News from Good Shepherd and Beyond

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    News from Good Shepherd and Beyond
Word on Fire
Rome Reports
Whispers in the Loggia
- For Brooklyn, “Columbus” Day Comes Early – In NY Homecoming, Pope Taps Brennan to Succeed “The Czar”
  
  In the first Stateside move of the Vatican’s new working year, the most significant opening on the current US docket is off the table… and as Mets fans can always use good news, for once they’re in...
- Amid US Bench's Communion Clash, The "Holy Office" Flashes A Red Light
  
  As some US bishops advocate levying de facto sanctions on President Biden and other Catholic politicians for their support of legal abortion, the Holy See's distinct, but veiled skepticism over a...
- "A Child Can Teach Us How To Love" – Despite COVID and Curfews, Christus Natus Est
  
  Before anything else, especially amid all the sorrows, fears, loss and disorientation of a brutal year across the globe, Buon Natale a tutti – to one and all, a Blessed Christmas... may all its light,
- "The Poor Are The Center of The Gospel" – At Vatican "Festivus," The Church's Choice: "The Docility of the Shepherds, or the Defensiveness of Herod"
  
  Fifteen years (less a day) since Benedict XVI revolutionized the Roman Pontiff's Christmas "greeting" to the leaders of his Curia – transforming the holiday pleasantry into a Pope's ultimate...
- Whether you’ve been waiting three decades or just three weeks for this, the “mountaintop” is at hand. From 4pm Rome (10am US ET), the livefeed of a Public Consistory like no other – from the Altar of...
- Fearing "Attack" On "Fundamental Values," The Bishops Warn Biden's White House
  
  As the US bishops face a moment unseen in most of their lifetimes – the nation's election of a Catholic to the Presidency – the issue of Joe Biden's faith emerged by surprise at today's public close...
- On Day Two, The "Viruses" Take Center Stage
  
  Set to begin at 1pm Eastern, this final day of a virtual – and heavily curtailed – USCCB Plenary will be underpinned by what've arguably been the two key threads of American life in 2020: the bench's...

National Catholic Register
News from the Vatican
- Despite bronchitis, Pope leads outdoor events for Immaculate Conception
  
  After two weeks of battling a flu that left him breathless and unable to read his prepared speeches, Pope Francis Friday led several public events, including an outing to Rome’s Piazza di Spagna, to...
- For second week in a row, ailing Pope speaks from private residence
  
  Pope Francis on Sunday recited his traditional Angelus address from his residence rather than Saint Peter’s Square in order to avoid changing temperatures as he continues treatment for lung...
- In COP-28 message, Pope insists climate change is a ‘religious problem’
  
  Though absent from COP28 in Dubai due to his health, Pope Francis sent a message for the inauguration of the first-ever Faith Pavilion at a United Nations climate event, stressing the responsibility...
- Don’t ignore us: Backed by pope, poorer nations use COP28 summit to press rich world on climate
  
  Countries once colonized by empires are striking back on global warming — and they have the pope’s blessing.
- In message to COP-28, ailing pope calls environmental degradation ‘structural sin’
  
  Despite cancelling his planned trip to Dubai to speak at the COP28 United Nations climate summit due to health concerns, Pope Francis sent a message to the event lamenting the lack of progress in...
- Pope meets with chief of Peru sodality amid calls for dissolution
  
  Pope Francis despite a lingering flu causing breathing difficulties met with the leader of a Peru-based lay group at the Vatican Friday amid an ongoing investigation into the community’s financial...
- Health struggles aside, Pope keeps a jam-packed Thursday schedule
  
  Regardless of cancelling a scheduled trip to Dubai this week due to health concerns, Pope Francis kept a busy schedule Thursday despite receiving ongoing antibiotic treatment for a flu causing lung...