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At friendship meeting in Italy, Pope Leo calls for fraternity: ‘Love is the law of life’ #Catholic Pope Leo XIV arrived in the Italian city of Rimini on Aug. 22 to visit the 47th Meeting for Friendship Among the Peoples, telling about 60,000 attendees that “love is the force that can transform the world.”Upon arrival after a brief visit to the country of San Marino, Leo addressed a spontaneous greeting to the people gathered in the auditorium, expressing his joy and pointing out that “the loudest applause should be for Jesus Christ.” Pope Leo XIV greets attendees at the 47th Meeting for Friendship Among the Peoples in Rimini, Italy, Aug. 22, 2026. | Credit: Vatican Media “Our hearts, so big and capable of loving, should never be closed. Letʼs find the way together to build a world of peace and love,” he said.In his speech to the gathering, Pope Leo recounted the teachings of his immediate predecessors on social friendship, fraternity and union, highlighting the value of Riminiʼs meeting to achieve these ideals. The annual event is hosted by the international organization Communion and Liberation. He assured the assembly that “in recognizing our dignity as children of God, we come into contact with what originally unites human beings, beyond all diversity, separation or conflict.”“We can identify with each other, listen to each other and establish friendship, between individuals and, therefore, also between peoples. Before borders, definitions and institutions, there are always people,” he added.Reflecting on the pastoral constitution Gaudium et spes of the Second Vatican Council, Pope Leo did not hesitate to affirm that “it is a time of responsibility” among men and that it is love that is the foundation of a fraternal society.“Following Jesus Christ after the tragedies and the new beginnings of the twentieth century implies, in fact, a clear awareness: Evil is not fought with evil. As in heaven, as on earth, love is the law of life, the method of redemption of the crucified Messiah,” he said.“Faced with the false realism that rearms minds, words and nations, the current Catholic culture must counteract the realism of mercy, which maintains that enemies cannot exist and that everyone, even adversaries, are brothers to whom they look into the eyes and receive with sincerity,” he added.Addressing especially young people, Leo told them that they “are a sign that the future is a promise, not a threat” and witnesses of a love that “continues to inspire hope.”“Love moves, drives, awakens from lethargy, inspires new vocations and calls us to take risks. Get involved! Open up to true universality, expanding your ties beyond any too close affiliation,” he said."In every corner of the world, especially in the margins and among those who suffer, you will find those willing to build the civilization of love. Do not allow anyone to belittle this word, which is the very name of God: 'God is love,'" said the Holy Father.“In love, there is never coercion or indoctrination; there is never seduction, deception or manipulation. Love resides only in freedom, in sincere exchange, in generous self-giving.”Finally, he invited young people to remain devoted to Christ to testify, without boasting, in the midst of todayʼs world."May the Holy Spirit instruct us in the practice of communion. That gives us pleasure for [the Holy Spirit], appreciation for him and hope in him. May he continue to guide us, dear brothers and sisters, with that love 'that moves the sun and the other stars'," he concluded.This story was originally published by ACI Prensa, EWTN News’ Spanish-language news partner. It has been translated and adapted by EWTN News English.
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At friendship meeting in Italy, Pope Leo calls for fraternity: ‘Love is the law of life’ #Catholic Pope Leo XIV arrived in the Italian city of Rimini on Aug. 22 to visit the 47th Meeting for Friendship Among the Peoples, telling about 60,000 attendees that “love is the force that can transform the world.”Upon arrival after a brief visit to the country of San Marino, Leo addressed a spontaneous greeting to the people gathered in the auditorium, expressing his joy and pointing out that “the loudest applause should be for Jesus Christ.” Pope Leo XIV greets attendees at the 47th Meeting for Friendship Among the Peoples in Rimini, Italy, Aug. 22, 2026. | Credit: Vatican Media “Our hearts, so big and capable of loving, should never be closed. Letʼs find the way together to build a world of peace and love,” he said.In his speech to the gathering, Pope Leo recounted the teachings of his immediate predecessors on social friendship, fraternity and union, highlighting the value of Riminiʼs meeting to achieve these ideals. The annual event is hosted by the international organization Communion and Liberation. He assured the assembly that “in recognizing our dignity as children of God, we come into contact with what originally unites human beings, beyond all diversity, separation or conflict.”“We can identify with each other, listen to each other and establish friendship, between individuals and, therefore, also between peoples. Before borders, definitions and institutions, there are always people,” he added.Reflecting on the pastoral constitution Gaudium et spes of the Second Vatican Council, Pope Leo did not hesitate to affirm that “it is a time of responsibility” among men and that it is love that is the foundation of a fraternal society.“Following Jesus Christ after the tragedies and the new beginnings of the twentieth century implies, in fact, a clear awareness: Evil is not fought with evil. As in heaven, as on earth, love is the law of life, the method of redemption of the crucified Messiah,” he said.“Faced with the false realism that rearms minds, words and nations, the current Catholic culture must counteract the realism of mercy, which maintains that enemies cannot exist and that everyone, even adversaries, are brothers to whom they look into the eyes and receive with sincerity,” he added.Addressing especially young people, Leo told them that they “are a sign that the future is a promise, not a threat” and witnesses of a love that “continues to inspire hope.”“Love moves, drives, awakens from lethargy, inspires new vocations and calls us to take risks. Get involved! Open up to true universality, expanding your ties beyond any too close affiliation,” he said."In every corner of the world, especially in the margins and among those who suffer, you will find those willing to build the civilization of love. Do not allow anyone to belittle this word, which is the very name of God: 'God is love,'" said the Holy Father.“In love, there is never coercion or indoctrination; there is never seduction, deception or manipulation. Love resides only in freedom, in sincere exchange, in generous self-giving.”Finally, he invited young people to remain devoted to Christ to testify, without boasting, in the midst of todayʼs world."May the Holy Spirit instruct us in the practice of communion. That gives us pleasure for [the Holy Spirit], appreciation for him and hope in him. May he continue to guide us, dear brothers and sisters, with that love 'that moves the sun and the other stars'," he concluded.This story was originally published by ACI Prensa, EWTN News’ Spanish-language news partner. It has been translated and adapted by EWTN News English.

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“Our heart, so big and capable of loving, should never be closed. Let’s find the way together to build a world of peace and love,” the pope said to a crowd of thousands.

