Prince of Peace Parish

Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Jul 23, 2024 / 16:38 pm (CNA).

The Knights of Columbus used a paper cover to temporarily cloak artwork created by Father Marko Rupnik at the St. John Paul II National Shrine in Washington, D.C., pending the outcome of a Vatican investigation into sexual abuse allegations against the Slovenian artist and priest.

Rupnik’s mosaics line the walls of the Luminous Mysteries Chapel, which contains a first-class relic of St. John Paul II’s blood at the front of the altar, and the larger Redemptor Hominis Chapel, both of which sit inside the shrine near the entrance. The shrine is sponsored and managed by the Knights of Columbus, a Catholic fraternal organization.

The paper cover will eventually be replaced with a fabric canvas while the Vatican continues to investigate allegations that Rupnik spiritually, psychologically, and sexually abused between 20 and 40 adult women, including religious sisters.

Rupnik’s artwork was fully covered on Tuesday, July 23, less than two weeks after Supreme Knight Patrick Kelly announced that the Catholic fraternal organization would cover its displays of his artwork at the shrine and at its headquarters in New Haven, Connecticut. 

Rupnik first faced allegations of sexual misconduct in 2018 and subsequently faced numerous allegations of past sexual abuse in 2021 and again in 2022, 2023, and 2024.

Kelly said in a statement on July 11 that the Knights of Columbus would cover up the artwork “because our first concern must be for victims of sexual abuse, who have already suffered immensely in the Church, and who may be further injured by the ongoing display of the mosaics at the shrine.”

The Knights of Columbus consulted with sexual abuse victims and those who minister to them, art historians, pilgrims to the shrine, bishops, and moral theologians before making the decision.

“While opinions varied among those consulted, there was a strong consensus to prioritize the needs of victims, especially because the allegations are current, unresolved, and horrific,” the statement read.

The Vatican investigated Rupnik in May 2019 for violating canon law by providing absolution during confession to an accomplice in sin — a woman with whom he had sexual relations. After the investigation, the Vatican confirmed in May 2020 that Rupnik had incurred an automatic excommunication, which the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith (CDF) lifted two weeks later.

New sexual abuse allegations against Rupnik came to light in June 2021 from the Loyola Community in Slovenia, where he is accused of abusing nuns. The CDF stated in October 2022 that the statute of limitations had expired and Rupnik could not be investigated. However, in December 2022, he faced new allegations of abuse from his time at the Aletti Center in Rome. 

In October 2023, Pope Francis lifted the statute of limitations and ordered the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith to begin a judicial process to investigate the claim. More allegations have come to light following that announcement. 

Rupnik was expelled from the Jesuits in June 2023 but is still a priest and a consultant to the Dicastery for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments.

Rupnik’s artwork is still displayed around the world, including in the Vatican’s Redemptoris Mater Chapel.

CNA Staff, Jul 23, 2024 / 15:45 pm (CNA).

A Christian human rights advocacy group is calling on the U.S. government to recognize the pervasive persecution of Christians in Nigeria in a report that documents religiously-motivated violence, kidnappings, torture, sexual assault, forced marriages, blasphemy laws, and other forms of abuse in that country.

“The outcry of Nigerian Christians is falling on deaf ears. It is time for the United States to answer their call for help,” International Christian Concern (ICC), an ecumenical, nonpartisan Christian group advocating for human rights for Christians and religious minorities around the world, says in its July report “A Case for Nigeria’s Country of Particular Concern Status.” 

The U.S. secretary of state designates countries of “particular concern” if they tolerate or engage in severe violations against religious freedom such as torture, prolonged detention without charges, abduction, and other human rights abuses.

ICC’s report includes firsthand testimony from an ICC staff visit to Nigeria in March 2023 as well as open-source research and on-the-ground information collected by ICC field staff. 

