Friday, October 25, 2024

Order of nuns living in monastery hit back after GOP canvasser falsely accuses them of voter fraud

A Pennsylvania canvasser claimed an address in Erie, Pennsylvania a key swing county in a key swing state for the upcoming presidential election – is linked to 53 voter registrations and could be the source of voter fraud.

However, that address is home to the Benedictine Sisters of Erie – and they’re firing back at what they’ve called a “defamatory” claim from the canvassing group’s founder.

Cliff Maloney said on Monday that one of his members discovered an address in Erie with several dozen voter registrations – and claimed that “no one” lives there. 

Maloney is the founder of The Pennsylvania Chase, a self-described “ground-game campaign to knock 500,000 doors to chase GOP ballots & increase GOP mail-in results.”

“We knocked on the door because a Republican mail-in ballot is unreturned,” Maloney wrote on X. “Our attorney’s are reviewing this right now. We will not let the Dems count on illegal votes.”

The Benedictine Sisters of Erie were quick to hit back — and make it clear that they very much exist and reside there.

“We want to call Cliff Maloney to account for his blatantly false post that accuses our sisters of fraud,” Sister Stephanie Schmidt said in a statement. “We do live at Mount Saint Benedict Monastery and a simple web search would alert him to our active presence in a number of ministries in Erie.”

That same statement made it clear the sisters have no issue with canvassing and door-knocking — but they do care when “false information” is leveraged to “discredit differing views of affiliations.”

The organization is already pursuing legal counsel over what they’ve called “public defamation.”

“We recognize that many persons and organizations are victims of similar untruths that appear daily in social and other media,” their statement reads. “We are sharing our experience in an effort to increase scrutiny and to encourage others to ask questions and seek information.”

“We want to be on public record as having called out this fraud so that if the outcome of next month’s election is contested in Pennsylvania our integrity will not be called into question,” the statement continues. “We are also pursuing legal counsel regarding this public defamation.”

Linda Romey, a member of the Benedictine Sisters and their communications manager, told The Independent they responded to Maloney’s post because they want to dispel misinformation and promote citizens’ right to vote.

“We believe that to have a free and fair election, every citizen needs to know what’s going on and not believe everything they read on social media,” Romey said. “So we want to call out something like this that’s just a blatant untruth.”

On Tuesday, Maloney went on to claim the “commies” are now claiming people live there despite what his “team leader” saw.

“Now the commies are coming in claiming that ‘nuns live there’ or ‘you idiot just google it,’” he wrote. “WRONG. Our team leader spoke to the one person there and they claimed ‘NO ONE LIVES HERE.’”

When contacted for comment, Maloney sent The Independent a post on X from Wednesday evening.

“My goal is to only count legal votes,” Maloney wrote. “If the 53 people registered at this address are legal voters… then I encourage them to participate in their right to vote.”

Erie County will be one of the most closely watched locations come Election Day. Not only is Pennsylvania a key swing state, but Erie County is itself a swing county. Barack Obama won the county during in 2008 and 2012.

However, Donald Trump won it in 2016 before President Joe Biden secured it in 2020. Kamala Harris is currently leading the state by two points, according to the latest Washington Post/Schar School swing state poll.

Fortune teller ‘linked to Caritas Luxembourg fraud’

A fortune teller allegedly tied to Bulgarian organized criminals is suspected of enabling the theft of 61 million euros ($67 million) from Caritas Luxembourg, according to local media.

The website Reporter.lu said Oct. 17 that investigators suspected a criminal network in Bulgaria had duped a Caritas Luxembourg employee into transferring funds through a clairvoyant in whom she allegedly confided.

The employee reportedly began consulting the website of a psychic operating in neighboring Belgium but based in Spain.

Reporter.lu said the employee divulged information about her workplace that the fortune teller then allegedly shared with organized criminals.

“According to information from Reporter.lu, the investigation is now targeting criminals of Bulgarian origin, who allegedly abused the psychological fragility of the foundation’s financial director and took advantage of the organization’s weak governance to steal 61 million euros in five months,” the website said.

Reporter.lu said around 25 million euros was believed to be in China, 10 million in Hong Kong, and roughly 8 million in Lithuania.

Luxembourg’s public prosecutor’s office said in August that Caritas Luxembourg may have fallen victim to “fake president fraud,” in which a fraudster impersonates a senior figure within a company, demanding that employees arrange urgent international payments.

The public prosecutor’s office has not commented on the fortune teller report, but in an Oct. 9 update, it said it still favored the “fake president fraud” hypothesis. 

“Since the initial complaint was lodged, investigators from the criminal investigation department, under the direction of the investigating judge, have been working closely with the Financial Intelligence Unit (CRF),” it said.

“The ongoing investigation has identified more than 8,200 transactions, carried out at very short intervals, to hundreds of accounts opened in a multitude of countries around the world, reinforcing the presumption that a criminal association or organization is involved in this fraud.”

“At this stage, some 15 requests for mutual assistance have been sent by the investigating judge to his foreign counterparts. The foreign authorities’ response is crucial to the outcome of the investigations.”

The public prosecutor’s office added that no new charges had been leveled and it was not known whether some of the misappropriated funds could be recovered.

The “Caritas affair,” which has shaken the small country bordering Belgium, France, and Germany, came to light in July, prompting anger among government officials and a national debate about oversight of charities receiving state funds.

Caritas Luxembourg, which was founded in 1932 and belongs to the Caritas network, filed a complaint July 16. 

The public prosecutor’s office then requested the opening of a judicial investigation into suspected forgery, fraud, breach of trust, and money laundering, among other crimes.

