Outside the Walls

Germany’s bishops are continuing to press Rome on women deacons. Bishop Franz Jung has said that Pope Leo XIV received a “very clear vote in favour” from the country’s episcopal conference following the Katholikentag gathering in Würzburg The German bishops have renewed pressure on Rome to permit women to be ordained as deacons, with Bishop Franz Jung of Würzburg declaring that the country’s episcopal conference had given Pope Leo XIV a “very clear vote in favour of the female diaconate”. Speaking after the conclusion of the Katholikentag in Würzburg, one of Germany’s largest gatherings of Catholic laity and clergy, Bishop Jung said the question of women deacons remained firmly on the agenda of the Church and would not disappear “any time soon”. “We, as the German Bishops’ Conference, have done everything we can,” he told Mainpost.de. “We have very clearly expressed our support in Rome for the diaconate of women. Now it is up to him how things proceed.” The issue of women deacons has become one of the defining fault lines within the global Church in recent years, particularly since the launch of Germany’s Synodal Way in 2019 where German bishops and lay delegates repeatedly backed calls for expanded roles for women, including access to ordained ministries. Pope Francis established two commissions during his pontificate to study the historical question of female deacons in the early Church, but neither resulted in any definitive change. Shortly before his death, Francis authorised the publication of findings from a Vatican study group examining the subject further, although no conclusions were reached on whether women could sacramentally receive the diaconate. Bishop Jung suggested that the election of Pope Leo XIV had not diminished expectations among German bishops that movement might eventually come from Rome. “The issue is on the agenda,” he said, adding that the bishops were now “eager to see what happens”. His intervention came after a Katholikentag heavily focused on questions of Church reform, political engagement and the role of Catholics in German public life. Held under the slogan “Have courage, stand up!”, the gathering drew senior politicians, clergy and lay activists for five days of debates, liturgies and public events across Würzburg. Jung described the event as a success, praising what he called the “joie de vivre and festive spirit” of participants. He said the motto had resonated strongly because it connected with “personal, religious and socio-political” concerns at a time of growing division in society. The event came under criticism after a video of the event appeared to show a woman holding a chalice and reciting the words of consecration while a priest stood behind her. The bishop also defended the organisers’ decision not to invite representatives of the Alternative für Deutschland party, saying the AfD’s “view of humanity does not correspond to the Christian one”. He also pointed to what he described as the party’s “explicitly anti-church stance”. However, the event included other groups and speakers from outside the Church’s traditional structures. The exclusion of the AfD continued the increasingly overt political tone adopted by sections of the German Church hierarchy in recent years, particularly on migration, nationalism and climate policy. Critics, however, argue that Church events have become excessively politicised and risk alienating ordinary Catholics concerned primarily with faith and worship. Bishop Jung rejected those criticisms, insisting that the Katholikentag maintained a balance between political discussion and spiritual life. “Many people come to the Catholic Congress to recharge their spirits and pray together in a large community,” he said, adding that spiritual events during the gathering had been filled to capacity. Among the highlights of the event, he said, was a discussion with former Green Party leader Ricarda Lang on the conference theme of courage and public witness. He also praised a youth prayer service featuring praise, worship and testimonies of faith, saying the enthusiasm of young Catholics had renewed his energy after an exhausting week. The debate surrounding women deacons nevertheless overshadowed much of the wider discussion, continuing the tensions between the German Church and Rome over the direction of reform. The Vatican has consistently distinguished the question of women deacons from the priesthood, but senior cardinals and theologians remain divided over whether historical evidence supports the existence of sacramental female deacons in the early Church. Germany’s bishops have emerged as some of the strongest advocates for change. During sessions of the Synodal Way, delegates repeatedly approved texts calling for women to be admitted to ordained ministries, same-sex blessings and revisions to Catholic teaching on sexuality. The Vatican responded on several occasions with unusually direct interventions. In 2022, the Holy See warned that the Synodal Way had “no authority” to oblige bishops and faithful to adopt new forms of governance or doctrine. A year later, senior German bishops were summoned to Rome for talks over mounting concern about the trajectory of reforms. Yet despite those warnings, bishops such as Jung continue to present the female diaconate as unfinished business within the universal Church. Asked whether he expected Pope Leo XIV to visit Germany in the near future, Jung said he could not say, but added that Würzburg would “certainly roll out the red carpet for him” should such a visit take place.

