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Jesse Jackson, civil rights activist who urged Vatican to address humanitarian crises, dies at 84 #Catholic Jesse Jackson, whose decades of activism included work in the Civil Rights Movement, two runs for the White House, and multiple meetings with Pope John Paul II, died on Feb. 17. He was 84 years old.His family announced his passing in a statement on social media. They described him as a “servant leader” with an “unwavering belief in justice, equality, and love.” Jackson had suffered health issues for several years, including a diagnosis of Parkinson’s disease in 2017.Born Jesse Burns in Greenville, South Carolina, on Oct. 8, 1941, Jackson was adopted by his mother Helen’s subsequent husband Charles Jackson, though he maintained a close relationship with his birth father, Noah Robinson.Taunts from local children about his out-of-wedlock birth reportedly instilled in Jackson a motive to succeed; he further cited his biological father’s example of a “strong healthy ego” and “sense of dignity” that led him to push for civil rights in what was then the heavily segregated Southern U.S.He was a member of the “Greenville Eight” who protested the city’s segregated library system in 1960. A protege of Martin Luther King Jr., he participated in the Selma-to-Montgomery marches and played early roles in the Southern Christian Leadership Conference. Jackson was present at King’s assassination at the Lorraine Motel in Memphis on April 4, 1968.He founded the social justice organization Operation PUSH — now Rainbow/PUSH — in 1971. He would eventually mount two campaigns for U.S. president, one in 1984 and one in 1988, both of which he lost.Earlier in his career Jackson had been an outspoken pro-life advocate, at one point even endorsing amending the U.S. Constitution to ban abortion, though in later decades he would pivot to aggressive support of abortion.He met with Pope John Paul II on three separate occasions in the 1980s and 1990s. In 1982 he urged the pontiff to advocate on behalf of Haitian refugees in the U.S., describing John Paul II as “the dominant force and moral authority in the world” at the time.He met with the pope again in 1985 and reportedly asked him to visit South Africa to protest apartheid, and again a third time in 1999 to urge the pontiff to advocate on behalf of three imprisoned CARE humanitarian workers in a Belgrade prison.Jackson is survived by his wife of 64 years, Jacqueline Lavinia Brown, and their five children. He is also survived by a daughter, Ashley, born to one of his former staffers in 1999.In a famed speech at the 1984 Democratic National Convention in San Francisco, Jackson reflected on his political career and acknowledged that he was “not a perfect servant” but “a public servant doing my best against the odds.” He told the crowd: “As I develop and serve, be patient: God is not finished with me yet.”“For leaders, the pain is often intense,” he said at the time. “But you must smile through your tears and keep moving with the faith that there is a brighter side somewhere.”

unitedyam February 17, 2026

The longtime activist was a fixture in U.S. politics for decades, including two presidential runs.

43 Catholic Democrats pledge migrant solidarity, invoke Leo XIV, Francis #Catholic More than 40 Catholic Democrats in the House of Representatives signed onto a statement of principles regarding immigration, which urged “solidarity” with migrants and cited Catholic social teaching and the visions of Pope Francis and Pope Leo XIV to back up their positions.The statement comes as the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) continues to speak out against indiscriminate mass deportations. Lawmakers are also negotiating an end to a partial government shutdown, which was spurred by debates about funding and potential reforms for immigration enforcement.“We feel called in solidarity to stand with immigrants — especially those who are poor, marginalized, or fleeing hardship — and to ensure they are treated with dignity, justice, and compassion,” the statement said.“As Catholics and elected officials, we believe that addressing long-standing inequities and expanding meaningful opportunities for immigrants is an essential part of our responsibility to community and to those most in need,” the lawmakers said.The statement was led by Rep. Rosa L. DeLauro, D-Connecticut, and signed by former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-California, and 41 other Catholic Democrats. No Republicans signed onto the statement.The Catholic Democrats said their position is rooted in three principles of Catholic social teaching on immigration: that people have a right to migrate to sustain their lives and the lives of their families, that nations have a right to regulate borders, and that all enforcement must be consistent with justice and mercy.In their statement, they said Jesus Christ “identifies with the migrant” when he says in Matthew 25:35: “I was … a stranger and you welcomed me.” They also cited Pope Leo XIV’s encyclical Dilexi Te, commenting on migration, in which he said the Church knows that “in every rejected migrant, it is Christ himself who knocks at the door of the community.”They quoted Pope Francis’ 2019 message for the World Day of Migrants and Refugees, in which the former pontiff said the Church’s response to immigration can be summed up in four verbs: “welcome, protect, promote, and integrate.”The statement recognizes that regulations on immigration are legitimate, citing the Catechism of the Catholic Church, which teaches that “political authorities, for the sake of the common good for which they are responsible, may make the exercise of the right to immigrate subject to various juridical conditions.”“Catholic social teaching approaches migration with realism: It affirms the right of persons to seek safety and opportunity while recognizing the legitimate authority of nations to regulate their borders,” they said. “Sound immigration policy is ordered, humane, and sustainable, balancing solidarity with prudence in service of human dignity and the common good.”The Catholic Democrats said, however, that border enforcement “is never a license for cruelty, indifference, or dehumanization” but instead “must be governed by justice and mercy.” They accused Immigrations and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Customs and Border Protection (CBP) of having “failed this moral standard.”“Their actions have separated families, removed law-abiding individuals from our communities, and, tragically, contributed to the deaths of detained migrants and citizens like Renee Good and Alex Pretti,” the statement read.The Catholic Democrats, in their statement, said their position on immigration is “guided by a living Catholic tradition that affirms the dignity of every human life.” Despite the USCCB having called “the threat of abortion” its “preeminent priority” in the 2024 election, the Democratic Party supports abortion access, identifying abortion as an essential component of health care.Negotiating ICE, CBP reformsThe signatories called on Congress to “bear the Church’s teachings in mind” when considering reforms to ICE and CBP, which are being negotiated.On Feb. 14, the government entered into a partial shutdown when Congress did not reach an agreement on funding for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), which operates both ICE and CBP.Many Democrats are proposing reforms that would restrict immigration enforcement as a condition of approving funds. Some have gone further, calling for the abolition of ICE altogether.Catholic administration officials have rejected the Democrats’ characterization that immigration enforcement has violated the human dignity of migrants.In December 2025, border czar Tom Homan told EWTN News that “we treat everybody with dignity.” He said “the most humane thing you can do is enforce the law, secure the border, because it saves lives” and asserted that the administration targets criminals and cited its work to combat fentanyl and sex trafficking.Nathaniel Madden, principal deputy assistant secretary for communications at DHS, told EWTN News in November 2025 that detainees “are going to be treated like a person, and your dignity is going to be respected.” He said dignity and immigration enforcement are compatible and “we have to take into account that laws were broken.”In January, U.S. citizens Pretti and Good were both shot and killed by federal immigration officers in separate incidents in Minneapolis.In November 2025, the USCCB issued a special message that opposed “the indiscriminate mass deportation of people” and called for an end to “dehumanizing rhetoric and violence, whether directed at immigrants or at law enforcement.” The message was approved by a vote of 216-5.

unitedyam February 16, 2026

Catholic U.S. House Democrats cited Church teaching in defense of the dignity of migrants as Trump administration officials defend immigration enforcement.

Lawmakers urge White House to restore visas for international adoptions #Catholic Lawmakers are urging the Trump administration to offer government exceptions for international adoption visas so that children can be united with their adoptive families and “welcomed into safe and stable homes.”U.S. Sens. Kevin Cramer and Amy Klobuchar, along with U.S. Reps. Robert Aderholt and Danny Davis, asked the Department of State to restore a “categorical exemption for adoption visas,” one that was suspended in December 2025 amid government travel restrictions on certain countries.The suspension of the visas “has introduced uncertainty for children and American parents who have waited years for their adoptions to be completed and were preparing to bring their children home,” the lawmakers said.The letter cited Department of State guidance from 2025 that acknowledged that adoption “involves children in need — some in urgent need — of a loving, permanent home and family.”In that guidance the State Department acknowledged the need to “vigorously engage at both the policy and case levels to protect the interests of all parties involved.”“We strongly urge you to advocate for the restoration of the categorical exemption for adoption visas,” the lawmakers said, calling on the department to “move expeditiously to address this situation to ensure these children are united with their adoptive parents.”Difficulty of international adoption changes with governmentsKatie Dillon, a spokeswoman for Commonwealth Catholic Charities in Virginia, said international adoptions “typically follow clear, predictable steps,” though she said the process is “lengthy.”Like many Catholic charity groups, Commonwealth Catholic Charities offers adoptive families a variety of resources and services to facilitate in both domestic and international adoptions. Dillon said the Virginia group “acts as the home study provider and post-placement agency” for families seeking to adopt from other countries.Such adoptions “can be a difficult process that ebbs and flows with global policy shifts,” she said. “It can be a challenging process for families to navigate.”“Families interested in international adoption work with an in-state agency like Commonwealth Catholic Charities to complete their home study and an international agency to help with the placement of the child,” she said.Child placement agencies must be accredited by the Hague Adoption Convention of 1993, an international accord that established protections for children in international adoptions. Such agencies “have programs in certain countries to legally assist a family in the adoption of a child from that country,” Dillon said.Though there are numerous resources that prospective adoptive families can utilize to help them in their journey, Dillon said international adoption “is often a long process that can take upwards of three or four years.” Some countries can require parents to reside in the country in question for anywhere from several months to a year, she said.Amid the uncertainty at the federal level, Dillon stressed that the difficult process is at times upended by elections in which government rules can shift without warning.“Parents who are considering international adoption should be aware that adoption policies can change abruptly with changes in government leadership,” she said. “There are no guarantees.”

unitedyam February 16, 2026

“Adoption visas are not guaranteed” amid a travel freeze, said lawmakers who have asked the State Department to restore a “categorical exemption for adoption visas.”

Catholic thinkers, tech experts reflect on promise and perils of AI at New York Encounter #Catholic NEW YORK — How can Catholic social teaching guide us in weighing the benefits of artificial intelligence against the dangers it poses to human dignity? That question animated a wide-ranging discussion among Catholic thinkers and technology experts at the New York Encounter on Saturday.Citing Pope Leo XIV’s call to use AI responsibly as well as the Church’s historic defense of human dignity in the face of modern technology, Davide Bolchini, moderator and dean of the Luddy School of Informatics at Indiana University, opened the discussion before an audience of several hundred people gathered for the three-day cultural conference in New York City.“The pope encouraged us to use AI responsibly, to use it in a way that helps us grow, not to let it work against us, but to let it work with us, not to substitute human intelligence, not to replace our judgment of what’s right … our ability of authentic wonder,” Bolchini said.With technology rapidly advancing, Bolchini asked, how can the Church stay ahead of these challenges?Chuck Rossi, an engineer at Meta who is developing AI-driven content moderation technology at the technology conglomerate, which includes Facebook and Instagram, argued that in his work, developments in AI have been instrumental in safeguarding human beings from harm. AI systems, he said, can examine 2.5 billion pieces of of shared online content per hour, filtering harmful material including nudity and sexual activity, bullying and harassment, child endanger, dangerous organizations, fake accounts, hateful conduct, restricted goods and services, spam, suicide and self-injury, violence and incitement, and violent and graphic content.“That’s my world,” he said. “It’s a very, very hard problem. If we miss 0.1% of 2. 5 billion, that’s millions of things that we didn’t want to be seeing. But we do an excellent job, and we have for years — we’re one of the best at it,” Rossi said.Using AI also protects human content moderators from being exposed to disturbing material, as they were in the past.“The good thing that we are giving back to humans is you never have to do this horrible work,” he said.Paul Scherz, professor of theology at the University of Notre Dame, acknowledged the benefits of AI, which he said included advances in medicine and efficiency for tasks like billing (“Nobody wants to do billing,” he said).But Scherz warned of the dangers of relying on technology to do what is intrinsically human.“We are really starting to turn to AI as people more broadly for these relational aspects, which would be tragic because there is something in that human-to-human connection, the ‘I/thou connection,’ as Martin Buber called it, that is irreplaceable by a machine,” Scherz said. He noted that AI has even moved into ministry, with the rise of Catholic apps relying on bots to offer catechesis.Scherz also cautioned that substituting AI for human interaction and intelligence risks eroding our skills, whether in relationships or in professional life.“My fear is as we use these chatbots more and more we will lose those person-to-person skills. We’ll no longer be able to engage one another as well, or have the patience and virtue to deeply love and encounter one another,” Scherz said.In addition, relying on AI in our work, for example, when a doctor consults AI to make a diagnosis, will result in our “de-skilling,” he said. “We know that people, when they’re using automated systems, they tend to just become biased and complacent and just approve the automated system. They lose their skills,” he said, adding that airline pilots who rely too much on autopilot are more prone to making errors.Louis Kim, former vice president of personal systems and AI at Hewlett-Packard who is currently pursuing graduate studies in theology and health care, pointed out that it’s not possible to know today what skills will be required in the future.“My personal view is I often find that predictions of impacted technology are largely unconsciously based on what we know of the current paradigm and structure and technologies,” Kim said.“There are going to be skills needed to control AI that are going to be different,” he said.Kim also called for “humility” in discussions about AI’s potential to affect human relationships.“Let’s ask ourselves about the quality of our current human relationships, whether it’s in the workplace, in toxic cultures, sometimes at home — even at conferences, at your next break, as you go around talking to this person [or] that person, how many times that person is looking over your shoulder for the more important person to talk to?” he said.Our moral formation, he said, will continue to shape the quality of our encounters with others.

unitedyam February 15, 2026

“The pope encouraged us to use AI responsibly, to use it in a way that helps us grow, not to let it work against us, ” said Davide Bolchini, the moderator of an AI panel at the weekend conference.

Slowing of religious decline points to ‘shifting’ faith landscape, experts say at New York Encounter #Catholic Recent claims of an emerging religious revival in the West may overstate the case, but there are clear signs that belief in God is rising, experts said Saturday at the New York Encounter, the annual conference hosted by members of Communion and Liberation.Speaking at the gathering, Chip Rotolo, a research associate at the Pew Research Center, cited data showing that religious affiliation in the United States has declined steadily for decades. Yet recent findings from Pew’s Religious Landscape Study have offered reasons for cautious optimism among those concerned about the nation’s secularization.According to Pew’s data, the share of U.S. adults identifying as Christian (63%) is down from 2007 levels (78%) but has held steady since 2020.

Panelists Brandon Vaidyanathan, Chip Rotolo, Lauren Jackson, and Justin Brierley speak on the panel “Hungry for Belonging” at New York Encounter on Saturday, Feb. 14, 2026. | Credit: Jeff Bruno

“The fact that the religious decline we’re so used to seeing is leveled off is a huge shift,” Rotolo said, noting that recent data shows that the number of Americans who are religiously affiliated, attend church, and pray daily have “been very stable.”He noted that this stabilization began during the COVID-19 pandemic, when many might have expected religious participation to drop as churches closed and communities were forced to rethink worship and parish life.“If you already had one foot out the door at your church, it would have been easy to step away,” Rotolo said. “But we’ve seen this remarkable stability. That has drawn a lot of attention, curiosity, and hope.”A second key finding has further fueled interest. According to Pew’s research, 92% of Americans express some form of spiritual outlook — meaning they believe in at least one of the following: that people have souls, that God exists, that there is something spiritual beyond the natural world, or that there is an afterlife.

Attendees listen to the panel “Hungry for Belonging” at New York Encounter on Saturday, Feb. 14, 2026. | Credit: Jeff Bruno

“Something is definitely shifting in American religious life,” Rotolo said. “We can disagree and continue figuring out exactly what that is, but it’s certainly an interesting time to study.”Also speaking at the panel was Justin Brierley, author of “The Surprising Rebirth of Belief in God.” Brierley said that although there have been questions raised about the methodology of surveys showing an increase in religiosity in the West, there has been a noticeable cultural shift away from the “New Atheism” popularized in the early 2000s by figures such as Richard Dawkins, author of “The God Delusion.”By the 2010s, Brierley said, he began to see public intellectuals acknowledging Christianity’s formative role in shaping Western civilization. Some, he added, have gone further — openly professing religious belief.He pointed to the conversion of the Somali-born Dutch and American writer Ayaan Hirsi Ali, who in late 2023 published a viral essay titled “Why I’m Now a Christian.”“When she came out with that article, it made a lot of people say, ‘If Ayaan Hirsi Ali — arguably one of the most prominent former atheists in the world — has changed her mind, it could happen to anyone,’” Brierley said.Lauren Jackson, a religion columnist at The New York Times, said her outlet recently launched a series titled “Believing,” inspired in part by Pew’s findings on religious life in America.“We took all this data together and made the claim that Americans haven’t found a satisfying alternative to religion,” Jackson said. Through interviews and surveys, she added, many in the U.S. have expressed “an intense desire for belonging, for meaning, for community, for connection to the transcendent.”That desire, however, is not always expressed within the walls of a church. The series has explored other avenues through which Americans seek spiritual meaning and communal identity, including the growing popularity of saunas and the sense of belonging fostered by soccer communities.While the speakers stopped short of declaring a religious revival at work, they agreed that the current moment reflects a significant shift — one marked by a renewed openness to faith and the enduring human search for transcendence.Brierley noted that to most people the once-popular atheists’ arguments in favor of science and technology as an alternative to religion haven’t been convincing.“I think as we’ve lost the Christian story in the modern West, it has led to people looking for other stories to make sense of their life. I think some people did for a while reach for the atheist materialist story,” he explained.“When you look at where culture has actually gone and the science and technology we put in, it turns out we have made ourselves unhappier,” he said.

unitedyam February 14, 2026

According to Pew data, the share of U.S. adults identifying as Christian is down from 2007 levels but has held steady since 2020.

