November 2020

• California Bishop Oscar Cantú Under Vatican ‘Vos Estis’ Investigation
The investigation into Bishop Oscar Cantú concerns alleged actions or inactions in cases of clerical sexual misconduct in the Diocese of Las Cruces, where Cantu served as bishop from 2013 to 2018. 
- November 17, 2020

• Archbishop Viganò Responds In-Depth to the McCarrick Report
Your Excellency, the report claims you “did not come forward” to present evidence for this Vatican inquiry: were you asked to provide information? Did anyone reach out to you?

I am surprised to discover that a Report in which I am mentioned 306 times accuses me of not having “come forward” to testify in this Vatican inquiry on Theodore McCarrick. But according to the norm of canon law, the calling of witnesses is the responsibility of the one who is in charge of the process, on the basis of evidence gathered in the investigation phase. - November 13, 2020

• Texas Bishop Calls for Prayer Until Election Result is ‘Officially Authenticated’
Bishop Michael Olson of Fort Worth has called on Catholics to pray for peace if the 2020 election results are challenged in court. - November 11, 2020

• The McCarrick Report: Full Text and a Vatican Summary
The report details “a tragic page in the recent history of Catholicism, a painful story from which the entire Church has learned,” writes Vatican editorial director, Andrea Tornielli. - November 10, 2020

• +Viganò on the McCarrrick Report: “The Vatican Fiction Continues”
Today the official Report of the Holy See regarding the McCarrick case has been made public. Before I express myself on its merit, I will take time to analyze its content. - November 10, 2020

• Abp. Viganò: We Are Facing a “Panorama of Systematically Constructed Lies”
The world in which we find ourselves living is, to use an expression from the Gospel, “in se divisum” (Mt 12:25). This division, it seems to me, consists of a split between reality and fiction: objective reality on one side, and the fiction of the media on the other. This certainly applies to the pandemic, which has been used as a tool of social engineering that is instrumental to the Great Reset, but it applies even more to the surreal American political situation, in which the evidence of a colossal electoral fraud is being censored by the media, which now proclaims Joe Biden’s victory as an accomplished fact. - November 9, 2020

• Archbishop Viganò on US Election: Reality Is Denied But Truth Will Prevail
The world in which we find ourselves living is, to use an expression from the Gospel, “in se divisum” (Mt 12:25). This division, it seems to me, consists of a split between reality and fiction: objective reality on one side, and the fiction of the media on the other. This certainly applies to the pandemic, which has been used as a tool of social engineering that is instrumental to the Great Reset, but it applies even more to the surreal American political situation, in which the evidence of a colossal electoral fraud is being censored by the media, which now proclaims Joe Biden’s victory as an accomplished fact. - November 8, 2020

• MESSAGE OF ARCHBISHOP CARLO MARIA VIGANÒ TO AMERICAN CATHOLICS AND TO ALL AMERICANS OF GOOD WILL
Dear Brothers and Sisters,
As devout Christians and faithful citizens of the United States of America, you have intense and heartfelt concern for the fate of your beloved country while the final results of the Presidential election are still uncertain. - November 4, 2020

• Archbishop Viganò to American Catholics: Do Not Be Discouraged by the Enemy, Even in This Terrible Hour
Dear Brothers and Sisters,
As devout Christians and faithful citizens of the United States of America, you have intense and heartfelt concern for the fate of your beloved country while the final results of the Presidential election are still uncertain. - November 4, 2020

• Student’s Gender ‘Transition’ at Archdiocese of Baltimore School Sparks Furor
After concerned parents pushed back against the archdiocese’s decision to accommodate the girl’s ‘transition,’ her father resigned from his position as an administrator at the Catholic school. - November 17, 2020

• Bishops air feelings, solutions to prevent another ‘predator’ in their midst
Bishop Joseph E. Strickland of Tyler, Texas, said the recently released report on former cardinal Theodore E. McCarrick, describing his ascent to highest rungs of the church, even amid rumors of abuse, read like a list of the seven deadly sins. - November 17, 2020

• Polish Catholic university defends St. John Paul II against ‘slander’ in wake of McCarrick Report
A Polish Catholic university rejected Saturday claims that St. John Paul II failed to combat clerical abuse. - November 17, 2020

