In this episode, we look at the reforms the U.S. Catholic Bishops drafted after the sexual abuse crisis of 2002. How did these new rules change things for Catholics in parishes around the country?
Bishops
Posted inFaith, Short Take
Catholic and apostolic: The complicated reality behind oversight of bishops
Lay oversight of Catholic bishops is needed—but it should be a process that respects the principle of apostolic succession while providing a check on the successors of the apostles.
Posted inEditorials, Faith
The Editors: The Vatican’s sex abuse summit is a time for decisive action
Hopes are high (perhaps too high) that the summit will bring about significant and lasting change.
Posted inExplainer, Faith
Explainer: Will Pope Francis allow married priests?
What exactly is Pope Francis suggesting?
Posted inPolitics & Society, Vatican Dispatch
Pope Francis on Venezuela, Married Priests, and the Sex Abuse Summit
During a press conference on the flight from Panama to Rome, the pope spoke on a variety of topics, including the situation in Venezuela, the issue of married priests, sex education in schools and the Vatican’s sex abuse summit.
Posted inPolitics & Society, Vatican Dispatch
Cardinal O’Malley: Venezuela’s interim president has a formula that could avoid a civil war
Cardinal Sean P. O’Malley believes that Venezuela’s interim president, Juan Guaido, “has come up with a formula that could avoid a civil war, could avoid bloodshed” in the country, and he regrets that the country’s military have “not yet” sided with him.
Posted inNews, Politics & Society
Bishops urge bipartisan plan to stop shutdown, protect ‘vulnerable’ groups
The U. S. Conference of Catholic bishops in a statement issued on January 20, 2019, urged President Trump and the Congress to come to an agreement to end the government shutdown which is hurting many people.
Posted inFaith, News
Cardinal Wuerl says he ‘forgot’ he knew about sexual abuse accusation against McCarrick
Cardinal Donald W. Wuerl, Washington’s retired archbishop, apologized Jan. 15 for what he called a “lapse of memory,” clarifying that he knew of at least one abuse allegation against former U.S. Cardinal Theodore E. McCarrick, but he had “forgotten” about it.
Posted inFaith, Faith and Reason
Daniel E. Burns: Don’t appoint bishops. Elect them.
The Catholic church would benefit if bishops felt more like local leaders and less like regional managers in a Rome-based nonprofit. One way to move in that direction would be to have the clergy elect their bishops.
Posted inFaith, Faith and Reason
Massimo Faggioli: Electing bishops will not solve the church’s problems.
There is no question that the process for the appointment of bishops should be updated. But the election of bishops with procedures similar to democratic elections would only exacerbate all kinds of rifts in the Catholic Church today.