![Maryland Supreme Court: State cannot reveal names of individuals who allegedly hid Church abuse #Catholic Prosecutors in Maryland may not reveal the names of individuals who allegedly hid or failed to report Church abuse, the state Supreme Court said April 27. As part of its investigation into alleged abuse in the Archdiocese of Baltimore, the state attorney generalʼs office had sought to make public the details of a grand jury report, including the identities of individuals who have not been charged with a crime but who allegedly failed to stop abuse from occurring. A lower court granted the attorney generalʼs request to publish the information, with an appellate court partly upholding that decision. Yet in its April 27 ruling, the Maryland Supreme Court reversed those decisions, holding that the attorney generalʼs office did not “meet [the] burden” of justifying the release of the identities. “Many grand jury investigations obtain damaging information and allegations about uncharged individuals that the public might benefit from learning,” the high court acknowledged. But “one of the primary purposes of grand jury secrecy is to protect uncharged persons from public disgrace in the absence of a criminal charge and a forum in which to seek vindication,” it said. “A court may not order disclosure of secret grand jury material, over the objection of an uncharged individual, for the purpose of holding that person accountable in the court of public opinion,” the justices said. The court noted that the attorney generalʼs office had argued that the “intensity of public interest” in the case could justify revealing the identities.Yet “the interests promoted by grand jury secrecy do not increase or decrease based on how much the public wants to learn the information contained in grand jury materials,” the court said.The decision comes amid ongoing court proceedings in the Archdiocese of Baltimore, which filed for bankruptcy in September 2023 ahead of a wave of sex abuse claims filed against it under the Maryland Child Victims Act. Earlier this month, the archdiocesan insurer Hartford Insurance Group proposed contributing $100 million to a settlement for abuse victims. The archdiocese in 2024 sued multiple insurers over what it claimed was a failure to pay abuse claims for which the insurers were contractually obligated.In 2024 Archbishop William Lori attended two court-ordered “listening sessions” with alleged victims of sexual abuse, with the prelate describing himself as "deeply moved by their very powerful testimony.”](https://unitedyam.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/maryland-supreme-court-state-cannot-reveal-names-of-individuals-who-allegedly-hid-church-abuse-catholic-prosecutors-in-maryland-may-not-reveal-the-names-of-individuals-who-allegedly-hid-or-failed-to-scaled.jpg "Maryland Supreme Court: State cannot reveal names of individuals who allegedly hid Church abuse #Catholic Prosecutors in Maryland may not reveal the names of individuals who allegedly hid or failed to report Church abuse, the state Supreme Court said April 27. As part of its investigation into alleged abuse in the Archdiocese of Baltimore, the state attorney generalʼs office had sought to make public the details of a grand jury report, including the identities of individuals who have not been charged with a crime but who allegedly failed to stop abuse from occurring. A lower court granted the attorney generalʼs request to publish the information, with an appellate court partly upholding that decision. Yet in its April 27 ruling, the Maryland Supreme Court reversed those decisions, holding that the attorney generalʼs office did not “meet [the] burden” of justifying the release of the identities. “Many grand jury investigations obtain damaging information and allegations about uncharged individuals that the public might benefit from learning,” the high court acknowledged. But “one of the primary purposes of grand jury secrecy is to protect uncharged persons from public disgrace in the absence of a criminal charge and a forum in which to seek vindication,” it said. “A court may not order disclosure of secret grand jury material, over the objection of an uncharged individual, for the purpose of holding that person accountable in the court of public opinion,” the justices said. The court noted that the attorney generalʼs office had argued that the “intensity of public interest” in the case could justify revealing the identities.Yet “the interests promoted by grand jury secrecy do not increase or decrease based on how much the public wants to learn the information contained in grand jury materials,” the court said.The decision comes amid ongoing court proceedings in the Archdiocese of Baltimore, which filed for bankruptcy in September 2023 ahead of a wave of sex abuse claims filed against it under the Maryland Child Victims Act. Earlier this month, the archdiocesan insurer Hartford Insurance Group proposed contributing $100 million to a settlement for abuse victims. The archdiocese in 2024 sued multiple insurers over what it claimed was a failure to pay abuse claims for which the insurers were contractually obligated.In 2024 Archbishop William Lori attended two court-ordered “listening sessions” with alleged victims of sexual abuse, with the prelate describing himself as \"deeply moved by their very powerful testimony.”")
