![Catholic Church in U.S. to focus National Migration Week on migrant children – #Catholic – The situations faced by migrant and refugee children will be the focus of the U.S. Catholic Churchʼs 2026 National Migration Week, addressing the same concerns expressed by Pope Leo XIV in his message for this yearʼs World Day of Migrants and Refugees.National Migration Week will begin on Monday, Sept. 21, and conclude on Sunday, Sept. 27, the day the Catholic Church observes the 112th World Day of Migrants and Refugees.On its website, the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) announced that in solidarity with the pontiff, it will adopt the theme “Even One of These Little Ones,” the same theme chosen by Leo XIV for the global observance.In his message, Leo XIV explains that this theme “draws our attention to the minors directly involved in the experience of migration and flight, to the care owed to them, and to the Lord’s promise that “whoever receives one such child in my name receives me.’”The chairman of the USCCB Committee on Migration, Bishop Brendan Cahill, noted that the Catholic Church, “in this country and beyond has a long, inspiring history of caring for migrant and refugee children.”In the United States, this history spans “from the days of St. Frances Xavier Cabrini and her sisters sheltering many orphaned immigrant children when few others looked their way to today’s diocesan charities providing them and their families with vital support,” he noted.The Italian saint and her sisters arrived in New York in 1889, where they encountered a very harsh pastoral reality among European immigrants. Yet, despite the difficulties, the sisters managed to open an orphanage, a home for themselves, and a school for the children.Cahill expressed his gratitude to law enforcement officers, social workers, pastoral staff, and caregivers who look after the safety and well-being of migrant and refugee minors.However, he added, “[a]s we see protections for this population being undermined in various ways, including prolonged stays in detention and decreased access to legal representation, we urge governments and communities to ensure a high level of care rooted in their God-given human dignity.”“This requires promoting family unity and reunification whenever possible,” he said.Therefore, the USCCB invited the nation’s Catholics amid “heightened social tensions regarding immigration” to reflect “on how our faith is calling us to respond to this most vulnerable group.”Toward this end, the bishops’ conference is encouraging “dioceses, parishes, schools, and organizations nationwide to mark this observance with prayer, educational programs, pastoral outreach and support for migration-related ministries.”For its part, the USCCB’s Secretariat of Migration will host a webinar on Sept. 23 at 2 p.m. ET featuring “several expert panelists who will highlight some of the key implications of this yearʼs theme."“These experts will shed light on both the international and domestic dynamics facing children in the context of migration,” the bishops’ conference explained.Those interested in participating in the webinar may register at this link.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.](https://unitedyam.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/09/catholic-church-in-u-s-to-focus-national-migration-week-on-migrant-children-catholic-the-situations-faced-by-migrant-and-refugee-children-will-be-the-focus-of-the-u-s-catholic-churchcabcs-202-scaled.jpg "Catholic Church in U.S. to focus National Migration Week on migrant children – #Catholic – The situations faced by migrant and refugee children will be the focus of the U.S. Catholic Churchʼs 2026 National Migration Week, addressing the same concerns expressed by Pope Leo XIV in his message for this yearʼs World Day of Migrants and Refugees.National Migration Week will begin on Monday, Sept. 21, and conclude on Sunday, Sept. 27, the day the Catholic Church observes the 112th World Day of Migrants and Refugees.On its website, the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) announced that in solidarity with the pontiff, it will adopt the theme “Even One of These Little Ones,” the same theme chosen by Leo XIV for the global observance.In his message, Leo XIV explains that this theme “draws our attention to the minors directly involved in the experience of migration and flight, to the care owed to them, and to the Lord’s promise that “whoever receives one such child in my name receives me.’”The chairman of the USCCB Committee on Migration, Bishop Brendan Cahill, noted that the Catholic Church, “in this country and beyond has a long, inspiring history of caring for migrant and refugee children.”In the United States, this history spans “from the days of St. Frances Xavier Cabrini and her sisters sheltering many orphaned immigrant children when few others looked their way to today’s diocesan charities providing them and their families with vital support,” he noted.The Italian saint and her sisters arrived in New York in 1889, where they encountered a very harsh pastoral reality among European immigrants. Yet, despite the difficulties, the sisters managed to open an orphanage, a home for themselves, and a school for the children.Cahill expressed his gratitude to law enforcement officers, social workers, pastoral staff, and caregivers who look after the safety and well-being of migrant and refugee minors.However, he added, “[a]s we see protections for this population being undermined in various ways, including prolonged stays in detention and decreased access to legal representation, we urge governments and communities to ensure a high level of care rooted in their God-given human dignity.”“This requires promoting family unity and reunification whenever possible,” he said.Therefore, the USCCB invited the nation’s Catholics amid “heightened social tensions regarding immigration” to reflect “on how our faith is calling us to respond to this most vulnerable group.”Toward this end, the bishops’ conference is encouraging “dioceses, parishes, schools, and organizations nationwide to mark this observance with prayer, educational programs, pastoral outreach and support for migration-related ministries.”For its part, the USCCB’s Secretariat of Migration will host a webinar on Sept. 23 at 2 p.m. ET featuring “several expert panelists who will highlight some of the key implications of this yearʼs theme.\"“These experts will shed light on both the international and domestic dynamics facing children in the context of migration,” the bishops’ conference explained.Those interested in participating in the webinar may register at this link.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.")
Following Pope Leo’s lead and building on the legacy of St. Frances Cabrini, who opened orphanages among the migrant population, U.S. bishops are drawing attention to the needs of migrant children.
![Catholics worldwide invited to join Global Rosary for Peace – #Catholic – Catholics around the world are invited to join in prayer for the Global Rosary for Peace taking place on Oct. 22, the feast of St. John Paul II.The event is an international prayer initiative that aims to bring together families, parishes, schools, religious communities, and individuals from around the world in response to Pope Leo XIV’s call for the Church to pray the rosary for peace.The Global Rosary for Peace is organized by Holy Cross Family Ministries and is part of its efforts to strengthen family prayer and encourage the faithful to pray the rosary. The initiative received the pope’s blessing last year and over 67,000 people prayed the rosary live during the first global event.Father Fred Jenga, CSC, president of Holy Cross Family Ministries (HCFM), told EWTN News that the first Global Rosary for Peace was created due to several global crises taking place and the need for prayer.“There is always some kind of global crisis that is going on that really calls us to pray more,” he said. “Last year it was all the conflicts that were everywhere. Some of them have sort of died down a little bit but we still have more going on as well in this very year that we are in. So we are just picking up from where we left off. So that we invite people again to pray more.”Currently, over 95,000 people have signed up to take part in this year’s live, global rosary.HCFM was founded by Venerable Patrick Peyton, an Irish-born Catholic priest who was known as the “rosary priest” and for his famous phrase “a family that prays together stays together.”With this at the core of its ministry, HCFM desires to “bring God back into the life of families because we know when God is at the center of the families, especially through prayer, regular prayer, God changes the chemistry in those families because God is love, God is kindness,” Jenga explained.“God created our families. And they will be restless and weak and all over the place until they allow [God] to be the center,” he said.Jenga also spoke about the importance of praying the rosary specifically.“When we pray the rosary on a family level, the heart of the rosary is the mysteries of the rosary, and those mysteries speak to every human season that you can think about,” he shared. “We go through joy, we go through sorrow, we go through mission, we go through celebration or glory. So there you have a set of mysteries that you can pray with through any season that youʼre talking about.”The priest also pointed out that when we look at the saints, nearly all of them share two characteristics: a love for the Eucharist and a love for the rosary.“So, in their path to sanctity, these are the two rails that they ran on. And if we also desire the same kind of sanctity and strength in our families, right there is really a formula for us that we can be able to employ to help ourselves as a family and also to help ourselves as individuals,” Jenga said.He added: “We’re at a time of need in our world right now. There are too many conflicts that are going on and we need a favor for global peace, and the rosary is one of those prayers that weʼre turning to because even throughout history, every time there was a global crisis, the Church, even our Blessed Mother, if she appeared, she asked us to pray the rosary.”For those who participate in the Global Rosary for Peace, Jenga said he hopes they are “able to renew their belief in the power of prayer.”“Secondly, this can be a jumping-off point for them to get started, in smaller ways, praying in their own families and for the needs in their families, but also keep praying for our world at this time.”To take part and register for the Global Rosary of Peace visit https://hcfm.org/pray-for-peace/.](https://unitedyam.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/09/catholics-worldwide-invited-to-join-global-rosary-for-peace-catholic-catholics-around-the-world-are-invited-to-join-in-prayer-for-the-global-rosary-for-peace-taking-place-on-oct-22-the-feast-of.png "Catholics worldwide invited to join Global Rosary for Peace – #Catholic – Catholics around the world are invited to join in prayer for the Global Rosary for Peace taking place on Oct. 22, the feast of St. John Paul II.The event is an international prayer initiative that aims to bring together families, parishes, schools, religious communities, and individuals from around the world in response to Pope Leo XIV’s call for the Church to pray the rosary for peace.The Global Rosary for Peace is organized by Holy Cross Family Ministries and is part of its efforts to strengthen family prayer and encourage the faithful to pray the rosary. The initiative received the pope’s blessing last year and over 67,000 people prayed the rosary live during the first global event.Father Fred Jenga, CSC, president of Holy Cross Family Ministries (HCFM), told EWTN News that the first Global Rosary for Peace was created due to several global crises taking place and the need for prayer.“There is always some kind of global crisis that is going on that really calls us to pray more,” he said. “Last year it was all the conflicts that were everywhere. Some of them have sort of died down a little bit but we still have more going on as well in this very year that we are in. So we are just picking up from where we left off. So that we invite people again to pray more.”Currently, over 95,000 people have signed up to take part in this year’s live, global rosary.HCFM was founded by Venerable Patrick Peyton, an Irish-born Catholic priest who was known as the “rosary priest” and for his famous phrase “a family that prays together stays together.”With this at the core of its ministry, HCFM desires to “bring God back into the life of families because we know when God is at the center of the families, especially through prayer, regular prayer, God changes the chemistry in those families because God is love, God is kindness,” Jenga explained.“God created our families. And they will be restless and weak and all over the place until they allow [God] to be the center,” he said.Jenga also spoke about the importance of praying the rosary specifically.“When we pray the rosary on a family level, the heart of the rosary is the mysteries of the rosary, and those mysteries speak to every human season that you can think about,” he shared. “We go through joy, we go through sorrow, we go through mission, we go through celebration or glory. So there you have a set of mysteries that you can pray with through any season that youʼre talking about.”The priest also pointed out that when we look at the saints, nearly all of them share two characteristics: a love for the Eucharist and a love for the rosary.“So, in their path to sanctity, these are the two rails that they ran on. And if we also desire the same kind of sanctity and strength in our families, right there is really a formula for us that we can be able to employ to help ourselves as a family and also to help ourselves as individuals,” Jenga said.He added: “We’re at a time of need in our world right now. There are too many conflicts that are going on and we need a favor for global peace, and the rosary is one of those prayers that weʼre turning to because even throughout history, every time there was a global crisis, the Church, even our Blessed Mother, if she appeared, she asked us to pray the rosary.”For those who participate in the Global Rosary for Peace, Jenga said he hopes they are “able to renew their belief in the power of prayer.”“Secondly, this can be a jumping-off point for them to get started, in smaller ways, praying in their own families and for the needs in their families, but also keep praying for our world at this time.”To take part and register for the Global Rosary of Peace visit https://hcfm.org/pray-for-peace/.")