Patient advocate on passage of New York assisted suicide bill: ‘Reexamine your consciences’ #Catholic In spite of opposition from Catholic bishops and patient advocate groups, New York Gov. Kathy Hochul on Feb. 6 signed a bill to legalize physician-assisted suicide in the Empire State.Assisted suicide is already legal in California, Colorado, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Maine, New Jersey, New Mexico, Oregon, Vermont, Washington, and Washington, D.C.Hochul, a Catholic, had already announced she would sign the bill once “guardrails” were added — specifically, laws to allow faith-based hospice providers to opt out of offering assisted suicide.The Catholic bishops had urged Hochul not to pass the bill, saying that it undermined her own work on anti-suicide programs.“How can any society have credibility to tell young people or people with depression that suicide is never the answer, while at the same time telling elderly and sick people that it is a compassionate choice to be celebrated?” the bishops said in a recent statement.The Catholic Church is outspokenly opposed to euthanasia and assisted suicide. In the Catechism of the Catholic Church, the Church condemns assisted suicide and euthanasia, instead encouraging palliative care, which means supporting patients with pain management and care as the end of their lives approaches. Additionally, the Church advocates for a “special respect” for anyone with a disability or serious health condition (CCC, 2276).Any action or lack of action that intentionally “causes death in order to eliminate suffering constitutes a murder gravely contrary to the dignity of the human person and to the respect due to the living God, his Creator” (CCC, 2277).“We call on Catholics and all New Yorkers to reject physician-assisted suicide for themselves, their loved ones, and those in their care,” the bishops continued. “And we pray that our state turn away from its promotion of a culture of death and invest instead in life-affirming, compassionate hospice and palliative care, which is seriously underutilized.”“While physician-assisted suicide will soon be legal here in New York, we must clearly reiterate that it is in direct conflict with Catholic teaching on the sacredness and dignity of all human life from conception until natural death and is a grave moral evil on par with other direct attacks on human life,” the New York bishops said.Hochul said the law, which goes into effect 180 days after its signing, gives New Yorkers “the choice to endure less suffering.”“Our state will always stand firm in safeguarding New Yorkers’ freedoms and right to bodily autonomy, which includes the right for the terminally ill to peacefully and comfortably end their lives with dignity and compassion,” Hochul said in the Feb. 6 statement.“I firmly believe we made the right decision,” she concluded.A national disability rights group, the Patients’ Rights Action Fund, along with the New York Alliance Against Assisted Suicide, advocated against the law.Jessica Rodgers, a spokeswoman for the Patients Rights Action Fund, urged those behind the new law “to reexamine your consciences.”“New York’s assisted suicide law will turn some doctors and pharmacists into executioners,” Rodgers said in a statement shared with EWTN News. “It will turn coroners into liars by requiring them to provide false information about the cause of death for each person who chooses assisted suicide.”Rodgers noted that the bill “will do nothing to address New York’s low rates of hospice care use.”“Instead of doing the difficult work of making hospice care more accessible and helping to ease the pain of terminal illnesses, the governor has chosen to enact a law that will, likely, result in some New Yorkers’ premature deaths,” she said.“It will stigmatize and endanger the terminally ill, whose lives are deemed of so little worth by our governor that other New Yorkers will now be allowed to help them expedite their own deaths,” Rodgers continued.“It will encourage vulnerable people to view suicide as a legitimate response to suffering of all kinds; it could even raise the overall suicide rate,” she said. “It opens the door to future expansions of doctor-assisted death, like those we have seen in Canada in recent years.”“Finally, it willfully ignores the fact that physicians’ estimates of their patients’ life expectancies can be mistaken, and that such mistakes could lead people to choose assisted suicide when they could otherwise have gone on living for years,” Rodgers concluded.

unitedyam February 9, 2026

In spite of opposition from Catholic bishops and patient advocate groups, Gov. Kathy Hochul signed into law physician-assisted suicide in New York.

Pope Leo XIV appoints Bishop James Golka to lead Archdiocese of Denver #Catholic Colorado Springs Bishop James Golka will lead the Archdiocese of Denver after Archbishop Samuel Aquila steps down from the post, the Vatican announced on Feb. 7.Aquila — who at 75 has reached the customary retirement age for prelates — has led the Colorado archdiocese since 2012, when he was appointed by Pope Benedict XVI. He was ordained in that archdiocese in 1976 and previously served as the bishop of Fargo, North Dakota.In a “farewell thank you” letter published on Feb. 7, Aquila said his heart was “filled above all with gratitude” as he prepares to enter retirement. “From the beginning of my ministry here, I have been convinced that the Lord is at work among us, calling us ever more deeply to conversion, communion, and mission,” the archbishop told the archdiocese. Aquila prayed that Golka would be “strengthened by your prayers, encouraged by your collaboration, and sustained by the grace of the office he will receive.” Golka has lead the Colorado Springs Diocese since 2021 after being appointed there by Pope Francis.Born Sept. 22, 1966, in Grand Island, Nebraska, Golka obtained philosophy and theology degrees at Creighton University. He served as a Jesuit lay missionary volunteer for the Native American Missions in South Dakota before attending St. Paul Seminary in Minnesota. After obtaining master’s degrees in divinity and sacramental theology, he was ordained in the Diocese of Grand Island on June 3, 1994. During his time in the Grand Island Diocese he served in various capacities, including as director of diocesan youth, chair of the personnel board, director of ongoing formation of clergy, and on the presbyteral council.Upon being named as bishop of Colorado Springs in 2021, Golka said he aimed to help the faithful “become fascinated by the Lord.”“I’m fascinated by Jesus Christ,” Golka said at the time. “It’s a gift that God gave me as a boy. I remember as a second-grader getting my first children’s Bible. I loved reading the stories of Jesus.”He was consecrated as a bishop on June 29, 2021.The Archdiocese of Denver will host a press conference on Feb. 7 at 12 p.m. EST to introduce Bishop-designate Golka. Watch the press conference here.

unitedyam February 7, 2026

The Holy Father accepted the resignation of Archbishop Samuel Aquila, the Holy See announced on Feb. 7.

Seattle, Boston archbishops make friendly wager ahead of 2026 Super Bowl #Catholic It’s become an annual tradition for the Catholic bishops from the two cities sending teams to the Super Bowl to make a friendly wager before the big game to benefit Catholic nonprofits in the teams’ cities.As the New England Patriots and the Seattle Seahawks prepare to play in the Super Bowl on Feb. 8, Archbishop Richard G. Henning of Boston and Archbishop Paul D. Etienne of Seattle discussed this year’s wager with EWTN News.The two archbishops said the weekend will be fun for fans across the nation but acknowledged it comes amid a tense time in the United States with ongoing debates and division surrounding immigration.“I think this is an important moment, obviously, of unity. This is a shared cultural moment, hopefully a moment for people to gather, be with friends and family, a joyful thing,” Henning said. “But at the same time, we don’t want to forget that there are other realities in our world and suffering; [we want to] be attentive to that as well.”“It’s a situation that requires attentiveness and sensitivity,” Etienne said. With the “tradition of a friendly wager between the bishops of the teams, Archbishop Henning and I just simply wanted to acknowledge that we do realize we got more important matters that we are being attentive to,” he said.“But at the same time, we recognize the great role that sports and relaxation play in the lives of our people, too.”The pair decided the wager this year would be a $500 donation to Catholic charities that have a particular focus on the care and support of immigrants.Preparing for a ‘joyful’ gameEtienne discussed how putting aside differences and coming together is an advantage that sports and recreation can bring.“Healthy competition is a part of so many aspects of human life, and it’s good for people to have something to take their minds off of other matters in their world and in their lives to just relax. And hopefully, the outcome of the game will still allow everybody watching it and participating to still be relaxed and joyful at the performance of their teams,” he said.The 60th Super Bowl marks the second time the Seahawks and Patriots will compete in the championship game. In 2015, the Patriots defeated the Seahawks at the 49th Super Bowl. Despite the loss, Etienne said “there is definitely a better performance on the way this year” for Seattle’s team.Etienne said Seattle players see it as a “good omen” that in the 21st century, every time a new pope has been elected, the Seahawks made it to the next Super Bowl.When Pope Benedict XVI was elected in April 2005, the Seahawks played in the Super Bowl in February 2006. Then Pope Francis was elected in March 2013, and the Seahawks played in the Super Bowl in 2014. In May 2025, Pope Leo XIV was elected and now Seattle’s team is once again in the championship game.While Henning has only been in Boston a little over a year after moving from New York, he said he is “absolutely a fan” of the New England Patriots and said they are “a great team.”“This is a team that unites New England and Boston. It’s a team that is committed to young people in our communities. They give a great example of hard work, resilience, discipline, and the team is very generous in going out into our communities among our young people, helping them with their sports programs,” Henning said.“It’s a great team, a great management, a great coach who’s a wonderful witness of Catholic faith, Coach [Mike] Vrabel. So, I’m very much a fan of them in every way,” Henning said.The teams are schedule to compete on Sunday, Feb. 8, at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, California.

unitedyam February 6, 2026

Seattle and Boston archbishops place a wager ahead of the Super Bowl while also acknowledging the big game comes amid a difficult time for many across the nation.

U.S. government reminds public schools to allow prayer #Catholic Public schools in the United States are required by the U.S. Constitution to allow students and staff to pray, the government said this week, with the Trump administration reminding educators that they must neither impose nor generally forbid prayer in school facilities. The government issued the guidance on Feb. 5, with U.S. Department of Education Office of the Secretary Chief Counsel Josh Kleinfeld writing that schools in general should “allow the individuals who make up a public school community to act and speak in accordance with their faith.”Schools must adopt a “stance of neutrality” regarding faith, the guidance says, with educators required to allow personal religious conduct so long as it does not infringe upon the rights of other students and the school itself does not show favoritism to one religion or another.U.S. President Donald Trump announced the guidance ahead of its release on Feb. 5, telling attendees at the 2026 National Prayer Breakfast that he expected the document to incur lawsuits. “We’ll win it,” Trump anticipated. Students, employees allowed to express religious beliefsDetailing a history of Supreme Court decisions involving free speech and religious expression in schools, the guidance offers “concrete scenarios” in which schools are required to accommodate religious expression.Among them include instances where students “pray privately and quietly by themselves” and cases where students “dress in accordance with their religious faith,” such as wearing crosses, yarmulkes, or headscarfs. Support for religious student groupsSchools are also required to support religious student groups “on the same terms” they support nonreligious groups. Public schools “may not sponsor or organize compulsory prayer” at school functions, the guidance notes, but schools are also required to allow participants to engage in prayer at such events provided they do not coerce other attendees or “speak on behalf of the school.” Teachers and staff themselves, meanwhile, “do not forfeit their First Amendment rights at the schoolhouse gate and need not pray behind closed doors.” School employees “must be permitted to pray while at work on the same terms as students.”The guidance distances itself from what it described as the “legally unsound” principle of a “wall of separation” between church and state.Rather, it advances what it says is “a stance of neutrality among and accommodation toward all faiths, and hostility toward none,” which it describes as “deeply rooted in our nation’s history, traditions, and constitutional law.”Though the guidance itself is ultimately reflective of years of settled court precedent, it offers another indication of the Trump administration’s proactive support for religious liberty and practice in the U.S.At the 2026 National Prayer Breakfast, Trump announced that the government will hold an event, titled “Rededicate 250,” on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., on May 17 “to rededicate America as one nation under God.”“We’re inviting Americans from all across the country to come together on our National Mall to pray, to give thanks,” he said.In May 2025 the president established the Religious Liberty Commission, which has held hearings on religious liberty in education and the military.In December 2025, meanwhile, Trump became the first president in U.S. history to officially recognize the feast of the Immaculate Conception, acknowledging it as a “holy day honoring the faith, humility, and love of Mary, mother of Jesus and one of the greatest figures in the Bible.”

unitedyam February 6, 2026

Public schools in the United States are required by the U.S. Constitution to allow students and staff to pray, the government said this week.

Jonathan Roumie trades in Jesus sandals for dress shoes in new ‘wholesome’ rom-com #Catholic Jonathan Roumie, known for his role portraying Jesus in “The Chosen,” is trading in the sandals for dress shoes in a new movie titled “Solo Mio” to be released on Feb. 6.Roumie first appeared as Jesus in the hit series in 2019. In 2023, he took on the role of Lonnie Frisbee, an evangelical pastor, in the film “Jesus Revolution.” Now, Roumie is playing the role of Neil, a wannabe therapist, in his first non-faith-based role since taking on the role of Jesus Christ.“It was a lovely change of pace for me,” Roumie told EWTN News in an interview. “It was nice to play a character that is not shouldering the weight of the world.”“Solo Mio,” rated PG and taking place in Rome, is a romantic comedy starring Kevin James as Matt Taylor, an art teacher left at the altar in Rome who decides to go on his nonrefundable honeymoon despite no longer being in a relationship. Throughout his journey, he encounters fellow honeymooners Neil, played by Roumie, and Julian, played by Kim Coates, who offer friendship and advice.Roumie shared that he became friends with James, a practicing Catholic, during a Lenten spiritual retreat. Two years later, James reached out to Roumie to pitch him the idea of the movie.

Kevin James and Jonathan Roumie in “Solo Mio.” | Credit: Angel Studios

“I said, ‘I’d do anything you’re doing. Whatever you’re doing, if you want me in it, I’d be honored to be in it,” Roumie recalled. “Because I just love him, I love his heart, and I love who he is and getting to know him as a person and as a man of faith to me was like, ‘All right, whatever this guy’s doing I know it’s going to be — he’s got God at the center of his life, so I know it’ll be good no matter what.’”Reflecting on his character, Neil, and Jesus, Roumie pointed out a similarity the two share in that they “both have huge hearts.”“Neil wants to help people heal. That’s his thing. He’s a therapist and he wants to help people heal and so does Jesus. And so I think that’s where they can kind of connect in that way,” he added.Another major theme seen throughout the film is the importance of genuine male friendships — a theme also seen among Jesus and the disciples in “The Chosen.”Roumie said he believes portrayals of male friendships are important because “for whatever reason, culture or society or the world in its current state has driven culture to, I don’t know, paint this negative picture of what it means to be masculine and what it means to share brotherhood.”“I think it comes down to this detraction of masculinity. And the whole toxic masculinity thing I think was something adopted by the culture that became very pervasive over the last 10 years,” he added. “And so you’ve seen any image of men being just men, and like good men, just stripped from stories and stripped from culture as if that’s what people want to see. And I think it’s a gross mischaracterization of what it means to be a man.”The actor said he sees this new movie as a “real throwback to how stories used to be told and the kinds of movies that used to be made — they were just good films, with great stories, that were wholesome, and that were beloved by generations of fans.”Roumie admitted that he’s aware that there will be people who are “a little nervous to see it because they only want to see me as Jesus.”“To them I say: It’s OK. It’s going to be OK. You’re going to enjoy the film. It’s within the ethos of the projects that appeal to me. It’s within the ethos of the spirit of the work that I think God has put me on this Earth to do. It’s within the ethos of the mission and the ministry that I carry as an artist,” he said.

unitedyam February 6, 2026

“Solo Mio” will be released in theaters across the U.S. on Feb. 6.

Archbishop Wenski makes case for ‘permanent’ solution for Haitian refugees in U.S. #Catholic Archbishop Thomas Wenski of Miami is calling on Congress to find a “permanent” solution for Haitian refugees in the United States.On Feb. 2 a federal judge blocked the Trump administration from ending Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for hundreds of thousands of Haitian immigrants that was given in 2010. TPS provides eligible Haitians in the U.S. with protection from deportation and work authorization, due to ongoing safety concerns in Haiti.As Florida has the largest Haitian population in the country, Wenski said there is “relief” after the judge blocked the order. Ending TPS “would affect possibly 300,000 Haitians, not only here in South Florida but throughout the United States,” he said in an interview with “EWTN News Nightly.”“It’s not the final solution … because the administration, I think, has the intention of making an appeal, and what is given could be quickly taken away as well. While the Haitians are breathing a sigh of relief, at the same time, we realize that it’s a temporary relief.”Now, Wenski said, it is up to Congress “to step up to the plate and provide a more permanent solution to the plight of these Haitians.” The administration “is applying the laws as they understand them, but it is Congress that makes the laws.”“If the laws are unfair, unjust, or inadequate to the real needs of our country, then they should be changed, and that’s a prerogative of Congress. So I would urge Congress to step up to provide a solution, because the Haitians being forced back to Haiti with very perilous, dangerous conditions right now … puts their lives in danger.”The Haitians “leaving South Florida and other places in the United States so abruptly would cause great economic damage to the United States,” Wenski said. He detailed that Haitians in the U.S. with TPS are working gainfully, paying taxes, and participating in the economy.“It is also important to remember, these people have temporary protective status, which also grants them a work permit. They are not illegals. They’re not violating any law because they have been given a status by the government,” Wenski said.TPS status does put them “in limbo,” Wenski said. It “doesn’t provide any path to permanent residency. If they would leave the country, they would not be able to return.”Concerns in HaitiAs the U.S. State Department tells Americans not to travel to Haiti, when “the Trump administration puts a travel ban, trying to stop people from Haiti,” it “shows the perilousness of the country conditions,” Wenski said.“For instance, the capital city, where there’s about 3 million people residing, is in the hands of gangs,” he said. “Here’s a country that has its school system in disarray because gangs make it impossible for kids to go to school.”Wenski also highlighted the issue of “almost nonexistent health care” as “doctors have been forced to flee and hospitals have been closed” in the country.“It is a place where there is no rule of law, no government, where these gangs and other criminals operate with impunity. For many people, the only lifeline that they have that allows them to survive is the remittances, small as they might be, that the Haitians in the United States are sending home to support families,” Wenski said.“It’s a real problem, not only in Haiti, but the Caribbean region,” Wenski said. He specifically noted Mexico, Venezuela, Colombia, and Ecuador.“We see the drugs that are being transported into Europe from Asia and also Africa. It is a worldwide problem. What I think we have to recognize is that the poorest people are not the ones that are driving the problem. They are the victims of the problem.”The Haitians in the U.S. seeking refuge and protection “did not create the problems, but they were the ones that have been victimized by the problems,” Wenski said. “We have to be careful that we don’t blame the victims because it’s easier to do that sometimes because they don’t have the strength to oppose us,” Wenski said.

unitedyam February 5, 2026

The Haitians “leaving South Florida and other places in the United States so abruptly would cause great economic damage to the United States,” Archbishop Thomas Wenski said.

Bishop offers guidance amid ‘staggering’ mental health crisis, especially among the young #Catholic “In talking to my pastors, it became crystal clear that there really is a crisis right now regarding mental health and emotional well-being, and in a special way for young people,” Bishop Michael Burbidge of the Diocese of Arlington, Virginia, told EWTN News in an interview discussing a pastoral letter he issued recently. “The scale and scope of this crisis are staggering,” he said in the letter titled “The Divine Physician and a Christian Approach to Mental Health and Wellbeing.” Burbidge explained that he hopes “to offer encouragement and guidance, in light of the teachings of Christ and the Gospel, to all who wish to confront and overcome the modern world’s challenges to mental health and well-being.”With depression now the leading cause of disability worldwide, and 1 in 5 American adults experiencing mental health challenges each year, according to the National Alliance on Mental Illness, which the bishop cites in his letter, Burbidge told EWTN News that “there’s a real pastoral need for mental health counseling, and my pastors told me they don’t have the expertise” that many families need.The importance of counselors with a Christian perspectiveMany Catholic parents and couples seek out counseling, he said, but often the counseling “isn’t coming from a Christian or Catholic understanding of the world, where persons are oriented to God and to authentic human relationships and the development of virtue.”Understanding the world through the lens of faith is “the crucial factor — even in circumstances where such faithfulness seems in the eyes of the wider world to be desperate, foolish, or even absurd. Faith and trust in God are shown to be the keys to everlasting health and well-being for humanity,” Burbidge wrote in his letter.Faith, he told EWTN News, “helps us to get a glimpse of heaven even now … If that’s not a part of the counseling being provided, it won’t bring about the healing we’re seeking.”Regarding efforts in his diocese, the bishop told EWTN News he formed a mental health commission about a year ago, on which sit experts in psychology, theology, and mental health counseling.He said with the commission’s help, he hopes to soon issue an extensive list of counselors who have been vetted and recommended for the Catholic faithful in his diocese.Father Charles Sikorsky, LC, the president of Divine Mercy University, a Catholic school that offers graduate degrees in psychology and clinical mental health and whose graduates work in various capacities in the Diocese of Arlington, told EWTN News that psychology cannot be addressed properly without a “a Christian view, a Catholic view of the person.”“We’re incarnational beings,” Sikorsky said, “so we need to address the human but also the spiritual dimension of the person, who needs to be treated in a holistic way.”“The word psyche comes from Greek and means soul,” he continued,” so psychology is the science of the soul, and Christ is the divine physician. Any way of looking at or treating people that doesn’t include the entirety of the interior, spiritual life is not going to work. If you reduce a human person to just biology or experiences, it’s not going to work.”Lack of community the ‘culprit’ in the crisisIn his letter, Burbidge named a lack of community as a culprit in the mental health crisis.“We must be willing to connect with others. We are made for community and find purpose when given the chance to cultivate authentic relationships with others and practice virtues like compassion,” he wrote.“As people of faith, Christians have a particular responsibility to address the stigmas that prevent people from seeking help and to remove barriers that keep so many stuck in patterns of isolation and misery,” he wrote.