• Bishops Call for Prayer, Fasting and Reform as USCCB Discusses McCarrick Report
USCCB president Archbishop Jose Gomez of Los Angeles opened the discussion after having already expressed his own “deep sorrow” at the report’s contents during his opening speech earlier in the afternoon. - November 17, 2020

• Archbishop Gregory calls for 'transparency and contrition' after McCarrick Report
Archbishop Wilton Gregory of Washington, D.C., called for transparency after the Vatican’s release of the McCarrick Report last week. - November 16, 2020

• McCarrick Report at Odds with Cardinal Wuerl’s Claims of Ignorance
Cardinal Wuerl’s denials of any prior knowledge about McCarrick’s alleged conduct are apparently contradicted by multiple accounts in the report. - November 14, 2020

• Exclusive: EWTN’s Raymond Arroyo Interviews Archbishop Viganò About McCarrick Report
The archbishop, whose explosive letter in August 2018 helped trigger the Vatican investigation into McCarrick’s misconduct, explains why he believes the report is gravely flawed. - November 13, 2020

• Pope Francis Congratulates Biden on Election Victory in Phone Call
In a news release, the Biden-Harris transition team said the call occurred Nov. 12. - November 12, 2020

• Did McCarrick Use Charitable Fund to Settle Abuse Claim?
The report includes several references to the practice, and footnotes instances of McCarrick regularly offering gifts of money to individual Vatican officials, but does not disclose their names or offices. - November 12, 2020

• ARCHBISHOP CARLO MARIA VIGANÒ Interviewed by Raymond Arroyo
RA: Your Excellency, the report claims you “did not come forward” to present evidence for this Vatican inquiry: were you asked to provide information? Did anyone reach out to you?

+CMV: I am surprised to discover that a Report in which I am mentioned 306 times accuses me of not having “come forward” to testify in this Vatican inquiry on Theodore McCarrick. But according to the norm of canon law, the calling of witnesses is the responsibility of the one who is in charge of the process, on the basis of evidence gathered in the investigation phase. - November 12, 2020

• Abuse Inquiry Faults English Cardinal and the Vatican
In a Nov. 11 statement, Cardinal Nichols said that the findings marked “an important moment in our safeguarding journey in the Catholic Church.” - November 11, 2020

• McCarrick Report: Pope Francis Prays for Victims of Sexual Abuse
With the release of the McCarrick Report, Pope Francis said, "I renew my closeness to the victims of sexual abuse and the Church’s commitment to eradicate this evil." - November 11, 2020

• McCarrick Report Documents ‘Tragic Chapter’ in Church’s Life, USCCB President Says
In his statement, Archbishop Gomez urged victims of clerical abuse to report their abuse to both law enforcement and Church authorities, and called for repentance. - November 10, 2020

• Viganò on the McCarrick Report: "The Vatican fiction continues."
Today the official Report of the Holy See regarding the McCarrick case has been made public. Before I express myself on its merit, I will take time to analyze its content. - November 10, 2020

• McCarrick Report: Catholics ‘Shocked, Saddened, Scandalized and Angered,’ US Bishops Say
The Archdiocese of Newark, where McCarrick was archbishop for 15 years, released a statement from Cardinal Joseph Tobin, calling the release of the report “unprecedented and substantial.” - November 10, 2020

• Leading German Catholic Bishop Renews Intercommunion Call After Vatican Objections
The Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith (CDF) said in September that the proposal did not do justice to the Catholic understanding of the Church, the Eucharist, and Holy Orders. - November 9, 2020

• US Catholic Bishops Congratulate Joe Biden as President-Elect
Though he would be the second Catholic president in U.S. history, Biden has faced criticism from U.S. bishops for a policy agenda that includes expanded legal protection and federal funding for abortion. - November 8, 2020'

• Searches Carried Out on Key Figures in Vatican Financial Scandal
Three companies connected to Mincione, Crasso, and Tirabassi in Rome, Milan, and Genoa were also searched. - November 6, 2020

• Pope Francis Knew of Failed London Property Deal, Alleges Becciu Secretary’s Lawyer
The allegation came the same day as the Vatican announced the Pope had transferred all real estate assets and investments managed by the Vatican Secretariat of State — the dicastery responsible for the London deal — to another dicastery. - November 6, 2020

