The Pillar

A French archbishop has condemned as "appalling" the decision by a colleague to appoint as chancellor a priest previously jailed for rape. pillarcatholic.com/p/french-bisho…

Why wasn't Fr. Dominique Spina laicized? And what will happen now? pillarcatholic.com/p/will-leo-wei…

An archbishop in France has appointed a priest convicted of raping a 16-year-old boy to the position of archdiocesan chancellor — telling French media that the appointment was meant as an act of mercy. pillarcatholic.com/p/french-archb…

Bring back papal dukes! Wait. Bring back papal dukes? It's the Tuesday Pillar Post. pillarcatholic.com/p/papal-dukes-…

Meet Charles Untz: A Minnesota teenager with an enduring legacy -- for holiness. pillarcatholic.com/p/a-simple-sai…

"There was a sense for people that the Lord was coming to them, coming to their shore, coming to their town." pillarcatholic.com/p/henning-what…

The attorney representing the two men said they were vaguely aware their actions were illegal but did not know the full extent of the scheme. pillarcatholic.com/p/two-convicte…

The Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem has expressed doubts, after the Israeli government said tank fire on a Gaza parish was not deliberate. pillarcatholic.com/p/pizzaballa-n…

A priest jailed in Vatican City for possession and distribution of child pornography has returned to work in the Holy See’s diplomatic service. pillarcatholic.com/p/vatican-offi…

With more than 200 men’s religious communities in the U.S., only 153 men in 2023 entered religious formation — leaving numerous communities with few men in formation, or none at all. pillarcatholic.com/p/a-crisis-of-…

An incident in which Denver seminarians were invited to make a "blood oath" with a man in a yeti costume has been described as "a well-intended moment that clearly went badly wrong and never should have happened" by the vice rector involved. pillarcatholic.com/p/yeti-blood-o…

"Ours is not much of a heroic age and few of us today (or ever) are world historic figures (or fiddlers) put to the direct and explicit choice between our soul and worldly glory." -- @pojanowski on Songs about the Devil. pillarcatholic.com/p/singing-abou…

While some find the Church's association with bullfighting in different countries deeply problematic, others see no issue - “the Church has to accompany the people, and to celebrate their traditions.” pillarcatholic.com/p/lord-in-the-…

A recent report found that of the 13,864 permanent deacons in ministry in the US, fewer than 4% are under the age of 49, and fewer than 1% are in their 30s. But some of those young deacons believe their youth offers a unique asset. pillarcatholic.com/p/young-perman…

"Swimming upstream, against the cultural current, is exhausting. Most of us lack the fortitude or virtue or holiness to go at maximum effort all the time." @Stephen_P_White in this week's Pillar column. pillarcatholic.com/p/cultural-cat…

Who's spending Peter's Pence? pillarcatholic.com/p/whos-spendin…

"They were singing with so much enthusiasm...in darkness, in pain and sorrow, in confusion, in uncertainty." pillarcatholic.com/p/faith-amid-t…

An archbishop has defended his decision to appoint a priest convicted of rape as archdiocesan chancellor, amid an outcry from French Catholics. pillarcatholic.com/p/archbishop-d…

Bishop Frank Dewane on Alligator Alcatraz: pillarcatholic.com/p/florida-bish…

“There will be hard cuts, which are unavoidable.” pillarcatholic.com/p/german-churc…