Catholic News
- Papal message: Catholic social teaching shows path to peaceful coexistence (Vatican News)
Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the Secretary of State of His Holiness, sent a message in Pope Leo’s name to participants in a conference on Catholic social thought and peacebuilding in Europe. The conference was organized by the Centesimus Annus Pro Pontifice (CAPP) Foundation, named after Pope St. John Paul II’s 1991 social encyclical. No continent can “live in peace and thrive without commonly held truths that inform its norms and values,” the papal message stated. Catholic social teaching “has much to offer as it goes beyond borders and provides a platform for collective interests and way of living, thus making peaceful coexistence possible,” the message added. - Franciscan official warns that new Israeli law threatens existence of Jerusalem's Christian schools (L'Osservatore Romano (Italian))
The head of the schools of the Franciscan province in the Holy Land warned that a new Israeli law threatens the existence of Christian schools in Jerusalem. The new law, approved by the Knesset (parliament), “prevents graduates of universities that follow the curriculum of the State of Palestine from teaching in schools in Israel, unless they also possess a specific accreditation from the Israeli authorities,” the Vatican newspaper reported. Father Ibrahim Faltas, OFM, of the Custody of the Holy Land, said that “all Palestinians from the West Bank who studied at Palestinian universities, such as the one in Bethlehem, which is Christian, or Hebron, will no longer be able to teach in schools in Israel: this is truly very serious.” The 15 Christian schools in Jerusalem, with 12,000 students, “are the ones that will primarily bear the consequences of this decision,” Father Faltas added. “There are many teachers who come from the West Bank and especially from the Bethlehem area: as many as 235. It would mean closing all these schools because there are no teachers in Jerusalem, they cannot be found.” - Pope encourages Puerto Rico's bishops to promote peace within dioceses (Vatican News (Spanish))
Pope Leo XIV received the bishops of Puerto Rico and encouraged them to be “bearers of fraternal communion and to strive for peace in all our dioceses,” according to a bishop who was present at the meeting. Auxiliary Bishop Tomás González made his remarks in an interview with Vatican News following the January 23 audience. Bishop González also said that synodal meetings in Puerto Rico’s dioceses have “blessed us enormously as we live this process as children of God, all the baptized, faithful and pastors together.” - Orthodox prelate calls for greater Christian unity in Ukraine to resist evil (Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church)
A prelate of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine called for greater unity among Ukraine’s Christians in order to “overcome the evil that has come upon our land.” “Only by being united can we overcome the evil that has come upon our land today,” said Archbishop Agapit of Vyshgorod. “I want to wish that the Lord, through our prayers and seeing our intentions, will help us Ukrainians to unite first and foremost—to unite around Christ, around God.” The prelate made his remarks at a January 22 service for the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity. The service, led by the apostolic nuncio, took place in a Latin-rite church whose stained-glass windows were shattered in a recent Russian attack. - Guatemalan Primate suspends some Sunday Masses (ADN CELAM (Spanish))
As gang violence and prison riots led Guatemala’s president to declare a state of emergency, the nation’s Primate suspended Sunday evening Masses in his archdiocese on January 18. Archbishop Gonzalo de Villa y Vásquez, SJ, also called for prayers for peace. The prelate subsequently discussed the violence in the Central American nation in an interview with Vatican News. - US bishops back 2 pro-life bills in Congress (CWN)
The chairmen of three committees of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops lent their support to the Pregnant Students’ Rights Act, sponsored by Rep. Ashley Hinson (R-IA), and the Supporting Pregnant and Parenting Women and Families Act, sponsored by Rep. Michelle Fischbach (R-MN). - Pontiff to celebrate Sunday Mass at 5 Roman parishes (Diocese of Rome (Italian))
The Diocese of Rome has announced that on each of the first five Sundays of Lent, Pope Leo XIV will visit a parish in Rome: Santa Maria Regina Pacis in Ostia Lido, Sacred Heart of Jesus in Castro Pretorio, Ascension of Our Lord Jesus Christ, Santa Maria della Presentazione, and Sacred Heart of Jesus in Ponte Mammolo. “They will be real pastoral visits,” said Cardinal Baldassare Reina, vicar general of His Holiness for the Diocese of Rome. “Pope Leo XIV will meet with participatory bodies, pastoral animators and some youth organizations. The culmination of the visit will be the Eucharistic celebration with the entire parish community.” - Pope receives Grand Duke, Duchess of Luxembourg (Vatican News)
Pope Leo XIV received Grand Duke Guillaume, Luxembourg’s head of state, and his consort, Grand Duchess Stéphanie. The Grand Duke subsequently met with Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the Secretary of State of His Holiness, and Archbishop Paul Richard Gallagher, the Holy See’s Secretary for Relations with States and International Organizations. According to a Vatican statement, the parties discussed “social cohesion, the education of young people, and the safeguarding of the dignity of life and of the human person,” as well as international affairs. The Western European nation of 690,000 (map) is 72% Christian (70% Catholic) and 4% Muslim. - Vatican newspaper devotes special section to Arctic geopolitics (CWN)
L’Osservatore Romano devoted a special section in its January 23 edition to the theme of “Geopolitica Artica” (Arctic Geopolitics). - Vatican spokesman pays tribute to journalist John Allen (Vatican News)
Andrea Tornielli, the editorial director of the Vatican’s Dicastery for Communication, hailed the late John Allen as “the journalist who explained the Vatican with expertise and wit.” “In every article, John combined rigor and careful attention to sources with interpretive frameworks, analysis, and context, and he insisted on using quotations “on the record,” always accompanied by full names.” said Tornielli. “Another defining feature of his work was that he never took anything for granted and therefore never wrote only for insiders: he knew how to speak to his audience—not composed solely of Catholics, nor only of believers.” - 6 beatification causes advance, including martyred Guatemalan priest (CWN)
