Bishop Nulty warns of fewer Masses and rise of lay-led liturgies in Kildare and Leighlin

The Bishop of Kildare and Leighlin has warned the faithful “not to be under any illusion” about the scale of change facing parish life, signalling that fewer Masses and an increase in lay-led liturgies will become a defining feature of the diocese in the years ahead.

In a pastoral letter issued in February, Bishop Denis Nulty said it will no longer be possible to sustain the current number of Masses in every church as priest numbers continue to decline. He called for more manageable Mass schedules within newly established pastoral areas and said lay-led liturgies would increasingly provide opportunities for communal prayer.

The letter, ‘A Time to Pull in our Nets and Take Stock’, reflects on the pastoral implications of synodality, demographic change and a growing reliance on lay ministry. 

Bishop Nulty appealed for sensitivity toward elderly and overburdened clergy, noting that priests are entitled to retire at 75 and that it is no longer possible for fewer priests to meet every expectation.

The diocese is being restructured into 11 pastoral areas, grouping 56 parishes and 117 faith communities into collaborative clusters. 

Bishop Nulty said the move is intended to encourage cooperation and shared pastoral planning across parish boundaries.

He pointed to the training of 25 new lay pastoral ministers and the ordination of five permanent deacons as signs of an emerging model of Church marked by fewer clergy and greater lay involvement. He stressed that mission must be rooted in baptism, cautioning against a parish culture overly focused on maintenance rather than evangelisation.

The letter echoes warnings issued by Bishop Nulty in 2017, when he spoke of a “new reality” shaped by fewer priests and the need for a radical reappraisal of parish life.

Cardinal Fernandez urges SSPX to drop plan to consecrate bishops

Hopes for an agreement between the Vatican and the Priestly Society of Saint Pius X (SSPX) were dashed after a meeting between the prefect of the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith (DDF) and Father Davide Pagliarani.

On Thursday, Cardinal Víctor Manuel Fernández and Fr. Pagliarani, the superior general of the SSPX, met in Rome for what the Vatican’s media chief, Matteo Bruni, had described on February 5 as “an opportunity for an informal and personal dialogue.” 

However, a communique released after the meeting revealed that Fernández threatened Pagliarani and the SSPX with the crime of “schism” if the episcopal consecrations announced by the Society go ahead.

The message noted that Fernández offered Pagliarani the initiation of a dialogue on several contentious issues, including whether God willed the plurality of religions, and the degree of the binding authority of the documents of the Second Vatican Council. 

However, this dialogue would presuppose the suspension of the SSPX’s intention to create bishops without papal sanction. According to the document:

It was reiterated by the Holy See that the ordination of bishops without the mandate of the Holy Father, who holds supreme ordinary power, which is full, universal, direct, and immediate, and direct (cf. CDC, can. 331; Dogmatic Constitution Pastor aeternus, chaps. I and III), would imply a decisive rupture of ecclesial communion (schism) with grave consequences for the Fraternity as a whole (JOHN PAUL II, Apostolic Letter Ecclesia Dei, July 2, 1988, nos. 3 and 5c; PONTIFICAL COUNCIL FOR 1 LEGISLATIVE TEXTS, Explanatory Note, August 24, 1996, no. 1). Therefore, the possibility of carrying out this dialogue presupposes that the Fraternity suspend the decision of the announced episcopal ordinations.

The communique reported that Fernández had, after clarifying theological points on which the SSPX and the DDF have disagreed, proposed “a path of specifically theological dialogue, with a well-defined methodology.” 

He also “proposed to address a series of issues listed by the FSSPX in a letter dated January 17, 2019.”

This dialogue would contain the carrot of a clear canonical status for the Society.

“The purpose of this process would be to highlight, among the issues under discussion, the minimum requirements for full communion with the Catholic Church and, consequently, to outline a canonical statute for the Fraternity, along with other aspects to be further explored,” the communique stated.

According to the DDF, Pagliarani will now “present the proposal to his Council and give his response to the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith.

In the event of a positive response, the steps, stages, and procedures to be followed will be established by mutual agreement.”

“The whole Church is asked to accompany this journey, especially in the coming days, with prayer to the Holy Spirit. He is the principal architect of the true ecclesial communion desired by Christ,” the statement concluded.

This morning’s meeting, proposed by Fernández, followed the Society’s February 2 announcement that they would consecrate new bishops this July 1. 

The late founder of the Society, Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre, famously ordained four bishops without the permission of Pope John Paul II on June 30, 1988. He took this step to ensure that Catholic Tradition, as he and the SSPX understood it, would survive in the post Vatican II-era Church.

Lefebvre, together with the new bishops Bernard Fellay, Bernard Tissier de Mallerais, Richard Williamson, and Alfonso de Galarreta, were subsequently declared excommunicated latae sententiae by the pope. 

The excommunications of the four bishops were lifted by Pope Benedict on January 21, 2009; Lefebvre had died on March 25, 1991. As of today, only two of those prelates are still living: Fellay and De Galaretta.

In its February 2 communique, the SSPX explained that Pagliarani had approached the Vatican on the subject of consecrating new bishops in August:

Last August, he sought the favour of an audience with the Holy Father, making known his desire to present to the Holy Father, in a filial manner, the current situation of the Priestly Society of Saint Pius X. 

In a second letter, he explicitly expressed the particular need of the Society to ensure the continuation of the ministry of its bishops, who have been travelling the world for nearly 40 years to respond to the many faithful attached to the Tradition of the Church and desirous, for the good of their souls, that the sacraments of Holy Orders and Confirmation be conferred.

However, despite the support and encouragement the Society had been offered by his late predecessor Francis, who had explicitly permitted SSPX priests to hear confessions and officiate at weddings, Pope Leo apparently did not give the Society permission to ordain new bishops. 

As the communique continues, Pagliarani decided to plan new episcopal consecrations anyway:

After having long matured his reflection in prayer, and having received from the Holy See, in recent days, a letter which does not in any way respond to our requests, Father Pagliarani, in harmony with the unanimous advice of his Council, judges that the objective state of grave necessity in which souls find themselves requires such a decision.