On July 22, the office said that an individual had appeared for questioning and was arrested. The person was later released from custody.

At the end of July, the former chartered auditor Christian Billon was named head of a crisis committee charged with restoring the confidence of donors, the public, and the authorities in Caritas Luxembourg.

In August, it emerged that two banks approved tens of millions of euros in loans for the charity while the suspected fraud was occuring. 

On Sept. 4, Luxembourg’s Prime Minister Luc Frieden denounced what he called “a horrible fraud” and said that Caritas Luxembourg would be replaced by a “new Caritas.” 

On Sept. 11, Billon announced the creation of a new entity that will take over most of Caritas Luxembourg’s domestic activities. The non-profit Hellëf um Terrain (Help on the Ground) will begin work Oct. 1.

Days later, Caritas Luxembourg announced the closure of its overseas aid projects. But Luxembourg’s development minister Xavier Bettel has said efforts are underway to salvage some of the projects.

The Luxembourg Times reported that the global Caritas network will take on five of the projects, while Bettel’s ministry is considering funding 12 projects via local partners.

A special parliamentary committee on the Caritas Luxembourg scandal held its first meeting Oct. 23.

Pope Francis made a daylong visit to Luxembourg Sept. 26, during which he met with the prime minister and the head of state, Grand Duke Henri.

At the end of an encounter with the Catholic community in Luxembourg’s Notre-Dame Cathedral, the pope was presented with a gift of 176,000 euros (around $190,000), which he immediately returned, indicating it should be used to support the local poor and refugees.

‘We must ensure the next generation believe in God’

Some dioceses and parishes will not survive financially in the future and while there is “pain in letting go” passing on the Faith is more important, the Primate of All Ireland has said. 

Simply “ensuring that the next generation of Irish people believe in God” is the reality the Church is facing, not the expensive upkeep of buildings, Archbishop of Armagh Eamon Martin has said. 

“I’m very hopeful about the future but I do realise there is a lot of pain in letting go, there is a lot of worry. You look at the maintenance of buildings and huge churches and the expenses, financially the Church is going to be very, very poor – not to mention the impact of paying the just compensation to people who’ve been abused,” Archbishop Martin said. 

“We’re going to find that some parishes, some dioceses perhaps even, are not going to be able to survive financially, and that’s a whole new challenging landscape for us to inhabit.  

“But remember the Faith, and the passing on of the Faith, is the really important thing, not the buildings, not the structures, but ensuring that the next generation of Irish people believe in God – you would never have believed that the Archbishop of Armagh would be saying that to you, but that is the reality that we are facing,” he added.  

Already many parishes and dioceses are working more closely together across Ireland, with some priests in charge of several parishes and some bishops heading two dioceses.  

It is clear that the Pope’s representative in Ireland, Papal Nuncio Archbishop Luis Mariano Montemayor – who began his ministry early last year – sped up the process of bringing dioceses closer together. This can be seen in the effective merger of the Archdiocese of Tuam and Killala and that of Elphin and Achonry in the west of Ireland. 

At diocesan level, Archbishop Martin thinks different models will emerge depending on the circumstance.  

“I see that sort of rationalisation of resources continuing.I’m not too sure if we have yet properly thought it through. In some ways it’s happening when a diocese becomes vacant that conversations begin. The Dromore situation is different to the situation insay Galway and Clonfert, which is in turn is different to the situation in Tuam and Killala,” he said. 

The archbishop asserts he would prefer that what emerges is what is best for evangelisation and that Irish dioceses are not treated like a “big jigsaw”.  

“I’m hoping that our ongoing synodal journey and the synodal pathway for the Church in Ireland will enable a lot of that thinking to come through,” he says.   

Archbishop Martin insists that for a long time Irish bishops have accepted that there does need to be change – but when the moments arise.   

Looking at the situation in Dromore, he says: “It’s difficult for a diocese to say, ‘we’ve been around for 1,000 years, are we going to lose something of our distinctiveness or our identity as a diocese or as a local particular church?’  

“And those conversations do need to happen, particularly when we’re talking synodaly nowadays. But sometimes it does take somebody to come in and say, ‘let’s do it now, we need to take these decisions now’.”

Deal collapses as Veritas wind-down continue

Discussions regarding the possible buy out and takeover of Veritas Ltd by another major religious publisher, St Pauls Ireland, have broken down. 

Veritas stated this week on Twitter that its branch in Blanchardstown, Dublin will now close. 

Veritas announced their wind-down in February last, saying it would be complete by the end of the year with the loss of approximately 80 jobs. 

Since then, they have been exploring potential buyers, the most promising of which – St Pauls – is believed to have fallen through in the last two weeks.  

It was subsequently announced that Veritas Blanchardstown would close on Friday, October 25. 

A source in Blanchardstown said there were hopes that the deal with St Pauls would have prevented any further store closures, and that there was “deep disappointment” in the community upon hearing the news.

A staff member said that the closure had been on the cards “for a long time”, and that they had actually “got longer than we thought”, adding that it was “sad after 20 years” of the shop being open. 

This is the fourth shop closure, with the Limerick store officially closing on May 15, Tallaght on May 17 and the Cork branch on July 19. 

This leaves shops in Letterkenny, Abbey Street, Derry and Newry still open, with their future unclear.

Catholic schools advised to not make use of SPHE textbooks

Chief Executive Officer of the Catholic Education Partnership Alan Hynes has said that regardless of any apparent shift in tone from Minister for Education Norma Foley regarding the controversial content in the DCU course for SPHE teachers, with reports indicating that Minister Foley is “unhappy” with the content, which includes graphic descriptions of specific sexual acts, Catholic schools were advised not to make use of certain SPHE textbooks and this will remain the policy regardless of any decision the minister may or may not make in the future. 

