Damned Catholics

[Fake Messiah]

Yet another set of medical procedures forbidden in Catholic hospitals.

U.S. bishops officially ban gender-affirming care at Catholic hospitals

U.S. Catholic bishops voted Wednesday to make official a ban on gender-affirming care for transgender patients at Catholic hospitals. The step formalizes a yearslong process for the U.S. church to address transgender health care.

From a Baltimore hotel ballroom, the bishops overwhelmingly approved revisions to their ethical and religious directives that guide the nation's thousands of Catholic health care institutions and providers.

More than one in seven patients in the U.S. are treated each day at Catholic hospitals, according to the Catholic Health Association. Catholic hospitals are the only medical center in some communities.

Major medical groups and health organizations support gender-affirming care for transgender patients.

Most Catholic health care institutions have taken a conservative approach and not offered gender-affirming care, which may involve hormonal, psychological and surgical treatments. The new directives will formalize that mandate. Bishops will have autonomy in making the directives into law for their dioceses.

https://www.npr.org/2025/11/12/g-s1-9765...-hospitals

[Fake Messiah]

Do you think that Catholics will warmly welcome this or will they go berserk and switch to Mel Gibson's Catholicism?

At a private Vatican audience with Archbishop José Gomez of Los Angeles this past month, Pope Leo XIV made a bit of quiet history.

The two men — Alex Capecelatro, a renowned tech entrepreneur and CEO of Josh.ai, and his husband Brian D. Stevens, a celebrated Catholic philanthropist — were part of Gomez’s delegation.

When Pope Leo learned “we are married,” Alex later said on social media, he received them with unmistakable warmth and kindness, not a hint of hesitation.

For Capecelatro, who wasn’t raised Catholic, the moment was especially heartwarming alongside Brian, a devout Catholic.

Speaking with an English-speaking pope whose message is unity and peace, they felt fully welcome in the Church’s embrace.

https://www.thelettersfromleo.com/p/pope...nt-married

[Fake Messiah]

Nostra Aetate wasn’t a cure for antisemitism, only the start of repentance

Last week, at the conference “Nostra Aetate: In Their Age and In Ours,” we gathered to mark sixty years since the Catholic Church publicly renounced theological antisemitism and began reconsidering its relationship with the Jewish people.

It should have been a moment of commemoration. Instead, as the day unfolded, particularly through historian Sarah Han’s searing lecture, some voices made clear that the Church has never fully accepted the implications of the document it celebrates.

It was the first Catholic document in history to speak directly about Jews. It was inspired in part by French Jewish historian Jules Isaac, who argued that Christian anti Judaism had helped prepare the ground for the Holocaust. Pope John XXIII agreed that the Church had a moral obligation to confront this past.

But the comforting narrative the Church still clings to, that antisemitism at Vatican II was confined to “the margins,” voiced by a few fringe extremists, is simply not true. Han showed, with unsettling clarity, that antisemitism sat at the center of the Council’s debates themselves.

Han reminded us that one of the most vocal and organized factions at the Council, the Coetus Internationalis Patrum, led by Archbishop Lefebvre, Bishop Carli, and Cardinal Ruffini, openly defended anti-Jewish theology as Catholic tradition.

Under the banner of “protecting Catholic identity,” they argued that Christian truth required an anti-Jewish stance. Their opposition was not subtle: they saw any shift toward Judaism as a threat to the Church itself.

Alongside them, what Han called the “apologetic choir” attacked the declaration as a Zionist conspiracy. Some claimed Jews were “arrogant,” “provocative,” even “Eurasian,” the vocabulary of classic antisemitic propaganda.

One cardinal declared that the Church “cannot oppose the entire Arab world just to satisfy its Jews,” as though Jewish theological dignity were a bothersome political request. A prominent theological adviser added: “The Jews are so clever that they have succeeded in dividing Christians.”

To call this “antisemitism at the margins,” Han argued, is to participate in a carefully crafted illusion. It is not an innocent scholarly phrase. It is a strategy, a way of pushing antisemitism out of sight, protecting the Church’s self-image, and insisting that the hatred lived outside Christianity rather than within it.

