Welcome to Wednesday. Religious sisters share their wisdom and reason for not endorsing political candidates. There is a consistory planned next month, but will the cardinals gather in Rome for the ceremony? An NCR columnist says that Joe Biden's Catholicism and character are greasing the wheels toward a victory.

Sisters: The wisdom in not endorsing politicians

As Americans cast their ballots for president in the waning days of a bitterly contentious election, they're been bombarded by messages from campaigns, interest groups, the media and church pulpits — including the lingering, contrasting portraits of two women religious who took the stage when the parties officially nominated their candidates.

Both Catholic sisters — one in a nun's habit — elevated Catholic concerns at the August Democratic and Republican conventions. They diverged in how they presented their messages, yet they both illustrate the line women and men religious must navigate while publicly engaging in politics as well as how this campaign season is different.

While the presence of men or women religious at a political event may already "telegraph" their belief that a particular candidate or campaign is "worth listening to," St. Joseph Sr. Christine Schenk said, "there's a wisdom in not outright endorsing any one candidate."

Read the rest of the story at Global Sisters Report. 

More background:

• Eleven congregational justice and peace promotors created and circulated a voting guide to help voters discern that whom to vote for is not a one-issue matter.


• A number of individual U.S. bishops are using the presidential election year to offer their own reflections on how Catholics should approach the ballot box, often doubling down on emphasizing abortion via letters and columns.

Will the 13 new cardinals come to Rome during a pandemic?

Pope Francis' announcement that he would be creating new Catholic cardinals next month came the same day the Italian government mandated a new "semi-lockdown" for the country's population, urging people not to travel outside their communities because of increasing coronavirus infection numbers.

What are the 13 men now set to be inducted into the church's most select body of prelates during a Vatican ceremony to do? Several of them are in their 70s and 80s, and may well be hesitant to travel.

Typically, the new cardinals would join current cardinals in making their way to Rome for the event, known as a consistory. But several canon lawyers stressed to NCR that Francis could instead ask global cardinals to stay home, and conduct the ceremony without them.

"The fact is, they don't need to be here," Nicholas Cafardi, a civil and canon lawyer who has advised bishops and dioceses on canonical issues for decades, said about the new cardinals.

Read the rest of the story here.

More background:

• Pope Francis named 13 new Catholic cardinals, including two Vatican officials; archbishops in Rwanda, the Philippines and Chile; and Washington, D.C. Archbishop Wilton Gregory.


• Pope Francis' announcement to make Archbishop Wilton Gregory of Washington a cardinal is being hailed as an important moment for the U.S. Catholic Church, and especially for Black Catholics at a time of racial reckoning in the country.

More headlines

• In the final stretch to Election Day, NCR political columnist Michael Sean Winters says that Joe Biden's character and Catholicism are greasing the wheels to victory.
   
• Few Catholic leaders or public figures in the United States are talking about 2020's toll on mental health. But the Australian bishops offer an incredible contribution, writes NCR columnist Franciscan Fr. Daniel Horan.
   
• ICYMI: Presidential nominee Joe Biden quoted from Fratelli Tutti on the campaign trail, and within moments, President Donald Trump's reelection campaign took the pope's words out of context in an attempt to use them against Biden.


• ICYMI: A political action committee opposed to President Donald Trump's reelection has released a new ad targeting Catholic voters, highlighting polling that shows the majority of Catholics are voting against him

Final thoughts

Join us today at 1:30 p.m. Central for a Facebook Live event with NCR national correspondent Christopher White, Network executive director Social Service Sr. Simone Campbell and lay minister and immigration attorney Yuneun Trujillo to talk about the Catholic and Latino vote in the upcoming election. 
 

Until Thursday,

Stephanie Yeagle
NCR Production/Online Editor
[email protected]
Twitter: @ncrSLY

P.S. This is the final week of our Fall Member Drive. If you know someone who you think would like to be a member, please forward and share this email with them. Or, if you are not yet a member and are enjoying this newsletter, join the NCR family today.

Featured Advertisers

Join Sacred Heart & Seton Hall Universities for a virtual conference on the Catholic intellectual tradition in higher education Oct. 29-31.

Register today to attend Fairfield University’s free online Fall 2020 webinar lectures, sponsored by the Center for Catholic Studies. Visit fairfield.edu/cs for details.

A traditional dark old-style flavorful cake, filled with fruit and nuts, dipped in brandy and perfectly aged - Trappist Abbey Bakery

Online certificate and master's programs. 50% tuition waivers given to faith-based leaders, church workers, and educators. A leader in global distance education for more than 10 years.