The Michael Voris chatter

Catholic media is full of chatter after Vigano's testimony this weekend and the call for Pope Francis to resign. 

Part of that chatter is focused on Church Militant's Michael Voris for his sudden change of heart about criticizing a sitting pope. 

Full disclosure, I support Church Militant and believe they do a good job in defending and teaching the Faith - particularly when our clergy fail us. I also admire their bulldog attitude in going after corrupt clergy and not letting them get away with it. I think they are doing a very good job and I applaud them daily for their dedicated work. 

That said, I have on my blog disagreed with Church Militant on a few issues over the years. 

One of those times is when I voiced a different opinion on whether or not it is right to publicly criticize a sitting pope. 

My posts: 

March 14, 2014:  Is it ever right to criticize a Pope?

    

     In this post, I look at The Remnant's writer Chris Ferrara, the late (God rest his soul) John Vennari of Catholic Family News, Louie Verrecchio of (at the time) Harvesting the Fruits of Vatican II, and myself after Church Militant put out their "manifesto" stating they would not publicly criticize a sitting pope.  

Church Militant's manifesto: 

Quote: “Faithful Catholics need help in persevering through their anxieties and doubts, not continual reinforcement and encouragement of those troubling states. Less faithful Catholics form their judgments of "traditional Catholics" through the lens of perceived dissatisfaction and unhappiness with the Church and the Holy Father. Those who relentlessly criticize the Church, Her leaders, and especially the Holy Father, do immense harm to the Church Herself and discourage both potential converts and those struggling to stay faithful through the crisis that is all around us. The sad reputation of "traditional Catholics" as angry dissidents from virtually everything in the Church today is as well deserved as the reputations of those rightly described as modernists. A line must be drawn when it comes to criticism of the Holy Father, even when he says or does things that would invite appropriate criticism when said or done by those of lower ecclesiastical rank. Errant priests and bishops can be replaced. The Pope cannot. It may make us cringe at times but it always was and always will be true that ubi Petrus, ibi ecclesia. There have been extraordinarily awful Popes in the past but, for all that, the Church not only survived but thrived. The Popes immediately before, during and after the Protestant Revolt showed little recognition or understanding of the catastrophe unfolding before them (not unlike the post-conciliar Popes of our own time) yet, from such unpromising soil emerged an astonishing number of great Saints, and the Council of Trent.”

[note: the above quote taken from CM's website has since been either moved or taken down. The original link I have (as given in my blog post= http://www.churchmilitant.tv/faq/papalcriticism.php ) no longer works.] 

Soon after writing the above post, I received a flood of emails, some from Church Militant on the subject. I wrote about our email exchange on... 

March 19, 2014:  Michael Voris Stands His Ground

In this post, after reading email discussions between Voris and others, I talk about the people who -seemed to me- to want to bully Voris into going against his conscience and criticize Pope Francis. While I disagree with Voris on a persons right to criticize a sitting pope, I defend Voris' right to set his own terms and limits to what he will publicly say about a sitting pope. My point was/is no one should be forced into saying or doing something their conscience tells them not to do. 

I did not get into who felt insulted by Voris' "ecclesiastical porn" judgment of other Catholic media outlets. I again disagree with Voris' take, as I am a daily reader of these outlets and have even been a subscriber to The Remnant paper- which I highly recommend. Each of these outlets hit back at Voris and stood their own ground very well. I couldn't have defended them any better than they defended themselves. More on this later. 

My posts... 

July 17, 2017: We have a pope problem and we can't ignore it 

   In this post, I talk about a Vortex episode in which Michael Voris tells Catholics to "take a chill pill", ignore what the media reports about Francis and wait for the Vatican to tell us what the Pope really means when he says outrageous scandalous stuff. 

I couldn't disagree more with Voris on this and state my reasons in the above blog post. 

Now zoom ahead a year later and Michael Voris is himself calling for Pope Francis to resign. This of course, gave many Church Militant followers whiplash after all these years of being told to "take a chill pill" and "don't criticize a sitting pope" or you risk harming the Church and other people! 

Here are a few of Church Militant's current articles suddenly critical of Pope Francis... 

Aug. 26, 2018: EPISCOPAL SODOMY: POPE FRANCIS MUST RESIGN 

Aug. 27, 2018: CHURCH MILITANT STATEMENT ON THE POPE

It needs to end!