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New film ‘American Martyr’ tells story of Oklahoma priest and martyr Blessed Stanley Rother #Catholic Hundreds gathered late last month in Oklahoma City for the premiere of the new film “American Martyr: The Stanley Rother Story,” a feature-length documentary depicting the inspiring life of Blessed Stanley Rother.“This has been a long time coming,” Archbishop Paul Coakley of Oklahoma City told EWTN News on the red carpet July 28.Born in Okarche, Oklahoma, Rother was a farmer before he attended Mount St. Mary’s Seminary in Emmitsburg, Maryland, and was ordained a priest in 1963. After serving as an associate pastor at a parish in Oklahoma for five years, Rother received permission to join the staff at the Oklahoma diocese’s mission in Santiago Atitlán, Guatemala.He served the Tz’utujil people, who are descendants of the Mayans, in Guatemala, learning their native Tz’utujil language as well as Spanish. As their pastor, Rother celebrated Mass and helped translate the New Testament into the Tz’utujil language. He quickly gained the trust and love of the local people, ministering to them in their homes, sharing meals, helping them in the fields, and visiting the sick.While Rother was in Guatemala, a civil war broke out and the Catholic Church was caught in its crosshairs. The priest’s name was placed on a death list. On July 28, 1981, three men entered the rectory at night and killed the beloved priest.Rother’s cause for canonization opened in 2007 by the Archdiocese of Oklahoma City, and in 2016 Pope Francis recognized Rother as a martyr for the faith. He became the first American-born priest to be recognized as a martyr by the Catholic Church. The Warren Theater in Oklahoma City hosted the premiere of “American Martyr: The Stanley Rother Story” on July 28, 2026. | Credit: Photo courtesy of Chris Porter “We’ve been very intentionally promoting the cause of Blessed Stanley Rother for many years,” Coakley said. “He’s been beatified and now we’re working toward his canonization, and in order for that ever to happen we need more and more people seeking the intercession of Blessed Stanley Rother and seeking his divine favor so that miracles may be performed through his intercession. So that’s why we undertook this production, to introduce him to more and more people.”The archbishop added that the film is “a beautiful depiction of the life of an ordinary Catholic who responded generously and faithfully to Godʼs grace and mercy and allowed the Lord to transform him and form him into the saint ultimately that we hope he will finally be named.”Michael Scaperlanda, chancellor at the Archdiocese of Oklahoma City, said: “This is an exciting moment for the archdiocese to have a nationwide release … of this wonderful documentary narrated by Martin Sheen.”He highlighted the importance of sharing Rother’s story to a wider audience because it serves as a reminder that “even ordinary people can become saints.” For Felipe Coche Pablo, the documentary is particularly personal. Pablo is a native of Santiago Atitlan and was baptized by Rother when he was 6 months old. He was 2 years old when Rother was killed.When Rother’s cause was opened, Pablo was appointed to serve as the official church notary for Rother’s parish in Santiago Atitlán. It was then that he learned about the potential saint’s life and legacy.Pablo said learning about Rother deeply impacted his life and taught him “to keep fighting in life. There are always stumbles, but you have to pick yourself back up, like he [Rother] did.” Archbishop Paul Coakley of Oklahoma City, left, and Felipe Coche Pablo, right, at the premiere of “American Martyr: The Stanley Rother Story” on July 28, 2026. | Credit: Photo courtesy of Chris Porter Today, Pablo is the administrator at Colegio Católico Padre Aplaʼs — also known as the Blessed Stanley Rother Catholic School — in Santiago Atitlán. This school is part of the parish in which Rother served, Santiago Apóstol, or St. James the Apostle Church.“We have 435 students and the education is trilingual — Tz’utujil, Spanish, and English,” he explained. “Our first language is the Mayan language, Tz’utujil. And he [Rother] was a priest that was very loved by the people because he learned the Mayan language Tz’utujil, like us, like what I speak.”Pablo said he hopes viewers of the film will be inspired by Rother’s “service to others” and to “carry peace, love, evangelize, and what is most needed in life — look for God.”Coakley added that he hopes viewers will leave the theater reminded that “all of us are called to holiness.”“Stanley Rother would not have been the one in high school in the yearbook that said most likely to become a saint … And yet all of us are called, it’s our vocation if you’re baptized, you’re called to be a saint. All of us are called to be saints. And Stanley Rother gives us a hope that for each one of us that is a possibility that is real.”“American Martyr” can be seen in theaters across the U.S. on Aug. 25 and 26 in English and in Spanish on Aug. 27.
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New film ‘American Martyr’ tells story of Oklahoma priest and martyr Blessed Stanley Rother #Catholic Hundreds gathered late last month in Oklahoma City for the premiere of the new film “American Martyr: The Stanley Rother Story,” a feature-length documentary depicting the inspiring life of Blessed Stanley Rother.“This has been a long time coming,” Archbishop Paul Coakley of Oklahoma City told EWTN News on the red carpet July 28.Born in Okarche, Oklahoma, Rother was a farmer before he attended Mount St. Mary’s Seminary in Emmitsburg, Maryland, and was ordained a priest in 1963. After serving as an associate pastor at a parish in Oklahoma for five years, Rother received permission to join the staff at the Oklahoma diocese’s mission in Santiago Atitlán, Guatemala.He served the Tz’utujil people, who are descendants of the Mayans, in Guatemala, learning their native Tz’utujil language as well as Spanish. As their pastor, Rother celebrated Mass and helped translate the New Testament into the Tz’utujil language. He quickly gained the trust and love of the local people, ministering to them in their homes, sharing meals, helping them in the fields, and visiting the sick.While Rother was in Guatemala, a civil war broke out and the Catholic Church was caught in its crosshairs. The priest’s name was placed on a death list. On July 28, 1981, three men entered the rectory at night and killed the beloved priest.Rother’s cause for canonization opened in 2007 by the Archdiocese of Oklahoma City, and in 2016 Pope Francis recognized Rother as a martyr for the faith. He became the first American-born priest to be recognized as a martyr by the Catholic Church. The Warren Theater in Oklahoma City hosted the premiere of “American Martyr: The Stanley Rother Story” on July 28, 2026. | Credit: Photo courtesy of Chris Porter “We’ve been very intentionally promoting the cause of Blessed Stanley Rother for many years,” Coakley said. “He’s been beatified and now we’re working toward his canonization, and in order for that ever to happen we need more and more people seeking the intercession of Blessed Stanley Rother and seeking his divine favor so that miracles may be performed through his intercession. So that’s why we undertook this production, to introduce him to more and more people.”The archbishop added that the film is “a beautiful depiction of the life of an ordinary Catholic who responded generously and faithfully to Godʼs grace and mercy and allowed the Lord to transform him and form him into the saint ultimately that we hope he will finally be named.”Michael Scaperlanda, chancellor at the Archdiocese of Oklahoma City, said: “This is an exciting moment for the archdiocese to have a nationwide release … of this wonderful documentary narrated by Martin Sheen.”He highlighted the importance of sharing Rother’s story to a wider audience because it serves as a reminder that “even ordinary people can become saints.” For Felipe Coche Pablo, the documentary is particularly personal. Pablo is a native of Santiago Atitlan and was baptized by Rother when he was 6 months old. He was 2 years old when Rother was killed.When Rother’s cause was opened, Pablo was appointed to serve as the official church notary for Rother’s parish in Santiago Atitlán. It was then that he learned about the potential saint’s life and legacy.Pablo said learning about Rother deeply impacted his life and taught him “to keep fighting in life. There are always stumbles, but you have to pick yourself back up, like he [Rother] did.” Archbishop Paul Coakley of Oklahoma City, left, and Felipe Coche Pablo, right, at the premiere of “American Martyr: The Stanley Rother Story” on July 28, 2026. | Credit: Photo courtesy of Chris Porter Today, Pablo is the administrator at Colegio Católico Padre Aplaʼs — also known as the Blessed Stanley Rother Catholic School — in Santiago Atitlán. This school is part of the parish in which Rother served, Santiago Apóstol, or St. James the Apostle Church.“We have 435 students and the education is trilingual — Tz’utujil, Spanish, and English,” he explained. “Our first language is the Mayan language, Tz’utujil. And he [Rother] was a priest that was very loved by the people because he learned the Mayan language Tz’utujil, like us, like what I speak.”Pablo said he hopes viewers of the film will be inspired by Rother’s “service to others” and to “carry peace, love, evangelize, and what is most needed in life — look for God.”Coakley added that he hopes viewers will leave the theater reminded that “all of us are called to holiness.”“Stanley Rother would not have been the one in high school in the yearbook that said most likely to become a saint … And yet all of us are called, it’s our vocation if you’re baptized, you’re called to be a saint. All of us are called to be saints. And Stanley Rother gives us a hope that for each one of us that is a possibility that is real.”“American Martyr” can be seen in theaters across the U.S. on Aug. 25 and 26 in English and in Spanish on Aug. 27.

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“American Martyr” can be seen in theaters Aug. 25-26 in English and in Spanish on Aug. 27.