This clearly follows Lefebvre’s precedent, and the SSPX quoted their late founder in explaining Pagliarani’s rationale:

The Society [of Saint Pius X] is not primarily seeking its own survival. It primarily seeks the good of the Universal Church and, for this reason, the Society is, par excellence, a work of the Church, which, with unique freedom and strength, responds adequately to the specific needs of an unprecedentedly tragic era. 

This single goal is still ours today, just as it was 50 years ago. “That is why, without any spirit of rebellion, bitterness, or resentment, we pursue our work of forming priests, with the timeless Magisterium as our guide. We are persuaded that we can render no greater service to the Holy Catholic Church, to the Sovereign Pontiff and to posterity (Abp. Lefebvre, Declaration of 21 November 1974).”

It is yet unknown who the candidates for the SSPX’s planned episcopal consecrations are.

Cardinal Marx accuses Russian Patriarch Cyril of heresy

The Munich Archbishop, Cardinal Reinhard Marx, has opposed the instrumentalization of religion for politics, violence and war, and the Russian Patriarch Cyril I.

According to the archdiocese, he said on Wednesday night: "What the Patriarch of Moscow says is heresy." 

Orthodox Patriarch Cyril I had repeatedly stood behind the policies of Russian President Vladimir Putin and called the Ukraine war a "Holy War."

During a panel discussion at the third theological peace symposium on the occasion of the Munich Security Conference, Marx continued: "We see everywhere an instrumentalization of religion, some religious leaders love proximity to power." 

He stressed: "Religion must not stand by the side of the powerful, but must stand by the side of the weak and victims." 

In addition, religious representatives should not place themselves above others in their claims, because every person is a picture of God and "we are all brothers and sisters," according to Marx.

Europe must remember values

Marx noted parallels between Russian propaganda and statements in U.S. politics. 

In both, there are more anti-liberal, freedom or solidarity-undermining tendencies. 

He demanded that Europe, on the other hand, must reconsider its values: "We need a renewal of our position, our ideas, an understanding of our common values."

Several states have imposed sanctions on Cyril I because the head of the church, as a key ally of Putin, supports the war against Ukraine.

Church on funeral law: Poor have right to name after death

After the comprehensive liberalization of the funeral law in Rhineland-Palatinate, the worthy commemoration of the dead should not fall by the wayside from the point of view of the Catholic Church. 

This is evident from a joint declaration by the dioceses of Limburg, Mainz, Speyer and Trier as well as the Archdiocese of Cologne.

The responsible persons therefore attach great importance to the fact that the name remains recognizable at the grave site beyond death as a sign of the uniqueness and dignity of the deceased person," stressed Trier's Vicar General Ulrich von Plettenberg on Wednesday. 

We promote the culture of visible, publicly accessible grave sites as a link for mourning and communal commemoration. 

"These options are hardly equivalent to the new forms of burial." However, it should be emphasized that a church service and pastoral accompaniment could still take place, even without a cemetery burial.

Also for financially weaker

The Vicar General of the Diocese of Speyer, Markus Magin, added: "A special concern for us is that even those who receive a worthy funeral and a name-born grave site who have little financial resources or no relatives." 

Here, the municipalities in particular are legally regarded as having a duty. 

The Church, however, offers them the participation in shaping good solutions.

Since January, it has been possible in Rhineland-Palatinate, among other things, to process the ashes of deceased into a memento and to have them buried under the native apple tree or in one of the large rivers of the federal state. 

Other changes concern honorary graves for soldiers who died in foreign operations as well as the funeral of so-called star children. These are children who died before, during or immediately after birth.

The diocese lines also appreciate that after 42 years the legal basis has been adapted to today's requirements. 

The Mainz Vicar General Sebastian Lang mentions, for example, the regulation that the municipalities must allow their nearest relatives to burial in addition to their inhabitants: "This contributes to the fact that a grave may be where someone lives, to whom it is important as a place of mourning and remembrance."

Archdiocese of Hamburg wants its own abuse study

The Archdiocese of Hamburg is in favour of its own comprehensive review study on cases of sexualised violence. 

The aim is a new gain in knowledge in order to derive further concrete steps from this, said Vicar General Sascha-Philipp Geißler of the "Neue Kirchenzeitung". 

According to the deputy of Archbishop Stefan Hesse, the Independent Commission for Reappraisal of North (UAK) is in discussion.

So far, there is no separate scientific abuse study for the entire Archdiocese of Hamburg, which includes around 340,000 Catholics in Hamburg, Schleswig-Holstein and Mecklenburg. 

There is only one study for the particularly affected part of Mecklenburg and a study for the diocese of Osnabrück, which included large parts of the present-day archdiocese of Hamburg until 1995. 

The UAK Nord, the joint commission of the dioceses of Hamburg, Osnabrück and Hildesheim, sees this as a gap.

Privacy dispute blocks file inspection

The criticism that Hamburg proceeds more slowly than the neighboring bishoprics in the reprocessing, Geißler rejected. "Speed is less important to me than thoroughness." 

Currently, proceedings are still ongoing before the interdiocesan data protection court on issues of disclosure of case reports and the responsibility of the UAK. "We have to wait and see what this UAK-strained procedure yields."

The procedure concerns the question of whether the archdiocese of the UAK must at least grant anonymised access to the files even without the individual consents of the persons concerned. 

The Archdiocese has so far rejected this with reference to data protection. 

The UAK sees itself as significantly hindered in its work and has therefore sued against the interpretation of data protection by the archdiocese. The procedure has been going on for several months.

Two accused priests continue to be deployed

"It hurts me when we are held up, we would wall there," Geißler said. "In our country, the fundamental right to informational self-determination of every natural person applies, and we must take this seriously." 

Data protection is not protection of the crime, but determines scope for the processing.

Geißler acknowledged that there were cases in which accused priests continued to work to those affected despite benefits paid because there was no court-approved evidence or admissions of guilt. 

"We actually have two accused priests who act as retirees in the worship field but otherwise bear no responsibility," he said. "I can understand the perspective of those affected well that this seems unbearable and is being questioned." However, as long as no one is legally convicted, the presumption of innocence applies.

Long-vacant Cork city convent set for new lease of life as 52-apartment domestic violence refuge

A long-vacant former convent site in Cork city is to be redeveloped as a domestic violence refuge with 52 apartments and associated support services after city councillors voted to approve the plan at a meeting this week.

