Ghislaine Maxwell pleaded the Fifth Amendment and refused to answer questions during a deposition in the House Oversight Committee’s Epstein probe.
The post Ghislaine Maxwell Pleads the Fifth, Refuses to Answer Questions in Epstein Probe appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.
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Glenna Goldis, who worked for radical New York Attorney General Letitia James, was fired for speaking out against “gender-affirming care.” Now, she has been hired by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) under President Trump.
The post Lawyer Fired by Letitia James for Speaking Out Against “Gender-Affirming Care” Hired by Trump’s FTC (Video) appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.
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(Note: Thank you for supporting businesses like those presenting a sponsored message below and ordering through the links below, which benefits Gateway Pundit.
The post White House Insider Warns: Prepare for Public Law 63-43 appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.
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Seton Hall receives $8.4M state grant to transform STEM, law and student life facilities #Catholic – 
With the support of an $8.4 million New Jersey Higher Education Capital Facilities Grant, Seton Hall University in South Orange, N.J., is reinvigorating its campus through several modernizations and improvements in the coming months.
In August 2025, the State of New Jersey announced that $250 million in capital grant funding is being committed to higher education facility upgrades. The grant aims to address deferred maintenance while improving infrastructure across public and private colleges, including county colleges.
Last month, the state awarded $244.4 million for 92 projects across 23 institutions, including Seton Hall University. Funding will be directed toward infrastructure overhauls throughout the campus.
This funding is distributed through two key programs, the Higher Education Capital Improvement Fund (CIF) and the Higher Education Facilities Trust Fund (HEFT). CIF designates $110 million for four-year public and private institutions to support renovation, construction and technology upgrades. HEFT allocates $140 million for both public and private institutions, including county colleges, to enhance communication, laboratory, instructional and communication facilities.
Seton Hall and its students will begin seeing the results of these investments as early as fall 2026.
– With the support of an $8.4 million New Jersey Higher Education Capital Facilities Grant, Seton Hall University in South Orange, N.J., is reinvigorating its campus through several modernizations and improvements in the coming months. In August 2025, the State of New Jersey announced that $250 million in capital grant funding is being committed to higher education facility upgrades. The grant aims to address deferred maintenance while improving infrastructure across public and private colleges, including county colleges. Last month, the state awarded $244.4 million for 92 projects across 23 institutions, including Seton Hall University. Funding will be directed toward infrastructure overhauls throughout the
O my God, relying on your infinite goodness and promises, I hope to obtain pardon of my sins, the help of your grace, and life everlasting, through the merits of Jesus Christ, my Lord and Redeemer.
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Driving Rome’s “Queen of Roads” revealed beach towns, buried arenas, and new archaeological discoveries mile by mile.
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A reading from the First Book of Kings
1 Kings 8:1-7, 9-13
The elders of Israel and all the leaders of the tribes,
the princes in the ancestral houses of the children of Israel,
came to King Solomon in Jerusalem,
to bring up the ark of the LORD’s covenant
from the City of David, which is Zion.
All the people of Israel assembled before King Solomon
during the festival in the month of Ethanim (the seventh month).
When all the elders of Israel had arrived,
the priests took up the ark;
they carried the ark of the LORD
and the meeting tent with all the sacred vessels
that were in the tent.
(The priests and Levites carried them.)
King Solomon and the entire community of Israel
present for the occasion
sacrificed before the ark sheep and oxen
too many to number or count.
The priests brought the ark of the covenant of the LORD
to its place beneath the wings of the cherubim in the sanctuary,
the holy of holies of the temple.
The cherubim had their wings spread out over the place of the ark,
sheltering the ark and its poles from above.
There was nothing in the ark but the two stone tablets
which Moses had put there at Horeb,
when the LORD made a covenant with the children of Israel
at their departure from the land of Egypt.
When the priests left the holy place,
the cloud filled the temple of the LORD
so that the priests could no longer minister because of the cloud,
since the LORD’s glory had filled the temple of the LORD.
Then Solomon said, “The LORD intends to dwell in the dark cloud;
I have truly built you a princely house,
a dwelling where you may abide forever.”
From the Gospel according to Mark
6:53-56
After making the crossing to the other side of the sea,
Jesus and his disciples came to land at Gennesaret
and tied up there.
As they were leaving the boat, people immediately recognized him.
They scurried about the surrounding country
and began to bring in the sick on mats
to wherever they heard he was.
Whatever villages or towns or countryside he entered,
they laid the sick in the marketplaces
and begged him that they might touch only the tassel on his cloak;
and as many as touched it were healed.
All are permitted on the Lord’s path: no one should feel as an intruder, an interloper or one who has no right. To have access to His heart, to Jesus’ heart, there is only one requirement: to feel in need of healing and to entrust yourself to Him. I ask you: do each of you feel that you need to be healed? Of something, of some sin, of some problem? And, if you feel this, do you have faith in Jesus? These are the two requirements in order to be healed, in order to have access to his heart: to feel in need of healing and to entrust yourself to Him. Jesus goes to discover these people among the crowd and removes them from anonymity, frees them from the fear of living and of taking risks. He does so with a look and a word which sets them back on the path after much suffering and humiliation. We too are called to learn and to imitate these freeing words and this gaze which restores the will to live to those who lack it. (Pope Francis, Angelus, 1 July 2018)
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U.S. — In a deep loss for the nation, the mass layoffs at The Washington Post have left no one to monitor how racist birds are becoming.
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Posting social media content for the President of the United States comes with tremendous responsibility, so it’s critical to give posts a once-over before sending them out to the masses. Here are eight things you should always double-check before posting a video on the President’s account:
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Lake Baikal in winter. Ice ridges near Olkhon island in Pribaikalsky National Park.
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The pontiff is expected to travel to Africa in April, visit Peru later this year, and make a summer stop in Spain.
On Feb. 8, 1969, a massive meteorite rained a couple of tons of stones on the Mexican town of Allende, not far from the Texas border. The fireball scattered thousands of stones over a huge area. Over 2 tons were recovered, giving researchers — already primed by the impending Apollo missions — an abundance ofContinue reading “Feb. 8, 1969: The Allende meteorite falls”
The post Feb. 8, 1969: The Allende meteorite falls appeared first on Astronomy Magazine.
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This is no surprise. After the British Ambassador was found connected to Jeffrey Epstein, Christopher Steele came out and blamed Russia. These people have no shame. We learned last week … Read more
The post PREDICTABLE: After British Ambassador’s Connections to Epstein Unearthed, Christopher Steele Blames Russia appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.
Read More![University student from England being considered for canonization - #Catholic - A young man from Manchester, England, who “committed himself totally to God” could one day be included among the ranks of Sts. Carlo Acutis and Pier Giorgio Frassati as calls continue for him to be named a saint.Pedro Ballester died on Jan. 13, 2018, at the age of 21 of bone cancer after a life of prayer, sacrifice, and virtue. Vatican representatives are now in the process of interviewing his family and friends to gauge whether a cause should be formally opened for the former university student.
Through his illness, Pedro Ballester “was uniting himself to the suffering of Christ,” Father Joseph Evans, who accompanied Ballester, told EWTN News. | Credit: Photo courtesy of Opus Dei Communications Office
Father Joseph Evans, chaplain of Greygarth Hall, Manchester, who accompanied Ballester during the last year of his life, told EWTN News: “People like Pedro and Carlo Acutis, they didn’t keep their options open. They committed themselves totally to God. They found happiness in deep self-giving and deep suffering.” Carlo Acutis, a 15-year-old Italian, died in 2006 and was canonized a saint in 2025.Evans told EWTN News that “young people are attracted to self-giving and self-sacrifice and practice because of our soft, consumerist world.”A gift for friendship and commitment to God Ballester was born into a Catholic family and his Spanish parents are married members of Opus Dei, a personal prelature of the Catholic Church founded in Spain by St. Josemaría Escrivá in 1928. Ballester himself joined Opus Dei in 2013 as a “numerary” member — meaning he made a commitment to celibacy for life and living out the charism of Opus Dei in the world. After winning a place at Imperial College in London to study chemical engineering, Ballester experienced intense back pain during his first semester, after which he was diagnosed with advanced cancer of the pelvis.During his illness, he would often go to Christie’s Hospital in Manchester for cancer treatment where his holiness and kindness were noted by many. He befriended his fellow patients and the nurses, showing a deep interest in their lives outside the hospital. “He made really good friends with them,” Evans told EWTN News. “He was genuinely interested in you. He really inspired people in a very, very natural way. He got through to people and spoke to them about God.” On one occasion, Ballester wrote a card to Pope Francis, signed by his fellow cancer patients, and delivered it in person to the pontiff in Rome in November 2015. His father, also named Pedro, recounted how his son told Pope Francis: “I just wanted to let you know that I got cancer, and I offer all the sufferings for you and for the Church."
