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Hope for broken marriages: One couple’s story #Catholic On April 7, 2009, Mariela Villanueva landed in Venezuela convinced that she was going to end her marriage. Five years had passed since her husband, Harold Figueras, had left his family in Peru and rebuilt his life in another country. She carried with her the pain of a long separation and the resolve to sign the divorce papers. He had with him a written list of all the grievances he intended to unleash the moment he saw her.Nothing happened the way either of them had imagined.They arranged to meet on a Wednesday at 3 p.m., the Hour of Mercy, at the very spot where they had courted years before. When Mariela appeared, Harold frantically searched for the sheet of paper containing his complaints. It had vanished.“I was expecting a war. She opened her arms to embrace me, and I realized that I was the only one who wanted to fight,” Harold recalled in an interview with ACI Prensa, the Spanish-language sister service of EWTN News. Mariela said she made that gesture because she had already begun a process of conversion and was holding onto one last hope.That embrace did not immediately restore the marriage, however. It would still be nearly a month before he ended the other relationship he was in and decided to return to his family. But on that day, they both attest, Jesus won the first great battle. Harold and Mariela in front of Lima Cathedral. | Credit: Photo courtesy of Harold Figueras and Mariela Villanueva A marriage marked by woundednessHarold and Mariela met in 1998 at the Venezuelan College of Engineers. He worked in systems; she was a young lawyer running a legal consultation firm with dozens of professionals under her supervision.While Mariela had grown up in a Catholic family and frequently prayed the rosary, Harold was completely indifferent to the faith.“I used to make fun of priests. For me, getting married in the Church was simply a matter of fulfilling a social formality,” he admitted.They were married in a civil ceremony and on Sept. 2, 2000, received the sacrament at marriage at St. Francis of Assisi Parish in Barranco, Peru. However, they acknowledged that they came to the altar without truly understanding the meaning of the vocation of marriage.“We began our life together without God at the center. That was the first major mistake,” Harold explained.Over the years, deep-seated wounds began to surface: abandonment, loneliness, pride, an inability to communicate, and unrealistic expectations about love. Venezuela’s economic crisis further aggravated the situation. Harold traveled constantly between the two countries until, one day, he simply stopped coming back.Mariela was left alone in Lima with her young daughter. Recent photo of Harold and Mariela with their three daughters in Lima, Peru. | Credit: Photo courtesy of Harold Figueras and Mariela Villanueva ‘Mom, teach me to pray’Paradoxically, the restoration did not begin when Harold changed. It began when Mariela got down on her knees.Estranged from the Church and filled with resentment, the young mother had abandoned the practice of her faith after being hurt by a bad experience at a parish. Everything changed thanks to an unexpected request from her 7-year-old daughter: “Mom, grandma says you know how to pray. Teach me the rosary.”Mariela agreed, more out of a sense of obligation than anything else. Shortly after that, her daughter insisted on making her first Communion and said something that pierced her mother’s heart: “You know what it’s like to have Jesus in your heart… so why don’t you [go to Communion]?”Those words led Mariela back to the confessional.From then on, she began a routine that would change her life: daily Mass before work, Eucharistic adoration at midday, and the rosary every night with her daughter.“I was looking for God to change my husband. The Lord ended up changing me,” she related. Harold and Mariela with members of the Peruvian Catholic movement “Jesus and Mary Are Restoring My Family.” | Credit: Photo courtesy of Harold Figueras and Mariela Villanueva ‘Look at me’During Eucharistic adoration, an experience occurred that would, years later, give its name to the retreat the couple now leads as part of the Peruvian Catholic movement “Jesus and Mary Are Restoring My Family.”Mariela was praying, seeing herself as the victim in her story: “Lord, look at me. Look at how good I am. Look at what he did to me.”Then, she raised her eyes toward the monstrance.“I no longer saw the monstrance. I saw Jesus, wounded and bloodied. And he said to me only: ‘Look at me.’”In that moment, she experienced a personal encounter with Jesus. She began to recall her own sins from childhood and realized that, for years, she had been unable to recognize her own wounds.“I realized that God wasn’t going to ask me about Harold’s sins. He was going to ask me how much I loved my husband within the sacrament.”Her prayer changed completely, and she no longer asked for Harold to return. She only prayed: “Lord, bring him back to you.” Mariela Villanueva. | Credit: Photo courtesy of Mariela Villanueva The hell of the occultWhile Mariela was deepening her prayer life, Harold was heading down a completely opposite path.Seeking better financial prospects, he began consulting tarot cards. Next came syncretist Santería practices, and finally Palería, a witchcraft practice involving human remains and animal sacrifices.“I entered a dark room containing skeletal remains. I felt an indescribable fear, yet I kept looking for answers where they weren’t to be found,” Harold recalled.Amid that emptiness, he began to notice something strange. Mariela kept calling him, but no longer to get him back. One afternoon, in a mocking tone, he asked her: “What’s wrong? Don’t you need me anymore?”Her answer baffled him.“No. Whatʼs going on is that I have someone here who loves me.”Harold thought she had another romantic partner, but today he knows his wife was speaking of Christ himself. Harold Figueras. | Credit: Photo courtesy of Harold Figueras Welcomed back with loveAfter that encounter with his wife in Venezuela, Harold eventually returned to Peru.He admitted he was terrified of facing Mariela’s family and above all, their daughter. He imagined reproaches, humiliation, and rejection. Yet, he found exactly the opposite.“They all hugged me as if I had just stepped out to buy bread,” he recounted.A few days later, he accompanied Mariela to the Oblate Fathers’ church in the Barranco neighborhood of Lima. He had no thought of even going inside. He was standing near the doorway when, as he tells it, he felt an inner impulse that led him straight to the confessional.“I told the priest: ‘Father, I’ve been separated from my wife for five years, and I don’t know why I’ve come back.’”The priest invited him to attend a spiritual retreat. It was there that Harold experienced his own conversion.Before the Blessed Sacrament, after resisting for hours, Harold looked up: “I no longer saw the monstrance. I saw two honey-colored eyes that pierced my heart. I began to weep as I never had in my life.”From that moment on, he abandoned the occult and began a journey of faith that continues to this day.An ongoing miracleMore than 15 years have passed since that reconciliation.Harold and Mariela maintain that the true miracle was not simply living together again but discovering that marriage is a daily path to holiness.“Restoring the marriage takes your whole life. It doesn’t stop when the husband returns. It begins there,” Mariela said. Harold and Mariela today. | Credit: Photo courtesy of Harold Figueras and Mariela Villanueva That experience gave rise to the “Jesus and Mary Are Restoring My Family” movement, an initiative that supports spouses who are separated or on the verge of divorce. The path they propose begins with oneʼs own conversion rather than an attempt to change oneʼs spouse.Those who come to the mission begin with what’s called “Mary’s Workshop,” a preparation for consecration to the Immaculate Heart of Mary that focuses on the sacrament of marriage. There, the aim is for each person to acknowledge his or her own wounds and receive the tools to discern how to handle their issues as a family.However, Harold and Mariela noted that not all journeys end the same way. Some married couples manage to reunite, while others go their separate ways, including through the process of a declaration of nullity. What remains, they maintain, is the call to conversion and to seek God’s will.“The Lord wants us to be holy,” Mariela explained. She said that even when a person goes through a process different from what she or he hoped for, suffering can become an opportunity to draw closer to Christ and offer that pain for the holiness of the Church.Today, when they look back, the couple no longer see themselves as the same people who had separated. Mariela describes Harold as a man more committed to knowing Godʼs love and capable of giving of himself to his family.For his part, he acknowledged that the woman he reunited with after five years was no longer the same one he had left behind. The Figueras Villanueva family today. | Credit: Photo courtesy of Harold Figueras and Mariela Villanueva For this reason, their testimony does not aim to offer a formula for restoring a lost marriage. It is, above all, the story of two people who discovered that, before asking God to change the other person, they had to allow themselves to be transformed by him.“Many people come saying, ‘I want my husband to come back.’ We tell them: First, let Jesus return to the center of your heart,” Harold explained.Their message to couples in crisis stems from that experience: Don’t hide your wounds, don’t let shame defeat you, and don’t confuse restoration with a simple return to the life you had before.For as they discovered that Wednesday afternoon in 2009, some marital battles are not won by defeating the other person but by allowing oneself to be conquered by God’s merciful love.This story was first published by ACI Prensa, the Spanish-language sister service of EWTN News. It has been translated and adapted by EWTN News English.
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Hope for broken marriages: One couple’s story #Catholic On April 7, 2009, Mariela Villanueva landed in Venezuela convinced that she was going to end her marriage. Five years had passed since her husband, Harold Figueras, had left his family in Peru and rebuilt his life in another country. She carried with her the pain of a long separation and the resolve to sign the divorce papers. He had with him a written list of all the grievances he intended to unleash the moment he saw her.Nothing happened the way either of them had imagined.They arranged to meet on a Wednesday at 3 p.m., the Hour of Mercy, at the very spot where they had courted years before. When Mariela appeared, Harold frantically searched for the sheet of paper containing his complaints. It had vanished.“I was expecting a war. She opened her arms to embrace me, and I realized that I was the only one who wanted to fight,” Harold recalled in an interview with ACI Prensa, the Spanish-language sister service of EWTN News. Mariela said she made that gesture because she had already begun a process of conversion and was holding onto one last hope.That embrace did not immediately restore the marriage, however. It would still be nearly a month before he ended the other relationship he was in and decided to return to his family. But on that day, they both attest, Jesus won the first great battle. Harold and Mariela in front of Lima Cathedral. | Credit: Photo courtesy of Harold Figueras and Mariela Villanueva A marriage marked by woundednessHarold and Mariela met in 1998 at the Venezuelan College of Engineers. He worked in systems; she was a young lawyer running a legal consultation firm with dozens of professionals under her supervision.While Mariela had grown up in a Catholic family and frequently prayed the rosary, Harold was completely indifferent to the faith.“I used to make fun of priests. For me, getting married in the Church was simply a matter of fulfilling a social formality,” he admitted.They were married in a civil ceremony and on Sept. 2, 2000, received the sacrament at marriage at St. Francis of Assisi Parish in Barranco, Peru. However, they acknowledged that they came to the altar without truly understanding the meaning of the vocation of marriage.“We began our life together without God at the center. That was the first major mistake,” Harold explained.Over the years, deep-seated wounds began to surface: abandonment, loneliness, pride, an inability to communicate, and unrealistic expectations about love. Venezuela’s economic crisis further aggravated the situation. Harold traveled constantly between the two countries until, one day, he simply stopped coming back.Mariela was left alone in Lima with her young daughter. Recent photo of Harold and Mariela with their three daughters in Lima, Peru. | Credit: Photo courtesy of Harold Figueras and Mariela Villanueva ‘Mom, teach me to pray’Paradoxically, the restoration did not begin when Harold changed. It began when Mariela got down on her knees.Estranged from the Church and filled with resentment, the young mother had abandoned the practice of her faith after being hurt by a bad experience at a parish. Everything changed thanks to an unexpected request from her 7-year-old daughter: “Mom, grandma says you know how to pray. Teach me the rosary.”Mariela agreed, more out of a sense of obligation than anything else. Shortly after that, her daughter insisted on making her first Communion and said something that pierced her mother’s heart: “You know what it’s like to have Jesus in your heart… so why don’t you [go to Communion]?”Those words led Mariela back to the confessional.From then on, she began a routine that would change her life: daily Mass before work, Eucharistic adoration at midday, and the rosary every night with her daughter.“I was looking for God to change my husband. The Lord ended up changing me,” she related. Harold and Mariela with members of the Peruvian Catholic movement “Jesus and Mary Are Restoring My Family.” | Credit: Photo courtesy of Harold Figueras and Mariela Villanueva ‘Look at me’During Eucharistic adoration, an experience occurred that would, years later, give its name to the retreat the couple now leads as part of the Peruvian Catholic movement “Jesus and Mary Are Restoring My Family.”Mariela was praying, seeing herself as the victim in her story: “Lord, look at me. Look at how good I am. Look at what he did to me.”Then, she raised her eyes toward the monstrance.“I no longer saw the monstrance. I saw Jesus, wounded and bloodied. And he said to me only: ‘Look at me.’”In that moment, she experienced a personal encounter with Jesus. She began to recall her own sins from childhood and realized that, for years, she had been unable to recognize her own wounds.“I realized that God wasn’t going to ask me about Harold’s sins. He was going to ask me how much I loved my husband within the sacrament.”Her prayer changed completely, and she no longer asked for Harold to return. She only prayed: “Lord, bring him back to you.” Mariela Villanueva. | Credit: Photo courtesy of Mariela Villanueva The hell of the occultWhile Mariela was deepening her prayer life, Harold was heading down a completely opposite path.Seeking better financial prospects, he began consulting tarot cards. Next came syncretist Santería practices, and finally Palería, a witchcraft practice involving human remains and animal sacrifices.“I entered a dark room containing skeletal remains. I felt an indescribable fear, yet I kept looking for answers where they weren’t to be found,” Harold recalled.Amid that emptiness, he began to notice something strange. Mariela kept calling him, but no longer to get him back. One afternoon, in a mocking tone, he asked her: “What’s wrong? Don’t you need me anymore?”Her answer baffled him.“No. Whatʼs going on is that I have someone here who loves me.”Harold thought she had another romantic partner, but today he knows his wife was speaking of Christ himself. Harold Figueras. | Credit: Photo courtesy of Harold Figueras Welcomed back with loveAfter that encounter with his wife in Venezuela, Harold eventually returned to Peru.He admitted he was terrified of facing Mariela’s family and above all, their daughter. He imagined reproaches, humiliation, and rejection. Yet, he found exactly the opposite.“They all hugged me as if I had just stepped out to buy bread,” he recounted.A few days later, he accompanied Mariela to the Oblate Fathers’ church in the Barranco neighborhood of Lima. He had no thought of even going inside. He was standing near the doorway when, as he tells it, he felt an inner impulse that led him straight to the confessional.“I told the priest: ‘Father, I’ve been separated from my wife for five years, and I don’t know why I’ve come back.’”The priest invited him to attend a spiritual retreat. It was there that Harold experienced his own conversion.Before the Blessed Sacrament, after resisting for hours, Harold looked up: “I no longer saw the monstrance. I saw two honey-colored eyes that pierced my heart. I began to weep as I never had in my life.”From that moment on, he abandoned the occult and began a journey of faith that continues to this day.An ongoing miracleMore than 15 years have passed since that reconciliation.Harold and Mariela maintain that the true miracle was not simply living together again but discovering that marriage is a daily path to holiness.“Restoring the marriage takes your whole life. It doesn’t stop when the husband returns. It begins there,” Mariela said. Harold and Mariela today. | Credit: Photo courtesy of Harold Figueras and Mariela Villanueva That experience gave rise to the “Jesus and Mary Are Restoring My Family” movement, an initiative that supports spouses who are separated or on the verge of divorce. The path they propose begins with oneʼs own conversion rather than an attempt to change oneʼs spouse.Those who come to the mission begin with what’s called “Mary’s Workshop,” a preparation for consecration to the Immaculate Heart of Mary that focuses on the sacrament of marriage. There, the aim is for each person to acknowledge his or her own wounds and receive the tools to discern how to handle their issues as a family.However, Harold and Mariela noted that not all journeys end the same way. Some married couples manage to reunite, while others go their separate ways, including through the process of a declaration of nullity. What remains, they maintain, is the call to conversion and to seek God’s will.“The Lord wants us to be holy,” Mariela explained. She said that even when a person goes through a process different from what she or he hoped for, suffering can become an opportunity to draw closer to Christ and offer that pain for the holiness of the Church.Today, when they look back, the couple no longer see themselves as the same people who had separated. Mariela describes Harold as a man more committed to knowing Godʼs love and capable of giving of himself to his family.For his part, he acknowledged that the woman he reunited with after five years was no longer the same one he had left behind. The Figueras Villanueva family today. | Credit: Photo courtesy of Harold Figueras and Mariela Villanueva For this reason, their testimony does not aim to offer a formula for restoring a lost marriage. It is, above all, the story of two people who discovered that, before asking God to change the other person, they had to allow themselves to be transformed by him.“Many people come saying, ‘I want my husband to come back.’ We tell them: First, let Jesus return to the center of your heart,” Harold explained.Their message to couples in crisis stems from that experience: Don’t hide your wounds, don’t let shame defeat you, and don’t confuse restoration with a simple return to the life you had before.For as they discovered that Wednesday afternoon in 2009, some marital battles are not won by defeating the other person but by allowing oneself to be conquered by God’s merciful love.This story was first published by ACI Prensa, the Spanish-language sister service of EWTN News. It has been translated and adapted by EWTN News English.

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Starting out their marriage without God at the center, the couple became estranged and the husband left, but things began to change when their daughter asked her mom, “Teach me to pray.”

