Catholic Nutshell News: Thursday 5/1/25
Topics include: Preserve history of U.S. women religious, Study of ‘Human Flourishing’, Man running 3,500 miles, & Tips about misreading the Bible
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Today's sources are Aleteia, OSV, CNA, National Catholic Register, What We Need Now, The Pillar, John Eldredge, & Babylon Bee. (Catholic Nutshell is a subscription service for faithful, hopeful, & curious Catholics willing to exercise the Catholic News Muscle)
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Catholic News Agency
Archive in Ohio to preserve the history of U.S. women religious
By Daniel Payne, May 1, 2025
A group of religious sisters in Cleveland is launching a multimillion-dollar archive center that will help collect, preserve, and share the stories of women religious in the United States. Sister Susan Durkin, OSU, told CNA that the Women Religious Archives Collaborative will ensure the preservation of the “tremendous stories of how sisters in the United States overcame insurmountable obstacles to serve the people in front of them.” Durkin said that when she was serving as the president of the Ursuline Sisters of Cleveland, the congregation undertook a project to downsize its motherhouse. “In our downsizing, we had to make a decision about what to do with our archives,” she said, describing the storage option in the reduced space as “not a long-term strategy.”
Providence
Study of ‘Human Flourishing’ shows religion’s importance
By Paul Marshall, May 1, 2025
On April 30, Baylor University’s Institute for Studies of Religion (ISR) and Harvard University’s Human Flourishing Program, along with Gallup and the Center for Open Science, released the first findings of their ongoing worldwide survey of human flourishing. The survey’s delineation of “flourishing” includes health, happiness, meaning, character, relationships, and financial security, and included interviews with over 200,000 people in 22 countries. One finding of particular interest to Providence readers is that those who attend religious services tend to flourish more. Unlike other trends, the survey reports that this result does not vary much from country to country, though the effect is strongest in the most secular, usually Western, countries.
Our Sunday Visitor
Man running 3,500 miles to reclaim Catholic masculinity
By Katie Yoder, April 25, 2025
Johnny Kuplack is running 3,500 miles in 100 days to spread the message that every person — including every young man — is made for greatness. The 36-year-old began his run, called the Via Magna (“Great Way”) run, in California earlier this year and will finish in New York on Divine Mercy Sunday, which falls on the second Sunday of Easter. His goal is to run an “ultra” — a run longer than the 26.2-mile length of a marathon — every day to raise awareness for his new organization, Sebaste. The nonprofit co-founded by Kuplack promises to help men reclaim their masculinity through trial, training and mentorship. Kuplack said of his group, which is based in New Mexico and named after the 40 martyrs of Sebaste, Roman soldiers who died for their Christian faith in the fourth century. “You need to get swept up into the bigger plan,” he added.
Aleteia
‘The more they’re persecuted, the more they believe’
By Daniel Esparza, May 1, 2025
Stephen Rasche, an American lawyer, whose life took a dramatic turn after heart surgery in 2014, began to rethink everything — his work, his purpose, and most of all, his faith. That same summer, ISIS overran the Iraqi city of Mosul, forcing more than 150,000 Christians to flee their ancestral homes. Rasche, who had previously worked with the Church in Iraq, began receiving desperate messages from friends. Within months, he was on a plane to Erbil to spend the next five years working with the Chaldean Catholic Church. “Everywhere that I have seen real persecution, the impact on faith has always been an inverse—the more the faithful are persecuted, the more deeply and courageously they hold fast to their faith. This has been true everywhere on earth where I have seen it, throughout the Mideast and Africa, increasingly as well here in the West.”
National Catholic Register
What the Bible says about misreading the Bible
By Dave Armstrong, April 30, 2025
St. Peter warns that Scripture can be distorted. Christians need more than personal interpretation to guard the truth. The Catholic view of authority and Holy Scripture is not about interpreting each verse exactly as the Church says it ought to be interpreted. In fact, fewer than 10 Bible verses are “officially” interpreted by the Catholic Church. St. Peter makes a general statement: “There are some things in them [St. Paul’s letters] hard to understand.” Then he notes that these “things” are what “the ignorant and unstable twist to their own destruction.” Peter says many Scriptures — not necessarily even those written just by Paul — are “twist[ed]” by the ignorant and unstable. The problem is that many people are “ignorant” — lacking knowledge of Scripture, its exegesis, and the nature and exercise of hermeneutics: how to interpret Scripture systematically.
