United Yam – You Never Know

Trump Cracks Up Crowd at Midterm Convention With Pledge to Vote – The Media Will Lose Their Minds Over This (VIDEO) – President Trump cracked up the audience at the GOP Midterm Convention by asking them to take a pledge to vote in November.
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unitedyam September 10, 2026September 11, 2026

President Trump cracked up the audience at the GOP Midterm Convention by asking them to take a pledge to vote in November.

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JD Vance Drops a Hard Truth at GOP Midterm Convention: ‘Democrats Are the Party of Hatred’ (VIDEO) – Thursday night at the GOP Midterm Convention, JD Vance told the story of how Michigan Democrat Abdul El-Sayed criticized his deceased grandfather, suggesting that the man could not have loved Vance’s wife because of who she is.
The post JD Vance Drops a Hard Truth at GOP Midterm Convention: ‘Democrats Are the Party of Hatred’ (VIDEO) appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.

unitedyam September 10, 2026September 11, 2026

Thursday night at the GOP Midterm Convention, JD Vance told the story of how Michigan Democrat Abdul El-Sayed criticized his deceased grandfather, suggesting that the man could not have loved Vance’s wife because of who she is.

The post JD Vance Drops a Hard Truth at GOP Midterm Convention: ‘Democrats Are the Party of Hatred’ (VIDEO) appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.

JD Vance Laughs Off Midterm Convention Protester With Mexican Flag: ‘We Just Discovered the Symbol of the Far Left’ (VIDEO) – Some left wing dope decided to show up and protest the GOP Midterm Convention with the Mexican flag during JD Vance’s speech and Vance improvised and turned it into a humorous moment.
The post JD Vance Laughs Off Midterm Convention Protester With Mexican Flag: ‘We Just Discovered the Symbol of the Far Left’ (VIDEO) appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.

unitedyam September 10, 2026September 11, 2026

Some left wing dope decided to show up and protest the GOP Midterm Convention with the Mexican flag during JD Vance’s speech and Vance improvised and turned it into a humorous moment.

The post JD Vance Laughs Off Midterm Convention Protester With Mexican Flag: ‘We Just Discovered the Symbol of the Far Left’ (VIDEO) appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.

Dust and Water in Sagittarius A* – Using the James Webb Space Telescope, an international team of astronomers have discovered that dust and water can form and survive surprisingly close to the supermassive black hole at the center of our Milky Way galaxy.

unitedyam September 10, 2026September 10, 2026

Using the James Webb Space Telescope, an international team of astronomers have discovered that dust and water can form and survive surprisingly close to the supermassive black hole at the center of our Milky Way galaxy.

Florida firm accused of failing to pay Catholic military catechists – #Catholic – Orlando-based military contractor Idemma has failed to meet payment obligations for some of its subcontractors who worked in Catholic ministry positions at U.S. military bases, according to three people who say they are still owed thousands of dollars by the company.Three people who spoke with EWTN News reported that Idemma was routinely late in paying them for their work and missed payments that have still not been fulfilled. In some cases, late payments are more than a year overdue, subcontractors said. Each person said Idemma initially promised to make them whole and then eventually stopped responding to emails or phone calls.Michael Aldeguer, administrative assistant for Idemma, told EWTN News “the overwhelming majority” of obligations were paid, and acknowledged “a limited number of contractor accounts that remain under review or resolution.”He said the company is “firmly committed to honoring our contractual obligations and resolving legitimate outstanding amounts.” He said Idemma plans to “make substantial progress toward resolving the remaining matters by year-end.”On Sept. 10, Aldeguer said Idemma would reach out to every subcontractor “today” to “ensure they have received our recent communications and are aware of the latest updates.”The Pentagon referred an inquiry by EWTN News to the military service departments, which oversee the contracts.Contractor describes worsening payment lagPaulette Padua began working as a Catholic religious education coordinator at Beale Air Force Base in California in 2013, initially as an independent contractor. In 2020, Padua was underbid by Idemma, which took over the contract but kept her in the role.Initially, Padua said payments came as agreed upon, but “something happened” in 2025 and “payment became later and later and every month.” Her contract ended in September, and she said there is still more than $8,000 in outstanding payments owed to her.“I kept having to beg for my pay,” she said, and was “sending constant, constant emails” to the company to receive her payments. An email chain that Padua shared with EWTN News shows an Idemma employee repeatedly promising to complete the payments, but with her responding that only partial payments were being made.Padua said Idemma promised to pay her back in increments in 2026, but she only received a $200 check. She said the company no longer responds to her emails about payments, complaining that “they just ghost [me].”“It was causing me so much stress that it was making me sick so at a certain point I had to let go and let God have his way,” Padua said. “I can’t let them give me a heart attack.”Padua, who was crying when recalling the situation, said losing payments “was very difficult physically, emotionally, and financially,” adding: “I worked for them for so long and I love that military community and I was good at my job and just to be done so dirty it feels terrible.”She said she was “counting on” those payments and was reassured “you’re going to get paid.”“Should I tell that to my mortgage company? For my car loans? For my bills?” she asked.Another subcontractor who said she faced similar issues is Dianne Hodges, who had two contracts with Idemma, one of which was paid late and the other which is still not paid off. She said most of it was paid off by June 2026, about a year after she’d completed the initial contract.Hodges said they still owe her $3,200 for the other contract she worked but that Idemma did not respond to her most recent emails in August about the remaining balance, saying “they’ve gone radio silent on me” and worrying “I guess I’ll never see it.”“It’s been a nightmare,” Hodges said. “It’s been an absolute nightmare.”Hodges said the delayed payments led to trouble with creditors and late fees on credit cards that she couldn’t pay off. She had to pull money out of her 401K to pay her bills and shop for Christmas gifts in 2024.“It was tough for me sometimes to make ends meet,” she said, adding that when she called Idemma about the financial struggles she faced that year, “I broke down in tears, I was telling them this is not how a business works.”Morgan Loftis, who worked as a director of religious education at the Marine Corps Air Station New River from September 2025 through May 2026, told EWTN News she is also still owed thousands of dollars in payments from Idemma.Loftis said she was owed $12,300 but was only paid $4,875, which leaves $7,425 unpaid.In May 2026, before she left the role, she said Idemma “offered to pay me in full … if I stayed onto the next year because they were about to lose the contract.” She said she considered the offer and requested “an actual payment plan in writing” but never received one. Now, she said “they won’t take my calls.”“I think they know our numbers and they’re just not going to respond,” she said, referring to the subcontractors who are still owed money.Loftis said she took the role even though she heard other subcontractors were not getting paid, but “I wanted there to be a faith formation program and it looked like there wasn’t going to be one.”Yet, as she and her husband are expecting their fifth child and bought a new car, she said, “it would be really nice to have had the full pay. That could really alleviate how hard that car payment hits.”Archbishop Broglio: Allegations ‘deeply troubling’Archbishop Timothy Broglio of the Archdiocese for the Military Services, USA, expressed concern about the lack of payments.“The archdiocese … has no contractual or business relationship with Idemma, which operates under direct contract with the federal government,” Broglio said in a statement to EWTN News.“Even so, the allegations of late or missed payments, if true, are deeply troubling,” he said. “Idemma has a moral responsibility to meet its payroll obligations in a timely fashion. I strongly encourage the company to do so.”In email exchanges about the missed payments, Idemma responded to the specific cases of the three subcontractors who spoke with EWTN News.For Hodges, Aldeguer noted that one contract was “recently cleared and paid in full” and said “payments have continued to be made toward the remaining balance, and we have also added interest.”For Padua, he said Idemma has “agreed to pay interest, which we also confirmed to her in writing.” He said in her situation, “we agreed to pay her more than what we received under the contract” because she was the chaplainʼs first choice. He said: “This arrangement worked until our other live music business was essentially wiped out by COVID.”For Loftis, Aldeguer said “we are still verifying the amounts owed” and “she should have received a request to upload her invoices related to the contract.”“Each situation is different, and we are making our best efforts to get everything cleared as soon as possible, with interest being applied to the final remaining balances where agreed,” Aldeguer said. “Ultimately, we are a small team that is extremely dedicated to getting these matters resolved, even in situations where we ourselves sustained significant losses on the underlying contracts.”He said Idemma has implemented a centralized invoice-submission process for contractors with unresolved accounts to collect outstanding invoices and documents in one place to compare them to their records, identify discrepancies, and resolve outstanding balances.Aldeguer requested that EWTN News delay publication while the company worked to resolve outstanding contractor accounts, saying recent progress wasnʼt being reflected.

unitedyam September 10, 2026September 11, 2026

A spokesman for the company, Idemma, acknowledged “a limited number of contractor accounts that remain under review or resolution.”

Bishop Boxie addresses why the U.S. has so few Black Catholic bishops – #Catholic – Bishop Robert Boxie reflected on why the United States has so few Black Catholic bishops, citing “racism” as the short answer.“I really enjoy the gift of a Black Catholicism, Black Catholic spirituality, and it certainly does have a place in the universal Church,” said Boxie, an auxiliary bishop of Washington.Boxie is a former lawyer and graduate of Vanderbilt University and Harvard Law School. He is now the youngest bishop in the United States. “The last time that an African American bishop had been ordained was 10 years prior. When I was appointed a couple of months ago, I became the second African American bishop in the entire United States,” Boxie explained in an interview with “Vatican Access,” a Catholic News Service podcast.“We have a total of four active Black bishops, but there are only two African American bishops,” he said. “We need Black bishops in the United States … And I am OK with being a voice for the Black community that needs to be in the hierarchy of the Church.”When asked why there are so few Black bishops, Boxie said: “The short answer is racism.”“People may not want to hear that. People may not agree with that. But the short answer is racism.”“For a long time, Black men were not accepted or allowed in seminary,” he said. “We had the first recognized African American priest, Father Augustus Tolton, Venerable Augustus Tolton, whose cause for canonization is currently underway … But it took so much more than an arm and a leg for him to even be … allowed to study for the priesthood.”“So after him, it was a while before dioceses, and bishops, and religious communities would accept African American men. And when they did accept them, they experienced racism and discrimination and injustice and all the things that we would not associate, or should not associate with, the Church.”Racism within the ChurchBoxie shared his own personal experience with racism in the Church, even during his time in seminary.“There was a time in seminary where my next-door neighbor … had a Confederate flag in their room and … I was totally taken aback by that,” Boxie said.“I would never go in his room … We would talk outside in the hall. I wouldnʼt go in his room as long as he had that flag up,” Boxie said.“Eventually he did take it down and he eventually discerned out of seminary. And so we didnʼt really talk … much about it.”About seven years later, “during COVID, during 2020, and the summer of George Floyd … all of these things were sort of being revealed and uncovered in the United States — disparities within our country.”During that time, he said, “I got a Facebook message from him saying that … he was working at a Catholic school with a large minority population, large number of African American students and Hispanic students.”“He realized, for himself, how wrong that was seven years prior for him to have that Confederate flag in his room, especially at a seminary. And he wanted to have a conversation to apologize.”“We had a really wonderful conversation” and “I accepted his apology,” Boxie said. “We had a real honest conversation about race, the Church, and how we can be healers.”The conversation addressed “how we can help to bridge these gaps, these disparities, the misunderstanding, all the things that pull us apart, how we can in fact be healers and bridge builders in the Church,” Boxie said.In the interview, Boxie noted other areas where Black Catholics lack presence in the Church, specifically noting “images” in Catholic churches.“In our churches, we often only see white saints,” he said. “I have no problem with that. Thereʼs nothing wrong with that. But thatʼs not the only view, or the only image, or icon of holiness that we can aspire to.”He noted that seven Black Catholics who lived in the United States are currently in line for canonization.“I feel as though every parish in the United States should have images of them in their church in some form or fashion, because these were Americans who were raised and formed in this country who have an authentic … Catholic American spirituality,” he said.The Church has the answers on raceBoxie has previously said that “culture does not have the answers” in regard to race. In his recent interview, he was asked whether the Church has the answers, to which he said that it does.Itʼs “not just Catholic social teaching, which … Pope Leo very beautifully expresses in Magnifica Humanitas, but this goes all the way back to the very beginning … just the dignity of the human person."“Thatʼs a core tenet of what we believe as Catholics and certainly part of the foundation for Catholic social teaching.”It is about “the human person being made in the image and likeness of God, with an inherent dignity, an infinite dignity, a magnificent dignity that transcends race and culture and geography and language and land,” Boxie said.“The Church has proclaimed, from the beginning, the dignity of the human person — thatʼs from her teaching, her doctrine, Scriptures. The problem is that we have not always been faithful to that.”“When we have turned away from that, or when we have been unfaithful to that teaching and gone astray, then thatʼs when problems such as this racism have arisen,” Boxie said.Being labeled a ‘DEI bishop’Boxie also addressed the subject of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI), which he said has been “hijacked."Diversity, equity, and inclusion are “biblical” concepts and are “part of our Catholic tradition,” he said. DEI was originally “trying to correct a number of institutional wrongs that have occurred in our country,” in employment, education, housing, healthcare, and other “disparities.”Now, Boxie said he believes there is a “negative association” with DEI.It is now seen as taking “something away from a white person who deserves it, who merits” and “giving it to a Black person, or a brown person, or a minority who doesnʼt deserve it, who doesnʼt merit it. Thatʼs what the association is right now, and itʼs just not true.”“Some people may believe that I have been selected, picked, because Iʼm Black,” Boxie said about his appointment as bishop.“Iʼve thought about this, Iʼve reflected on this. And you know what? Iʼm actually OK with that … because I think my background, my formation, my experience, even though it has been … limited, I think it has prepared me for this moment.”“I do fundamentally believe that even though in my mind … we never feel ready for whatever the Lord calls us to, but I know that he … has been providing the grace.”Also, “we need Black bishops in the United States,” he said. “We need the voice of African American bishops, men in the hierarchy in the Church structure to be more of an advocate for the Black Catholic community.”“I think that the pope has realized that this voice needs to be at the table. And what better way to have a Black Catholic voice than a Black Catholic bishop?”

unitedyam September 10, 2026September 11, 2026

“I really enjoy the gift of a Black Catholicism, Black Catholic spirituality, and it certainly does have a place in the universal Church,” Bishop Robert Boxie said.

