Catholicism

A Wisconsin judge suspended charges against defrocked Roman Catholic Cardinal Theodore McCarrick, accused of sexually assaulting a boy in the 1970s.

Wisconsin’s Catholic leaders are stressing that Pope Francis’s declaration that priests can bless same sex couples has not changed the church’s definition of marriage. Earlier this week, the pope issued a declaration that priests can offer spontaneous blessings to those who seek them, including to same-sex couples. While many regard the announcement a major tonal…

Some Wisconsin Catholics say it’s not surprising to see Pope Francis take action against Wisconsin-native Cardinal Raymond Burke. The Associated Press reported on Tuesday that two people briefed on the measures say Francis has decided to revoke Burke’s right to a Vatican apartment and salary. One of the sources said Francis had reasoned that Burke…

Pope Francis has decided to take measures to punish Cardinal Raymond Burke, who is one of his highest-ranking critics. Two people briefed on the measures say Francis has decided to revoke Burke’s right to a Vatican apartment and salary. Burke’s secretary says he hasn’t received any notification of the measures. One of the people briefed…

When Thanksgiving approaches, so too does an influx of classical music performances across the state. Wisconsin Public Radio “Afternoon Classics” host Lori Skelton says Wisconsin is seeing a unique “concert bottleneck” this autumn, due in part to effects of COVID-19 public gathering restrictions. Skelton joined WPR’s “The Morning Show” to discuss the season’s most anticipated…

On its first day of oral arguments since liberals took control of the Wisconsin Supreme Court, justices questioned whether a charitable arm of the Catholic Diocese of Superior should be exempt from paying into Wisconsin’s unemployment insurance system. Catholic Charities Bureau, Inc. argues its social welfare programs throughout Wisconsin are operated primarily for religious purposes…

Wisconsin’s Department of Justice is asking to see sealed records from the Milwaukee branch of the Catholic Church as part of the attorney general’s investigation into sexual abuse by faith leaders. Those records were shielded from public view after the Milwaukee Archdiocese filed for bankruptcy in 2011. In 2015, that bankruptcy case resulted in a…

The Wisconsin Supreme Court will hear a case to determine a religious charity’s obligation to participate in the state unemployment system. Catholic Charities Bureau, Inc., the social services arm of the Diocese of Superior, filed to be exempt from paying into the state unemployment insurance program. At the heart of this case is a question…

A once high-ranking leader of the Catholic Church who’s faced multiple accusations throughout the country is now being charged with sexual assault in Wisconsin. Walworth County District Attorney Zeke Wiedenfeld filed the misdemeanor charge Friday against Theodore McCarrick, 92, stemming from an alleged 1977 incident at a home on Geneva Lake. According to a criminal…

A Madison-based secular group is calling on Wisconsin Attorney General Josh Kaul to escalate a statewide review of clergy sex abuse that launched last year. The request follows the release of names of nearly two dozen clergy by the Catholic Diocese of Superior, which it says have had credible claims of sexually abusing minors made…