Saint Joseph Catholic Church

Bishop Georg Bätzing of Limburg, the former chairman of the German bishops’ conference, and Irme Stetter-Karp, president of the lay Central Committee of German Catholics, defended the blessing of same-sex couples and of couples who remarried outside the Church, after Pope Leo XIV reiterated the Holy See’s disapproval of the practice.

“Even though there are differing views on this within the universal Church, I believe this practice in the Diocese of Limburg is carried out within responsible limits,” said Bishop Bätzing. “It serves the people and, in my view, does not jeopardize the unity of the Church.”

Following an investigation, Bishop Joseph Bonnemain of Chur, Switzerland, ruled that three dog owners who shared the Blessed Sacrament with their pets did not incur an automatic excommunication because they did not act with sacrilegious intent. Canon 1382 provides that “one who throws away the consecrated species or, for a sacrilegious purpose, takes them away or keeps them, incurs a latae sententiae excommunication reserved to the Apostolic See.”

The incident during place last October 4, the memorial of St. Francis of Assisi, at Good Shepherd Parish in Zurich. The diocese stated:

Due to a poor weather forecast, the blessing [of the animals] was moved indoors and combined with a Eucharistic celebration. During this Eucharistic celebration, three people shared portions of their hosts with their dogs.

The findings clearly showed that the three individuals did not act with sacrilegious intent. Consequently, these individuals cannot be accused of sacrilege, as they lacked this sacrilegious intent. Therefore, they did not incur the excommunication reserved to the Apostolic See as a penalty for their actions.

Bishop Robert Barron of Winona-Rochester, Minnesota, and Bishop David Bonnar of Youngstown, Ohio, joined the president of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops in condemning the White House Correspondents’ dinner shooting.

“I’m grateful that the president and his entourage are unhurt after this latest attack,” said Bishop Barron. “May I raise my voice against the viciousness and tribalism that are so prevalent on the internet and that contribute mightily to the violence we see in our political culture?”

A Catholic Charities official in the Diocese of Charlotte, North Carolina, was charged with embezzlement and money laundering.

Leah Stewart, a disaster case management supervisor, is accused of spending funds intended for disaster victims on personal expenses, including repairs to her Mercedes.

At the consecration of a bishop of the Episcopal Church, a Catholic bishop performed a “gesture that some commentators have interpreted as active participation in a non-Catholic ordination ceremony,” The Catholic Herald reported.

“Publicly available footage and images circulated online appear to show the Catholic bishop”—Bishop Joseph Brennan of Fresno, California—“standing with Anglican clergy during the laying on of hands portion of the rite,” according to the report.

(The Catholic Church teaches that Anglican orders, unlike orders conferred in the separated Eastern Churches, are invalid. In his 1896 apostolic letter Apostolicae Curae, Pope Leo XIII taught that “ordinations performed according to the Anglican Rite have been and are completely null and void.”)

A South Sudanese bishop called on authorities to renew their search for Father Luke Yugue and his driver, two years after their reported abduction.

“Their disappearance is not a private loss. It is a national wound. It is a moral test for our society,” said Bishop Eduardo Hiiboro Kussala. “We need truth, not silence. We need accountability, not uncertainty.”

Today the Church celebrates the Optional Memorial of St. Peter Chanel (1803-1841). St. Peter was born in France in 1802. He was ordained a priest in 1827, and engaged in the parochial ministry for a few years; but the reading of letters of missionaries in far-away lands inflamed his heart with zeal, and he resolved to devote his life to the Apostolate. He joined the Society of Mary (Marists), and in 1836 he embarked for Oceania. He died a martyr's death on the island of Futuna, Melanesia. He is called the apostle of Oceania where he spread the Gospel.

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