Quote: "Given the horror that has increasingly seized hold of the Church these past 50 years — and which has climbed to unimaginable heights under the pontificate of Pope Francis — now is the appropriate moment for the laity to offer comment, which we are rightly allowed to do according to canon law.
As many people know, Church Militant has taken great pains in the past to avoid public criticism of Pope Francis with regard to various confusing theological writings, interviews and off-the-cuff remarks.
Out of respect for the office of Pope, and so as not to induce scandal, we have dutifully left the work of publicly analyzing his theological content to those above us, more qualified to address those things specifically and those responses we have covered in great detail.
Likewise, we have made a point of steering far clear of any disrespectful or uncharitable comments denigrating the Holy Father owing to his theological pronouncements — but that was in the arena of theology.
The homosexual clerical sex abuse scandal and resulting cover-up is not theological at its foundation, but moral.
And in this arena, the laity are absolutely duty-bound to speak up, for while we may not all be theologians, each one of us is a moral being and will be judged by Our Blessed Lord on how faithfully we have lived in accord with that objective morality.
With that said, Pope Francis, Holy Father, for the salvation of your own soul, you must step down from the Chair of Peter and do so immediately."[clipped] 

Aug. 27, 2018: WATCH: POPE FRANCIS MUST RESIGN: ‘A CONSPIRACY OF SILENCE’

  

Aug. 28, 2018: Pope Francis Must Resign: Zero Tolerance

Now Church Militant has decided it is the right time to criticize a sitting pope...this is not going over well with those Voris has condemned in the past. 

The Remnant is calling Voris out on his sudden change of opinion... "Now, after keeping silent on Francis’ continual violations Church teaching for five years, Voris suddenly rips the man he would previously piously refer to as “The Vicar of Christ on earth,” “The Supreme Roman Pontiff,” and “Sweet Christ on Earth” to absolute shreds."

 

I highly recommend reading Chris Jackson's The Remnant article in full:  

Now That It's Safe and Five Years Late, Michael Voris Okays Criticism of Francis

The Remnant isn't the only one calling out Mr. Voris. 

Hilary White has a few things to say also in her blog post "Wish you were here: Mike Voris, just man up and apologise" 

Quote: "I just wrote this ridiculously long thread on Twitter. I’ll only add that though I’m glad Mike has finally got on board, (video here) the way he did it was, to be perfectly frank and given all the crap he’s given a lot of people over the years, churlish and ungracious. Dude, don’t be that guy.
Taylor Marshall and Dom Betinelli have done the more manly thing recently – admitted they were mistaken and wrong to have attacked people who should have been their friends and apologised. Be like them.
I still like Mike, and still want to maintain good professional relations with him. And I look forward to more beer and songs at some point in the future when all is at least a bit better in the world. In professional terms, we go way back and I welcome him to the Super-Sekrit Club, and appreciate his incredible furious flying helicopter of fists now that the crunch seems to be here at last."[clipped] 

***

I know this sounds lame, but as a Catholic woman just looking for good sound Catholic news, information and teachings on the Internet- I really, really, really wish everyone could just get along. 

What The Remnant, Church Militant, Catholic Family News and other Catholic media outlets and blogs have to offer is wonderful, inspiring, encouraging, uplifting and is often the glue that keeps so many of us sane in the chaos and mess of the Pope Francis Pontificate. We need your voices in the world today. Please try to sort out your differences and where apologies are needed, give them. 

God bless you all. 

In Christ, 

Julie @ Connecticut Catholic Corner 

Sources:

http://www.ncregister.com/daily-news/ex-nuncio-accuses-pope-francis-of-failing-to-act-on-mccarricks-abuse

https://www.churchmilitant.com/news/article/episcopal-sodomy-pope-francis-must-resign 

https://www.churchmilitant.com/news/article/pope-francis-must-resign-a-conspiracy-of-silence 

https://www.churchmilitant.com/news/article/pope-francis-must-resign-zero-tolerance 

https://www.churchmilitant.com/video/episode/vort-cm-statement-on-the-pope

https://remnantnewspaper.com/web/index.php/fetzen-fliegen/item/4053-voris-is-now-the-larry-flynt-of-spiritual-porn

http://whatisupwiththesynod.com/index.php/2018/08/29/wish-you-were-here-mike-voris-just-man-up-and-apologise/

**My previous posts on Pope Francis and Michael Voris... 

http://connecticutcatholiccorner.blogspot.com/2014/07/we-have-pope-problem-and-we-cant-ignore.html 

http://connecticutcatholiccorner.blogspot.com/2014/03/is-it-ever-right-to-criticize-pope.html

http://connecticutcatholiccorner.blogspot.com/2014/03/michael-voris-stands-his-ground.html 

National Catholic Register Awards

National Catholic Register Repeats as ‘Newspaper of the Year’

The Register captured 11 awards, including top marks for coverage of religious liberty, vocations to the priesthood, religious life & the diaconate, & best regular column

Irondale, AL (EWTN) – The National Catholic Register was named “Newspaper of the Year” for the second consecutive year at the Catholic Press Association’s annual Catholic Media Conference June 12-15 in Green Bay, Wisconsin.

