Cardinal Raymond Leo Burke

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Cardinal Burke promotes 9-month novena to pray for the Church amid ‘forces of sin’

February 27, 2024 Catholic News Agency 2
Raymond Leo Cardinal Burke during the Solemnity of Sts. Peter and Paul in St. Peter’s Basilica in Vatican City, June 29, 2019. / Credit: Daniel Ibáñez/CNA

CNA Staff, Feb 27, 2024 / 13:38 pm (CNA).

Cardinal Raymond Burke this week invited Catholics to join in praying a nine-month novena seeking Mary’s intercession beginning on March 12 and culminating on the feast day of Our Lady of Guadalupe on Dec. 12. 

The American cardinal, who founded the Shrine of Our Lady of Guadalupe in Wisconsin, announced the prayer initiative in a video address posted over the weekend. 

“Our Lord has not called us to fear. No matter the darkness of our age, men and women of faith are not without the truth and love of Christ, nor the faithful care of his mother,” Burke wrote in an accompanying letter posed to the Guadalupe shrine website. 

“The darkness of sin seems so great. But Our Lord has not called us to fear! Evil cannot approach the power of God’s grace. Sin cannot prevent Our Lord’s healing mercy from reaching those who repent and seek it. And nothing can diminish the care and protection of Our Lady for us, which remain as strong today as they were 500 years ago.”

A novena, a traditional Catholic practice usually consisting of a nine-day series of petitionary prayers, can also be much longer. Those who sign up to join Burke’s novena will receive, via email, short video reflections from the cardinal each month in addition to regular written reflections and prayers. 

Recalling St. Juan Diego, to whom Christ’s mother appeared under the name of Our Lady of Guadalupe in present-day Mexico in 1531, Burke invited “all Catholics, especially those in the Americas” to ask for the intercession of Our Lady of Guadalupe for “maternal care and protection.”

“The world wrestled with famine and disease, and war in the Holy Land threatened to reduce that beautiful and tortured region to chaos. Then, too, poisonous confusion from within the Church corroded the faith of Christians the world over,” Burke wrote. 

“And then, too, we saw the forces of sin retreat before the presence of Our Lady. Through St. Juan Diego’s humble and courageous cooperation with grace, Our Lady claimed the New World for Christ, drawing nearly 9 million new souls into the Church by the time of St. Juan Diego’s death in 1548. It is this same maternal care and protection that we seek today — a care and protection that she will grant us, should we earnestly ask for it.”

A native of Wisconsin, Burke previously shepherded the Diocese of La Crosse and the Archdiocese of St. Louis before being appointed in 2008 as head of the Church’s highest court, the Apostolic Signatura, until 2014. 

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Here are 5 things to know about Cardinal Burke

December 6, 2023 Catholic News Agency 0
Raymond Leo Cardinal Burke during the solemnity of Saints Peter and Paul in St. Peter’s Basilica in Vatican City, June 29, 2019. / Credit: Daniel Ibáñez/CNA

CNA Staff, Dec 6, 2023 / 10:10 am (CNA).

Reports emerged last week that Cardinal Raymond Burke — a prominent American archbishop — will soon lose his current Vatican housing and salary privileges. As the details of the situation continue to come to light, here are some important things to know about Burke. 

  1. He is the former head of the Church’s highest court.

A native of Wisconsin, Burke was ordained a priest in 1975 by Pope Paul VI. Later ordained a bishop in 1995 by Pope John Paul II, Burke shepherded the Diocese of La Crosse, Wisconsin, founding the Shrine of Our Lady of Guadalupe while there. In 2003, he was appointed archbishop of St. Louis, a post he held from 2004–2008. 

Widely respected for his expertise in canon law, Pope Benedict XVI appointed Burke in 2008 as prefect of the Apostolic Signatura — head of the Church’s highest court. The next year, Benedict appointed Burke to the Congregation (now Dicastery) for Bishops, which is responsible for giving recommendations to the pope on episcopal candidates. The year after that, in 2010, Benedict elevated the then-62-year-old Burke to the rank of cardinal.