The 1930s-built Christ the King Presentation Convent on Evergreen Road at Turner’s Cross has been empty for years. 

Now the existing convent building will be renovated and extended and two new 4-storey residential blocks will be built on the 0.69-hectare site to house women and children on a short-term emergency basis. 

The development will be carried out by the Good Shepherd Cork organisation in partnership with Cork City Council.

At this week’s meeting of the city council the elected members voted 28-1 to approve the development. 

Cllr Niamh O’Connor described it as “a much-needed facility in the city. At the moment, we have a handful of domestic violence refuge beds in the city. I understand that we have six beds in Cuanlee [refuge] and maybe a handful more across the city.”

“Otherwise, women and children are being sent to homeless services, which is completely inappropriate. This facility will meet their needs and it will provide vital services for women and children going through probably one of the hardest things any one of us could ever go through,” she said.

Cllr Mary Rose Desmond said the Good Shepherds organisation has “a fantastic record for providing for women and families in need over many, many years in Cork City. I think we need more refuges and we also need them outside of the city, I mean these women and families need to not just be stuck in the city centre.”

Cllr Kieran McCarthy also welcomed the development. “That building has been empty for so many years, even decades, it’s great to see a repurposing. There are fantastic refuges in the city in terms of Cuanlee and Edel House and so on, but we need way, way, way more.”

"I regularly get an email from someone who has suffered from domestic violence and they have to leave their social housing but because they've left their social housing, they don't fit in any frame to get more social housing. And so they're just left in limbo or on a waiting list for seven or eight years,” he said.

Investigation launched after arson attack on Limerick mosque

Gardaí have launched an investigation after an arson attack at an Islamic Cultural Centre overnight.

Emergency services, including members of Limerick City Fire Brigade, were dispatched to the scene in Dooradoyle at around 1:30am on Thursday after the blaze broke out at the Limerick Mosque and Islamic Cultural Centre.

Fianna Fáil’s Councillor Abul Kalam Azad Talukder, the only Muslim councillor in Limerick, said it was very lucky no one was killed in the horror attack.

“Some individual person entered the mosque, and he threw some burning materials,” Councillor Talukder said.

“And luckily, somebody was inside at that time, and he responds very quickly, and we call the Garda and fire brigade, they came. It is very, very luckily there's no casualty, or nobody killed, or anything.”

Gardaí confirmed that no injuries were reported following the attack, and that investigations are ongoing.

A Garda spokesperson said: “Gardaí received a report of an incident of criminal damage by fire that occurred at a premises in the Dooradoyle area, Co. Limerick this Thursday, 12 February 2026 at approximately 1:30am.

“No injuries have been reported at this time. Investigations are ongoing."

Rearrangements in the Mexican Episcopate, New Bishops for Atlacomulco and Campeche

On the morning of February 11, the Mexican Episcopal Conference announced two episcopal appointments at a time of pastoral renewal in various regions of the country. 

Pope Leo XIV has appointed Adolfo Miguel Castaño Fonseca, until now bishop of Azcapotzalco, as the fourth bishop of the diocese of Atlacomulco. At the same time, he has named José Alberto González Juárez, bishop of Tuxtepec, as the fifteenth bishop of the diocese of Campeche.

The official communiqués from the Mexican Episcopal Conference (CEM) express the joy of the Church at these designations. 

“We join in joy and prayer with the Church that journeys in the Diocese of Atlacomulco and wish Mons. Adolfo Miguel a fruitful performance in the new episcopal assignment that the Lord has entrusted to him,” states one of the bulletins. A similar message accompanies the appointment for Campeche.

Adolfo Miguel Castaño Fonseca, 63 years old, returns to his native land to assume this new responsibility. Born on September 27, 1962, in San Mateo Mozoquilpan, municipality of Otzolotepec, State of Mexico, he entered the Toluca Conciliar Seminary in 1977 and was ordained a priest on March 19, 1987. 

His academic training is distinguished by a specialization in Sacred Scripture; he obtained a licentiate in Biblical Theology at the Pontifical University of Mexico and a doctorate in the same discipline at the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome.

For many years he dedicated himself to the formation of future priests in the seminaries of Toluca, where he held various positions such as prefect of studies, professor, general secretary, and librarian. 

He was also rector of the Temple of the Annunciation in Metepec and actively participated in continental projects, such as the coordination for the translation of the New Testament in the “Bible for the Church of America” initiative of CELAM, in addition to being part of the Biblical Pastoral Center for Latin America. 

Benedict XVI appointed him auxiliary bishop of Mexico in 2010, and Francis designated him as the first bishop of the newly created diocese of Azcapotzalco in 2019. In the CEM he has held relevant responsibilities, including the direction of Biblical Pastoral Care and, currently, the presidency of the Episcopal Commission for Prophetic Pastoral Care.

The diocese of Atlacomulco was erected by John Paul II in November 1984. Since then, it has been successively shepherded by the bishops Ricardo Guízar Díaz, Constancio Miranda Weckmann, and Juan Odilón Martínez García, who submitted his resignation in 2024 and left the see vacant under the apostolic administration of Juan Pedro Juárez Meléndez. 

 This diocese covers a region in the northwest of the State of Mexico with a strong presence of indigenous Otomí and Mazahua peoples, where Franciscan evangelization has deep roots since the 16th century. 

With more than a hundred presbyters and numerous parishes in rural and semi-urban areas, Atlacomulco represents a pastoral challenge in which the biblical and formative experience of its new bishop will be able to contribute valuable elements for the consolidation of the faith and the formation of the clergy.

For his part, José Alberto González Juárez, 58 years old, arrives in Campeche after eleven years at the helm of the Diocese of Tuxtepec, in Oaxaca. Born on December 19, 1967, in El Parral, municipality of Villacorzo, Chiapas, he was ordained a priest in 1995 for the archdiocese of Tuxtla Gutiérrez. 

His trajectory has been strongly focused on priestly formation: he studied philosophy at the Pontifical University of Mexico and held positions such as professor, prefect, spiritual director, and rector of the Major Seminary of Tuxtla Gutiérrez. He also served as vicar general and episcopal vicar for the clergy and consecrated life. Francis appointed him bishop of Tuxtepec in 2015.

