Catholic Church

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French Bishops: Lord's Prayer Is 'Blasphemous'

Will be updated with new translation

(Newser) - France's Catholics have been using a potentially blasphemous version of the Lord's Prayer for almost 50 years, the country's bishops have decided. For 17 years, linguistic and theological experts have been arguing over a translation, introduced in 1966, of the line "And lead us not into...

Bishop in Trouble for $42M House

Franz-Peter Tebartz-van Elst dubbed 'Luxury Bishop'

(Newser) - A German bishop has been called to the principal's office after his exorbitant spending. Franz-Peter Tebartz-van Elst—or the "Luxury Bishop" as the BBC calls him—is under fire for spending $42 million on his house and then lying about it. Some have called for him to resign....

Francis Kicks Off Vatican Reform, Disses 'Narcissists'

Meetings with 8 cardinals seek to reform institution

(Newser) - Pope Francis isn't mincing words today as he kicks off the first of three days of meetings aimed squarely at reforming the Vatican. The pontiff is meeting with eight cardinals from across the globe, even as he addressed his concerns in an interview with leftist newspaper La Repubblica. Many...

Catholic Church Fined for Mass Texting

Not to be confused with texting during Mass

(Newser) - Austria's Roman Catholic church has learned its lesson: Mass is OK. Mass texting is not. A diocese in the southern city of Graz says it has been found guilty of contravening Austria's telecommunications law by sending mass texts to the cellphones of followers asking them to pay overdue...

Unknown Calif. Housewife on Road to Sainthood

Cora Evans claimed to receive visions of Jesus

(Newser) - A late California housewife has started on the path to sainthood, and the San Jose Mercury News digs into the "largely unknown" woman's story. During her lifetime, Cora Evans, who died in 1957 and was declared a "Servant of God" by the Vatican last year, would reportedly...

Archdiocese Kept Lid on Minn. Priest's Sex 'Compulsions'

Curtis Wehmeyer was allowed to keep working

(Newser) - The Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis made it clear that once officials heard about a priest's abuse of two boys, they went straight to law enforcement. Trouble is, the archdiocese actually knew about what Minnesota Public Radio calls Curtis Wehmeyer's "sexual compulsions" for almost a decade—...

Pope: Church Should Accept Gays 'With Respect'

Says Vatican has been 'small-minded,' can't be 'obsessed'

(Newser) - More unexpected comments about homosexuality from Pope Francis: In a new interview with a Jesuit journal, he says the church cannot "interfere spiritually" in the lives of gays and lesbians, CNN reports. He's gotten letters from gays and lesbians who felt "socially wounded" by the church, "...

Pope's No. 2: Priest Celibacy Not Set in Stone

Says it's up for discussion, though it is an important tradition

(Newser) - While Pope Francis is off puttering around in a second-hand car , his soon-to-be secretary of state has been doing something even more controversial: talking about priestly celibacy. When he was asked about it by a Venezuelan newspaper, Archbishop Pietro Parolin said the matter was open to discussion. "Celibacy is...

Benedict: God Told Me to Quit

Former pope says he had 'mystical experience'

(Newser) - Former Pope Benedict is quoted as giving his most straightforward answer yet as to why he resigned : "God told me to." Benedict said so to an anonymous visitor, according to Catholic news agency Zenit, reports the Telegraph . It wasn't an apparition, explained Benedict, but more of a...

Why It's Weird That the Pope's Acting Like a Christian

Kirsten Powers thinks other Christian leaders could learn a thing or two

(Newser) - Pope Francis' unorthodox actions— washing the feet of women and Muslims, extending an olive branch to atheists , and so on—have drawn worldwide attention, with some wondering if he's the most liberal pope ever. Kirsten Powers at USA Today sees it a different way: "Yep, Pope Francis is...

Pope Has Changed the Tone—if Not the Teaching

John Corvino: Pope Francis brings 'love' back to 'love the sinner'

(Newser) - Pope Francis once again made headlines this week when he asked, "Who am I to judge a gay person?" That's not because the Roman Catholic Church is changing its official stance on homosexuality, writes philosophy professor John Corvino in the New York Times , but it is changing its...

Pope Francis: Who Am I to Judge Gays?

Makes big statement on flight back from Latin America

(Newser) - Pope Francis continues to make news by making waves: for assuring the world that atheists can be good people , for blessing leather-clad Harley riders , and, now, for softening the church's position on gay priests. With the ink barely dry on yet another big news moment (he racked up the...

3 Million Crowd Copacabana to Hear Pope

It's the second-most attended papal address ever

(Newser) - Take note, Mick Jagger: For the final Mass of his historic return to Latin America , Pope Francis basically sold out not a stadium, but an entire 2.5 mile beach. As the AP reports, Francis this morning headed to Rio's Copacobana Beach, where some 3 million cheering faithful crammed...

Pope Scolds Bishops: Go Outside Your Churches

You've got to get out and meet the needy, he says in Brazil

(Newser) - Pope Francis delivered a simple simple message to Latin American bishops in Brazil today—if you're going to help the needy and keep people from straying from the church, you've got to get outside and actually meet them:
  • "We cannot keep ourselves shut up in parishes, in
...

Busy Pope Running Staff Ragged

Francis hits beach, then visits Rio slum on foot

(Newser) - Pope Francis may be 76, but that's not slowing him down: He's maintaining a schedule so busy —and getting busier—that aides are struggling to keep up, the AP reports. Yesterday, for instance, he had a full day planned in Brazil, then added two extra events, including...

Pope in Rio: Throngs, a Bomb, Protests

His Fiat made a wrong turn, but it's been mostly smooth sailing

(Newser) - Pope Francis is back on his home continent for the first time this week, and what a reception he got. He landed in Brazil's Rio de Janeiro yesterday for a week of World Youth Day festivities to boisterous crowds, and a somewhat confused driver. The AP reports that the...

Follow Pope on Twitter, Get Time Off Purgatory Stay

Vatican offers 'indulgences' for social media use during Catholic World Youth Day

(Newser) - If you're a Catholic due to spend some time in purgatory before heading on up to heaven, we have good news for you: You can shorten the length of time you have to spend there just by following Pope Francis on Twitter , the Guardian reports. A papal court has...

So, What Was Pope John Paul II's 2nd Miracle?

Floribeth Mora says he healed her brain aneurysm

(Newser) - As promised, more details have been released on the second miracle that got Pope John Paul II cleared for sainthood . Floribeth Mora, a 50-year-old Costa Rican woman, told her story publicly for the first time today, tears in her eyes. She developed a brain aneurysm in 2011 and had no...

John Paul II Will Be a Saint
 John Paul II Will Be a Saint 
Jul 2, 2013 10:24 AM CDT

John Paul II Will Be a Saint

All that's left is the ceremony

(Newser) - Pope John Paul II has cleared the final obstacle before being made a saint, awaiting just the final approval from Pope Francis and a date for the ceremony that could come as soon as Dec. 8, a Vatican official and news reports said today. The ANSA news agency reported that...

Milwaukee Archdiocese Releases Priest Sexual Abuse Records

Records secured by victims fighting archdiocese in bankruptcy court

(Newser) - The Archdiocese of Milwaukee has released 6,000 pages of documents detailing the church's response (and lack thereof) to sexual abuse by its priests over several decades—including the personnel files of 42 priests known to have sexually abused minors, and the depositions of church leaders. Amongst the depositions...

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