understanding

Catholic social scientists reframe perspective on retirement #Catholic

As Father Emmanuel Nanabanyin Conduah (right) looks on, PennWest University Professor Miguel Olivas-Luján (left) delivers his paper “Retiring for Eternity: Planning Based on Social Science and Catholic Social Thought” during the 2025 annual conference of the Society of Catholic Social Scientists at the Franciscan University of Steubenville. / Credit: Ken Oliver-Méndez/CNA

Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Oct 29, 2025 / 10:08 am (CNA).
“Retiring for Eternity: Planning Based on Social Science and Catholic Social Thought” was among the topics the Society of Catholic Social Scientists examined during its 2025 annual conference, held Oct. 24–25 on the campus of Franciscan University of Steubenville, Ohio.In his presentation on the topic, Miguel Olivas-Luján, a professor of business at PennWest University, called for a transformative vision of retirement, one that “transcends conventional models of successful or active aging.”“While secular frameworks emphasize health, financial stability, and social engagement, Catholic social teaching invites a deeper reflection on the spiritual dimensions of aging, particularly the preparation for eternal life,” Olivas-Luján pointed out.Catholic retirementIn Catholic social teaching, Olivas-Luján explained, aging and retirement are not viewed as periods of decline but as opportunities for deepening solidarity within families, communities, and the Church. Recent developments in Catholic social teaching on aging include the work of Professor Peter Kevern, who in a 2018 paper identified the elderly as bearers of unique charisms — wisdom, memory, and interdependence — that substantially enrich both eccesial and civic communities.The Catholic view on aging, Olivas-Luján continued, considers the spiritual, relational, and ethical contributions of older adults to be “indispensable to the flourishing of both Church and society.”Professor Miguel Olivas-Luján noted that the elderly are “bearers of unique charisms — wisdom, memory, and interdependence” that enrich both ecclesial and civic communities. Credit: Ken Oliver-Méndez/CNAIn his presentation, Olivas-Luján explained how the foundational principles of Catholic social thought affirm the inherent worth of older adults and their continued role in society. He cited the Catechism of the Catholic Church, which affirms the understanding that because of each person’s essential human dignity, for example, as individuals age their value remains constant, rooted in their divine origin and eternal destiny. Retirement is thus, in Olivas-Luján’s words, “an ideal time to accelerate the pace and intentionality toward this union with God, once work-related preoccupations no longer take the highest priority.”Practical implicationsFor many older adults, Olivas-Luján noted, the end of a professional career can lead to feelings of isolation or a loss of direction. Catholic parishes and ministries, however, offer a unique and spiritually enriching environment that help retirees remain engaged, purposeful, and connected to their communities.Through their ministries, volunteer opportunities, and social events, for example, parishes and organizations like the Knights of Columbus provide retirees with opportunities to continue contributing meaningfully. The Catholic Health Association has also documented how faith communities can help retirees maintain their physical, emotional, and spiritual health through holistic support systems that integrate prayer, service, and fellowship.In addition, Olivas-Luján cited studies that show that seniors with strong spiritual engagement experience lower rates of depression and anxiety, and register greater life satisfaction and improved physical health. Nonetheless, the Church’s understanding of suffering in old age also reframes physical decline and existential questioning as pathways to grace and communion with Christ. The PennWest professor pointed out that from a Catholic perspective and specifically when viewed through the lens of redemptive suffering, “human pain, when united with trust in Christ’s redeeming passion, can contribute to personal sanctification and the salvation of others.”Ultimately, as Olivas-Luján put it, retirement and aging are not problems to be solved but vocations to be lived, “a sacred season rich with opportunities for love, service, and spiritual flourishing.”

unitedyam October 29, 2025

As Father Emmanuel Nanabanyin Conduah (right) looks on, PennWest University Professor Miguel Olivas-Luján (left) delivers his paper “Retiring for Eternity: Planning Based on Social Science and Catholic Social Thought” during the 2025 annual conference of the Society of Catholic Social Scientists at the Franciscan University of Steubenville. / Credit: Ken Oliver-Méndez/CNA

Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Oct 29, 2025 / 10:08 am (CNA).

“Retiring for Eternity: Planning Based on Social Science and Catholic Social Thought” was among the topics the Society of Catholic Social Scientists examined during its 2025 annual conference, held Oct. 24–25 on the campus of Franciscan University of Steubenville, Ohio.

In his presentation on the topic, Miguel Olivas-Luján, a professor of business at PennWest University, called for a transformative vision of retirement, one that “transcends conventional models of successful or active aging.”

“While secular frameworks emphasize health, financial stability, and social engagement, Catholic social teaching invites a deeper reflection on the spiritual dimensions of aging, particularly the preparation for eternal life,” Olivas-Luján pointed out.

Catholic retirement

In Catholic social teaching, Olivas-Luján explained, aging and retirement are not viewed as periods of decline but as opportunities for deepening solidarity within families, communities, and the Church.

Recent developments in Catholic social teaching on aging include the work of Professor Peter Kevern, who in a 2018 paper identified the elderly as bearers of unique charisms — wisdom, memory, and interdependence — that substantially enrich both eccesial and civic communities.

The Catholic view on aging, Olivas-Luján continued, considers the spiritual, relational, and ethical contributions of older adults to be “indispensable to the flourishing of both Church and society.”

Professor Miguel Olivas-Luján noted that the elderly are "bearers of unique charisms — wisdom, memory, and interdependence" that enrich both ecclesial and civic communities. Credit: Ken Oliver-Méndez/CNA — Professor Miguel Olivas-Luján noted that the elderly are “bearers of unique charisms — wisdom, memory, and interdependence” that enrich both ecclesial and civic communities. Credit: Ken Oliver-Méndez/CNA

In his presentation, Olivas-Luján explained how the foundational principles of Catholic social thought affirm the inherent worth of older adults and their continued role in society. He cited the Catechism of the Catholic Church, which affirms the understanding that because of each person’s essential human dignity, for example, as individuals age their value remains constant, rooted in their divine origin and eternal destiny.

Retirement is thus, in Olivas-Luján’s words, “an ideal time to accelerate the pace and intentionality toward this union with God, once work-related preoccupations no longer take the highest priority.”

Practical implications

For many older adults, Olivas-Luján noted, the end of a professional career can lead to feelings of isolation or a loss of direction. Catholic parishes and ministries, however, offer a unique and spiritually enriching environment that help retirees remain engaged, purposeful, and connected to their communities.

Through their ministries, volunteer opportunities, and social events, for example, parishes and organizations like the Knights of Columbus provide retirees with opportunities to continue contributing meaningfully. The Catholic Health Association has also documented how faith communities can help retirees maintain their physical, emotional, and spiritual health through holistic support systems that integrate prayer, service, and fellowship.

In addition, Olivas-Luján cited studies that show that seniors with strong spiritual engagement experience lower rates of depression and anxiety, and register greater life satisfaction and improved physical health.

Nonetheless, the Church’s understanding of suffering in old age also reframes physical decline and existential questioning as pathways to grace and communion with Christ. The PennWest professor pointed out that from a Catholic perspective and specifically when viewed through the lens of redemptive suffering, “human pain, when united with trust in Christ’s redeeming passion, can contribute to personal sanctification and the salvation of others.”

Ultimately, as Olivas-Luján put it, retirement and aging are not problems to be solved but vocations to be lived, “a sacred season rich with opportunities for love, service, and spiritual flourishing.”