The diocese of Campeche, one of the oldest in southeastern Mexico, was erected by Leo XIII in 1895 by dismembering territory from the then extensive diocese of Yucatán. 

Its territory coincides with the nearly 58 thousand square kilometers of the state of Campeche and serves a predominantly Catholic population, with important Mayan communities in rural areas. 

The Cathedral of Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception, a World Heritage site in the walled city of Campeche, symbolizes a centuries-old history that now receives its fifteenth bishop. The see had been vacant since the transfer of José Francisco González González to Tuxtla Gutiérrez in 2025.

The CEM has invited the faithful to accompany the new bishops with their prayer, as well as the dioceses of Azcapotzalco and Tuxtepec, which in the coming months will receive their respective successors.

China forces priests to surrender their passports and strengthens state control over the Church

The Chinese regime has taken a new step in its policy of control over religious confessions by imposing the mandatory surrender of passports to all Catholic clergy and religious in the country. 

The measure, adopted by the official bodies of the State-recognized Church, strengthens the existing supervision system and once again places pressure on the controversial agreement between Beijing and the Holy See.

According to Per Mariam, the new regulations were promulgated in December by the Chinese Catholic Patriotic Association (CCPA) and the so-called Chinese Catholic Bishops’ Conference (BCCCC), entities that do not recognize the authority of the Holy See and operate under the direct supervision of the Chinese Communist Party.

Passports under state custody

The provisions require priests and religious to surrender their passports and travel documents—including those related to Hong Kong, Macao, and Taiwan—for storage by the authorities. Although different procedures are foreseen depending on clerical rank, the outcome is the same: the State retains the identity documents.

Those wishing to travel abroad for official reasons must submit an application accompanied by the corresponding approval documentation. Only after authorization can they temporarily recover the passport to manage visas and travel.

In the case of private trips, the requirements are even greater. The interested party must submit, at least 30 days in advance, a detailed application outlining the itinerary, purpose, duration, and list of participants. 

After approval, they must sign a written commitment. Any deviation from the authorized plan may result in sanctions, such as the suspension of travel privileges for both the individual and their institution.

Upon return, the religious must return the passport within seven days and, in some cases, complete additional forms and reports.

A framework of increasingly strict control

The new provisions fit into a broader policy of state supervision of religious life. In recent statements, official bodies insisted that religious activities must strictly comply with current legislation. 

Among other restrictions, worship services can only be held in authorized places and can only be presided over by officially registered clergy.

The Communist Party has maintained a process of «sinicization» of religions for years, aimed at ensuring that all confessions adapt to the State’s ideology and operate under its direction. 

Regulations approved in 2025 reinforced this line by requiring the promotion of communist principles and severely limiting the activity of foreign clergy.

The Sino-Vatican agreement under pressure

These measures once again call into question the provisional agreement signed in 2018 between China and the Holy See on the appointment of bishops, recently renewed until 2028. 

Although the content of the pact remains largely reserved, it is considered to grant Beijing a decisive role in episcopal selection, with an alleged right of veto by the Pope.

Leo XIV has approved episcopal appointments from Chinese authorities without explicitly commenting on the tightening of state control. 

In an initial intervention of his pontificate, he expressed his desire for Chinese Catholics to remain in communion with the universal Church, a statement that some interpreted as a sign of concern regarding the sinicization policy.

Msgr. Fellay defends the new episcopal consecrations of the FSSPX: "We are Catholics and we simply want to remain Catholics"

The Priestly Fraternity of Saint Pius X (FSSPX) is living decisive days following the announcement made by its Superior General, Father Davide Pagliarani, regarding the request for new episcopal consecrations. 

In this context, Monsignor Bernard Fellay - Swiss bishop of the FSSPX - delivered on February 8, the Sunday of Sexagesima, a homily in which he directly addressed the issue and justified the decision by appealing to the “state of necessity” in the Church.

From the beginning of his sermon, Fellay acknowledged the gravity of the announcement and the mixed reactions it has provoked among the faithful. “It is not difficult to understand, given the seriousness of the matter, that this has caused contradictory feelings,” he stated, alluding to both the relief and the fear that the news has aroused.

A “very serious” decision

Fellay emphasized that the consecration of bishops without a pontifical mandate is not a minor act. “This matter is, in fact, very serious. And such an act can only be justified by a proportionate situation,” he noted. He insisted that it is not a decision taken for pleasure or on a whim, but rather responds - according to his explanation - to an analysis of the current situation in the Church.

He acknowledged that serious accusations immediately arise, such as those of schism or excommunication, but maintained that the measure can only be understood if one starts from the diagnosis that the Fraternity has held for decades: the existence of a deep crisis in the Church.

The notion of “crisis” and “state of necessity”

The bishop explained that when the FSSPX speaks of “crisis,” “state of emergency,” or “state of necessity,” it does not deny the authority of the Pope or the hierarchical structure of the Church. “We do not deny, in any way, that our mother, the Catholic Church, needs authorities and has authorities,” he affirmed. And he added that the Pope possesses “the supreme authority on earth.”

However, he recalled that the proper end of the Church is the salvation of souls, a mission entrusted by Christ. “The goal of the Church has been given by its founder, Our Lord Himself, and it is the salvation of souls,” he declared. In his view, the current situation must be evaluated in light of that end.

Doctrinal crisis and loss of faith

A large part of the homily was dedicated to describing what he considers a widespread doctrinal crisis. Fellay evoked statements by St. John Paul II on the spread of errors in Catholic universities and cited the analysis by then-Cardinal Ratzinger regarding certain theological currents that, as he said, dilute the doctrine on God, the divinity of Christ, and ultimate truths.

To illustrate the deterioration in catechesis, he recounted specific cases of young people who are unaware of fundamental prayers or basic aspects of the faith, as well as situations of ignorance regarding the real presence of Christ in the Eucharist. He did not attribute these shortcomings to bad intentions, but to a deficient transmission of the faith in broad sectors of the Church.

Likewise, he criticized recent approaches to religious pluralism, stating that such assertions affect the traditional dogma on the necessity of the Church for salvation.

