VATICAN CITY (CNS) – The life and ministry of the Catholic Church is enriched by listening to everyone, especially those who are often excluded by society, and by including their experiences and perspectives, Pope Francis said.
“For the church is like a rich tapestry, made up of many individual threads that come from various peoples, languages and cultures, yet woven into a unity by the Holy Spirit,” he told a delegation from Catholic Extension.
The pope greeted the delegation during an audience at the Vatican April 26. The group included: U.S. Cardinal Blase J. Cupich of Chicago, chancellor of the organization’s board of governors; retired Arizona Bishop Gerald F. Kicanas of Tucson, vice-chancellor; and Sister Norma Pimentel, a member of the Missionaries of Jesus, who received Catholic Extension’s “Spirit of Francis” Award this year for her work providing care to hundreds of thousands of people at the U.S.-Mexico border.
“I congratulate Sister Norma Pimentel,” the pope said, “for her service to the many men, women and children arriving at the southern border of the United States.”
Speaking briefly in Spanish, the pope said the border was “caliente caliente,” that is, a hotbed of activity with so many people “in search of a better future.”
Pope Francis uses his wheeled walker after an audience with a delegation from Catholic Extension at the Vatican April 26, 2023. The group, which included U.S. Cardinal Blase J. Cupich of Chicago, chancellor of the organization’s board of governors, and retired Arizona Bishop Gerald F. Kicanas of Tucson, vice-chancellor, was in Rome April 23-28. The pope thanked the organization for its work “providing assistance to missionary dioceses, particularly in the United States, and in caring for the needs of the poor and most vulnerable.” (CNS photo/Vatican Media)
He thanked Catholic Extension, which had a delegation in Rome April 23-28, for its work “providing assistance to missionary dioceses, particularly in the United States, and in caring for the needs of the poor and most vulnerable,” especially in Puerto Rico “following the various hurricanes and earthquakes which brought such devastation to the island in recent years.”
“By giving a voice to those who are frequently voiceless,” he told the delegation,”you bear witness to the God-given dignity of every person.”
As the entire church is journeying together on the path of synodality, the pope said, “listening to and including the experiences and perspectives of all, especially those on the margins of society, enriches the church’s life and ministry.”
“I am pleased to know of your concern to place those who are often victims of today’s ‘throw-away culture’ at the heart of the church’s pastoral activity; in this way, their voices can be heard, and all can benefit,” he said.
Pope Francis encouraged them to serve others with “God’s style,” that is with closeness, compassion and tender love so that “God’s loving mercy becomes visible, and the fabric of society is strengthened and renewed.”
There’s a saying attributed to Attila the Hun, a 5th century ruler infamous for his cruelty, which reads this way: For me to be happy, it’s not just important that I succeed; it’s also important that everyone else fails. I suspect that Atilla the Hun was not the author of that, but, no matter, there’s a lesson here.
The Gospels tell us that God’s mercy is unlimited and unconditional, that God has no favorites, that God is equally solicitous for everyone’s happiness and salvation, and that God does not ration his gift of the Spirit. If that is true, then we need to ask ourselves why we so frequently tend to withhold God’s Spirit from others in our judgments – particularly in our religious judgments. We are blind to the fact that sometimes there’s a little of Attila the Hun in us.
Father Ron Rolheiser, OMI
For example, how prone are we to think this way? For my religion to be the true, it’s important to me that other religions are not true! For my Christian denomination to be faithful to Christ, it’s important that all the other denominations be considered less faithful. For the Eucharist in my denomination to be valid, it’s important that the Eucharist in other denominations be invalid or less valid. And, since I’m living a certain sustained fidelity in my faith and moral life, it’s important to me that everyone else who isn’t living as faithfully does not get to heaven or is assigned to a secondary place in heaven.
Well, we aren’t the first disciples of Jesus to think this way and to be challenged by him in our Attila the Hun proclivities. This is in fact a large part of the lesson in Jesus’ parable regarding an over-generous landowner who paid everyone the same generous wage no matter how much or little each had worked.