![EWTN News explains: What does a diocese do when a priest is accused of misconduct? – #Catholic – News headlines in recent years have periodically reported on Catholic priests accused of various types of misconduct, including financial crimes and sexual abuse, among other allegations. Much of the public will only be aware of the beginning and the end of such controversies — when a clergyman is accused of a misdeed and when he is ultimately either found guilty of it or cleared of any wrongdoing. But U.S. dioceses have complex and at times lengthy ways of addressing such allegations — processes that ensure both a full treatment of the alleged misconduct and the rights of priests to be presumed innocent until proven otherwise. ‘The smoke of truth’Monsignor William King, JCD, serves as an assistant professor of canon law at The Catholic University of America. His academic expertise includes the study of both canon and civil law as well as the study of “temporal goods” such as Church finance and corporate structure. King told EWTN News that bishops who receive allegations of wrongdoing against priests must first determine if there is sufficient credibility to the allegations, a principle he said in canon law is known as “fumus veritatis,” or “the smoke of truth.”“It’s not proof [of the allegations] in any way,” King said, “but if there’s sufficient suspicion that it might be truth, then the bishop would accept that allegation” and launch what is known as a “prior investigation” meant to gather facts. Amid the start of the process, King said, a bishop may or may not remove the priest from ministry if he “felt that it was necessary for any of several reasons.” After that he would appoint an investigator, who may or may not be a priest, to lead the inquiry. “That person is bound to secrecy so as to protect the reputation of the priest, and any of the accusers and witnesses,” King said. Such an investigator has “pretty broad powers” to ask questions of, and seek evidence from, those connected to the case. After that process, he or she would bring the results to the bishop.The prelate would likely then speak to his canon law experts. He may also talk with mental health experts and could potentially order the priest to submit to a psychological assessment. “That’s not uncommon, and depending on the nature of the allegations, it might be appropriate,” King said.After the fact-finding and consultation process, the bishop will decide whether or not to move forward with a criminal or penal process. In some cases, the ordinary may opt instead for a “penal remedy.““It could be a warning or rebuke, or a ‘penal precept’ — a formal document that prohibits the priest from undertaking certain actions or doing certain things,” King said. A precept, he said, can be used even in cases where no crime is committed, to ensure that the actions that led to the controversy are not repeated.If a penal process is instigated, the preferred method for most bishops is to convene a tribunal; in some cases, a prelate may opt for a less formal “administrative process.” Either option involves the calling of witnesses, testimony from both the accuser and the accused, and the collection of additional evidence. Tribunals are usually overseen by three judges, King said; they must be priests, and "they would typically be brought in from other dioceses.”Tribunals are meant to determine both whether a priest committed a crime, King said, as well as whether or not the crime itself is “fully imputable” to the priest. Sexual abuse allegations: Rome must be notifiedThe process is largely the same whether the allegations involve claims of administrative or professional misconduct or if they involve accusations of sexual abuse, King said. However, allegations against a priest of abuse of a minor are “reserved to the Holy See,” he said. In those cases, following the results of a preliminary investigation, a bishop is obligated to send a summary of the case, including the evidence, to the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith, specifically its special disciplinary section. “[The dicastery] will review that and instruct the bishop as to what type of process should be followed — administrative or judicial,” King said.“When the bishop sends the initial dossier or file over, most of the time he will make a recommendation” as to which process should be followed, King said. A bishop in certain cases may recommend “no process, or another remedy or way of addressing the situation.”The dicastery “will take that into consideration. But ultimately, they make the determination, and the bishop is bound to follow their direction,” King said.The Vatican can approve or reject a diocese’s decision if the matter is reserved to Rome, King said. In all other cases, it is resolved domestically either via administrative process or tribunal.A priest, King said, can appeal a diocese’s decision to the Roman Rota if he wishes.](https://unitedyam.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/09/ewtn-news-explains-what-does-a-diocese-do-when-a-priest-is-accused-of-misconduct-catholic-news-headlines-in-recent-years-have-periodically-reported-on-catholic-priests-accused-of-various-types.jpg "EWTN News explains: What does a diocese do when a priest is accused of misconduct? – #Catholic – News headlines in recent years have periodically reported on Catholic priests accused of various types of misconduct, including financial crimes and sexual abuse, among other allegations. Much of the public will only be aware of the beginning and the end of such controversies — when a clergyman is accused of a misdeed and when he is ultimately either found guilty of it or cleared of any wrongdoing. But U.S. dioceses have complex and at times lengthy ways of addressing such allegations — processes that ensure both a full treatment of the alleged misconduct and the rights of priests to be presumed innocent until proven otherwise. ‘The smoke of truth’Monsignor William King, JCD, serves as an assistant professor of canon law at The Catholic University of America. His academic expertise includes the study of both canon and civil law as well as the study of “temporal goods” such as Church finance and corporate structure. King told EWTN News that bishops who receive allegations of wrongdoing against priests must first determine if there is sufficient credibility to the allegations, a principle he said in canon law is known as “fumus veritatis,” or “the smoke of truth.”“It’s not proof [of the allegations] in any way,” King said, “but if there’s sufficient suspicion that it might be truth, then the bishop would accept that allegation” and launch what is known as a “prior investigation” meant to gather facts. Amid the start of the process, King said, a bishop may or may not remove the priest from ministry if he “felt that it was necessary for any of several reasons.” After that he would appoint an investigator, who may or may not be a priest, to lead the inquiry. “That person is bound to secrecy so as to protect the reputation of the priest, and any of the accusers and witnesses,” King said. Such an investigator has “pretty broad powers” to ask questions of, and seek evidence from, those connected to the case. After that process, he or she would bring the results to the bishop.The prelate would likely then speak to his canon law experts. He may also talk with mental health experts and could potentially order the priest to submit to a psychological assessment. “That’s not uncommon, and depending on the nature of the allegations, it might be appropriate,” King said.After the fact-finding and consultation process, the bishop will decide whether or not to move forward with a criminal or penal process. In some cases, the ordinary may opt instead for a “penal remedy.““It could be a warning or rebuke, or a ‘penal precept’ — a formal document that prohibits the priest from undertaking certain actions or doing certain things,” King said. A precept, he said, can be used even in cases where no crime is committed, to ensure that the actions that led to the controversy are not repeated.If a penal process is instigated, the preferred method for most bishops is to convene a tribunal; in some cases, a prelate may opt for a less formal “administrative process.” Either option involves the calling of witnesses, testimony from both the accuser and the accused, and the collection of additional evidence. Tribunals are usually overseen by three judges, King said; they must be priests, and \"they would typically be brought in from other dioceses.”Tribunals are meant to determine both whether a priest committed a crime, King said, as well as whether or not the crime itself is “fully imputable” to the priest. Sexual abuse allegations: Rome must be notifiedThe process is largely the same whether the allegations involve claims of administrative or professional misconduct or if they involve accusations of sexual abuse, King said. However, allegations against a priest of abuse of a minor are “reserved to the Holy See,” he said. In those cases, following the results of a preliminary investigation, a bishop is obligated to send a summary of the case, including the evidence, to the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith, specifically its special disciplinary section. “[The dicastery] will review that and instruct the bishop as to what type of process should be followed — administrative or judicial,” King said.“When the bishop sends the initial dossier or file over, most of the time he will make a recommendation” as to which process should be followed, King said. A bishop in certain cases may recommend “no process, or another remedy or way of addressing the situation.”The dicastery “will take that into consideration. But ultimately, they make the determination, and the bishop is bound to follow their direction,” King said.The Vatican can approve or reject a diocese’s decision if the matter is reserved to Rome, King said. In all other cases, it is resolved domestically either via administrative process or tribunal.A priest, King said, can appeal a diocese’s decision to the Roman Rota if he wishes.")
A diocesan bishop will usually undertake a lengthy investigation and administrative process when responding to misconduct or abuse allegations.
Looking for a sky event this week? Check out our full Sky This Week column. September 20: Juno’s movement Rising around 7:30 P.M. local daylight time, Saturn reaches an altitude above 40° in the southeast by local midnight. Visible to the naked eye, it is the brightest point of light in this region of the sky, sittingContinue reading “The Sky Today on Monday, September 21: Saturn passes a field star”
The post The Sky Today on Monday, September 21: Saturn passes a field star appeared first on Astronomy Magazine.
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The 27-year-old model Presley Gerber, son of supermodel Cindy Crawford and her entrepreneur husband Rande Gerber, has died.
The post BREAKING TRAGEDY: 27-Yr-Old Son Of Supermodel Cindy Crawford and Randy Gerber Has Died appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.
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President Trump on Sunday posted a video of himself practicing his golf swing with golf star Bryson DeChambeau.
The post President Trump Practices His Swing with Golf Star Bryson DeChambeau (VIDEO) appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.
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The Gateway Pundit reported on Motaz Azaiza, a reporter from Gaza who documented life in Gaza following the Palestinian raid on southern Egypt on October 7th and the murder of 1,200 Jews, including young adults at a concert targeted by the barbarians.
The post Look Who Else is Cozying Up to Gaza Reporter Who Hid Atrocities to Protect Terrorists appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.
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As an alternative to bustling Paris, visit these picturesque towns and villages, where the crowds are fewer and the pace is slower.
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A reading from the Letter of St. Paul to the Ephesians
4:1-7, 11-13
Brothers and sisters:
I, a prisoner for the Lord,
urge you to live in a manner worthy of the call you have received,
with all humility and gentleness, with patience,
bearing with one another through love,
striving to preserve the unity of the Spirit
through the bond of peace:
one Body and one Spirit,
as you were also called to the one hope of your call;
one Lord, one faith, one baptism;
one God and Father of all,
who is over all and through all and in all.
But grace was given to each of us
according to the measure of Christ’s gift.
And he gave some as Apostles, others as prophets,
others as evangelists, others as pastors and teachers,
to equip the holy ones for the work of ministry,
for building up the Body of Christ,
until we all attain to the unity of faith
and knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood,
to the extent of the full stature of Christ.
From the Gospel according to Matthew
9:9-13
As Jesus passed by,
he saw a man named Matthew sitting at the customs post.
He said to him, "Follow me."
And he got up and followed him.
While he was at table in his house,
many tax collectors and sinners came
and sat with Jesus and his disciples.
The Pharisees saw this and said to his disciples,
"Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?"
He heard this and said,
"Those who are well do not need a physician, but the sick do.
Go and learn the meaning of the words,
I desire mercy, not sacrifice.
I did not come to call the righteous but sinners."
"I desire steadfast love and not sacrifice, the knowledge of God, rather than burnt offerings" (Hos 6: 6). It is a key word, one of those that bring us into the heart of Sacred Scripture. The context in which Jesus makes it his own is the calling of Matthew, a "publican" by profession, in other words a tax collector for the Roman imperial authority: for this reason the Jews considered him a public sinner. Having called Matthew precisely when he was sitting at his tax counter – this scene is vividly depicted in a very famous painting by Caravaggio -, Jesus took his disciples to Matthew’s home and sat at the table together with other publicans. To the scandalized Pharisees he answered: "Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick…. For I came not to call the righteous, but sinners" (Mt 9: 12-13). Here, the Evangelist Matthew, ever attentive to the link between the Old and New Testaments, puts Hosea’s prophecy on Jesus’ lips: "Go and learn what this means, "I desire mercy, and not sacrifice’". (…) God’s words have come down to us, through the Gospels, as a synthesis of the entire Christian message: true religion consists in love of God and neighbour. This is what gives value to worship and to the practice of the precepts. (Pope Benedict XVI, Angelus, 8 giugno 2008)
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Cape Burhan with Shamanka Rock. The rock formation is made of white marble, dolomite, limestone, with inclusions of garnet, quartz and graphite. Olkhon Island, Lake Baikal, Russia.
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In his Sunday Angelus catechesis, the pontiff reflected on the parable of the vineyard workers, saying God’s generosity overturns human calculations of merit and reward.
While the Catholic Church is often viewed from a Latin rite prism, it also includes 23 Eastern Churches that are in full communion as part of the one Catholic fold.
A prayer pilgrimage from Byblos to Annaya aims to offer solidarity and hope to Christians in southern Lebanon.
Looking for a sky event this week? Check out our full Sky This Week column. September 19: Mars meets Pollux Now is the best time to catch 145-mile-wide 3 Juno as it passes through a random collection of 9th- and 10th-magnitude stars. Now located in far southern Aquila near its border with Sagittarius, Juno glows at magnitude 9.6.Continue reading “The Sky Today on Sunday, September 20: Juno’s movement”
The post The Sky Today on Sunday, September 20: Juno’s movement appeared first on Astronomy Magazine.
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The Baltimore archbishop gave the keynote address to the Council of Major Superiors of Women Religious meeting in Missouri.