$Bishops reflect on 25th anniversary of 9/11 attacks – #Catholic – Bishops across the country issued remarks, reflections, and prayers for the United States and the lives lost in the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks 25 years ago. “Twenty-five years later, its memory lives on; in a new skyline, in simple plaques and great memorials, and in the photographs of first responders who were lost, still displayed outside of firehouses and police stations,” Archbishop Ronald Hicks of New York said in a statement.“We remember those who died and the extraordinary courage, service, sacrifice, and compassion that followed,” Hicks said.Hicks will celebrate an invitation-only Vigil Mass on Sept. 10 at St. Patrick’s Cathedral to commemorate all those affected by the terrorist attacks. It also will be available via livestream.The archdiocese reported the Mass will remember those who died as a result of the tragedy and mourn with their loved ones.In honor of the anniversary, the archdiocese also shared words from Cardinal Edward Egan, who served as New Yorkʼs archbishop in 2001 and died in 2015.“We will not pretend that words can deal with this adequately. The healing will take time, as it always does,” Egan said. “Still, we insist that the extraordinary goodness of our people has marched alongside the pain and the hurt.”“Amidst the tragedy, the sadness and the grief, there was this real genuine kindness and fraternal love in the city of New York of all places,” Bishop John Bonnici of Rochester, New York, previously said in an interview with the diocese’s news publication.“The Lord was able to use people to reach out to others and allow for the healing that was so necessary,” said Bonnici, who served as a priest in New York at the time of the attack. In the nation’s capital, the faithful also will gather to remember those who died. Archbishop Timothy Broglio, who leads the Archdiocese for the Military Services, USA, will celebrate Mass at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in Washington, D.C., inside its Crypt Church.The Mass will “honor the brave first responders and members of our Armed Forces who answered the nation’s call in its aftermath, and entrust to the mercy of God all affected by that tragic day,” the basilica reported. It will be held at the 5:15 p.m. on Sept. 11 and will be livestreamed. President of U.S. bishops encourages commitment to be ‘instruments of peace’Archbishop Paul Coakley of Oklahoma City invited Catholics to join “in prayer for the victims taken from us in acts of unjustifiable violence 25 years ago at the World Trade Center, the Pentagon and in rural Pennsylvania.”“In a special way, we lovingly embrace in prayer the victims’ families and friends, who still mourn the irretrievable loss of their loved ones on that day,” said Coakley, president of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB).“We also remember the first responders and emergency workers, so many who gave their lives in selfless acts of courage,” he said in the statement.Coakley said that amid the fear and uncertainty following the attacks, “our faith lifted us up and sustained us,” as the nation turned to God in prayer with “a new intensity and a sense of unity.”“As conflicts intensify around the world, let us renew our commitment to be Christ’s instruments of peace in an increasingly fractured and divided world,” Coakley said.He echoed Pope Leo XIV, who said peace “is more than just a goal, it is a presence and a journey.”Bishops offer personal reflections of 9/11 attacksArchbishop William Lori of Baltimore, who was then the bishop of Bridgeport, Connecticut, reflected on Sept. 11, calling it an “unthinkable morning.”After learning about the attacks, “I quickly realized that many of my parishioners worked in the World Trade Center,” Lori wrote in an article for the Archdiocese of Baltimore.“Driven by an urgent need to be with my flock, I arranged to offer Mass at St. Augustine Cathedral in Bridgeport. As the hours unfolded, I also celebrated unannounced, yet well attended, Masses at St. John’s in Stamford and St. Thomas Aquinas in Fairfield.”Throughout the day, Lori met “incoming trains from New York, simply to stand with commuters emerging dazed and traumatized by what they had witnessed,” he said. Lori also said he checked local hospitals for burn victims but realized “the vast majority had not survived.”“What followed was a relentless, agonizing search through the rubble,” Lori said. “As names were identified, the agonizing weeks of funerals began. I sat with spouses, children and parents trying to make sense of the unimaginable.”“Nearly 3,000 souls perished that day, including 343 firefighters, 72 law enforcement officers and 55 military personnel, followed by thousands more responders whose later illnesses stemmed from their selfless recovery efforts at Ground Zero,” he said.“To truly honor those we lost and the legendary courage of our first responders, we must never forget,” Lori said. “Let no one believe that terrorism or violence can ever resolve injustice.”Bishop Frank Caggiano of Bridgeport also recalled his experience and what his community taught him afterward. “Twenty-five years is long enough for a wound to close into a scar, and long enough for a generation to grow up knowing that morning only as a chapter in a textbook. It is not nearly long enough for the families I serve,” Caggiano said.“In Fairfield County the loss has never been abstract. Our trains carried neighbors into those towers, and that evening they came back with empty seats,” he said.“In the years since, I have sat with some of them: parents who lost children, children who were infants then and are grown now, colleagues who still wonder why they were late to work that day,” he said.Caggiano said they have taught him numerous lessons, including “that resilience is not the same thing as moving on” and “that fear must not be allowed to govern us.”“The third lesson is the hardest, and I offer it carefully,” Caggiano said. “It is mercy.”“It is not forgetting, excusing, or indifference to justice. Justice without mercy becomes vengeance, and mercy without justice becomes indulgence. Forgiveness begins with a full acknowledgment of the wound and then refuses to let that wound dictate the rest of a life,” he said.“It is not a feeling that arrives one morning but a deliberate decision, sometimes one that must be made again and again over years,” he said. Ukrainian Catholic bishops: ‘What is the legacy of September 11?’The Ukrainian Catholic Bishops of the United States issued a pastoral letter about the attack and the legacy it left.The bishops said Christians must do more than remember. They asked: “What is the legacy of September 11? What have we learned? What can that terrible day teach us today?”The tragedy “confronts us with the terrible reality of the capacity of fallen humanity for evil,” they said. “When hatred is allowed to take possession of the human heart, when another person is no longer seen as a child of God but as an enemy to be destroyed, the consequences can be horrifying.”Sept. 11 also revealed “an even greater capacity for goodness, courage, compassion, sacrifice and love,” the bishops wrote.“We saw strangers helping strangers. We saw firefighters climbing stairways toward almost certain death. We saw ordinary people performing extraordinary acts of courage. We saw communities opening their doors, people donating blood, churches filling with worshippers, and a nation and the entire world coming together in grief and solidarity,” he said.“Even in the midst of tragedy, God gives us opportunities to become instruments of His love,” they said.The bishops concluded with the words of St. Paul: “Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.”$

unitedyam September 10, 2026September 11, 2026

“We remember those who died and the extraordinary courage, service, sacrifice, and compassion that followed,” New York Archbishop Ronald Hicks said.

unitedyam September 10, 2026September 11, 2026

Chad Pecknold, a longtime professor at The Catholic University of America, has begun working for the government agency that oversees immigration enforcement.

unitedyam September 10, 2026September 10, 2026

TENERIFE, Canary Islands, Sept. 8, 2026 — Fifteen years after STARMUS brought together the legends who defined the first age of human space exploration, the Festival will welcome the explorers who have opened its newest chapter. Artemis II Commander Reid Wiseman, Pilot Victor Glover and Mission Specialist Jeremy Hansen will attend STARMUS VIII — TheContinue reading “Artemis 2 crew lands at Starmus VII — 15 years after Armstrong, Aldrin, and Leonov launched its lengacy”

The post Artemis 2 crew lands at Starmus VII — 15 years after Armstrong, Aldrin, and Leonov launched its lengacy appeared first on Astronomy Magazine.

Controversial ‘Creed of the Ecclesial Base Communities’ included at Mass in Brazil #Catholic On Sept. 7, Bishop José Valdeci Santos Mendes of Brejo, Maranhão, Brazil, celebrated Mass as part of a national Cry of the Excluded event. During the Mass, the "Creed of the Ecclesial Base Communities” (known as CEBs, by their synonym in Portuguese) was read. This creed, developed in 2016, professes belief in “a God/Goddess present in the diverse experiences of the communities: a God who is close, a liberating and revolutionary God, a God who is a member of the CEBs, who works and struggles just as Jesus of Nazareth did.”Following the distribution of the Eucharist but before the final blessing, the bishop — who chairs the Episcopal Commission for Social-Transformative Action of the National Conference of Bishops of Brazil (CEPAST-CNBB, by its Portuguese acronym) — introduced the referenced creed. He called it a “supplication from the youth of Latin America, who stand before God asking him to come to meet us,” and entrusted the creed’s recitation to two young men.“We do not believe in a static, patriarchal, clerical, and hierarchical Church,” stated the text read by the young men at the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Conception. “We believe in an inclusive, intergenerational community with a voice of its own. We believe in this Church that struggles, ‘casting its lot with the poor of the earth’ in the face of a dominant capitalist system.”“We believe we are daughters and sons of a ‘Great Homeland’ free from racism and free from rules governing love — embracing all sexual diversity, women, youth, Indigenous peoples, Black people, minorities, and all those at the bottom of the social order.”The Creed of the Ecclesial Base Communities is part of a suggested liturgy outline for Masses, worship services, and public gatherings marking the 32nd Cry of the Excluded — a mobilization bringing together pastoral groups, Catholic organizations, and social movements, held annually on Brazil’s Independence Day. CEPAST has called upon dioceses, pastoral groups, and grassroots movements to strengthen this mobilization within their respective jurisdictions this year.In a message released in June regarding the 2026 elections, the CNBB (National Conference of Bishops of Brazil) stated that “the Catholic Church does not endorse candidates or political parties” but affirmed that the Church, “driven by the Gospel and the mission to proclaim it, promotes life and human dignity, and serves the building of the common good.”Elections, the CEB Creed, and prayersDuring the penitential rite, Mass participants asked for forgiveness for “times when we did not take the country’s destiny seriously during elections” and for failing to speak out against “candidacies backed by economic power that will harm the people and potentially even impose authoritarian regimes.”The other parts of the penitential rite address wars, people living on the streets, real estate speculation, housing movements, violence against women, and femicide.During the Prayers of the Faithful, an intention regarding the elections was also included: “For this election season, that we may have the discernment not to vote for anyone who seeks to jeopardize Brazil’s sovereignty or harbors plans for a coup. May we not vote for politicians and parties that wish to turn the public good into an object of profit. Sovereignty is not negotiable.” The assembly’s response was: “Deliver us, Lord, from all those who use politics to betray the Brazilian people!”CEPAST states it did not draft the liturgy guideCEPAST’s communications office told ACI Digital, the Portuguese-language sister service of EWTN News, that the CNBB commission did not participate in drafting the document. “The ‘Cry of the Excluded’ is a coalition formed by various organizations, and CEPAST did not participate in drafting the liturgy guide,” said Juce Rocha of the commission’s communications team.The National Coordination of the Cry of the Excluded includes among its participants Catholic pastoral groups, organizations, and social movements such as the Pastoral Land Commission (CPT), Caritas Brazil, the Workers' Pastoral, the Migrants' Pastoral Service, Base Ecclesial Communities (CEBs), the Landless Rural Workers' Movement (MST), the Movement of People Affected by Dams (MAB), the Central of Popular Movements (CMP), and the National Confederation of Education Workers (CNTE).The national map for this year’s “Cry” documented activities in all regions of the country. In Cachoeiro de Itapemirim, Espírito Santo, a march brought together the faithful, pastoral groups, and representatives of social movements, concluding at St. Peterʼs Cathedral, where Bishop Luiz Fernando Lisboa participated in the mobilization. In Santos, São Paulo, the “Cry” was part of the dioceseʼs official agenda and was attended by Bishop Joaquim Giovani Mol Guimarães.

In Cachoeiro de Itapemirim, Brazil, a march brought together the faithful, pastoral groups, and representatives of social movements, concluding at St. Peter’s Cathedral. | Credit: Diocese of Cachoeiro de Itapemirim

The same order of service was not followed at all Masses linked to the Cry. At the National Shrine of Aparecida in São Paulo, for instance, the Sept. 7 Mass was celebrated within the context of both the 39th Workers' Pilgrimage and the 32nd Cry of the Excluded. The Mass was celebrated by the archbishop of Aparecida, Mário Antonio da Silva; among the concelebrants was the bishop of the Prelature of Marajó, Pará, José Ionilton Lisboa de Oliveira, president of the Pastoral Land Commission.The Cry was mentioned during the Mass and the homily, but the program used in Brejo was not adopted for the celebration.The Cry of the Excluded first emerged during the evaluation of the second Brazilian Social Week — promoted by the CNBB in 1993 and 1994 — as a way to continue the reflections from that process. The initiative was also inspired by the 1995 Fraternity Campaign, which featured the theme “Fraternity and the Excluded” and the motto “Was it you, Lord?”The first edition took place on Sept. 7, 1995, in 170 locations. In 1996, the CNBB adopted the Cry during its general assembly as part of the Toward the New Millennium Project.Today, the mobilization is led by a National Coordination body comprising the CNBB’s Commission 8, Catholic pastoral groups and organizations, and various social movements and entities — including the CPT, Cáritas Brasileira, the Workers‘ Pastoral, the Migrants’ Pastoral Service, CEBs, the MST, MAB, CMP, and CNTE.According to the event’s organizers, the choice of Sept. 7 is intended to provide a “counterpoint” to the official Independence Day commemoration. The date has also been identified by the event’s organizers as a moment for “political awareness” and the struggle for a “new national and global order.”While the movement’s longtime theme is “Life Comes First!”, the slogan for 2026 is: “In defense of the land, peace, and housing, we raise our voices: Women alive and sovereignty!” National demands include ending the “6×1” (six days of work and one day off) work schedule, ensuring dignified housing, agrarian reform, quality public education, and the defense of the SUS (Unified Health System), as well as combating femicide, racism, and what is termed as “LGBTphobia.”The event’s website states that the choice of Sept. 7 seeks to offer a “counterpoint to the official history of Brazilʼs independence. Contrasting with the civic and military parades that have traditionally marked the day, it calls upon the people — especially the poor and the excluded — to step down from the grandstands, leave passive patriotism behind, and occupy public squares and streets in defense of their rights.”This story was first published by ACI Digital, the Portuguese-language sister service of EWTN News. It has been translated and adapted by EWTN News English.

unitedyam September 10, 2026September 11, 2026

This past Sept. 7, the “Creed of the Ecclesial Base Communities” was included as part of a Mass marking Brazil’s annual “Cry of the Excluded” event.

Picture of the day

The shipwreck of Cabo de Santa Maria in Boa Vista, Cape Verde as it appeared in December 2010. The Spanish cargo ship ran aground at Praia de Atalanta beach on this date in 1968.
#ImageOfTheDay

unitedyam September 10, 2026September 10, 2026

Picture of the day

The shipwreck of Cabo de Santa Maria in Boa Vista, Cape Verde as it appeared in December 2010. The Spanish cargo ship ran aground at Praia de Atalanta beach on this date in 1968.

unitedyam September 10, 2026September 10, 2026

Obituary: Erin Guiltinan Piacenti, 32, Chester #Catholic –

A Mass of Christian Burial was held on Sept. 9 at St. Joseph Church in Mendham, N.J., for Erin Guiltinan Piacenti of Chester, N.J., who died on Aug. 31 in New York City. She was 32.