Burke continued to serve as prefect of the Apostolic Signatura until 2014. On his personal website, Burke notes that he has “written and spoken widely on Roman Catholic canon law, the Holy Eucharist, devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus, devotion to Our Lady of Guadalupe, and the sanctity of human life.”

  1. He has been publicly critical of various papal initiatives.

Burke’s public questioning of initiatives led by Pope Francis began in earnest in 2016, when he along with three other cardinals first privately submitted “dubia” — formal requests for clarification — to Pope Francis regarding the interpretation of his apostolic exhortation Amoris Laetitia, published after the 2015’s Synod on the Family. (As far as is known, the pope has never replied to those requests.) The cardinals released the dubia to the public two months later, igniting significant debate in the Church and in the media. 

In an interview conducted the following year, Burke stated that he’s wrongly depicted as an “enemy” of Pope Francis but also stressed his view that current divisions in the Church demand answers to requests for clarity.

“The urgency of a response to the dubia derives from the harm done to souls by the confusion and error, which result as long as the fundamental questions raised are not answered in accord with the constant teaching and practice of the Church,” Burke said at the time.

Later on, in 2019, Burke was critical of that year’s Synod on the Pan-Amazon Region, convened by Pope Francis at the Vatican, claiming that the meeting’s working document seemed “not only in dissonance with respect to the authentic teaching of the Church, but even contrary to it.”

When Pope Francis moved to restrict the use of the Traditional Latin Mass worldwide in 2021, Burke called the new restrictions “severe and revolutionary” and questioned the pope’s authority to revoke the use of the rite. 

More recently, this fall Burke was one of five cardinals who sent a new set of dubia to Pope Francis asking for clarification on the Church’s position on doctrinal development, the blessing of same-sex unions, the authority of the ongoing Synod on Synodality, women’s ordination, and sacramental absolution. Burke has insisted that the dubia were aimed neither at the pope’s person nor his agenda but merely at safeguarding the Church’s perennial doctrine.

The cardinal has also spoken out on other hot-button topics, such as when he released a lengthy defense in 2021 of what he called a “sacred duty” on the part of Catholic bishops to apply canon law by advising pro-abortion politicians not to receive holy Communion. He recently wrote a book detailing his views on fostering a greater respect for the Eucharist and discernment of cases when the sacrament ought to be denied to people in a state of manifest grave sin. 

  1. Pope Francis has gradually reduced Burke’s official roles.

Near the end of 2013, the year of Pope Francis’ election, the new pope declined to reappoint Burke to his role as a member of the Dicastery for Bishops. 

The following year, Pope Francis removed Burke from his post as prefect of the Apostolic Signatura, appointing him instead to a largely ceremonial role as cardinal patron of the Sovereign Military Order of Malta — a role dedicated to the spiritual welfare of the members of the medieval lay religious order. 

Despite holding that post until this year, Burke had been reportedly sidelined from active involvement for several years after Pope Francis appointed then-Archbishop Angelo Becciu in 2017 as his special delegate to oversee the order’s reform. Burke thus was sidelined during the extensive institutional reforms of the order that have since taken place. 

  1. Burke survived a severe bout with COVID.

The septuagenarian Burke was hospitalized with COVID-19 in August 2021 and put on a ventilator. Burke had previously announced his diagnosis four days earlier, having fallen ill during a visit to Wisconsin.

A week later, the Shrine of Our Lady of Guadalupe, which shared official news from the cardinal at the time, reported that Burke was in “serious but stable condition” and that the next few days would be critical. The shrine asked for continued prayers for Burke and his family, especially through praying the rosary and attending Mass. By Aug. 21, the shrine stated that he was off the ventilator and was leaving the hospital ICU.

