In this week’s edition:

• Pope Francis’ salvation remarks in Singapore spark debate

• Three abuse scandals from across the globe

• North Dakota judge says the state constitution creates a right to abortion

• Pope Francis comments on the upcoming US election

• and more!

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Pope Francis says “All religions are a path to God,” sparking controversy

Summary: During an interreligious meeting during his visit to Singapore, Pope Francis made comments comparing different religions to “idioms” to reach God, raising concerns about the relativistic implications.

Details:

• The pope also said “And since God is God for everyone, we are all children of God. ‘But my God is more important than yours!’ Is this true? There is only one God…”

• While the Italian text calls these religions “paths to arrive at God,” the official English translation says they “are seen as paths trying to reach God.”

• The Church teaches that “The Catholic Church recognizes in other religions that search…for the God who is unknown yet near…. Thus, the Church considers all goodness and truth found in these religions as “a preparation for the Gospel….” (CCC 843)

• That said, the Church also declared in Lumen Gentium that “This Sacred Council…teaches that the Church, now sojourning on earth as an exile, is necessary for salvation.”

• Still, Lumen Gentium acknowledges that “Those also can attain to salvation who through no fault of their own do not know the Gospel of Christ or His Church, yet sincerely seek God and moved by grace strive by their deeds to do His will as it is known to them through the dictates of conscience.”

Why we care: Is it possible that something was lost in translation? Certainly yes, although it seems to happen too often that the Holy Father says the right thing in the wrong (or at least most confusing) way. With so many Catholics being ostensibly poorly catechized as demonstrated by last week’s poll, it would be a shame if the Church’s position on salvation were obfuscated by a mistranslated line or a poorly executed attempt to convey doctrine to the young folks. Either way, please join us in continuing to pray for Pope Francis and for the conversion of souls to God’s Church.

Emmaus founder, Irish religious schools, and Chicago “baby priest” embroiled in sex abuse scandals

Summary: French bishops release files on Abbe Pierre, Irish government to open investigation into historical abuse, and a Chicago priest is accused of abusing a child.

Details:

• Given the “the seriousness of the successive revelations”, the French Conference of Bishops (CEF) has decided to release files on Abbe Pierre, founder of the poverty ministry Emmaus, 58 years earlier than conventions prescribe.

• Following 2,395 abuse allegations against 884 individuals across 308 schools over the course of 86 years and a 2022 radio documentary, the Irish Government has announced an investigation into historical abuse at its religious-run schools.

• A newly-ordained priest has been accused of molesting a child during a confirmation retreat. Illinois’ Department of Child and Family Services is investigating the allegations against the priest, who “strenuously denies” any wrongdoing.

Why we care: Perhaps this is simply a case of the frequency illusion given that we often include abuse stories in our newsletter, but it seems as though these stories are popping up more and more. The silver lining here (if one must be found) is that two of the three stories are primarily historical in nature. Is the Church getting better at weeding out abuse and holding perpetrators accountable? We’d certainly like to think so. Of course we’d like to see that no wrong had been done in any of these cases, but realistically that isn’t likely the case, and in that case we’d like to see that justice is done. We may never be entirely rid of abuse, but the fact that we’re so willing to give it news coverage gives us hope that this issue will no longer be swept under the rug. We’ll keep the cynicism for another day.

North Dakota abortion restrictions struck down

Summary: The protections for the unborn were overturned by a state judge who claims the state’s constitution creates a right to abortion up until fetal viability.

Details:

• The ruling overturns a 2023 law that allow narrow exceptions for abortions, namely within the first six weeks, in the case of rape or incest, and when the health of the mother is at risk.

• The ruling was suppose to be simply on whether or not to grant the state’s request to dismiss a lawsuit brought by a women’s clinic in 2022; instead it appears as though the judge is legislating from the bench.

• The judge also declared that the “vagueness” of the existing restrictions made them void.

• North Dakota Right to Life has issued a statement, expressing disappointment both with the ruling and the judge’s methodology.

Why we care: Don’t get us started on the previous law, which certainly did not go far enough in restricting abortion. Don’t even get us started on the eagerness of certain judges to legislate from the bench. It’s difficult to come up with something to write that won’t send us off on some diatribe about the current state of politics and morality in this country. Suffice it to say we’re quite disgusted with this turn of events, and hope to see the decision overturned.

Pope Francis comments on U.S. election, encourages Catholics to vote with conscience

Summary: The Holy Father called the election a choice for “the lesser evil”, adding that “…if you don’t vote, it’s not good, it’s bad. You have to vote, and you have to choose the lesser evil.”

Details:

• Pope Francis said he did not know whether “that woman, or that man” was the “lesser evil”, but said that voters “…n his or her conscience, must think and do this.”

• When asked by a CBS reporter how voters ought to choose between one candidate “who is in favor of abortion and another who wants to deport millions of migrants,” Pope Francis responded that “both of them are against life.”

• The Holy Father’s statement reflects the Church’s position on voting against the candidate who would do the most harm.

Why we care: On the heels of the Republican part re-writing its platform and President Trump coming out in strong support of IVF, we’re tempted ourselves to withhold our vote from the major party candidates and cast it in support of a third-party candidate who more closely reflects our values (go ahead, call us crazy). While we live in a state which pretty reliably goes red, that result might not be so reliable if everyone were to start voting third-party. Some of you, dear readers, may live in states which are deeply purple and in which each vote carries significant weight. While we’re not yet sure which way we’ll vote, it’s good to be reminded that we can vote pragmatically (i.e. for Trump) as Catholics and not be in violation of our moral obligations.

Other Stories

• Catholic Charities in search of volunteers in Louisiana to handle hurricane fallout

• In Memoriam: James Earl Jones, actor and convert to Catholicism, dies at 93

• Maine “poison pill” law prevents Christian schools from participating in school choice; school responds with lawsuit

• Story Updates:

  • Vicar General, self-proclaimed bishop leave community of schismatic Poor Clares in Spain

  • The Arlington, TX Carmelites at the center of a conflict with the Diocese of Ft. Worth have yet to respond to an offer to restore sacramental life

• Pro-Life

  • Competing abortion initiatives are on the ballot in Nebraska

  • Abortion on the ballot in Missouri

  • Death penalty resumes in S. Carolina, with potential for executions as frequent as every 5 weeks

Quote of the Week

What’s going on:

• Sept 17 is the Feast of The Sacred Stigmata of St. Francis of Assisi

• Sept 21 is the Feast of St. Matthew, Apostle and Evangelist

• Tidbit: Sept 16 is the feast of Sts. Cornelius and Cyprian, both of whom are mentioned (together) in the Roman Canon.

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