Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Mar 21, 2025 / 15:45 pm (CNA).
Here are some of the major stories about the Church from around the world that you may have missed this week:
Swiss bishop issues call on podcast for ordination of women
Bishop Markus Büchel of the Swiss Diocese of St. Gallen spoke out in favor of women’s ordination during a podcast appearance for a German-language online news outlet, kath.ch, CNA Deutsch, CNA’s German-language news partner, reported Tuesday.
The bishop argued his position stating that the Church has a “consecration emergency” due to the fact that only celibate men may enter the priesthood.
German director of Münster academy defends award honoring Bishop Barron
Following backlash over what some have called Bishop Robert Barron’s “conservative” theological and political views, the director of the Münster Academy Franz-Hitze-Haus, Johannes Sabel, has defended plans to award the American bishop and Word on Fire founder with the academy’s Josef Pieper Prize, CNA Deutsch reported.
Sabel stated in a guest article in a German-language outlet that Barron’s theological and political views should not be a reason to cancel his award ceremony. He further called it “a good sign” that there was debate surrounding the award, saying it is the academy’s mission to represent a plurality of positions.
Myanmar military targets St. Patrick Cathedral on eve of his feast
The ruling military junta in Myanmar torched a Catholic cathedral dedicated to St. Patrick in the northern Kachin state on the eve of his feast day last weekend, according to the Vatican news service Agenzia Fides.
The cathedral, its three-story office building, high school, and rectory were all destroyed in the fire, which soldiers of the SAC (State Administration Council) set during military operations around 4 p.m. on Sunday.
President of Zambia: ‘The Catholic Church and the government will always be one’
President Hakainde Hichilema of Zambia celebrated his government’s partnership with the Catholic Church during a speech on Wednesday, stating that “the Catholic Church and the government are development partners, we are not competitors,” according to ACI Africa, CNA’s news partner in Africa.
He further emphasized the bond between the two institutions, adding: “The Catholic Church and the government will always be one and we will work together, and I want to assure you that you have our full support.”
Franciscan monks in Syria condemn attacks on innocent civilians
The Fransiscan Monks of the Custodian of the Holy Land living in Syria issued a statement condemning the recent violence, which they said “increases the suffering of the Syrian people and threatens civil peace and the future of the country at this sensitive stage,” ACI MENA, CNA’s Arabic-language news partner, reported on Tuesday.
The statement comes after an onslaught of civilian revenge killings along the coastal region of Syria earlier this month, which took place after remnants of former president Bashar al-Assad regime supporters launched a series of attacks on the country’s interim government that were met with immense retaliatory force targeting mostly Alawite civilians.
Knights of Malta leader reaffirms support for Lebanon’s reconstruction during visit
During his recent visit to Lebanon, the grand chancellor of the Sovereign Order of Malta met with Maronite Patriarch Cardinal Bechara Boutros Raï to reaffirm the order’s support for Lebanon in its recovery phase, ACI MENA reported Sunday. The meeting highlighted the international community’s recognition of Lebanon’s sovereignty and neutrality, essential for the country’s stability and rebuilding efforts.
200 Christians at Punjab prison suffer human rights abuses
Following the escape of a fellow inmate, the roughly 200 Christian inmates contained at Rawalpindi Central Jail in the Punjab Province are now being denied usual access to the facility’s church, Asia News reported Thursday.
Human rights activist Xavier William — who visits the prison frequently — told the outlet: “[Christians] are already facing many difficulties, both inside the prison and with the judicial system. They are forced to clean the cells and suffer repeated abuse. Now they are even denied access to the church, to pray or engage in activities for their spiritual growth.”
Chaldean patriarch in Iraq: Muslims praying with Church for Holy Father’s health
The patriarch of the Chaldean Church, Cardinal Louis Raphael Sako, told ACI Prensa, CNA’s Spanish-language news partner, that Chaldean churches and monasteries have been praying for Pope Francis’ health daily and have been joined as well by Iraq’s Muslim community, ACI MENA reported.
Sako stated that “a large number of Muslims call me daily to check on his health condition.” The Holy Father has been hospitalized in Rome’s Gemelli Hospital for 35 days.
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And Bishop Markus Büchel wonders why there’s a “consecration emergency.” Respectfully…idiot.
Recommended reading for Bishop Markus Büchel and other inventive clerics is “From the Depth of Our Heart” (Ignatius, January 2020), co-authored by emeritus pope Benedict XVI and Cardinal Sarah, and the related article by Cardinal Gerhard Cardinal Muller (“Inside the Vatican,” February 2020).
Writes Muller: “What Pope Francis writes in the preface to his predecessor’s book on the priesthood should be read by all the ‘wise and powerful men of this world (cf. 1 Corinthians 2:6).’” Also, from “Inside the Vatican,” here quoting Benedict from the book:
“The priesthood of Jesus Christ causes us to enter into a life that consists of becoming one with Him and renouncing all that belongs only to us…This is the foundation of the necessity of celibacy…and the renunciation of material goods.” Marriage, he writes, requires man to give himself totall to his family. “Since serving the Lord likewise requires the total gift of a man, it does not seem possible to carry on the two vocations simultaneously.”
An essential read, too, possibly for members of the post-synodal Study Group #4 (out of 15) on so-called “hot-button issues”: this Study Group possibly addressing celibacy (?) within the priestly vocation, in its assigned task to review “Ratio Fundamentalis Institutionis Sacerdotalis.”
All the Study Groups are scheduled to report by June 2025, in advance of Cardinal Grech’s sequence of diocesan, national and continental synodal exercises, and the grand finale “Ecclesial Assembly” of 2028.
Is Bishop Buchel’s contribution random, or is it the camel’s nose under the tent?
He just openly declared himself a heretic. He needs to be laicized and excommunicated.
But, but…there’s a shortage of priests. (eyeroll)
St. Gallen?
Mmm. That rings a bell.
If there’s a silver lining to this dark time in Church history, it’s that the wolves who prowl among the flock are exposed for all to see.
Buchel, Cupich, McElroy, Hollerich — all of them, from Bergoglio on down — have revealed their true faces.
By advocating heresy, they show that they are not faithful shepherds. They are not even Catholic.
@ German director of Münster academy defends award honoring Bishop Barron
Another feather in the Bishop’s miter. If the ultra liberal Germans concede his orthodoxy shouldn’t be cause for revocation of the award, it means he’s good enough theologically to convince them.
The Swiss “bishop” is an imbecile.
God’s Fool issues call in comments section for Swiss Bishop Büchel to resign or be removed as a heretic.
To solve this consecration emergency, Bishop Strickland is available. His diocese had a lot of vocations.