Providence Magazine
Amazonian Rite: Ordination of women deacons & married men
By Eduardo Campos Lima, May 1, 2025
A document released earlier this month showed that the commission in charge of the elaboration of the Amazonian Rite will include, in its final proposition, a request for the ordination of women deacons. The text, a seven-page summary of a longer document released in 2024, which contains most of the suggestions for the new rite and theological debates about them, was published on the website of the Latin American Ecclesial Council on Apr. 5. It also includes two other controversial ideas that emerged during the preparation of the Synod for the Pan-Amazon region, the ordination of married men who have leadership roles in Amazonian communities, the so-called viri probati, and that priests who left the clergy to get married can resume their ministries.
The Pillar
Chinese diocese ‘elects’ new bishop despite pope vacancy
By The Pillar, April 30, 2025
The Chinese mainland Diocese of Xinxiang has “elected” a local priest to become its new bishop, it was announced yesterday, despite the death of Pope Francis on April 21 and the current period of sede vacante in the Church. Local priest Fr. Li Janlin was “elected” as the sole candidate for the office of diocesan bishop on April 29, in a move coordinated by the Chinese Patriotic Catholic Association, the state-sponsored group under the Communist Party responsible for the regulation of Catholic clergy and practice on the mainland. The announcement highlights the continued official policy of the Chinese state not to recognize any outside authority in the organization of the Church in China, including the Holy See. The agreement to allow China to elect bishops was delivered and defended by Cardinal Pietro Parolin, Vatican Secretary of State under Pope Francis, and currently a leading candidate ahead of the conclave due to begin on May 7.
CatholicVote
Catholic Church faces deep polarization
By CV News Feed, May 1, 2025
According to one of the most authoritative lay voices, the Catholic Church stands at a crossroads, marked by unprecedented polarization and internal debate in the wake of Pope Francis’ death. That is the take Gian Maria Vian — historian, journalist, and former director of the Vatican newspaper L’Osservatore Romano — offered in a candid and critical interview with the Chilean daily La Tercera. Vian characterizes Francis as a pope who “had good intentions, but his achievements have been incomplete and contradictory.” According to Vian, the promise of a more collegial and horizontal Church was not fulfilled. “But he has been anything but collegial,” Vian said of the late pope. “He spoke of synodality, which is excellent, but of collegiality, nothing — he forgot about it, because he was very authoritarian. He himself acknowledged it several times.”
CatholicVote, CNA & Satire for 5/1/2025
CatholicVote - The Loop
Read daily news and political impact stories at the “LOOP”
Elections and politics matter. The LOOP gives you daily gems on the news that seek “to renew our country and culture.” CatholicVote’s advertised mission is “To inspire every Catholic in America to live out the truths of our faith in public life.”
SUPREME COURT LEANS IN FAVOR OF RELIGIOUS FREEDOM - The Supreme Court appears to be leaning in favor of an Oklahoma Catholic school being the nation’s first publicly funded religious charter institution after hearing oral arguments Wednesday in the pivotal religious freedom case.
TEXAS SENATE UNANIMOUSLY PASSES LIFE OF THE MOTHER ACT - The Texas Senate has unanimously passed the Life of the Mother Act (Senate Bill 31), a bipartisan measure designed to clarify when doctors can legally perform emergency medical interventions during pregnancy.
JUDGE IN SANCTUARY CITIES CASE QUASHED PRO-LIFE EXPOSÉ - An Obama-appointed judge who blocked President Donald Trump’s executive order denying federal funds to "sanctuary cities" also protected the abortion industry by barring the release of undercover videos exposing the sale of aborted baby body parts. Pro-life journalist David Daleiden spoke with CatholicVote about the judge's pro-abortion record.
Catholic News Agency
CNA’s top headlines — May 1, 2025
Catholic News Agency provides reliable, free, up-to-the-minute news affecting the Universal Church, emphasizing the words of the Holy Father and happenings of the Holy See to anyone with access to the internet.
Catholic theologians in Nigeria pledge to uphold Pope Francis’ legacy with ‘renewed zeal’ - May 1, 2025 - By Nicholas Waigwa - Members of the Catholic Theological Association of Nigeria have pledged to uphold the “theological and pastoral legacy” of the late pope.
Trump’s first 100 days: Catholics praise important wins, but immigration tension continues - Apr 30, 2025 - By Tyler Arnold - Trump won the Catholic vote by double digits last November and since then has received praise from Catholics on several issues but skepticism and even legal challenges on others.