Born in 1994 in New York City, Piacenti was raised in Chester, N.J. She attended St. Joseph School in Mendham and Villa Walsh Academy in Morristown, N.J. She earned a bachelor’s degree in political science from the University of Pennsylvania. While at Penn, Piacenti served as a member, soloist, and eventually music director of Dischord A Cappella.

Piacenti began her career as a buyer at Bloomingdale’s, but always knew her true ambition was to be an attorney. She graduated magna cum laude and earned induction into the Order of the Coif and law review from Fordham University School of Law. Thereafter, she began her legal career at Davis Polk & Wardwell in Manhattan and later became a vice president at Bank of America.

At Fordham Law School, Piacenti met her husband, Frank, who also grew up in Chester. They quickly formed an inseparable bond, grown through shared interests, frequent travel, and deep trust. After four years together, they were married in 2024 at St. Francis of Assisi Parish on Long Beach Island, N.J.

In March of 2026, the couple welcomed their daughter, Madison. Piacenti effortlessly transitioned into her role as Madison’s devoted mother. Each morning, she sang Disney songs to Madison and danced with her. The joy they brought to one another was overwhelming.

The family notes their heartbreak that Piacenti will not be able to participate in Madison’s future milestones, holidays, and life events. Yet Madison will grow up knowing how much she loved her and how much her parents loved one another.

Piacenti was the big sister to her two sisters, Megan and Kelly, and her two brothers, Edward and William. She doted on her siblings, and they, in turn, adored and looked up to her. They were all best friends. Piacenti’s family members are heartbroken at her untimely, unfair, and tragic passing but are thankful she was and will always be in their lives and hearts.

Piacenti loved singing, running, traveling, Broadway musicals, Harry Potter, and Disney World, and she enjoyed spending time at her family home on Long Beach Island and playing with the family golden retrievers. She will be remembered for her intelligence, warmth, loyalty, generosity, and, above all, her love for her family. She was a devoted wife, mother, daughter, sister, and friend.

Survivors include her husband, Frank Piacenti; her daughter, Madison Piacenti; her devoted parents, Edward and Barbara Guiltinan; her siblings, Megan Guiltinan Sneden and her husband, Riley, Edward Guiltinan, Jr., Kelly Guiltinan, and William Guiltinan; her father-in-law and mother-in-law, Frank and Kelly Piacenti; her sisters-in-law, Alexandria and Olivia; and many other family members and friends.

Please make memorial donations to Supporting Madison’s Future, a GoFundMe established to provide Piacenti’s daughter the future she dreamed of building with her.

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– A Mass of Christian Burial was held on Sept. 9 at St. Joseph Church in Mendham, N.J., for Erin Guiltinan Piacenti of Chester, N.J., who died on Aug. 31 in New York City. She was 32. Born in 1994 in New York City, Piacenti was raised in Chester, N.J. She attended St. Joseph School in Mendham and Villa Walsh Academy in Morristown, N.J. She earned a bachelor’s degree in political science from the University of Pennsylvania. While at Penn, Piacenti served as a member, soloist, and eventually music director of Dischord A Cappella. Piacenti began her career as a buyer

unitedyam September 10, 2026September 10, 2026

Peruvian city to unveil world’s tallest statue of Pope Leo for trip to South America #Catholic –

BUENOS AIRES, Argentina (OSV News) — The Peruvian city of Callao announced an unusual tribute to Pope Leo XIV ahead of his November visit to the South American country: the largest statue of the pontiff in the world.

The 45.9-foot-tall statue of Pope Leo will grace a seafront park overlooking the Pacific Ocean in Callao, located in the northern suburbs of Lima, the national capital.

“This work will be a source of pride for all the residents of Callao and a new space for us to come together as a community,” said Mayor César Pérez, according to the newspaper El Comercio. “May the (statue) be a place that transmits faith, hope, and unity, and may this sculpture become a symbol that accompanies families.”

The mayor added that the local government donated park space, while a private firm provided funding for the statue.

The steel and marble statue of the pope with open arms is expected to be installed prior to his arrival in Peru Nov. 11. Pérez expressed hope that the statue would be inaugurated during the pope’s five-day trip to Peru. The visit — a homecoming for Pope Leo, who became a Peruvian citizen while serving as bishop of Chiclayo — will cap an 11-day journey to South America, which includes visits to Uruguay and Argentina.

Pope Leo is expected to arrive in Callao, site of Lima’s international airport, but not spend time in the city, despite serving as apostolic administrator of the Diocese of Callao for 13 months, ending in May 2021.

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Pérez remembered Pope Leo driving some 475 miles from Chiclayo to Callao during the COVID-19 pandemic, where, the mayor told EFE, “he oversaw food donations, helping those who have the least and need the most. That was Robert Prevost’s way of working when he was administrator of the Callao Diocese.”

The statue being built in Callao reflects the stature and popularity of Pope Leo in his adopted home country, where Catholic observers say he has emerged as the world’s most prominent Peruvian since his May 2025 election. Observers say excitement for the papal trip is especially strong in northern Peru, where Pope Leo served as an Augustinian missionary and later bishop of Chiclayo from 2015 to 2023.

“What’s being promoted,” by Peruvian church leaders “is how important it is to have a Peruvian pope and how good it is that he’s returning,” Jesuit Father José Luis Gordillo, told OSV News.

Church leaders have promoted Pope Leo’s teachings ahead of the visit, with “the result being an emphasis on (Pope) Leo’s role as someone who will be a relevant leader, a leader relevant to the world, and who will say something relevant to the country,” Father Gordillo said. “I do believe that the archdiocese (of Lima) and probably the episcopal conference are also expecting that.”

Pope Leo is expected to visit Lima, Chiclayo, Pucallpa and Cusco between Nov. 11 and Nov. 17. Observers say the trip incorporates the three regions of Peru: the coast, mountains and jungle — each representing different cultures and socioeconomic realities.

The official agenda of the pope’s trip to Peru is to be published shortly after Vatican confirmation is received around Sept. 15, Bishop Carlos García Camader of Lurín, president of the Peruvian bishops’ conference, told Agencia Andina.

Pope Francis visited Peru in 2018. The late pope never visited his native Argentina after being elected in 2013. He never voiced his reasons for not visiting his homeland, but Church observers cite deep political divisions in Argentina as a possible motive. Church officials hope Pope Leo’s visit can encourage unity among Argentines.

“It’s a very polarized country,” Bishop Dante Braida of La Rioja, Argentina, told OSV News. “There are two opposing political sectors, which are vying for power. … They’ve had great difficulty finding common ground to build a country together.

“On the other hand, there’s a Church that tries to accompany a process of dialogue, of openness, and that tries to be close to the grassroots,” he continued. “It’s a country with a certain degree of complexity, but the pope will always be welcome, and we trust that his presence will be a presence of unity. And of dialogue. That’s what’s needed.”

Pope Leo arrives in Buenos Aires Nov. 8. Archbishop Jorge García Cuerva of Buenos Aires has provided details of the pope’s proposed itinerary, which, in the Argentine capital, includes celebrating Mass at the Monumento a los Españoles; an encounter with labor leaders, workers and public and private officials at the Pontifical Catholic University of Argentina; and a visit to the Pequeño Cottolengo Don Orione, which serves people with developmental disabilities. Pope Leo is also expected to visit a prison in Buenos Aires.

The pope will spend Nov. 10 in the city of Cordoba, roughly 425 miles northwest of Argentina, where he will celebrate Mass and later meet with priests, religious and seminarians at the local cathedral. He will celebrate Mass the next day at the Basilica of Our Lady of Luján near Buenos Aires — a shrine to the namesake patroness of Argentina — before flying onward to Peru. No pope has visited Argentina since St. John Paul II in 1987.

Pope Leo’s first trip to South America begins Nov. 6 in Uruguay, the least religious country in Latin America. The pope is scheduled to visit the cities of Montevideo, the capital, along with Paysandú on the border with Argentina and Florida. His visit to Florida on Nov. 8 coincides with celebrations of Our Lady of the 33, the national patroness.

Official details of the pope’s itinerary in Uruguay are expected to be released sometime after Sept. 21, said Gabriela Gómez, press director for the Archdiocese of Montevideo.

David Agren writes for OSV News from Buenos Aires, Argentina.

– BUENOS AIRES, Argentina (OSV News) — The Peruvian city of Callao announced an unusual tribute to Pope Leo XIV ahead of his November visit to the South American country: the largest statue of the pontiff in the world. The 45.9-foot-tall statue of Pope Leo will grace a seafront park overlooking the Pacific Ocean in Callao, located in the northern suburbs of Lima, the national capital. “This work will be a source of pride for all the residents of Callao and a new space for us to come together as a community,” said Mayor César Pérez, according to the newspaper El

21 Best U.S. Cities to Visit in the Fall for Oktoberfest, Halloween Ghost Tours, and Picturesque Strolls #Travel From Maine to California, these destinations offer an abundance of autumnal appeal.

unitedyam September 10, 2026September 10, 2026

From Maine to California, these destinations offer an abundance of autumnal appeal.

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A reading from the First Letter of St. Paul to Corinthians
8:1b-7, 11-13

Brothers and sisters:
Knowledge inflates with pride, but love builds up.
If anyone supposes he knows something,
he does not yet know as he ought to know.
But if one loves God, one is known by him.

So about the eating of meat sacrificed to idols:
we know that there is no idol in the world,
and that there is no God but one.
Indeed, even though there are so-called gods in heaven and on earth
(there are, to be sure, many “gods” and many “lords”),
yet for us there is one God, the Father,
from whom all things are and for whom we exist,
and one Lord, Jesus Christ,
through whom all things are and through whom we exist.

But not all have this knowledge.
There are some who have been so used to idolatry up until now
that, when they eat meat sacrificed to idols,
their conscience, which is weak, is defiled.

Thus, through your knowledge, the weak person is brought to destruction,
the brother for whom Christ died.
When you sin in this way against your brothers
and wound their consciences, weak as they are,
you are sinning against Christ.
Therefore, if food causes my brother to sin,
I will never eat meat again,
so that I may not cause my brother to sin.

From the Gospel according to Luke
6:27-38

Jesus said to his disciples:
“To you who hear I say, love your enemies,
do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you,
pray for those who mistreat you.
To the person who strikes you on one cheek,
offer the other one as well,
and from the person who takes your cloak,
do not withhold even your tunic.
Give to everyone who asks of you,
and from the one who takes what is yours do not demand it back.
Do to others as you would have them do to you.
For if you love those who love you,
what credit is that to you?
Even sinners love those who love them.
And if you do good to those who do good to you,
what credit is that to you?
Even sinners do the same.
If you lend money to those from whom you expect repayment,
what credit is that to you?
Even sinners lend to sinners,
and get back the same amount.
But rather, love your enemies and do good to them,
and lend expecting nothing back;
then your reward will be great
and you will be children of the Most High,
for he himself is kind to the ungrateful and the wicked.
Be merciful, just as also your Father is merciful.

“Stop judging and you will not be judged.
Stop condemning and you will not be condemned.
Forgive and you will be forgiven.
Give and gifts will be given to you;
a good measure, packed together, shaken down, and overflowing,
will be poured into your lap.
For the measure with which you measure
will in return be measured out to you.”

Is it possible for a person to come to love his or her enemies? If it depended only on us, it would be impossible. But let us recall that, when the Lord asks for something, he wishes to give it. The Lord never asks for something he has not already given us first. When he tells me to love my enemies, he wants to give me the capacity to do so. Without that ability, we would not be able, but he tells you to “love your enemy” and gives you the capacity to love. Saint Augustine prayed in this way — listen to this beautiful prayer: Lord, “give what You command, and command what You will” (Confessions , X, 29.40), because you have already given it to me. What should we ask of him? What is God happy to give us? The strength to love, which is not a thing, but rather the Holy Spirit. The strength to love is the Holy Spirit, and with the Spirit of Jesus, we can respond to evil with good, we can love those who do us harm. (…) And we, do we try to live following Jesus’ invitations? Let us think about someone who has wronged us. (…) And then let us ask the Holy Spirit to act in our heart. Finally, let us pray for that person: praying for those who have done us harm (cf. Lk 6:28). When someone has wronged us, we immediately go and tell others and we feel we are victims. Let us stop, and pray to the Lord for that person, that he might help him or her, and so this feeling of resentment will be dispelled. Praying for those who have wronged us is the first step to transforming evil into good. (Pope Francis, Angelus, 20 February 2022)

Catholic mother denied vaccine exemption in New York – #Catholic – The U.S. Supreme Court this week denied an emergency request that would have allowed a Catholic mother in New York to send her 5-year-old son to kindergarten without the vaccinations required by state law.The mother, identified in court papers as Jane Doe, wanted her son, C.F., to start at Waverly School in Eastchester this month and is seeking a religious exemption to required vaccines. New York dropped religious exemptions from school vaccine rules in 2019 after a measles outbreak, however, though medical exemptions remain.Doe had asked the Supreme Court for a temporary injunction so C.F. could start school as the fight continues in court.Two other courts had already denied her request for a temporary injunction. A federal judge in New York and then a three-judge U.S. Court of Appeals for the 2nd Circuit panel turned her down. The application was then presented to Justice Sonia Sotomayor, the circuit justice for the 2nd Circuit, who referred it to the full Supreme Court, which denied it. Justices Samuel Alito and Neil Gorsuch said they would have granted it.The unsigned order does not address the case’s merits, and Doe’s underlying appeal remains pending in the 2nd Circuit.State officials have said a religious carve-out would undercut efforts to keep disease from spreading among children, pointing to an earlier appeals court ruling that left the vaccine law in place.Doe, who is Catholic, says the state policy puts her faith and her child’s schooling at odds. In an April statement she gave the school, she wrote that her beliefs now “require me to categorically refuse vaccination for myself and for my children.”Referring to the abortions from which fetal cells were taken to produce the original vaccines, she said: “The taking of an innocent human life is a grave sin. My Catholic beliefs have always held this.” She said that for her and her son, vaccination would be “a genuine, serious sin.”“I will not do it,” she stated.She also expressed serious reservations about other aspects of vaccine development: “Defiling the blood by mixing it with the blood of animals, with the remains of aborted human beings, or with foreign biological material, violates God’s Word,” she said, according to her statement of religious beliefs filed in the case. “Vaccination injects biological material derived from unclean sources directly into the bloodstream. My faith forbids this.”Church teaching on conscience and vaccinationWhile the Church does not teach that the use of biological materials from nonhuman animals is categorically wrong, it absolutely condemns abortion and the use of tissue from aborted fetuses used to create the original cell lines. It teaches that a parent may receive or give a child a vaccine developed with those cell lines when there is no alternative and there is a serious health reason. The vaccine recipient’s participation in the evil act of abortion, the Church teaches, is “remote,” and therefore permitted.However, in the 2008 instruction Dignitas Personae, the Church said that Catholics utilizing vaccines have “a duty” to let drugmakers and their healthcare providers know they oppose the way the vaccines were developed and demand vaccines created without the use of aborted fetal cells.A 2020 note from the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith says vaccination “is not, as a rule, a moral obligation and that, therefore, it must be voluntary.” Those who refuse for reasons of conscience, it adds, should take other steps so they do not spread disease.New York law has a provision that children unvaccinated for medical reasons must stay at home during outbreaks, and Doe agreed to abide by that if granted an exemption.According to the Catechism of the Catholic Church, a person must not be forced to act against a conscience formed well through Scripture, reason, and Church teaching, even when others would make a different choice. Forcing one to act against his or her conscience could be a sin against charity, which calls for others to respect the consciences of others.The catechism also teaches that “[m]an has the right to act in conscience and in freedom so as personally to make moral decisions. ‘He must not be forced to act contrary to his conscience. Nor must he be prevented from acting according to his conscience.’”

unitedyam September 9, 2026September 9, 2026

She had asked the U.S. Supreme Court for a temporary injunction so her son could start kindergarten as the fight continues in court.

unitedyam September 9, 2026September 9, 2026

The crew of NASA’s Artemis II mission visited NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama on Sept. 1, 2026.