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How the movie ‘Top Gun: Maverick’ inspired a camp for Catholic fathers and sons #Catholic Inspired by the movie “Top Gun: Maverick,” a D.C.-based youth ministry is using a weekendlong camp to build mentors and strengthen the bonds between Catholic fathers and their sons.The annual “Top Gun Father and Son” camping event welcomes dads and sons for a mission to grow closer, strengthen their relationships through challenges and reflections, and partake in faith-filled adventures.Encounters, Convictions, and Your Decisions (ECYD), an international Catholic association of adolescents with the Legionaries of Christ and Regnum Christi, hosts the annual weekend at Camp Castleton in Virginia for boys in fifth to eighth grade and their fathers.The event is only one of the fruits of ECYD, which also carries out other youth clubs, camps, leadership trainings, and gatherings.Father Vito Crincoli, LC, the director of the ECYD Leadership Training program in D.C., told EWTN News the ECYD ministry is “based on the spirituality of Jesus calling you to be his friend.”“Itʼs an international movement,” he said. “In Washington, D.C., in particular, weʼve been putting a lot of emphasis on forming dads to be mentors for our clubs.”“One is because we donʼt have as many priests as we would like to run the youth ministry. But also, above all, we want to create vibrant apostles, vibrant laypeople, to run youth work. And because men really want to be mentors.”“Weʼve noticed in these past years of our ministry that thereʼs been such a desire for the men to want to be involved. And we saw that precisely through the father-son weekends we do. It awakens something in them.”Men “want to do more,” Crincoli said. “They want to give more.” A father and his son at the 2024 Top Gun Father and Son weekend event at Camp Castleton in Virginia. | Credit: Photo courtesy of Father Vito Crincoli Finding unexpected inspiration from filmWhile the camp grew out of the desire to minister to Catholic men, it was ultimately a fictional adventure film about U.S. Navy aviators that set the idea into motion.After noticing a “father and son tone” in the 2022 film “Top Gun: Maverick,” Crincoli was inspired to bring together families for the event, which now welcomes anywhere from 20 to 40 fathers and sons.Crincoli was inspired by the relationship between the film’s characters Pete Mitchell and Bradley Bradshaw, better known by their call signs “Maverick” and “Rooster.”While the two Top Gun pilots are not related, Crincoli noticed a bond between them that is unique to a father and his son.In the movie, “Maverick is trying to be the best dad he could be for Rooster. Experiencing his own limitations, but also just trying,” Crincoli explained. “And then Rooster is looking for the type of dad he wants: ‘I need a role model in my life. Someone who can guide me.’”“Weʼre really trying to tell the dads: ‘Be a dad as a mission.’ Itʼs a mission of love. The whole idea of Top Gun Father and Son is that you and your son are a team. Youʼre preparing your son for life.”“Thatʼs what Maverick was doing with Rooster. He was preparing him for battle.”Top Gun Father and SonWhile at the camp, the group has previously been joined by members of the U.S. Naval Academy, including a Catholic former Top Gun pilot who “gave a talk to the dads about learning to fly with your kids — learning to fly with them through life.” Retired Top Gun pilot Lt. Adam Farber speaks to participants at the 2024 Top Gun Father and Son weekend event held at Camp Castleton in Virginia. | Credit: Photo courtesy of Father Vito Crincoli A pivotal part is the “moment where the dads earn their wings,” he said. “We had somebody donate real Navy wings to us.”“Itʼs a ceremony. Weʼll have the wings on the table, the flag, the dads line up and then … the dads become ‘Top Gun dads’” and “they get their wings.” It “begins the mission of the weekend.”To help the participants live out the mission, the dads have “a training camp,” Crincoli said. “In that training camp we have different activities.”The activities include anything from dodgeball and nighttime “missions” to quiet time in prayer. The weekend includes “different dynamics and different adventures” to create fellowship and teamwork between the fathers and sons.During dodgeball, “itʼs the fathers and sons as teams against each other,” Crincoli explained. “But then, if their son gets hit with the ball, the dad has to go and rescue his son.”“Thereʼs even a night mission that the son and the dad have to do together. There was one year that we did a mission where the dads and kids had to crack codes and to find the missing pilot. But they have to do it together — the son and dad.”The event also includes father and sons giving each other their own call signs and explaining why they chose them for each other. Itʼs a “dynamic of ‘How well do you know your son, and how well does your son know you?’” Father Vito Crincoli and Top Gun Father and Son weekend participants hold the Encounters, Convictions, and Your Decisions flag at the 2024 Top Gun Father and Son weekend event at Camp Castleton in Virginia. | Credit: Photo courtesy of Father Vito Crincoli Along with the mission-center games, the group most importantly spends time in prayer throughout the weekend.The “most beautiful” part of the event is when “we have the adoration — father-son adoration together,” Crincoli said. “The dad and his kid, they both come up to receive the blessing with the Blessed Sacrament. Itʼs a very intimate moment.”“Then we have the finishing Mass. And after the Mass, the dads and the kids are together,” and “itʼs the award ceremony.”Then, “the dads give their wings to their sons” and “as theyʼre pinning the wings to their son, theyʼre praying over their kids. Theyʼre blessing them. Theyʼre encouraging them.” A father blesses his son at the 2024 Top Gun Father and Son weekend event at Camp Castleton in Virginia. | Credit: Photo courtesy of Father Vito Crincoli The many ‘lights’ that come from the eventThe last day includes “a debriefing with the dads,” Crincoli said. “We sit down with the dads and we start asking them, ‘What has this weekend been for you?’”“The dads begin to express different comments,” Crincoli said. He further reflected on some of the past insights he has heard from fathers.  “The men say, ‘It is great to be with men that believe what I believe.’”“Another, he goes, ‘Itʼs beautiful, itʼs great, to be with men who are strongly Catholic, who are bonded by their sons, and that we could be a community.’ One of the dads said, ‘I really want to be a mentor in this because … this is an extension of my fatherhood.’”After the weekend, “they come back,” Crincoli said. They come back as mentors for ECYD clubs or take part in its other camps.“There are so many different lights that come from this,” he said.The next annual Top Gun Father and Son will be held the weekend of Oct. 17–18. It will include the presence of members of the U.S. Naval Academy and a former Navy Seabee chief who will support the weekend with leadership and inspiration.
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How the movie ‘Top Gun: Maverick’ inspired a camp for Catholic fathers and sons #Catholic Inspired by the movie “Top Gun: Maverick,” a D.C.-based youth ministry is using a weekendlong camp to build mentors and strengthen the bonds between Catholic fathers and their sons.The annual “Top Gun Father and Son” camping event welcomes dads and sons for a mission to grow closer, strengthen their relationships through challenges and reflections, and partake in faith-filled adventures.Encounters, Convictions, and Your Decisions (ECYD), an international Catholic association of adolescents with the Legionaries of Christ and Regnum Christi, hosts the annual weekend at Camp Castleton in Virginia for boys in fifth to eighth grade and their fathers.The event is only one of the fruits of ECYD, which also carries out other youth clubs, camps, leadership trainings, and gatherings.Father Vito Crincoli, LC, the director of the ECYD Leadership Training program in D.C., told EWTN News the ECYD ministry is “based on the spirituality of Jesus calling you to be his friend.”“Itʼs an international movement,” he said. “In Washington, D.C., in particular, weʼve been putting a lot of emphasis on forming dads to be mentors for our clubs.”“One is because we donʼt have as many priests as we would like to run the youth ministry. But also, above all, we want to create vibrant apostles, vibrant laypeople, to run youth work. And because men really want to be mentors.”“Weʼve noticed in these past years of our ministry that thereʼs been such a desire for the men to want to be involved. And we saw that precisely through the father-son weekends we do. It awakens something in them.”Men “want to do more,” Crincoli said. “They want to give more.” A father and his son at the 2024 Top Gun Father and Son weekend event at Camp Castleton in Virginia. | Credit: Photo courtesy of Father Vito Crincoli Finding unexpected inspiration from filmWhile the camp grew out of the desire to minister to Catholic men, it was ultimately a fictional adventure film about U.S. Navy aviators that set the idea into motion.After noticing a “father and son tone” in the 2022 film “Top Gun: Maverick,” Crincoli was inspired to bring together families for the event, which now welcomes anywhere from 20 to 40 fathers and sons.Crincoli was inspired by the relationship between the film’s characters Pete Mitchell and Bradley Bradshaw, better known by their call signs “Maverick” and “Rooster.”While the two Top Gun pilots are not related, Crincoli noticed a bond between them that is unique to a father and his son.In the movie, “Maverick is trying to be the best dad he could be for Rooster. Experiencing his own limitations, but also just trying,” Crincoli explained. “And then Rooster is looking for the type of dad he wants: ‘I need a role model in my life. Someone who can guide me.’”“Weʼre really trying to tell the dads: ‘Be a dad as a mission.’ Itʼs a mission of love. The whole idea of Top Gun Father and Son is that you and your son are a team. Youʼre preparing your son for life.”“Thatʼs what Maverick was doing with Rooster. He was preparing him for battle.”Top Gun Father and SonWhile at the camp, the group has previously been joined by members of the U.S. Naval Academy, including a Catholic former Top Gun pilot who “gave a talk to the dads about learning to fly with your kids — learning to fly with them through life.” Retired Top Gun pilot Lt. Adam Farber speaks to participants at the 2024 Top Gun Father and Son weekend event held at Camp Castleton in Virginia. | Credit: Photo courtesy of Father Vito Crincoli A pivotal part is the “moment where the dads earn their wings,” he said. “We had somebody donate real Navy wings to us.”“Itʼs a ceremony. Weʼll have the wings on the table, the flag, the dads line up and then … the dads become ‘Top Gun dads’” and “they get their wings.” It “begins the mission of the weekend.”To help the participants live out the mission, the dads have “a training camp,” Crincoli said. “In that training camp we have different activities.”The activities include anything from dodgeball and nighttime “missions” to quiet time in prayer. The weekend includes “different dynamics and different adventures” to create fellowship and teamwork between the fathers and sons.During dodgeball, “itʼs the fathers and sons as teams against each other,” Crincoli explained. “But then, if their son gets hit with the ball, the dad has to go and rescue his son.”“Thereʼs even a night mission that the son and the dad have to do together. There was one year that we did a mission where the dads and kids had to crack codes and to find the missing pilot. But they have to do it together — the son and dad.”The event also includes father and sons giving each other their own call signs and explaining why they chose them for each other. Itʼs a “dynamic of ‘How well do you know your son, and how well does your son know you?’” Father Vito Crincoli and Top Gun Father and Son weekend participants hold the Encounters, Convictions, and Your Decisions flag at the 2024 Top Gun Father and Son weekend event at Camp Castleton in Virginia. | Credit: Photo courtesy of Father Vito Crincoli Along with the mission-center games, the group most importantly spends time in prayer throughout the weekend.The “most beautiful” part of the event is when “we have the adoration — father-son adoration together,” Crincoli said. “The dad and his kid, they both come up to receive the blessing with the Blessed Sacrament. Itʼs a very intimate moment.”“Then we have the finishing Mass. And after the Mass, the dads and the kids are together,” and “itʼs the award ceremony.”Then, “the dads give their wings to their sons” and “as theyʼre pinning the wings to their son, theyʼre praying over their kids. Theyʼre blessing them. Theyʼre encouraging them.” A father blesses his son at the 2024 Top Gun Father and Son weekend event at Camp Castleton in Virginia. | Credit: Photo courtesy of Father Vito Crincoli The many ‘lights’ that come from the eventThe last day includes “a debriefing with the dads,” Crincoli said. “We sit down with the dads and we start asking them, ‘What has this weekend been for you?’”“The dads begin to express different comments,” Crincoli said. He further reflected on some of the past insights he has heard from fathers.  “The men say, ‘It is great to be with men that believe what I believe.’”“Another, he goes, ‘Itʼs beautiful, itʼs great, to be with men who are strongly Catholic, who are bonded by their sons, and that we could be a community.’ One of the dads said, ‘I really want to be a mentor in this because … this is an extension of my fatherhood.’”After the weekend, “they come back,” Crincoli said. They come back as mentors for ECYD clubs or take part in its other camps.“There are so many different lights that come from this,” he said.The next annual Top Gun Father and Son will be held the weekend of Oct. 17–18. It will include the presence of members of the U.S. Naval Academy and a former Navy Seabee chief who will support the weekend with leadership and inspiration.

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The annual camping event welcomes dads and sons for a mission to grow closer, strengthen their relationships through challenges and reflections, and partake in faith-filled adventures.

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Revival of Latin Mass spreads among Vietnamese Catholic youth #Catholic The Latin Mass and traditional Vietnamese prayers and catechetical texts written by missionaries prior to the Second Vatican Council are growing in popularity among young Vietnamese Catholics.“Few Catholic communities in Southeast Asia still possess such a rich heritage,” Joseph Christopher Nguyen Thien Tuan Hoang, the leader of a Latin Mass community in Vietnam, said in an Aug. 25 UCA News report.While there is no established parish dedicated to the Latin Mass according to the report, traditional communities are able to attend the liturgy when approval is granted and with the help of foreign visiting priests.“Our biggest challenge is not hostility, but misunderstanding,” Hoang said. “If more Church leaders understood why some young Catholics are drawn to the older liturgy, I believe more people would have the opportunity to experience this part of the Churchʼs tradition.”From Gaza to Taybeh, priests call for living Christian presence in Holy LandFather Gabriel Romanelli of Holy Family Parish in Gaza City discussed the ongoing humanitarian crisis in Gaza during a video appearance at the Rimini Meeting, a signature event hosted by the Catholic movement Communion and Liberation.Romanelli described Gaza as a devastated territory where water, electricity, and basic necessities remain scarce. The priest said his decision to stay was rooted in pastoral duty: the parish could not abandon children, people with disabilities, or struggling families.ACI MENA, the Arabic-language sister service of EWTN News, reported Aug. 26 that Gaza’s Christian community now numbers 541 Catholics and Orthodox, and 60 members have died since the war began.Father Francesco Ielpo, custos of the Holy Land, also spoke at the event, turning attention to the attacks facing the Christian town of Taybeh and called for concrete protection of fundamental rights. He also encouraged pilgrims to return, noting that their presence supports local Christians and strengthens their calling to care for the holy sites.10 Catholic dioceses in the Philippines call for end to mining agreementBishops representing 10 Catholic dioceses in the Philippines have issued a joint pastoral statement addressed to President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and Environment Secretary Juan Miguel T. Cuna calling for an end to mining in the island of Sibuyan.The letter, titled “Let Sibuyan Live: A Joint Call to Initiate the Cancellation of APMC’s Mining Agreement,” urges political leaders to carry out a comprehensive review of a mining agreement with Altai Philippines Mining Corp (APMC) in Sibuyan to ensure compliance with environmental laws, according to an Aug. 24 report from Inquirer.net. The bishops expressed concern over the mining agreement’s threats to the island’s mountains, watersheds, rivers, coral reefs, and species unique to the island.Recently appointed apostolic nuncio to Germany makes first visitThe recently appointed apostolic nuncio to Germany, Archbishop Hubertus van Megen, completed his inaugural visit to the headquarters of the German Bishops' Conference (DBK) in Bonn this week, CNA Deutsch, the German-language sister service of EWTN News, reported Aug. 28. During the meeting, van Megen presented his official assignment letter as nuncio to the DBK chairman signed by Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin. "It was the first visit of an apostolic nuncio to the Secretariat of the German Bishops' Conference in more than 13 years,” the DBK noted in its announcement on social media. Van Megen has served as nuncio to Kenya and South Sudan and held various positions within United Nations institutions.UK member of Parliament calls for reforms before considering assisted suicideMember of Parliament Zubir Ahmed, a former health minister in the British Labour Party and National Health Service doctor, has backed calls from Prime Minister Andy Burnham, a Catholic, to carry out health reforms before considering legislation on assisted suicide.“What kind of society are we building if, before we’ve fixed the systems designed to care for people, we introduce a system designed to help them die?” Ahmed asked in an Aug. 25 op-ed in The Guardian. “As a former health minister who has seen the system from the inside, I am able to say it is not ready or equipped to answer this question.” Ahmed’s remarks come after the prime minister said in July that debates on assisted suicide should be delayed until the country’s palliative and social care systems have been reformed.Syria’s Catholic schools seek to remain both strong and compassionateWith another school year approaching, Syria’s Christian schools are struggling to keep tuition affordable while covering salaries, taxes, electricity, books, and other rising expenses.Father Fadi Najjar, secretary-general of Catholic educational institutions in Syria, said no child should be forced out because a family cannot pay, ACI MENA reported Aug. 27. At the same time, he cautioned that schools cannot fulfill their educational mission if they are treated solely as charitable institutions. Najjar appealed to churches and aid organizations to support families in genuine need and help protect the future of Christian education in Syria.Catholic priest in Ghana suspended for ‘abandoning’ pastoral ministryGhana’s Diocese of Konongo-Mampong has imposed an indefinite canonical suspension on a priest of the diocese for taking a leave of absence and “abandoning his pastoral ministry” without legitimate permission.Bishop John Opoku-Agyemang announced the suspension of Father Samuel Adapore on Aug. 24, ACI Africa, the sister service of EWTN News in Africa, reported. The priest has been barred from administering any of the sacraments publicly, including the celebration of Mass, or officiating any other liturgical services. The bishop said he made the decision “with a heavy heart but a great sense of duty to Holy Mother Church” to suspend the priest, who he noted had left his parish without telling anyone where he was going, including immediate family members.Sierra Leonean priest cautions religious against shunning help for mental health strugglesThe president of the Regional Union of Priests of West Africa has told members of the Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life not to be ashamed of seeking psychological support, stressing that “mental-health struggles do not cancel their vocation,” ACI Africa reported Aug. 25.“Our priests and religious spend their lives caring for others. We must also care for them. They need trusted friends, safe spaces for honest conversation, regular medical and psychological support, sufficient rest, and communities that listen without judgment,” Father Peter Konteh said following the resignation of Bishop Karl-Heinz Wiesemann of German’s Speyer Diocese over mental health struggles.Christian city of Qamishli, Syria, turns 100The city of Qamishli marked its centennial with a Christian community far smaller than the one that helped build the northeastern Syrian city.Founded in 1926 after Christians fled Ottoman-era massacres, the city once had a population that was nearly 90% Christian, ACI MENA reported Aug. 25. Father Samir Kanoun, priest of the church of St. Yacoub Al-Nusaibini in Qamishli, said decades of migration, intensified after the Syrian crisis began in 2011, have reduced that share to about 20%, leaving roughly 2,000 Christian families. Despite the decline, Qamishli retains a rich mix of Syriac, Armenian, Chaldean, Assyrian, and Protestant churches. Their cooperation grew stronger during the war through shared prayer, security coordination, and charitable work. Kanoun remains hopeful, pointing to the city’s active young Christians and the Church’s efforts to preserve their faith, heritage, and sense of belonging to Syria.
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Revival of Latin Mass spreads among Vietnamese Catholic youth #Catholic The Latin Mass and traditional Vietnamese prayers and catechetical texts written by missionaries prior to the Second Vatican Council are growing in popularity among young Vietnamese Catholics.“Few Catholic communities in Southeast Asia still possess such a rich heritage,” Joseph Christopher Nguyen Thien Tuan Hoang, the leader of a Latin Mass community in Vietnam, said in an Aug. 25 UCA News report.While there is no established parish dedicated to the Latin Mass according to the report, traditional communities are able to attend the liturgy when approval is granted and with the help of foreign visiting priests.“Our biggest challenge is not hostility, but misunderstanding,” Hoang said. “If more Church leaders understood why some young Catholics are drawn to the older liturgy, I believe more people would have the opportunity to experience this part of the Churchʼs tradition.”From Gaza to Taybeh, priests call for living Christian presence in Holy LandFather Gabriel Romanelli of Holy Family Parish in Gaza City discussed the ongoing humanitarian crisis in Gaza during a video appearance at the Rimini Meeting, a signature event hosted by the Catholic movement Communion and Liberation.Romanelli described Gaza as a devastated territory where water, electricity, and basic necessities remain scarce. The priest said his decision to stay was rooted in pastoral duty: the parish could not abandon children, people with disabilities, or struggling families.ACI MENA, the Arabic-language sister service of EWTN News, reported Aug. 26 that Gaza’s Christian community now numbers 541 Catholics and Orthodox, and 60 members have died since the war began.Father Francesco Ielpo, custos of the Holy Land, also spoke at the event, turning attention to the attacks facing the Christian town of Taybeh and called for concrete protection of fundamental rights. He also encouraged pilgrims to return, noting that their presence supports local Christians and strengthens their calling to care for the holy sites.10 Catholic dioceses in the Philippines call for end to mining agreementBishops representing 10 Catholic dioceses in the Philippines have issued a joint pastoral statement addressed to President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and Environment Secretary Juan Miguel T. Cuna calling for an end to mining in the island of Sibuyan.The letter, titled “Let Sibuyan Live: A Joint Call to Initiate the Cancellation of APMC’s Mining Agreement,” urges political leaders to carry out a comprehensive review of a mining agreement with Altai Philippines Mining Corp (APMC) in Sibuyan to ensure compliance with environmental laws, according to an Aug. 24 report from Inquirer.net. The bishops expressed concern over the mining agreement’s threats to the island’s mountains, watersheds, rivers, coral reefs, and species unique to the island.Recently appointed apostolic nuncio to Germany makes first visitThe recently appointed apostolic nuncio to Germany, Archbishop Hubertus van Megen, completed his inaugural visit to the headquarters of the German Bishops' Conference (DBK) in Bonn this week, CNA Deutsch, the German-language sister service of EWTN News, reported Aug. 28. During the meeting, van Megen presented his official assignment letter as nuncio to the DBK chairman signed by Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin. "It was the first visit of an apostolic nuncio to the Secretariat of the German Bishops' Conference in more than 13 years,” the DBK noted in its announcement on social media. Van Megen has served as nuncio to Kenya and South Sudan and held various positions within United Nations institutions.UK member of Parliament calls for reforms before considering assisted suicideMember of Parliament Zubir Ahmed, a former health minister in the British Labour Party and National Health Service doctor, has backed calls from Prime Minister Andy Burnham, a Catholic, to carry out health reforms before considering legislation on assisted suicide.“What kind of society are we building if, before we’ve fixed the systems designed to care for people, we introduce a system designed to help them die?” Ahmed asked in an Aug. 25 op-ed in The Guardian. “As a former health minister who has seen the system from the inside, I am able to say it is not ready or equipped to answer this question.” Ahmed’s remarks come after the prime minister said in July that debates on assisted suicide should be delayed until the country’s palliative and social care systems have been reformed.Syria’s Catholic schools seek to remain both strong and compassionateWith another school year approaching, Syria’s Christian schools are struggling to keep tuition affordable while covering salaries, taxes, electricity, books, and other rising expenses.Father Fadi Najjar, secretary-general of Catholic educational institutions in Syria, said no child should be forced out because a family cannot pay, ACI MENA reported Aug. 27. At the same time, he cautioned that schools cannot fulfill their educational mission if they are treated solely as charitable institutions. Najjar appealed to churches and aid organizations to support families in genuine need and help protect the future of Christian education in Syria.Catholic priest in Ghana suspended for ‘abandoning’ pastoral ministryGhana’s Diocese of Konongo-Mampong has imposed an indefinite canonical suspension on a priest of the diocese for taking a leave of absence and “abandoning his pastoral ministry” without legitimate permission.Bishop John Opoku-Agyemang announced the suspension of Father Samuel Adapore on Aug. 24, ACI Africa, the sister service of EWTN News in Africa, reported. The priest has been barred from administering any of the sacraments publicly, including the celebration of Mass, or officiating any other liturgical services. The bishop said he made the decision “with a heavy heart but a great sense of duty to Holy Mother Church” to suspend the priest, who he noted had left his parish without telling anyone where he was going, including immediate family members.Sierra Leonean priest cautions religious against shunning help for mental health strugglesThe president of the Regional Union of Priests of West Africa has told members of the Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life not to be ashamed of seeking psychological support, stressing that “mental-health struggles do not cancel their vocation,” ACI Africa reported Aug. 25.“Our priests and religious spend their lives caring for others. We must also care for them. They need trusted friends, safe spaces for honest conversation, regular medical and psychological support, sufficient rest, and communities that listen without judgment,” Father Peter Konteh said following the resignation of Bishop Karl-Heinz Wiesemann of German’s Speyer Diocese over mental health struggles.Christian city of Qamishli, Syria, turns 100The city of Qamishli marked its centennial with a Christian community far smaller than the one that helped build the northeastern Syrian city.Founded in 1926 after Christians fled Ottoman-era massacres, the city once had a population that was nearly 90% Christian, ACI MENA reported Aug. 25. Father Samir Kanoun, priest of the church of St. Yacoub Al-Nusaibini in Qamishli, said decades of migration, intensified after the Syrian crisis began in 2011, have reduced that share to about 20%, leaving roughly 2,000 Christian families. Despite the decline, Qamishli retains a rich mix of Syriac, Armenian, Chaldean, Assyrian, and Protestant churches. Their cooperation grew stronger during the war through shared prayer, security coordination, and charitable work. Kanoun remains hopeful, pointing to the city’s active young Christians and the Church’s efforts to preserve their faith, heritage, and sense of belonging to Syria.

