Post Helene Tragedies Continue in North Carolina

 A week after the remnants of Hurricane Helene swept through the western part of North Carolina, Monsignor Patrick Winslow said everyone leading the Diocese of Charlotte's response and recovery efforts is still trying to understand the full extent of the damage, the Crux website reports today (Oct. 5, 2024). 

Winsalow, the diocese's chancellor and vicar general, said every day that communication capabilities are restored, more information and images trickle in about families whose homes were destroyed or people in a particular region who are in need. 

He said he has seen a western North Carolina that is unrecognizable. "It  is heartbreaking to see these scenes," Winslow told Crux. 

The Diocese of Charlotte constitutes 46 counties in western North Carolina. More than half of those have been declared federal disaster areas. That region includes 44 of the diocese's 92 churches, which for the most part sustained minor damage. 

More than 200 people in six states have died due to the storm. At least 100 of those deaths are in North Carolina, and search and rescue in the state continue. 

Pope, Holy Land Leaders Call for Oct. 7 to Be a Day of Prayer, Fasting for Peace

 With the war in Gaza morphing into a full--blown regional conflict as the first anniversary of hostilities approaches, the Church's leading voice  in the Holy Land has called on believers to observe an Oct. 7 day of prayer and fasting for peace, the Crux website reports today (Oct. 4, 2024). 

In a recent statement, Cardinal Pierbarttista Pizzaballa, the Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem, noted that "for the past year the Holy Land , and not only, has been plunged into a vortex of violence and hatred never seen or  experienced before."

"The intensity and impact of the tragedies we have witnessed in the past 12 months have deeply lacerated our conscience and our sense of humanity, " he said. 

In light of this, as the first anniversary approaches of the Oct. 7,

 2023 Hamas attack on Israel, which prompted a retaliatory offensive that has since spun into an escalating regional conflict, Pizzaballa invited faithful to observe Oct. 7 "a day of prayer, fasting, and penance." 

Last year on Oct. 7, Hamas militants attacked various locations throughout Israel, killing 1,200 people and taking over 250 hostages. 

Israel in response launched a retaliatory ground and air offensive in Gaza with the aim of eradicating Hamas that has left more than 41,000 people in Gaza dead. 

Pope Francis echoed Pizzaballa's call for a day of prayer and fasting on Oct.  7, asking everyone "to take part in a day of prayer and fasting for peace in the world" on Oct. 7.

Synod of Bishops on Synodality Rejects Women Becoming Deacons; Women Becoming Deacons Violates Catholic Doctrine

 On the first day of the final session of the Synod of Bishops on Synodality, a study group responsible for evaluating the female diaconate has said that, while still exploring other forms of women's involvement in the Church, they will not become deacons, the Crux website reports today (Oct. 3, 2024). 

Cardinal Victor Manuel Fernandez, prefect of the Vatican's Dicastery for the  Doctrine of the Faith, made the announcement during the synod's afternoon session Oct. 2, the first official working day of the Oct. 2--27 synod. 

On the women's diaconate, he said, "We would like to share from the outset that, based on the analysis conducted so far -- which also takes into account the work done by the two Commissions established by Pope Francis on the female diaconate -- the dicastory judges that there is no room for a positive decision by the Magisterium regarding the access of women to the diaconate, understood as a degree of the Sacrament of Holy Orders." 

"The Holy Father himself recently confirmed this consideration publicly. In any event, the Dicastery judges that the opportunity to continue the work of in--depth study remains open," he said. 

Feds Arrest Thousands of Violent Fugitives in Huge Operation

 The U.S.Marshals Service said yesterday a months--long nationwide mission to capture violent fugitives has resulted in the arrests of more than 3,400  suspects wanted on murder, rape, and robbery charges, The Washington Times website reports today (Oct. 2, 2024). 

The U.S. Marshals Service's Operation North Star saw 216 homicide suspects, as well as 803 suspects wanted for assault, and 482 people wanted on weapons offenses, taken into custody during the sprawling mission that covered the metropolitan areas in the Midwest, Southwest, and Southeast. 

Notable arrests include Michael Moldovan, who was nabbed in Sterling, Virginia in August after he fled North CXarolina on statutory rape charges. . 

"We first launched Operation North Star in 2022 to identify and apprehend the most dangerous fugitives and violent offenders ," Attorney General Merrick Garland said in  a statement. 

The Marshals said the operation, which lasted from May 10 to Sept. 13, ended with 534 firearms seized, more than $508,000 in currency reclaimed, and the confiscation of 456 kilograms of illegal narcotics, including 138 pounds and more that 550,000 pills of deadly fentanyl.

Synod of Bishops on Synodality Begins

 After three years of discussion, debate and, at times, division, the concluding act of Pope Francis' Synod of Bishops on synodality began yesterday, with the opening of a two--day spiritual retreat before the 368 participants in the second , and final, Roman assembly start their conversations, the Crux website reports today (Oct. 1, 2024). 

As during the first session of the synod last year, the retreat will be led by Dominican Father Timothy Radcliffe and Benedictine Mother Ignazia Angelini, organized into four "meditations" over the two days. The retreat will also feature a Mass tonight in St. Peter's Basilica, and a penitential liturgy tomorrow evening in the presence of the pope, in which victims of abuse, of war, and indifferenc to migrants will offer testimony. 

Forgiveness will be asked for a litany of sins, including abuse, "using doctrine as stones to be hurled," and war and violence, as well as offenses against creation, indigenous populations, migrants, women, families, and youth. 

Of the 368 participants, 272 are bishops and the rest are priests. deacons, male and female religious, and laity. 

October 2 marks the official opening of the synod itself, with a Mass in St. Peter's Square at 9:30 a.m. Rome time, and the first working session that afternoon at 4 p.m., which will begin with a greeting from Pope Francis.