Americans’ religious preferences remain mostly unchanged over the last 5 years, poll shows - Apr 30, 2025 - By Tessa Gervasini - In 2020, 22% of Americans identified as Catholic and in 2024 the population remained similar at 21%. The Catholic population experienced a smaller yet still notable decline over the same time period, decreasing from 25% to 22%.
Babylon Bee’s (Satire) News
Wife Beginning To Suspect Husband's Thoughtful, Relevant Responses To Her Texts Might Be AI-Generated
By Family Staff, April 29, 2025
According to sources, local wife Sue Page is beginning to suspect that her husband's thoughtful and relevant responses to her texts might be AI-generated. "I first became suspicious when I asked him what movie he wanted to see for date night and he replied with an entire list of movies, their ratings, and a brief synopsis of each," Page said. "No one talks like that." When confronted, her husband reportedly said he would need a minute to think. He came back several minutes later with a prepared response he claimed to have typed out so he could organize his thoughts. When Sue continued to suspect AI had generated the statement, her husband said he needed time to think and put his thoughts together. Sue Page then decided to outsource dinner to AI.
Nutshell reflections for 5/1/25:
USCCB Daily Reflection - AUDIO & VIDEO - May 1, 2025
Thursday of the Second Week of Easter
What We Need Now
Jesus accomplished the Exodus when he rode into Jerusalem
By Scott Powell, April 14, 2025
For many, the story of Christ’s triumphant entry into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday is one of the most familiar passages from the Bible. To read the story in isolation from the broader biblical narrative and the overarching story of salvation history would be a great mistake. For the ancient Jews, and thus, for Jesus himself, the story of the Exodus was the foundational story of the Bible. When the Lord appeared on the mountain and spoke with Moses and Elijah, the Gospel writers tell us that their topic of conversation was “the Exodus, which he was to accomplish in Jerusalem” (Luke 9:31). When Jesus arrives in Jerusalem for Palm Sunday, we must remember that he was there to celebrate the Passover—and therefore the Exodus event. On this particular day, riding this animal, far from being a mere act of humility, told the crowds everything they needed to know.
Our Sunday Visitor
Work with heaven in mind
By Father Patrick Briscoe, OP, May 1, 2025
We read at today’s Mass, “The one who comes from above is above all. The one who is of the earth is earthly and speaks of earthly things.” (Jn 3:31) Today the Church honors St. Joseph the Worker, reminding us that the dignity of labor is rooted in something far beyond earthly concerns. In a world so often tempted by materialism, this feast invites us to look higher — to see in our daily work not just toil or task, but the opportunity to live in the spirit of the Gospel. St. Joseph’s greatness wasn’t in loud pronouncements or dramatic miracles. It was in his silent fidelity. His hands, worn from carpentry, cared for the Son of God. His labor supported the Holy Family. And through all his work, his heart remained fixed not on the things of earth, but on the things of heaven.
Catholic Answers
The Church’s socialism problem
By Trent Horn & Catherine R. Pakaluk, May 1, 2025
In Quadragesimo Anno (1931), Pope Pius XI reflected on the debate between capitalist and socialist economic systems. Like his predecessor, Leo XIII, Pius had strong words for capitalists who hoarded wealth and treated workers as disposable commodities on par with machines or sacks of coal. But he also said that capitalism “is not to be condemned in itself. And surely it is not of its own nature vicious” (101). Pius said, “When it comes to the present [capitalist] economic system, we have found it laboring under the gravest of evils.” But whereas these evils could be remedied, the same was not true for socialism. Regarding this latter system, Pius bluntly declared, “We have also summoned communism and socialism again to judgment and have found all their forms, even the most modified, to wander far from the precepts of the gospel” (128).
Wild at Heart
Take the time to process what has happened
By John Eldredge, May 1, 2025
I think Archibald Hart pointed out that because we are so accustomed to moving pedal to the metal in our world, the things we overlook in the Gospels are all in-between times when Christ and his followers were walking from one town to another. When the record states, “The next day Jesus decided to leave for Galilee” (John 1:43), we project our own pace upon it, not realizing it took the boys three days on foot to get there. Three days just strolling along, talking, or sharing the silent beauty; the pauses for lunch or a drink from a well; the campfires in the evening. Even as I write this, it sounds luxurious. Christ does not move immediately from one dramatic story to another; there was downtime, transition time between those demands. Time to process what had happened (these are the moments you see the disciples asking questions; “what did you mean by ... ?”). They took the time to catch their breath before the next encounter.
Image of peanuts by Nicole Köhler, from Pixabay
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