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Vietnamese youth drawn to the TLM, Holy Land priests highlight plight of Christian community, Philippine dioceses call for end of mining agreement, and more in this week’s world news roundup.

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Augustinian priests: St. Monica had ‘great interior strength’ #Catholic Since the fourth century, Christians have revered St. Monica, the mother of Church Father St. Augustine, as a woman of unwavering faith in God.In an interview with EWTN News reporter Valentina Di Donato, two Augustinian priests living in Rome explained why the woman they refer to as their “grandmother” continues to be a source of hope and inspiration, especially for Catholic wives and mothers.Augustinian Father Angelo Di Berardino, who has worked and lived at the Augustinian International College of Santa Monica in Rome for 50 years, said St. Monica had a great interior strength that influenced all members of her family.“Respecting her husband, she was able to convert him,” Di Berardino told EWTN News. “Then, she was a strong woman to educate her three children, especially Augustine.”“I think she was so strong in her life, in her prayer, that she had a great influence on the great theologian Augustine,” he added.According to Augustinian Father Edward Daleng Daniang, vice regent of the Prefecture of the Pontifical Household and former general counsellor and procurator general of the Order of St. Augustine, St. Monica is the saint to turn to for spouses who feel alone in their desire to create a Christian family home.“St. Monica did not have it easy with her husband Patrick,” he said. “She tried to win him with her love, with her patience and endurance and tolerance and, above all, bringing her husband to God through prayer.”Describing the ancient saint as a “living example” of a mother who does not give up on her children, Daniang said those struggling with their children can have hope that their prayers, and tears, are never wasted.“St. Monica was struggling with her son St. Augustine who wandered away from home,” he said. “He left Monica, his mother, to come to Italy in those days and Monica did not give up.”“He left the faith which she tried to transmit to him but she did not give up,” he emphasized.Following her son to Italy, Daniang said her main intention of leaving Africa was not to bring her son back home but to lead her son to Jesus Christ for the salvation of his soul.“St. Monica stands as someone who led her husband to God, to Christ, and also brought her son St. Augustine to Christ,” he said.“That’s bringing the unity of family together,” he added.This story was first published on Aug. 27, 2025, and has been updated.
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Augustinian priests: St. Monica had ‘great interior strength’ #Catholic Since the fourth century, Christians have revered St. Monica, the mother of Church Father St. Augustine, as a woman of unwavering faith in God.In an interview with EWTN News reporter Valentina Di Donato, two Augustinian priests living in Rome explained why the woman they refer to as their “grandmother” continues to be a source of hope and inspiration, especially for Catholic wives and mothers.Augustinian Father Angelo Di Berardino, who has worked and lived at the Augustinian International College of Santa Monica in Rome for 50 years, said St. Monica had a great interior strength that influenced all members of her family.“Respecting her husband, she was able to convert him,” Di Berardino told EWTN News. “Then, she was a strong woman to educate her three children, especially Augustine.”“I think she was so strong in her life, in her prayer, that she had a great influence on the great theologian Augustine,” he added.According to Augustinian Father Edward Daleng Daniang, vice regent of the Prefecture of the Pontifical Household and former general counsellor and procurator general of the Order of St. Augustine, St. Monica is the saint to turn to for spouses who feel alone in their desire to create a Christian family home.“St. Monica did not have it easy with her husband Patrick,” he said. “She tried to win him with her love, with her patience and endurance and tolerance and, above all, bringing her husband to God through prayer.”Describing the ancient saint as a “living example” of a mother who does not give up on her children, Daniang said those struggling with their children can have hope that their prayers, and tears, are never wasted.“St. Monica was struggling with her son St. Augustine who wandered away from home,” he said. “He left Monica, his mother, to come to Italy in those days and Monica did not give up.”“He left the faith which she tried to transmit to him but she did not give up,” he emphasized.Following her son to Italy, Daniang said her main intention of leaving Africa was not to bring her son back home but to lead her son to Jesus Christ for the salvation of his soul.“St. Monica stands as someone who led her husband to God, to Christ, and also brought her son St. Augustine to Christ,” he said.“That’s bringing the unity of family together,” he added.This story was first published on Aug. 27, 2025, and has been updated.

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Two Augustinian priests living in Rome explain why the woman they refer to as their “grandmother” continues to be a source of hope and inspiration.

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‘An unborn child is a child’: Lawyer questions lack of empathy regarding pregnancy loss #Catholic Ecuadorian lawyer Pablo Proaño questioned the lack of empathy for families who lose a child during pregnancy and called for protocols to support them.His remarks followed the death due to a pregnancy complication of Stefano, the son of Ecuadorian President Daniel Noboa and his wife, Lavinia Valbonesi.On Aug. 15, Interior Minister Nataly Morillo announced the news and offered her condolences to the presidential family.Many comments appeared on social media questioning the characterization of the loss as the death of a “child” rather than an embryo or fetus, or arguing that the matter should have remained private.For Proaño, a lawyer with the firm Dignidad y Derecho (Dignity and Law), these reactions reveal “a lack of understanding regarding pregnancy loss and a lack of empathy that goes beyond the political debate over the way the president is running the country.”“Many people approached this topic by first claiming it’s a ‘fake news’ story — arguing that it’s not a child, but rather an embryo or a fetus — and secondly, by insisting that it’s a matter that should remain private. And this reveals, as I said, a profound lack of empathy,” he noted in an interview with ACI Prensa, the Spanish-language sister service of EWTN News.‘There’s already an expectation’ of welcoming the childThe lawyer explained that regardless of gestational age, “parents who already know, long for, and look forward to welcoming this baby are already forming an expectation, both on the psychological and social level.”He said there can be “severe psychological impact following the loss” but also “long-term effects when the time comes to decide whether or not to try for another child.”The lawyer also noted that this suffering can arise in everyday situations, particularly when the mother encounters other women with babies.Proaño said he believes the scale of the phenomenon makes it important for society to learn how to support those going through this type of grief. “According to the World Health Organization, 1 in 4 women has experienced pregnancy loss at some point in her life,” he stated.The lawyer noted that while the circumstances of a miscarriage or an abortion may differ, both situations can involve suffering and grief.“Induced abortion often entails a greater sense of guilt,” he said.Regarding miscarriage, he said there is also “a great deal of suffering regarding why the pregnancy could not be carried to term.” “Many questions remain unanswered, and this creates a great deal of anxiety and can even lead to cases of severe depression in women and families going through this grief,” he continued.The need for protocols regarding pregnancy lossProaño said he believes healthcare systems should have protocols in place to care for women who lose their babies during pregnancy.“The first and most important aspect is institutional support from a medical standpoint. In many Latin American countries, there are protocols known as ‘butterfly protocols’ for the care of women experiencing pregnancy loss,” he explained.In this practice, the silhouette of a butterfly is placed on the headboard of the patient’s bed, alerting the hospital staff to be particularly sensitive to her emotional state. The butterfly symbolizes a brief life, fragility, and transformation.Ecuador does not currently have an official protocol from the Ministry of Health. “There are foundations promoting these types of protocols, and individual hospitals may implement them, but it largely depends on whether the hospital authorities choose to adopt them,” Proaño stated.These protocols, he explained, aim to prevent situations that could increase the suffering of a woman who has just lost her child.“What do these ‘butterfly protocols’ mean? It means healthcare staff are sensitized that they don’t say things like, ‘Oh, right. Well, it would have been better if you’d done this or that, and then you wouldn’t have lost the baby,’” he explained.He also emphasized the need to avoid placing a woman who has just suffered a loss “in the maternity ward, where you can hear and see other women with their babies.”Proaño even proposes identifying these patients: “They should be given a separate room and identified by a symbol or a sign on the door, so that when a nurse or doctor walks by, no one makes the mistake of asking, ‘And where is your baby? Why haven’t they brought your baby to you?’” he said.In addition, the woman should receive psychological care, he noted.Employers should also have to make allowancesAccording to Proaño, families also need “social recognition that extends to the workplace.”“In Ecuador, these cases often only qualify for three days of leave for a family emergency, and three days is not enough,” he maintained.“Many of these people go through episodes of severe depression, return to work, and are then fired because the enhanced job protection afforded to pregnant women because they are carrying a child does not apply. But if the baby dies, they don’t benefit from this leave,” he added.Parents' right to say goodbye to their childAnother aspect the lawyer deems necessary to review is what happens to the babyʼs remains following a pregnancy loss.Measures should be in place “to ensure the baby can be given a proper burial," he stated.Proaño explained that, according to Ecuadorian regulations, there is a distinction regarding the release of remains based on whether the pregnancy has reached 22 weeks of gestation.“In Ecuador, up to the 22nd week of pregnancy, hospitals are not required to hand over the child — the body or remains of the fetus — and may simply dispose of it, donate it for research, or even sell it to institutions,” he stated.He said this situation can deprive parents of a step that is important for the grieving process.“This baby is the child of a family that deserves and needs, for the sake of their grieving process, to bury him and have a place to go to mourn his death,” he noted.In his view, families should receive clear information about their rights and be able to decide what happens to their childʼs remains.“Parents should be provided with informed consent that explains this possibility and their rights, so they can make a decision. And if they ultimately decide not to take the fetus, they should also be able to decide on its final disposition,” he explained.‘An unborn child is a child’Beyond the legal and medical aspects, Proaño said he believes there is a cultural challenge: “A great deal of work to raise awareness and foster understanding” needs to be done, he noted.“Because an unborn child is a child; it’s not merely a fetus,” he emphasized.The lawyer lamented that many families do not even receive condolences after losing a child during pregnancy. He also questioned certain responses that may seem well-intentioned but ultimately minimize the pain.For example, he said, “there are many doctors who say, ‘You can get pregnant again; there’s no problem.’ As if that loss could simply be erased from a mother’s heart.”An issue that also involves the stateProaño maintained that the response should include public policies focused on prevention, support, and family protection.“At the state level, there are these three points: promoting the implementation of support protocols; ensuring proper informed consent when the disposition of the fetuses is to be decided; and enacting workplace reforms to grant parents more time to grieve the loss of their child in accordance with the law,” he explained.“And also, having awareness-raising campaigns. Furthermore — taking it a step further — it would be very important for the state to take up this issue as a public policy necessity,” he added.Proaño said he also believes that proper preventive care during pregnancy can help reduce some pregnancy losses. He cited, among other factors, medical monitoring during pregnancy and the detection of potential vitamin or hormonal deficiencies.This story was first published by ACI Prensa, the Spanish-language sister service of EWTN News. It has been translated and adapted by EWTN News English.
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‘An unborn child is a child’: Lawyer questions lack of empathy regarding pregnancy loss #Catholic Ecuadorian lawyer Pablo Proaño questioned the lack of empathy for families who lose a child during pregnancy and called for protocols to support them.His remarks followed the death due to a pregnancy complication of Stefano, the son of Ecuadorian President Daniel Noboa and his wife, Lavinia Valbonesi.On Aug. 15, Interior Minister Nataly Morillo announced the news and offered her condolences to the presidential family.Many comments appeared on social media questioning the characterization of the loss as the death of a “child” rather than an embryo or fetus, or arguing that the matter should have remained private.For Proaño, a lawyer with the firm Dignidad y Derecho (Dignity and Law), these reactions reveal “a lack of understanding regarding pregnancy loss and a lack of empathy that goes beyond the political debate over the way the president is running the country.”“Many people approached this topic by first claiming it’s a ‘fake news’ story — arguing that it’s not a child, but rather an embryo or a fetus — and secondly, by insisting that it’s a matter that should remain private. And this reveals, as I said, a profound lack of empathy,” he noted in an interview with ACI Prensa, the Spanish-language sister service of EWTN News.‘There’s already an expectation’ of welcoming the childThe lawyer explained that regardless of gestational age, “parents who already know, long for, and look forward to welcoming this baby are already forming an expectation, both on the psychological and social level.”He said there can be “severe psychological impact following the loss” but also “long-term effects when the time comes to decide whether or not to try for another child.”The lawyer also noted that this suffering can arise in everyday situations, particularly when the mother encounters other women with babies.Proaño said he believes the scale of the phenomenon makes it important for society to learn how to support those going through this type of grief. “According to the World Health Organization, 1 in 4 women has experienced pregnancy loss at some point in her life,” he stated.The lawyer noted that while the circumstances of a miscarriage or an abortion may differ, both situations can involve suffering and grief.“Induced abortion often entails a greater sense of guilt,” he said.Regarding miscarriage, he said there is also “a great deal of suffering regarding why the pregnancy could not be carried to term.” “Many questions remain unanswered, and this creates a great deal of anxiety and can even lead to cases of severe depression in women and families going through this grief,” he continued.The need for protocols regarding pregnancy lossProaño said he believes healthcare systems should have protocols in place to care for women who lose their babies during pregnancy.“The first and most important aspect is institutional support from a medical standpoint. In many Latin American countries, there are protocols known as ‘butterfly protocols’ for the care of women experiencing pregnancy loss,” he explained.In this practice, the silhouette of a butterfly is placed on the headboard of the patient’s bed, alerting the hospital staff to be particularly sensitive to her emotional state. The butterfly symbolizes a brief life, fragility, and transformation.Ecuador does not currently have an official protocol from the Ministry of Health. “There are foundations promoting these types of protocols, and individual hospitals may implement them, but it largely depends on whether the hospital authorities choose to adopt them,” Proaño stated.These protocols, he explained, aim to prevent situations that could increase the suffering of a woman who has just lost her child.“What do these ‘butterfly protocols’ mean? It means healthcare staff are sensitized that they don’t say things like, ‘Oh, right. Well, it would have been better if you’d done this or that, and then you wouldn’t have lost the baby,’” he explained.He also emphasized the need to avoid placing a woman who has just suffered a loss “in the maternity ward, where you can hear and see other women with their babies.”Proaño even proposes identifying these patients: “They should be given a separate room and identified by a symbol or a sign on the door, so that when a nurse or doctor walks by, no one makes the mistake of asking, ‘And where is your baby? Why haven’t they brought your baby to you?’” he said.In addition, the woman should receive psychological care, he noted.Employers should also have to make allowancesAccording to Proaño, families also need “social recognition that extends to the workplace.”“In Ecuador, these cases often only qualify for three days of leave for a family emergency, and three days is not enough,” he maintained.“Many of these people go through episodes of severe depression, return to work, and are then fired because the enhanced job protection afforded to pregnant women because they are carrying a child does not apply. But if the baby dies, they don’t benefit from this leave,” he added.Parents' right to say goodbye to their childAnother aspect the lawyer deems necessary to review is what happens to the babyʼs remains following a pregnancy loss.Measures should be in place “to ensure the baby can be given a proper burial," he stated.Proaño explained that, according to Ecuadorian regulations, there is a distinction regarding the release of remains based on whether the pregnancy has reached 22 weeks of gestation.“In Ecuador, up to the 22nd week of pregnancy, hospitals are not required to hand over the child — the body or remains of the fetus — and may simply dispose of it, donate it for research, or even sell it to institutions,” he stated.He said this situation can deprive parents of a step that is important for the grieving process.“This baby is the child of a family that deserves and needs, for the sake of their grieving process, to bury him and have a place to go to mourn his death,” he noted.In his view, families should receive clear information about their rights and be able to decide what happens to their childʼs remains.“Parents should be provided with informed consent that explains this possibility and their rights, so they can make a decision. And if they ultimately decide not to take the fetus, they should also be able to decide on its final disposition,” he explained.‘An unborn child is a child’Beyond the legal and medical aspects, Proaño said he believes there is a cultural challenge: “A great deal of work to raise awareness and foster understanding” needs to be done, he noted.“Because an unborn child is a child; it’s not merely a fetus,” he emphasized.The lawyer lamented that many families do not even receive condolences after losing a child during pregnancy. He also questioned certain responses that may seem well-intentioned but ultimately minimize the pain.For example, he said, “there are many doctors who say, ‘You can get pregnant again; there’s no problem.’ As if that loss could simply be erased from a mother’s heart.”An issue that also involves the stateProaño maintained that the response should include public policies focused on prevention, support, and family protection.“At the state level, there are these three points: promoting the implementation of support protocols; ensuring proper informed consent when the disposition of the fetuses is to be decided; and enacting workplace reforms to grant parents more time to grieve the loss of their child in accordance with the law,” he explained.“And also, having awareness-raising campaigns. Furthermore — taking it a step further — it would be very important for the state to take up this issue as a public policy necessity,” he added.Proaño said he also believes that proper preventive care during pregnancy can help reduce some pregnancy losses. He cited, among other factors, medical monitoring during pregnancy and the detection of potential vitamin or hormonal deficiencies.This story was first published by ACI Prensa, the Spanish-language sister service of EWTN News. It has been translated and adapted by EWTN News English.