Bishop Michael Burbidge of Arlington, Virginia, recently issued the pastor letter “The Divine Physician and a Christian Approach to Mental Health and Wellbeing.” | Credit: Courtesy of the Diocese of Arlington

Burbidge told EWTN News about community-building initiatives that leaders in his diocese have begun, especially since the isolation of the COVID-19 pandemic.“People learned quickly from COVID that being isolated, not being part of a caring fellowship, was a detriment to their growth and affected mental health,” he said.He described an increase in new programs throughout the Diocese of Arlington such as Bible studies, lectures, and programs such as That Man is You, a Catholic men’s leadership program.Sikorsky also cited a lack of connection and loneliness that are particularly prevalent in a society rife with “marriage and family breakdown” and in which technology separates people.“So many people are afraid to say they need help,” he said. “If the Church is what it needs to be and should be, it will be a place to experience a sense of belonging to something higher, where people can come to be loved and to be understood.”‘Suffering can be the cross’ that leads us to holinessThe bishop said that in addition to being in communion with others, those suffering from mental health problems must also realize they are beloved children of God, and their “severe distress, depression, or whatever it is, does not define who you are.”“You’re a child of God — that never changes,” Burbidge said. “Don’t identify yourself with that suffering.”“You don’t necessarily need to run away from the suffering, however,” he continued. “That could be the cross that can lead you to holiness. It doesn’t have to completely disappear for you to be well. Maybe you can get help, and still live a healthy, balanced life living with the anxiety or whatever it is you’re struggling with. If it causes a little suffering, it can be united to the Lord’s, and you can see it as a path to holiness.”Sikorsky echoed the bishop, telling EWTN News: “Our dignity is rooted in being children of God. Your dignity is much more than your struggle or the difficulties that you’ve had.”Burbidge is the latest American Catholic bishop to draw attention to the widening mental health crisis in the United States. In 2025, ahead of World Mental Health Day in October, the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) announced an addition to its ongoing National Catholic Mental Health Campaign.“As pastors, we want to emphasize this point to anyone who is suffering from mental illness or facing mental health challenges: Nobody and nothing can alter or diminish your God-given dignity. You are a beloved child of God, a God of healing and hope,” the U.S. bishops said at the time.

unitedyam February 4, 2026

In a recent pastoral letter, Bishop Michael Burbidge addressed what he sees as a “crisis” in mental health among Catholics, especially the young, and seeks to remove stigma over seeking help.

$Catholic colleges among best and worst for pro-life support, report finds #Catholic Some Catholic colleges ranked among the best for pro-life support for women, while others were among the worst for their ties to abortion clinics, a recent report found.In an audit of more than 700 Christian colleges and universities, the Christian Schools Project found that 1 in 7 Christian colleges referred students to Planned Parenthood for health care or future jobs, among other pro-abortion “infractions.”The report by Demetree, a branch of Students for Life of America (SFLA), called the Catholic connection to the abortion industry “shocking.”“Most shockingly, a portion of Catholic schools have forsaken their Christian values,” the report read, citing the Catechism of the Catholic Church’s teaching on abortion.One in 10 Catholic colleges had ties to abortion clinics, and about 25% of all the infractions were by Catholic universities.“Despite this, Catholic schools also had 24 ‘A+’ schools: the most of any denomination,” the report continued.The lowest grade an institution could receive was an “F” and the highest an “A+.”Among the Catholic schools receiving an “F” was Villanova University in Pennsylvania — Pope Leo’s alma mater, where he was known for his involvement in the pro-life club in his days at the university.Other Catholic schools that received a “F” included Boston College in Massachusetts; Carroll College in Montana; Loyola Marymount University in California; Sacred Heart University in Connecticut; Santa Clara University in California; Seattle University in Washington; St. Catherine University in Minnesota; University of Detroit Mercy in Michigan; and University of San Diego in California. Catholic colleges that received a “D” grade included Mount Saint Mary’s University in California; Saint Louis University in Missouri; and St. John Fisher University in New York.Paradoxically, Catholic colleges were also among the best schools for pro-life values and made up more than half of the top 10 best schools in the report.These schools don’t just avoid ties to Planned Parenthood but provide pregnancy support for student mothers in need. Benedictine College students hold pro-life signs at the 2026 March for Life in Washington, D.C. | Credit: Isabella Wilcox/Benedictine College The schools that leadAt the center of campus at Benedictine College in Atchison, Kansas, sits a statue of an angel holding a child.Installed in 2017, the Memorial to the Unborn is one of the “unique” aspects of pro-life culture on Benedictine’s campus, according to spokesman Steve Johnson.Each year, busloads of students travel to Washington, D.C., for the March for Life. But before they leave, they place roses before the memorial. Before Benedictine College students head off to the March for Life in Washington, D.C., they place roses on the campus memorial for unborn children. | Credit: Isabella Wilcox/Benedictine College The student-led pro-life group, Ravens Respect Life, is a “major player” for the culture on campus, according to Johnson. The club helps fundraise for the local pro-life pregnancy resource center, while the campus ministry service team organizes volunteering. The pro-life culture is woven into classes as well, according to Johnson.“We have a pro-life School of Nursing and our graduates take that position out into the world and the hospitals and clinics at which they work,” he said.The school is also looking to further expand its pro-life medical education. Every year, busloads of students from Benedictine College in Atchison, Kansas, head to the March for Life in Washington, D.C. | Credit: Isabella Wilcox/Benedictine College “We are in the process of opening a proposed School of Osteopathic medicine,” Johnson said. “This new school will be the most pro-life medical school in the country and will focus on treating the whole person as a human being and not just treating the ailment.”At the University of Mary in North Dakota, a young woman carrying a toddler crossed the stage at graduation, shaking hands with the president, Monsignor James Shea, who gave the beloved baby Lucia a kiss on the cheek.Katie O’Meara (Chihoski) is one of several students who have received the support they need to complete their education as part of the university’s recently-launched maternity home program, the St. Teresa of Calcutta Community for Mothers, at the University of Mary. Student mom Katie O’Meara (Chihoski) walks the stage with her toddler, Lucia, by her side at commencement in 2024. Father Dominic Bouck, chaplain at the university, is pictured at left. | Credit: Mike McCleary/University of Mary Per a Jan. 27 announcement, the university has plans for a new residence hall following record enrollment, including a dedicated wing of the future hall for the maternity home.At UMary, motherhood doesn’t have to compete with education.“This St. Teresa of Calcutta Community for Mothers is a concrete expression of the University of Mary’s commitment to building a culture of life,” Vice President for Student Development Reed Ruggles told EWTN News. “It ensures that motherhood and higher education are not competing paths but complementary vocations.”As for the March for Life, “we treat it like a pilgrimage,” said Ed Konieczka, assistant director of University Ministry at the college.The university sends hundreds of students each year and even provides scholarships to help with the cost.Father Dominic Bouck, the University of Mary chaplain and director of University Ministry, told EWTN News that it comes down to formation.“The University of Mary forms its students for the whole of their lives so that they can learn to live well, then take this formation into their communities after graduation,” Bouck said. “We form them to be servant leaders so that they can go out and serve generously to all who need aid. We teach them the sanctity of human life through the Benedictine value of respect for persons and teach them to form community wherever they are at.”“As a Christian, Catholic, and Benedictine institution, the sanctity of human life is core to our beliefs, and we are not afraid to show that in our mission,” he continued.Belmont Abbey College, which also ranked in the top 10, has its own maternity home, MiraVia, as previously reported by EWTN News. University of Mary students hold a banner at the March for Life in Washington, D.C., on Jan. 23, 2026. | Credit: University of Mary student photographer Regina Turner Why Christian Schools Project?Though schools like Benedictine, University of Mary, and others stand out for their pro-life work, the report found that many colleges fall short of their Christian values. Project leaders call on readers to reach out to colleges and encourage them to live out these values.“It’s simple: Either stop promoting abortion or stop claiming to be Christian,” said SFLA spokeswoman Mary Mobley.Over the years of doing Christian Schools Project, researchers have seen growth. Since 2024, “56 infractions have been remedied” thanks to the project, according to organizers.“For some schools, they may be unaware of their ties to abortion,” Mobley told EWTN News. “This report offers a chance for them to cut those ties — and to reaffirm their support for life by promoting pro-life resources.”But the project is about more than just cutting ties with abortion providers. University of Mary student moms involved with the St. Teresa of Calcutta Community for Mothers, University of Mary’s program for moms. | Credit: Photo courtesy of University of Mary “Being pro-life doesn’t just mean being anti-abortion; it means coming alongside women and supporting them, providing them with the resources they need to choose life,” Mobley said.“Humans are made in the image of God, and because of that, they have inherent value and worth — and their lives cannot be disposed of for the convenience of others,” Mobley continued.“It’s vital that Christian schools come alongside pregnant and parenting women, showing them that they are valued, loved, and supported — offering them the resources they need to choose life,” Mobley said. University of Mary students attend the 2026 March for Life in Washington, D.C. | Credit: University of Mary student photographer Regina Turner$

unitedyam February 4, 2026

Some Catholic colleges ranked among the best for pro-life support for women, while others were among the worst for their ties to abortion clinics, according to a new report.

unitedyam January 23, 2026

Cardinal Seán O’Malley, archbishop emeritus of Boston, offers the homily at the closing Mass for the annual National Prayer Vigil for Life at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in Washington, D.C., on Jan. 23, 2026. | Credit: EWTN

Jan 23, 2026 / 10:34 am (CNA).

Cardinal Seán P. O’Malley said life is a “precious gift from a loving God” ahead of the 2026 annual March for Life.

O’Malley, archbishop emeritus of Boston, celebrated Mass on Jan. 23 before the March for Life, concluding the annual National Prayer Vigil for Life at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in Washington, D.C.

“I know that many of you are tired and have made many sacrifices to be here,” O’Malley said. “I assure you, you could not be doing anything more important than being here today. And your presence is not by accident. The Lord in his providence has brought all of us here today.”

The Mass featured prayers for the pro-life movement and provided a moment to strengthen commitment to defending human life ahead of the march.

“Abortion is the greatest moral crisis faced by our country and by our world. It’s a matter of life and death in a very grand scale," O’Malley said. “It’s been a joy and a privilege for me to be at every March for Life here in Washington for the past 53 years.”

“It’s such a joy to be with you here today in this March for Life. This is a pilgrimage for life, and it begins with prayer, here in Mary’s shrine. I thank God for all of you,” he said.

‘Life Is a gift’

O’Malley spoke about the 2026 March for Life theme: “Life Is a Gift.”

“What a powerful theme,” O’Malley said. “Sadly, life is not always seen as a gift. For some, it seems a burden or a curse.”

The cardinal detailed a recent poll that found “for the very first time in the history of our nation, the majority of Americans say they do not want to have children.” O’Malley called it “an alarming statistic.”

“Life is a gift, a gift given by a loving God,” he said. “Life is beautiful, especially when it is received with gratitude and love.”

We must “love as God loves,” O’Malley said. “We must love first, forgive first, give first. That’s why we’re here in this Mass for life.”

“We’re here because life is a gift. God has given us this precious gift. We must be grateful and express our gratitude by proclaiming the gospel of life,” he said.

Future of the pro-life movement

O’Malley, who has been active in the pro-life movement for decades, said the opposition once believed the pro-life advocates would “die off,” but “we’re still here, proclaiming the gospel of life.”

“Our mission is not a political crusade. It’s a response to God’s command to love and to care for each other. And God bless us, the crowd is getting younger and younger. You are beautiful,” he said.

To end abortion, “our task is not to judge others but to bring healing,” O’Malley said. We must be “gentle” like Jesus was with “the Samaritan woman, the poor, the tax collector, the adulterous woman, the good thief,” he said.

“Our task is to build a society that takes care of everybody, where every person counts, where every life is important. Political polarization, racism, economic injustice will only continue to fuel abortion in a post-Roe v. Wade world,” O’Malley said.

“Our world is wracked by divisions and violence. Pope Leo is inviting us to be messengers of unity and of peace. But we do not want to get in the way of the message,” O’Malley said.

“Together, we can protect and nurture that gift of life. We must look for opportunities to be apostles of life, building a civilization of love and ethic of care,” he said.

“The antidote to abortion is love. Love manifests in community, compassion, and solidarity. Life is a gift. Every person is a gift. Every person counts. All are important. Our mission is to work so that no child be left behind. Every baby will be welcomed, loved, cared for, nurtured, and protected,” he said.

“Thank God for the gift of life. Thank God for love. Thank God for you,” O’Malley concluded.

EWTN News’ coverage of the 2026 March for Life can be found here.

If you’re attending the March for Life, don’t forget to use #ewtnprolife on all your posts across X, TikTok, Instagram, and Facebook!

Want to relive interviews and special moments from the march? Visit ewtnnews.com/watch and subscribe to youtube.com/@EWTNNews for full coverage.

unitedyam January 22, 2026

Actor David Henrie in the new series “Seeking Beauty,” which airs on EWTN+. | Credit: EWTN Studios

Jan 22, 2026 / 12:00 pm (CNA).

Catholic figures gathered in Los Angeles on Jan. 16 for the premiere of “Seeking Beauty,” the first original series from EWTN Studios airing exclusively on the network’s brand-new streaming platform, EWTN+.

Here are five things to know about the new series and its host, actor David Henrie.

What is ‘Seeking Beauty’?

“Seeking Beauty” is a first-of-its-kind adventure documentary series that explores culture, architecture, food, art, and music, and aims to point viewers to the beautiful — and ultimately to the divine.

The series follows Henrie’s journey into the heart of Italy to explore what makes Italian culture one of the most beautiful in the world. It not only looks at the physical beauty of the country but also its spiritual richness.

Where can I watch it?

“Seeking Beauty” is available to watch exclusively on EWTN+, a free digital streaming platform that offers faith-based content. EWTN+ is available on RokuTV, GoogleTV, AppleTV, AmazonFireTV, and on EWTN.com.

Where does ‘Seeking Beauty’ take place?

The first season of “Seeking Beauty” takes place in several cities across Italy including Vatican City, Rome, Milan, Florence, and Venice.

Who is David Henrie?

Henrie is best known for his breakout role as Justin Russo on Disney Channel’s “Wizards of Waverly Place.” He grew up in a Catholic household with Italian heritage; however, Henrie’s early adult years were marked by what he has described as a relativistic and agnostic period. He has also spoken about how the successes of early fame left him feeling unfulfilled and searching for deeper meaning.

Henrie’s return to the Catholic faith was a profound personal transformation that he says began around age 21 or 22.

A significant influence came while working on the movie “Little Boy,” where conversations with Catholic cast members Kevin James and Eduardo Verástegui, as well as a visit to St. Michael Abbey in Orange County, California — including his first confession since childhood — played a pivotal role in rediscovering his faith.

Since then, Henrie has embraced his faith publicly and personally, integrating his beliefs into his family life, creative projects, and charity work, including serving as a brand ambassador for Cross Catholic Outreach and participating in mission trips that reflect his commitment to living out his faith. He is married and has three children.

Will there be another season of ‘Seeking Beauty’?

Yes! The second season of the series was filmed in Spain and is scheduled to premiere this fall.

Health spending bill would keep ban on tax-funded abortion #Catholic

An unborn baby at 20 weeks. | Credit: Steve via Flickr (CC BY-NC 2.0)

Jan 21, 2026 / 15:49 pm (CNA).
A federal health spending bill would impose a long-enforced ban on using taxpayer funds for elective abortion, known as the Hyde Amendment.The U.S. House is set to consider the bill this week, which would fund the departments of Labor, Education, and Health and Human Services. Lawmakers would need to pass spending bills in both chambers and send them to the White House by Jan. 30 or the government could face another partial shutdown.Republican President Donald Trump had asked his party to be “flexible” in its approach to the provision in a separate funding bill. According to a Jan. 19 news release from the Republican-led House Appropriations Committee, the Labor-HHS-Education spending bill includes the provision “protecting the lives of unborn children” known as the Hyde Amendment.The Hyde Amendment, which is not permanent law, was first included as a rider in federal spending bills in 1976. It was included consistently since then although some recent legislation and budget proposals have sometimes excluded it. The provision would ban federal funds for abortion except when the unborn child is conceived through rape or incest or if the life of the mother is at risk.Katie Glenn Daniel, director of legal affairs and policy counsel for Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America, said the amendment is “a long-standing federal policy that’s been included for the last five decades and is popular with the American people.”“Americans don’t want to pay for abortion on demand,” she said.Many Democratic lawmakers have sought to eliminate the rider in recent years, saying it disproportionately limits abortion access for low-income women. Former President Joe Biden reversed his longtime support of the Hyde Amendment in the lead-up to the 2020 election and refused to include it in his spending proposals, saying: “If I believe health care is a right, as I do, I can no longer support an amendment that makes that right dependent on someone’s zip code.” But Republicans successfully negotiated the rider’s inclusion into spending bills.In January 2025, Trump issued an executive order directing the government to enforce the Hyde Amendment. A year later, Trump urged Republicans to be “a little flexible on Hyde” when lawmakers were negotiating the extension of health care subsidies related to the Affordable Care Act. A White House spokesperson also said the president would work with Congress to ensure the strongest possible pro-life protections.The House eventually passed the extension without the Hyde Amendment after 17 Republicans joined Democrats to support the bill. The Senate has not yet advanced the measure, where the question of whether to include the Hyde Amendment has been a point of contention between Republicans and Democrats.In mid-January, Trump announced a plan to change how health care subsidies are disbursed. There was no mention of the Hyde Amendment in the White House’s 827-word memo.The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops has consistently lobbied for the inclusion of the Hyde Amendment in spending bills. On Jan. 14, the bishops sent a letter to Congress “to stress in the strongest possible terms that Hyde is essential for health care policy that protects human dignity.”“Authentic health care and the protection of human life go hand in hand,” the letter said. “There can be no compromise on these two combined values.”

unitedyam January 21, 2026

An unborn baby at 20 weeks. | Credit: Steve via Flickr (CC BY-NC 2.0)

Jan 21, 2026 / 15:49 pm (CNA).

A federal health spending bill would impose a long-enforced ban on using taxpayer funds for elective abortion, known as the Hyde Amendment.

The U.S. House is set to consider the bill this week, which would fund the departments of Labor, Education, and Health and Human Services. Lawmakers would need to pass spending bills in both chambers and send them to the White House by Jan. 30 or the government could face another partial shutdown.