The Council’s difficulty in articulating any positive theology of Judaism was not a bureaucratic accident. It reflected a deep structural reality: for nearly two thousand years, Christianity had defined itself against Judaism. Whenever the Church feared losing its exclusive claim to be the “sole People of God,” anti-Judaism returned.

That dynamic did not disappear after 1965. It continued, sometimes quietly, sometimes openly, into the decades that followed. It still shapes Catholic thought today.

The phrase “antisemitism at the margins” allows the Church to congratulate itself for Nostra Aetate while ignoring the persistence of anti-Jewish patterns in religious textbooks, catechism classes, preaching, and theologies of “fulfilled” or “spiritualized” Judaism.

The door opened in 1965, but what stands behind it is nothing less than the theological core of Catholic identity. Walking through it means confronting where antisemitism lived, and still lives, at the very heart of Christian thought.

That is the work the Church has not yet done.

https://www.jpost.com/opinion/article-878943

[Fake Messiah]

Central Minnesota Catholic Priest Charged with Criminal Sexual Conduct, Stalking After Alleged Violent Relationship with Woman

A Catholic priest serving five parishes in central Minnesota is being charged in Stearns County District Court after he allegedly had an inappropriate relationship with a woman that turned violent.

The woman told police that Father Joseph Herzing gave her spiritual advice and comfort through confession in 2018 while he was serving as a priest in Little Falls. Between 2018 and 2022, multiple people told church leadership they saw inappropriate intimate conduct between the 61-year-old priest and the woman, including Herzing being at her home late at night and early in the morning. In February 2022, the relationship escalated to violence when he allegedly choked and threatened to kill her. In May 2022, the woman saw a text message that led her to believe Herzing was involved in an intimate relationship with someone else, and she confronted him. Herzing choked her, wrestled her to the ground, pulled her hair and threatened to kill her. In August of 2022, the two got into a physical altercation at an event in Milaca, and on the motorcycle ride home, she says he threatened to ride into a tree and kill them both, and also drove toward an oncoming semi truck before swerving out of its path.

In August of 2024, St. Cloud police began investigating the reported sexual abuse, and the next month, Bishop Neary learned that a report had been made to police regarding the allegations in 2022 and that an investigation was underway. Despite this, the bishop allowed Herzing to continue serving as pastor under severe restrictions and monitoring.

Bishop Neary was notified of charges of third-degree criminal sexual conduct, stalking and three counts of making threats of violence on Wednesday, November 26th, and immediately placed Herzing on administrative leave. He is prohibited from all public ministry pending the outcome of the criminal case. His next court date is December 29th. Retired diocesan priest Father Arlie Sowada has been named parochial administrator of the affected parishes.

https://knsiradio.com/2025/12/01/central...ith-woman/


I guess the point of this story is that the priest was not fired although the Church knew he had a relationship with a woman, but only when it turned out repeatedly that this relationship was violent was he removed. Which means that the Catholic priests are allowed to have affairs with women and even families as long as they don't get in the news for beating the shit out of them.

[Fake Messiah]

Parents Sue Catholic School for Denying Students Food, Bathroom Breaks

Seven parents of 11 children have sued La Purísima Concepción Catholic School in Lompoc for assault and negligence after they say school administrators denied their children access to food, water, and the restroom, leading to urinary tract infections and long-term digestive issues.

The parents, all former members of the La Purísima’s Parent-Teacher Organization (PTO), claim the students were singled out and retaliated against after they butted heads with administrators over campus finances. Amid the turmoil, the small K-8 school has seen a mass exodus of staff and sharp decline in enrollment.

One of the plaintiffs, former PTO president Carolina Araya, explained the problems began when her group resisted tuition increases enacted by Preciado that they felt discriminated against low-income and scholarship students. The PTO also pressed Preciado over campus improvement projects they had raised money toward but were never completed.

