Catholic Nutshell News: Friday 9/26/25
Topics include: England rally co-opts Christianity; Italian Carmelite taking Leo’s old job; Censorship's ‘New rules of engagement’; & Planned Parenthood could owe $1.8 billion
Fridays, "Living that coconut kinda life."
Today's sources: National Catholic Register, Catholic News Agency, Word on Fire, Our Sunday Visitor, ChurchPOP, & Aleteia. (Catholic Nutshell is a FREE subscription service for faithful, hopeful, & curious Catholics willing to exercise their Catholic News Muscle)
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Catholic News Agency
Cardinal Vincent Nichols condemned rally ‘co-opting Christianity’
By Madalaine Elhabbal, September 25, 2025
Cardinal Vincent Nichols, the president of the Bishops’ Conference of England and Wales, has joined other church leaders in England to express concern that protesters were “co-opting Christianity” at the recent “Unite the Kingdom” rally in London. “As leaders of Christian churches in this country, we wish to express our deep concern that in the recent rally ‘Unite the Kingdom’ and in other places, use has been made, by some, of the symbols and words of the Christian faith to support views and attitudes actually opposed” to the Christian message, the presidents of Churches Together in England (CTE) said in a Sept. 23 statement. “The cross of Christ reveals God’s overwhelming and unconditional love for every single human being,” the statement said. ”The cross and the Gospel of Christ must never be co-opted to support the messages that breed hostility towards others. Its message never legitimizes rejection, hatred, or superiority towards people of other cultures.”
The Pillar
Italian Carmelite taking Leo’s old job as prefect for bishops
By Edgar Beltrán, September 26, 2025
Iannone, an Italian Carmelite who has served as prefect of the Dicastery for Legislative Texts since 2018, fills a vacancy created in May when Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost, the previous prefect of the Dicastery for Bishops, was elected as Pope Leo XIV. Iannone will also be the president of the Pontifical Commission for Latin America, the Vatican said Sept. 26. During his tenure as secretary and prefect of the Dicastery for Legislative Texts, Iannone rejected a push for radical reforms of the Code of Canon Law, several Vatican sources told The Pillar. Iannone also has a track record as a critic of the German “synodal way,” a controversial 2019-2023 initiative that brought together bishops and select lay people to discuss sweeping changes to Catholic teaching and practice.
CatholicVote
‘New rules of engagement’ to defend truth at censorship symposium
By Elise Winland, September 25, 2025
Speaking at the symposium on “Truth, Freedom of Speech, & Modern-day Censorship” Sept. 25, CatholicVote Vice President Joshua Mercer warned that conservatives risk “winning the argument but losing the culture” unless they change how they fight censorship and defend truth. Surveying the cultural landscape, Mercer said conservatives have lost major battles on marriage, family, abortion, and education because they assume “facts can speak for themselves. They just don’t.” Mercer delivered his remarks by video to the Washington, D.C., gathering, which was co-sponsored by Subsidium, the International Catholic Jurists Forum, Ralston College, the Ruth Institute, Ave Maria School of Law, and the Center for Family and Human Rights. The event drew scholars, lawyers, and advocates from across the country and came just weeks after the assassination of conservative leader Charlie Kirk.
National Catholic Register
Award for pro-abortion Senator Durbin sows confusion
By Jeanne Ives, September 25, 2025
Cardinal Blase Cupich’s decision to present Catholic Sen. Richard Durbin, D-Ill., with a “Lifetime Achievement Award” from the Archdiocese of Chicago’s Office of Human Dignity and Solidarity is offensive to Catholics and Protestants around the country. It is especially offensive to Catholic politicians who have fought in debates, committee hearings, and in front of hostile press and who have been called hateful names and had smear campaigns directed at them for holding positions that align with Catholic doctrine. It is also breathtakingly tone-deaf, especially in Illinois at present. When a candidate advances to the level of state and national politics, various interest groups can influence whether that person wins or loses an election. Sen. Durbin was aware of this, and in 1982, when he first ran for public office in an election for the United States Congress, he leveraged his pro-life connections to win.
The Times of Israel
PM says Israel won’t let world ‘shove a terror state down our throat’
By ToI Staff, September 26, 2025
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that the war in Gaza has “everything” to do with people around the world. “Our enemies are your enemies,” he argued. He held up a poster with the question, “Who shouts ‘Death to America’?” The poster showed the answer – Hamas, Hezbollah, the Houthis, and Iran. “Our enemies hate all of us with equal venom,” he said. “They want to drag the modern world back to the past, to a dark age of violence, fanaticism, and terror. You know deep down that Israel is fighting your fight,” he said, adding that leaders who publicly condemn Israel say behind closed doors that they value Israel’s intelligence services that have repeatedly prevented attacks in their capitals. Trump said, “I think we have a deal.” Yesterday, Trump indicated that he would have to meet with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Washington on Monday before the deal can be finalized.