UC Berkeley engineers and managers watch as the COSI (Compton Spectrometer and Imager) detector assembly is slowly raised from a table in this July 8, 2026, image.
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The holy day for Jews involves fasting and atonement and is held in late September or early October.
Brighten lives of those in need through Diocesan Ministries Appeal #Catholic – 
This weekend, Sept. 19 to 20, the Paterson Diocese, N.J., will commence its 2026 Diocesan Ministries Appeal (DMA) in parishes, inviting local faithful to “Be a Good Samaritan” — the theme for this year’s Appeal — in supporting the good works of the Church of Paterson for those in most need.
The annual DMA helps fund ministries that serve the poor, sick, and needy through diocesan Catholic Charities; city school students; educational needs for diocesan seminarians; and priests’ healthcare, including support for Nazareth Village, the diocesan home for retired priests in Chester.
For the Kick-Off Weekend, each parish’s Lay Appeal Chairperson will speak at Mass, encouraging participation in the 2026 DMA. The In-Pew Commitment Weekend will be Oct. 24 and 25. At that time, the pastor in each parish will play Bishop Sweeney’s DMA video or his audio homily at all Masses and lead the In-Pew process.
Last year, through the generosity of the faithful, the Appeal raised almost $5.7 million in pledges with almost $1.3 million in parish rebates.
In a video to promote the 2026 DMA, Bishop Kevin J. Sweeney said Jesus teaches us through the Parable of the Good Samaritan “that we are called to go to those who are in need to help our brothers and sisters who are most in need.”
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“Your support of the Appeal helps us…serve as Jesus calls us to serve. Thank you for your prayerful consideration, and I hope that you’ll be able to make a gift or a pledge to our annual appeal, and truly be a Good Samaritan,” Bishop Sweeney said in the video.
Last year will be the final allocation of DMA funds for a three-year, $600,000 grant for the complete renovation of Father English Food Pantry in Paterson, N.J., at $200,000 annually, said Tim Potter, diocesan development director.
“The food pantry assists thousands of people each month, and the building needed to be retrofitted to expand space for food and clothing,” Potter said. “The new layout also allows for space for people needing emergency services as well as English as a Second Language and computer classes. The incredible generosity of the faithful helped make this possible,” he said.
In addition to the usual support for Catholic Charities’ work, this year’s DMA is also funding the At-Risk Youth program in Paterson and providing funds to purchase a handicapped-accessible van to support the important work of the Department for Persons with Disabilities of Catholic Charities, Potter said.
The largest percentage of Appeal funds supports Catholic Charities. The agency reaches out to give help and hope to people in poverty with programs such as food pantries in each of the diocese’s three counties and emergency housing and homelessness prevention.
Catholic Charities also has programs that aid at-risk youth, people with physical and developmental disabilities, people with HIV/AIDS, senior citizens, veterans, and men and women battling addiction through the agency’s Straight and Narrow substance treatment program in Paterson.
The DMA also helps seminarians preparing for a lifetime of service to the Church by funding their education, as well as retired priests who have faithfully served the diocese for decades. The DMA supports priests’ extraordinary healthcare needs as well as Nazareth Village, the diocesan priests’ retirement residence in Chester, N.J.
The generous support of the Diocesan Ministries Appeal has made it possible to provide a faith-filled, excellent Catholic education to students in economically challenged urban areas — a mission that continues to thrive.
Through the Parish Rebate program, half of the amount received over the parish goal is returned to parishes for their own needs. Last year’s Appeal returned almost $1.3 million directly to parishes.
Potter said the Appeal theme, “Be A Good Samaritan,” is “a reminder that we are called to care for our neighbors in need. The Diocesan Ministries Appeal is a concrete way to make that happen. When you give to the Appeal, you are truly transforming lives.”
There are ways to give to DMA:
• One-time gift or pledges paid over several months with reminders sent for your convenience.
• Credit card contributions- see information on your pledge card or call 973-777-8818, ext. 263 for details.
• Online gifts- go to www.2026appeal.org andfollow instructions for pledging.
• Recurring monthly gift– visit www.2026appeal.org and choose the Recurring Gift Option that will help people in need now and in the future. You can discontinue your recurring gift at any time. For more information, call 973-777-8818, ext. 263.
• Gifts can also be made through stocks, matching gifts, and/or an IRA. The EIN is 22-1493174. Make donations under the organization name: Roman Catholic Diocese of Paterson. Contact Aimee Landestoy at 973-777-8818 ext. 282 after you make your gift so we can credit your donation properly.
– This weekend, Sept. 19 to 20, the Paterson Diocese, N.J., will commence its 2026 Diocesan Ministries Appeal (DMA) in parishes, inviting local faithful to “Be a Good Samaritan” — the theme for this year’s Appeal — in supporting the good works of the Church of Paterson for those in most need. The annual DMA helps fund ministries that serve the poor, sick, and needy through diocesan Catholic Charities; city school students; educational needs for diocesan seminarians; and priests’ healthcare, including support for Nazareth Village, the diocesan home for retired priests in Chester. For the Kick-Off Weekend, each parish’s Lay Appeal
The Bishops’ Conference of Nigeria has called for prayer and fasting on December 8 for the success of the country’s general elections, calling on Nigerians to prepare spiritually for the polls.
![From ‘Farmer Wants a Wife’ to Catholic content creator: John Sansone’s journey of faith – #Catholic – In 2025, John Sansone made his television debut when he appeared on Fox’s reality dating show “Farmer Wants a Wife” as one of the farmers in search of love. Today, he has traded in the television screen for cellphone screens as a Catholic content creator.Sansone, 27, was born and raised in a Catholic family. He and his five siblings grew up in St. Louis, where their faith played an important role in their daily lives.“Catholicism was ingrained in just about every aspect of my childhood and my life growing up,” Sansone told EWTN News in an interview. “We were taught from a very young age that faith was extremely important. It came right before family and then two before hard work.”He added: “We had a little prayer corner in every house that weʼve lived in that had a picture of Jesus and then right underneath was a kneeler and then a bunch of little pamphlets — prayer cards or funerals of loved ones, and things like that.”Sansone was taught hard work on his family’s 170-acre soy, corn, and wheat farm located on his great-grandfather’s land. It was here that he learned about farm life.Fast forward to 2024 and Sansone’s mother and sisters were watching Season 2 of “Farmer Wants a Wife,” a reality dating series that follows farmers as they search for love among a group of women willing to leave city life behind for a chance at a relationship and life on the farm. The show combines romance with the realities of rural life, as the farmers and contestants get to know one another with the possibility of building a future together.“They were constantly telling me to come watch it and see an episode and things like that and I just kept saying, ‘No, not interested,’” he recalled.Then Sansone received a direct message (DM) on Instagram from the creators of the show. After thinking about it and speaking to his family about it, he decided to take part in the show.“Realistically, the motivation for me to actually entertain that DM and to ultimately go on the show was, hey, this is a fun, random, once in a lifetime thing. I can make the most of it … and perhaps even find a wife,” he said.Despite Sansone not finding a wife on the show, he reflected that it “reinforced his faith.”“There were no Catholics in my group. I was the only one … I think what it really did is reinforced my faith a little bit because we would have these faith-based conversations on the show and we would have conversations about our beliefs and things like that and it kind of forced me to reconcile with myself what I actually did believe. So I would say that in doing that it reinforced my faith,” he shared.Coming off the show and once it aired, Sansone began to gain a following on social media. He explained that he came to the realization one day that he “didn’t do anything to earn it.”“All of this kind of fame and publicity, I would say in air quotes, is not something that I earned,” he said. “So, my way of paying back that opportunity, that was obviously a gift from God, was to use my platform to promote my faith.”Sansone, who goes by @notjohnsansone on Instagram, has 109,000 followers on the platform and uses his growing social media platform to share approachable Catholic content, often drawing from his own experiences to encourage others in their faith. His posts touch on Catholic teachings, prayer, and the realities of striving for holiness while acknowledging the imperfections and struggles of everyday life.Instagram post“The social media world is not the friendliest spot for that type of thing,” he said. “So, my way of doing it and my strategy is more so kind of to subtly incorporate that into everyday things and make it a relatable thing that people who donʼt understand the faith or maybe didnʼt grow up in it, itʼs something for them to relate to.”Thanks to his content creating, Sansone admitted that it has “forced me to improve my faith” and has “strengthened it.”“Iʼve met a lot of interesting people through it [social media]. People who are much stronger in their faith, know a lot more about the Catholic Church and her history,” he added. “And in being around them, I think Iʼve forced myself to kind of become better at my faith.”Sansone’s content creation recently took him to Peoria, Illinois, ahead of the beatification of Venerable Fulton Sheen alongside a large group of other Catholic content creators. He called the experience “incredible” and that he also “learned a lot about my faith and it kind of made me realize how far I needed to go still.”Reflecting on Sheen’s life and how his legacy can inspire Catholic content creators, Sansone said: “I think what was great about him is that a lot of his messages were, yes, based in the Catholic faith, but they were more relatable to an everyday person. You didnʼt have to be Catholic to utilize his messages and apply them to your own life. I feel like thatʼs one important thing that a lot of Catholic content creators can do. Itʼs what I try to do.”As for what he hopes viewers of his content take away from it, Sansone emphasized that he wants “people to understand Catholicism for what it really is.”](https://unitedyam.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/09/from-farmer-wants-a-wife-to-catholic-content-creator-john-sansones-journey-of-faith-catholic-in-2025-john-sansone-made-his-television-debut-when-he-appeared-on-fox.png "From ‘Farmer Wants a Wife’ to Catholic content creator: John Sansone’s journey of faith – #Catholic – In 2025, John Sansone made his television debut when he appeared on Fox’s reality dating show “Farmer Wants a Wife” as one of the farmers in search of love. Today, he has traded in the television screen for cellphone screens as a Catholic content creator.Sansone, 27, was born and raised in a Catholic family. He and his five siblings grew up in St. Louis, where their faith played an important role in their daily lives.“Catholicism was ingrained in just about every aspect of my childhood and my life growing up,” Sansone told EWTN News in an interview. “We were taught from a very young age that faith was extremely important. It came right before family and then two before hard work.”He added: “We had a little prayer corner in every house that weʼve lived in that had a picture of Jesus and then right underneath was a kneeler and then a bunch of little pamphlets — prayer cards or funerals of loved ones, and things like that.”Sansone was taught hard work on his family’s 170-acre soy, corn, and wheat farm located on his great-grandfather’s land. It was here that he learned about farm life.Fast forward to 2024 and Sansone’s mother and sisters were watching Season 2 of “Farmer Wants a Wife,” a reality dating series that follows farmers as they search for love among a group of women willing to leave city life behind for a chance at a relationship and life on the farm. The show combines romance with the realities of rural life, as the farmers and contestants get to know one another with the possibility of building a future together.“They were constantly telling me to come watch it and see an episode and things like that and I just kept saying, ‘No, not interested,’” he recalled.Then Sansone received a direct message (DM) on Instagram from the creators of the show. After thinking about it and speaking to his family about it, he decided to take part in the show.“Realistically, the motivation for me to actually entertain that DM and to ultimately go on the show was, hey, this is a fun, random, once in a lifetime thing. I can make the most of it … and perhaps even find a wife,” he said.Despite Sansone not finding a wife on the show, he reflected that it “reinforced his faith.”“There were no Catholics in my group. I was the only one … I think what it really did is reinforced my faith a little bit because we would have these faith-based conversations on the show and we would have conversations about our beliefs and things like that and it kind of forced me to reconcile with myself what I actually did believe. So I would say that in doing that it reinforced my faith,” he shared.Coming off the show and once it aired, Sansone began to gain a following on social media. He explained that he came to the realization one day that he “didn’t do anything to earn it.”“All of this kind of fame and publicity, I would say in air quotes, is not something that I earned,” he said. “So, my way of paying back that opportunity, that was obviously a gift from God, was to use my platform to promote my faith.”Sansone, who goes by @notjohnsansone on Instagram, has 109,000 followers on the platform and uses his growing social media platform to share approachable Catholic content, often drawing from his own experiences to encourage others in their faith. His posts touch on Catholic teachings, prayer, and the realities of striving for holiness while acknowledging the imperfections and struggles of everyday life.Instagram post“The social media world is not the friendliest spot for that type of thing,” he said. “So, my way of doing it and my strategy is more so kind of to subtly incorporate that into everyday things and make it a relatable thing that people who donʼt understand the faith or maybe didnʼt grow up in it, itʼs something for them to relate to.”Thanks to his content creating, Sansone admitted that it has “forced me to improve my faith” and has “strengthened it.”“Iʼve met a lot of interesting people through it [social media]. People who are much stronger in their faith, know a lot more about the Catholic Church and her history,” he added. “And in being around them, I think Iʼve forced myself to kind of become better at my faith.”Sansone’s content creation recently took him to Peoria, Illinois, ahead of the beatification of Venerable Fulton Sheen alongside a large group of other Catholic content creators. He called the experience “incredible” and that he also “learned a lot about my faith and it kind of made me realize how far I needed to go still.”Reflecting on Sheen’s life and how his legacy can inspire Catholic content creators, Sansone said: “I think what was great about him is that a lot of his messages were, yes, based in the Catholic faith, but they were more relatable to an everyday person. You didnʼt have to be Catholic to utilize his messages and apply them to your own life. I feel like thatʼs one important thing that a lot of Catholic content creators can do. Itʼs what I try to do.”As for what he hopes viewers of his content take away from it, Sansone emphasized that he wants “people to understand Catholicism for what it really is.”")