Republican President Donald Trump had asked his party to be “flexible” in its approach to the provision in a separate funding bill. According to a Jan. 19 news release from the Republican-led House Appropriations Committee, the Labor-HHS-Education spending bill includes the provision “protecting the lives of unborn children” known as the Hyde Amendment.

The Hyde Amendment, which is not permanent law, was first included as a rider in federal spending bills in 1976. It was included consistently since then although some recent legislation and budget proposals have sometimes excluded it. The provision would ban federal funds for abortion except when the unborn child is conceived through rape or incest or if the life of the mother is at risk.

Katie Glenn Daniel, director of legal affairs and policy counsel for Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America, said the amendment is “a long-standing federal policy that’s been included for the last five decades and is popular with the American people.”

“Americans don’t want to pay for abortion on demand,” she said.

Many Democratic lawmakers have sought to eliminate the rider in recent years, saying it disproportionately limits abortion access for low-income women. Former President Joe Biden reversed his longtime support of the Hyde Amendment in the lead-up to the 2020 election and refused to include it in his spending proposals, saying: “If I believe health care is a right, as I do, I can no longer support an amendment that makes that right dependent on someone’s zip code.” But Republicans successfully negotiated the rider’s inclusion into spending bills.

In January 2025, Trump issued an executive order directing the government to enforce the Hyde Amendment. A year later, Trump urged Republicans to be “a little flexible on Hyde” when lawmakers were negotiating the extension of health care subsidies related to the Affordable Care Act. A White House spokesperson also said the president would work with Congress to ensure the strongest possible pro-life protections.

The House eventually passed the extension without the Hyde Amendment after 17 Republicans joined Democrats to support the bill. The Senate has not yet advanced the measure, where the question of whether to include the Hyde Amendment has been a point of contention between Republicans and Democrats.

In mid-January, Trump announced a plan to change how health care subsidies are disbursed. There was no mention of the Hyde Amendment in the White House’s 827-word memo.

The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops has consistently lobbied for the inclusion of the Hyde Amendment in spending bills. On Jan. 14, the bishops sent a letter to Congress “to stress in the strongest possible terms that Hyde is essential for health care policy that protects human dignity.”

“Authentic health care and the protection of human life go hand in hand,” the letter said. “There can be no compromise on these two combined values.”

Virginia bishops condemn proposed abortion amendment: ‘We will fight’ #Catholic

Bishop Michael Burbidge of Arlington and Bishop Barry Knestout of Richmond. | Credit: Katie Yoder/EWTN News; photo courtesy of the Archdiocese of Washington

Jan 18, 2026 / 08:00 am (CNA).
The Virginia Catholic bishops on Friday spoke out against an abortion amendment that would remove state protections for unborn children, calling the measure “extreme.”The Virginia General Assembly passed a proposed amendment that would add a fundamental right to abortion to Virginia’s constitution, if voters approve it this November.The proposed abortion amendment would establish a “fundamental right to reproductive freedom, including the ability to make and carry out decisions relating to one’s own prenatal care, childbirth, postpartum care, contraception, abortion care, miscarriage management, and fertility care.”Bishops Michael Burbidge of Arlington and Barry Knestout of Richmond called the move “shocking to the conscience,” noting that lawmakers quickly moved the proposed amendment through both chambers in the early days of its 60-day session.“The extreme abortion amendment, which will proceed to a referendum for voters to decide later this year, would go far beyond even what Roe v. Wade previously allowed,” the bishops said in the Jan. 16 statement. “It would enshrine virtually unlimited abortion at any stage of pregnancy, with no age restriction.”The bishops cautioned that the amendment would “severely jeopardize Virginia’s parental consent law, health and safety standards for women, conscience protections for health care providers, and restrictions on taxpayer-funded abortions.”“Most tragically of all, the extreme abortion amendment provides no protections whatsoever for preborn children,” the bishops continued.“Most importantly, human life is sacred,” the bishops said. “The lives of vulnerable mothers and their preborn children must always be welcomed, cared for, and protected.”“Parental rights and the health and well-being of minors must be defended,” the bishops said. “So too must religious liberty. No one should ever be forced to pay for or participate in an abortion. Health and safety should be enhanced, not diminished.”In addition, the bishops urged Virginia voters to oppose a measure that would repeal a 2006 provision defining marriage as between one man and one woman. The bishops also expressed support for a measure that would restore voting rights to those who have completed prison sentences.“We will be deeply engaged in the work of helping to educate voters on these proposed amendments and will fight the extreme abortion amendment with maximum determination,” the bishops concluded.The joint statement followed a statement by Burbidge, who on Jan. 15 urged Catholics to “to pray, fast, and advocate for the cause of life” amid the “looming threat” of the abortion amendment.“Prayer opens our hearts to God’s wisdom and strengthens us to act with courage and charity,” Burbidge wrote. “Fasting makes reparation for sin and reminds us that true freedom is found not in self-indulgence but in self-gift. Advocacy allows us to bring our convictions into the public square with respect, clarity, and perseverance.”“Our response as Catholics — and as citizens committed to justice — must be rooted in faith, truth, and love,” he continued.Burbidge also reminded Catholics of the mercy of the Church. “It is essential to reaffirm a truth that lies at the very center of the Church’s pro-life mission: The Church is a loving mother,” Burbidge continued. “To any man or woman who carries the pain, regret, or sorrow of participation in abortion, know this clearly — you are not alone, and God awaits you with love and mercy. The Church desires to walk with you on a journey of healing and hope.”“May we together pray fervently, act courageously, and serve generously,” Burbidge said. “May our witness help build a culture in Virginia — and beyond — that recognizes every human life as sacred, every person as beloved, and every moment as an opportunity to choose life.”

unitedyam January 18, 2026

Bishop Michael Burbidge of Arlington and Bishop Barry Knestout of Richmond. | Credit: Katie Yoder/EWTN News; photo courtesy of the Archdiocese of Washington

Jan 18, 2026 / 08:00 am (CNA).

The Virginia Catholic bishops on Friday spoke out against an abortion amendment that would remove state protections for unborn children, calling the measure “extreme.”

The Virginia General Assembly passed a proposed amendment that would add a fundamental right to abortion to Virginia’s constitution, if voters approve it this November.

The proposed abortion amendment would establish a “fundamental right to reproductive freedom, including the ability to make and carry out decisions relating to one’s own prenatal care, childbirth, postpartum care, contraception, abortion care, miscarriage management, and fertility care.”

Bishops Michael Burbidge of Arlington and Barry Knestout of Richmond called the move “shocking to the conscience,” noting that lawmakers quickly moved the proposed amendment through both chambers in the early days of its 60-day session.

“The extreme abortion amendment, which will proceed to a referendum for voters to decide later this year, would go far beyond even what Roe v. Wade previously allowed,” the bishops said in the Jan. 16 statement. “It would enshrine virtually unlimited abortion at any stage of pregnancy, with no age restriction.”

The bishops cautioned that the amendment would “severely jeopardize Virginia’s parental consent law, health and safety standards for women, conscience protections for health care providers, and restrictions on taxpayer-funded abortions.”

“Most tragically of all, the extreme abortion amendment provides no protections whatsoever for preborn children,” the bishops continued.

“Most importantly, human life is sacred,” the bishops said. “The lives of vulnerable mothers and their preborn children must always be welcomed, cared for, and protected.”

“Parental rights and the health and well-being of minors must be defended,” the bishops said. “So too must religious liberty. No one should ever be forced to pay for or participate in an abortion. Health and safety should be enhanced, not diminished.”

In addition, the bishops urged Virginia voters to oppose a measure that would repeal a 2006 provision defining marriage as between one man and one woman. The bishops also expressed support for a measure that would restore voting rights to those who have completed prison sentences.

“We will be deeply engaged in the work of helping to educate voters on these proposed amendments and will fight the extreme abortion amendment with maximum determination,” the bishops concluded.

The joint statement followed a statement by Burbidge, who on Jan. 15 urged Catholics to “to pray, fast, and advocate for the cause of life” amid the “looming threat” of the abortion amendment.

“Prayer opens our hearts to God’s wisdom and strengthens us to act with courage and charity,” Burbidge wrote. “Fasting makes reparation for sin and reminds us that true freedom is found not in self-indulgence but in self-gift. Advocacy allows us to bring our convictions into the public square with respect, clarity, and perseverance.”

“Our response as Catholics — and as citizens committed to justice — must be rooted in faith, truth, and love,” he continued.

Burbidge also reminded Catholics of the mercy of the Church.

“It is essential to reaffirm a truth that lies at the very center of the Church’s pro-life mission: The Church is a loving mother,” Burbidge continued. “To any man or woman who carries the pain, regret, or sorrow of participation in abortion, know this clearly — you are not alone, and God awaits you with love and mercy. The Church desires to walk with you on a journey of healing and hope.”

“May we together pray fervently, act courageously, and serve generously,” Burbidge said. “May our witness help build a culture in Virginia — and beyond — that recognizes every human life as sacred, every person as beloved, and every moment as an opportunity to choose life.”

How one woman’s unexpected pregnancy launched a pro-life group helping women in need #Catholic

A woman receives a baby shower at her local church through Embrace Grace. | Credit: Embrace Grace

Jan 18, 2026 / 06:00 am (CNA).
Amy Ford was 19 years old when she found herself with an unplanned pregnancy. Scared and thinking her life and dreams were over, she attempted to get an abortion but was unable to go through with it. Ford and the baby’s father turned to their church for support and received none. The experience led her to create Embrace Grace, a nonprofit that provides support and community through local churches for pregnant mothers in need.The story behind the ministryFord told EWTN News that she thought “my life was over, my dreams were over, that my parents were going to hate me.” She said she thought she would end up homeless. “The father of the baby felt the same way and we just thought we could have an abortion and maybe that’s a quick fix and we’ll just deal with the consequences of a broken heart later. And even though we grew up knowing abortion was wrong, we just kind of went into this mode of trying not to feel anything,” Ford recalled.So, she went to an abortion clinic. As the nurses explained what they were going to do during the procedure, Ford began to hyperventilate and passed out. She was told she was “too emotionally distraught” to make a decision and that she could go back to the abortion clinic another day.As she walked into the waiting room, she told the baby’s father that she was still pregnant. At that moment, the two decided they would keep the child. The high school sweethearts knew they wanted to get married one day; they just didn’t expect to have a child before marriage.The two went to an evangelical pastor whom they knew personally to ask him if he could marry them.“He said, ‘No, I’m sorry, because you sinned I will not bless this marriage,’” Ford shared.The couple found another pastor to marry them and got married when Ford was 16 weeks pregnant. They tried going back to their church after that but it was “the elephant in the room” — others changed how they interacted with them and they decided to stop attending church for a period of time.Ford and her husband welcomed their son — who is now 27 years old and also works in the pro-life movement — and have been married for 27 years, welcoming three more children after their firstborn.Amy Ford, founder of Embrace Grace. | Credit: Embrace GraceHelping womenLooking back at her experience, Ford felt called to help women who found themselves in these situations, not sure where to go, and weren’t aware of the resources available to them. So she started a small group at her church for women who were experiencing an unexpected pregnancy.Ford admitted that back then she didn’t know what a pregnancy center was or what the pro-life movement was.“If someone would have said, ‘I work in the pro-life movement,’ I would have assumed that meant picketing because that’s the only thing the media shows,” she admitted. “I didn’t know what a pregnancy center was even when I started Embrace Grace, the group. I didn’t know anything about it. So, I never thought, ‘I’m starting a pro-life group.’ That wasn’t even on my mind. I just wanted to start a small group for women that have unexpected pregnancies.”In 2008 Ford hosted her first group, which was made up of three women who met at a local church in the Dallas-Forth Worth area. After meeting for 12 weeks as a group, “they didn’t even seem like the same person by the end of it,” Ford recalled.“They had completely transformed. They were empowered as women to be the moms that God created them to be.”After the first group, Ford held another Embrace Grace session, and another and another. With each passing session, more and more young women were attending and slowly more and more churches were getting involved.Today, Embrace Grace is in over 1,200 churches across the country — mostly in evangelical, Baptist, and Catholic churches. A woman who joins an Embrace Grace group goes through a 12-week curriculum that aims to help her experience healing and remind her of who God made her to be as a daughter of God and a mother. Additionally, the church hosting the group throws each woman a baby shower.A woman receives a baby shower at her local church through Embrace Grace. | Credit: Embrace GraceEmbrace Grace also has two other programs: Embrace Life and Embrace Legacy. Embrace Life is a 20-week program that teaches the women more practical skills in terms of parenting, the newborn phase and postpartum, how to manage finances, and more. Embrace Legacy is a 12-week program aimed at new or single fathers.Ford hopes that Embrace Grace serves as a tool of “courage and the bridge to get them actually going to church and raising their kids in the church and being a part of a spiritual family.”The nondenominational nonprofit also works in partnership with local pregnancy centers that are within a 30-mile radius of a church that hosts an Embrace Grace group by giving them what they call “Love Boxes” to give women who find out they are pregnant and are seeking support. The Love Box contains a onesie with the words “Best Gift Ever,” a book called “A Bump in Life” — which contains 20 testimonies from women who chose life — a journal, a handwritten letter encouraging a new mother, and an invitation to join the local Embrace Grace group.Love Boxes are given to women at pregnancy centers after they find out they’re pregnant and are in search of support. | Credit: Embrace Grace“Because most pregnancy centers have sonogram machines, that means they’re medical, which means they have HIPAA laws that they have to abide by. So, they can’t just give the church the girl’s name,” Ford explained. “So these Love Boxes are kind of a way, another touch, for the mom to find out more … and that there’s a church that wants to walk alongside you.”Embrace Grace recently reached a milestone by giving out 150,000 Love Boxes since its launch in 2018.Looking ahead, Ford’s goal is to be in 23,400 churches. If that number sounds specific, that’s because it is. By using different tools, Ford and her team concluded that if they want every woman who finds herself in an unplanned pregnancy to be able to turn to a church for support, Embrace Grace needs to be in “23,400 churches strategically placed around the United States … so that no mom would ever have to walk alone.”“We are just putting it out there, trying to partner with as many churches as possible, so that we can make that happen,” she said. “That is our big dream. That that’s what the world would look like — that no mom would have to walk alone and that she would have a church to turn to in her local area.”“I believe in leading Embrace Grace, we have front-row seats to miracles.”

unitedyam January 18, 2026

A woman receives a baby shower at her local church through Embrace Grace. | Credit: Embrace Grace

Jan 18, 2026 / 06:00 am (CNA).

Amy Ford was 19 years old when she found herself with an unplanned pregnancy. Scared and thinking her life and dreams were over, she attempted to get an abortion but was unable to go through with it.

Ford and the baby’s father turned to their church for support and received none. The experience led her to create Embrace Grace, a nonprofit that provides support and community through local churches for pregnant mothers in need.

The story behind the ministry

Ford told EWTN News that she thought “my life was over, my dreams were over, that my parents were going to hate me.” She said she thought she would end up homeless.

“The father of the baby felt the same way and we just thought we could have an abortion and maybe that’s a quick fix and we’ll just deal with the consequences of a broken heart later. And even though we grew up knowing abortion was wrong, we just kind of went into this mode of trying not to feel anything,” Ford recalled.

So, she went to an abortion clinic. As the nurses explained what they were going to do during the procedure, Ford began to hyperventilate and passed out. She was told she was “too emotionally distraught” to make a decision and that she could go back to the abortion clinic another day.

As she walked into the waiting room, she told the baby’s father that she was still pregnant. At that moment, the two decided they would keep the child. The high school sweethearts knew they wanted to get married one day; they just didn’t expect to have a child before marriage.

The two went to an evangelical pastor whom they knew personally to ask him if he could marry them.

“He said, ‘No, I’m sorry, because you sinned I will not bless this marriage,’” Ford shared.

The couple found another pastor to marry them and got married when Ford was 16 weeks pregnant. They tried going back to their church after that but it was “the elephant in the room” — others changed how they interacted with them and they decided to stop attending church for a period of time.

Ford and her husband welcomed their son — who is now 27 years old and also works in the pro-life movement — and have been married for 27 years, welcoming three more children after their firstborn.

Amy Ford, founder of Embrace Grace. | Credit: Embrace Grace

Helping women

Looking back at her experience, Ford felt called to help women who found themselves in these situations, not sure where to go, and weren’t aware of the resources available to them. So she started a small group at her church for women who were experiencing an unexpected pregnancy.

Ford admitted that back then she didn’t know what a pregnancy center was or what the pro-life movement was.

“If someone would have said, ‘I work in the pro-life movement,’ I would have assumed that meant picketing because that’s the only thing the media shows,” she admitted. “I didn’t know what a pregnancy center was even when I started Embrace Grace, the group. I didn’t know anything about it. So, I never thought, ‘I’m starting a pro-life group.’ That wasn’t even on my mind. I just wanted to start a small group for women that have unexpected pregnancies.”

In 2008 Ford hosted her first group, which was made up of three women who met at a local church in the Dallas-Forth Worth area. After meeting for 12 weeks as a group, “they didn’t even seem like the same person by the end of it,” Ford recalled.

“They had completely transformed. They were empowered as women to be the moms that God created them to be.”

After the first group, Ford held another Embrace Grace session, and another and another. With each passing session, more and more young women were attending and slowly more and more churches were getting involved.

Today, Embrace Grace is in over 1,200 churches across the country — mostly in evangelical, Baptist, and Catholic churches.

A woman who joins an Embrace Grace group goes through a 12-week curriculum that aims to help her experience healing and remind her of who God made her to be as a daughter of God and a mother. Additionally, the church hosting the group throws each woman a baby shower.

A woman receives a baby shower at her local church through Embrace Grace. | Credit: Embrace Grace

Embrace Grace also has two other programs: Embrace Life and Embrace Legacy.

Embrace Life is a 20-week program that teaches the women more practical skills in terms of parenting, the newborn phase and postpartum, how to manage finances, and more. Embrace Legacy is a 12-week program aimed at new or single fathers.

Ford hopes that Embrace Grace serves as a tool of “courage and the bridge to get them actually going to church and raising their kids in the church and being a part of a spiritual family.”

The nondenominational nonprofit also works in partnership with local pregnancy centers that are within a 30-mile radius of a church that hosts an Embrace Grace group by giving them what they call “Love Boxes” to give women who find out they are pregnant and are seeking support. The Love Box contains a onesie with the words “Best Gift Ever,” a book called “A Bump in Life” — which contains 20 testimonies from women who chose life — a journal, a handwritten letter encouraging a new mother, and an invitation to join the local Embrace Grace group.

Love Boxes are given to women at pregnancy centers after they find out they’re pregnant and are in search of support. | Credit: Embrace Grace

“Because most pregnancy centers have sonogram machines, that means they’re medical, which means they have HIPAA laws that they have to abide by. So, they can’t just give the church the girl’s name,” Ford explained. “So these Love Boxes are kind of a way, another touch, for the mom to find out more … and that there’s a church that wants to walk alongside you.”

Embrace Grace recently reached a milestone by giving out 150,000 Love Boxes since its launch in 2018.

Looking ahead, Ford’s goal is to be in 23,400 churches. If that number sounds specific, that’s because it is. By using different tools, Ford and her team concluded that if they want every woman who finds herself in an unplanned pregnancy to be able to turn to a church for support, Embrace Grace needs to be in “23,400 churches strategically placed around the United States … so that no mom would ever have to walk alone.”

