Catholic Nutshell News: Saturday 7/12/25
Topics include: Parish payments to Buffalo Diocese halted; Flight attendant fired for Catholic beliefs; 14 Catholic scouts declared ‘martyrs’; & Superman’ OK, but not for kids
“We see through new tender verdant pecan leaves”
Today's news sources are Aleteia, CRUX, Catholic News Agency, National Catholic Register, Aleteia, First Things, and The Catholic Thing. (Catholic Nutshell is a subscription service for faithful, hopeful, & curious Catholics willing to exercise their Catholic News Muscle)
Please support the following Catholic news services and spiritual support sites. Click here to view this email on the Catholic Nutshell News website. Today’s Catholic Nutshell News audio podcast is available on the Substack App.
National Catholic Register
New York SC halts parish payments to Buffalo Abuse Fund
By Daniel Payne/CNA, July 11, 2025
Parishioners in the Diocese of Buffalo, New York, won a reprieve on Friday when the state Supreme Court instituted a temporary halt on payments the diocese has required of parishes to fund its clergy-abuse settlement amid a Vatican-moderated dispute over parish mergers. The complicated case stems from a group of parishes that object to the diocese’s requirement that they pay huge portions of cash into the diocese’s $150-million clergy-abuse settlement even as they wait for the Vatican to hear their appeal concerning a diocesan merger plan. The Diocese of Buffalo, which filed for bankruptcy in 2020 amid a large number of abuse claims, announced last month that its parishes would be required to pay up to 80% of their “unrestricted cash” by July 15 to help fund the settlement for abuse victims.
Catholic News Agency
Flight attendant fired for Catholic beliefs proceeds with lawsuit
By Matt McDonald, July 11, 2025
A Catholic flight attendant who says United Airlines fired him after he endorsed Catholic teachings on marriage and gender identity while talking with a co-worker can proceed with his lawsuit against his union for not standing up for him, a federal judge has ruled. The flight attendant, Ruben Sanchez, of Anchorage, Alaska, claims the airline investigated his extensive social media posts only after receiving what he describes as “baseless accusations” arising from a red-eye flight conversation in May of 2023 — and that when the company came up with nothing that violated its social media policy, it terminated him anyway. Sanchez filed the lawsuit in January of 2025 against United Airlines and the union he belonged to while working for the airline, the Association of Flight Attendants-CWA, in U.S. District Court for the Central District of California.
Agenzia Fides
Nepal Catholics demand a guarantee for the right to education
By Agenzia Fides, July 7, 2025
Nepal's new education law, currently being approved, has sparked intense public debate and protests by teachers. The Nepal Teachers’ Federation has threatened to launch a fresh protest if the School Education Bill is not endorsed within a week. The bill, with 163 sections, had received more than 1,700 amendments. "Despite the progress made, challenges such as poverty, social exclusion, and gender bias continue to compromise children's access to education," Father Pius Perumana, a priest of the Apostolic Vicariate of Nepal, the ecclesiastical district that covers the entire country, told Fides. Nepal is home to 11.5 million children out of a population of 33 million, and nearly one million are orphans. “The main problem in Nepal is how to make the right to education accessible to children even in the most remote corners of the country," said Fr. Perumana.
Aleteia
14 French Catholic scouts declared ‘martyrs’ by Pope Leo XIV
By Philip Kosloski, July 12, 2025
On June 20, 2025, Pope Leo XIV officially recognized a large group of French priests and laymen who were persecuted by the Nazi regime. Many French men were sent to the German front through a Compulsory Work Service. In response to this order, various French priests, religious, and laymen followed these workers into German territory. However, because they were caring for the physical and spiritual needs of these workers, they were arrested, tortured, and put to death mainly in concentration camps. Included in this number of martyrs are 14 men who were part of the Scouts de France movement. Inspired by Baden-Powell and the "Boy Scout" movement that began in England, French priest Venerable Jacques Sevin began Catholic scouting in France (Fédération des Scouts de France) in 1920 and later became known as the “Father of Catholic Scouting” for his innovative ideas. The 14 men who were declared martyrs by Pope Leo XIV were part of this same scouting movement in France.
Our Sunday Visitor
Strength & values in the new ‘Superman’ movie, but not for kids
By John Mulderig, July 11, 2025
In the spring of 1938, when the figure of Superman made his first appearance in the pages of DC’s “Action Comics #1,” President Franklin Roosevelt’s efforts to combat the Great Depression via the New Deal were at their height. There had been only one World War, and Lou Gehrig was still playing for the New York Yankees. Writer-director James Gunn and his collaborators have succeeded in painting a fresh and vibrant portrait of journalist Clark Kent’s alter ego (David Corenswet) in the reboot “Superman” (Warner Bros.). The less welcome tidings are that — based on smudges of vulgarity in the dialogue — the picture is not a fit one for kids. Old-fashioned in the best sense, “Superman” celebrates the small-town values. Yet the screenplay aims for contemporary resonance as well, serving as a parable about the treatment of immigrants and the evils of aggressive war. (Amusingly, its stand-in for Vladimir Putin resembles a post-“Munsters” Al Lewis gone to seed.)
