Catholic News

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The Holy See has asked the governor of Missouri to cancel the scheduled execution of Ernest Johnson. Johnson was sentenced to death for murdering three people in the 90s. The papal nuncio to the United States emphasized Johnson’s humanity, and the sacredness of all human life. He said all of society benefits when violence is restrained, including the violence of a legal execution. Johnson is scheduled to be executed tomorrow.

A 78-year old Cardinal has been hospitalized with COVID-19, after traveling to the International Eucharistic Congress in Budapest last month. The cardinal had been fully vaccinated last May. He is being treated at a hospital in northern Italy, where he served as an archbishop until his retirement last year.

Pope Francis has asked countries around the world to work quickly toward net zero carbon emissions. The environmental plea was a joint statement with dozens of international religious leaders. The pope presented the statement to the head of the 2021 United Nations Climate Change Conference.

Greatness is found in placing one’s hope entirely in the Lord. That was the message of Pope Francis on Sunday, during his Angelus address in Rome. The pope said the secret to greatness is not self-sufficiency, but smallness, and trust in God. He encouraged Catholics to ask the Blessed Virgin Mary for the grace of humility, and trust in God.

Today is the feast of Saint Francis of Assisi. The Italian deacon is remembered for selling everything to devote his life to God. He received the stigmata - or the wounds of Christ. He was canonized in 1228, two years after his death.

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The archbishop of San Francisco has launched a prayer campaign for the conversion of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi on the issue of abortion. The campaign consists of praying one rosary a week, and fasting on Fridays. Catholics can sign up online with the Benedict XVI Institute. A rose will be sent to Pelosi as a symbol of the prayers and fasting.

The next World Meeting of Families will have limited in-person attendance, due to the coronavirus pandemic. The meeting is scheduled to take place in Rome in June of 2022. Participants can meet in-person, online, and in their individual dioceses, though most in-person events will be limited to around 2,000 people. Those 2,000 people will be selected by bishops conferences and family associations, to represent the church around the world.

A Catholic diocese in the Australian Outback, plans to open the first ever Catholic elementary school named for Blessed Carlo Acutis. Acutis was a young Catholic from Italy, with a passionate devotion to the Eucharist. He was the first millennial to be beatified by the Catholic Church. The Australian diocese said it hopes Acutis will inspire students in their own faith.

Today is the feast day of Saint Thérèse of Lisieux. Thérèse was born in France in 1973. She entered the Carmelite Monastery at 15, with the permission of the pope. She lived a life of humility, and childlike trust in God. She died of Tuberculosis at a young age. Today, millions have been inspired by her little way of loving God and neighbor. She is a Doctor of the Church.

A daily news briefing from Catholic News Agency, powered by artificial intelligence. Ask your smart speaker to play “Catholic News,” or listen every morning wherever you get podcasts.

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Muslim herdsman in Nigeria killed at least 49 people this week in a two-hour massacre on villages in a northern state. Victims included women and children, and at least twenty homes were destroyed. A Catholic priest in the area described the attacks as a massacre against native people, many of whom are Christian.

A Catholic parish in Boulder, Colorado, was desecrated with pro-abortion graffiti this week. The parish has a memorial to aborted babies on its front lawn. The memorial includes a display of 4,000 small white crosses, representing a baby aborted each day in the United States. The vandals also trampled or desecrated many of the crosses. Local police are investigating the incident.

The number of abortions reported in Germany is down by 8.5% from last year, according to numbers released this week. There is no clear cause for the downward trend. Abortion is legal in Germany in the first 12 weeks of pregnancy. The country recorded about 100,000 abortions last year.

Pope Francis has asked Catholics worldwide to pray during the month of October for every baptized person to be engaged in evangelization. The pope would like every baptized person to be witnesses of a life flavored by the Gospel. He shared his monthly prayer intention in a video released today.

Today, the Church honors Saint Jerome, a priest, monk and Doctor of the Church. Jerome is remembered for his translations of the Bible into Latin in the Vulgate.

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Pope Francis is reportedly expected to receive President Joe Biden on October 29th. The visit will be the president’s first official visit to the Vatican since his inauguration. Biden is also expected to meet with the Vatican’s Secretariat of State. Biden first met Pope Francis in 2015, at the World Meeting of Families in Philadelphia.

A federal appeals court will wait to rule on a pro-life law in Georgia, until the Supreme Court makes a decision in the abortion case, Dobbs v Jackson Women’s Health Organization. The appellate court was considering whether to continue to block a heartbeat law in Georgia.