After appearing on “Farmer Wants a Wife,” John Sansone is using his growing social media platform to share relatable Catholic content and encourage others in their faith.
Two Louisiana Catholic moms with special-needs kids felt isolated so they founded a support ministry that has since transformed communities and brought families back to Mass.
Looking for a sky event this week? Check out our full Sky This Week column. September 18: The Lizard’s brightest cluster Mars passed 6° due south of Pollux in Gemini at midnight on the 18th, and they now rise together in the early-morning sky. An hour before sunrise, the heads of Gemini have reached an altitude ofContinue reading “The Sky Today on Saturday, September 19: Mars meets Pollux”
The post The Sky Today on Saturday, September 19: Mars meets Pollux appeared first on Astronomy Magazine.
Read MoreLord let me walk with You
Although my steps are small
Stay beside, hold my hand
And never let me fall.
Amen.
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A reading from the First Letter of St. Paul to Corinthians
15:35-37, 42-49
Brothers and sisters:
Someone may say, “How are the dead raised?
With what kind of body will they come back?”You fool!
What you sow is not brought to life unless it dies.
And what you sow is not the body that is to be
but a bare kernel of wheat, perhaps, or of some other kind.
So also is the resurrection of the dead.
It is sown corruptible; it is raised incorruptible.
It is sown dishonorable; it is raised glorious.
It is sown weak; it is raised powerful.
It is sown a natural body; it is raised a spiritual body.
If there is a natural body, there is also a spiritual one.
So, too, it is written,
“The first man, Adam, became a living being,”
the last Adam a life-giving spirit.
But the spiritual was not first;
rather the natural and then the spiritual.
The first man was from the earth, earthly;
the second man, from heaven.
As was the earthly one, so also are the earthly,
and as is the heavenly one, so also are the heavenly.
Just as we have borne the image of the earthly one,
we shall also bear the image of the heavenly one.
From the Gospel according to Luke
8:4-15
When a large crowd gathered, with people from one town after another
journeying to Jesus, he spoke in a parable.
“A sower went out to sow his seed.
And as he sowed, some seed fell on the path and was trampled,
and the birds of the sky ate it up.
Some seed fell on rocky ground, and when it grew,
it withered for lack of moisture.
Some seed fell among thorns,
and the thorns grew with it and choked it.
And some seed fell on good soil, and when it grew,
it produced fruit a hundredfold.”
After saying this, he called out,
“Whoever has ears to hear ought to hear.”
Then his disciples asked him
what the meaning of this parable might be.
He answered,
“Knowledge of the mysteries of the Kingdom of God
has been granted to you;
but to the rest, they are made known through parables
so that they may look but not see, and hear but not understand.
“This is the meaning of the parable.
The seed is the word of God.
Those on the path are the ones who have heard,
but the Devil comes and takes away the word from their hearts
that they may not believe and be saved.
Those on rocky ground are the ones who, when they hear,
receive the word with joy, but they have no root;
they believe only for a time and fall away in time of temptation.
As for the seed that fell among thorns,
they are the ones who have heard, but as they go along,
they are choked by the anxieties and riches and pleasures of life,
and they fail to produce mature fruit.
But as for the seed that fell on rich soil,
they are the ones who, when they have heard the word,
embrace it with a generous and good heart,
and bear fruit through perseverance.”
This Parable of the Sower is somewhat the ‘mother’ of all parables, because it speaks about listening to the Word. It reminds us that the Word of God is a seed which in itself is fruitful and effective; and God scatters it everywhere, paying no mind to waste. Such is the heart of God! Each one of us is ground on which the seed of the Word falls; no one is excluded! The Word is given to each one of us. We can ask ourselves: what type of terrain am I? Do I resemble the path, the rocky ground, the bramble bush? If we want, with the grace of God, we can become good soil, ploughed and carefully cultivated, to help ripen the seed of the Word. It is already present in our heart, but making it fruitful depends on us; it depends on the embrace that we reserve for this seed. Often one is distracted by too many interests, by too many enticements, and it is difficult to distinguish, among the many voices and many words, that of the Lord, the only one that makes us free. This is why it is important to accustom oneself to listening to the Word of God, to reading it. And I return once more to that advice: always keep a handy copy of the Gospel with you, a pocket edition of the Gospel, in your pocket, in your purse … and then, read a short passage every day, so that you become used to reading the Word of God, understanding well the seed that God offers you, and thinking with what soil do I receive it. (Pope Francis, Angelus, 12 July 2020)
Read More
The Word on Fire founder clarifies the call to evangelize, defends his nonpartisan advisory role on religious liberty, and warns of resurgent communism.
“We pray for an end to the hatred and threats of violence that have become so regrettably prevalent on social media,” an archdiocesan spokesperson said.
![Priest describes tearful ‘spiritual experience’ during consecration after video goes viral online – #Catholic – A video of a Catholic priest breaking down in tears and struggling to raise the chalice above his head while saying the consecration prayers during Mass spread across social media this week, prompting the priest to issue a statement through his diocese.“Take this all of you and drink from it: For this is the chalice…” Father Brent Bowman prayed at the altar, followed by a six-second pause while celebrating Mass for the feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross at St. Gabriel the Archangel Catholic Church in Hopkins, Minnesota, on Sept. 14.He continued the consecration prayer through tears and then sobbed for nearly one minute at the altar, struggling to raise the chalice. He continued to cry as he raised the chalice and was weeping as he knelt before the blood of Christ after the consecration.Instagram postBowman’s emotional response to the consecration was captured on video because the parish livestreams its daily Masses on YouTube and it spread across social media platforms, with many viewers wondering what prompted the reaction.In his statement, he explained that he did not witness what the Church considers a “Eucharistic miracle,” such as when the accidents of the bread and wine apparently change in some way along with the substance. Rather, he said, “I had a private spiritual experience” during the Mass.“During the consecration prayer over the wine at the altar, as I spoke the words, I was given what I believe to be internal knowledge of the power of these words being spoken and the reality of their effect to the point that I had difficulty speaking,” Bowman said in his statement.“With each word, I became more physically overwhelmed as seen in the video,” he said. “At the same time, I was given sensory knowledge of the weight of God’s power coming down upon the altar, and I felt the heaviness of Jesus’s substantial presence in the chalice in my hands.”“The chalice became too heavy to hold as I felt it pulled down to rest upon the altar,” Bowman said. “I felt my hands fixed to the chalice of the Precious Blood, and I could not physically move it. Attempting to elevate the Precious Blood, which I was not able to do for a period of time, I believe I was given grace to understand more deeply the bittersweetness of Our Lord’s Passion and how much blood Christ shed for the immense weight of all our sins.”“I believe I experienced this weight in the chalice,” he said. “This spiritual experience emotionally and physically overwhelmed me as evident in the Mass recording.”Bowman noted that spiritual experiences are “completely unmerited gifts and signs of God’s abundant love for all his people” but “not necessarily signs of any person’s holiness.”“I pray this brief testimony moves all our hearts to contemplate more deeply the mysteries of the Real Presence of Jesus Christ in the Eucharist and the Precious Blood,” he said.Although Bowman did not experience a “Eucharistic miracle” in the sense of the bread or the wine altering its appearance, God does perform a miracle at every Mass during consecration, known as transubstantiation.When the priest consecrates the Eucharist, the “substance” of bread and wine does not remain, but instead the bread and wine are transubstantiated into the true body, blood, soul, and divinity of Jesus Christ even though it maintains the physical appearance and chemical structure of bread and wine.“The presence of Christʼs true body and blood in this sacrament cannot be detected by sense, nor understanding, but by faith alone, which rests upon Divine authority,” St. Thomas Aquinas wrote in the “Summa Theologica.”St. Cyril of Alexandria, a patriarch and doctor of the Church, wrote about the true presence of Christ in the Eucharist in a sermon about the Last Supper, written in the early 400s: “Do not doubt that this is true, since Himself plainly says, ‘This is My body’ [and] ‘This is My blood,’ but rather receive in faith the Saviorʼs word; for He, being the Truth, cannot lie.”“For the words of God are of course true, and in no manner whatsoever can they be false: for even though we understand not in what way God works acts such as these, yet He Himself knows the way of His works,” Cyril wrote.](https://unitedyam.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/09/priest-describes-tearful-spiritual-experience-during-consecration-after-video-goes-viral-online-catholic-a-video-of-a-catholic-priest-breaking-down-in-tears-and-struggling-to-ra.png "Priest describes tearful ‘spiritual experience’ during consecration after video goes viral online – #Catholic – A video of a Catholic priest breaking down in tears and struggling to raise the chalice above his head while saying the consecration prayers during Mass spread across social media this week, prompting the priest to issue a statement through his diocese.“Take this all of you and drink from it: For this is the chalice…” Father Brent Bowman prayed at the altar, followed by a six-second pause while celebrating Mass for the feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross at St. Gabriel the Archangel Catholic Church in Hopkins, Minnesota, on Sept. 14.He continued the consecration prayer through tears and then sobbed for nearly one minute at the altar, struggling to raise the chalice. He continued to cry as he raised the chalice and was weeping as he knelt before the blood of Christ after the consecration.Instagram postBowman’s emotional response to the consecration was captured on video because the parish livestreams its daily Masses on YouTube and it spread across social media platforms, with many viewers wondering what prompted the reaction.In his statement, he explained that he did not witness what the Church considers a “Eucharistic miracle,” such as when the accidents of the bread and wine apparently change in some way along with the substance. Rather, he said, “I had a private spiritual experience” during the Mass.“During the consecration prayer over the wine at the altar, as I spoke the words, I was given what I believe to be internal knowledge of the power of these words being spoken and the reality of their effect to the point that I had difficulty speaking,” Bowman said in his statement.“With each word, I became more physically overwhelmed as seen in the video,” he said. “At the same time, I was given sensory knowledge of the weight of God’s power coming down upon the altar, and I felt the heaviness of Jesus’s substantial presence in the chalice in my hands.”“The chalice became too heavy to hold as I felt it pulled down to rest upon the altar,” Bowman said. “I felt my hands fixed to the chalice of the Precious Blood, and I could not physically move it. Attempting to elevate the Precious Blood, which I was not able to do for a period of time, I believe I was given grace to understand more deeply the bittersweetness of Our Lord’s Passion and how much blood Christ shed for the immense weight of all our sins.”“I believe I experienced this weight in the chalice,” he said. “This spiritual experience emotionally and physically overwhelmed me as evident in the Mass recording.”Bowman noted that spiritual experiences are “completely unmerited gifts and signs of God’s abundant love for all his people” but “not necessarily signs of any person’s holiness.”“I pray this brief testimony moves all our hearts to contemplate more deeply the mysteries of the Real Presence of Jesus Christ in the Eucharist and the Precious Blood,” he said.Although Bowman did not experience a “Eucharistic miracle” in the sense of the bread or the wine altering its appearance, God does perform a miracle at every Mass during consecration, known as transubstantiation.When the priest consecrates the Eucharist, the “substance” of bread and wine does not remain, but instead the bread and wine are transubstantiated into the true body, blood, soul, and divinity of Jesus Christ even though it maintains the physical appearance and chemical structure of bread and wine.“The presence of Christʼs true body and blood in this sacrament cannot be detected by sense, nor understanding, but by faith alone, which rests upon Divine authority,” St. Thomas Aquinas wrote in the “Summa Theologica.”St. Cyril of Alexandria, a patriarch and doctor of the Church, wrote about the true presence of Christ in the Eucharist in a sermon about the Last Supper, written in the early 400s: “Do not doubt that this is true, since Himself plainly says, ‘This is My body’ [and] ‘This is My blood,’ but rather receive in faith the Saviorʼs word; for He, being the Truth, cannot lie.”“For the words of God are of course true, and in no manner whatsoever can they be false: for even though we understand not in what way God works acts such as these, yet He Himself knows the way of His works,” Cyril wrote.")
