The High Court has dismissed the appeal lodged by the parents of gender-confused children and detransitioner Keira Bell. They were seeking to halt research into the use of puberty-blocking drugs. The trial, which is due to start on 1 August, involves recruiting 226 participants aged between 11 and 16. A human trial with foreseeable harms.
Here's why the Lefebvrian case merits attention
Many wonder why we devote so much space to the Lefebvrian issue when there are various other problems within the Church. Two aspects are worth highlighting: the nature of the Church and the danger posed by a schism, and the gravity of the Fraternity’s positions and Lefebvre’s judgement of Saint John Paul II.
The Oasis of Medjugorje and the Desert of Satan
The matter of the desecrations in Medjugorje cannot be considered closed because wherever God manifests himself, the devil also plays his part in thwarting Heaven's plans. It is no coincidence that these events took place in the run-up to the Youth Festival, which Our Lady has addressed on multiple occasions with words of salvation.
Mauro Marabini, a champion of Italian genius
Entrepreneur, publisher, cultural patron and promoter of Italian culture abroad. Mauro Marabini, who passed away on Monday in the Principality of Monaco, was all this and more. But above all, he was a great friend of the Daily Compass.
Maaloula, an ancient Christian village in the Syrian mountains, was occupied by jihadists between 2013 and 2014. Now that the jihadists are in power across the country, the population is reliving the nightmare of the massacres and abductions of that time. Father Fadi’s account.
Poland is home to Europe’s tallest statue of the Virgin Mary
Work is nearing completion on the statue of Our Lady of Mercy (55.6 metres high, including the plinth) in the village of Konotop. The statue, funded by a Polish millionaire, will be blessed on 15 August, the Solemnity of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary.
During the night of 27–28 July, the statues of Our Lady on the Hill of Apparitions in Medjugorje were defaced with blasphemous graffiti; they have since been cleaned. A fire was also set at the outdoor altar of St James’s Church. These sacrilegious acts took place just a few days before Mladifest. The parish has responded by following the example of the Virgin Mary, through prayer, fasting and forgiveness.
The Rupnik scandal: the trial has become a farce
Vatican News endorses artificial fertilisation
In an article dated 21 July, the official publication of the Dicastery for Communication highlights some of the issues raised by AI with regard to in vitro fertilisation. However, it effectively presents IVF itself as normal. This is a worrying development that goes against the teachings of the Church.
Nuns take state of New York to court over assisted suicide law
On 5 August, a law will come into force obliging even religious institutions to facilitate assisted suicide. Four congregations of nuns are taking the Democrat-governed state to court. Bishop Barres stands with them: 'We will never submit to New York's culture of death.'
The Society of Saint Pius X lodges an appeal, but excommunications stand
The Lefebvrian bishops were consecrated on the basis that any condemnation would be invalid; they are now asking Rome to revoke the decree. However, the excommunication latae sententiae takes effect before, and irrespective of, the relevant judgement. The consequences are uncertain, but the contradiction regarding Petrine authority is clear: it is recognised, but only in order to act against it.
Euthanasia: the French bishops’ resistance is a lesson for the Italian Bishops’ Conference
For years, the French episcopate has justified its opposition to the law on euthanasia and assisted suicide. Now that the law has been passed, the French bishops have issued an unequivocal condemnation. Some bishops have even warned pro-euthanasia MPs that they will not be permitted to receive Holy Communion. This stance is very different from that of the Italian Bishops' Conference (CEI), which favours a 'democratic' law