“With regard to the textbooks issue, in one sense I’d almost view it as moot in the sense that Catholic schools were advised not to make use of these textbooks,” he said. “That was pretty much the advice we gave to schools and we directed them toward our own resources and supplemented those with resources found in the National Council for Curriculum and Assessment’s website. 

“That was our advice and that remains our guidance and advice to schools. Whether or not the department wants to look into what the textbook companies put into the textbooks, that’s a matter for the department. 

“This controversy will not affect any schools following the advice that came from the Catholic education bodies.” 

Meanwhile, TDs who have been campaigning for the removal of the content in the SPHE curriculum questioned why material of this nature was ever considered for inclusion in schools in the first place. 

Independent TD Mattie McGrath said that Minister Foley needed to answer questions about “how this situation had been allowed to arise”. 

“The buck stops with the minister,” he said. “There’s no escaping that. How did she allow SPHE to be taken over in this way? She needs to apologise and take action.” 

Aontú leader Peadar Tóibín said it’s clear that young people need to be taught about sex education but that any grounding in the subject must be free of “over-sexualised” themes.  

“It is clearly not suitable and totally age inappropriate,” he said. “Obviously children and young people need to be taught about sex education, they need to be taught about consent, they need to be taught about safety, but this material coupled with the videos was over-sexualised in the extreme.”  

Independent TD Carol Nolan said that “extremist voices” are to blame for the “relentless determination to sexualise children” and said that she will not accept this “poison” as “the new normal”. 

“I’m absolutely certain that what I would term extremist voices are exerting a powerful sphere of influence on our children’s school curriculum,” she said.  

“What is driving this relentless determination to sexualise children or to prompt them toward the exploration of what, until 5 minutes ago, were adult only themes? Well I for one and the very many parents who contact me will not simply accept this poison as the new normal,” she said.

Activist welcomes EU reprimand of Irish government

DUNMANWAY- based rights activist Fiona O’Leary has said she welcomes the news that the Irish government has been reprimanded by the European Commission over its failure to update legislation to combat racism and xenophobia, in line with EU law.

The Commission said recently that the Irish courts were not considering racism or xenophobia as a motive by those carrying out crimes, including Holocaust denial.

Ms O’Leary has been campaigning for some years against ultra conservative group SSPX Resistance, founded by convicted Holocaust denier Richard Williamson, who have a base at a former farm at Reenascreena outside Dunmanway.

The farmhouse was purchased by a ‘Fr Giacomao Ballini’ in 2016 – who is the head of the Irish arm of the group.

SSPX is a disgruntled spin-off from the controversial Society of Saint Pius X (SSPX) group, founded in 1970 by former archbishop Marcel Lefebvre, who clashed with the church following his rejection of Vatican II reforms.

One of the founding members of the SSPX Resistance is convicted Holocaust denier Richard Williamson, who visited the West Cork premises and said mass there in 2020.

In a letter to the Irish government, the EU Commission said Ireland ‘has not fully transposed the provisions related to incitement to hatred or violence, including the condoning, denial or gross trivialisation of international crimes and the Holocaust’.

Ms O’Leary was arrested in 2020 after visiting the SSPX site in Reenascreena. ‘When I went to the gardaí in 2020 to tell them of my concerns about this group, I thought, in my naivete, that Holocaust denial was a crime,’ she said.

She had hoped the gardaí would investigate her fears about the group and their links to Holocaust deniers. But the activist was shocked when she was, instead, arrested for trespass. 

After a court case in 2023, Ms O’Leary, a mother of five, from Dunmanway, was sentenced to 60 days’ jail, suspended for two years, and was ordered not to post anything on social media ‘that is abusive or offensive to any person’ – an order which Ms O’Leary described as effectively ‘gagging’ her. 

After challenging the order via a judicial review, the ‘gag order’ was quashed.

This week Ms O’Leary said she was hopeful that SSPX could now be challenged under hatred legislation. 

‘The head of the sect in West Cork was recently seen with a holocaust denier in the Philippines, and Fr Ballini also runs an organisation – the Society of the Apostles of Jesus and Mary – which has been approved by the Irish Charities Regulator,’ she said. 

The Regulator said it does not comment on ‘individual charities’.

Vatican orders suppression of the Latin Mass at California diocese’s cathedral

 The Vatican suppressed the Traditional Latin Mass at the cathedral in Santa Rosa, California, leaving parishioners to seek a new location for the Mass of the Ages.

Bishop Robert Vasa of the Diocese of Santa Rosa confirmed Wednesday to LifeSiteNews that the Vatican directed that the TLM be discontinued at the Cathedral of St. Eugene. 

According to Bishop Vasa, permission has been granted to relocate the Latin Mass, but details regarding when and where this will take place have yet to be determined.

A source who read the letter directing the cancellation of the cathedral’s TLM told LifeSiteNews that it was signed by Archbishop Vittorio Viola, the Secretary of Divine Worship and Discipline of the Sacraments. 

The letter cited St. Ignatius of Antioch and Sacrosanctum Concilium, the Second Vatican Council’s Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy, according to the source.

The decision was announced to parishioners on Sunday, October 13, without a definite date for the cathedral’s last TLM. However, parishioner George Zieminski told LifeSiteNews that the Latin Mass is expected to end there within the next two months or so.

“This news was met with great sorrow, but not unexpected,” said Zieminski, who added that there are no similar locations nearby for the Latin Mass. Santa Rosa is located about an hour north of San Francisco.