Pedro Ballester met Pope Francis in 2015 and told him: “I just wanted to let you know that I got cancer, and I offer all the sufferings for you and for the Church.” | Credit: Photo courtesy of Opus Dei Communications Office
From that point on, the young man’s suffering worsened and he regularly experienced acute pain leading up to his death. Paying tribute to the way Ballester responded to his disease, Evans said: “He was uniting himself to the suffering of Christ. The pain he was going through was a much bigger share in the passion of Christ, offering that suffering to Christ for souls, for salvation. Above all, he would say the best form of prayer was offering up our suffering.”Opus Dei, which is promoting Ballester’s cause for sainthood, is hoping the impressive young adult will follow in the footsteps of Carlo Acutis and Pier Georgio Frassati, who was famous for serving the poor in Milan. Speaking to EWTN News about the impact of such young people, Jack Valero from Opus Dei said: “There seems to be a whole collection of people, [a] new generation of Catholics who are going to lead the way. God is saying that, now in the 21st century, ‘I’m going to give you a whole load of people that are going to be models for the young.’”He added: “[Pedro] could be somebody who can teach us to be happy with whatever our circumstances are, and that to be close to God is to be happy.”Valero also described Ballester as a “special” person who was “a really friendly guy throughout his life, and he continued to be a very friendly guy in his sickness.” Pinpointing Ballester’s “ability to make friends” as a strong evangelistic tool, he said: “He realized that he didn’t have much long to live. So he asked people: ‘Are you going to Mass? Are you OK with God? Are you being good to people?’ This ability to make friends was directed to bring them close to God.”
Pedro Ballester is greeted by the former archbishop of Westminster, Cardinal Vincent Nichols. | Credit: Photo courtesy of Opus Dei Communications Office
Accounts of Ballester’s impact on people have spread around the world to places such as Mexico, Spain, and Kenya, while a prayer card asking for his intercession has now been translated into 28 languages. Additionally, a documentary called “A Friend in Heaven” has been released that highlights the impact of Ballester‘s short life, describing him as a “student with a gift of friendship and a love for God.”Looking to the future, Evans urged caution while the Church “makes its mind up” about Ballester becoming a saint, but he told EWTN News: “He loved chatting with people. He was very generous. There’s a tremendous spontaneous phenomenon of devotion to him in all sorts of places throughout the world.”](https://unitedyam.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/02/university-student-from-england-being-considered-for-canonization-catholic-a-young-man-from-manchester-england-who-committed-himself-totally-to-god-could-one-day-be-included-a.jpg)
Vatican representatives are in the process of reviewing the life of Pedro Ballester, a British university student who died of cancer in 2018, to gauge whether his canonization cause should be opened.
Far left Rep.
The post LAUGHABLE: Jasmine Crockett Tells MSNOW That Republicans Will ‘Absolutely’ Vote for Her in a General Election (VIDEO) appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.
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The total meltdown of the left over the recent layoffs at the Washington Post continue to prove that the media class just doesn’t get what’s happening.
The post DELUSIONAL: Former Washington Post Editor Suggests Paper’s Problems Come From Going Too Soft on Trump (VIDEO) appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.
Read MoreO dear Jesus,
I humbly implore You to grant Your special graces to our family.
May our home be the shrine of peace, purity, love, labor and faith.
I beg You, dear Jesus,
to protect and bless all of us,
absent and present,
living and dead.
O Mary,
loving Mother of Jesus,
and our Mother,
pray to Jesus for our family,
for all the families of the world,
to guard the cradle of the newborn,
the schools of the young and their vocations.
Blessed Saint Joseph,
holy …
A full moon is seen shining over NASA’s SLS (Space Launch System) and Orion spacecraft, atop the mobile launcher in the early hours of February 1, 2026.
Read MoreFirst reading from the Book of the Prophet Isaiah
58:7-10
Thus says the LORD:
Share your bread with the hungry,
shelter the oppressed and the homeless;
clothe the naked when you see them,
and do not turn your back on your own.
Then your light shall break forth like the dawn,
and your wound shall quickly be healed;
your vindication shall go before you,
and the glory of the LORD shall be your rear guard.
Then you shall call, and the LORD will answer,
you shall cry for help, and he will say: Here I am!
If you remove from your midst
oppression, false accusation and malicious speech;
if you bestow your bread on the hungry
and satisfy the afflicted;
then light shall rise for you in the darkness,
and the gloom shall become for you like midday.
Second reading from the First Letter of St. Paul to the Corinthians
1 Corinthians 2:1-5
When I came to you, brothers and sisters,
proclaiming the mystery of God,
I did not come with sublimity of words or of wisdom.
For I resolved to know nothing while I was with you
except Jesus Christ, and him crucified.
I came to you in weakness and fear and much trembling,
and my message and my proclamation
were not with persuasive words of wisdom,
but with a demonstration of Spirit and power,
so that your faith might rest not on human wisdom
but on the power of God.
From the Gospel according to Matthew
5:13-16
Jesus said to his disciples:
"You are the salt of the earth.
But if salt loses its taste, with what can it be seasoned?
It is no longer good for anything
but to be thrown out and trampled underfoot.
You are the light of the world.
A city set on a mountain cannot be hidden.
Nor do they light a lamp and then put it under a bushel basket;
it is set on a lampstand,
where it gives light to all in the house.
Just so, your light must shine before others,
that they may see your good deeds
and glorify your heavenly Father."
“You are the light of the world”. Light disperses darkness and enables us to see. Jesus is the light that has dispelled the darkness, but it [darkness] still remains in the world and in individuals. It is the task of Christians to disperse it by radiating the light of Christ and proclaiming his Gospel. It is a radiance that can also come from our words, but it must flow above all from our “good works” (v. 16). A disciple and a Christian community are light in the world when they direct others to God, helping each one to experience his goodness and his mercy. The disciple of Jesus is light when he knows how to live his faith outside narrow spaces, when he helps to eliminate prejudice, to eliminate slander, and to bring the light of truth into situations vitiated by hypocrisy and lies. To shed light. But it is not my light, it is the light of Jesus: we are instruments to enable Jesus’ light to reach everyone. (Pope Francis, Angelus, 9 February 2020)
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From celebrating Carnival to sailing, these are the can’t-miss experiences on the smallest of the U.S. Virgin Islands.
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MALIBU, CA — In direct competition with President Trump’s new TrumpRx website, Hunter Biden announced the launch of HunterRx, a brand new low-price pharmacy he runs out of the back of his van.
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While the Summer Olympics are often lauded for their impressive displays of elite athletic prowess, the Winter Olympics are often (rightfully or wrongfully) seen as the "gay" version of the Olympic Games. Upon investigation, however, there may be a few not-quite-as-gay events.
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Great Cormorant (Phalacrocorax carbo), Little Egret (Egretta garzetta) and Gadwall (Mareca strepera) in misty Taudaha Lake during winter, near Kathmandu, Nepal.
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The country’s bishops will travel to Rome from Feb. 16–20 to present to Pope Leo XIV “the vicissitudes, sorrows, joys, and hopes of the Church in Cuba.”
