Holy Name Cathedral, the seat of the Archdiocese of Chicago. / Credit: Photo courtesy of Maddy Johnson/Church Properties Initiative
CNA Staff, Nov 25, 2025 / 16:31 pm (CNA).
Multiple lawsuits allege that the Archdiocese of Chicago kept two priests in active ministry in spite of years of “mounting complaints” of child sexual abuse leveled against them.
The suits, filed by the Chicago-based law firm Gould, Grieco, & Hensley, allege that archdiocesan officials allowed Father Daniel Holihan and Father John Curran to continue ministry “even after Church officials were aware of their history abusing children.”
The suits were filed on behalf of students from two archdiocesan schools, Quigley Preparatory Seminary and St. Christina Catholic School. Holihan is alleged to have abused a male student at the now-closed preparatory seminary during the 1980s, while Curran allegedly abused two students at St. Christina around the same time.
The law firm claims the archdiocese had been warned about both Holihan and Curran as early as the 1960s. The alleged abuse victims said they were unaware of the archdiocese’s alleged prior knowledge until recently, when “previously concealed internal documents became accessible.”
The law firm alleged that the archdiocese “relied on a pattern of relocating clergy with known problems rather than addressing the underlying misconduct.”
“For decades, the archdiocese relied on secrecy and reassignment instead of transparency and accountability,” attorney Mike Grieco said in a press release. “That structure is what allowed priests like Holihan and Curran to stay in ministry for years, putting children in harm’s way.”
The Chicago Archdiocese did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the lawsuits.
As part of its investigations into clergy abuse, the Illinois attorney general’s office described Holihan as “one of the more notorious abusers in archdiocesan history.”
“The archdiocese knew what Holihan was doing to children years before it removed him from the pastorate — but during that time, it did nothing to stop him, taking him at his word that he could turn over a new leaf of his own accord,” the prosecutor’s office said.
The attorney general’s office also identified Curran as an alleged abuser. Holihan died in 2016, while Curran died in 2000.
Both Curran and Holihan are on the archdiocese’s list of priests with “substantiated” allegations of abuse leveled against them, and both are listed as having served at eight different locations in the archdiocese. Holihan was removed from public ministry in 2002 and laicized in 2010, while Curran was removed from public ministry in 1994.
Franciscan University of Steubenville. / Credit: Photo courtesy of Franciscan University of Steubenville
Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Nov 24, 2025 / 15:08 pm (CNA).
The 2025-2026 Newman Guide will be available in December to help parents and students find reliable Catholic elementary, secondary, college, international, and graduate education programs.
The Cardinal Newman Society, which publishes a yearly guide on the most faithfully Catholic schools in the U.S., will release its new edition as both an e-book and a digest-sized print book.
The Newman Guide has recommended colleges for Catholic families for 20 years, but the 2025-2026 edition is the first that will recommend elementary schools, secondary schools, colleges, and graduate programs. Credit: Cardinal Newman Society
The guide gives families a path to a faithful Catholic education, which is growing more relevant, according to the Cardinal Newman Society, which reported a 55% decline in enrollment at Catholic schools in the last 50 years. Recognizing that Catholic education is the Church’s most effective means of evangelization and Catholic formation, the society says it continues to respond with tools, including the Newman Guide.
“With so many Catholic colleges compromising their mission, the Newman Guide served as a trusted resource to identify schools committed to forming students intellectually and spiritually in line with Church teachings,” said Dominic Kalpakgian, a student who started attending a Newman Guide-recommended college in 2024.
“The guide’s endorsement carried significant weight with my parents, who trusted the Newman Guide schools to uphold the values and principles they had instilled in me,” Kalpakgian said.
“The Newman Guide was instrumental in helping my family locate a faithfully Catholic grade school when we were moving across the country,” said Molly Metzgar, a mother, teacher, and Cardinal Newman Society employee. “While subsequently teaching at my child’s school, I helped successfully navigate the Newman Guide application process.”
The guide reaches more than 75,000 families online each year and now plans to expand numbers with the additional print version. Since starting to approve schools beyond just colleges, 28 elementary schools and 55 graduate programs have become Newman Guide-recommended.
“Out of our 160+ graduates, those who attended Newman Guide colleges are the ones still practicing their faith,” said Derek Tremblay, the headmaster of Mount Royal Academy.
How to become Newman Guide recommended
Since 2007, the Cardinal Newman Society has recognized Catholic colleges in the Newman Guide that have strong policies and standards and uphold Catholic identity within academics, athletics, faculty hiring, and campus life.
The key elements in faithful Catholic education, according to the society, is looking for salvation of souls, Catholic community, prayer, Scripture and sacrament, integral formation, and Christian worldview.
To be recognized in the Newman Guide, “a Catholic school must be committed to strong Catholic identity and model the ‘Principles of Catholic Identity in Education,’ use the Catholic ‘Curriculum Standards’ in whole or part, and align their school policies with standards promoted by the society which are derived from Church teaching.”
Catholic schools must have a curriculum that provides for the integral formation of the whole person and helps students know and understand objective reality, including transcendent truth.
The Newman Guide policy standards are derived from guidance from Church councils, popes, Vatican congregations, bishops conferences, the Catechism of the Catholic Church, and other Church documents.
Pope Leo XIV waves to pilgrims gathered at his general audience on Oct.25, 2025. / Credit: Daniel Ibáñez/EWTN News
Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Nov 20, 2025 / 15:30 pm (CNA).
Pope Leo XIV will hold a historic live digital conversation with American teenagers at the National Catholic Youth Conference (NCYC) on Friday. The faithful across the globe can also tune in to watch the encounter.
The pope will speak at 10:15 a.m. ET on Nov. 21 and enter into dialogue with a group of high school students.
People attending NCYC in Indianapolis at Lucas Oil Stadium can watch the encounter at the event, but others across the world are able to join online from homes, schools, and parishes.
The exchange will be broadcast via a livestream available on EWTN YouTube. Viewers can also watch through the EWTN app or on EWTN’s cable channel.
This marks the first time that a pope will directly engage with U.S. youth in a live digital encounter at NCYC. More than 40 teens have participated in the dialogue planning process, and five of them will get the chance to speak directly with the Holy Father.
For other news about the pope’s discussion and NCYC, the faithful can stay informed on CNA’s live updates page.
Mia Smothers is among the teens chosen to ask Pope Leo XIV questions at the National Catholic Youth Conference Nov. 21, 2025. / Credit: Photo courtesy of National Federation for Catholic Youth Ministry
Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Nov 19, 2025 / 07:00 am (CNA).
Mia Smothers said she is looking forward to the “opportunity of a lifetime” as she prepares to speak with Pope Leo XIV during a digital encounter at the upcoming National Catholic Youth Conference (NCYC).
The Holy Father will hold a 45-minute digital encounter with young people from across the United States during the Nov. 20–22 conference hosted by the National Federation for Catholic Youth Ministry (NFCYM) in Indianapolis.
More than 40 teens have participated in the dialogue planning process, and five of them will get the chance to speak directly with the Holy Father. Smothers, a high school freshman from Joppa, Maryland, is the youngest teen selected to speak with the pontiff.
“I’m feeling excited,” Smothers said in a Nov. 18 interview with “EWTN News Nightly.” She added: “This is a very good opportunity for me to learn more about my faith and others around me.”
This year marks the first time Smothers will attend NCYC. She said she is looking forward to the opportunity for adoration at the conference, because she heard it “is a very powerful experience.”
Smothers said she thinks the young attendees of NCYC want to get a better understanding of how the Church wants them to act in the faith, how they can be more helpful, and how they can be more hands-on in the Church.
The NCYC team and the students who will speak with the Holy Father have been preparing and practicing in anticipation for the encounter to get a better idea of how they can establish themselves in the Church.
“We have been meeting up on Zoom and doing follow-up questions — practicing what the pope might tell us and to figure out how we could answer and how we could switch the conversation to something that we want to ask,” Smothers said.