U.S. bishops urge Supreme Court to rule against indefinite detention of noncitizens – #Catholic – The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) is asking the U.S. Supreme Court to rule in favor of stronger due process rights for noncitizens who are facing deportation proceedings and against indefinite detention without judicial review.In a legal filing to the Supreme Court, the USCCB and the Catholic Legal Immigration Network (CLINIC) argued that stronger due process protections would help uphold the human dignity of noncitizens and safeguard the common good, based on Catholic teaching.The bishops sent the petition in relation to the ongoing case Genalo v. Keisy G.M., in which a U.S. permanent resident from the Dominican Republic argues that Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) violated his Fifth Amendment right to due process.Keisy G.M., whose full name is not public, was detained for 21 months. Although he did appear before a judge, he did not receive a bond hearing to determine whether he could be released on bond.In spite of his permanent residency status, he faced deportation proceedings after he was convicted of felonious assault. He was later pardoned by the State of New York, ending the threat of deportation.Dignity of the human personIn their legal brief, the bishops argued that due process protections are consistent with the law, American tradition, and Catholic teaching, saying “executive detention has never been wholly insulated from judicial scrutiny,” adding that “this accords with Catholic social teaching, which recognizes both the legitimate authority of the state and the dignity of the individual.”“Indefinite confinement without individualized review by a neutral tribunal is anathema to our constitutional system and the ordered liberty it enshrines,” the bishops said. “The consequences of abandoning that system are severe and concrete.”“Prolonged detention can cost people their jobs, homes, health, and the ability to participate meaningfully in their own legal proceedings,” they said. “It can separate parents from children, destabilize entire families, and inflict harms that cannot be undone by eventual release. Although such detention may at times be necessary to further important state interests, such as ensuring public safety, it must be subject to justification before a neutral tribunal.”In the court filing, they cited Pope John XXIII’s 1963 encyclical Pacem in Terris, which teaches that “the common good is best safeguarded when personal rights and duties are guaranteed.”Quoting from the document, they said authorities must “ensure that these rights are recognized, respected, co-ordinated, defended and promoted, and that each individual is enabled to perform his duties more easily” because “safeguard[ing] the inviolable rights of the human person” and “facilitat[ing] the performance of his duties” is “the principal duty of every public authority.”The bishops also quoted Archbishop Paul Gallagher, the Holy See’s secretary for relations with states, from his statement during the general debate at the opening of the 80th session of the United Nations General Assembly’s high‑level week.In his statement, Gallagher said the “principles of equality before the law, accountability, the equitable application of the law, the separation of [four] powers, legal certainty, due process, the prevention of arbitrariness, as well as transparency in both procedural and legal matters, must always be observed.”“Those principles,” the bishops continued, “are effectuated by procedures that require the government to justify significant deprivations of liberty based on individualized circumstances rather than categorical assumptions.”Oral arguments for the case are scheduled for Oct. 13. Keisy G.M. is represented by the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and other civil liberties organizations.

unitedyam September 9, 2026September 9, 2026

The bishops argue that strong due process protections are consistent with American principles and good governance in accordance with Catholic teaching.

Love is not a feeling but a decision, Pope Leo XIV tells couples – #Catholic – Pope Leo XIV reflects on human love in the prologue to the new edition of “YouCat: Love Forever,” emphasizing that it is not a fleeting feeling but rather “a decision, a journey, and a lifelong covenant.”This version of the catechism, aimed at young people preparing for the vocation of marriage, is scheduled for release in November. The first edition of this catechism was published one week after the passing of Pope Francis in May 2025.“Your heart longs for love, a deep, passionate, and enduring love,” notes Leo XIV, emphasizing that this desire is no accident but rather “a sign that you were created for love.”Reflecting on this teaching, Pope Leo emphasizes that "God himself can make his presence felt within human love and transform it," such that “he endows us with the capacity to love as he loves: by serving through a generous gift of one’s self, and if necessary, by forgiving."Regarding love between a man and a woman, the pope says it “may pierce the heart like an arrow, swiftly and impetuously,” yet it does not stop there, for “it is not an ephemeral or fleeting sentiment.”“It is much more,” the pope adds. “It is a profound ‘yes’ to the other, a decision, a journey, and a lifelong covenant,” when it reflects Godʼs love.He further explains that “solid, deep relationships are built together on mutual trust, on that ‘forever’ that beats at the heart of every vocation,” with a love that “asks first: ‘How can I love as Christ has loved?’ and puts the question ‘What will I receive?’ in the background.”Loving to the point of death: ‘The DNA of Christianity’The Holy Father also takes the opportunity to explain to young people that something of the divine mystery is revealed in marriage: “When a man and a woman give themselves completely to one another in love, God comes alive in their midst. Their fidelity, their forgiveness, and their daily striving for the good are a reflection of Christʼs love for his Church.”He also encourages young people not to fear the depth of the “great love” to which they are called, because “it is strong enough to overcome difficulties and great enough to sustain you throughout your entire life.”This love “is not perfect, but grows in the light of faith”; it is “a gift from God, and we cannot produce it on our own.” Unlike human love, often clouded by selfish desires, it “is selfless, patient, and kind, possessing all those wonderful qualities St. Paul lists in the Letter to the Corinthians.”The pontiff writes that “we behold the most beautiful image of true love when we look at the cross of Jesus Christ,” which confirms that “he loves us so much that he was willing to die for us. This is the DNA of Christianity, the commandment of Christ.”Finally, Pope Leo expresses his appreciation for the new edition, which features numerous testimonies from young people in over 30 countries, testifying “that the ideal to which Christ calls us is a fascinating treasure” and constitutes an invitation to open oneʼs heart “to a plan greater than any human dream.”It serves as preparation for a “yes” that is good not just for a day, but for a lifetime; a “yes” that, like Godʼs love, is tireless and faithful, the pope explains, saying he prays that young people respond “with confidence and courage to the most beautiful of all vocations: the vocation to love.”This story was first published by ACI Prensa, the Spanish-language sister service of EWTN News. It has been translated and adapted by EWTN News English.

unitedyam September 9, 2026September 9, 2026

In the foreword to a new edition of the youth catechism YouCat, on the subject of love and marriage, Pope Leo XIV goes to the heart of the vocation to love: serving through a generous gift of self.

unitedyam September 9, 2026September 10, 2026

The Supreme Court is set to consider whether or not Americans are permitted to possess AR-15 rifles and similar firearms.

Why St. Nicholas of Tolentino is the patron of souls in purgatory #Catholic The Catholic Church’s teaching on purgatory — the “cleansing fire” that prepares the elect for heaven — can be difficult to understand. But for one saint, the Catholic imperative to pray for the dead was made very real to him when, according to the story, one of his deceased friends appeared to him asking for prayers.St. Nicholas of Tolentino, whose feast day is celebrated in the Church on Sept. 10, was born in 1245 in the town of Sant’Angelo in central Italy. He was drawn to the Augustinan religious order at a young age after hearing a sermon from the local superior on the vanity of the world. The order was in the nearby town of Tolentino, and after studying for seven years, Nicholas was ordained to the priesthood.A charitable and holy man who often fasted and practiced self-mortification, he spent long hours in prayer. He fed the poor he encountered in a special way — he gave them blessed bread dipped in water. The reason he did this was that he once had a vision of the Virgin Mary telling him to dip bread in water and eat it to regain his health.Thanks in part to these “panini benedetti” (blessed sandwiches), Nicholas was known for obtaining healings for many of the sick who lived in Tolentino — and for even raising some people from the dead.During Nicholas’ lifetime, the Catholic Church formally defined the doctrine of purgatory at the Second Council of Lyon in 1274. The doctrine teaches that when a person dies in God’s grace, he or she either goes straight to heaven or undergoes a state of purification called purgatory before entering heaven.So how did Nicholas become associated with this doctrine?As the Midwest Augustinians tell it, Nicholas was asleep in bed one night when he heard the voice of a deceased friar he had known. The friar told Nicholas that he was in purgatory and urged him to celebrate the Eucharist for him and other souls there, so that they would be set free by the power of Christ. After Nicholas did so for seven days, the friar again spoke to him, thanking him and assuring him that a large number of souls were now with God.Nicholas is also the subject of numerous legends — some of which are rather bizarre. A 16th-century painting depicts a story about Nicholas, bedridden and sick, refusing to eat but blessing two cooked partridges (he was a vegetarian). The dead partridges subsequently flew away.Nicholas died of illness in 1305 or 1306, and Pope Eugenius IV — also an Augustinian — canonized him in 1446 after recognizing some 300 miracles attributed to him. In addition to being the patron saint of souls in purgatory, Nicholas is also considered the patron saint against epidemic disease and against fires.This story was first published on Sept. 10, 2022, and has been updated.

unitedyam September 9, 2026September 10, 2026

For St. Nicholas of Tolentino, the Catholic imperative to pray for the dead was made very real to him when a deceased friend appeared to him asking for prayers.

I Took 5 Trains in One Day Just to Ride This 0 Dessert Train in Taiwan—and I’d Do It Again #Travel Limited to 60 passengers, this scenic train delights with pop-up menus and local culinary flair.

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Limited to 60 passengers, this scenic train delights with pop-up menus and local culinary flair.

unitedyam September 9, 2026September 9, 2026

The phenomenon of a Full Moon arises when our planet, Earth, is precisely sandwiched between the Sun and the Moon. This alignment ensures the entire side of the Moon that faces us gleams under sunlight. Thanks to the Moon’s orbit around Earth, the angle of sunlight hitting the lunar surface and being reflected back toContinue reading “2026 Full Moon calendar: When to see the Full Moon and phases”

The post 2026 Full Moon calendar: When to see the Full Moon and phases appeared first on Astronomy Magazine.

Picture of the day

Devonshire Lodge (Low-Martin House), Windsor, Ontario, Canada. Commissioned by the rum-runner Harry Low in 1927, the building was designed in the style of a Cotswold cottage and completed in 1928. It served as the home of Member of Parliament Paul Martin Sr. for almost three decades. It was designated under the Ontario Heritage Act in 2008.
#ImageOfTheDay

unitedyam September 9, 2026September 9, 2026

Picture of the day

Devonshire Lodge (Low-Martin House), Windsor, Ontario, Canada. Commissioned by the rum-runner Harry Low in 1927, the building was designed in the style of a Cotswold cottage and completed in 1928. It served as the home of Member of Parliament Paul Martin Sr. for almost three decades. It was designated under the Ontario Heritage Act in 2008.

EWTN to air film on St. Peter Claver, slave of the slaves #Catholic St. Peter Claver was a Spanish Jesuit priest who dedicated his life to the care of African slaves. On Sept. 9 — the saint’s feast day — EWTN will release an original docudrama on his life titled “Saint Peter Claver — Slave of the Slaves.”The docudrama was filmed on location in Spain, Colombia, and Cape Verde and uses interviews and dramatizations to present the life of Claver, who tirelessly ministered to the spiritual and physical needs of African slaves in Cartagena, Colombia, for 40 years.The film will air on EWTN TV and EWTN+ on Sept. 9 at 9:30 p.m. ET and re-air on Sept. 12 at 8 p.m. ET. At this time, the program will not air on YouTube.

A behind-the-scenes look at the making of “Saint Peter Claver — Slave of the Slaves.” | Credit: EWTN

Who was St. Peter Claver?Born on June 26, 1580, in Catalonia, Spain, Claver grew up in a devout Catholic farming family. He attended the University of Barcelona and at age 20 joined the Jesuits.During his studies as a novice, Claver met an older lay Jesuit brother, Alphonsus Rodriguez. It was Rodriguez who encouraged Claver to become a missionary in the Spanish colonies in the Americas.In 1610, Claver traveled from Spain to Cartagena, Colombia, where he was ordained a priest five years later.At that time, the African slave trade had been in place for several decades in the Americas, and Cartagena was one of the busiest slave ports in the Spanish empire.While there, Claver witnessed the cruelty with which the slaves were treated firsthand, despite Pope Paul III’s repeated condemnations of slavery. It is estimated that tens of thousands of enslaved Africans passed through Cartagena during Claver’s ministry.Moved by their suffering, Claver worked to bring both bodily and spiritual aid to the slaves. Despite his own health problems and the language barrier, he dedicated himself to his vocation.Claver would meet slave ships upon arrival in the harbor and board them to care for the poorly treated passengers on board who had made the journey from Africa in diseased and cramped conditions over the course of several months. He would tend to the sick — bringing food, water, and medicine — and treat wounds and illnesses. He would immediately baptize babies and those near death.After a slave was sold, Claver would continue to visit the individual, providing physical and spiritual support.When it came to catechesis, due to the language barrier, Claver used pictorial representations of the Gospel stories he was teaching.Throughout his ministry, Claver lived on small amounts of food and sleep. His lifestyle led to several miraculous occurrences, including when he healed the sick with the touch of his cloak or appeared surrounded by a supernatural light during his hospital visits.After suffering for several years from poor health, Claver died on Sept. 8, 1654. He had baptized and taught the faith to more than 300,000 slaves during his 40 years in Colombia.He was beatified by Pius IX on July 16, 1850, and canonized along with his friend St. Alphonsus Rodriguez on Jan. 15, 1888, by Pope Leo XIII.Claver is the patron saint of enslaved peoples, African missions, and interracial justice, and one of several patron saints of Colombia.

