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Denver, Colo., Apr 1, 2023 / 06:00 am (CNA).

After interviewing three priests in January who were students at CU Boulder, Denver Catholic spoke to the men and women behind the ministry to figure out their "secret sauce." What is the St. Thomas Aquinas Center doing to turn out great apostles?

"It's Boulder," said Father Peter Mussett, pastor at St. Thomas Aquinas Parish in Boulder. "The secret sauce that we have is that we get to do ministry in Boulder, which is on one hand, two steps ahead of the culture in its progressivism and on another hand, it actually facilitates this strange openness of exploration."

"There's oddly an openness to Boulder, too; there's a curiosity," said Megan Dillon, director of advancement for St. Thomas Aquinas. "It's a tough environment but also there's a genuine curiosity." 

The St. Thomas Aquinas Center (St. Tom's), serves the University of Colorado-Boulder community through its Catholic center for students and St. Thomas Aquinas Catholic Church. Mussett has been at St. Tom's since 2006. During his time, he's seen 10 "Buffs" (the CU-Boulder mascot is a buffalo) become priests and has a count of 21 priests who have come from Boulder over the years.

"If you really want to know the strength of the hero in any story, it's going to be directly in relationship to the antagonist," Mussett said. "The antagonistic parts of Boulder, the parts that are hostile towards Christianity, hostile towards any sort of living in a traditional way drive our student life here to really have a magnanimity and a strength of character."

"We've been very intentional in structuring this ministry in creating missionaries," Dillon said. "We are intentional with the students throughout their time here, even so much so that at graduation Father Peter prays the blessing of missionaries over our students and says, 'I'm sending you out.'" 

Their goal is to form the minds of the students in the truths of the faith and also have a whole Catholic culture to surround them. Bible studies, intramural games, socials, liturgies, and more make up a typical week at St. Tom's.

But the St. Tom's Center is not just a club, Dillon said.  

One way the Catholic center keeps itself open to new people is the coffee shop located within St. Tom's: Drogo's Coffee Bar. Named for St. Drogo, the patron saint of coffee and coffee shop owners, Drogo's serves not only the Catholic students at the center but also the wider Boulder community.  

"The coffee shop serves as kind of a bridge between the Catholic culture that we're creating and also just the secular culture that we're immersed in," Mussett said. 

At any moment you might find professors, construction workers, moms who live in the neighborhood, and students frequenting the cafe. And with drip coffee priced at $1.75 and a latte for $3, it might be the most reasonably priced coffee in town.

That's intentional, Mussett said.  

"Everybody knows that a cup of coffee is a ticket to sit in a chair at a table for as long as you possibly want," he said. "If I can make that ticket cheaper than any other ticket in town, now all of a sudden I have somebody who's sitting there, who wouldn't have sat there for the next six hours, observing what the culture of Catholic Church is." 

"[It's] a place for us to engage the community," Mussett said. "We all know that it's so easy to get trapped in the Catholic bubble. The world's a little scary." 

Drogo's gives students a chance to live out their faith and extend an invitation to someone new while still being in a familiar environment.  

"Invitation is the most powerful gift that we have been given by God, and teaching other people to invite into the light is the great joy of our work here," Mussett said.

Amid the temptation to be insular in the harsh environment of Boulder, St. Tom's stays outwardly focused, said Hilary Draftz, former student and FOCUS (Fellowship of Catholic University Students) missionary at CU. Draftz is now the west area director for FOCUS, meaning she oversees 46 teams of missionaries, including the team at CU.

"It is a light in the darkness," Draftz said. "The cultural opposition makes faith shine all the brighter." 

FOCUS has had a presence on campus for the last 24 years, Draftz said. The vibrancy of the center complements the work of the FOCUS missionaries.

"It frees up the missionaries to be the hands and feet on campus," she said. Instead of spending time planning the events, the missionaries can concentrate on outreach while always having something to invite students to.

The parish has six students who are in the process of becoming Catholic this year.  

Mussett is also a key part of the center's success, Draftz said. 

"He's a very human priest," she said. "He's so confident being himself."  

