Catholic News
- Reacting to new IRS stance, USCCB emphasizes that Church does not endorse, oppose candidates (CWN)
A spokeswoman for the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops emphasized that “the Catholic Church maintains its stance of not endorsing or opposing political candidates,” following a new IRS interpretation of the Johnson Amendment. - 'Take action against Christianophobia,' Vatican diplomat urges UN Security Council (Holy See Mission)
During a recent UN Security Council discussion of children in armed conflict, a Vatican diplomat strayed from the topic at hand to plead for international action against the persecution of Christians. After offering several considerations related to the plight of children in armed conflict, Msgr. Marco Formica said: The Holy See cannot remain silent in the face of the terrorist attack that took place at the Mar Elias Greek Orthodox Church in Damascus on 22 June 2025, and expresses its profound concern and unequivocal condemnation of the attack. The Holy See calls on this Council to address the persecution of Christians and take action against Christianophobia. - Bombs, machine gun fire draw closer to Gaza's Catholic parish (L'Osservatore Romano (Italian))
Writing “from the parish of the Holy Family in a Gaza that is now totally destroyed,” a young local Catholic said that “every day and every night, we continue to hear the terrifying noise of bombs and the crackle of machine guns.” “They are ever closer to us,” said Suhail Abo Dawood. “And inevitably, fragments from these explosions also fall on the roof of our church and in the compound where we are barricaded.” “We all live in fear, but especially the children are terrified,” he added. “Despite this constant suffering, which has become a horrible routine, only one thing continues to give us some consolation: prayer.” - Following factory explosion, Indian bishops call for protection of workers (Fides)
Following an Indian chemical factory explosion that left 42 dead, the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of India called for a transparent investigation and respect for workers’ dignity. “The explosion at a chemical factory in the state of Telangana once again raises the serious problem of exploitation and disregard for the dignity of workers,” said Father Stephen Alathara, the conference’s deputy secretary general. Father Alathara noted that “the victims are mostly poor people, members of tribal communities, migrant workers, and daily laborers, who are the most vulnerable.” - Signaling end of Syro-Malabar liturgical dispute, Leo XIV concludes pontifical delegate's mandate (CWN)
The Dicastery for the Eastern Churches announced on July 7 that Pope Leo XIV has ended the mandate of Archbishop Cyril Vasil’, SJ, as pontifical delegate in liturgical matters for the Syro-Malabar Archeparchy of Ernakulam-Angamaly, India. - French-Iranian author pens front-page Gospel commentary for L'Osservatore Romano (CWN)
The Vatican newspaper has published a front-page commentary on the parable of the Good Samaritan by Lila Azam Zanganeh, a French author whose parents were exiles from Iran. - Look at world from children's perspective, Vatican spokesman counsels (Vatican News)
Alessandro Gisotti, a vice director of the Editorial Directorate of the Vatican’s Dicastery for Communication, has written an article, “Pope Leo XIV and a world in the measure of children,” to mark the two-month anniversary of the Pontiff’s election. Recalling a photograph of Pope Leo with a child, Gisotti mused: Why is this image so striking? Because in that simple act of bending down, the Pope points us toward a direction that all people—especially those who hold the fate of the world in their hands—should follow: to meet children at their level, to look at the world through their eyes. “Imagine, just for a moment, if children from the nations of the Great Powers sat on the UN Security Council,” Gisotti added. “Who knows how international relations might change.” - New superior general for Pontifical Institute for Foreign Missions (AsiaNews)
Participants in the 16th general assembly of the Pontifical Institute for Foreign Missions (PIME) have elected Father Francesco Rapacioli, a missionary in Bangladesh, as their new superior general. Founded in 1850 by Venerable Angelo Ramazzotti, the institute has 400 missionaries in 20 countries. The institute also publishes AsiaNews. - Nickel mining threatens Philippine island's ecosystem, Vatican newspaper warns (CWN)
L’Osservatore Romano devoted the most prominent front-page coverage in its July 8 edition to the “deforestation, heavy metal contamination, and health problems” that are “the main effects of nickel mining” on the Philippine island of Palawan. - Syriac Catholic hierarchy again meets with Pontiff (L'Osservatore Romano (Italian))