“Uncharged individuals” may not be exposed to the “court of public opinion” in grand jury documents, the state high court ruled.
The suit concerned allegations against former priest Stephen Kiesle, who has faced dozens of lawsuits regarding alleged child abuse.
![Federal judge pauses Louisiana telehealth abortion suit pending FDA review #Catholic After the Trump administration appealed, a federal judge put on pause a lawsuit filed by the state of Louisiana that challenges the federal policy of allowing mail-order abortion pills.U.S. District Judge David Joseph in Lafayette, Louisiana, ruled that the challenge be paused pending the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA)’s review of the safety of the drug but noted that the state could continue the challenge after the review was completed.Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murrill filed a lawsuit in late 2025 to challenge the 2023 deregulation of mifepristone, which is used in chemical abortions. The 2023 rule changes, initiated during former president Joe Biden’s administration, allowed the drugs to be delivered through the mail and prescribed without any visits to a doctor.In January of this year, President Donald Trump’s Department of Justice (DOJ) filed a motion with a federal district court to pause the suit, pending a review by the FDA of the chemical abortion drug.Louisiana had filed the lawsuit after residents — including Rosalie Markezich, who is named in the lawsuit — said they were coerced into taking abortion pills that were obtained through the mail. In Markezich’s case, she said her boyfriend forced her to take it.Study: Maternal mortality decreased in states that protect unborn lifeA recent study published by JAMA Network Open found a decrease in maternal mortality in states that protect unborn children from abortions as well as in states with permissive abortion laws.The study considered 22 million births and more than 12,000 pregnancy-related deaths from 2018 to 2023, with 14 states with abortion bans and 37 control jurisdictions.“This cohort study found that abortion bans were not associated with statistically significant overall or state-specific increases in pregnancy-associated mortality,” the study read.In states with strong pro-life laws, on average, maternal mortality rates declined slightly faster than pro-abortion states.Illinois pregnancy centers continue to appeal for conscience rightsA court heard arguments on Friday from Illinois pregnancy centers that are appealing an Illinois district court decision that affirmed a law requiring pregnancy centers to refer women for abortions.The National Institute of Family and Life Advocates and three Illinois pregnancy centers appealed after an April 2025 court ruling found that requiring pregnancy centers to refer pregnant women for an abortion was not a violation of speech and conscience rights.“No one should be forced to express a message that violates their convictions, and compelling people to refer others for abortions does that,” said Alliance Defending Freedom Counsel Erin Hawley. “The U.S. Supreme Court held in NIFLA v. Becerra that forcing people to promote abortion is unconstitutional.”Maryland bill to force hospitals to offer abortions goes to governor’s deskA Maryland bill that would force hospitals to offer abortions, even against their conscience, in some circumstances, heads to the stateʼs governor after the state Legislature passed it this week.The bill would require “a hospital to allow the termination of a pregnancy in certain circumstances” under the federal 1986 Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act (EMTALA), which ensures that emergency care is offered regardless of a patient’s ability to pay.The bill would also require a hospital to screen patients for “emergency pregnancy-related medical condition[s]” and to provide “transfer of a patient who has an emergency pregnancy-related medical condition.”“This bill will result in a new government-created loss of valuable highly trained and experienced emergency department physicians, nurses, providers, and staff,” said Dr. James Kelly, representing the Association of American Physicians and Surgeons. “The legislation will increase the already existing severe shortages of qualified medical staff and will decrease access to emergency medical care, and endanger the health and safety of patients seeking emergency medical care.”](https://unitedyam.