She described some of his quirky hobbies: jeeping, art, and jiu jitsu — where he even brought his sensei through RCIA.

"God wants to do amazing things through us," Mussett said. "He's not limited to us, but he loves working with us and doing great things. We are here to both foster and to catch those who experience grace." 

Mussett and St. Tom's make an impact on young men opening their lives to vocation, but it's more than that.  

"There are on-fire disciples coming out of St. Tom's," Draftz said. Dynamic families and laypeople having an impact on the archdiocese are among the fruits from Boulder — not just priestly vocations.  

To date, 56 FOCUS missionaries have come out of St. Tom's. And seven women alum have discovered religious vocations, Dillon said.

"None of this is inaccessible to anybody else," said Mussett of their work at the center. "Inviting new people, risking ourselves, being personal, creating opportunities for grace. It's just that God has asked us to do it in a place where it takes courage to do it. And courage always yields great results." 

"If you're willing to listen to what God is asking of you — that's the secret sauce," Mussett said. "Having the courage to listen to the voice of God and not resisting what God is asking you to do. That's the only real way."

This story was originally published in Denver Catholic and is republished here on CNA with permission.

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Rome Newsroom, Apr 1, 2023 / 09:00 am (CNA).

French bishops have voted to open the sainthood cause of 20th-century theologian Henri de Lubac.

The French bishops' conference announced on March 31 that the opening of de Lubac's cause for beatification was approved during the bishops' plenary assembly in Lourdes.

De Lubac is considered by many to be one of the most important theologians of the 20th century. The French Jesuit priest was a leading thinker in the ressourcement school of thought that encouraged a return to the writings of the Church Fathers in Catholic theology. He also founded the Communio journal together with Joseph Ratzinger and Hans Urs von Balthasar.

Some of his best-known books are "The Splendor of the Church," "The Christian Faith," "Catholicisme," "The Drama of Atheist Humanism," and "The Motherhood of the Church."

Born on Feb. 20, 1896, in the northern French city of Cambrai, de Lubac grew up in a traditionally Catholic family with five siblings. After his family moved to Lyon, de Lubac studied at a Jesuit school before making the decision to enter the Jesuit order in 1913.

His novitiate studies in England were interrupted by World War I the following year when he was drafted into the French army. He served in the army from 1914 to 1919, sustaining a head injury that caused him pain for the rest of his life.

De Lubac was ordained a priest in 1927 and began teaching theology at the Catholic University of Lyon.

During World War II, he resisted the ideologies of Nazism and anti-Semitism. He co-founded Sources Chrétiennes, a collection of patristic texts published in Greek or Latin with a French translation.

In 1950, de Lubac was banned from teaching at his Catholic university for a period of eight years. He continued to write and was named a member of the Institut de France in 1958.

Pope John XXIII appointed de Lubac as a member of the Second Vatican Council's preparatory commission in 1959. De Lubac later participated in the council as a peritus, or theological expert, his writings are seen as having been influential in the texts that emerged from the council.

Pope John Paul II named De Lubac a cardinal in 1983 at the age of 86. He died five years later in Paris on Sept. 4, 1991.

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Rome Newsroom, Apr 1, 2023 / 05:00 am (CNA).

Palm Sunday marks the start of one of the most full and beautiful liturgical periods of the Catholic Church year.

It is also one of the busiest liturgical periods at the Vatican, where Pope Francis has been scheduled to preside over nine Masses, liturgies, and devotions between April 2 and Easter Monday, April 10.

With Pope Francis having been hospitalized on March 29 for a respiratory infection, it was unclear if he would be well enough to participate in any or some of the liturgies.

Vatican spokesman Matteo Bruni confirmed on April 1 as Pope Francis was discharged from the hospital that the pope is still planning to be present for Palm Sunday Mass on April 2. Pope Francis will preside over the liturgies with a cardinal celebrating at the altar.

Here is the Vatican's full schedule for Holy Week and Easter 2023:

Palm Sunday

On Sunday morning, April 2, Pope Francis is scheduled to preside over Mass for Palm Sunday, also known as Passion Sunday or the Commemoration of the Lord's entrance into Jerusalem.

