Catholic Church

Did "Black Lives Matter and Antifa" set fire to a Catholic church in Minneapolis? No, there is no evidence the historic church was set ablaze by protesters or activists in the same city where the Derek Chauvin murder trial was taking place. A fire broke out at the Sacred Heart of Jesus Polish National Catholic Church on April 19, 2021,…

Were eight years lost when the Gregorian calendar was introduced in 1582, meaning that the global apocalypse supposedly foretold in the Mayan calendar for 2012 actually was supposed to happen in 2020? No, that's not true: Only 10 days were lost when the Gregorian calendar replaced the Julian calendar because it is more accurate. Besides, the Mayan calendar did not…

Did Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden say he was raised in a "Black Baptist Church," despite also saying he has been a "practicing" Catholic all his life? That claim is partially true, but it's missing context: Although Biden has said he was raised in a "Black church," while referencing a Baptist church in Delaware, it was in the context of…

Did the Catholic Church forgive a pedophile priest with HIV who raped 30 children? No, that's not true: There is no evidence the priest the story claims was HIV-positive, raped 30 children and was forgiven by the Catholic church ever existed. The situation and person accused of raping children and being absolved by the church appears to be completely fabricated.…

Was Queen Elizabeth found guilty in a missing children murder case? No, this is not true: A claim that the British monarch tried and convicted in the disappearance of 10 native children from the Catholic-run Kamloops residential school in British Columbia is completely made up. There is no evidence such a crime ever occurred. The story appeared as an article…

Did Did Bill Gates say that the Catholic religion may have to be suspended forever because of the COVID-19 pandemic? No, that's not true: While the billionaire philantrophist has predicted that "mass gatherings" may not return until vaccinations for the novel coronavirus are widespread, he was talking about large gatherings of people at "optional events," not specifically Catholic Mass services.…

Is Microsoft founder Bill Gates conspiring with the Vatican to try to depopulate the world with a new vaccine for the novel coronavirus? No, that's not true: The video misinterprets a soundbite from Gates' TED Talk to try to make a point about vaccines. It later launches into an anti-Catholic screed. The claim originated in a post published by Saving…

Did Pope Francis declare Lucifer as God? No, that's not true: The video being shared to make the claim relied on a poor translation of Latin and has been taken entirely out of context. "Lucifer" in Latin means "morning star," "Venus," or "light-bringing." While it's become synonymous today with Satan, the term was used in Christian tradition as a name…

Did freshman Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez say Christianity should be ignored as "superstitious nonsense"? No, that's not true: the article comes from a liberal satire website and Ocasio-Cortez is Catholic. The claim originated from an article published by Taters Gonna Tate on January 3, 2020, titled "AOC Says Christianity Should Be Ignored As 'Superstitious Nonsense'" (archived here) which opened: Democrats are…

Did the Church of Sweden announce climate activist Greta Thunberg is the "successor" of Jesus Christ? No, that's not true: a single tweet by a local pastor in December 2018 made that controversial claim but he later apologized for it. The Church of Sweden (to which over half of Swedes belong) has issued no official statement making this claim at…