He noted that the cathedral was “renovated about 10 years ago to make it a much more beautiful place to worship our God,” and asked for prayers for the cathedral parish and Bishop Vasa during this time.

Since Pope Francis’ motu proprio Traditionis Custodes, which said that bishops are not to allow Traditional Latin Masses in “parochial churches,” dozens of Latin Masses have been suppressed across the world, with some relocated and many cancelled altogether.

Liturgical scholar Dr. Peter Kwasniewski has implored priests to resist Traditionis Custodes and its accompanying Responsa ad dubia “regardless of threats or penalties,” since obedience to these documents would undermine the very mission of the holy Catholic Church.

‘The traditional Mass belongs to the most intimate part of the common good in the Church. Restricting it, pushing it into ghettos, and ultimately planning its demise can have no legitimacy. This law is not a law of the Church because, as St. Thomas (Aquinas) says, a law against the common good is no valid law,’” he said in a speech during the 2021 Catholic Identity Conference. 

In virtue of Our Apostolic authority, We grant and concede in perpetuity that, for the chanting or reading of the Mass in any church whatsoever, this Missal is hereafter to be followed absolutely, without any scruple of conscience or fear of incurring any penalty, judgment, or censure, and may freely and lawfully be used. Nor are superiors, administrators, canons, chaplains, and other secular priests, or religious, of whatever title designated, obliged to celebrate the Mass otherwise than as enjoined by Us. We likewise declare and ordain … that this present document cannot be revoked or modified, but remains always valid and retains its full force … Would anyone, however, presume to commit such an act (i.e., altering Quo Primum), he should know that he will incur the wrath of Almighty God and of the Blessed Apostles Peter and Paul.

Kwasniewski pointed out that Quo Primum “is not ‘just a disciplinary document’ that can be readily set aside or contradicted by his successors. It is a document de rebus fidei et morum, concerning matters of faith and morals, and therefore not susceptible to being set aside by a later pontiff.”

Deletion from baptismal register reaches record high in Belgium

In Belgium, more than 14,000 people turned their backs on the Catholic Church in 2023 - more than ever before. 

This was announced by the church in a recent annual report. 

Many cited a "revulsion at sexual abuse" within the church and a "culture of silence" as the reason. 

The Flanders region and the archdiocese of Mechelen-Brussels recorded 98 per cent of applications for removal from the baptismal register. It is not possible to formally leave the church in Belgium.

According to the figures, around 1,200 people have applied to be removed from the baptismal register each year so far; only in 2021 did this figure exceed 5,000. No official reasons need to be given for this step.

According to the church, last year's broadcast of the documentary "Forgotten by God" led to the significant increase. 

The programme, which was broadcast on the Flemish public broadcaster VRT, featured interviews with around 20 victims of sexual abuse, mainly older men who had been abused as teenagers in Catholic institutions.

Debate about abuse during the Pope's visit

Abuse was also a central topic during Pope Francis' visit in September. At the Vatican embassy, he met 17 victims of sexualised violence by Belgian clergy. The meeting lasted more than two hours. 

Afterwards, the head of the Church called the abuse of minors a disgrace. "We must recognise this shame, ask for forgiveness and solve the problem." 

The Belgian parliament had previously decided to set up a new committee of enquiry to investigate abuse in the church.

Belgium could also see more resignations than usual this year. 

After the Pope's trip , 524 Belgians announced in an open letter that they would be "de-baptised"

They were protesting against statements made by Francis during his visit to Belgium, in which he described an earlier law liberalising abortion as "murderous".

Warsaw Cardinal Nycz open to homosexual partnerships

Warsaw Cardinal Kazimierz Nycz is open to the idea of legal protection for same-sex couples in Poland. People should be allowed to register partnerships without equating this relationship with marriage, Nycz told the broadcaster "Polsat News" on Wednesday evening. 

The Catholic Church would at best make its opinion known, but would probably "not interfere" in the corresponding legislative process in parliament, said the cardinal.

Equality Minister Katarzyna Kotula from the "New Left" party published a draft partnership law a few days ago. This would allow two people of legal age to register their relationship at the registry office, regardless of their gender. 

This would put them on an equal footing with married couples in terms of tax and inheritance law and the choice of surname, among other things. However, they would not be able to adopt children together. 

In Prime Minister Donald Tusk's centre-left coalition, the bill has met with resistance from the conservative PSL party.

Majority in favour of registered partnerships

According to Nycz, the "temperature of this discussion" in parliament shows "that the problem is not so simple". 

Marriage, especially church marriage, must be distinguished from other types of relationships. 

However, there should be a "certain tolerance" on the part of the Church for the desire of people to be able to enter into and dissolve partnerships more easily by civil contract, said the Archbishop of Warsaw.

Poland is one of only five EU states that do not allow same-sex marriages or the official registration of gay and lesbian partnerships. 

In recent surveys, a majority of the Polish population was in favour of introducing a registered civil partnership for homosexual couples.

Cardinal Schönborn resigns from the Council of the World Synod of Bishops

The Synod on Synodality has elected a new Synod Council. 

The number of members of the body, which is responsible for preparing and organising the Ordinary General Assemblies of the World Synod of Bishops, was increased from 13 to 17 following a decision by Pope Francis, as announced by the Synod Secretariat on Wednesday evening. Cardinal Christoph Schönborn (79) from Vienna will no longer be a member of the council.

In the afternoon, the participants of the Synod on Synodality elected one bishop each from the Eastern Catholic Churches and from Oceania, as well as two bishops each from North America, Latin America, Europe, Africa and Asia. 