By mid-October, Burke announced that he had recovered to the point of being able to once again offer daily Mass. It is not known if Burke was vaccinated against the virus, but he has been a vocal opponent of mandatory vaccines as well as the closing of churches.

  1. Burke intends to remain in Rome.

Burke lives in Rome and has signaled his intention to remain there even if he has to find and pay for his own accommodations, telling the Wall Street Journal last week that “it’s my duty as a cardinal to remain in Rome.”

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The Dispatch

Pope Francis reportedly takes Vatican apartment, salary from Cardinal Burke

November 28, 2023 Catholic News Agency 43
Cardinal Raymond Burke at EWTN’s studio in Rome during the canonization of St. John Paul II and St. John XXIII. / Credit: Steven Driscoll/CNA

Vatican City, Nov 28, 2023 / 13:34 pm (CNA).

Pope Francis has stripped one of his top American critics, Cardinal Raymond Burke, of his Vatican housing and salary privileges, the Associated Press is reporting.

According to the AP report, which is based on conversations with two anonymous sources briefed on the measures, the pope discussed his planned actions against the American prelate at a Nov. 20 meeting of Vatican office heads.

The pope reportedly said that Burke was a source of “disunity” in the Church and that he was using the privileges afforded to retired cardinals against the Church.

The Italian Catholic news blog La Nuova Bussola Quotidiana first reported pending actions against Burke on Nov. 27.

“Cardinal Burke is my enemy, so I take away his apartment and his salary,” the pope had said at the Nov. 20 meeting, according to Bussola’s undisclosed Vatican source.

CNA was unable to immediately reach Burke to confirm the measures against him. The Vatican’s communications office did not respond to EWTN’s request for comment by time of publication.

The AP reported that the Vatican spokesman, Matteo Bruni, “referred questions to Burke.”

“I don’t have anything particular to say about that,” Bruni told reporters.

Burke was ordained a priest by Pope Paul VI in Rome in 1975 and was bishop of La Crosse, Wisconsin, from 1995 to 2004 and archbishop of St. Louis from 2004 to 2008. Widely regarded as an expert in canon law, Burke was appointed in 2008 as prefect of the Supreme Tribunal of the Apostolic Signatura (the highest judicial authority in the Church) by Pope Benedict XVI. Two years later, Benedict made him a cardinal. 

Pope Francis removed him from the post of prefect in 2014 and instead appointed him cardinal patron of the Sovereign Military Order of Malta, a mostly ceremonial role dedicated to the spiritual welfare of the members of the order. He remained patron until this year but had held only the title, having been reportedly restricted from active involvement since 2016 and thus sidelined during the extensive institutional reforms of the order over the last years. In June, Pope Francis named Cardinal Gianfranco Ghirlanda, SJ, as Burke’s official replacement. At the time of the announcement, Burke was only a few days away from the customary retirement age for bishops of 75.

Burke has emerged as a strong critic of some of Pope Francis’ initiatives.

He was one of the five cardinals who sent “dubia” to Pope Francis asking for clarification on the Church’s position on doctrinal development, the blessing of same-sex unions, the authority of the Synod on Synodality, women’s ordination, and sacramental absolution. 

The document was made public on the eve of the opening of the Synod on Synodality at the Vatican and discussed at an Oct. 2 press conference in which Burke took part and expressed his concerns about the synod.

“It is unfortunately very clear that the invocation of the Holy Spirit by some has for its purpose the advancement of an agenda that is more political and human than ecclesial and divine,” Burke said.

This would not be the first former curial official this year asked to leave his Vatican living quarters.

According to a German newspaper report in June, Pope Francis ordered Archbishop Georg Gänswein to leave the Vatican and return to Germany. Gänswein, a longtime secretary to Pope Benedict XVI, served as prefect of the Papal Household to both Benedict and his successor, Pope Francis, until February 2020. Gänswein’s departure from the Vatican following the death of Benedict and subsequent dismissal by Pope Francis was seen by some as a fall from grace.

