Unsealed archives gives fresh look at Pope Pius and the holocaust (The New York Times) In an article published in The Atlantic on Thursday, [Brown University historian] Dr. David Kertzer revealed previously unpublished documents, including a memorandum advising Pius against making a formal protest when the Gestapo rounded up 1,000 of Rome’s Jews on Oct. 16, 1943, for deportation to the concentration camp in Auschwitz. Dr. Kertzer also found a trail of documents revealing that Vatican officials directed clerics in France to resist turning over two Jewish boys who had been put in the care of local Catholics and baptized when their parents were killed in Auschwitz — despite rulings by French courts ordering that the boys be given to their aunt…
Philippines Archbishop Cruz dies at 85 from coronavirus (The New York Times) Archbishop Oscar Cruz, an outspoken senior Philippine Catholic Church leader who railed against illegal gambling and challenged politicians with stinging commentaries, died on Wednesday at a hospital in metropolitan Manila. He was 85. The cause was complications of the coronavirus, the church said. Archbishop Cruz, a former president of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines — a powerful institution in the predominantly Catholic country — used his influence to direct attention to social ills…
Bishop warns priests to distribute communion in the hand (CNA) The Bishop of San Rafael, Argentina, warned last week that he will impose canonical sanctions on priests who distribute Communion on the tongue during the coronavirus pandemic, in defiance of a diocesan directive permitting the distribution of Communion only in the hand…
India investigates priest’s suicide for possible foul play (UCANews.com) Southern India’s Karnataka state has ordered a probe into a Catholic priest’s death, 10 months after he was found hanging from the ceiling fan in his room. Police chief Kumarachandra told media that the state police’s Criminal Investigation Department had been asked to probe the death of Father Mahesh D’Souza. Police closed it as a case of suicide. However, the latest move comes after a group of Catholics demanded a fresh probe after they suspected foul play in the death, reports said…
Words or deeds: Catholics will be discussing Biden’s religion during the campaign (Get Religion) Conflicts between bishops, clergy and laity will loom in the background as Biden seeks to become America’s second Catholic president. Combatants will be returning to territory explored in a famous 1984 address by the late Gov. Mario Cuomo of New York, entitled “Religious Belief and Public Morality…”
Want even more Catholic news? Become a patron of The Deacon’s Bench for exclusive posts, books and more.