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“Saint Peter Claver — Slave of the Slaves” will air on EWTN on Sept. 9.

Coalition backs parental rights lawsuit over California transgender student policy – #Catholic – A coalition of lawmakers, state attorneys general, and advocacy groups filed dozens of legal briefs in support of California parents who are challenging a state law that excludes parents from decisions about “socially” transitioning a child’s gender.California law does not allow school districts to adopt policies that require teachers and school administrators to tell parents when their child identifies as transgender and wants to be treated as the opposite sex. The law does not forbid voluntary notification by a teacher.In March, the U.S. Supreme Court halted enforcement of the state law, warning it cuts parents out of the conversation. The 6-3 decision did not offer a final ruling on the constitutionality of the law but found that it likely violates constitutionally protected rights to freedom of religion and to direct the upbringing of one’s children, and sent the case back down to the lower courts.A lower court’s permanent injunction that blocks the law indefinitely is in effect, and the case is in front of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit.The parents, represented by the Catholic nonprofit legal group The Thomas More Society, are getting support from 17 state attorneys general, five senators, and dozens of organizations that filed legal briefs with the appellate court in their defense.Paul M. Jonna, special counsel for Thomas More Society, said in a statement that the legal briefs “all converge on the same point,” which is that the law will not survive “strict scrutiny,” which is the highest standard of review, required in cases when constitutional rights are at risk.“Parents, not school bureaucrats, have the right to raise their children and to direct their religious upbringing,” Jonna said. “That means a school may not facilitate a childʼs gender transition without their knowledge and consent.”Legal briefs backing parentsFive Republican senators signed on to a joint brief supporting the parents: Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas; Sen. Mike Lee of Utah; Sen. Kevin Cramer of North Dakota; Sen. Roger Marshall of Kansas; and Sen. Jim Banks of Indiana.“America’s history and tradition affirm that parents bear the primary responsibility for their children’s upbringing and have ‘natural bonds of affection’ with their children leading them to act in their children’s best interests,” the senators wrote.“The state must presume that parents are fit to direct their children’s upbringing and education,” they wrote. “It follows that parents are also in the best position to help their children with life’s struggles. That includes mental health struggles like gender dysphoria. When children engage with their school for help regarding their gender dysphoria, the school must tell the parents.”Republican attorneys general from 17 states also filed a brief: Alabama, Alaska, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Mississippi, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, and West Virginia.In the brief, they stated their intent is “to ensure that parents retain their fundamental right to direct the upbringing of their minor children.”“The need for parental involvement and oversight is only more pressing when the ideology pushed by the state confuses innocent and impressionable children experiencing ‘gender dysphoria,’” they wrote.A large coalition of more than 70 nongovernmental organizations, which includes Catholic and other Christian organizations, signed a separate brief. The signatories include Tradition, Family, Property, Inc.; the Christian Law Association; and the Christian Medical & Dental Associations, along with Catholic former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum.“Parents, whether religious or not, have the responsibility as well as the right to monitor the ideas to which their children are exposed and to protect them from those ideas likely to confuse and harm them,” the brief said.“When officious school officials use their access to children absent parental supervision to instill in those children ideas to which the parents are likely to object, they subvert the trust upon which family strength, and child wellbeing, depend,” it adds.Three legal scholars also filed a legal brief with the court: Professors Robert P. George, Melissa Moschella, and Eric A. DeGroff. George and Moschella are Catholic.“Anglo-American law has long recognized that parents — not the state — are the primary decision-makers for their children’s medical care,” the brief said. “This reflects a considered judgment that parents are best positioned to know their children’s needs, weigh risks and benefits in light of family values, and act in their children’s interests.”“Our legal tradition has never treated parental authority as absolute,” it added. “But the limits history has placed on that authority reflect two principles that, properly understood, reinforce rather than diminish the primacy of parental decision-making.”The Becket Fund for Religious Liberty, which secured a religious liberty and parental rights victory at the Supreme Court in Mahmoud v. Taylor, also filed a brief in defense of the parents, as did a parent represented by Alliance Defending Freedom, who is fighting against a similar school policy in Wisconsin.

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Dozens of organizations urged the court to protect parental rights and religious freedom as the state law remains blocked.

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Rocket launches this week On Thursday, Sept. 10 at 5:00 a.m. EST, a Long March 2D rocket is set to lift off from Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in northern China’s Gobi Desert carrying an undisclosed payload, according to tracking from Next Spaceflight. The rocket is operated by the state-owned space contractor China Aerospace Science andContinue reading “SpaceX closes out SES’s O3b mPower constellation”

The post SpaceX closes out SES’s O3b mPower constellation appeared first on Astronomy Magazine.

unitedyam September 8, 2026September 8, 2026

A reading from the First Letter of St. Paul to Corinthians
7:25-31

Brothers and sisters:
In regard to virgins, I have no commandment from the Lord,
but I give my opinion as one who by the Lord’s mercy is trustworthy.
So this is what I think best because of the present distress:
that it is a good thing for a person to remain as he is.
Are you bound to a wife? Do not seek a separation.
Are you free of a wife? Then do not look for a wife.
If you marry, however, you do not sin,
nor does an unmarried woman sin if she marries;
but such people will experience affliction in their earthly life,
and I would like to spare you that.

I tell you, brothers, the time is running out.
From now on, let those having wives act as not having them,
those weeping as not weeping,
those rejoicing as not rejoicing,
those buying as not owning,
those using the world as not using it fully.
For the world in its present form is passing away.

From the Gospel according to Luke
6:20-26

Raising his eyes toward his disciples Jesus said:

“Blessed are you who are poor,
for the Kingdom of God is yours.
Blessed are you who are now hungry,
for you will be satisfied.
Blessed are you who are now weeping,
for you will laugh.
Blessed are you when people hate you,
and when they exclude and insult you,
and denounce your name as evil
on account of the Son of Man.

Rejoice and leap for joy on that day!
Behold, your reward will be great in heaven.
For their ancestors treated the prophets
in the same way.

But woe to you who are rich,
for you have received your consolation.
But woe to you who are filled now,
for you will be hungry.
Woe to you who laugh now,
for you will grieve and weep.
Woe to you when all speak well of you,
for their ancestors treated the false
prophets in this way.”

On the mountain, Christ gives his disciples the new law, no longer written on stone. It is a law that renews our lives and makes them good, even when the world seems to have failed us and is full of misery. Only God can truly call the poor and afflicted blessed (cf. vv. 3-4), because he is the highest good who gives himself to all with infinite love. Only God can satisfy those who seek peace and justice (cf. vv. 6.9), because he is the just judge of the world and the author of eternal peace. Only in God do the meek, the merciful and the pure of heart find joy (vv. 5.7-8), because he is the fulfilment of their expectations. In persecution, God is the source of redemption; in falsehood, he is the anchor of truth. Therefore, Jesus proclaims: “Rejoice and be glad!” (…) In this way, Jesus illuminates the meaning of history. It is no longer written by conquerors, but rather by God, who is able to accomplish it by saving the oppressed. (…) The Beatitudes become for us a measure of happiness, leading us to ask whether we consider it an achievement to be bought or a gift to be shared; whether we place it in objects that are consumed or in relationships that accompany us. It is in fact because of Christ (cf. Mt 5:11) and thanks to him that the bitterness of trials is transformed into the joy of the redeemed. Jesus does not speak of a distant consolation, but of a constant grace that always sustains us, especially in times of affliction. (Pope Leo XIV, Angelus, 1st February 2026)

Colombian government to help finance restoration of earthquake-damaged basilica – #Catholic – Colombian President Abelardo de la Espriella announced an initial disbursement of 1.2 billion pesos (0,000) to restore the Minor Basilica of the Lord of Miracles, which was damaged by the Aug. 10 earthquake.The basilica, located in the city of Buga in the Valle del Cauca department (administrative district), sustained damage to its dome. As a safety precaution, Masses inside the church have been suspended and are currently being held in the town’s central square.In addition, as the basilica has the legal designation of an asset of cultural interest, any restoration work must be supervised by the Ministry of Culture.During his Sept. 5 visit to Valle del Cauca, De la Espriella expressed the governmentʼs commitment to “protecting the spiritual symbols of the Colombian people.”

Colombian President Abelardo de la Espriella announces the government’s plan to partially fund the repair of the Minor Basilica of the Lord of Miracles, which was damaged in the Aug. 10, 2026, earthquake. | Credit: Screenshot/Presidency of the Republic, Colombia

“We already have 1.2 billion pesos [approximately 0,000] to repair our Basilica of the Lord of Miracles, and we are working with the private sector to secure another 5 billion [.6 million] to rebuild and repair the basilica so that Masses can be held there,” he announced Sept. 5.Referring to the image of Christ crucified in the church, which depicts the Savior with dark-colored skin, the president stated the state-funded repairs are intended to “honor our beloved [Black Christ],” as the Lord of Miracles of Buga is also known, “and to defend that symbol of faith and spirituality that means so much to us Colombians.”The announcement comes just days before the feast of the Lord of Miracles in Buga, celebrated on Sept. 14, which draws thousands of pilgrims.In a Facebook video, Father Alcides de Jesús Orozco, rector of the basilica, explained that although the basilica is closed, the part of the church where the image of Christ is enthroned suffered no damage and the faithful may enter there.This story was first published by ACI Prensa, the Spanish-language sister service of EWTN News. It has been translated and adapted by EWTN News English.

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The government has pledged to help finance repairs to the church, a part of Colombia’s cultural heritage and a popular pilgrimage site.

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Seton Hall University welcomes academically strong Class of 2023 #Catholic –

Seton Hall University in South Orange, N.J. recently welcomed about 1,560 first-year students to campus, representing 42 states and 17 countries. The Class of 2030 was selected from a pool of 28,070 applicants, roughly 2,300 more than the year prior — one of many signs of growing interest in a Seton Hall education.

That growth has come with increased selectivity. Seton Hall’s admission rate has fallen from 79 percent in 2023 to 67.5 percent in 2026, a decline of nearly 12 percent in three years. At the same time, the academic profile of incoming students remains strong, continuing a broader trend of gains over the past decade.

“Seton Hall is proud to welcome the Class of 2030, an accomplished and diverse group of students who bring tremendous talent, ambition and greater purpose to our community,” said Kathleen (Katie) McCarthy, MBA, ’17, Seton Hall’s vice president for enrollment management. “We look forward to seeing all they will accomplish in the years ahead.”

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Among the 33 percent of incoming students who submitted standardized test scores, the average SAT score was 1323, and the average ACT score was 29. The average high school GPA for the incoming class is 3.68, up from 3.55 in 2016.

The Class of 2030 also reflects Seton Hall’s longstanding role as a university of opportunity, bringing together students from a broad range of backgrounds and experiences. More than 40 percent of incoming first-year students are the first in their families to attend college, and 41 percent are Pell Grant-eligible.

The class reflects the communities Seton Hall serves, with 62 percent of incoming students identifying as students of color and 61 percent identifying as female. These varied perspectives and experiences strengthen classroom discussions, campus life, and the university community.

Founded in 1856, Seton Hall, which is located in the Newark Archdiocese, N.J., remains grounded in its Catholic mission and its commitment to being a home for the mind, heart, and spirit. Guided by the Catholic Intellectual Tradition and our patroness and intercessor, St. Elizabeth Ann Seton, the university welcomes students of all faiths and backgrounds into a community that encourages intellectual growth, service to others, and the pursuit of greater purpose.

– Seton Hall University in South Orange, N.J. recently welcomed about 1,560 first-year students to campus, representing 42 states and 17 countries. The Class of 2030 was selected from a pool of 28,070 applicants, roughly 2,300 more than the year prior — one of many signs of growing interest in a Seton Hall education. That growth has come with increased selectivity. Seton Hall’s admission rate has fallen from 79 percent in 2023 to 67.5 percent in 2026, a decline of nearly 12 percent in three years. At the same time, the academic profile of incoming students remains strong, continuing a broader

unitedyam September 8, 2026September 8, 2026

Holy Spirit’s 70-year legacy of academic and spiritual growth #Catholic –

Holy Spirit School in Pequannock, N.J., is filled with anticipation as it begins its 70th school year! The school is thrilled to welcome its new staff, families, and students into the Holy Spirit family for the 2026–2027 school year.

Each new school year brings opportunities for academic and spiritual growth, service to others, and living out the faith within the school community and beyond. Holy Spirit’s administration is proud to lead the school community as it continues to live by the school motto, “Inspiring Minds, Igniting Faith and Shaping the Future.”

Virtue formation will remain an important focus throughout the year. Each month, Holy Spirit students will explore a different virtue and discover how they can grow closer to Jesus. Through the school community’s words, actions, and service to others, it strives to put its faith into practice and model Christ’s love.

In Holy Spirit’s classrooms, students are engaged in meaningful learning experiences across the curriculum. Whether experimenting in our Science Lab, tackling challenges in STREAM, completing novel studies in language arts, solving problems in math, creating projects in social studies, or producing masterpieces in art, students work collaboratively, ask thoughtful questions, and think critically. Instilling a lifelong love of learning remains a priority in every classroom.

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Beyond the classroom, Holy Spirit’s students have many opportunities to explore their interests, develop leadership skills, build friendships, and serve others. Students can participate in Student Government, National Junior Honor Society, CYO basketball, cheerleading, performing arts, TREP$, and many other activities throughout the year. Holy Spirit looks forward to seeing its students take on leadership roles and plan meaningful service projects that bring the entire school community together.

As Holy Spirit celebrates this special year, it looks forward to its annual Legacy Gala, honoring Rod Donnelly of Donnelly Construction and Father Peter VB Wells, pastor of Our Lady of the Valley Parish in Wayne, N.J. The event will be held at The Brownstone in Paterson, N.J., on Friday, Nov. 20 and will celebrate and support Catholic education. The school invites alums from the past 70 years to join in celebrating this remarkable milestone, along with all who have helped shape Holy Spirit School’s history.

Most importantly, Holy Spirit remains devoted to faith formation, which is woven throughout every aspect of the school day. Led by Father Cesar Jaramillo, pastor of Holy Spirit Parish, and Filippini Sister Marie Antonelli, the school’s principal, students witness firsthand their dedication to their vocations.

Holy Spirit’s school community is touched by the spirit of St. Lucy Filippini, foundress of the Religious Teachers Filippini, who lead the school. The school celebrates Masses weekly, with class Masses and adoration held each Tuesday.
As the school begins its 70th year, it is excited to embark on a year together filled with learning, love, faith, and fun.

Holy Spirit is grateful for the generations of families, educators, students, alums, and supporters who have made the school what it is today, and it looks forward to continuing this legacy.