“Unfortunately, for almost two decades, the right to religious freedom has rapidly deteriorated in the West African country of Nigeria,” the report says. “After the rise of Islamic terrorist groups in 2009, Nigeria’s Christian community in particular has faced extremist violence at one of the fastest-growing rates.” 

“From then until the present day, more than 50,000 Christians have been slaughtered by violent insurgency groups — and the silence from Western nations on this genocide is appalling.”

Religiously-motivated violence 

The groups behind the violence are “strongly influenced by religion,” the report notes, highlighting Boko Haram, which targets “un-Islamic” activity, the Islamic State West Africa (ISIS-West Africa or IS-WA), which specifically targets Christian communities, and radical members of the nomadic Fulani. 

The groups engage in torture, sexual assault, kidnappings, mass killings, and other forms of violence, the report documents. 

Boko Haram is an insurgency group that has “wreaked havoc in Nigeria, bombing and burning down churches, killing Christians and non-Muslims in mass, and targeting any individual it believes to be engaging in ‘un-Islamic’ activity.” 

From 2009 to 2014, Boko Haram was responsible for kidnapping 22,000 Christians as well as burning 13,000 churches and 1,500 Christian schools. In 2023 alone, the group killed about 500 Nigerian Christians. 

IS-WA, “the deadliest terrorist organization in Nigeria,” split from Boko Haram in the mid-2010s and has since pledged allegiance to ISIS. IS-WA publicly executed Christians for their faith in 2019; bombed a Catholic church, killing 40 congregants in 2022; and bombed a market in 2022 for selling alcohol. 

Extremists of the Fulani group, which is traditionally a nomadic herding group, were responsible for killing at least 5,000 Christians in 2023 alone. 

The report notes that the Fulani “strategically target Christian communities,” engaging in the cutting of limbs, torturing, and raping of victims. The Fulani were also responsible for the 2023 Christmas Eve attacks on a string of 21 Christian villages. 

The report finds that the Nigerian government often fails to protect the Christian communities. Thirty-seven distress calls were made to security officials warning of the Christmas Eve attacks, but the government failed to protect the communities, the report notes. 

In northeastern Nigeria, civilians report that Nigerian security forces “deliberately avoid responding to warnings of violence until after attacks have taken place.”

“Unchecked terrorism has led to a kidnapping epidemic in Nigeria,” the report reads, noting that in 2023, at least 4,700 Christians were abducted, 281 of whom were kidnapped because of their faith. 

Twelve of Nigeria’s 36 states enforce blasphemy laws where blasphemy is punishable by imprisonment or death, according to the Islamic code, Sharia law. This goes against Nigeria’s constitution, which restricts Sharia courts to matters of personal law.

In Kano state, Solomon Tarfa, who ran the Christian orphanage Du Merci with his wife, Mercy, was arrested when the orphanage was raided by police without a warrant. The orphanage was closed.

Most of the children were sent to an Islamic orphanage, but 16 children remain in government custody, where they have reported being abused and neglected. In one case, the report shows a photograph of a 16-year-old boy with third-degree burns on his hands and arms from time in government custody. 

Sharia law has also led to forced marriage and conversion of Christian girls and women, the report notes. “Northern state governments regularly refuse to protect Christian families from this abuse,” the report reads, listing several cases of kidnapping where the local governments approved of the forced marriage or did nothing.  

The U.S. has yet to designate Nigeria as a Country of Particular Concern for its religious persecution, the report noted, even though the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF), the highest religious freedom advisory body in the nation, has been recommending it do so since 2009. 

In 2020, former secretary of state Mike Pompeo designated Nigeria as a CPC for the first time, but the designation was removed the following year under Secretary of State Antony Blinken, who attributed the violence to other causes. 

“Sadly, it appears that the CPC designations have been politicized,” the document reads. “Rather than being used as a tool to advance religious freedom abroad, administrations are dodging the designation to avoid political problems.”