Authority and limits

Fellay addressed the relationship between authority and conscience. He acknowledged that the Pope possesses supreme power, but maintained that this power is not arbitrary. “Authority is always related to truth and to the good,” he affirmed, insisting that its purpose is the salvation of souls.

According to his explanation, when the exercise of authority deviates from that end, an abuse occurs that cannot bind in conscience. In this context, he mentioned current moral and pastoral issues that, in his opinion, generate confusion among the faithful.

“Survival operation”

In the final part of the homily, the bishop evoked the episcopal consecrations carried out in 1988 by Monsignor Marcel Lefebvre, describing them—as he did then—as a “survival operation.” He reiterated that the intention is not to break with Rome or to establish a parallel structure, but to preserve the faith and the sacraments as the Fraternity understands them.

“It is not rebellion. It is not that we are leaving. It is not building a parallel Church. Not at all. We are Catholics and we simply want to remain Catholic,” he affirmed.

Fellay concluded by calling for calm and trust in Providence. He invited the faithful not to give in to panic and to intensify prayer in this delicate moment.

A decisive moment

Fellay’s words come days before the meeting with Cardinal Fernández, prefect of the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith. A meeting that inevitably recalls 1988.

The historical precedent is evident. At that time, the Holy See declared the consecrations illicit and applied canonical sanctions. Decades later, part of those sanctions were lifted, but the canonical situation of the FSSPX remains irregular.

The underlying issue remains intact: does a state of necessity truly exist that justifies acting without a pontifical mandate?

What is clear is that the FSSPX has decided to make a move at a time when doctrinal confusion, the crisis of vocations, and internal tensions in the Church remain open. The meeting on February 12 will mark a new chapter in a relationship that has been tense for years.

The coming weeks will be decisive in determining whether the Holy See opts for a new confrontation or for an attempt at diplomatic containment on the part of the pontificate of Leo XIV.

What to know about Catholic Jimmy Lai’s Hong Kong journey from media mogul and activist to convict

To his supporters, former Hong Kong media mogul Jimmy Lai is a fighter for democracy. 

To the government, he is a traitor to his motherland.

The 78-year-old outspoken critic of China’s ruling Communist Party was sentenced Monday to 20 years in prison for conspiring to commit sedition and collude with foreign forces.

Observers say his trial came to symbolize a crackdown that began in 2020 on press and other freedoms that has changed Hong Kong, the former British colony that returned to China’s control in 1997.

The Hong Kong government insists Lai’s case has nothing to do with press freedom, but instead is an example of righteousness upheld by the law.

A migrant from mainland China, he made a fortune in the garment industry in Hong Kong and later founded the Apple Daily newspaper, where he wrote articles criticizing the Chinese and Hong Kong governments for limiting freedoms. The publication eventually was shuttered and his words became trial evidence.

Here is what to know about his unusual journey to political activism that has ended, at least for the moment, in prison.

A stowaway founds a clothing giant

Lai was born in 1947 in the southern Chinese city of Guangzhou, once known as Canton, two years before the communists came to power.

He was just 12 when he stowed away on a fishing boat to Hong Kong, about 135 kilometers (84 miles) from Guangzhou. Like many other Chinese of that era, Lai hoped for a better life in the British colony. Working as a child laborer in a glove factory served as his introduction to the garment industry.

In 1981, he founded Giordano, an affordable casual clothing chain that has grown into an international brand with 1,600 retail outlets in 30 countries, according to its website.

Shift to publishing gives Lai a voice

Lai sold his interest in Giordano in the mid-1990s when the company came under pressure from Beijing. That came after he called hard-line Premier Li Peng “the son of a turtle egg,” a slur in Chinese, after the communist leader justified the government’s deadly 1989 crackdown on protests in Beijing’s Tiananmen Square.

The violent suppression was a pivotal moment for Lai, he later said. Giordano printed T-shirts in support of the pro-democracy protests and he made his first foray into publishing in 1990, founding Next Magazine.

Five years later, he started the Apple Daily, a tabloid-style publication that drew readership with sometimes sensational reports and investigative scoops. The publication openly criticized the government, which some observers now say landed Lai in trouble about 25 years down the road.

Joining activists in Hong Kong’s streets

Lai took to the streets in 2014, taking part in the pro-democracy protests known as the Umbrella Movement that for months filled parts of Hong Kong. Demonstrators used umbrellas to shield themselves from police pepper spray. The Apple Daily ran articles sympathetic to the movement.

Lai came out again in 2019 for a new wave of protests that shook the government and led to the crackdown on the city’s freedoms. He also urged U.S. Vice President Mike Pence and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo to speak out on Hong Kong’s situation in meetings that became an issue during his trial.

The following year, China’s central government in Beijing imposed a national security law on Hong Kong. Lai was arrested more than a month later.

Drawing the crucifixion

Lai has been in custody since December 2020. The food lover who was called “Fatty Lai” by some friends and even a rival newspaper appears to have become thinner behind bars.

A Catholic, Lai made drawings in prison of the crucifixion of Jesus, according to his friend Robert Sirico, a priest who received one of the pictures.

“For truth prevails in God’s kingdom, and that’s good enough for me,” Lai testified in November 2024 during his trial, arguing that his Apple Daily writings were done without hostility or seditious intent.

In July 2020, shortly after the commencement of the national security law under which he was eventually convicted, Lai told The Associated Press that “Hong Kong is dead.”

“If I have to go to prison, I don’t mind. I don’t care,” he said. “It won’t be something I can worry about, I’ll just relax and do what I have to do.”

Brazil Catholics say agrarian reform is too slow under Lula

President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva’s administration has sent important signals to Brazil’s landless rural workers regarding land reform, but those signals have yet to translate into concrete measures, the Bishops’ Conference’s Land Pastoral Commission (known in Portuguese as CPT) said in a brief review of 2025.

In an article on the progress and setbacks of land reform in Brazil last year, the CPT acknowledged that Lula has taken significant steps since the beginning of his third term in 2023. The most relevant was the reestablishment of the Ministry of Rural Development and Family Farming, which had been shut down during President Jair Bolsonaro’s 2019-2022 administration.