Pope Leo XIV held a face-to-face meeting with the members of the Ordinary Synod of Bishops of the Syriac Catholic Church on July 4, just three days after a similar meeting. The Vatican did not release a summary of the topics that were discussed in either meeting. Headquartered in Beirut, Lebanon, and led by Patriarch Ignatius Joseph III Younan, the Eastern Catholic church has 208,000 members (CNEWA profile). It has eparchies (dioceses) in Syria, Lebanon, Iraq, Egypt, and the United States. - Papal gratitude for Vatican monthly newspaper of the poor (Vatican News)
Pope Leo XIV has written a message marking the third anniversary of L’Osservatore di Strada, the Vatican monthly newspaper that describes itself as “of the poor, through the poor, with the poor.” “Your work is important because it helps us to remember that the world must also be seen from the street, having the courage to change our perspective, breaking down the patterns and conventions that often prevent us from seeing truly and more deeply and from listening to the voice of those who have no voice,” the Pope wrote in his July 5 message. - Holy See emphasizes link between poverty, climate change (Holy See Mission)
Addressing a session of the UN Human Rights Council, a Vatican diplomat said recently that “the Holy See emphasizes the interconnectedness of climate change, poverty and social protection.” “Around 2.7 billion people living at or below the poverty line are currently at risk of major climate-change related disruptions,” said Archbishop Ettore Balestrero, apostolic nuncio and Permanent Observer to the United Nations and other international organizations in Geneva, Switzerland. “It is therefore urgent to address the disproportionate impact of this crisis on the poorest, who are the least responsible for it.” The diplomat also stated that “it is deeply concerning that fewer than 9% of people in the 20 countries most vulnerable to climate change are covered by social protection systems.” - In unusual move, Pope transfers Kenyan bishop to far smaller diocese (CWN)
In an unusual move, Pope Leo XIV has transferred a Kenyan auxiliary bishop to a diocese that is nearly ten times smaller than his former diocese. - Nigerian governor orders demolition of memorial to church attack victims (Aid to the Church in Need)
The governor of Nigeria’s Ondo State (map), without explanation, ordered the demolition of a civil memorial to the victims of a 2022 terrorist attack on a Catholic parish. “The demolition is a violation of our common respect for the dignity of life and the memory we share of our 41 brothers and sisters who were unjustly killed,” Bishop Jude Arogundade of Ondo said in a statement. The “demolition seems to have renewed the pain of everyone who was affected by the attack, and justifiably so.” Nigeria, a nation of 237 million, is the most populous in Africa and sixth most populous in the world; it is 47% Christian (11% Catholic), 46% Muslim, and 7% ethnic religionist. - Florida bishop denounces 'Alligator Alcatraz' (Pillar)
Bishop Frank Dewane of Venice, Florida, has denounced the opening of the “Alligator Alcatraz” prison in Florida in dramatic terms, even comparing it to the gulags of the Soviet Union. Bishop Dewane, in an interview with The Pillar, said that the use of the term “Alligator Alcatraz”—to “advertise the fact that there are pythons and alligators out there guarding it”—causes fears that “no human being really deserves.” The prisoners who might be assigned to the institution “may have violated the law, but they are not serious criminals,” the bishop continued. He questioned whether the references to wild animals was a throwback to the bloody spectacle of executions in the Colosseum of Rome, and remarked: “We consider Rome not to be a particularly civilized society.” - Vatican newspaper editor sees listening as major theme of Leo's pontificate (CWN)
The editor-in-chief of the Vatican newspaper, citing a recent papal address, sees listening as a major theme of the pontificate of Pope Leo XIV. - Harvard professor who traced Leo XIV's genealogy meets with Pope (CWN)
Pope Leo XIV received Harvard University Professor Henry Louis Gates, Jr., in a July 5 audience. - Vatican Museums reopen Raphael Rooms after major restoration (Smithsonian)
The famous Raphael Rooms of the Vatican Museums are being opened to the public, after a ten-year restoration project. The restoration, using high-tech equipment to analyze the works of the Renaissance master, resulted in several important discoveries about his work and his techniques. - Reporting on Texas floods, L'Osservatore Romano chides Trump administration over climate policies (CWN)
The Vatican newspaper devoted the most prominent front-page coverage in its July 5 edition to the central Texas floods that left over 20 dead at Camp Mystic, a Christian girls’ camp. - More...