SSPX superior: consecrations ‘even more necessary in 2026’ The Society of St Pius X has defended its decision to proceed with episcopal consecrations this summer, with its Superior General warning that any declaration of excommunication or schism against the Society “would be objectively unjust”. In a letter addressed to SSPX priests ahead of the consecrations due to take place at Écône on 1 July, Fr Davide Pagliarani said the “state of necessity” invoked by Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre in 1988 was “even more evident in 2026”. “While the state of necessity could already be invoked in 1988, this state of necessity is, unfortunately, even more evident in 2026,” he wrote. The text, dated 7 March and released publicly by the Society on 21 May, was accompanied by an introduction from the SSPX Secretary General, Fr Foucauld le Roux, who said the purpose of publishing the letter was to help clergy and faithful prepare spiritually for the ceremony. “This text does not revisit the question of the consecrations themselves, but is devoted to recalling the spirit in which they must be prepared for and lived,” Fr le Roux wrote. The publication of the letter comes four months after the SSPX announced that bishops would again be consecrated at its seminary in Switzerland, the site of Archbishop Lefebvre’s consecrations in June 1988. Those consecrations, carried out without papal mandate, led Rome to declare that Archbishop Lefebvre, Bishop Antonio de Castro Mayer and the four newly consecrated bishops had incurred automatic excommunication. Although the excommunications of the surviving bishops were lifted by Pope Benedict XVI in 2009, the Society remains canonically irregular and without official status in the Church. In his latest letter, Fr Pagliarani repeatedly insisted that the SSPX was acting out of fidelity to the Catholic Church rather than separation from it. “The Society is nothing more than a means of remaining faithful to the Church,” he wrote. “If we are taking exceptional measures today to preserve the faith, the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, and the priesthood, it is because we want the whole Catholic Church – and every soul without distinction – to be able to benefit freely from them one day. All this belongs to the Church, and we are only its guardians.” Fr Pagliarani also directly addressed the prospect of fresh sanctions from Rome, stating that the Society neither desired nor celebrated such a development. “If we come to be declared excommunicated and schismatic, this would not mean that we seek such a sanction or rejoice in it, for it would be objectively unjust,” he wrote. Furthermore, Fr Pagliarani wrote: “It is one thing to rejoice in receiving a new humiliation to offer to God, and it is quite another to rejoice in an evil and an objective injustice that causes scandal to the whole Church.” The SSPX superior urged members to avoid bitterness and resentment during the controversy surrounding the consecrations, warning against triumphalism and hostility towards Church authorities. “We must always show kindness,” he wrote. “When there is no understanding on the other side, when there is not even a willingness to listen to what we have to say and understand our reasons, it is very easy – humanly speaking – to fall into resentment.” He added that members should remain “firm and gentle at the same time”, “especially towards the hierarchy of the Catholic Church”. The letter contains repeated references to charity and suffering, including a lengthy citation from St John’s Gospel. “It is with this same charity that, now more than ever, we must love souls and Holy Mother Church, even if its official representatives were to declare us excommunicated and schismatic once again,” Fr Pagliarani wrote, before quoting John 16:1-4: “They will put you out of the synagogues: yea, the hour cometh, that whosoever killeth you, will think that he doth a service to God.” Fr Pagliarani also rejected accusations that the SSPX had become a “parallel Church”, arguing instead that the Society existed to safeguard Catholic tradition until it could once again flourish throughout the wider Church. “We ask nothing for ourselves,” he wrote. “Our only reward will be to see one day Holy Mother Church reclaim her Traditions.” The Superior General described the debate surrounding the consecrations as “providential”, saying the issue had provoked concern throughout the Catholic Church. “The announcement on 2 February left no one in the Catholic Church indifferent,” he wrote. “Almost everyone feels concern and the need to express their approval or disapproval.” He added: “Sometimes words, opinions, and simple statements are no longer enough. They must be accompanied by meaningful actions that Divine Providence can use to shake consciences – and even the Church herself.” Fr Pagliarani concluded his letter by urging members and faithful to prepare for the consecrations through prayer and devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary. “It is with these sentiments and this charity that we must prepare for the ceremony on 1 July,” he wrote, “and strive to prepare all the faithful under our care.” The tensions between the Vatican and the SSPX stem from the Second Vatican Council. Relations improved significantly during the pontificate of Pope Benedict XVI, who lifted the excommunications of the SSPX bishops and expanded permission for the celebration of the Traditional Latin Mass through Summorum Pontificum in 2007. Under Pope Francis, however, tensions between Rome and traditionalist groups deepened following the publication of Traditionis Custodes in 2021, which imposed major restrictions on the old rite of Mass. Despite those disputes, Pope Francis granted SSPX priests faculties to hear confessions during the Jubilee Year of Mercy before extending them indefinitely, while also allowing local bishops to delegate SSPX priests to witness marriages. Image credit: SSPX