Military archdiocese: Army’s response to canceled religious contracts ‘inadequate’ #Catholic

Archbishop Timothy Broglio speaks at Mass on Dec. 3, 2023. / Credit: The Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception

Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Oct 22, 2025 / 18:04 pm (CNA).
The Archdiocese for the Military Services, USA, expressed concern that the U.S. Army is not adequately addressing its discontent with canceled religious contracts, which the archdiocese said is straining its ability to minister to Catholics in the armed forces.This month, the Army canceled all contracts for three roles: coordinators of religious education (CRE), Catholic pastoral life coordinators (CPLC), and musicians. The contract terminations affected Catholics and those of other faiths.CREs served as catechists trained by the archdiocese to assist the priests in religious education in the military chapels. The archdiocese also trained CPLCs who offered administrative support such as liturgy coordination, assistance with sacramental record documentation, and weekly bulletin preparation. Contracts also included musicians, usually pianists who played music during Mass.Military Services Archbishop Timothy Broglio sent a letter to Congress on Oct. 17 saying Army officials assured him that religious affairs specialists (RAS) and directors of religious education (DREs) — federal employees — would accommodate the needs of the archdiocese amid the canceled contracts but that he believes this is not possible.Neither an RAS nor a DRE is a trained catechist, he explained, and neither are properly trained or qualified to perform the roles of people who served in the canceled contracts. There is no requirement for a DRE to be Catholic or for an RAS to have any faith.In response to the archdiocesan complaint, an Army spokesperson told CNA it would reexamine its contract support for RASs and DREs “to mitigate any potential impact during this period.“Archdiocese: Response is ‘wholly inadequate’Elizabeth A. Tomlin, a lawyer for the archdiocese, told CNA that the Army’s response is “wholly inadequate” and “demonstrates the spokesperson’s total lack of understanding of the issue.”“Merely eight DREs across the entire Army are Catholics, so most DREs are not qualified to direct Catholic religious education,” Tomlin said.“[RASs] are soldiers, [usually] anywhere from private first class to staff sergeant in rank,” she explained. “There is no requirement whatsoever for RASs to be Catholic or have any training in catechesis or catechetical methodology that could possibly equip them to coordinate religious education.”Tomlin rejected the Army’s assertion that people in these positions could fulfill the work of the CREs, CPLCs, or musicians.“Without meeting the basic requirement of a catechist, namely, to be a confirmed Catholic, these people are not qualified to be involved in Catholic religious education programs whatsoever,” she said.Tomlin said the only way to have music during Mass is if someone volunteers.“It is factually inaccurate that DREs or RASs are fulfilling the duties of CREs, CPLCs, or liturgical musicians,” Tomlin said.‘No knowledge of our faith’Jena Swanson — who worked as a Catholic CRE at Fort Drum from August 2024 until her contract was canceled on March 31, 2025 — told CNA she agrees with the archdiocese’s assessment that those employees cannot fulfill the roles of those whose contracts were canceled.She said she helped facilitate religious education classes, Bible studies, sacrament preparation classes, and retreats, and collected sacramental records, among a variety of other tasks. She said she mostly worked independently of the DRE because that employee did not have much knowledge about the Catholic faith.“The DRE is not guaranteed to be Catholic depending on the installation military families are stationed at,” Swanson said. “In our 13 years of military family life (my husband is active duty Army), we’ve experienced one Catholic DRE and only for two years.”She said in her experience, RASs “are as helpful as they can be” but often “have no knowledge of our faith.”Swanson said the Catholic community at Fort Drum “was thrown into a bit of chaos” once her contract ended. Some weeks there were no teachers for religious education, families did not know whom to direct questions to, and weekly Mass attendance dropped about 50%.“Our families want answers and want to continue coming to our parish, but if these options are not open it will drastically affect attendance and faith formation,” Swanson said.

unitedyam October 22, 2025

Archbishop Timothy Broglio speaks at Mass on Dec. 3, 2023. / Credit: The Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception

Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Oct 22, 2025 / 18:04 pm (CNA).

The Archdiocese for the Military Services, USA, expressed concern that the U.S. Army is not adequately addressing its discontent with canceled religious contracts, which the archdiocese said is straining its ability to minister to Catholics in the armed forces.

This month, the Army canceled all contracts for three roles: coordinators of religious education (CRE), Catholic pastoral life coordinators (CPLC), and musicians. The contract terminations affected Catholics and those of other faiths.

CREs served as catechists trained by the archdiocese to assist the priests in religious education in the military chapels. The archdiocese also trained CPLCs who offered administrative support such as liturgy coordination, assistance with sacramental record documentation, and weekly bulletin preparation. Contracts also included musicians, usually pianists who played music during Mass.

Military Services Archbishop Timothy Broglio sent a letter to Congress on Oct. 17 saying Army officials assured him that religious affairs specialists (RAS) and directors of religious education (DREs) — federal employees — would accommodate the needs of the archdiocese amid the canceled contracts but that he believes this is not possible.

Neither an RAS nor a DRE is a trained catechist, he explained, and neither are properly trained or qualified to perform the roles of people who served in the canceled contracts. There is no requirement for a DRE to be Catholic or for an RAS to have any faith.

In response to the archdiocesan complaint, an Army spokesperson told CNA it would reexamine its contract support for RASs and DREs “to mitigate any potential impact during this period.“

Archdiocese: Response is ‘wholly inadequate’

Elizabeth A. Tomlin, a lawyer for the archdiocese, told CNA that the Army’s response is “wholly inadequate” and “demonstrates the spokesperson’s total lack of understanding of the issue.”

“Merely eight DREs across the entire Army are Catholics, so most DREs are not qualified to direct Catholic religious education,” Tomlin said.

“[RASs] are soldiers, [usually] anywhere from private first class to staff sergeant in rank,” she explained. “There is no requirement whatsoever for RASs to be Catholic or have any training in catechesis or catechetical methodology that could possibly equip them to coordinate religious education.”

Tomlin rejected the Army’s assertion that people in these positions could fulfill the work of the CREs, CPLCs, or musicians.

“Without meeting the basic requirement of a catechist, namely, to be a confirmed Catholic, these people are not qualified to be involved in Catholic religious education programs whatsoever,” she said.

Tomlin said the only way to have music during Mass is if someone volunteers.

“It is factually inaccurate that DREs or RASs are fulfilling the duties of CREs, CPLCs, or liturgical musicians,” Tomlin said.

‘No knowledge of our faith’

Jena Swanson — who worked as a Catholic CRE at Fort Drum from August 2024 until her contract was canceled on March 31, 2025 — told CNA she agrees with the archdiocese’s assessment that those employees cannot fulfill the roles of those whose contracts were canceled.

She said she helped facilitate religious education classes, Bible studies, sacrament preparation classes, and retreats, and collected sacramental records, among a variety of other tasks. She said she mostly worked independently of the DRE because that employee did not have much knowledge about the Catholic faith.

“The DRE is not guaranteed to be Catholic depending on the installation military families are stationed at,” Swanson said. “In our 13 years of military family life (my husband is active duty Army), we’ve experienced one Catholic DRE and only for two years.”

She said in her experience, RASs “are as helpful as they can be” but often “have no knowledge of our faith.”

Swanson said the Catholic community at Fort Drum “was thrown into a bit of chaos” once her contract ended. Some weeks there were no teachers for religious education, families did not know whom to direct questions to, and weekly Mass attendance dropped about 50%.

“Our families want answers and want to continue coming to our parish, but if these options are not open it will drastically affect attendance and faith formation,” Swanson said.

Catholic experts say new AI ‘Friend’ device undermines real relationships #Catholic

A commuter waits at the Westchester/Veterans Metro K Line station on Thursday, Oct. 2, 2025, in Los Angeles. / Credit: Carlin Stiehl/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images

Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Oct 21, 2025 / 07:00 am (CNA).
A controversial ad campaign posted in the New York City subway system has sparked criticism and vandalism over the past few weeks. The print ads are selling an AI companion necklace called “Friend” that promises to be “someone who listens, responds, and supports.”The device first launched in 2024, retailing at 9. It is designed to listen to conversations, process the information, and send responses to the user’s phone via a connected app. While users can tap the disc’s button to prompt an immediate response, the product will also send unprompted texts. The device’s microphones don’t offer an off switch, so it is constantly listening and sending messages based on conversations it picks up.CNA did not receive a response to a question from Friend.com about the success of its subway ad campaign and how many people are currently using the devices, but Sister Nancy Usselmann, FSP, director of the Daughters of St. Paul’s Pauline Media Studies who also studies AI, told CNA that “people are turning to AI for companionship because they find human relationships too complicated.” But “without that complicatedness, we cannot grow to become the best that we can be. We remain stagnant or selfish, which is a miserable existence,” she said.Creating ‘Friend’ amid loneliness epidemic Avi Schiffmann, the 22-year-old who started Friend.com, was a Harvard student before leaving school to focus on a number of projects. At 18, he created a website that tracked early COVID-19 data from Chinese health department sources. In 2022, he built another website that matched Ukrainian refugees with hosts around the world to help them find places to stay. He then founded Friend and now serves as the company’s CEO. Schiffmann and his company first turned heads when an eerie video announcing the new gadget was released in July 2024. The advertisement featured four different individuals interacting with their “friends.” One woman takes a hike with her pendant, while another watches a movie with hers. A man gets a text from his “friend” while playing video games with his human friends. He first appears to be sad and lonely around his friends, until his AI “friend” texts him, which appears to put him at ease.The marketing video ends with a young man and woman spending time together as the woman discusses how she has only ever brought “her” to where they are hanging out, referencing her AI gadget. “It’s so strange because it’s awkward to have an AI in between a human friendship,” Usselmann said about the video ad. Hundreds took to the comments section of the YouTube video to respond — mostly negatively — to both the Friend.com ads and the technology. Commentators called out the company for capitalizing on loneliness and depression. One user even called the video “the most dystopian advertisement” he had ever seen, and others wrote the video felt like a “horror film.”“While its creators might have good intentions to bring more people the joys of companionship, they are misguided in trying to achieve this through a digital simulacrum,” Father Michael Baggot, LC, professor of bioethics at the Pontifical Athenaeum Regina Apostolorum in Rome, told CNA.The device “suffers from a misnomer, since authentic friendship involves an interpersonal relationship of mutual support,” said Baggot, who studies AI chatbots and works on the development of the Catholic AI platform Magisterium AI. “The product risks both worsening the loneliness epidemic by isolating users from others and undermining genuine solitude by intruding on quiet moments with constant notifications and surveillance. Friend commodities connection and may exploit human emotional vulnerabilities for profit,” he said, adding: “It might encourage users to avoid the challenging task of building real relationships with people and encourage them to settle for the easily controllable substitute.” Usselmann agreed. “Only by reaching out in genuine compassion and care can another person who feels lonely realize that they matter to someone else,” she said. “We need to get to know our neighbors and not remain so self-centered in our apartments, neighborhoods, communities, or places of work.”AI device ad campaign causes stirIn a post to social media platform X on Sept. 25, Schiffmann announced the launch of the subway ad campaign. The post has more than 25 million views and nearly 1,000 comments criticizing the pendant and campaign — and some commending them.Dozens of the ads have since been torn up and written on. People have posted images to social media of the vandalized ads with messages about the surveillance dangers and the general threats of chatbots. One urged the company to “stop profiting off of loneliness,” while another had “AI is not your friend” written on it.One person added to the definition of “friend,” writing it is also a “living being.” It also had the message: “Don’t use AI to cure your loneliness. Reach out into the world!”Usselmann said the particular issue with the campaign and device is “the tech world assuming certain words and giving them different connotations.” “A ‘friend’ is someone with whom you have a bond based on mutual affection,” she said. “A machine does not have real affection because it cannot love. It does not have a spiritual soul from which intellect, moral agency, and love stem.”She continued: “And from a Christian understanding, a friend is someone who exhibits sacrificial love, who supports through the ups and downs of life, and who offers spiritual encouragement and forgiveness. An AI ‘friend’ can do none of those things.”

unitedyam October 21, 2025

A commuter waits at the Westchester/Veterans Metro K Line station on Thursday, Oct. 2, 2025, in Los Angeles. / Credit: Carlin Stiehl/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images

Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Oct 21, 2025 / 07:00 am (CNA).

A controversial ad campaign posted in the New York City subway system has sparked criticism and vandalism over the past few weeks. The print ads are selling an AI companion necklace called “Friend” that promises to be “someone who listens, responds, and supports.”

The device first launched in 2024, retailing at $129. It is designed to listen to conversations, process the information, and send responses to the user’s phone via a connected app. While users can tap the disc’s button to prompt an immediate response, the product will also send unprompted texts. The device’s microphones don’t offer an off switch, so it is constantly listening and sending messages based on conversations it picks up.

CNA did not receive a response to a question from Friend.com about the success of its subway ad campaign and how many people are currently using the devices, but Sister Nancy Usselmann, FSP, director of the Daughters of St. Paul’s Pauline Media Studies who also studies AI, told CNA that “people are turning to AI for companionship because they find human relationships too complicated.”

But “without that complicatedness, we cannot grow to become the best that we can be. We remain stagnant or selfish, which is a miserable existence,” she said.

Creating ‘Friend’ amid loneliness epidemic

Avi Schiffmann, the 22-year-old who started Friend.com, was a Harvard student before leaving school to focus on a number of projects. At 18, he created a website that tracked early COVID-19 data from Chinese health department sources. In 2022, he built another website that matched Ukrainian refugees with hosts around the world to help them find places to stay. He then founded Friend and now serves as the company’s CEO.

Schiffmann and his company first turned heads when an eerie video announcing the new gadget was released in July 2024. The advertisement featured four different individuals interacting with their “friends.” One woman takes a hike with her pendant, while another watches a movie with hers. A man gets a text from his “friend” while playing video games with his human friends. He first appears to be sad and lonely around his friends, until his AI “friend” texts him, which appears to put him at ease.

The marketing video ends with a young man and woman spending time together as the woman discusses how she has only ever brought “her” to where they are hanging out, referencing her AI gadget.

“It’s so strange because it’s awkward to have an AI in between a human friendship,” Usselmann said about the video ad.

Hundreds took to the comments section of the YouTube video to respond — mostly negatively — to both the Friend.com ads and the technology. Commentators called out the company for capitalizing on loneliness and depression. One user even called the video “the most dystopian advertisement” he had ever seen, and others wrote the video felt like a “horror film.”

“While its creators might have good intentions to bring more people the joys of companionship, they are misguided in trying to achieve this through a digital simulacrum,” Father Michael Baggot, LC, professor of bioethics at the Pontifical Athenaeum Regina Apostolorum in Rome, told CNA.

The device “suffers from a misnomer, since authentic friendship involves an interpersonal relationship of mutual support,” said Baggot, who studies AI chatbots and works on the development of the Catholic AI platform Magisterium AI.

“The product risks both worsening the loneliness epidemic by isolating users from others and undermining genuine solitude by intruding on quiet moments with constant notifications and surveillance. Friend commodities connection and may exploit human emotional vulnerabilities for profit,” he said, adding: “It might encourage users to avoid the challenging task of building real relationships with people and encourage them to settle for the easily controllable substitute.”

Usselmann agreed. “Only by reaching out in genuine compassion and care can another person who feels lonely realize that they matter to someone else,” she said. “We need to get to know our neighbors and not remain so self-centered in our apartments, neighborhoods, communities, or places of work.”

AI device ad campaign causes stir

In a post to social media platform X on Sept. 25, Schiffmann announced the launch of the subway ad campaign. The post has more than 25 million views and nearly 1,000 comments criticizing the pendant and campaign — and some commending them.

Dozens of the ads have since been torn up and written on. People have posted images to social media of the vandalized ads with messages about the surveillance dangers and the general threats of chatbots. One urged the company to “stop profiting off of loneliness,” while another had “AI is not your friend” written on it.

One person added to the definition of “friend,” writing it is also a “living being.” It also had the message: “Don’t use AI to cure your loneliness. Reach out into the world!”

Usselmann said the particular issue with the campaign and device is “the tech world assuming certain words and giving them different connotations.”

“A ‘friend’ is someone with whom you have a bond based on mutual affection,” she said. “A machine does not have real affection because it cannot love. It does not have a spiritual soul from which intellect, moral agency, and love stem.”

She continued: “And from a Christian understanding, a friend is someone who exhibits sacrificial love, who supports through the ups and downs of life, and who offers spiritual encouragement and forgiveness. An AI ‘friend’ can do none of those things.”

Trump administration’s move to end annual hunger report meets criticism #Catholic