The Mass, which will be in St. Peter's Square at 10 a.m. local time, will kick off with a grand procession of deacons, priests, bishops, cardinals, and laypeople carrying palms.

The procession includes olive tree branches, palm fronds, and the large, weaved palms called "parmureli," all blessed by Pope Francis.

Holy Thursday

Pope Francis is set to start Holy Thursday with a Chrism Mass in St. Peter's Basilica at 9:30 a.m. in the presence of cardinals, bishops, and priests living in Rome.

During the Mass, Pope Francis, as the bishop of Rome, will bless the oil of the sick, the oil of catechumens, and the chrism oil to be used in the diocese during the coming year.

In the evening, the pope will offer Mass at the juvenile detention center "Casal del Marmo," the same detention center where he offered Holy Thursday Mass in 2013, shortly after his election.

In 2022, the pope offered the Mass at a prison in Civitavecchia, a port city about 50 miles northwest of Rome. After the homily, Francis washed the feet of 12 inmates, representing the disciples.

Good Friday

Continuing the liturgies of the Triduum, Pope Francis is also scheduled to preside over a celebration for the Passion of the Lord on Good Friday at 5 p.m. in St. Peter's Basilica.

During this liturgy, which is not a Mass, instead of the pope papal preacher Cardinal Raniero Cantalamessa preaches on Christ's crucifixion.

In the evening, Francis will lead the Stations of the Cross devotion at the Colosseum at 9:15 p.m.

Holy Saturday

On Holy Saturday, Pope Francis is set to preside over the Easter Vigil at 7:30 p.m. in St. Peter's Basilica.

The Easter Vigil, which takes place on Holy Saturday night, "is the greatest and most noble of all solemnities," according to the Roman Missal.

The liturgy begins in darkness with the blessing of the new fire and the preparation of the paschal candle. At the Vatican, cardinals, bishops, and priests process through the dark basilica carrying lit candles to signify the light of Christ coming to dispel the darkness.

Pope Francis also typically baptizes new Catholics at this Mass.

Easter Sunday

The morning of Easter Sunday, Pope Francis will preside over Mass in St. Peter's Square at 10 a.m. on a flower-decked parvise.

After Mass, he will give the annual Easter urbi et orbi blessing from the central balcony of St. Peter's Basilica.

"Urbi et orbi" means "to the city [of Rome] and to the world" and is a special apostolic blessing given by the pope every year on Easter Sunday, Christmas, and other special occasions.

In 2022, local authorities estimated 100,000 people were present for the blessing.

Easter Monday

Pope Francis will mark Easter Monday, also called "Monday of the Angel," by praying the Angelus at noon from a window of the Apostolic Palace.

The Angelus is a traditional prayer honoring the Virgin Mary. Pope Francis leads the prayer and gives a brief reflection every Sunday and on important Marian and other feast days.

Courtney Mares contributed to this report.

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ACI Prensa Staff, Mar 31, 2023 / 15:07 pm (CNA).

Mosaic art created by Father Marko Rupnik could be removed from the Basilica of the Sanctuary of Lourdes, France, out of consideration for victims of abuse who come to the sanctuary in search of consolation, the bishop of Tarbes and Lourdes said.

"Lourdes is a place where many victims turn to the Immaculate Conception for comfort and healing. Their anguish is great before the mosaics of Father Rupnik in this very place: We cannot ignore it," Bishop Jean-Marc Micas said in a statement released Friday.

Rupnik, a Jesuit priest and artist, founded the Aletti Center, an art school in Rome dedicated to religious art. He has been accused of sexually and psychologically abusing consecrated women from the Loyola Community in Slovenia who were associated with the Aletti Center.

As the National Catholic Register reported earlier this year, Rupnik's art decorates more than 200 churches and shrines around the world, including at Lourdes, Fatima, and the Vatican.

The Jesuit order has received accusations against Rupnik that span from 1985 to 2018 and include claims of spiritual, psychological, and sexual abuse, and abuse of conscience.