Lula has also resumed talks with grassroots movements formed by peasants, rural workers and members of traditional communities, listening to their demands and creating government programs to assist them, the document said.

But those gestures were not enough, given that the budget for land reform and for family farming — through the National Program to Strengthen Family Farming (known as Pronaf) — remains low.

“While agribusiness continues to receive the largest share of public funding – as in the 2025/2026 Crop Plan, which allocated R$ 516.2 billion (roughly $100 billion) to the sector — family farming received R$ 89 billion (about $17 billion) through Pronaf in 2025,” the text read.

While Lula’s administration has been very cautious in advancing land expropriation and redistribution, it has opted for a specific approach to land reform, negotiating land purchases with owners rather than expropriating properties.

“There has thus been a shift from a policy of land expropriation to one of ‘negotiated acquisition.’ This strategy ends up serving more to ‘bail out bankrupt companies’ and solve agribusiness’s problems than to meet the demands of peasant communities,” the analysis went on.

According to Plácido Junior, a CPT coordinator in the state of Pernambuco and one of the authors of the document, the Brazilian government tends to see land reform as a kind of social program, whereas it should in fact be a broad structural reform of the Brazilian economy.

“The need to carry out land reform in Brazil is enshrined in the Constitution. But no president has been courageous enough to do it. It would transform the country,” Junior told Crux.

In the colonial era, vast portions of land along the Brazilian coast were distributed among Portuguese noblemen, who passed them down from father to son. Many of those lands ended up abandoned over the centuries.

At the same time, enormous territories — especially regions far from the coast and covered by dense rainforest, such as the Amazon — were considered vacant lands and were formally owned by the Portuguese Crown (and, after independence in 1822, by the Brazilian Empire).

With the proclamation of the Republic in 1889, part of those lands gradually became forest reserves, but many areas were invaded by ranchers who frequently forged deeds to claim ownership.

Poor farmers, Indigenous peoples and quilombolas — descendants of enslaved Africans who fled captivity and formed communities in remote areas — who had occupied those lands for generations have been systematically expelled – or killed – by land grabbers.

Today, that process continues especially in the Amazon, where many ranchers invade protected lands, deforest them and convert them to monocropping (especially soy and maize) or cattle ranching.

Last year, at least 26 people — including rural workers, Indigenous activists and quilombolas — were killed in land conflicts.

“That farming model is extremely harmful not only to people, but also to the environment,” Junior claimed.

The destruction of native vegetation and the cultivation of a single crop year after year lead to the intensive use of synthetic fertilizers and agrochemicals.

In livestock production, the dominant model tends to be extensive ranching, which leads to soil degradation, erosion, river sedimentation and contamination, as well as the use of fire to renew pastures.

“We’re in the middle of a climate crisis, and peasants and traditional communities know how to deal with it,” Junior said.

Indigenous peoples and quilombolas, unlike European peasantry, did not need to devastate forests in order to grow food, he said. In Latin America as a whole, traditional populations have not historically separated society from the environment. Production took place in dialogue with the biomes.

“Agroecological projects associated with land reform would drastically change Brazil’s current environmental crisis. Pope Francis understood that only under a different system would we be able to defend our common home,” he said.

Bishop José Ionilton de Oliveira of the Prelature of Marajó, who heads the CPT, told Crux that Lula’s administration has undoubtedly made progress compared with Bolsonaro’s, which simply froze land reform. But the process has been too slow, he said.

“To promote land reform, the government needs support in Congress. But the current Congress is among the worst in history when it comes to decisions that favor the people,” he lamented. Lula has built a broad coalition that includes political blocs opposed to land reform, de Oliveira added.

Later this year, Brazilians will hold general elections, and land reform must be part of the political debate, the bishop said.

“We will work to ensure it is on the agenda of the next administration,” he said.

Concerns New Clare Burial Ground Rules Will Open Door To Rogue Traders

It’s feared new Clare burial ground rules will be exploited by rogue sculptors and bogus traders.

Following a review of service costs last year, the local authority has introduced a €100 headstone application fee.

The changes aren’t just limited to monument works, with Clare County Council also changing burial plot rates and columbarium fees.

The local authority also issued a correspondence to sculptors in late January, not outlining a new policy, but aiming to clamp down on bye-laws that are already in place.

However the administration involved is proving to be a point of concern for local traders, given that permission will be sought for any renovations carried out to an existing burial plot, with sculptors required to inform the council three days in advance of when they intend to do the work.

Ennistymon Fianna Fáil Councillor Shane Talty, who’s called for the clarification to be rescinded, believes it could open the door to rogue traders.

A prominent Clare Headstone Provider, meanwhile, is demanding that the unworkable elements of the burial ground policy are scrapped.

Kilnamona based Sculptor Michael McTigue believes the enforcement would seriously reduce the number of new headstones installed across the county.

Alabama mulls bill to make disrupting church services a felony

Alabama lawmakers are considering a bill that, if passed, would make disrupting worship services a felony punishable by up to 10 years in prison.

The Alabama House of Representatives might soon vote on House Bill 363, which would make disrupting a church service a Class C felony.

According to the bill, a person “commits the crime of disruption of a worship service” if they “knowingly” enter a “church building with the intent to disrupt the worship service” and either “engages in an unlawful protest, riot, or disorderly conduct inside the church building” or “otherwise engages in harassment of any individual participant in the worship service; or obstructs the ingress or egress to the church building or church property.”

If an individual receives “a second or subsequent violation, the individual shall be guilty of a Class C felony and shall serve a mandatory minimum of five years imprisonment.”

Introduced last month and sponsored by Republican state Rep. Greg Barnes, HB 363 was approved by a House committee last week and is expected to be taken up by the House soon.  

“No one has the right to disrupt a church service and infringe on their fellow citizens’ right to worship freely,” Barnes said, as quoted by the Alabama Political Reporter.

“In Alabama, we are not going to sit by and allow crazy people to intimidate our women and children in our churches. We simply will not tolerate it.”

The proposed legislation came in response to a protest held last month at Cities Church of St. Paul, Minnesota, in which several people disrupted a worship service to protest one of the pastors being tied to a local U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement office. One protester blocked parents from accessing their children, and a churchgoer was injured while attempting to flee, according to CBS News affiliate KARE. 

