Latest news with #Catholics'
New York Post
6 days ago
- General
- New York Post
Extent of FBI's targeting of ‘radical traditionalist Catholics' greater than Biden officials claimed, GOP senator reveals
Documents released by Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) on Tuesday appear to contradict former FBI Director Christopher Wray's claim that a controversial 2023 memo targeting 'radical traditionalist Catholics' was a one-off and the work of a single bureau field office. Extent of FBI's targeting of 'radical traditionalist Catholics' greater than Biden officials claimed, GOP senator reveals The Biden-era FBI chief told House lawmakers in July of 2023 that the memo – which described the purported overlaps between Catholics who oppose abortion rights and would-be terrorists as an opportunity for 'threat mitigation' and 'source development' – was 'a single product by a single field office.' However, the new FBI files obtained by Grassley show the bureau produced 'at least 13 additional documents and five attachments that used anti-Catholic terminology,' as well as a second memo updating the FBI's Richmond Field Office's case against 'radical' Catholics. 4 FBI Director Christopher Wray testifies before the House Judiciary Committee hearing in Washington, DC, on July 12, 2023. 'Director Wray's testimony was inaccurate not only because it failed to reveal the scope of the memo's production and dissemination, but also because it failed to reveal the existence of a second, draft product on the same topic intended for external distribution to the whole FBI,' Grassley wrote in a letter to current FBI Director Kash Patel on Monday, demanding more documents. The second FBI memo, released by Grassley, was also drafted by the FBI's Richmond office and repeated the 'unfounded link between traditional Catholicism and violent extremism.' The backlash over the whistleblower disclosure of the initial memo led the Richmond office to never release the second version, according to the Iowa Republican. However, the first 'anti-Catholic Richmond Memo' was 'widely distributed' in February 2023 to more than 1,000 FBI employees nationwide, according to Grassley's findings. 'This raises serious concerns that FBI field offices may have relied on the Richmond memo, and placed groups in their areas of responsibility under suspicion based on reporting from the deeply-biased sources used in the memo,' the senator informed Patel. Additionally, the new documents reveal that Richmond FBI officials worked with the bureau's field offices in Louisville, Portland, and Milwaukee as they drafted the memo – further belying Wray's testimony. 4 The memo described the purported overlaps between Catholics who oppose abortion rights and would-be terrorists as an opportunity for 'threat mitigation' and 'source development.' mariangarai – 4 President Joe Biden delivers his farewell address to the nation from the Oval Office of the White House on Jan. 15, 2025. Getty Images 4 Sen. Chuck Grassley attends a confirmation hearing on Capitol Hill on Jan. 15, 2025. REUTERS Grassley and numerous conservatives and Catholics have criticized the FBI for largely relying on the far-left Southern Poverty Law Center's 'hate group' classifications when putting together the memo. 'I continue to investigate the Richmond memo and the culture at the FBI that allowed it to be produced and approved,' the senator informed Patel.
The Herald Scotland
15-05-2025
- Entertainment
- The Herald Scotland
I am a Catholic so why do I feel empathy for the Orange Lodge?
When, at last they rounded the corner, and strode into view your senses danced with the spectacle. Nothing you'd ever seen or heard before those first moments was anything like this. The closest perhaps might have been a circus parade scene in a film. There was always a thin little man who'd hurl a long metal baton high into the air and then twist and twirl and pirouette before catching it behind his back. He never dropped it. There were large banners from places such as Bridgeton and Larkhall and Thornliebank that you thought you might have heard cropping up occasionally when the men drank beer at communions and baptisms. Now read Kevin's full piece The Orangemen marched in disciplined lines in crisp, white, short-sleeved shirts, the older ones in hats and black suits and the women all wearing fancy wedding hats and handbags. They all seemed serious about what they were doing. The young men swaggered. If the term 'woke' had existed back in the late 1960s, it might accurately have been applied to my late dad, Joe. Back then 'woke' meant using the aphorism 'a bit light on his loafers' rather than anything more brutal. It was Joe who first explained to me the reality of apartheid in South Africa when the BBC began to transmit pictures of police brutality in black townships. He hated bullying and urged us always to be kind to the oddballs and awkwards whom we realised many years later were probably neuro-divergent. And he never said anything bad about the Orangemen, choosing to say they believed in Jesus but not so much in Mary and the saints, 'but that didn't make them bad people'. Then one day, my rascally uncle told me 'they hated Catholics' and Joe went through him: the first time I'd ever heard him argue with another grown up in my presence. Even as innocence gave way to experience and fear and mistrust and dodgy songs about King Billy at Celtic Park, I never lost that thrill on hearing The Sash being belted out by fifes and drums and wee contortionists dancing beneath their airborne sticks.