Araya began to suspect her 9-year-old son was being punished when he started coming home from school with a full lunch box and even fuller bladder. “They don’t give us time to eat,” he would tell her. “And they don’t let us go to the bathroom.”

There were also reports of bullying by other students, particularly under the watch of Signorelli, a close friend and confidant of Preciado. Another plaintiff claimed her son, who is autistic, was tied up with an electrical cord while in Signorelli’s care. Another said their child was struck with rocks on the playground.

Araya first took her concerns to Rev. Ortiz, who she said waived her off. Araya returned with a petition signed by 40 other parents that described Preciado’s “egregious behavior” and demanded her immediate removal. The petition cited the recent resignation of six La Purísima staff members — including three longtime teachers, which forced the remaining four teachers to each oversee two grade levels — and an enrollment figure that had plummeted from more than 100 students to fewer than 40. Ortiz again dismissed the complaints.

The following Sunday during mass, Rev. Ortiz — who is also a friend and ally of Preciado — chastised the parents who had challenged Preciado’s leadership, calling them a “leprosy” in the La Purísima community that needed to be removed. He singled out Araya, describing her as “evil” and using statements she had made to him during confession to vilify her, she said. “He not only violated my privacy, he violated canon law,” she said.

Ortiz told the congregation that if they didn’t want their confessionals aired during mass, they should “check out his Amazon Wish List … or otherwise enjoy the show.” His statements were corroborated by other parishioners who filed their own complaints with the church.

After that, Araya contacted the bishop, the deacon, and the vicar, as well as directors of the church’s educational department. She was never offered any support or assistance. The lawsuit was the last resort. “We exhausted all avenues,” Araya said. “We felt betrayed.” She has also been in touch with law enforcement and Child Welfare Services.

https://www.independent.com/2025/12/04/p...om-breaks/

[Fake Messiah]

Catholic bishops in Europe express concern over EU ruling mandating recognition of same-sex unions

The Commission of the Bishops’ Conferences of the European Union (COMECE) has expressed concern about a recent ruling by the Court of Justice of the European Union, which obliges all member states to recognize so-called "homosexual marriages" legally performed in another country.

In a Dec. 9 statement, the president of COMECE, Bishop Mariano Crociata, warned that the ruling could have an impact on the legal sovereignty of each nation, since the recognition of these unions is mandatory even if they are not valid under a country’s own legal system.

On behalf of the Church in Europe, Crociata referred to the Church's anthropological vision, "founded on natural law," and reiterated that marriage is a "union between a man and a woman."

The European bishops warned that the approach adopted in this ruling could lead to “negative developments in other sensitive areas,” such as surrogacy.

They therefore expressed their concern about “the current challenging situation in the EU and the polarization present in our societies,” warning that such rulings “can give rise to anti-European [Union] sentiments in member states and can be easily instrumentalized in this sense.”

https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/...sex-unions


Give rise to anti-EU sentiments? And when their bigotry gives rise to anti-Catholic church sentiments, he'll proclaim that he's being unjustifiably persecuted.

[Fake Messiah]

Catholic Voters Still Back Trump

One year after the 2024 presidential election returned him to the White House, President Donald Trump remains popular among Catholic voters, whose support proved pivotal to his re-election.

That backing extends to the chief flashpoint of Trump’s first year since regaining the presidency: the ongoing mass deportation of hundreds of thousands of illegal or undocumented immigrants.

The broadest source of support comes from the 60% of white Catholic voters who favor detentions and deportations on a broad scale, while 26% oppose. Notably, Latinos — who, as a group, are bearing the brunt of the Trump administration’s aggressive enforcement strategy — are split on the issue: 41% say they support it, while 39% are opposed.

At the same time, however, Catholic voters in the poll were clear that immigration is not their chief concern. Just 15% ranked it as their highest priority, compared to 40% who said reducing inflation is the Trump campaign promise they care most about — far and away the top choice.

Overall, President Trump is viewed favorably by 52% of all Catholics, with 37% viewing him unfavorably and 11% neutral. That number is consistent with the overall Catholic vote for him in the 2024 election.