We are all familiar with this story. A landowner goes out one morning and hires workers to work in his fields. He hires some early in the morning, some at noon, some in mid-afternoon, and some with only an hour left in the workday. Then he pays them all the same wage – a generous one. The people who worked the full day understandably became resentful, upset that (while their wage was in fact a generous one) they felt it was unfair to them that those who had worked a lot less should also receive an equally generous wage. The landowner in response says to the complainant, “Friend, I am not being unjust to you. Didn’t you agree to this wage? Why are you envious because I am generous?” (Matthew 20:1-16) Notice that Jesus addresses the one making the complaint as ‘friend.” That’s a designation for us, we, the ones who are faithfully doing the full day’s work. Note his tone is warm and soft. However, his challenge is less warm and soft: Why are you jealous because God is overly generous? Why is it important to us that because we are doing things right, that God should be hard on those who aren’t?
Full disclosure: sometimes I imagine myself, after having lived a life of celibacy, entering heaven and meeting there the world’s most notorious playboy and asking God, “How did he get in here?” and God answering, “Friend, isn’t heaven a wonderful place! Are you envious because I am generous?” Who knows, we might even meet Attila the Hun there.
One of the core values held by a certain group of Quakers is something they call generous orthodoxy. I like the combination of those two words. Generosity speaks of openness, hospitality, empathy, wide tolerance and of sacrificing some of ourselves for others. Orthodoxy speaks of certain non-negotiable truths, of keeping proper boundaries, of staying true to what you believe and of not compromising truth for the sake of being nice. These two are often pitted against each other as opposites, but they are meant to be together. Holding ground on our truth, keeping proper boundaries and refusing to compromise even at the risk of not being nice is one side of the equation, but the full equation requires us to be also fully respectful and gracious regarding other people’s truth, cherished beliefs and boundaries. And this is not an unhealthy syncretism, if what the other person holds as truth does not contradict what we hold – although it might be very different and may not in our judgment be nearly as full and rich as what we hold.
Hence, you can be a Christian, convinced that Christianity is the truest expression of religion in the world without making the judgment that other religions are false. You can be a Roman Catholic, convinced that Roman Catholicism is the truest and fullest expression of Christianity, and your Eucharist is the real presence of Jesus, without making the judgment that other Christian denominations are not valid expressions of Christ and do not have a valid Eucharist. There’s no contradiction there. You can be right, without that being contingent on everyone else being wrong!
(Oblate Father Ron Rolheiser is a theologian, teacher and award-winning author. He can be contacted through his website www.ronrolheiser.com.)
Back in Spring 2021, I visited the Diocese of Little Rock to discover why they had so many seminarians. For the past several years the diocese had consistently large numbers of seminarians and most of those seminarians came from parishes in the diocese. This was interesting to me since the Diocese of Little Rock has a similar demographic layout to the Diocese of Jackson. The diocese spans the entire state of Arkansas, and other than the parishes in the metro area of the capital, and a couple of university towns, most of the parishes are in rural areas.
When I spoke to Msgr. Scott Friend, then the longtime vocation director of the diocese, he told me that one of the biggest unifying forces for his men was their dedication to learning Spanish and being ready to serve whatever community they needed to upon ordination. Speaking with some of the young priests of the diocese on that trip, they told me how their dedication to learning a second language had galvanized them to see their priesthood through the lens of mission, and this was helpful since they were studying for a mission diocese. They shared with me that learning Spanish created a ‘buy-in’ among the seminarians and helped them to grow in humility and trust of the Lord as they struggled to encounter the People of God in a new way.
Father Nick Adam
As I processed through my visit to Little Rock and I spoke to Bishop Kopacz about the experience, I was sure that language immersion and a dedication to being ready to minister to the growing number of Hispanic Catholics in our diocese needed to be a focus in our formation program.