Yahoo
09-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Vance brushes off apparent Pope Leo XIV criticism: ‘I try not to play the politicization of the Pope game'
Vice President JD Vance brushed off apparent criticism from Pope Leo XIV — formerly Cardinal Robert Prevost — downplaying any entanglement between the Catholic Church's leader and modern American politics. After the white smoke on Thursday, a social media account with Prevost's name lambasting the Trump administration's immigration policy and directly calling out Vance exploded online. And while some MAGA influencers and Trump loyalists blasted Leo on social media — Steve Bannon called Leo the 'worst pick for MAGA Catholics' — Vance, who is Catholic, did not engage. 'I try not to play the politicization of the Pope game,' Vance told conservative radio host Hugh Hewitt on Friday. 'I'm sure he's going to say a lot of things that I love. I'm sure he'll say some things that I disagree with, but I'll continue to pray for him and the Church despite it all and through it all.' The vice president added the church is 'bigger than politics,' while not directly addressing the comments made by the account. POLITICO has not been able to independently confirm the authenticity of the Prevost account. The Vatican press office, the Vatican's embassy to the U.S., the Midwest Augustinians and the dioceses in Chicago and Peru did not respond to questions. 'And my attitude is, you know, the Church is about saving souls, and about spreading the Gospel,' Vance said. 'And yeah, it's going to touch public policy from time to time as all human institutions do, but that's not really what it's about.' The Trump administration has elevated Christian and Catholic leaders during his second term, signing orders to end 'anti-Christian weaponization' in the government and loading his Cabinet with Catholics. But Vance had also faced criticism from the late Pope Francis on the administration's hard-line immigration policies. His brief row with Pope Francis came after the pontiff sent a letter to U.S. bishops decrying mass deportations. Vance has justified the policy through the idea of ordo amoris, or 'order of love,' which ranks or prioritizes love and duty. 'The true ordo amoris that must be promoted is that which we discover by meditating constantly on the parable of the 'Good Samaritan,'' Francis wrote in his letter. At a national prayer breakfast in February, Vance said the immigration policies will best serve the American people, and that he would not 'litigate with him or any other clergy member' on the subject. Francis was known for his more pro-immigrant ideals — which some claim that Leo seems to share. The social media account bearing his name re-posted an op-ed by auxiliary Catholic Bishop Evelio Menjivar-Ayala of Washington, D.C., on the suffering of the Venezuelan immigrants deported by the Trump administration. Another re-post was of an opinion piece from the liberal-leaning National Catholic Reporter, entitled 'JD Vance is wrong: Jesus doesn't ask us to rank our love for others.' But Vance said the papacy should not be viewed solely through the lens of American politics. 'Most of the people are not thinking about whether the pope is a Republican or a Democrat, or a conservative or a liberal,' Vance said. Vance, however, did have one notable split with Leo: baseball. Vance, a Cincinnati Reds fan, joked how the pope's affinity for Chicago baseball set him up well for his role leading the church. 'I had a friend of mine that had a pretty funny take on this. He said, 'if Pope Leo really is a Chicago White Sox fan, then he's already actually faced the stress of martyrdom multiple times,' so maybe we have a real winner in the new Holy Father,' Vance concluded.
