In this week’s edition:

• Cafeteria Catholicism runs wild

• More Catholic AI news

• Pro-life victory in Missouri

• CFR friar laicized

• and more!

Cafeteria Catholicism rampant in the U.S.

Summary: A recent study by religion & politics researcher Ryan Burge found that only 0.9% of American Catholics agreed with the Church’s positions on abortion, euthanasia, and the death penalty. This is the lowest since 1972, when Global Social Survey started collecting the data.

Details:

• Only 17.7% of Catholics believe that abortion should be illegal in all cases

• Over 50% of Catholics support elective abortion

• 70% of Catholics support euthanasia

• 61% of Catholics support the death penalty

• At the same time, there has been a 12% decrease in Church attendance over the past 20 years. This coincides with a stat that only 28% of Catholics attend Mass weekly.

Why we care: It’s tough to say what percentage of these numbers can be attributed to willful ignorance / rebellion or good old-fashioned lack of catechesis; we’re given to leaning charitable and presuming the latter. Either way, it’s clear that the Church has some work to do on promoting adherence to her teachings. We have faith in the good work done by organizations such as Relevant Radio and Catholic Answers, and are hopeful that these and other Catholic groups can increase awareness of and adherence to Mother Church’s teachings.

Catholic AI “arms race” under way

Summary: We’ve previously discussed the failed launch of Catholic Answer’s “Fr. Justin”. It turns out there are other, less controversial AI solutions being developed to help people learn about the faith.

Details:

• Swiss Engineer Nicolas Torcheboeuf developed CatéGPT, which launched in the spring of 2023

• Torcheboeuf launched his service around the same time MagisteriumAI was launched.

• Catholic.chat is another option which allows users to query the Catechism using natural language.

Why we care: While no AI is guaranteed to be perfect, it’s encouraging to see so many Catholics engaged in the goal of leveraging current technologies to increase knowledge of the faith. A little friendly competition is healthy, and if the result is that it’s easier for the faithful to access Church documents and teachings in an easily digestible way - well who could be against that?

Missouri governor signs bill defunding Planned Parenthood

Summary: On May 9th, Missouri Governor Mike Parsons signed a bill which prevents abortion providers and affiliates from receiving taxpayer dollars.

Details:

• Public funds were previously prohibited from funding abortions

• The new law prevents any taxpayer money from going to abortion providers or their affiliates

• Previously, funding was restricted through the budget process

• The MO Supreme Court deemed this process unconstitutional, but ruled that the defunding could be enshrined in a statutes.

• So that’s what they did

Why we care: Major kudos and thanks to Governor Parsons and all the politicians in Missouri and across our nation who are not just talking the talk but walking the walk when it comes to being pro-life. We need more legislators and executives like these to stand by their morals and put the proper laws into place. We hope that their example will inspire others and that the pro-life community will continue to elect folks like them into office.

Laicization of Franciscan friar restores faith in the Church’s fight against abuse

Summary: Franciscan Friars of the Renewal member Louis Leonelli admitted to a sexual relationship with an adult woman and was subsequently laicized. Leonelli will be separated from the community once documentation has been finalized by the Vatican.

Details:

• In May 2022 Leonelli was accused of serially assaulting a woman a decade ago

• Leonelli admitted to a relationship with the woman while maintaining it was consensual.

• “civil litigation…has been resolved”, likely in late 2022

• Leonelli has been laicized and has requested dispensation from his vows

• He is no longer a priest, and once documentation has been finalized will no longer be a friar

Why we care: We obviously hate to see abuse an any form by any member of the clergy or religious. That said, it is encouraging to see the order act with such celerity and respect for the accuser, handling the case in what seems to be a no-nonsense way. When there are so many discouraging cases of abuse allegations being handled poorly, we’re glad to see that there are still members of the Church committed to weeding out abuse wherever it rears its nasty head. May they be an example to clergy and religious (and all the faithful) throughout the world. Please keep all those involved in your prayers, that there may be healing and repentance.

Other stories

• Shooting averted at Mass in Louisiana (late-breaking; hope to have more info in the next issue)

• Have you heard of these Marian apparitions?

• British doctor recognized for pro-life work

• 9 stats about American Catholics

• Magdalen College the latest Catholic college to close its doors

• S. Carolina the latest state to ban “sex-changes” for minors

Saint of the Day

Our Lady of Fatima

What’s going on:

• Vatican to release document on Marian apparitions on Friday, May 17th

• USCCB Virtual Event - Bishop Barron, Cardinal McElroy, and Bishop Flores discuss polarization in the Church. Moderated by Gloria Purvis. May 14th at 3 pm EST.

• Notable Feast Days