Three monks secretly left the Transalpine Redemptorists’ monastery on Papa Stronsay by boat after allegedly arranging their departure with the Diocese of Aberdeen without informing superiors Three monks of the Transalpine Redemptorists have left the order’s monastery on the island of Papa Stronsay after secretly arranging their departure from the remote Orkney community. The Press and Journal reported on 20 May that two priests and a subdeacon coordinated their exit with Bishop Hugh Gilbert of Aberdeen and left the island by boat without informing their superiors. The arrangement was allegedly discovered only on the day of their departure after the use of a monastery laptop came to light. The three men are understood to have left Papa Stronsay quietly and are now believed to be staying at an undisclosed location under the care of the Diocese of Aberdeen. Fr Anthony Mary, the superior of the community, criticised the manner of the departure and said the remaining members had been left without any explanation. “They tried to leave quietly, but it came to light on the very day they intended to go,” he said. “One of the fathers discovered it after they used a laptop without permission.” Describing the departure itself, Fr Anthony said the men had left without speaking to their superiors or fellow members. “They left on the evening boat, and we have heard nothing since – no word, no explanation, nothing,” he said. “It is as though we never existed.” The priest also alleged that Bishop Gilbert had “worked against us” and said repeated attempts to contact both the bishop and the departing clerics had produced no personal response. “I wrote to the bishop three times and to the priests four or five times,” he said. “There has been no reply to me personally. Recently, the bishop said he would respond at some stage. But trying to live as a good Catholic and follow the faith has become very difficult.” The congregation recently published a document rejecting the legitimacy of every pope since Pope Paul VI. The document, entitled The Dogma to Steer By , described Pope Leo XIV as a “pretender”, called for his replacement and declared the group’s intention to withdraw cooperation with the Vatican, which it accused of having been overtaken by “modernist enemies”. The document is interesting because it does not follow the usual norms of sedevacantism, where adherents normally reject the papacies since Pius XII or, on occasion, since Pius X. The monks, however, appear to accept John XXIII as a legitimate pope while rejecting the “papal pretenders Paul VI, John Paul II, Benedict XVI, Francis, and Leo XIV”, who, according to the text, “have engaged in actions embodying indifferentism”. The text also claims that the “Church has been infiltrated by enemies from at least the time of Pope Gregory XVI”, but that it is only since the Second Vatican Council that popes have “caused a spiritual catastrophe of the greatest imaginable proportions”. The monks also say that they are working and praying for an “Imperfect General Council”, in which “all the Catholic bishops of the world who have kept the true Faith” will “pronounce on the status of the present claimants to the papacy and restore order to the Church”. They continue that, until that day comes, which they acknowledge may still be some time away, they will seek to be “guided by the Magisterium of the holy Popes who have always taught the one true Faith in its integrity and purity”. Following publication of the text, Fr Michael Mary, founder of the Transalpine Redemptorists, reportedly came under investigation by Rome. Speaking separately, Fr Michael said the three men had left because of “theological differences” and had opposed the direction taken by the community. “We’ve lost three priests – two priests and a subdeacon – who have really not been in agreement from the beginning,” he said. “They hung on for quite a while, not wanting to abandon their vocations, but what we’ve come to now has been the last straw.” He added that the departing members had ultimately concluded they could no longer remain. “They were unable in their consciences to go along with us. So, they left us,” he said. The departures took place only weeks after the disappearance of Brother Justin Evans, 25, a member of the community who was reported “lost to the sea” on 11 April. Although a body was later recovered, it has not yet been positively identified. The Transalpine Redemptorists were founded in 1988 and were initially closely associated with the Society of St Pius X. Following Pope Benedict XVI’s lifting of the SSPX excommunications in 2009, the community entered into closer relations with Rome and was later recognised as a religious institute under the authority of the Diocese of Aberdeen.