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Last Chinese Trappist monk to survive Maoist persecution dies at 108 #Catholic Father Benedict Chao, the worldʼs oldest Trappist monk and the last survivor of the community that suffered communist persecution in China, died at the age of 108 on July 31 in Lantau, Hong Kong.The Order of Cistercians of Strict Observance reported that Chao was born in 1918 in Chengting, Hebei Province, China. He entered the monastery in Hebei in 1941, made his solemn profession in 1947, and was ordained a priest in 1949.He lived as a monk for 79 years and as a priest for 77. His funeral is scheduled for Aug. 14.According to AsiaNews, Chao also served for more than 20 years as superior of the Trappist community on Lantau.TweetPersecuted by communistsIn 1941, at the age of 23, Chau entered the Abbey of Our Lady of Joy, also known by its French name, “Liesse,” meaning “jubilation.”According to AsiaNews, the monastery was occupied by Japanese troops in 1937 and several monks were imprisoned and killed.However, the worst was yet to come when the Chinese dictator Mao Zedong took control of the region.In 1947, the same year Chao made his solemn vows, the Abbey of Our Lady of Consolation in Yangjiaping was attacked. The monks were tortured and forced to leave the monastery.A year later, six monks were executed by firing squad following a peopleʼs trial. Among them was 29-year-old Father Chrysostom Chang, the communityʼs sub-prior.Those who were killed during the persecution are commemorated as the 33 martyrs of Yangjiaping, comprising 30 Chinese monks and three foreign religious, according to AsiaNews.Exile and new monastery in Hong KongThe Liesse community, where the young Chao was living, also came under attack, leaving the monks no choice but to seek refuge in another city.As the persecution intensified, some monks were sent out of China. Among them was Chao, who arrived at the monastery of Notre-Dame-des-Prairies in Manitoba, Canada.In 1951, the Xindu community also had to close due to communist persecution. The monks who had managed to leave China then began preparing to rebuild their community in Hong Kong.With the support of the then-bishop of Hong Kong, Enrico Valtorta, a missionary of the Pontifical Institute for Foreign Missions, the monks were granted a plot of land in the highlands of Lantau Island.There, eight monks built the new monastery, which was inaugurated in 1956. In 1999, the Cistercian order recognized the Lantau community as an autonomous abbey, and in January 2000, it reclaimed the name Abbey of Our Lady of Joy, the same name the community had in Hebei.With Chao’s passing, the abbey bids farewell to the last survivor of that generation of Trappist monks who were persecuted by Mao but managed to reestablish a monastery in Hong Kong.This story was first published by ACI Prensa, the Spanish-language sister service of EWTN News. It has been translated and adapted by EWTN News English.
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Last Chinese Trappist monk to survive Maoist persecution dies at 108 #Catholic Father Benedict Chao, the worldʼs oldest Trappist monk and the last survivor of the community that suffered communist persecution in China, died at the age of 108 on July 31 in Lantau, Hong Kong.The Order of Cistercians of Strict Observance reported that Chao was born in 1918 in Chengting, Hebei Province, China. He entered the monastery in Hebei in 1941, made his solemn profession in 1947, and was ordained a priest in 1949.He lived as a monk for 79 years and as a priest for 77. His funeral is scheduled for Aug. 14.According to AsiaNews, Chao also served for more than 20 years as superior of the Trappist community on Lantau.TweetPersecuted by communistsIn 1941, at the age of 23, Chau entered the Abbey of Our Lady of Joy, also known by its French name, “Liesse,” meaning “jubilation.”According to AsiaNews, the monastery was occupied by Japanese troops in 1937 and several monks were imprisoned and killed.However, the worst was yet to come when the Chinese dictator Mao Zedong took control of the region.In 1947, the same year Chao made his solemn vows, the Abbey of Our Lady of Consolation in Yangjiaping was attacked. The monks were tortured and forced to leave the monastery.A year later, six monks were executed by firing squad following a peopleʼs trial. Among them was 29-year-old Father Chrysostom Chang, the communityʼs sub-prior.Those who were killed during the persecution are commemorated as the 33 martyrs of Yangjiaping, comprising 30 Chinese monks and three foreign religious, according to AsiaNews.Exile and new monastery in Hong KongThe Liesse community, where the young Chao was living, also came under attack, leaving the monks no choice but to seek refuge in another city.As the persecution intensified, some monks were sent out of China. Among them was Chao, who arrived at the monastery of Notre-Dame-des-Prairies in Manitoba, Canada.In 1951, the Xindu community also had to close due to communist persecution. The monks who had managed to leave China then began preparing to rebuild their community in Hong Kong.With the support of the then-bishop of Hong Kong, Enrico Valtorta, a missionary of the Pontifical Institute for Foreign Missions, the monks were granted a plot of land in the highlands of Lantau Island.There, eight monks built the new monastery, which was inaugurated in 1956. In 1999, the Cistercian order recognized the Lantau community as an autonomous abbey, and in January 2000, it reclaimed the name Abbey of Our Lady of Joy, the same name the community had in Hebei.With Chao’s passing, the abbey bids farewell to the last survivor of that generation of Trappist monks who were persecuted by Mao but managed to reestablish a monastery in Hong Kong.This story was first published by ACI Prensa, the Spanish-language sister service of EWTN News. It has been translated and adapted by EWTN News English.

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Father Benedict Chau survived the period of communist persecution by Mao Zedong and ended his days at the reestablsihed monastery of Our Lady of Joy on Lantau Island, Hong Kong.

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White House marks 45th anniversary of martyrdom of Blessed Stanley Rother #Catholic The White House issued a presidential message commemorating the 45th anniversary of the martyrdom of Blessed Stanley Rother, continuing the administrationʼs pattern of recognizing prominent Catholic feast days and observances.“Today, Melania and I join with American Catholics and people of faith all across the world in honoring the towering legacy of Father Stanley Rother — an Oklahoma farm boy, the first American-born martyr beatified by the Catholic Church, and a champion of human dignity who heroically laid down his life to bring the light of Jesus Christ to a people plagued by horrific darkness,” President Donald Trump, who is not Catholic, said in the July 28 message.Rother was an Oklahoma native who became a missionary priest in 1968, serving in “the war-torn highlands of Guatemala, then ravaged by conflict,” the message said.“Though thousands of Catholics were forcibly disappeared and viciously murdered during the Guatemalan Civil War, Father Rother nonetheless spent 13 years bringing the Gospel to those devastated by poverty and violence — translating sacred Scripture and helping to build a school, a hospital, and the region’s first Catholic radio station — fearlessly embodying Christ’s commission to ‘make disciples of all nations,’” the message said.In the late 1970s, Guatemalaʼs civil war intensified. Rother was surrounded by extreme poverty and saw parishioners murdered for their faith.Amid the conflict, Rother’s name appeared on a hit list, which prompted him to seek refuge in Oklahoma. Despite the dangers, he insisted on returning to Guatemala, “refusing to abandon his flock in their hour of need.”On July 28, 1981, three men entered Rother’s rectory and fatally shot him. He was 46 years old.Rother was declared blessed by Pope Francis, and in 2017 a beatification Mass was said in Oklahoma City, which houses the Blessed Stanley Rother Shrine.Archbishop Paul Coakley of Oklahoma City said in a homily July 28 at the Rother Shrine that he was surprised “to wake up to an email that contained a special message from the White House. I don’t know if you’ve seen it or heard about it, but the White House acknowledged this day in honoring the 45th anniversary of the death of Father Stanley Rother. I didn’t know we were on their radar screen.”“But what a … tremendous honor it is for the Church, for Oklahoma, for our nation, to have this distinction and this recognition of this ordinary martyr, this parish priest, this missionary martyr: Blessed Stanley Rother,” said Coakley, president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB).A story of religious libertyThe presidential statement highlighted that Rother’s story is a reminder of “America’s rich tradition of religious liberty.”“In his honor, we recommit to remaining vigilant so that our birthright of freedom endures in the face of every trial,” Trump’s statement said. “Above all, we pray that every soul of faith, every lover of freedom, and every seeker of truth will forever remember the name and treasure the story of Father Stanley Rother.”Since his martyrdom, “Rother has stood as a living testament to the power of courage, sacrificial service, and fidelity to God,” the message said. “He has inspired widespread devotion among Catholics.”“And every day, countless priests, pastors, chaplains, and spiritual leaders faithfully look to Father Rother as they strive to carry out his immortal legacy of fortitude, charity, humility, service, generosity, and perseverance.”Marking Catholic observancesTrump has established a pattern of releasing White House statements addressing significant commemorative Catholic days, along with messages marking observances by other faith traditions such as Judaism and Islam.Since Trump began his second term, the White House has released Catholic-focused celebratory statements on the feast of St. Joseph, the birthday of St. Frances Xavier Cabrini, and St. Patrick’s Day, acknowledging the saints’ lives and legacies.It also released a message on the solemnity of the Immaculate Conception, which appeared to be the first time a U.S. president formally recognized the holy day “honoring the faith, humility, and love of Mary, mother of Jesus and one of the greatest figures in the Bible,” the statement said.The president also released a statement on the anniversary of the death of St. John Paul II, calling him “one the fiercest defenders of human dignity to ever live” and encouraging “every American to keep the memory of Pope Saint John Paul II alive for generations to come.”Ahead of the 250th anniversary of the U.S., the president also released a statement regarding the USCCB’s Mass consecrating the nation to the Sacred Heart of Jesus, which the president called “a powerful moment in our national story.”While releasing the formal presidential messages on Catholic matters, Trump has also criticized Pope Leo XIV, calling him “weak on crime” and “terrible for foreign policy” on his social media accounts amid the Iran conflict.The president gained widespread attention in April when he made the comments.Despite the online criticism and falsely suggesting that Pope Leo wants Iran to develop nuclear weapons, the president later told reporters he has “nothing against the pope.”
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White House marks 45th anniversary of martyrdom of Blessed Stanley Rother #Catholic The White House issued a presidential message commemorating the 45th anniversary of the martyrdom of Blessed Stanley Rother, continuing the administrationʼs pattern of recognizing prominent Catholic feast days and observances.“Today, Melania and I join with American Catholics and people of faith all across the world in honoring the towering legacy of Father Stanley Rother — an Oklahoma farm boy, the first American-born martyr beatified by the Catholic Church, and a champion of human dignity who heroically laid down his life to bring the light of Jesus Christ to a people plagued by horrific darkness,” President Donald Trump, who is not Catholic, said in the July 28 message.Rother was an Oklahoma native who became a missionary priest in 1968, serving in “the war-torn highlands of Guatemala, then ravaged by conflict,” the message said.“Though thousands of Catholics were forcibly disappeared and viciously murdered during the Guatemalan Civil War, Father Rother nonetheless spent 13 years bringing the Gospel to those devastated by poverty and violence — translating sacred Scripture and helping to build a school, a hospital, and the region’s first Catholic radio station — fearlessly embodying Christ’s commission to ‘make disciples of all nations,’” the message said.In the late 1970s, Guatemalaʼs civil war intensified. Rother was surrounded by extreme poverty and saw parishioners murdered for their faith.Amid the conflict, Rother’s name appeared on a hit list, which prompted him to seek refuge in Oklahoma. Despite the dangers, he insisted on returning to Guatemala, “refusing to abandon his flock in their hour of need.”On July 28, 1981, three men entered Rother’s rectory and fatally shot him. He was 46 years old.Rother was declared blessed by Pope Francis, and in 2017 a beatification Mass was said in Oklahoma City, which houses the Blessed Stanley Rother Shrine.Archbishop Paul Coakley of Oklahoma City said in a homily July 28 at the Rother Shrine that he was surprised “to wake up to an email that contained a special message from the White House. I don’t know if you’ve seen it or heard about it, but the White House acknowledged this day in honoring the 45th anniversary of the death of Father Stanley Rother. I didn’t know we were on their radar screen.”“But what a … tremendous honor it is for the Church, for Oklahoma, for our nation, to have this distinction and this recognition of this ordinary martyr, this parish priest, this missionary martyr: Blessed Stanley Rother,” said Coakley, president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB).A story of religious libertyThe presidential statement highlighted that Rother’s story is a reminder of “America’s rich tradition of religious liberty.”“In his honor, we recommit to remaining vigilant so that our birthright of freedom endures in the face of every trial,” Trump’s statement said. “Above all, we pray that every soul of faith, every lover of freedom, and every seeker of truth will forever remember the name and treasure the story of Father Stanley Rother.”Since his martyrdom, “Rother has stood as a living testament to the power of courage, sacrificial service, and fidelity to God,” the message said. “He has inspired widespread devotion among Catholics.”“And every day, countless priests, pastors, chaplains, and spiritual leaders faithfully look to Father Rother as they strive to carry out his immortal legacy of fortitude, charity, humility, service, generosity, and perseverance.”Marking Catholic observancesTrump has established a pattern of releasing White House statements addressing significant commemorative Catholic days, along with messages marking observances by other faith traditions such as Judaism and Islam.Since Trump began his second term, the White House has released Catholic-focused celebratory statements on the feast of St. Joseph, the birthday of St. Frances Xavier Cabrini, and St. Patrick’s Day, acknowledging the saints’ lives and legacies.It also released a message on the solemnity of the Immaculate Conception, which appeared to be the first time a U.S. president formally recognized the holy day “honoring the faith, humility, and love of Mary, mother of Jesus and one of the greatest figures in the Bible,” the statement said.The president also released a statement on the anniversary of the death of St. John Paul II, calling him “one the fiercest defenders of human dignity to ever live” and encouraging “every American to keep the memory of Pope Saint John Paul II alive for generations to come.”Ahead of the 250th anniversary of the U.S., the president also released a statement regarding the USCCB’s Mass consecrating the nation to the Sacred Heart of Jesus, which the president called “a powerful moment in our national story.”While releasing the formal presidential messages on Catholic matters, Trump has also criticized Pope Leo XIV, calling him “weak on crime” and “terrible for foreign policy” on his social media accounts amid the Iran conflict.The president gained widespread attention in April when he made the comments.Despite the online criticism and falsely suggesting that Pope Leo wants Iran to develop nuclear weapons, the president later told reporters he has “nothing against the pope.”