In Summer 2022, I visited the Benedictine Abbey of Our Lady of the Angels outside of Cuernavaca, Mexico in hopes of finding an immersion program that fit our needs. I visited on Fourth of July weekend as the seminarians in that year’s program in the middle of their studies led by lay teachers and monks from the Abbey. I came away very impressed by the program, and we began to make plans to implement this summer program as a part of our formation plan.
This summer, four of our seminarians and I will depart for Cuernavaca to take part in this program. We will spend two hours each day individually practicing with a teacher, then two hours in small group discussion. We will also be spending regular prayer time and attending Mass with the monastic community in the Abbey. We will also be visiting historical sites around the area, including the Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe, who is the patroness of North America. I am very hopeful that this program will not only equip our seminarians with a much-needed skill in today’s church, but that it will be a great source of fraternal bonding. The Lord meets us whenever we take a risk and trust in Him, and I know that He will be with us in Mexico. Please keep myself, Ryan Stoer, Tristan Stovall, Grayson Foley and Will Foggo in your prayers this summer, and pray to the efforts of these great seminarians will bless them, and our diocese, for many years to come.
Father Nick Adam
For more info on vocations email: nick.adam@jacksondiocese.org.
On earth day I planted one seed, a giant sunflower sent to me by a friend in California. If it sprouts and is nourished it might grow to 15’14” across. Oh my. That’s a lot for one seed. While thinking about this one seed (and she sent me seven) I recalled the wonders God has done and was drawn to Psalm 104 where we encounter God as provider and creator.
In this springtime some of our readers are suffering perhaps from illness or accident, aging or loneliness. You might be reading from a prison or a nursing home, from your den or garden. What I learned from this Psalm is how rich and bountiful our God is and no matter where I make this meditation, (34) I can sing (33) praise to God. This is a seed of hope.
What is the one seed you will plant today? Is it an actual seed like mine, or will it be a seed of happiness or healing? Will it be a seed of thanksgiving or peace, or gratitude or friendship? See each day as the opportunity to plant one seed. Maybe it will be a phone call, or kindness to a visitor, or writing an email to someone who is sick. One seed can change things greatly. This God knows and shows God’s graciousness to us. Our favorite ‘one seed’ is Jesus. One seed planted and grown and rescued from permanent danger by being raised from the dead. Not all seeds seem to flourish like Jesus … they pop up and then whither. I do not want to wither, and Psalm 104 shows me how God, our provider wishes the same.
Sister alies therese
We remember the story about the seeds on the path, the seeds in the thorns, the seeds on rich soil. Maybe only one seed prospered … the rich soil made it possible. The birds and creeping things each come from one seed. Out of all the reproductive possibilities, one seed is available, one seed blossoms, one seed provides nourishment. And what did Jesus say that seed was? The Word of God. Are you reading your Bible? Are you finding new ways to grow in God? Are you praying in thanksgiving for the treasures of God?
In this Psalm, I am happy to read about all of creation and also about how I can respond. I can rejoice, sing and mediate and my love for God is deepened, and I increase my wonder and awe of all that God created. I can also be alert to the ways human beings are not generous with the creation of God. Russell Baker, a US journalist who remarked in an article in the New York Times on Feb. 22, 1968, “We live in an environment whose principal product is garbage.” I dare say we have not become more responsible in all these years. Rachel Carson, environmentalist, and writer, in her work Silent Spring, noted: “For the first time in the history of the world, every human being is now subjected to contact with dangerous chemicals, from the moment of conception until death.”
What is this garbage besides the obvious plastic? Well, when it is a seed of resentment or anger, hatred or regret the ‘garbage’ in our souls grows. When our focus is on the things of this world that keep us from God, chemicals surround us … dangerous and contaminating. What breaks the cycle of negativity? What causes us to be transformed into peacemakers and children of such a gracious Father? Well, plant the seeds, even if only one of charity within and all the others will fall into place. Consider St. James 1:21ff, who sets the seeds of welcome and meekness against those of sordidness and wickedness. They are like smog in the throat keeping one from singing.
“ ‘Once-ler!’ He cried with a cruffulous croak.