Religious orders and dioceses across Spain are increasingly turning to professional investment managers and ethically screened funds as ageing communities, falling vocations and rising maintenance costs force Catholic institutions to modernise their finances Spain’s religious orders are increasingly turning to professional investment managers and ethical funds as declining vocations, ageing communities and rising maintenance costs force Catholic institutions to modernise the way they manage their finances. According to Bloomberg News, the change was evident during a seminar held at the Theological Institute of Religious Life in Madrid, where members of religious congregations met bankers and financial advisers to discuss investment strategies, artificial intelligence and the economic uncertainty caused by Donald Trump’s second term in the White House. The gathering is indicative of a shift taking place across the Spanish Church, which has traditionally relied on donations, rental income and a system allowing taxpayers to allocate 0.7 per cent of their income tax to the Catholic Church. But falling numbers in religious life and growing financial pressures have led many dioceses and congregations to professionalise the management of their assets. Figures published by the Spanish bishops’ conference show the number of men and women in religious orders in Spain fell by around 45 per cent between 2014 and 2024. The number of priests has also continued to decline during the same period, though recent years have seen a small increase in the number of seminarians. Many religious communities possess valuable property portfolios, including schools, hospitals, convents and apartments in major cities, but these assets have not always been managed with profitability in mind. Guillermo Vanrell, head of finance and administration for a diocese in eastern Spain, said he was struck by the outdated state of Church administration when he first entered the role more than a decade ago. “I hadn’t seen an Olivetti typewriter since I was a kid,” he said, recalling how receipts were still being produced manually. He said diocesan investments had been concentrated in fixed-term deposits and banking products with little long-term strategy behind them. Since then, he has worked to modernise accounting systems and restructure investments while monitoring financial markets more closely. The scale of Church assets can vary widely between religious institutions. Smaller congregations often struggle with limited resources, while larger orders may oversee international portfolios worth hundreds of millions of euros. Many institutions must also navigate both civil and canon law obligations, particularly where schools, hospitals and heritage properties are concerned. The growing complexity of Church finances led CaixaBank and the Universidad Pontificia Comillas in Madrid to establish Spain’s first postgraduate programme dedicated to the administration of ecclesiastical property and religious institutions. Some congregations have been forced to make difficult decisions about properties they can no longer afford to maintain. The owners of Hospital La Milagrosa in Madrid sought outside advice when the cost of modernising the hospital became unsustainable. The religious order eventually reached an agreement with the Vithas Group, which now manages the hospital and has pledged to invest €30 million in renovations, while the congregation retained ownership of the property itself. As Church institutions become more active investors, Vatican guidance has increasingly shaped how Catholic organisations approach financial markets. In 2022 the Pontifical Academy of Social Sciences published Mensuram Bonam , a document setting out “faith-consistent investing” guidelines for Catholic institutions following a series of financial scandals linked to Vatican finances. The document warned against investments in industries connected to weapons, pornography, contraception and addictive products while encouraging support for businesses linked to sustainability, human dignity and social responsibility. María Canel, who oversees the finances of the Religiosas de la Pureza de María near Barcelona, said there had once been “a fear of investing”, but that attitude had changed significantly. She recalled rejecting a fund after discovering that it included investments linked to the arms industry despite assurances that it complied with Catholic social teaching. The demand for ethically screened investments has contributed to the growth of explicitly Catholic funds in Spain. According to financial advisers, around a dozen such funds now operate in the country with combined assets worth approximately €650 million. Many are linked to major banking groups including Santander, Sabadell and Ibercaja, although independent firms also operate within the sector. Earlier this year the Vatican Bank, working alongside Morningstar, launched two equity indices designed to comply with Catholic ethical principles. Companies listed within the indices include Deutsche Telekom, ASML, Apple, Nvidia and Tesla.