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/federal-judge-pauses-louisiana-telehealth-abortion-suit-pending-fda-review-catholic-after-the-trump-administration-appealed-a-federal-judge-put-on-pause-a-lawsuit-filed-by-the-state-of-louisiana-tha.jpg "Federal judge pauses Louisiana telehealth abortion suit pending FDA review #Catholic After the Trump administration appealed, a federal judge put on pause a lawsuit filed by the state of Louisiana that challenges the federal policy of allowing mail-order abortion pills.U.S. District Judge David Joseph in Lafayette, Louisiana, ruled that the challenge be paused pending the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA)’s review of the safety of the drug but noted that the state could continue the challenge after the review was completed.Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murrill filed a lawsuit in late 2025 to challenge the 2023 deregulation of mifepristone, which is used in chemical abortions. The 2023 rule changes, initiated during former president Joe Biden’s administration, allowed the drugs to be delivered through the mail and prescribed without any visits to a doctor.In January of this year, President Donald Trump’s Department of Justice (DOJ) filed a motion with a federal district court to pause the suit, pending a review by the FDA of the chemical abortion drug.Louisiana had filed the lawsuit after residents — including Rosalie Markezich, who is named in the lawsuit — said they were coerced into taking abortion pills that were obtained through the mail. In Markezich’s case, she said her boyfriend forced her to take it.Study: Maternal mortality decreased in states that protect unborn lifeA recent study published by JAMA Network Open found a decrease in maternal mortality in states that protect unborn children from abortions as well as in states with permissive abortion laws.The study considered 22 million births and more than 12,000 pregnancy-related deaths from 2018 to 2023, with 14 states with abortion bans and 37 control jurisdictions.“This cohort study found that abortion bans were not associated with statistically significant overall or state-specific increases in pregnancy-associated mortality,” the study read.In states with strong pro-life laws, on average, maternal mortality rates declined slightly faster than pro-abortion states.Illinois pregnancy centers continue to appeal for conscience rightsA court heard arguments on Friday from Illinois pregnancy centers that are appealing an Illinois district court decision that affirmed a law requiring pregnancy centers to refer women for abortions.The National Institute of Family and Life Advocates and three Illinois pregnancy centers appealed after an April 2025 court ruling found that requiring pregnancy centers to refer pregnant women for an abortion was not a violation of speech and conscience rights.“No one should be forced to express a message that violates their convictions, and compelling people to refer others for abortions does that,” said Alliance Defending Freedom Counsel Erin Hawley. “The U.S. Supreme Court held in NIFLA v. Becerra that forcing people to promote abortion is unconstitutional.”Maryland bill to force hospitals to offer abortions goes to governor’s deskA Maryland bill that would force hospitals to offer abortions, even against their conscience, in some circumstances, heads to the stateʼs governor after the state Legislature passed it this week.The bill would require “a hospital to allow the termination of a pregnancy in certain circumstances” under the federal 1986 Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act (EMTALA), which ensures that emergency care is offered regardless of a patient’s ability to pay.The bill would also require a hospital to screen patients for “emergency pregnancy-related medical condition[s]” and to provide “transfer of a patient who has an emergency pregnancy-related medical condition.”“This bill will result in a new government-created loss of valuable highly trained and experienced emergency department physicians, nurses, providers, and staff,” said Dr. James Kelly, representing the Association of American Physicians and Surgeons. “The legislation will increase the already existing severe shortages of qualified medical staff and will decrease access to emergency medical care, and endanger the health and safety of patients seeking emergency medical care.”")
Bishop Samson Shukardin said government committees are often delayed so people forget, as protests continue over the marriage of 13-year-old Maria Shahbaz.
UEFA told EWTN News its fine on a Serbian soccer club was for offensive language, not a massive Orthodox Christian display — contradicting widespread reports the sanction targeted religious imagery.