In addition, there are four members appointed by the Pope as well as "in due course" the head of the Dicastery of the Roman Curia, which is responsible for the topic of the next Synod. 

The new council is also responsible for implementing the new resolutions for more synodality in the Church, according to the press release.

Representatives from all continents

The head of the Greek Melkite Church, Patriarch Youssef Absi of Antioch, was elected to represent the Eastern Churches. The Archbishop of Perth (Australia), Timothy John Costelloe, represents Oceania. The Bishop of Brownsville (USA), Daniel Ernest Flores, and Bishop Alain Faubert of Valleyfield (Canada) were elected to represent North America. Latin America is represented by Cardinal Luis Jose Rueda Aparicio of Bogota (Colombia) and the Archbishop of Maracaibo (Venezuela), Jose Luis Azuaje Ayala.

Europe will be represented in the Synod Council by Cardinal Jean-Marc Aveline of Marseille (France) and Archbishop Gintaras Grusas of Vilnius (Lithuania), who is also President of the Council of European Bishops' Conferences (CCEE). Cardinal Dieudonne Nzapalainga of Bangui (Central African Republic) and Archbishop Andrew Fuanya Nkea of Bamenda (Cameroon) will speak on behalf of Africa. Asia is represented by Cardinal Filipe Neri Antonio Sebastiao do Rosario Ferrao of Goa and Damao (India) and Bishop Pablo Virgilio S. David of Kalookan (Philippines).

In addition to Schönborn, the outgoing members include Cardinals Oswald Gracias (India), Gerald Cyprien Lacroix (Canada), Charles Maung Bo (Myanmar), Daniel Fernando Sturla Berhouet (Uruguay), Sergio da Rocha (Brazil), Joseph William Tobin (USA), Juan Jose Omella Omella (Spain), Joseph Coutts (Pakistan) and Matteo Zuppi (Italy).

Irish parliament votes Yes to ‘note’ report supporting Assisted Suicide

On Wednesday, the Irish parliament – called the Dáil – voted to “note” the final report of the Joint Oireachtas Committee on Assisted Dying, which calls on the Republic of Ireland to legalize assisted dying in certain restricted circumstances. 

The vote was 76 in favor with 53 against.

Independent TD Michael Healy-Rae, the Chair of the Oireachtas Committee on Assisted Dying, was not in favor of the report.

“I don’t believe that it’s the place of a legislator to speed you up on that journey,” he told RTÉ.

“At present, if you assist somebody in dying in Ireland, you will get a mandatory jail sentence for doing so,” he said.

What is being suggested in this report is that in certain limited, certain circumstances, that you could assist somebody into the journey of death and that there would not be any legal penalty for it. It is a very serious move,” he continued.

“I looked at the evidence given from psychiatrists who also argued to us that, in their terminology, it could lead to a slippery slope, with increasing numbers of people looking to end their lives because of a number of different reasons,” he continued.

“I know that there are hard cases, but hard cases make for bad laws,” Healy-Rae said.

Eilís Mulroy of the Pro Life Campaign said in a statement that it is important to recognize the vote was not a vote on the issue of euthanasia or assisted suicide itself “but was on whether to note the radical and far-reaching report of the Joint Committee on Assisted Dying, which called for the introduction of euthanasia/assisted suicide.”

“It would have been preferable if a majority of TDs had voted No. It is clear from the remarks of many Oireachtas members in recent days that they haven’t reflected on or studied the extreme recommendations contained in the JCAD report,” she said.

“In addition to reducing the value of human life and undermining anti-suicide campaigns, the introduction of euthanasia/assisted suicide in Ireland would have the impact of undercutting investment in palliative care and would inevitably lead to certain vulnerable groups feeling growing pressure to opt for euthanasia/assisted suicide, as shown by what has happened in the small number of countries that have gone down this road,” Mulroy continued.

“Significantly the push for euthanasia/ assisted suicide has been opposed by professional bodies such as the College of Psychiatrists of Ireland and the Irish Palliative Medicine Consultants Association. I sincerely hope TDs will take account of this going forward,” she said.

“The focus of the Oireachtas should be on promoting assisted living, not assisted dying. There is so much good and life-affirming work that needs to be done in this area and candidates in the upcoming General Election have a duty to state clearly where they stand on the issue, so voters are left in no doubt with regard to their position,” Mulroy added.

The Irish bishops have also called for more focus on palliative care.

“It is our experience however that, in the final weeks of terminal illness, many people can be helped to experience human and spiritual growth,” they said in a statement earlier this year.

“Faced with the reality of their own mortality, they can and do come to understand themselves better, and to experience the love of family members and friends. This can be a time when old hurts are healed and people find inner peace. This process is supported through palliative and pastoral care, which places the focus on the needs of the whole person,” the bishops’ statement said.

“The Church does not and never has insisted on the use of extraordinary means to prolong life. Nor is there any moral obligation on a sick person to accept treatment which they feel is unduly burdensome,” the bishops added.

“A decision to end life prematurely, however, cuts off any prospect of growth or healing and represents a failure of hope. It is surely far better when a person’s freedom to live is affirmed and supported by a compassionate community of care,” they said.

Welsh Parliament rejects assisted suicide in significant setback for campaign to change UK law

The Welsh Parliament has voted to reject a motion calling for Westminster to legalise assisted suicide. 

The decision is viewed as a significant setback for the assisted suicide lobby who are currently pushing strongly for a change in UK law.

The power to introduce assisted suicide is not devolved to Wales but is reserved to Westminster in London. 

The members of the Senedd – the Welsh Parliament – voted 26 votes to 19 against the motion. 