‘Once-ler! You’re making such smogulous smoke! My poor Swomee-Swams…why they can’t sing a note! No one can sing who has smog in his throat.” (Dr. Seuss, The Lorax).
That includes the smog in our hearts. Plant something today that will bring joy and healing to hearts and minds. It could be green things that drive out the smog and invite us into the refreshment of God. Blessings.
(Sister alies therese is a canonically vowed hermit with days formed around prayer and writing.)
LIGHT ONE CANDLE By Father Ed Dougherty, M.M., The Christophers’ board of directors
This year, Mother’s Day falls on Sunday, May 14, just one day after the Feast of Our Lady of Fatima. Together, these two days make up a special weekend in this month already dedicated to our Blessed Mother. It is fitting that our celebrations of motherhood and Mary coincide because she is the guardian of mothers in this world. Mary is the model for motherhood in both joy and sorrow, and she shows the way of mercy at all times.
The story of Mary standing at the foot of the cross resonates with mothers in their deepest moments of suffering. When Jesus said to Mary, “Woman, behold, your son!” He was entrusting her to the care of John. He followed that by saying to John, “Behold, your mother!” So, He was entrusting John to her care as well, and by extension, He was entrusting us all to Mary’s care.
Father Ed Dougherty
The numerous and well-documented Marian apparitions that have occurred over the years confirm Mary’s role as mother to us all and her profound connection to God. Credible Marian apparitions have occurred in many cultures at important moments in history, and the apparitions at Fatima remain among the most astounding.
Mary’s final apparition at Fatima made international news, and it was reported that somewhere between 30,000 and 100,000 people made pilgrimages to the Cova da Iria, a field where Lucia dos Santos and her cousins Francisco and Jacinta Marto pastured their families’ sheep. There, the pilgrims witnessed Mary’s promised sign as the sun broke through dark rain clouds and defied the laws of physics, dancing in the sky and, at one point, appearing to fall to earth before finally returning to its normal position, leaving the ground the people were standing on and their previously wet clothes completely dry.
In her appearances to Lucia, Francesco and Jacinta, Mary asked for prayers, reparations and devotion to her Immaculate Heart, and she made statements about war and peace that proved prophetic throughout the 20th century. At every turn, her intervention at Fatima was marked by a profound care for humanity and the hope that we would follow Christ and discover the Mercy of God.
Mary’s role as the mother of Jesus is the lens through which to understand why she is such a powerful intercessor for us. Consider the story of the Wedding at Cana, when Jesus turned water into wine at His mother’s request. Midway through the gathering, she said to Him, “They have no wine,” and Jesus answered, “O woman, what have you to do with me? My hour has not yet come.” At this point, Mary turned to the servants and said, “Do whatever He tells you.”
What amazing confidence Mary had that Jesus would do as she asked even after He expressed displeasure at the request. This is the type of confidence we should have in asking for Mary’s intercession because she will always bring our needs to the foot of the Cross where all good things have been made possible in Christ.
In His actions at the Wedding at Cana, Jesus demonstrates the tremendous loyalty and respect we all owe to our mothers, who walk in the footsteps of Mary in the countless selfless acts they perform on our behalf. We should turn to the intercession of Mary to ask Christ to bless us with the same devotion to our mothers that He showed to His, so we can honor them this Mother’s Day and throughout our lives.
(For a free copy of The Christophers’ LIFT UP YOUR HEARTS, e-mail: mail@christophers.org)
ADRIAN, Michigan – Sister Rosalie Bulanda, formerly known as Sister David Miriam, died on Monday, March 27, 2023, at the Dominican Life Center in Adrian. She was 83 years of age and in the 66th year of her religious profession in the Adrian Dominican Congregation.
Sister was born in Aurora, Illinois, to Walter and Dolores (Senneke) Bulanda. She graduated from St. Joseph Academy in Adrian and received a Bachelor of Science degree in Biology from Siena Heights College (University) in Adrian. Sister was also certified as a registered nurse by the Mercy School of Nursing in Toledo, Ohio.