![California grandmother aims for 10,000 signatures on petition against second-trimester abortions #Catholic Mary Waldorf didn’t know anything about organizing petitions, but when a hospital worker and fellow parishioner told her that staff were forced to participate in second-trimester abortions, she felt called to do something.Enloe Medical Center in Chico, California, about 80 miles north of Sacramento, is the primary hospital in the area.“It’s the only hospital in a huge county. We all have to use it,” Waldorf told “EWTN Pro-Life Weekly.”Waldorf still remembers how she felt the day she found out about the abortions being performed there.“I spent the rest of the day just bawling because I know what a second-trimester abortion is,” she said.“Everybody was shocked,” she added.Waldorf went with a small group to peacefully protest in front of the hospital, holding signs. Hospital staff approached, asking why they were there.“They didn’t even know” about the later-term abortions being performed at the facility, Waldorf said.Waldorf claimed that local media will not cover the controversy. She said she has sent several letters to the editor of local papers but described the situation as a “media blackout.”A pediatrician at the hospital told her the hospital administration might reconsider if there was enough concern. “Why she told me, God only knows,” Waldorf said. “But I thought, well, if that’s the case, then what if we do a petition?”“I’m just somebody who goes to church, has grandkids, goes to work — I don’t know how to do [a petition],” she told “EWTN Pro-Life Weekly.” “I am not a media [figure]. But when God gives you an opportunity, you got to go for it.”The petition had about 800 signatures as of March 27. Waldorf is aiming for 10,000 — 10% of the size of the town.Waldorf said staff members have told her that the hospital allegedly has refused to allow some medical workers to opt out of assisting with abortion procedures.“They were told that the pre-op and the post-op nurses and personnel could not opt out,” Waldorf said.Waldorf runs a local chapter of 40 Days for Life, a nationwide effort aimed at praying for women seeking abortions and for their children, usually in front of abortion clinics during Lent. She says she wants women to have “true choice.”“If the mindset of people is about death, they don’t consider the child — and you have to consider both,” Waldorf said. “They’re not counseling these women. What about giving them true choice?”“The dignity of the human person is so paramount,” Waldorf added. “And I think that that is what’s being lost here completely.”](https://unitedyam.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/california-grandmother-aims-for-10000-signatures-on-petition-against-second-trimester-abortions-catholic-mary-waldorf-didnt-know-anything-about-organizing-petitions-but-when-a-hospital-wor-scaled.png "California grandmother aims for 10,000 signatures on petition against second-trimester abortions #Catholic Mary Waldorf didn’t know anything about organizing petitions, but when a hospital worker and fellow parishioner told her that staff were forced to participate in second-trimester abortions, she felt called to do something.Enloe Medical Center in Chico, California, about 80 miles north of Sacramento, is the primary hospital in the area.“It’s the only hospital in a huge county. We all have to use it,” Waldorf told “EWTN Pro-Life Weekly.”Waldorf still remembers how she felt the day she found out about the abortions being performed there.“I spent the rest of the day just bawling because I know what a second-trimester abortion is,” she said.“Everybody was shocked,” she added.Waldorf went with a small group to peacefully protest in front of the hospital, holding signs. Hospital staff approached, asking why they were there.“They didn’t even know” about the later-term abortions being performed at the facility, Waldorf said.Waldorf claimed that local media will not cover the controversy. She said she has sent several letters to the editor of local papers but described the situation as a “media blackout.”A pediatrician at the hospital told her the hospital administration might reconsider if there was enough concern. “Why she told me, God only knows,” Waldorf said. “But I thought, well, if that’s the case, then what if we do a petition?”“I’m just somebody who goes to church, has grandkids, goes to work — I don’t know how to do [a petition],” she told “EWTN Pro-Life Weekly.” “I am not a media [figure]. But when God gives you an opportunity, you got to go for it.”The petition had about 800 signatures as of March 27. Waldorf is aiming for 10,000 — 10% of the size of the town.Waldorf said staff members have told her that the hospital allegedly has refused to allow some medical workers to opt out of assisting with abortion procedures.“They were told that the pre-op and the post-op nurses and personnel could not opt out,” Waldorf said.Waldorf runs a local chapter of 40 Days for Life, a nationwide effort aimed at praying for women seeking abortions and for their children, usually in front of abortion clinics during Lent. She says she wants women to have “true choice.”“If the mindset of people is about death, they don’t consider the child — and you have to consider both,” Waldorf said. “They’re not counseling these women. What about giving them true choice?”“The dignity of the human person is so paramount,” Waldorf added. “And I think that that is what’s being lost here completely.”")