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Ecuadoran lawyer Pablo Proaño’s remarks followed the death due to a pregnancy complication of Stefano, the son of Ecuadorian President Daniel Noboa and his wife, Lavinia Valbonesi.

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People ‘thirsting for Christ’ at procession in Brazil, bishop says #Catholic About 50,000 faithful took part in the closing procession for the novena to Our Lady of Glory in Brazil on Aug. 15. The local bishop, Flávio Giovenale, said the large turnout reflects the faith of the people, who are “thirsting for Christ.”“This multitude is saying: We want spirituality, we want Jesus, and we love Our Lady because she leads us to Jesus,” the bishop told the website Juruá 24 Horas.“Our Lady is like a mother who takes us to school; the teacher — the master — is Jesus, and Our Lady leads us to him,” he said.The devotees walked about two miles in a procession lasting nearly two hours. Holding candles, they followed the image of Our Lady, praying and giving thanks.“We came to give thanks for the harvest and for our family’s health. Being here among so many people sharing the same purpose is something indescribable,” farmer Renilson Fox said to news website G1.“We spend the whole year waiting for this moment,” veterinarian Douglas Vasconcelos told G1. He said that for him, this “is a day to renew our faith and give thanks for so many graces received.”Mary is our ‘prototype’“Today, we celebrate Our Lady of Glory, who is already there [in glory], a gift from God,” Giovenale said during the Mass at the Cruzeiro do Sul cathedral prior to the procession. The bishop recalled Jesus’s words: “I am going to the Father’s glory, and after I prepare a place, I will return and take you with me.”“We say that at the end of time, we will all rise again and be reunited in body and soul to live in heaven, body and soul. But for Our Lady, Jesus chose to make an exception, a gift. In his freedom, he said: ‘Our Lady was the first to say yes to me; she will also be the first to rise again,’” he explained.The bishop recalled that the Dormition of Mary, although not found in the Bible, has been a tradition “since the early years” of Christianity. It says “that Our Lady fell asleep in the Lord and Jesus came and took her, body and soul.”“She is there in heaven, body and soul, as the first Christian, the first to say ‘Here am I, the servant of the Lord,’ and the first to rise again, body and soul. She is, as it were, our prototype,” he said.In his homily, Giovenale said that before attaining glory, Mary served, and Christians must follow her example to reach the kingdom of heaven.“We’re going to walk in procession, why? Because Mary — after receiving the angel’s announcement that she would be the Mother of the Savior, and after saying, ‘I am the servant of the Lord’ — what did she do? She went to serve Elizabeth,” he said.“To serve, to be Christians, to be a faithful people, we can’t afford to slack off. Jesus promised us happiness, not ease. It requires effort; it requires saying, ‘I want to serve,’ just as Mary did,” he said.The bishop recalled that it was Jesus who said, “I came into the world not to be served, but to serve.” “Mary was the one who, in so many ways, anticipated this, because she is the first to be faithful to Jesus,” he added.Giovenale cited the theme of this year’s novena to Our Lady of Glory: “Our Lady of Glory, Mother of the Faithful People.” “If we want to be faithful to Jesus, faithful to God, we must imitate Mary — to journey forth and go serve others,” he said.This story was first published by ACI Digital, the Portuguese-language sister service of EWTN News. It has been translated and adapted by EWTN News English.
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People ‘thirsting for Christ’ at procession in Brazil, bishop says #Catholic About 50,000 faithful took part in the closing procession for the novena to Our Lady of Glory in Brazil on Aug. 15. The local bishop, Flávio Giovenale, said the large turnout reflects the faith of the people, who are “thirsting for Christ.”“This multitude is saying: We want spirituality, we want Jesus, and we love Our Lady because she leads us to Jesus,” the bishop told the website Juruá 24 Horas.“Our Lady is like a mother who takes us to school; the teacher — the master — is Jesus, and Our Lady leads us to him,” he said.The devotees walked about two miles in a procession lasting nearly two hours. Holding candles, they followed the image of Our Lady, praying and giving thanks.“We came to give thanks for the harvest and for our family’s health. Being here among so many people sharing the same purpose is something indescribable,” farmer Renilson Fox said to news website G1.“We spend the whole year waiting for this moment,” veterinarian Douglas Vasconcelos told G1. He said that for him, this “is a day to renew our faith and give thanks for so many graces received.”Mary is our ‘prototype’“Today, we celebrate Our Lady of Glory, who is already there [in glory], a gift from God,” Giovenale said during the Mass at the Cruzeiro do Sul cathedral prior to the procession. The bishop recalled Jesus’s words: “I am going to the Father’s glory, and after I prepare a place, I will return and take you with me.”“We say that at the end of time, we will all rise again and be reunited in body and soul to live in heaven, body and soul. But for Our Lady, Jesus chose to make an exception, a gift. In his freedom, he said: ‘Our Lady was the first to say yes to me; she will also be the first to rise again,’” he explained.The bishop recalled that the Dormition of Mary, although not found in the Bible, has been a tradition “since the early years” of Christianity. It says “that Our Lady fell asleep in the Lord and Jesus came and took her, body and soul.”“She is there in heaven, body and soul, as the first Christian, the first to say ‘Here am I, the servant of the Lord,’ and the first to rise again, body and soul. She is, as it were, our prototype,” he said.In his homily, Giovenale said that before attaining glory, Mary served, and Christians must follow her example to reach the kingdom of heaven.“We’re going to walk in procession, why? Because Mary — after receiving the angel’s announcement that she would be the Mother of the Savior, and after saying, ‘I am the servant of the Lord’ — what did she do? She went to serve Elizabeth,” he said.“To serve, to be Christians, to be a faithful people, we can’t afford to slack off. Jesus promised us happiness, not ease. It requires effort; it requires saying, ‘I want to serve,’ just as Mary did,” he said.The bishop recalled that it was Jesus who said, “I came into the world not to be served, but to serve.” “Mary was the one who, in so many ways, anticipated this, because she is the first to be faithful to Jesus,” he added.Giovenale cited the theme of this year’s novena to Our Lady of Glory: “Our Lady of Glory, Mother of the Faithful People.” “If we want to be faithful to Jesus, faithful to God, we must imitate Mary — to journey forth and go serve others,” he said.This story was first published by ACI Digital, the Portuguese-language sister service of EWTN News. It has been translated and adapted by EWTN News English.

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In his homily, Bishop Flávio Giovenale held up Mary as the faithful disciple who, like her son, served others.

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

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

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‘It’s always the Holy Spirit’: Meet 3 dioceses seeing large numbers of priestly ordinations #Catholic What drives a young man to discern into the priesthood — a supportive family, a vibrant parish, a proactive pastor, an outspoken bishop? Father John Eckert’s response: “Yes.” Eckert, the vocations director for the Diocese of Charlotte, North Carolina, chuckled a little when describing the myriad paths that a young man may take when finding his way to holy orders. But, he said, “it’s always the Holy Spirit at work. It’s always cooperating with the grace of God.” The Charlotte Diocese is among those in the U.S. seeing high numbers of seminarians and priestly ordinations. The diocese in western North Carolina saw a record 10 young men ordained to the priesthood earlier in 2026; that followed six ordinations in 2025 and seven in 2024. “We’re blessed in the Diocese of Charlotte,” Eckert said. “It’s a beautiful moment.” The priest just wrapped up his first full year as vocations director there. He said one of the strengths of the diocese is in its vibrant faith life, which he attributed partly to the “evangelical Bible-belt roots” of the region. “This is Billy Graham territory,” he joked. The diocese itself bears out that witness, he said. “The Church is growing like crazy down here,” he said. “We have wonderful families. We have faithful, hardworking priests. We’ve had five bishops who keep on striving to bear the Gospel message and bring that to every corner of the diocese.”The growing ranks of the priesthood is proof of that high spirit, though Eckert said it can be tricky to tease out just what contributes to years of high ordinations. One of the diocese’s strengths, he said, is its own “in-house college seminary.” “It’s so wonderful that if we have a young man interested in the priesthood, we can actually just bring him to this place and show him where the initial years of formation will take place,” he said. The school offers prospective seminarians a chance to see “a group of men living this out, being very intentional about their prayer life, striving to grow in love of Our Lord.”Charlotte Bishop Michael Martin, OFM Conv, told EWTN News that when seeing such high levels of devotion to the priesthood, “we often have to just marvel at God’s work.” Priests in the diocese, he said, excel at offering candidates to the priesthood “the opportunity to see a healthy, holy, good person that they can see themselves becoming.” Families, meanwhile, have become “far more open” to communicating to their sons that they would be “honored to see [them] consider the priesthood.”“That dynamic has come about because the presbyterate gives a good example,” the bishop said. “It makes families, and parents in particular, more willing to be able to create that environment in their own families.”Both Martin and Eckert said that at a certain point Church leaders simply have to acknowledge the work of the Holy Spirit. “To fully try to understand it is important,” Martin said, “but in some ways it’s best just to appreciate and enjoy it and be grateful for it.”Eckert, meanwhile, cited as an example 1 Corinthians 3:6, in which Paul tells the Church at Corinth about its faith: “I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the growth.”The priest spoke joyfully about his work in the diocesan vocations office, though he downplayed his own role in bringing men to holy orders. He recounted with a laugh what a speaker told a group of vocations directors at a recent conference: “Gentlemen, get over yourselves. Nobody ever entered seminary because of their vocations director.”Priestly vocation ‘seen as a natural, fulfilling life’Father Garett Burns, the director of vocations promotion in the Diocese of Wichita, Kansas, admitted that the Midwestern diocese is “blessed with a strong culture of vocations.” “For example, this past May six men were ordained to the priesthood,” he said. “We’ve been blessed to generally have a steady number of ordinations each year. There have been 22 priestly ordinations since 2020 and 44 priestly ordinations in the last 10 years. We will begin this academic year with 50 seminarians in formation.”He said that it is “difficult to capture succinctly” why a diocese might have such abundant vocations, describing every Catholic’s vocation as a “mystery of grace.” But he said promoting vocations throughout every aspect of Church life — including in families, schools, and parishes — has borne steady fruit. The diocese has an abundance of Eucharistic adoration, he said, including perpetual adoration. Such chapels present opportunities for young people to spend time in silence before Christ, he said, and “these moments are where vocations grow and flourish.”Priests and bishops in the diocese, meanwhile, are “deeply committed to the Lord.” “When priests love their priesthood and enjoy each other, that is attractive to young men,” he said. A local seminary program has also borne fruit, he said, allowing young men to form a close, core connection with the Church “at home.” The priest said he hesitates to offer advice to other dioceses, admitting that there is “no universal solution” given the unique histories, gifts, and challenges of each diocese. But expanding opportunities for Eucharistic adoration, he said, offers “one viable option that promises to deepen the culture of vocations.”Father Noah Morey, the vocations director in the Diocese of Arlington, Virginia, echoed the assessment of his fellow vocations directors: “It’s not just one thing, it’s everything,” he told EWTN News. The Arlington Diocese saw seven new priests ordained in 2026; it recorded 12 ordinations in 2025. Morey noted that when it comes to ordinations, “it’s not about numbers, it’s about quality.” But he said the Arlington Diocese has a “strong culture of vocations” that has helped produce exemplary priests over the years. The diocese has promoted vocations since its founding in 1974. Its first leader, Bishop Thomas Welsh, “really fostered that culture” in part by bringing a Poor Clares monastery to the diocese. “Our bishops have all taken a hands-on approach of fostering vocations in young men from a young age,” Morey said. Bishops in Arlington regularly attend seminary events and meet personally with aspiring priests, he said. Eucharistic adoration is prolific throughout the diocese, meanwhile; several years ago, Morey said, current Bishop Michael Burbidge asked every pastor in the diocese to institute 40 hours of Eucharistic adoration annually.The diocese also holds St. Andrew dinners several times a year, which allows young men to speak to both the bishop and diocesan priests about their potential discernment. “I tell the young men, it’s a very low-commitment event — you’re not signing your life away!” he said. “You just show up for a free dinner with the bishop.” A yearly “Quo Vadis?” summer camp offers another opportunity for young men to have face-to-face discernment with Church leaders. An active, vibrant priesthood in the diocese also helps foster vocational discernment, he said. “If a young man sees a priest who’s in love with the Lord, that’s really attractive to the priesthood,” he said. And faith-filled and encouraging families are equally to credit for fostering vocations in young men, Morey continued. He offered a baseball analogy to describe the process by which young men find their way to the priesthood. “The families are the starting pitchers,” he said. “The priests are the middle relievers. And the vocations director is the closer.”Globally the Church has continued to see lower vocations; the most recent data shows a continued drop in priests, with significant declines in Europe and the Americas, though Africa and Asia saw notable increases. In the first 15 months of his pontificate Pope Leo XIV has continued to emphasize the importance of vocations. In June 2025 he told vocations ministers at the Vatican that their job consisted of “forming men capable of loving, listening, praying, and serving as a community.”The pope said God “continues to call and remains faithful to his promises.” He urged leaders to help bring about the creation of appropriate conditions “to hear [God’s] voice.”In Charlotte, Bishop Martin said the best response to an increase in vocations is to be both joyful for the gift and determined to help it flourish. “There’s something in God’s design that’s beyond even what I can say,” he said. “I can provide some insights, but at the end of the day, this is the work of the Holy Spirit.” Eckert, meanwhile, said an increase in vocations is a blessing no matter where it develops.“The job that I think we all have is being intentional in our discipleship of Jesus Christ,” he said. “I pray for myself and all my brother vocations directors out there. Whether it happens in Peoria or it happens in Charlotte, it’s good for all of us.”
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‘It’s always the Holy Spirit’: Meet 3 dioceses seeing large numbers of priestly ordinations #Catholic What drives a young man to discern into the priesthood — a supportive family, a vibrant parish, a proactive pastor, an outspoken bishop? Father John Eckert’s response: “Yes.” Eckert, the vocations director for the Diocese of Charlotte, North Carolina, chuckled a little when describing the myriad paths that a young man may take when finding his way to holy orders. But, he said, “it’s always the Holy Spirit at work. It’s always cooperating with the grace of God.” The Charlotte Diocese is among those in the U.S. seeing high numbers of seminarians and priestly ordinations. The diocese in western North Carolina saw a record 10 young men ordained to the priesthood earlier in 2026; that followed six ordinations in 2025 and seven in 2024. “We’re blessed in the Diocese of Charlotte,” Eckert said. “It’s a beautiful moment.” The priest just wrapped up his first full year as vocations director there. He said one of the strengths of the diocese is in its vibrant faith life, which he attributed partly to the “evangelical Bible-belt roots” of the region. “This is Billy Graham territory,” he joked. The diocese itself bears out that witness, he said. “The Church is growing like crazy down here,” he said. “We have wonderful families. We have faithful, hardworking priests. We’ve had five bishops who keep on striving to bear the Gospel message and bring that to every corner of the diocese.”The growing ranks of the priesthood is proof of that high spirit, though Eckert said it can be tricky to tease out just what contributes to years of high ordinations. One of the diocese’s strengths, he said, is its own “in-house college seminary.” “It’s so wonderful that if we have a young man interested in the priesthood, we can actually just bring him to this place and show him where the initial years of formation will take place,” he said. The school offers prospective seminarians a chance to see “a group of men living this out, being very intentional about their prayer life, striving to grow in love of Our Lord.”Charlotte Bishop Michael Martin, OFM Conv, told EWTN News that when seeing such high levels of devotion to the priesthood, “we often have to just marvel at God’s work.” Priests in the diocese, he said, excel at offering candidates to the priesthood “the opportunity to see a healthy, holy, good person that they can see themselves becoming.” Families, meanwhile, have become “far more open” to communicating to their sons that they would be “honored to see [them] consider the priesthood.”“That dynamic has come about because the presbyterate gives a good example,” the bishop said. “It makes families, and parents in particular, more willing to be able to create that environment in their own families.”Both Martin and Eckert said that at a certain point Church leaders simply have to acknowledge the work of the Holy Spirit. “To fully try to understand it is important,” Martin said, “but in some ways it’s best just to appreciate and enjoy it and be grateful for it.”Eckert, meanwhile, cited as an example 1 Corinthians 3:6, in which Paul tells the Church at Corinth about its faith: “I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the growth.”The priest spoke joyfully about his work in the diocesan vocations office, though he downplayed his own role in bringing men to holy orders. He recounted with a laugh what a speaker told a group of vocations directors at a recent conference: “Gentlemen, get over yourselves. Nobody ever entered seminary because of their vocations director.”Priestly vocation ‘seen as a natural, fulfilling life’Father Garett Burns, the director of vocations promotion in the Diocese of Wichita, Kansas, admitted that the Midwestern diocese is “blessed with a strong culture of vocations.” “For example, this past May six men were ordained to the priesthood,” he said. “We’ve been blessed to generally have a steady number of ordinations each year. There have been 22 priestly ordinations since 2020 and 44 priestly ordinations in the last 10 years. We will begin this academic year with 50 seminarians in formation.”He said that it is “difficult to capture succinctly” why a diocese might have such abundant vocations, describing every Catholic’s vocation as a “mystery of grace.” But he said promoting vocations throughout every aspect of Church life — including in families, schools, and parishes — has borne steady fruit. The diocese has an abundance of Eucharistic adoration, he said, including perpetual adoration. Such chapels present opportunities for young people to spend time in silence before Christ, he said, and “these moments are where vocations grow and flourish.”Priests and bishops in the diocese, meanwhile, are “deeply committed to the Lord.” “When priests love their priesthood and enjoy each other, that is attractive to young men,” he said. A local seminary program has also borne fruit, he said, allowing young men to form a close, core connection with the Church “at home.” The priest said he hesitates to offer advice to other dioceses, admitting that there is “no universal solution” given the unique histories, gifts, and challenges of each diocese. But expanding opportunities for Eucharistic adoration, he said, offers “one viable option that promises to deepen the culture of vocations.”Father Noah Morey, the vocations director in the Diocese of Arlington, Virginia, echoed the assessment of his fellow vocations directors: “It’s not just one thing, it’s everything,” he told EWTN News. The Arlington Diocese saw seven new priests ordained in 2026; it recorded 12 ordinations in 2025. Morey noted that when it comes to ordinations, “it’s not about numbers, it’s about quality.” But he said the Arlington Diocese has a “strong culture of vocations” that has helped produce exemplary priests over the years. The diocese has promoted vocations since its founding in 1974. Its first leader, Bishop Thomas Welsh, “really fostered that culture” in part by bringing a Poor Clares monastery to the diocese. “Our bishops have all taken a hands-on approach of fostering vocations in young men from a young age,” Morey said. Bishops in Arlington regularly attend seminary events and meet personally with aspiring priests, he said. Eucharistic adoration is prolific throughout the diocese, meanwhile; several years ago, Morey said, current Bishop Michael Burbidge asked every pastor in the diocese to institute 40 hours of Eucharistic adoration annually.The diocese also holds St. Andrew dinners several times a year, which allows young men to speak to both the bishop and diocesan priests about their potential discernment. “I tell the young men, it’s a very low-commitment event — you’re not signing your life away!” he said. “You just show up for a free dinner with the bishop.” A yearly “Quo Vadis?” summer camp offers another opportunity for young men to have face-to-face discernment with Church leaders. An active, vibrant priesthood in the diocese also helps foster vocational discernment, he said. “If a young man sees a priest who’s in love with the Lord, that’s really attractive to the priesthood,” he said. And faith-filled and encouraging families are equally to credit for fostering vocations in young men, Morey continued. He offered a baseball analogy to describe the process by which young men find their way to the priesthood. “The families are the starting pitchers,” he said. “The priests are the middle relievers. And the vocations director is the closer.”Globally the Church has continued to see lower vocations; the most recent data shows a continued drop in priests, with significant declines in Europe and the Americas, though Africa and Asia saw notable increases. In the first 15 months of his pontificate Pope Leo XIV has continued to emphasize the importance of vocations. In June 2025 he told vocations ministers at the Vatican that their job consisted of “forming men capable of loving, listening, praying, and serving as a community.”The pope said God “continues to call and remains faithful to his promises.” He urged leaders to help bring about the creation of appropriate conditions “to hear [God’s] voice.”In Charlotte, Bishop Martin said the best response to an increase in vocations is to be both joyful for the gift and determined to help it flourish. “There’s something in God’s design that’s beyond even what I can say,” he said. “I can provide some insights, but at the end of the day, this is the work of the Holy Spirit.” Eckert, meanwhile, said an increase in vocations is a blessing no matter where it develops.“The job that I think we all have is being intentional in our discipleship of Jesus Christ,” he said. “I pray for myself and all my brother vocations directors out there. Whether it happens in Peoria or it happens in Charlotte, it’s good for all of us.”

