Catholic News
- Pope, at audience, says Resurrection is cure for sadness (Vatican Press Office)
At his weekly public audience on October 22, Pope Leo XIV spoke about the Resurrection, “an event that one never finishes contemplating and meditating on, and the more one explores it, the more one is filled with wonder, drawn in as if by an overwhelming yet fascinating light.” The Resurrection, the Pope said, is an answer to the sadness that permeates our time. Recalling how the reality of the Resurrection brought joy to the grieving apostles who encountered the risen Lord on the road to Emmaus, Pope Leo observed that “this sad journey of defeat and return to ordinary life occurs on the same day as the victory of light, fo the Pasch that has been fully consummated.” The Pope concluded: “May the unexpected joy of the disciples of Emmaus be a gentle reminder to us when the going gets tough.” - Leo XIV reflects on lives of newly canonized saints (Dicastery for Communication)
Addressing pilgrims in Rome for the canonization of seven saints, Pope Leo reflected on the life of each of the saints. For example, in speaking of St. Ignatius Choukrallah Maloyan (1869-1915), who was martyred by Ottoman officials during the Armenian genocide, Pope Leo said: We all share in the joy of the beloved Armenian people as we look to the holiness of the martyred Bishop Ignatius Maloyan. He was a pastor after Christ’s own heart, and in times of heavy difficulties, he did not abandon his flock, rather he encouraged them in order to strengthen their faith. When he was asked to renounce his faith in exchange for freedom, he did not hesitate to choose his Lord, even to the point of shedding his own blood for God. This makes me think fondly of the Armenian people, who carve the cross into stones as a sign of their firm and rock-solid faith. May the intercession of the new Saint renew the fervor of believers and bring fruits of reconciliation and peace for all. - Annual Report finds over 5 billion lack religious freedom (Aid to the Church in Need)
More than 5 billion people—two-thirds of the world’s population—live in countries that restrict religious freedom, according to an annual report from Aid to the Church in Need (ACN). The ACN report finds serious violations of religious freedom in 62 countries (of 196 studied). Among these countries, ACN classified the restraints on religious freedom in 38 as “discrimination,” while 24 were severe enough to be called “persecution.” The countries where ACN found persecution are heavily clustered in Asia and northern Africa, with only one such country—Nicaragua—in the Western hemisphere. The report finds that Islamic extremist continues to grow, constituting the main factor in outright persecution in 15 countries and discrimination in 10 more. Sub-Saharan Africa is now the area where jihadist violence is most intense. However the Western world is not immune from anti-religious violence. ACN detailed almost 1,000 attacks on churches in France, for instance; vandalism of churches also spiked in Greece, Spain, Italy, and the US. The ACN report noted that authoritarian governments—notably China, Iran, and Nicaragua—have employed high-tech means of restricting religious activities, including surveillance and digital censorship. ACN found that in only two countries, Kazakhstan and Sri Lanka, had restrictions on religious freedom eased during the past year. - Cardinal Parolin calls for respect for human rights in Venezuela (Vatican News (Italian))
Departing from the Vatican’s near silence on abuses committed by Venezuela’s Maduro regime, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the Secretary of State of His Holiness, called respect for human rights in the South American nation. Preaching at a Mass of thanksgiving in St. Peter’s Basilica for the canonization of two Venezuelan saints, Cardinal Parolin said that the Lord calls us to “break unjust pressures, to shatter the chains, to liberate the oppressed, to destroy all traps.” Addressing “dear Venezuela,” the prelate said that only by listening to the Word of the Lord “will your light shine in the darkness, your gloom will become midday.” He added: Only in this way, dear Venezuela, will you be able to respond to your vocation for peace, if you build it on the foundations of justice, truth, freedom, and love, respecting human rights, creating spaces for encounter and democratic coexistence, prioritizing what unites rather than what divides, seeking the means and opportunities to find common solutions to the great problems that concern you, placing the common good as the goal of every public activity. - Unite your hearts to the Sacred Heart, Pope tells Portuguese seminarians (Dicastery for Communication)