The Register’s Sept. 3, Sept. 17 and Oct. 1 issues, with the lead stories “Racism on Main Street,” “Houston’s ‘Dunkirk’ Moment” and “Consecrated to the Blessed Mother” “had interesting stories with a variety of topics ranging from immigration, pro-life rallies, and racism,” the judges said in awarding the conference’s top national award to the Register. “The graphics and photos in the paper were also superb. A nice variety of topics for an audience with diverse interests. Articles are well-written and easy to read.”

“I never imagined we’d be recognized as Newspaper of the Year twice in a row,” said Jeanette De Melo, the Register’s editor-in-chief. “That’s an incredible honor and sign of our consistency. But I’m also thrilled that we were recognized across a broad spectrum of awards, for a variety of writing styles and topics: from columns and analysis to news and feature reporting on religious liberty, biotechnology, vocation, racism and pro-life issues. Such general excellence makes me truly proud and even more determined in our editorial mission.”

The Register, marking its 90th anniversary through November, won 11 awards in all, including top awards for “Best Coverage of Religious Liberty Issues,” “Best Regular Column: General Commentary” and “Best Reporting on Vocations to the Priesthood, Religious Life or Diaconate.”

“Conscience in Residency Project,” by correspondent Elisabeth Deffner, “Trump on Religious Freedom,” by senior editor Joan Frawley Desmond, and “Contraceptive Mandate Relief in Sight” by correspondent Brian Fraga combined to earn a first-place finish for its coverage of religious liberty.

The judges remarked of these stories, “It is often hard to top the work of the National Catholic Register and you can't this year. The article on Conscience in Residency Project introduces tough topics and the fine doctors in the battle. The discussion on President Trump and religious freedom structured by Joan Frawley Desmond is a vibrant and complete article. The piece on Contraceptive Mandate Relief is another important topic with good insight and coverage.”

Veteran Register contributor Rebecca Taylor earned the top award for her commentaries — “Immoral Uses of Biotechnology — Even With Good Intentions — Are Nevertheless Evil”; “When Redefining ‘Normal’ Is More Hurtful Than Helpful”; “It’s Up to Us to Protect the Tree of Life.” The judges said of her award-winning work, “Powerful persuasion backed by strong coverage makes this one stand out as a winner.”

Also lauded was the work of correspondents Michael Kelly, Patti Armstrong and Nicholas Wolfram Smith, “Monastic Life in Ireland,” “New Priests Honor Mom with Old Tradition” and “Doctor the Priesthood is Calling,” as a “wonderful package that spans all that is Catholic, the small but steady growth of monastic life in Ireland, a warm and fuzzy family story of two brothers who became priests, and a look at those who have combined Ph.D. knowledge with priestly wisdom. Each article stands alone, but also becomes part of a bigger picture of vocations.”

The Register won second place for “Best Investigative/News Analysis/News Writing for its coverage of the Reformation at 500. Contributors were senior editor Matthew Bunson and Stephen Beale, Steve Weidenkopf, Mark Brumley and Susan Klemond. The judges called it “a fascinating and exhaustively reported exploration.”

“This series challenges common misperceptions, brings historical figures to life through vivid writing, and uses timelines and short profiles to show how centuries-old events still have resonance in today,” they added.

The Register also won a second-place award for “Best Coverage of Pro-Life Issues:” Deffner, for “Small Blessings: Volunteers Give Proper Burial to Babies,” Desmond, for “Human Coalition Helps Change Hearts of Abortion Determined Mothers,” and Fraga, for “Abortion Divide Deepens in US.”

Staff writer Peter Jesserer Smith’s “Racism on Main Street” took third place for “Best News Writing on a National Event.”

Longtime Register film critic Deacon Steven D. Greydanus also won third place for “Best Regular Column: Culture, the Arts and Leisure” for “Apostasy and Ambiguity,” “What Does a Starship Need with God?” and “All Saints Offers Story of Encounter, Welcome of Refugees.”

The Register also earned honorable mention for “Best Front Page Design” (“The Trump Presidency,” “The Register at 90” and “Fractured Faith: The Reformation at 500”); “Best In-Depth News/Special Reporting” (“Indian Nun’s Killer Participates in Her Beatification Mass” by Anto Akkara) and “Best News Writing on an International Event” for its coverage by Peter Jesserer Smith and Vatican reporter Edward Pentin of persecuted Christians in the Middle East in the wake of ISIS.