“We are just putting it out there, trying to partner with as many churches as possible, so that we can make that happen,” she said. “That is our big dream. That that’s what the world would look like — that no mom would have to walk alone and that she would have a church to turn to in her local area.”

“I believe in leading Embrace Grace, we have front-row seats to miracles.”

From Baptist pastor to Catholic priest: A unique journey to priesthood #Catholic

Father Travis Moger on the day of his ordination alongside his son, Mark; wife, Amelia; mother; and daughter, Maddy. | Credit: EWTN News screenshot

Jan 17, 2026 / 11:00 am (CNA).
Father Travis Moger has been a Catholic priest for just nine months, and his journey to ordination was a unique one. A former Baptist pastor and Navy chaplain, he was ordained in May 2025 in the Diocese of Wheeling-Charleston, West Virginia, seven years after he, his wife, and his son entered the Catholic Church.“I didn’t come into the Church in order to be a priest; God used prayer to draw me to the Catholic Church,” Moger told EWTN News reporter Julia Convery.During a military campaign as a Navy chaplain, Moger; his wife, Amelia; and his son, Mark, all separately began to feel the call toward Catholicism. While Moger was away, his wife had begun attending RCIA (Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults, which is now called OCIA — the Order of Christian Initiation of Adults).Father Thomas Falkenthal, Moger’s former Navy chaplain supervisor, witnessed the seeds being planted in Moger’s heart.“He was connecting with the liturgy. The Catholic Mass was certainly far from his tradition. I could tell it was touching him,” Falkenthal shared with Convery.“He didn’t realize it, but all the way back home in the United States his wife, Amelia, was going to RCIA and preparing to join the Catholic Church. So when he came home from that deployment, they both had something to share with each other. Now I think that’s an amazing movement of the Spirit to keep that couple so close," Falkenthal said.“It was definitely a God thing definitely to draw her towards the Catholic Church,” Moger added.After a five-year journey of study and conversion, Moger, his wife, and his son were received into the Catholic Church on Easter Sunday 2018.“I entered the Church not knowing if there would be a path to the priesthood for me,” Moger shared.Bishop Mark Brennan of the Diocese of Wheeling-Charleston explained that Pope Francis eventually granted Moger a dispensation from the usual requirement of celibacy for the Catholic priesthood, allowing him to be ordained a priest. The bishop also pointed out that he believes having a desire for a family is a trait that makes a good priest.“When I was a vocations director, I always looked for would this man make a good husband and father? If he would, then he’d probably make a good priest,” Brennan said.Moger also highlighted this trait as one that allows him to have a unique perspective into his now-spiritual fatherhood.“There’s something about being able to bring a child into the world and then nurture them and you’re fully invested in another person. And I think that experience does inform the way you look at spiritual fatherhood and the way you look at God’s fatherhood,” Moger said.Moger’s son, Mark, told EWTN News that his father’s newly found spiritual fatherhood has brought a “deeper spirituality” into their family.Maddy Cordle, Moger’s daughter, added: “I’ve had the privilege of watching his conversion from the beginning — same with my mom and my brother —and I just got to watch how it brought them so much closer to each other in their marriage, together as a family, but also really, really strengthened their relationship with God.”“To him there’s nothing more important than the impoverished and the cast aside. That’s his charism and you’ll see it throughout his ministry,” Mark added.Despite his unconventional journey to the priesthood, Moger sees it as the result of saying “yes” to God.“God honors it when we start moving in the direction that he’s leading us, trusting that he’s going to work it out,” he said.

unitedyam January 17, 2026

Father Travis Moger on the day of his ordination alongside his son, Mark; wife, Amelia; mother; and daughter, Maddy. | Credit: EWTN News screenshot

Jan 17, 2026 / 11:00 am (CNA).

Father Travis Moger has been a Catholic priest for just nine months, and his journey to ordination was a unique one. A former Baptist pastor and Navy chaplain, he was ordained in May 2025 in the Diocese of Wheeling-Charleston, West Virginia, seven years after he, his wife, and his son entered the Catholic Church.

“I didn’t come into the Church in order to be a priest; God used prayer to draw me to the Catholic Church,” Moger told EWTN News reporter Julia Convery.

During a military campaign as a Navy chaplain, Moger; his wife, Amelia; and his son, Mark, all separately began to feel the call toward Catholicism. While Moger was away, his wife had begun attending RCIA (Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults, which is now called OCIA — the Order of Christian Initiation of Adults).

Father Thomas Falkenthal, Moger’s former Navy chaplain supervisor, witnessed the seeds being planted in Moger’s heart.

“He was connecting with the liturgy. The Catholic Mass was certainly far from his tradition. I could tell it was touching him,” Falkenthal shared with Convery.

“He didn’t realize it, but all the way back home in the United States his wife, Amelia, was going to RCIA and preparing to join the Catholic Church. So when he came home from that deployment, they both had something to share with each other. Now I think that’s an amazing movement of the Spirit to keep that couple so close," Falkenthal said.

“It was definitely a God thing definitely to draw her towards the Catholic Church,” Moger added.

After a five-year journey of study and conversion, Moger, his wife, and his son were received into the Catholic Church on Easter Sunday 2018.

“I entered the Church not knowing if there would be a path to the priesthood for me,” Moger shared.

Bishop Mark Brennan of the Diocese of Wheeling-Charleston explained that Pope Francis eventually granted Moger a dispensation from the usual requirement of celibacy for the Catholic priesthood, allowing him to be ordained a priest.

The bishop also pointed out that he believes having a desire for a family is a trait that makes a good priest.

“When I was a vocations director, I always looked for would this man make a good husband and father? If he would, then he’d probably make a good priest,” Brennan said.

Moger also highlighted this trait as one that allows him to have a unique perspective into his now-spiritual fatherhood.

“There’s something about being able to bring a child into the world and then nurture them and you’re fully invested in another person. And I think that experience does inform the way you look at spiritual fatherhood and the way you look at God’s fatherhood,” Moger said.

Moger’s son, Mark, told EWTN News that his father’s newly found spiritual fatherhood has brought a “deeper spirituality” into their family.

Maddy Cordle, Moger’s daughter, added: “I’ve had the privilege of watching his conversion from the beginning — same with my mom and my brother —and I just got to watch how it brought them so much closer to each other in their marriage, together as a family, but also really, really strengthened their relationship with God.”

“To him there’s nothing more important than the impoverished and the cast aside. That’s his charism and you’ll see it throughout his ministry,” Mark added.

Despite his unconventional journey to the priesthood, Moger sees it as the result of saying “yes” to God.

“God honors it when we start moving in the direction that he’s leading us, trusting that he’s going to work it out,” he said.

CUA professor launches AI marketplace in line with Catholic social teaching #Catholic

Credit: David Gyung/Shutterstock

Jan 17, 2026 / 06:00 am (CNA).
An artificial intelligence (AI) marketplace launched by a business professor at The Catholic University of America seeks to offer products and services in a venue consistent with the social teachings of the Catholic Church — it is called Almma AI.Lucas Wall, who teaches finance at the university and has led several entrepreneurial ventures, began building Almma AI in mid-2023. The marketplace facilitates transactions for AI-related products, allowing people to upload their creations to be purchased or, in some cases, used for no charge.The types of products that can be offered on the marketplace include Large Language Models (LLMs) — similar to ChatGPT and Grok — along with AI prompts, personas, assistants, agents, and plugins.Although other marketplaces exist, Wall told EWTN News that Almma AI is designed to ensure the average person can “benefit from this new revolution that is coming” by selling or purchasing products in the marketplace.“With most technological revolutions and changes, there are only a handful of people who make fortunes,” Wall said.Almma’s mission statement is “AI profits for all,” and Wall said it is meant to “help people monetize their knowledge.” He said the marketplace can “build bridges across cultures” because people anywhere can access it, and “allows people to make solutions for their neighbors or for their parishes.”Almma does not exclusively offer Catholic-related products, but it does block the sale of anything that is immoral or could provoke sin, which Wall said was another major contrast with other AI marketplaces.“I want to be part of the group of people who help innovation meet morality,” he said.Among the examples of problems within larger AI companies, he noted, are the development of artificial romantic chatbots and the creation of erotica and artificial pornographic images and videos. He also expressed concern about AI consultation in end-of-life care.“I refuse to believe we don’t have enough imagination as a Catholic community and the courage to build something better,” Wall said.AI and Catholic social teachingWall said the development of Almma AI was “responding to the call of Pope Francis that he very clearly outlined in [the 2025 doctrinal note] Antiqua et Nova” and also took inspiration from Pope Leo XIII’s 1891 encyclical Rerum Novarum.In Antiqua et Nova, the Vatican holds that the development of AI should spur us to “a renewed appreciation of all that is human.” It teaches that AI should be used to serve the common good, promote human development, and not simply be used for individual or corporate gain.That note builds on the framework provided in Rerum Novarum, which expressed Catholic social teaching in the wake of the industrial revolution. At the time, Pope Leo XIII emphasized a need to seek the common good and safeguard the dignity of work when many laborers faced poor working conditions.“Wages ought not to be insufficient to support a frugal and well-behaved wage-earner,” Leo XIII writes. “... If a workman’s wages be sufficient to enable him comfortably to support himself, his wife, and his children, he will find it easy, if he be a sensible man, to practice thrift, and he will not fail, by cutting down expenses, to put by some little savings and thus secure a modest source of income.”Wall said Almma AI follows those guidelines by “trying to help people earn a decent living and keeping their dignity.” He added: “If you want to monetize a skill, we have the tools for you.”When the current pontiff Leo XIV chose the name “Leo,” he said he did so to honor Leo XIII, who “addressed the social question in the context of the first great industrial revolution.” He chose the name, in part, because AI developments pose “new challenges for the defense of human dignity, justice, and labor,” Leo XIV explained.Leo XIV has spoken at length about AI. This includes warnings about anti-human ideologies, the threat to human connections and interactions, and concern about the displacement of workers. However, he has also highlighted the potential benefits of AI if used to advance humanity and uphold the dignity of the human person.Wall welcomed continued guidance from the Vatican, saying the Church has “moral foundations … beyond what anyone in secular society can point at.” He expressed hope that Leo XIV will author a document similar to Rerum Novarum that addresses the changes AI is bringing about to the global economy“I pray daily for it,” Wall said.

unitedyam January 17, 2026

Credit: David Gyung/Shutterstock

Jan 17, 2026 / 06:00 am (CNA).

An artificial intelligence (AI) marketplace launched by a business professor at The Catholic University of America seeks to offer products and services in a venue consistent with the social teachings of the Catholic Church — it is called Almma AI.

Lucas Wall, who teaches finance at the university and has led several entrepreneurial ventures, began building Almma AI in mid-2023. The marketplace facilitates transactions for AI-related products, allowing people to upload their creations to be purchased or, in some cases, used for no charge.

The types of products that can be offered on the marketplace include Large Language Models (LLMs) — similar to ChatGPT and Grok — along with AI prompts, personas, assistants, agents, and plugins.

Although other marketplaces exist, Wall told EWTN News that Almma AI is designed to ensure the average person can “benefit from this new revolution that is coming” by selling or purchasing products in the marketplace.

“With most technological revolutions and changes, there are only a handful of people who make fortunes,” Wall said.

Almma’s mission statement is “AI profits for all,” and Wall said it is meant to “help people monetize their knowledge.” He said the marketplace can “build bridges across cultures” because people anywhere can access it, and “allows people to make solutions for their neighbors or for their parishes.”

Almma does not exclusively offer Catholic-related products, but it does block the sale of anything that is immoral or could provoke sin, which Wall said was another major contrast with other AI marketplaces.

“I want to be part of the group of people who help innovation meet morality,” he said.

Among the examples of problems within larger AI companies, he noted, are the development of artificial romantic chatbots and the creation of erotica and artificial pornographic images and videos. He also expressed concern about AI consultation in end-of-life care.

“I refuse to believe we don’t have enough imagination as a Catholic community and the courage to build something better,” Wall said.

AI and Catholic social teaching

Wall said the development of Almma AI was “responding to the call of Pope Francis that he very clearly outlined in [the 2025 doctrinal note] Antiqua et Nova” and also took inspiration from Pope Leo XIII’s 1891 encyclical Rerum Novarum.

In Antiqua et Nova, the Vatican holds that the development of AI should spur us to “a renewed appreciation of all that is human.” It teaches that AI should be used to serve the common good, promote human development, and not simply be used for individual or corporate gain.

That note builds on the framework provided in Rerum Novarum, which expressed Catholic social teaching in the wake of the industrial revolution. At the time, Pope Leo XIII emphasized a need to seek the common good and safeguard the dignity of work when many laborers faced poor working conditions.

“Wages ought not to be insufficient to support a frugal and well-behaved wage-earner,” Leo XIII writes. “… If a workman’s wages be sufficient to enable him comfortably to support himself, his wife, and his children, he will find it easy, if he be a sensible man, to practice thrift, and he will not fail, by cutting down expenses, to put by some little savings and thus secure a modest source of income.”

Wall said Almma AI follows those guidelines by “trying to help people earn a decent living and keeping their dignity.” He added: “If you want to monetize a skill, we have the tools for you.”

When the current pontiff Leo XIV chose the name “Leo,” he said he did so to honor Leo XIII, who “addressed the social question in the context of the first great industrial revolution.” He chose the name, in part, because AI developments pose “new challenges for the defense of human dignity, justice, and labor,” Leo XIV explained.

Leo XIV has spoken at length about AI. This includes warnings about anti-human ideologies, the threat to human connections and interactions, and concern about the displacement of workers. However, he has also highlighted the potential benefits of AI if used to advance humanity and uphold the dignity of the human person.

Wall welcomed continued guidance from the Vatican, saying the Church has “moral foundations … beyond what anyone in secular society can point at.” He expressed hope that Leo XIV will author a document similar to Rerum Novarum that addresses the changes AI is bringing about to the global economy

“I pray daily for it,” Wall said.

Vice President Vance, House Speaker Johnson to speak at 2026 March for Life #Catholic

U.S. Vice President JD Vance. | Credit: Gage Skidmore, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Jan 16, 2026 / 16:40 pm (CNA).
Vice President JD Vance is scheduled to speak at the 2026 March for Life Rally in Washington, D.C., on Jan. 23.Vance, who is the nation’s second Catholic vice president, will join Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson and Rep. Chris Smith, R-New Jersey, among other speakers at the 53rd annual pro-life event, organizers said.“Vice President Vance is grateful to the tens of thousands of Americans who travel to the National Mall each year to speak out in support of life and looks forward to joining them for the second consecutive year,” a spokesperson for the vice president told EWTN News.Vance will be attending and speaking at the event for the second time as vice president. He spoke at the March for Life in 2025 where he delivered his first public remarks in the leadership position.Addressing the crowd at the 2025 march, Vance said becoming a father helped to solidify his convictions that “an unborn life is worthy of protection.”“You remind us that the March for Life is not a single event that takes place on a frigid January day,” he said to the crowd. “The March for Life is the work of the pro-life movement every day from this point forward,” he said.“We will be back next year,” he said.While President Donald Trump will not be attending the 2026 March for Life in person, he told EWTN News’ White House correspondent Owen Jensen on Jan. 16 he will address the crowd through a “beautiful” prerecorded message.“And they’re going to play it,” he said. “And those are great people. I want to tell you they’re great people,” Trump said about attendees.While the president will deliver the virtual message, the Trump administration is receiving backlash from pro-life activists following his claim that Republicans need to be “ flexible” with the Hyde Amendment and the reinstatement of funds to Planned Parenthood.When asked about the Hyde Amendment, Trump said “you’re going to hear about it” in the message. Vance is set to deliver his remarks at the pre-march rally at 11 a.m. on Jan. 23. The March for Life is scheduled to begin after the rally.

unitedyam January 16, 2026

U.S. Vice President JD Vance. | Credit: Gage Skidmore, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Jan 16, 2026 / 16:40 pm (CNA).

Vice President JD Vance is scheduled to speak at the 2026 March for Life Rally in Washington, D.C., on Jan. 23.

Vance, who is the nation’s second Catholic vice president, will join Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson and Rep. Chris Smith, R-New Jersey, among other speakers at the 53rd annual pro-life event, organizers said.

“Vice President Vance is grateful to the tens of thousands of Americans who travel to the National Mall each year to speak out in support of life and looks forward to joining them for the second consecutive year,” a spokesperson for the vice president told EWTN News.

Vance will be attending and speaking at the event for the second time as vice president. He spoke at the March for Life in 2025 where he delivered his first public remarks in the leadership position.

Addressing the crowd at the 2025 march, Vance said becoming a father helped to solidify his convictions that “an unborn life is worthy of protection.”

“You remind us that the March for Life is not a single event that takes place on a frigid January day,” he said to the crowd. “The March for Life is the work of the pro-life movement every day from this point forward,” he said.

“We will be back next year,” he said.

While President Donald Trump will not be attending the 2026 March for Life in person, he told EWTN News’ White House correspondent Owen Jensen on Jan. 16 he will address the crowd through a “beautiful” prerecorded message.

“And they’re going to play it,” he said. “And those are great people. I want to tell you they’re great people,” Trump said about attendees.

While the president will deliver the virtual message, the Trump administration is receiving backlash from pro-life activists following his claim that Republicans need to be “ flexible” with the Hyde Amendment and the reinstatement of funds to Planned Parenthood.

When asked about the Hyde Amendment, Trump said “you’re going to hear about it” in the message.

Vance is set to deliver his remarks at the pre-march rally at 11 a.m. on Jan. 23. The March for Life is scheduled to begin after the rally.