According to the official indictment, filed in U.S. District Court for the District of Minnesota, the church protesters engaged in “a coordinated take-over style attack,” which included “acts of oppression, intimidation, threats, interference, and physical obstruction.”

“As a result of defendants’ conduct, the pastor and congregation were forced to terminate the Church’s worship service, congregants fled the Church building out of fear for their safety, other congregants took steps to implement an emergency plan, and young children were left to wonder, as one child put it, if their parents were going to die,” claimed the indictment.

According to prosecutors, protesters interrupted the sermon with “loud declarations” that included chants like “ICE Out!” and “Stand up, fight back!” as well as yells and the blowing of whistles. 

Some have defended the actions of the Cities Church demonstrators, arguing they were protected by the First Amendment. Others have said the protest violated the federal Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances Act, which protects houses of worship from physical intimidation.

Jubilee 2033: Rift between Moscow and Constantinople patriarchates threatens ecumenical progress

Pope Leo XIV wants to travel to Jerusalem in 2033 to commemorate the 2,000th anniversary of the passion, death, and resurrection of Christ. The Jubilee of Redemption is an event that is shaping up to be a historic opportunity to advance toward the full and visible unity of Christians.

However, the main obstacle to this goal remains the rift between the Russian Orthodox Patriarchate and the Patriarchate of Constantinople, an expert told ACI Prensa, the Spanish-language sister service of EWTN News.

Father Frans Bouwen, a missionary of the Society of Missionaries of Africa — known as the White Fathers — and an expert in ecumenical dialogue, explained the complexity of the situation: “Moscow currently refuses to participate in ecumenical meetings where Constantinople is present, which also conditions its participation and that of the local churches aligned with it.”

The future ecumenical event, framed within the bimillennial Jubilee of the Redemption, was announced by the Vatican after the ecumenical meeting in which the pontiff participated during his trip to Turkey held at Mor Ephrem Syriac Orthodox Church in Istanbul.

That meeting was also attended by representatives of the Eastern Orthodox Churches, the Oriental Orthodox Churches, and other Christian communions and ecumenical organizations. Among the participants were also envoys from the Anglican Communion, the Lutheran World Federation, the Baptist World Alliance, the World Evangelical Alliance, and the World Council of Churches.

However, the Russian Orthodox were absent. As revealed by Swiss Cardinal Kurt Koch, prefect of the Dicastery for Promoting Christian Unity, in an interview with Crux, the patriarchate of Constantinople did not invite the Russian Orthodox Church.

The decision, he explained, was to invite the oldest Orthodox churches, which include the patriarchates of Constantinople, Alexandria, Antioch, and Jerusalem.

“Catholics invite Catholics, and Orthodox invite Orthodox,” he said. “The decision not to invite the largest Orthodox church in the world was theirs to make, and I respect the decision of the Orthodox.”

There are still seven years until 2033, and many things can change, both in the ecumenical and geopolitical spheres. In any case, for Bouwen, for the 2033 pilgrimage to fulfill its objective and leave no one behind, the authentic participation of all the churches will be essential.

“The specific paths of preparation must be studied and decided together, ecumenically, following a synodal approach, seeking to actively involve as many churches as possible. It is essential that contacts be established between the churches as soon as possible, creating working groups at both the local and global levels. Perhaps a preparation in different stages, as the Catholic Church did for the Jubilee of the Year 2000, would be advisable,” explained the priest, who has been in Jerusalem for over 40 years.

Ecumenical dialogue with Rome has progressed in recent years, but the situation within Orthodoxy is complicated.

New rift over Ukraine

The turning point came in 2018 when Bartholomew I granted autocephaly (self-governance) to the Orthodox Church of Ukraine, separating it from being under the Moscow Patriarchate. Patriarch Kirill considered the move meddling and broke off Eucharistic communion with Constantinople, opening a rift that persists to this day.

The conflict has intensified, in part, due to Kirill’s support for the Russian invasion of Ukraine, prompting Russian warnings of potentially even more drastic measures.

For Bouwen, this rupture is not theological in nature but rather canonical and geopolitical, linked above all to the status of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine. 

“Russia considers Kyiv to be the place of its baptism and its birthplace, [with the baptism of Vladimir, Grand Prince of Kyivan Rus’ and his subjects in 988] and does not accept that it should come under another jurisdiction without its consent. Moreover, the Russian position reflects a more general distrust of the West and its values, and a growing reluctance toward ecumenism itself,” he noted.

“The interruption of communion has caused a major schism within the Orthodox communion and has repercussions for ecumenical relations worldwide,” he explained when addressing the complications arising from the break in communion between Moscow and Constantinople, which currently condition the potential participation of Russian Orthodox Christians in the Jubilee of 2033.

‘Let us have faith in the Spirit‘

The missionary clarified that, from a Catholic perspective, the path is one of hope and patience. “Let us have faith in the Spirit who will accompany this pilgrimage and help us discern what is possible at each stage,” he added.

“Perhaps opportunities will arise to collaborate in teaching, pastoral work, or even in the shared participation in certain sacraments. That in itself would constitute a powerful shared witness,” he noted.

Furthermore, he said that given that the final destination of this pilgrimage is Jerusalem, “it is important to establish contact with the patriarchs and heads of the Churches there without delay.” In this regard, he maintained that since the Greek Orthodox patriarch of Jerusalem is generally recognized as first among his brethren, “he must be involved from the very beginning.”

Bouwen situated the significance of the 2033 Jubilee not only in the anniversary itself — 2,000 years since the Redemption — but also in the context in which it was announced: the ecumenical celebrations of the 1,700th anniversary of the Council of Nicaea (325), held first in Iznik and then in Istanbul.

“While we celebrate in the Nicene Creed, the foundations of the Christian faith common to all the churches, the call to a shared pilgrimage toward 2033 turns our gaze toward the saving events at the heart of this faith: the incarnation, life, passion, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ,” he noted.

From this perspective, Jerusalem emerges as the natural destination of this shared journey. “Jerusalem is the place where these events took place,” the missionary reminded, insisting that the jubilee can only bear fruit if it is lived as a genuine ecumenical process.