In fact, among Catholic voters, Trump is more popular than two prominent Catholics in his administration: Vice President JD Vance (50% favorable, 31% unfavorable, 19% neutral or never heard of) and Secretary of State Marco Rubio (42% favorable, 25% unfavorable, 33% neutral or never heard of).

https://www.ncregister.com/news/catholic...-shows?amp

[Fake Messiah]

What, young Catholics are antisemitic? But then it turns out that the Catholic Church was always antisemitic, although not in a Nazi way but more in a parlor-of-the-19th-century way where Catholic men got together, smoked cigars, and talked about how Jews run everything.

Anybody who spends much time on social media, especially that website formerly known as Twitter, has likely seen an uptick in antisemitism these last couple years. As a Catholic, it has been disappointing to see so much of it among Catholic youth. For many years, we lived in a world in which the social memory of the Holocaust was tangible, when the “ick” toward antisemitism was nearly universal.

Now, one can find popular Catholic accounts on social media, or young zealous Catholics on college campuses, who have rediscovered and uncritically embraced some of the antisemitism that was so popular before and during World War II. In light of this, it is critical that Catholics learn from the shameful mistakes of the past.

If you call these young antisemites out, they are likely to say something like “I don’t hate Jews … it is just that powerful Jews are conspiring to harm civilization.” Call this the “I don’t hate Jews” defense, and if it is said in earnest, it reflects a misunderstanding of what antisemitism usually looks like. Nick Fuentes recently used this defense when responding to Tucker Carlson’s claim that Fuentes is an antisemite (pot-kettle, I know), stating, “I’m not a Jew hater. I don’t hate anybody. I just recognize, like everybody does now, that we live in a Jewish oligarchy.”

Fuentes’ comment is representative of modern antisemitism. It does not typically manifest as explicit hatred of Jews, nor is it usually based on a racial theory, as it was in Nazism. A more typical form of antisemitism was that popular among 19th and early 20th-century reactionary Frenchmen. This antisemitism involved the scapegoating of Jews for societal ills or political upheaval and often the use, and credulous acceptance, of conspiracy theories to rationalize and justify that scapegoating.

One can find antisemitism in the writings of many prewar Catholic thinkers and clergy, some of them even saints. Usually, the editors of their texts leave those parts out, as is the case in some editions of the works of G.K. Chesterton. One defense of people like Chesterton and his friend Hilaire Belloc is that they did not hate Jews and that they rejected Nazism. Chesterton himself expresses this paradox, “in our early days, Hilaire Belloc and myself were accused of being anti-Semites. Today, although I still think there is a Jewish problem, and that what I understand by the expression the Jewish spirit is a spirit foreign in western countries, I am appalled by the Hitlerite atrocities in Germany.”

In 1940, when the Nazis invaded France and Philippe Pétain became the dictator, the vast majority of French bishops were all too happy for the regime to enact laws that limited the civil rights of Jews. In the end, around 70,000 Jews who had been under the jurisdiction of Vichy France would perish in concentration camps.

People like Fuentes find pre-war antisemitism and embrace it. They fail to see the absurdity of the conspiracy theories that tried to justify it. The Protocols of the Elders of Zion was, for instance, entirely debunked, proven to be a forgery by Russian secret police of a 19th-century.

It is critical that my fellow Catholics and I learn from these historical embarrassments instead of hiding them behind historically ignorant apologetics.

https://thedispatch.com/article/catholic...ism-youth/

[Fake Messiah]

The WORST Catholic LGBTQ+ News Events of 2025

1 The U.S. Bishops’ Conference publicly supports the Trump administration’s anti-transgender executive orders.

2 In a Supreme Court case, the U.S. Bishops’ Conference supports constitutional right to practice conversion therapy issues a strongly-restrictive doctrinal note about gender-affirming healthcare.