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The White House has issued a string of statements acknowledging prominent Catholic feast days and observances.

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Major restoration in Minneapolis aims to renew ‘every square inch’ of country’s oldest basilica #Catholic If you want to clean more-than-century-old marble statues of the apostles, you don’t simply use soap and water. Rather, you must spray the figures with a “specialized conservation material” that subsequently dries into a “latex-like layer,” which is then “carefully peeled away,” thus preserving the statue’s original finish. The process “is labor intensive and takes significant time,” according to staff at the Basilica of Saint Mary, a towering and historic minor basilica in downtown Minneapolis. The massive church, which was dedicated in 1915 and became the first basilica in the United States when it was designated as such by Pope Pius XI in 1926, has been undergoing a major restoration project since 2025. A specialty cleaning material is sprayed on a statue of St. Peter at the Basilica of Saint Mary in Minneapolis in an undated photo. | Credit: Ken Fournelle/Courtesy of the Basilica of Saint Mary Built in the Beaux-Arts style — what was at the time a popular architectural form in the United States — the co-cathedral boasts a towering flèche-topped central dome and an 82-foot-high barrel vault. Among its many adornments include the statues of the apostles, which were carved in Italy as half-scale replicas of statues at the Archbasilica of St. John Lateran, the cathedral of the pope in Rome. Church’s roots stretch back to 1860sOn its website, the basilica says its roots can be traced to 1868, when a simple “shed church” was constructed in Minneapolis. Years later another, more substantial Gothic Revival edifice was built, but burgeoning development in the neighborhood eventually pushed the parish to relocate to its present location on Hennepin Avenue. The cornerstone of the current structure was laid in 1908. The church, designated a pro-cathedral, celebrated its first Mass in 1914; it was dedicated the following year. It was still being worked on when the U.S. entered World War I in 1917. An original print of the basilica, drafted by architect Emmanuel Louis Masqueray, hangs in the church’s undercroft. | Credit: Courtesy of the Basilica of Saint Mary In 1926, Pius XI raised the pro-cathedral to the rank of minor basilica, after which it took on its present name. It would enjoy a vibrant parish life in the following decades, though the construction of adjacent freeways in the 1960s “took a heavy toll” on the building. The 1980s and 1990s saw parishioners spearheading efforts at ongoing restoration. The latest restoration campaign, titled “Restoring Beauty, Inspiring Hope,” has aimed to raise a total of about million in funding. Among the project’s goals are masonry repairs, roof repairs, pew restorations with new kneelers, plaster restoration, and numerous other projects. Workers in an undated photograph clean a limestone surface in an ambulatory of the Basilica of Saint Mary in Minneapolis. | Credit: Photo courtesy of the Basilica of Saint Mary Johan van Parys, who has served as the basilica’s director of liturgy and the sacred arts since 1995, told EWTN News that the basilica has needed repairs almost from its inception. “Even from the beginning, the building had issues with moisture intrusion,” he said. The architect who designed the church, Emmanuel Louis Masqueray, was French, and he “didn’t completely understand the challenges of Minnesota summers and winters.” “He designed flat roofs over part of the building,” van Parys said. He jokingly described flat roofs as “the bane of our existence” due to their tendency to hold water. In existing photographs of the church taken in 1914, van Parys said, water damage is already visible. “We’ve had to do work on the building ever since,” he said. The church underwent a “somewhat major” restoration in the 1950s, van Parys said, during which for unknown reasons workers painted over intricate stenciling within coffers and other parts of the structure. Along with those details, van Parys said, the restoration effort is “bringing back the original look of the basilica.” The effort was formally launched in 2019 with a master plan for the entire church campus, but the COVID-19 pandemic the next year set the project back. The process resumed after a few years, and the restoration work itself formally began in 2025. Scaffolding towers above the nave of the Basilica of Saint Mary in Minneapolis in an undated photograph. | Credit: Ken Fournelle/Courtesy of the Basilica of Saint Mary Van Parys said the basilica is being restored both inside and out from top to the bottom, including the plaster ceiling, which has suffered damage over the years and has to be replastered in parts. Work is also being done on the church’s extensive stained-glass window arrangements. Such windows are generally held in place with a lead matrix, but over time the weight of the glass can weaken the metal frame, leading the glass to bulge outward. A stained-glass specialist, however, told the restoration crew that the window fixtures were in “great condition,” meaning considerable amounts of work could be avoided. Some of the windows were still in need of repair, however, and were sent to a specialist in Newark, New Jersey. Limestone throughout the building is also being restored, van Parys said. The visible stone throughout the building is bolstered by several inches of reinforced concrete and bricks; moisture often makes its way through this sandwiching of materials, leading to a buildup of salt crystals on the stone, what is known as “efflorescence.” Removing this blemish beautifies the facade of the stone and also protects it from degradation. Crews use a spray-and-peel chemical similar to the process used on the statues of the apostles. A century’s worth of visible soot and grime contrasts with a restored limestone surface in an undated photograph in the Basilica of Saint Mary, Minneapolis. | Credit: Photo courtesy of the Basilica of Saint Mary The restoration crews also removed the basilica’s pews in order to have them restored with cleaning, sanding, and shellac finishing.“We opted to restore the original 1914 pews,” van Parys said. “One of our principles in terms of restoration is that we don’t want to over-restore. We didn’t want it to be a new church. People have worshipped in here since 1914. We want this presence of prayer and generations before us to remain.”“So rather than have new pews we decided to restore the old ones,” he said. “In doing so we discovered that the people who built the pews in 1914 signed them. So we have the names of all the people who worked on the pews.” Workmen in an undated photo remove pews from the Basilica of Saint Mary in Minneapolis as part of the restoration of the church. | Credit: Ken Fournelle/Courtesy of the Basilica of Saint Mary Upon removing the pews, the work crews discovered that the flooring of the nave was not level. “One option was to put shims under all the pews,” van Parys said. “But that would have been a huge operation.” Since crews were already removing the wood flooring to restore it, they also removed part of the old concrete subfloor and re-leveled it. A worker at Fresh Air Finishers in Saint Paul, Minnesota, restores a pew from the Basilica of Saint Mary in an undated photograph. | Credit: Ken Fournelle/Courtesy of the Basilica of Saint Mary Numerous other restoration projects are ongoing, van Parys said, including restoring the church’s bronze doors, which were installed after it was designated a basilica. The church’s rector at the time, Monsignor James Reardon, had traveled to Rome and observed that the basilicas there had bronze doors. “He decided we needed bronze doors as well,” van Parys said. Archbishop Bernard Hebda blesses and seals bronze doors at the Basilica of Saint Mary ahead of restoration of the century-old features of the historic church, April 5, 2026. | Credit: Photo courtesy of the Basilica of Saint Mary Crews are aiming to be done with the massive project by Palm Sunday 2027. At the moment the parish holds Masses in the building’s undercroft beneath the structure. “Every week at Mass, I tell people, for instance, ‘Last Sunday was Week 35, which means we have 34 weeks to go,’” van Parys said with a laugh. He said the work is “quite expedited” and progressing quickly. Ultimately the effort is meant not just to restore the church but to develop a “manual of preservation” for future generations to help protect it. “Our goal is to restore and to also make sure that everything is cared for in the best possible way, to extend the lifespan of the basilica as long as possible before another restoration is necessary,” he said. He said the entire project is being conducted “not only with liturgical principles but also historical preservation principles.”“It is really comprehensive,” he said. “Every square inch of the basilica will be restored.”
