Davos Congress Center in Davos, Switzerland (WEF – CC BY SA 4.0 DEED)
Last week’s meeting of the World Economic Forum in Davos created quite a controversy around the world when an Amazonian Chieftess was permitted to lead participants in a shamanic ritual, which prompted some to ask, “What spirit governs Davos?”
From attacks on churches and pregnancy centers to the threat of extreme laws aimed at forcing Christians to perform abortions and gender transition procedures on minors, the U.S. bishops have compiled a comprehensive report on the present state of religious liberty in the United States, the five greatest threats to our freedoms, and why the very lives of religious Americans may be at stake in 2024.
During a popular video podcast in Peru, self-proclaimed visionary Erica Serrano told listeners in this predominantly Catholic country to use a consecrated host in a purification ritual and to ward off “toxic people.”
During his annual address to the world’s ambassadors to the Vatican yesterday, Pope Francis called for an international ban on the “deplorable” practice of surrogacy, saying that it “represents a grave violation of the dignity of the woman and the child.”
Catholics are still dying for the Faith. In 2023, 20 men and women from nearly every continent laid down their lives for Christ, including a mother and daughter who were killed in Gaza as they walked into a Catholic church, two young students who were killed when a bomb was detonated at a Mass in the Philippines, and a Nigerian priest who was burned alive in his rectory.
To begin a new series of catechesis on the virtues and vices, Pope Francis spoke about the necessity of understanding the dynamics of evil and temptation and why it is so important to guard the heart against the wiles of Satan.
The issuing of the declaration entitled, Fiducia supplicans, by the Dicastery for the Doctrine of Faith (DDF) on December 18 was meant to open the door to allow same-sex couples to receive a form of blessing in the Church, but many experts say it is opening the door to a great deal of confusion and controversy as well.
Father Stephen Gutgsell, 65, was stabbed to death in the rectory of St. John the Baptist Catholic Church in Fort Calhoun, Nebraska on December 10. The murder of Father Gutgsell, who had a troubled past, marks the 100th attack on Catholic churches in 2023.
Commentary by Susan Brinkmann, OCDS
Several years ago, William J. Bennett wrote a book entitled, The True St. Nicholas: Why He Matters to Christmas, in which he details the story of this heroic saint and how his story became the foundation for the Santa Claus we know today.
What began in 2003 as an inspiration to help Catholic women discover the beauty of authentic femininity, Women of Grace® has grown over the last 20 years into one of the largest Catholic women’s ministries in the Church today.
