8-18-2026
Maura Healey Signed Abortion Up to Birth. Catholic Boston Took Her Money. | A Catholic Take
Joe McClane
Massachusetts Governor Maura Healey signed abortion up to birth into law on August 10 and
defended it by calling herself a “proud Catholic.” What almost nobody is reporting: the
Catholic institutions of Massachusetts have taken grant after grant from her administration
for four straight years.
Joe walks through the paper trail assembled by the Catholic Action League of Massachusetts —
nine separate awards to Catholic Charities, the Archdiocese of Boston, the Diocese of
Springfield and Catholic schools between 2023 and 2026 — alongside Archbishop Richard
Henning’s condemnation of the signing and the growing calls for the Massachusetts bishops to
act. Then: Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem, visits Taybeh, the
last entirely Christian village in the West Bank, and pledges to preserve the Church’s
presence in the Holy Land.
SCRIPTURE
Jeremias 1:5 — “Before I formed thee in the bowels of thy mother, I knew thee.”
Psalm 138:13 — “For thou hast possessed my reins: thou hast protected me from my mother’s
womb.”
Proverbs 24:11 — “Deliver them that are led to death: and those that are drawn to death
forbear not to deliver.”
Matthew 5:10 — “Blessed are they that suffer persecution for justice’ sake: for theirs is the
kingdom of heaven.”
REFERENCED DOCUMENTS
Massachusetts H.5595 — signed 10 August 2026, effective 8 November 2026
Code of Canon Law, c. 1397 sec. 2 — abortion, latae sententiae excommunication (formerly c.
1398, renumbered with the revised Book VI in force 8 December 2021)
Code of Canon Law, c. 915 — admission to Holy Communion
Evangelium Vitae, John Paul II (1995), nn. 58-62, 73
CDF, “Worthiness to Receive Holy Communion: General Principles” (2004)
USCCB, “The Mystery of the Eucharist in the Life of the Church” (2021)
8-17-2026
Bishop Mutsaerts to Pope Leo: We Need Saints, Not Synods | A Catholic Take – Joe McClane
Bishop Rob Mutsaerts wrote Pope Leo XIV an open letter with one question: is the Synod on Synodality actually saving souls?
Two clips out of Ireland and Spain this week show exactly why he’s asking — and the letter is where the answer starts.
Joe walks through the auxiliary bishop of Hertogenbosch’s open letter to the Holy Father, published in the Catholic Herald on August 14, 2026.
Mutsaerts writes in reverence for the Petrine office, not against it — his concern is the one Christ gave us the measure for: “By their fruits you shall know them.” After years of consultations, reports and documents, are the churches fuller? Are there more vocations? Is confession being used? Has anyone been converted?
Then two clips from the last 48 hours. In Ireland, a laywoman delivering what was called a “homily” at Mass, after the Gospel. In Cantabria, Spain, a priest telling the faithful that the Assumption of Our Lady is not to be “taken literally” — that heaven is “a state of the soul,” not a place. Both come days after the Feast of the Assumption. Both are what rebellion looks like when catechesis collapses.
So what do we do about it? Joe goes back to the design of the Church — a thing received, not a thing voted on — and back to basics: salvation. Salus animarum suprema lex. Mutsaerts’ answer is not a new structure. It’s the one the Church has always used.
The great Catholic reforms almost never began with committees; they began with saints. Benedict, Francis, Dominic, Catherine of Siena, Ignatius, Teresa of Ávila, John Bosco, Thérèse. Their program was simple: become holy. A parish with a holy pastor has a greater future than a diocese with twenty working groups. Not less listening — more holiness. Not less participation — more conversion. Not less dialogue — more proclamation. And that’s the standing order for the rest of us. When bishops go quiet and priests go off the rails, the answer for the man in the pew is not despair and it is not leaving. It’s the sacraments, the confessional, the rosary, a family that prays, and a faith you can actually explain to your grandchildren. Remain faithful. That’s how the Church has survived every one of these before.
SCRIPTURE & SOURCES:
Luke 22:32 (DR) — “And thou, being once converted, confirm thy brethren.”
Matthew 7:16 (DR) — “By their fruits you shall know them.”
Mark 1:15 (DR) — “Do penance, and believe the gospel.”
Matthew 28:19 (DR) — “Going therefore, teach ye all nations.”
Mark 16:15 (DR) — “Go ye into the whole world, and preach the gospel to every creature.”