According to the German media report, Pope Francis in his comments on the decision “referred to the custom that the former private secretaries of deceased popes did not remain in Rome.”

Like Burke, Gänswein, 66, is without portfolio.

This is a developing story.

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News Briefs

U.S. cardinals react to Benedict XVI’s death

January 1, 2023 Catholic News Agency 3
New cardinal Timothy Michael Dolan (L), Archbishop of New York, receives the biretta cap from Pope Benedict XVI in Saint Peter’s Basilica on February 18, 2012 in Vatican City, Vatican. / Franco Origlia/Getty Images

Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Jan 1, 2023 / 11:33 am (CNA).

Since the death of Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI, members of the College of Cardinals from the United States have offered tributes to the late pope who they remember as a “scholar” and “true disciple.”

Here is a round-up of statements from the U.S. cardinals:

Cardinal Timothy Dolan, Archdiocese of New York

Cardinal Timothy Dolan called Benedict XVI “a good shepherd and Holy Father.” In an interview with Newsmax Dolan shared that he met Benedict XVI “innumerable times” and was “always impressed with his ability to listen,” adding that “he knew the biblical, that before you can be a teacher you’ve got to be a listener.”  

Dolan compared Benedict’s passing to losing a grandparent or elderly parent, saying “we knew it was coming,” but that “it’s still a shock when it comes.” 

In a statement, Dolan said, “The human family grieves the passing of this erudite, wise, and holy man, who spoke the truth with love.”

Dolan called to mind Benedict XVI’s pastoral visit to the Archdiocese of New York in 2008 and shared his personal sense of loss at the former pope’s death, saying, “he was so encouraging, and appointed me Archbishop of New York and nominated me a Cardinal.”

Dolan said Benedict’s legacy will be that of “faith and reason” and called for every parish in his archdiocese to offer a Mass for Benedict’s soul, concluding, “may the angels lead him into paradise!” 

Read Dolan’s full statement here.

Cardinal Blase Cupich, Archdiocese of Chicago

Cardinal Blase Cupich stated that “Pope Benedict XVI taught us that belief in God means completely placing our trust in Divine Providence.”

“Throughout his life as a scholar and as a churchman, he showed us what it means to fulfill the ancient command to love God with all your heart, with all your soul and with all your mind,” said Cupich.

“I think he will be remembered as a man who was single-focused on serving others and serving God,” Cupich told ABC 7.

Read Cupich’s full statement here. 

Cardinal Daniel DiNardo, Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston

Cardinal Daniel DiNardo said that “it is with deep sadness and hope in the Resurrection that we mourn the death of Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI.” 

DiNardo called Benedict a “true pastor of souls and son of the Church,” saying the former pope “shepherded the Church with great love.” 

“His keen intellect invigorated the New Evangelization,” said DiNardo, and inspired “countless men and women to spread the Gospel by the example of their lives.” 

“May the Lord now welcome this faithful servant into the heavenly liturgy of the Wedding Feast of the Lamb,” DiNardo said. 

Read DiNardo’s full statement here. 

Cardinal Sean O’Malley, Archdiocese of Boston

“Today, a loving God called Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI home to his eternal reward for a lifetime of dedicated service to the Church,” said Cardinal Sean O’Malley. 

“Perhaps the most moving experience for me was accompanying survivors of clergy sexual abuse to a meeting with the Holy Father in Washington, D.C. during his 2008 pastoral visit to the United States,” O’Malley said. “Pope Benedict XVI recognized the pain experienced by survivors and all persons impacted by the abuse crisis.”

“I will miss Pope Benedict,” said O’Malley. “His fidelity to maintaining the truth and clarity of the Catholic faith, cultivating ecumenical and interfaith dialogue and reaching out to inspire the next generation of Catholics have been great gifts to us all.”

Read O’Malley’s full statement here.