The priest did not witness a Eucharistic miracle but felt “the weight of God’s power coming down upon the altar, and I felt the heaviness of Jesus’s substantial presence in the chalice in my hands.”
![St. Carlo Acutis relic inspires faith at Wayne parish #Catholic – On Sept. 13, young people, their families, catechists, and parishioners filled Immaculate Heart of Mary (IHM) Church in Wayne, N.J., with joy as the parish embarked on the new religious education year. With help from Bishop Kevin J. Sweeney, the faith community also welcomed the arrival of a first-class relic of St. Carlo Acutis — canonized last year as the first millennial saint — to inspire people’s faith at its new home in IHM’s church.
Pope Leo XIV canonized two young men as saints, St. Carlo Acutis and St. Pier Giorgio Frassati, on Sept. 7 last year in Rome. They have become models of the Catholic faith, especially for youth and young adults in the Church.
Considered to be the first millennial saint, British-born St. Carlo died from incurable leukemia in 2006 at age 15 in Italy. Active in parish life, he served as a catechist and helped inspire several people to convert to Catholicism. Called “God’s influencer,” St. Carlo received the Eucharist daily and used his digital media skills to share the joy of Christ’s Real Presence with the world. He developed what have become traveling exhibitions about Eucharistic miracles, which have visited the Paterson Diocese on several occasions.
On that Sept. 13, Sunday morning, Bishop Sweeney celebrated a Mass at IHM with Father Mateusz “Fr. Matt” Jasniewicz, its pastor. Children from the parish’s religious education program led the congregation in songs of praise during the liturgy.
Click here to subscribe to our weekly newsletter.
“It’s wonderful that one of St. Carlo’s relics has been entrusted to IHM and is available for prayer and veneration. It’s significant because St. Carlo shows young people and everybody that holiness is possible now — not only in the Middle Ages or in the future,” Father Jasniewicz said. “St. Carlo also had a devotion to the Eucharist, the source and summit of our faith. He can open youth to learning more about the Church and our faith and how to have a relationship with Jesus — to fall in love with him — and share that love with others,” he said.
After undergoing a formal process with the Diocese of Assisi in Italy that included Bishop Sweeney, Father Jasniewicz flew to Assisi in August to secure one of St. Carlo’s first-class relics — a snippet of his hair — for IHM. In Assisi, St. Carlo is entombed in the Shrine of Renunciation inside the Church of Santa Maria Maggiore.
Housed in a reliquary, the St. Carlo relic is displayed in a shrine in the rear of IHM’s church near the confessional. It joins several other relics at the shrine in IHM, including ones of St. John Paul II, St. Vincent de Paul, and St. Lucy Filippini.
St. Mary Parish in Dover, N.J., also has a first-class relic of St. Carlo from Assisi.
Father Jasniewicz also said St. Carlo is relatable to young people in their own lives — with backpacks, computers, and soccer balls.
“St. Carlo was a young person who loved life, technology, his friends, and above all, Jesus in the Eucharist. His life reminds our young people that becoming a saint does not mean becoming someone else. It means allowing God to work through who you are and the gifts He has given you,” Father Jasniewicz posted on social media after the Mass.
BEACON PHOTOS | JOE GIGLI
[See image gallery at beaconnj.org]](https://unitedyam.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/09/st-carlo-acutis-relic-inspires-faith-at-wayne-parish-catholic-on-sept-13-young-people-their-families-catechists-and-parishioners-filled-immaculate-heart-of-mary-ihm-church-in-wayne-n-j-w.jpg "St. Carlo Acutis relic inspires faith at Wayne parish #Catholic – On Sept. 13, young people, their families, catechists, and parishioners filled Immaculate Heart of Mary (IHM) Church in Wayne, N.J., with joy as the parish embarked on the new religious education year. With help from Bishop Kevin J. Sweeney, the faith community also welcomed the arrival of a first-class relic of St. Carlo Acutis — canonized last year as the first millennial saint — to inspire people’s faith at its new home in IHM’s church.
Pope Leo XIV canonized two young men as saints, St. Carlo Acutis and St. Pier Giorgio Frassati, on Sept. 7 last year in Rome. They have become models of the Catholic faith, especially for youth and young adults in the Church.
Considered to be the first millennial saint, British-born St. Carlo died from incurable leukemia in 2006 at age 15 in Italy. Active in parish life, he served as a catechist and helped inspire several people to convert to Catholicism. Called “God’s influencer,” St. Carlo received the Eucharist daily and used his digital media skills to share the joy of Christ’s Real Presence with the world. He developed what have become traveling exhibitions about Eucharistic miracles, which have visited the Paterson Diocese on several occasions.
On that Sept. 13, Sunday morning, Bishop Sweeney celebrated a Mass at IHM with Father Mateusz “Fr. Matt” Jasniewicz, its pastor. Children from the parish’s religious education program led the congregation in songs of praise during the liturgy.
Click here to subscribe to our weekly newsletter.
“It’s wonderful that one of St. Carlo’s relics has been entrusted to IHM and is available for prayer and veneration. It’s significant because St. Carlo shows young people and everybody that holiness is possible now — not only in the Middle Ages or in the future,” Father Jasniewicz said. “St. Carlo also had a devotion to the Eucharist, the source and summit of our faith. He can open youth to learning more about the Church and our faith and how to have a relationship with Jesus — to fall in love with him — and share that love with others,” he said.
After undergoing a formal process with the Diocese of Assisi in Italy that included Bishop Sweeney, Father Jasniewicz flew to Assisi in August to secure one of St. Carlo’s first-class relics — a snippet of his hair — for IHM. In Assisi, St. Carlo is entombed in the Shrine of Renunciation inside the Church of Santa Maria Maggiore.
Housed in a reliquary, the St. Carlo relic is displayed in a shrine in the rear of IHM’s church near the confessional. It joins several other relics at the shrine in IHM, including ones of St. John Paul II, St. Vincent de Paul, and St. Lucy Filippini.
St. Mary Parish in Dover, N.J., also has a first-class relic of St. Carlo from Assisi.
Father Jasniewicz also said St. Carlo is relatable to young people in their own lives — with backpacks, computers, and soccer balls.
“St. Carlo was a young person who loved life, technology, his friends, and above all, Jesus in the Eucharist. His life reminds our young people that becoming a saint does not mean becoming someone else. It means allowing God to work through who you are and the gifts He has given you,” Father Jasniewicz posted on social media after the Mass.
BEACON PHOTOS | JOE GIGLI
[See image gallery at beaconnj.org]")
St. Carlo Acutis relic inspires faith at Wayne parish #Catholic – 
On Sept. 13, young people, their families, catechists, and parishioners filled Immaculate Heart of Mary (IHM) Church in Wayne, N.J., with joy as the parish embarked on the new religious education year. With help from Bishop Kevin J. Sweeney, the faith community also welcomed the arrival of a first-class relic of St. Carlo Acutis — canonized last year as the first millennial saint — to inspire people’s faith at its new home in IHM’s church.
Pope Leo XIV canonized two young men as saints, St. Carlo Acutis and St. Pier Giorgio Frassati, on Sept. 7 last year in Rome. They have become models of the Catholic faith, especially for youth and young adults in the Church.
Considered to be the first millennial saint, British-born St. Carlo died from incurable leukemia in 2006 at age 15 in Italy. Active in parish life, he served as a catechist and helped inspire several people to convert to Catholicism. Called “God’s influencer,” St. Carlo received the Eucharist daily and used his digital media skills to share the joy of Christ’s Real Presence with the world. He developed what have become traveling exhibitions about Eucharistic miracles, which have visited the Paterson Diocese on several occasions.
On that Sept. 13, Sunday morning, Bishop Sweeney celebrated a Mass at IHM with Father Mateusz “Fr. Matt” Jasniewicz, its pastor. Children from the parish’s religious education program led the congregation in songs of praise during the liturgy.
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“It’s wonderful that one of St. Carlo’s relics has been entrusted to IHM and is available for prayer and veneration. It’s significant because St. Carlo shows young people and everybody that holiness is possible now — not only in the Middle Ages or in the future,” Father Jasniewicz said. “St. Carlo also had a devotion to the Eucharist, the source and summit of our faith. He can open youth to learning more about the Church and our faith and how to have a relationship with Jesus — to fall in love with him — and share that love with others,” he said.
After undergoing a formal process with the Diocese of Assisi in Italy that included Bishop Sweeney, Father Jasniewicz flew to Assisi in August to secure one of St. Carlo’s first-class relics — a snippet of his hair — for IHM. In Assisi, St. Carlo is entombed in the Shrine of Renunciation inside the Church of Santa Maria Maggiore.
Housed in a reliquary, the St. Carlo relic is displayed in a shrine in the rear of IHM’s church near the confessional. It joins several other relics at the shrine in IHM, including ones of St. John Paul II, St. Vincent de Paul, and St. Lucy Filippini.
St. Mary Parish in Dover, N.J., also has a first-class relic of St. Carlo from Assisi.
Father Jasniewicz also said St. Carlo is relatable to young people in their own lives — with backpacks, computers, and soccer balls.
“St. Carlo was a young person who loved life, technology, his friends, and above all, Jesus in the Eucharist. His life reminds our young people that becoming a saint does not mean becoming someone else. It means allowing God to work through who you are and the gifts He has given you,” Father Jasniewicz posted on social media after the Mass.
BEACON PHOTOS | JOE GIGLI
– On Sept. 13, young people, their families, catechists, and parishioners filled Immaculate Heart of Mary (IHM) Church in Wayne, N.J., with joy as the parish embarked on the new religious education year. With help from Bishop Kevin J. Sweeney, the faith community also welcomed the arrival of a first-class relic of St. Carlo Acutis — canonized last year as the first millennial saint — to inspire people’s faith at its new home in IHM’s church. Pope Leo XIV canonized two young men as saints, St. Carlo Acutis and St. Pier Giorgio Frassati, on Sept. 7 last year in Rome. They
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Red-and-green macaw (Ara chloropterus) couple in flight in Mato Grosso, Brazil
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The rollout ceremony for NASA’s first space shuttle, OV-101, coincided with Constitution Day of the nation’s bicentennial on Sept.17, 1976. Although the orbiter was originally planned to be named Constitution, Star Trek fans successfully convinced President Gerald Ford to name it Enterprise after the series’ fictional starship.
Read MoreFriday, September 18First Quarter Moon occurs at 4:44 P.M. EDT. The Moon then reaches apogee, the farthest point from Earth in its orbit, at 11 P.M. EDT. At that time, our satellite will be 251,171 miles (404,221 kilometers) away. Venus reaches greatest brilliancy at 9 P.M. EDT, shining at magnitude –4.8. It’s bright and easyContinue reading “The Sky This Week from September 18 to 25: Autumn begins”
The post The Sky This Week from September 18 to 25: Autumn begins appeared first on Astronomy Magazine.
Read MoreA reading from the First Letter of St. Paul to Corinthians
15:12-20
Brothers and sisters:
If Christ is preached as raised from the dead,
how can some among you say there is no resurrection of the dead?