Mary Waldorf is rallying her town to petition against second-trimester abortions offered by Enloe Medical Center.
![Pakistan Christian prisoners rebuild lives after church bombings #Catholic LAHORE, Pakistan — Every year during Lent, Sunil Masih remembers his elder brother as churches in Youhanabad — Lahore’s largest squatter settlement for poor Christians — mark the anniversary of the 2015 church bombings.The four Catholic brothers were among more than 150 Christians arrested by police days after twin suicide attacks on St. John’s Catholic Church and Christ Church on March 15, 2015, which killed at least 19 people and injured hundreds. The attacks were claimed by Jamaat-ul-Ahrar, an offshoot of Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan.The bombings sparked mob violence that mistakenly killed two Muslim men, who were later identified and detained through raids and video evidence.
Sunil Masih stands beside his vegetable cart in front of his family’s former
milk shop in Youhanabad, Lahore, Pakistan, on March 15, 2025. | Credit:
Kamran Chaudhry
Masih, now 28, said the trauma of prison changed him forever.“They hurled abuses at us, beat us with strips cut from vehicle tires, and in jail we were given old dried roti [flat bread],” he told EWTN News. “Water from the greasy toilet taps was served for drinking. Family meetings were allowed only after a month. It was a hellhole on earth.”He and his brother Sadaqat Perwaiz — popularly known as Monty — were released after six months in Central Jail Lahore. One brother, however, remained among 42 Christians and one Muslim charged in the lynching case.Devastation beyond prisonThe protracted court proceedings devastated the family’s four-decade-old milk business, saddled them with mounting debts, and forced the sale of their 680-square-foot home.Their worries deepened after two Christian inmates, Inderyas Masih, 36, and Usman Shaukat, 29, died in custody under suspicious circumstances during the trial. Police claimed tuberculosis and a heart attack, respectively, while families and the British Pakistani Christian Association reported bruises and unexplained injuries.
Pakistani police stand guard outside St. John’s Catholic Church in
Youhanabad, Lahore, on March 15, 2025. Posters of Servant of God Akash Bashir flank the entrance gate on the 10th anniversary of twin suicide bombings that struck the neighborhood. | Credit: Kamran Chaudhry
In January 2020, an anti-terrorism court acquitted the remaining 39 accused after blood money (Diyat) of 25 million rupees ($89,800) was paid to the victims’ families by Pastor Anwar Fazal, a prominent Christian televangelist.Under the Qisas and Diyat Ordinance 1990, introduced during Gen. Ziaul Haq’s Islamization process, courts calculate compensation based on the financial capacity of the convict and the victim’s heirs, with a minimum value linked to 30,630 grams of silver.Monty died of a heart attack in 2022, leaving behind two children aged 10 and 14. His faded poster still hangs in front of the family’s closed milk shop.“He was a stout man, known for his strong community ties and friendly nature in our neighborhood. Prison left him very lean and weakened by an infection that caused his legs to swell beneath the knees and bleed,” Masih said.Today, Sunil Masih sells vegetables from a wooden cart in front of the same shop, now leased to a real estate dealer. He hopes to marry once his new business stabilizes.‘The gift of a hero’On March 15, police guarded churches in Youhanabad, which houses more than 150,000 Christians, as the community observed the 11th bombing anniversary.At St. John’s, parishioners lit candles and placed flowers beneath a banner honoring Akash Bashir, the 20-year-old security volunteer who died preventing a suicide bomber from entering the church during that Sunday Mass.“Salute and gratitude to the martyrs of Youhanabad,” read the banner near the Marian grotto. In January 2022, the Vatican recognized Bashir as a servant of God, making him the first Pakistani Catholic on the path to canonization.