![Zambia bishops instruct clergy and faithful to stay out of partisan politics – #Catholic – Here is a roundup of world news you may have missed this past week:Zambia bishops instruct clergy and faithful to stay out of partisan politicsCatholic bishops in Zambia issued a pastoral letter this past week telling priests to refrain from engaging in party politics as preparations for the country’s August presidential and general elections begin.“The Church is not and must never be a mouthpiece for any political party or candidate. Our duty is to form consciences, promote the common good, and speak truth to power,” the letter stated, adding that “clergy who align themselves with political interests risk compromising their sacred vocation.” The bishops further emphasized that Church property should never be used for political campaigns or meetings, that priests should never accept political donations in exchange for influence, and that preaching from the pulpit remain centered on the Gospel rather than politics.Vietnam has an abundance of priests, lack of missionaries, report saysThe Catholic Church in Vietnam is facing a critical lack in missionaries despite having massive vocational growth, a report this week said.There is “a dire shortage of the missionary spirit required to reach the ‘peripheries’” in Vietnam, according to a UCA News article on Tuesday by Catholic commentator Petrus Po. Though the country in January welcomed 76 new transitional deacons, who are all expected to be ordained in the next year to the priesthood, Po observed that Vietnam’s clergy are heavily concentrated in urban centers, leaving areas such as the Central Highlands and northwestern areas to “wait months for a single Mass.” Amid shortages in rural areas, Po said the local Church should “embrace” the Vietnamese bishops’ designation of 2026 as the year of “Every Christian as a Missionary Disciple” by sending more priests to live in rural areas rather than merely “lending” them.Rising violence in Pakistan prompts increased worry among ChristiansCatholics in Pakistan are experiencing heightened anxiety as conflict between armed militant separatist groups and Pakistan’s security forces continues to strike closer to home.Amar Mansoor Bhatti, a 35-year old Catholic man, told UCA news that he awoke to the sound of gunfire and explosions this past week from the armed clash that has left more than 190 people dead including civilians. “The firing continued for more than eight hours until late afternoon. We stayed inside. We were afraid to step outside the house until Sunday morning [Feb. 1],” he said.The ongoing violence has included suicide bombing attacks, grenade strikes, gunfire, and more. A Christian woman, Maria Shamoon, was abducted from her home in Balochistan by separatists before being later rescued, the report noted.Kenya bishop cautions politicians against disrespecting places of worshipThe auxiliary bishop of the Catholic Diocese of Wote, Bishop Simon Peter Kamomoe, has cautioned politicians against showing disrespect to places of worship, warning that such actions amount to mocking God and undermining the sanctity of the churches in Kenya, ACI Africa, the sister service of EWTN News in Africa, reported Wednesday.Kamomoe issued a stern rebuke of political figures during his homily on Sunday following an attack on former Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua during a Sunday church service at St. Peter’s Anglican Church in Othaya, Nyeri County, saying: “The leaders of this country don’t respect the sanctuaries of the Lord … That is mocking God, that is contempt, which is very unfortunate, and if they don’t change, they will see the results.”Filipino priest tapped to serve as new auxiliary bishop for Perth ArchdiocesePope Leo XIV has appointed Philippine-born priest Father Nelson Po to serve as an auxiliary bishop to the Archdiocese of Perth.“It was a big surprise to me. It was overwhelming and surreal because I have never dreamed of becoming a bishop. I went straight to the chapel and became very emotional. I felt so inadequate and unworthy, but I know that God’s strength will carry me through,” Nelson said regarding the news of his appointment, according to a Feb. 2 press release.Australian Catholic Bishops’ Conference president Archbishop Timothy Costelloe, SDB, welcomed the announcement, saying Nelson is “greeted with great joy and excitement by the whole Catholic community of the archdiocese.”Shifts in Syria’s Jazira region: Calm returns, crises remainThe entry of Syrian security forces into Qamishli, following similar deployments in Hasakah and Ayn al-Arab, marks a tangible step in implementing understandings between Damascus and the Syrian Democratic Forces under international pressure, ACI MENA, the Arabic-language sister service of EWTN News, reported Wednesday.For local Christians and other communities, the move has brought cautious relief, particularly with the end of compulsory service previously imposed under the label of “self-defense duty.” Yet stability on paper contrasts sharply with daily realities. Church sources report that around 12% of Jazira’s Christians emigrated in 2025, driven by insecurity and crushing costs, while those who remain face severe water shortages, near-total groundwater depletion, prolonged power cuts, environmental pollution, and persistent security incidents. Eastern Christian youth thrive in the Australian diasporaFrom Melbourne to Auckland, young people from Eastern Churches are finding creative ways to live their faith far from their ancestral homelands, ACI MENA recently reported.The Syriac Catholic youth festival in Australia combined prayer, theater, and open discussion on anxiety, technology, and Christian identity, drawing strong participation.Meanwhile, Chaldean youth gatherings in Australia and New Zealand focused on strengthening communion, daily liturgical life, and reflection on faith within multicultural societies. These initiatives show that, even in the diaspora, Eastern Christian youth are not merely preserving tradition but actively reshaping it for new contexts.](https://unitedyam.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/02/zambia-bishops-instruct-clergy-and-faithful-to-stay-out-of-partisan-politics-catholic-here-is-a-roundup-of-world-news-you-may-have-missed-this-past-weekzambia-bishops-instruct-clergy-and-faithfu.jpg "Zambia bishops instruct clergy and faithful to stay out of partisan politics – #Catholic – Here is a roundup of world news you may have missed this past week:Zambia bishops instruct clergy and faithful to stay out of partisan politicsCatholic bishops in Zambia issued a pastoral letter this past week telling priests to refrain from engaging in party politics as preparations for the country’s August presidential and general elections begin.“The Church is not and must never be a mouthpiece for any political party or candidate. Our duty is to form consciences, promote the common good, and speak truth to power,” the letter stated, adding that “clergy who align themselves with political interests risk compromising their sacred vocation.” The bishops further emphasized that Church property should never be used for political campaigns or meetings, that priests should never accept political donations in exchange for influence, and that preaching from the pulpit remain centered on the Gospel rather than politics.Vietnam has an abundance of priests, lack of missionaries, report saysThe Catholic Church in Vietnam is facing a critical lack in missionaries despite having massive vocational growth, a report this week said.There is “a dire shortage of the missionary spirit required to reach the ‘peripheries’” in Vietnam, according to a UCA News article on Tuesday by Catholic commentator Petrus Po. Though the country in January welcomed 76 new transitional deacons, who are all expected to be ordained in the next year to the priesthood, Po observed that Vietnam’s clergy are heavily concentrated in urban centers, leaving areas such as the Central Highlands and northwestern areas to “wait months for a single Mass.” Amid shortages in rural areas, Po said the local Church should “embrace” the Vietnamese bishops’ designation of 2026 as the year of “Every Christian as a Missionary Disciple” by sending more priests to live in rural areas rather than merely “lending” them.Rising violence in Pakistan prompts increased worry among ChristiansCatholics in Pakistan are experiencing heightened anxiety as conflict between armed militant separatist groups and Pakistan’s security forces continues to strike closer to home.Amar Mansoor Bhatti, a 35-year old Catholic man, told UCA news that he awoke to the sound of gunfire and explosions this past week from the armed clash that has left more than 190 people dead including civilians. “The firing continued for more than eight hours until late afternoon. We stayed inside. We were afraid to step outside the house until Sunday morning [Feb. 1],” he said.The ongoing violence has included suicide bombing attacks, grenade strikes, gunfire, and more. A Christian woman, Maria Shamoon, was abducted from her home in Balochistan by separatists before being later rescued, the report noted.Kenya bishop cautions politicians against disrespecting places of worshipThe auxiliary bishop of the Catholic Diocese of Wote, Bishop Simon Peter Kamomoe, has cautioned politicians against showing disrespect to places of worship, warning that such actions amount to mocking God and undermining the sanctity of the churches in Kenya, ACI Africa, the sister service of EWTN News in Africa, reported Wednesday.Kamomoe issued a stern rebuke of political figures during his homily on Sunday following an attack on former Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua during a Sunday church service at St. Peter’s Anglican Church in Othaya, Nyeri County, saying: “The leaders of this country don’t respect the sanctuaries of the Lord … That is mocking God, that is contempt, which is very unfortunate, and if they don’t change, they will see the results.”Filipino priest tapped to serve as new auxiliary bishop for Perth ArchdiocesePope Leo XIV has appointed Philippine-born priest Father Nelson Po to serve as an auxiliary bishop to the Archdiocese of Perth.“It was a big surprise to me. It was overwhelming and surreal because I have never dreamed of becoming a bishop. I went straight to the chapel and became very emotional. I felt so inadequate and unworthy, but I know that God’s strength will carry me through,” Nelson said regarding the news of his appointment, according to a Feb. 2 press release.Australian Catholic Bishops’ Conference president Archbishop Timothy Costelloe, SDB, welcomed the announcement, saying Nelson is “greeted with great joy and excitement by the whole Catholic community of the archdiocese.”Shifts in Syria’s Jazira region: Calm returns, crises remainThe entry of Syrian security forces into Qamishli, following similar deployments in Hasakah and Ayn al-Arab, marks a tangible step in implementing understandings between Damascus and the Syrian Democratic Forces under international pressure, ACI MENA, the Arabic-language sister service of EWTN News, reported Wednesday.For local Christians and other communities, the move has brought cautious relief, particularly with the end of compulsory service previously imposed under the label of “self-defense duty.” Yet stability on paper contrasts sharply with daily realities. Church sources report that around 12% of Jazira’s Christians emigrated in 2025, driven by insecurity and crushing costs, while those who remain face severe water shortages, near-total groundwater depletion, prolonged power cuts, environmental pollution, and persistent security incidents. Eastern Christian youth thrive in the Australian diasporaFrom Melbourne to Auckland, young people from Eastern Churches are finding creative ways to live their faith far from their ancestral homelands, ACI MENA recently reported.The Syriac Catholic youth festival in Australia combined prayer, theater, and open discussion on anxiety, technology, and Christian identity, drawing strong participation.Meanwhile, Chaldean youth gatherings in Australia and New Zealand focused on strengthening communion, daily liturgical life, and reflection on faith within multicultural societies. These initiatives show that, even in the diaspora, Eastern Christian youth are not merely preserving tradition but actively reshaping it for new contexts.")