According to current restrictions imposed by the Jesuit order, Rupnik is prohibited "from any public ministerial and sacramental activity," banned from public communication, ordered not to leave Lazio, and "may not engage in any public artistic activity, especially in relation to religious structures (such as churches, institutions, oratories and chapels, exercise or spirituality houses)."

In April, the bishop of Lourdes said, a decision will be made regarding what to do about the mosaics by Rupnik that decorate the Shrine at Lourdes.

The work was commissioned in 2008 for the facade of the Basilica of the Rosary at the Sanctuary of Lourdes on the occasion of the 150th anniversary of the apparitions of the Blessed Mother.

The bishop of Lourdes said in his statement: "Like all works of art, they are appreciated by some, less by others, but the vast majority of pilgrims and visitors to Lourdes highlight their beauty."

He then noted that "for several months, Father Rupnik has been in the news following various accusations of sexual abuse of adults in the framework of his ministry in various parts of the world." 

He noted that because Rupnik "has been sanctioned by his religious superiors and by the Holy See …the question of the status of his works and his future is being raised."

Consultations with victims

"Given the specific nature of the Sanctuary of Our Lady of Lourdes," the bishop said, "the general question of the status of the works of artists involved in situations of abuse is much more delicate here." 

Millions of pilgrims travel to Lourdes every year to receive healing at the site where, in 1858, the Virgin Mary appeared to a 14-year-old girl named Bernadette Soubirous.

The bishop reported that on March 27, together with the rector of the shrine, Father Michel Daubanes: "We brought this matter to the attention of the Guidance Council of the Shrine." 

"The issue was discussed with great seriousness: We know that the victims must be at the center of our reflections, and any decision will have serious consequences," he said. 

He said that a "reflection group" has been established, made up of the bishop, the rector, a victim of abuse, an expert in sacred art, and a psychotherapist, whose objective is to reach a determination in April. 

During this time, they intend to "develop the necessary elements to make the best decision, carry out this reflection in the most serene way possible and not reject any decision hypothesis a priori."

Finally, Bishop Micas said that he was entrusting this process and the decision to be made "to the intercession of Mary, Our Lady of Lourdes, and to the mercy of God."

"I also count on the prayers and support of the faithful of the diocese and of those who love the Sanctuary of Lourdes," he concluded.

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

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Washington D.C., Mar 31, 2023 / 10:05 am (CNA).

Kentucky lawmakers passed a comprehensive bill that prohibits doctors from providing sex changes for children, prevents schools from pushing transgender ideology onto students, and grants parents more authority and oversight over their children in the public education system.

Following Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear's veto of the legislation, Republican lawmakers successfully overrode his veto with a 29-6 vote in the House and a 76-23 vote in the Senate. The new rules regarding health care will go into effect 90 days after the veto was overridden Wednesday, but many of the new education rules went into effect immediately. 

"It should come as no surprise that Gov. Beshear put his party's politics over the people of Kentucky, as he has done his whole political career," Sen. Max Wise, R-Campbellsville, who sponsored the legislation, said in a statement.

"The goal of SB 150 is to strengthen parental engagement and communication in their children's education," Wise added. "This bill, which passed the Senate with bipartisan support, reinforces a positive atmosphere in the classroom and removes unnecessary distractions, like woke ideology and mandating use of specific pronouns in our schools."

Medical providers will be barred from performing sterilizing surgery on patients under the age of 18 or performing surgery to remove a child's genitals or altering the minor's genitals to make them appear like the genitals of the opposite sex. 

The rules prohibit doctors from removing any healthy or nondiseased body tissue. Additionally, medical providers cannot prescribe any drugs that would delay or halt normal puberty or prescribe estrogen or testosterone at levels greater than what would normally be found in a child of that sex and age. 

The legislation provides exceptions for children who have sex development disorders, such as children born with ambiguous biological sex characteristics. The legislation also specifies that the rules do not prevent surgeries or drugs necessary to treat an infection, injury, disease, or disorder. 