• Same-Sex-Attracted Catholics Decry Papal Comments on Same-Sex Unions
Three men who are striving to live out the Church’s authentic teachings on sexuality explain why the controversy is so damaging for them. - November 6, 2020

• Pope Francis’ Seismic Shift of the Secretariat of State
COMMENTARY: The move to remove the financial authority of the Vatican department vindicates the financial reforms first undertaken by Cardinal George Pell. - November 6, 2020

• Fresno Diocesan Priest Accused of Misconduct, Gang Links
The diocese has also accused Fr. Rios of physically and emotionally abusing the 41-year-old church secretary. - November 6, 2020

• Pope Francis Transfers Financial Administration Out of Secretariat of State
Pope Francis’ decision, outlined in an Aug. 25 letter to Cardinal Pietro Parolin, was made as the Secretariat of State continues to be at the center of unfolding Vatican financial scandals. - November 5, 2020

• ‘Vos Estis’ Inquiry into Polish Catholic Archbishop Advances
Archbishop Głódź served as archbishop of Gdańsk from 2008 to Aug. 13, 2020, when the pope accepted his resignation on his 75th birthday. - November 5, 2020

• Report: Catholic Nuns in China Forced Out of Convent Amid Government Harassment
The nuns were also forced to remove religious symbols, such as crosses and statues of saints from inside the convent, or face the demolition of their convent. - November 5, 2020

• Pope Francis Requires Bishops to Have Vatican Permission for New Diocesan Religious Institutes
With a Nov. 4 motu proprio, Pope Francis modified canon 579 of the Code of Canon Law, which concerns the erection of religious orders and congregations, referred to in Church law as institutes of consecrated life and societies of apostolic life. - November 4, 2020

• Cardinal Parolin Tells EU Bishops: Protect Life from Conception to Natural Death
During a livestream event Oct. 28, Cardinal Parolin said that Europe today needed to return to some of the basic principles of Catholic social teaching that were “at the heart of the European Project.” - November 3, 2020

• Priest Who Denied Pope Francis Laicized, Bishop Urges Reparation for Clergy Sexual Abuse
Leatherby’s laicization likely brings to a halt the canonical trial against him related to allegations of sexual coercion and manipulation. - November 3, 2020

• Vatican Bishop: Peter’s Pence Not Used to Cover London Investment Losses
In an interview released Saturday, the 72-year-old Italian bishop acknowledged that “errors” had contributed to the Vatican’s losses. - November 3, 2020

• Biden Claims His Politics and Catholic Faith ‘Coincide’, Despite Abortion and Religious Freedom Policies
Biden has frequently referenced his Catholic faith during his political career, and placed his Catholicism at the center of several campaign ads during the 2019-2020 presidential election cycle - November 2, 2020

• Vatican Secretariat of State Provides Context of Pope Francis Civil Union Remark
The clarifications explain that the pope’s comments do not pertain to Catholic doctrine regarding the nature of marriage as a union between one man and one woman, but to provisions of civil law. - November 2, 2020

• The Truth About the Great Reset
The Great Reset is all the rage. Because we identify reset with a computer upgrade, it’s sold to us as something good. If a reset is good a great reset must be great. Right? The phrase comes from the founder and CEO of the World Economic Forum, (Schwab) Klaus Schwab. Mr. Schwab and his fellow oligarchs have been trying to gain some traction with this great reset saying for years without much traction. In fact, in a short propaganda video, the World Economic Forum predicts a world where, “You’ll own nothing, and you’ll be happy” and that everyone will rent everything they need.