Father Akram Javed (fifth from right), parish priest of St. John’s Catholic Church, lights a memorial candle for Servant of God Akash Bashir at a commemoration in Youhanabad, Lahore, Pakistan, on March 15, 2025. |
Credit: Kamran Chaudhry
Father Akram Javed, parish priest of St. John’s, thanked police for security.“A group of 30 local volunteers carry on Akash’s mission, protecting the church and worshippers. The bombings were a terrible tragedy, but in that darkness, we received the gift of a hero,” he told EWTN News.‘The bombing was a national tragedy’Pentecostal politician Aslam Pervaiz Sahotra, who spent five years in prison, sees the anniversary as a moment of reflection for Pakistan’s 3.3 million Christians, many of whom continue to face discrimination, economic hardship, and lingering trauma.
A man prays outside a church in Youhanabad, Lahore, Pakistan, on March 15, 2025, during commemorations marking the anniversary of the twin suicide bombings. Banners honoring Akash Bashir are visible in the background. | Credit: Kamran Chaudhry
“The bombing was a national tragedy from which the authorities learnt nothing. We continue to suffer losses due to terrorism, with sporadic attacks targeting minority communities and security forces,” said the 65-year-old head of the Massiha Millat Party (Christian Nation Party).He alleged prison authorities tried to manipulate him, introducing Muslim prisoners to persuade him to stay passive.“Despite back pain from four displaced vertebrae, my time in prison strengthened my faith and resolve for activism. The trend of arresting Christians for alleged blasphemy to appease angry crowds will continue unless investigations are conducted on merit,” he added.
Pakistani bishops demand probe into death of Christian farmworker
The United States Commission on International Religious Freedom, in its 2025 annual report, said religious freedom in Pakistan continued to deteriorate, recommending it be designated a “country of particular concern,” citing blasphemy-related prosecutions, mob violence, and forced conversions targeting Christians and other minorities, and a growing climate of fear and impunity.](https://unitedyam.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/pakistan-christian-prisoners-rebuild-lives-after-church-bombings-catholic-lahore-pakistan-every-year-during-lent-sunil-masih-remembers-his-elder-brother-as-churches-in-youhanabad.jpg)
Eleven years after twin suicide bombings struck two Pakistan churches, survivors of mass arrests still bear the scars as a young martyr who died stopping the attack moves toward sainthood.