If a health care provider has already prescribed these drugs to a child, the law states that doctors can systematically reduce the drugs over a period of time if immediately halting the use of the drugs would be detrimental to the child's health. 

The legislation also prohibits schools from promoting transgender ideology through lessons that encourage the student to study or explore his or her gender identity, gender expression, or sexual orientation. It also bans schools from providing lessons on human sexuality and sexually transmitted diseases for students in the fifth grade or lower. Schools must receive written consent from parents before providing a student with lessons on human sexuality or sexually transmitted diseases in higher grades.

Per the legislation, schools must also ensure that bathrooms, locker rooms, changing rooms, and showers are reserved for students based on the student's biological sex. This prevents a student from using a facility that is not consistent with his or her biological sex, even if that student self-identifies with the opposite gender. The legislation notes that schools can accommodate transgender students in other ways, such as by providing single-stall restrooms. 

"Parents have a reasonable expectation that schools will not allow minor children to be viewed in various states of undress by members of the opposite biological sex, nor allow minor children to view members of the opposite sex in various states of undress," the legislation states. 

When a student enrolls in a school, the school district must provide parents with a written list of all health services and mental health services they provide concerning human sexuality, family planning, and contraception. Parents will be allowed to withhold consent for or decline any of those services. If parents allow the school to provide those services, they do not waive their rights to access education and medical records. 

Neither the Board of Education nor the local school district will be allowed to compel teachers or students to use a student's preferred pronoun when it differs from the student's biological sex, under these rules.

"Denying the truth that we are either male or female causes real harm to people, especially vulnerable children," Alliance Defending Freedom senior counsel Matt Sharp said in a statement.

"The Kentucky Legislature enacted vital protections for young children and parents to ensure they can't be pressured into agreeing to life-altering, so-called 'gender transition' procedures," Sharp added. "Young people deserve to live in a society that doesn't subject them to risky experiments to which they cannot effectively consent."

Transgender activists opposed the legislation and the American Civil Liberties Union of Kentucky has announced it intends to file a lawsuit to block the enforcement of these new rules. 

"[The bill] was rushed through the Legislature in a deliberately secretive process at the 11th hour," a Kentucky ACLU statement read. "Trans Kentuckians, medical and mental health professionals, and accredited professional associations pleaded with lawmakers to listen to the experts, not harmful rhetoric based in fear and hate. Their pleas fell on deaf ears as the General Assembly passed the bill in a matter of hours."

Several states have enacted legislation over the past two years to block sex changes on children and to change education guidelines or grant parents more control. In some cases, the laws are being fought through the court system.

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Washington D.C., Mar 31, 2023 / 10:35 am (CNA).

Archbishop Timothy Broglio, the president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops and archbishop for the Military Services, USA, offered prayers for the nine American soldiers who died in a tragic accident during a helicopter training exercise in Kentucky on Wednesday evening.

"The tragic helicopter crash in Kentucky is a grim reminder of the risks taken daily by our men and women in uniform. They put themselves in harm's way to defend our freedom, our values, our way of life. In the process some pay the ultimate sacrifice," Broglio said in a March 31 statement.

The nine soldiers were in the U.S. Army's 101st Combat Aviation Brigade, based at Fort Campbell, Kentucky. The accident occurred in Trigg County, Kentucky, which is about a 38-minute drive away from Fort Campbell.

"We pray for the repose of the souls of the nine soldiers who died. May Almighty God welcome them to life eternal, and may their devotion to service, God, and country stand always as an example for us all," Broglio said.

He also offered prayers for the families of the soldiers "in this time of extreme grief."

"May our Blessed Mother of Sorrows comfort them in this painful hour," Broglio added.

The 101st Airborne Division said in a March 30 press release that the two helicopters were Blackhawks, the Army's utility tactical transport helicopter. The helicopter "provide[s] air assault, general support, aeromedical evacuation, command and control, and special operations support to combat, stability, and support operations," according to the U.S. Army.

The accident occurred at about 10 p.m., the press release said. An investigation into the crash is being conducted by an aviation safety team from Fort Rucker, Alabama, the release said.