Related: Cardinal Pizzaballa: Situation in Gaza a ‘disaster,’ two-state solution ‘less and less real’ - By OSV News, September 26, 2025
Catholic World Report
Planned Parenthood could owe $1.8 billion in Medicaid fraud lawsuit
By Kate Quiñones/CNA, September 25, 2025
A $1.8 billion lawsuit, Doe v. Planned Parenthood, brought by an anonymous activist and the state of Texas, is seeking to recover money they say Planned Parenthood illegally took from Medicaid. When Planned Parenthood was exposed for selling fetal tissue and organs, Louisiana and Texas quickly moved to revoke the organization’s Medicaid eligibility. Court orders delayed the revocation. As the courts debated Planned Parenthood’s eligibility, the group continued to make Medicaid reimbursement claims despite the uncertain status until 2020, when the U.S. 5th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled in favor of the states. Designed to protect taxpayer dollars from fraudulent actors, the False Claims Act requires that “any person who knowingly submits, or causes to submit, false claims to the government is liable for three times the government’s damages plus a penalty that is linked to inflation,” according to the U.S. Department of Justice website.
CRUX
Claims of massive fraud in the Holy See’s trial denied
By Nicole Winfield/AP, September 26, 2025
The Vatican appeals tribunal put an end Thursday to prosecutors’ efforts to salvage their claims of massive fraud in the Holy See’s “Trial of the Century,” in which a once-powerful cardinal and nine others were accused of fleecing tens of millions of euros from the church. In an embarrassing loss, the tribunal declared the prosecutor’s appeal in the case inadmissible, meaning the court refused to admit the prosecutor’s requests to overturn acquittals on more than two dozen charges. The court said prosecutors had failed on a basic procedural point: To provide specific reasons for their appeal within the right timeframe. The decision, a stunning and embarrassing blow to prosecutors, means the appeals process goes forward but only for the defense efforts to overturn the 2023 convictions or reduce the sentences.
Our Sunday Visitor
Can parishes lock doors after a school Mass begins for safety?
By Jenna Marie Cooper, September 24, 2025
Pastors are probably aware of the requirement in canon law that churches be open to the public for liturgical celebrations, such as Mass. As Canon 1221 of the Code of Canon Law states: “Entry to a church at the hours of sacred functions is to be open and free of charge.” Closing the doors of a church to the faithful while Mass is being celebrated in that church is straightforwardly against the law. Some canon lawyers believe that this law can be dispensed by the local bishop, who, in theory, might grant special, limited permission to lock the doors of a church during Mass for an appropriately serious reason. Other canon lawyers would argue that this requirement cannot be dispensed, not even by the local bishop, because it pertains to the heart of what a church building is most essentially. A church building is a sacred space that is inherently open to the public. The faithful fundamentally have a right to join in the prayer conducted in a church building since it is, in a sense, their spiritual home.
Big Pulpit, CNA & ChurchPOP for 9/26/25
Big Pulpit
Tito Edwards Catholic site: September 26, 2025
The Big Pulpit website is a news aggregator that gathers quality insights and analysis on the Catholic Church worldwide.
Fr. James Martin, S.J., Folds – Donald R. McClarey, J.D., at The American Catholic
Pope Leo Hints at Future of Traditional Latin Mass: Will He be Like Pope Francis? – Kennedy Hall
Jesuit Critic Of Order’s Direction Meets With Pope – Catholic World News
Bishop Garcia Ended TLM in Monterrey & Just Now at Texas A&M University – Rorate Cæli
Catholic News Agency
CNA’s top headlines — September 26, 2025
Catholic News Agency provides reliable and free up-to-the-minute news affecting the Universal Church, with updates on the words of the Holy Father and the Holy See.
U.S. bishops reiterate solidarity with faithful of Africa amid ongoing conflicts - Sep 26, 2025 - By Tessa Gervasini - The United States bishops have expressed their solidarity with the bishops and faithful in Africa “amidst ongoing conflicts.”
Police investigate flyers at Georgetown recruiting for far-left gun group tied to violence - Sep 25, 2025 - By Tessa Gervasini - Police are investigating a number of posters displayed on Georgetown University’s campus that appear to be recruiting students for a leftist gun club linked to violence.
