August 16, 2019 (LifeSiteNews) — Cardinal Blase Cupich is this week’s Bishop of the Week for Faithful Shepherds, a website launched by LifeSiteNews in August 2018 that encourages bishops to remain faithful to Christ by enabling laity to email, send personalized postcards, or call their bishops to urge them to uphold the Church’s perennial teachings.
Cardinal Cupich, the archbishop of Chicago since 2014, has been one of the most high-profile American bishops in recent years. From his close relationship with Pope Francis to his recent remarks in favor of allowing Communion for pro-abortion politicians, Cupich has never failed to garner headlines. Perhaps what Cardinal Cupich is most known for is his widespread deviation from Church teaching on a variety of issues.
Learn more about Cardinal Cupich’s views and past actions by visiting FaithfulShepherds.com. Click here.
As Bishop of Spokane, Wash., Cupich urged priests and seminarians in his diocese not to pray outside abortion facilities. He is also a firm believer in the “seamless garment of life” ethic. On multiple occasions, he has equated abortion with gun violence and other social justice issues.
Cupich also has not upheld the Church’s teaching on homosexuality and “LGBT” ideology. He has been one of the greatest supporters of pro-gay priest Fr. James Martin. After several of Fr. Martin’s speaking appearances were canceled in 2018 due to his radical views, Cardinal Cupich invited Martin to speak at the prestigious Holy Name Cathedral in Chicago. Cupich has even said that Martin “has a wonderful message” and that he “appreciates” what Martin is doing for the Church.
On the issue of liturgy, Cardinal Cupich is not much better. While Bishop of Rapid City in 2002, Cupich ordered that the doors of a Traditional Latin Mass parish be locked during the entirety of the Easter Triduum, forcing the parish to celebrate Mass on the sidewalk in front of the church. Additionally, the Chicago Sun Tribune reported that Cupich went “calmly ballistic” when he found out that there were no female altar servers scheduled to serve at his installation Mass as Archbishop of Chicago in 2014. Cupich promptly changed the traditional, all-seminarian group of altar servers to a group that included four women.
Cardinal Cupich was appointed to the Roman Curia’s Congregation for Bishops by Pope Francis in 2016, possibly as a reward for his unwavering support for allowing divorced and “remarried” Catholics to receive Holy Communion. In 2016, Cupich condemned the authors of the dubia regarding Amoris Laetitia and claimed that Pope Francis “doesn’t have to, in any way, defend” the controversial encyclical. Additionally, Cupich has repeatedly been open about his support of a more “pastoral” approach toward those living in a state of adultery and the reception of Communion, saying the Church needs to focus more on “merciful accompaniment.”
Learn more about Cardinal Cupich’s views and past actions by visiting FaithfulShepherds.com. Click here.
One of the most troubling aspects of Cupich’s record is his vehement opposition to Archbishop Viganò’s heroic testimony about widespread homosexual corruption in the Church. Cupich has accused Viganò of inciting “open and scandalous rebellion” against Pope Francis. Furthermore, Cardinal Cupich defended Pope Francis’s lack of transparency in response to the accusations made by Viganò. Cupich said it would be “inappropriate” for Francis to address the situation and stated that he has a “bigger agenda” to focus on.
Although Cardinal Cupich is responsible for one of the largest sees in the U.S., he is one of the most dissident bishops in America. As clergy like Cardinal Cupich rapidly move up the Church hierarchy, it is more important now than ever to hold them accountable. To learn how you can contact him directly — by email, with a personalized postcard, or with a phone call — visit his profile page on FaithfulShepherds.com.