News this week in the Roman Catholic Church

Nancy Pelosi has been barred from reception of the sacrament of Holy Communion due to her very public stance on and promotion of abortion. Archbishop Cordileone’s imposition has received a firestorm of criticism, but since Pelosi swore to bring about the codification of the controversial sentence Roe vs Wade, which would essentially provide unfettered access to abortion at all stages of pregnancy for any reason, the archbishop and canon lawyer has taken it upon himself to clarify the position of the Catholic Church, in order to prevent further confusion and scandal. After sending letters to Pelosi, Archbishop Cordileone launched the Rosery and roses for Nancy initiative. The Archbishop has been accused of politicizing the sacrament, but he has stated to be exclusively moved by his pastoral mission, as well as Pope Francis’s underlying support of the revised book 6 of the Code of Canon Law (canon 1379), in which the importance of moving the erring Catholic to the point of conversion is treated in detail, and underlined as the responsibility of the pastor. It is also sound Catholic doctrine and an act of mercy to refuse communion to one who is publicly recognized as being in a state of grave sin, both to protect that individual’s soul from eternal condemnation, and the Church from greater scandal. Nancy Pelosi has since flagrantly disregarded the imposition of her Archbishop, which could signify that she is now ipso facto outside of the Church (she has, by her actions, excommunicated herself).  

One must be in a state of grace to receive Holy Communion: 1 Corinthians 11:23-26:

“Therefore whoever eats this bread or drinks this cup
of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of the body and blood
of the Lord. But let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of the
bread and drink of the cup. For he who eats and drinks in an unworthy
manner eats and drinks judgment to himself, not discerning the Lord’s
body.”

Cardinal Zen’s trial in Hong Kong

On Tuesday, the former bishop of Hong Kong,  Joseph cardinal Zen appeared in a Hong Kong court and faced new charges. He was originally arrested on charges of conspiracy to collude, which under new security laws, carries potentially a life sentence. He faced trial together with 4 other former trustees of this relief fund, who, upon appearing in court, were charged with failing to register the fund with police as a ‘society’; a misdemeanor which may incur a fine of up to 1200 Us dollars for the first conviction. Cardinal Zen plead not guilty. The second charge is not a change, but rather an addition to original charges, but cardinal Zen will face the more serious security charges later this year. He will return to court in September for the fine, and there may very well be a life sentence for the graver charge. The situation is a concocted effort to intimidate the Catholic Church and Chinese Christians at large. In fact, Cardinal Zen’s arrest really symbolizes the end of religious freedom in Hong Kong. The arrest is a warning that no one will be exempt from arrest – not even a 90-year-old emeritus bishop – if they fail to conform to the ideology of the CCP.

Following his trial, Cardinal Zen offered a Mass (May 24^th, feast of Mary, Help of All Christians) in commemoration and honor of all those Christians who are not able to offer or attend Mass. This also coincided with the Day of Prayer for the Church in China. Speaking with the circa three hundred people at the Mass, Cardinal Zen spoke critically of the Vatican- China deal, which he suspects may very well represent the death of the underground Church.

Although Cardinal Zen is perhaps the most well-known Chinese Catholic dissident on the world stage, and despite the fact that he is the only Catholic cardinal on political trial anywhere in the world, the Vatican  – and more specifically, Pope Francis –  failed to mention his name on the day of Prayer for the Chinese Church, nor are they offering him any legal assistance. Parolin apparently believes that ‘dialogue’ with the CCP takes priority over the life of an elderly Chinese cardinal.

Pope Francis stated earlier this week that Americans don’t have deep roots in North America: “You are a people of migrants, of Irish immigrants and Italian immigrants. The Irish brought you whisky, and the Italians brought you the Mafia. Always look at the roots”.  Some are reacting with hostility to those comments, with one journalist calling it a series of ethnic slurs.