Italian priest Lino Zatelli, 75, killed himself on August 12. He had been parish priest of San Carlo Borromeo in Trento for a quarter of a century. He was found dead inside the rectory of his parish after he didn’t show up to celebrate the Eucharist. Corriere del Trentino reported the death as a voluntary act. Two months earlier he had learned that he would have to leave San Carlo in November for another pastoral assignment. Zatelli publicly said he had not asked to leave. Sad detail: During his Easter homily, Don Zatelli preached about Judas's suicide. He discussed Judas as someone overwhelmed by despair who could no longer see beyond the obstacle before him, but emphasized Christ's forgiveness and imagined Jesus ultimately embracing Judas in heaven. Eucharists Beyond Rubrics A 2019 interview called him the “eternal bad boy of the Trentino Church.” A November 2020 profile describes Zatelli as working in a kind of laboratory parish. His Eucharists went beyond formulas and interpreted …More
Natalie Harp wouldn’t take no for an answer. It was October 2023, and Donald Trump was due at a New York City courthouse to fight his latest set of legal troubles. But as the motorcade idled outside his Trump Tower residence, staffers confronted a more immediate problem: There wasn’t room for Harp, the hyper-loyal aide whose devotion to Trump had quickly entrenched her within his orbit. A screaming match in the lobby ensued, with Harp insisting that Trump had personally asked her to attend the court appearance, two sources familiar with the matter told CNN. Denied a seat but determined not to be left behind, Harp jumped into an SUV trunk, according to the two sources and confirmed by a photo obtained by CNN. 0:00 Trump's relationship with aide Natalie Harp 3:55 Inside Natalie Harp's SUV trunk ride 6:58 Is it normal for a presidential aide to ride in a trunk? Panel discussion Watch 24/7 live news with CNN Headlines: https://bit.ly/4eIvlTr
A right of defense for accused priests is supported on paper in the Diocese of Manchester, but in this case it has been suppressed and obstructed at every turn.
Today, Leo XIV accepted the resignation of Bishop Karl-Heinz Wiesemann, 66, of Speyer, Germany, due to health reasons. He had led the Diocese of Speyer since March 2008. Bishop Wiesemann said that "the burden of the extensive responsibility has taken a serious physical and psychological toll on me." Depression and Health Bishop Wiesemann had previously suffered from depression. In 2021, he withdrew from his duties for about seven months for health reasons, including inpatient treatment. He later publicly identified the illness as depression. In May 2026, he spoke about his experience at the Katholikentag in Würzburg during an event on depression and mental health. He attributed his depression to prolonged pressures including the demands of episcopal office, financial and structural problems in the diocese and, above all, the Catholic Church's sexual abuse crisis. Pro-Homosexual Bishop Bishop Wiesemann was among the German bishops supporting changes in the Church's approach to homosexuality …More
Ezekiel 36:23-28 “I will give you a new heart and put my Spirit within you.” For God, this has already been done, since the Spirit is life. Let us return to allowing ourselves to be loved by God. Matthew 22:1-14 Often in recent weeks, Jesus begins his parables by saying, “The kingdom of heaven is like…” a treasure, a landowner, yeast, a mustard seed, etc. Jesus wants us to understand that God’s love is the treasure in which we dwell. Biblical texts: NAB-RE Normand Thomas.
After Drone Strike, a Famed Cathedral in Ukraine Stirs Back to Life nytimes.com/…pe/ukraine-kyiv-cathedral-russia-dro… Volunteers and priests rallied to clean up Kyiv’s Dormition Cathedral, still smelling of smoke from a massive blaze, for an anniversary celebration.0:00 By Carlotta Gall and Stanislav Kozliuk Visuals by Brendan Hoffman Reporting from Kyiv, Ukraine Aug. 19, 2026, 5:29 a.m. ET There was a bustle on a recent morning on the quiet grounds of Kyiv’s oldest monastery, as volunteers gathered beside Orthodox priests with hoes and rakes to assist in a grand clean up. Mostly parishioners, military veterans and charity workers, the volunteers had answered a call from the head of the monastery after a Russian drone struck the Dormition Cathedral, at the center of the monastic complex, in June. It is unclear whether the drone, which was part of a broader bombardment of Ukraine’s capital, had intentionally targeted the cathedral. Still, the strike damaged one of its golden domes …More
The Vatican’s Dicastery for Education has responded to a Catholic mother involved in a parents’ campaign against a new sexual-education framework for Catholic schools in the Archdiocese of Hamburg, reports LaNuovaBq.it on August 18. Hamburg is led by Archbishop Stefan Heße. The response was sent to Varinia Arauco, a Peruvian-born mother involved with the ‘Parents’ Network for Child Protection and Prevention’. Arauco and other parents have appealed to Church authorities in Germany and Rome over the Archdiocese of Hamburg’s framework “Male, Female, Diverse: Framework for Sexual Education at Catholic Schools in the Archdiocese of Hamburg.” The framework was published in 2025 and is intended to be implemented in the archdiocese’s 15 Catholic school locations from the 2026/27 school year. It explicitly supports the “acceptance of diversity with regard to sexual orientations and gender identity” The parents also submitted a petition to Pope Leo XIV through the Apostolic Nuncio in Germany and …More
OF THE EXTERNAL CAUSES OF SIN - EVIL HABITS, i.e. VICES AND SINS (QQ[71]-8 - First Section - Summa Theologica - Thomas Aquinas...Download, print, and above all share !to be continued
Lourdes Bans FSSPX Masses: On August 13, Bishop Jean-Marc Micas of Tarbes and Lourdes, France, issued a statement concerning the Priestly Fraternity of Saint Pius X (FSSPX) pilgrimage to Lourdes. He cited the episcopal consecrations at Écône on July 1 and the subsequent decree of the Holy See. The FSSPX is no longer authorized to celebrate Mass or other sacraments inside the Lourdes Sanctuary, nor to organize public prayers there. Individual pilgrims remain free to pray privately. Bishop Micas wrote that he was aware the decision would cause “pain” and “perhaps incomprehension.” The FSSPX had held organized public worship at Lourdes for many years, including Masses, confessions, processions and public prayers within the Sanctuary.
A depiction of Our Lady by Romanian artist Teodora Axente has sparked controversy in Siena, Italy. The Virgin on this year's Palio banner os androgynous and departs from any Marian iconography. The Municipality of Siena commissioned Axente to create the Drappellone, the painted silk banner awarded to the winning contrada, one of Siena's historic districts, in the city's centuries-old Palio horse race. Axente was appointed by the city government on the proposal of Mayor Nicoletta Fabio. The banner was unveiled on August 10. It places the Virgin above Siena and its contrade, protecting the Golden Rose associated with Pope Pius II, and commemorates the 500th anniversary of the 1526 Battle of Camollia. Axente called the figure her personal vision of the Madonna and said the figures in the work were “more androgynous” and therefore “universal characters.” On August 13, the Archdiocese of Siena published a statement by Father Enrico Grassini, rector of the Collegio dei Correttori. He rejected …More