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Major restoration in Minneapolis aims to renew ‘every square inch’ of country’s oldest basilica #Catholic If you want to clean more-than-century-old marble statues of the apostles, you don’t simply use soap and water. Rather, you must spray the figures with a “specialized conservation material” that subsequently dries into a “latex-like layer,” which is then “carefully peeled away,” thus preserving the statue’s original finish. The process “is labor intensive and takes significant time,” according to staff at the Basilica of Saint Mary, a towering and historic minor basilica in downtown Minneapolis. The massive church, which was dedicated in 1915 and became the first basilica in the United States when it was designated as such by Pope Pius XI in 1926, has been undergoing a major restoration project since 2025. A specialty cleaning material is sprayed on a statue of St. Peter at the Basilica of Saint Mary in Minneapolis in an undated photo. | Credit: Ken Fournelle/Courtesy of the Basilica of Saint Mary Built in the Beaux-Arts style — what was at the time a popular architectural form in the United States — the co-cathedral boasts a towering flèche-topped central dome and an 82-foot-high barrel vault. Among its many adornments include the statues of the apostles, which were carved in Italy as half-scale replicas of statues at the Archbasilica of St. John Lateran, the cathedral of the pope in Rome. Church’s roots stretch back to 1860sOn its website, the basilica says its roots can be traced to 1868, when a simple “shed church” was constructed in Minneapolis. Years later another, more substantial Gothic Revival edifice was built, but burgeoning development in the neighborhood eventually pushed the parish to relocate to its present location on Hennepin Avenue. The cornerstone of the current structure was laid in 1908. The church, designated a pro-cathedral, celebrated its first Mass in 1914; it was dedicated the following year. It was still being worked on when the U.S. entered World War I in 1917. An original print of the basilica, drafted by architect Emmanuel Louis Masqueray, hangs in the church’s undercroft. | Credit: Courtesy of the Basilica of Saint Mary In 1926, Pius XI raised the pro-cathedral to the rank of minor basilica, after which it took on its present name. It would enjoy a vibrant parish life in the following decades, though the construction of adjacent freeways in the 1960s “took a heavy toll” on the building. The 1980s and 1990s saw parishioners spearheading efforts at ongoing restoration. The latest restoration campaign, titled “Restoring Beauty, Inspiring Hope,” has aimed to raise a total of about $50 million in funding. Among the project’s goals are masonry repairs, roof repairs, pew restorations with new kneelers, plaster restoration, and numerous other projects. Workers in an undated photograph clean a limestone surface in an ambulatory of the Basilica of Saint Mary in Minneapolis. | Credit: Photo courtesy of the Basilica of Saint Mary Johan van Parys, who has served as the basilica’s director of liturgy and the sacred arts since 1995, told EWTN News that the basilica has needed repairs almost from its inception. “Even from the beginning, the building had issues with moisture intrusion,” he said. The architect who designed the church, Emmanuel Louis Masqueray, was French, and he “didn’t completely understand the challenges of Minnesota summers and winters.” “He designed flat roofs over part of the building,” van Parys said. He jokingly described flat roofs as “the bane of our existence” due to their tendency to hold water. In existing photographs of the church taken in 1914, van Parys said, water damage is already visible. “We’ve had to do work on the building ever since,” he said. The church underwent a “somewhat major” restoration in the 1950s, van Parys said, during which for unknown reasons workers painted over intricate stenciling within coffers and other parts of the structure. Along with those details, van Parys said, the restoration effort is “bringing back the original look of the basilica.” The effort was formally launched in 2019 with a master plan for the entire church campus, but the COVID-19 pandemic the next year set the project back. The process resumed after a few years, and the restoration work itself formally began in 2025. Scaffolding towers above the nave of the Basilica of Saint Mary in Minneapolis in an undated photograph. | Credit: Ken Fournelle/Courtesy of the Basilica of Saint Mary Van Parys said the basilica is being restored both inside and out from top to the bottom, including the plaster ceiling, which has suffered damage over the years and has to be replastered in parts. Work is also being done on the church’s extensive stained-glass window arrangements. Such windows are generally held in place with a lead matrix, but over time the weight of the glass can weaken the metal frame, leading the glass to bulge outward. A stained-glass specialist, however, told the restoration crew that the window fixtures were in “great condition,” meaning considerable amounts of work could be avoided. Some of the windows were still in need of repair, however, and were sent to a specialist in Newark, New Jersey. Limestone throughout the building is also being restored, van Parys said. The visible stone throughout the building is bolstered by several inches of reinforced concrete and bricks; moisture often makes its way through this sandwiching of materials, leading to a buildup of salt crystals on the stone, what is known as “efflorescence.” Removing this blemish beautifies the facade of the stone and also protects it from degradation. Crews use a spray-and-peel chemical similar to the process used on the statues of the apostles. A century’s worth of visible soot and grime contrasts with a restored limestone surface in an undated photograph in the Basilica of Saint Mary, Minneapolis. | Credit: Photo courtesy of the Basilica of Saint Mary The restoration crews also removed the basilica’s pews in order to have them restored with cleaning, sanding, and shellac finishing.“We opted to restore the original 1914 pews,” van Parys said. “One of our principles in terms of restoration is that we don’t want to over-restore. We didn’t want it to be a new church. People have worshipped in here since 1914. We want this presence of prayer and generations before us to remain.”“So rather than have new pews we decided to restore the old ones,” he said. “In doing so we discovered that the people who built the pews in 1914 signed them. So we have the names of all the people who worked on the pews.” Workmen in an undated photo remove pews from the Basilica of Saint Mary in Minneapolis as part of the restoration of the church. | Credit: Ken Fournelle/Courtesy of the Basilica of Saint Mary Upon removing the pews, the work crews discovered that the flooring of the nave was not level. “One option was to put shims under all the pews,” van Parys said. “But that would have been a huge operation.” Since crews were already removing the wood flooring to restore it, they also removed part of the old concrete subfloor and re-leveled it. A worker at Fresh Air Finishers in Saint Paul, Minnesota, restores a pew from the Basilica of Saint Mary in an undated photograph. | Credit: Ken Fournelle/Courtesy of the Basilica of Saint Mary Numerous other restoration projects are ongoing, van Parys said, including restoring the church’s bronze doors, which were installed after it was designated a basilica. The church’s rector at the time, Monsignor James Reardon, had traveled to Rome and observed that the basilicas there had bronze doors. “He decided we needed bronze doors as well,” van Parys said. Archbishop Bernard Hebda blesses and seals bronze doors at the Basilica of Saint Mary ahead of restoration of the century-old features of the historic church, April 5, 2026. | Credit: Photo courtesy of the Basilica of Saint Mary Crews are aiming to be done with the massive project by Palm Sunday 2027. At the moment the parish holds Masses in the building’s undercroft beneath the structure. “Every week at Mass, I tell people, for instance, ‘Last Sunday was Week 35, which means we have 34 weeks to go,’” van Parys said with a laugh. He said the work is “quite expedited” and progressing quickly. Ultimately the effort is meant not just to restore the church but to develop a “manual of preservation” for future generations to help protect it. “Our goal is to restore and to also make sure that everything is cared for in the best possible way, to extend the lifespan of the basilica as long as possible before another restoration is necessary,” he said. He said the entire project is being conducted “not only with liturgical principles but also historical preservation principles.”“It is really comprehensive,” he said. “Every square inch of the basilica will be restored.”