“The Church is not and must never be a mouthpiece for any political party or candidate,” the Zambian bishops stated. Read more in this roundup of world news that you may have missed this past week.
Lurking in the southwestern corner of Aquarius the Water-bearer, globular cluster M72 doesn’t stand out. At magnitude 9.4, it ranks among the dimmest globulars Charles Messier included in his celebrated catalog. But M72 also lies farther away than most Messier clusters. Its 100,000 stars shine across 55,000 light-years of intragalactic space. M72 appears to beContinue reading “Hubble images globular cluster M72”
The post Hubble images globular cluster M72 appeared first on Astronomy Magazine.
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The Canadian bishops issued a statement Feb. 5 supporting Bill C-218, which would prevent persons whose sole medical condition is mental illness from accessing physician-assisted suicide.
The Holy Father accepted the resignation of Archbishop Samuel Aquila, the Holy See announced on Feb. 7.
Amid the freezing temperatures hitting many parts of the U.S., one Knights of Columbus council is providing warmth to children in need through an initiative called “Hoodies from Heaven.”
President Trump sparred with reporters during a press gaggle aboard Air Force One en route to Mar-a-Lago on Friday evening.
The post Trump Zings Washington Post Reporter During Press Gaggle Aboard Air Force One (VIDEO) appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.
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In a message for the Church’s Feb. 8 World Day of Prayer and Awareness against Human Trafficking, the pope warns that conflict and inequality fuel exploitation.
Things might be about to get very serious for Michigan’s Democrat Rep.
The post Report From Watchdog Group Claims Rep. Rashida Tlaib Has Ties to Terrorist-Linked Organizations, Urges Investigation appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.
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An American Bald Eagle, the symbol of our country, was recently killed by a ‘green energy’ wind turbine in Minnesota.
The post OUTRAGE: American Bald Eagle Killed in Minnesota by ‘Clean Energy’ Wind Turbine – The Details Are Horrific appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.
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Addressing his new flock directly, Hicks said “I desire to follow the heart of Christ, to be a good shepherd. I come to walk with you, to serve you, and to proclaim Jesus Christ to you.”
At Araksa Tea Garden in Northern Thailand, guests are invited to learn the precise skill of tea-making in the most stunning of settings.
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Glorious Saint Joseph,
pattern of all who are devoted to toil,
obtain for me the grace to toil in the spirit of penance,
in order thereby to atone for my many sins;
to toil conscientiously,
putting devotion to duty before my own inclinations;
to labour with thankfulness and joy,
deeming it an honour to employ and to develop,
by my labour, the gifts that I have received from Almighty God;
to work with order, peace, moderation, and patience,
without ever shrinking …
The U.S. government announced it will send a new shipment of humanitarian aid to Cuba worth $6 million, which will be delivered directly to the population through the Catholic Church.
A reading from the First Bok of Kings
1 Kings 3:4-13
Solomon went to Gibeon to sacrifice there,
because that was the most renowned high place.
Upon its altar Solomon offered a thousand burnt offerings.
In Gibeon the LORD appeared to Solomon in a dream at night.
God said, “Ask something of me and I will give it to you.”
Solomon answered:
“You have shown great favor to your servant, my father David,
because he behaved faithfully toward you,
with justice and an upright heart;
and you have continued this great favor toward him, even today,
seating a son of his on his throne.
O LORD, my God, you have made me, your servant,
king to succeed my father David;
but I am a mere youth, not knowing at all how to act.
I serve you in the midst of the people whom you have chosen,
a people so vast that it cannot be numbered or counted.
Give your servant, therefore, an understanding heart
to judge your people and to distinguish right from wrong.
For who is able to govern this vast people of yours?”
The LORD was pleased that Solomon made this request.
So God said to him: “Because you have asked for this–
not for a long life for yourself,
nor for riches, nor for the life of your enemies,
but for understanding so that you may know what is right–
I do as you requested.
I give you a heart so wise and understanding
that there has never been anyone like you up to now,
and after you there will come no one to equal you.
In addition, I give you what you have not asked for,
such riches and glory that among kings there is not your like.”
From the Gospel according to Mark
6:30-34
The Apostles gathered together with Jesus
and reported all they had done and taught.
He said to them,
“Come away by yourselves to a deserted place and rest a while.”
People were coming and going in great numbers,
and they had no opportunity even to eat.
So they went off in the boat by themselves to a deserted place.
People saw them leaving and many came to know about it.
They hastened there on foot from all the towns
and arrived at the place before them.
When Jesus disembarked and saw the vast crowd,
his heart was moved with pity for them,
for they were like sheep without a shepherd;
and he began to teach them many things.
The rest proposed by Jesus is not an escape from the world, a retreat into a merely personal well-being. On the contrary, when he is confronted with the aimless people, he feels compassion. We thus learn from the Gospel that these two realities — rest and compassion — are linked: only if we learn how to rest can we have compassion. Indeed, it is possible to have a compassionate gaze that understands the needs of others, only if our heart is not consumed by the anxiety of doing, if we know how to stop and how to receive God’s grace, in the silence of adoration.
Therefore, dear brothers and sisters, we can ask ourselves: do I know how to pause throughout my day? Am I capable of taking a moment to be with myself and with the Lord, or am I always in a hurry, in a rush to get things done? Can we find some kind of “inner desert” in the midst of the din and activities of each day? (Pope Francis, Angelus, 21 July 2024)
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NASA’s Solar Dynamics Observatory captured this image of a solar flare — seen as the bright flash toward the upper middle — on Feb. 4, 2026. The image shows a subset of extreme ultraviolet light that highlights the extremely hot material in flares and which is colorized in blue and red.
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New York’s new archbishop ‘grounded’ by love of God, the poor and the people he serves #Catholic – 
CHICAGO (OSV News) — As a young man discerning a call to the priesthood in the late 1980s, Ronald Hicks took a year off from the seminary with the goal of learning Spanish.
He volunteered in an orphanage, Nuestros Pequeños Hermanos (“Our Little Brothers”) in Central Mexico, and from that moment on, “his connection to the poor and his priestly vocation grew together,” according to the Catholic Extension Society.
“He reentered the seminary and was ordained a priest in 1994, recalling that he couldn’t stop smiling that day.”