In an audience with the prefect of the Dicastery for the Causes of Saints, Pope Leo XIV approved the promulgation of decrees that pave the way for the beatification of two Servants of God and recognize the heroic virtue of four others. - Pope names canonist as #2 official of Dicastery for the Clergy (CWN)
Pope Leo XIV has appointed Archbishop Carlo Roberto Maria Redaelli of Gorizia, Italy, as the secretary, or second-ranking official, of the Dicastery for the Clergy. - Pope Leo, in message to March for Life, praises advocacy for the unborn, calls for respect for life at every stage (Dicastery for Communication)
Pope Leo XIV has sent a message to participants in the March for Life, which takes place today in Washington, DC. “I send warm greetings to those of you participating in the 2026 March for Life,” Pope Leo began. “I likewise express heartfelt appreciation, and assure you of my spiritual closeness as you gather for this eloquent public witness to affirm that the protection of the right to life constitutes the indispensable foundation of every other human right.” “I would encourage you, especially the young people, to continue striving to ensure that life is respected in all of its stages through appropriate efforts at every level of society, including dialogue with civil and political leaders,” the Pope continued. “May Jesus, who promised to be with us always (cf. Mt 28:20), accompany you today as you courageously and peacefully march on behalf of unborn children.” “By advocating for them, please know that you are fulfilling the Lord’s command to serve him in the least of our brothers and sisters (cf. Mt 25:31-46),” he added in his message, dated January 17 and released yesterday. - European, US prelates highlight suffering of Holy Land's Christians (CBCEW)
At the conclusion of a four-day visit to the Holy Land, 13 prelates from Europe and the United States issued a statement highlighting the suffering of Christians there. The prelates of the Holy Land Coordination said the Palestinian Christians in the West Bank “told us of their suffering: endless attacks from extremist settlers, uprooting of their olive trees, the seizure of their land and intimidatory acts that make their daily life unbearable, driving many into mass emigration.” “As Christians, it is our calling and duty to give a voice to the voiceless, and to bear witness to their dignity, so that the world may know their suffering and be moved to advocate for justice and compassion,” the prelates added. “The people of the Holy Land cry out for our help and prayers; they long for an end to their suffering. Stand with them.” - Bishops in Japan, US call for progress toward nuclear disarmament (Archbishop Etienne)
The archbishops of Santa Fe and Seattle, joined by the archbishop of Nagasaki and bishop of Hiroshima, issued a statement on January 21 marking the fifth anniversary of the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons, which the nuclear powers have not ratified. “We specifically call upon world leaders to demonstrate measurable progress toward nuclear disarmament,” the prelates said. “Eight decades of nuclear threats are far too long, as evidenced by the horrors documented by the atomic bombing museums in Japan. It is long past time for the nuclear weapons powers to begin to make tangible progress toward that end.” - Leading Catholic, Orthodox prelates recall 60th anniversary of lifting of 1054 excommunications (Vatican News)
Cardinal Kurt Koch and Metropolitan Job of Pisidia spoke at a January 21 conference marking the 60th anniversary of the joint declaration of Pope St. Paul VI and Ecumenical Patriarch Athenagoras of Constantinople. The declaration lifted the mutual excommunications pronounced by their predecessors at the beginning of the East-West Schism (1054). Cardinal Koch, the prefect of the Dicastery for Promoting Chrisitan Unity, spoke about the canonical irregularity surrounding the 1054 Catholic decree of excommunication; Archbishop Job discussed primacy, synodality, and the Filioque controversy. The two are co-presidents of the Joint International Commission for Theological Dialogue between the Catholic Church and the Orthodox Church. - UK Bible sales reached record high in 2025 (The Guardian)
Bible sales in the UK reached £6.3m ($8.52 million) in 2025, up 134% since 2019. “We’ve seen an increase in people coming to the Bible from scratch,” said the retail sales director of a bookstore near Westminster Abbey. “They have no Christian background whatsoever. They have no grounding from their parents or from their school ... It’s definitely younger people who are seeking some sort of spirituality.” - Over 5,000 attend National Prayer Vigil for Life (EWTN News)
Over 5,000 people attended the National Prayer Vigil for Life last evening at the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in Washington. Bishop James Conley of Lincoln, Nebraska, preached, “I firmly believe that 50 years from now when my generation will have gone to God, your grandchildren will ask you: ‘Is it true, that when you were my age, they put children to death in the womb?’” - Vatican employees report distrust of managers, mistreatment in the workplace (EWTN News)
A survey conducted by the Vatican Lay Employees Association found widespread dissatisfaction, with nearly 76% stating that merit and initiative are not rewarded, and over 56% reporting “injustices or humiliating behavior from superiors.” 250 of the Vatican’s employees, who number over 4,000, took part in the survey. Msgr. Marco Sprizzi, president of the Labor Office of the Apostolic See, responded: Technically, it is a survey conducted on a very small sample, since it involves less than 5% of employees. In any case, we take all voices seriously, even if it were the voice of just one employee who complained of a lack of attention, dialogue, or respect for the rules. - New nuncio to Israel appointed (Vatican Press Office)
Pope Leo XIV has accepted the resignation of Archbishop Adolfo Tito Yllana, 77, from the office of apostolic nuncio in Israel and apostolic delegate in Jerusalem and Palestine, one of the most sensitive Vatican diplomatic posts. The prelate’s successor, Archbishop Giorgio Lingua, 65, is no stranger to sensitive posts. A priest of the Diocese of Fossano, Italy, he has served as apostolic nuncio to Jordan and Iraq (2010-2015), Cuba (2015-2019), and Croatia (2019-2026). - More...