The Pope, Axelrod and Trump

N.B. Bad form to involve himself so directly in US politics during the lead-up to the mid-terms. Trump is not entirely on the “wrong side”…

“So the Pope met with David Axelrod last week. David Axelrod. Obama's campaign architect. A man who is not Catholic, has never met a pope before, and whose entire career has been engineering political narratives for the American left.

“And then, by pure coincidence, the Pope immediately started lobbing shots at the Trump administration, and three US Cardinals popped up on 60 Minutes doing the same thing. 

“All organically, I'm sure.

“I'm a practicing Catholic. I need you to understand that part. But in my opinion, Trump has all the right to lash out at him. Maybe you'll disagree, but in the end, Trump talks like Trump. Water is wet. I'm talking about MY Church being run like a DNC satellite office but with a golden throne.

“This is the same Vatican that watched governments padlock churches during COVID and said nothing. That let Biden take communion while funding abortion and said nothing. That fired Bishop Strickland for defending actual Church doctrine. That removed Bishop Fernández in Puerto Rico for defending religious exemptions THE CATECHISM ITSELF supports.

“But somehow Trump is the threat to human dignity.

“Pope Francis was bad. Leo has turned out to be worse. Francis at least was vague about his politics. Leo went and hired the consulting firm.

“The man has ignored the slaughter of Christians across Nigeria, the Sahel, India, Syria, Bangladesh, Pakistan. Hundreds of believers murdered, churches burned, pastors kidnapped. His response? Platitudes about dialogue. 

“OF COURSE he won't even name who's doing the killing.

“But he'll fly across continents to make interfaith gestures the week after his people coordinated a media hit on a sitting US president.

“The weaponization of belief is obvious. You get the Pope to pick a fight with Trump, and suddenly millions of conservative Catholics have to choose between their faith and their vote.”

@Knesix

Scripture for today: Consolation in suffering calumny and slander

“They that now speak evil of you will be found out in the slanderers, liars, and calumniators, and ye shall be seen to be brighter than the sun…”

From the Holy Gospel according to Luke
Luke 12:2-8
In the meantime, when there were gathered together an innumerable multitude of people, in so much that they trod one upon another, Jesus began to say unto His disciples first of all, Beware ye of the leaven of the Pharisees, which is hypocrisy, for there is nothing covered, that shall not be revealed; neither hid, that shall not be known. And so on.

Homily by St. John Chrysostom, Patriarch of Constantinople)
On Matthew x. 26.
The disciple is not above his master, nor the servant above his lord. It is enough for the disciple that he be as his master, and the servant as his lord. If they have called the master of the house Beelzebub, how much more shall they call them of his household? Fear them not, therefore: for] there is nothing covered, that shall not be revealed; and hid, that shall not be known. It is as though He would say: It is comfort enough for you, if I, your Master and Lord, am a partaker in your reproach. But if it grieve you unto this present to hear these things, bethink you likewise that it is but a little while, and ye shall be free from that reproach. For what is it that grieveth you? is it that they call you tricksters and deceivers? Wait but a little while and all men shall call you the preservers and benefactors of the world. In a little while all the things which are dark now shall be made clear, and the falsehood of them that reproach you and your own goodness shall be shown in the light. For when that which cometh to pass shall itself show that ye are preservers and benefactors, and filled with all goodness, men will regard not the words of your gainsayers but the truth. They that now speak evil of you will be found out in the slanderers, liars, and calumniators, and ye shall be seen to be brighter than the sun; time shall make you known and shall preach you with a voice louder than the voice of a trumpet, and shall bring forward all men as the witnesses of your goodness. Let not, therefore, those things which are now spoken cast you down, but rather let the hope of the good things which are to come lift you up. For the things which regard you cannot be hidden.

Cesar Chavez Mass canceled in Los Angeles Archdiocese after bombshell sexual abuse allegations

  By Daniel Payne for EWTN News

March 19, 2026 Daniel Payne

The long-celebrated champion of farm workers, who died in 1993, has been accused of “abusing girls for years,” according to the New York Times.