– Holy Spirit School in Pequannock, N.J., is filled with anticipation as it begins its 70th school year! The school is thrilled to welcome its new staff, families, and students into the Holy Spirit family for the 2026–2027 school year. Each new school year brings opportunities for academic and spiritual growth, service to others, and living out the faith within the school community and beyond. Holy Spirit’s administration is proud to lead the school community as it continues to live by the school motto, “Inspiring Minds, Igniting Faith and Shaping the Future.” Virtue formation will remain an important focus throughout the

Indianapolis becomes seventh U.S. diocese to grant Mass dispensation to migrants fearing deportation – #Catholic – The archbishop of Indianapolis has granted a dispensation from Mass for parishioners who fear deportation, making Indianapolis the seventh U.S. diocese to issue such a decree amid rising federal immigration-enforcement activity nationwide.Catholic parishioners, regardless of documentation, are permitted to miss Sunday Mass if they “reasonably fear being detained, separated from their families, or experience intimidation due to the increased immigration enforcement,” according to the decree, showing how the archdiocese is accompanying migrants.The dispensation took effect Sept. 4 and runs through Sept. 30 unless extended. With Indianapolis added, dioceses that have issued similar decrees encompass about 3.5 million Catholics, according to the Official Catholic Directory 2025.During the pandemic in 2020, all Catholic dioceses and archdioceses issued Mass dispensations. Canon 1245 allows a diocesan bishop or pastor to grant a dispensation from Mass obligation “for a just cause.” “The decision to grant the dispensation at this time came as a response to requests from our pastors who work closely with our immigrant communities,” Sally Krause, the archdiocese’s director of communications, told EWTN. “They are experiencing fear and uncertainty due to an increase in immigration enforcement in Indianapolis and the surrounding areas. By granting the dispensation, we wished to express the Churchʼs solidarity and care for those who are afraid to leave their homes.”Archbishop Charles Thompson of Indianapolis said the dispensation and his statement came after what he described as a “recent surge in immigration enforcement activity in Indiana,” which he said “has caused fear and uncertainty for many families, particularly when detention results in the sudden separation of parents and children.”

Archbishop Charles Thompson. | Credit: Photo courtesy of Archdiocese of Indianapolis

Thompson encouraged the faithful who use the dispensation to supplement with prayer, reading the Sunday readings, praying the rosary, and watching livestreamed Mass.“Pastors and all those who minister to the faithful within the Archdiocese of Indianapolis are encouraged to attend to the spiritual care of those who must make use of this dispensation to the best of their ability, especially regarding the Sacraments of Penance and Anointing of the Sick, or the distribution of Holy Communion to the homebound,” he said.Thompson said the dispensation applies to immigrant parishioners fearing detention, adding: “This applies even to those with proper legal documentation.”“While recognizing the need for law enforcement to protect and defend, it is gravely concerning to witness families being torn apart,” Thompson said in the statement. “The family, the fabric of stability in our society, must be cherished and defended. The inherent dignity of being created in the image of God demands that every person be treated with dignity, compassion, and respect.”Krause said: “It is our practice that dispensations have a specific time frame delineated for which they have legal force. One month is a measured amount of time for such a decree, and we knew that we would discern the situation again in a monthʼs time.”Dispensations across the U.S.The dispensation in Indianapolis marks the seventh such dispensation granted in the U.S. for migrants fearing deportation by immigration enforcement officers since the start of the Trump administration.The Archdiocese of New Orleans and the dioceses of Columbus, Baton Rouge, Charlotte, San Bernardino, and Nashville have granted dispensations.Archbishop Jeffrey Grob of Milwaukee has said he would consider granting dispensation from Mass obligations to migrants fearing deportation, should the situation in his archdiocese require it. No dispensation has been announced in Milwaukee to date.Bishops in other dioceses along the border, including the Diocese of El Paso, the Diocese of Brownsville, and the Diocese of Tucson, have not granted dispensations but issued strong statements of condemnation over mass detentions and deportations of migrants in their respective communities.

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Dioceses issuing dispensation decrees cover a combined Catholic population of about 3.5 million people.

Faith on the Hill: Catholic members of Congress share how faith shapes their lives and work #Catholic For many of the 150 Catholics serving in the 119th Congress, faith plays an important role in their lives and work.The current number of Catholic lawmakers on Capitol Hill is slightly higher than the previous Congress, with Catholics accounting for more than 28% of the members of the United States House of Representatives and Senate. Of the Catholic members, 126 serve in the House and 24 in the Senate, according to a report from the Pew Research Center.In this special report, EWTN News Capitol Hill correspondent Erik Rosales spoke with various Catholic members of Congress about their faith and how they live it in their work.Sen. Eric SchmittSen. Eric Schmitt, R-Missouri, grew up a cradle Catholic and said his parents instilled in him the importance of having a personal relationship with Christ at a young age.“I grew up in St. Louis, which is a very Catholic town and has been referred to as the Rome of the West because per capita, very Catholic,” Schmitt told Rosales.A “conversation back home, it might very easily start … ‘What parish are you at? or ‘What parish did you grow up in?’” Schmitt said.At 17, Schmitt went to a Jesuit retreat house that had a profound impact on him. Later, when his son was born with a rare genetic condition, Schmitt would often return to the Jesuits for prayer.It “was a seed that was planted … when I was confronted with this really kind of difficult situation. I went back there, and it was a profound experience,” he said. “I go back every year. Itʼs a … weekend silent retreat. And that keeps me very rooted.”When working busy days on the Hill, Schmitt said he looks to prayer.“Iʼll listen to a podcast by Bishop [Robert] Barron or Father Michael Schmitz,” he said. “I think technology now too has allowed a different avenue for people to … maintain their faith and grow their faith.”Even “if itʼs five or 10 minutes, it really does help me kind of start the day right,” Schmitt said.Rep. John RutherfordRep. John Rutherford, R-Florida, also spoke about leaning on his faith when working in a hectic position, often by attending Mass and saying the rosary.“In Ephesians 2:10, it says, ‘for we are all Godʼs workmanship, created in the image of Christ Jesus to do good work,’ which he prepared … in advance for us to do,’” Rutherford said. “So heʼs got work out there that heʼs prepared for me to do,” he continued.While Rutherford’s Catholic faith is incorporated into his day-to-day life, he shared that was not always the case. He grew up in the United Methodist Church, but at about 14 years old, “fell away from the church,” he said.After becoming a police officer in Jacksonville, Florida, Rutherford’s perspective on faith changed. Witnessing crimes made him question his own mortality.“So I went back to the Bible, and I read the Bible literally cover to cover, not once but twice,” he said.Rutherford returned to the Methodist Church, while his wife and kids attended Catholic Mass. After reading about the Methodist Churchʼs seven principles, he realized he didnʼt agree with them.“It was a long process, but I finally read a book by Pope John Paul II, ‘Crossing the Threshold of Hope,’ and that explained where the authority of the Church is,” Rutherford said. “And how itʼs passed down through the papacy.”After his research, and inspired by the true Church and presence of Jesus in the Eucharist, Rutherford entered the Catholic Church.Rep. Mark MessmerRep. Mark Messmer, R-Indiana, said he has spent his life putting God, family, and community first.It was during his time as a state legislator that a colleague invited Messmer and his wife to attend a Cursillo, a retreat focused on showing Christian laity how to become effective leaders and how to use the Gospel in daily life.“It ignited a passion and a love for Christ, and a love for the Eucharist that I always said I wanted. And then it gives you the tools [for] your prayer life, study life, and evangelization, how to live that out on a daily basis,” he said.Messmer said he stays grounded with daily Mass and his Friday morning prayer group. He and his family also all join together for a weekly group call to catch up and join for “spiritual reinforcement.”Rep. Stephanie BiceRep. Stephanie Bice, R-Oklahoma, converted to Catholicism in college after she started going to Mass with her now husband.Bice served six years in the Oklahoma Senate and later ran for U.S. Congress. She joined a number of women who have been elected over the past two cycles.“Not every woman believes that … you should be able to terminate pregnancies up to birth,” Bice said. “So you had a groundswell of women consider running for congressional seats and Senate seats,” she said.While serving on Capitol Hill, Bice said she turns to prayer and the comfort of the Blessed Mother.“I stumbled across a group of staffers that actually pray the rosary on fly-in days in the morning,” she explained. “I said, ‘Hey, can a member come?’ And they were delighted that I would even ask.”One highlight of her congressional career was meeting Pope Francis at the Vatican. The invitation came from Rep. James Langevin, a fellow Catholic and Democrat from Rhode Island.Pope Francis “looked at my husband and I after blessing us both, and he said: ‘Will you pray for me?’ And that was pretty profound,” Bice said.Rep. Robert Onder“Really, my Catholic faith has motivated me my whole life, my whole career, and really motivated in many ways the direction my life has taken,” Rep. Robert Onder, R-Missouri, said.Onder said his faith was present in his work trying to pass a religious liberty bill in the Missouri Senate and through his fight to protect the conscience rights of physicians who are forced to perform abortions.As a medical doctor, Onder detailed the present problem in some states and hospitals, which “want to force physicians to participate in abortions, participate in vitro fertilization or artificial contraception, and, of course, more recently, participate in euthanasia.”Onder said his political service has been motivated by love of God, family, and country. He said he stays rooted in faith by attending daily Mass. He said he also enjoys talking with other lawmakers about their love for Christ.“Speaker [Mike] Johnson is absolutely a brother in the Christian faith and a very, very strong believer,” Onder said. “It does give me a lot hope and a lot of encouragement to serve with other people who really take their faith seriously.”Rep. Riley MooreRep. Riley Moore, R-West Virginia, said his Catholic faith is “is the most important thing” in his life.“It forms me — every decision I make, everything that I do here on the Hill, it is central to my life. Iʼm always praying to be able to deepen my faith, be a strong family man, and then also my service.”“So itʼs my faith, my family, my service to my state, my country. But faith comes first.”“Canʼt always be easy to discern Godʼs will, particularly in a place that is more about individual will and not Godʼs will,” Moore said. “Iʼm trying to re-center myself towards that. Thatʼs that gravitational pull for me that Iʼm always trying to get back to.”Moore started as a Hill staffer on the House Foreign Affairs Committee, working under the late Rep. Henry Hyde, R-Illinois. One of his priorities is drawing attention to the persecution of Christians around the world, especially in Nigeria.While in Nigeria, “I met a woman who had had all five of her children murdered, murdered by Islamic terrorists,” Moore said. “I met another woman who had her two daughters and husband killed right in front of her, and then they killed her unborn child.”“As we know and weʼve heard many times, and itʼs so true that there is salvation through suffering. I think that … their suffering offers us salvation as well by doing something here,” he said.House Majority Whip Tom EmmerMajority Whip of the U.S. House of Representatives Tom Emmer discussed how his faith was largely inspired by his family, including his father, who attended daily Mass.“The example that they set is, I believe, why I am who I am,” said Emmer, R-Minnesota.Emmer also detailed the trials of his faith, including the loss of his sister Bridget, who died of breast cancer at 38 years old.Emmer said he was angry at the Lord and had doubts about Godʼs will because of his sisterʼs suffering. A conversation with Bridget during her chemotherapy treatment was a pivotal moment for him and his faith.“She looked at me and she said, ‘Tom, would I love to live forever? Absolutely. But Iʼm not going to,’” he explained. His sister added: “I have lived a good life. If God comes and calls me today, so be it.”Emmer said her words brought him away from his own anger with the Lord. Now his message to others is to put God first while living each moment to the fullest.

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EWTN News Capitol Hill correspondent Erik Rosales spoke with various Catholic lawmakers about how their faith intersects with their public service.

Superbubble in the Large Magellanic Cloud – N44 is a complex nebula filled with glowing hydrogen gas, dark lanes of dust, massive stars, and many populations of stars of different ages. One of its most distinctive features, however, is the dark, starry gap called a “superbubble,” visible in this Hubble Space Telescope image in the upper central region.

unitedyam September 8, 2026September 8, 2026

N44 is a complex nebula filled with glowing hydrogen gas, dark lanes of dust, massive stars, and many populations of stars of different ages. One of its most distinctive features, however, is the dark, starry gap called a “superbubble,” visible in this Hubble Space Telescope image in the upper central region.

unitedyam September 8, 2026September 9, 2026

DePaul celebrates 70 years of excellence with new principal #Catholic –

For 70 years, DePaul Catholic High School in Wayne, N.J. has been a place where faith, family, community, tradition, and excellence come together to shape generations of young people. Since 1956, our school has remained committed to developing students who strive for excellence in the classroom, on the stage, on the athletic fields, and through service to others.

For this historic 2026-7 academic year, DePaul Catholic welcomes Stephen D. Trivino as its new principal and looks forward to the leadership, experience, and vision he brings to our Spartan community.

For seven decades, DePaul Catholic has carried forward a proud legacy built on faith, perseverance, community, and achievement. The school’s traditions unite generations of students, families, faculty, staff, and alums, creating a Spartan community that extends far beyond graduation.

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As DePaul Catholic celebrates this milestone, the school invites its alums, families, and friends to return to campus throughout the school year. Together, DePaul Catholic will honor the accomplishments, traditions, and cherished memories that have shaped the school while looking confidently toward the future.

The spirit of DePaul Catholic lives in every Spartan who carries our mission and values into the world.

With a distinguished background in Catholic education, Trivino has served as a science teacher, coach, and school administrator. He has dedicated his career to helping students and educators reach their full potential.

Most recently, Trivino served as vice principal of teacher development and dean of student affairs at St. Joseph Regional High School in Montvale, N.J. There, he helped cultivate a culture centered on faith, academic excellence, respect, and continuous growth.

As principal of DePaul, Trivino is committed to strengthening the DePaul Catholic community, investing in faculty development, encouraging innovative approaches to teaching and learning, and ensuring that our Catholic identity remains at the heart of the student experience.

Inspired by the examples of St. Vincent de Paul and St. Elizabeth Ann Seton, Trivino’s vision reflects a commitment to faith, service, character, and excellence.

– For 70 years, DePaul Catholic High School in Wayne, N.J. has been a place where faith, family, community, tradition, and excellence come together to shape generations of young people. Since 1956, our school has remained committed to developing students who strive for excellence in the classroom, on the stage, on the athletic fields, and through service to others. For this historic 2026-7 academic year, DePaul Catholic welcomes Stephen D. Trivino as its new principal and looks forward to the leadership, experience, and vision he brings to our Spartan community. For seven decades, DePaul Catholic has carried forward a proud legacy

unitedyam September 8, 2026September 9, 2026

Assumption College for Sisters students unite for orientation, Mass #Catholic –

Students of Assumption College for Sisters (ACS), Denville, N.J., gathered on Aug. 24 for orientation and the Mass of the Holy Spirit.