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Multiple dioceses throughout the U.S. are bucking national trends and seeing large numbers of men discern into the priesthood.

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Study shows society’s religious norms can affect children’s anxiety #Catholic Religious faith in society may do more than provide spiritual comfort and moral guidance; it could also help protect against anxiety disorders, according to a recent study published in Developmental Science.The research published in March explored if there were links between what societies value — such as independence and community — and anxiety disorder rates among children and adolescents over three decades.The study by Leonard Konstantin Kulisch, Ana Lorena Domínguez Rojas, Silvia Schneider, and Babett Voigt analyzed preexisting records and data during the years 1989 to 2022 from the World Value Survey, Global Burden of Disease study, Human Development Report, and Future of Families and Child Wellbeing Study.The research found an emphasis on independence was linked to higher anxiety rates in “WEIRD” (Western, Educated, Industrialized, Rich, Democratic) nations, while a greater emphasis on religious faith and interdependence correlated with less anxiety disorders globally.It also found that the importance of religious faith in socialization, and its link to interdependence, was associated with fewer anxiety disorders across 70 of the countries examined.The study did not compare religious versus nonreligious people or compare specific countries. While the effect sizes were small, it did find that “in countries where emphasis on religious faith in childrearing declined, youth anxiety rose,” Brandon Vaidyanathan, professor of sociology at The Catholic University of America, told EWTN News.Country-based disparitiesIn WEIRD nations, the societies that have norms that are oriented toward independence were associated with more anxiety disorders, but the analyses found no significant association among the non-WEIRD countries.In “developing societies [a] shift toward independence accompanies gains in growth and quality of life that may offset its psychological costs, but in already developed societies, it may only intensify competition and achievement-pressure,” Vaidyanathan explained.“The difference between WEIRD and non-WEIRD societies on the independence finding is quite interesting, and the authors suggest that it is stage-dependent,” Vaidyanathan said.“But religion is universal in providing goods that do not depend on development stage” including “belonging, order, meaning, purpose, routine.”Family versus society predictorsThe study reports that religious socialization may serve as “a protective factor” against anxiety issues in children and adolescents, which “is at the communal level much more than the individual level,” Vaidyanathan said. So much so that the U.S. data suggested the societyʼs religious norms predicted childrenʼs anxiety better than the motherʼs own beliefs.“The religiosity of the surrounding social environment was a stronger predictor of childrenʼs anxiety level than the familyʼs own faith, suggesting the protection comes from the society more than family,” Vaidyanathan said. The global protective factor was not communal values in general but religious faith specifically, which Vaidyanathan called “textbook sociology” of religion.“Since Durkheim, sociologists have shown that integration into [a] shared moral community buffers individuals from anomie” or “normlessness,” he said.“Where the community has clear norms, attachments, obligations, limits … the individual doesnʼt have to shoulder the burden of ordering life themselves —which is where anxiety comes in.”“Thatʼs why the protection is at the group level more than individual or family level, and that is what gets eroded in a secularized society,” he said.Vaidyanathan also pointed to Peter Berger, a sociologist and Protestant theologian who coined the term “plausibility structures,” which are the social, cultural, and institutional environments that make certain values or religious beliefs seem believable and normal to a group of people.Bergerʼs “famous concept of ‘plausibility structures’ helps us understand that a religious framework reduces anxiety, only while the surrounding society keeps it plausible — when the surrounding community keeps talking and living as if it were true.”“When that fails, religion becomes one option among many and even a devout householdʼs commitment to their faith is not enough to shield a child in that society. So this is why community norms [or] religiosity matters much more than family belief,” Vaidyanathan said.
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Study shows society’s religious norms can affect children’s anxiety #Catholic Religious faith in society may do more than provide spiritual comfort and moral guidance; it could also help protect against anxiety disorders, according to a recent study published in Developmental Science.The research published in March explored if there were links between what societies value — such as independence and community — and anxiety disorder rates among children and adolescents over three decades.The study by Leonard Konstantin Kulisch, Ana Lorena Domínguez Rojas, Silvia Schneider, and Babett Voigt analyzed preexisting records and data during the years 1989 to 2022 from the World Value Survey, Global Burden of Disease study, Human Development Report, and Future of Families and Child Wellbeing Study.The research found an emphasis on independence was linked to higher anxiety rates in “WEIRD” (Western, Educated, Industrialized, Rich, Democratic) nations, while a greater emphasis on religious faith and interdependence correlated with less anxiety disorders globally.It also found that the importance of religious faith in socialization, and its link to interdependence, was associated with fewer anxiety disorders across 70 of the countries examined.The study did not compare religious versus nonreligious people or compare specific countries. While the effect sizes were small, it did find that “in countries where emphasis on religious faith in childrearing declined, youth anxiety rose,” Brandon Vaidyanathan, professor of sociology at The Catholic University of America, told EWTN News.Country-based disparitiesIn WEIRD nations, the societies that have norms that are oriented toward independence were associated with more anxiety disorders, but the analyses found no significant association among the non-WEIRD countries.In “developing societies [a] shift toward independence accompanies gains in growth and quality of life that may offset its psychological costs, but in already developed societies, it may only intensify competition and achievement-pressure,” Vaidyanathan explained.“The difference between WEIRD and non-WEIRD societies on the independence finding is quite interesting, and the authors suggest that it is stage-dependent,” Vaidyanathan said.“But religion is universal in providing goods that do not depend on development stage” including “belonging, order, meaning, purpose, routine.”Family versus society predictorsThe study reports that religious socialization may serve as “a protective factor” against anxiety issues in children and adolescents, which “is at the communal level much more than the individual level,” Vaidyanathan said. So much so that the U.S. data suggested the societyʼs religious norms predicted childrenʼs anxiety better than the motherʼs own beliefs.“The religiosity of the surrounding social environment was a stronger predictor of childrenʼs anxiety level than the familyʼs own faith, suggesting the protection comes from the society more than family,” Vaidyanathan said. The global protective factor was not communal values in general but religious faith specifically, which Vaidyanathan called “textbook sociology” of religion.“Since Durkheim, sociologists have shown that integration into [a] shared moral community buffers individuals from anomie” or “normlessness,” he said.“Where the community has clear norms, attachments, obligations, limits … the individual doesnʼt have to shoulder the burden of ordering life themselves —which is where anxiety comes in.”“Thatʼs why the protection is at the group level more than individual or family level, and that is what gets eroded in a secularized society,” he said.Vaidyanathan also pointed to Peter Berger, a sociologist and Protestant theologian who coined the term “plausibility structures,” which are the social, cultural, and institutional environments that make certain values or religious beliefs seem believable and normal to a group of people.Bergerʼs “famous concept of ‘plausibility structures’ helps us understand that a religious framework reduces anxiety, only while the surrounding society keeps it plausible — when the surrounding community keeps talking and living as if it were true.”“When that fails, religion becomes one option among many and even a devout householdʼs commitment to their faith is not enough to shield a child in that society. So this is why community norms [or] religiosity matters much more than family belief,” Vaidyanathan said.

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The study, which looked at data over three decades, reports that a country’s religious values may serve as “a protective factor” against anxiety issues in children and adolescents.

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Why the feast of St. Dominic is not actually the Dominicans’ biggest feast day #Catholic Aug. 8 marks the feast day of St. Dominic, the 13th-century priest known for founding the Order of Preachers, commonly called the Dominicans, and for spreading devotion to the rosary.Surprisingly, though, the Dominicans don’t usually do much to celebrate the saint’s Aug. 8 feast day.While the August feast “is for us certainly always a feast,” Dominican Father Angelo Giuseppe Urru told EWTN News in 2018, it’s not the primary one.Instead, the order celebrates “more solemnly” May 24, which is the solemnity of the Translation of St. Dominic.This unusual feast day commemorates the day St. Dominic’s remains were moved, or “translated,” from their original burial spot behind an altar of the church of San Nicolo della Vigne in Bologna, Italy, to a more prominent place in the church in 1233.For many Dominican provinces, this day is the big celebration, Urru said.The move of St. Dominic’s body was carried out at the request of Pope Gregory IX about one year before the saint’s canonization on July 13, 1234, only 13 years after his death.As recorded in a letter by Blessed Jordan of Saxony, one of the first leaders of the Dominicans, the brothers were very anxious before the move of the body, because they were worried that when the wooden coffin was un-interred from the stone sepulcher, the body would give off a foul odor, since it had been buried in a poorly constructed tomb, exposed to water and heat.But they received a great surprise, because when the tomb was opened, a wonderful and sweet perfume emanated from the coffin instead.“Its sweetness astonished those present, and they were filled with wonder at this strange occurrence. Everyone shed tears of joy, and fear and hope rose in all hearts,” Blessed Jordan wrote.He reported that the odor remained and if anyone touched a hand or some object to the body, the odor immediately attached itself and lingered for a long time.“The body was carried to the marble sepulcher where it would rest — it and the perfume that it poured forth. This marvelous aroma which the holy body emitted was evidence to all how much the saint had truly been the good odor of Christ,” he wrote.By 1240, the church containing St. Dominic’s remains had been expanded into a basilica and renamed for the saint.Now, every year Dominican friars, sisters, and laity all over the world celebrate St. Dominic on May 24.Mass is celebrated at the Basilica of Santa Sabina, the mother church of the Dominicans in Rome, for this feast.The tradition is for a priest of the Order of Friars Minor, commonly called the Franciscans, to say the Mass and preach. After Mass, the procession of friars stops at the first side chapel, where the Blessed Sacrament is kept, to sing the “O Lumen,” the Dominican antiphon to St. Dominic.Besides the tomb with the saint’s body, which is in the basilica in Bologna, there are few relics of St. Dominic in existence.One relic, a piece of his skull, can be found in Rome. It is at the church of Santa Maria del Rosario, part of a Dominican monastery located on Monte Mario, the tallest hill of Rome.Urru said he was not sure how it came to be kept in the monastery but that it originated when some students in Bologna stole it to have in their chapel.“There is also the breviary of St. Dominic, a small breviary,” he said.In 2016, the Dominicans celebrated the 800th anniversary of their founding with a jubilee year, culminating in an International Congress for the Mission of the Order, which took place Jan. 17–21 in Rome.Urru voiced gratitude for the blessing of vocations, which allow the order’s work to continue.Thankfully, though there are some provinces that are very small, many are growing and are very strong, he noted, such as those in Vietnam and Africa. The United States as well has seen a good number of new vocations, he said.Around the world, “there are many initiatives of the order,” and they are working hard still, just as they have the last 800 years.Ultimately, though, he said, the future of the order is “in the hands of God.”This story was first published on Aug. 8, 2017, and has been updated.
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Why the feast of St. Dominic is not actually the Dominicans’ biggest feast day #Catholic Aug. 8 marks the feast day of St. Dominic, the 13th-century priest known for founding the Order of Preachers, commonly called the Dominicans, and for spreading devotion to the rosary.Surprisingly, though, the Dominicans don’t usually do much to celebrate the saint’s Aug. 8 feast day.While the August feast “is for us certainly always a feast,” Dominican Father Angelo Giuseppe Urru told EWTN News in 2018, it’s not the primary one.Instead, the order celebrates “more solemnly” May 24, which is the solemnity of the Translation of St. Dominic.This unusual feast day commemorates the day St. Dominic’s remains were moved, or “translated,” from their original burial spot behind an altar of the church of San Nicolo della Vigne in Bologna, Italy, to a more prominent place in the church in 1233.For many Dominican provinces, this day is the big celebration, Urru said.The move of St. Dominic’s body was carried out at the request of Pope Gregory IX about one year before the saint’s canonization on July 13, 1234, only 13 years after his death.As recorded in a letter by Blessed Jordan of Saxony, one of the first leaders of the Dominicans, the brothers were very anxious before the move of the body, because they were worried that when the wooden coffin was un-interred from the stone sepulcher, the body would give off a foul odor, since it had been buried in a poorly constructed tomb, exposed to water and heat.But they received a great surprise, because when the tomb was opened, a wonderful and sweet perfume emanated from the coffin instead.“Its sweetness astonished those present, and they were filled with wonder at this strange occurrence. Everyone shed tears of joy, and fear and hope rose in all hearts,” Blessed Jordan wrote.He reported that the odor remained and if anyone touched a hand or some object to the body, the odor immediately attached itself and lingered for a long time.“The body was carried to the marble sepulcher where it would rest — it and the perfume that it poured forth. This marvelous aroma which the holy body emitted was evidence to all how much the saint had truly been the good odor of Christ,” he wrote.By 1240, the church containing St. Dominic’s remains had been expanded into a basilica and renamed for the saint.Now, every year Dominican friars, sisters, and laity all over the world celebrate St. Dominic on May 24.Mass is celebrated at the Basilica of Santa Sabina, the mother church of the Dominicans in Rome, for this feast.The tradition is for a priest of the Order of Friars Minor, commonly called the Franciscans, to say the Mass and preach. After Mass, the procession of friars stops at the first side chapel, where the Blessed Sacrament is kept, to sing the “O Lumen,” the Dominican antiphon to St. Dominic.Besides the tomb with the saint’s body, which is in the basilica in Bologna, there are few relics of St. Dominic in existence.One relic, a piece of his skull, can be found in Rome. It is at the church of Santa Maria del Rosario, part of a Dominican monastery located on Monte Mario, the tallest hill of Rome.Urru said he was not sure how it came to be kept in the monastery but that it originated when some students in Bologna stole it to have in their chapel.“There is also the breviary of St. Dominic, a small breviary,” he said.In 2016, the Dominicans celebrated the 800th anniversary of their founding with a jubilee year, culminating in an International Congress for the Mission of the Order, which took place Jan. 17–21 in Rome.Urru voiced gratitude for the blessing of vocations, which allow the order’s work to continue.Thankfully, though there are some provinces that are very small, many are growing and are very strong, he noted, such as those in Vietnam and Africa. The United States as well has seen a good number of new vocations, he said.Around the world, “there are many initiatives of the order,” and they are working hard still, just as they have the last 800 years.Ultimately, though, he said, the future of the order is “in the hands of God.”This story was first published on Aug. 8, 2017, and has been updated.

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While the August feast is “always a feast” for Dominicans, it’s not the primary one.