Chicago-based Catholic Extension posted a profile on now-Archbishop Hicks on its website. The prelate joined the organization’s board of governors in 2022 at the invitation of its president, Father Jack Wall. He has helped it build up the Church’s presence among the poor and in the poorest regions of the country — which has been Catholic Extension’s mission since its founding in 1905.
The profile urged the faithful to get to know the 58-year-old man appointed by Pope Leo XIV to lead 2.5 million Catholics as the new shepherd of the Archdiocese of New York, succeeding Cardinal Timothy M. Dolan.
“New Yorkers will appreciate that he is driven by a sense of duty that fuels his remarkable work ethic,” it said. “He remains grounded by his tight-knit family, including his brother, his parents — both still living — and his extended family. All of them have stayed very connected to his ministry over the years.”
Of special note, the future archbishop and the future pope grew up in neighboring suburbs on Chicago’s South Side.
At a news conference Dec. 18, the day his appointment was announced, the former bishop of Joliet, Illinois, and former auxiliary of Chicago said he was raised “in the South suburbs of Chicago and South Holland,” and Pope Leo was raised in the neighboring suburb of Dolton. Their houses “were literally 14 blocks away from each other,” Archbishop Hicks added.
After his ordination as a priest for the Archdiocese of Chicago, then-Father Hicks served in parishes throughout the archdiocese. Later, he assisted in the archdiocese’s education of seminarians, eventually becoming dean of formation at Mundelein Seminary.
“One of things he modeled to the seminarians was that a diocesan priest’s vocation is formed not only in a book or in a classroom, but also by the people he serves and grows to love,” Catholic Extension said in its profile.
“Perhaps that is why in between stints at Mundelein he went back to Latin America for five years to reunite with the community that helped forge his priestly vocation,” it added.
In July 2005, with permission from Cardinal Francis E. George, then archbishop of Chicago, Archbishop Hicks moved from Chicago to El Salvador to begin a five-year term as regional director of Nuestros Pequeños Hermanos, or NPH, in Central America.
NPH is a home dedicated to caring for more than 3,400 orphaned and abandoned children in nine Latin American and Caribbean countries.
“His time in El Salvador was an influential period,” Catholic Extension said. When he became a bishop in 2018, ordained as a Chicago auxiliary, it noted, he included a sprig of rosemary in the middle of his coat of arms in homage to El Salvador’s St. Óscar Romero, whose last name translates into English as “rosemary.”
The archbishop of San Salvador, St. Romero, “was martyred in 1980 for his defense of the voiceless.”
The rosemary “signals that Hicks, too, wants to be a bishop that prioritizes the least of God’s people, no matter the importance of his day-to-day duties,” Catholic Extension said.
In a 2022 interview with reporter Rhina Guidos of Catholic News Service, then-Bishop Hicks said that anytime people visited him in El Salvador, he would take them to the “holy sites” — what he calls the places where priests, religious men or women, and laity were brutalized before and during the country’s civil war from 1980 to 1992.
During that time, he came to know of the life of St. Romero, who “quickly became one of my heroes,” and of the life of the country, particularly for the poor, during the war, he said.
“If I learned any lessons, it was mostly to not lose hope, to have faith, to never give up and to realize through everything, through the good and the bad, that we are not abandoned: God is with us,” he told CNS.
The bishop spoke to CNS in El Salvador. He was there for the beatifications that January of four martyrs: Franciscan Father Cosme Spessotto; Jesuit Father Rutilio Grande, who was martyred along with Manuel Solórzano, a sacristan in his 70s; and Nelson Rutilio Lemus, a boy in his teens.
“If we are truly followers of Jesus, then their beatification gives us a direct example of what it looks like to love without counting the costs,” he said.
He “came back from El Salvador an even stronger priest,” Catholic Extension’s profile said.
The day before his Feb. 6 installation, Archbishop Hicks told reporters, “I left my heart there in Central America.”
The archbishop “speaks Spanish effortlessly when in Latino parishes and out in the community,” said Catholic Extension, which also noted that he “is a masterful preacher, with homilies that reflect his relatability as a human being and man of faith.”
When he returned to Chicago from El Salvador, Cardinal George appointed him dean of formation at Mundelein.
Four years later, now-Cardinal Blase J. Cupich, Cardinal George’s successor, named him vicar general. In September 2018, the cardinal ordained him as an auxiliary bishop for the archdiocese. In September 2020, then-Bishop Hicks was installed to head the Diocese of Joliet, where he has served more than half a million Catholics.
“But his vocation as bishop was never separated from his foundational belief that a priest is shaped by his people,” Catholic Extension said.
With his Feb. 6 installation, “he steps into a massive new role leading 2.5 million Catholics in New York,” but “he will be a man grounded by his love of God, the poor and the people he serves,” it said.
– CHICAGO (OSV News) — As a young man discerning a call to the priesthood in the late 1980s, Ronald Hicks took a year off from the seminary with the goal of learning Spanish. He volunteered in an orphanage, Nuestros Pequeños Hermanos (“Our Little Brothers”) in Central Mexico, and from that moment on, “his connection to the poor and his priestly vocation grew together,” according to the Catholic Extension Society. “He reentered the seminary and was ordained a priest in 1994, recalling that he couldn’t stop smiling that day.” Chicago-based Catholic Extension posted a profile on now-Archbishop Hicks on its website.
![Seattle, Boston archbishops make friendly wager ahead of 2026 Super Bowl #Catholic It’s become an annual tradition for the Catholic bishops from the two cities sending teams to the Super Bowl to make a friendly wager before the big game to benefit Catholic nonprofits in the teams’ cities.As the New England Patriots and the Seattle Seahawks prepare to play in the Super Bowl on Feb. 8, Archbishop Richard G. Henning of Boston and Archbishop Paul D. Etienne of Seattle discussed this year’s wager with EWTN News.The two archbishops said the weekend will be fun for fans across the nation but acknowledged it comes amid a tense time in the United States with ongoing debates and division surrounding immigration.“I think this is an important moment, obviously, of unity. This is a shared cultural moment, hopefully a moment for people to gather, be with friends and family, a joyful thing,” Henning said. “But at the same time, we don’t want to forget that there are other realities in our world and suffering; [we want to] be attentive to that as well.”“It’s a situation that requires attentiveness and sensitivity,” Etienne said. With the “tradition of a friendly wager between the bishops of the teams, Archbishop Henning and I just simply wanted to acknowledge that we do realize we got more important matters that we are being attentive to,” he said.“But at the same time, we recognize the great role that sports and relaxation play in the lives of our people, too.”The pair decided the wager this year would be a $500 donation to Catholic charities that have a particular focus on the care and support of immigrants.Preparing for a ‘joyful’ gameEtienne discussed how putting aside differences and coming together is an advantage that sports and recreation can bring.“Healthy competition is a part of so many aspects of human life, and it’s good for people to have something to take their minds off of other matters in their world and in their lives to just relax. And hopefully, the outcome of the game will still allow everybody watching it and participating to still be relaxed and joyful at the performance of their teams,” he said.The 60th Super Bowl marks the second time the Seahawks and Patriots will compete in the championship game. In 2015, the Patriots defeated the Seahawks at the 49th Super Bowl. Despite the loss, Etienne said “there is definitely a better performance on the way this year” for Seattle’s team.Etienne said Seattle players see it as a “good omen” that in the 21st century, every time a new pope has been elected, the Seahawks made it to the next Super Bowl.When Pope Benedict XVI was elected in April 2005, the Seahawks played in the Super Bowl in February 2006. Then Pope Francis was elected in March 2013, and the Seahawks played in the Super Bowl in 2014. In May 2025, Pope Leo XIV was elected and now Seattle’s team is once again in the championship game.While Henning has only been in Boston a little over a year after moving from New York, he said he is “absolutely a fan” of the New England Patriots and said they are “a great team.”“This is a team that unites New England and Boston. It’s a team that is committed to young people in our communities. They give a great example of hard work, resilience, discipline, and the team is very generous in going out into our communities among our young people, helping them with their sports programs,” Henning said.“It’s a great team, a great management, a great coach who’s a wonderful witness of Catholic faith, Coach [Mike] Vrabel. So, I’m very much a fan of them in every way,” Henning said.The teams are schedule to compete on Sunday, Feb. 8, at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, California.](https://unitedyam.