If there is no resurrection of the dead,
then neither has Christ been raised.
And if Christ has not been raised, then empty too is our preaching;
empty, too, your faith.
Then we are also false witnesses to God,
because we testified against God that he raised Christ,
whom he did not raise if in fact the dead are not raised.
For if the dead are not raised, neither has Christ been raised,
and if Christ has not been raised, your faith is vain;
you are still in your sins.
Then those who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished.
If for this life only we have hoped in Christ,
we are the most pitiable people of all.
But now Christ has been raised from the dead,
the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep.
From the Gospel according to Luke
8:1-3
Jesus journeyed from one town and village to another,
preaching and proclaiming the good news of the Kingdom of God.
Accompanying him were the Twelve
and some women who had been cured of evil spirits and infirmities,
Mary, called Magdalene, from whom seven demons had gone out,
Joanna, the wife of Herod’s steward Chuza,
Susanna, and many others
who provided for them out of their resources.
Jesus (…) certainly chose from among his disciples 12 men as Fathers of the new Israel and appointed them "to be with him, and to be sent out to preach". This fact is obvious; but, in addition to the Twelve, pillars of the Church and fathers of the new People of God, many women were also chosen to number among the disciples. (…) In the first place, we think spontaneously of the Virgin Mary, who with her faith and maternal labours collaborated in a unique way in our Redemption. (…) Then there are various women with roles of responsibility who gravitated in their different capacities around the figure of Jesus. The women who followed Jesus to assist him with their own means, some of whose names Luke has passed down to us, are an eloquent example: Mary of Magdala, Joanna, Susanna and "many others" (cf. Lk 8: 2-3). (…) Nor was the female presence in the sphere of the primitive Church in any way secondary. (…) Without the generous contribution of many women, the history of Christianity would have developed very differently. This is why (…) the Church gives thanks for each and every woman. (Pope Benedict XVI, General Audience, 14 February 2007)
Read More![Oregon officials back off ‘gender ideology mandate’ for mom seeking to adopt #Catholic Oregon officials have agreed they will not “categorically disqualify” a Christian woman from adopting or fostering children based on her religious beliefs about gender and human sexuality, which settles a three-and-a-half-year legal battle.The Oregon Department of Human Services (ODHS) agreed to a legal settlement with Jessica Bates, who was represented by Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF). It affirms the department will not consider her religious beliefs when evaluating her application for a certification to adopt children and will not attempt to regulate her speech about gender and sexuality.“Every child deserves a loving home, and children suffer when the government excludes people of faith from foster care because of the state’s own ideological crusade,” ADF Senior Counsel Johannes Widmalm-Delphonse said in a statement following the Sept. 9 settlement.“Oregon officials turned Jessica away just because of her common-sense belief that parents should help children become comfortable with who they are instead of pushing them down a path of confusion and medicalization,” he said. “We believe this settlement is a win-win that protects constitutional rights and puts children’s interests first.”In September 2022, the ODHS denied Bates’ application because she would not comply with a state policy that requires applicants to agree they will “respect, accept and support the … sexual orientation, gender identity [and] gender expression … of a child or young adult” who is placed in the home, which ADF has characterized as a “gender ideology mandate.”Bates sued ODHS in March 2023, arguing that the policy violated her First Amendment rights to free speech and the free exercise of religion. The lawsuit stated she told the certification officer she would love any child as her own but would not facilitate a child’s gender transition through hormone therapy, use pronouns inconsistent with a child’s biological sex, or encourage gender expression inconsistent with the child’s biological sex or same-sex attraction.A federal district court initially ruled in favor of ODHS in December 2023, but an appellate panel of judges ruled in July 2025 that ODHS likely violated her constitutional rights and blocked the department from enforcing the rules against her while the lawsuit continued.Legal settlementPer the legal agreement, ODHS will allow Bates to apply for a certification and will not consider her religious views in any way.It states ODHS will not deny the application “because of her religious beliefs that sexual activity should occur only within the confines of a marriage between one man and one woman, and a person should identify and seek to live consistent with his or her biological sex.”The settlement adds that this extends to her “desire to respectfully speak about, live out, parent, and make day-to-day caregiving decisions consistent with these sincerely held religious beliefs.”Under the agreement, ODHS also cannot require her to “agree to use prescribed words or language, including chosen pronouns, to express views about sexual orientation, gender identity, or gender expression inconsistent with her religious beliefs described above as a condition of certification.”“[The] ODHS may not enforce any per se standard, rule, or policy that precludes Bates from being considered for any particular placement, based in whole or in part based on her religious belief,” the settlement agreement states.It further prohibits ODHS from disqualifying Bates from consideration for any particular child placement based on her religious beliefs.Yet, the settlement does not prevent ODHS from “deciding a child’s placement based on its individualized consideration of the child’s needs and of a foster parent’s concerns or limitations (including where religiously motivated) on their ability or willingness to meet the child’s specific needs, including with regard to their sexual orientation, gender identity, and gender expression.”The Oregon attorney general’s office referred EWTN News to the Oregon Department of Human Services for comment. The department did not respond to a request for comment.](https://unitedyam.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/09/oregon-officials-back-off-gender-ideology-mandate-for-mom-seeking-to-adopt-catholic-oregon-officials-have-agreed-they-will-not-categorically-disqualify-a-christian.jpg "Oregon officials back off ‘gender ideology mandate’ for mom seeking to adopt #Catholic Oregon officials have agreed they will not “categorically disqualify” a Christian woman from adopting or fostering children based on her religious beliefs about gender and human sexuality, which settles a three-and-a-half-year legal battle.The Oregon Department of Human Services (ODHS) agreed to a legal settlement with Jessica Bates, who was represented by Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF). It affirms the department will not consider her religious beliefs when evaluating her application for a certification to adopt children and will not attempt to regulate her speech about gender and sexuality.“Every child deserves a loving home, and children suffer when the government excludes people of faith from foster care because of the state’s own ideological crusade,” ADF Senior Counsel Johannes Widmalm-Delphonse said in a statement following the Sept. 9 settlement.“Oregon officials turned Jessica away just because of her common-sense belief that parents should help children become comfortable with who they are instead of pushing them down a path of confusion and medicalization,” he said. “We believe this settlement is a win-win that protects constitutional rights and puts children’s interests first.”In September 2022, the ODHS denied Bates’ application because she would not comply with a state policy that requires applicants to agree they will “respect, accept and support the … sexual orientation, gender identity [and] gender expression … of a child or young adult” who is placed in the home, which ADF has characterized as a “gender ideology mandate.”Bates sued ODHS in March 2023, arguing that the policy violated her First Amendment rights to free speech and the free exercise of religion. The lawsuit stated she told the certification officer she would love any child as her own but would not facilitate a child’s gender transition through hormone therapy, use pronouns inconsistent with a child’s biological sex, or encourage gender expression inconsistent with the child’s biological sex or same-sex attraction.A federal district court initially ruled in favor of ODHS in December 2023, but an appellate panel of judges ruled in July 2025 that ODHS likely violated her constitutional rights and blocked the department from enforcing the rules against her while the lawsuit continued.Legal settlementPer the legal agreement, ODHS will allow Bates to apply for a certification and will not consider her religious views in any way.It states ODHS will not deny the application “because of her religious beliefs that sexual activity should occur only within the confines of a marriage between one man and one woman, and a person should identify and seek to live consistent with his or her biological sex.”The settlement adds that this extends to her “desire to respectfully speak about, live out, parent, and make day-to-day caregiving decisions consistent with these sincerely held religious beliefs.”Under the agreement, ODHS also cannot require her to “agree to use prescribed words or language, including chosen pronouns, to express views about sexual orientation, gender identity, or gender expression inconsistent with her religious beliefs described above as a condition of certification.”“[The] ODHS may not enforce any per se standard, rule, or policy that precludes Bates from being considered for any particular placement, based in whole or in part based on her religious belief,” the settlement agreement states.It further prohibits ODHS from disqualifying Bates from consideration for any particular child placement based on her religious beliefs.Yet, the settlement does not prevent ODHS from “deciding a child’s placement based on its individualized consideration of the child’s needs and of a foster parent’s concerns or limitations (including where religiously motivated) on their ability or willingness to meet the child’s specific needs, including with regard to their sexual orientation, gender identity, and gender expression.”The Oregon attorney general’s office referred EWTN News to the Oregon Department of Human Services for comment. The department did not respond to a request for comment.")
The legal settlement ensures that Jessica Bates’ religious views will not be a factor in determining whether she can adopt children.
The priest was found dead with gunshot wounds along a stretch of highway. The local bishop urged people not to speculate about the crime and denounced the ongoing violence in the country.
The U.S. government has been sending and continues to send millions of dollars of humanitarian aid to be distributed by Caritas Cuba, thus bypassing the communist regime.
Beyond The Beacon podcast 118 – A life devoted to prayer: Inside a Carmelite monastery #Catholic – 
What does it mean to step away from the world and embrace a life of prayer, silence, and community? In this episode, we explore the quiet world of cloistered Carmelite life and the women who choose to dedicate themselves to God within the walls of a monastery.
Bishop Kevin J. Sweeney of the Diocese of Paterson leads the thoughtful conversation about vocation, sacrifice, contemplation, and a way of life that remains largely unseen—but deeply spiritual.
The episode is recorded with the Discalced Carmelites of the Most Blessed Virgin Mary of Mount Carmel at their monastery in Morristown, N.J.
Joining Bishop Sweeney for interviews are Mother Therese Katulski, prioress of the Morristown and Malta monasteries; Sister Theresa Lee, F.M.A., chancellor and delegate for religious; Marcy Funk, a monastery volunteer; and Father Brendan Murray, who celebrates Masses with the sisters at their monastery in Morristown.
Listen to the episode here, or on any major podcast platform, or watch it on Bishop Sweeney’s YouTube channel.
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– What does it mean to step away from the world and embrace a life of prayer, silence, and community? In this episode, we explore the quiet world of cloistered Carmelite life and the women who choose to dedicate themselves to God within the walls of a monastery. Bishop Kevin J. Sweeney of the Diocese of Paterson leads the thoughtful conversation about vocation, sacrifice, contemplation, and a way of life that remains largely unseen—but deeply spiritual. The episode is recorded with the Discalced Carmelites of the Most Blessed Virgin Mary of Mount Carmel at their monastery in Morristown, N.J. Joining Bishop
Dr. Gregory Popcak addresses the unique layer of spiritual guilt that Catholic mothers often experience when struggling with mental health post-childbirth.
Seminaristas hispanos comparten su historia vocacional #Catholic – 
La Diócesis de Paterson celebró recientemente su primer Seminarian Media Day, una jornada en la que los seminaristas se pusieron frente a las cámaras para compartir un poco de sus vidas, su formación y su vocación.
La iniciativa nació de la Oficina de Vocaciones como una nueva manera de acercarse a los jóvenes que pueden estar preguntándose si Dios los llama al sacerdocio.
Al explicar la importancia de utilizar también los medios digitales para acompañar el discernimiento vocacional, el Padre Charles Lana, director de Vocaciones, señaló que “muchos jóvenes que están explorando una vocación primero buscan en línea información e inspiración”. Después, añadió, lo que encuentran puede llevarlos a conversar con sacerdotes, seminaristas y otras personas de la Iglesia.
Por eso, durante el Media Day fueron los propios seminaristas quienes ayudaron a crear contenido para promover las vocaciones. Para el Padre Lana, sus historias tienen un valor especial porque ellos mismos son testigos de lo que significa responder al llamado de Dios. Estas son tres de esas historias.
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Diácono Carlos: un llamado desde la infancia
Dcn.Carlos Vargas nació en Barranquilla, Colombia, y su historia vocacional comenzó mucho antes de entrar al seminario.
Creció en una familia de fe. Recuerda especialmente a su abuela paterna, con quien iba a Misa todos los domingos y rezaba el rosario. Desde los siete años comenzó a sentir el deseo de ser sacerdote y sirvió en su parroquia como monaguillo.
Inició su formación en Colombia, donde estuvo un año en el seminario. Después continuó su camino en Estados Unidos. Primero estudió inglés y en 2022 se graduó de St. Andrew’s College Seminary. Actualmente estudia Teología en Immaculate Conception Seminary, en Seton Hall.