The report advises that the U.S. take a series of steps to hold Nigeria accountable and address the issues, including appointing an ambassador to Nigeria, selecting a special envoy to report on the violence, and analyzing U.S. aid distribution to Nigeria. 

“Finally, the U.S. needs to understand and broadcast the true nature of the violence in Nigeria,” the report concludes. “Diminishing the violence to secondary issues of ‘farmers-herders conflict’ or ‘climate change’ prevents the U.S. from sufficiently addressing the source of the violence.”  

“The United States’ failure to hold Nigeria accountable for its religious freedom violations has allowed the Nigerian government to operate with impunity, perpetuating the violence caused by nonstate actors and allowing state-level persecution to continue,” the document notes.

“The unchecked violence and discrimination have led to severe loss of life, particularly Christians, and the conflict continues to undermine the Nigerian government, threaten national security, and cause significant economic loss,” it reads.

CNA Staff, Jul 23, 2024 / 14:08 pm (CNA).

Cardinal Gérald Cyprien Lacroix of Quebec announced Monday that he will resume his duties as archbishop after a voluntary six-month withdrawal amid abuse allegations. 

Lacroix, a member of the Council of Cardinals that advises Pope Francis, had been accused in a lawsuit made public in January of abusing a 17-year-old girl almost four decades ago. 

The Vatican had in March commissioned André Denis, a former judge of the Superior Court of Quebec, to conduct an investigation into the allegations. Lacroix “categorically” denied the allegations made against him.

“Never, to my knowledge, have I made any inappropriate actions towards anyone, whether minors or adults,” Lacroix said in January. “My soul and my conscience are at peace in the face of these accusations, which I refute.”

In May, the Vatican said it would take “no further canonical procedure” after the investigation found no evidence of misconduct or abuse.

According to a July 22 statement from the archdiocese, Denis found that “the elements gathered during my investigation make it implausible that the facts attributed to the cardinal occurred.” 

The alleged victim did not participate in the investigation, however, and Denis said the investigation could be reopened if she chooses to participate, CBC reported. 

Lacroix has been a cardinal since 2014 and archbishop of Quebec since 2011. He said he will celebrate Mass on July 26 for the feast of St. Anne — a popular saint in Canada and patron saint of Quebec — at the famous Sainte-Anne-de Beaupré sanctuary.

“It has been a difficult journey, but the conclusions of Judge Denis’ investigation, the support of those around me, and the possibility of making myself heard that could result from the request for intervention lead me to calmly resume my ministry,” Lacroix said in the Monday statement.

“The community knows to what extent the Church of Quebec condemns reprehensible acts and knows the measures we have taken to prevent them,” he said, urging the reporting of any kind of abuse that harms “the moral, spiritual, and physical integrity of our brothers and sisters.”

When it was filed in 2022, the class-action lawsuit against the Archdiocese of Quebec included the testimony of 101 people who said they were sexually assaulted by dozens of clerics or Church staff from 1940 to the present. 

The Canadian law firm Arsenault Dufresne Wee Avocats, which has also filed several other class-action lawsuits against other Catholic dioceses and religious orders, filed the lawsuit.

In that filing, Cardinal Marc Ouellet, the former Archbishop of Quebec, was also accused of sexual assault. The Vatican in 2022 said an investigation revealed “no elements to initiate a trial” against Ouellet.

Vatican City, Jul 23, 2024 / 13:23 pm (CNA).

Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin met with Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Tuesday at the end of a diplomatic visit to the country.

Zelenskyy wrote in a post on X that he had “a meaningful meeting” with Parolin and is “grateful for [the] cardinal’s support of our country and people.”

Earlier the same day, Parolin toured the Okhmatdyt Children’s Hospital in Kyiv and met some of its young patients.

The country’s largest pediatric hospital partially reopened early last week, one week after it was seriously damaged in an alleged Russian missile attack on July 9.

Russia has denied responsibility for the attack, which reportedly injured dozens of children receiving treatment at the hospital.