Cardinal Joseph Tobin, Archdiocese of Newark

Cardinal Joseph Tobin shared his prayer for the former pope, saying, “May the Angels lead you into paradise; may the martyrs greet you at your arrival and lead you into the holy city, Jerusalem. May the choir of Angels greet you and like Lazarus, who once was poor, may you have eternal rest” (In Paradism). May he rest in the peace of Christ.” 

Cardinal Robert McElroy, Diocese of San Diego

“The death of Pope Benedict is a moment of both sadness and gratitude,” said Cardinal Robert McElroy, who was appointed a cardinal just this May.

McElroy called Benedict a “theologian of immense depth” as well as a “caring pastor” and a “prayerful servant who unswervingly sought to follow the pathway to which God was calling him.”

“In faith we know that he goes to the loving embrace of the God whom he had served with sacrifice and courage, brilliance and wisdom, humility and kindness for his entire life,” said McElroy.

Read the full statement here. 

Cardinal Raymond Burke

“It was my honor to serve him as Prefect of the Supreme Tribunal of the Apostolic Signatura,” said Cardinal Raymond Burke, prefect emeritus of the Apostolic Signatura and archbishop emeritus of the Archdiocese of St. Louis. “In my meetings with him, while he was still Roman Pontiff and after his abdication, I was always impressed by his extraordinary intelligence and knowledge, coupled with Christ-like meekness.”

Burke said that Benedict’s teaching regarding the sacred liturgy will remain “a lasting and living heritage.” 

“He was an especially gifted teacher of the Catholic Faith with a particular appreciation of the highest and most perfect expression of the Faith: Sacred Worship,” said Burke. 

Burke called the former pope’s passing “sad,” saying that Benedict had “continued to be a source of many graces for the Church, especially by the offering of his prayers and sufferings for so many needs of the Church in our time.”

Read Burke’s full statement here. 

Cardinal Justin Rigali

“I had the privilege of knowing Pope Benedict for many years, going back to his time as a cardinal of the Church — Cardinal Ratzinger,” said Cardinal Justin Rigali, archbishop emeritus of Philadelphia. 

Rigali recalled his participation in the election of Benedict XVI, saying, “it was a privilege to participate in the election of Pope Benedict. I can remember when I went up to the pope and knelt before him to show my respect and offer to him my pledge to be faithful and obedient, the first thing that Pope Benedict said to me was, ‘Happy Birthday, your eminence.’ It was my 70th birthday. Pope Benedict remembered that, and that is a memory I will always carry with me.”

Read more of Rigali’s statements here. 

Cardinal James Stafford

Cardinal James Stafford, who participated in the former pope’s election, called Benedict XVI “a true disciple,” Denver Catholic reported.

“Pope Benedict XVI was dedicated to the mystery of Jesus of Nazareth,” said Stafford, archbishop emeritus of the Archdiocese of Denver. 

Stafford shared, “In afternoon walks in the Vatican Gardens I sometimes encountered Pope Benedict. I thought that here was a true disciple ‘who walks with Jesus and is thus caught up with Him into communion with God.’” Concluding, “May he rest in peace!” 

Read more of Stafford’s statement here. 

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Cardinal Burke tweets that his condition is improving

August 28, 2021 Catholic News Agency 3
Raymond Leo Cardinal Burke during the Solemnity of Saints Peter and Paul in St. Peter’s Basilica in Vatican City, June 29, 2019. Daniel Ibáñez/CNA

Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Aug 28, 2021 / 21:38 pm (CNA).

Raymond Cardinal Burke issued a personal statement via Twitter Saturday night, thanking his doctors, all those who have offered prayers on his behalf, and especially God “who has brought me to this point of healing and recovery.”

Coming a week after the last public update on his health, Cardinal Burke’s tweet provided another positive sign that his condition has improved since being placed on ventilator Aug. 14 due to complications from COVID-19. He said he now faces an “intensive rehabilitation.”