"This is a truly tragic loss for these families, our division, and Fort Campbell. Our No. 1 priority is caring for the families and the soldiers within our combat aviation brigade," Brig. Gen. John Lubas, the 101st Airborne Division deputy commanding general for operations, said in the release.

"Our entire Fort Campbell community is surging resources in support. Our thoughts and prayers are with these families and soldiers during this difficult time," he added.

The identities of the nine soldiers have not been released.

Speaking at a press conference on the accident, Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear said that the nine soldiers are "children of God."

"We are blessed to live in the freest country in the history of planet Earth. We must remember that freedom relies on those who are willing to serve, some of whom pay the ultimate price," he said.

"My faith teaches me that while the body is mortal, the soul is eternal, and we will see them again," Beshear said.

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Rome Newsroom, Mar 31, 2023 / 05:25 am (CNA).

The Vatican said Friday that Pope Francis may be discharged from the hospital on Saturday after responding well to treatments yesterday and sharing a pizza dinner with those assisting him.

In two brief statements in the early afternoon of March 31, Vatican spokesman Matteo Bruni also said Pope Francis is scheduled to be present at the Vatican's Palm Sunday Mass in St. Peter's Square on April 2.

Pope Francis was admitted to Rome's Gemelli Hospital on Wednesday afternoon with difficulty breathing. He was later diagnosed with bronchitis.

"Yesterday passed well, with a normal clinical progression," Bruni said around 12:30 p.m. on Friday.

"In the evening Pope Francis had dinner, eating pizza together with those assisting him during his hospital stay," the Holy See Press Office director said. "With the Holy Father were the doctors, nurses, assistants and Gendarmerie personnel."

On the morning of March 31, the pope had breakfast, read the newspapers, and resumed work, he said, adding that "His Holiness is expected to return to his Santa Marta home tomorrow, upon the outcome of the results of the last tests this morning."

Around 1:15 p.m., Bruni added the information about the pope's presence for the Palm Sunday Mass.

In the afternoon on March 29, Bruni issued a brief statement to say Francis was at Gemelli Hospital "for some previously scheduled checkups." Later that day, he said the 86-year-old pope would remain hospitalized for "some days" after being diagnosed with a respiratory infection.

Gemelli is the same hospital where Pope Francis was hospitalized in July 2021 when he underwent surgery on his colon for diverticulitis, or inflammation of the intestinal wall.

In an interview with the Associated Press in January, Pope Francis disclosed that the diverticulitis had "returned." At the time, the pope — who traveled to South Sudan and the Democratic Republic of Congo in late January — insisted he was in relatively good condition.

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St. Louis, Mo., Mar 31, 2023 / 06:00 am (CNA).

The 2023 Wisconsin judicial race, which might have remained obscure in other years even within Wisconsin, is garnering national media attention and record fundraising numbers for the candidates. 

Here's what you need to know about the April 4 election, when voters will choose who will sit on the state Supreme Court for the next decade. Pro-life groups say this election could help determine whether abortion stays illegal in Wisconsin. 

Why is this election so potentially consequential?

Wisconsin is the only state in the nation with a pre-Roe v. Wade abortion ban in effect, at least on paper. Wisconsin's ban, which is contained in Section 940.04 of the Wisconsin Statutes and dates to 1849, allows abortion only to save the life of the mother. The state's Democratic governor and attorney general have said they will not enforce the ban and are currently suing in an attempt to have it overturned.

The law was previously unenforceable following the Roe v. Wade decision in 1973, but Roe's overturning last year allowed the statute to come into effect. So far, it has not been blocked in court, as has happened with pre-Roe bans in West Virginia and Michigan.

Pro-abortion groups within and outside Wisconsin have identified the state Supreme Court race as the key to getting 940.04 overturned. Gov. Tony Evers, along with Wisconsin Attorney General Josh Kaul, announced a lawsuit last year to attempt to overturn the law, arguing that it has been superseded by subsequent legislation and cannot be enforced.

The lawsuit is likely to be ultimately decided by the state Supreme Court, which has had a 4-3 conservative majority for the past decade and a half. Now, there is an open seat being vacated by retiring conservative justice Patience Roggensack.

