5 keys to better understand the encyclical Humanae Vitae

St. Paul VI. / Credit: Catholic News Service, Public domain, via Wikimedia CommonsACI Prensa Staff, Jul 25, 2024 / 18:30 pm (CNA).On July 25, 1968, St. Paul VI published Humanae Vitae, an encyclical on the regulation of birth and the dangers involved in the use of artificial contraceptive methods and their imposition as state policy. At the time the encyclical was rejected by many even within the Catholic Church.The document, published at the beginning of the sexual revolution, continues to draw mixed reactions, which is why it's necessary to take a closer look at five key points that allow us to better understand the encyclical, the context in which it was written, its prophetic message, and its validity even today. 1. It is ordinary, definitive, and irreformable magisterial teaching.Various priests, theologians, and laypeople frequently claim the encyclical only belongs to the ordinary magisterium of a pope and that as such, its content could change with another pope who...

Priest sues gay hookup app Grindr over data leak

Msgr. Jeffrey Burrill / U.S. Conference of Catholic BishopsCNA Staff, Jul 26, 2024 / 11:10 am (CNA).A priest is suing the gay dating and "hookup" app Grindr after the company reportedly failed to protect his data, leading to his resignation from a top position at the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB). In July 2021, Monsignor Jeffrey Burrill resigned from his post as the general secretary of the USCCB ahead of a report by The Pillar alleging that he had engaged in inappropriate behavior and frequent use of Grindr. The app advertises itself as "the largest social networking app for gay, bi, trans, and queer people." Its geolocation feature is popularly known to facilitate sex hookups between gay men. The Pillar said its report on Burrill was based on "commercially available records" correlated to the priest's mobile device. But a lawsuit filed this week claims that Grindr hadn't taken steps to protect the data from third-party acquisition. The suit, ...

Pro-life roundup: Harris pledges to restore Roe v. Wade

U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris speaks to reporters after meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in the Vice President's ceremonial office in the Eisenhower Executive Office Building on July 25, 2024, Washington, D.C. / Credit: Kenny Holston-Pool/Getty ImagesWashington, D.C. Newsroom, Jul 26, 2024 / 10:05 am (CNA).Here's a roundup of pro-life-related developments in the U.S. this week. Harris pledges to codify Roe in federal lawSince replacing President Joe Biden as the presumptive presidential nominee for the Democratic party, Vice President Kamala Harris has already made abortion a major focus of her campaign, pledging in several speeches to codify Roe v. Wade into federal law.In a Wednesday night speech in Indianapolis, Harris bashed former President Donald Trump for nominating three Supreme Court justices who voted to overturn Roe."When I am president of the United States and when Congress passes a law to restore those freedoms, I will sign it in...

Florida pro-abortion activists to pay restitution following pro-life clinic vandalism 

Vandalism at a Heartbeat of Miami pregnancy center in Hialeah, Florida, July 3, 2022. / Heartbeat of Miami.CNA Staff, Jul 26, 2024 / 14:45 pm (CNA).Four Florida activists from the abortion rights extremist group "Jane's Revenge" agreed on July 25 to pay restitution and keep away from crisis pregnancy centers following vandalism and threats of violence on three pro-life clinics."We will not allow radicals to threaten and intimidate women seeking help from crisis pregnancy centers or the counselors and health care professionals serving these women and their babies," Attorney General Ashley Mood said in a statement. "In Florida, illegal actions have consequences, and I am proud of the work our attorneys did in this case to make sure these extremists were held accountable."Moody and First Liberty Institute, a legal nonprofit, filed civil lawsuits authorized under the federal Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances (FACE) Act on behalf of several life-affirming pregnancy clinics in Fl...

Arkansas parish hit by multiple vandalism incidents

A vandalized statue of Mary, the Mother of God, at St. Leo Parish in Hartford, Arkansas, July 2024. / Fr. Joseph ChanCNA Newsroom, Jul 26, 2024 / 14:20 pm (CNA).Police are investigating after a parish in Arkansas was struck by three vandalism incidents in recent months, including the destruction of a statue of Mary on the parish grounds. Father Joseph Chan, the pastor at St. Leo Church in Hartford, Arkansas, told CNA that the incidents of vandalism began early last year. The parish is part of the Diocese of Little Rock. "The first was on February 26, 2023," he said. "Our St. Leo sign and notification board had words/letters removed/jumbled to reflect body parts; for example, the letter 'M' was removed from the word 'Mass'.""The second was on March 10, 2024, which involved graffiti to our sacristy door," the pastor said. "Sprayed was a racial slur commonly directed towards African Americans."The most recent incident occurred on July 13. "Toppled to the ground were an a...