Sister Rosalie spent 15 years ministering in elementary education in Toledo, Ohio; Detroit, Farmington, and Adrian, Michigan; Chicago, Illinois; and Bronxville, New York. Sister later served for 30 years in nursing care in Detroit, Dearborn and Westland, Michigan, and Jackson, Mississippi. In Jackson, she ministered in nursing for 17 years at Mississippi Baptist Medical Center. She then spent more than 14 years as a volunteer, first with Hospice of Mississippi and then at St. Richard Parish, Jackson, Mississippi. Sister became a resident of the Dominican Life Center in Adrian in 2020.
Sister was preceded in death by her parents and her brother, Edward Bulanda. She is survived by a brother, Warren Hickman of Marengo, Indiana, other loving family and her Adrian Dominican Sisters.
A Funeral Mass was offered at St. Catherine Chapel on Friday, March 31, 2023, with prayers of committal in the Congregation Cemetery. Memorial gifts may be made to Adrian Dominican Sisters, 1257 East Siena Heights Drive, Adrian, MI, 49221.
By Kate Scanlon (OSV News) – After its defense of a state law limiting abortion made its way to the U.S. Supreme Court, resulting in the court’s subsequent decision to overturn Roe v. Wade in June, Mississippi passed a package of bills that state officials said demonstrate creating a safety net for both mothers and babies. The package introduces an income tax credit for qualified adoption expenses, as well as amends the state’s Safe Haven law to increase the amount of time in which an infant can be safely surrendered to qualified personnel at designated Safe Haven locations, among other measures.
The Mississippi State Capitol is pictured in Jackson May 23, 2021. Mississippi has passed eight bills that supporters say are part of the state’s efforts to build a better pro-life social safety net. (OSV News photo/Evelyn Hockstein, Reuters)
After Roe v. Wade was overturned, abortion advocates would sometimes point to statistics showing states that restricted abortion often have smaller safety nets for women facing unplanned pregnancies. But proponents of Mississippi’s package argued that the state can support mothers and children with what the office of Gov. Tate Reeves, R-Miss., called “Pro-Mom, Pro-Life Legislation.”
Reeves said in a statement that “Mississippi will always protect life.”
“Our state will continue to be a beacon on the hill, a symbol of hope for the country, and a model for the nation,” Reeves said. “Mississippi will be relentless in its commitment to life. We will be relentless in our support of mothers and children. And we will be relentless in our efforts to advance the New Pro-life Agenda. The legislation I signed today is further proof that when it comes to protecting life, Mississippi isn’t just talking the talk – we’re walking the walk.”
Mississippi Attorney General Lynn Fitch, who defended the state’s law restricting abortion after 15 weeks of pregnancy that was at issue in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, where the high court reversed its jurisprudence since the 1973 Roe v. Wade decision, returning the matter of regulating abortion to the legislature, said in a statement, “I applaud Mississippi for adopting legislation that supports pregnant women and new mothers, streamlines and reforms adoption and foster care systems, enhances child support enforcement, and expands tax credits for employers providing childcare for their employees.”
“These initiatives will help build healthy families and, as a result, healthy communities,” Fitch said. Measures passed by the state also increase resources for foster parents and children, and grant what the governor’s office said was the largest budget in the Mississippi Department of Child Protection Services’ history.
Fitch, who published a post-Dobbs legislative agenda dubbed The Empowerment Project, celebrated some of the initiatives passed that were included in that legislative framework.
“Whether it is offering compassionate, life-affirming options to mothers in need or providing resources to those looking to upskill and grow, Mississippi is showing the nation that we can both empower women and promote life,” Fitch said.
“We are not done yet – we can and will do more to empower women and their families – but I am encouraged by the progress we’ve made in only a few short weeks and appreciate the hard work that the Mississippi Legislature has done to demonstrate that women and children are their priority, too.”
Caitlin Connors, southern regional director for SBA Pro-Life America, said in an April 19 statement that Mississippi “makes history again today, as Governor Reeves signs eight pro-life safety net measures into law.”