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The massive church was dedicated in 1915 and became the first basilica in the United States when it was designated as such by Pope Pius XI in 1926.

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St. Mary Magdalene: The first witness to the Resurrection #Catholic Not much is known about the life of St. Mary Magdalene, whose feast day is celebrated in the Catholic Church on July 22. She first appears in the Gospel of Luke as a follower of Christ from whom seven demons have been cast out. In the Gospels, she is sometimes associated with two other women in Scripture: the woman who washes Jesus’ feet with oil and Mary, the sister of Martha and Lazarus.Her most prominent position in Scripture occurs in the Gospel of John, where she remains with Jesus at the Crucifixion, keeps vigil at the tomb, and is the first to see him on Easter morning. Differing traditions have her evangelizing in Ephesus, while others place her in Marseille, France.Her body has never been found.Apart from the Blessed Virgin Mary, perhaps no other saint alive during the time of Christ appears to have been as deeply moved by Jesus’ death as this saint.“How beautiful to think that the first appearance of the Risen One took place in such a personal way! That there is someone who knows us, who sees our suffering and delusion, who is moved by us, and who calls us by name,” said Pope Francis of the encounter in a 2017 general audience the year after upgrading her memorial to a feast day in 2016.After this shocking encounter, the joy of Christ’s resurrection imbued her with the courage to spread this good news joyfully. “I have seen the Lord!” she proclaimed to the apostles and the whole world. Once known as a sinful woman, Mary Magdalene becomes the Apostle to the Apostles, the first witness to the Resurrection, and the model of a personal encounter with Jesus Christ risen from the grave.“God surprises her in the most unexpected way,” Pope Francis opined. “So that woman, who is the first to encounter Jesus … now has become an apostle of the new and greatest hope.”This story was first published on July 21, 2021, and has been updated.
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St. Mary Magdalene: The first witness to the Resurrection #Catholic Not much is known about the life of St. Mary Magdalene, whose feast day is celebrated in the Catholic Church on July 22. She first appears in the Gospel of Luke as a follower of Christ from whom seven demons have been cast out. In the Gospels, she is sometimes associated with two other women in Scripture: the woman who washes Jesus’ feet with oil and Mary, the sister of Martha and Lazarus.Her most prominent position in Scripture occurs in the Gospel of John, where she remains with Jesus at the Crucifixion, keeps vigil at the tomb, and is the first to see him on Easter morning. Differing traditions have her evangelizing in Ephesus, while others place her in Marseille, France.Her body has never been found.Apart from the Blessed Virgin Mary, perhaps no other saint alive during the time of Christ appears to have been as deeply moved by Jesus’ death as this saint.“How beautiful to think that the first appearance of the Risen One took place in such a personal way! That there is someone who knows us, who sees our suffering and delusion, who is moved by us, and who calls us by name,” said Pope Francis of the encounter in a 2017 general audience the year after upgrading her memorial to a feast day in 2016.After this shocking encounter, the joy of Christ’s resurrection imbued her with the courage to spread this good news joyfully. “I have seen the Lord!” she proclaimed to the apostles and the whole world. Once known as a sinful woman, Mary Magdalene becomes the Apostle to the Apostles, the first witness to the Resurrection, and the model of a personal encounter with Jesus Christ risen from the grave.“God surprises her in the most unexpected way,” Pope Francis opined. “So that woman, who is the first to encounter Jesus … now has become an apostle of the new and greatest hope.”This story was first published on July 21, 2021, and has been updated.

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Once known as a sinful woman, Mary Magdalene became the Apostle to the Apostles and the first witness to the Resurrection.

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Czech court to weigh clearing cardinal jailed by communists #Catholic A second cardinal and a third senior churchman may be rehabilitated this year for mistreatment under the communist regime in Czechoslovakia. The District Court in Litoměřice, in what is now the Czech Republic, will consider a proposal for the rehabilitation of Cardinal Štěpán Trochta, the former bishop of Litoměřice, over his internment between 1950 and 1953.The public prosecutor asked the relevant authorities to carry out an investigation into the archives and, based on the outcome, found the initiative reasonable. He has already submitted a proposal for the judicial rehabilitation of Trochta over the illegal deprivation of his personal freedom. A date for consideration of the proposal has not yet been set.“I firmly believe that the name of Štěpán Trochta, my predecessor in Litoměřice, will be cleared through the courts,” said Archbishop Stanislav Přibyl of Prague, who is also apostolic administrator of Litoměřice.The verdict that sent Trochta to prison, handed down in a political trial for “treason and conspiracy,” was overturned in 1968, but the Czech courts have not dealt with his earlier illegal internment. The initiative for full rehabilitation came from Jan Kratochvil, director of the Museum of Czech, Slovak, and Ruthenian Exile of the 20th Century, and the lawyer Lubomír Müller.It is “important to clean his name in this way as well,” said Kratochvil, whose family was friends with the prelate.Salesian, prisoner, cardinalŠtěpán Trochta (1905–1974) was one of the first Czech members of the Society of St. Francis de Sales, the so-called Salesians. He studied in Turin, Italy, where he obtained a doctorate in theology. He returned to Czechoslovakia, and when Nazi Germany occupied the country, he was arrested for his contacts with and support for the resistance and was sent to several concentration camps.He was “ready to work, full of energy, enthusiasm, and willing to work hard.” Trochta was also a good organizer and a gifted speaker and writer who “enjoyed being among the boys, even though he gradually had to spend more time in administration,” according to “Life and Legacy,” a booklet published by the Salesians on the 50th anniversary of the prelate’s death.Shortly before the communists took over in Czechoslovakia, he was appointed bishop of Litoměřice. He became the spokesman for the episcopate of Czechoslovakia in difficult negotiations with the new government. In the end, the regime interned him in his residence and later imprisoned him. Although he was released sooner than expected, he was not allowed to continue as a bishop and had to work as a manual laborer.In 1969, when he was already back in the Diocese of Litoměřice, Pope Paul VI created him a cardinal “in pectore” — that is, secretly.When Trochta died five years later, the funeral was attended by many of the faithful, including cardinals from Berlin, Krakow, and Vienna. Archbishop Karol Wojtyła of Krakow, who later became Pope John Paul II, reportedly asked to concelebrate but was not permitted to do so. Wojtyła then defied the ban on foreign participants speaking, delivering a short address over the coffin in which he called the deceased prelate a martyr. The funeral Mass was celebrated by the Czech bishop and future Cardinal František Tomášek.A series of Czech rehabilitationsThe case may become one more in a recent series of rehabilitations in the Czech Republic.In February, the District Court of Prague recognized the unjust treatment of Cardinal Josef Beran, the former archbishop of Prague, who was interned in several locations. Last month, the District Court in Olomouc rehabilitated Archbishop Josef Karel Matocha of Olomouc, also over his internment.In 2024, the Regional Court in Hradec Králové rehabilitated Father Josef Toufar, who was illegally arrested and tortured to death.
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Czech court to weigh clearing cardinal jailed by communists #Catholic A second cardinal and a third senior churchman may be rehabilitated this year for mistreatment under the communist regime in Czechoslovakia. The District Court in Litoměřice, in what is now the Czech Republic, will consider a proposal for the rehabilitation of Cardinal Štěpán Trochta, the former bishop of Litoměřice, over his internment between 1950 and 1953.The public prosecutor asked the relevant authorities to carry out an investigation into the archives and, based on the outcome, found the initiative reasonable. He has already submitted a proposal for the judicial rehabilitation of Trochta over the illegal deprivation of his personal freedom. A date for consideration of the proposal has not yet been set.“I firmly believe that the name of Štěpán Trochta, my predecessor in Litoměřice, will be cleared through the courts,” said Archbishop Stanislav Přibyl of Prague, who is also apostolic administrator of Litoměřice.The verdict that sent Trochta to prison, handed down in a political trial for “treason and conspiracy,” was overturned in 1968, but the Czech courts have not dealt with his earlier illegal internment. The initiative for full rehabilitation came from Jan Kratochvil, director of the Museum of Czech, Slovak, and Ruthenian Exile of the 20th Century, and the lawyer Lubomír Müller.It is “important to clean his name in this way as well,” said Kratochvil, whose family was friends with the prelate.Salesian, prisoner, cardinalŠtěpán Trochta (1905–1974) was one of the first Czech members of the Society of St. Francis de Sales, the so-called Salesians. He studied in Turin, Italy, where he obtained a doctorate in theology. He returned to Czechoslovakia, and when Nazi Germany occupied the country, he was arrested for his contacts with and support for the resistance and was sent to several concentration camps.He was “ready to work, full of energy, enthusiasm, and willing to work hard.” Trochta was also a good organizer and a gifted speaker and writer who “enjoyed being among the boys, even though he gradually had to spend more time in administration,” according to “Life and Legacy,” a booklet published by the Salesians on the 50th anniversary of the prelate’s death.Shortly before the communists took over in Czechoslovakia, he was appointed bishop of Litoměřice. He became the spokesman for the episcopate of Czechoslovakia in difficult negotiations with the new government. In the end, the regime interned him in his residence and later imprisoned him. Although he was released sooner than expected, he was not allowed to continue as a bishop and had to work as a manual laborer.In 1969, when he was already back in the Diocese of Litoměřice, Pope Paul VI created him a cardinal “in pectore” — that is, secretly.When Trochta died five years later, the funeral was attended by many of the faithful, including cardinals from Berlin, Krakow, and Vienna. Archbishop Karol Wojtyła of Krakow, who later became Pope John Paul II, reportedly asked to concelebrate but was not permitted to do so. Wojtyła then defied the ban on foreign participants speaking, delivering a short address over the coffin in which he called the deceased prelate a martyr. The funeral Mass was celebrated by the Czech bishop and future Cardinal František Tomášek.A series of Czech rehabilitationsThe case may become one more in a recent series of rehabilitations in the Czech Republic.In February, the District Court of Prague recognized the unjust treatment of Cardinal Josef Beran, the former archbishop of Prague, who was interned in several locations. Last month, the District Court in Olomouc rehabilitated Archbishop Josef Karel Matocha of Olomouc, also over his internment.In 2024, the Regional Court in Hradec Králové rehabilitated Father Josef Toufar, who was illegally arrested and tortured to death.