As a teenager in the Church, Smothers is concerned about how people are supposed to find their vocations in life. She said: “I really want to ask him how he found out he wanted to become a priest and then how he felt about becoming pope.”
“This is an opportunity of a lifetime and something that you’ve never heard of and never … seen before,” Smothers said. “I plan to tell all of my siblings, all of my friends, and everyone at my school … to be involved and see what the pope wants for us.”
The Vatican choosing to set up this dialogue with the youth at the conference is “making a difference,” Smothers said. She said the Vatican and the pope are starting something that will be passed on to the following generations.
It is impactful that the pope himself is going to be “talking with young kids and trying to make a difference in their lives,” Smothers said.
The University of Notre Dame. / Credit: Matt B. via Flickr (CC BY-NC-SA 2.0)
Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Nov 16, 2025 / 07:00 am (CNA).
Here’s a roundup of the latest Catholic education news in the United States:
Notre Dame drops ‘acceptance and support for Catholic mission’ from staff values
The University of Notre Dame has dropped acceptance and support for its Catholic mission from the list of staff values it has held for the past 20 years.
The university’s leadership announced new updates to its staff values at its Fall 2025 Staff Town Halls on Oct. 29 and 30, according to a press release. Human Resources President Heather Christophersen said the new values were “an expression of how we seek to advance Notre Dame’s mission as a global, Catholic research university.”
Prior to the change, Notre Dame’s staff values were as follows:
— Accountability: Takes responsibility and ownership for decisions, actions, and results. Accountable for both how and what is accomplished
— Teamwork: Works cooperatively as a member of a team and is committed to the overall team objectives rather than own interests
— Integrity: Demonstrates honest and ethical behavior that displays a high moral standard. Widely trusted, respectful, and honorable
— Leadership in Excellence: Demonstrates energy and commitment to improving results, takes initiatives often involving calculated risks while considering the common good
— Leadership in Mission: Understands, accepts, and supports the Catholic mission of the university and fosters values consistent with that mission
The new and pared down values and their descriptions are:
— Community: Treat every person with dignity and respect.
— Collaboration: Work together with honesty, kindness, and humility.
— Excellence: Pursue the highest standards with a commitment to truth and service.
— Innovation: Embrace opportunities with creativity and dedication.
According to the Notre Dame Observer, Christophersen said in an email to staff that the former Notre Dame values “had only one value that pointed into mission” and that the decision to remove the “Leadership in Mission” value was motivated by a desire to reframe the school’s Catholic mission as all-encompassing. She said the old values had caused confusion in staff evaluation processes during annual performance reviews and that the school does not monitor religious affiliation for staff in the same way as faculty and students.
Notre Dame did not return multiple requests for comment.
University of St. Francis and Belleville Diocese announce student admission partnership
The University of St. Francis (USF) and the Diocese of Belleville, Illinois, have announced a new partnership guaranteeing admission for diocesan high school graduates.
Students from Althoff Catholic High School, Mater Dei Catholic High School, and Gibault Catholic High School will have guaranteed admission at the university as well as the opportunity to earn scholarships of up to $3,000.
“We are so pleased with this partnership and look forward to welcoming students from the Catholic high schools within the Belleville Diocese,” University of St. Francis President Ryan C. Hendrickson said in a press release announcing the partnership.
“In addition to the guaranteed admission, USF plans to host workshops and information sessions for diocese-based school counselors, teachers, parents, and prospective students. USF will also offer campus visitation days, facilitating exploration and engagement with the diocese schools,” the release stated.
Archdiocese of Hartford to open 2 new Catholic schools amid Mass attendance boom
The Archdiocese of Hartford, Connecticut, will open two new Catholic schools next year as Mass attendance and renewed interest in the faith continues to rise.
“A lot of the decisions that are being made in the public-school systems are not decisions that a lot of people find easy to hold, and they’re looking for places where they could just find a little bit less politics,” Archbishop Christopher Coyne said, emphasizing the important role of Catholic schools in this environment, according to a local report. Coyne said elsewhere that the new school openings come amid “a great reversal of the downward trends we experienced before and during COVID.”
One of the schools, Chesterton Academy of St. Francis of Assisi, will accept ninth and 10th grade students in fall 2026. The other school, the Catholic Academy of Hartford, will accept pre-K through second graders starting in the fall, adding a grade each year until it reaches the eighth grade. The school will operate on an income-based tuition model.
St. Anselm College announces reception of $40 million gift
St. Anselm College, a Benedictine liberal arts school in New Hampshire, announced a $40 million gift, the largest donation in the school’s 136-year history.
The gift was from Robert and Beverly Grappone, whose son, Greg, graduated from the college in 2004 and passed away from cancer at the age of 35. “While many colleges and universities are struggling in a challenging higher education environment, St. Anselm is fortunate to have a different story,” the college said in a press release announcing the historic gift. “The college has seen enrollment growth over the last four years, increasing each year since the post-COVID class. This year’s incoming freshmen class set a record with 647 students. The college has a retention rate of 90%.”
The gift includes $11 million designated for the school of business, which will be named the Robert J. Grappone School of Business and Innovation, a $5 million endowment to the Grappone Humanities Institute, and “multimillion dollar renovations” to the school’s residence halls, support for the athletic complex, an endowment for the school’s nursing program, scholarships, and further campus improvements.
Residents help move food supplies at a community center before distribution to the Whitehouse community in Westmoreland, Jamaica, one of the areas most severely affected by the passage of Hurricane Melissa, on Nov. 2, 2025. / Credit: Ricardo Makyn/AFP via Getty Images
Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Nov 6, 2025 / 14:15 pm (CNA).
Catholic leaders and agencies have mobilized to help communities left devastated after Hurricane Melissa hit Jamaica.
The Category 5 hurricane swept through the Caribbean with sustained winds of 185 miles per hour and claimed up to 50 lives after making landfall on Oct. 28. Jamaica suffered the largest impact, but neighboring nations also experienced immense effects including flash flooding and landslides.
In Jamaica, practically no buildings along the country’s southern coast remain intact. Areas have experienced structural failures, immense roof damage, floods, power outages, and communication disruptions. Families have a long road to recovery after many lost loved ones, property, possessions, and livelihoods.
To help communities suffering from Hurricane Melissa’s aftermath, Catholic agencies are on the ground supporting relief efforts and fundraising across the globe to provide aid.
Providing aid
Dominican friars with St. Martin’s Missions, an initiative that supports communities in Jamaica and Grenada, are working to help communities most affected. Father Bede Mullens, OP, one of the friars working in Jamaica, told CNA they are based in Kingston, “which mercifully was left largely unscathed by the hurricane.”
“Nonetheless, some of our poorer parishioners in August Town, an impoverished neighborhood, did lose roofs, walls, and in one case pretty much the whole house,” Mullens said. With the help of donations from across the globe, St. Martin’s will purchase and provide materials for repairs and food.
Mullens explained that “after recent panic-buying, some food items are hard to come by, and food prices on the whole are set to go up in the coming months, as the part of the island hardest hit is a major agricultural area.”
This Friday, Nov. 7, the friars will distribute 300 meals to students at the University of the West Indies in Mona, Jamaica, and to several less-well-off parishioners. Mullens said: “We are trying to arrange sponsorship from local benefactors for students in need to receive support for food and personal hygiene items.”
Across the island the friars have been able to contact some parishes near Montego Bay, which suffered great damage. “One of the churches is currently operating as a shelter with just half a roof,” Mullens said.
The friars have also coordinated provisions of basic building materials and essentials including water and baby food that will be transported to Sacred Heart Church near Montego Bay and St. Agnes Church in Chester Castle.
When the roads reopen and the friars are able to make contact with more parishes in other areas, they plan to also assist their rebuilding efforts and support the local community needs.