Una de sus clases favoritas es Cristología porque, dice, le permite conocer más profundamente la identidad de Jesús. Ciertamente su formación no ocurre solamente en las aulas. Carlos disfruta especialmente el trabajo pastoral en hospitales y parroquias, donde puede encontrarse directamente con las personas. Cuando habla de por qué quiere ser sacerdote, su respuesta es sencilla: quiere servir.
David: la pregunta después de la secundaria
La historia de David Marín Urquía es diferente. Nació en Estados Unidos y durante años estuvo vinculado a la Iglesia de Santa Margarita de Escocia, Morristown, donde creció en la fe.
Al graduarse de la secundaria (High School) en 2023 comenzó a preguntarse más seriamente por su vocación. Un profesor de Teología lo ayudó a encontrar un director espiritual, y esas conversaciones le permitieron hablar sobre su vida espiritual y, sobre todo, llevar la pregunta por su vocación a la oración.
La Virgen María también ha estado presente en ese camino. Desde pequeño, David rezaba el rosario con su familia y le pedía a María que lo ayudara a descubrir su vocación.
Buscando dar otros pasos, preguntó al entonces director de Vocaciones, el Padre Edward Rama, si había algún evento en el que pudiera participar. Así llegó a una peregrinación al santuario de los Mártires Norteamericanos, en Nueva York.
Después vinieron los retiros, la Misa diaria, la Adoración Eucarística, la lectura de las Sagradas Escrituras y de las vidas de los santos. También fueron importantes su servicio como monaguillo y lector, y el acompañamiento que recibió del Padre Sebastián Muñoz y del grupo Ágape de St. Margaret.
En medio de ese proceso fue descubriendo con mayor claridad su deseo de ser sacerdote. David siente una atracción especial hacia los sacramentos y considera un privilegio poder algún día celebrarlos y llevarlos a las personas.
Jairo: paz ante el Santísimo
Jairo Andrés Jaramillo Bernal también nació en Colombia, en San Alberto, departamento del Cesar. En su historia vocacional, dos experiencias han sido especialmente importantes: la fe que recibió de su abuela y el tiempo que pasó ante el Santísimo Sacramento.
Fue su abuela quien le enseñó a rezar el rosario y lo ayudó a conocer mejor la fe católica y el significado de la Eucaristía. Aunque el llamado al sacerdocio estuvo presente desde su infancia, comenzó a hacerse más claro durante su servicio militar en la Armada Nacional de Colombia.
Jairo recuerda que en aquel tiempo sentía un vacío interior. Comenzó entonces a pasar tiempo ante el Santísimo Sacramento y allí encontraba paz y tranquilidad. Poco a poco nació en él un deseo más profundo de conocer a Jesús y servirlo.
Después del servicio militar conoció al Padre Wilfrey Arenas y comenzó a conversar con él sobre su vocación. En 2017 ingresó al Seminario Nacional Cristo Sacerdote, en Colombia, y al año siguiente llegó a Estados Unidos para continuar su formación. Este otoño comienza su segundo año de Teología.
El servicio también ha sido importante para entender su vocación. Las misiones humanitarias, la ayuda a familias necesitadas, la evangelización y el trabajo en las comunidades le fueron mostrando que encontraba alegría cuando servía a los demás. Sus dos tíos sacerdotes también lo han acompañado y aconsejado durante su camino. De ellos admira especialmente la confianza que ofrecen a las personas y su disposición para estar presentes cuando alguien los necesita.
Para Jairo, allí está también la razón por la que quiere ser sacerdote: ha descubierto que su verdadera alegría y el sentido de su vida están en servir a los demás y acercarse más a Jesucristo.
Caminos distintos, un mismo llamado
Las historias de Carlos, David y Jairo muestran caminos distintos. Carlos comenzó a sentir el llamado siendo apenas un niño en Colombia. David empezó a discernirlo con mayor intensidad después de terminar la secundaria en Estados Unidos. Para Jairo, un momento decisivo llegó durante su servicio militar, cuando comenzó a pasar más tiempo ante el Santísimo. En los tres aparecen elementos muy sencillos: la familia, la oración, el servicio, buenos sacerdotes y otras personas que los ayudaron a discernir.
El Seminarian Media Day busca precisamente que historias como estas lleguen a otros jóvenes.
Al hablar sobre la formación de los seminaristas para la evangelización en el mundo actual, el Padre Lana explicó que “los futuros sacerdotes necesitan ser capaces de comunicar las verdades de la fe no solamente desde el púlpito, sino también a través de los medios modernos de comunicación que las personas utilizan todos los días”.
Este mes de septiembre, la Oficina de Vocaciones lanza una cuenta de Instagram dedicada a las vocaciones. El Padre Lana invitó a los fieles a seguirla, compartir su contenido y, especialmente, rezar por los seminaristas.
Quizá alguno de esos jóvenes llegue a hacerse la misma pregunta que Dcn.Carlos, David y Jairo se hicieron alguna vez: ¿Dios me estará llamando a mí?
– La Diócesis de Paterson celebró recientemente su primer Seminarian Media Day, una jornada en la que los seminaristas se pusieron frente a las cámaras para compartir un poco de sus vidas, su formación y su vocación. La iniciativa nació de la Oficina de Vocaciones como una nueva manera de acercarse a los jóvenes que pueden estar preguntándose si Dios los llama al sacerdocio. Al explicar la importancia de utilizar también los medios digitales para acompañar el discernimiento vocacional, el Padre Charles Lana, director de Vocaciones, señaló que “muchos jóvenes que están explorando una vocación primero buscan en línea información e
Inspired by the zeal of the venerable Fulton Sheen, a man who lived life to the fullest #Catholic – 
I wonder where I’ve been all this time, as I didn’t know Archbishop Fulton Sheen until relatively recently. It wasn’t until I arrived in Chicago in 2019 that his name began to ring a bell.
One evening, while browsing YouTube for material for my parish ministry, I came across a video from the 1950s in which an eloquent and lively bishop shared words of wisdom on the meaning of our existence. It was the now Venerable Fulton John Sheen in one of the episodes of his well known TV show “Life Is Worth Living.” I was immediately captivated.
Hearing Fulton Sheen for the first time, I felt a sense of nostalgia that wasn’t my own; nostalgia for something great that I hadn’t experienced at the time, but which I realized had been a watershed moment for the American Church in the last century. A man of substance, filled with God, spoke with courage and enthusiasm about the Triune God on national television, wearing the vestments of a consecrated Catholic bishop with pride and joy. Brilliant! I got goosebumps straight away!
His work, like all of God’s work, endures to this day, spreading throughout the world. For example, I was certainly familiar with the missionary rosary and had indeed prayed it with the very same intention with which Sheen had conceived it in 1951.
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I came across words attributed to the Chilean writer Isabel Allende that really struck a chord with me: I am not afraid of death; I am afraid of a lack of passion, of not having lived with sufficient intensity. St. Irenaeus of Lyon had already alluded to this in the second century of Christianity when he stated: “The glory of God is man fully alive, and true life for man is the vision of God.”
For me, Fulton Sheen is the epitome of a human being who embodies these statements. He was a man overflowing with divine grace and wisdom, capable of affirming through his testimony — despite his many trials and tribulations — that life is worth living, cherishing and sharing in every second that is granted to us.
In May 2024, I fulfilled a goal I had set myself before leaving Chicago: to visit the Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen Museum, located at the Diocese of Peoria’s Spalding Pastoral Center. After all, it couldn’t be true that, living in the same state where my dear Fulton Sheen was born and lived, I wouldn’t go to see it.
I prepared briefly for my visit there by reading a heart-warming memoir written by Joan Sheen Cunningham (one of the bishop’s nieces) entitled “My Uncle Fulton Sheen.” I booked a room in a hotel near the museum for a couple of days and, filled with the Pentecostal enthusiasm of those days, set off on a train journey to Peoria.
The museum is just a short walk from the Cathedral of St Mary of the Immaculate Conception, where the young Fulton Sheen was ordained a priest in 1919, and where his mortal remains now rest. Although it is, in reality, a small and simple space, I felt an overwhelming emotion there that I had to contain, as I had made this pilgrimage on my own and had no one there with whom to share it.
During my stay in Peoria, I visited the museum and the cathedral twice. I tried to take in as much as possible of all the exquisitely selected information and all the objects so harmoniously displayed. I watched at my leisure a film shown in a room in the museum decorated to look like the set of the show “Life Is Worth Living.” I loved it. I bought a copy of the film so that I could share its content with my community later.
It is easy to imagine the joy I felt when the Vatican announced the official date of Sheen’s beatification. To celebrate, I proposed “Treasure in Clay,” his spiritual autobiography, as the title for my Catholic book club last April.
I rejoice with the whole Church. I rejoice because another of our own is being raised to the altars. I am eager to share this admiration for him, his fidelity to Christ and the way in which he taught us to live. I constantly present my pastoral and professional intentions (which are one and the same) to Sheen, and I pray that others may not go through this life — as I did for so long — without having the joy of knowing of the existence of this remarkable human being.
Ely Segura is a laywoman and creator of the Teófilo project, an initiative for the faith formation of Hispanic adults in the United States (proyectoteofilo.com).
– I wonder where I’ve been all this time, as I didn’t know Archbishop Fulton Sheen until relatively recently. It wasn’t until I arrived in Chicago in 2019 that his name began to ring a bell. One evening, while browsing YouTube for material for my parish ministry, I came across a video from the 1950s in which an eloquent and lively bishop shared words of wisdom on the meaning of our existence. It was the now Venerable Fulton John Sheen in one of the episodes of his well known TV show “Life Is Worth Living.” I was immediately captivated. Hearing Fulton
French Church awaits ‘breath of new life’ from Pope Leo XIV’s visit #Catholic – 
PARIS (OSV News) — With a little over a week left in France to welcome Pope Leo XIV, the country’s Catholics hope for a “breath” of “new life” into their Church from the pope.
They don’t know the pontiff well, but are still counting on the “Leo effect,” a newly released survey has shown.
According to the Sept. 15 poll conducted by the French Institute of Public Opinion, or IFOP, and commissioned by Catholic media outlets Famille Chrétienne, Aleteia and RCF Notre Dame, more than a quarter of respondents — 26% — said Pope Leo’s apostolic visit could “breathe new life into the Church in France.”
Asked what they would like Pope Leo to address in the country, nearly 1 in 3, or 28%, said “peace and global conflicts,” with the respondents also hoping “he will speak candidly about the issue of sexual abuse.”
While 58% of French respondents don’t have an opinion on whether Pope Leo defends Catholic values well, 32% of those who will welcome the pope for the Sept. 25-28 visit to Paris, Lourdes and Metz said the American pope defends them “quite well.”
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French commentators point out that the country’s Catholic community is looking forward to “Leo’s effect.”
For Jérôme Fourquet, director of the opinion department at IFOP, French Catholics are looking for a momentum similar to the one seen during World Youth Day 1997 with St. John Paul II.
“One of the goals of (Pope) Leo XIV’s visit to France is precisely to create such moments of fervor,” he told Famille Chrétienne, commenting on the newest survey.
For Bishop Pierre-Antoine Bozo, spokesman for the French bishops’ conference, “there is a genuine thirst in the heart of modern man,” and in France, “this spiritual curiosity is awakening” and is seen widely through a record number of baptized Catholics.
“I would add that the pope’s message has the power to resonate with the existential aspirations of many French people,” he said. “He comes to light a spark on fertile ground,” he told Famille Chrétienne.
Fourquet predicts that “those who are 15, 20 or 25 years old today” and who take part in events with the pope — “will later be able to testify to the extraordinary impact it had on their lives.” For some “it will even shape their life choices,” he said, pointing out to many priests admitting in the past they found their vocation through WYD 1997.
While “Leo XIV is not very well known to the French public,” Bishop Bozo added, this apostolic journey “is precisely the opportunity for them to get to know him — to meet him not only as the head of the Church but also as Robert Prevost, with his own distinct personality.”
What French Catholics greatly appreciate, and wait for, the survey has shown, is the papal message of peace.