French Dominican friar created the motto for the Olympic Games

The motto of the modern Olympic Games, "Faster, Higher, Stronger," was coined by French Dominican friar Louis Henri Didon. / Credit: Pixabay / Public DomainACI Prensa Staff, Jul 26, 2024 / 17:45 pm (CNA).The motto of the modern Olympic Games, "Faster, Higher, Stronger," was coined by French Dominican friar Louis Henri Didon, who became friends with the founder of the modern Olympic Games, Baron Pierre de Coubertin, five years before the 1896 Athens Games.The motto, originally formulated in Latin as "Citius, Altius, Fortius," was used before the modern Olympic movement at St. Albert the Great School in Paris, where the Dominican friar was the principal.Born in 1840, Didon entered the Rondeau Minor Seminary in Grenoble, France, beginning at the age of nine, and during his youth, he stood out for his ability as an athlete. After visiting the Carthusian monastery in Grenoble, he decided to follow a religious vocation and took the habit of the Order of Preachers (Dominican...

Pope Francis and Holy See sports association to Olympic athletes: 'Win the medal of fraternity'

Norwegian players Christian Sorum (L), Anders Mol (2ndL) and Australian players Zachery Schubert (2ndR) and Thomas Hodges (R) take part in a practice session ahead of the opening of the Paris 2024 Olympic Games at the Eiffel Tower Stadium in Paris on July 24, 2024. / Credit: ODD ANDERSEN/AFP via Getty ImagesVatican City, Jul 26, 2024 / 17:26 pm (CNA).Pope Francis and Athletica Vaticana, the official Holy See sports association, have invited all athletes participating in the 2024 Olympic Games to harness the "great social power of sport" to unite people and be witnesses of peace, particularly during these times of international tensions and conflict.  Around 300,000 spectators welcomed thousands of athletes representing 206 countries at the opening ceremony of this year's summer games in Paris today.The ceremony to open the two-week international festival took place at 7:30 p.m. in Paris (1:30 p.m. ET). The Olympic Games, which take place between July 26 and Aug. 11 th...

Russian Orthodox bishop of Budapest-Hungary suspended following reports of sexual misconduct

Russian President Vladimir Putin shakes hands with Russian Orthodox Church Bishop Hilarion Alfeyev during a state ceremony at the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia, on September 22, 2016. / Credit: Photo by Mikhail Svetlov/Getty ImagesCNA Staff, Jul 26, 2024 / 17:15 pm (CNA).Russian Orthodox Bishop Hilarion Alfeyev of Budapest-Hungary has been temporarily suspended following reports about an ongoing investigation of sexual misconduct with a young staff member.According to the online news site Novaya Gazeta Europe, Georgy Suzuki, who served as the bishop's personal assistant between Oct. 2022 and Jan. 2024, was sexually harassed on several occasions by the 58-year-old high-ranking prelate. Alfeyev has reportedly denied all allegations made by Suzuki. Earlier this month, Church Times reported that 11 Russian Orthodox priests in Budapest signed a joint statement defending Alfeyev who, they believe, is innocent and a victim of a "dirty slanderous campaign."    Yes...

German AfD party member challenges removal from church volunteer positions

Altar servers. / Credit: Mazur/catholicnews.org.uk (CC BY-NC-SA 2.0)CNA Newsroom, Jul 25, 2024 / 10:51 am (CNA).A Catholic priest in Germany has barred an altar server and lector from his duties because he works for the Alternative for Germany (AfD) party. According to a report by CNA Deutsch, CNA's German-language news partner, the party has announced legal steps in response, but the archdiocese is backing the priest's decision.In early July, parish priest Father Ralf Dunker informed 20-year-old Julian-Bert Schäfer that he could no longer serve as an altar server, lector, and organist in the Parish of St. Francis of Assisi in Hamm in northwestern Germany. Dunker cited Schäfer's active involvement with the AfD as incompatible with these volunteer duties.While polling has shown the AfD as the second most popular party in Germany, the party is variously described in the media as a populist, right-wing, or far-right extremist outfit. The banned altar server, an AfD member for...

U.S.-Mexico border diocese of Matamoros to have new name, co-cathedral in Reynosa

Cathedral of Our Lady of Refuge in Matamoros, Mexico (left), and Our Lady of Guadalupe Church in Reynosa, Mexico, which will be a "co-cathedral." / Credit: Michael Martin from Cypress, Texas, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons; Robox91, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia CommonsACI Prensa Staff, Jul 25, 2024 / 07:00 am (CNA).The Diocese of Matamoros in the Mexican state of Tamaulipas on the border with the U.S. announced two changes in its pastoral government: Its name will change to the Diocese of Matamoros-Reynosa and the Our Lady of Guadalupe church in Reynosa will be its co-cathedral.In a statement shared Monday, the Mexican diocese said the changes will not be immediate. In the coming days the date will be announced when the new name will be official and a Mass will be celebrated at which time Our Lady of Guadalupe Church will be elevated to a co-cathedral.According to the statement, the Vatican Dicastery for Bishops approved the changes, which had been requested by the bishop o...