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Federal court hears arguments on Oklahoma’s ban for religious charter schools #Catholic A federal court heard oral arguments on Aug. 5 about whether an Oklahoma law banning religious charter schools violates the First Amendment’s protection of the free exercise of religion.Oklahoma established a charter school system in 1999, which provides public funds for privately run K–12 schools to which parents can send their children instead of a public school operated by a school district. The law only allows “nonsectarian” applicants, which prevents any participation from schools that have a religious identity.In 2023, the Oklahoma Statewide Charter School Board (SCSB) approved an application from a proposed Catholic charter school — St. Isidore of Seville Catholic Virtual School — which led to a legal challenge from Oklahoma Attorney General Gentner Drummond, who opposed religious charter schools.The Oklahoma Supreme Court sided against the school, finding that charter schools are public schools and that public schools must be secular. St. Isidore appealed this to the U.S. Supreme Court, but that resulted in a 4-4 deadlock with no majority opinion because Justice Amy Coney Barrett had a conflict of interest and recused herself.Amid no clear guidance from the federal courts, a Jewish organization — National Ben Gamla Jewish Charter School Foundation — filed an application to set up a charter school, which was denied. The group, represented by lawyers at the Becket Fund, filed a new lawsuit and asked a federal district court to require the SCSB to consider religious applicants.“Oklahoma makes room in its charter program for schools of all shapes and sizes, from those focused on science and fine arts to language immersion and classical education,” Daniel Chen, a Becket attorney representing the Jewish foundation, said in a statement.“The one it refuses to make room for is a faith-based school,” Chen added. “That is religious discrimination, plain and simple, and the state deserves a failing grade for it.”Chen told EWTN News that Becket is asking the federal court to immediately allow National Ben Gamla Jewish Charter School Foundation to set up a charter school, citing U.S. Supreme Court precedent that requires government programs to allow religious institutions the same access as secular institutions.“They’re private actors,” he said. “And because they’re private actors, they cannot be excluded from participating in a public benefits program.”Chen said the federal district court is not bound by the precedent of the Oklahoma Supreme Court because that is a state court, so it could rule in favor of the school. He also said if the case goes to the U.S. Supreme Court, he hopes Barrett can weigh in to break the 4-4 deadlock.“We’re hoping that [for] our case, there wouldn’t have to be any recusals,” he said.School board’s hands are tiedAlthough the charter school board denied the application from the National Ben Gamla Jewish Charter School Foundation, one of its lawyers at First Liberty Institute explained to EWTN News that its hands are tied by the statute and the Oklahoma Supreme Court’s decision.“They’re following that order,” said Hiram Sasser, executive general counsel for First Liberty and the lawyer representing SCSB. “But [they] would be happy if the federal court didn’t [require the school board] to engage in that kind of discrimination.”Sasser said the SCSB does not want to exclude an applicant “simply because it’s religious” and would rather evaluate applicants “just based on the merits.” But he said the order “makes them exclude religious schools just because they’re religious.”“They want to maximize all of the various choices and opportunities for parents,” he added.Sasser said he hopes the question goes to the U.S. Supreme Court again so “we’ll get an answer — a real answer.” He said it would provide more clarity for the school board, which “needs an answer.”John Meiser, director of the Lindsay and Matt Moroun Religious Liberty Clinic at the University of Notre Dame and the lawyer who represented St. Isidore at the Supreme Court, told EWTN News that the question ultimately comes down to whether charter schools are private or public institutions.In Oklahoma, he said charter schools “are called public schools” and that label “introduces a confusion that I don’t think would be present if they chose any other word.”He said Supreme Court precedent is clear that religious institutions must have equal access to government programs available to private institutions, but if a charter school is a “government school,” that “doesn’t apply” because the government “doesn’t and can’t run religious schools.”In spite of the label, Meiser said charter schools in Oklahoma are “formed and designed and run by private groups” and people who work there “are private employees.” He said the structure “looks just like a government contract” and funding from the government “doesn’t turn all those private contractors into the government itself.”“The dispute is really just about, ‘Well is a charter school in some way different?’” he said.Although Meiser said he is not aware of any ongoing Catholic efforts to recreate a charter school, he said that a Supreme Court ruling in favor of the National Ben Gamla Jewish Charter School Foundation’s constitutional arguments for equal access “would presumably apply to all religious operators of schools, and so it would open the door to a Catholic charter school or other religiously based charter school.”Attorney general stands firmDrummond, who remains Oklahoma’s attorney general, is standing firm in opposing the creation of religious charter schools and is fighting against National Ben Gamla Jewish Charter School Foundation’s efforts."This matter was resolved when the state Supreme Courtʼs ruling to prevent taxpayer funded religious charter schools was upheld by the U.S. Supreme Court last year,” Leslie Berger, press secretary for the attorney general’s office, told EWTN News.Drummond has also criticized the charter school board in public statements surrounding this legal battle in March, accusing the SCSB of “playing politics with the taxpayers' money” and alleged it “manipulated the record [about why National Ben Gamla Jewish Charter School Foundation’s application was rejected] to make that lawsuit easier to lose — not win.”"A state agency that deliberately hobbles its own legal position is not doing its job — it is betraying Oklahoma taxpayers,” he said. “I will not allow that.”Drummond has garnered support from the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and the Freedom From Religion Foundation (FFRF) for opposing the creation of religious charter schools.Attorneys for FFRF are representing seven Oklahomans who oppose their tax money being used to support religious charter schools.“The federal court should rule according to constitutional principles,” FFRF Co-President Annie Laurie Gaylor said in a statement. “A religious public charter school has no place in our secular public education system.”It’s unclear when the federal court will issue its ruling, but National Ben Gamla Jewish Charter School Foundation has asked the judge to issue a preliminary injunction against the state so it can begin operating a school while the litigation plays out.
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Federal court hears arguments on Oklahoma’s ban for religious charter schools #Catholic A federal court heard oral arguments on Aug. 5 about whether an Oklahoma law banning religious charter schools violates the First Amendment’s protection of the free exercise of religion.Oklahoma established a charter school system in 1999, which provides public funds for privately run K–12 schools to which parents can send their children instead of a public school operated by a school district. The law only allows “nonsectarian” applicants, which prevents any participation from schools that have a religious identity.In 2023, the Oklahoma Statewide Charter School Board (SCSB) approved an application from a proposed Catholic charter school — St. Isidore of Seville Catholic Virtual School — which led to a legal challenge from Oklahoma Attorney General Gentner Drummond, who opposed religious charter schools.The Oklahoma Supreme Court sided against the school, finding that charter schools are public schools and that public schools must be secular. St. Isidore appealed this to the U.S. Supreme Court, but that resulted in a 4-4 deadlock with no majority opinion because Justice Amy Coney Barrett had a conflict of interest and recused herself.Amid no clear guidance from the federal courts, a Jewish organization — National Ben Gamla Jewish Charter School Foundation — filed an application to set up a charter school, which was denied. The group, represented by lawyers at the Becket Fund, filed a new lawsuit and asked a federal district court to require the SCSB to consider religious applicants.“Oklahoma makes room in its charter program for schools of all shapes and sizes, from those focused on science and fine arts to language immersion and classical education,” Daniel Chen, a Becket attorney representing the Jewish foundation, said in a statement.“The one it refuses to make room for is a faith-based school,” Chen added. “That is religious discrimination, plain and simple, and the state deserves a failing grade for it.”Chen told EWTN News that Becket is asking the federal court to immediately allow National Ben Gamla Jewish Charter School Foundation to set up a charter school, citing U.S. Supreme Court precedent that requires government programs to allow religious institutions the same access as secular institutions.“They’re private actors,” he said. “And because they’re private actors, they cannot be excluded from participating in a public benefits program.”Chen said the federal district court is not bound by the precedent of the Oklahoma Supreme Court because that is a state court, so it could rule in favor of the school. He also said if the case goes to the U.S. Supreme Court, he hopes Barrett can weigh in to break the 4-4 deadlock.“We’re hoping that [for] our case, there wouldn’t have to be any recusals,” he said.School board’s hands are tiedAlthough the charter school board denied the application from the National Ben Gamla Jewish Charter School Foundation, one of its lawyers at First Liberty Institute explained to EWTN News that its hands are tied by the statute and the Oklahoma Supreme Court’s decision.“They’re following that order,” said Hiram Sasser, executive general counsel for First Liberty and the lawyer representing SCSB. “But [they] would be happy if the federal court didn’t [require the school board] to engage in that kind of discrimination.”Sasser said the SCSB does not want to exclude an applicant “simply because it’s religious” and would rather evaluate applicants “just based on the merits.” But he said the order “makes them exclude religious schools just because they’re religious.”“They want to maximize all of the various choices and opportunities for parents,” he added.Sasser said he hopes the question goes to the U.S. Supreme Court again so “we’ll get an answer — a real answer.” He said it would provide more clarity for the school board, which “needs an answer.”John Meiser, director of the Lindsay and Matt Moroun Religious Liberty Clinic at the University of Notre Dame and the lawyer who represented St. Isidore at the Supreme Court, told EWTN News that the question ultimately comes down to whether charter schools are private or public institutions.In Oklahoma, he said charter schools “are called public schools” and that label “introduces a confusion that I don’t think would be present if they chose any other word.”He said Supreme Court precedent is clear that religious institutions must have equal access to government programs available to private institutions, but if a charter school is a “government school,” that “doesn’t apply” because the government “doesn’t and can’t run religious schools.”In spite of the label, Meiser said charter schools in Oklahoma are “formed and designed and run by private groups” and people who work there “are private employees.” He said the structure “looks just like a government contract” and funding from the government “doesn’t turn all those private contractors into the government itself.”“The dispute is really just about, ‘Well is a charter school in some way different?’” he said.Although Meiser said he is not aware of any ongoing Catholic efforts to recreate a charter school, he said that a Supreme Court ruling in favor of the National Ben Gamla Jewish Charter School Foundation’s constitutional arguments for equal access “would presumably apply to all religious operators of schools, and so it would open the door to a Catholic charter school or other religiously based charter school.”Attorney general stands firmDrummond, who remains Oklahoma’s attorney general, is standing firm in opposing the creation of religious charter schools and is fighting against National Ben Gamla Jewish Charter School Foundation’s efforts."This matter was resolved when the state Supreme Courtʼs ruling to prevent taxpayer funded religious charter schools was upheld by the U.S. Supreme Court last year,” Leslie Berger, press secretary for the attorney general’s office, told EWTN News.Drummond has also criticized the charter school board in public statements surrounding this legal battle in March, accusing the SCSB of “playing politics with the taxpayers' money” and alleged it “manipulated the record [about why National Ben Gamla Jewish Charter School Foundation’s application was rejected] to make that lawsuit easier to lose — not win.”"A state agency that deliberately hobbles its own legal position is not doing its job — it is betraying Oklahoma taxpayers,” he said. “I will not allow that.”Drummond has garnered support from the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and the Freedom From Religion Foundation (FFRF) for opposing the creation of religious charter schools.Attorneys for FFRF are representing seven Oklahomans who oppose their tax money being used to support religious charter schools.“The federal court should rule according to constitutional principles,” FFRF Co-President Annie Laurie Gaylor said in a statement. “A religious public charter school has no place in our secular public education system.”It’s unclear when the federal court will issue its ruling, but National Ben Gamla Jewish Charter School Foundation has asked the judge to issue a preliminary injunction against the state so it can begin operating a school while the litigation plays out.

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Oklahoma’s Statewide Charter School Board wants to approve religious charter schools, but a ruling from the Oklahoma Supreme Court and efforts by the state attorney general prevent it from doing so.

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Bishops issue new calls for recognition of immigrants’ human dignity and immigration reform #Catholic In response to increased immigration enforcement measures throughout the country, two U.S. Catholic bishops have issued fresh statements affirming the human dignity of immigrants as children of God and calling for immigration reform.Both prelates said Americans should understand why people flee their home countries in search of a better life while acknowledging the nation’s right to enforce its immigration laws. The current situation, however, is unjust, immoral, and must be fixed, both men emphasized.On Aug. 3, the centennial anniversary of the elevation of San Antonio to a metropolitan archdiocese, Archbishop Gustavo García-Siller released a pastoral letter expressing the Church’s solidarity with migrants and calling for the “careful and well-formed moral discernment of every Catholic conscience” in response.Meanwhile, on Aug. 1, Bishop Robert Gruss of the Diocese of Saginaw, Michigan, issued a statement in which he reminded the faithful of the “inherent human dignity” of every person.Gruss said the current “challenge” facing the United States, which has “consistently received immigrants, refugees, exiles, and the persecuted from other lands” throughout its history, is “how to deal with a situation when one administration has allowed individuals and families to migrate … freely and the next administration wants their removal.”The bishop wrote that the removal of “immigrants who have caused harm to society by participating in criminal activity” is understandable, but asked if it is “fair to remove those who are and have been contributing to society in a positive way, oftentimes for many years?”He said that a “just and civil society” would not allow the deportation or detention of people “without cause” or “meaningful legal representation, without access to family or a supportive community, and without basic human needs being met.”He urged the faithful to “push for public policy changes that secure civil rights for all immigrants” and “humane border enforcement policies” that simultaneously uphold national security while protecting the “safety and dignity” of those who come to the country to work.‘We will come to you’García-Siller promulgated his letter, titled “We Will Come to You: United in Solidarity with Our Brothers and Sisters in Migration,” at a Mass at San Fernando Cathedral in downtown San Antonio.“We are living in a world of war,” the letter began. “Across continents, people are dying every day. Across borders, survivors are forced to migrate. They do not leave by choice, but because of violence, hunger, fear, and oppression.”In the 56-page letter, composed of five sections and concluding with a prayer to Our Lady of Guadalupe, García-Siller said he prayed “for a long time” before writing, saying he wanted to write from “the right place, one of accompaniment and solidarity.”He said the letter addresses an “unprecedented” time in the country, writing that “a convergence of structural and legal tactics … calls for the careful and well-formed moral discernment of every Catholic conscience.”“I write to comfort the afflicted, to ignite the comfortable, and to confront injustice with the full conviction of the Gospel.”He went on to cite his personal experience of “years walking alongside” migrants, many of whom are living in so much fear they rarely leave their homes, as well as his own story as a migrant himself.The archbishop wrote that he has witnessed a “fear that has taken root” across the archdiocese, saying he and other pastors “pray with parents who embrace their children each morning unsure if they will be home at night,” and describing parents who avoid taking children to the doctor or to go to work “because each mile carries risk.”“The community bears this cross, and the Church cannot be silent,” he wrote, describing declining Mass attendance and the worsening physical health of those who suffer fear related to immigration.“The people have not lost their faith,” he wrote. “Many, however, have lost their sense of safety and belonging.”The Church must “defend the dignity of those caught in the machinery of removal,” he emphasized.García-Siller described visiting three detention centers in the area, including the South Texas Family Residential Center in Dilley, the largest family detention center in the nation, saying he’s witnessed "firsthand, violations of human dignity within their walls.”He went on to quote Bishop Steven Biegler of the Diocese of Cheyenne, Wyoming, who wrote in a pastoral letter in April that “‘the current campaign of mass detention and deportations is immoral.’”García-Siller accused private corporations of profiting from the processing and movement of large numbers of detained immigrants from one site to another.He also cited an investigation by U.S. Sen. John Ossoff, D-Georgia, which documented more than 1,000 “credible reports of human rights abuses since January 2025, including “medical neglect, denial of food and water, overcrowding, sleep deprivation, and the separation of breastfeeding mothers from their infants,” as well as similar abuses in privately-run sites.García-Siller called the public narrative that only criminals are being removed “misleading,” writing that “73% of those in immigration detention have no criminal conviction, and only 5% have been convicted of a violent crime.”He described how pastors, deacons, extraordinary ministers, and trained catechists are developing “active ministries of accompaniment” in the archdiocese, visiting migrants in their homes, bringing the sacraments along with medicines and other supplies, as well as in detention centers.“If your family has been detained, tell us. We will go to them. The Body of Christ does not abandon its members in chains,” García-Siller declared.The archbishop went on to lament that existing legal pathways take years to navigate, years that families cannot afford to wait as they seek safety and stability. He called for more accessible legal pathways, saying migrants would take those pathways if they were available. Migrants’ “contribution to the common good of our nation” demands such, he wrote.At the end of the letter, García-Siller entrusted the situation to Our Lady of Guadalupe, who herself crossed borders of culture and race and walked the road of exile with the Holy Family: “Long before she was Queen of Mexico … she was a mother who crossed a border. She knows this road; she walked it with her own feet.”
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Bishops issue new calls for recognition of immigrants’ human dignity and immigration reform #Catholic In response to increased immigration enforcement measures throughout the country, two U.S. Catholic bishops have issued fresh statements affirming the human dignity of immigrants as children of God and calling for immigration reform.Both prelates said Americans should understand why people flee their home countries in search of a better life while acknowledging the nation’s right to enforce its immigration laws. The current situation, however, is unjust, immoral, and must be fixed, both men emphasized.On Aug. 3, the centennial anniversary of the elevation of San Antonio to a metropolitan archdiocese, Archbishop Gustavo García-Siller released a pastoral letter expressing the Church’s solidarity with migrants and calling for the “careful and well-formed moral discernment of every Catholic conscience” in response.Meanwhile, on Aug. 1, Bishop Robert Gruss of the Diocese of Saginaw, Michigan, issued a statement in which he reminded the faithful of the “inherent human dignity” of every person.Gruss said the current “challenge” facing the United States, which has “consistently received immigrants, refugees, exiles, and the persecuted from other lands” throughout its history, is “how to deal with a situation when one administration has allowed individuals and families to migrate … freely and the next administration wants their removal.”The bishop wrote that the removal of “immigrants who have caused harm to society by participating in criminal activity” is understandable, but asked if it is “fair to remove those who are and have been contributing to society in a positive way, oftentimes for many years?”He said that a “just and civil society” would not allow the deportation or detention of people “without cause” or “meaningful legal representation, without access to family or a supportive community, and without basic human needs being met.”He urged the faithful to “push for public policy changes that secure civil rights for all immigrants” and “humane border enforcement policies” that simultaneously uphold national security while protecting the “safety and dignity” of those who come to the country to work.‘We will come to you’García-Siller promulgated his letter, titled “We Will Come to You: United in Solidarity with Our Brothers and Sisters in Migration,” at a Mass at San Fernando Cathedral in downtown San Antonio.“We are living in a world of war,” the letter began. “Across continents, people are dying every day. Across borders, survivors are forced to migrate. They do not leave by choice, but because of violence, hunger, fear, and oppression.”In the 56-page letter, composed of five sections and concluding with a prayer to Our Lady of Guadalupe, García-Siller said he prayed “for a long time” before writing, saying he wanted to write from “the right place, one of accompaniment and solidarity.”He said the letter addresses an “unprecedented” time in the country, writing that “a convergence of structural and legal tactics … calls for the careful and well-formed moral discernment of every Catholic conscience.”“I write to comfort the afflicted, to ignite the comfortable, and to confront injustice with the full conviction of the Gospel.”He went on to cite his personal experience of “years walking alongside” migrants, many of whom are living in so much fear they rarely leave their homes, as well as his own story as a migrant himself.The archbishop wrote that he has witnessed a “fear that has taken root” across the archdiocese, saying he and other pastors “pray with parents who embrace their children each morning unsure if they will be home at night,” and describing parents who avoid taking children to the doctor or to go to work “because each mile carries risk.”“The community bears this cross, and the Church cannot be silent,” he wrote, describing declining Mass attendance and the worsening physical health of those who suffer fear related to immigration.“The people have not lost their faith,” he wrote. “Many, however, have lost their sense of safety and belonging.”The Church must “defend the dignity of those caught in the machinery of removal,” he emphasized.García-Siller described visiting three detention centers in the area, including the South Texas Family Residential Center in Dilley, the largest family detention center in the nation, saying he’s witnessed "firsthand, violations of human dignity within their walls.”He went on to quote Bishop Steven Biegler of the Diocese of Cheyenne, Wyoming, who wrote in a pastoral letter in April that “‘the current campaign of mass detention and deportations is immoral.’”García-Siller accused private corporations of profiting from the processing and movement of large numbers of detained immigrants from one site to another.He also cited an investigation by U.S. Sen. John Ossoff, D-Georgia, which documented more than 1,000 “credible reports of human rights abuses since January 2025, including “medical neglect, denial of food and water, overcrowding, sleep deprivation, and the separation of breastfeeding mothers from their infants,” as well as similar abuses in privately-run sites.García-Siller called the public narrative that only criminals are being removed “misleading,” writing that “73% of those in immigration detention have no criminal conviction, and only 5% have been convicted of a violent crime.”He described how pastors, deacons, extraordinary ministers, and trained catechists are developing “active ministries of accompaniment” in the archdiocese, visiting migrants in their homes, bringing the sacraments along with medicines and other supplies, as well as in detention centers.“If your family has been detained, tell us. We will go to them. The Body of Christ does not abandon its members in chains,” García-Siller declared.The archbishop went on to lament that existing legal pathways take years to navigate, years that families cannot afford to wait as they seek safety and stability. He called for more accessible legal pathways, saying migrants would take those pathways if they were available. Migrants’ “contribution to the common good of our nation” demands such, he wrote.At the end of the letter, García-Siller entrusted the situation to Our Lady of Guadalupe, who herself crossed borders of culture and race and walked the road of exile with the Holy Family: “Long before she was Queen of Mexico … she was a mother who crossed a border. She knows this road; she walked it with her own feet.”

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“I write to comfort the afflicted, to ignite the comfortable, and to confront injustice with the full conviction of the Gospel,” San Antonio Archbishop Gustavo García-Siller wrote.