Bouwen also linked this perspective to a key historical precedent: the pilgrimage of St. Paul VI to Jerusalem in January 1964. “His ardent desire was to firmly root the Second Vatican Council, and the Church itself, in the mysteries that lie at the origin of its foundation and mission,” he explained.

During that journey, the historic meeting with Ecumenical Patriarch Athenagoras took place, sealed with a kiss of peace that, in the words of this priest, “became an icon and a promise of the shared rediscovery and joint journey of our churches toward full communion.”

U.S. Religious Liberty commissioner booted from post

Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick announced that Carrie Prejean Boller has been removed from President Donald Trump’s Religious Liberty Commission.

“No member of the commission has the right to hijack a hearing for their own personal and political agenda on any issue,” said Patrick, who serves as chair of the commission, in a post on X. “This is clearly, without question, what happened Monday in our hearing on antisemitism in America.”

“This was my decision,” he added.

Boller, a Catholic who is former Miss California USA, sparked a debate Feb. 9 among fellow commissioners and panelists at a hearing focused on the topic of on antisemitism when she said her Catholic faith prevents her from embracing Zionism and repeatedly pressed Jewish panelists on whether her views made her an antisemite.

The Church recognizes Israel’s fundamental right to exist and universally condemns antisemitism. 

Catholic teaching does not explicitly oppose Zionism, the movement supporting Jewish self‑determination in a homeland in Israel.

Israel is seen as God’s chosen people through whom God revealed himself and prepared the way for the coming of Jesus Christ.

Patrick praised the work of the commission, which has held five hearings and has two more scheduled. He described testimonies that have been shared with the commission as “both illuminating and heartbreaking.”

He said: “This spring, the commission will deliver one of the most important reports in American history directly to the president.”

The commission is a federal advisory panel created in May 2025 under the Trump administration to provide guidance to the White House on protecting religious freedom in the United States. Cardinal Timothy Dolan and Bishop Robert Barron of Winona-Rochester, Minnesota, are members.

Boller told EWTN News after the hearing that members of the commission asked her to resign a few months ago but that she refused. She also said several members asked to meet with her before the Feb. 9 hearing to discourage her from making her planned remarks. “They were seeing what I was going to say in the hearing, trying to silence me,” she said. “I told them I won’t be silenced.”

Boller did not immediately respond to a request for comment about her removal from the panel.

Bishop of the Derry diocese of the Catholic Church says that the organisation needs to look at ways of restructuring itself as members of the clergy are being “worked to exhaustion”

Bishop Donal McKeown, who has handed in his resignation after turning 75 but remains in post while his successor is selected, spoke to The Irish News after the suspension of Sunday Mass services in two rural Co Tyrone churches earlier this month due to a lack of priests.

St Mary’s Church in Knockmoyle and Corpus Christi in Mountfield, both near Omagh, will no longer host fortnightly Sunday Mass, but will remain available for the local community for individual prayer, funerals, weddings and anniversary events. Cappagh Parish, where the fortnightly services were suspended, said the decision would be “disappointing and painful” for many, but reflected the “pastoral realities” faced by clergy.

Thirteen new seminarians entered Irish dioceses during the 2025/26 academic term, bringing the total number to 77 men training for the priesthood in the country.

Parishes have had to combine across dioceses in Ireland in recent years due to falling numbers of priests, while Clogher Diocese received its first seminarian in six years last year.

When asked whether he regularly hears reports from priests of being overworked, Bishop McKeown said that was very much the case, while many are working “to exhaustion”.

Last bells ring for Sunday Mass at Co Tyrone churches as parish admits ‘pastoral realities’Opens in new window

“I most certainly do, my job is to try and see what we can do at the centre of the diocese to ensure that we can work together to do the best we can in the circumstances without burning ourselves out,” the Bishop said.

“There’s no use in priests tiring themselves out with unnecessary burdens.

“We have to learn from the experience of other areas where churches did not have a lot of clergy, how can we restructure and use what resources we do have without people working themselves absolutely to the bone.

“I know many of our priests work themselves to exhaustion trying to satisfy everyone’s needs, turning up for all the funerals, turning up for all the weddings, events at school, communions, confirmation as well as doing the regular masses.

“I want to praise priests who in so many circumstances are working against the odds and trying to do their best and to remain cheerful.

“My job is to support them and coordinate, do my best in a leadership role so that we keep that momentum going and help our young people to believe that there is hope in the future rather than despair.”

The Bishop added that those from the Catholic faith needed to move away from the idea of the church being a “service delivery” body and move towards what it can deliver as a “community organisation”.

“There’s an opportunity for renewal of the church, not as a service delivering body, but as a community organisation providing help to one another, particularly to those in distress.

“I see this really not as a bad time, but as a time when God is remaking the church to serve a different purpose.

“There’s a limit on what can be done by a small number of priests and the ministries that they have. It’s a call to lay people to see how they can serve the parish and the community, rather than the idea of a service organisation run by clergy meeting the needs of people.

“Those needs are increasing as far as I can see. I think we all know the fragmentation that’s going on in our society. We all know the levels of distress, the levels of mental illness, suicide, poverty. There’s a huge need out there for good news and for healing.”

Bishop McKeown also revealed that church leaders have been contacted by local health trusts in order to explore how the church can be used on the ground to support the struggling health service.

“The health service has been in contact with a number of us in terms of drawing up a policy to say how can our parishes be used to deliver belonging, healing, hope.

“There are examples now of young people rediscovering ancient spiritual values like meditation, rituals of gathering together, common celebrations. All of those things are hopeful for healing for our younger generation, who are being assailed by online materials and exposure to denigrating material at a very early age.

“That’s what I mean when saying there’s a huge need for seeing how the church can respond to the distress being experienced by our young people.

“We are trying to see how we can be useful on the ground in a faith context, because it’s about belonging and utilising that social capital in a fragmented society.”

The search for his successor as Bishop of Derry is continuing, and Bishop McKeown says he will continue to do his best after decades of service to the church.

“I’ll do whatever I’m asked to do. I’ve always done that throughout my years as a priest and as a bishop.

“I’m happy to do my best in the circumstances, realising I can’t do any short or medium term initiatives as changes like that really need to come from my successor.

“It is a period of uncertainty but I’m happy to do my best in the circumstances.”