In an interview with the periodical Herder Korrespondenz, Benedict XVI highlights the growing distance between the authentic ecclesial mission and the “institutional Church”, made up of bureaucracy and documents without “the heart and the spirit”. A situation that does not only concern the Church in Germany, but is more general and feeds “the exodus from the world of faith”. Recalling his precious year as chaplain in Bogenhausen, Ratzinger reminds us that God alone is the answer against totalitarianism, past and present.

Access to Masses celebrated by the Pope in Slovakia is prohibited to those who are not vaccinated. And in Italy, the bishop’s daily newspaper launches a crusade against those who oppose mandatory vaccination. Fully espousing the pro-vaccination cause and the adoption of the Green pass, the Church of mercy that advocates tearing down all walls,  is building one around the Mass.

It’s months now that the Dublin government has kept a ban on celebrating First Communions and Confirmations under the pretext of avoiding the festivities that follow. The bishops denounce an attack on religious freedom, but it is also a testimony of how increasingly anti-Catholic Ireland has become.

With the Motu proprio that does away with the vetus ordo, Pope Francis erases Benedict XVI's effort to ensure the development of the Church in continuity with Tradition, to prevent the Second Vatican Council from being understood as a rupture.

In dealing with the Body and Blood of Jesus truly present in the Eucharistic species, the priest must imitate the sentiments of piety and adoration that St Joseph had in nourishing and raising his divine Son during the long years of His hidden life. And the example of Mary’s virginal spouse also points to perfect chastity as an ontological dimension of the priesthood.

The impressive and universal witness of faith experienced last Friday, on the occasion of the 40th anniversary of the first apparition of Medjugorje, in one stroke swept away endless disquisitions on masks and social distancing. After months of being deserted due to free movement restrictions, long queues were seen again at the confessionals. At Medjugorje one lives in another dimension, where “the Lord’s glory” is “seen upon you”, while elsewhere a “deep darkness covers the people”. From here one can set out to strengthen the mission in the world.

The first news of extraordinary events in a small village in Herzegovina unknown even to maps; the reactions of the Communist regime; the arrest of the parish priest; the testimony of a flash of light that appeared in the sky. We publish some excerpts from the chapter dedicated to Medjugorje in the book “Verità e beffe del secolo passato” [(“Truth and Mockery of the Past Century”), Marcianum Press]. It’s the autobiography of Graziano Motta, our Middle East specialist. At the time, Motta was ANSA’s correspondent from Belgrade and was the first Italian journalist to report on the events of Medjugorje.

The public sins of rulers are never only a "personal" matter. The pastors of the Church have the duty to protect their flock from scandal. We do not know how any possible clear position from American bishops will provoke reactions on a political level. However, one thing is certain: reiterating the Church's teaching on the need to refuse the Eucharist "to those who obstinately persevere in manifest grave sin" will lead to healthy reflections on Who is substantially present in the Blessed Sacrament.

Calling private property a 'secondary' right makes it susceptible to restrictions by oppressive powers. To say, on the other hand, that private property is a primary right, but that its use must be well regulated, leads us to discuss the proper roles of individuals, families and natural societies. On the other, requests to limit private property rights favour state and supranational powers, as is happening right now. Let us reflect on the language used by Francis at the United Nations Conference.

As his human nature was united with his divine one, even Jesus needed to be educated. Under the guidance of Mary and Joseph, the Son of God made man was able to grow “in wisdom and stature, and in favour with God and man”. In particular, St Joseph had to perform the duties of a father, such as instructing Jesus in the Law and in a trade while integrating him into social life. Thus he and the Virgin emerge as “models for all educators” (St John Paul II).

The assembly of U.S. bishops to decide on a common position concerning the Eucharist to pro-abortion politicians begins today. But according to the New York Times, the Vatican has already decided the outcome. Fr. Antonio Spadaro and the New York Time contradict themselves by providing political "motivations" regarding an issue that concerns the heart of the Catholic faith and which is well-defined by both canon law and Ratzinger's 2004 CDF memorandum: the Eucharist should be denied to those in grave and manifest sin.

With the new papal decree imposing their democratisation, ecclesial movements are now reduced to associations and their charisms demeaned. This is a further stage in the process of constriction and standardisation that has already affected cloistered convents and even parishes. The large movements are now being regularised. Meanwhile, those movements that are nonconforming are under pressure and those that resist are being openly fought. Never before has there been such a wide range of organisations placed under external oversight, apostolic visits, centralisation of ecclesial power and fears of retaliation.