The Armenian Apostolic Church has said that Pope Leo XIV and Catholicos Aram I discussed the possibility of convening a “Third Vatican Council” during a private meeting at the Vatican focused on Christian unity, Artsakh and the Middle East The idea of convening a “Third Vatican Council” was discussed during a private meeting between Pope Leo XIV and Catholicos Aram I at the Vatican. The meeting took place on May 18 and focused on Christian unity, the plight of displaced Armenians from Artsakh, the continuing detention of Armenian prisoners in Baku and the situation in Lebanon. While the Vatican’s own account of the audience made no mention of a council, a statement released by the Armenian Apostolic Church said the two Church leaders discussed “the establishment of a common date for Easter, a day of commemoration for all martyrs, and the convening of a Third Vatican Council”. According to the statement, Aram I stressed the “urgent necessity” of such initiatives for the life of the “universal Christian Church”. The Armenian Church added that Pope Leo XIV expressed “understanding and support” concerning the issues raised during the meeting. No details were given about what form a Third Vatican Council might take or whether it would involve only the Catholic Church or a wider ecumenical gathering of Christian Churches. The Second Vatican Council, convened by Pope John XXIII in 1962 and concluded under Pope Paul VI in 1965, remains the most recent ecumenical council of the Catholic Church. Speculation about a future council has surfaced periodically in recent decades, though no pope has publicly advanced plans for another ecumenical council. The proposal emerged during a broader conversation between Leo XIV and Aram I concerning the condition of Christians in the Middle East and relations between Churches. According to the Armenian statement, Aram I also raised the issue of Artsakh and the right of displaced Armenians to return “under international guarantees”. He further stressed the need to protect Armenian churches and historical monuments in accordance with international law. The Catholicos additionally referred to the continuing detention of former Artsakh officials and political leaders held in Baku, saying their release remained an urgent matter. The meeting also addressed Lebanon, where Aram I underlined the importance of preserving the sovereignty of the Lebanese state and ensuring the authority of the government throughout the country. He also spoke of the importance of Israel withdrawing from southern Lebanon and respecting existing ceasefire agreements. The Armenian statement said the two Church leaders also discussed ecumenical relations and the future direction of inter-Church dialogue. Aram I emphasised that alongside theological discussions, “moral and ethical issues” should occupy a greater place within ecumenical cooperation and international Christian initiatives. The Vatican has sought closer ties with the Oriental Orthodox Churches since the Second Vatican Council, with relations between Rome and the Armenian Apostolic Church improving markedly during the pontificates of Pope St John Paul II, Benedict XVI and Francis. Pope Francis maintained warm relations with Armenian Christian leaders and frequently referred to the suffering of Armenian Christians in the Middle East. In 2015 he described the mass killing of Armenians under the Ottoman Empire as “the first genocide of the 20th century”. Aram I, who has led the Catholicosate of the Great House of Cilicia since 1995, has long been active in ecumenical affairs and previously served as moderator of the World Council of Churches.

Father Dario Escobar, the Colombian-born Maronite hermit reported to have spent 14 hours a day in prayer in Lebanon’s Qadisha Valley, has died aged 92 Father Dario Escobar, priest and hermit, has died aged 92. He was born in Medellín, Colombia, in 1934, a city which Pablo Escobar also called home, though the two were unrelated. He came from an affluent family and excelled academically, becoming a polyglot and later lecturing in theology and Biblical Greek, according to the Beiruter . It was in the United States, where Father Escobar was living in the 1990s, that he first heard of the Qadisha Valley, “Qadisha” meaning “holy” in Aramaic, the language traditionally associated with Jesus. He had already transferred to the Maronite rite when a Lebanese priest visiting Miami told him of the place, where Christians have sought solitude for the past fifteen hundred years. He left the United States for Lebanon, where he tried various forms of religious life before joining the Lebanese Maronite Order and settling at the Hermitage of Our Lady of Hawqa in the Qadisha Valley in 2000. Renowned for his asceticism, it was reported that the priest spent 14 hours a day in prayer, three working, two reading spiritual texts, and five asleep. He used a stone as a pillow and adhered to a vegetarian diet, with food provided by his garden and donations from visitors. He also made a point of adopting the Lebanese culture in which he found himself, learning Arabic and making a full transition to the Maronite rite. He embraced the Maronite rite completely. He prayed in the tradition of the Lebanese Church. He learned Arabic. He cared deeply about Lebanese politics, following events through the accounts of visitors. He prayed daily for the country and never left it again. His life naturally brings to mind Saint Charbel Makhlouf, also a Maronite, also a hermit and of the same monastic order. Beatified by Pope Paul VI in 1965 and canonised in 1977 in the final canonisation of his pontificate, Saint Charbel lived a life of asceticism and Eucharistic devotion in 19th-century Lebanon. Today he remains the most recognisable Maronite saint and the first Maronite monk to be formally canonised in the modern era. In the later years of his life, a sort of cult following developed around visiting Father Escobar in the hills of the Qadisha Valley. He was reportedly happy to converse with visitors, living a less secluded life than some of the other hermits who inhabited the area. In the final years of his life he was moved to the Monastery of Saint Boula in Hawqa, as climbing the hills to his hermitage had become too difficult. He will be buried at Monastery of Saint Anthony of Qozhaya, famous for the Grotto of Saint Anthony the Great, another renowned hermit. Image credit: X@SacerdosMariae