U.S. Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins hosts a USDA all-staff meeting on May 23, 2025, in Washington, D.C. Rollins announced the termination of household food insecurity reports in September 2025. / Credit: USDAgov, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Oct 20, 2025 / 05:20 am (CNA).
The Trump administration’s recent decision to cease publishing an annual U.S. Department of Agriculture report on household food insecurity is being met with strong criticism by the Catholic Health Association of the United States, anti-hunger activists, and academics.The last USDA food insecurity report, covering 2024 data, is set for release Oct. 22. On Sept. 20, the USDA, led by Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins, who was appointed by President Donald Trump, announced the termination of future “Household Food Security Reports,” which were first published in 1995 during the administration of then-President Bill Clinton.“These redundant, costly, politicized, and extraneous studies do nothing more than fearmonger,” the USDA said in a published statement.The USDA questioned the legitimacy of the annual reports, saying food insecurity trends have remained virtually unchanged since 1995, “regardless of an over 87% increase in SNAP spending between 2019–2023.”SNAP is an acronym for “Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program,” which according to the USDA “provides food benefits to low-income families to enhance their grocery budget so they can afford the nutritious food essential to health and well-being.” SNAP was formerly known as the “Food Stamp Program.”The Trump administration explained its decision for discontinuing the reports, saying: “For 30 years, this study — initially created by the Clinton administration as a means to support the increase of SNAP eligibility and benefit allotments — failed to present anything more than subjective, liberal fodder.”Responses to terminating the report“I don’t think collecting data about food insecurity across the country is ‘liberal fodder,’” said Lisa Smith, vice president of advocacy and public policy for the Catholic Health Association of the United States, which generally aligns with Church teaching but has clashed with the U.S. bishops in the past on health care issues, such as the Affordable Care Act. “When you don’t have the data, it makes it more difficult to know where the keys areas of need are.”The end of the annual food security report “is going to impact the health of low-income communities,” Smith said. Smith’s concerns were echoed by Colleen Heflin, a professor of public administration and international affairs at Syracuse University and co-author of “Food for Thought: Understanding Older Adult Food Insecurity,” a book published last month along with Madonna Harrington Meyer, a sociology professor at Syracuse.“Without national data from the Current Population Survey on food insecurity, it will no longer be possible to track year-to-year variation in food insecurity due to changing economic and policy conditions,” Heflin said. “This lack of data will make it harder for Catholic charities and other community-based organizations to effectively address food insecurity without a consistent and comprehensive understanding of how food insecurity is changing for different demographic and geographic communities.”Like Smith, Heflin dismissed the Trump administration’s claim that the reports were little more than liberal, redundant fearmongering.“Food insecurity data collection has been a bipartisan issue since the Reagan administration,” since the 1980s, Heflin said. Referring to the Trump administration’s plan to end the annual report, Heflin said she found “both the decision and the justification provided quite shocking and without merit.”James Ziliak, a professor of microeconomics and founding director of the Center for Poverty Research at the University of Kentucky, told CNA that eliminating the USDA household food security reports could reduce public and policy awareness of hunger needs and hinder private-sector responses, such as those by Catholic health and social service organizations.“This report was one of the most widely watched barometers of economic well-being among low- and moderate-income households in the U.S. and provided key information for policymakers, charitable organizations, and researchers,” Ziliak said in an email.Like Smith and Heflin, Ziliak said he did not accept the Trump administration’s explanation for ending publication of the annual report.“This is absolutely not justified, and the timing is especially harmful to public policy as the economy slows down and major cuts are being implemented in the largest federal food assistance program,” he said, referring to SNAP.

unitedyam October 20, 2025

U.S. Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins hosts a USDA all-staff meeting on May 23, 2025, in Washington, D.C. Rollins announced the termination of household food insecurity reports in September 2025. / Credit: USDAgov, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Oct 20, 2025 / 05:20 am (CNA).

The Trump administration’s recent decision to cease publishing an annual U.S. Department of Agriculture report on household food insecurity is being met with strong criticism by the Catholic Health Association of the United States, anti-hunger activists, and academics.

The last USDA food insecurity report, covering 2024 data, is set for release Oct. 22. On Sept. 20, the USDA, led by Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins, who was appointed by President Donald Trump, announced the termination of future “Household Food Security Reports,” which were first published in 1995 during the administration of then-President Bill Clinton.

“These redundant, costly, politicized, and extraneous studies do nothing more than fearmonger,” the USDA said in a published statement.

The USDA questioned the legitimacy of the annual reports, saying food insecurity trends have remained virtually unchanged since 1995, “regardless of an over 87% increase in SNAP spending between 2019–2023.”

SNAP is an acronym for “Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program,” which according to the USDA “provides food benefits to low-income families to enhance their grocery budget so they can afford the nutritious food essential to health and well-being.” SNAP was formerly known as the “Food Stamp Program.”

The Trump administration explained its decision for discontinuing the reports, saying: “For 30 years, this study — initially created by the Clinton administration as a means to support the increase of SNAP eligibility and benefit allotments — failed to present anything more than subjective, liberal fodder.”

Responses to terminating the report

“I don’t think collecting data about food insecurity across the country is ‘liberal fodder,’” said Lisa Smith, vice president of advocacy and public policy for the Catholic Health Association of the United States, which generally aligns with Church teaching but has clashed with the U.S. bishops in the past on health care issues, such as the Affordable Care Act. “When you don’t have the data, it makes it more difficult to know where the keys areas of need are.”

The end of the annual food security report “is going to impact the health of low-income communities,” Smith said. Smith’s concerns were echoed by Colleen Heflin, a professor of public administration and international affairs at Syracuse University and co-author of “Food for Thought: Understanding Older Adult Food Insecurity,” a book published last month along with Madonna Harrington Meyer, a sociology professor at Syracuse.

“Without national data from the Current Population Survey on food insecurity, it will no longer be possible to track year-to-year variation in food insecurity due to changing economic and policy conditions,” Heflin said. “This lack of data will make it harder for Catholic charities and other community-based organizations to effectively address food insecurity without a consistent and comprehensive understanding of how food insecurity is changing for different demographic and geographic communities.”

Like Smith, Heflin dismissed the Trump administration’s claim that the reports were little more than liberal, redundant fearmongering.

“Food insecurity data collection has been a bipartisan issue since the Reagan administration,” since the 1980s, Heflin said. Referring to the Trump administration’s plan to end the annual report, Heflin said she found “both the decision and the justification provided quite shocking and without merit.”

James Ziliak, a professor of microeconomics and founding director of the Center for Poverty Research at the University of Kentucky, told CNA that eliminating the USDA household food security reports could reduce public and policy awareness of hunger needs and hinder private-sector responses, such as those by Catholic health and social service organizations.

“This report was one of the most widely watched barometers of economic well-being among low- and moderate-income households in the U.S. and provided key information for policymakers, charitable organizations, and researchers,” Ziliak said in an email.

Like Smith and Heflin, Ziliak said he did not accept the Trump administration’s explanation for ending publication of the annual report.

“This is absolutely not justified, and the timing is especially harmful to public policy as the economy slows down and major cuts are being implemented in the largest federal food assistance program,” he said, referring to SNAP.

Missouri court says man can sue St. Louis Archdiocese over abuse he repressed for decades #Catholic

The Cathedral Basilica of St. Louis. / Credit: legacy1995/Shutterstock

CNA Staff, Oct 16, 2025 / 11:48 am (CNA).
A Missouri appeals court has ordered that an alleged victim of clergy sexual abuse can sue the Archdiocese of St. Louis, ruling that an arcane aspect of bankruptcy law does not negate the archdiocese’s potential liability for abuse that the plaintiff allegedly repressed for decades.The case touches on both the complex character of U.S. bankruptcy statutes as well as the often-protracted nature of abuse allegations, which frequently only come to light years or decades after the abuse is alleged to have occurred. In its Oct. 14 ruling, the Missouri Court of Appeals, Eastern District, said the alleged victim, John Doe, claims to have been abused at the St. Joseph’s Home for Boys in the late 1980s. Doe alleges that Father Alexander Anderson, who was assigned as a counselor to the home, sexually abused him; the plaintiff said he “reported the abuse [but] no action was taken,” according to the court. Doe “alleged he repressed his memory of the abuse until 2016,” the court said. He ultimately filed suit against the archdiocese in August 2022. The archdiocese argued in response that Doe’s abuse claim was effectively negated by two bankruptcy claims he had filed in 2008 and 2009. U.S. law dictates that when debtors file for bankruptcy, they create “an estate that includes nearly all of the debtor’s legal or equitable interests in property,” including legal causes of action. The archdiocese claimed that since Doe did not list his abuse claims as “exempted assets” in his bankruptcy proceedings, they became part of that “estate” and can only be administered by the trustee that handled those proceedings. The appeals court rejected the archdiocese’s argument, reversing a lower court decision and holding that Doe’s “cause of action” only arose when he said he remembered the alleged abuse in 2016, “well after” his bankruptcy filings. Doe’s standing to sue “did not accrue [when] the sexual abuse was allegedly committed” but rather when it was “capable of ascertainment,” the court held. The court’s ruling cited Missouri Supreme Court precedent, which holds that, in some cases of abuse, “the victim may be so young, mentally incompetent, or otherwise innocent and lacking in understanding that the person could not reasonably have understood that substantial harm could have resulted from the wrong.”The St. Louis Archdiocese did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the ruling on Oct. 16. This is not the first instance in which the archdiocese has been held accountable for abuse allegations that an alleged victim claimed to have repressed for decades.In 2023 the archdiocese agreed to pay a $1 million settlement to a man who said he was abused by Father Gary Wolken in the mid-1990s but repressed the memories until he was an adult. Wolken was in prison from 2003 to 2015 for sexually abusing another boy in the St. Louis area from 1997 to 2000.

unitedyam October 16, 2025

The Cathedral Basilica of St. Louis. / Credit: legacy1995/Shutterstock

CNA Staff, Oct 16, 2025 / 11:48 am (CNA).