Homeland Security Department says rule will address religious worker visa backlog #Catholic

Credit: Lisa F. Young/Shutterstock

Jan 14, 2026 / 10:25 am (CNA).
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) said it is addressing a religious worker visa backlog with rules that will reduce wait times and disruptions in ministry for faith-based communities.“Under the leadership of Secretary [Kristi] Noem, DHS is committed to protecting and preserving freedom and expression of religion. We are taking the necessary steps to ensure religious organizations can continue delivering the services that Americans depend on,” a DHS spokesperson said in a press release Wednesday. “Pastors, priests, nuns, and rabbis are essential to the social and moral fabric of this country. We remain committed to finding ways to support and empower these organizations in their critical work.”Under the rule expected to be issued Jan. 14, religious workers in the country on R-1 visas would no longer be required to reside outside of the U.S. for a full year if they reach their statutory five-year maximum period of stay before completing their green card applications. “While R-1 religious workers are still required to depart the U.S., the rule establishes that there is no longer a minimum period of time they must reside and be physically present outside the U.S. before they seek readmission in R-1 status,” DHS said.DHS acknowledged the significant demand for visas within the EB-4 category “has exceeded the supply for many years,” citing 2023 changes implemented by President Joe Biden’s State Department. “By eliminating the one-year foreign residency requirement, USCIS [U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services] is reducing the time religious organizations are left without their trusted clergy and non-ministerial religious workers,” according to a DHS statement.The rule, expected to be issued at 11 a.m. Jan. 14, is effective immediately, DHS said.Secretary of State Marco Rubio said in a press conference in December 2025 that the government would reveal its plan “early next month” for religious worker visas that would avoid giving preference to one denomination over another. Rubio noted that the plan would not favor one religion over another and that there would be “country-specific requirements depending on the country they’re coming from.” “I think we’re going to get to a good place,” Rubio said at the time. “We don’t have it ready yet. All this takes time to put together, but we’re moving quickly. I think we’ll have something positive about that at some point next month, hopefully in the early part of next month.”Visas for religious workers allow foreign nationals to work for a U.S. religious organization, through the temporary R-1 visa or a Green Card EB-4 visa, which requires at least two years of membership in the same denomination and a job offer from a qualifying nonprofit religious group.Rubio had also said in August the administration was working to create a “standalone process” for religious workers, separate from other competing applicants to the employment-based fourth preference (EB-4) category of visas that became severely backlogged after an unprecedented influx in unaccompanied minor applicants — most of which the USCIS has since alleged were fraudulent — who were added to the already-tight category under the Biden administration.In November 2025, a Catholic diocese in New Jersey dropped a lawsuit filed against the Biden administration’s State Department, Department of Homeland Security, and USCIS, citing knowledge of a solution with national implications.Since the issue of the backlogged visas started, multiple U.S. dioceses have called for a solution. Priests in the Archdiocese of Boston who are in the U.S. on visas were urged to avoid international travel amid the Trump administration’s immigration policies and deportations.Priests and other Church leaders have expressed fear of having to leave their ministries and return to their home countries, then endure lengthy wait times before coming back. Church officials have warned that a continuing backlog could lead to significant priest shortages in the United States.“We are grateful for the administration’s attention to this important issue for the Church and value the opportunity for ongoing dialogue to address these challenges so the faithful can have access to the sacraments and other essential ministries,” a spokesperson for the USCCB told CNA.

unitedyam January 14, 2026

Credit: Lisa F. Young/Shutterstock

Jan 14, 2026 / 10:25 am (CNA).

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) said it is addressing a religious worker visa backlog with rules that will reduce wait times and disruptions in ministry for faith-based communities.

“Under the leadership of Secretary [Kristi] Noem, DHS is committed to protecting and preserving freedom and expression of religion. We are taking the necessary steps to ensure religious organizations can continue delivering the services that Americans depend on,” a DHS spokesperson said in a press release Wednesday. “Pastors, priests, nuns, and rabbis are essential to the social and moral fabric of this country. We remain committed to finding ways to support and empower these organizations in their critical work.”

Under the rule expected to be issued Jan. 14, religious workers in the country on R-1 visas would no longer be required to reside outside of the U.S. for a full year if they reach their statutory five-year maximum period of stay before completing their green card applications.

“While R-1 religious workers are still required to depart the U.S., the rule establishes that there is no longer a minimum period of time they must reside and be physically present outside the U.S. before they seek readmission in R-1 status,” DHS said.

DHS acknowledged the significant demand for visas within the EB-4 category “has exceeded the supply for many years,” citing 2023 changes implemented by President Joe Biden’s State Department. “By eliminating the one-year foreign residency requirement, USCIS [U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services] is reducing the time religious organizations are left without their trusted clergy and non-ministerial religious workers,” according to a DHS statement.

The rule, expected to be issued at 11 a.m. Jan. 14, is effective immediately, DHS said.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio said in a press conference in December 2025 that the government would reveal its plan “early next month” for religious worker visas that would avoid giving preference to one denomination over another. Rubio noted that the plan would not favor one religion over another and that there would be “country-specific requirements depending on the country they’re coming from.”

“I think we’re going to get to a good place,” Rubio said at the time. “We don’t have it ready yet. All this takes time to put together, but we’re moving quickly. I think we’ll have something positive about that at some point next month, hopefully in the early part of next month.”

Visas for religious workers allow foreign nationals to work for a U.S. religious organization, through the temporary R-1 visa or a Green Card EB-4 visa, which requires at least two years of membership in the same denomination and a job offer from a qualifying nonprofit religious group.

Rubio had also said in August the administration was working to create a “standalone process” for religious workers, separate from other competing applicants to the employment-based fourth preference (EB-4) category of visas that became severely backlogged after an unprecedented influx in unaccompanied minor applicants — most of which the USCIS has since alleged were fraudulent — who were added to the already-tight category under the Biden administration.

In November 2025, a Catholic diocese in New Jersey dropped a lawsuit filed against the Biden administration’s State Department, Department of Homeland Security, and USCIS, citing knowledge of a solution with national implications.

Since the issue of the backlogged visas started, multiple U.S. dioceses have called for a solution. Priests in the Archdiocese of Boston who are in the U.S. on visas were urged to avoid international travel amid the Trump administration’s immigration policies and deportations.

Priests and other Church leaders have expressed fear of having to leave their ministries and return to their home countries, then endure lengthy wait times before coming back. Church officials have warned that a continuing backlog could lead to significant priest shortages in the United States.

“We are grateful for the administration’s attention to this important issue for the Church and value the opportunity for ongoing dialogue to address these challenges so the faithful can have access to the sacraments and other essential ministries,” a spokesperson for the USCCB told CNA.

On his dying day, renowned cartoonist’s faith in Christ made public #Catholic

Scott Adams had previously announced his intention to convert to Christianity. | Credit: Art of Charm, CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Jan 13, 2026 / 15:36 pm (CNA).
Scott Adams, the creator of the long-running “Dilbert” comic strip whose art satirized the typical American workplace, died on Jan. 13 at 68 years old after a battle with cancer.Adams, who became known later in his career for espousing conservative and at times controversial political views, revealed in May 2025 that he was suffering from prostate cancer. The disease spread in the coming months, with Adams passing away after a short stay in hospice. On Jan. 13, shortly after his death, Adams’ X account posted a “final message” from the renowned cartoonist in which he recalled that many of his Christian friends had urged him to convert to Christianity.
A Final Message From Scott Adams pic.twitter.com/QKX6b0MFZA— Scott Adams (@ScottAdamsSays) January 13, 2026

“I accept Jesus Christ as my lord and savior, and I look forward to spending an eternity with him,” Adams declared in the message, adding that he hoped he was “still qualified for entry” into heaven upon his death. “I had an amazing life. I gave it everything I had,” he wrote in the statement. “If you got any benefits from my work, I’m asking you to pay it forward as best you can. That is the legacy I want.” Adams had previously announced his intent to convert on Jan. 1, admitting that “any skepticism I have about reality would certainly be instantly answered if I wake up in heaven.”Born June 8, 1957, in Windham, New York, Adams began drawing from a young age. His work at the Pacific Bell Telephone Company in the 1980s and 1990s inspired many of the humorous office stereotypes portrayed in “Dilbert.”A send-up of many of the tropes that continue to define U.S. office work, “Dilbert” became wildly popular into the 2000s and eventually included a brief television series. Later in his career he launched the video talk series “Real Coffee With Scott Adams,” which he continued until just several days before his death. In his final message released after his death, Adams told his fans: “Be useful.” “And please know,” he added, “I loved you all to the end.”

unitedyam January 13, 2026

Scott Adams had previously announced his intention to convert to Christianity. | Credit: Art of Charm, CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Jan 13, 2026 / 15:36 pm (CNA).

Scott Adams, the creator of the long-running “Dilbert” comic strip whose art satirized the typical American workplace, died on Jan. 13 at 68 years old after a battle with cancer.

Adams, who became known later in his career for espousing conservative and at times controversial political views, revealed in May 2025 that he was suffering from prostate cancer. The disease spread in the coming months, with Adams passing away after a short stay in hospice.

On Jan. 13, shortly after his death, Adams’ X account posted a “final message” from the renowned cartoonist in which he recalled that many of his Christian friends had urged him to convert to Christianity.

A Final Message From Scott Adams pic.twitter.com/QKX6b0MFZA

— Scott Adams (@ScottAdamsSays) January 13, 2026

“I accept Jesus Christ as my lord and savior, and I look forward to spending an eternity with him,” Adams declared in the message, adding that he hoped he was “still qualified for entry” into heaven upon his death.

“I had an amazing life. I gave it everything I had,” he wrote in the statement. “If you got any benefits from my work, I’m asking you to pay it forward as best you can. That is the legacy I want.”

Adams had previously announced his intent to convert on Jan. 1, admitting that “any skepticism I have about reality would certainly be instantly answered if I wake up in heaven.”

Born June 8, 1957, in Windham, New York, Adams began drawing from a young age. His work at the Pacific Bell Telephone Company in the 1980s and 1990s inspired many of the humorous office stereotypes portrayed in “Dilbert.”

A send-up of many of the tropes that continue to define U.S. office work, “Dilbert” became wildly popular into the 2000s and eventually included a brief television series.

Later in his career he launched the video talk series “Real Coffee With Scott Adams,” which he continued until just several days before his death.

In his final message released after his death, Adams told his fans: “Be useful.”

“And please know,” he added, “I loved you all to the end.”

‘Adopt a Bishop’ initiative invites faithful to pray for Church leaders #Catholic

Pope Leo XIV speaks to bishops gathered for the Jubilee of Bishops on June 25, 2025, in St. Peter’s Basilica at the Vatican. | Credit: Vatican Media

Jan 11, 2026 / 06:00 am (CNA).
Soon after the election of Pope Leo XIV, Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle shared in a press conference that moments before then-Cardinal Robert Prevost was chosen to be pontiff, Tagle noticed the emotion by the soon-to-be-pope as it was becoming more clear he would be elected, so he reached into his pocket and offered Prevost a piece of candy.It was this simple moment that inspired Lauren Winter, founder of the Catholic company Brick House in the City, to start the Adopt a Bishop initiative.“It really reminded me that these are all human beings who made the choice one day to accept a very serious ‘yes,’” Winter told CNA in an interview.The Adopt a Bishop initiative, which has been launched in collaboration with The Dorothea Project, invites the faithful to adopt a bishop for the year and pray for that bishop throughout the year.“I think our bishops carry an enormous and often invisible spiritual weight,” she said. “They carry a responsibility that most of us never see — it’s pastoral and spiritual and it’s deeply personal and they’re holding entire dioceses in their prayer. And I think that kind of weight requires spiritual support.”This is the first year of the initiative and over 1,000 people have already signed up to adopt a bishop in prayer. When an individual signs up on the website that person is randomly assigned a bishop from anywhere in the world.Winter explained that she decided to use a random generator in order to “remove preference.”“I didn’t want anyone to choose a bishop that they already knew and admired and I wanted to leave that room for the Holy Spirit,” she said. “And it may be a bishop you are already familiar with. It may be a bishop that is someone that you have disagreed with. But the call to prayer is still there and I think receiving a bishop instead of choosing one, that felt more like a posture of reception, which I feel like it’s more aligned with how grace works in the Church — just leaving the room there for the Spirit to work.”The Catholic business owner highlighted the importance spiritual adoption plays in the Church in that it reminds us that “we are also being prayed for, it strengthens the bonds within the Church, and then I feel like it helps us to live more intentionally as one body of Christ.”Winter said she hopes that through this initiative “people feel more connected to their bishop, to the Church, to the quiet work of prayer, and how a small faithful commitment can really shape our faith.”“I imagine many people when they meet a bishop, they ask the good bishop to pray for them and I think it’s really beautiful that we can return that — the reciprocity of prayer. I think they need our prayers too.”

unitedyam January 11, 2026

Pope Leo XIV speaks to bishops gathered for the Jubilee of Bishops on June 25, 2025, in St. Peter’s Basilica at the Vatican. | Credit: Vatican Media

Jan 11, 2026 / 06:00 am (CNA).

Soon after the election of Pope Leo XIV, Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle shared in a press conference that moments before then-Cardinal Robert Prevost was chosen to be pontiff, Tagle noticed the emotion by the soon-to-be-pope as it was becoming more clear he would be elected, so he reached into his pocket and offered Prevost a piece of candy.

It was this simple moment that inspired Lauren Winter, founder of the Catholic company Brick House in the City, to start the Adopt a Bishop initiative.

“It really reminded me that these are all human beings who made the choice one day to accept a very serious ‘yes,’” Winter told CNA in an interview.

The Adopt a Bishop initiative, which has been launched in collaboration with The Dorothea Project, invites the faithful to adopt a bishop for the year and pray for that bishop throughout the year.

“I think our bishops carry an enormous and often invisible spiritual weight,” she said. “They carry a responsibility that most of us never see — it’s pastoral and spiritual and it’s deeply personal and they’re holding entire dioceses in their prayer. And I think that kind of weight requires spiritual support.”

This is the first year of the initiative and over 1,000 people have already signed up to adopt a bishop in prayer. When an individual signs up on the website that person is randomly assigned a bishop from anywhere in the world.

Winter explained that she decided to use a random generator in order to “remove preference.”

“I didn’t want anyone to choose a bishop that they already knew and admired and I wanted to leave that room for the Holy Spirit,” she said. “And it may be a bishop you are already familiar with. It may be a bishop that is someone that you have disagreed with. But the call to prayer is still there and I think receiving a bishop instead of choosing one, that felt more like a posture of reception, which I feel like it’s more aligned with how grace works in the Church — just leaving the room there for the Spirit to work.”

The Catholic business owner highlighted the importance spiritual adoption plays in the Church in that it reminds us that “we are also being prayed for, it strengthens the bonds within the Church, and then I feel like it helps us to live more intentionally as one body of Christ.”

Winter said she hopes that through this initiative “people feel more connected to their bishop, to the Church, to the quiet work of prayer, and how a small faithful commitment can really shape our faith.”

“I imagine many people when they meet a bishop, they ask the good bishop to pray for them and I think it’s really beautiful that we can return that — the reciprocity of prayer. I think they need our prayers too.”

CNA explains: How does the Catholic Church create dioceses and archdioceses? #Catholic

St. Joseph Cathedral, Buffalo. | Credit: CiEll/Shutterstock

Jan 10, 2026 / 06:00 am (CNA).
Catholics in the U.S. were witness to a rare Church decision in 2023 when Pope Francis elevated the Diocese of Las Vegas to a metropolitan archdiocese. Las Vegas had previously been a suffragan diocese of San Francisco, having been created by Pope John Paul II in 1995. A suffragan diocese operates within an ecclesiastical province subordinate to a larger archdiocese and is led by a suffragan bishop who has the authority to lead his own diocese but works under the metropolitan archbishop.In September 2025, Pope Leo XIV created a new Catholic diocese in northern China; though it goes by the same name as one established decades ago by Beijing without Vatican approval — a product of ongoing tensions between China and the Holy See — the move demonstrated the Holy See’s authority in creating local Church jurisdictions. Outside of one’s own parish, a diocese or archdiocese is arguably the average Catholic’s most common point of interaction with the Church. These jurisdictions manage local Church life and administration, with bishops and archbishops offering both spiritual and temporal guidance and authority to Catholics under their care. But how does the Catholic Church decide what becomes a diocese or an archdiocese? What are the roots of this ancient practice, and how does it function today?Exclusively a papal rightMonsignor William King, JCD, KCHS, an assistant professor at the school of canon law at The Catholic University of America, told CNA that the right to erect (or suppress) a diocese “belongs exclusively to the successor of Peter, the bishop of Rome,” that is, the pope.“Historically, secular rulers have intruded into the process and the autonomy of the Church in this action has been hard-won,” he said, pointing out that “even today in certain parts of the world, secular or civil rulers wish to have input into matters such as this.”The pope never makes decisions regarding dioceses and archdioceses “without considerable study and consultation,” King said. The history of diocesan administration stretches back to the earliest years of the Church, he said. In those days a diocese consisted of “a city larger than the surrounding cities and towns,” often a place of commerce or a center of government.Throughout the centuries, including after the imperial legalization of the Church by Constantine, Church leaders refined the diocesan structure of “pastoral ministry and governance” in order to facilitate “communication and decision-making” throughout Christendom.“This became increasingly important as the Church grew and encountered different systems of law, philosophy, and religious practice,” King said. Roman models of government structure proved useful and sufficient for Church governance; King noted that the Church structure even today more closely resembles a government than a corporation.The process by determining which jurisdictions counted as archdioceses likely arose in earlier centuries organically, King said, with Church leaders identifying major centers of “culture, education, commerce, government, and transportation” as particularly significant jurisdictions.The procedure for elevating a diocese to an archdiocese, meanwhile — as Pope Francis did to Las Vegas in 2023 — requires “significant study, discussion, and decision-making,” King said.The Holy See conducts such reviews in part through a diocese’s “quinquennial report,” a detailed rundown of the diocese’s activities and administration. Such a report may indicate to the Holy See that a particular region is growing and could benefit from elevation to an archdiocese.Local suffragan bishops will participate in discussions to that effect, King said, and the Roman Curia will work with bishops’ conferences as well as the local apostolic nuncio.“The ultimate decision is that of the Roman pontiff, the bishop of Rome,” King said, “but is always done with his awareness of the conversations and consultations already conducted at every level.”The priest pointed out that not every local jurisdiction of the Church is a diocese or archdiocese. At times, he said, the pope may establish a less common ecclesiastical administration “for a variety of reasons that relate to culture, legal acceptance or opposition, small numbers, and the like.”Such jurisdictions include apostolic prefectures, apostolic vicariates, ordinariates, and other designations. Such areas may be governed by a bishop or a priest named by the pope, King said.

unitedyam January 10, 2026

St. Joseph Cathedral, Buffalo. | Credit: CiEll/Shutterstock

Jan 10, 2026 / 06:00 am (CNA).

Catholics in the U.S. were witness to a rare Church decision in 2023 when Pope Francis elevated the Diocese of Las Vegas to a metropolitan archdiocese. Las Vegas had previously been a suffragan diocese of San Francisco, having been created by Pope John Paul II in 1995.

A suffragan diocese operates within an ecclesiastical province subordinate to a larger archdiocese and is led by a suffragan bishop who has the authority to lead his own diocese but works under the metropolitan archbishop.

In September 2025, Pope Leo XIV created a new Catholic diocese in northern China; though it goes by the same name as one established decades ago by Beijing without Vatican approval — a product of ongoing tensions between China and the Holy See — the move demonstrated the Holy See’s authority in creating local Church jurisdictions.

Outside of one’s own parish, a diocese or archdiocese is arguably the average Catholic’s most common point of interaction with the Church. These jurisdictions manage local Church life and administration, with bishops and archbishops offering both spiritual and temporal guidance and authority to Catholics under their care.

But how does the Catholic Church decide what becomes a diocese or an archdiocese? What are the roots of this ancient practice, and how does it function today?

Exclusively a papal right

Monsignor William King, JCD, KCHS, an assistant professor at the school of canon law at The Catholic University of America, told CNA that the right to erect (or suppress) a diocese “belongs exclusively to the successor of Peter, the bishop of Rome,” that is, the pope.

“Historically, secular rulers have intruded into the process and the autonomy of the Church in this action has been hard-won,” he said, pointing out that “even today in certain parts of the world, secular or civil rulers wish to have input into matters such as this.”

The pope never makes decisions regarding dioceses and archdioceses “without considerable study and consultation,” King said.

The history of diocesan administration stretches back to the earliest years of the Church, he said. In those days a diocese consisted of “a city larger than the surrounding cities and towns,” often a place of commerce or a center of government.

Throughout the centuries, including after the imperial legalization of the Church by Constantine, Church leaders refined the diocesan structure of “pastoral ministry and governance” in order to facilitate “communication and decision-making” throughout Christendom.

