Catholic News
- Pro-lifers force referendum on abortion bill in Massachusetts (CWN)
Pro-life activists in Massachusetts have collected 100,000 certified signatures—more than double the number required by law—to force a statewide referendum on a radical abortion law. - Archbishop Gallagher says Pope wants Ukraine war to end (L'Osservatore Romano (Italian))
Archbishop Paul Richard Gallagher, the Holy See’s Secretary for Relations with States and International Organizations, told journalists that “we will remain committed to Ukraine, addressing humanitarian issues, the exchange of prisoners, and the return of deported Ukrainian children.” “Pope Leo XIV wants to bring the war in Ukraine to an end,” Archbishop Gallagher said on October 27. The prelate added that the White House and Russia want the Holy See to take a supportive role, rather than a direct role, in negotiations to end the war. At the same time, he noted that “we have a good relationship and good communication” with the White House, “including through Ambassador Brian Burch.” - Noting Catholicism is state religion, Costa Rica's president invites Pontiff to visit nation (CWN)
Pope Leo XIV received President Laura Fernández of Costa Rica in an October 29 audience. - Pope mourns lives lost in Spanish train collision (Vatican Press Office)
Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the Secretary of State of His Holiness, send a telegram of condolence in Pope Leo’s name to the archbishop of Toledo, Spain, following a train collision that killed at least 69 passengers. Cardinal Parolin said that Pope Leo prayed for the eternal repose of the deceased, extended condolences to their families, and offered encouragement to the rescue teams. - Vatican diplomat says 'migration and return should never be driven by desperation' (Holy See Mission)
A Vatican diplomat said that “wherever possible,” the return of migrants to their native lands “should be a voluntary and informed choice.” Addressing a committee meeting of the International Organization for Migration, Archbishop Ettore Balestrero, Permanent Observer of the Holy See to the United Nations and other International Organizations in Geneva, said on October 29 that “it is imperative to emphasize that migration and return should never be driven by desperation.” “The credibility of any return policy is measured by the manner in which it is executed,” Archbishop Balestrero continued. “A return that is voluntary, informed and carried out in a safe and dignified manner will be more successful than one that is forced or poorly executed.” The prelate added: However, it is important to note that if the return is not followed by development, it will not endure. It is vital to emphasize reintegration, which involves providing ongoing support to returnees, their families, and the communities that receive them until they can thrive independently and establish a future for themselves. - Major Archbishop: Ukraine needs weapons and solidarity (Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church)
The head of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church said in an interview that “Ukraine needs weapons, but it also needs you—your solidarity, your prayers, and your human and Christian empathy.” Appearing on the Italian bishops’ television network, Major Archbishop Sviatoslav Shevchuk “emphasized the need to balance Ukraine’s right to self-defense with the responsibility to preserve human life,” according to the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church. He also “noted that the Ukrainian people genuinely need help defending themselves, while observing the principle of proportionality in the use of weapons.” - Cardinal Fernández speaks on 'love and truth in Marian devotion' (CWN)
The prefect of the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith delivered a lecture, “Love and Truth in Marian Devotion,” at a recent conference at the Marianum. - Pew: Religiosity remains stable in US, with mixed signals for young adults (Pew Research Center)
A new Pew Research Center report found that “since 2020, steady percentages of U.S. adults have said they identify with a religion, pray daily, consider religion to be very important in their lives and attend religious services at least monthly,” 41% of young adults born between 2004 and 2008 attend religious services at least monthly, according to the report. In contrast, 27% of young adults born between 2000 and 2003, and 33% of adults born before 2000, attend services at least monthly. - Dissenters rip Cardinal Ratzinger's 1986 letter on homosexuality on 40th anniversary (National Catholic Reporter)
Critics of Catholic teaching on the immorality of homosexual acts strongly criticized the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith’s letter to bishops on the pastoral care of homosexual persons, 40 years after its publication. At the time, the congregation’s prefect was Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, who became Pope Benedict XVI in 2005. “We were horrified when we read it, but I would say we were not surprised,” said Sister Jeannine Gramick, cofounder of New Ways Ministry. “I was really shocked,” added New Ways Ministry executive director Francis DeBernardo. “It just seemed so un-Catholic to me.” - Archbishop Gomez, Cardinal Mahony, Vatican newspaper pay tribute to late labor leader Dolores Huerta (CWN)