The Welsh First Minister, Eluned Morgan, and the Secretary for Health and Social Care, Jeremy Miles, both voted against the motion.

“My fear with this motion – well, my terror, really – is not so much with how it will begin as with how it will end,” said Delyth Jewell, Plaid Cymru member for South Wales East.

“There are safeguards in what is being proposed in Westminster, indeed there are, but every precedent we see internationally shows that no safeguard is sacrosanct; the experiences of Canada, the Netherlands, Belgium and some states in the US show what can so easily, so inevitably, happen.”

Opposition among Senedd members came from all major parties including Labour, Liberal Democrats, Plaid Cymru and the Conservatives.

“Assisted suicide campaigners appear to have brought forward the motion with the expectation that they would have the numbers to win the vote and claim support from the Welsh Parliament for Kim Leadbeater’s assisted suicide Bill, which is currently before the House of Commons,” says Catherine Robinson, spokesperson for Right To Life UK.

She highlights that if the vote had gone the campaigners’ way it “would have given their campaign in Westminster a large boost but instead, the tactic has spectacularly backfired”, with the Welsh Assembly making clear its view and rejecting the proposed change in the law.

“Laws are first introduced for people who are terminally ill, as is being proposed in Westminster, and bit by bit, the safeguards have been eroded so that now people with depression, with anorexia, and many other non-terminal disorders can qualify – disorders from which people can recover; lives that will have been ended that might have got better,” says Jewell.

Joel James, member for South Wales Central, said: “It has been repeatedly proven that assisted dying laws, when introduced, descend quickly into a range of problems, from coercion by relatives to the hand-picking of specific doctors willing to euthanise. It would, I believe, set a dangerous precedent and lead to a catalogue of unintended consequences if it was introduced into the UK.”

Darren Millar, member for Clwyd West, echoed such concerns, saying: “[L]egalising assisted suicide would send a clear message that some lives are not worth living, and I don’t think that that’s a message that any civilised society, frankly, should be promoting to any of its citizens, especially when there are many people across Wales right now who are enjoying a fulfilling life in spite of their terminal illness, or in spite of a debilitating condition.”

Vatican signs accord with Czech Republic, ensuring legal status of Church

The Prime Minister of the Czech Republic, Petr Fiala, and the Vatican Secretary of State, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, have signed an Accord to “strengthen the bonds of friendship” between the two nations.

An agreement for religious freedom

The 16-article agreement encourages collaboration between the two countries, specifically aimed at serving the “common good and the spiritual, human, and cultural values of the Czech people.” The document guarantees religious freedom and the Church’s ability to carry out its mission.

The bilateral agreement also confirms the right to liberty of thought, religion, and conscience for all people—not only Catholics—and states that religious worship can be regulated by law only if absolutely necessary to protect public order, wellbeing, and others’ rights.

Separation of Church and State

In the Accord, the Czech State acknowledges the Catholic Church’s right to function according to its own rules, to self-govern, and to freely select its ministers. It further guarantees the right to conscientious objection regarding military service and healthcare; protection is also provided for the sacramental seal of confession.

According to a census from 2021, only about 10% of the Czech population identifies as Catholic.  

With this agreement, the Church’s right to create their own educational and charitable organizations, provide healthcare, and facilitate pastoral care for the military is solidified.

The Accord will be sent to Pope Francis and the Parliament of the Czech Republic to be reviewed and ratified and it will be effective the first day of the month after both parties have ratified the document.

Ties between the two countries

Relations between the Czech Republic and the Vatican were first established in 1919—when it was part of the country of Czechoslovakia. 

Ties weakened after the rise of communism in the country and the Vatican representative was expelled in 1950. 

Forty years later, in April 1990, on the day before his papal trip to the country, Pope John Paul II re-established diplomatic ties. 

In 1993, Czechoslovakia was dissolved and split into the Czech Republic and Slovakia. 

The Czech Republic became officially independent in 1993.

‘He Loved Us’: Pope Francis' new encyclical on the Sacred Heart of Jesus

“Dilexit nos,” Pope Francis’ fourth Encyclical, retraces the tradition and relevance of thought on “the human and divine love of the heart of Jesus Christ,” calling for a renewal of authentic devotion to avoid forgetting the tenderness of faith, the joy of serving, and the fervour of mission.

“‘He loved us’, Saint Paul says of Christ (cf. Rom 8:37), in order to make us realize that nothing can ever “separate us” from that love (Rom 8:39)”: Thus begins Pope Francis’ fourth Encyclical, which takes its title from the opening words, Dilexit nos.

The Encyclical is dedicated to the human and divine love of the Heart of Jesus Christ: “His open heart has gone before us and waits for us, unconditionally, asking only to offer us His love and friendship,” the Pope writes in the introductory paragraph. “For ‘He loved us first’ (cf. 1 Jn 4:10). Because of Jesus, ‘we have come to know and believe in the love that God has for us’ (1 Jn 4:16).”  

Read the full text here.

The love of Christ represented in His Sacred Heart

In our societies, the Pope writes, “we are also seeing a proliferation of varied forms of religiosity that have nothing to do with a personal relationship with the God of love” (87), while Christianity often forgets “the tender consolations of faith, the joy of serving others, the fervour of personal commitment to mission” (88).

In response, Pope Francis proposes a new reflection on the love of Christ represented in His Holy Heart. He calls for a renewal of “authentic devotion” (163) to the Sacred Heart, recalling that in the Heart of Christ “we find the whole Gospel” (89). It is in His Heart that “we truly come at last to know ourselves and we learn to love” (30).