“In a world defined by sound and fury, (Pope) Leo XIV’s personality stands out very clearly indeed,” Forquet emphasized. “He is a figure of an era where aggression has become the norm,” and in this moment “There is a real need for a stabilizing force,” he said. Pope Leo “answers this latent expectation among a segment of the population.”
Nearly 600,000 people have registered to attend the pope’s Mass in Paris on Sept. 26 — a truly massive turnout, according to observers.
Archbishop Laurent Ulrich of Paris described it as “a number that exceeds all our expectations” in a Sept. 16 press release.
“Given this large turnout, the Archdiocese of Paris is setting up an additional area, secured by law enforcement,” he said, announcing that the area for participants was extended but registration has been closed for that event.
Still, sociologist Yann Raison du Cleuziou cautioned that enthusiasm does not signal a broad Catholic revival.
For Raison du Cleuziou, professor of political science, historian, sociologist of religion and one of the most renowned experts on French Catholicism, the numbers are not yet proving a comeback of Catholicism as a major force in French society.
“We should not conclude from this that Catholicism is regaining significant influence” as “secularization continues in France,” he told OSV News.
“The enthusiasm for the reopening of Notre Dame in 2024 was genuine,” he said, noting “renewed spiritual vitality in certain parishes and movements, and an objective increase in adult baptisms in recent years,” but the number of practicing Catholics, he said, “continues to decline.”
According to Raison du Cleuziou, it’s not communities or the Church as an institution that introduces change in society these days. “Individuality plays a decisive role in society far more so than communities and institutions,” he said, “and the voice of the Catholic Church as such is no longer taken into account.”
“In this context, the future of the Church in France depends on those who remain,” Raison du Cleuziou noted. “In general, it is the most conservative Catholics — those who are very devout and closely follow the Church’s teachings — who have been most successful in passing on the Catholic faith from one generation to the next. Three-quarters of today’s seminarians come from these families.”
For Raison du Cleuziou, today’s younger generations of Catholics in France are very different from those in the 1970s. They are not ashamed of their Catholicism — on the contrary — they want to show off that they’re proud of who they are.
“They want to clearly display their identity, rather than fade into the background, at the risk of being diluted by the dominant secular culture. Seminarians, for example, are increasingly in favor of wearing the cassock, at least occasionally, whereas it had almost completely disappeared after the (Second Vatican) Council.”
“Young people also feel the need for beautiful, meaningful liturgies that combine both a sense of inner reflection and solemnity in the liturgy, along with traditional theological instruction, and clear guidelines for everyday life,” Raison du Cleuziou noted. “And they are reviving individual devotions and collective expressions of popular piety that had been set aside by their elders, such as processions with banners or devotion to the Sacred Heart.”
Still, the “dominant group in France today,” about 70% of the French population, is the “nonreligious,” Raison du Cleuziou told OSV News.
“Among those over (the age of) 60, nearly one in two still identifies as Catholic, but among 18- to 29-year-olds, that figure has dropped to just 15%,” the expert pointed out. “Young Catholics therefore feel like a very small minority. And they are closely followed by Muslims, who now make up 13% of their age group and openly embrace their faith and religious practices without any hesitation.”
In this context, he said, “the presence of Catholics who have immigrated to France, for example, those from Africa, is important,” as immigrant Catholics “embrace their faith openly, calmly and simply,” he said, adding they integrate well into parishes, which are now more vibrant in cities than in the countryside.
For Raison du Cleuziou, the phenomenon of catechumens and neophytes, who often come from families that were once Catholic, is an important indicator of the state of French Catholicism.
“They say they had an ‘experience of encountering Jesus’ that has transformed their lives,” he explained. “It was this encounter that led them to seek to deepen an intimate relationship with Christ they have discovered.”
“For these newly baptized individuals, belonging to the Church as an institution was not a priority at first,” Raison du Cleuziou concluded. “They are not very familiar with the Holy See and the pope. Nevertheless, the visit of Pope Leo XIV, who will meet with some of them, is sure to intrigue them and should pique their interest.”
Caroline de Sury writes for OSV News from Paris.
– PARIS (OSV News) — With a little over a week left in France to welcome Pope Leo XIV, the country’s Catholics hope for a “breath” of “new life” into their Church from the pope. They don’t know the pontiff well, but are still counting on the “Leo effect,” a newly released survey has shown. According to the Sept. 15 poll conducted by the French Institute of Public Opinion, or IFOP, and commissioned by Catholic media outlets Famille Chrétienne, Aleteia and RCF Notre Dame, more than a quarter of respondents — 26% — said Pope Leo’s apostolic visit could “breathe new
Why Sept. 17 is a holiday in Vatican City: Pope Leo XIV’s ‘name day’ explained #Catholic – 
ROME (OSV News) — Pope Leo XIV celebrated his 71st birthday on Sept. 14, but in Vatican City the more significant celebration comes three days later. Sept. 17 marks the pope’s “name day,” the feast of St. Robert Bellarmine.
Born Robert Prevost, the pope shares his given name with the 17th-century saint, a Jesuit cardinal and Doctor of the Church who died on Sept. 17, 1621. In southern Italy, it is common to celebrate one’s “onomastico,” or name day, in addition to one’s birthday.
For Pope Leo XIV, the coincidence of a birthday and a name day falling in the same week offers a moment of double celebration, as well as some surprisingly relevant lessons on Church governance, administration, and holiness for a pope from the saint whose name he has borne for 71 years.
Sept. 17 is and will be an official holiday of Vatican City State for the duration of Pope Leo XIV’s pontificate, following a pattern set by his predecessors. The feast of St. George, April 23, was observed as a holiday under Pope Francis, born Jorge Mario Bergoglio, while the feast of St. Joseph, March 19, held that place during the pontificate of Pope Benedict XVI, born Joseph Ratzinger.
St. Bellarmine, canonized in 1930 and declared a Doctor of the Church in 1931, was one of the towering theological figures of the Counter-Reformation. Born in 1542 into a prominent Tuscan family and a nephew of a pope, he entered the Society of Jesus shortly before his 18th birthday. He studied philosophy and theology in Padua and Louvain, focusing on the works of St. Thomas Aquinas and the Church Fathers, and was ordained a priest in 1570.
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As the first Jesuit to teach at Louvain, he lectured for seven years before returning to Rome in 1576. There he taught at the Roman College, now known as the Pontifical Gregorian University, where he produced a three-volume defense of Catholic teaching against the Protestant heresies of the era, work that shaped Catholic thought in the years following the Council of Trent.
St. Bellarmine went on to serve as spiritual director to Jesuit students at the Roman College, where he guided St. Aloysius Gonzaga, before becoming Jesuit provincial and cardinal-archbishop of Capua.
Pope Clement VIII named him papal theologian, a consultor to the Holy Office and rector of the College of Confessors at St. Peter’s Basilica, later appointing him Examiner of Bishops. He also mediated theological disputes over grace and was drawn into the controversy surrounding Galileo’s teaching that the Earth was not the center of the universe. In his later years, he turned to devotional writing, producing works including “On the Art of Dying Well.”
Pope Benedict XVI devoted a 2011 general audience to St. Bellarmine, praising how the saint balanced administrative duties with personal holiness, lessons that Pope Leo XIV would likely find applicable to the administrative challenges of the highest office of the Church.
“The burdensome offices of governance did not prevent (Bellarmine) from striving daily for holiness, faithful to the demands of his own state as a religious, priest and bishop,” Pope Benedict said, noting that this fidelity drove St. Bellarmine to preach “assiduously” across Flanders, Rome, Naples and Capua.
Pope Benedict also pointed to a lesson in St. Bellarmine’s life applicable to governance of the Church today, “There can be no true reform of the Church unless there is first our own personal reform and the conversion of our own heart.”
St. Bellarmine’s own writings reflect that same conviction. “Whoever finds God finds everything, whoever loses God loses everything,” he wrote, urging readers to seek the glory of God above wealth, honor or health.
He died in Rome on Sept. 17, 1621. Today his tomb can be visited at the Church of St. Ignatius near the Pantheon, near the remains of St. Aloysius Gonzaga, the student he once guided.
“If you have wisdom, may you understand that you have been created for the glory of God and for your eternal salvation. This is your goal, this is the centre of your soul, this the treasure of your heart,” St. Bellarmine wrote. “Therefore consider as truly good for you what leads you to your goal, and truly evil what causes you to miss it.”
Courtney Mares is Vatican editor for OSV News. Follow her on X @catholicourtney.
– ROME (OSV News) — Pope Leo XIV celebrated his 71st birthday on Sept. 14, but in Vatican City the more significant celebration comes three days later. Sept. 17 marks the pope’s “name day,” the feast of St. Robert Bellarmine. Born Robert Prevost, the pope shares his given name with the 17th-century saint, a Jesuit cardinal and Doctor of the Church who died on Sept. 17, 1621. In southern Italy, it is common to celebrate one’s “onomastico,” or name day, in addition to one’s birthday. For Pope Leo XIV, the coincidence of a birthday and a name day falling in the
Trump names Bishop Barron to international religious freedom watchdog #Catholic – 
WASHINGTON (OSV News) — President Donald Trump’s new appointees to the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom include Bishop Robert E. Barron of Winona-Rochester, Minnesota, the commission said Sept. 16.
Spokespersons for USCRIF and other religious freedom advocates previously told OSV News they were eager for Trump to make nominations to the commission after several previous commissioners reached the end of their terms in May.
In a statement posted on X, Bishop Barron wrote, “I was honored to accept President Trump’s invitation to serve on the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom.”
“This agency, formed by act of Congress over thirty years ago, is designed to advise both the President and Congress on matters pertaining to the defense and enhancement of religious liberty around the world,” he said. “The Commission, by intention, is strictly bi-partisan, its members chosen by leaders of both major political parties.”
“Distinguished Catholics who have served on this body over the years include Professor Robert George, Ambassador Mary Ann Glendon, Fr. Thomas Reese, S.J., Archbishop Charles Chaput, and Bishop William Murphy,” he continued. “I feel privileged to join their company.”
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Barron was previously named by Trump to the Department of Justice’s Religious Liberty Commission. That commission has presented a draft of its final report to Trump, but has a still-outstanding final meeting to approve it, per the DOJ website.
Trump’s other nominations to USCIRF, an independent, bipartisan U.S. federal government commission that monitors religious freedom around the globe, were Andrew Brunson, an evangelical pastor who did ministry in Turkey and was imprisoned there, and Joe Grogan, previously a top domestic policy adviser to Trump during his first term.
USCIRF also said Trump nominated Jane “Cissie” Lynch, the daughter of the Rev. Franklin Graham and granddaughter of the late Rev. Billy Graham, both evangelical leaders, to be the ambassador-at-large for international religious freedom, a key, related role at the Department of State. That role requires Senate confirmation.
Asif Mahmood, chair of USCIRF, welcomed the nomination and appointments in a statement.
“President Trump’s announcement is a vital step in advancing the human right of freedom of religion or belief (FoRB) abroad. USCIRF calls for a swift confirmation process for IRF Ambassador-Designate Lynch,” Mahmood said. “Filling these roles demonstrates the ongoing commitment of the United States to international religious freedom as a priority in foreign policy.”
CeCe Heil, the commission’s vice chair, added, “With these appointments, USCIRF’s full bipartisan composition further supports our efforts to advance religious freedom abroad for all. We look forward to working together.”
Kate Scanlon is a national reporter for OSV News covering Washington. Follow her on X @kgscanlon.
– WASHINGTON (OSV News) — President Donald Trump’s new appointees to the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom include Bishop Robert E. Barron of Winona-Rochester, Minnesota, the commission said Sept. 16. Spokespersons for USCRIF and other religious freedom advocates previously told OSV News they were eager for Trump to make nominations to the commission after several previous commissioners reached the end of their terms in May. In a statement posted on X, Bishop Barron wrote, “I was honored to accept President Trump’s invitation to serve on the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom.” “This agency, formed by act of Congress
The French bishops’ conference is still short more than 21 million euros to cover the cost of Pope Leo’s Sept. 25–28 visit. Meanwhile, demand for the Paris Mass forced a major expansion of the route.
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