Archbishop José Gomez of Los Angeles paid tribute to labor leader and activist Dolores Huerta following her death on October 28 at the age of 96. - USCCB highlights National Vocation Awareness Week (CWN)
The chairman of the U.S. bishops’ Committee on Clergy, Consecrated Life and Vocations issued a brief statement for National Vocation Awareness Week (November 1-7). - Pope thanks Mercedes-Benz executives for longstanding partnership with Holy See (CWN)
As the Vatican Museums opened an exhibition entitled “A Century of the Popemobile,” Pope Leo XIV thanked Mercedes-Benz executives for the company’s longstanding partnership with the Holy See. - Vatican newspaper spotlights Burundi's poverty (CWN)
The Vatican newspaper devoted the most prominent front-page article in its October 29 edition to poverty in Burundi. - Faith should 'become culture,' Pope Leo emphasizes at audience on Vatican II (CWN)
Continuing his series of Wednesday general audiences on the Second Vatican Council and its documents, Pope Leo XIV devoted his October 28 audience (video) to the relationship between faith and culture. - Vatican dicastery warns of 'danger of extremism' in liturgical sphere (Dicastery for Divine Worship)
The Dicastery for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments warned of the “danger of extremism in the liturgical sphere” and linked it to unnamed groups that “provoke division and confusion” by “raising issues such as receiving Communion kneeling and in the hand, or the use of the veil by women.” In its summary of a recent visit of Panama’s bishops, the dicastery stated: The dialogue also brought to light the danger of extremism in the liturgical sphere and of the instrumentalization of the Eucharistic celebration by certain groups of the faithful. These groups tend to provoke division and confusion by raising issues such as receiving Communion kneeling and in the hand, or the use of the veil by women. It was reaffirmed that the Eucharist is the sacrament of unity and cannot become an object of contention. The dicastery also reported that Panama’s bishops discussed “certain incorrect practices in Eucharistic adoration, which risks becoming a highly individual form of worship, detached from the celebration of the Eucharist.” - 220 million Christians live in conditions of persecution (Aid to the Church in Need)
413 million Christians live in nations “where serious violations of religious freedom occur,” and “about 220 million Christians worldwide are directly exposed to persecution,” according to a new report from Aid to the Church in Need. The report examines oppression under authoritarian regimes, violence committed by Islamist terrorist groups, and the displacement of millions of Christians from their homes. “What is shocking is just how mainstream—dare I say tolerated—the persecution of Christians is as simply part of the global reality,” said Bishop Robert J. Brennan of Brooklyn. “Awareness of so much persecution moves us to a greater solidarity with our brothers and sisters who are suffering. As Christians, we pray and cry out for respect for religious freedom of all people in every land.” - Pope pays tribute to Blessed Elżbieta Róża Czacka, 'blind mother of the blind' (CWN)
Pope Leo XIV paid tribute to Blessed Elżbieta Róża Czacka (1876-1961), a century and a half after the religious sister’s birth. - Vatican diplomat calls for responsible stewardship of outer space (Holy See Mission)
A leading Vatican diplomat called for the responsible stewardship of outer space. Archbishop Christophe-Zakhia El-Kassis, apostolic nuncio and Permanent Observer of the Holy See to the United Nations, told participants in a UN General Assembly committee meeting on October 28 that “a responsible stewardship of outer space, with the objective of ensuring that scientific and technological progress does not compromise its peaceful and sustainable use by future generations, is imperative.” “The Holy See therefore encourages States to pursue their common efforts to preserve outer space as a realm of peace, stability, and cooperation, for the benefit of present and future generations,” Archbishop El-Kassis added. - Pope Leo: Look to the saints, pray for the dead (CWN)
At the conclusion of his October 28 general audience, Pope Leo XIV spoke about the upcoming commemorations of All Saints’ Day and All Souls’ Day. - Pope to visit 5 Roman parishes in late November, December (Vatican News)
The Vicariate of Rome announced that Pope Leo XIV will visit five Roman parishes in late November and December. On November 27—two days before the First Sunday of Advent, and the anniversary of the second apparition of Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal to St. Catherine Labouré—Pope Leo will visit Sant’Andrea delle Fratte, a center of devotion to the Miraculous Medal. The Pontiff will visit San Carlo da Sezze on the First Sunday of Advent; the Church of Sant’Eligio on the Second Sunday of Advent; the Church of Santa Lucia on the Third Sunday of Advent, which coincides this year with the feast of St. Lucy; and the Church of San Roberto Bellarmino on the Fourth Sunday of Advent. - More...