According to Zelenskyy, he and Parolin mainly discussed the decisions of the international summit on peace in Ukraine held in Switzerland in June and the Vatican’s role in facilitating peace. 

Zelenskyy also said they spoke about Russia’s ongoing aerial attacks and the humanitarian situation in the country as well as the outcomes of the president’s meeting with Pope Francis during the G7 in Italy last month.

The Secretariat of State said in a post on X that Parolin, in his meeting with Zelenskyy, “reiterated the pope’s closeness and commitment to finding a just and lasting peace.”

Parolin also met with Ukraine’s prime minister, Denys Shmyhal, and the president of the Parliament, Ruslan Stefanchuk, on Monday.

Tuesday marked the last full day of Parolin’s July 19–24 trip to Ukraine. It was the diplomat’s first visit to the country since the outbreak of war with Russia in 2022.

He also celebrated Mass for Latin-rite Ukrainian Catholics at the Marian shrine of Berdychiv on Sunday, traveled to the severely-damaged port city of Odesa, and met with Catholic and Orthodox leaders, including Major Archbishop Sviatoslav Shevchuk, the head of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church.

Sydney, Australia, Jul 23, 2024 / 09:27 am (CNA).

As the National Eucharistic Congress in Indianapolis drew to a close, an Australian bishop praised the event as a model for revitalizing the Catholic faith across the world and expressed hope that it could inspire similar revivals worldwide.

Auxiliary Bishop Richard Umbers of Sydney, who attended the congress as an international observer, said that the U.S. gathering had generated a lot of interest in Australia, according to the Australian Catholic Weekly.

“We are very interested in learning all the aspects of the journey to this national congress,” Umbers said.

“We’ve been following this revival, and it has captured our imagination.”

The bishop noted that the congress, which drew over 50,000 participants from all 50 states and 17 countries, demonstrated the power of Eucharistic devotion to unite and energize the faithful.

“It has been an amazing experience that we can all gather so many people,” Umbers said. “We talk about Real Presence, but for that we need to be present, and present in the liturgy.”

U.S. support for Eucharistic congress in Australia

Umbers said Australia is closely studying the U.S. Eucharistic revival with a specific purpose, too: Catholics in the Land Down Under hope to host the International Eucharistic Congress in Sydney — with American support — in the year 2028. 

This September, the 53-year-old prelate plans to travel to South America for the upcoming International Eucharistic Congress in Quito, Ecuador.

“I will be going to Quito and I will be taking a group of people with me,” the bishop said. “We will have an observation team and a pilgrimage to see where we can learn because we love holding events such as these in Australia.”

Umbers explained that following the COVID-19 pandemic, Australia’s Plenary Council voted to pursue hosting an International Eucharistic Congress to help reinvigorate Catholic life and bring people back to Mass.

“COVID had hit us hard, we really need to revitalize ourselves in appreciation of the work of the Lord and worship together,” he said.

The bishop also addressed growing challenges to religious freedom in the U.S. and Australia, suggesting these pressures may fuel a resurgence in public expressions of faith.

“The Catholic Church in Australia is the largest nongovernment provider of education, health care, and social services and we are increasingly noticing a squeeze on being able to operate according to our faith,” Umbers said.

“Even culturally with the intellectual battles taking place, identifying yourself as a Christian or a Catholic in everyday life is to take it on the chin. This is one reason why more Catholics are going out on the street and saying we believe in Jesus.”

American ‘blueprint’ for universal Church

As the 10th National Eucharistic Congress concluded Sunday in Indianapolis, Umbers expressed hope that the congress’ fruits would spread far beyond American shores.

“The world is so connected. The kinds of challenges you’re facing here in the United States are very similar to the ones we are facing in Australia,” he said.

“We’re looking to the U.S. experience as a blueprint for how the universal Church can be renewed through greater devotion to Christ in the Eucharist.”