Politico
09-05-2025
- Politics
- Politico
Vance brushes off apparent Pope Leo XIV criticism: ‘I try not to play the politicization of the Pope game'
Vice President JD Vance brushed off apparent criticism from Pope Leo XIV — formerly Cardinal Robert Prevost — downplaying any entanglement between the Catholic Church's leader and modern American politics. After the white smoke on Thursday, a social media account with Prevost's name lambasting the Trump administration's immigration policy and directly calling out Vance exploded online. And while some MAGA influencers and Trump loyalists blasted Leo on social media — Steve Bannon called Leo the 'worst pick for MAGA Catholics' — Vance, who is Catholic, did not engage. 'I try not to play the politicization of the Pope game,' Vance told conservative radio host Hugh Hewitt on Friday. 'I'm sure he's going to say a lot of things that I love. I'm sure he'll say some things that I disagree with, but I'll continue to pray for him and the Church despite it all and through it all.' The vice president added the church is 'bigger than politics,' while not directly addressing the comments made by the account. POLITICO has not been able to independently confirm the authenticity of the Prevost account. The Vatican press office, the Vatican's embassy to the U.S., the Midwest Augustinians and the dioceses in Chicago and Peru did not respond to questions. 'And my attitude is, you know, the Church is about saving souls, and about spreading the Gospel,' Vance said. 'And yeah, it's going to touch public policy from time to time as all human institutions do, but that's not really what it's about.' The Trump administration has elevated Christian and Catholic leaders during his second term, signing orders to end 'anti-Christian weaponization' in the government and loading his Cabinet with Catholics. But Vance had also faced criticism from the late Pope Francis on the administration's hard-line immigration policies. His brief row with Pope Francis came after the pontiff sent a letter to U.S. bishops decrying mass deportations. Vance has justified the policy through the idea of ordo amoris, or 'order of love,' which ranks or prioritizes love and duty. 'The true ordo amoris that must be promoted is that which we discover by meditating constantly on the parable of the 'Good Samaritan,'' Francis wrote in his letter. At a national prayer breakfast in February, Vance said the immigration policies will best serve the American people, and that he would not 'litigate with him or any other clergy member' on the subject. Francis was known for his more pro-immigrant ideals — which some claim that Leo seems to share. The social media account bearing his name re-posted an op-ed by auxiliary Catholic Bishop Evelio Menjivar-Ayala of Washington, D.C., on the suffering of the Venezuelan immigrants deported by the Trump administration. Another re-post was of an opinion piece from the liberal-leaning National Catholic Reporter, entitled 'JD Vance is wrong: Jesus doesn't ask us to rank our love for others.' But Vance said the papacy should not be viewed solely through the lens of American politics. 'Most of the people are not thinking about whether the pope is a Republican or a Democrat, or a conservative or a liberal,' Vance said. Vance, however, did have one notable split with Leo: baseball. Vance, a Cincinnati Reds fan, joked how the pope's affinity for Chicago baseball set him up well for his role leading the church. 'I had a friend of mine that had a pretty funny take on this. He said, 'if Pope Leo really is a Chicago White Sox fan, then he's already actually faced the stress of martyrdom multiple times,' so maybe we have a real winner in the new Holy Father,' Vance concluded.