“This became increasingly important as the Church grew and encountered different systems of law, philosophy, and religious practice,” King said. Roman models of government structure proved useful and sufficient for Church governance; King noted that the Church structure even today more closely resembles a government than a corporation.

The process by determining which jurisdictions counted as archdioceses likely arose in earlier centuries organically, King said, with Church leaders identifying major centers of “culture, education, commerce, government, and transportation” as particularly significant jurisdictions.

The procedure for elevating a diocese to an archdiocese, meanwhile — as Pope Francis did to Las Vegas in 2023 — requires “significant study, discussion, and decision-making,” King said.

The Holy See conducts such reviews in part through a diocese’s “quinquennial report,” a detailed rundown of the diocese’s activities and administration. Such a report may indicate to the Holy See that a particular region is growing and could benefit from elevation to an archdiocese.

Local suffragan bishops will participate in discussions to that effect, King said, and the Roman Curia will work with bishops’ conferences as well as the local apostolic nuncio.

“The ultimate decision is that of the Roman pontiff, the bishop of Rome,” King said, “but is always done with his awareness of the conversations and consultations already conducted at every level.”

The priest pointed out that not every local jurisdiction of the Church is a diocese or archdiocese. At times, he said, the pope may establish a less common ecclesiastical administration “for a variety of reasons that relate to culture, legal acceptance or opposition, small numbers, and the like.”

Such jurisdictions include apostolic prefectures, apostolic vicariates, ordinariates, and other designations. Such areas may be governed by a bishop or a priest named by the pope, King said.

Trump urges Republican ‘flexibility’ on taxpayer-funded abortions #Catholic

President Donald Trump talks to Republicans about their stance on the Hyde Amendment on Jan. 6, 2026. | Credit: Mandel NGAN/AFP via Getty Images

Jan 6, 2026 / 18:10 pm (CNA).
President Donald Trump is asking congressional Republicans to be more flexible on taxpayer funding for abortions as lawmakers continue to negotiate an extension to health care subsidies related to the Affordable Care Act, also known as Obamacare.Some federal subsidies that lowered premiums for those enrolled in the Affordable Care Act expired in December. The Kaiser Family Foundation estimates that the average increase to premiums for people who lost the subsidies will be about 114%, from $888 in 2025 to $1,904 in 2026. The exact costs will be different, depending on specific plans.Trump has encouraged his party to work on extending those subsidies and is asking them to be “flexible” on a provision that could affect tax-funded abortion. Democrats have proposed ending the restrictions of the Hyde Amendment, which bans direct federal funding for abortions in most cases.“Let the money go directly to the people,” Trump said at the House Republican Conference retreat at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts on Jan. 6.“Now you have to be a little flexible on Hyde,” the president said. “You know that you got to be a little flexible. You got to work something [out]. You got to use ingenuity. You got to work. We’re all big fans of everything, but you got to be flexible. You have to have flexibility.”The Hyde Amendment began as a bipartisan provision in funding bills that prohibited the use of federal funds for more than 45 years. Lawmakers have reauthorized the prohibition every year since it was first introduced in 1976.A study from the Charlotte Lozier Institute estimates that the Hyde Amendment has saved more than 2.6 million lives. According to a poll conducted by the Marist Institute for Public Opinion, which was commissioned by the Knights of Columbus, nearly 6 in 10 Americans oppose tax funding for abortions.However, in recent years, many Democratic politicians have tried to keep the rule out of spending bills. Former President Joe Biden abandoned the Hyde Amendment in budget proposals, but it was ultimately included in the final compromise versions that became law.Marjorie Dannenfelser, president of Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America, criticized Trump for urging flexibility on the provision, calling its support “an unshakeable bedrock principle and a minimum standard in the Republican Party.”Dannenfelser said Republicans “are sure to lose this November” if they abandon Hyde: “The voters sent a [Republican] trifecta to Washington and they expect it to govern like one.”“Giving in to Democrat demands that our tax dollars are used to fund plans that cover abortion on demand until birth would be a massive betrayal,” she said.Dannenfelser also noted that, before these comments, Trump has consistently supported the Hyde Amendment. The president issued an executive order in January on enforcing the Hyde Amendment that accused Biden’s administration of disregarding this “commonsense policy.”“For nearly five decades, the Congress has annually enacted the Hyde Amendment and similar laws that prevent federal funding of elective abortion, reflecting a long-standing consensus that American taxpayers should not be forced to pay for that practice,” the executive order reads.“It is the policy of the United States, consistent with the Hyde Amendment, to end the forced use of federal taxpayer dollars to fund or promote elective abortion,” it adds.

unitedyam January 6, 2026

President Donald Trump talks to Republicans about their stance on the Hyde Amendment on Jan. 6, 2026. | Credit: Mandel NGAN/AFP via Getty Images

Jan 6, 2026 / 18:10 pm (CNA).

President Donald Trump is asking congressional Republicans to be more flexible on taxpayer funding for abortions as lawmakers continue to negotiate an extension to health care subsidies related to the Affordable Care Act, also known as Obamacare.

Some federal subsidies that lowered premiums for those enrolled in the Affordable Care Act expired in December.

The Kaiser Family Foundation estimates that the average increase to premiums for people who lost the subsidies will be about 114%, from $888 in 2025 to $1,904 in 2026. The exact costs will be different, depending on specific plans.

Trump has encouraged his party to work on extending those subsidies and is asking them to be “flexible” on a provision that could affect tax-funded abortion. Democrats have proposed ending the restrictions of the Hyde Amendment, which bans direct federal funding for abortions in most cases.

“Let the money go directly to the people,” Trump said at the House Republican Conference retreat at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts on Jan. 6.

“Now you have to be a little flexible on Hyde,” the president said. “You know that you got to be a little flexible. You got to work something [out]. You got to use ingenuity. You got to work. We’re all big fans of everything, but you got to be flexible. You have to have flexibility.”

The Hyde Amendment began as a bipartisan provision in funding bills that prohibited the use of federal funds for more than 45 years. Lawmakers have reauthorized the prohibition every year since it was first introduced in 1976.

A study from the Charlotte Lozier Institute estimates that the Hyde Amendment has saved more than 2.6 million lives. According to a poll conducted by the Marist Institute for Public Opinion, which was commissioned by the Knights of Columbus, nearly 6 in 10 Americans oppose tax funding for abortions.

However, in recent years, many Democratic politicians have tried to keep the rule out of spending bills. Former President Joe Biden abandoned the Hyde Amendment in budget proposals, but it was ultimately included in the final compromise versions that became law.

Marjorie Dannenfelser, president of Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America, criticized Trump for urging flexibility on the provision, calling its support “an unshakeable bedrock principle and a minimum standard in the Republican Party.”

Dannenfelser said Republicans “are sure to lose this November” if they abandon Hyde: “The voters sent a [Republican] trifecta to Washington and they expect it to govern like one.”

“Giving in to Democrat demands that our tax dollars are used to fund plans that cover abortion on demand until birth would be a massive betrayal,” she said.

Dannenfelser also noted that, before these comments, Trump has consistently supported the Hyde Amendment. The president issued an executive order in January on enforcing the Hyde Amendment that accused Biden’s administration of disregarding this “commonsense policy.”

“For nearly five decades, the Congress has annually enacted the Hyde Amendment and similar laws that prevent federal funding of elective abortion, reflecting a long-standing consensus that American taxpayers should not be forced to pay for that practice,” the executive order reads.

“It is the policy of the United States, consistent with the Hyde Amendment, to end the forced use of federal taxpayer dollars to fund or promote elective abortion,” it adds.

Catholic singles seek faithful connections at huge SEEK 2026 speed dating event #Catholic

Young Catholics gather for a possibly record-breaking large speed dating event in Columbus, Ohio, on Jan. 4, 2026. | Credit: Gigi Duncan/EWTN News / null

Jan 5, 2026 / 16:41 pm (CNA).
“Do you believe in miracles, or should we start with coffee?”Young Catholics gathered for a possibly record-breaking large speed dating event in Columbus, Ohio, on Jan. 4. About 2,500 students participated in speed dating at SEEK 2026, reflecting both a thirst for genuine connection and a willingness to step outside of comfort zones in pursuit of meaningful relationships. At a time when dating culture often seems dominated by casual hookups, social media pressures, and uncertainty, SEEK 2026 participants explored a wide range of topics, from personal faith to vocational discernment. The event broke the world record for the largest speed dating event based on earlier entries in Guinness World Records.About 26,000 people attended the SEEK 2026 conference held simultaneously in Columbus, Denver, and Fort Worth, Texas, organized by FOCUS, a Catholic group that sends missionaries to college campuses and parishes.In Columbus, which drew about 16,000 attendees, Emily Wilson, a Catholic author and YouTuber, offered students a framework for approaching dating with clarity and purpose ahead of the speed dating event on Jan. 4. 6 principles for intentional Catholic dating Wilson emphasized six key points for navigating dating with freedom, dignity, and an ultimate focus on God.1. Go on one date — and let others do the same.“Dating is the process of discernment,” Wilson said. “You do not need to know if you’re going to marry someone before saying yes to a second date. Jesus wants you to be calm.” The idea is simple: Allow yourself and others to explore relationships without pressure, gossip, or unrealistic expectations. 2. Use the word “date” and be clear and intentional.Clarity matters, especially in an age where sending a “WYD” (what are you doing?) text has become common. “If you want to stand out, be clear. Use the word ‘date,’” Wilson told the audience. “Call her. Say, ‘I’d love to take you on a date.’ Yes, it’s a risk, but many marriages begin with that courage.”3. If God calls you to marriage, college is not the only place to meet your spouse.Wilson encouraged young people to resist the “ring by spring” pressures. “Focus on becoming the most beautiful version of yourself — the person God is calling you to be right now,” she said. God’s timing, she emphasized, is unique for everyone.4. Let go of the idea that your future spouse will perfectly match your type.While attraction is important, deeper qualities matter most. “When life gets hard,” Wilson noted, one will not be so fixated on physical appearance but rather be thanking God that their spouse is so “selfless, giving, kind, loving, virtuous, and holy.”5. Guard your heart.“Peace in dating comes from making hard choices to protect your heart,” she said, quoting Philippians 4:7: “The peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.” Making intentional decisions is a form of self-respect, not aggression.6. Do not apologize for your standards.Wilson urged students to stand firm in their faith and virtues: “Say it with confidence. ‘I’m looking for a virtuous Catholic who loves the Eucharist, desires the sacraments, and wants a faithful marriage.’ There is nothing to apologize for.”Breaking records, building connectionsThe “Catholic Speed Dating Event with Candid” drew lines stretching across several exhibit halls down the Greater Columbus Convention Center. Students repeatedly noted that such spaces provide rare, faith-aligned opportunities to meet new people without immediate expectation.Participants described the speed dating event as both countercultural and reassuring — a response to frustrations many feel with modern dating. For Clemson University student Jonathan Brinker, the shared Catholic identity immediately changed the tone of conversations. “It was nice to meet people who have similar values,” he said. “That makes the conversation deeper and more meaningful.”That sense of ease stood out for Shippensburg University student Joseph Striggle as well. “Events like this help you realize dating isn’t as intimidating as it’s made out to be,” he said. “It’s just having a normal conversation with another person.”His classmate, Tom Gehman, said the event addressed deeper concerns about today’s dating culture. “A lot of people don’t share the same worldview or end goals, especially when it comes to faith and relationships,” he noted. “People want reassurance that there are other people who share their values.” Expressing a strong dislike of social media, Gehman added that he desires “to meet someone face-to-face and ask them out directly,” calling the event “good practice” for doing so.Students from Western Kentucky University echoed this sentiment as well as an emphasis on lowering pressure while remaining intentional. “Going on a first date doesn’t mean you have to marry that person,” Mary Pikar said. “It’s just about getting to know each other.” Karley Solorzano added that high expectations can sometimes lead to inaction. “We overthink dating, especially as Catholics,” she said. “Events like this can give us a way to take chances and trust that God can surprise us.”For some students, simply being surrounded by others who take faith seriously was encouraging. Seton Hall University student Emily Castillo said observing faithful behavior — even in her male friendships — gave her hope. “Seeing that makes me think what it could be like with someone who genuinely loves and cares for me,” she said. Maria Notario added: “A shared faith allows relationships to go deeper than surface-level connections. Everyone [at the event] is single and Catholic; there’s at least some foundation there.”Short conversations also proved meaningful. Kylee Jackels from Winona State University said having a designated space to meet people — even for a few minutes at a time — mattered. “It’s valuable to have a low-pressure environment where people can actually talk,” she said. “There aren’t many single Christians where I’m from,” Lindsay Moen added. “It was nice to be in this space with similar people without crazy expectations.” The two students did see immediate results, however, as their friend was asked out on a date while waiting in line for the event to begin.Others said the event helped them step outside their comfort zones. Anna Whittenburg of Bowling Green State University referenced Emily Wilson’s earlier point of maintaining standards, sharing that this was something she kept in mind before going into the speed dating event. “Hearing that reaffirmed by someone like Emily Wilson made a difference. I don’t have to apologize for wanting a good, healthy Catholic relationship,” she said. Her twin sister, Elaina, added that the experience was practical as well as affirming: “It was a good way to practice talking to new people.”For University of Alabama student Jay Zito, this event challenged initial hesitation. “We were kind of dragged into it by a friend,” he admitted. “But I’m glad we were. In an age where men can be fearful of approaching women for several reasons, this space gave people permission to try and make meaningful connections.” His friend Landon McClellan added that the in-person nature of the event was crucial. “Hookup culture is everywhere today, and things like social media, filters, and AI mess with expectations and confidence,” he said. “Dating doesn’t have to be scary; it can be a really good thing that will lead to sacramental marriages.”Candid Dating, a platform co-founded by Taylor O’Brien, led the speed dating event. Candid hosts weekly virtual speed dating for Catholic singles, and SEEK provided a chance to create real connections in person. “Success can look different for everyone. For some, it’s gaining experience and confidence in talking to others — men or women,” O’Brien said. “For others, it might be building the courage to ask for someone’s number or feeling secure and confident present themselves as a whole person.”She added that another goal for some could be marriage, reflecting the previous year’s several couples who have since become engaged. Hope for the futureWilson said the weekend confirmed what she has seen in her work with Catholic singles: a deep desire for holy, intentional relationships. “There has been a real breakdown in communication, and a lot of fear has crept in,” she said. That fear, she described, is not from the Lord but rather the enemy who “wants us stuck in panic or overwhelm” so that we don’t “step into what the Lord desires for us.”Drawing on her experience with Sacred Spark, a Catholic dating platform she co-founded, Wilson expressed optimism. “We now have tens of thousands of Catholic singles on the app who are intentionally seeking meaningful relationships, even if it starts digitally — just making that initial connection.”She added that in the coming years, “we’re going to see a revival of beautiful sacramental marriages, with Catholic singles who are intentional, communicative, open, honest, and clear.”“After things have become as complicated as they have, there’s really nowhere to go but up,” she said. “For these young Catholics desiring relationships, I really stand on hope.”

unitedyam January 5, 2026

Young Catholics gather for a possibly record-breaking large speed dating event in Columbus, Ohio, on Jan. 4, 2026. | Credit: Gigi Duncan/EWTN News / null

Jan 5, 2026 / 16:41 pm (CNA).

“Do you believe in miracles, or should we start with coffee?”

Young Catholics gathered for a possibly record-breaking large speed dating event in Columbus, Ohio, on Jan. 4.

About 2,500 students participated in speed dating at SEEK 2026, reflecting both a thirst for genuine connection and a willingness to step outside of comfort zones in pursuit of meaningful relationships. At a time when dating culture often seems dominated by casual hookups, social media pressures, and uncertainty, SEEK 2026 participants explored a wide range of topics, from personal faith to vocational discernment.

The event broke the world record for the largest speed dating event based on earlier entries in Guinness World Records.

About 26,000 people attended the SEEK 2026 conference held simultaneously in Columbus, Denver, and Fort Worth, Texas, organized by FOCUS, a Catholic group that sends missionaries to college campuses and parishes.

In Columbus, which drew about 16,000 attendees, Emily Wilson, a Catholic author and YouTuber, offered students a framework for approaching dating with clarity and purpose ahead of the speed dating event on Jan. 4.

6 principles for intentional Catholic dating

Wilson emphasized six key points for navigating dating with freedom, dignity, and an ultimate focus on God.

1. Go on one date — and let others do the same.

“Dating is the process of discernment,” Wilson said. “You do not need to know if you’re going to marry someone before saying yes to a second date. Jesus wants you to be calm.” The idea is simple: Allow yourself and others to explore relationships without pressure, gossip, or unrealistic expectations.

2. Use the word “date” and be clear and intentional.

Clarity matters, especially in an age where sending a “WYD” (what are you doing?) text has become common. “If you want to stand out, be clear. Use the word ‘date,’” Wilson told the audience. “Call her. Say, ‘I’d love to take you on a date.’ Yes, it’s a risk, but many marriages begin with that courage.”

3. If God calls you to marriage, college is not the only place to meet your spouse.

Wilson encouraged young people to resist the “ring by spring” pressures. “Focus on becoming the most beautiful version of yourself — the person God is calling you to be right now,” she said. God’s timing, she emphasized, is unique for everyone.

4. Let go of the idea that your future spouse will perfectly match your type.

While attraction is important, deeper qualities matter most. “When life gets hard,” Wilson noted, one will not be so fixated on physical appearance but rather be thanking God that their spouse is so “selfless, giving, kind, loving, virtuous, and holy.”

5. Guard your heart.

“Peace in dating comes from making hard choices to protect your heart,” she said, quoting Philippians 4:7: “The peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.” Making intentional decisions is a form of self-respect, not aggression.

6. Do not apologize for your standards.

Wilson urged students to stand firm in their faith and virtues: “Say it with confidence. ‘I’m looking for a virtuous Catholic who loves the Eucharist, desires the sacraments, and wants a faithful marriage.’ There is nothing to apologize for.”

Breaking records, building connections

The “Catholic Speed Dating Event with Candid” drew lines stretching across several exhibit halls down the Greater Columbus Convention Center. Students repeatedly noted that such spaces provide rare, faith-aligned opportunities to meet new people without immediate expectation.

Participants described the speed dating event as both countercultural and reassuring — a response to frustrations many feel with modern dating. For Clemson University student Jonathan Brinker, the shared Catholic identity immediately changed the tone of conversations. “It was nice to meet people who have similar values,” he said. “That makes the conversation deeper and more meaningful.”

That sense of ease stood out for Shippensburg University student Joseph Striggle as well. “Events like this help you realize dating isn’t as intimidating as it’s made out to be,” he said. “It’s just having a normal conversation with another person.”

His classmate, Tom Gehman, said the event addressed deeper concerns about today’s dating culture. “A lot of people don’t share the same worldview or end goals, especially when it comes to faith and relationships,” he noted. “People want reassurance that there are other people who share their values.”

Expressing a strong dislike of social media, Gehman added that he desires “to meet someone face-to-face and ask them out directly,” calling the event “good practice” for doing so.

Students from Western Kentucky University echoed this sentiment as well as an emphasis on lowering pressure while remaining intentional. “Going on a first date doesn’t mean you have to marry that person,” Mary Pikar said. “It’s just about getting to know each other.”

