Priest from Washington to be new bishop of Springfield (Vatican Bulletin) The Holy Father has appointed Rev. William D. Byrne, of the clergy of the Archdiocese of Washington, DC, currently pastor of Our Lady of Mercy Parish in Potomac, Bishop of Springfield in Massachusetts (USA) . HE Mons. William D. Byrne, was born on September 26, 1964 in Washington, DC, in the same Archdiocese. In 1986 he obtained his Baccalaureate from the College of the Holy Cross in Worcester (Massachusetts). He completed his ecclesiastical studies at the Pontifical University of St. Thomas Aquinas in Rome as a pupil of the Pontifical North American College (1989-1994). He was ordained a priest for the Archdiocese of Washington on June 25, 1994…
India’s Catholic Church protests arrest of priest (Vatican News) The Catholic Church of India is protesting the unjust arrest of a Jesuit priest noted for his advocacy of the rights of indigenous peoples, locally known as tribals and adivasis. Father Stan Swamy, 83, was arrested on October 8 in Ranchi, the capital of the eastern state of Jharkhand. The priest has been accused by the government for links with Maoist insurgents who are accused of being behind a riot in Bhima Koregaon village in the western state of Maharashtra in December 2018. He has been remanded by a special court of the National Investigation Agency (NIA) in Maharashtra capital, Mumbai, until his hearing scheduled for 23 October…
Amy Coney Barrett says she could set aside Catholic beliefs when ruling (The Los Angeles Times) Barrett told Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina on Tuesday she can set aside her Catholic beliefs and has done that since her confirmation as an appeals court judge in 2017…
St. Junipero Serra statue defaced, pulled down (CNA) A group of activists near San Francisco on Monday defaced a statue of St. Junipero Serra on private property with red spray paint before tearing it from its foundation. Serra, an 18th-century Franciscan priest and missionary, is viewed by some activists as a symbol of colonialism and of the abuses that many Native Americans suffered after contact with Europeans. However, historians say the missionary protested abuses and sought to fight colonial oppression. San Francisco Archbishop Salvatore Cordileone on Tuesday decried the “mob rule” that led to the statue of the saint being “mindlessly defaced and toppled by a small, violent mob…”
New report details allegations against composer David Haas (CNS) A report detailing sexual abuse and assault allegations against Catholic musician and composer David Haas describes him using his influence as a faith leader in grooming victim/survivors and suppressing reports or concerns about his behavior. The report also alleges Haas sexually abused minors, including the claim he raped a 13-year-old girl in 1979 during a confirmation retreat in the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis…
Catholic activists praise pope’s move away from just war theory (NCR) The leaders of an international movement seeking to have the Catholic Church formally set aside its long-held teachings on just war theory are praising Pope Francis’ new encyclical Fratelli Tutti, which said it is “very difficult” to invoke the theory today because of the brutality of modern combat. Former and current presidents of Pax Christi International, which has co-hosted two conferences with the Vatican over the past four years focused on helping the church move away from the just war tradition, say the pope’s document makes substantial progress toward their goal…
What Catholic women see in Amy Coney Barrett (The Washington Post) As Catholic women watched the first two days of Barrett’s confirmation process in the Senate, some saw her as a new kind of “feminist icon,” a woman who raised seven children while pursuing a successful career and prioritizing her faith. Others saw an unrealistic model of what Catholic women are expected to be. “She’s like a new-wave Virgin Mary where you can have it all. You can be a virgin and be a mom. You can be super successful in your career and be a perfect, submissive wife,” said Natalia Imperatori-Lee, a professor of religious studies at Manhattan College in New York. “It’s pedestalizing the impossible…”