“There is, of course, a massive need for material assistance, but for us it is very important that St. Martin’s bears witness to our worldwide solidarity in the body of Christ,” Mullens said. “We belong to a Church that is at once truly Catholic and truly one, at once global and personal.”
Franciscan Friars Charities (FFC), the charitable arm of the Province of Our Lady of Guadalupe, activated the Franciscan Relief Fund to help the people in western Jamaica recover from extensive damage.
“The friars in Negril have quickly mobilized to assess the community’s needs after the storm,” FFC said in a statement. “Each day they ground their hearts in faith through morning prayer and daily Mass before heading out into the community to provide vital services.”
The friars are serving warm meals daily at St. Anthony Kitchen, a soup kitchen in Negril. They anticipate a significant increase in the number of people coming to the kitchen, expecting approximately 400 to 500 people a day.
The friars are cleaning the Revival Health Clinic, which provides basic medical care, and are looking into creating a mobile clinic to visit remote areas. They are also visiting parishioners, many of whom have lost their homes, and providing them with immediate relief including water and food.
“Communicating with our friars in Negril has been difficult because there’s no electricity and the cellular services are down,” said Brother Jim Bok, OFM. “There’s just unbelievable destruction. It’s going to take years to recover. A tremendous amount of outside support will be needed to help deal with it.”
Organizations respond with action
Hospital Sisters Mission Outreach, an Illinois-based organization that partners with organizations, hospitals, and clinics around the world, is working directly with Food for the Poor and other organizations transporting and distributing aid.
After learning there was an urgent need for diapers, Mission Outreach’s warehouse team mobilized to send out 4,000 it had available. It also shipped out a 40-foot container to Jamaica filled with requested medical supplies and equipment.
A number of Catholic relief organizations including Cross Catholic Outreach (CCO) and Catholic Relief Services (CRS) are fundraising to send food, medicines, and housing supplies to ministry partners in Jamaica, the Dominican Republic, Haiti, and Cuba.
CCO said it is “sending shipments of recovery supplies to the Compassionate Franciscan Sisters of the Poor and will airlift medical supplies into Montego Bay when conditions are safe enough to do so.” It is also working to help the Diocese of Mandeville to rebuild St. Theresa Kindergarten, which was destroyed in the storm.
CRS is working to help on the ground with “a team of 100 staff in Haiti and local partners in Jamaica and the region,” the organization reported. “CRS and the Catholic Church are committed to walking with families through every phase of recovery — from immediate relief to long-term rebuilding. ”
The U.S. State Department’s Bureau of Western Hemisphere Affairs will coordinate with the Catholic Church to distribute $3 million in humanitarian assistance. The funds will go directly to helping those impacted in eastern Cuba by the devastation of Hurricane Melissa.
Catholic schools are faring much better in dioceses in which state-funded voucher programs are available for parents to use to pay school tuition, one researcher has found, though enrollment is still declining in most places.
John F. Quinn, a historian at Salve Regina University in Rhode Island, examined six Catholic dioceses over the last 16 years — three in states with voucher programs and three in states without them — and found that parochial schools are benefiting from vouchers.
He presented his research at the Society of Catholic Social Scientists’ annual conference at Franciscan University of Steubenville, Ohio, in October.
Quinn found that since 2009, the dioceses of Providence, Rhode Island; Fall River, Massachusetts; and Rockford, Illinois — none of which are located in states with voucher programs — have seen school closures and drops, some very large, in their parochial school enrollment.
Providence schools have seen a two-thirds drop, from 16,000 students in 2009 to about 10,000 in 2025, according to the historian.
The Diocese of Fall River, meanwhile, saw a 36% drop in enrollment, going from 7,800 students in 2009 to 5,000 in 2025. Rockford’s diocese saw a precipitous 52% drop, with 15,500 students in 2009 and 7,400 today. All three dioceses also saw multiple parochial school closures.
The numbers are very different in the dioceses in states that have voucher programs.
According to Quinn, the Archdiocese of Indianapolis only saw its enrollment numbers drop 3% since 2009. Nearly 23,000 were enrolled in its parochial schools in 2009, and the number stands at 22,300 today. The overall population of the archdiocese has also dropped 5% over the same time period, he noted.
Indiana’s Choice Scholarship Program was launched in 2011 and expanded to nearly all residents in 2025.
Two other dioceses, Orlando and Venice, are both in Florida, a state that approved its voucher program in 1999 and expanded it significantly in 2023.
The Diocese of Orlando has seen a 13% drop, going from 14,500 students in 2009 to 12,750 in 2025.
The Diocese of Venice, a relatively new one established in 1984, has seen a 52% increase in parish school enrollment since 2009 and growth in its number of parochial schools. In 2009, 4,400 students attended three high schools and 10 elementary schools, and today there are four high schools and 12 elementary schools with an enrollment of 6,800.
Quinn acknowledged that Florida has a growing population but said even taking that into account, the voucher programs have indisputably aided the Catholic schools there.
“We are full up with nearly every school at capacity,” Father John Belmonte, SJ, Diocese of Venice Superintendent of Catholic Education, said in September.
History of parochial schooling
“America’s Catholic leaders have long seen parochial schools as critical to the well-being of the Church in America,” Quinn noted.
He recalled the Third Plenary Council of Baltimore in 1884, at which the bishops “called for every parish to have a school and for all Catholic parents to send their children” to them.
Quinn noted that pastors would sometimes build a parish school first before completing the church building.
In 1965, the high point of parochial school enrollment, 52% of American Catholic children, or 5.2 million students, were enrolled at 13,000 Catholic grammar and high schools.
Quinn cited the National Catholic Educational Association’s annual report, released in the spring, that showed just under 1.7 million students are currently enrolled in the nation’s current 8,500 parochial schools.
In 1965, nearly 70% of all parochial school teachers, or 115,607, were religious sisters, priests, or brothers, according to the Cardinal Newman Society.
By 1990, only 2.5% of parochial school faculty were priests or religious, and that number remains the same today.
Quinn said costs started rising as more lay teachers replaced religious and priests in the classroom.
Finish line of the A-Cross America Relay, hosted by Benedictine College in Atchison, Kansas. / Credit: Photo courtesy of LIFE Runners.
CNA Staff, Nov 1, 2025 / 05:55 am (CNA).
A pro-life relay with more than 10,000 participants came to a joyful conclusion in Kansas last Saturday after runners made the shape of a cross as they ran across the U.S.
The 5,124 mile “A-Cross America Relay,” organized by pro-life group LIFE Runners, kicked off in September in four cities around the country and ended at Benedictine College in Atchison, Kansas on Oct. 25.
The starting points were San Francisco, California; New York City, New York; Austin, Texas; and Fargo, North Dakota, but participants around the world also joined to witness to life in their own nations.
The San Francisco kickoff of the A-Cross America Relay began at Star of the Sea Church with students from Stella Maris Academy. Credit: Photo courtesy of LIFE Runners.
With more than 25,000 “teammates” in nearly 4,000 cities across 50 countries, LIFE Runners aim to raise awareness for unborn children during their annual relay.
Patrick Castle, president and founder of LIFE Runners, spoke with CNA about what inspires participants to run for the unborn.
CNA: What inspires the mission of LIFE Runners?
Castle: LIFE Runners is inspired by the obvious responsibility of Christians to reach the youth, pregnant mothers, fathers, and influencers with God’s love and the truth that abortion isn’t a solution to anything, it is the greatest problem, the greatest evil by definition, by the numbers.
Abortion claims more American lives in one year than all combat casualties in the history of America. With the 250th anniversary of our country next year, may we reflect on who we are as Americans and as Christians.
We are people who stand for God and His gifts of life and liberty. Amen!
How does the relay help raise awareness for the unborn?
Castle: The LIFE Runners A-Cross America Relay helps raise awareness for the unborn through our public witness [of] wearing “REMEMBER The Unborn” shirts.
Eighty-two percent of post-abortion mothers said if they had encountered one supportive person or encouraging message, they would have chosen life.
