What People are Commenting
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Sound Therapy & Vatican’s Bistro
Sound Therapy
Can you please advise me on if it is forbidden for Catholics to participate in sound therapy.
The hospital where I was treated for cancer is offering sound therapy described as “sounds of instruments designed for restoring balance and harmony in the body and mind” while seated on zero gravity chairs.
It sounds very nice and relaxing but I can’t seem to find any information that specifically forbids it, except the following, which the 30 minute session doesn’t seem to have.
Thank you so much and God’s abundant blessings.
M.N.
What to Avoid (New Age/Eastern Mysticism): Steer clear of sessions that attempt to channel "life force energies" (such as reiki or chakras), claim to generate supernatural spiritual experiences, or promote Buddhist/Hindu paths to nirvana. The Catholic Church cautions against mixing alternative therapies with non-Christian spiritualties and warns against practices that substitute real prayer for the goal of self-absorption.
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TIA responds:
Dear M.N.,
Thank you for your inquiry and the consideration it reveals.
A search we made informed us that sound therapy is a medicine practice inspired by Buddhist traditions, especially by the Tibetan Singing Bowls and Cymbals, which are used to mark pauses in the meditation of the Himalayan monasteries.
In the 20th century this practice was introduced to the West by the New Age movement.
We do not believe the Catholic Church has an official position on this topic, but if sound therapy practice relies on invoking alternative spiritual energies, universal life forces, or non-material divinities, we consider it incompatible with the First Commandment and against Catholic doctrine.
As a general appraisal, we would say that given its suspicious origins and the play it normally makes with spiritual energies, the apparent natural effects of sound therapy veil the dissemination of a Buddhist mindset and favor an unconscious gradual initiation into that religion.
Cordially,
TIA correspondence desk
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Bistro in Vatican’s Dome
In the process of adaptation of the Church to the modern world, initiated by John XXIII and “faithfully” followed by the next six Popes, the Vatican is preparing to open a restaurant – a bistro – in the Vatican's Michelangelo Dome where customers will enjoy a beautiful view.
Drinks and food will be served – probably with modern music playing – at the highest part of the Basilica, which is the symbol of the Catholic Church and was built to shelter the bones and the throne of the Apostle St. Peter.
Who cannot see in this initiative a desecration of the whole Catholic Church?
Nonetheless, it was the suggestion of a Cardinal… who most likely is a Mason or, still worse, a Progressivist.
Please, check the article below. By the way, be aware that the original is in Spanish and I translated it with an electronic tool.
In Jesus and Mary,
P.M.
will open in September barring intervention by Leo XIV
The project to open a bistro on the terrace of St. Peter's Basilica is moving forward and, barring direct intervention from Pope Leo XIV, will open its doors next September. This is according to the Italian newspaper Il Messaggero , which maintains that the work has already been completed, six months after the Vatican tried to downplay the controversy by stating that it was only considering expanding the reception area and the small existing café.
In late January, several Italian media outlets revealed plans to install a restaurant on the terrace next to the basilica's dome. Hours later, Vatican News published an official statement from the St. Peter's Basilica Communications Office denying the opening of a restaurant as such and explaining that the project consisted of expanding the area open to the public and the service already provided by the existing café. However, the statement acknowledged that the expansion would include the terrace's restaurant area, fueling doubts about the true scope of the initiative.
A project promoted by Cardinal Gambetti
It has now been confirmed that the new establishment will occupy a space next to the existing bar, but will go beyond the drinks service that has been there for years. It will have its own kitchen to serve prepared dishes, allowing visitors to have lunch or dinner just a few meters from Michelangelo's dome, with a 360-degree panoramic view of Rome.
The initiative has been promoted by Cardinal Mauro Gambetti, archpriest of St. Peter's Basilica, whose five-year term has already expired and whose continuation has not yet been decided by Leo XIV.
The Italian newspaper adds that the original project envisioned a large restaurant with a capacity for several hundred people. Later, the proposal was scaled back to a bistro, though without abandoning the idea of offering a full-service restaurant in one of the Vatican's most iconic locations.
In recent days, officials from the San Pedro Factory reportedly inspected the facilities and participated in a private tasting to test the kitchen's functionality before opening. According to this information, the facilities are fully equipped and ready to begin operations.
The Vatican argues that it is a service for visitors
Last February, Cardinal Gambetti publicly defended the project, arguing that if there have been restrooms and a small bar for those who ascend to the dome for years, there is no reason to prevent a catering service for visitors.
The official position of St. Peter's Basilica remains that the expansion responds to the need to improve the reception of the millions of people who visit the temple, better distributing tourist flows and offering a service compatible with the sacredness of the place.
Following those statements, the project appeared to stall for several months. It was even interpreted as a possible review by the new pontificate after Leo XIV's private secretary, Edgar Rimaycuna, was seen inspecting the area. However, the prolonged silence maintained since then and the current state of the construction suggest an imminent opening.
Canonical objections persist
Official explanations have failed to quell the criticism. A petition addressed to Cardinal Pietro Parolin remains active, requesting a halt to the project and demanding an examination of its compatibility with canon law.
The promoters invoke canon 1210 of the Code of Canon Law, which states that in sacred places "only that which serves the exercise or promotion of worship, piety and religion is permitted," excluding any activity incompatible with the sanctity of the place.
Although Leo XIV has not publicly commented on the matter, the planned opening in September puts the debate back on the table and reignites the discussion about the bistro as a service for visitors or as a space for commercializing one of the most sacred spaces in Christendom.
Original here
Posted July 23, 2026
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The opinions expressed in this section - What People Are Commenting - do not necessarily express those of TIA
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Re: Priestesses in the making in Brazil
Your article of the women ministers of the Eucharist brings back memories of a similar encounter I had in the Philippines in the mid 1990's. As part of my post-graduate degree I went to a province for a week. At that time I attended daily Novus Ordo Masses whenever I could, so I went to the local church in the morning.
To my surprise, what took place on the weekdays was not a Mass, but a substitution of it: a religious sister in full habit stood at the lector's podium, led the Sign of the Cross, then read introductory prayers, followed by the proclamation of the First Reading and the Gospel. After that, she distributed Communion.
I chose not to receive, and left after the concluding prayer. Wanting to have some spiritual sustenance I returned for the next few days rather than staying away but always sat in the back.
I do not know if this was a direct predecessor of what you just reported, but apparently it was already in practice back then, and probably was done elsewhere.
Very truly yours,
R.A., Philippines