CRUX
Cardinal urges Ghana to reset its moral, democratic compass
By Ngala Killian Chimtom, July 12, 2025
Cardinal Peter Turkson strongly criticized Ghanaian leaders for shifting their priorities from national development to personal enrichment. Turkson said resetting the nation’s moral and democratic compass requires reprioritizing development and the welfare of Ghanaians. “The first government of Ghana [under Nkwane Nkrumah] was concerned more about building a nation, putting Ghana on the map,” the cardinal said, by meeting the UN’s Human Development Index, such as “access to food and water; access to healthcare, shelter, a roof over one’s head, and decent work.” The focus on development shifted, and the country’s later political leaders became more concerned with staying in power and lining their pockets with money, often stolen. “I’m not holding anybody up for criticism. That’s why this reset cannot be left only to government. It must be a vision, a program of action that all of us in Ghana must adopt,” said Turkson.
The PILLAR
Lima’s Cardinal Carlos Castillo facing significant criticism
By Edgar Beltrán, July 11, 2025
Fr. Nilton Zárate Rengifo, a Lima priest accused of sexual misconduct with a nun under his care, requested laicization last week, after The Pillar reported charges that the Lima archdiocese mishandled the allegations against him, in a process that some alleged amounted to a cover-up for a priest close to Lima’s Cardinal Carlos Castillo. Castillo, 75, has faced significant criticism over his leadership of the archdiocese in recent weeks, but the cardinal pushed back last week, telling Catholics that he enjoys the confidence of Pope Leo XIV and expects to remain in office for five more years. While Zárate had reportedly considered laicization amid the allegations against him, he did not petition to leave the clerical state until The Pillar’s recent reporting on the subject. The nun charged in her affidavit that Zárate became increasingly intimate with her, to the point of solicitation of sexual favors, in addition to becoming controlling of her daily life.
VOX
Law upheld banning dangerous ‘gender-affirming care,’ but …
By Michael Ippolito, July 9, 2013
On June 18, the Supreme Court ruled that a Tennessee law banning dangerous “gender-affirming care” for minors did not violate the Equal Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment. Skrmetti should be applauded as a victory for restoring sanity and protecting children from barbaric procedures. However, a specter looms over the Court’s jurisprudence on sex and gender that has the potential to wreak havoc. The infamous “textualist decision”—Bostock v. Clayton County—looms over each Court case related to sexual orientation and civil rights. The real salt in the wound was Gorsuch’s attempt to posit the decision as a victory for the originalist school of interpretation. But as Justice Samuel Alito wrote, it represented “the theory that courts should ‘update’ old statutes so that they better reflect the current values of society.” The Court is dealing with a precedent that conflates “because of sex” with one’s sexual orientation and gender identity.
From CNA & Big Pulpit to Satire for 7/12/25
Catholic News Agency
CNA’s top headlines — July 12, 2025
The Catholic News Agency provides reliable, free, and up-to-the-minute news affecting the Universal Church, emphasizing the words of the Holy Father and the happenings of the Holy See to anyone with internet access.
Former liberation theology leader calls on Latin American bishops to focus on Christ - Jul 12, 2025 - By Monasa Narjara -"When will you give us good news about God, Christ, and his Spirit? About grace and salvation? About conversion of heart and meditating on the Word? … In short, when will you send us a truly religious, spiritual message?"
10 years after Obergefell, state legislators fight uphill battle against same-sex marriage - Jul 12, 2025 - By Tyler Arnold - In 2025, lawmakers in several states introduced resolutions that urged the Supreme Court to overturn the 2015 ruling in Obergefell v. Hodges, which established same-sex civil marriage nationwide.
Bishop goes to bat for migrant farm workers as administration mulls enforcement, visa changes - Jul 11, 2025 - By Madalaine Elhabbal - As the Trump administration grapples with potentially conflicting immigration enforcement and economic policy goals, Bishop Brendan Cahill of Texas is raising his voice on behalf of the country’s migrant farm workers.
The Big Pulpit
Tito Edwards Catholic blogger site: July 12, 2025
The Big Pulpit website is an intelligent news aggregator offering quality insight & analysis on the Catholic Church worldwide. Here are Chief Editor Tito Edward’s top recommendations for today.
Attack on Seminary in Nigeria – John Burger at Aid to the Church in Need
Why Congress Must Defund Planned Parenthood Permanently – Tradition, Family, & Property.