ACI Prensa Staff, Jul 23, 2024 / 07:00 am (CNA).

The Senate of the Dominican Republic has approved the first reading of a draft penal code, which maintains the total prohibition of abortion in the country and establishes new criminal charges with penalties ranging between 30 and 40 years in prison.

The bill has been sent to a special committee for in-depth study and possible modifications before possible passage in a second reading by the Chamber of Deputies (lower house).

In an interview with EWTN News, Father Manuel Ruiz, national executive secretary of the Life Commission of the Dominican Bishops’ Conference, commented that “a step forward” has been achieved.

“Although it has not been fully approved, because the deputies who already approved it in a first reading and the committee are absent, we went to public hearings, they listened to us, and it was approved without the three grounds that [typically] decriminalize abortion, because our constitution does not allow that,” he explained.

Among the most notable new provisions in the bill are punishments for genocide, feminicide, contract killings, and harm caused by chemical substances. However, the point that has generated the greatest debate and public attention is retention of the total prohibition of abortion in line with Article 37 of the Caribbean country’s constitution, which protects the right to life from conception to natural death.

Ruiz stressed the importance of “fighting scientifically and medically to save both lives,” that of the mother and that of the unborn child, and emphasized that in cases where an attempt is made to save both lives but one of the two dies, there is no sin nor crime. 

“What [abortion advocates] want is to establish abortion as a right, a human right of women. And we have clearly said that there is only one Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the same for men, women, children, for everyone. And they want to expand rights, which is an attack on dignity. But our constitution doesn’t allow it,” the priest said.

The bill on the penal code was approved in the first reading by a 20-3 vote, reflecting broad support in the country’s Senate. However, there is still a way to go before this bill can become law. “We are hoping it will be passed before August,” Ruiz said.

The priest said that for pro-life advocates, the position is clear: The fight against abortion will continue without letting up. “We’re not going to get weary. These people don’t sleep, and neither do we. What we cannot do is stand idly by believing that evil is unconcerned, that the devil is on vacation.”

Ruiz concluded the interview by pointing out that people of goodwill will continue encouraging “everyone, where abortion has not been approved and where it has been approved, to continue fighting.”

“Because there is faith, there is hope.”

This story was first published by ACI Prensa, CNA’s Spanish-language news partner. It has been translated and adapted by CNA.

Spirituality and Full Consciousness: Paths to Well-Being” was one of the panels at the international conference on ‘Positive Mental Health’, organised by the Cabo Verde Ministry of Health. The meeting took place over the weekend in Cabo Verde’s city of Praia. Fr. Gilson Frede was one of the speakers on the panel.

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Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Jul 23, 2024 / 06:00 am (CNA).

Katie Ledecky, an Olympic athlete considered to be one of the best female swimmers of all time, often speaks about her faith and experiences of attending Catholic schools.

After winning her first Olympic gold medal in 2012 at age 15, Ledecky has gone on to become one of the best female swimmers of all time. With 10 Olympic medals and 21 world championship titles under her belt, Ledecky is poised to be one of the top competitors in the Paris Olympics later this month.

While her swimming feats have brought Ledecky accolades worldwide, those who knew the Maryland native in her youth while she attended Catholic schools describe her as being a bright, kind, and faithful student.

“She’s not only a wonderful athlete, but she is also a role model that you would want a young, Catholic woman to be,” Sister Rosemaron Rynn shared with CNA. “She’s grown into this wonderful person because of her great parents, her family life, and also the fact that she keeps herself close to God.”

Sister Rosemaron, who served as Ledecky’s principal at the Little Flower School in Bethesda, Maryland, said Ledecky attended the school from pre-K to eighth grade. “Her mom was a part of the Mystical Rose Society that takes care of the altar and other things in the church,” she added.

“Katie used to help her mom now and then with that, and I know from reading stories about her that she continues to say that her faith is very important,” Sister Rosemaron continued. “She has said that she prays before each event, and I believe that the Lord has really blessed her.”