Cesar Chavez speaks at the 1980 political endorsement conference held at Trade Tech College in Los Angeles, Sunday, Sept. 7, 1980. | Credit: Ken Hively/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images

An annual Mass in the nation’s largest Catholic diocese honoring legendary labor leader Cesar Chavez will not take place this year after a bombshell report alleged that the activist sexually abused multiple girls at the height of his popularity decades ago.

The explosive allegations came on March 18 in an investigation by the New York Times, one that alleged that Chavez abused multiple young girls in a “pattern” of sexual misconduct for years.

The revelations sent numerous organizations scrambling to distance themselves from Chavez, who has loomed large in U.S. politics for decades, including being honored by President Joe Biden with a bust in the Oval Office during his administration.

The Archdiocese of Los Angeles said it would not be holding its regular Mass this year honoring Chavez’s legacy. The Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels has held an annual Mass in March to acknowledge the advocate’s “commitment to the struggle for justice and dignity for all workers,” but an archdiocesan spokeswoman said the Mass would not take place in at least 2026.

“The Chavez family informed the archdiocese that they had decided not to move forward with having a Mass this year,” the spokeswoman told EWTN News.

The United Farm Workers of America, a labor union founded in part by Chavez, said ahead of the Times’ report that the allegations were “deeply troubling.” The group said it would “not be taking part in any Cesar Chavez Day activities” amid the controversy.

More: https://www.catholicworldreport.com/2026/03/19/cesar-chavez-mass-canceled-in-los-angeles-archdiocese-after-bombshell-sexual-abuse-allegations/

When Popes Drop Jesus and Presidents Play Messiah?

N.B. Popes have their lane just like presidents. Salvation of souls must come first. And should never be trumped by politics.

Video: https://youtu.be/brlG4mPZuz0

And more from @catholickelsey on Twitter/X:

“There is no doubt that President Trump’s post insulting Pope Leo crossed, again, a line of decorum that plays an important part in diplomacy and sets the temperature for interactions between the two. Calls for an apology are well founded.

“But we also need to reasonably evaluate the Vatican-vs.-Trump narrative: too many people are trying to turn a public disagreement into a grand showdown between the two.

“That is false, and Catholics should reject it.

“Archbishop Paul Coakley and Pope Leo himself, this morning, made the key point clear: the Pope is not a politician, not a partisan operator, and not a rival to the President of the United States. He is the Vicar of Christ. His role is to speak moral truth, defend human dignity, and call leaders to pursue peace.

“The President needs to hear that in a way he understands.

“Of course, some of the Pope’s statements may sound out of step with the tone, assumptions, or priorities of American politics. Fine. That does not mean he is “anti-American.” It does not mean he is attacking the United States. And it certainly does not mean Catholics should be manipulated into choosing between the Church and their country.

“The Pope also needs to understand that many Americans view his interventions as overtly political and aligned with one side of the political spectrum. Catholics who have been paying attention note that no such condemnation of the loss of life through abortion ever came from Rome to Catholic President Joe Biden during the last pontificate, despite that evil ending millions of lives.

“Enter Ambassador Brian Burch. As the founder and first president of CatholicVote, and now as U.S. Ambassador to the Holy See, Burch is uniquely positioned to serve as a credible bridge between Washington and Rome. He understands the convictions, language, and concerns on both sides, and that gives him an especially important role at a moment when honest mediation, fair translation, and cooler heads are urgently needed.

“What American Catholics should oppose is the deliberate effort to manufacture a large-scale confrontation between the Vatican and the United States, between Pope Leo and President Trump, or between fidelity to the Holy Father and love of country. Parts of the media are pushing that narrative. So are identifiable bad actors, including some inside the Church. They want conflict. They feed on confusion. And they benefit from division.

“Catholics should be smarter than that.

“There is no reason this disagreement should become a larger rupture. But it will if reckless voices keep treating every papal statement as a partisan attack and every political disagreement as proof of betrayal.

“Once again, we must delineate between moral principles and the realm of politics.