• AFTER THE MCCARRICK REPORT
With the release of the so-called “McCarrick Report,” this brutal, bizarre year has a new low point. Many priests have already begun whispering among themselves: When we eventually reinstate the Sunday Mass obligation, what if our numbers don’t budge? What if what we have now—about 30 percent of the 30 percent who were actually attending Mass before the pandemic—is what we have? And if so, does the “institutional knowledge and decision-making” detailed in the McCarrick Report have anything to do with it? - November 17, 2020

• VOWS BROKEN
Icouldn't bear to look at the recently released Vatican report on Theodore McCarrick. And yet the image of his face on the front page of national newspapers kept appearing in my mind, uninvited. What is it about the McCarrick debacle that feels even more devastating than those 2002 Boston Globe articles? Perhaps because in 2002 we were still naïve about how many rotten apples there were in the Church and how far the rot had spread. - November 16, 2020

• Fr. Z's Blog: Food for thought: “How to Red-Pill a Bishop”
Today at Crisis there is a thoughtful piece by Michael Warren Davis about bishops, both impressive and dreadful. - November 16, 2020

• The McCarrick report shows that the Church needs more transparency in its selection of bishops
The Vatican document tracing the rise of ex-cardinal Theodore McCarrick through the hierarchy’s ranks has been praised for its unprecedented transparency in shedding light on a dark episode in the life of the Church. But the practice of transparency shouldn’t stop there. - November 16, 2020

• Antonio Socci: Benedict XVI Warns of a New Totalitarianism
Last May there was controversy over the anticipation of some statements made by Benedict XVI to Peter Seewald published in his biography that was about to be published in Germany. This work has now been translated into Italian with the title Benedetto XVI. Una vita (Garzanti), and so we are now able to better understand the pope’s words. - November 16, 2020

• How Will the Church Emerge From the Shadow of the McCarrick Report?
COMMENTARY: The McCarrick Report has many words but, in the end, speaks with no one’s voice and seems addressed to no one in particular, yet what Catholics crave from this ordeal is personal accountability. - November 16, 2020

• Cardinal Gulbinowicz Dies 10 Days After Vatican Sanctions
A Polish cardinal recently sanctioned by the Vatican for sexual abuse has died at the age of 97. - November 16, 2020

• McCarrick and the Apocalypse
Homily for the 33rd Sunday in Ordinary Time. Today’s Gospel, the parable of the talents, ends with the “darkness outside,” the “wailing and grinding of teeth.” These words appear again and again in Matthew’s Gospel, from which we’ve been reading all year. - November 15, 2020

• Critics Say McCarrick Report Evades Issue of Pervasive Homosexuality in Catholic Clergy
They note that the Vatican report downplays McCarrick’s homosexual misconduct and grooming behaviors with adult clergy and seminarians, and the influence of a clerical ‘gay lobby’ in covering up his moral crimes. - November 14, 2020

• Fr. Z's Blog: ASK FATHER: Since the Church does nothing about Joe Biden, what commandments do I have to follow?
From a reader…
QUAERITUR:

Since the “Church” hasn’t excommunicated Joe Biden for his and the Democratic Party stance on abortion, which commandments/teaching do I/we have to follow? - November 14, 2020

• Every 250 Years the Church Faces Certain Destruction
In my study of history, I’ve noticed a few patterns. One of these is the cycle of impossible situations. It seems that about every ten generations—250 years, sometimes less—the Church is faced with one of these. It is some crisis which threatens to the destroy the whole Church and prove God false. At the time, it is unprecedented—unlike anything the Church has faced up to that point. During such a crisis many think that the world is at an end and start to identify the Antichrist among their contemporaries. Apocalyptic literature begins to proliferate. Yet somehow, against all odds, God delivers His Church once again. - November 13, 2020

• The McCarrick Report’s Unanswered Questions
A NOTE FROM OUR PUBLISHER: Document represents one important step in fostering authentic renewal. - November 13, 2020

• Fr. Z's Blog: Fishwrap – swamp of pseudo-Catholic wokeness: CANCEL JOHN PAUL II!
Here is a spectacular example of “fundamental osculation” from the Fishwrap (aka National Schismatic Reporter).
Keep in mind an old principle: Everything before “but” is B as in B, S as in S.

