Christopher R. Altieri, Author at Catholic Herald

Christopher R. Altieri

The abuse summit begins amid turmoil in Rome

February 21, 2019

The eyes of the world were already going to be on Rome this week, where some of the most senior Church leaders have gathered for a four-day meeting on child protection. Pope Francis convoked the meeting last September after more than seven months of unremitting scandal that began with his own mishandling of a case

Truth and fiction in a new Vatican exposé

February 21, 2019

In the Closet of the Vatican: Power, Homosexuality, Hypocrisy is the English title of the major book by the French sociologist and gay rights advocate Frédéric Martel. Written in the classic French style of long-form journalism, with which Anglophone readers may be acquainted but likely not accustomed, the book can read like a meandering yarn.

Abuse summit day one: Pope calls for ‘concrete and effective’ action

February 21, 2019

(Rome, Thursday, February 21, 2019) The highly anticipated meeting on child protection opened at the Vatican on Thursday morning, with powerful testimony from victims, one of whom told the bishops flatly, “You are the physicians of the soul and yet, with rare exceptions, you have been transformed – in some cases – into murderers of

McCarrick will continue to live at Kansas friary

February 17, 2019

Theodore McCarrick, the former Archbishop of Washington, DC, whom Pope Francis has dismissed from the clerical state as punishment for sexual abuse of minors and adults, will continue to live at the friary in Salina, Kansas, where he moved in September of last year. The Diocese of Salina released a statement on Saturday saying: “Mr

The Pope has acknowledged the abuse of nuns. But will it make a difference?

February 14, 2019

The abuse of women – especially consecrated women in religious life, and including but not limited to sexual abuse – by clerics of every rank, on every continent, is almost certainly the most under-reported of the Church’s crises. En route to Rome from Abu Dhabi last week, Pope Francis became the first reigning pontiff to

Pope signs decree recognising second Newman miracle

February 13, 2019

Blessed John Henry Newman is headed for sainthood. Pope Francis on Tuesday authorised the Congregation for the Causes of Saints to issue a decree attributing a miracle to the intercession of the great 19th century convert. The move clears the final hurdle in the cause of Bl. John Henry Cardinal Newman’s Cause for canonisation. The

The Pope’s in-flight press conference didn’t get the attention it deserved

February 07, 2019

When it comes to news from the Pope’s in-flight press conference en route to Rome from Panama last week, his discussion of the “inflated expectations” for the upcoming child protection summit rightly garnered the lion’s share of attention. Those remarks were always going to grab the headlines, though they weren’t the only newsworthy things Pope

The Pope’s prayer app is an excellent idea

January 31, 2019

Pope Francis launched his own profile on the “Click To Pray” app on Sunday, January 20, just ahead of his departure for World Youth Day celebrations in Panama. Vatican Media described Click To Pray as “a platform that invites men and women from around the world, to accompany the Pope in a mission of compassion

The bishops’ language games are adding to the confusion

January 24, 2019

“Everybody lies” is the maxim of the fictional Dr Gregory House, deliciously played by Hugh Laurie in the television series House. The first few weeks of 2019 have not quite proven the maxim to be true, but they have left strong evidence that certain men in positions of high Church leadership have a hard time

Report: Vatican already knew about Argentine bishop’s sexual misconduct

January 21, 2019

(Rome) An AP Exclusive report published Sunday claims the Holy See received evidence of misconduct on the part of an Argentinian bishop with ties to Pope Francis years earlier than the Vatican had previously suggested. The claims tend to contradict the Vatican’s earlier statements regarding what authorities in the Holy See knew about the bishop’s

Vatican confirms suppression of Ecclesia Dei commission

January 19, 2019

Pope Francis folded the responsibilities and budget of the commission responsible for traditional Catholics into the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith on Saturday. With the motu proprio Da oltre (trent’anni), the Pontifical Commission Ecclesia Dei, historically also tasked with leading negotiations with the canonically irregular Priestly Fraternity of St Pius X (SSPX), is

The bishops’ credibility is still an issue

January 17, 2019

Last week we learned that the former Archbishop of Washington, DC, Cardinal Donald Wuerl, consistently misrepresented his knowledge of the character and proclivities of his disgraced predecessor in the See of Washington, Theodore McCarrick, who is at present facing canonical proceedings in Rome on charges of criminal sexual misconduct, including the abuse of minors. Specifically,

← 1 … 24 25 26 27 28 … 34 →

Sorry, no search matching search results found. Please try again.