Karley Solorzano added that high expectations can sometimes lead to inaction. “We overthink dating, especially as Catholics,” she said. “Events like this can give us a way to take chances and trust that God can surprise us.”

For some students, simply being surrounded by others who take faith seriously was encouraging. Seton Hall University student Emily Castillo said observing faithful behavior — even in her male friendships — gave her hope. “Seeing that makes me think what it could be like with someone who genuinely loves and cares for me,” she said.

Maria Notario added: “A shared faith allows relationships to go deeper than surface-level connections. Everyone [at the event] is single and Catholic; there’s at least some foundation there.”

Short conversations also proved meaningful. Kylee Jackels from Winona State University said having a designated space to meet people — even for a few minutes at a time — mattered. “It’s valuable to have a low-pressure environment where people can actually talk,” she said.

“There aren’t many single Christians where I’m from,” Lindsay Moen added. “It was nice to be in this space with similar people without crazy expectations.” The two students did see immediate results, however, as their friend was asked out on a date while waiting in line for the event to begin.

Others said the event helped them step outside their comfort zones. Anna Whittenburg of Bowling Green State University referenced Emily Wilson’s earlier point of maintaining standards, sharing that this was something she kept in mind before going into the speed dating event.

“Hearing that reaffirmed by someone like Emily Wilson made a difference. I don’t have to apologize for wanting a good, healthy Catholic relationship,” she said. Her twin sister, Elaina, added that the experience was practical as well as affirming: “It was a good way to practice talking to new people.”

For University of Alabama student Jay Zito, this event challenged initial hesitation. “We were kind of dragged into it by a friend,” he admitted. “But I’m glad we were. In an age where men can be fearful of approaching women for several reasons, this space gave people permission to try and make meaningful connections.”

His friend Landon McClellan added that the in-person nature of the event was crucial. “Hookup culture is everywhere today, and things like social media, filters, and AI mess with expectations and confidence,” he said. “Dating doesn’t have to be scary; it can be a really good thing that will lead to sacramental marriages.”

Candid Dating, a platform co-founded by Taylor O’Brien, led the speed dating event. Candid hosts weekly virtual speed dating for Catholic singles, and SEEK provided a chance to create real connections in person.

“Success can look different for everyone. For some, it’s gaining experience and confidence in talking to others — men or women,” O’Brien said. “For others, it might be building the courage to ask for someone’s number or feeling secure and confident present themselves as a whole person.”

She added that another goal for some could be marriage, reflecting the previous year’s several couples who have since become engaged.

Hope for the future

Wilson said the weekend confirmed what she has seen in her work with Catholic singles: a deep desire for holy, intentional relationships.

“There has been a real breakdown in communication, and a lot of fear has crept in,” she said. That fear, she described, is not from the Lord but rather the enemy who “wants us stuck in panic or overwhelm” so that we don’t “step into what the Lord desires for us.”

Drawing on her experience with Sacred Spark, a Catholic dating platform she co-founded, Wilson expressed optimism. “We now have tens of thousands of Catholic singles on the app who are intentionally seeking meaningful relationships, even if it starts digitally — just making that initial connection.”

She added that in the coming years, “we’re going to see a revival of beautiful sacramental marriages, with Catholic singles who are intentional, communicative, open, honest, and clear.”

“After things have become as complicated as they have, there’s really nowhere to go but up,” she said. “For these young Catholics desiring relationships, I really stand on hope.”

Food assistance, housing top Catholic Charities’ policy wish list in 2026 #Catholic

Credit: Jonathan Weiss/Shutterstock

Jan 2, 2026 / 07:00 am (CNA).
Many people who receive assistance through anti-poverty programs faced disruptions in 2025, and Catholic Charities’ wish list for 2026 includes government support for food assistance and housing.The largest disruption came in October when food stamps received through the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) were delayed amid the government shutdown. Funding for rental and heating assistance were also disrupted.Confusion about how to implement a memo in January from the Office of Management and Budget calling for a grant freeze also caused delays in funding related to health care, housing affordability, and food assistance.Luz Tavarez, vice president of government relations at Catholic Charities USA, said “people get nervous and scared” amid disruptions.Many Catholic Charities affiliates saw an influx in clients, especially during the shutdown, but Tavarez said there are “very poor people who rely on SNAP subsidies for their meals” and who “can’t get to a Catholic Charities [affiliate] or other food pantry for assistance” when it happens.Long-term eligibility and funding changes to SNAP were also approved in the tax overhaul signed into law in July. Previous rules only included a work requirement up to age 54, but the law extended those requirements up to age 64. It added stricter and more frequent checks for verifying the work requirements.It also shifted some funding responsibilities away from the federal government and to the states.Tavarez expressed concern about some of the SNAP changes as well, saying the government should end “burdensome requirements for individuals and states.”Under the new law, there are stricter rules for verifying a person’s immigration status for benefits. It also limited which noncitizens could receive SNAP benefits, which excluded some refugees and people granted asylum. Tavarez expressed concern about such SNAP changes, encouraging the government to permit “humanitarian-based noncitizens” to receive those benefits.Overall the 2025 tax law gave the biggest boost to the richest families while poorer families might get a little less help than before, according to the Congressional Budget Office.The bill added a work requirement for Medicaid recipients, and this will not take effect until 2027. Under the previous law, there was no work requirement for this benefit. It also shifts some Medicaid funding requirements onto the states.Tavarez said Catholic Charities has “concerns with how [work requirements are] implemented” moving forward but does not oppose the idea outright: “There’s dignity in work so the Church isn’t necessarily opposed to people working as long as there’s some opportunities for people to do other things and other issues are taken into consideration.”She also expressed concerns about funding shifts: “We know that not every state views things like SNAP and Medicaid as a good thing. We don’t know how states are going to balance their budget and prioritize these programs.”2026 wish listLooking forward to 2026, Tavarez said Catholic Charities hopes the government will restore full funding to the Temporary Emergency Food Assistance Program for food banks and bulk food distribution programs and ensure that funding is protected for school meals and the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children.The Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) made policy changes in November that would focus its homelessness funding on “transitional” housing instead of “permanent” housing. This move is facing legal challenges.President Donald Trump’s administration initially sought to cut federal housing assistance and shift much of those costs to states, but this was ultimately not included in the final version of the 2025 tax law.In December, Trump promised an “aggressive” housing reform plan that focuses on reducing costs. At this time, the specifics of that proposal have not been announced. The increased cost to buy a new home has outpaced the growth in wages for decades.Tavarez said Catholic Charities is focused on housing affordability in 2026 and that the solution must be multifaceted. This includes “building and developing affordable housing,” “a tax credit for developers,” “more affordable housing units,” and subsidies and Section 8 vouchers for low-income Americans, she said.“We recognize that there’s a real crisis — I think everybody does in a bipartisan way — but there needs to be a real bipartisan approach and it’s going to require money,” Tavarez said.Tax credits and economic trendsSome changes to the tax code included in the 2025 tax law are geared toward helping low-income Americans.Specifically, the law reduced taxes taken from tips and overtime work. It also increased the child tax credit from $2,000 to $2,200 and tied the credit to inflation, meaning that it will increase each year based on the rate of inflation.Tavarez characterized the changes to the child tax credit as a “win” and hopes it can be expanded further.The economy has been a mixed bag, with November unemployment numbers showing a 4.6% rate. In November of last year, it was slightly lower at 4.2%.Inflation has gone down a little, with the annual rate being around 2.7%. In 2024, it was around 2.9%. The average wage for workers also outpaced inflation, with hourly wages increasing by 3.5%, which shows a modest inflation-adjusted increase of 0.8%.

unitedyam January 2, 2026

Credit: Jonathan Weiss/Shutterstock

Jan 2, 2026 / 07:00 am (CNA).

Many people who receive assistance through anti-poverty programs faced disruptions in 2025, and Catholic Charities’ wish list for 2026 includes government support for food assistance and housing.

The largest disruption came in October when food stamps received through the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) were delayed amid the government shutdown. Funding for rental and heating assistance were also disrupted.

Confusion about how to implement a memo in January from the Office of Management and Budget calling for a grant freeze also caused delays in funding related to health care, housing affordability, and food assistance.

Luz Tavarez, vice president of government relations at Catholic Charities USA, said “people get nervous and scared” amid disruptions.

Many Catholic Charities affiliates saw an influx in clients, especially during the shutdown, but Tavarez said there are “very poor people who rely on SNAP subsidies for their meals” and who “can’t get to a Catholic Charities [affiliate] or other food pantry for assistance” when it happens.

Long-term eligibility and funding changes to SNAP were also approved in the tax overhaul signed into law in July. Previous rules only included a work requirement up to age 54, but the law extended those requirements up to age 64. It added stricter and more frequent checks for verifying the work requirements.

It also shifted some funding responsibilities away from the federal government and to the states.

Tavarez expressed concern about some of the SNAP changes as well, saying the government should end “burdensome requirements for individuals and states.”

Under the new law, there are stricter rules for verifying a person’s immigration status for benefits. It also limited which noncitizens could receive SNAP benefits, which excluded some refugees and people granted asylum.

Tavarez expressed concern about such SNAP changes, encouraging the government to permit “humanitarian-based noncitizens” to receive those benefits.

Overall the 2025 tax law gave the biggest boost to the richest families while poorer families might get a little less help than before, according to the Congressional Budget Office.

The bill added a work requirement for Medicaid recipients, and this will not take effect until 2027. Under the previous law, there was no work requirement for this benefit. It also shifts some Medicaid funding requirements onto the states.

Tavarez said Catholic Charities has “concerns with how [work requirements are] implemented” moving forward but does not oppose the idea outright: “There’s dignity in work so the Church isn’t necessarily opposed to people working as long as there’s some opportunities for people to do other things and other issues are taken into consideration.”

She also expressed concerns about funding shifts: “We know that not every state views things like SNAP and Medicaid as a good thing. We don’t know how states are going to balance their budget and prioritize these programs.”

2026 wish list

Looking forward to 2026, Tavarez said Catholic Charities hopes the government will restore full funding to the Temporary Emergency Food Assistance Program for food banks and bulk food distribution programs and ensure that funding is protected for school meals and the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children.

The Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) made policy changes in November that would focus its homelessness funding on “transitional” housing instead of “permanent” housing. This move is facing legal challenges.

President Donald Trump’s administration initially sought to cut federal housing assistance and shift much of those costs to states, but this was ultimately not included in the final version of the 2025 tax law.

In December, Trump promised an “aggressive” housing reform plan that focuses on reducing costs. At this time, the specifics of that proposal have not been announced. The increased cost to buy a new home has outpaced the growth in wages for decades.

Tavarez said Catholic Charities is focused on housing affordability in 2026 and that the solution must be multifaceted. This includes “building and developing affordable housing,” “a tax credit for developers,” “more affordable housing units,” and subsidies and Section 8 vouchers for low-income Americans, she said.

“We recognize that there’s a real crisis — I think everybody does in a bipartisan way — but there needs to be a real bipartisan approach and it’s going to require money,” Tavarez said.

Tax credits and economic trends

Some changes to the tax code included in the 2025 tax law are geared toward helping low-income Americans.

Specifically, the law reduced taxes taken from tips and overtime work. It also increased the child tax credit from $2,000 to $2,200 and tied the credit to inflation, meaning that it will increase each year based on the rate of inflation.

Tavarez characterized the changes to the child tax credit as a “win” and hopes it can be expanded further.

The economy has been a mixed bag, with November unemployment numbers showing a 4.6% rate. In November of last year, it was slightly lower at 4.2%.

Inflation has gone down a little, with the annual rate being around 2.7%. In 2024, it was around 2.9%. The average wage for workers also outpaced inflation, with hourly wages increasing by 3.5%, which shows a modest inflation-adjusted increase of 0.8%.

Picture of the day

Work shed on the Boshuisweg. Location: Kroondomein Het Loo. (Detail)
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unitedyam November 26, 2025

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Work shed on the Boshuisweg. Location: Kroondomein Het Loo. (Detail)

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Basilica, Xavier, Navarre, Spain. The basilica belongs to the ensemble of the Castle of Xavier, built in the 10th century, although the basilica was not built until end of the 19th and beginning of the 20th century. Of eclectic style, the interior has a unique neogothic nave built with grey stone and white marble. The stained glass is a work of painter Marcelino Santamaría from Burgos. The main altar is an artistic decorative work, carved in stone inlaid with mosaics, bronzes and enamels by the Biais house in Paris. The tabernacle is located on a high relief that represents San Francisco baptizing and preaching.
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unitedyam November 25, 2025

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Basilica, Xavier, Navarre, Spain. The basilica belongs to the ensemble of the Castle of Xavier, built in the 10th century, although the basilica was not built until end of the 19th and beginning of the 20th century. Of eclectic style, the interior has a unique neogothic nave built with grey stone and white marble. The stained glass is a work of painter Marcelino Santamaría from Burgos. The main altar is an artistic decorative work, carved in stone inlaid with mosaics, bronzes and enamels by the Biais house in Paris. The tabernacle is located on a high relief that represents San Francisco baptizing and preaching.

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Church of El Salvador, Luesia, Zaragoza, Spain. The church is located in the highest area of the nucleus of the village of Luesia, next to the remains of the old medieval castle, to which it is historically and constructively associated. Its origin dates back to the end of the 11th century with the construction of the semicircular triple apse head with a double crypt at the bottom, while the body with three naves was built throughout the 12th century and the two portals on its southern fronts and occidental already respond to models from the beginning of the 13th century. The Romanesque building underwent a profound reform though in the mid-16th century. The main altarpiece is a Romanesque piece carved in wood; polychrome and gilt. The work is attributed to Gaspar Ramos, a sculptor from Sangüesa, who executed it around 1630.
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unitedyam October 24, 2025

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Church of El Salvador, Luesia, Zaragoza, Spain. The church is located in the highest area of the nucleus of the village of Luesia, next to the remains of the old medieval castle, to which it is historically and constructively associated. Its origin dates back to the end of the 11th century with the construction of the semicircular triple apse head with a double crypt at the bottom, while the body with three naves was built throughout the 12th century and the two portals on its southern fronts and occidental already respond to models from the beginning of the 13th century. The Romanesque building underwent a profound reform though in the mid-16th century. The main altarpiece is a Romanesque piece carved in wood; polychrome and gilt. The work is attributed to Gaspar Ramos, a sculptor from Sangüesa, who executed it around 1630.

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Triumph of St. Ignatius of Loyola by Andrea Pozzo, celebrates the work of Ignatius of Loyola and the Society of Jesus in the world by depicting the saint welcomed into paradise by Christ and surrounded by allegorical representations of the four continents. The trompe-l’œil fresco adorns the flat ceiling of the Church of St. Ignatius of Loyola at Campus Martius. Today is Ignatius of Loyola’s feast day.
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unitedyam August 9, 2025

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Triumph of St. Ignatius of Loyola by Andrea Pozzo, celebrates the work of Ignatius of Loyola and the Society of Jesus in the world by depicting the saint welcomed into paradise by Christ and surrounded by allegorical representations of the four continents. The trompe-l’œil fresco adorns the flat ceiling of the Church of St. Ignatius of Loyola at Campus Martius. Today is Ignatius of Loyola’s feast day.

NASA Astronaut Jonny Kim, Axiom Mission 4 Commander Peggy Whitson Conduct Research in Space

unitedyam July 25, 2025

Expedition 73 Flight Engineer Jonny Kim from NASA and Axiom Mission 4 Commander Peggy Whitson work together inside the International Space Station’s Destiny laboratory module setting up research hardware to culture patient-derived cancer cells, model their growth in microgravity, and test a state-of-the-art fluorescence microscope.

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Waterloopbos, detail of the monumental work of art Deltawerk // formerly Delta Flume. (artists RAAAF en Atelier de Lyon).
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unitedyam June 18, 2025

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Waterloopbos, detail of the monumental work of art Deltawerk // formerly Delta Flume. (artists RAAAF en Atelier de Lyon).

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Mauritius kestrel (Falco punctatus), Ebony Forest Reserve Chamarel, Mauritius. In 1974, this Mauritius endemic was the rarest bird in the World. Due to ground-breaking conservation work the population rose to 800, but has now slumped to possibly 400 birds. In 2023, the Government of Mauritius declared the Mauritius Kestrel as its national bird.
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unitedyam June 16, 2025

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Mauritius kestrel (Falco punctatus), Ebony Forest Reserve Chamarel, Mauritius. In 1974, this Mauritius endemic was the rarest bird in the World. Due to ground-breaking conservation work the population rose to 800, but has now slumped to possibly 400 birds. In 2023, the Government of Mauritius declared the Mauritius Kestrel as its national bird.

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Ceiling of the Oratory of Saint Mary Queen and Mother, Málaga, Spain. The church was constructed in 2008 and is host of the Confraternity of the Sorrows. The paintings in the ceiling, done with acrylic paint, are work of Raúl Berzosa Fernández and were executed in different phases between 2008 and 2014. The 140 square metres (1,500 sq ft) surface is dedicated to the Coronation of the Virgin.
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unitedyam June 13, 2025

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Ceiling of the Oratory of Saint Mary Queen and Mother, Málaga, Spain. The church was constructed in 2008 and is host of the Confraternity of the Sorrows. The paintings in the ceiling, done with acrylic paint, are work of Raúl Berzosa Fernández and were executed in different phases between 2008 and 2014. The 140 square metres (1,500 sq ft) surface is dedicated to the Coronation of the Virgin.

unitedyam May 21, 2025

NASA’s X-59 quiet supersonic research aircraft is seen during its “aluminum bird” systems testing at Lockheed Martin’s Skunk Works facility in Palmdale, California. The test verified how the aircraft’s hardware and software work together, responding to pilot inputs and handling injected system failures.

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Annunciation (c. 1472–1475), is thought to be Leonardo da Vinci’s earliest complete work. Today is the Feast of the Annunciation
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unitedyam April 2, 2025

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Annunciation (c. 1472–1475), is thought to be Leonardo da Vinci’s earliest complete work. Today is the Feast of the Annunciation

unitedyam March 1, 2025

An apprentice at Langley Laboratory (now NASA’s Langley Research Center in Hampton, Virginia) inspects wind tunnel components in this image from May 15, 1943.

‘Life Is a gift’

Future of the pro-life movement

What is ‘Seeking Beauty’?

Where can I watch it?

Where does ‘Seeking Beauty’ take place?

Who is David Henrie?

Will there be another season of ‘Seeking Beauty’?

Exclusively a papal right

2026 wish list

Tax credits and economic trends

Picture of the day Work shed on the Boshuisweg. Location: Kroondomein Het Loo. (Detail) #ImageOfTheDay

NASA Astronaut Jonny Kim, Axiom Mission 4 Commander Peggy Whitson Conduct Research in Space

Picture of the day Waterloopbos, detail of the monumental work of art Deltawerk // formerly Delta Flume. (artists RAAAF en Atelier de Lyon). #ImageOfTheDay

Another Milestone for X-59

Picture of the day Annunciation (c. 1472–1475), is thought to be Leonardo da Vinci’s earliest complete work. Today is the Feast of the Annunciation #ImageOfTheDay

Langley Laboratory Apprentice at Work