Gaza’s only Catholic priest: ‘For mercy’s sake stop this war and stop killing people’ - Sep 25, 2025 - By Walter Sánchez Silva - The only parish priest in Gaza, Father Gabriel Romanelli, pleaded in a video posted Sept. 23 for an end to the war.
ChurchPOP Trending
ChurchPOP provides fun, informative, and authentically Catholic news and culture - September 26, 2025
The Hidden Power of the Seven Sorrows Devotion: 8 Ways Our Lady of Sorrows Changed My Life - Our Lady says in my heart, “Be gentle and patient, as I am gentle and patient.”
101-Year-Old Woman Recites This Prayer Every Morning for Peace & Strength - Cardiologist Manuel de la Peña, author of the book Guide to Living Healthy for 120 Years, shared a moving video on Instagram featuring Conchi, who at her age still demonstrates remarkable clarity of mind—and an unwavering commitment to prayer.
Beautiful Musical About Saint Bernadette of Lourdes to Hit Theaters at End of September - Fathom Entertainment will release “Bernadette of Lourdes, The Musical” in theaters from Sept. 28-29 for two days only.
Nutshell reflections for 9/26/25:
USCCB Daily Reflection: AUDIO - September 26, 2025
Friday of the Twenty-fifth Week in Ordinary Time
Catholic Weekly
Sport was never meant to bear the weight of our souls
By Anthony Eltarraf, September 26, 2025
In Australia, sport often feels like a religion of its own. Our weekends revolve around it. Our identities are wrapped up in our teams. Whole communities unite or divide over the colours we wear. The stadiums are secular cathedrals, the players our ‘saints’, the commentators, preachers. And yet, as much as I love rugby league, I have to remind myself that it is not my faith. It is not ultimate. It cannot give my life meaning in the way the Catholic faith does. The danger with sport becoming ‘religion’ is that it takes something good and elevates it beyond its purpose. Sport is a gift. It builds community, teaches discipline, brings joy. But it was never meant to bear the weight of our souls. We were made for more. The catechism reminds us that “the desire for God is written in the human heart” (CCC 27).
Aleteia
Pope Leo’s pleasant surprise regarding France
By Agnès Pinard Legry, September 26, 2025
In his first interview since his election, published in a book released on September 18, Leo XIV discussed many topics. He revealed some of the directions his pontificate will take. However, when he brought up a particular subject — catechumens — he spoke specifically of a country: France. Leo XIV specifically mentioned the situation of the Church in that country, referring to his audience on July 29 with 600 young catechumens — people seeking baptism — in France. He described as “very interesting” the phenomenon of the rise of catechumens in a country, “which for a period of time was considered one of the most secularized countries that was around.” In April, the Conference of Bishops of France announced that more than 10,000 adults and more than 7,400 adolescents were expected to be baptized in 2025, a record number.
Word on Fire
Broken Mary: God can troll with the best of them
By Maggie Phillips, September 26, 2025
Broken Mary: The Kevin Matthews’ Story offers a poignant glimpse into shock jock Kevin Matthews’ personal and professional life. Format-wise, the first half is a VH1 Behind the Music–style documentary about his tenure as Chicago’s clown prince of the airwaves. The anecdotes about his pranks and stunts have a real “you had to be there” quality to them. Yet even as he was breaking FCC rules and inciting NFL players to duct tape him to a chair, Matthews remained what he calls a “zombie Catholic,” still going through the motions. By the 2010s, a changing radio landscape and a multiple sclerosis diagnosis had all taken their toll on Matthews’ career. He began to turn to the faith of his own troubled childhood, but he still couldn’t bring himself to look at a statue of Mary. The second half of Broken Mary tells the story of how the former DJ went from being the headliner to “Mary’s roadie.”
Catholic365
Are we all really created equal?
By Eileen Renders, September 26, 2025
Equality depends upon our perception. We can all agree that some of us are physically bigger and stronger than others, and many of us are more intelligent or attractive than others. Some are born without limbs and must, therefore, depend on others for simple tasks such as going to the bathroom or eating. Some are born without sight. With compassion, at some time in our lives, we may turn to God and ask, “Why do you allow this to occur?” Nick Vujicic, known as the limbless evangelist, has traveled to over 600 prisons across America, speaking to those imprisoned to share hope that even while being imprisoned, they can find hope and freedom. Romans 8:26 tells us. “We do not know what to pray for, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us through wordless groans.” The Spirit provides believers with a deeper understanding of their faith and the divine plan for us.
Image of Coconut by Celio Nicoli from Pixabay
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