Catholic News
- Pope Leo welcomes return of refugees to Chagos, condemns forced exile (Dicastery for Communication (French))
Pope Leo XIV received a group of refugees from the Chagos Archipelago in the Indian Ocean and welcomed their impending return to their native islands, over five decades after their removal by the United Kingdom. “I am pleased that your cause has been very successful, since the return of the Chagos Archipelago to the Republic of Mauritius was recently obtained through the signing of a treaty,” Pope Leo said on August 23. The Pope added: The renewed prospect of your return to your native archipelago is an encouraging sign and has symbolic force on the international scene: all peoples, even the smallest and weakest, must be respected by the powerful in their identity and in their rights, in particular the right to live on their lands; and no one may compel them into forced exile. - Pope, in message to Italian liturgists, hopes faithful will 'rediscover churches as places of worship' (CWN)
Pope Leo XIV sent a message to Archbishop Claudio Maniago, president of the Centro Azione Liturgica [Liturgical Action Center], as the Church in Italy commenced its 75th National Liturgical Week. - Caritas strongly condemns Israel's 'machinery of annihilation' in Gaza (Caritas Internationalis)
Caritas Internationalis, the Church’s confederation of relief and development agencies, strongly condemned Israeli actions in Gaza. “On August 20, 2025, Israeli forces stormed Gaza City, where nearly one million displaced civilians had sought refuge, many already starving,” Caritas stated. “Gazans have long endured a deliberate descent into starvation. This is not a tragic accident.” “The siege of Gaza has become a machinery of annihilation, sustained by impunity and the silence, or complicity, of powerful nations,” Caritas added. “Famine here is not a natural disaster, but the outcome of a deliberate strategy: blocking aid, bombing food convoys, destroying infrastructure, and denying basic needs.” Caritas issued seven demands, including “an immediate and permanent ceasefire,” “unrestricted humanitarian access to end starvation and provide care,” and the “release of all hostages and arbitrarily detained persons.” - Myanmar's government announces plans to demolish cathedral, Buddhist sites (UCANews)
Myanmar’s Ministry of Religious Affairs and Culture announced plans to demolish Sacred Heart Cathedral and 19 Buddhist sites in Taungoo, a city of 110,000, as part of an archeological excavation. The Catholic community “is powerless to defend their beautiful cathedral,” said Father Xavier Wine Maung, the cathedral parish priest. “My only hope is to plead for leniency, asking them to save at least the main church building. It doesn’t matter if they demolish other buildings in the compound.” - Syria's new government is not persecuting Christians, prelate says (CWN)
The vicar apostolic of Aleppo emphasized in an interview that Syria’s new government is not persecuting Christians. - Vatican newspaper editor raps Israeli decision to invite social media influencers into Gaza (CWN)
In a front-page editorial in its August 26 edition, the director of L’Osservatore Romano condemned the Israeli government’s decision to permit social media influencers to enter the Gaza Strip while continuing to bar journalists. - Italian prelates plead for government action to help repopulate rural areas (Chiesa Cattolica Italiana)
139 Italian cardinals, bishops, and abbots signed an open letter taking aim at a government report that spoke of the “irreversible depopulation” of rural areas. The report also stated that “the population can only grow in some large cities and in specific particularly attractive locations.” The signatories of the open letter appealed to the Italian government and parliament not to “put oneself at the service of an ‘assisted suicide’” of small communities. On the contrary, said the signatories, the government should encourage the repopulation of rural areas “with economic incentives and tax reductions, smart working and co-working solutions, agricultural innovation, sustainable tourism, enhancement of cultural and landscape heritage, specific transport plans, recovery of abandoned villages, co-housing, broadband extension, community health services, telemedicine.” Births in Italy have fallen by over 30% since 2008, and there are now more Italians over 80 than under 10. - USCCB calls for racial equity, justice in Hurricane Katrina anniversary statement (USCCB)
The chairmen of the US bishops’ Subcommittee for African American Affairs and Ad Hoc Committee Against Racism issued a joint statement for the 20th anniversary of Hurricane Katrina. The hurricane “threw into stark focus the deep racial and socio-economic disparities across various sectors, including environmental justice, systemic housing inequality, and disaster response,” said Auxiliary Bishops Roy E. Campbell, Jr. and Joseph Perry. “As we mark the 20th anniversary of this tragedy we remember those who were lost and displaced but also renew our commitment to racial equity and justice in every sector of public life. “ - Knife-wielding man vandalizes 2 French churches, disrupts Mass (OIDAC Europe)
A barefoot knife-wielding man, apparently under the influence of drugs, vandalized two churches in suburban Paris: the Église Sainte-Marthe des Quatre-Chemins (built in 1876) and the Église Saint-Yves des Quatre-Routes (completed in 1933). “The attacker overturned benches, smashed religious statues and paintings, and disrupted a Mass,” according to the Observatory on Intolerance and Discrimination against Christians in Europe. “He threatened police with a knife, shouting ‘Come closer, I’ll kill you!’ before being subdued by the Anti-Crime Brigade.” - Learn from St. Augustine's City of God, Pontiff tells Catholic lawmakers (CWN)
Pope Leo XIV received members of the International Catholic Legislators Network on August 23 and encouraged them to learn from St. Augustine’s The City of God, in which the “Church Father taught that within human history, two ‘cities’ are intertwined: the City of Man and the City of God.” - Cardinal Parolin reflects on liturgy and hope (Vatican News)
Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the Secretary of State of His Holiness, delivered the opening address at the Church in Italy’s 75th National Liturgical Week, an event held this year in Naples. In his address, entitled “The liturgy nourishes and sustains hope” (video), Cardinal Parolin discussed hope, contemplation, action, and peace. Citing the example of the parish in Gaza, “Cardinal Parolin stressed that the liturgy must increasingly become a ‘place’ of closeness, hope, freedom, hospitality, and refuge,” according to Vatican News’s summary of his remarks. “The Cardinal also called for a liturgy that is ‘inclusive, intercultural, and welcoming’ in today’s increasingly multicultural Italian parishes—a liturgy that is the fullest expression of ‘synodality.’” Pope Leo XIV sent a message to the event, which began on August 25. - School employee may not display 'anti-trans' books in presence of students, federal court rules (Religion Clause)
A federal district court ruled that a social worker employed by Intermountain Education Service District in Pendleton, Oregon, is not permitted to display the children’s books He is He and She is She in the presence of students. Magistrate Judge Andrew Hallman ruled that the social worker’s constitutional rights were not violated when the district found that the books constituted an act of hostile expression under the school’s anti-bias policy. The judge ruled that the employee is permitted to display the books when no children are present. - Papal message to Waldensians, Methodists calls for journey toward full communion (L'Osservatore Romano (Italian))
Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the Secretary of State of His Holiness, sent a telegram in Pope Leo’s name to the Waldensian-Methodist synod, which is meeting from August 24-27 in Torre Pellice, Italy. “I assure you of my fervent remembrance in prayer so that all Christians may journey with sincerity of heart toward full communion, to bear witness to Jesus Christ and his Gospel,” stated the Pope. “We are called to cooperate in the service of humanity, particularly in defending the dignity of the human person, in promoting justice and peace, and in providing common responses to the suffering that afflicts the most vulnerable.” - Cardinal Parolin sees 'unanimity' in condemning violence in Gaza (Vatican News)
The Vatican is “appalled by what is happening in Gaza, despite the condemnation of the whole world,” Cardinal Pietro Parolin said on August 25. At an appearance in Naples, the Vatican Secretary of State said that there is “ unanimity in condemning what is taking place” in Gaza. He voiced frustration with the lack of progress toward peace, saying that “there seems to be no openings for a solution.” Questioned about the war in Ukraine, Cardinal Parolin was somewhat more optimistic, saying that “there are many possible solutions and many paths that could lead to peace. But they must be put into practice.” - Pope Leo assures Zelensky of prayer for people of Ukraine (@ZelenskyyUa)
President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine posted a message that Pope Leo XIV sent him for the nation’s independence day (August 24). “With a heart wounded by the violence that ravages your land, I address you on this day of your national feast,” Pope Leo wrote. “I wish to assure you of my prayer for the people of Ukraine who suffer from war—especially for all those wounded in body, for those bereaved by the death of a loved one, and for those deprived of their homes.” “May God Himself console them; may He strengthen the injured and grant eternal rest to the departed,” the Pope added. “I implore the Lord to move the hearts of people of good will, that the clamor of arms may fall silent and give way to dialogue, opening the path to peace for the good of all.” The Pontiff concluded by entrusting the nation to the Blessed Virgin Mary, Queen of Peace. - Put Jesus, the only Savior, at the center of your life, Pope Leo tells French altar servers (CWN)
In an address to French altar servers in Rome for a jubilee year pilgrimage, Pope Leo XIV emphasized the importance of friendship with Christ, the only Savior. - 'Immense river of people' flees Islamist insurgency in Mozambique, Vatican newspaper reports (CWN)
A day after Pope Leo XIV appealed for prayer for the people of Cabo Delgado Province in Mozambique, the Vatican newspaper reported on the “immense river of people seeking safety from shootings, attacks, and kidnappings” associated with the Islamist insurgency there. - Ukrainian Catholic leader: 'We all want peace, but true peace is always just' (Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church)
Major Archbishop Sviatoslav Shevchuk, the head of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church, said in a television interview that “we all want peace, but true peace is always just.” In an apparent reference to Russian President Vladimir Putin’s proposal that Ukraine cede part of its territory to Russia, the Major Archbishop said, “It is obvious that we will never be satisfied if part of our people is once again enslaved. That would not be just.” “If money becomes more important than human life in all these processes, then democracy and peace in the world will come to an end,” the prelate added. “That is why Ukraine is today the pivot of these global changes.” - Patriarchs fear 'death sentence' for Gaza residents (Vatican Press Office)
The Catholic and Greek Orthodox Patriarchs of Jerusalem have issued a joint plea for peace, saying that “there has been enough destruction” in Gaza, and warning that an Israeli plan to occupy the city of Gaza would cause a humanitarian disaster. Israel has ordered the evacuation of the city, instructing residents to move to the south of Gaza. That order “would, for many, be a death sentence,” the Patriarchs predict, noting that many of the city’s occupants are now weak, malnourished, or disabled. Priests and religious have promised to remain in Gaza to care for those in need. Citing an Israeli threat that “the gates of hell will open” against Hamas, the patriarchs respond that those words are “not merely a threat—it is a reality already underway.” - Italian foreign minister, Leo XIV discuss commitment to peace, defense of Christian minorities (@Antonio_Tajani)
Pope Leo XIV received Antonio Tajani, Italy’s deputy prime minister and minister of foreign affairs, on August 25. Tajani tweeted that he and the Pontiff spoke about “commitment to peace and the defense of Christian minorities around the world.” “I spoke of our commitment to defending Christian minorities in Gaza and the West Bank,” added Tajani, in remarks reported by Agenzia Nova. - More...