“I am grateful for the dedication and creativity of the Register team, from the editors and staff writers to the many freelance journalist and commentators who contribute to our pages,” De Melo said. “They deserve this recognition for the standout service they provide our readers. I couldn’t be prouder of the hard work and dedication of the Register team.”

The award-winning National Catholic Register (www.NCRegister.com) provides its readers with timely news reporting from across the United States, the Vatican, and around the world. As the newspaper of record for the Catholic Church in America, the Register and its online presence, NCRegister.com, have become America’s most complete and faithful Catholic news source. With over 90 years in print, the Register is published bi-weekly, 26 issues per year. The National Catholic Register also produces Register Radio, a weekly program that airs on EWTN’s radio network.

EWTN Global Catholic Network, in its 37th year, is the largest religious media network in the world. EWTN's 11 TV channels are broadcast in multiple languages 24 hours a day, seven days a week to over 275 million television households in more than 145 countries and territories. EWTN platforms also include radio services transmitted through SIRIUS/XM, iHeart Radio, and over 500 domestic and international AM & FM radio affiliates; a worldwide shortwave radio service; the largest Catholic website in the U.S.; electronic and print news services, including Catholic News Agency, "The National Catholic Register" newspaper, and several global news wire services; as well as EWTN Publishing, its book publishing division.  

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EWTN Big Winner at 2018 Gabriel Awards

EWTN Global Catholic Network was honored with numerous Gabriel awards – for news coverage in war-torn Iraq, for two high-end original docudramas, and for a new radio talk show – during the 53rd Annual Gabriel Awards ceremony, Thursday, June 14, at the Hyatt Regency in Green Bay, Wisconsin.

Irondale, AL (EWTN) –  EWTN Global Catholic Network was honored with numerous Gabriel awards – for news coverage in war-torn Iraq, for two high-end original docudramas, and for a new radio talk show – during the 53rd Annual Gabriel Awards ceremony, Thursday, June 14, at the Hyatt Regency in Green Bay, Wisconsin. The Gabriel Awards are presented annually by the Catholic Press Association and honor both secular and religious film, television, radio and digital media outlets for “outstanding artistic achievement in media that entertains and enriches with a true vision of humanity and a true vision of life.”

“EWTN News Nightly with Lauren Ashburn” swept the “TV, News and Informational, National Release” category of the 2018 Gabriel Awards winning first place, second place, and an honorable mention for its on-the-ground coverage in Iraq. First place went to Anchor Lauren Ashburn’s interview with a Catholic priest from Michigan, who moved to Erbil, a town in Northern Iraq, to minister to war-weary Catholics and other Christians and to give them hope. According to the Gabriel judges: “The selflessness of this priest and the timeliness of the story make it a real winner.” (www.youtube.com/ewtn)

A story about residents returning to areas liberated from ISIS and conditions on the ground in Iraq was honored with a second place win, while “EWTN News Nightly” was given an honorable mention for a story about Batnaya after the expulsion of ISIS by Kurdish fighters.

“EWTN has given considerable attention to the plight of Christians in the Middle East, so it was gratifying to see Lauren Ashburn and videographer Tom Haller recognized for their incredible work in Iraq covering stories on Catholics dealing with the devastation wrought by ISIS,” said EWTN Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Michael P. Warsaw. “I was especially pleased to see the judges recognize the Network’s efforts to provide viewers with news they will not see anywhere else.”

“Called and Chosen – Father Vincent R. Capodanno,” an EWTN original docudrama, also garnered a first place award in the “TV, Religious, National Release” category. The program depicts the life of a former Maryknoll missionary turned military chaplain, who died at the age of 38 on the killing fields of Vietnam administering the sacraments and pulling others to safety. The judges called the program “[b]eautiful, heart wrenching and inspiring.” (http://bit.ly/CalledandChosen)

The Network also garnered an Honorable Mention for Episode 2 of its blockbuster series, “The Message of Fatima.” The episode, which aired during Fatima’s 100th anniversary, dramatizes Our Lady of Fatima’s first apparition. (http://bit.ly/TheMessageOfFatima)

“For several years now, EWTN has been focused on creating more original, high quality movies, documentaries, and docudramas,” Warsaw said. “That’s why we are especially pleased that the Gabriels honored ‘Called and Chosen – Father Vincent R. Capodanno’ with a first place award for its depiction of the inspiring life of this heroic priest, as well as ‘The Message of Fatima.’ These two docudramas were EWTN viewer favorites.”