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/02/seattle-boston-archbishops-make-friendly-wager-ahead-of-2026-super-bowl-catholic-its-become-an-annual-tradition-for-the-catholic-bishops-from-the-two-cities-sending-teams-to-the-super-bowl.jpg "Seattle, Boston archbishops make friendly wager ahead of 2026 Super Bowl #Catholic It’s become an annual tradition for the Catholic bishops from the two cities sending teams to the Super Bowl to make a friendly wager before the big game to benefit Catholic nonprofits in the teams’ cities.As the New England Patriots and the Seattle Seahawks prepare to play in the Super Bowl on Feb. 8, Archbishop Richard G. Henning of Boston and Archbishop Paul D. Etienne of Seattle discussed this year’s wager with EWTN News.The two archbishops said the weekend will be fun for fans across the nation but acknowledged it comes amid a tense time in the United States with ongoing debates and division surrounding immigration.“I think this is an important moment, obviously, of unity. This is a shared cultural moment, hopefully a moment for people to gather, be with friends and family, a joyful thing,” Henning said. “But at the same time, we don’t want to forget that there are other realities in our world and suffering; [we want to] be attentive to that as well.”“It’s a situation that requires attentiveness and sensitivity,” Etienne said. With the “tradition of a friendly wager between the bishops of the teams, Archbishop Henning and I just simply wanted to acknowledge that we do realize we got more important matters that we are being attentive to,” he said.“But at the same time, we recognize the great role that sports and relaxation play in the lives of our people, too.”The pair decided the wager this year would be a $500 donation to Catholic charities that have a particular focus on the care and support of immigrants.Preparing for a ‘joyful’ gameEtienne discussed how putting aside differences and coming together is an advantage that sports and recreation can bring.“Healthy competition is a part of so many aspects of human life, and it’s good for people to have something to take their minds off of other matters in their world and in their lives to just relax. And hopefully, the outcome of the game will still allow everybody watching it and participating to still be relaxed and joyful at the performance of their teams,” he said.The 60th Super Bowl marks the second time the Seahawks and Patriots will compete in the championship game. In 2015, the Patriots defeated the Seahawks at the 49th Super Bowl. Despite the loss, Etienne said “there is definitely a better performance on the way this year” for Seattle’s team.Etienne said Seattle players see it as a “good omen” that in the 21st century, every time a new pope has been elected, the Seahawks made it to the next Super Bowl.When Pope Benedict XVI was elected in April 2005, the Seahawks played in the Super Bowl in February 2006. Then Pope Francis was elected in March 2013, and the Seahawks played in the Super Bowl in 2014. In May 2025, Pope Leo XIV was elected and now Seattle’s team is once again in the championship game.While Henning has only been in Boston a little over a year after moving from New York, he said he is “absolutely a fan” of the New England Patriots and said they are “a great team.”“This is a team that unites New England and Boston. It’s a team that is committed to young people in our communities. They give a great example of hard work, resilience, discipline, and the team is very generous in going out into our communities among our young people, helping them with their sports programs,” Henning said.“It’s a great team, a great management, a great coach who’s a wonderful witness of Catholic faith, Coach [Mike] Vrabel. So, I’m very much a fan of them in every way,” Henning said.The teams are schedule to compete on Sunday, Feb. 8, at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, California.")
Seattle and Boston archbishops place a wager ahead of the Super Bowl while also acknowledging the big game comes amid a difficult time for many across the nation.
Public schools in the United States are required by the U.S. Constitution to allow students and staff to pray, the government said this week.
![Catholic convert Eva Vlaardingerbroek on censorship and immigration in Europe #Catholic Catholic Dutch political commentator and activist Eva Vlaardingerbroek said “the rule of law is dead” in Europe and detailed the issues of censorship and immigration on the continent.Vlaardingerbroek is an attorney and Catholic convert who has been outspoken about European immigration, national sovereignty, and free speech. Recently, the U.K. government banned her from entering the country due to her outspoken views.“Out of the blue, I saw that I had received an email from the U.K. government,” she told Raymond Arroyo on EWTN’s “The World Over with Raymond Arroyo.” It was “just a couple of sentences saying that my ETA, which is the travel authorization that Europeans need to travel to the U.K., had been revoked.”The reason they stated “was that I am ‘not conducive to the public good,’” she said. Vlaardingerbroek said she believes the ban occurred because she criticized the prime minister of the United Kingdom, Keir Starmer, on social media three days before receiving the email.The situation shows that “the rule of law is dead in Europe,” Vlaardingerbroek said. “Because if you get a notification like that out of the blue, you have no ability, no means to defend yourself … I don’t have a criminal record. I didn’t commit a crime.”“I got converted to Catholicism in the United Kingdom, so I have a couple of really dear friends there. Now, I’m no longer able to go because I say the wrong things, apparently. That is the state of Europe right now … They either throw you in jail or they make sure that you can’t enter the country. That’s what happens in the United Kingdom if you go against the grain,” she said.European immigrationVlaardingerbroek has also been outspoken about illegal immigration in Europe and said that mass immigration has destabilized Europe and led to spikes in violent crimes.“Anyone with two eyes can see that it’s true,” she said. Everyone who lives here, apart from maybe people living in ivory towers or in areas where there are no immigrants, everyone who lives in the real world knows that it’s true.”“I will continue speaking the truth about what I see happening to this beautiful continent of ours because it’s being destroyed,” she said. “We see churches burning down every week here in Europe, and that’s not a coincidence. That didn’t happen for hundreds of years, and suddenly now … they’re burning down faster than I can count.”“You can break the law coming here. It’s not being punished. In fact, it’s rewarded because people get to stay, people get free housing, people get free health care, and they’re able to just roam around even awaiting whether they are going to get their asylum approved or not.”“The governments and the legal system seem to be working hand in hand” and the “judges are complicit,” Vlaardingerbroek said. In Europe, the migrants that commit crimes are not held accountable because judges believe “they are traumatized because they come from a war zone” or due to their “their mental state.”“Then what ends up happening is these immigrants who rape, kill, and assault the native population, they just don’t get any real prison time, and they definitely do not get deported,” she said.“I think that this is a holdover from World War II,” she continued. Institutions including the European Union have “given evil one face and one face only” and “they refuse to see the difference between a Nazi and a conservative Christian.”“To them, it’s all the same, and that’s the way that they treat us,” she said. “I don’t think they’re afraid to acknowledge it. I think they honestly don’t care. I mean, the churches that are being burned down in France that we see, that’s a physical thing unfolding in front of our eyes.”The burning of churches “is powerful imagery that should wake people up to something else, something invisible, which is the agenda that is being carried out here to erode Christianity,” Vlaardingerbroek said.When the European Union discusses European culture, identity, and history, “they never mention Christianity,” Vlaardingerbroek said.“They actively removed it from their documents. They talk about the Enlightenment, but Christianity is never mentioned. They are actively eroding and erasing Christianity here in Europe because it threatens their agenda, because these people see [themselves] as God,” she said.U.S. immigrationAs debates over Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and law enforcement continue in the U.S, Vlaardingerbroek also discussed the status of immigration on this side of the pond.“As a Catholic, of course, we can be charitable. Nobody’s saying that we cannot allow some immigration or that we cannot help those in need. That is, of course, a Catholic ideal. That is a Catholic value … That’s what our legal system reflects,” she said.“That doesn’t mean, however, that when you come here illegally, which is what happens the majority of the time, and you break [the] laws, that we have to sit by and watch that happen.”ICE agents “are doing their job,” Vlaardingerbroek said. “They are enforcing the law. I think it’s a disgrace the way that they are being treated.”“I wish actually that here in Europe, we would have our version of ICE and that they would … send back home the people who come here illegally and who do not belong in these countries and who actively fight everything that we stand for, both in America and here in Europe,” Vlaardingerbroek said.](https://unitedyam.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/02/catholic-convert-eva-vlaardingerbroek-on-censorship-and-immigration-in-europe-catholic-catholic-dutch-political-commentator-and-activist-eva-vlaardingerbroek-said-the-rule-of-law-is-dead.png "Catholic convert Eva Vlaardingerbroek on censorship and immigration in Europe #Catholic Catholic Dutch political commentator and activist Eva Vlaardingerbroek said “the rule of law is dead” in Europe and detailed the issues of censorship and immigration on the continent.Vlaardingerbroek is an attorney and Catholic convert who has been outspoken about European immigration, national sovereignty, and free speech. Recently, the U.K. government banned her from entering the country due to her outspoken views.