A Missouri appeals court has ordered that an alleged victim of clergy sexual abuse can sue the Archdiocese of St. Louis, ruling that an arcane aspect of bankruptcy law does not negate the archdiocese’s potential liability for abuse that the plaintiff allegedly repressed for decades.

The case touches on both the complex character of U.S. bankruptcy statutes as well as the often-protracted nature of abuse allegations, which frequently only come to light years or decades after the abuse is alleged to have occurred.

In its Oct. 14 ruling, the Missouri Court of Appeals, Eastern District, said the alleged victim, John Doe, claims to have been abused at the St. Joseph’s Home for Boys in the late 1980s.

Doe alleges that Father Alexander Anderson, who was assigned as a counselor to the home, sexually abused him; the plaintiff said he “reported the abuse [but] no action was taken,” according to the court.

Doe “alleged he repressed his memory of the abuse until 2016,” the court said. He ultimately filed suit against the archdiocese in August 2022.

The archdiocese argued in response that Doe’s abuse claim was effectively negated by two bankruptcy claims he had filed in 2008 and 2009. U.S. law dictates that when debtors file for bankruptcy, they create “an estate that includes nearly all of the debtor’s legal or equitable interests in property,” including legal causes of action.

The archdiocese claimed that since Doe did not list his abuse claims as “exempted assets” in his bankruptcy proceedings, they became part of that “estate” and can only be administered by the trustee that handled those proceedings.

The appeals court rejected the archdiocese’s argument, reversing a lower court decision and holding that Doe’s “cause of action” only arose when he said he remembered the alleged abuse in 2016, “well after” his bankruptcy filings.

Doe’s standing to sue “did not accrue [when] the sexual abuse was allegedly committed” but rather when it was “capable of ascertainment,” the court held.

The court’s ruling cited Missouri Supreme Court precedent, which holds that, in some cases of abuse, “the victim may be so young, mentally incompetent, or otherwise innocent and lacking in understanding that the person could not reasonably have understood that substantial harm could have resulted from the wrong.”

The St. Louis Archdiocese did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the ruling on Oct. 16.

This is not the first instance in which the archdiocese has been held accountable for abuse allegations that an alleged victim claimed to have repressed for decades.

In 2023 the archdiocese agreed to pay a $1 million settlement to a man who said he was abused by Father Gary Wolken in the mid-1990s but repressed the memories until he was an adult.

Wolken was in prison from 2003 to 2015 for sexually abusing another boy in the St. Louis area from 1997 to 2000.

Israelis, Gazan Christians, Catholics in U.S. weigh in on historic peace deal #Catholic

Daniel Ayalon, former Israeli ambassador to the U.S. and former foreign policy adviser to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, speaks with “EWTN News Nightly” anchor Veronica Dudo on Oct. 10, 2025. / Credit: “EWTN News Nightly”

Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Oct 11, 2025 / 08:00 am (CNA).
Former Israeli government officials, representatives for the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem, and Catholic advocates for Israel in the U.S. spoke with EWTN News this week following the historic peace deal brokered by the Trump administration between Israel and Hamas. News of the peace agreement came as “a joy for the entire population of Gaza, for the families of the hostages, and for our parish, our little parish there in Gaza,” according to Farid Jabran, the public and government affairs adviser for the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem.In an Oct. 10 interview with “EWTN News Nightly,” Jabran noted there is still an air of “expectation” as the region waits to “see what happens.”Jabran revealed that Latin Patriarch Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa had spoken to the pastor of Gaza’s only Catholic Church, Father Gabriel Romanelli. “They are all very happy that they are not hearing more bombings,” Jabran said of the Gazan parish community. “They expect a better future, but still they wait to see what is going to happen … They’re all waiting to see what happens after the release of the hostages.” “The Catholic Church, as the patriarch, as the pope, as many said, will give anything in its power to to offer assistance, to offer good services when it’s asked to do so,” said Jabran, noting that the Latin Patriarchate has “big plans for Gaza,” including the construction of a new hospital in the southern region of the enclave. “We’ll have more details on that that will be supported by the Italian Conference of Catholic Bishops and the Latin Patriarchate,” he revealed, adding: “We are planning to create field hospitals in several places and to work on schools and education for the children, not only for the Christian community [but] for everyone.”Breaking down the peace deal In an Oct. 10 appearance on “EWTN News Nightly,” Daniel Ayalon, former Israeli ambassador to the U.S. and former foreign policy adviser to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, shared how the historic peace deal brokered by the Trump administration will play out in the coming days. Though both Israel and Hamas signed on to the first phase of the peace plan set out by the Trump administration on Wednesday, reports of ongoing bombardment from the IDF in northern Gaza was reported on Friday morning. Avalon explained that “there was a threat that the IDF depicted, and they had to take care of it.” “We have enough experience with Hamas that even though they agree on a ceasefire, they continue their aggression,” he told “EWTN News Nightly” anchor Veronica Dudo. “But we adhere, or Israel adheres to the agreement and to the ceasefire terms … We started right on time, and we are now back off the former position, and hopefully we will see our hostages within the next 72 hours.” President Donald Trump announced on Truth Social on Wednesday that both parties had agreed to the first phase of his 20-point peace plan for the Middle East, in which he noted: “ALL of the hostages will be released very soon, and Israel will withdraw their troops to an agreed-upon line as the first steps toward a strong, durable, and everlasting peace.”“I think that we should all acknowledge the leadership and the negotiation capabilities of President Trump and his team,” Ayalon said. “I believe that they found the right moment to really bring together an assembly of protagonists in the region that could really be instrumental, namely, Turkey, Qatar, and Egypt, that put a lot of pressure on Hamas that was not there before.” Given that the first phase goes according to plan, Ayalon said, Israel will release its Palestinian prisoners, and IDF troops will continue to withdraw, allowing Gazans to return to their homes. After which, he said, comes the precarious task of disarming Hamas, which will include dismantling its vast network of tunnels. This task, he predicted, could take several months. “I think the people of Gaza deserve this,” Ayalon reflected. “After these two horrendous years … they were actually held hostage by Hamas, which used them as cannon fodder or as human shields.” The former ambassador further expressed hope that Gazans ensure “no more terror organizations will grow there to a monstrous dimension, as we did with Hamas.”Looking ahead, Ayalon expressed hope for a broader normalization of relations between Israel and its Arab neighbors, such as Saudi Arabia and others, as well as other major Islamic countries such as Indonesia or Pakistan, to take place alongside reconstruction. He also floated the start of “a political process with the Palestinians,” noting Hamas will no longer govern the enclave. “It probably will be the Palestinian Authority,” he said, noting that under the agreement the governing body is mandated to promote peaceful coexistence and to “do away with terror” and indoctrination in its schools. “Then we can talk about real peace between Israel and the Palestinians, which may be a cornerstone of a much broader peace with the region,” he said, adding: “And we all deserve it — the world deserves it, and I think it will be to the benefit and the prosperity of all here.”Remembering Oct. 7On the two-year anniversary of the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas attacks on Israel, Philos Catholic Director Simone Rizkallah told CNA: “This is not a day to discuss U.S. foreign policy or to analyze political dynamics.” Even with the Trump administration’s efforts in the background to make a peace deal between the Hamas terrorist group and Israel, Rizkallah emphasized, “Oct. 7 is a day to live out the beatitude ‘Blessed are they who mourn.’” Philos Catholic is an arm of the U.S-based nonprofit organization, the Philos Project, which works to foster Catholic-Jewish relations. Over 1,200 Israelis and 22 Americans were confirmed killed, and thousands more wounded in the wake of Hamas’ large-scale surprise attack on Israel. An additional 251 were taken hostage into the Gaza Strip.“We mourn with the Jewish people and with Israel as if we are mourning for our own selves — because, in truth, we are,” she said. “To stand with our Jewish brothers and sisters today is not a political act, and it is certainly not a partisan one. The Church is not a political entity. This is about faith and the culture that faith gives birth to.”According to Rizkhallah: “To speak up and stand with our Jewish friends is not sentimental — it is an act of spiritual realism and solidarity with our own people in the faith.” To do so, she continued, is not a partisan act but a “part of orthodox Catholic theology, rooted in the heart of the Church’s self-understanding.”Catholics, she urged, should “incarnate this love by showing up in the flesh” for their Jewish friends and neighbors. “Call your Jewish friends,” she said. “Reach out to your local synagogue or Jewish community center. Drop off white roses in the wake of antisemitic attacks — a symbol of Christian resistance to hatred, inspired by the White Rose movement that opposed Nazi Germany.”Philos Catholic will host an event commemorating the 60th anniversary of Nostra Aetate this year at the Saint John Paul II National Shrine in Washington, D.C., which will be available to attend both in person and virtually.

unitedyam October 11, 2025

Daniel Ayalon, former Israeli ambassador to the U.S. and former foreign policy adviser to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, speaks with “EWTN News Nightly” anchor Veronica Dudo on Oct. 10, 2025. / Credit: “EWTN News Nightly”

Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Oct 11, 2025 / 08:00 am (CNA).