“But for now, let’s pray for wisdom for both leaders. And do not let others manufacture a conflict that does not have to exist.”

German Catholic Church In Free-Fall: Lost 550K Members, Ordained Only 25 Priests in 2025

 N.B. The Synod results are in!

March 18, 2026 Tags Church Decline from LifeSite News by Andreas Wailzer

The Catholic Church in Germany lost nearly 550,000 members in 2025 and only recorded 25 priestly ordinations nationwide.

The German Bishops’ Conference (DBK) has published preliminary figures for 2025 across all German dioceses, showing another year of a massive exodus from the Church.

Around 307,000 people left the Catholic Church, while 2,269 joined and 5,443 were readmitted. However, if one factors in the deaths, the Church shrank by 549,636 persons compared to the previous year. This represents a slight decrease from the previous year, when the Church lost around 575,000 members.

Most notably, only 25 priests were consecrated in all German dioceses, excluding religious orders, which are recorded separately.

The number of baptisms has declined once again, with 109,028 recorded in 2025 compared to 116,274 in 2024. The same applies to Catholic weddings, which numbered 19,478 (2024: 22,513). The numbers remained stable for First Communions at 152,357 (2024: 151,702) and for Confirmation, at 105,334 (2024: 105,041). The number of parishes fell from 9,291 to 8,997 due to structural reform prompted by fewer practicing believers.

Weekly church attendance was recorded at 6.8 percent, a very slight increase from the previous year (2024: 6.6 percent).

Continue reading at LifeSite News

“Unless you take up your Cross and follow Me, you cannot be My disciple”

From the Holy Gospel according to Luke

Luke 14:26-33
At that time, Jesus said unto the multitudes: If any man come to Me, and hate not his father, and mother, and wife, and children, and brethren, and sisters, yea, and his own life also, he cannot be My disciple. And so on.

Homily by Pope St Gregory the Great
Homilia 37th on the Gospels.
Dearly beloved brethren, if we consider what and how great things are promised unto us in heaven, all things which are upon earth grow poor to our mind. For when this world's goods are reckoned against the gladness above, they are found to be a clog rather than an help. This present life being compared to life eternal, ought rather to be called death than life. For what is the daily failing of our corruption but, as it were, a creeping death. But what tongue is there that can tell, or what understanding that can comprehend how great is the rejoicing in the city above, where they have part with the choirs of Angels, where they stand with the most blessed spirits before the glory of the Creator, where they see the face of God present, where they behold the Incomprehensible Light, where they have no fear of death, and where they rejoice eternally incorruptible.

Then we hear these things our hearts burn within us and we long to be already there, where we hope to rejoice for ever. But we cannot attain unto great rewards, save through great labour. Therefore saith the excellent preacher Paul: “He is not crowned, except he strive lawfully.” 2 Tim. ii. 5. The greatness of the reward doth delight our mind let not the throes of the struggle dishearten us. Therefore the Truth saith unto every one that cometh unto Him “If any man come to Me, and hate not his father and mother, and wife, and children, and brethren, and sisters, yea, and his own life also, he cannot be My disciple.”

Or it may be asked how we are commanded in one place to hate our parents, and them that are near us in the flesh, and in another place to love even our enemies. And, verily, the Truth hath said, as touching a wife “What God hath joined together, let not man put asunder.” Matth. xix. 6. And Paul saith “ Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also loved the Church.” Eph. v. 25. Behold, the disciple commandeth a man to love his wife, and the Master saith “If any man hate not his wife, he cannot be My disciple.” Doth the judge, then, order one proclamation, and the crier make another? or can the man both love and hate? If we consider well the force of the commandment, we shall be able in wisdom to do both. Let us love wife, and kindred, and neighbour, as touching their nearness in the flesh but as touching the way of God, if they withstand us therein, let us not know them, but hate them and flee from them.

Pope Leo XIV leading prayer of rosary for peace today

 Please join him as you are able.

Link to prayers in Italian: https://www.vatican.va/content/dam/liturgy/pdf/2026/20260411-libretto-santo-rosario-pace.pdf