“Out of the blue, I saw that I had received an email from the U.K. government,” she told Raymond Arroyo on EWTN’s “The World Over with Raymond Arroyo.” It was “just a couple of sentences saying that my ETA, which is the travel authorization that Europeans need to travel to the U.K., had been revoked.”The reason they stated “was that I am ‘not conducive to the public good,’” she said. Vlaardingerbroek said she believes the ban occurred because she criticized the prime minister of the United Kingdom, Keir Starmer, on social media three days before receiving the email.The situation shows that “the rule of law is dead in Europe,” Vlaardingerbroek said. “Because if you get a notification like that out of the blue, you have no ability, no means to defend yourself … I don’t have a criminal record. I didn’t commit a crime.”“I got converted to Catholicism in the United Kingdom, so I have a couple of really dear friends there. Now, I’m no longer able to go because I say the wrong things, apparently. That is the state of Europe right now … They either throw you in jail or they make sure that you can’t enter the country. That’s what happens in the United Kingdom if you go against the grain,” she said.European immigrationVlaardingerbroek has also been outspoken about illegal immigration in Europe and said that mass immigration has destabilized Europe and led to spikes in violent crimes.“Anyone with two eyes can see that it’s true,” she said. Everyone who lives here, apart from maybe people living in ivory towers or in areas where there are no immigrants, everyone who lives in the real world knows that it’s true.”“I will continue speaking the truth about what I see happening to this beautiful continent of ours because it’s being destroyed,” she said. “We see churches burning down every week here in Europe, and that’s not a coincidence. That didn’t happen for hundreds of years, and suddenly now … they’re burning down faster than I can count.”“You can break the law coming here. It’s not being punished. In fact, it’s rewarded because people get to stay, people get free housing, people get free health care, and they’re able to just roam around even awaiting whether they are going to get their asylum approved or not.”“The governments and the legal system seem to be working hand in hand” and the “judges are complicit,” Vlaardingerbroek said. In Europe, the migrants that commit crimes are not held accountable because judges believe “they are traumatized because they come from a war zone” or due to their “their mental state.”“Then what ends up happening is these immigrants who rape, kill, and assault the native population, they just don’t get any real prison time, and they definitely do not get deported,” she said.“I think that this is a holdover from World War II,” she continued. Institutions including the European Union have “given evil one face and one face only” and “they refuse to see the difference between a Nazi and a conservative Christian.”“To them, it’s all the same, and that’s the way that they treat us,” she said. “I don’t think they’re afraid to acknowledge it. I think they honestly don’t care. I mean, the churches that are being burned down in France that we see, that’s a physical thing unfolding in front of our eyes.”The burning of churches “is powerful imagery that should wake people up to something else, something invisible, which is the agenda that is being carried out here to erode Christianity,” Vlaardingerbroek said.When the European Union discusses European culture, identity, and history, “they never mention Christianity,” Vlaardingerbroek said.“They actively removed it from their documents. They talk about the Enlightenment, but Christianity is never mentioned. They are actively eroding and erasing Christianity here in Europe because it threatens their agenda, because these people see [themselves] as God,” she said.U.S. immigrationAs debates over Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and law enforcement continue in the U.S, Vlaardingerbroek also discussed the status of immigration on this side of the pond.“As a Catholic, of course, we can be charitable. Nobody’s saying that we cannot allow some immigration or that we cannot help those in need. That is, of course, a Catholic ideal. That is a Catholic value … That’s what our legal system reflects,” she said.“That doesn’t mean, however, that when you come here illegally, which is what happens the majority of the time, and you break [the] laws, that we have to sit by and watch that happen.”ICE agents “are doing their job,” Vlaardingerbroek said. “They are enforcing the law. I think it’s a disgrace the way that they are being treated.”“I wish actually that here in Europe, we would have our version of ICE and that they would … send back home the people who come here illegally and who do not belong in these countries and who actively fight everything that we stand for, both in America and here in Europe,” Vlaardingerbroek said.")
Catholic convert Eva Vlaardingerbroek discussed immigration and the state of free speech in Europe on EWTN’s “The World Over with Raymond Arroyo.”
A newly discovered comet has astronomers excited, with the potential to be a spectacular sight in early April. C/2026 A1 (MAPS) was spotted by a team of four amateur astronomers with a remotely operated telescope in the Atacama desert on January 13. It quickly became apparent the newly discovered object was a member of a group calledContinue reading “A new comet was just discovered. Will it be visible in broad daylight?”
The post A new comet was just discovered. Will it be visible in broad daylight? appeared first on Astronomy Magazine.
Read More![‘My Catholic faith guides me’: HHS assistant secretary speaks on policy, saints #Catholic Adm. Brian Christine, assistant secretary for health at the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and a practicing Catholic, talked about the state of the pro-life movement as well as his own faith in an interview on “EWTN Pro-Life Weekly” on Wednesday.Christine, a practicing Catholic, said the HHS values religious freedom.“We are not going to allow health care practitioners to be disparaged or be discriminated against because of their faith,” he told host Abigail Galvan. “We faithful don’t have to check our faith at the door to practice medicine or science.”For his part, Christine said his faith and the example of the saints guides him.“My Catholic faith guides me,” he said. “Every decision that I make — I don’t set my faith aside at the door.”When asked if he had a particular devotion, Christine said he takes inspiration from many saints.“I don’t have a patron saint — I have a whole cloud of witnesses,” he said. “I have a whole cloud of saints because I need them. I’m really devoted to St. Peter the Apostle — I’ve made so many mistakes in my life. I’ve fallen so many times. But you get back up and St. Peter could deny the Lord, and yet there he is, the rock of the Church, the first pontiff, the first Holy Father.”“St. Thomas More, who really stood strong to serve in government and yet ultimately did what was right, and he paid the ultimate price,” Christine said.Christine said he also looks to a more recent blessed, Blessed Clemens August Graf von Galen, the archbishop of Münster in Germany in the 1930s and 1940s, and how he spoke out against euthanasia in his time.“He was known as the Lion of Münster because [of] his homilies against the Nazi T4 program, which was the euthanasia of those the Nazis considered undesirable for life or unworthy of life,” Christine said. “He preached such strong homilies against the T4 program that the Nazis ultimately stopped that program.”Abortion pillChemical abortions make up nearly two-thirds of U.S. abortions and are being mailed across state lines, even to states where unborn children are protected throughout pregnancy. Due to easy access to the abortion drug, mifepristone, abortion rates are climbing, making it a key issue in the pro-life movement.But action against chemical abortions has stalled in the Trump administration, which promised an investigation into the safety concerns for women surrounding the abortion pills.
Adm. Brian Christine, a practicing Catholic who serves as the assistant secretary for health at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, speaks with Abigail Galvan on “EWTN Pro-Life Weekly” on Feb. 4, 2026. | Credit: “EWTN Pro-Life Weekly” screenshot
When asked about this, Christine said that “data is being collected” and a review is “ongoing,” saying “the commissioner of the FDA [Food and Drug Administration], Dr. Marty Makary, has certainly committed to doing a review of the safety of mifepristone.”“That review is ongoing because we want to make sure we have the best data about the potential harm of mifepristone so that women can make truly informed-consent decisions,” Christine continued. “If women are considering using that drug, they need to understand what the implications may be.”Compassionate mental health careFor the HHS, “compassionate mental health care” for minors suffering from gender dysphoria “is incredibly important to the country,” Christine said.“It’s incredibly important to those most vulnerable, these minors who suffer from gender dysphoria, because gender dysphoria is a real condition, a mental health condition,” Christine said.Referring to an HHS study, Christine said that “using castrating chemicals — that is not the way to treat these vulnerable children.”“If you use the mental health support, the vast majority of these children are going to be very happy in their own skin,” he continued. “We don’t need to be cutting off body parts.”“We don’t need to be giving them chemicals that are going to cause irreversible harm for the rest of their life,” Christine said. “We have been very strong about this in the Trump administration. We have been led by [HHS] Secretary [Robert] Kennedy, and we’re never going to back away from these things.”](https://unitedyam.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/02/my-catholic-faith-guides-me-hhs-assistant-secretary-speaks-on-policy-saints-catholic-adm-brian-christine-assistant-secretary-for-health-at-the-department-of-health-and-human-ser-scaled.png)
Adm. Brian Christine, a practicing Catholic, talked about the state of the pro-life movement and how his faith guides him.