Editorial: US bishops, please suppress the cult of St. John Paul II - Novembe 13, 2020

• Fr. Z's Blog: The best thing I’ve seen, so far, about the infamous McCarrick Report: ‘Status quaestionis’ and sign posts for reform.
Sadly, I have found so far one of the best examinations of the infamous McCarrick Report.
My own stomach-turning look at the Report left me with the impression that whoever assembled it had the primary objective of shielding Francis through the means of insinuations about the misfeasance of John Paul II, Benedict XVI and Archbp. Viganò. - November 13, 2020

• Public pressure or civil disobedience: a conversation with Archbishop Cordileone
Back in September, when Archbishop Salvatore Cordileone began a campaign of public pressure to loosen government restrictions on the Church, I wrote ( “Two Cheers for Archbishop Cordileone”) to pose a question:

If the archbishop thinks that the city’s restrictions are unreasonable—if he thinks that it would be safe to celebrate Mass for a larger congregation in the city’s cathedral—why doesn’t he take the obvious action? Why doesn’t he go into his own cathedral, invite the public, and celebrate Mass? - November 13, 2020

• How McCarrick Got Away
How did it happen? That’s the question the McCarrick Report was supposed to answer. How many of the bishops knew about his beach house? Who turned a blind eye? Who lied to protect one of their own? - November 13, 2020

• Analysis: After McCarrick Report, Embracing the Cross
In the wake of the McCarrick Report, renewal of the Church likely has most to do with whether ordinary Catholics will turn to Christ, and embrace his suffering on the cross. - November 12, 2020

• Gen X-Catholic and the McCarrick Report – Steve Skojec on Joseph Sciambra’s Show
Yesterday, I had the chance to go on Joseph Sciambra’s show to talk about the thinking behind my article from a little while back, “No More Platitudes: It’s Time to Take a Hard Look at the Crisis of Catholicism.” We talked about Catholic identity and the effects the crisis in the Church have on that worldview. - November 12, 2020

• McCarrick & The Gay Lobby Score Again
The McCarrick report reveals a substantial degree of tolerance towards homosexual conduct by the clergy, which is punished only if minors are the persons abused. This report also ignores the fact that the McCarrick case is only the tip of the iceberg of a power system controlled by the gay lobby. - November 12, 2020

• Mistakes Were Made
For those who don’t think clericalism has played a major role in the abuse crisis in the Catholic Church, the McCarrick Report published this week ought to change their minds. The report reveals an insular and bureaucratized clerical culture that served the ambitions of a man like Theodore McCarrick, who knew how to manipulate that system to his advantage, far better than it served the Church and the Gospel. And certainly, far better than it served the many victims of McCarrick’s predations. - November 12, 2020

• Clergy Abuse Survivors Respond to McCarrick Report: ‘We Need to Look This Evil in the Eye’
Based on her reading of the report, one abuse survivor said, there was "an extremely high level of denial" in the hierarchy about McCarrick, especially when it came to the allegations that he abused adults. - November 11, 2020

• The McCarrick Report: the cover-up continues
The McCarrick Report, hyped for months as a candid Vatican exploration of an ecclesiastical scandal, is actually a clever bid to deflect attention away from the real scandal. - November 11, 2020

• McCarrick Report Released: Preliminary Notes
Well, after much delaying, the McCarrick report has finally been released — you can grab it from the Vatican website as a PDF — and it weighs in at a whopping 461 pages. (UPDATE: There’s an executive summary from Andrea Tornielli, editorial director of the Dicastery for Communication, available via Ed Pentin here. It’s worth noting, as Pentin does, that there was no press conference for the release of this document. No doubt they’re hoping it will disappear behind the smokescreen of ongoing American election coverage.) - November 10, 2020

• VIDEO: Dr. Taylor Marshall: VIGANÒ responds to McCARRICK REPORT: Dr Taylor Marshall Podcast - November 10, 2020

• McCarrick Report: details of abuse ignored [News Analysis]
The Vatican has issued a 450-page report on former cardinal Theodore McCarrick, acknowledging that reports of McCarrick’s sexual misconduct had circulated for years but insisting that Pope Francis was unaware of any serious charges against the influential American prelate until shortly before he was stripped of his ecclesiastical honors. - November 10, 2020

• McCarrick Report: When One Mother Had to Speak Up
Published Tuesday by the Vatican, The McCarrick Report includes testimony from a mother, one of the first people known to have accused McCarrick of misconduct with minors. - November 10, 2020

• JPII Biographer: ‘Pathological’ McCarrick ‘Lied to’ the Pope
George Weigel, biographer of St. John Paul II, said that McCarrick was a “pathological personality,” and that his ability to lie to, and deceive those around him was a “hallmark” of his career and rise in the Church. - November 10, 2020