![Pope Leo XIV reunites with his eighth grade classmates #Catholic On the steps of St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome, Pope Leo XIV met last week with some of his eighth grade classmates from St. Mary of the Assumption lower school in south Chicago, where he grew up.Of the 82 eighth graders with whom he attended St. Mary’s in 1969, 10 greeted him after the general audience on March 18, exchanging laughs, gifts, and warm handshakes.During the meeting, his former classmates gave him a photograph of the class of 1969, which he held up as he posed for another group shot more than 50 years later.Jerome Clemens pointed out the young Robert Prevost standing among his classmates to the L’Osservatore Romano, the Vatican newspaper: “Here he is, our friend, the pope,” showing the back of the photo with Prevost’s old autograph and his new one, which he signed, “Leo XIV.”Another former classmate, Sherry Stone (née Blue), dropped a sign she held that read “God bless you Pope Leo” when the pope approached her.“Sorry! I’m nervous!” she said, laughing, as he shook her hand.Instagram postLast spring, Stone told the Lansing Journal: “When he was in the conclave, I thought, ‘Could it be him? Could Bob be the new pope? No, probably not.’ When I saw that it was him, I was just amazed. I was crying tears of joy.”“He was a super nice guy, but not nerdy,” she said.After finishing eighth grade at St. Mary’s, Prevost attended boarding school at St. Augustine Seminary High School in Michigan, graduating in 1973. He then attended another Augustinian school, Villanova University, where he earned a bachelor’s degree in mathematics in 1977 before entering the Augustinian novitiate that September. He was ordained a priest in 1982, earning a master of divinity degree from the Catholic Theological Union in Chicago that same year. He earned a licentiate in canon law (JCL) in 1984 and completed a doctorate in canon law (JCD) in 1987, both from the Pontifical University of St. Thomas Aquinas in Rome.St. Mary’s church and school on Chicago’s ‘most endangered list’St. Mary of the Assumption Church and School, where a young Prevost served as an altar boy and his mother, Mildred Prevost, worked as a librarian, was at the center of a vibrant Catholic community in the Riverdale neighborhood on Chicago’s South Side in the 1960s.The property, which has been vacant since 2011 and is now privately owned, is located just a few blocks from the pope’s childhood home in Dolton, Illinois, but within Chicago city limits.The neighborhood has seen significant decline since then. Ward Miller of Preservation Chicago told EWTN News that St. Mary’s, which has a hole in the roof of the church building, broken windows, graffiti, and many other issues, was listed on Preservation Chicago’s 2026 “7 Most Endangered List" as of March 4.
Broken windows and graffiti on St. Mary of the Assumption School, where Robert Prevost, now Pope Leo XIV, the first American pope, attended eighth grade in 1969. | Credit: Matthew Kaplan
“We at Preservation Chicago are of the opinion that the church and school buildings of St. Mary’s are in need of immediate attention in order to secure temporary repairs, with a long-term goal of a full restoration of the campus of buildings, before everything is lost to deterioration,” Miller said.The property’s current owner, Joel Hall, said last year he is open to a landmark designation by the city, according to Miller. Preservation Chicago, a nonprofit advocacy organization dedicated to preserving historic sites in Chicago and encouraging landmark designations in the city, presented its case to designate it as such at a meeting in May 2025 of the Commission of Chicago Landmarks.No decision has been made yet regarding the landmark designation, but Preservation Chicago has created an online petition to the city of Chicago to “Save the Pope’s Church!”“This complex should become a visitors site, an oratory or shrine, as this is our first American pope — a world leader, and from Chicago!” Miller told EWTN News.
The interior of the dilapidated St. Mary of the Assumption Church, showing water damage to the floor and graffiti behind where the altar once stood. Pope Leo XIV served as an altar boy there during his childhood. | Credit: Ward Miller/Preservation Chicago
“We would very much like to see a partnership form to save these buildings and tell the story of this world leader,” reads an article on Preservation Chicago’s website. “An initial step in this process would be to consider a Chicago landmark designation of the buildings of this campus, with a plan to methodically restore and repurpose each of the buildings.”
Close-up of St. Mary of the Assumption Church in Riverdale, Chicago, Pope Leo XIV’s childhood parish, which was recently added to Preservation Chicagoʼs “7 Most Endangered” list of historic structures in the city. | Credit: Cristen Brown
Miller told EWTN News he would like to see the property “prepared [in time] for the pope’s return visits to Chicago!”The pope does not yet have plans to visit the United States.](https://unitedyam.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/pope-leo-xiv-reunites-with-his-eighth-grade-classmates-catholic-on-the-steps-of-st-peters-basilica-in-rome-pope-leo-xiv-met-last-week-with-some-of-his-eighth-grade-classmates-from-st-mary.jpg)
Pope Leo XIV met with 10 of his eighth grade classmates in St. Peter’s Square at a recent general audience.
Our Lady of Fatima Parish in the Archdiocese of Luanda is preparing to host Pope Leo XIV’s meeting with bishops, priests, women and men religious, and catechists during his April 18–21 visit.