Pope Leo XIV’s Reforms: Change or Continuity? – The Prayerful Posse at The Catholic Thing
Cardinal Marx Thinks Pope Leo XIV Will Relax Celibacy; Synodality as Solution – C Conclave
Babylon Bee’s Satire News
Life’s Struggles Causing Atheist To Lose His Faith In The Existence Of Nothing
By Theology Staff, July 11, 2024
Local atheist and president of The Enlightened Rationalist Guild of Supreme Cognition (ERGSC) Steve Wimbly admitted to several close friends that recent struggles had shaken his faith in the existence of nothing. Wimbly said that all his life, he had prided himself on his ability to face life's challenges with an unshakable faith in absolutely nothing, but several recent events had admittedly led him to thinking about the possibility of a divine and loving creator. "Things were getting so hard, I accidentally prayed the other day," said Wimbly, shaking his head with embarrassment. "Who was I praying to? Is someone there? I feel like I may have felt something. I'm afraid I'm on the edge of losing my faith in the existence of cold, blind determinism and nihilism." Steve's faith was further shaken after none of his atheist comrades were able to answer his question about why anything good happens if there isn't a God.
Nutshell reflections for 7/12/25:
USCCB Daily Reflection - AUDIO - July 12, 2025
Saturday of the Fourteenth Week in Ordinary Time
What We Need Now
Unease can be an excellent sign
By Fr. Olek Stirrat, July 8, 2025
During my time in the seminary, I once found myself confiding in my spiritual director. I say “confiding,” but it was more of a gentle moan, the sort one emits when one’s shoes pinch or one’s soul is feeling slightly askew. I expressed a nagging sense of unease about being in the place at all, and wondered aloud if this discomfort was, in the grand celestial scheme, a hint from the Almighty regarding my vocation. The old sage, bless him, didn’t bat an eyelash. With the serene air of a man who has seen many a jittery seminarian wobble on the high wire of discernment, he explained that such unease was, in fact, an excellent sign. After all, said he, no one is called to be a seminarian per se—seminaries being less a destination and more a sort of spiritual railway station en route to the priesthood. If one feels a bit off-kilter while waiting on the platform, it likely means the train is indeed coming.
The Catholic Thing
Even a hard heart can be moved by piety
By Jeffrey Dirk Wilson, July 12, 2025
There are two stories of the Black Madonna icon’s origin, one of pious legend, the other of the art historians. The board on which the icon is painted was (supposedly) taken from the table used by the Holy Family when they were at home in Nazareth. St. Luke got hold of it, cut out sections, and painted portraits of Mother and Child. One hangs in Florence; the other is the Black Madonna. Whatever importance Our Lady of Częstochowa has had for Polish national awareness before the sundering by Russia, Prussia, and Austria, the centrality of her shrine for Polish nationhood increased with every year from the tripartite division of Poland in A.D. 1795 through the period of Soviet hegemony. Cardinal Karol Wojtyła (later as Pope John Paul II) underscored that importance as he plotted and philosophized over modern Polish freedom. It would take a very hard heart not to be moved by such piety.
Bishop Barron
Breathe the air of real spiritual freedom
By Bishop Robert Barron, July 12, 2025
Friends, in today’s Gospel, Jesus tells his disciples not to fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Through the power of his being, he has linked us to the creative source of all existence. And in that “place,” loved in the Spirit by the Father and the Son, we are safe—even from those who would kill the body.
But this means that our perspective can and must change. Most of us spend most of our lives defending ourselves against assaults on the “body”—keen, almost every waking moment, to protect our psyches, our emotions, our fortunes, our health, our reputations. When we do that, we warp ourselves, turning our lives defensively inward, living in a very small spiritual space. But when we live out of the divine center, we breathe the air of real spiritual freedom.
First Things
Is the Just War Theory still relevant?
By Richard Cassleman, July 11, 2025
Conflict in the Middle East brings fundamental questions about just war into the public debate. Yet the use of just war may itself need justification, given the evolution of the nation-state and its contemporary means of warfare. Can an ethic developed in the era of empires and overlapping political authorities—a pre-industrial ethic of war fought mainly with swords, spears, and horses—survive the post-industrial age of national sovereignty, precision strikes, and proxy wars? I argue that just war can meet the challenge, though we may need to reach farther back within the tradition to do so. Just war posits a rule higher than the individual political community, a rule that both penetrates the nation-state and binds nations together. Hence, just war maintains an easy relationship with natural law, though a tenuous relationship with the nation-state.
Image of Pecans by tseiu from Pixabay
Listen to an audio podcast of today’s Catholic Nutshell News on the Substack App!
At the top of your phone, while in the Substack app to read our post, you can press the ▶️ play button and have Catholic Nutshell News read to you daily …