For example, two mothers saw our “REMEMBER The Unborn” witness outside of the Omaha Planned Parenthood, asked for help, and chose life.
New York City kickoff for the A-Cross America Relay. Participants prayed and then walked with the big “REMEMBER The Unborn” banner to the Father Francis Duffy statue in Times Square. Credit: Photo courtesy of LIFE Runners.
Thousands of people witnessed thousands of LIFE Runners wearing “REMEMBER The Unborn” shirts across America and around the world during the 5,124 mile relay that made a cross over America.
With access to abortion in the mail and across state lines, LIFE Runners wear life-saving messages everywhere to inspire a culture of life at work, school, walking, running, grocery store; everywhere!
What stood out to you from the finish line relay at Benedictine College in Atchison, Kansas?
Castle: I am so encouraged by the authentic, Catholic, pro-life identity of Benedictine College … While running up the hill, students invited other students to join us, like a scene out of the “Rocky” movie when the local community joined him on a training run.
The last mile ended on the main campus drive with President [Stephen] Minnis leading a large crowd with cheering. The finish was immediately followed by a beautiful prayer from Archbishop [Joseph]Naumann.
What is the significance of having a national relay across the United States?
Castle: The significance of having a relay that makes a cross over America is unity. [The relay] connects everyone in a pro-God way, allowing faith and light to overcome the darkness to end abortion — all in Christ for pro-life!
Teammates in other countries adopt segments, knowing that America can and should lead the way in ending abortion around the world.
The relay is an inspiring light for the world. The cross is the greatest symbol of love, bringing hope that life will prevail!
The North arm kickoff of the A-Cross America Relay in Fargo, North Dakota. NDSU Newman Center students helped launch the north arm with a 2.7 mile prayerful witness walk. Credit: Photo courtesy of LIFE Runners.
Faustina Academy, a K–12 private school in Irving, Texas, bans social media use among its students, and parents have been totally supportive. / Credit: Photo courtesy of Faustina Academy
CNA Staff, Oct 30, 2025 / 06:00 am (CNA).
As the harmful effects of smartphone use on children become more well known, one school in the Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex is partnering with parents to enforce a no-social-media policy and witnessing students flourish as a result.
Faustina Academy, a K–12 private, independent Catholic school in Irving, Texas, asks parents to formally commit to a school policy of keeping their kids socia-media-free while enrolled.
In addition to asking families to commit to prohibiting TikTok, Instagram, Snapchat, and CapCut, Faustina students have never been permitted to have phones with them during school hours.
Student drivers must leave their phones in their cars during the school day and younger high school students who need phones for after-school activities turn them in to the office in the morning and pick them up after school and can only take them out once they are off campus.
In the school’s early days, years before the smartphone’s launch, Christina Mehaffey, principal since the school’s founding in 2003, told CNA she paid attention to technology trends, researching MySpace and other early social-networking sites available on desktop or laptop computers.
She concluded the sites “opened doors to inappropriate material” such as pornography and violence and “tweaked the tech policy to be more restrictive” over the years by informally asking parents to keep their children off devices at home (they were never allowed to have phones during the school day). She also asked parents to limit their children’s video game time.
In 2017, after seeing the effects of years of smartphone use and social media apps on the children, Mehaffey began asking parents to prohibit social media use among students.
She held two weeks of mandatory parent meetings for every grade level, discussing the harms of popular smartphone apps that were “drawing kids away from reality” and exposing them to “horrifying” content that was “right at their fingertips.”
Mehaffey brought in an IT expert to explain to both parents and students that the app and smartphone creators “intentionally” made the devices and apps addictive because “they knew kids don’t have self-control; all for the sake of making money.”
The expert told parents that kids could easily access content so harmful it was “far beyond what anyone could even imagine,” Mehaffey said.
“Parents were amazed” at what they learned, she said, and 100% were willing to verbally commit to keeping their children off social media.
Mehaffey said it was necessary that every parent “get on board” in order to address the “collective action problem, the fear of missing out” that would be present among the students if every family did not have the same policy at home.
Speaking of the overwhelming support of the parents, Mehaffey told CNA that many parents even “asked me to just make a school-wide policy prohibiting social media so they would be relieved of the burden of having to enforce the rules. A few parents said: ‘Our lives will be easier if the school makes it a policy.’”
So, in 2022, the school’s official policy became “no social media use by Faustina students.”
“Every single parent signed on,” Mehaffey said.
Heidi Maher, whose family has been at Faustina since 2020, told CNA her family already had a no-social-media policy, but when Mehaffey took the no-phone policy in school a step further and banned social media, “it was a huge blessing to me as a parent. It took that battle off the table. We have enough battles as parents. If no one else has social media, I don’t have to battle with my children.”
At previous schools her children attended, Maher said “they weren’t willing to lay down the law on more controversial social issues and they weren’t being direct enough about what being Catholic means.”
Faustina Academy students attended the March for Life in Washington, D.C., in 2022 and plan to go again this coming January. Credit: Photo courtesy of Faustina Academy
“Kids are catechized on the playground,” Maher said. “Their peers, and what their peers’ families are doing, affect them, regardless of what their teachers say.”
“My kids have grown up in one of the most liberal neighborhoods in Dallas. But when it came to education, we wanted an orthodox Catholic school,” she said.
Since the policy change, Maher said she now sees a level of innocence in her children and their friends that she has not seen in a long time.
The Dominicans visit the school once a week to read, answer questions, or give a talk to the students at Faustina Academy. Credit: Photo courtesy of Faustina Academy
Jane Petres, who has two daughters at the school, agreed, telling CNA she appreciates raising her family among “mostly like-minded families” and school staff whom she can trust.
“The other parents here seem very ‘with it’ and proactive,” she said of Faustina. “You can ban everything in the world, but unless the parents are enforcing it, kids are still going to be exposed to harmful things.”
She said that at a previous school, an eighth-grade girl became involved with a 45-year-old man (who she thought was a teenage boy) through social media, and rather than recognizing the dangers and changing their policies, the school hushed it up.
Every year, Faustina hosts parent orientations where Mehaffey tells them that “our purpose on earth is to get people to heaven. It has to be in everything we do; in our choices, friendships, our technology use, everything.”
Faustina students attend Mass. Credit: Photo courtesy of Faustina Academy
“We want a school where everyone is on the same page, but we’re open to all,” Mehaffey said. “If someone comes in who isn’t Catholic, they have to commit to doing things the way the school does. Not only the technology policy but also prayers, the Mass, all of it. We’re going to teach the truth.”
A portrait of a young St. John Henry Newman hangs in Cathedral High School, part of the Ordinariate of the Chair of St. Peter, in Houston. / Credit: Amira Abuzeid/CNA
CNA Staff, Oct 27, 2025 / 13:00 pm (CNA).
Pope Leo XIV will name St. John Henry Newman a patron saint of Catholic education in a document to be published on Oct. 28 for the 60th anniversary of Gravissimum Educationis, the Second Vatican Council’s declaration on Christian education.
He will become an official co-patron saint of education, alongside St. Thomas Aquinas, during the Vatican’s Jubilee of the World of Education from Oct. 27 to Nov. 1. He will also be declared a doctor of the Church by Pope Leo at the jubilee’s closing Mass on Nov. 1, the solemnity of All Saints.
Newman will join a list of several other Catholic saints considered patrons of other aspects of education. Get to know them here:
St. Thomas Aquinas
A scholar and doctor of the Church, St. Thomas Aquinas is considered one of the Catholic Church’s greatest theologians and philosophers. He is the patron saint of Catholic colleges and universities, teachers, philosophers, theologians, and students.
St. Albert the Great
A teacher of St. Thomas Aquinas, St. Albert the Great was a provincial of the Dominican order and is also a doctor of the Church. He is the patron saint of science students due to his belief that science and faith are compatible.