Former Israeli government officials, representatives for the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem, and Catholic advocates for Israel in the U.S. spoke with EWTN News this week following the historic peace deal brokered by the Trump administration between Israel and Hamas.

News of the peace agreement came as “a joy for the entire population of Gaza, for the families of the hostages, and for our parish, our little parish there in Gaza,” according to Farid Jabran, the public and government affairs adviser for the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem.

In an Oct. 10 interview with “EWTN News Nightly,” Jabran noted there is still an air of “expectation” as the region waits to “see what happens.”

Jabran revealed that Latin Patriarch Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa had spoken to the pastor of Gaza’s only Catholic Church, Father Gabriel Romanelli.

“They are all very happy that they are not hearing more bombings,” Jabran said of the Gazan parish community. “They expect a better future, but still they wait to see what is going to happen … They’re all waiting to see what happens after the release of the hostages.”

“The Catholic Church, as the patriarch, as the pope, as many said, will give anything in its power to to offer assistance, to offer good services when it’s asked to do so,” said Jabran, noting that the Latin Patriarchate has “big plans for Gaza,” including the construction of a new hospital in the southern region of the enclave.

“We’ll have more details on that that will be supported by the Italian Conference of Catholic Bishops and the Latin Patriarchate,” he revealed, adding: “We are planning to create field hospitals in several places and to work on schools and education for the children, not only for the Christian community [but] for everyone.”

Breaking down the peace deal

In an Oct. 10 appearance on “EWTN News Nightly,” Daniel Ayalon, former Israeli ambassador to the U.S. and former foreign policy adviser to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, shared how the historic peace deal brokered by the Trump administration will play out in the coming days.

Though both Israel and Hamas signed on to the first phase of the peace plan set out by the Trump administration on Wednesday, reports of ongoing bombardment from the IDF in northern Gaza was reported on Friday morning. Avalon explained that “there was a threat that the IDF depicted, and they had to take care of it.”

“We have enough experience with Hamas that even though they agree on a ceasefire, they continue their aggression,” he told “EWTN News Nightly” anchor Veronica Dudo. “But we adhere, or Israel adheres to the agreement and to the ceasefire terms … We started right on time, and we are now back off the former position, and hopefully we will see our hostages within the next 72 hours.”

President Donald Trump announced on Truth Social on Wednesday that both parties had agreed to the first phase of his 20-point peace plan for the Middle East, in which he noted: “ALL of the hostages will be released very soon, and Israel will withdraw their troops to an agreed-upon line as the first steps toward a strong, durable, and everlasting peace.”

“I think that we should all acknowledge the leadership and the negotiation capabilities of President Trump and his team,” Ayalon said. “I believe that they found the right moment to really bring together an assembly of protagonists in the region that could really be instrumental, namely, Turkey, Qatar, and Egypt, that put a lot of pressure on Hamas that was not there before.”

Given that the first phase goes according to plan, Ayalon said, Israel will release its Palestinian prisoners, and IDF troops will continue to withdraw, allowing Gazans to return to their homes. After which, he said, comes the precarious task of disarming Hamas, which will include dismantling its vast network of tunnels. This task, he predicted, could take several months.

“I think the people of Gaza deserve this,” Ayalon reflected. “After these two horrendous years … they were actually held hostage by Hamas, which used them as cannon fodder or as human shields.” The former ambassador further expressed hope that Gazans ensure “no more terror organizations will grow there to a monstrous dimension, as we did with Hamas.”

Looking ahead, Ayalon expressed hope for a broader normalization of relations between Israel and its Arab neighbors, such as Saudi Arabia and others, as well as other major Islamic countries such as Indonesia or Pakistan, to take place alongside reconstruction. He also floated the start of “a political process with the Palestinians,” noting Hamas will no longer govern the enclave. “It probably will be the Palestinian Authority,” he said, noting that under the agreement the governing body is mandated to promote peaceful coexistence and to “do away with terror” and indoctrination in its schools.

“Then we can talk about real peace between Israel and the Palestinians, which may be a cornerstone of a much broader peace with the region,” he said, adding: “And we all deserve it — the world deserves it, and I think it will be to the benefit and the prosperity of all here.”

Remembering Oct. 7

On the two-year anniversary of the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas attacks on Israel, Philos Catholic Director Simone Rizkallah told CNA: “This is not a day to discuss U.S. foreign policy or to analyze political dynamics.”

Even with the Trump administration’s efforts in the background to make a peace deal between the Hamas terrorist group and Israel, Rizkallah emphasized, “Oct. 7 is a day to live out the beatitude ‘Blessed are they who mourn.’”

Philos Catholic is an arm of the U.S-based nonprofit organization, the Philos Project, which works to foster Catholic-Jewish relations.

Over 1,200 Israelis and 22 Americans were confirmed killed, and thousands more wounded in the wake of Hamas’ large-scale surprise attack on Israel. An additional 251 were taken hostage into the Gaza Strip.

“We mourn with the Jewish people and with Israel as if we are mourning for our own selves — because, in truth, we are,” she said. “To stand with our Jewish brothers and sisters today is not a political act, and it is certainly not a partisan one. The Church is not a political entity. This is about faith and the culture that faith gives birth to.”

According to Rizkhallah: “To speak up and stand with our Jewish friends is not sentimental — it is an act of spiritual realism and solidarity with our own people in the faith.” To do so, she continued, is not a partisan act but a “part of orthodox Catholic theology, rooted in the heart of the Church’s self-understanding.”

Catholics, she urged, should “incarnate this love by showing up in the flesh” for their Jewish friends and neighbors. “Call your Jewish friends,” she said. “Reach out to your local synagogue or Jewish community center. Drop off white roses in the wake of antisemitic attacks — a symbol of Christian resistance to hatred, inspired by the White Rose movement that opposed Nazi Germany.”

Philos Catholic will host an event commemorating the 60th anniversary of Nostra Aetate this year at the Saint John Paul II National Shrine in Washington, D.C., which will be available to attend both in person and virtually.

High Court weighs free speech in Colorado’s law banning counseling on gender identity

unitedyam October 8, 2025

null / Credit: Wolfgang Schaller|Shutterstock

Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Oct 8, 2025 / 10:00 am (CNA).

The U.S. Supreme Court during oral arguments on Oct. 7 scrutinized Colorado’s law banning counseling on gender identity with some justices voicing concern about possible viewpoint discrimination and free speech restrictions embedded in the statute.

Colorado Solicitor General Shannon Stevenson defended the law, which prohibits licensed psychologists and therapists from engaging in any efforts that it considers “conversion therapy” when treating minors. It does not apply to parents, members of the clergy, or others.

Nearly half of U.S. states have a similar ban. The Supreme Court ruling on this matter could set nationwide precedent on the legality of such laws.

The Colorado law defines “conversion therapy” as treatments designed to change a person’s “sexual orientation or gender identity,” including changes to “behaviors or gender expressions or to eliminate or reduce sexual or romantic attraction or feelings toward individuals of the same sex” even if the minor and his or her family has requested that care.

Under the law, permitted therapy includes “acceptance, support, and understanding” of a minor’s self-asserted transgender identity or same-sex attraction.

The law is being challenged by Kaley Chiles, a Christian counselor who provides faith-based counseling to clients with gender dysphoria and same-sex attraction.

Free speech and viewpoint discrimination

Stevenson argued that Colorado’s law is not a speech restriction but instead a regulation on a specific type of “treatment,” saying that regulations cannot cease to apply “just because they are using words.”

“That treatment does not work and carries great risk of harm,” Stevenson said, referring to the practices the state considers to be “conversion therapy.”

She argued that health care has been “heavily regulated since the beginning of our country” and compared “conversion therapy” to doctors providing improper advice on how to treat a condition. She claimed this therapy falsely asserts “you can change this innate thing about yourself.”

“The client and the patient [are] expecting accurate information,” Stevenson said.

Justice Samuel Alito told Stevenson the law sounds like “blatant viewpoint discrimination,” noting that a minor can receive talk therapy welcoming homosexual inclinations but cannot access therapy to reduce those urges. He said it is a restriction “based on the viewpoint expressed.”

Alito said the state’s position is “a minor should not be able to obtain talk therapy to overcome same-sex attraction [even] if that’s what he wants.”