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This is Pope Leo XIV’s prayer intention for the month of August #Catholic Pope Leo XIV’s prayer intention for the month of August is for evangelization in the city.“Roughly half of us live in cities. Jesus himself walked city streets, in Cana, in Jericho, in Jerusalem, and just as in those cities Christ is present in ours — teaching, praying, celebrating, but also suffering among the poor, the forgotten, the imprisoned," the Holy Father said in a video released July 31 on X.He added: “This month, let us pray for the courage to recognize him [Jesus] there and through our work and witness to bring the Gospel to the streets and homes of our metropolises.”In the full video shared on the Pope’s Worldwide Prayer Network website, Pope Leo recites an original prayer written specifically for this month’s prayer intention:“Lord Jesus, Good Shepherd,You walk through our streets and squares,enter tall buildings and humble neighborhoods,and silently accompany millionswho seek meaning amid noise and haste.You know, Lord, the heart of the city:its lights and shadows, its noise and loneliness.We know that cities are called to be places of freedom and opportunity,but they can also become spaces of anonymity and isolation.That’s why today we ask you for a renewed gaze,able to discover in urban lifefertile ground for proclaiming your Gospel.Give us a creative and deep faith,that doesn’t remain in words,but becomes flesh through simple and loving gestures.Make us a Church that goes forth,able to reach out to the peripheries,to console those who are lonely,and to sow fraternity and connection instead of giving in to indifference.Lord, may our urban communitiesbe open and welcoming homes,places where hope is shared,where no one feels invisible,and where the joy of your Gospel shinesin the hidden lives of so many brothers and sisters.Make us your witnesses in the city,bold and creative missionaries,who proclaim your love with their lives—a love capable of overcoming haste, noise, and anonymity.Amen.”“Pray with the Pope” is accessible on the Pope’s Worldwide Prayer Network website and its digital platforms.
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This is Pope Leo XIV’s prayer intention for the month of August #Catholic Pope Leo XIV’s prayer intention for the month of August is for evangelization in the city.“Roughly half of us live in cities. Jesus himself walked city streets, in Cana, in Jericho, in Jerusalem, and just as in those cities Christ is present in ours — teaching, praying, celebrating, but also suffering among the poor, the forgotten, the imprisoned," the Holy Father said in a video released July 31 on X.He added: “This month, let us pray for the courage to recognize him [Jesus] there and through our work and witness to bring the Gospel to the streets and homes of our metropolises.”In the full video shared on the Pope’s Worldwide Prayer Network website, Pope Leo recites an original prayer written specifically for this month’s prayer intention:“Lord Jesus, Good Shepherd,You walk through our streets and squares,enter tall buildings and humble neighborhoods,and silently accompany millionswho seek meaning amid noise and haste.You know, Lord, the heart of the city:its lights and shadows, its noise and loneliness.We know that cities are called to be places of freedom and opportunity,but they can also become spaces of anonymity and isolation.That’s why today we ask you for a renewed gaze,able to discover in urban lifefertile ground for proclaiming your Gospel.Give us a creative and deep faith,that doesn’t remain in words,but becomes flesh through simple and loving gestures.Make us a Church that goes forth,able to reach out to the peripheries,to console those who are lonely,and to sow fraternity and connection instead of giving in to indifference.Lord, may our urban communitiesbe open and welcoming homes,places where hope is shared,where no one feels invisible,and where the joy of your Gospel shinesin the hidden lives of so many brothers and sisters.Make us your witnesses in the city,bold and creative missionaries,who proclaim your love with their lives—a love capable of overcoming haste, noise, and anonymity.Amen.”“Pray with the Pope” is accessible on the Pope’s Worldwide Prayer Network website and its digital platforms.

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Pope Leo XIV’s prayer intention for the month of August is for evangelization in the city.

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Forest fires in Spain: ‘Providence is taking super good care of us,’ priest says #Catholic The territory of the Diocese of Getafe, south of Madrid, Spain, is being especially hard hit by wildfires that have forced thousands of people to shelter in place or evacuate. The natural disaster finds the diocese’s priests on the front lines, welcoming, accompanying, consoling, and praying.In the central area of ​​Spain alone, 12 towns have been evacuated and another three are under a shelter-in-place order due to the wave of forest fires that in recent days have devastated thousands of acres. At least 50,000 people have been affected in the area.Faced with this human tragedy, the Catholic Church has set to work providing material aid, shelter, a listening ear, and the sacraments in efforts overseen by the auxiliary bishop of Getafe, José María Avendaño.Father Álvaro Piñero is the vicar of the parish in Villaviciosa de Odón, one of the towns serving as a place of refuge for those fleeing the fires who had nowhere else to go. Throughout the weekend, he has been coordinating the aid provided by the parish to the more than 300 displaced people arriving from Chapinería, Pelayos de la Presa, Navas del Rey, and other towns.Along with the residents, the parish priests from those towns are also being sheltered because as Piñero explained to ACI Prensa, the Spanish-language sister service of EWTN News, “even when displaced, one remains a priest and continues to minister to the people of oneʼs town.”“Many of the volunteers helping at the sports center are from Caritas or local confraternities from the town; they have ties to the parish,” noted Piñero, who is from Valdemoro, a nearby town where he has gone to pick up hosts for Mass.Instagram postIn addition to providing food and meeting material needs, the Church offers the treasure of the faith and the sacraments: “At the sports center, we have been attending to people, listening to them, hearing their confessions and above all, listening to so many suffering people. At the end of the day, the people here are extremely vulnerable.”The authorities specifically entrusted the care of the children to the parish. The youngsters are kept entertained with games and activities, so much so that when asked if they want to return home, some say no, “because it feels like camp.”Despite the magnitude of the tragedy, heart-wrenching from a purely human perspective, a supernatural outlook and a shepherd’s heart keep hope alive.“As St. Paul said in the reading: We hold this treasure in earthen vessels so that not only death but the glory of the Lord may be manifested in our lives. That is somewhat what we are experiencing; while we are keenly feeling the drama of so many very difficult situations, Providence is also taking super good care of us,” Piñero emphasized.“If God is looking after us now in this situation, why would he fail me tomorrow? If he is doing so now, then I believe trust is what sustains us in these moments, and not blind trust, but a trust we can tangibly feel here and now,” he explained, referring to the help provided by so many volunteers and donors.‘The Lord is going through this evacuation with us’One of the areas hardest hit by the fire is the Tiétar Valley, home to the town of Rozas de Puerto Real and the minor seminary of the Diocese of Getafe, where 130 students, 35 of whom are seminarians, normally study.The facility, currently spared by the flames, is in grave danger. A summer camp was taking place there until participants had to be evacuated on July 25, the feast of St. James the Apostle. “We were already surrounded by smoke and had to evacuate all the young people; it was done very quickly. In less than 25 minutes, the entire seminary had been cleared, and although there was great fear, everyoneʼs efforts made it possible,” Father Eliert Jerez, rector of the minor seminary, told ACI Prensa.In addition to the people, they removed the statues of the Immaculate Conception and St. Joseph, the archives, and the tabernacles containing the Blessed Sacrament from the site; these were taken to Villaviciosa de Odón, where Jerez is currently taking shelter. Father Eliert Jerez, rector of the minor seminary of the Diocese of Getafe in Spain | Credit: Nicolás de Cárdenas/ACI Prensa The moment the Body of Christ was being moved was captured on video. “I canʼt get that moment out of my head, and I donʼt want to let it go from my heart either,” the priest shared.“When you hold the Blessed Sacrament in your hand, when you can’t wear a cope or liturgical vestments — you realize the Lord’s closeness in those moments. You realize that the Lord was going through this evacuation with us, and I imagine he was also in this prayer and this plea for it to end,” he added.It’s precisely in prayer that they are finding great comfort: “Prayer is working real miracles such as the fact that the seminary has not yet been engulfed by the flames,” explained the rector, even as the burden of responsibility weighs heavily on him: “Many of our seminarians are going to be left homeless. Many of our seminarians will face immense difficulties in continuing their formation.”It’s not just for their sake that Jerez is aware of how this situation will transform life in the region for years to come: “So many towns have been affected. Many people will not get their jobs back because they make their living from the land, and that is very difficult to recover from. Many people have lost not only their homes but also their prospects for the future, and this is a reality that will stay with us in the years ahead.”Indeed, he admitted to his deep unease: “I have had trouble sleeping ever since the first flames appeared.”This story was first published by ACI Prensa, the Spanish-language sister service of EWTN News. It has been translated and adapted by EWTN News English.
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Forest fires in Spain: ‘Providence is taking super good care of us,’ priest says #Catholic The territory of the Diocese of Getafe, south of Madrid, Spain, is being especially hard hit by wildfires that have forced thousands of people to shelter in place or evacuate. The natural disaster finds the diocese’s priests on the front lines, welcoming, accompanying, consoling, and praying.In the central area of ​​Spain alone, 12 towns have been evacuated and another three are under a shelter-in-place order due to the wave of forest fires that in recent days have devastated thousands of acres. At least 50,000 people have been affected in the area.Faced with this human tragedy, the Catholic Church has set to work providing material aid, shelter, a listening ear, and the sacraments in efforts overseen by the auxiliary bishop of Getafe, José María Avendaño.Father Álvaro Piñero is the vicar of the parish in Villaviciosa de Odón, one of the towns serving as a place of refuge for those fleeing the fires who had nowhere else to go. Throughout the weekend, he has been coordinating the aid provided by the parish to the more than 300 displaced people arriving from Chapinería, Pelayos de la Presa, Navas del Rey, and other towns.Along with the residents, the parish priests from those towns are also being sheltered because as Piñero explained to ACI Prensa, the Spanish-language sister service of EWTN News, “even when displaced, one remains a priest and continues to minister to the people of oneʼs town.”“Many of the volunteers helping at the sports center are from Caritas or local confraternities from the town; they have ties to the parish,” noted Piñero, who is from Valdemoro, a nearby town where he has gone to pick up hosts for Mass.Instagram postIn addition to providing food and meeting material needs, the Church offers the treasure of the faith and the sacraments: “At the sports center, we have been attending to people, listening to them, hearing their confessions and above all, listening to so many suffering people. At the end of the day, the people here are extremely vulnerable.”The authorities specifically entrusted the care of the children to the parish. The youngsters are kept entertained with games and activities, so much so that when asked if they want to return home, some say no, “because it feels like camp.”Despite the magnitude of the tragedy, heart-wrenching from a purely human perspective, a supernatural outlook and a shepherd’s heart keep hope alive.“As St. Paul said in the reading: We hold this treasure in earthen vessels so that not only death but the glory of the Lord may be manifested in our lives. That is somewhat what we are experiencing; while we are keenly feeling the drama of so many very difficult situations, Providence is also taking super good care of us,” Piñero emphasized.“If God is looking after us now in this situation, why would he fail me tomorrow? If he is doing so now, then I believe trust is what sustains us in these moments, and not blind trust, but a trust we can tangibly feel here and now,” he explained, referring to the help provided by so many volunteers and donors.‘The Lord is going through this evacuation with us’One of the areas hardest hit by the fire is the Tiétar Valley, home to the town of Rozas de Puerto Real and the minor seminary of the Diocese of Getafe, where 130 students, 35 of whom are seminarians, normally study.The facility, currently spared by the flames, is in grave danger. A summer camp was taking place there until participants had to be evacuated on July 25, the feast of St. James the Apostle. “We were already surrounded by smoke and had to evacuate all the young people; it was done very quickly. In less than 25 minutes, the entire seminary had been cleared, and although there was great fear, everyoneʼs efforts made it possible,” Father Eliert Jerez, rector of the minor seminary, told ACI Prensa.In addition to the people, they removed the statues of the Immaculate Conception and St. Joseph, the archives, and the tabernacles containing the Blessed Sacrament from the site; these were taken to Villaviciosa de Odón, where Jerez is currently taking shelter. Father Eliert Jerez, rector of the minor seminary of the Diocese of Getafe in Spain | Credit: Nicolás de Cárdenas/ACI Prensa The moment the Body of Christ was being moved was captured on video. “I canʼt get that moment out of my head, and I donʼt want to let it go from my heart either,” the priest shared.“When you hold the Blessed Sacrament in your hand, when you can’t wear a cope or liturgical vestments — you realize the Lord’s closeness in those moments. You realize that the Lord was going through this evacuation with us, and I imagine he was also in this prayer and this plea for it to end,” he added.It’s precisely in prayer that they are finding great comfort: “Prayer is working real miracles such as the fact that the seminary has not yet been engulfed by the flames,” explained the rector, even as the burden of responsibility weighs heavily on him: “Many of our seminarians are going to be left homeless. Many of our seminarians will face immense difficulties in continuing their formation.”It’s not just for their sake that Jerez is aware of how this situation will transform life in the region for years to come: “So many towns have been affected. Many people will not get their jobs back because they make their living from the land, and that is very difficult to recover from. Many people have lost not only their homes but also their prospects for the future, and this is a reality that will stay with us in the years ahead.”Indeed, he admitted to his deep unease: “I have had trouble sleeping ever since the first flames appeared.”This story was first published by ACI Prensa, the Spanish-language sister service of EWTN News. It has been translated and adapted by EWTN News English.

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Amid the destructive forest fires in central Spain, the Catholic Church is ministering to the evacuees, providing material aid, shelter, a listening ear, and the sacraments.

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Catholic parents of Texas flood victims share witness to faith amid grief #Catholic The parents of Blair and Brooke Harber, the Catholic sisters who died in the 2025 Texas Hill Country flash floods, shared how their faith has sustained them through the tremendous grief and how they are honoring their daughters' legacy.Blair Harber, 13, and Brooke Harber, 11, who attended St. Rita Catholic School in Dallas, were among the victims of the Texas Hill Country flash floods that devastated parts of the state on July 4, 2025.“I would say after a year, itʼs almost more difficult than it has been," RJ Harber said in an interview with host Catherine Hadro on “EWTN News In Depth” alongside his wife, Annie Harber.“The depth of the grief does not go away. It actually enhances, because this is your reality now, and you understand your children are actually gone,” he said.“Now there is comfort knowing that they are in heaven, and we did our job as parents to prepare them to get them there. But our love for them was so deep that the grief that we have is just tremendous,” he said.The family was vacationing with RJ Harber’s parents, Mike and Charlene Harber, on the Guadalupe River near Hunt, Texas, when the floods occurred.The flash flood raised the river more than 22 feet in half an hour in the early morning hours of July 4, dislodging and carrying away the sisters’ cabin, in which they were staying with their grandparents.Harbers have ‘leaned heavily’ on Catholic faithAnnie and RJ Harber detailed the challenges of navigating such a profound loss. They shared how it tested their faith, while also relying on that same faith to carry them through the past year.It was “really important to us to instill the Catholic faith and values in our girls,” Annie Harber said. “But … after all of this, I definitely questioned God and was angry at God” and “didnʼt understand why, or how, this could happen to us.”“We have leaned on each other and our faith to get us up every morning,” she said. “I think for me, truly, when I wake up, I tell myself Iʼm one day closer to seeing the girls, because we know theyʼre in heaven and our goal is to ultimately get there. So we have to continue to live by the Catholic faith and our values that we taught the girls.”“I think weʼre still alive because of our faith,” RJ Harber said. “God can accept anger, but he can also help us carry this cross. And the Church has rallied around us.”“We found the girls on Saturday, July 5, and we went to Mass Sunday, July 6. It was probably the most difficult thing Iʼve ever done. But thatʼs because we want to follow the commandments,” he said, citing the Third Commandment to keep holy the Sabbath. “So weʼve leaned heavily … on our Catholic faith,” he said.RJ Harber, who also lost his parents in the disaster, said his “daughters were their greatest joy.” His parents attended “every single sporting event” of their granddaughters.The girls “were their only grandchildren, so they just doted on them,” he said. “My father was suffering from Parkinsonʼs disease, but he would just want me to drive him to Brooke’s softball game and watch her pitch, or ask to watch Blair play soccer.”“We find solace in the fact that theyʼre watching over our girls in heaven and are just thankful that theyʼre there with them now,” he said.‘The faith was very important to our girls’As Annie and RJ Harber have relied on their faith through their grief, they detailed the importance the Catholic faith played in their daughters’ lives as well.“Not only did they go to Catholic school, but we would go to Mass every Sunday,” RJ Harber said. “It was instrumental in our lives.”RJ reflected on his daughter Blair’s faith, sharing that she prayed the rosary “every single night.” Two weeks before the tragedy, “her rosary beads broke and she asked to borrow mine, which I received when I converted to the Catholic faith, and took those down to the river with her.”“So we know that she died with those beads in her hands, and with Mary and God protecting her, in those last moments,” he said. So we know that she died with those beads in her hands, and with Mary and God protecting her, in those last moments.” RJ Harber “We prayed every single night. And we still pray with them every single night,” RJ said.“Prayer has been instrumental. We get messages from all over the world about people praying for us. And I think thatʼs helping us share the girls with the world. And honestly I think God, through the Holy Spirit, is using our daughters to bring people closer to the faith,” he said.The couple said they have heard from several people who have returned to Mass and confession since hearing the sisters’ story.“Weʼve received … messages about people converting to the Catholic faith because of Brooke and Blair. So their work is not done in this world — itʼs only beginning.”The Blair & Brooke Harber Beloved Sisters FundSince losing their daughters, Annie and RJ have started a fund to continue to honor their daughters through The Blair & Brooke Harber Beloved Sisters Fund.The fund, set up through The Catholic Foundation of Texas, supports flood and disaster relief efforts and aids Catholic after-school activities, including after-school education and Catholic sports.Blair and Brooke “played lacrosse and there is a large barrier to entry into lacrosse,” RJ Harber said. “So weʼve been able to get hundreds of sticks donated, hundreds of goggles donated, and have allowed girls to come and try lacrosse for the first time who would otherwise never try it.”“This February, we hosted an event. Over 200 girls came out and tried the sport for the first time. So these kindergartners, first graders, second graders are looking up to our girls and carrying their life forward. And I just think thatʼs a beautiful thing to see,” he said.
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Catholic parents of Texas flood victims share witness to faith amid grief #Catholic The parents of Blair and Brooke Harber, the Catholic sisters who died in the 2025 Texas Hill Country flash floods, shared how their faith has sustained them through the tremendous grief and how they are honoring their daughters' legacy.Blair Harber, 13, and Brooke Harber, 11, who attended St. Rita Catholic School in Dallas, were among the victims of the Texas Hill Country flash floods that devastated parts of the state on July 4, 2025.“I would say after a year, itʼs almost more difficult than it has been," RJ Harber said in an interview with host Catherine Hadro on “EWTN News In Depth” alongside his wife, Annie Harber.“The depth of the grief does not go away. It actually enhances, because this is your reality now, and you understand your children are actually gone,” he said.“Now there is comfort knowing that they are in heaven, and we did our job as parents to prepare them to get them there. But our love for them was so deep that the grief that we have is just tremendous,” he said.The family was vacationing with RJ Harber’s parents, Mike and Charlene Harber, on the Guadalupe River near Hunt, Texas, when the floods occurred.The flash flood raised the river more than 22 feet in half an hour in the early morning hours of July 4, dislodging and carrying away the sisters’ cabin, in which they were staying with their grandparents.Harbers have ‘leaned heavily’ on Catholic faithAnnie and RJ Harber detailed the challenges of navigating such a profound loss. They shared how it tested their faith, while also relying on that same faith to carry them through the past year.It was “really important to us to instill the Catholic faith and values in our girls,” Annie Harber said. “But … after all of this, I definitely questioned God and was angry at God” and “didnʼt understand why, or how, this could happen to us.”“We have leaned on each other and our faith to get us up every morning,” she said. “I think for me, truly, when I wake up, I tell myself Iʼm one day closer to seeing the girls, because we know theyʼre in heaven and our goal is to ultimately get there. So we have to continue to live by the Catholic faith and our values that we taught the girls.”“I think weʼre still alive because of our faith,” RJ Harber said. “God can accept anger, but he can also help us carry this cross. And the Church has rallied around us.”“We found the girls on Saturday, July 5, and we went to Mass Sunday, July 6. It was probably the most difficult thing Iʼve ever done. But thatʼs because we want to follow the commandments,” he said, citing the Third Commandment to keep holy the Sabbath. “So weʼve leaned heavily … on our Catholic faith,” he said.RJ Harber, who also lost his parents in the disaster, said his “daughters were their greatest joy.” His parents attended “every single sporting event” of their granddaughters.The girls “were their only grandchildren, so they just doted on them,” he said. “My father was suffering from Parkinsonʼs disease, but he would just want me to drive him to Brooke’s softball game and watch her pitch, or ask to watch Blair play soccer.”“We find solace in the fact that theyʼre watching over our girls in heaven and are just thankful that theyʼre there with them now,” he said.‘The faith was very important to our girls’As Annie and RJ Harber have relied on their faith through their grief, they detailed the importance the Catholic faith played in their daughters’ lives as well.“Not only did they go to Catholic school, but we would go to Mass every Sunday,” RJ Harber said. “It was instrumental in our lives.”RJ reflected on his daughter Blair’s faith, sharing that she prayed the rosary “every single night.” Two weeks before the tragedy, “her rosary beads broke and she asked to borrow mine, which I received when I converted to the Catholic faith, and took those down to the river with her.”“So we know that she died with those beads in her hands, and with Mary and God protecting her, in those last moments,” he said. So we know that she died with those beads in her hands, and with Mary and God protecting her, in those last moments.” RJ Harber “We prayed every single night. And we still pray with them every single night,” RJ said.“Prayer has been instrumental. We get messages from all over the world about people praying for us. And I think thatʼs helping us share the girls with the world. And honestly I think God, through the Holy Spirit, is using our daughters to bring people closer to the faith,” he said.The couple said they have heard from several people who have returned to Mass and confession since hearing the sisters’ story.“Weʼve received … messages about people converting to the Catholic faith because of Brooke and Blair. So their work is not done in this world — itʼs only beginning.”The Blair & Brooke Harber Beloved Sisters FundSince losing their daughters, Annie and RJ have started a fund to continue to honor their daughters through The Blair & Brooke Harber Beloved Sisters Fund.The fund, set up through The Catholic Foundation of Texas, supports flood and disaster relief efforts and aids Catholic after-school activities, including after-school education and Catholic sports.Blair and Brooke “played lacrosse and there is a large barrier to entry into lacrosse,” RJ Harber said. “So weʼve been able to get hundreds of sticks donated, hundreds of goggles donated, and have allowed girls to come and try lacrosse for the first time who would otherwise never try it.”“This February, we hosted an event. Over 200 girls came out and tried the sport for the first time. So these kindergartners, first graders, second graders are looking up to our girls and carrying their life forward. And I just think thatʼs a beautiful thing to see,” he said.