St. Joseph of Cupertino
A Conventual Franciscan Friar, St. Joseph of Cupertino was an Italian mystic who was known for struggling with his studies. He is a patron saint of students, especially those preparing to take exams.
St. Jean-Baptiste de La Salle
St. Jean-Baptiste de La Salle was a French priest, educational reformer, and founder of the Institute of Brothers of the Christian Schools. He is a patron saint of teachers.
St. Scholastica
St. Scholastica is the foundress of the women’s branch of Benedictine monasticism, which focuses on prayer, work, and study. Her name also means “scholar.” Therefore, she is a patron saint of education.
St. Francis de Sales
Known for his influential writings on spiritual direction and formation, St. Francis de Sales is the patron saint of writers, journalists, the Catholic press, and educators.
St. Elizabeth Ann Seton
St. Elizabeth Ann Seton is considered the foundress of the Catholic school system in the United States, making her a patron of Catholic schools. In 1810, she opened the first Catholic girls school in Emmitsburg, Maryland. It was also here where she founded the first American congregation of religious sisters, the Sisters of Charity.
St. John Neumann
A member of the Redemptorist order, St. John Neumann was the fourth bishop of Philadelphia. While he was there, he founded the first Catholic diocesan school in the United States, which made him a patron saint of Catholic education.
St. Gemma Galgani
St. Gemma Galgani is considered a patron saint of students because she was an exceptional and diligent student who excelled in her education despite her fragile health.
St. Catherine of Alexandria
A fourth-century noblewoman and scholar, St. Catherine of Alexandria is a patron saint of students, teachers, and librarians due to her incredible skills in debate, which led to many conversions among pagan philosophers.
Annunciation School shooting survivor Sophia Forchas in a photo before the incident and then posing with neurosurgeon Dr. Walt Galicich at Gillette Children’s Hospital in Minneapolis on a very happy day as she goes home to be with her family on Oct. 23, 2025. / Credit: Photo courtesy of the Forchas family
National Catholic Register, Oct 24, 2025 / 12:02 pm (CNA).
Twelve-year-old Sophia Forchas is finally home after spending 57 days in the hospital with severe injuries sustained from the deadly shooting on Aug. 27 at Annunciation Catholic Church in Minneapolis during the first school Mass of the year that claimed the lives of two students.
Sophia received a fond farewell outside the hospital on Oct. 23.
In a statement posted to the family’s GoFundMe page, Sophia’s parents, Tom and Amy Forchas, wrote: “Today marks one of the most extraordinary days of our lives! Our beloved daughter, Sophia, is coming home!!”
Speaking with gratitude for the team of doctors that worked diligently to save their daughter, the couple wrote: “We thank you from the depths of our hearts. We will never forget your world-class care that sustained her. Your commitment carried us through.”
Sophia still has a long road ahead with outpatient therapy, but her parents said “our hearts are filled with indescribable joy as we witness her speech improving daily, her personality shining through once more, and her ability to walk, swim, and even dribble a basketball. Each step she takes is a living testament to the boundless grace of God and the miraculous power of prayer.”
Archbishop Bernard Hebda of the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis told the National Catholic Register, CNA’s sister news partner: “I celebrate with the Annunciation community the return to home of Sophia Forchas. It was very moving that she was able to join us last evening for the daily 9:00 rosary outside of the Church. She and her father thanked the community for the many prayers that they have received throughout the time that Sophia had been in the hospital and at the rehabilitation center. Please join me in continuing to pray for the ongoing recovery of all of those affected by the tragedy at Annunciation, and especially for the families and loved ones of Harper Moyski and Fletcher Merkel.”
In a news conference Sept. 5, neurosurgeon Dr. Walt Galicich of Hennepin County Medical Center told reporters that in treating Sophia’s injuries he would attempt to “go through the normal brain to get there” and potentially cause more damage. Given the pressure in her brain, Sophia’s survival was extremely low.
The neurosurgeon led a team in performing a decompressive craniectomy, which removed the left half of her skull to allow the pressure in her brain to be relieved.
“If you had told me at this juncture that, 10 days later, we’d be standing here with any ray of hope, I would have said, ‘It would take a miracle,’” Galicich said tearfully to reporters back in September.
Sophia Forchas smiles with her family and neurosurgeon Dr. Walt Galicich on Oct. 23, 2025. Credit: Photo courtesy of the Forchas family
Sophia’s mother, who works as a pediatric nurse in the critical care unit at the hospital where the victims were taken, had no idea that it was her children’s school that had been attacked that fateful day. She initially had no idea that one of the three patients was her own daughter.
Sophia’s younger brother also witnessed the school shooting that day; by the grace of God, he was left unscathed, though he is still suffering from the trauma, given the horrific event and his sister’s dire injuries.
After Sophia’s 57-day stint in the hospital, Galicich gave his young patient a big hug as she walked out of the Hennepin County Medical Center to cheers and applause from her family and classmates. Even the city’s police chief was present, taking her on a ride through the city in a stretch limo to mark the occasion.
Speaking to The Minneapolis Star Tribune, Police Chief Brian O’Hara called Sophia’s homecoming “nothing short of a miracle.”
Sophia Forchas smiles alongside Police Chief Brian O’Hara, other police officers, and her family on Oct. 23, 2025. Credit: Photo courtesy of the Forchas family
Ecstatic parents Tom and Amy also noted how crucial prayer was in their daughter’s healing, writing in their statement: “Those prayers came from family, friends, and countless souls around the world; many of whom have never met Sophia, yet lifted her spirit with unconditional love. Your prayers have been a wellspring of comfort, hope, and healing for our entire family. We are certain that God heard every single one.”
The Forchases expressed condolences to the families who lost their children during the shooting, saying: “We continue to pray for those whose lives were tragically lost on that heartbreaking day. May their memory be eternal.”
“We also hold close those who were injured and bear lasting scars, and the families and loved ones forever changed,” the Forchases continued. “May God grant healing, consolation, and his peace to all who grieve. To those whose hearts are hardened in despair, may the grace of the all-Holy Spirit soften them. We pray that the Trinity fill the world with compassion and love.”
This story was first published by the National Catholic Register, CNA’s sister news partner, and has been adapted by CNA.
Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Oct 22, 2025 / 10:07 am (CNA).
Here’s a roundup of the latest Catholic education news in the United States:
Catholic college graduates leading in purpose, belonging, financial stability, report says
Graduates of Catholic colleges and universities are outperforming other students in purpose and belonging and are reporting higher levels of mental health and financial stability, a report has found.
Students from Catholic institutions of higher education are 7% more likely to view their careers as meaningful, 14% more likely to report a strong sense of belonging, and 17% more likely to say they are satisfied with their mental health, according to this year’s Holistic Impact Report.
The annual report is published by the Center for Catholic Studies at St. Mary’s University (San Antonio) in partnership with YouGov.
The report also found that Catholic university graduates are more than 50% more likely to say their education encouraged them to engage in faith-based conversations and 12% more likely to say their courses promoted dialogue across differing perspectives.
“Higher education has been disrupted by political battles and financial pressures,” stated Jason King, the Beirne director and chair of the Center for Catholic Studies at St. Mary’s University.
But “Catholic higher education does not appear to be caught in those tides,” he said.
“With two years of data, we can see that it continues to form graduates for meaningful lives, community engagement, and ethical decision-making. And, because of this focus, it also supports graduates’ mental, financial, and social well-being.”
Los Angeles-area school aims to ‘raise’ 1 million prayers by All Saints’ Day
A Catholic school in California is leading an initiative to “raise” 1 million prayers by All Saints’ Day.
“This special initiative began on the eve of the canonizations of St. Carlo Acutis and St. Pier Giorgio Frassati, two modern witnesses who remind us that holiness is possible for everyone, especially the young,” St. Joseph School explained in a Facebook post on Oct. 3.
“Inspired by their example, our students, families, and faculty have already prayed more than 150,000 prayers… and we’re just getting started!” the school said.
