[October 29, 2026] For many who follow the Catholic Church, we have noticed that the church’s senior leaders make public announcements that are inconsistent with the faith. What we have witnessed raises the question whether the Catholic Church is for sale.
Lay Catholic and opinion writer Joseph Fosco has focused much of his writing calling for the consistent application of Church teachings in public life, especially amid the upcoming U.S. elections and hierarchical debates. He argues that Catholic leaders (including Cardinal Blaise Cupich of Chicago, other U.S. bishops, and Pope Leo XIV) are overly partisan and inappropriately selective in their public announcements.
In a recent X post, Fosco argues that those outside the Church see it as being bought.
“And when a bishop speaks out days before a national election against one party’s immigration positions—which are prudential disagreement open to debate—while remaining silent on the other’s platform positions that contradict settled Church teaching on life, on the body, on marriage, the imbalance is impossible to miss.” – Joseph Fosco, October 27, 2026
I recommend reading the comments responding to his letter. Here are two that are representative of many others.
“When will the Bishops speak out about abortion and child transgender propaganda/mutilation. Still waiting….” – Sally @paxvobiscum72
And, another more to the point.
“So the Catholic leaders who are against Trump – it’s because the Catholic charities NGO money was cut off. Now Satan is showing his head. Trump cuts off our largest money hole? Which is illegal immigration – well – now we hate Trump. That’s not a Faith leader. That’s a money hungry leader who’s lost his way.” – MakeAmericaSaneAgain @obidensux
In another post Fosco writes to Bishop Joensen. His letter is enlightening.
Dear Bishop Joensen,
Your October 24th statement said: There are many things tied to this present Administration that are blatantly at odds with our Catholic faith. You named the administration. You did not name the party whose platform contradicts Catholic teaching more directly than any policy you cited. That asymmetry is not a pastoral observation. It ispartisan one.
Immigration enforcement is a prudential question, and Catholics may weigh it differently. On abortion, on the surgical and chemical transition of children, on the redefinition of marriage — the Church has not left room for prudential disagreement. Those positions are not at odds with Catholic teaching in some debatable sense. They contradict it outright.
If your standard is what is blatantly at odds with the faith, the Democratic Party’s platform meets it more directly than any border policy. You know this. Your silence on it, nine days before a national election, while naming only the administration in power, tells the faithful something you did not say in words.
A bishop who applies the faith as a measuring stick owes the faithful both ends of it. Selective application is not teaching. It is campaigning with vestments on.
In Christ,
Joseph Fosco
October 26, 2026
It appears, at least from the outside where I stand, that the Catholic Church is for sale.
————
NOTE: The thumbnail is Bishop Joensen.
————
Please read my books:
Some people say the Catholic Church is for sale because it fought against President Trump’s plan to stop giving money to church-run groups. These groups help the poor and refugees, but a lot of their money comes from the government, not just from church members. When the money was cut, the groups had to do less charitable work, and that made people angry. The Church says it must keep helping people in need, even if the government wants to change the rules. Critics answer that taking government money can make the Church listen to politicians more than to its own teachings. Both sides agree that cutting the money hurts the people who get the help. The real question is whether the Church can stay independent when so much of its work depends on public funds. In the end, the Church must decide if serving the poor is worth the risk of looking like it is selling its voice.
It would appear the answer to the question whether the Catholic Church is for sale is YES.
Yes indeed so, Nick.