In an unsurprising move, Pope Francis removed Bishop Joseph Strickland from his position as the head of the Diocese of Tyler, Texas. His action on Saturday follows an Apostolic Visitation of the Diocese and Strickland’s refusal to resign when the Pope offered him the chance to do so gracefully. The Vatican initiated an Apostolic Visitation Read more
The Synod on Synodality didn’t offer “a single idea of how to meaningfully include women” says Ireland’s former president, Professor Mary McAleese. There was just a tentative suggestion that the two unpublished papal-commissioned reports on women and the diaconate be made available for the 2024 Synod, she says. Balance of power Referring to October’s synod Read more
Despite Vatican disapproval, an important synodal way meeting in Germany took place on 10 November. It was the first meeting programmed to implement the country’s synodal way decisions. The meeting was light on bishops though. Eight of Germany’s 27 diocesan bishops were marked absent. Four chose to boycott the meeting: Cologne’s Cardinal Rainer Maria Woelki, Read more
Children are suffering! Wars in Gaza, Ukraine and other parts of the world are destroying their futures, Pope Francis says. Speaking about the conflict in Palestine and Israel after praying the Angelus in St Peter’s Square this week, Francis asked the world to “think of the children” who suffer as a result of war. For Read more
The Vatican has affirmed that transgender individuals are eligible to participate as godparents and witnesses in Roman Catholic sacraments of baptism and marriage, and they can be baptised. The Vatican’s document, signed by Pope Francis and Cardinal Víctor Manuel Fernández, was published on the Holy See’s Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith website on Read more
On November 1, 2023, Pope Francis issued the “Motu Proprio” Ad theologiam promovendam indicating how theology today “is called to a turning point, to a paradigm shift.” The Pope signalled how this shift must foster a “fundamentally contextual theology” based on a nexus between relationships, experience, and no longer being self-referential. The following offers a Read more
“The criteria of Catholic ecclesiology have been lost, (…) it is not said openly, but the path that has been taken is that of Protestantisation”. Cardinal Gerard L. Müller’s assessment of the Synod on Synodality, which has just ended, is extremely worrying. The Daily Compass meets the Prefect Emeritus of the Congregation for the Doctrine Read more
“Disarmament Week” – a UN-sponsored event that takes place every year from October 24-30 – usually comes and goes unnoticed. It is seen as a nice idea that is impractical in the real world. This year, however, it is more likely to be dismissed as an absurd idea. The conflict between Israel and Hamas will Read more
Blessings for same-sex couples and divorced and remarried couples in Germany’s Speyer diocese are now officially ‘allowed’. In his letter to priests, deacons and lay pastoral workers last week, Bishop Karl-Heinz Wiesemann officially sanctioned the blessings. The same-sex blessings the Speyer diocese gave in the Speyer churches could also be given to remarried couples, he Read more
Catholic theology needs to undergo a “paradigm shift” says Pope Francis. It must engage widely with contemporary science, culture and people’s lived experience as an essential starting point. Citing the need to deal with “profound cultural transformations,” Francis’s vision for Catholic theology’s future is encapsulated in a new motu proprio (apostolic letter) issued on Saturday. Read more