“During this month of the holy rosary,” the school continued, “we are dedicating ourselves to praying the rosary together each day as a school community. Families are also recording their prayers at home; rosaries, Masses, traditional devotions, and personal prayers spoken from the heart.”
Three schools — Epiphany Catholic School in South El Monte, St. Anthony School in San Gabriel, and Santa Clara Elementary School in Oxnard — have also joined the initiative, according to the school.
San Antonio Catholic schools to start accepting education saving accounts
The Archdiocese of San Antonio says its Catholic schools will now officially accept tuition from the Texas education savings account (ESA) program.
“Catholic schools in the Archdiocese of San Antonio are strongly promoting and participating in the Texas Education Freedom Accounts (TEFA) program, which provides funds for tuition at Catholic schools,” the archdiocese said in a statement to local media.
Under the program, students at Catholic schools will be able to receive $10,000 to cover tuition costs that will be placed in a savings account, providing increased flexibility to parents.
Inga Cotton, the founder and executive director of the San Antonio-based School Discovery Network, told media: “Catholic schools are some of the most affordable private schools in our region.”
She added that for “so many of them, the annual tuition is already below what the ESA will cover. It makes it more affordable for families.”
“Across the archdiocese, schools are preparing to welcome many new families through the launch of this effort,” the archdiocese said.
The legislation “was the result of hard work from many people through the years, who have been consistently advocating to give parents a true choice in education for their children.”
Pennsylvania diocese: State tax policy allows major break for donating to Catholic schools
The Diocese of Pittsburgh is encouraging residents to take advantage of the state’s tax policy, which grants major tax breaks to those who donate to Catholic schools.
“The Catholic Diocese of Pittsburgh is making it easier than ever for individuals and businesses to transform their Pennsylvania state tax dollars into tuition assistance for Catholic school students, at no additional cost to them,” the diocese said in a statement this month.
“When you participate, you’re transforming lives,” Pittsburgh Bishop Mark Eckman said. “Every dollar given through this program helps open doors to a Catholic education that forms hearts, minds, and futures. It’s one of the simplest and most powerful ways to make a lasting difference for our children and our Church.”
According to the diocese, the state’s Educational Improvement Tax Credit programs enable participants to receive a 90% state tax credit when they contribute to the diocese’s approved scholarship fund.
The diocese has launched an online resource that offers step-by-step instructions on how to participate.
The relic of St. Gemma Galgani rests in the reliquary at the Newman Center at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Wednesday, Oct. 8, 2025. / Credit: Corbin Hubbell
CNA Staff, Oct 10, 2025 / 15:07 pm (CNA).
The Diocese of Lincoln, Nebraska, has determined that a moving relic was “not of supernatural origin” after video of the apparent phenomenon spread across social media.
The viral video depicted a first-class relic of St. Gemma Galgani appearing to move of its own accord behind a display case.
A relic of St. Gemma Galgani has reportedly moved within its sealed reliquary at the University of Nebraska–Lincoln’s Newman Center, drawing Catholics from across the state eager to witness it.
Visitors reportedly came to the Newman Center at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln to see the apparently moving relic.
But a diocesan investigation found that the source of the movement was a bent hook.
Father Caleb La Rue, the chancellor for the Diocese of Lincoln, investigated whether the moving relic could be of supernatural origin with the help of another priest.
He told CNA that the Church has to look at such things with a “healthy skepticism” to see if there are any “natural” causes of the occurrences.
“Not that these things can’t happen — of course, they absolutely can,” he said. “God can work in any myriad of ways.”
La Rue found that the hook was bent, causing a similar relic to move in the same way when hung on the same hook. When St. Gemma’s relic was removed from the hook, it ceased moving on its own. La Rue said because of the bend in the hook, the weight of the reliquary was likely “not evenly distributed.”
Artifacts are displayed in the reliquary at the Newman Center at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Wednesday, Oct. 8, 2025. Credit: Corbin Hubbell
But La Rue also noted that miracles do happen and encouraged people to look for the ordinary ways God shows his presence in our lives.
“Even if it’s not supernatural, I think there’s something that God wants all of us to take away from this experience because he either willed or permitted it to happen,” La Rue said.
What qualifies as a miracle?
Church authorities investigate alleged miracles when they receive reports of them. Apparently miraculous phenomena often have to do with the Eucharist, Marian apparitions, and miracles of healing, among others.
Michael O’Neill, a miracle expert who developed a miracle-tracking website and hosts the EWTN show “Miracle Hunter,” told CNA that the Church “would not in modern times investigate a moving relic.”
“Traditionally, only a few types of miracles are ever investigated, specifically healing miracles, Marian apparitions, Eucharistic miracles, weeping statues or icons, and incorrupt saints,” O’Neill said. “And each has their own investigative process.”
La Rue, however, noted that it’s not impossible for a relic to be moving miraculously in this way.
“It’s, of course, possible. There’s far more miraculous things that happen every day,” La Rue said. “You don’t want to prematurely begin dampening the fervor. But at the same time, the Church is cautious for a reason because she wants our attention to be on truly miraculous things.”
Do miracles still occur?
The Church has documented many miracles related to healing, the Eucharist, and Marian apparitions.
Healing miracles are especially important in the investigation of potential saints. Would-be-saints need several miraculous healings to be attributed to their intercession before the Church will canonize them.
These healing miracles undergo a scrutinous investigation in line with what is called “the Lambertini Criteria,” according to O’Neill. A miracle can be confirmed only if there is no possible scientific explanation for the healing.
The Diocese of Lincoln noted in a statement that miracles still do occur, especially the miracle of the Eucharist, where the consecrated bread and wine become Jesus’ body, blood, soul, and divinity.
“God surrounds us with miracles every day, with the Lord’s real presence in the Blessed Sacrament being preeminent of all,” the diocese said in a statement shared with CNA on Thursday.
La Rue noted that the Newman Center has all-day Eucharistic adoration, where students and staff come to pray in the presence of Jesus Christ.
“The entire time this was happening, there was Eucharistic exposition going on,” La Rue said.
He noted that the Eucharist “is the ultimate sign of God’s abiding presence with his people and his desire to be a part of our life.”
“Even if this wasn’t what some people were hoping it would be, it doesn’t mean that God isn’t still very active in our lives,” La Rue said. “Sometimes we maybe just don’t pay attention to the little ways in which he is.”
O’Neill noted that the official norms for addressing miracles were adjusted last year, meaning that the Church doesn’t explicitly declare occurrences to be supernatural, but rather uses the designation “nihil obstat,” meaning “nothing obstructs.”
This means that the miracle has “signs” of the Holy Spirit and nothing “critical or risky” has been detected.
While nihil obstat is the highest designation a proposed miracle can receive in modern times, the Vatican, according to the recent norms, can also denounce alleged miracles if the Church finds them to be concerning, not of supernatural origin, or even fraudulent.
La Rue encouraged those who had hoped for a miracle to “be mindful of the ordinary ways in which God communicates his love and his grace to us throughout the day.”
“It doesn’t necessarily need to be something spectacular, but there’s lots of little ways that God is constantly showing us his care for us,” La Rue said.
A thriving faith community
La Rue, who is in residence at the Newman Center, noted that the vibrant community is growing.
“It’s a place where young people are really encountering Our Lord and encountering each other and building strong friendships and lasting friendships founded on shared love of God and wanting to live a full life, a joyful life,” La Rue said.
About 70 people entered the Church through the center’s OCIA program last year.
“The number of people who came to join the church last year who just literally just showed up — nobody went and found them,” La Rue said. “We certainly have those people, but a lot of them just came on their own.”
Sunday Mass, he said, is “standing room only.”
“I’ve been able to see just the reality of young people recognizing that the world doesn’t have the answers — that the things of the world aren’t satisfying,” he said. “And they come here to find actual peace and love and freedom in Our Lord.”