“Through its Gestational Age Act, the life at conception protection that is now in effect, and more policies and programs that help families, it’s incredible to see how much ground Mississippi has covered in the course of a year to protect the unborn and serve their mothers in the Dobbs era, Connors said. “We thank Gov. Reeves, Attorney General Lynn Fitch, and legislative leaders for boldly advocating measures that carry out the full-picture pro-life mission to support women during pregnancy and beyond. The impact of these policies will be felt for generations.”
(Kate Scanlon is a national reporter for OSV News covering Washington. Follow her on Twitter @kgscanlon)
WALLS – Priests of the Sacred Heart, Inc. dba Sacred Heart Southern Missions (SHSM), announced that Timothy Courts has been named as president and chief executive officer. Father Jack Kurps, SCJ, who has been president and CEO for 36 years, will continue on as spiritual director of the organization.
Father Jack Kurps announced his decision to step back as President and CEO to staff last Friday at a prayer service and luncheon in celebration of the 100th anniversary of ministry the Priests of the Sacred Heart in the United States.
Courts began as Sacred Heart Southern Missions president and CEO on May 1, 2023 and is uniquely qualified for his new role. He attended Sacred Heart School in Walls, Mississippi, before attending Southaven High School. Before earning a Bachelors of Business Administration, Management Information Systems at the University of Memphis in September of 1993, he worked part-time at SHSM as a maintenance helper before transferring to computer assistant in March of 1992. He rose to information systems manager in 1995, director of management information systems in 1999 and transferred to director of operations in 2003.
WALLS – Timothy Courts was named president and chief executive officer of Sacred Heart Southern Mission (SHSM) on Monday, May 1. Courts is committed to breaking the cycle of poverty, as the organization serves families across northern Mississippi. (Photo courtesy of Sacred Heart Southern Missions)
Courts resigned in 2004 and began working at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital before moving to Methodist LeBonheur Healthcare in 2007 to become the micro applications implementation manager before being promoted to director of information security. He left Methodist LeBonheur Healthcare and returned to SHSM as director of finance in February of 2015. In his role as director of finance he oversaw the finance, information system, human resources and facilities departments. He was promoted to executive director of corporate services in November of 2022. Courts also earned a Masters of Business Administration from the Executive MBA program at the University of Memphis and is a licensed Certified Public Accountant in both Mississippi and Tennessee. Courts said: “I am honored and humbled to have been appointed to lead Sacred Heart Southern Missions. I have been affiliated with the organization my whole life and believe in its mission and that of the Priests of the Sacred Heart. I look forward to working with the SHSM team to break the cycle of poverty, as we serve the thousands of financially struggling individuals and families across northern Mississippi who depend on us and the tens of thousands of donors across the United States who support our mission.”
Provincial Superior of the Priests of the Sacred Heart US Province Father Vien Nguyen, SCJ, said to the SHSM staff, “With the approval of the Provincial Council of the US Province and the approval of the Sacred Heart Southern Missions board of directors, I appoint Tim Courts as president and CEO of Sacred Heart Southern Missions. With this appointment, Tim will collaborate with you and with the Priests of the Sacred Heart, and the Diocese of Jackson to carry out the mission of church, the mission of the Priests of the Sacred Heart and the mission of Sacred Heart Southern Missions.”
“On behalf of the Priests of the Sacred Heart and the board of directors of Sacred Heart Southern Missions,” Father Nguyen continued, “I would also like to thank Rev. Jack Kurps’ ministry to carry on the Dehonian mission in northern Mississippi and for his love and dedication to the people and the staff.”