Pope Leo XIV received members of the Pontifical Portuguese College in Rome and said that “a college consecrated to the Heart of Christ is a school of divine mercy, in which the students, imitating the beloved disciple, listen to the beating of God’s love and thus become true theologians.” “A priest, whatever the mission entrusted to him, always finds in it an opportunity to conform himself to the Good Shepherd: not only does he need a heart of flesh, a humane and wise heart, but he also feels the need for a heart like that of Jesus, always united to the Father, impassioned by the Church and full of compassion,” Pope Leo continued. The Pope exhorted the seminarians to “hold fast to the Lord Jesus in listening to His Word, in the celebration of the Sacraments, especially the Eucharist, in Adoration, in spiritual discernment, and in fraternal kindness among yourselves.” - Vatican publishes Pope Francis's foreword to book by Father Gustavo Gutiérrez (Vatican News (Italian))
The Vatican has published the late Pope Francis’s foreword to the last work of Father Gustavo Gutiérrez, OP, the father of liberation theology. Father Gutiérrez died last year; the book has been published posthumously. “Throughout his long life, Gustavo Gutiérrez was a faithful servant of God and a friend of the poor,” Pope Francis wrote. “His theology has shaped the life of the Church and remains relevant today, with a freshness that opens up new avenues for following Jesus.” “I want to emphasize in these pages his profound and enduring fidelity to the Church on its journey,” Pope Francis continued. “A fidelity lived with humility, at times with pain, and fundamentally with freedom.” - Cardinal Cupich links liturgical changes to Vatican II's teaching on the poor (Vatican News)
Vatican News has published an article by Cardinal Blase Cupich of Chicago on the relationship between the Second Vatican Council’s teaching on the poor and the postconciliar liturgical changes. “The renewal of our worship was pursued in keeping with the Council Fathers’ desire to present to the world a church defined not by the trappings of world power but marked by sobriety and simplicity, enabling it to speak the people of this age in a way that more closely resembles the Lord and allowing it to take up in a fresh way the mission of proclaiming good news to the poor,” Cardinal Cupich asserted. “With the recovery of the ancient sobriety of the Roman Rite the Eucharist is once again the locus of genuine peace and solidarity with the poor in a fractured world,” he concluded. - Bishop appointed for troubled English diocese (Vatican Press Office)
Pope Leo XIV has appointed Auxiliary Bishop Nicholas Hudson of Westminster as bishop of Plymouth. Over the past two years, the troubled diocese has seen the appointment of Canon Christopher Whitehead as bishop; the announcement that his ordination would not take place amid an investigation; the appointment of Bishop Philip Moger, a Southwark auxiliary, as bishop; the announcement of a delay in his installation; and his resignation. - 'Death never has the last word': papal letter to grieving father (CNA)
Responding to a letter from a father whose 12-year-old son died 18 years ago, Pope Leo XIV wrote that “death never has the last word.” “The last word, which opens the doors to eternity and joy that lasts forever, is the resurrection, which knows no discouragement or pain that imprisons us in the extreme difficulty of not finding meaning in our existence,” Pope Leo continued. The exchange was published in Piazza San Pietro, a magazine published under the Vatican basilica’s auspices. Pope Leo has continued his predecessor’s custom of answering one letter in each issue. - Cleveland diocese confirms Vatican OK for traditional liturgy (Catholic Herald)
The Diocese of Cleveland, Ohio, has confirmed the the Vatican approved a two-year extension of permission to celebrate the Traditional Latin Mass (TLM) in two parishes. The announcement from Cleveland contrasts with reports from other US dioceses where bishops have said the Vatican required ending the use of the TLM. - Armenian leader, Pontiff discuss peace in the Caucasus (Prime Minister of Armenia)
Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan of Armenia discussed regional peace during an audience with Pope Leo XIV. The meeting came three months after the signing of the Armenia–Azerbaijan peace agreement. The two “discussed the establishment of peace between Armenia and Azerbaijan, as well as humanitarian issues,” according to the prime minister’s office. “His Holiness congratulated the progress made in this direction and expressed hope that the establishment of peace in the region will be the beginning of a new phase of cooperation and stability.” Following the audience, the prime minister met with Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the Secretary of State of His Holiness, and Archbishop Paul Richard Gallagher, Secretary for Relations with States and International Organizations. “Satisfaction was expressed for the good relations between the Holy See and Armenia, a country with an ancient Christian tradition,” according to a Vatican statement. The Caucasus nation of 3 million people (map) is 95% Christian (8% Catholic). Most Christians there are members of the Armenian Apostolic Church, an Oriental Orthodox church that ceased to be in full communion with the Holy See following the Ecumenical Council of Chalcedon (451). - Pope Francis championed religious liberty, Vatican spokesman writes (L'Osservatore Romano (Italian))
In a front-page article in the Vatican newspaper, Alessandro Gisotti, vice director of the Editorial Directorate at the Vatican’s Dicastery for Communication, surveyed the late Pope Francis’s words and actions in defense of religious freedom. “Until the last moment of his pontificate, Francis positioned himself as a courageous and tireless defender of the inseparable rights to freedom of thought, conscience, and religion,” said Gisotti. “He did so with words, gestures, and fundamental documents, but above all with journeys of extraordinary significance, often to places from which political or security reasons might have dissuaded him.” Gisotti concluded: Pope Francis made religious freedom one of the pillars of his mission as Successor of Peter, closely linking it to the promotion of peace, dialogue, and human dignity. A legacy now entrusted to Pope Leo, who continues to challenge us all to build a freer and more fraternal humanity. - 7 saints canonized during Mass in St. Peter's Square (CWN)
Pope Leo XIV canonized seven saints yesterday during a Mass in St. Peter’s Square (video, booklet). - Cardinal Menichelli dies at 86 (EWTN Vatican)
Cardinal Edoardo Menichelli, created a cardinal by Pope Francis in 2015, died on October 20 at the age of 86, following a long illness. Ordained to the priesthood in 1965, Menichelli was appointed archbishop of Chieti-Vasto, Italy, in 1994 and archbishop of Ancona-Osimo in 2004. He retired in 2017. With Cardinal Menichelli’s passing, there are now 246 members of the College of Cardinals, 127 of whom are eligible to take part in a papal election. - USCCB committee chairman reflects on reparations and racial justice (USCCB)
Bishop Joseph Perry, chairman of the US bishops’ Ad Hoc Committee Against Racism, has published a reflection marking the upcoming first anniversary of Dilexit Nos, Pope Francis’s encyclical on the human and divine love of the Heart of Jesus Christ. “Just as the Sacrament of Penance invites physical expressions of contrition—making the sign of the cross, performing a penance, offering restitution—so too do acts of reparation in communal life require gestures of sincerity, and concrete actions,” said the retired Chicago auxiliary bishop, who added: Authentic reparation demands more than regret or distancing ourselves from past wrongs. It requires communal courage, sincere acknowledgment, and a willingness to ask forgiveness... To confront racism, we must begin with reparation. We must name the sin, seek forgiveness, and commit to healing, and concrete actions to correct past wrongs and present-day inequities. - Papal message: St. Thérèse's parents show us that marriage is a path to holiness (Dicastery for Communication)
The tenth anniversary of the canonization of Saints Louis and Zélie Martin, the parents of St. Thérèse, “highlights marriage as a path to holiness,” Pope Leo XIV wrote in a message to Bishop Bruno Feillet of Séez, France. “Louis and Zélie did not fulfil their desire to become saints and educate their children in holiness by withdrawing from the world,” Pope Leo wrote in his message, dated October 1 and released by the Vatican on October 18. “They assumed their duty in the ordinary course of everyday life,” in “the Norman society of their time through their parish, their professional activities, their charitable works, their circles of friends and, of course, their family life.” “In these troubled and confused times, when so many counter-models of unions, often fleeting, individualistic and selfish, with bitter and disappointing fruits, are presented to young people, the family as the Creator intended it may seem outdated and dull,” the Pope added. “Louis and Zélie Martin testify that this is not the case: they were happy—deeply happy!—giving life, radiating and transmitting the faith, seeing their daughters grow and flourish under the gaze of the Lord.” - Cardinal Parolin underlines need for religious freedom (Vatican News)
Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the Vatican Secretary of State, stressed “religious freedom as a fundamental aspect of human existence,” in a keynote address at an October 21 event marking the publication of the 2025 Religious Freedom Report compiled by Aid to the Church in Need. [See the separate CWN headline story on the ACN report itself.] “It is incumbent upon governments and communities alike to refrain from compelling anyone to violate their deeply held convictions or obstructing anybody from living them out authentically,” Cardinal Parolin said. In conversation with reporters at the event, Cardinal Parolin said that the Vatican remains “full of hope” for a ceasefire agreement in Gaza despite reported violations. He also decried acts of violence against Christians in the West Bank by Israeli settlers. Speaking about the violence that has struck Christians in Nigeria, the cardinal said that the cause is “not a religious conflict, but rather more a social one, for example, disputes between herders and farmers.” He remarked that Muslims in Nigeria had been subject to the same sort of violence. - Pope Leo: Usury is a 'grave sin, at times very grave' (Dicastery for Communication)
Pope Leo XIV told members of the Italian National Anti-Usury Council that usury is “a grave sin, at times very grave.” Usury can affect “those who have to face difficult moments, such as for instance extraordinary medical treatment or unexpected expenses beyond their means or those of their families,” Pope Leo said during the October 18 audience, which took place in Clementine Hall of the Apostolic Palace. “And [this] even happens at the level of countries around the world. Unfortunately, usurious financial systems can bring entire peoples to their knees.” “When the pursuit of profit prevails, others are no longer people, they no longer have a face, they are just objects to be exploited; and so we end up losing ourselves and our souls.” the Pope added. “The conversion of those who engage in usury is just as important as closeness to those who suffer from usury.” - Vatican foundation presents award to archbishop tortured by ISIS (Vatican News)
The John Paul II Vatican Foundation, founded by the late Pontiff in 1981, presented its prize to Archbishop Julian Yacoub Mourad, the Syriac Catholic archbishop of Homs, Syria. The award was presented “in recognition of his lifetime of service, his witness of faith, Christian love, interreligious dialogue, and his dedication to peace and reconciliation,” said Cardinal Kurt Koch, prefect of the Dicastery for Promoting Christian Unity. Vatican News noted that the future archbishop was “kidnapped in 2015 by ISIS terrorists and tortured in a bid to make him renounce his faith, even subjected to a staged execution.” He “endured five months of captivity without denying Christ.” - USCCB committee chairmen condemn Trump administration's push for IVF expansion (USCCB)
Reacting to a Trump administration announcement, the chairmen of three USCCB committees said that they “strongly reject the promotion of procedures like IVF” that “freeze or destroy precious human beings and treat them like property.” “Every human life, born and preborn, is sacred and loved by God,” said the chairmen of the bishops’ Committees on Laity, Marriage, Family Life and Youth; Religious Liberty; and Pro-Life Activities. “Without diminishing the dignity of people born through IVF, we must recognize that children have a right to be born of a natural and exclusive act of married love, rather than a business’s technological intervention. And harmful government action to expand access to IVF must not also push people of faith to be complicit in its evils.” At the same time, the bishops welcomed aspects of the administration’s announcement, including “comprehensive and holistic restorative reproductive medicine, which can help ethically to address infertility and its underlying causes.” - More...