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A district court will weigh whether Cardinal Štěpán Trochta, imprisoned by the Nazis and later by the communists, was unlawfully interned in the 1950s.

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Iranian delegation visits Our Lady of Guadalupe Basilica, engaging in ‘interfaith dialogue’ #Catholic An Iranian delegation recently visited Our Lady of Guadalupe Basilica in Mexico City, the Marian shrine that displays the original image of the Virgin Mary that miraculously appeared on the tilma of the Indigenous St. Juan Diego nearly 500 years ago.On July 8, the Iranian Embassy in Mexico shared on social media that “at the spiritual heart of Mexico, Our Lady of Guadalupe Basilica, we had the honor of sharing a fraternal meeting between representatives of Islam and Christianity.”The Iranian delegation consisted of Iranʼs ambassador to Mexico, Abolfazl Pasandideh; Ayatollah Dr. Emran Khanzadeh; and Mohammad Reza Gilani, the counselor of cultural affairs at the Iranian Embassy. The Iranian delegation with Monsignor Edgar Alan Valtierra López during their visit to Our Lady of Guadalupe Basilica. | Credit: Our Lady of Guadalupe Basilica The three were welcomed at the Marian shrine by Monsignor Edgar Alan Valtierra López, senior penitentiary canon and head of the Commission for Ecumenism and Interreligious Dialogue at the basilica.In its social media post, under the title “When respect opens the way, friendship is born,” the Iranian embassy highlighted that “during the conversation, Dr. Emran Khanzadeh recalled that the Virgin Mary (Maryam) occupies a unique place in Islam,” since “she is the only woman mentioned by name in the Quran and an eternal example of purity, faith, and dedication to God.”“We also share a little-known reality: In Iran, Muslims, Christians, Jews, and Zoroastrians have lived together for centuries with mutual respect. Because when people know each other, prejudices disappear,” the Iranian delegation said.“Religions may have different paths, but they all lead to peace,” the embassy wrote.The Virgin Mary and her ‘very important’ role in dialogue between Catholics and MuslimsSpeaking to ACI Prensa, the Spanish-language sister service of EWTN News, Valtierra said that “the role of the Blessed Virgin Mary in Catholic-Muslim dialogue is very important.”“Ambassador Abolfazl told us that in the Quran, their holy book, she is called Maryam, and she is the only woman to whom a surah, that is, a chapter of the Quran, is dedicated. Surah 3:42 states: ‘Oh Mary! God has chosen you, purified you, and selected you above the women of all worlds.’”“Although there are very profound differences regarding the figure of Jesus, Mary becomes a sign of rapprochement and respectful dialogue, as we discover shared values such as love for God, obedience, faith, humility, hope, and many others,” the Mexican priest said.Valtierra noted that the gathering took place in the context of the desire of the primatial archbishop of Mexico, Cardinal Carlos Aguiar Retes, for the shrine of Our Lady of Guadalupe to be a place where people of all faiths can learn about and draw closer to the message of Our Lady of Guadalupe and her son, Our Lord Jesus Christ.“Interfaith and ecumenical events are held in various areas of the shrine,” he said, noting that meetings have taken place with Lutheran, Anglican, and evangelical Christians as well as believers “from other religions such as Jews, Buddhists, and Hare Krishnas,” among others.“In this context, the Iranian embassy requested to visit the shrine on the occasion of a visit by a very important figure, Ayatollah Dr. Emran Khanzadeh, who wished to engage in interfaith dialogue,” he explained. Monsignor Edgar Alan Valtierra López accompanies the Iranian delegation during a tour of Our Lady of Guadalupe Basilica. | Credit: Our Lady of Guadalupe Basilica ‘A testimony to the Church’s openness’Valtierra noted that during the visit, “we first toured the shrine, which included viewing the image head-on from the sanctuary. Afterward, we moved to a room where Ayatollah Emran spoke, drawing on profound Islamic theology, about the need for religions to work together.”The ayatollah, he said, “mentioned that in Iran there is a street where there is a Mazdean [Zoroastrian] temple, an Armenian Christian church, and a mosque,” ​​and “noted that monotheistic religions share many common points, one of which is a merciful God who calls upon us to work in fraternity.”This meeting, the canon of the basilica noted, demonstrates “that the Church can welcome everyone with respect and without neglecting the proclamation of Our Lord Jesus Christ.”Visitors who were ‘very devoted to Our Lady of Guadalupe’According to Valtierra, the Iranian visitors “showed themselves to be very devoted to Our Lady of Guadalupe” and noted that “in the sacristy, we gave them some holy cards featuring the image of the Virgin, and they liked them very much.” The ambassador and the ayatollah shared with him that both men have daughters named Mary.Furthermore, “they also told us that they have an image of Our Lady of Guadalupe in their homes, and that in Iran there is even a metro station named ‘Holy Virgin Mary,’ which features a beautiful relief image of the Virgin on one of its walls.”“While the image in the station does not depict Guadalupe, it certainly speaks volumes about the respect held for Holy Mary,” the priest noted.Our Lady of Guadalupe Basilica and interreligious dialogueValtierra clarified that when receiving visits from believers of other religions, “the basilica does not stop being a Catholic shrine; rites blending beliefs are not performed,” but rather “each participant fully retains their own religious identity.”The aim, he emphasized, is “to promote mutual understanding, respect, and collaboration for peace and human dignity, as called for by the Second Vatican Council and the contemporary magisterium of the popes.”“Visits by people of other faiths to Our Lady of Guadalupe Basilica offer an opportunity to encounter the Catholic faith through its liturgy, devotion to the Virgin, and the witness of popular piety,” he said, noting that “interreligious dialogue does not promote relativism or syncretism; rather, it expresses the conviction that Christianity can bear witness to Christ with clarity while simultaneously listening to, learning from, and working alongside people of other religious traditions.”This story was first published by ACI Prensa, the Spanish-language sister service of EWTN News. It has been translated and adapted by EWTN News English.
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Iranian delegation visits Our Lady of Guadalupe Basilica, engaging in ‘interfaith dialogue’ #Catholic An Iranian delegation recently visited Our Lady of Guadalupe Basilica in Mexico City, the Marian shrine that displays the original image of the Virgin Mary that miraculously appeared on the tilma of the Indigenous St. Juan Diego nearly 500 years ago.On July 8, the Iranian Embassy in Mexico shared on social media that “at the spiritual heart of Mexico, Our Lady of Guadalupe Basilica, we had the honor of sharing a fraternal meeting between representatives of Islam and Christianity.”The Iranian delegation consisted of Iranʼs ambassador to Mexico, Abolfazl Pasandideh; Ayatollah Dr. Emran Khanzadeh; and Mohammad Reza Gilani, the counselor of cultural affairs at the Iranian Embassy. The Iranian delegation with Monsignor Edgar Alan Valtierra López during their visit to Our Lady of Guadalupe Basilica. | Credit: Our Lady of Guadalupe Basilica The three were welcomed at the Marian shrine by Monsignor Edgar Alan Valtierra López, senior penitentiary canon and head of the Commission for Ecumenism and Interreligious Dialogue at the basilica.In its social media post, under the title “When respect opens the way, friendship is born,” the Iranian embassy highlighted that “during the conversation, Dr. Emran Khanzadeh recalled that the Virgin Mary (Maryam) occupies a unique place in Islam,” since “she is the only woman mentioned by name in the Quran and an eternal example of purity, faith, and dedication to God.”“We also share a little-known reality: In Iran, Muslims, Christians, Jews, and Zoroastrians have lived together for centuries with mutual respect. Because when people know each other, prejudices disappear,” the Iranian delegation said.“Religions may have different paths, but they all lead to peace,” the embassy wrote.The Virgin Mary and her ‘very important’ role in dialogue between Catholics and MuslimsSpeaking to ACI Prensa, the Spanish-language sister service of EWTN News, Valtierra said that “the role of the Blessed Virgin Mary in Catholic-Muslim dialogue is very important.”“Ambassador Abolfazl told us that in the Quran, their holy book, she is called Maryam, and she is the only woman to whom a surah, that is, a chapter of the Quran, is dedicated. Surah 3:42 states: ‘Oh Mary! God has chosen you, purified you, and selected you above the women of all worlds.’”“Although there are very profound differences regarding the figure of Jesus, Mary becomes a sign of rapprochement and respectful dialogue, as we discover shared values such as love for God, obedience, faith, humility, hope, and many others,” the Mexican priest said.Valtierra noted that the gathering took place in the context of the desire of the primatial archbishop of Mexico, Cardinal Carlos Aguiar Retes, for the shrine of Our Lady of Guadalupe to be a place where people of all faiths can learn about and draw closer to the message of Our Lady of Guadalupe and her son, Our Lord Jesus Christ.“Interfaith and ecumenical events are held in various areas of the shrine,” he said, noting that meetings have taken place with Lutheran, Anglican, and evangelical Christians as well as believers “from other religions such as Jews, Buddhists, and Hare Krishnas,” among others.“In this context, the Iranian embassy requested to visit the shrine on the occasion of a visit by a very important figure, Ayatollah Dr. Emran Khanzadeh, who wished to engage in interfaith dialogue,” he explained. Monsignor Edgar Alan Valtierra López accompanies the Iranian delegation during a tour of Our Lady of Guadalupe Basilica. | Credit: Our Lady of Guadalupe Basilica ‘A testimony to the Church’s openness’Valtierra noted that during the visit, “we first toured the shrine, which included viewing the image head-on from the sanctuary. Afterward, we moved to a room where Ayatollah Emran spoke, drawing on profound Islamic theology, about the need for religions to work together.”The ayatollah, he said, “mentioned that in Iran there is a street where there is a Mazdean [Zoroastrian] temple, an Armenian Christian church, and a mosque,” ​​and “noted that monotheistic religions share many common points, one of which is a merciful God who calls upon us to work in fraternity.”This meeting, the canon of the basilica noted, demonstrates “that the Church can welcome everyone with respect and without neglecting the proclamation of Our Lord Jesus Christ.”Visitors who were ‘very devoted to Our Lady of Guadalupe’According to Valtierra, the Iranian visitors “showed themselves to be very devoted to Our Lady of Guadalupe” and noted that “in the sacristy, we gave them some holy cards featuring the image of the Virgin, and they liked them very much.” The ambassador and the ayatollah shared with him that both men have daughters named Mary.Furthermore, “they also told us that they have an image of Our Lady of Guadalupe in their homes, and that in Iran there is even a metro station named ‘Holy Virgin Mary,’ which features a beautiful relief image of the Virgin on one of its walls.”“While the image in the station does not depict Guadalupe, it certainly speaks volumes about the respect held for Holy Mary,” the priest noted.Our Lady of Guadalupe Basilica and interreligious dialogueValtierra clarified that when receiving visits from believers of other religions, “the basilica does not stop being a Catholic shrine; rites blending beliefs are not performed,” but rather “each participant fully retains their own religious identity.”The aim, he emphasized, is “to promote mutual understanding, respect, and collaboration for peace and human dignity, as called for by the Second Vatican Council and the contemporary magisterium of the popes.”“Visits by people of other faiths to Our Lady of Guadalupe Basilica offer an opportunity to encounter the Catholic faith through its liturgy, devotion to the Virgin, and the witness of popular piety,” he said, noting that “interreligious dialogue does not promote relativism or syncretism; rather, it expresses the conviction that Christianity can bear witness to Christ with clarity while simultaneously listening to, learning from, and working alongside people of other religious traditions.”This story was first published by ACI Prensa, the Spanish-language sister service of EWTN News. It has been translated and adapted by EWTN News English.

