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| THURSDAY, AUGUST 2 |
| McCARRICK SCANDAL Cardinal Daniel DiNardo addressed what he called the “grievous moral failure” in the Church that allowed Archbishop McCarrick’s abuse to be kept undisclosed for decades. “Why weren’t these allegations of sins against chastity and human dignity disclosed when they were first brought to Church officials? Why wasn’t this egregious situation addressed decades sooner and with justice?” asked DiNardo. READ |
| BISHOP DISCLOSES ABUSERS Bishop Ronald Gainer of Harrisburg, Pa., made public the names of 71 priests and other Church officials accused of child sex abuse. The Allentown Diocese plans to follow suit as well. “I apologize to the survivors of child sex abuse, to the Catholic faithful and to the general public for the abuses that took place and for those church officials who failed,” Bishop Gainer said. The diocese waived confidentiality agreements so victims are free to speak. Additionally, Bishop Gainer is removing the names of all bishops since 1947 from any building in the diocese. READ |
| SCANDAL IN LINCOLN The Diocese of Lincoln, Neb., acknowledged reports of inappropriate sexual behavior by a now deceased vocations director. The diocese asked “any priest, religious, seminarian, or lay Catholic with any information or concerns about past or current misconduct in a parish, school, or apostolate of the diocese to contact the diocesan chancery or, if criminal behavior is suspected, any law enforcement agency.” READ |
| MUELLER PROBE ABC News is claiming that special counsel Robert Mueller wants to ask President Trump about obstruction of justice. READ |
| CAPITAL GAINS The Trump administration is considering issuing a rule to allow capital gains to be indexed to inflation. READ |
| HEALTH CARE REFORM The Trump administration moved forward with a final rule to allow cheaper new and renewable health insurance plans that consumers can use for up to a year. The short-term plans would “provide relief for well over 1 million people,” said HHS Secretary Alex Azar. READ |
| CINEMA An actress in the upcoming “Gosnell” movie talks about the moment that she decided not to go through with an abortion. “When I look at him, I just can’t believe I was going to kill somebody so precious.” READ |
| CONFESSIONAL A government body in India has proposed a ban on the sacrament of confession. Father Varghese Vallikkatt, spokesman for the Kerala Catholic Bishops Conference, said: “We strongly feel that the recommendation is unwarranted and violates the honor and credibility of the Christian community.” READ |
| GREAT MEN OF FAITH Every Catholic in the United States should know about these three great men: Venerable Frederic Baraga, Fr. Thomas Price, and Archbishop John Noll. READ |
| SAINT OF THE DAY Today’s saint, Eusebius of Vercelli, spent most of his episcopal life defending the Church against the Arians. Also a defender of Saint Athanasius, whom the emperor wanted to punish, Saint Eusebius suffered death threats and harassment. But Saint Eusebius continued to remain faithful and hopeful. READ |
| DAILY READINGS “Blessed is he whose help is the God of Jacob.” (Ps 146:5) READ |
| DEVOTION Tour de France cyclists pray at Lourdes to demonstrate their devotion and receive a blessing. READ |