Pope Francis has accepted the resignation of the bishop of Brooklyn, Nicolas DiMarzio. The Vatican cleared DiMarzio of sexual abuse allegations earlier this month. But the bishop is 77 years old, two years past the age at which bishops are required to submit their request to retire to the pope. Pope Francis appointed the bishop of Columbus Ohio, to lead the Diocese of Brooklyn.

EWTN, Relevant Radio and Napa Institute are asking Catholics to join them in praying the rosary daily, during the month of October, to bring an end to legal abortion in the United States. EWTN will broadcast the rosary each day with the Franciscan Missionaries of the Eternal Word, Mother Angelica, from Lourdes in France, or from the Holy Land with Father Mitch Pacwa.

Today, the Church honors the three Archangels, Michael, Gabriel, and Raphael. These angels are the only angels named in Sacred Scripture. All three have important roles in salvation history.

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Bishops in Canada are aiming to raise $30 million dollars over the next five years, to support the Indigenous peoples of the country, including survivors of residential schools. The bishops also issued an apology this week for the Church’s role in the country’s residential school system.

California’s governor has signed two bills related to privacy surrounding abortion. One bill allows insured individuals, including minors, to keep sensitive services confidential from the insurance policyholder, generally their parents. Another bill makes it illegal to film or photograph patients or employees within 100 feet of an abortion clinic. The second bill could affect pro-life campaigners who may want to film or photograph themselves and their work outside clinics.

The Archdiocese of Toronto will now require regular COVID-19 testing for clergy and employees who are unvaccinated. The archdiocese will not require proof of vaccination or a recent negative test to attend Mass, or other religious services.

Lava following the eruption of a volcano in the Canary Islands destroyed a Catholic Church this week. Thousands of people have been evacuated, and there have been no reported deaths. The last eruption on the island was in 1971. Local Catholics removed the tabernacle, crucifixes, statues and paintings from the church, in anticipation of the eruption.

Today, the Church honors Saint Wenceslaus. Wenceslaus died at the hands of his brother, while seeking to strengthen the Catholic faith of his native Bohemia.

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Abortion and euthanasia are murder. That was the strong message of Pope Francis Monday, in a speech to members of the Pontifical Academy for Life. The pope reflected that abortion and euthanasia are the result of a throwaway culture. He said that to understand what abortion is, it is helpful to pose two questions: is it right to eliminate a human life to solve a problem, and is it right to hire a hitman to solve a problem. The pope said that is what abortion is.

The remains of Servant of God Father Emil Kapaun returned to his home state of Kansas on Saturday. Kapaun was a U-S Army Captain and chaplain in both World War II, and the Korean War. He died in a North Korean prisoner of war camp 70 years ago, at the age of 35. A funeral Mass will be celebrated for him in Wichita on Wednesday. His remains will then be interred at the Cathedral in Wichita.

The Republic of San Marino voted Sunday to legalize abortion up to 12 weeks of pregnancy. The vote ended the country’s ban on abbortion, which had been in place since 1865. More than 77% of voters approved the motion to allow abortion in the first trimester of pregnancy. Abortion will also be legal after 12 weeks in cases of fetal abnormalities, or for the health of the mother.

Switzerland voted Sunday to legalize same-sex marriage. Switzerland is the world’s 30th country to approve same-sex marriage. The country has recognized civil unions for same-sex couples since 2007.

Today, the Church remembers Saint Vincent de Paul. The 17th-century French priest is known as the patron of Catholic charities, because of his work among the poor and marginalized.

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House Speaker Nancy Pelosi defended her support for legal abortion this week, saying God gave her free will, to honor her responsibilities. Pelosi is working to pass an abortion bill in California. The Women’s Health Protection Act would allow for abortions, in some cases, throughout all nine months of pregnancy. Her local ordinary, the archbishop of San Francisco, has said the bill is nothing short of child sacrifice.

Dioceses in Canada continue to announce their policies for COVID-19 vaccines. The Diocese of Saint John New Brunswick, has said proof of vaccination will not be required for Mass or the other sacraments. Other dioceses in the province have said they will require proof of vaccination to attend Mass.

The U-S bishops’ conference, and Catholic Charities, are ramping up their efforts to welcome refugees from Afghanistan. The organizations will welcome upwards of 7,500 refugees. The USCCB is one of nine resettlement networks in the United States, and it is partnering with 45 Catholic Charities agencies, to provide resettlement services.