The world seems to have lost its heart

Pope Francis explains that by encountering the love of Christ, “we become capable of forging bonds of fraternity, of recognizing the dignity of each human being, and of working together to care for our common home,” noting the relationship between Dilexit nos and his social Encyclicals Laudato si' and Fratelli tutti (217).

And “in the presence of the Heart of Christ," he asks the Lord “to have mercy on this suffering world” and pour upon it “the treasures of His light and love, so that our world, which presses forward despite wars, socio-economic disparities, and uses of technology, that threaten our humanity, may regain the most important and necessary thing of all: the heart” (31).

When announcing the preparation of the document at the end of the General Audience on June 5, the Pope clarified that it would do us great good to meditate on various aspects of the Lord’s love, which can illuminate the path of ecclesial renewal, and say something meaningful to a world that seems to have lost its heart.”

This encyclical comes as celebrations are underway for the 350th anniversary of the first manifestation of the Sacred Heart of Jesus to Saint Margaret Mary Alacoque in 1673; the anniversary celebrations will conclude on 27 June 2025.

The importance of returning to the heart

Opening with a brief introduction and divided into five chapters, the Encyclical on the devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus incorporates, as announced in June, “the precious reflections of previous Magisterial texts and a long history that goes back to the Sacred Scriptures, in order to re-propose today, to the whole Church, this devotion imbued with spiritual beauty.”

The first chapter, “The Importance of the Heart,” explains why it is necessary to “return to the heart” in a world where we are tempted to become “insatiable consumers and slaves to the mechanisms of the market” (2). It analyzes what we mean by “heart”: the Bible speaks of it as a core “that lies hidden beneath all outward appearances” (4), a place where what is shown on the outside or hidden doesn’t matter; there, we are truly ourselves (6). The heart leads to questions that matter: what meaning do I want for my life, my choices, or my actions? Who am I before God (8)?

The Pope points out that the current “depreciation” of the heart originated in Hellenic and pre-Christian rationalism, in post-Christian idealism, and in materialism in its various guises” where great philosophical thought prioritized concepts like “reason, will, or freedom.”

“The failure to make room for the heart… has resulted in a stunting of the idea of a personal centre, in which love, in the end, is the one reality that can unify all the others” (10), the Pope writes.

For Pope Francis, it is important to recognize that “I am my heart, for my heart is what sets me apart, shapes my spiritual identity and puts me in communion with other people” (14).

‘The world can change beginning from the heart’

It is the heart that unites the fragments and “makes all authentic bonding possible, since a relationship not shaped by the heart is incapable of overcoming the fragmentation caused by individualism” (17).

The spirituality of saints like Ignatius of Loyola (accepting the Lord’s friendship is a matter of the heart) and Saint John Henry Newman (the Lord saves us by speaking to our heart from His Sacred Heart) teaches us, writes Pope Francis, that “before the Heart of Jesus, living and present, our mind, enlightened by the Spirit, grows in the understanding of His words” (27). This has social consequences, as “the world can change beginning with the heart” (28).

‘Actions and words of love’

The second chapter is dedicated to the actions and words of love of Christ. The acts by which He treats us as friends and shows that God “is closeness, compassion, and tender love” are evident in His encounters with the Samaritan woman, Nicodemus, the prostitute, the adulterous woman, and the blind man on the road (35).

His gaze, which “plumbs the depths of your heart” (39), shows “how attentive Jesus was to individuals and above all to their problems and needs” (40), in such a way “as to admire the good things He recognizes in us”—as He recognized the good in the centurion—even if others ignore them (41).

His most eloquent word of love is “being nailed to the Cross,” after having wept for His friend Lazarus and suffered in the Garden of Gethsemane, aware of His violent death “at the hands of those whom He had loved so greatly” (45, 46).

The mystery of a heart that loved so much

In the third chapter, “This is the heart that has loved so greatly,” the Pope recalls how the Church reflects and has reflected on “the holy mystery of the Lord’s Sacred Heart.” He refers to Pius XII’s Encyclical Haurietis aquas, on the devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus (1956). He clarifies that “devotion to the Heart of Christ is not the veneration of a single organ apart from the Person of Jesus,” because we adore “the whole Jesus Christ, the Son of God made man, represented by an image that accentuates His heart” (48).

The image of the heart of flesh helps us contemplate that the love of the Heart of Jesus Christ not only understands divine charity but also extends to human affection (61). His Heart, Pope Francis continues, quoting Pope Benedict XVI, contains a “threefold love”: the sensitive love of His physical heart and His twofold spiritual love, both human and divine, in which we find “the infinite in the finite” (67).

The Sacred Heart of Jesus is a synthesis of the Gospel

The Pope clarifies that the visions of some saints, particularly devoted to the Heart of Christ, “are rich sources of encouragement and can prove greatly beneficial,” but “are not something the faithful are obliged to believe as if they were the Word of God.”

At the same time, he reminds us, along with Pope Pius XII, that this devotion “cannot be said ‘to owe its origin to private revelations.’” Rather, “devotion to Christ’s heart is essential for our Christian life to the extent that it expresses our openness in faith and adoration to the mystery of the Lord’s divine and human love” and “in this sense, we can once more affirm that the Sacred Heart is a synthesis of the Gospel” (83).

The Pope calls for renewing devotion to the Heart of Christ, especially to counter “new manifestations of a disembodied spirituality” that are multiplying in society (87). It is essential, he says, to return to “the incarnate synthesis of the Gospel” (90) in the face of “communities and pastors excessively caught up in external activities, structural reforms that have little to do with the Gospel, obsessive reorganization plans, worldly projects, secular ways of thinking and mandatory programmes” (88).