Father Jack became executive director of SHSM in 1987. “As I look back on 36 years of ministry here in Mississippi, there is much that has been accomplished,” he said. “Our HIV/AIDS ministry began in the early 90s when a diagnosis was a death sentence. The program continues to serve a very important need with all the stigma that is often associated with the disease. Our Dehon Village and the Dehon Learning Center provides affordable housing and adult life skill development. Our food pantry has become a major program and serves a tremendous need. Our volunteer program matches the desire of individuals to give of themselves with people who need help and our volunteer housing makes it possible for groups to come from around the country to assist others. Merging Sacred Heart League back into Sacred Heart Southern Missions removed some of the duplication of efforts and made us a stronger organization. I will take credit for some ideas – but often my contribution was to green light the ideas and suggestions of others. SHSM is blessed with a dedicated staff. I look forward to continuing to be part of SHSM and I will assist Tim in any way he asks. With Tim, SHSM is in good hands. SHSM is in his blood.”
Since 1942, Sacred Heart Southern Missions (SHSM) with the help of generous volunteers and donors, has been helping those living in poverty experience God’s love and mercy through food, clothing, housing, education, spiritual enrichment and other assistance.
From their humble beginnings, with one priest in one church in one small town, they have grown to include six parishes, two Catholic elementary schools, eight social services offices, housing, a thrift store and food pantries serving thousands of people each year. For more information visit: www.shsm.org.
NATION WASHINGTON (OSV News) – The U.S. Supreme Court said April 21 it would block a lower court’s restrictions on an abortion pill, leaving the drug on the market while litigation over the drug proceeds. The court’s order was an apparent 7-2 vote, with Justices Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito publicly dissenting. The decision froze a lower court’s ruling to stay the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s approval of the drug. The Justice Department and a pharmaceutical company that manufactures the abortion pill mifepristone previously asked the Supreme Court to intervene in the case after an appeals court allowed portions of the ruling by U.S. District Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk to take effect. A coalition of pro-life opponents of mifepristone, the first of two drugs used in a medication or chemical abortion, had filed suit in an effort to revoke the FDA’s approval of the drug, arguing the government violated its own safety standards when it first approved the drug in 2000. However, proponents argued mifepristone poses statistically little risk to women using it for abortion early in pregnancy, and claim the drug is being singled out for political reasons. In an April 21 statement, President Joe Biden said he would continue “to stand by FDA’s evidence-based approval of mifepristone, and my Administration will continue to defend FDA’s independent, expert authority to review, approve, and regulate a wide range of prescription drugs.” On April 22, Bishop Michael F. Burbidge of Arlington, chairman of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ Committee on Pro-Life Activities, called the Supreme Court’s interim order “a tremendous disappointment, both for the loss of innocent preborn life from chemical abortion, and for the danger that chemical abortion poses to women.”
SAN FRANCISCO (OSV News) – On the very day Elon Musk launched SpaceX rocket Starship on its ill-fated maiden voyage toward space, that final frontier, Musk’s company Twitter did boldly go purging blue verification check marks from users who had not signed up for its paid Twitter Blue service on April 20, including Pope Francis’ Twitter accounts. The nine papal Twitter accounts, first set up under Benedict XVI in 2012, tweet a daily message from the Holy Father in English, Spanish, Portuguese, Italian, Latin, French, Polish, Arabic and German. The Vatican press office, noting that the nine @Pontifex accounts have a total of more than 53 million followers, told CNS Rome April 21 it understood Twitter was changing some of its policies. But it added, “the Holy See trusts that they will include certification of the authenticity of accounts.” That same day, following the loss of its blue checkmark, each papal account received a new gray verification checkmark designating “a government or multilateral organization account.” Other religious entities and organizations that have lost their blue checkmark include the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, National Catholic Reporter, Catholic News Service Rome and Protestant televangelist Joel Osteen. There is now a triad of checkmark colors on Twitter. Blue marks mean an account has an active subscription to Twitter Blue, gold indicates an official business account through Twitter Verified Organizations, and gray indicates a government or multilateral organization. There also are affiliate account badges for each, as well as automated account labels for bots.