Stevenson argued Colorado is not engaged in viewpoint discrimination and said: “Counseling is an evidence-based practice.” She said it would be wrong to suggest lawmakers “reach[ed] this conclusion based on anything other than protection of minors.”

“There is no other motive going on to suppress viewpoint or expression,” Stevenson said.

Justice Amy Coney Barrett and Justice Neil Gorsuch asked questions about how to handle issues where medical disagreement exists.

Gorsuch noted, for example, that homosexuality was historically viewed as a mental disorder and asked Stevenson whether it would have been legal for states to ban therapy that affirmed a person’s homosexuality at that time. Stevenson argued that at that time, it would have been legal.

Banning ‘voluntary conversations’

Alliance Defending Freedom Chief Counsel Jim Campbell argued on behalf of Chiles and her counseling services, telling the justices his client offers “voluntary speech between a licensed professional and a minor,” and the law bans “voluntary conversations.”

Campbell noted that if one of her minor clients says, “I would like help realigning my identity with my sex,” then the law requires that Chiles “has to deny them.”

“Kids and families that want this kind of help … are being left without any kind of support,” he added, warning that Chiles, her clients, and potential clients are suffering irreparable harm if access to this treatment continues to be denied.

Campbell argued that “many people have experienced life-changing benefits from this kind of counseling,” many of whom are seeking to “align their life with their religion” and improve their “relationship with God.”

Justice Sonia Sotomayor contested whether the issue was about free speech, noting Colorado pointed to studies that such therapy efforts “harm the child … emotionally and physically.”

Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson similarly objected to the claim, questioning whether a counselor acting in her professional capacity “is really expressing … a message for a First Amendment purposes.” She said treatment is different than writing an article about conversion therapy or giving a speech about it.

Campbell disagreed, arguing: “This involves a conversation,” and “a one-on-one conversation is a form of speech.” He said Chiles is “discussing concepts of identity and behaviors and attraction” and simply helping her clients “achieve their goals.”

Girl Scouts, Cincinnati Archdiocese announce ‘renewed’ partnership after LGBT dispute

unitedyam October 2, 2025

null / Credit: maximino/Shutterstock

CNA Staff, Oct 2, 2025 / 09:41 am (CNA).

After cutting ties with the Girl Scouts over the group’s endorsement of gender ideology, the Archdiocese of Cincinnati said this week that it has struck up a renewed partnership with the more-than-century-old youth organization.

Last year, the archdiocese ended a 110-year relationship with Girl Scouts of the USA due to the group promoting gender ideology contrary to Catholic teaching.

The decision was spearheaded by then-Archbishop Dennis Schnurr, who now serves as archbishop emeritus. At the time, Schnurr endorsed a faith-based scouting group, American Heritage Girls, as an alternative.

Newly-instated Archbishop Robert Casey has since made an agreement with the local Girl Scouts of Western Ohio to maintain Church moral teaching while operating in Catholic parishes.

Girl Scouts groups are “welcome” on Catholic campuses, so long as they pledge not to promote anything counter to the Church’s teaching on faith and morals, according to an archdiocesan press release.

Casey said he is “proud” that the archdiocese and the Girl Scouts “focused on our shared desire for the flourishing of young women in virtue and faith, rather than being solely focused on our differences.”

“Girl Scouts is a secular organization, and as such, they do not share all of our views,” he said in a Sept. 30 statement. “As the Catholic Church we are called to uphold the Gospel and teach young people the truth of the Catholic faith.”

“Despite these differences, we have reached a mutual understanding that allows us to fulfill our mission as Church in the faithful formation of young girls while also accessing all that is best about Girl Scouting,” he continued.

Aimée Sproles, president and CEO of Girl Scouts of Western Ohio, said that organization hopes to encourage girls in their faith journey.

“At Girl Scouts, we believe that a part of girls’ healthy development is encouraging girls in their spiritual journey, through partnerships with their individual faith communities,” Sproles said in a statement.

“Girl Scouts of Western Ohio and the Archdiocese of Cincinnati have helped generations of girls to grow in their faith and develop the critical thinking and decision-making skills they need in order to act on the values of their faith in our complex world,” she said.

“This renewed partnership allows our Catholic Girl Scouts to have the support of their family and the Catholic community as they grow in courage, confidence, and character,” she added.

The agreement comes after “continued dialogue,” archdiocesan spokeswoman Jennifer Schack told CNA.

“While this announcement highlights the renewed partnership, there has been ongoing dialogue, given the two agencies share a common interest to strengthen and support girls in our communities,” Schack said.

The agreement specifies that the Girl Scouts cannot promote anything that goes against Catholic faith and moral teachings, according to documents shared with CNA.

Whether the renewal of the Girl Scouts will affect the archdiocese’s partnership with American Heritage Girls is unclear.

When asked about the effect of the partnership renewal, American Heritage Girls told CNA that it looks forward to “deepening its relationship” with the archdiocese.

The interdenominational group has programs and activities designed for its Catholic scouting groups that promote the Catholic faith, including troop-led Stations of the Cross and Eucharistic Revival patches.

“Catholic families in Cincinnati and beyond have embraced AHG as a trusted youth ministry option,” the organization stated. “AHG looks forward to deepening its relationship with the Archdiocese of Cincinnati as more Catholic families and parishes build communities where virtue and faith flourish.”

Schack affirmed that the recent announcement “has no impact on American Heritage Girls troops” in the archdiocese.

American Heritage Girls, which has been endorsed by Catholic dioceses across the country, features a National Catholic Committee headed by Bishop James Conley of the Diocese of Lincoln, Nebraska.

The group forms “girls of integrity through Catholic Faith Awards, troop life, service, outdoor adventure, and leadership,” the group stated.

“American Heritage Girls is grateful for over 30 years of ministry rooted in a Christ-centered foundation, deeply aligned with the Catholic Church,” it added.

Religious Liberty Commission hears from teachers, coaches, school leaders

unitedyam September 29, 2025

President Trump’s Religious Liberty Commission meets on Sept. 29, 2025, in Washington, D.C. / Credit: Tessa Gervasini/CNA

Washington, D.C., Sep 29, 2025 / 19:13 pm (CNA).

Teachers, coaches, and other public and private school leaders said their religious liberty was threatened in American schools at a hearing conducted by President Donald Trump’s Religious Liberty Commission on Sept. 29.

Speakers said there must be a fight for schools to bring back the “truth” to protect students and religious liberty. Joe Kennedy, a high school football coach; Monica Gill, a high school teacher; Marisol Arroyo-Castro, a seventh grade teacher; and Keisha Russell, a lawyer for First Liberty Institute, addressed the commission led by Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick.

“There has to be a call to action,” commission member Dr. Phil McGraw said. “The most common way to lose power is to think you don’t have it to begin with. We do have power, and we need to rally with that power.”

Teachers and coaches describe experiences

Kennedy said he was suspended — and later fired — from his position as a football coach at Bremerton High School in Washington for praying a brief and quiet prayer after football games.

“After the game, I took a knee to say thanks,” Kennedy explained. “That’s all. If that could be turned into a national controversy, it says more about the confusion in our country than the conduct of the person performing it.”

Kennedy told the commission the law is “cloudy and muddy” and they “have the power to clarify it.” Kennedy also said some lawyers “need to be held accountable” for actions taken in religious liberty cases.

Kennedy said: “I don’t know a lot about law and liberty, but I know that you’re supposed to advise people on the truth and the facts, and they’re not. They have an agenda, and their agenda is well set and in place and is working very well, keeping prayer out of the public square. They’re still doing it. That needs to be exposed.”

“Being a teacher has been one of the greatest blessings of my life,” Gill said to the committee. “God really gave my heart a mission … to show all of my students every day that they are loved. No matter what they’re going through, no matter what their grades are, no matter what their status is with their peers, I love them.”

“But in the summer of 2021 … Loudoun County Public Schools adopted a policy that forced teachers to deny the foundational truth of what it means to be human, created as male and female,” Gill said.

“This policy forced teachers to affirm all transgender students,” Gill said. “My employer gave teachers a choice: deny truth or risk everything … I knew that I could not stand in front of my Father in heaven one day and say: ‘My pension plan was more important than your truth.’ I also knew that if I say that I love my students, the only right choice would be to stand in love and truth for them.”

To combat the policy, Gill joined a lawsuit by Alliance Defending Freedom after a fellow Virginia teacher was fired for speaking out against the same policy. The lawsuit “resulted in victory for all teachers to freely speak truth and love when Loudoun County finally agreed not to require teachers to use pronouns in accordance with the student’s sex,” Gill said.