Below, ASC welcomes three sisters participating in the college’s sponsorship program for international sisters to their first year of studies. From left: Sister Mercy Mwangi, SMIC (Kenya); Sister Maria Tatiana, SMIC (Brazil); and Sister Maria Rita Tran, SMIC (Vietnam); with Sister of Charity Marie Pauline Demek, ACS president.

Guided by the motto, “Teach a sister, touch the world,” ACS, an accredited college sponsored by the Sisters of Christian Charity, educates religious sisters called to consecrated life from the Diocese of Paterson, N.J., and around the world.

Click here to subscribe to our weekly newsletter.

– Students of Assumption College for Sisters (ACS), Denville, N.J., gathered on Aug. 24 for orientation and the Mass of the Holy Spirit. Below, ASC welcomes three sisters participating in the college’s sponsorship program for international sisters to their first year of studies. From left: Sister Mercy Mwangi, SMIC (Kenya); Sister Maria Tatiana, SMIC (Brazil); and Sister Maria Rita Tran, SMIC (Vietnam); with Sister of Charity Marie Pauline Demek, ACS president. Guided by the motto, “Teach a sister, touch the world,” ACS, an accredited college sponsored by the Sisters of Christian Charity, educates religious sisters called to consecrated life from the

unitedyam September 8, 2026September 8, 2026

Picture of the day

Toco toucan (Ramphastos toco) in Mato Grosso, Brazil

This Under-the-radar Northern California Destination Feels Like Lake Tahoe Before the Crowds #Travel Plumas County has pristine lakes, scenic hikes, mountain views, and plenty of small-town charm.

unitedyam September 8, 2026September 8, 2026

Plumas County has pristine lakes, scenic hikes, mountain views, and plenty of small-town charm.

Mary’s birthday: The Church celebrates the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary #Catholic The Catholic Church celebrates the birth of the Blessed Virgin Mary on its traditional fixed date of Sept. 8, nine months after the Dec. 8 celebration of her immaculate conception as the child of Sts. Joachim and Anne.The circumstances of the Virgin Mary’s infancy and early life are not directly recorded in the Bible, but other documents, legends, and traditions describing the circumstances of her birth are cited by some of the earliest Christian writers from the first centuries of the Church.These accounts are not included in the canon of Scripture and thus lack authority, but they do reflect some of the Church’s traditional beliefs about the birth of Mary.One such non-Scriptural source is the early second century “Protoevangelium of James,” an infancy gospel offering pious legends about Mary that nevertheless affirms some of the earliest teachings of the Church on the Blessed Mother.The Protoevangelium describes Mary’s father, Joachim, as a wealthy member of one of the 12 tribes of Israel. Joachim was deeply grieved, along with his wife, Anne, by their childlessness. “He called to mind Abraham,” the early Christian writing says, “that in the last day God gave him a son, Isaac.”Joachim and Anne began to devote themselves extensively and rigorously to prayer and fasting, initially wondering whether their inability to conceive a child might signify God’s displeasure with them.As it turned out, however, the couple was to be blessed even more abundantly than Abraham and Sarah, as an angel revealed to Anne when he appeared to her and prophesied that all generations would honor their future child: “The Lord has heard your prayer, and you shall conceive, and shall bring forth; and your seed shall be spoken of in all the world.”After Mary’s birth, according to the “Protoevangelium of James,” Anne “made a sanctuary” in the infant girl’s room and “allowed nothing common or unclean” on account of the special holiness of the child. The same writing records that when she was a year old, her father “made a great feast and invited the priests, and the scribes, and the elders, and all the people of Israel.”“And Joachim brought the child to the priests,” the account continues, “and they blessed her, saying: ‘O God of our fathers, bless this child, and give her an everlasting name to be named in all generations’ … And he brought her to the chief priests; and they blessed her, saying: ‘O God most high, look upon this child, and bless her with the utmost blessing, which shall be for ever.’”The protoevangelium goes on to describe how Mary’s parents, along with the Temple priests, subsequently decided that she would be offered to God as a consecrated virgin for the rest of her life and enter a chaste marriage with the carpenter Joseph.St. Augustine described the birth of the Blessed Virgin Mary as an event of cosmic and historic significance and an appropriate prelude to the birth of Jesus Christ. “She is the flower of the field from whom bloomed the precious lily of the valley,” he said.The fourth-century bishop, whose theology profoundly shaped the Western Church’s understanding of sin and human nature, affirmed that “through her birth, the nature inherited from our first parents is changed.”This story was first published on Sept. 5, 2010, and has been updated.

unitedyam September 8, 2026September 8, 2026

The Catholic Church celebrates the birth of the Blessed Virgin Mary on Sept. 8, nine months after the Dec. 8 celebration of her immaculate conception.

Leo XIV: Mary’s simple presence — and her Son within her — moves all of history – #Catholic – ROME — It was shortly after 5 p.m. local time when Pope Leo XIV arrived at the Shrine of Our Lady of Good Counsel, awaited by thousands of people along the road and welcomed by his fellow Augustinians.Not everyone could fit inside the church, and the streets of Genazzano, about 30 miles east of Rome, were packed. The pope chose to celebrate the Nativity of Mary at this shrine so dear to his heart. He brought a Golden Rose to place at Mary’s feet, and the rector thanked him, saying, “Our affection for you is true and genuine,” because “we all love you immensely.”The maternal presence of Our Lady of Good Counsel, the pope said, had “accompanied me throughout my entire life, with her wisdom, and with the example of her love for her Son, the Son who is always at the center of my faith,” as he wrote in the shrine’s guest book on May 10, 2025.The pope quoted the Augustinian St. Thomas of Villanova, who asked the Evangelists: “Why, I wonder, were we not told about the manner of her conception, her birth, her upbringing, her habits, the virtues that adorned her, what human relationship she had with her Son, how she related to him, how she lived with the apostles after his ascension? All these things were important, and the faithful would have read them with singular devotion, and ordinary people would have delighted in them. O Evangelists, I appeal to you! Why have you deprived us of such great joy by your silence? Why have you left out details so joyful, so eagerly awaited, so pleasing?”From this open dialogue with Scripture, the pope reflected: “Mary’s presence creates something like a leap in the genealogy, an unexpected newness capable of changing not only expectations but also the predictable behavior of a man. What Joseph hears, what he decides and what he does, in fact, is a response to God and to Mary’s presence, to her absolute difference, which surpasses every possible discourse and narrative. In Mary, salvation finds a home: God with us!”Faced with this mystery, the pope explained, “we feel a kind of vertigo.”After all, “God’s way has been and remains simpler and quieter, yet no less powerful and transformative.” Those humble historical circumstances that lead to the birth of Jesus reveal “the originality of his Kingdom, in which arrogance has no place and omnipotence is creation, service and care for life.”Continuing to draw on the teaching of the Augustinian saint, the pope spoke about prayer, because it is in contemplative prayer that “what the world does not tell us, but already exists, takes shape; what is still invisible, but already possesses a new kind of strength. This is not fantasy, but prophecy. We need it, in times of destruction and uncertainty, to see God’s work and serve it.”May the feast of Mary’s birth, the pope concluded, increase peace within us: “Yes, dear friends, we want to imagine peace — to broaden the boundaries of our understanding and paint it in our souls — in order to recognize that it already exists, to welcome it and to serve it. It is the gift of God, the breath of the Risen One, the work of the Holy Spirit. Let us allow peace to grow within us. It will blossom in the world. And the Mother of Good Counsel will accompany us in this mission.”The pope also expressed appreciation for the fresco depicting him at prayer, commemorating his visit to the shrine on May 10, 2025, two days after his election.The final hymn to Our Lady of Good Counsel brought consolation to all:“Protect our people, who hopein your counsel and live in your love.Receive their fervent prayer,O daughter, O bride, O Mother of the Lord.Holy Virgin of Genazzano,turn your serene gaze upon us;stretch out your hand to your children,strengthen the just, save the sinner.”This story was first published by ACI Stampa, the Italian-language sister service of EWTN News. It has been translated and adapted by EWTN News English.

unitedyam September 7, 2026September 7, 2026

The pope celebrates Mass at the Shrine of Our Lady of Good Counsel in Genazzano

Mother Teresa documentary premieres in Kolkata on her feast day – #Catholic – An international documentary tracing the life, legacy, and “prophetic path of compassion” of St. Teresa of Kolkata premiered Saturday on her feast day in Kolkata, India, drawing more than 200 people, including dozens of Missionaries of Charity (MC) nuns and novices.“Mother Teresa – Prophet of Compassion,” produced by journalist and author Anto Akkara, was screened at the Auditorium of St Xavier’s College, Park Street, with Archbishop Elias Frank of Kolkata presiding over the premiere.In his introductory remarks, the archbishop praised Akkara’s determination to bring lesser-known aspects of Mother Teresa’s life and work to a global audience.“We are here, dear friends, not just to see what he has done, but to be inspired by Mother’s work,” Frank said, commending the journalist’s “passion” for making Mother Teresa known through the documentary.“There are things that we may not even know yet,” Frank said, pointing to the film’s journalistic examination of events surrounding the Missionaries of Charity.

Archbishop Elias Frank of Kolkata sits beside journalist and author Anto Akkara during the premiere of the new documentary “Mother Teresa – Prophet of Compassion,” at the Auditorium of St Xavier’s College on Sept. 5, 2026. | Credit: Farrell Shah, Communications Director, Calcutta Archdiocese

Akkara, who is also a contributor to EWTN News, said his association with Mother Teresa began in 1995, when, at the age of 33, he was granted what he described as a “comprehensive” interview with her.“Since then, I pursued the Missionaries of Charity on crucial occasions, frequenting Kolkata often from the funeral of the Mother in 1997,” he said. Akkara has visited Kolkata more than two dozen times for international reporting.He said he proposed the documentary as the Missionaries of Charity approached their 75th anniversary, and the congregation agreed to the project. Atmadarshan TV, Indore, provided support for the production.The new 66-minute documentary builds on an earlier version produced for the congregation’s 75th Foundation Day in October 2025. Akkara subsequently reworked the film, adding more than a dozen new episodes and international accounts.The documentary traces Mother Teresa’s journey from her early work in India to the worldwide expansion of the Missionaries of Charity, highlighting episodes in Patna in 1948, Jharkhand in 1959, and New Delhi in 1961.It also examines the congregation’s work amid conflict, including the killings of MC sisters in Yemen in 1998 and 2016, the expulsion of the congregation from Nicaragua, and the decision of sisters to remain in Gaza and Ukraine amid bombardment.

Journalist and author Anto Akkara speaks at the premiere of his new documentary, “Mother Teresa – Prophet of Compassion,” at the Auditorium of St Xavier’s College on Sept. 5, 2026., hosted by the Archdiocese of Kolkata. | Credit: Farrell Shah, Communications Director, Calcutta Archdiocese| Credit: Farrell Shah, Communications Director, Calcutta Archdiocese

Among those featured in the film is legendary photographer Raghu Rai. The documentary also recalls appreciation expressed for Mother Teresa by Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru when inaugurating a new Shishu Bhavan building in New Delhi.Akkara said the film challenges allegations that Mother Teresa’s charitable work was primarily a vehicle for religious conversion and highlights her service to people living in extreme poverty, children, orphans, people with disabilities and mental illness, and those affected by leprosy.Several lesser-known stories included in the film illustrate the breadth of her work. The documentary notes that the distinctive blue-striped white cotton saris worn by MC sisters are woven by people affected by leprosy at the congregation’s Titagarh centre, dedicated to Mahatma Gandhi.

Archbishop Elias Frank speaks at the premiere of the new documentary “Mother Teresa – Prophet of Compassion,” at the Auditorium of St Xavier’s College on Sept. 5, 2026, hosted by the Archdiocese of Kolkata. | Credit: Farrell Shah, Communications Director, Calcutta Archdiocese

The film also recounts Mother Teresa’s efforts to persuade the Indian Air Force to plant trees at the MC leprosy home in Delhi and her decision to decline a papal invitation to the 1993 World Youth Day in Denver so that she could travel to Borduria in Arunachal Pradesh to intervene against the killing of infants born with deformities.Another story describes a raffle organized to raise funds for the leprosy hospital at Shanti Nagar by selling a popemobile reportedly donated to Mother Teresa following the 1964 World Eucharistic Congress in Mumbai.The documentary also recalls Mother Teresa’s request that the Nobel Committee cancel the customary banquet accompanying the Nobel Prize and use the money instead to help orphans in Kolkata.The film highlights the respect Mother Teresa received across religious and political lines, including appreciation from former President A.P.J. Abdul Kalam and former Prime Ministers Inder Kumar Gujral and Atal Bihari Vajpayee.The film also recounts Mother Teresa’s relationship with Jyoti Basu, the longtime Marxist chief minister of West Bengal. Basu, a friend of Mother Teresa, reportedly once remarked: “This lady makes me a bad Marxist, making me believe in Godliness.”

Over 200 people, including many Missionaries of Charity nuns and novices, attended the premiere of the new documentary “Mother Teresa – Prophet of Compassion” on Sept. 5, 2026, hosted by the Archdiocese of Kolkata. | Credit: Farrell Shah, Communications Director, Calcutta Archdiocese

In another example of her outreach across religious boundaries, Mother Teresa named an MC centre near Ranchi “Radharani Convent” in honor of a Hindu woman who donated land for a leprosy home in 1973.Born Anjezë Gonxhe Bojaxhiu in 1910 in present-day North Macedonia, Mother Teresa came to India in 1929 as a Loreto Sister and founded the Missionaries of Charity in 1950. The congregation has since expanded across the world, serving some of the poorest and most vulnerable communities. The new documentary presents that expansion as the story of a movement that seeks to “globalize compassion and care” while remaining rooted in the founder’s commitment to the destitute.

unitedyam September 7, 2026September 7, 2026

“Mother Teresa – Prophet of Compassion” premiered Sept. 5 in Kolkata, India, drawing more than 200 people, including dozens of Missionaries of Charity (MC) nuns, and novices.

unitedyam September 7, 2026September 7, 2026

James Van Allen, who was born in Iowa on Sept. 7, 1914, showed talent and interest in science and math from an early age. A major in physics from Wesleyan College in 1935 was followed by a Ph.D. in nuclear physics in 1939. Before and after World War II – during which he developed antiaircraftContinue reading “Sept. 7, 1914: The birth of James Van Allen”

The post Sept. 7, 1914: The birth of James Van Allen appeared first on Astronomy Magazine.