In a 2016 interview with the National Catholic Register, CNA’s sister news partner, Ledecky shared that she often prays a Hail Mary before each of her races, stating: “More than anything, praying just helps me to concentrate and let go of things that don’t matter in that moment. It gives me peace knowing I’m in good hands.”

“I think our devotion to Mary is very beautiful,” Ledecky said. “She has a sacred role in Catholicism, and her strong faith and humility are things we can learn from.”

Humility is another attribute that Sister Rosemaron credits Ledecky as having, telling CNA that “[Katie] never touted the fact that she was that good. In fact, it blew our minds when we found out that she was going toward the Olympics.”

“She’d come in during the morning before school started, her hair all wet because she had been out swimming before school,” she said. “But she never bragged about anything, ever. She was truly humble.”

Upon entering Stone Ridge School of the Sacred Heart for high school in 2011, Ledecky continued to remain “extremely grounded” and “humbly gracious” amid her rise to fame, according to Stone Ridge Principal Catherine Karrels.

“On our swim team, there were students of all levels. We had Katie who was an Olympian and students who were just learning how to make their way across the pool,” Karrels told CNA. “One of the things I admired about Katie was that she was so inclusive and celebratory for the other kids and all that they were able to accomplish.”

In addition to being a member of the Stone Ridge swim team and setting numerous records, Ledecky also participated in many of the school’s service opportunities. She volunteered as a teacher’s aide in her former elementary school, served meals to homeless people at the Shepherd’s Table soup kitchen, and helped lead Stone Ridge’s campus ministry program among others.

“Katie really cares deeply about other people and is very focused on community and family. I think a lot of that comes from her faith in that she sees the dignity in everyone around her,” Karrels said. “All of these things fit in with a faith life that is grounded in strong values that come from her family and that were also expressed in her education here at Stone Ridge.”

Ledecky has kept her Catholic formation and roots close to her, often making stops to see both the Little Flower School and Stone Ridge following her Olympic feats and accomplishments. As Sister Rosemaron recounted, Katie would visit her and the other sisters, “bringing her medals, letting us each wear one to take pictures with her.”

Karrels echoed this, sharing with CNA that Ledecky has done “a great job in keeping in touch with us, frequently coming back to campus when she’s in town.”

“She will often come and talk to our student body and engage with the kids. Usually when she does that, she wants it to be very informal,” Karrels continued. “She likes to come back and check in with her teachers and coaches, roam the halls, and see how everyone’s doing. I think she also knows how much we like for the young girls to be able to see and get to know her because she’s such an inspiration and a great role model for them in so many different ways.”

Set to compete in the upcoming Olympic games’ 200-meter, 400-meter, 800-meter, and 1500-meter freestyle events — two of which she currently holds the record for — the 27-year-old Ledecky is favored to win the gold for several of these events.

Sister Rosemaron and her fellow sisters of the Immaculate Heart of Mary plan to watch Ledecky and cheer her on, and the priests and congregation at the Church of the Little Flower expressed their prayers and well wishes for the athlete as she competes in Paris.

Stone Ridge will be hosting an Olympic Pep Rally on July 25, where more than 500 are expected to celebrate not just Ledecky but the school’s other two alumni competing for Team USA in swimming — Phoebe Bacon and Erin Gemmell.

Karrels, who will be traveling to Paris in order to cheer on her former students and report back to the Stone Ridge community, shared that “it’s astounding to have such high representation from our alumni.”

“I am thrilled to be going to watch Katie, Phoebe, and Erin compete,” she stated. “Hopefully when they get back from the games, we’ll be able to find a time for them to come to campus and tell their stories to our students, and to celebrate again all that they’ve accomplished and all the lessons they learned.”

Speaking at a meeting at the UN’s Geneva headquarters, Archbishop Ettore Balestrero warns of the “existential threat” posed by nuclear weapons.

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