John 6:69 (DR) — “Lord, to whom shall we go? thou hast the words of eternal life.”
Luke 24:13–35 (DR) — The road to Emmaus.
Luke 10:2 (DR) — “The harvest indeed is great, but the labourers are few.”
Bishop Rob Mutsaerts, “Open Letter to Leo XIV on synodality” — Catholic Herald, August 14, 2026
Pope Pius XII, Munificentissimus Deus (November 1, 1950) — the Assumption defined ex cathedra
Code of Canon Law, c. 1752 — salus animarum suprema lex esto
Code of Canon Law, c. 767 §1 — the homily is reserved to a priest or deacon
Redemptionis Sacramentum, 64–66 (2004)
Synod on Synodality implementation phase — Vatican roadmap published May 2026, ecclesial assembly Rome, October 2028
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8-14-2026
The Assumption: Did Rome Invent This in 1950? | A Catholic Take – Joe McClane
We cover the news live today and examine the earliest sources on the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary. Then, we welcome back Dr. Anthony Stine to discuss Pope Leo’s letter to Cardinal Roche.
8-13-2026
Pope Leo Calls Religious to be Experts in Synodality? | A Catholic Take – Joe McClane
We cover the news live today and welcome back Nicholas Cavazos to discuss the US bishops’ reliance on a migrant program for over 80% of revenue. Then, we welcome back Michael Hichborn to discuss selective enforcement and hierarchical scandal.
8-12-2026
They’d Never Do This to the Byzantines. So Why the Latin Mass? | A Catholic Take – Joe McClane
We cover the news live today and welcome back Niwa Limbu to discuss a German Bishop’s declaration that he will not sanction lay preaching despite the Vatican ban. then, we welcome back Fr. Jason Charron to examine the Eastern churches and whether or not they are feeling the pressure to modernize their liturgies.
8-11-2026
He Saw a “7” on the Moon — Then the Church Compromised Marriage | A Catholic Take – Joe McClane
We cover the news live today and welcome back Michael Haynes to address a report claiming that the Vatican firmly voted against Medjugorge in 2016. Then, we welcome back Dr. Matthew Tsakanikas to discuss the possible significance of a mysterious “7” that appeared over the Moon in 2019, and what he believes it may reveal about the Church’s current spiritual crisis.
8-10-2026
Signs of the Times: The Age of Entitlement with Jesse Romero | A Catholic Take – Joe McClane
We cover the news live today and welcome back Mike Koeniger to discuss the war on the TLM heating up. Then, we welcome back Jesse Romero to react to a concerning uptick in marijuana use.
8-7-2026 – Bishop Joseph Strickland: Modernism Is the Synthesis of All Heresies | A Catholic Take – Joe McClane
We cover the news live today and welcome back Dr. Anthony Stine to address the SSPX’s blistering statement on the errors of today’s Vatican. Then, we welcome back Bishop Joseph Strickland to explain why modernism is the synthesis of all heresies and the root of the crisis unfolding in the Church.
8-6-2026 – FBI Raid Survivor: Mark Houck on Pro-Life Under Trump vs. Biden | A Catholic Take – Joe McClane
We cover the news live today and welcome back Nicholas Cavazos to discuss the rise of Socialist Democrats. Then, we welcome back Mark Houck to examine the state of the pro-life movement under President Trump.
8-5-2026 – The Final Deception Will Look Christian: Fr. Jason Charron on the Antichrist | A Catholic Take – Joe McClane
We cover the news live today and welcome back Fr. Jason Charron to examine why so many people are talking about the antichrist.
8-4-2026 – Who’s Speaking for Pope Leo on the Traditional Latin Mass? | A Catholic Take – Joe McClane
We cover the news live today and welcome back Timothy Flanders to discuss homeschooling offerings from the Avila Institute for Spiritual Formation. Then, we welcome back Mark Lambert to examine whether or not someone may be trying to tie Pope Leo to Cardinal Roche’s TLM agenda.
8-3-2026 – The TLM, Sedevacantism & the Deep Divide in the Catholic Church with Matt Gaspers | A Catholic Take – Joe McClane
We cover the news live today and welcome back Mike Koeniger to discuss the concerning rise in active shooter incidents at churches. Then, we welcome back Matt Gaspers to discuss the TLM, sedevacantism, and the deep divide in the Church.