Kat Talalas, Amy Ford, Christopher Bell, and Sister Maria Frassati, SV, speak at the Leading with Love Conference at The Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C., on Oct. 8, 2025. / Credit: Tessa Gervasini/CNA
Washington, D.C., Oct 9, 2025 / 12:55 pm (CNA).
Pro-life leaders from across the country gathered this week to discuss how faith-based ministries are helping to cultivate a society that promotes human dignity and how others can advance the cause.
The Leading with Love Conference at The Catholic University of America (CUA) in Washington, D.C., was sponsored by the Human Life Foundation and the Center for Law and the Human Person at The Catholic University of America’s Columbus School of Law. It was aimed at “empowering Christians to cultivate a culture of life within their local communities.”
Jennie Bradley Lichter, president of the March for Life Education and Defense Fund, spoke to attendees Oct. 8 about the power of faith-based ministries, including The Guadalupe Project. Lichter founded the initiative in 2022 to provide resources and encouragement to parents within the CUA community.
To cultivate this encouragement, we must figure out how we can “create more of a revolution of love,” Lichter said. “Christ started this revolution of love, but it’s now up to each one of us in our particular time and place.”
“Caring for unborn babies and their mothers is one of the most urgent challenges of our time, Lichter said. “Six out of 10 women who have chosen abortion would have preferred to choose life if they had the emotional and financial support they felt necessary.”
The Guadalupe Project’s goal was to combat this by “[making] sure every woman on campus knows that resources exist and knows exactly how to find them,” Lichter said. “It’s meant to support all parents on campus, not just students, and not just mothers in unexpected or challenging circumstances.”
“We wanted to foster a culture on campus where each life is celebrated, knowing that a positive, vibrant, and joyful culture of life is truly life-giving in so many ways,” Lichter said.
The initiative “revamped all of the university’s pregnancy resource materials for students” and created “a poster campaign, including one designed specifically for the men’s dorms,” Lichter said.
It also promoted the placement of stickers in every women’s restroom stall on campus with a QR code leading to these pregnancy materials. The campus started allotting more maternity and paternity leave, designating maternity parking spots on campus, providing free diapers and wipes at the campus food pantry, holding maternity clothing drives, and “affirming the goodness of family life and that new babies are a moment to celebrate,” Lichter said.
The 2026 theme for the March for Life is “Life Is a Gift,” Lichter said. The initiative helps carry that out, because “life is something to be celebrated.”
She added: “[Life] is not a burden for which someone needs support, or not solely that. It is really a cause for celebration.”
Faith-based communities can use The Guadalupe Project as “prototype,” Lichter suggested. She shared that other universities have reached out to talk about the initiative as they were inspired to consider doing something similar.
“We need to make sure that pregnant women never reach the point of despair that drives them into the arms of the abortion clinics,” Lichter said. “We need to meet that moment of loneliness, fear, or emptiness with encouragement and empowerment.”
Hopes and suggestions for faith-based ministries
Other leaders from prominent pro-life ministries discussed what gives them hope for the future of the pro-life movement, including Kat Talalas of Walking with Moms in Need, Amy Ford of Embrace Grace, Christopher Bell of Good Counsel Homes, and Sister Maria Frassati of the Sisters of Life.
Talalas, who is the assistant director of pro-life communications for the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, said Walking with Moms in Need started five years ago but has already reached countless communities.
The parish-based initiative is “to the point where we don’t even know a lot of the time what new diocese or parish is starting a Walking with Moms in Need, what new lives are being saved, [and] what new women are being accompanied,” Talalas said. “It’s taken on a life of its own. That’s the work of the Holy Spirit — the Holy Spirit convicting hearts.”
“God guides us, we have each other, and we’re not alone. Just as we tell [mothers] that they’re not alone, we’re not alone in this movement. So what’s giving me hope is seeing the Holy Spirit catch fire and individual people saying: ‘I want to start talking with moms in need,’ and women saying: ‘I can do this,’” Talalas said.
Talalas said the work all begins with prayer. “It’s sitting in the presence of the love of God, letting him love you, and seeing how the Holy Spirit convicts you … It begins with that individual conviction. If we’re not following God’s law, it doesn’t matter what we’re doing.”
Ford, who leads Embrace Grace, which provides mothers support through local churches, said she has “noticed there’s a lot of people that seem like they have more of an open heart about Christianity, about spirituality … especially with the younger generation.”
She added: “I think that’s something we can all have hope about.”
To get involved, Ford said people need to carry out “the good works that God’s called us to do.” She posed the question: “What strengths and gifts did God put inside each of you that you can do?”
While Bell’s ministry, Good Counsel, provides services including housing for homeless mothers and children and post-abortion healing services, he said every person can help by simply praying. He specifically called on people to pray in front of an abortion center.
“If you have done it, do it again. If you’ve never done it, just go … You don’t have to say anything. You didn’t have to look up. You don’t have to open your eyes. But your presence will mean the world,” Bell said. “The babies who will die there that day will know that you loved them … That’s the most important thing to do.”
Sister Maria Frassati shared that “we could really grow in having more faith in what [God] is doing.”
“The truth is that God is actually really working in so many ways,” she said. “God is faithful, and that really gives me a lot of hope that nothing that you give is ever wasted. Even if you walk with a woman who’s not receptive, there’s really no gift that has been offered to him that he has not kept sacred and precious in his heart.”
More than 500 students with 75 teams from around the world participated in the 31st year of NASA’s Human Exploration Rover Challenge (HERC) on April 11 and April 12, 2025, near NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama. Participating teams represented 35 colleges and universities, 38 high schools, and two middle schools from 20 states, Puerto Rico, and 16 other nations.
Students from the University of Massachusetts Amherst team carry their high-powered rocket toward the launch pad at NASA’s 2025 Student Launch launch day competition in Toney, Alabama, on April 4, 2025.
NASA astronaut Tracy Dyson points to the Expedition 71 patch on her flight suit as she answers a question from students, Wednesday, March 5, 2025, at Elsie Whitlow Stokes Community Freedom Public Charter School in Washington. Dyson and fellow crewmates Matthew Dominick, Michael Barratt, and Jeanette Epps served as part of Expedition 71 aboard the International Space Station.
![10,000 pro-lifers join LIFE Runners annual relay across the U.S. #Catholic
Finish line of the A-Cross America Relay, hosted by Benedictine College in Atchison, Kansas. / Credit: Photo courtesy of LIFE Runners.
CNA Staff, Nov 1, 2025 / 05:55 am (CNA).