Arroyo-Castro testified that she was punished for displaying a cross in her private workspace in her seventh grade classroom in a New Britain School District school in Connecticut.

“I share this with you to help you understand why the crucifix is so significant to me and why I will never hide it from anyone’s view,” Arroyo-Castro said. “The vice principal told me that the crucifix was of a religious nature, so against the Constitution of the United States, and that it had to be taken down by the end of the day.”

If she did not take it down it would be considered “insubordination and could lead to termination,” Arroyo-Castro said. She asked if she could have time to pray on it, and was told she could, but “it wouldn’t change anything.”

“I was later called to a meeting with the district chief of staff, the principal, the vice principal, [and a] union representative. The chief of staff suggested that I put the crucifix in a drawer. I knew I couldn’t do that since my grandmother has instilled in me the meaning of the crucifix and how it should be treated with respect. But the chief of staff said that the Constitution says that I had to take it down,” Arroyo-Castro said.

After she refused to remove it, Arroyo-Castro was released from school with an unpaid suspension. She was offered legal defense by lawyers at First Liberty, which sued the school for violating the Constitution. While the lawsuit is ongoing she works in the administrative building “far from the students.”

Arroyo-Castro said: “Every day, I wonder how they’re doing.”

“Please do what you can to educate the districts in American schools about the true meaning of the establishment clause and the free exercise clause,” Arroyo-Castro advised the commission members. “How can we do our jobs well when many education leaders today don’t understand the Constitution themselves? We must understand as Americans that freedom of religion is a right that benefits all Americans.”

Suggestions from faith leaders

Leaders at Jewish, Catholic, and Christian schools also recounted religious freedom issues facing faith-based schools across the nation and what the country can do.

The leaders highlighted the need to protect the financial aid faith-based institutions receive and stop any threats of losing money if certain values are not enforced. Todd J. Williams, provost at Cairn University, said: “Schools will begin to cave because they’re worried about the millions of dollars that will go out the door.”

Father Robert Sirico, a priest at Sacred Heart Catholic School in Grand Rapids, Michigan, said he was recently affected by a decision by the Michigan Supreme Court that redefined sex to include sexual orientation and gender identity.

“While presented as a matter of fairness, this reinterpretation proposes grave dangers, grave risks for all religious institutions, even those like Sacred Heart that receive absolutely no public support,” he said.

Sacred Heart has filed a lawsuit to combat the issue, but Sirico said what needs to be done “exceeds the competency of [the] commission and the competency of this administration.”

“We have to think of this in existential terms, and we have to come at this project with the understanding that this is going to take years to transform. This is why religious people can transform the world: We believe in something that’s greater than our politics. We can reenvision.”

Michael, Gabriel, and Raphael: The 3 great archangels of the Bible

unitedyam September 29, 2025

A stained-glass window in St. Sulpice Church in Fougeres, France, depicts (from left to right) the archangels Michael, Raphael, and Gabriel. / Credit: Tiberiu Stan/Shutterstock

CNA Staff, Sep 29, 2025 / 04:00 am (CNA).

Many Catholics can, at the drop of a hat, recite the prayer to St. Michael the Archangel — the famous petition to that venerable saint to “defend us in battle” and “cast into hell Satan.”

In the culture of the Church, Michael is often accompanied by his two fellow archangels — Sts. Gabriel and Raphael — with the three forming a phalanx of protection, healing, and petition for those who ask for their intercession. The Church celebrates the three archangels with a joint feast day on Sept. 29.

St. Michael the Archangel

St. Michael the Archangel is hailed in the Book of Daniel as “the great prince who has charge of [God’s] people.”

Michael Aquilina, the executive vice president and trustee of the St. Paul Center for Biblical Theology in Steubenville, Ohio, described Michael among angels as “the one most often named — and most often invoked — and most often seen in history-changing apparitions.”

Devotion to Michael, Aquilina told CNA, “has been with the Church from the beginning. And Michael has been with God’s people since before the beginning of the Church.”

Michael’s history in the Bible is depicted through Daniel, in Jude (in which he battles Satan for possession of Moses’ body), and in Revelation as he “wag[es] war with the dragon” alongside his fellow angels.

Michael, Aquilina said, was “a supremely important character who was there from the beginning of the story.” Rabbinic tradition holds that Michael was at the center of many of the great biblical dramas even if not explicitly mentioned.

He was an early subject of veneration in the Church, though Aquilina noted that the Reformation led to a steep decline in devotion to the angels — until the end of the 19th century, when Michael began an “amazing comeback journey” in the life of the Church.

Following a vision of Satan “running riot” on the planet, “Pope Leo composed three prayers to St. Michael, ranging from short to long,” Aquilina said. “The brief one, he commanded, should be prayed at the end of every Mass.”

This was a regular feature of the Mass until the Vatican II era, after which it came to an end — though Pope John Paul II in 1994 urged Catholics to make the prayer a regular part of their lives.

“St. Michael is there for us in the day of battle, which is every day,” Aquilina said.

The St. Michael Prayer: St. Michael the Archangel, defend us in battle. Be our protection against the wickedness and snares of the devil / May God rebuke him, we humbly pray / And do thou, O Prince of the Heavenly Host, by the divine power of God, cast into hell Satan and all the evil spirits who prowl about the world seeking the ruin of souls. Amen.

St. Gabriel the Archangel

Gabriel appears regularly in Scripture as a messenger of God’s word, both in the Old and New Testaments. Daniel identifies Gabriel as a “man” who came “to give [him] insight and understanding,” relaying prophetic answers to Daniel’s entreaties to God.

In the New Testament, Luke relays Gabriel’s appearances to both Zechariah and the Virgin Mary. At the former, he informs the priest that his wife, Elizabeth, will soon conceive a child; at the latter he informs Mary herself that she will do the same. The two children in question, of course, were respectively John the Baptist and Jesus Christ.

Christian tradition further associates Gabriel with the apostle Paul’s reference in his First Letter to the Thessalonians to the “archangel’s call” and “the sound of the trumpet of God.”

“Judgment will begin with the archangel’s call and the sound of the horn,” Aquilina told CNA. “Thus we hear often of Gabriel’s trumpet.”

Media workers in particular have “good professional reasons to go to Gabriel,” Aquilina said.

“Since he is the Bible’s great communicator — the great teller of good news — he is the natural patron of broadcasters and all those who work in electronic media,” he said.

“For the same reason, he’s the patron saint of preachers … but also of postal workers, diplomats, and messengers.”

The St. Gabriel Prayer: O Blessed Archangel Gabriel, we beseech thee, do thou intercede for us at the throne of divine mercy in our present necessities, that as thou didst announce to Mary the mystery of the Incarnation, so through thy prayers and patronage in heaven we may obtain the benefits of the same, and sing the praise of God forever in the land of the living. Amen.

St. Raphael the Archangel

Lesser-known among the three great archangels, Raphael’s mission from God “is not obvious to the casual reader” of the Bible, Aquilina said. Yet his story, depicted in the Book of Tobit, is “something unique in the whole Bible.” In other depictions of angels, they come to Earth only briefly, to deliver a message or to help God’s favored people in some way.

“Raphael is different,” Aquilina said. “He stays around for the whole story, and by the end he’s become something more than an angel … he’s become a friend.”

In Tobit, Raphael accompanies Tobias, the son of the book’s namesake, as he travels to retrieve money left by his father in another town, helping him along the way and arranging for his marriage to Sarah.

The biblical account “has in every generation provided insight and consolation to the devout,” Aquilina said.

Notably, Raphael deftly uses the natural world to work God’s miracles: “What we would ordinarily call catastrophes — blindness, multiple widowhood, destitution, estrangement — all these become providential channels of grace by the time the threads of the story are all wound up in the end.”

“Raphael is patron of many kinds of people,” Aquilina said. “Of course, he’s the patron of singles in search of a mate — and those in search of a friend. He is the patron of pharmacists because he provided the salve of healing. He is a patron for anyone in search of a cure.”

He is also the patron saint of blind people, travelers, sick people, and youth.

“Raphael’s story,” Aquilina said, “remains a model for those who would enjoy the friendship of the angels.”

Prayer to St. Raphael: St. Raphael, of the glorious seven who stand before the throne of him who lives and reigns, angel of health, the Lord has filled your hand with balm from heaven to soothe or cure our pains. Heal or cure the victim of disease. And guide our steps when doubtful of our ways. Amen.

This story was first published on Sept. 29, 2023, and has been updated.

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Michael, Gabriel, and Raphael: The 3 great archangels of the Bible

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