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Blair Harber, 13, and Brooke Harber, 11, were among the victims of the Texas Hill Country flash floods that devastated parts of the state last year.

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Abortion count rises as women turn to chemical abortions, per new data #Catholic The U.S. abortion count continues to rise even as travel abortions decrease, a recent study found.The Guttmacher Institute, a data group that openly supports abortion access, documented a decrease in people leaving their own state to get abortions in other states. Instead, abortion seekers turn toward mail-order abortions, which have seen a surge in recent years.The group tracks abortions monthly, following trends “in the post-Dobbs era” since 2023, according to Guttmacher data scientist and study lead Isaac Maddow-Zimet. The data indicated an overall increase in abortions from 2025 to 2026. “In the first three months of 2026, there were 296,130 abortions as compared to 292,590 in the first three months of 2025,” data scholar Michael New told EWTN News. “This is an increase of just over 1%.”New said this fact has gone underreported.“Most media outlets that are reporting on the Guttmacher data have not reported on this, but the number of abortions continues to rise,” said New, who is a senior associate scholar at Charlotte Lozier Institute, a group that studies data relating to the pro-life cause.“These rising abortion numbers are an important reason why pro-lifers are frustrated with the Trump administration’s lack of action on telehealth abortions,” continued New, who also works as a professor at the Busch School of Business at The Catholic University of America.The Trump administration has neglected to enforce various regulations — such as the Comstock Act or in-person prescription requirements — that could be groundbreaking for protecting unborn children from chemical abortions.From 2024 to 2025, travel abortions declined by nearly 8%. Scholars agree that mail-order abortion is the reason for the decline in abortion travel.“Currently, we are seeing a major shift in where and how people access abortion,” Maddow-Zimet said. “While travel remains a critical pathway to care, we have seen a decrease in people leaving their state of residence, likely due to both the growth of telehealth access and fewer options for in-person care in the South and Southeast.”New also cited chemical abortions as the draw away from travel abortions. “The main reason for this decline in out-of-state travel is because of the rising number of telehealth abortions,” New said. “The most recent data from the Society for Family Planning shows that approximately 27% of all abortions are done by telehealth.”In Florida, the study also found a near tripling of abortion travel by Floridians after the state passed a heartbeat law to protect unborn babies; at the same time, fewer people traveled to Florida to obtain abortions due to this law.“The national decline [in travel abortions] might have been even larger had Florida not started enforcing a Heartbeat Act in 2024,” New said. “Because of this strong pro-life law, far fewer women residing in southern states traveled to Florida for abortions.”Texas has also seen a decline in Texans traveling to get abortions.  “This trend is seen at the state level,” New continued. “Between 2024 and 2025 the number of Texas women obtaining abortions in other states fell by 19%.”Mail-order abortion is pro-life priorityAdvocates for unborn children highlighted the importance of opposing chemical abortions and protecting unborn children across state lines. Abortion continues to rise with the increase in mail-order abortions.Kelsey Pritchard, Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America spokeswoman, called for protections of unborn children across state lines.“We need a national minimum standard to ensure children across America have basic human rights and the chance at life, regardless of their zip code,” Pritchard told EWTN News.“Nine states and the District of Columbia still have no gestational limits whatsoever on abortion, allowing abortion up to the moment of birth, with late-term abortion centers purposely located within range of pro-life state borders,” Pritchard said. “This is barbaric and extreme, and it places the United States in the same category as communist countries like China and Vietnam on abortion.”“While stopping the ‘Wild West’ of unregulated abortion by mail is our immediate priority, both issues underscore the urgent need for national action to protect unborn children and their mothers,” Pritchard said. “Abortion travel is down overall, but mail-order abortions are surging and driving the national total up to an estimated 1.1 million abortions per year — more than the day Roe was reversed,” Pritchard said. “Every single month, approximately 15,000 babies in the womb die from mail-order abortion drugs in states with pro-life laws, while women and girls are poisoned and coerced by abusers who obtain these drugs online without so much as an ID check.”Kristi Hamrick, Students for Life spokeswoman, questioned the data, noting that there is no reporting requirement for abortion.“I find it extraordinary that the abortion industry reports so much data that is accepted as gospel, despite the fact that we canʼt verify it,” Hamrick said. “We have no national abortion reporting law, and while this data will be broadly reported, every point of data from pro-life sources is treated as suspect.”Guttmacher collects monthly data from brick-and-mortar facilities and telehealth providers, according to the study methodology.The nature of mail-order abortion pills makes it harder to accurately track the number of the abortions in the U.S. as the pills are highly unregulated and some companies operate outside of the U.S. healthcare system.“The landscape of abortion is shifting, from brick-and-mortar abortion vendor to online pill pushers, so less driving, if that is true, does not mean less abortion,” Hamrick said.For Students for Life, “fighting chemical abortion pills” is a priority.Through pregnancy help centers, maternity homes, and other programs, the pro-life movement continues to encourage women to choose life.“But what is happening in real time is that many are reaching out to women online and in their communities to encourage and support them in choosing life, while we also have to confront a new abortion cartel,” Hamrick said.
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Abortion count rises as women turn to chemical abortions, per new data #Catholic The U.S. abortion count continues to rise even as travel abortions decrease, a recent study found.The Guttmacher Institute, a data group that openly supports abortion access, documented a decrease in people leaving their own state to get abortions in other states. Instead, abortion seekers turn toward mail-order abortions, which have seen a surge in recent years.The group tracks abortions monthly, following trends “in the post-Dobbs era” since 2023, according to Guttmacher data scientist and study lead Isaac Maddow-Zimet. The data indicated an overall increase in abortions from 2025 to 2026. “In the first three months of 2026, there were 296,130 abortions as compared to 292,590 in the first three months of 2025,” data scholar Michael New told EWTN News. “This is an increase of just over 1%.”New said this fact has gone underreported.“Most media outlets that are reporting on the Guttmacher data have not reported on this, but the number of abortions continues to rise,” said New, who is a senior associate scholar at Charlotte Lozier Institute, a group that studies data relating to the pro-life cause.“These rising abortion numbers are an important reason why pro-lifers are frustrated with the Trump administration’s lack of action on telehealth abortions,” continued New, who also works as a professor at the Busch School of Business at The Catholic University of America.The Trump administration has neglected to enforce various regulations — such as the Comstock Act or in-person prescription requirements — that could be groundbreaking for protecting unborn children from chemical abortions.From 2024 to 2025, travel abortions declined by nearly 8%. Scholars agree that mail-order abortion is the reason for the decline in abortion travel.“Currently, we are seeing a major shift in where and how people access abortion,” Maddow-Zimet said. “While travel remains a critical pathway to care, we have seen a decrease in people leaving their state of residence, likely due to both the growth of telehealth access and fewer options for in-person care in the South and Southeast.”New also cited chemical abortions as the draw away from travel abortions. “The main reason for this decline in out-of-state travel is because of the rising number of telehealth abortions,” New said. “The most recent data from the Society for Family Planning shows that approximately 27% of all abortions are done by telehealth.”In Florida, the study also found a near tripling of abortion travel by Floridians after the state passed a heartbeat law to protect unborn babies; at the same time, fewer people traveled to Florida to obtain abortions due to this law.“The national decline [in travel abortions] might have been even larger had Florida not started enforcing a Heartbeat Act in 2024,” New said. “Because of this strong pro-life law, far fewer women residing in southern states traveled to Florida for abortions.”Texas has also seen a decline in Texans traveling to get abortions.  “This trend is seen at the state level,” New continued. “Between 2024 and 2025 the number of Texas women obtaining abortions in other states fell by 19%.”Mail-order abortion is pro-life priorityAdvocates for unborn children highlighted the importance of opposing chemical abortions and protecting unborn children across state lines. Abortion continues to rise with the increase in mail-order abortions.Kelsey Pritchard, Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America spokeswoman, called for protections of unborn children across state lines.“We need a national minimum standard to ensure children across America have basic human rights and the chance at life, regardless of their zip code,” Pritchard told EWTN News.“Nine states and the District of Columbia still have no gestational limits whatsoever on abortion, allowing abortion up to the moment of birth, with late-term abortion centers purposely located within range of pro-life state borders,” Pritchard said. “This is barbaric and extreme, and it places the United States in the same category as communist countries like China and Vietnam on abortion.”“While stopping the ‘Wild West’ of unregulated abortion by mail is our immediate priority, both issues underscore the urgent need for national action to protect unborn children and their mothers,” Pritchard said. “Abortion travel is down overall, but mail-order abortions are surging and driving the national total up to an estimated 1.1 million abortions per year — more than the day Roe was reversed,” Pritchard said. “Every single month, approximately 15,000 babies in the womb die from mail-order abortion drugs in states with pro-life laws, while women and girls are poisoned and coerced by abusers who obtain these drugs online without so much as an ID check.”Kristi Hamrick, Students for Life spokeswoman, questioned the data, noting that there is no reporting requirement for abortion.“I find it extraordinary that the abortion industry reports so much data that is accepted as gospel, despite the fact that we canʼt verify it,” Hamrick said. “We have no national abortion reporting law, and while this data will be broadly reported, every point of data from pro-life sources is treated as suspect.”Guttmacher collects monthly data from brick-and-mortar facilities and telehealth providers, according to the study methodology.The nature of mail-order abortion pills makes it harder to accurately track the number of the abortions in the U.S. as the pills are highly unregulated and some companies operate outside of the U.S. healthcare system.“The landscape of abortion is shifting, from brick-and-mortar abortion vendor to online pill pushers, so less driving, if that is true, does not mean less abortion,” Hamrick said.For Students for Life, “fighting chemical abortion pills” is a priority.Through pregnancy help centers, maternity homes, and other programs, the pro-life movement continues to encourage women to choose life.“But what is happening in real time is that many are reaching out to women online and in their communities to encourage and support them in choosing life, while we also have to confront a new abortion cartel,” Hamrick said.

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The abortion count is rising as women rely more on mail-order chemical abortions, according to the most recent data.

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Ann Teresa O’Neill, healed in Seton canonization miracle, dies at 78 #Catholic Ann Teresa O’Neill, whose confirmed miracle led to the canonization of St. Elizabeth Ann Seton, died on July 17 at age 78.O’Neill, of Easton, Maryland, had leukemia as a child, and her cure was accepted for Seton’s path to sainthood in 1975.Archbishop William E. Lori of Baltimore will serve as the principal celebrant for O’Neill’s funeral Mass on July 25 at the Basilica of the National Shrine of St. Elizabeth Ann Seton in Emmitsburg, Maryland. Interment will follow on the grounds of the shrine.“Ann O’Neill spent more than seventy years answering questions about a miracle,” Rob Judge, executive director of the National Shrine of St. Elizabeth Ann Seton, said in a statement following her death. “Yet, if you talked with her for any length of time, you discovered she wasn’t really interested in talking about miracles.”“She wanted to talk about her mother’s faith. She wanted to talk about Mother Seton. Mostly, she wanted to talk about Jesus,” he said. She wanted to talk about her mother’s faith. She wanted to talk about Mother Seton. Mostly, she wanted to talk about Jesus. That may be the clearest evidence of why God chose her life to become part of one of the most important stories in American Catholic history.” Rob JudgeExecutive director of the National Shrine of St. Elizabeth Ann Seton “That may be the clearest evidence of why God chose her life to become part of one of the most important stories in American Catholic history,” he said.“The saints are like our friends,” O’Neill said in an interview with the Archdiocese of Baltimore’s Catholic Review in 2025. “Mother Seton was my mother’s friend. She’s my friend. And because we’re Catholic, we have a lot of friends in heaven.”Born on Oct. 7, 1947, O’Neill was the daughter of the late Felixena OʼNeill and the late William Richard OʼNeill.She is survived by her children, Joseph Hooe, Gerard Hooe, and Mary Alice Zawodny, and several grandchildren and great-grandchildren, a funeral notice said. She was preceded in death by her son Robert Eugene Hooe Jr. The miracle that helped Mother Seton become a saintBorn in Baltimore, O’Neill developed advanced leukemia as a young girl in 1952. Despite doctors trying every treatment, she grew more sick and her case was considered hopeless.During Holy Week, it was expected that the 4-year-old girl would pass within a few weeks.While her family prepared for her loss, Sister Mary Alice Fowler, supervisor of the children’s ward at St. Agnes Hospital, gave O’Neill’s mother prayers for Seton’s intercession and had her give them to relatives and friends.She pinned a cloth that had touched Seton’s remains to O’Neill’s hospital gown. Family members, friends, and other religious leaders began a novena for O’Neill.On Good Friday in 1952, with her daughter’s condition deteriorating, O’Neill’s mother took her to Mother Seton’s resting place in Emmitsburg — where Seton started the Sisters of Charity of St. Joseph, the first community for religious women established in the U.S., and the first Catholic school for girls.Against doctors’ wishes, O’Neill’s parents drove her to Emmitsburg, laid her on Seton’s tomb in the cemetery, and took her inside Mother Seton’s house where the saint had died of tuberculosis in 1821.Once her mother returned O’Neill to the hospital, doctors performed blood work and testing. On Easter Monday her blood count was normal. Constant tests over the following years showed her health to be normal.O’Neillʼs cure was accepted for Seton’s path to sainthood. Pope Paul VI officially canonized Mother Seton on Sept. 14, 1975, the ceremony for which O’Neill attended in Rome.
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Ann Teresa O’Neill, healed in Seton canonization miracle, dies at 78 #Catholic Ann Teresa O’Neill, whose confirmed miracle led to the canonization of St. Elizabeth Ann Seton, died on July 17 at age 78.O’Neill, of Easton, Maryland, had leukemia as a child, and her cure was accepted for Seton’s path to sainthood in 1975.Archbishop William E. Lori of Baltimore will serve as the principal celebrant for O’Neill’s funeral Mass on July 25 at the Basilica of the National Shrine of St. Elizabeth Ann Seton in Emmitsburg, Maryland. Interment will follow on the grounds of the shrine.“Ann O’Neill spent more than seventy years answering questions about a miracle,” Rob Judge, executive director of the National Shrine of St. Elizabeth Ann Seton, said in a statement following her death. “Yet, if you talked with her for any length of time, you discovered she wasn’t really interested in talking about miracles.”“She wanted to talk about her mother’s faith. She wanted to talk about Mother Seton. Mostly, she wanted to talk about Jesus,” he said. She wanted to talk about her mother’s faith. She wanted to talk about Mother Seton. Mostly, she wanted to talk about Jesus. That may be the clearest evidence of why God chose her life to become part of one of the most important stories in American Catholic history.” Rob JudgeExecutive director of the National Shrine of St. Elizabeth Ann Seton “That may be the clearest evidence of why God chose her life to become part of one of the most important stories in American Catholic history,” he said.“The saints are like our friends,” O’Neill said in an interview with the Archdiocese of Baltimore’s Catholic Review in 2025. “Mother Seton was my mother’s friend. She’s my friend. And because we’re Catholic, we have a lot of friends in heaven.”Born on Oct. 7, 1947, O’Neill was the daughter of the late Felixena OʼNeill and the late William Richard OʼNeill.She is survived by her children, Joseph Hooe, Gerard Hooe, and Mary Alice Zawodny, and several grandchildren and great-grandchildren, a funeral notice said. She was preceded in death by her son Robert Eugene Hooe Jr. The miracle that helped Mother Seton become a saintBorn in Baltimore, O’Neill developed advanced leukemia as a young girl in 1952. Despite doctors trying every treatment, she grew more sick and her case was considered hopeless.During Holy Week, it was expected that the 4-year-old girl would pass within a few weeks.While her family prepared for her loss, Sister Mary Alice Fowler, supervisor of the children’s ward at St. Agnes Hospital, gave O’Neill’s mother prayers for Seton’s intercession and had her give them to relatives and friends.She pinned a cloth that had touched Seton’s remains to O’Neill’s hospital gown. Family members, friends, and other religious leaders began a novena for O’Neill.On Good Friday in 1952, with her daughter’s condition deteriorating, O’Neill’s mother took her to Mother Seton’s resting place in Emmitsburg — where Seton started the Sisters of Charity of St. Joseph, the first community for religious women established in the U.S., and the first Catholic school for girls.Against doctors’ wishes, O’Neill’s parents drove her to Emmitsburg, laid her on Seton’s tomb in the cemetery, and took her inside Mother Seton’s house where the saint had died of tuberculosis in 1821.Once her mother returned O’Neill to the hospital, doctors performed blood work and testing. On Easter Monday her blood count was normal. Constant tests over the following years showed her health to be normal.O’Neillʼs cure was accepted for Seton’s path to sainthood. Pope Paul VI officially canonized Mother Seton on Sept. 14, 1975, the ceremony for which O’Neill attended in Rome.

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As a young girl, Ann Teresa O’Neill’s miraculous cure from leukemia was accepted as a miracle to advance St. Elizabeth Ann Seton’s path to sainthood.

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