The Catholic Church has a lot to say about Labor Day — why? #Catholic As the U.S. celebrates Labor Day, Catholics have a wealth of resources in biblical interpretation, Church teaching, and social thought that address the nature of work and the place of the worker in society and in God’s creation.But are Catholics, and others, aware of these resources?One Catholic leader considering such questions is Father Sinclair Oubre, a priest of the Diocese of Beaumont, Texas. He is the spiritual moderator of the Catholic Labor Network, a Catholic association that promotes Catholic teaching about work and labor unions. It also supports labor organizing.“All work, no matter what the work is, is essential,” Oubre likes to say. In his view, if a woman in janitorial work at a major software company does not show up to clean the toilets and empty the trash, all production in the office will nosedive.Centuries of Catholic teaching about labor can be found compiled in the Compendium of the Social Doctrine of the Church, published in 2004 by the Pontifical Commission for Justice and Peace. It dedicates its entire sixth chapter to human work and labor, its place in God’s plan, its role in society, and the rights and duties of workers.“The Compendium gathers together in one place those rights that are found in Catholic social teaching, whether it’s Rerum Novarum, or Quadragesimo Anno, or Centesimus Annus, and synthesizes them,” Oubre told EWTN News, referring to the respective encyclicals of popes Leo XIII, Pius XI, and John Paul II.“It’s a beautiful reflection on human work in the world and a very mature and in-depth discussion of the place of work, the place of labor, and the communal nature of it,” Oubre said.Labor, politics, and spiritualityOubre said Catholic teaching is a challenge regardless of people’s political views.“It’s a challenge to the right, but it’s also a challenge to the left,” he said. Catholicism encourages those on the political right not simply to pray novenas and commit themselves to spiritual actions. It is a challenge not to leave other questions about work and labor to the market.For the political left, Catholic social teaching “means you have to enter into a more intimate relationship with your Church and your relationship with Jesus and not just be as a social justice person by throwing a couple of little quotes around. It requires you to enter into that deeper spiritual relationship.”Oubre stressed the importance of starting from the view of Catholic spirituality, not only social justice, because if we don’t, our approach “becomes ideological and polemic.” The spiritual approach “brings us closer to Jesus Christ.”“No matter how dirty, how uncomfortable, how awful the job is, we are participating in God’s ongoing creation. It’s important that we do that job in a way that gives glory to God,” Oubre said.God and man at workThe Compendium’s reflection on work begins with its biblical aspects: There is a human duty to “cultivate and care for the earth” and other good things created by God, it says. Work existed before the fall of Adam and Eve, and it is not a punishment or curse until the break with God transforms it into “toil and pain.” However, God’s rest on the seventh day of creation is the sign of the “fuller freedom” of the “eternal Sabbath.”The life of Jesus Christ is a mission of work, from his early life helping St. Joseph in the work of a carpenter to his ministry of preaching and healing, and most of all in his redemptive labors on the cross.The Compendium presents human labor as a way of supporting oneself and one’s loved ones but also a way to serve those in need. Work is a way to make God’s creation more beautiful, since humankind shares in God’s art and wisdom.“Human work, directed to charity as its final goal, becomes an occasion for contemplation, it becomes devout prayer, vigilantly rising towards and in anxious hope of the day that will not end,” the Compendium says.The rights of laborGod’s rest on the seventh day of creation, the Compendium says, means men and women must enjoy “sufficient rest and free time that will allow them to tend to their family, cultural, social, and religious life.”The Compendium outlines and explains the many rights of workers: the right to rest from work; the right to a working environment that is not harmful to a worker’s health or moral integrity; the right to unemployment protections; the right to a pension and insurance for old age, disability, and work-related accidents; the right to social security for working mothers; and the right to assemble and form associations; the right to just wages and remuneration; and the right to strike.Labor unions play a “fundamental role” in serving the common good and promoting social order and solidarity, though they must not abuse their role in society or become simply arms of a political party.“The recognition of workers’ rights has always been a difficult problem to resolve because this recognition takes place within complex historical and institutional processes, and still today it remains incomplete,” the Compendium says. “This makes the practice of authentic solidarity among workers more fitting and necessary than ever.”A challenge for Catholics and institutionsCatholic teaching has a lengthy paper record. But as in other areas, there is a challenge to practice it.“What I find over and over again that the Church — our Church — gives us wonderful documents of guidance… and we never go back and read them,” Oubre told EWTN News.He cited the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ 1996 pastoral letter “Economic Justice for All,” which says the Church should be a model for labor rights and treating workers justly.However, Oubre said that in his experience Catholic parishes often neglect to provide unemployment insurance to employees if the law allows them to opt out. Catholic institutions often act as “at-will” employers in which management can fire employees for any reason. They may show preferences for nonunion labor over unionized labor when planning and funding construction projects.“You’re going to undercut the guy who has actually followed the Church’s teachings in regards to work by hiring somebody who may be not offering medical insurance for his employees,” the priest lamented.For Labor Day, Oubre encouraged parishes, dioceses, and other institutions to make sure to adopt policies that put Catholic labor teaching into practice.This story was first published on Sept. 4, 2023, and has been updated.

unitedyam September 7, 2026September 7, 2026

“All work, no matter what the work is, is essential,” said Father Sinclair Oubre, spiritual moderator of the Catholic Labor Network.

Picture of the day

Flower bud of a Succisa pratensis. Focus stack of 36 photos. The main flower is about 11 mm in diameter.
#ImageOfTheDay

unitedyam September 7, 2026September 7, 2026

Picture of the day

Flower bud of a Succisa pratensis. Focus stack of 36 photos. The main flower is about 11 mm in diameter.

unitedyam September 6, 2026September 7, 2026

Behold me, my beloved Jesus,
weighed down under the burden of my trials and sufferings,
I cast myself at Your feet,
that You may renew my strength and my courage,
while I rest here in Your Presence.
Permit me to lay down my cross in Your Sacred Heart,
for only Your infinite goodness can sustain me;
only Your love can help me bear my cross;
only Your powerful hand can lighten its weight.
O Divine King, Jesus,
whose heart is so compassionate to the afflicted,
I wish to live …

unitedyam September 6, 2026September 7, 2026

A reading from the First Letter of St. Paul to Corinthians
5:1-8

Brothers and sisters:
It is widely reported that there is immorality among you,
and immorality of a kind not found even among pagans–
a man living with his father’s wife.
And you are inflated with pride.
Should you not rather have been sorrowful?
The one who did this deed should be expelled from your midst.
I, for my part, although absent in body but present in spirit,
have already, as if present,
pronounced judgment on the one who has committed this deed,
in the name of our Lord Jesus:
when you have gathered together and I am with you in spirit
with the power of the Lord Jesus,
you are to deliver this man to Satan
for the destruction of his flesh,
so that his spirit may be saved on the day of the Lord.

Your boasting is not appropriate.
Do you not know that a little yeast leavens all the dough?
Clear out the old yeast, so that you may become a fresh batch of dough,
inasmuch as you are unleavened.
For our Paschal Lamb, Christ, has been sacrificed.
Therefore, let us celebrate the feast,
not with the old yeast, the yeast of malice and wickedness,
but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.

From the Gospel according to Luke
6:6-11

On a certain sabbath Jesus went into the synagogue and taught,
and there was a man there whose right hand was withered.
The scribes and the Pharisees watched him closely
to see if he would cure on the sabbath
so that they might discover a reason to accuse him.
But he realized their intentions
and said to the man with the withered hand,
"Come up and stand before us."
And he rose and stood there.
Then Jesus said to them,
"I ask you, is it lawful to do good on the sabbath
rather than to do evil,
to save life rather than to destroy it?"
Looking around at them all, he then said to him,
"Stretch out your hand."
He did so and his hand was restored.
But they became enraged
and discussed together what they might do to Jesus.

In the Gospels, many pages tell of Jesus’ encounters with the sick and of his commitment to healing them. He presents himself publicly as one who fights against illness and who has come to heal mankind of every evil: evils of the spirit and evils of the body. (…) When a father or mother, or even just friends brought a sick person for him to touch and heal, he never let time be an issue; healing came before the law, even one as sacred as resting on the Sabbath (cf. Mk 3:1-6). The doctors of the law reproached Jesus because he healed on the Sabbath, he did good on the Sabbath. But the love of Jesus was in giving health, doing good: this always takes priority! (…) This is the glory of God! This is the Church’s task! To help the sick, not to get lost in gossip, always help, comfort, relieve, be close to the sick; this is the task. (Pope Francis, General Audience, 10 June 2015)

College Football Star Horrified He Might Be Drafted And Have To Take Huge Pay Cut #BabylonBee – TUSCALOOSA, AL — After putting on a superb performance in the season opener, young college football star Davis Mack began worrying that he could wind up in the NFL Draft and be forced to take a massive pay cut.

unitedyam September 6, 2026September 6, 2026

TUSCALOOSA, AL — After putting on a superb performance in the season opener, young college football star Davis Mack began worrying that he could wind up in the NFL Draft and be forced to take a massive pay cut.

Breaking: Justice Still In The Hands Of God #BabylonBee – U.S. — As news broke that the murder trial of Lindsay Clancy would end in a mistrial, Heaven released a statement reminding everyone that justice is still ultimately in the hands of God.

unitedyam September 6, 2026September 6, 2026

U.S. — As news broke that the murder trial of Lindsay Clancy would end in a mistrial, Heaven released a statement reminding everyone that justice is still ultimately in the hands of God.

The Pony Express Trail Is Nearly 2,000 Miles and Crosses 8 States—Here’s What It’s Like to Drive It in 10 Days #Travel This historic route is one of the best ways to see the American West, passing vast plains, mountains, and deserts.

unitedyam September 6, 2026September 7, 2026

This historic route is one of the best ways to see the American West, passing vast plains, mountains, and deserts.

The dangerous journey home for Christian communities in southern Lebanon – #Catholic – Along Lebanon’s southern border with Israel, three Christian villages have found themselves caught on the front line of a war they neither chose nor supported. Ain Ebel, Rmeich and Debl, known locally as the “Delta of Resilience”, are the last inhabited Christian towns in Lebanon’s border region. Since fighting between Israel and Hezbollah escalated into a full-scale war in 2024, residents have endured deaths, destruction and growing isolation from the rest of the country.Today, even returning home has become a grueling journey. With the usual roads damaged or inaccessible, residents must travel in organized convoys through military checkpoints and Israeli-occupied territory, an ordeal some have come to call “road to Calvary.”Convoys travel to the villages almost daily, usually accompanied by Caritas and the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL). Carrying humanitarian assistance, they usually include approximately 30 cars and trucks. Yet a journey that once took around two hours from Beirut can now last 12 hours or more.The day begins at approximately 5 a.m., and the convoy may not reach the villages until after 6 p.m. One of the first stops is a Lebanese Army checkpoint, where residents are required to remain inside their vehicles for hours. Meanwhile, the sound of airstrikes and the sight of their impact on the surrounding hills heighten the fear and tension.The convoy then enters roads running through Israeli-occupied territory, where Israeli flags line the route. At Naqoura, residents can see the Mediterranean Sea, which they are no longer permitted to access, before another period of waiting begins. This can last for hours, with passengers prohibited from leaving their vehicles, even in the summer heat.

Vehicles making the journey back to the Christian villages of southern Lebanon. | Credit: Romy Haber/ACI MENA

Just feet away, Israeli soldiers can be seen inside buildings they have taken over, while Israeli military vehicles pass alongside the convoy. Many residents describe the experience as humiliating: They are in their own country, yet must wait for permission from a foreign military to reach their homes. As the hours pass, one question remains: Will the convoy be permitted to proceed, or will they be forced to return to Beirut after an entire day of waiting?If permission is finally granted, the last stage of the journey begins. Residents travel along severely damaged roads, past destroyed houses and through routes that require vehicles capable of navigating the difficult terrain, before finally reaching their villages.Many of those making the journey are elderly or ill and had been forced to travel to Beirut for medical treatment. Some underwent surgery only days earlier yet must spend long hours inside a vehicle under the sun, sometimes without enough water or access to a bathroom.Others travel to the capital for life’s most basic necessities. Pregnant women go to Beirut to give birth and then make the difficult return journey with their newborn babies, while parents travel to enroll their children in universities. The convoys often transport livestock, including pigs and cattle, some of which have died after being kept for hours in the intense heat.Maroun Louka, a father who was waiting in a convoy with his wife and children after a medical emergency forced the family to travel to Beirut, told ACI MENA the hardship begins even before the journey itself, with the registration of names and the wait for approval.“We are suffering greatly,” he said. “Sometimes we wait an entire week to receive approval and be able to return to our village.”“My uncle and my cousin were killed. Our homes were damaged, as were my brothers’ homes,” Louka continued. “I cannot even reach my olive press or my house. Life is extremely harsh and difficult.”Asked why he was determined to return, Louka said his family had no alternative. “Our parents and grandparents are deeply rooted in this village. They spent their lives here, and some were killed and buried here. Can we, today, simply come and abandon it? No. Leaving it would be extremely difficult.”While the journey reveals the harsh realities of war and occupation, it also reflects the faith, strength and resilience of those who continue to live in these villages.Father Najib al-Amil, a priest in Rmeish, told ACI MENA that the Church has played a central role in helping residents remain on their land.“Through our homilies, we encouraged the people and led them in prayer,” he said. “Every day, we prayed the rosary and held Eucharistic adoration.”The priests also encouraged parish groups to remain active by visiting the sick, checking on families and assisting the poor and others in need.Asked how the Vatican has supported the community, Father al-Amil pointed to the presence of Archbishop Paolo Borgia, the apostolic nuncio to Lebanon, whom he calls “the saintly nuncio.”“Despite the danger, the strikes and the shelling, he continued to come,” the priest said. “He insisted on reaching us here, sitting with the people, speaking with them and celebrating Mass with us.”The resilience of these communities is also sustained by Catholic organizations providing the material assistance families need to remain in their homes.Father Samir Ghaoui, president of Caritas Lebanon, said there had been a clear decision by the Maronite Church and the wider Catholic Church to stand beside these Christian villages, and ensure that their essential needs were met.“Since the beginning of the war, we have not abandoned them. Our decision was that we would stand beside every Christian household that chose to remain in its home and on its land. We will try to provide everything they need,” Father Ghaoui said. “They have the right to live with dignity in their own homes and with their families.”He expressed hope that residents would one day be able to support themselves once again through their own work.“But as long as there is war and as long as there is need, we at Caritas, in the name of the Church, will remain beside them,” he said. “Whatever the difficulties, we will continue finding a way to reach them.”This story was first published by ACI MENA, the Arabic-language sister service of EWTN News. It has been translated and adapted by EWTN News English.

unitedyam September 6, 2026September 6, 2026

With the usual roads damaged or inaccessible, residents must travel in organized convoys through military checkpoints and Israeli-occupied territory, an ordeal some call “road to Calvary.”

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