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At their request, a delegation of the Iranian embassy in Mexico City was given a tour of the Marian shrine, highlighting the reverence for the Virgin Mary shared by both Islam and Christianity.

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The Calabash clash – The Calabash Nebula, pictured here — which has the technical name OH 231.8+04.2 — is a spectacular example of the death of a low-mass star like the Sun. This image taken by the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope shows the star going through a rapid transformation from a red giant to a planetary nebula, during which it blows its outer layers of gas and dust out into the surrounding space. The recently ejected material is spat out in opposite directions with immense speed — the gas shown in yellow is moving close to a million kilometres an hour. Astronomers rarely capture a star in this phase of its evolution because it occurs within the blink of an eye — in astronomical terms. Over the next thousand years the nebula is expected to evolve into a fully fledged planetary nebula. The nebula is also known as the Rotten Egg Nebula because it contains a lot of sulphur, an element that, when combined with other elements, smells like a rotten egg — but luckily, it resides over 5000 light-years away in the constellation of Puppis (The Poop deck).
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The Calabash clash – The Calabash Nebula, pictured here — which has the technical name OH 231.8+04.2 — is a spectacular example of the death of a low-mass star like the Sun. This image taken by the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope shows the star going through a rapid transformation from a red giant to a planetary nebula, during which it blows its outer layers of gas and dust out into the surrounding space. The recently ejected material is spat out in opposite directions with immense speed — the gas shown in yellow is moving close to a million kilometres an hour. Astronomers rarely capture a star in this phase of its evolution because it occurs within the blink of an eye — in astronomical terms. Over the next thousand years the nebula is expected to evolve into a fully fledged planetary nebula. The nebula is also known as the Rotten Egg Nebula because it contains a lot of sulphur, an element that, when combined with other elements, smells like a rotten egg — but luckily, it resides over 5000 light-years away in the constellation of Puppis (The Poop deck).

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The Calabash Nebula, pictured here — which has the technical name OH 231.8+04.2 — is a spectacular example of the death of a low-mass star like the Sun. This image taken by the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope shows the star going through a rapid transformation from a red giant to a planetary nebula, during which it blows its outer layers of gas and dust out into the surrounding space. The recently ejected material is spat out in opposite directions with immense speed — the gas shown in yellow is moving close to a million kilometres an hour. Astronomers rarely capture a star in this phase of its evolution because it occurs within the blink of an eye — in astronomical terms. Over the next thousand years the nebula is expected to evolve into a fully fledged planetary nebula. The nebula is also known as the Rotten Egg Nebula because it contains a lot of sulphur, an element that, when combined with other elements, smells like a rotten egg — but luckily, it resides over 5000 light-years away in the constellation of Puppis (The Poop deck).

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Picture of the day Feskekôrka (meaning “fish church”) is a historic building in Gothenburg, Sweden that formerly housed an indoor fish market. Its name is based on the building’s resemblance to a neo-Gothic church. #ImageOfTheDay
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Picture of the day Feskekôrka (meaning “fish church”) is a historic building in Gothenburg, Sweden that formerly housed an indoor fish market. Its name is based on the building’s resemblance to a neo-Gothic church. #ImageOfTheDay

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Picture of the day
Feskekôrka (meaning “fish church”) is a historic building in Gothenburg, Sweden that formerly housed an indoor fish market. Its name is based on the building’s resemblance to a neo-Gothic church.
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Picture of the day A caterpillar of the spurge hawk moth (Hyles euphorbiae), photographed in the Scrivia riverbed, in Novi Ligure, Piedmont, Italy. The larvae of this Europiean hawk moth eat the leaves and bracts of the leafy spurge (Euphorbia virgata), which gives the species its common name. #ImageOfTheDay
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Picture of the day A caterpillar of the spurge hawk moth (Hyles euphorbiae), photographed in the Scrivia riverbed, in Novi Ligure, Piedmont, Italy. The larvae of this Europiean hawk moth eat the leaves and bracts of the leafy spurge (Euphorbia virgata), which gives the species its common name. #ImageOfTheDay

unitedyam
Picture of the day
A caterpillar of the spurge hawk moth (Hyles euphorbiae), photographed in the Scrivia riverbed, in Novi Ligure, Piedmont, Italy. The larvae of this Europiean hawk moth eat the leaves and bracts of the leafy spurge (Euphorbia virgata), which gives the species its common name.
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