The experience of ‘a love that gives itself as drink’

In the last two chapters, Pope Francis highlights two aspects that devotion to the Sacred Heart should unite to “to nourish us and bring us closer to the Gospel”: personal spiritual experience, and community and missionary commitment.

In the fourth chapter, “A love that gives itself as drink,” he revisits the Scriptures, and with the early Christians, recognizes Christ and His pierced side in “the one whom they have pierced,” a prophecy from the book of Zechariah in which God refers to Himself as an open fountain for the people, to quench their thirst for God’s love, “to cleanse them from sin and impurity” (95).

Various Church Fathers have mentioned “the wounded side of Jesus as the source of the water of the Holy Spirit”—especially St. Augustine, who “opened the way to devotion to the Sacred Heart as the locus of our personal encounter with the Lord” (103).

Gradually, this wounded side, recalls the Pope, “began to be associated with His Heart” (109) and he lists several holy women who “in recounting their experiences of encounter with Christ, have spoken of resting in the heart of the Lord as the source of life and interior peace (110).”

Among the modern devotees, the encyclical first mentions St. Francis de Sales, who presents his spiritual proposal with “a single heart pierced by two arrows,” (118).

Apparitions to St Margaret Mary Alacoque

Under the influence of this spirituality, St Margaret Mary Alacoque recounted the apparitions of Jesus at Paray-le-Monial, between the end of December 1673 and June 1675. The core of the message conveyed to us can be summed up in the words heard by St Margaret: “This is the heart that so loved human beings that it has spared nothing, even to emptying and consuming itself in order to show them its love” (121).

Therese of Lisieux, Ignatius of Loyola and Faustina Kowalska

Dilexit nos goes on to speak of St Therese of Lisieux, who described Jesus as the One “whose heart beats in unison with my own” (134); and of her letters to Sister Marie, which help avoid focusing the devotion to the Sacred Heart on suffering, “since some had presented reparation primarily in terms of accumulating sacrifices and good works.” Instead, “Therese, for her part, presents confidence as the greatest and best offering, pleasing to the heart of Christ” (138).

Pope Francis also dedicates several passages of the encyclical to the place of the Sacred Heart in the history of the Society of Jesus, emphasizing that in his Spiritual Exercises, St Ignatius of Loyola suggests to those following the method “to enter into the Heart of Christ” in a heart-to-heart dialogue.

In September 1871, he notes, Father Pieter Jan Beckx consecrated the Society to the Sacred Heart of Jesus; and Father Pedro Arrupe did so again in 1972 (146).

The experiences of St Faustina Kowalska, Pope Francis recalled, re-proposed the devotion “by greatly emphasizing the glorious life of the risen Lord and his divine mercy”; and motivated by these reflections, St John Paul II also “intimately linked his reflections on divine mercy with devotion to the Heart of Christ” (149).

Speaking of the “devotion of consolation,” the Encyclical explains that seeing the signs of the Passion preserved by the heart of the Risen One, “it is natural, then, that the faithful should wish to respond not only to this immense outpouring of love, but also to the suffering that the Lord chose to endure for the sake of that love” (151).

Pope Francis also asks “that no one make light of the fervent devotion of the holy faithful people of God, which in its popular piety seeks to console Christ” (160). God, he says, “offers us consolation ‘so that we may be able to console those who are in any affliction, with the consolation by which we ourselves are consoled by God’” (162).

Devotion to the Heart of Christ sends us to the brethren

The fifth and final chapter of the Encyclical, “Love for Love,” develops the communitarian, social, and missionary dimension of any authentic devotion to the Heart of Christ, which, as it “leads us to the Father,” also “sends us forth to our brothers and sisters” (163). Indeed, love for one’s brothers and sisters is the greatest gesture we can offer Him “to return love for love” (166).

Looking at the history of spirituality, the Pope recalls that St. Charles de Foucauld's missionary commitment made him a “universal brother”: “Allowing himself to be shaped by the heart of Christ, he sought to shelter the whole of suffering humanity in his fraternal heart” (179).

Pope Francis then speaks of “reparation”: as St. John Paul II explained, “by entrusting ourselves together to the heart of Christ, ‘over the ruins accumulated by hatred and violence, the greatly desired civilization of love, the Kingdom of the heart of Christ, can be built’” (182).

The mission to make the world fall in love

The Encyclical recalls again with St. John Paul II that “Consecration to the heart of Christ is thus ‘to be seen in relation to the Church’s missionary activity, since it responds to the desire of Jesus’ heart to spread throughout the world, through the members of His Body, His complete commitment to the Kingdom.’ As a result, ‘through the witness of Christians, ‘love will be poured into human hearts, to build up the body of Christ, which is the Church, and to build a society of justice, peace and fraternity” (206).

To avoid the great risk, underlined by Saint Paul VI, “amid all the things we say and do, we fail to bring about a joyful encounter with the love of Christ who embraces us and saves us” (208), we need “missionaries who are themselves in love and who, enthralled by Christ, feel bound to share this love that has changed their lives” (209).

The Prayer of Pope Francis

The text concludes with this prayer of Pope Francis:

“I ask our Lord Jesus Christ to grant that His Sacred Heart may continue to pour forth the streams of living water that can heal the hurt we have caused, strengthen our ability to love and serve others, and inspire us to journey together towards a just, solidary and fraternal world. Until that day when we will rejoice in celebrating together the banquet of the heavenly kingdom in the presence of the risen Lord, who harmonizes all our differences in the light that radiates perpetually from his open heart. May he be blessed forever” (220).