation of 9.5 million (map) is 82% Christian (63% Orthodox, 17% Catholic). An autocratic president, Alexander Lukashenko, has led the nation since 1994. - Iceland's president meets with Pontiff (Vatican Press Office)
Pope Leo XIV received President Halla Tómasdóttir of Iceland on May 4. Following the audience, President Tómasdóttir met with Cardinal Pietro Parolin, Secretary of State of His Holiness, and Archbishop Paul Richard Gallagher, Secretary for Relations with States and International Organizations. The parties discussed the “positive contribution of the local Church to the promotion of the common good of society and particularly of young people,” according to a Vatican press release, as well as regional and international issues. The nation of 367,000 is 87% Christian; Lutheranism is the state religion. - Canadian priest offered euthanasia twice while recovering from hip fracture (National Catholic Register)
A 79-year-old Canadian priest was twice offered the option of medical aid in dying (MAID) while he was recovering from a hip fracture in a Vancouver hospital. “I think I was very shocked,” said Father Larry Holland, who told a doctor he was opposed to euthanasia. A hospital spokesman said that “staff may consider bringing up MAID based on their clinical judgment, provided they possess the necessary knowledge and skills to do so.” - Transalpine Redemptorists denounce 'post-Vatican II claimants to the papacy' (Transalpine Redemptorists)
The Transalpine Redemptorists, a traditionalist community that reconciled with the Holy See in 2008, published a document on May 2 denouncing “post-Vatican II claimants to the papacy” as “manifest heretics.” Adopting a sedevacantist position, the institute listed Popes Paul VI, John Paul II, Benedict XVI, Francis, and Leo XIV as “papal pretenders.” In 2024, the institute was expelled from a New Zealand diocese following a Vatican investigation. - Hindu mob disrupts Mass in India; 4 Catholics arrested (UCANews)
A mob of Hindu activists disrupted a Mass in Kalinjara, India, on May 1. Police arrested four Catholics who confronted them. “They entered the substation during Communion and started filming it on their mobiles, and then began alleging religious conversion activity,” said Father Arvind Amliyar. “They also alleged that a cow had been killed for the community feast.” “One of them even tried to threaten our men with a knife, but he was overpowered, and the knife was snatched from him,” Father Amliyar added. - Bishop Gracida, outspoken emeritus of Corpus Christi, dies at 102 (OSV News)
Bishop René Gracida, ordained to the priesthood in 1959 and to the episcopate in 1975, died on May 1 at the age of 102. Before his 1997 retirement from the office of bishop of Corpus Christi, Texas, Bishop Gracida imposed an interdict on a pro-abortion politician. Outspoken in his retirement, he denounced voting for pro-abortion candidates and signed a filial correction directed to Pope Francis. - Dubai's Christian leaders pray for peace, thank civil authorities (Fides)
Catholic, Orthodox, and Protestant leaders in the United Arab Emirates gathered at a Catholic church in Dubai to pray for peace, over two months after the beginning of the Iran war. We thank our civil authorities who have protected us during these months; we continue to pray for them,” said Bishop Paolo Martinelli, vicar apostolic of Southern Arabia. “May the Lord hear our common prayer; may he grant us peace and reconciliation, harmony and prosperity.” - Vatican newspaper decries Israeli attack on Catholic school building in Lebanon (CWN)
The Vatican newspaper decried the Israeli army’s attack on a Catholic school building in Yaroun, Lebanon. - Vatican prosecutors defy appeals-court order [News Analysis] (CWN)
Vatican prosecutors have refused to comply with an order from a Vatican appeals court, in the latest stunning development in the long-running “trial of the century.” - More...