BALTIMORE (OSV News) – For every Dorothy Day – or St. Teresa of Kolkata, St. Oscar Romero or St. Pope John Paul II – there may be hundreds, even thousands, of anonymous potential saints who are not raised to the altars for a very simple reason: Their advocates just can not afford it. The sainthood process entails expenses for research, travel, translation and, if the cause progresses, beatification and canonization ceremonies. On average, costs total about $250,000 – with high-profile causes potentially topping $1 million. While ultimately conducted by the Vatican’s Dicastery for the Causes of Saints, causes are typically initiated by a diocese, religious order or nonprofit lay group. The intricacies of the canonization process – with stages marked by the titles servant of God, venerable, blessed and saint – also poses a challenge for under-resourced dioceses. In addition to undisputed holiness, there is intense research, reams of paperwork, continuous fundraising, potential discrimination – and sometimes, a few unanticipated roadblocks. Ralph E. Moore Jr., a lifelong Catholic and African-American parishioner of St. Ann Catholic Church in Baltimore and a member of its Social Justice Committee, has organized a canonization letter writing campaign to Pope Francis, urging him to advance the sainthood causes of six African Americans, noting that a lack of finances has played a role in denying Black Catholics their own recognized saints.
VATICAN VATICAN CITY (CNS) – At least three dozen women will be voting members of the assembly of the Synod of Bishops in October, Pope Francis has decided. In a decision formalized April 17, “the Holy Father approved the extension of participation in the synodal assembly to ‘non-bishops’ – priests, deacons, consecrated men and women, lay men and women,” the synod office said in a statement April 26. Cardinal Jean-Claude Hollerich, relator general of the synod, told reporters that about 21% of the synod’s 370 members would not be bishops and at least half of that group would be women. Adding women and young people to the membership will make sure “the church is well represented” in the prayer and discussions scheduled for Oct. 4-29 at the Vatican, the cardinal said. “It will be a joy to have the whole church represented in Rome for the synod.” “As you can see, the space in the tent is being enlarged,” Cardinal Mario Grech, synod secretary-general, told reporters. “The Synod of Bishops will remain a synod of bishops,” Cardinal Grech said, but it will be “enriched” by representatives of the whole church.
The Church of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary in Berdyansk, Ukraine, is seen in this undated photo. Ukrainian officials reported April 22, 2023, that Russian forces seized the church in occupied Berdyansk, part of what the Institute for the Study of War calls an ongoing persecution of Catholics. (OSV News photo/courtesy Primorka City)
WORLD BERDYANSK, Ukraine (OSV News) – Russian forces have reportedly seized a Roman Catholic church in Ukraine, according to published accounts. The nonprofit, nonpartisan Institute for the Study of War (ISW) released an April 22 assessment stating that Viktoria Halitsina, head of the Ukrainian military administration of the port city of Berdyansk, wrote on her agency’s Telegram channel April 22 that Russian troops had seized the city’s Church of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary. In her post, Halitsina said that the church “was not only a religious community,” but a place where “the needy could receive support.” In November 2022, two priests based at the church, who served both Latin-rite Catholics and Ukrainian Catholics, were abducted, and their fates remain unknown. ISW noted April 9 that Russia has engaged in widespread religious persecution in Ukraine, targeting a number of Catholic, Christian and Islamic communities.
NAIROBI, Kenya (OSV News) – Catholic bishops in Kenya have expressed shock and strongly condemned the mass “starvation suicide” in Shakahola, a remote forest-ranch area in eastern Kenya, where a pastor led congregants to fast to death. Kenyan authorities still continue to retrieve bodies from shallow graves in the 800-acre ranch in Kilifi County near the town of Malindi. On April 27 the official death toll was 95. All victims were followers of the Good News International Church Pastor Paul Mackenzie. He told his followers to pray and fast to meet Jesus and that the world would end April 15. As families arrived in the town of Malindi in search of their relatives following the Shakahola tragedy, the Kenyan Red Cross Society in Kilifi County said April 26 that officials had recorded 322 missing persons. Some of the devastated families that arrived in Malindi had lost several relatives to the cult. “We condemn in the strongest terms possible, the cultic preaching orchestrated by (the) pastor … which induced his followers to fast to death,” said Archbishop Martin Kivuva Musonde of Mombasa, president of the Kenyan bishops’ conference, in a statement April 24.