TUCSON, AZ — Local mom Ashley Marsten announced that she was glad to see the fruit she bought at the store earlier this week was finally ripe and ready to eat, and… oh wait… it’s rotten.
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MILAN — The most prestigious athletic event on the world stage issued a clear political statement this week, as the Winter Olympics announced it would be protesting U.S. President Donald Trump’s immigration policies by removing all ice from the skating rinks.
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Sunset over the ice of Brofjorden in Sandvik, Brastad, Lysekil Municipality, Sweden
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![Catholic activist Jimmy Lai sentenced to 20 years in prison in Hong Kong national security trial – #Catholic – Jimmy Lai, the human rights advocate and outspoken Catholic who has faced what supporters say has been years of politicized prosecution and conviction in Hong Kong, was sentenced on Feb. 9 to 20 years in prison over what Chinese officials claim were national security violations. The sentencing comes after Lai's December conviction under China's wide-reaching security law, which capped a years-long legal process during which he was found guilty on multiple other charges including fraud and unlawful assembly. Lai, who was known for years as the publisher of the outspoken pro-democracy tabloid Apple Daily, was first arrested in 2020 after alleged violations of Chinese national security policy.The government has charged him multiple times since then, holding him without bail and sentencing him to lengthy prison stretches, including a 69-month sentence in December 2022 for a fraud conviction. Lai's plight has drawn support from around the world, including from high-ranking national leaders such as U.S. President Donald Trump, who has advocated for Lai's release and who reportedly spoke to Chinese President Xi Jinping about the issue in October 2025. Lai has also drawn support from lawmakers, activists, religious leaders and civil rights leaders around the world. In 2025 he was named an honorary recipient of the Bradley Prize. That award is meant to honor individuals who in part espouse "the ideals of the Western tradition.”Catholic faith a central part of Lai's lifeThough known for his decades of pro-democracy activism, Lai is also an outspoken Catholic whose faith has continued to sustain him during his imprisonment. Having converted to Catholicism in 1997, Lai — along with his wife Teresa — raised his son Sebastien and daughter Claire in what Claire described as "a very loving Catholic family." Claire told EWTN News in December 2025 that Lai's incarceration "has just deepened his faith." He has regularly read the Gospel when permitted by his prison guards, she said, and he "wants to be remembered [as] a faithful servant of Our Lord."In February 2024 the Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C., installed a drawing of the Crucifixion made by Lai. Father Robert Sirico, the founder of the Acton Institute and a supporter and friend of Lai’s, told EWTN News at the time that Lai sees his imprisonment as a way of joining in Christ’s passion on the cross.In November 2023 a group of 10 Catholic bishops and archbishops called on the Hong Kong government to release Lai, arguing that his "persecution … has gone on long enough." “There is no place for such cruelty and oppression in a territory that claims to uphold the rule of law and respect the right to freedom of expression,” the prelates said.Long known for its greater respect for civil rights and freedom of speech relative to the Chinese mainland, the special administrative region of Hong Kong in recent years has seen a crackdown from the Chinese Communist Party government, which has tightened its hold on the region including with the strict national security law. In 2022 Father Vincent Woo, a priest of the Diocese of Hong Kong, told EWTN News that religious leaders in the region face "tremendous consequences" if they criticize the government, with many priests or bishops consequently refusing to speak out publicly against the Communist Party. At a 2025 hearing of the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom, advocates warned of "severe violations of religious freedom" by the Chinese Communist Party, with the government having reportedly “forcibly eradicated religious elements that are not in line with the CCP’s agenda.”Claire Lai admitted in January that her father's "physical body is breaking down" in his protracted confinement, and he has been denied regular access to the Eucharist, she said. But, she told EWTN News Nightly, he continues to “read the Gospel every morning" and spends his time “praying and drawing the Crucifixion and the Blessed Mother.”His faith "is what protects his mind and soul," she said.](https://unitedyam.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/02/catholic-activist-jimmy-lai-sentenced-to-20-years-in-prison-in-hong-kong-national-security-trial-catholic-jimmy-lai-the-human-rights-advocate-and-outspoken-catholic-who-has-faced-what-supporters.jpg "Catholic activist Jimmy Lai sentenced to 20 years in prison in Hong Kong national security trial – #Catholic – Jimmy Lai, the human rights advocate and outspoken Catholic who has faced what supporters say has been years of politicized prosecution and conviction in Hong Kong, was sentenced on Feb. 9 to 20 years in prison over what Chinese officials claim were national security violations. The sentencing comes after Lai's December conviction under China's wide-reaching security law, which capped a years-long legal process during which he was found guilty on multiple other charges including fraud and unlawful assembly. Lai, who was known for years as the publisher of the outspoken pro-democracy tabloid Apple Daily, was first arrested in 2020 after alleged violations of Chinese national security policy.The government has charged him multiple times since then, holding him without bail and sentencing him to lengthy prison stretches, including a 69-month sentence in December 2022 for a fraud conviction. Lai's plight has drawn support from around the world, including from high-ranking national leaders such as U.S. President Donald Trump, who has advocated for Lai's release and who reportedly spoke to Chinese President Xi Jinping about the issue in October 2025. Lai has also drawn support from lawmakers, activists, religious leaders and civil rights leaders around the world. In 2025 he was named an honorary recipient of the Bradley Prize. That award is meant to honor individuals who in part espouse \"the ideals of the Western tradition.”Catholic faith a central part of Lai's lifeThough known for his decades of pro-democracy activism, Lai is also an outspoken Catholic whose faith has continued to sustain him during his imprisonment. Having converted to Catholicism in 1997, Lai — along with his wife Teresa — raised his son Sebastien and daughter Claire in what Claire described as \"a very loving Catholic family.\" Claire told EWTN News in December 2025 that Lai's incarceration \"has just deepened his faith.\" He has regularly read the Gospel when permitted by his prison guards, she said, and he \"wants to be remembered [as] a faithful servant of Our Lord.\"In February 2024 the Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C., installed a drawing of the Crucifixion made by Lai. Father Robert Sirico, the founder of the Acton Institute and a supporter and friend of Lai’s, told EWTN News at the time that Lai sees his imprisonment as a way of joining in Christ’s passion on the cross.In November 2023 a group of 10 Catholic bishops and archbishops called on the Hong Kong government to release Lai, arguing that his \"persecution … has gone on long enough.\" “There is no place for such cruelty and oppression in a territory that claims to uphold the rule of law and respect the right to freedom of expression,” the prelates said.Long known for its greater respect for civil rights and freedom of speech relative to the Chinese mainland, the special administrative region of Hong Kong in recent years has seen a crackdown from the Chinese Communist Party government, which has tightened its hold on the region including with the strict national security law. In 2022 Father Vincent Woo, a priest of the Diocese of Hong Kong, told EWTN News that religious leaders in the region face \"tremendous consequences\" if they criticize the government, with many priests or bishops consequently refusing to speak out publicly against the Communist Party. At a 2025 hearing of the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom, advocates warned of \"severe violations of religious freedom\" by the Chinese Communist Party, with the government having reportedly “forcibly eradicated religious elements that are not in line with the CCP’s agenda.”Claire Lai admitted in January that her father's \"physical body is breaking down\" in his protracted confinement, and he has been denied regular access to the Eucharist, she said. But, she told EWTN News Nightly, he continues to “read the Gospel every morning\" and spends his time “praying and drawing the Crucifixion and the Blessed Mother.”His faith \"is what protects his mind and soul,\" she said.")