3 The U.S. Bishops’ Conference adopt a new set of Ethical and Religious Directives which include forbidding any healthcare intervention to aid gender transition (including referring a patient to other medical resources) at Catholic hospitals.

4 A conservative Catholic group invested $4 million dollars to potentially out gay priests based on their private digital data.

5 The Trump administration chooses Brian Burch, the president and co-founder of an ultra-conservative and anti-LGBTQ Catholic website as U.S. ambassador to the Holy See.

6 In an interview, Pope Leo expresses skepticism that church teaching on LGBTQ+ issues will change any time soon.

7 Two African cardinals continue their criticism of Pope Francis’ permission to bless people in same-gender relationships, hoping that Pope Leo may revoke the document, “Fiducia Supplicans,” which established this accommodation.

8 Cardinal Malcolm Ranjith, the archbishop of Colombo, Sri Lanka, criticized the nation’s tourism agency for seeking to promote the nation’s tourist opportunities to LGBTQ+ markets, stating as one of his reasons: “We cannot allow our healthy children to become victims of those with homosexual needs.”

9 Despite the public nature the 25-year civilly-recognized relationship between two high-profile Italian designers who died tragically in a car accident, the priest presiding at their joint funeral avoided referring to the gay men as a couple, instead calling them “friends.”

10 J.D. Vance’s remarks about transgender people remain unrebuked by his bishop.

https://www.newwaysministry.org/2025/12/...s-of-2025/

[Fake Messiah]

Again, the group of old men dictating what life choices women should make, invoking Bronze Age fairy tales—like Moses—and various conspiracy theories. They are again condemning women to death because of their religion.

Zimbabwe bishops oppose changes to abortion law

In Zimbabwe, the Catholic bishops’ conference has issued a call to action, urging all citizens to actively campaign against the Medical Services Amendment Bill, a proposal that would dramatically expand abortion access across the country.

The revised Bill proposes expanding the grounds for legal abortion, allowing abortion on request at up to 12 weeks, and up to 20 weeks in cases where the pregnancy poses a risk to the woman’s health, mental well-being, or socio-economic stability.

It will also simplify access to abortion services by reducing bureaucracy and giving medical practitioners and patients the ability to make the decision, instead of requiring a magistrate’s approval through a judicial process. In addition, trained midwives will be allowed to provide abortion services, especially in rural areas. And finally, the proposed legislation emphasizes that informed consent will be the sole requirement for getting an abortion, even for pregnant minors.

“As the Church, we are totally against abortion, and we would like to appeal to all people of faith and all those who value life to pray and speak against this evil,” the bishops said in a statement.

Invoking the Christian imperative to “choose life,” the bishops described abortion as an “evil” that would sanction the “massacre of the innocent.”

“How sad it is that the whole world celebrated with us last year as the country abolished the death penalty, and today it watches as we take a back step and sanction the massacre of the innocent,” the bishops said.

They said history will judge today’s generation if it fails f to “defend the weaker members of our society.”

“As the Church, we uphold the sanctity of life from conception to a natural death. A value that is also mirrored in our Zimbabwean cultures that nurture life,” the statement adds.

The bishops decried the legislation as a form of “worship at the altar of human sacrifice” and called on senators to examine their consciences before casting their votes.

They warned senators against allowing political correctness, financial interests, or the desire for relevance to override the defense of human life.

“Is it money, political correctness, or seeking relevance that sees you choose to worship at the altar of human sacrifice? As Moses commanded the Israelites, we urge you to choose life,” the Catholic bishops said.

Human Life International (HLI), the world’s largest pro-life global Catholic ministry that works to lower abortion rates across several African countries, has suggested that the pressures might be coming from powerful nations, particularly the United States, intent on reducing Africa’s population.

Authorities in Zimbabwe have framed the abortion debate as a way of saving women’s lives, arguing that restrictive abortion laws don’t stop abortions, they only push them underground.

Official data indicates that unsafe abortion remains the third leading cause of death in Zimbabwe, with as many as 70,000 cases every year.

https://cruxnow.com/church-in-africa/202...ortion-law