A pro-life relay with more than 10,000 participants came to a joyful conclusion in Kansas last Saturday after runners made the shape of a cross as they ran across the U.S.The 5,124 mile “A-Cross America Relay,” organized by pro-life group LIFE Runners, kicked off in September in four cities around the country and ended at Benedictine College in Atchison, Kansas on Oct. 25.The starting points were San Francisco, California; New York City, New York; Austin, Texas; and Fargo, North Dakota, but participants around the world also joined to witness to life in their own nations. The San Francisco kickoff of the A-Cross America Relay began at Star of the Sea Church with students from Stella Maris Academy. Credit: Photo courtesy of LIFE Runners.With more than 25,000 “teammates” in nearly 4,000 cities across 50 countries, LIFE Runners aim to raise awareness for unborn children during their annual relay. Patrick Castle, president and founder of LIFE Runners, spoke with CNA about what inspires participants to run for the unborn. CNA: What inspires the mission of LIFE Runners? Castle: LIFE Runners is inspired by the obvious responsibility of Christians to reach the youth, pregnant mothers, fathers, and influencers with God's love and the truth that abortion isn't a solution to anything, it is the greatest problem, the greatest evil by definition, by the numbers. Abortion claims more American lives in one year than all combat casualties in the history of America. With the 250th anniversary of our country next year, may we reflect on who we are as Americans and as Christians. We are people who stand for God and His gifts of life and liberty. Amen!How does the relay help raise awareness for the unborn?Castle: The LIFE Runners A-Cross America Relay helps raise awareness for the unborn through our public witness [of] wearing “REMEMBER The Unborn” shirts. Eighty-two percent of post-abortion mothers said if they had encountered one supportive person or encouraging message, they would have chosen life. For example, two mothers saw our “REMEMBER The Unborn” witness outside of the Omaha Planned Parenthood, asked for help, and chose life. New York City kickoff for the A-Cross America Relay. Participants prayed and then walked with the big “REMEMBER The Unborn” banner to the Father Francis Duffy statue in Times Square. Credit: Photo courtesy of LIFE Runners.Thousands of people witnessed thousands of LIFE Runners wearing "REMEMBER The Unborn" shirts across America and around the world during the 5,124 mile relay that made a cross over America. With access to abortion in the mail and across state lines, LIFE Runners wear life-saving messages everywhere to inspire a culture of life at work, school, walking, running, grocery store; everywhere! What stood out to you from the finish line relay at Benedictine College in Atchison, Kansas? Castle: I am so encouraged by the authentic, Catholic, pro-life identity of Benedictine College … While running up the hill, students invited other students to join us, like a scene out of the "Rocky" movie when the local community joined him on a training run. The last mile ended on the main campus drive with President [Stephen] Minnis leading a large crowd with cheering. The finish was immediately followed by a beautiful prayer from Archbishop [Joseph]Naumann.What is the significance of having a national relay across the United States? Castle: The significance of having a relay that makes a cross over America is unity. [The relay] connects everyone in a pro-God way, allowing faith and light to overcome the darkness to end abortion — all in Christ for pro-life! Teammates in other countries adopt segments, knowing that America can and should lead the way in ending abortion around the world. The relay is an inspiring light for the world. The cross is the greatest symbol of love, bringing hope that life will prevail!The North arm kickoff of the A-Cross America Relay in Fargo, North Dakota. NDSU Newman Center students helped launch the north arm with a 2.7 mile prayerful witness walk. Credit: Photo courtesy of LIFE Runners.](https://unitedyam.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/10000-pro-lifers-join-life-runners-annual-relay-across-the-u-s-catholic-finish-line-of-the-a-cross-america-relay-hosted-by-benedictine-college-in-atchison-kansas-credit-photo-courtesy-of.webp)
![Faith-based ministries discuss how to further pro-life mission #Catholic
Kat Talalas, Amy Ford, Christopher Bell, and Sister Maria Frassati, SV, speak at the Leading with Love Conference at The Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C., on Oct. 8, 2025. / Credit: Tessa Gervasini/CNA
Washington, D.C., Oct 9, 2025 / 12:55 pm (CNA).
Pro-life leaders from across the country gathered this week to discuss how faith-based ministries are helping to cultivate a society that promotes human dignity and how others can advance the cause.The Leading with Love Conference at The Catholic University of America (CUA) in Washington, D.C., was sponsored by the Human Life Foundation and the Center for Law and the Human Person at The Catholic University of America’s Columbus School of Law. It was aimed at “empowering Christians to cultivate a culture of life within their local communities.”Jennie Bradley Lichter, president of the March for Life Education and Defense Fund, spoke to attendees Oct. 8 about the power of faith-based ministries, including The Guadalupe Project. Lichter founded the initiative in 2022 to provide resources and encouragement to parents within the CUA community.To cultivate this encouragement, we must figure out how we can “create more of a revolution of love,” Lichter said. “Christ started this revolution of love, but it’s now up to each one of us in our particular time and place.”“Caring for unborn babies and their mothers is one of the most urgent challenges of our time, Lichter said. “Six out of 10 women who have chosen abortion would have preferred to choose life if they had the emotional and financial support they felt necessary.” The Guadalupe Project’s goal was to combat this by “[making] sure every woman on campus knows that resources exist and knows exactly how to find them,” Lichter said. “It’s meant to support all parents on campus, not just students, and not just mothers in unexpected or challenging circumstances.”“We wanted to foster a culture on campus where each life is celebrated, knowing that a positive, vibrant, and joyful culture of life is truly life-giving in so many ways,” Lichter said. The initiative “revamped all of the university’s pregnancy resource materials for students” and created “a poster campaign, including one designed specifically for the men’s dorms,” Lichter said.It also promoted the placement of stickers in every women’s restroom stall on campus with a QR code leading to these pregnancy materials. The campus started allotting more maternity and paternity leave, designating maternity parking spots on campus, providing free diapers and wipes at the campus food pantry, holding maternity clothing drives, and “affirming the goodness of family life and that new babies are a moment to celebrate,” Lichter said.The 2026 theme for the March for Life is “Life Is a Gift,” Lichter said. The initiative helps carry that out, because “life is something to be celebrated.” She added: “[Life] is not a burden for which someone needs support, or not solely that. It is really a cause for celebration.” Faith-based communities can use The Guadalupe Project as “prototype,” Lichter suggested. She shared that other universities have reached out to talk about the initiative as they were inspired to consider doing something similar.“We need to make sure that pregnant women never reach the point of despair that drives them into the arms of the abortion clinics,” Lichter said. “We need to meet that moment of loneliness, fear, or emptiness with encouragement and empowerment.”Hopes and suggestions for faith-based ministries Other leaders from prominent pro-life ministries discussed what gives them hope for the future of the pro-life movement, including Kat Talalas of Walking with Moms in Need, Amy Ford of Embrace Grace, Christopher Bell of Good Counsel Homes, and Sister Maria Frassati of the Sisters of Life.Talalas, who is the assistant director of pro-life communications for the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, said Walking with Moms in Need started five years ago but has already reached countless communities. The parish-based initiative is “to the point where we don’t even know a lot of the time what new diocese or parish is starting a Walking with Moms in Need, what new lives are being saved, [and] what new women are being accompanied,” Talalas said. “It’s taken on a life of its own. That’s the work of the Holy Spirit — the Holy Spirit convicting hearts.”“God guides us, we have each other, and we’re not alone. Just as we tell [mothers] that they’re not alone, we’re not alone in this movement. So what’s giving me hope is seeing the Holy Spirit catch fire and individual people saying: ‘I want to start talking with moms in need,’ and women saying: ‘I can do this,’” Talalas said. Talalas said the work all begins with prayer. “It’s sitting in the presence of the love of God, letting him love you, and seeing how the Holy Spirit convicts you … It begins with that individual conviction. If we’re not following God’s law, it doesn’t matter what we’re doing.”Ford, who leads Embrace Grace, which provides mothers support through local churches, said she has “noticed there’s a lot of people that seem like they have more of an open heart about Christianity, about spirituality … especially with the younger generation.” She added: “I think that’s something we can all have hope about.”To get involved, Ford said people need to carry out “the good works that God’s called us to do.” She posed the question: “What strengths and gifts did God put inside each of you that you can do?” While Bell’s ministry, Good Counsel, provides services including housing for homeless mothers and children and post-abortion healing services, he said every person can help by simply praying. He specifically called on people to pray in front of an abortion center. “If you have done it, do it again. If you’ve never done it, just go ... You don’t have to say anything. You didn’t have to look up. You don’t have to open your eyes. But your presence will mean the world,” Bell said. “The babies who will die there that day will know that you loved them … That’s the most important thing to do.”Sister Maria Frassati shared that “we could really grow in having more faith in what [God] is doing.”“The truth is that God is actually really working in so many ways,” she said. “God is faithful, and that really gives me a lot of hope that nothing that you give is ever wasted. Even if you walk with a woman who’s not receptive, there’s really no gift that has been offered to him that he has not kept sacred and precious in his heart.”](https://unitedyam.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/faith-based-ministries-discuss-how-to-further-pro-life-mission-catholic-kat-talalas-amy-ford-christopher-bell-and-sister-maria-frassati-sv-speak-at-the-leading-with-love-conference-at-the-ca.webp)
