If those Catholics who insist on denying Communion to the president feel vindicated or take delight in the process, it is a clear sign that perhaps they should not receive Communion themselves.

Cardinal Mauro Gambetti today reaffirmed restrictions on the private celebration of pre-Vatican II Masses at St. Peter’s Basilica: “So that what is exceptional does not become ordinary.”

The president of the U.S.C.C.B. has asked the nation’s Catholics to pray for him and his brother bishops “as we continue our dialogues and reflections” in the process of drafting a document on the “meaning of the Eucharist in the life of the church.”

“Medieval Peasanting” means reminding myself that there once existed Catholics who couldn’t read or write. They said their prayers and did their best to obey the commandments, and when they failed, they repented.

The U.S. church isn’t just polarized; it is tired. And it is polarized in part because it is tired.

The statement was announced minutes after clerics voted to draft a document on Communion following debate that discussed whether or not to deny the Eucharist to Catholic politicians who back abortion rights.

“From a Catholic point of view, there’s no question that reparations make sense.”

Both supporters and critics of the proposal said it could be used to pressure bishops to deny Communion to pro-choice Catholic politicians.

The United States has dithered on establishing any policy to help bring an end to a conflict now in its eighth decade.

Juneteenth is more than a day of celebration. It is a challenge to be accountable to one another as members of a beloved community.