Eight elderly nuns in the Philippines have died of COVID-19, after an outbreak at their convent. The outbreak infected 62 sisters in the community. 52 staff and personnel also tested positive for COVID-19. The convent is located in Manila.

Today the Church remembers Blessed Anton Martin Slomshek. Anton was born in 1800 in Slovenia. He was largely responsible for the nearly 100% literacy rate among Slovenians. He is the first Slovenian to be beatified.

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Catholic leaders are calling for better treatment of Haitians and other migrants, crowded under a bridge at the U-S Mexico border. Thousands of migrants have crowded under the international bridge in Del Rio, Texas in recent days. Many of the migrants are from Haiti, and are seeking better job opportunities. The Biden administration is bringing more federal personnel to the border to expel asylum-seekers, due to health concerns from the ongoing pandemic.

London’s High Court has rejected a challenge to U-K law, allowing abortion up to birth for disability. The court declared the law was not discriminatory. The challenge was brought by a woman with Down syndrome, and the mother of a child with Down syndrome. There were more than 3,000 abortions on the basis of disability recorded in England and Wales in 2020. About 700 of those abortions followed a prenatal diagnosis of Down syndrome.

The president of The Catholic University of America will step down from his role as of June 30, 2022. John Garvey is the university’s third lay president. He has served in the role since 2010.

A fire has severely damaged a historic Catholic church in Ukraine’s capital city. The fire began during an organ music rehearsal earlier this month. The fire destroyed the organ, charred the interior of the church, and sent a chandelier crashing to the ground. The church is the second-oldest Latin Rite Catholic church in the capital.

Today, the Church celebrates the feast of Saint Pio of Pietrelcina, better known as “Padre Pio.” The Italian Franciscan priest is remembered for his suffering, humility and miracles. He received the Stigmata, or Christ’s wounds, present in his own flesh.

A daily news briefing from Catholic News Agency, powered by artificial intelligence. Ask your smart speaker to play “Catholic News,” or listen every morning wherever you get podcasts.

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The Justice Department this week asked the Supreme Court to uphold legalized abortion in the U-S . The court will hear oral arguments later this year, in a major abortion case that could overturn Roe v Wade, the 1973 ruling that legalized abortion nationwide. The court had previously refused to consider appeals in favor of other state pro-life laws restricting abortion.

An abortion doctor in Texas who said he performed an abortion in violation of a new state law was sued this week, by two non-Texas residents. The lawsuit appears to be the first legal action taken since Texas’ heartbeat bill took effect this month.

Pope Francis met today with three Afghan refugee families at the Vatican. The families included a Catholic family of four children, and a man whose parents were killed by the Taliban. Several refugee children presented the pope with some of their drawings, and Pope Francis prayed with the families.

In his general audience today, Pope Francis said the Christian faith in Europe is being diluted by consumerism and ideologies. He said prayer and the witness of humble love are especially needed today. Francis made his comments in reflection on his recent trip to Hungary and Slovakia. He called the trip a pilgrimage of prayer in the heart of Europe.

Today, the Church remembers Saint Thomas of Villanova. Thomas was a 16th-century Spanish Augustinian monk and archbishop. He lived a life of austerity to provide for the spiritual and material needs of his people.

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The Supreme Court will hear arguments in a critical abortion case on December 1st. The case of Dobbs v Jackson Women’s Health Organization, is a challenge to Mississippi’s law restricting most abortions after 15 weeks of pregnancy. The case is considered to be the latest, and perhaps the best opportunity, for pro-life advocates to overturn Roe v Wade, a Supreme Court decision that legalized abortion nationwide.

The House will vote on a bill this week that U-S bishops have warned would effectively impose abortion on-demand throughout pregnancy. The Women’s Health Protection Act, recognizes the right of women to have abortions. It also states the right of doctors and other medical staff to perform abortions. It prohibits limitations on the right to abortion, including state laws requiring ultrasounds or waiting periods before abortions. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi announced the House vote on the bill after Texas passed its heartbeat law earlier this month.

The tiny European nation of San Marino will hold a referendum on the legalization of abortion later this month. Abortion has been illegal in the nation for nearly a century and a half. San Marino is home to about 35,000 people, and is estimated to be over 90% Catholic. A vote later this month will determine whether to allow abortions up to 12 weeks into pregnancy. The vote will also determine the legality of abortion after 12 weeks, in cases of fetal anomalies, or for the health of the mother.

Today, the Church celebrates the feast of Saint Matthew. Matthew was a first-century tax collector turned apostle. He chronicled the life and ministry of Christ in his Gospel.