“I have been transferred out of the Medical Intensive Care Unit and settled in a hospital room where the doctors, nurses, and numerous hospital staff have provided vigilant, superb, and steadfast medical care,” the 73-year-old American cardinal tweeted.

“For these dedicated professionals, too, I offer heartfelt thanks, as well as to the priests who have ministered to me sacramentally. To those who have offered innumerable Rosaries and prayers, lighted candles, and requested the offering of the Holy Mass, I extend my sincere gratitude, and I ask the Lord and His Mother to bless you all. I also thank my brother bishops and priests who have offered Mass for me or prayed for me at the altar. 

“This generous outpouring of grace unites me to you in a special way, as I am also particularly united to all victims suffering from the effects of the COVID-19 virus,” the tweet continued.

A leading prelate in the U.S. Catholic Church known for his outspoken defense of traditional Catholicism, Cardinal Burke is the former leader of the Archdiocese of St. Louis and the Diocese of La Crosse in his home state of Wisconsin.

Now based in Rome, Cardinal Burke fell ill while visiting Wisconsin and was transferred to a hospital as his condition worsened.

In a prior update on Aug. 21, the Shrine of Our Lady of Gaudalupe in La Crosse revealed that he had spoken to his sister by phone able to speak by phone with his sister on Saturday morning and “expressed his deep gratitude for the many prayers offered on his behalf.” 

In his tweet Saturday, Cardinal Burke reflected on the significance of the motto he took when he was selected for the episcopacy: “Secundum Cor Tuum” (“According to Your Heart.”)

“All things ordered in and through the Divine Will have as their origin the Sacred Heart of Our Savior, whose fundamental motivation is His Eternal Love for His Father and for His children,” he stated.

“Since Divine Providence has governed that I remain hospitalized for the present, I now reaffirm that same episcopal conviction: suffering, united with the suffering of Jesus Christ, is truly efficacious in His Divine Plan for our salvation when accepted willingly and wholeheartedly. Saint Paul, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, teaches us the meaning of our suffering: ‘Now I rejoice in my sufferings for your sake, and in my flesh I complete what is lacking in Christ’s afflictions for the sake of his body, that is, the Church’ (Col 1:24.)”

Cardinal Burke said in his tweet that he regrets he is unable to respond personally to the many letters, phone calls, and other expressions of support he has received during his illness. He said the Shrine of Our Lady of Gaudalupe will continue to handle communications on his behalf during his recovery.


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News Briefs

Cardinal Burke’s health has reportedly deteriorated

August 17, 2021 Catholic News Agency 5
Raymond Leo Cardinal Burke during the Solemnity of Saints Peter and Paul in St. Peter’s Basilica in Vatican City, June 29, 2019. Daniel Ibáñez/CNA

Denver Newsroom, Aug 17, 2021 / 12:06 pm (CNA).

The condition of Raymond Cardinal Burke, who was recently hospitalized with Covid-19, has reportedly deteriorated.

A source who has spoken to someone close to the cardinal told CNA his condition has deteriorated, and the next 48 hours are crucial.

Cardinal Burke’s Twitter account had announced Aug. 14 that he “has been admitted to the hospital with COVID-19 and is being assisted by a ventilator. Doctors are encouraged by his progress. His Eminence faithfully prayed the Rosary for those suffering from the virus. On this Vigil of the Assumption, let us now pray the Rosary for him.”

A report in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch said the cardinal, who lives in Rome and is prefect emeritus of the Apostolic Signatura, became ill while visiting Wisconsin, where he was raised.

Amid rumors that he was seriously ill, the 73-year-old cardinal confirmed Aug. 10 that he had tested positive for Covid-19, tweeting: “Thanks be to God, I am resting comfortably and receiving excellent medical care. Please pray for me as I begin my recovery. Let us trust in Divine Providence. God bless you.”


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