Pro-life advocates worry that should the state Supreme Court obtain a pro-choice majority, the state's pre-Roe ban could be thrown out, as happened last year in neighboring Michigan.

Who's running in the April 4 election?

In a Feb. 21 primary, Daniel Kelly and Janet Protasiewicz emerged as the two highest vote-getters, advancing to the nonpartisan general election on April 4. Protasiewicz earned the most votes in the February primary and Kelly the second most. The ultimate winner will serve a 10-year term on the state Supreme Court.

The race is officially nonpartisan, so neither Protasiewicz nor Kelly is running as a Democrat or Republican. Donations have poured into the race from across the country, making it likely the most expensive state Supreme Court race in history. Judge Protasiewicz has spent more than $10 million on television ads while Justice Kelly has spent less than $500,000 on them, the New York Times reported. 

Kelly is a former Wisconsin Supreme Court justice who served on the court from his appointment by then-Gov. Scott Walker in 2016 until he was voted out in 2020. He describes himself as a "constitutional conservative" and on his campaign website charges that his opponents are "judicial activists who seek to impose their own political agenda on our state."

Amid a contentious campaign, Kelly has earned the endorsement of three statewide pro-life groups — Wisconsin Family Action, Pro-Life Wisconsin, and Wisconsin Right to Life.

In contrast, Protasiewicz has garnered endorsements from numerous top Democrats in Wisconsin, as well as from pro-abortion groups such as NARAL, Planned Parenthood, and EMILY's List. Protasiewicz currently is a judge for Branch 24 of the Milwaukee County Circuit Court in Wisconsin, having been elected to that court in 2014.

Protasiewicz has also won the endorsement of Hillary Clinton. Kelly was endorsed by former president Donald Trump in his 2020 campaign, which he lost — he has not sought Trump's endorsement in the present race. 

What have the candidates said lately?

The candidates engaged in a spirited debate March 21. During that debate, Protasiewicz pledged to recuse herself from any cases involving the Democratic Party due to the large number of donations she has received from them. She said she has been "very clear about [her] values" during the campaign, but insisted she has made "no promises" to pro-abortion groups such as Planned Parenthood and EMILY's List. 

"My personal opinion is that [it] should be the woman's right to make the reproductive health decisions, period," she said during the debate.

Kelly said during the debate that he is not accepting any funds from the state Republican Party. He said his numerous endorsements from pro-life groups came about after having conversations with them about his pledge to uphold the Constitution, not because of any promise to keep the abortion ban in place. 

Following the debate, Wisconsin Right to Life took issue with Protasiewicz's characterization of Kelly as a candidate who has "pledged" to uphold pro-life values, saying that the group's endorsement of Kelly is "based on his judicial philosophy and not based on pledges to uphold any law or policy position."

What has the Catholic Church in Wisconsin said?

In a Feb. 14 newsletter, the Wisconsin Catholic Conference noted the upcoming 2023 spring primary election and reminded voters that as Catholics, "we are called to form our consciences in light of Church teaching."

"Human reason tells us that the right to life is the first and fundamental right. Without life, none of our basic human rights — such as food, shelter, liberty — can be exercised," the conference said in the newsletter.

"In addition, our Catholic faith holds that every human being, at every stage of life, is made in the image and likeness of God. When we encounter one another, we should do so with the understanding that we are encountering someone of transcendent worth, who like us is deserving of respect and protection from conception to natural death."

In a March 15 statement, the conference urged Wisconsin legislators to oppose legislation that would create an exception in Wisconsin's statute that would permit children conceived in rape and incest to be killed and expand abortion access in cases of fetal abnormality or risk to the mother. 

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Washington D.C., Mar 31, 2023 / 08:37 am (CNA).

Catholic exorcist Father Ernesto Caro is warning that what is being marketed on Amazon as a Christian "Holy Spirit" board game is "not a game" at all but instead "a trap from the devil."

On a March 28 segment of EWTN News Nightly, Caro, an exorcist in the Diocese of Monterey, Mexico, said that "the devil is always looking for different ways that he can trap all the victims that he can take for him, and this is one."