The Advertiser
09-05-2025
- Politics
- The Advertiser
Catholics pray for Pope Leo's mission, Australian visit
Australian Catholics' hopes are high for a papal visit as they express delight in the election of American-born Robert Prevost as the church's global leader. Cardinal Prevost will be known by the name Pope Leo XIV and is the first American and first native English-speaker to be appointed to lead the faith. Brisbane Archbishop Mark Coleridge said he had been impressed during their previous meetings and always thought the Chicago native was a "rough chance" to become Pope. "But I was surprised when I woke early to the news of his election as Pope Leo XIV - I was also delighted," he said. Archbishop Coleridge said despite a rapid rise, Pope Leo wasn't a man to "rush things" and had an air of calm that would serve him well. "He struck me as a man who ... was hard to fluster, a good driver in heavy traffic ... he will be his own man," he said. Melbourne Archbishop Peter Andrew Comensoli has met Pope Leo several times, saying he was a "great listener" with "wide experience and great depth of faith". "Clearly the cardinals were confident that they chose Cardinal Prevost," Archbishop Comensoli told AAP. "We have a chief shepherd and we will all look forward to getting a sense of him, as he begins his ministry." Sydney Archbishop Anthony Fisher said the Chicago native's "missionary heart" would make him a unifier and peacemaker. "He's in a very divided world and the divisions in culture, politics, diplomacy and the rest of the world have infected the church too," Archbishop Fisher said. "This Pope is a very centrist kind of Pope and so that might make him less controversial." The Sydney archbishop sees no reason why Australia won't soon have its first sovereign pontiff visit since Pope Benedict XVI in 2008. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has invited Pope Leo to visit Sydney in 2028 for the International Eucharistic Congress. Archbishop Fisher is confident the pontiff will travel down under after backing Australia's candidacy to host the event. "So we've got a foot in the door for making sure he comes to our Eucharistic Congress," the Archbishop said. Leo spent decades as a missionary in Peru, before Pope Francis appointed him to lead the Vatican's bishop selection process. Mr Albanese said the appointment brought joy and hope to Catholics. "May the papacy of Pope Leo advance the cause of peace and social justice for all humanity," he said. Churchgoers in Sydney celebrated the new Pope by attending mass at St Mary's Cathedral. "I'm not even Christian ... but this is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to see these events," Shantipack Chomsin told AAP. "It feels like everything is right again and we have something to look forward to, so it's fantastic news," Lauren Walker said. Australian Catholic Bishops Conference president Archbishop Timothy Costelloe offered heartfelt congratulations. "Cardinal Prevost brought to his most recent role as Prefect of the Dicastery for Bishops an approachability and willingness to listen which were no doubt developed throughout his many years as an Augustinian missionary in Peru," he said. Catholic Social Services Australia executive director Jerry Nockles said Pope Leo's appointment came at a critical time when the world yearned for compassionate leadership grounded in gospel values of justice, dignity and solidarity with the vulnerable. Cardinal Mykola Bychok was the sole Australian representative at the conclave in Rome. Archbishop Costelloe and Sale Bishop Greg Bennet have indicated they will travel to Rome for the installation, representing the Australian Catholic Bishops Conference and the church in Australia. Australian Catholics' hopes are high for a papal visit as they express delight in the election of American-born Robert Prevost as the church's global leader. Cardinal Prevost will be known by the name Pope Leo XIV and is the first American and first native English-speaker to be appointed to lead the faith. Brisbane Archbishop Mark Coleridge said he had been impressed during their previous meetings and always thought the Chicago native was a "rough chance" to become Pope. "But I was surprised when I woke early to the news of his election as Pope Leo XIV - I was also delighted," he said. Archbishop Coleridge said despite a rapid rise, Pope Leo wasn't a man to "rush things" and had an air of calm that would serve him well. "He struck me as a man who ... was hard to fluster, a good driver in heavy traffic ... he will be his own man," he said. Melbourne Archbishop Peter Andrew Comensoli has met Pope Leo several times, saying he was a "great listener" with "wide experience and great depth of faith". "Clearly the cardinals were confident that they chose Cardinal Prevost," Archbishop Comensoli told AAP. "We have a chief shepherd and we will all look forward to getting a sense of him, as he begins his ministry." Sydney Archbishop Anthony Fisher said the Chicago native's "missionary heart" would make him a unifier and peacemaker. "He's in a very divided world and the divisions in culture, politics, diplomacy and the rest of the world have infected the church too," Archbishop Fisher said. "This Pope is a very centrist kind of Pope and so that might make him less controversial." The Sydney archbishop sees no reason why Australia won't soon have its first sovereign pontiff visit since Pope Benedict XVI in 2008. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has invited Pope Leo to visit Sydney in 2028 for the International Eucharistic Congress. Archbishop Fisher is confident the pontiff will travel down under after backing Australia's candidacy to host the event. "So we've got a foot in the door for making sure he comes to our Eucharistic Congress," the Archbishop said. Leo spent decades as a missionary in Peru, before Pope Francis appointed him to lead the Vatican's bishop selection process. Mr Albanese said the appointment brought joy and hope to Catholics. "May the papacy of Pope Leo advance the cause of peace and social justice for all humanity," he said. Churchgoers in Sydney celebrated the new Pope by attending mass at St Mary's Cathedral. "I'm not even Christian ... but this is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to see these events," Shantipack Chomsin told AAP. "It feels like everything is right again and we have something to look forward to, so it's fantastic news," Lauren Walker said. Australian Catholic Bishops Conference president Archbishop Timothy Costelloe offered heartfelt congratulations. "Cardinal Prevost brought to his most recent role as Prefect of the Dicastery for Bishops an approachability and willingness to listen which were no doubt developed throughout his many years as an Augustinian missionary in Peru," he said. Catholic Social Services Australia executive director Jerry Nockles said Pope Leo's appointment came at a critical time when the world yearned for compassionate leadership grounded in gospel values of justice, dignity and solidarity with the vulnerable. Cardinal Mykola Bychok was the sole Australian representative at the conclave in Rome. Archbishop Costelloe and Sale Bishop Greg Bennet have indicated they will travel to Rome for the installation, representing the Australian Catholic Bishops Conference and the church in Australia. Australian Catholics' hopes are high for a papal visit as they express delight in the election of American-born Robert Prevost as the church's global leader. Cardinal Prevost will be known by the name Pope Leo XIV and is the first American and first native English-speaker to be appointed to lead the faith. Brisbane Archbishop Mark Coleridge said he had been impressed during their previous meetings and always thought the Chicago native was a "rough chance" to become Pope. "But I was surprised when I woke early to the news of his election as Pope Leo XIV - I was also delighted," he said. Archbishop Coleridge said despite a rapid rise, Pope Leo wasn't a man to "rush things" and had an air of calm that would serve him well. "He struck me as a man who ... was hard to fluster, a good driver in heavy traffic ... he will be his own man," he said. Melbourne Archbishop Peter Andrew Comensoli has met Pope Leo several times, saying he was a "great listener" with "wide experience and great depth of faith". "Clearly the cardinals were confident that they chose Cardinal Prevost," Archbishop Comensoli told AAP. "We have a chief shepherd and we will all look forward to getting a sense of him, as he begins his ministry." Sydney Archbishop Anthony Fisher said the Chicago native's "missionary heart" would make him a unifier and peacemaker. "He's in a very divided world and the divisions in culture, politics, diplomacy and the rest of the world have infected the church too," Archbishop Fisher said. "This Pope is a very centrist kind of Pope and so that might make him less controversial." The Sydney archbishop sees no reason why Australia won't soon have its first sovereign pontiff visit since Pope Benedict XVI in 2008. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has invited Pope Leo to visit Sydney in 2028 for the International Eucharistic Congress. Archbishop Fisher is confident the pontiff will travel down under after backing Australia's candidacy to host the event. "So we've got a foot in the door for making sure he comes to our Eucharistic Congress," the Archbishop said. Leo spent decades as a missionary in Peru, before Pope Francis appointed him to lead the Vatican's bishop selection process. Mr Albanese said the appointment brought joy and hope to Catholics. "May the papacy of Pope Leo advance the cause of peace and social justice for all humanity," he said. Churchgoers in Sydney celebrated the new Pope by attending mass at St Mary's Cathedral. "I'm not even Christian ... but this is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to see these events," Shantipack Chomsin told AAP. "It feels like everything is right again and we have something to look forward to, so it's fantastic news," Lauren Walker said. Australian Catholic Bishops Conference president Archbishop Timothy Costelloe offered heartfelt congratulations. "Cardinal Prevost brought to his most recent role as Prefect of the Dicastery for Bishops an approachability and willingness to listen which were no doubt developed throughout his many years as an Augustinian missionary in Peru," he said. Catholic Social Services Australia executive director Jerry Nockles said Pope Leo's appointment came at a critical time when the world yearned for compassionate leadership grounded in gospel values of justice, dignity and solidarity with the vulnerable. Cardinal Mykola Bychok was the sole Australian representative at the conclave in Rome. Archbishop Costelloe and Sale Bishop Greg Bennet have indicated they will travel to Rome for the installation, representing the Australian Catholic Bishops Conference and the church in Australia. Australian Catholics' hopes are high for a papal visit as they express delight in the election of American-born Robert Prevost as the church's global leader. Cardinal Prevost will be known by the name Pope Leo XIV and is the first American and first native English-speaker to be appointed to lead the faith. Brisbane Archbishop Mark Coleridge said he had been impressed during their previous meetings and always thought the Chicago native was a "rough chance" to become Pope. "But I was surprised when I woke early to the news of his election as Pope Leo XIV - I was also delighted," he said. Archbishop Coleridge said despite a rapid rise, Pope Leo wasn't a man to "rush things" and had an air of calm that would serve him well. "He struck me as a man who ... was hard to fluster, a good driver in heavy traffic ... he will be his own man," he said. Melbourne Archbishop Peter Andrew Comensoli has met Pope Leo several times, saying he was a "great listener" with "wide experience and great depth of faith". "Clearly the cardinals were confident that they chose Cardinal Prevost," Archbishop Comensoli told AAP. "We have a chief shepherd and we will all look forward to getting a sense of him, as he begins his ministry." Sydney Archbishop Anthony Fisher said the Chicago native's "missionary heart" would make him a unifier and peacemaker. "He's in a very divided world and the divisions in culture, politics, diplomacy and the rest of the world have infected the church too," Archbishop Fisher said. "This Pope is a very centrist kind of Pope and so that might make him less controversial." The Sydney archbishop sees no reason why Australia won't soon have its first sovereign pontiff visit since Pope Benedict XVI in 2008. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has invited Pope Leo to visit Sydney in 2028 for the International Eucharistic Congress. Archbishop Fisher is confident the pontiff will travel down under after backing Australia's candidacy to host the event. "So we've got a foot in the door for making sure he comes to our Eucharistic Congress," the Archbishop said. Leo spent decades as a missionary in Peru, before Pope Francis appointed him to lead the Vatican's bishop selection process. Mr Albanese said the appointment brought joy and hope to Catholics. "May the papacy of Pope Leo advance the cause of peace and social justice for all humanity," he said. Churchgoers in Sydney celebrated the new Pope by attending mass at St Mary's Cathedral. "I'm not even Christian ... but this is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to see these events," Shantipack Chomsin told AAP. "It feels like everything is right again and we have something to look forward to, so it's fantastic news," Lauren Walker said. Australian Catholic Bishops Conference president Archbishop Timothy Costelloe offered heartfelt congratulations. "Cardinal Prevost brought to his most recent role as Prefect of the Dicastery for Bishops an approachability and willingness to listen which were no doubt developed throughout his many years as an Augustinian missionary in Peru," he said. Catholic Social Services Australia executive director Jerry Nockles said Pope Leo's appointment came at a critical time when the world yearned for compassionate leadership grounded in gospel values of justice, dignity and solidarity with the vulnerable. Cardinal Mykola Bychok was the sole Australian representative at the conclave in Rome. Archbishop Costelloe and Sale Bishop Greg Bennet have indicated they will travel to Rome for the installation, representing the Australian Catholic Bishops Conference and the church in Australia.