• McCarrick Report: NJ Bishops Gave Vatican ‘Inaccurate’ Information Before McCarrick’s Washington Appointment
The report states that on three prior occasions transfers of McCarrick to other U.S. dioceses were stopped: to Chicago in 1997, to New York in 1999 and 2000, and to Washington in July 2000. - November 10, 2020

• What Catholics Should Know Ahead of the McCarrick Report
A look at some of the facts that Catholics should know ahead of the release of the McCarrick report Nov. 10. - November 9, 2020

• My action items for the US bishops’ meeting
The McCarrick Report challenges the US bishops to think big during their November meeting. The following agenda would be the first step in demonstrating they are serious in ensuring that policies, procedures, and protocols are put into place to—as James Martin, SJ promises, echoing the bishops themselves—“prevent this from ever happening again.” - November 9, 2020

• Fr. Z's Blog: There are so many things wrong with this.
The homosexualist activist Jesuit comes out with this. There are so many things wrong with this.
First, Joe Biden may be Catholic, since he was baptized into the Catholic Church, but he is, objectively, a bad Catholic. - November 8, 2020

• Abuse Survivor: ‘All Catholics Will be Grieving’ When McCarrick Report is Released
The report is expect to answer questions about how McCarrick rose through the ecclesiastical ranks despite apparently widespread rumors of sexual misconduct over the years. - November 7, 2020

• Long-Awaited McCarrick Report Due Next Tuesday
In October 2018, the Vatican announced that Pope Francis had ordered a “thorough study” of all the documentation in the Vatican archives to “ascertain all the relevant facts” surrounding the case of Theodore McCarrick. - November 5, 2020

• Civil-Unions ‘Imbergoglio’ Stains the Competency of the Holy See Press Office
COMMENTARY: The Vatican’s communications apparatus does grave disservice to Pope Francis and the Catholic faithful for not clarifying his comments. - November 3, 2020

• VIDEO: Dr. Taylor Marshall: Trump and Viganò against Globalist Reset for New World Order
President Trump and Archbishop Viganò are aligned against the attempt to have a "Globalist Reset." Dr. Taylor Marshall and Matt Gaspers discuss Vigano's recent statements. - November 2, 2020

• Bishop Barron Extols the Qualities of Barabbas
Imagine a conversation among the Apostles after the Resurrection in which one says, “You know, Barabbas is not so bad. I know he’s a criminal but we must consider his intrinsic dignity.” Another replies: “I heard that he comes from an underprivileged background. Besides Saint Peter was a sinner too.” - November 1, 2020

• Terminally-Ill Priest Warns: COVID Is Being Used by the Enemy to Drag Souls to Hell; We Must Fight!
About a year ago, I was diagnosed with ALS, commonly known as Lou Gehrig’s disease. It has already taken much from me, like the ability to offer the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, feed myself, or walk. Yet it has also brought me great freedom to live my priesthood in a radical way. Although this disease has taken much from me, and will take more, it cannot take from me the holy priesthood. 
- November 16, 2020

• U.S. Catholic Bishops: Retract premature and offensive statement "congratulating" Biden-Harris
The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops has finally spoken on Joe Biden and Kamala Harris....
Not to chastise them for their blatant anti-life, anti-family and anti-Catholic views, but to "congratulate" them on "[being elected]"!
BUT, as everyone know, the anti-Catholic Biden-Harris ticket has NOT been elected. - November 14, 2020

• Fighting the Good Fight
A NOTE FROM OUR PUBLISHER: Catholics, in the wake of a tumultuous election, need to commit ourselves to making voices heard in the public square. - November 6, 2020

• ‘Stay Awake,’ Do the Will of the Father and Engage in Good Works
User’s Guide to Sunday, Nov. 8 The Gospel today tells us the story of the wise and the foolish virgins. Ten in all, they prepare for the arrival of the bridegroom to his own wedding feast. The virgins’ task was to keep a light on, for night had already fallen. The newlyweds would need the light for guidance and safety, but no one knew exactly when the wedding party would arrive. - November 5, 2020

• In Times Like These, We Need More Eucharistic Adoration, Not Less
COVID is a challenge to Catholicism’s sacramental theology — but it’s also an opportunity to promote traditional Eucharistic devotions. - November 5, 2020