The board game's packaging claims it allows people to "communicate directly with Jesus Christ" and its online advertising says it's "perfect for churches, prayer groups, or just getting together with friends."

The game's layout is very similar to that of a Ouija board, but it features Christian imagery including images of God, the crucifixion, angels, and a dove. Whereas a Ouija board normally has a triangle pendant that is moved for users to communicate with spirits, the Holy Spirit Board has a golden-colored cross.

The game's description says, "GET THE ANSWERS YOU NEED! — The Holy Spirit Board can answer all of life's most important questions, straight from the man himself!" and assures potential buyers that "unlike other spirit boards, this one will NEVER contact evil ghosts or demons, so you can ask your questions with an assured sense of safety."

Despite the Christian imagery, Caro says the so-called Holy Spirit Board is just a Ouija board repackaged to trick Christians into using it.

As an exorcist, Caro warns Christians to not be fooled and that using the board would be "opening a door that could be dangerous for you."

The Catholic Church firmly condemns the use of Ouija boards as a form of occult participation and divination.

No. 2116 of the Catechism of the Catholic Church teaches that "all forms of divination are to be rejected: recourse to Satan or demons, conjuring up the dead or other practices falsely supposed to 'unveil' the future. Consulting horoscopes, astrology, palm reading, interpretation of omens and lots, the phenomena of clairvoyance, and recourse to mediums all … contradict the honor, respect, and loving fear that we owe to God alone."

Based on the board's advertising, "you would probably think that it is God that is talking with you," Caro said, "but it's not."

"If the [Ouija board] triangle is moving by itself, be careful, it's not God who is moving, it's the devil," Caro said. "Ouija games and all this are forbidden in the Bible."

Calling the game "disturbing" and "deceptive," EWTN News Nightly host Tracy Sabol asked Caro what Christians who were tricked into buying the game should do.

Besides getting rid of the board immediately, Caro encouraged Christians who have bought the game to "repent and ask God for liberation" by going to confession and asking the priest to give an extra blessing for protection.

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Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Mar 31, 2023 / 09:32 am (CNA).

While staying at Rome's Gemelli Hospital where he is undergoing treatment for bronchitis, Pope Francis paid a visit Friday to the pediatric oncology ward and baptized a newborn patient.

The Holy See reported that the Holy Father spent about half an hour in the ward, where he distributed "rosaries, chocolate eggs, and copies of the book 'Jesus Was Born in Bethlehem of Judah.'"

Photos released by Vatican Media show the pope speaking with mothers accompanying their babies, writing a message, and baptizing a newborn baby.

"During the visit, which lasted about half an hour, the pope imparted the sacrament of baptism to a baby named Miguel Angel, who was only a few weeks old. At the end he returned to his department," the Vatican press office said.

When Pope Francis underwent surgery for diverticulitis in July 2021, he visited the pediatric oncology ward. And in his first outing after that surgery, young cancer patients joined him as he led the Sunday Angelus from a balcony on the 10th floor of the hospital. 

The Vatican said Friday that Pope Francis may be discharged from the hospital on Saturday after responding well to treatments yesterday.

In two brief statements in the early afternoon of March 31, Vatican spokesman Matteo Bruni also said Pope Francis is scheduled to be present at the Vatican's Palm Sunday Mass in St. Peter's Square on April 2.

Pope Francis was admitted to Rome's Gemelli Hospital on Wednesday afternoon with difficulty breathing. He was later diagnosed with bronchitis.

"Yesterday passed well, with a normal clinical progression," Bruni said around 12:30 p.m. on Friday.

"In the evening Pope Francis had dinner, eating pizza together with those assisting him during his hospital stay," the Holy See Press Office director said. "With the Holy Father were the doctors, nurses, assistants and Gendarmerie personnel."

On the morning of March 31, the pope had breakfast, read the newspapers, and resumed work, he said, adding that "His Holiness is expected to return to his Santa Marta home tomorrow, upon the outcome of the results of the last tests this morning."

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