Finally, EWTN Radio won a second place Gabriel in the “Radio, Religious, National Release” category for “Take Two With Jerry & Debbie.” Said Warsaw: “We hope this award helps more people to discover one of our most popular radio shows!”

These award-winning programs can be found on EWTN’s YouTube channel, www.youtube.com/ewtn. Find “Called and Chosen” here: http://bit.ly/CalledandChosen, and “The Message of Fatima” here: http://bit.ly/TheMessageOfFatima.

EWTN Global Catholic Network, in its 37th year, is the largest religious media network in the world. EWTN’s 11 TV channels are broadcast in multiple languages 24 hours a day, seven days a week to over 275 million television households in more than 145 countries and territories. EWTN platforms also include radio services transmitted through SIRIUS/XM, iHeart Radio, and over 500 domestic and international AM & FM radio affiliates; a worldwide shortwave radio service; the largest Catholic website in the U.S.; electronic and print news services, including Catholic News Agency, “The National Catholic Register” newspaper, and several global news wire services; as well as EWTN Publishing, its book publishing division.

EWTN Press Release: EWTN is Expanding!

EWTN TO OPEN WEST COAST STUDIO
AT CHRIST CATHEDRAL CAMPUS

ORANGE COUNTY STUDIO TO SUPPORT
ONGOING NEWS & TELEVISION PRODUCTION

Irondale, AL – EWTN Global Catholic Network has begun construction of its first West Coast television production facility located on the campus of Christ Cathedral in the Diocese of Orange, California. EWTN hopes to begin using the studio to transmit news, televised Masses, and inspiring stories of faith to its global audience by the end of the year. A joint announcement of the new facility was made at the annual Napa Institute gathering in Napa, California on July 24 by EWTN Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Michael P. Warsaw and the Most Rev. Kevin Vann, Bishop of Orange.

The Roman Catholic Diocese of Orange acquired the former Crystal Cathedral in November 2011 and took possession of the property in September 2013. Shortly after moving onto the campus, the Diocese began an extensive renovation to restore the 34-acre campus and its seven buildings to their former magnificence - upgrading them to modern earthquake and energy efficiency standards in order to accommodate the unique needs of a large and vibrant parish, Diocesan Pastoral Office and Catholic school. As part of the renovations of the campus, the Diocese has worked to develop the capacity to share its events, liturgical celebrations, news and other topics of interest with audiences throughout Southern California and the world.

 

“As we transform the Christ Cathedral campus into a dynamic and inspirational center of Catholic worship and outreach, we are blessed to partner with EWTN to share our community’s energy and faithful witness with the world. EWTN’s partnership will profoundly benefit our Church, enabling us to share the love of Christ with millions across the world in multiple languages from the Cathedral campus, here in Orange County,” said the Most Rev. Kevin Vann, Bishop of Orange.

 

"EWTN is pleased to be able to collaborate with Bishop Vann and the Diocese of Orange on this important new project. The studio being developed there will be of great benefit to EWTN's programming efforts around the globe,” said Network CEO Michael P. Warsaw. “The location of the facility gives EWTN a presence in an area of the country where the Network will be able to execute programs that would be difficult to produce elsewhere, particularly for our Spanish-language channels.

 

“We are also pleased to develop this West Coast studio in advance of the historic renovation of the Christ Cathedral itself. We will be well positioned and prepared to share news of this closely watched transformation with our viewers,” said Warsaw.

 

As the world’s largest religious media network, EWTN transmits television programming 24 hours a day to more than 230 million homes in 140 countries and territories through cable, Direct Broadcast Satellite (DBS), broadcast TV and digital media platforms. EWTN airs family and religious programming from a Catholic point of view in multiple languages. The network offers inspiring talk shows, entertaining children's animation, exclusive teaching series, live coverage of Church events, and thought-provoking documentaries. Programming originating from the Christ Cathedral campus will be included within its broadcast content mix for global audiences.

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 About EWTN 

EWTN Global Catholic Network, now in its 33rd year, transmits 11 separate television networks in multiple languages to over 230 million television households in more than 140 countries and territories. EWTN also distributes a global radio service that is available through satellite radio platforms such as SiriusXM and Sky, a network of terrestrial AM & FM stations, a worldwide short-wave radio station and digital outlets such as iHeart Radio. With its Internet and digital media platforms, including the www.ewtn.com website, electronic and print news services, and publishing arm, EWTN is the largest religious media network in the world. Earlier in 2014, the network launched EWTN News Nightly, the first global daily newscast from a Catholic perspective. EWTN also recently announced its acquisition of the Denver-based Catholic News Agency and the ACI Prensa Group headquartered in Lima, Peru. ACI Prensa is the largest Spanish-language Catholic news service in the world.