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A church in Washington state won its case against a state abortion coverage mandate on Thursday. State law requires employers, including churches, to cover abortions if their health plans also included maternity coverage. The law allowed religious groups not to pay for abortion coverage, but Cedar Park Church argued it could not find a health plan without abortion coverage included.

On Thursday, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi cited her Catholic faith, while defending efforts to permit federal funding of elective abortions. A House committee recently approved a draft spending bill that excludes the Hyde Amendment. The federal policy prohibits funding of most abortions in Medicaid. The archbishop of Pelosi’s home diocese of San Francisco has said no one can claim to be a devout Catholic and condone the killing of innocent human life.

Bishops and cardinals continue to respond to the pope’s recent motu proprio restricting the Traditional Latin Mass . In England, Cardinal Vincent Nichols has said he will grant faculties to priests seeking to celebrate Traditional Latin Masses , as long as they fulfill the conditions of the pope’s motu proprio. Bishops in the Philippines issued a statement supporting the motu proprio. Cardinal Raymond Burke has called the restrictions severe and revolutionary, and questioned the pope’s authority to revoke use of the rite.

Today is the feast day of Saint Bridget of Sweden. Bridget received visions of Christ’s suffering many times throughout her life, and eventually founded the order of the Most Holy Savior.

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A new bill would defund public colleges and universities that perform abortions, or offer the abortion pill to students or staff. Pro-life lawmakers introduced the bill on Wednesday. They said the bill is a response to a new law in California, requiring campus health clinics at state colleges and universities to make abortion pills available to students on-campus starting in 2023.

New Hampshire is moving to restrict late term abortions. The state’s 2021 budget limits abortions in the state to the first 24 weeks of pregnancy. New Hampshire currently has no gestational age limit on abortion.

Catholics are continuing to respond to Pope Francis’ recent Motu Proprio restricting the Traditional Latin Mass. The retired bishop of Hong Kong, Cardinal Joseph Zen, has said the new restrictions are a blow, even if they were expected. Papal biographer George Wiegel described the motu proprio as theologically incoherent, pastorally divisive, unnecessary and cruel. Some U-S bishops have said nothing will change, including in the Archdiocese for the Military Services and Archdiocese of Milwaukee, as well as the dioceses of Cleveland, Grand Rapids, Kalamazoo, Knoxville, and Lincoln.

Today is the feast of Saint Mary Magdalene, one of the most prominent women mentioned in the New Testament. The Gospels record her as being one of the women present at Christ’s crucifixion. She was also the first recorded witness of the Resurrection.

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The general secretary of the U-S Conference of Catholic Bishops resigned from his post on Tuesday. The resignation came ahead of a media report alleging that he frequented gay bars and private residences while using a popular “hookup” app on his mobile device.

Bishops around the world are still responding to the Pope’s recent motu proprio restricting the use of the Traditional Latin Mass . The bishop of Springfield in Illinois has dispensed two parishes in his diocese from the new restrictions. Bishops in Costa Rica have prohibited the use of the Traditional Latin Mass in all eight of the country’s dioceses.

The Archbishop of Cincinnati has said he was not informed of President Biden’s upcoming visit to a Catholic university in his archdiocese. He did not approve of the university hosting the event. President Joe Biden will appear at a town hall event today hosted by Mount Saint Joseph University in Cincinnati. President Biden is the second Catholic president in U-S history. U-S bishops are concerned about his policies on abortion, gender issues, and religious freedom.

An environmental charity recently awarded Prince Harry and Meghan Markle for limiting their family to two children. The award was in honor of World Population Day. Catholic leaders have challenged the award, suggesting that welcoming children and embracing family contributes to the prosperity of the environment. Pope St. John Paul II once stressed that an appreciation of the human person is necessary for interest in others, and the earth.

Today, the Church celebrates the feast of Saint Lawrence of Brindisi, a Doctor of the Church.

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The state of California has ruled that the Los Angeles Unified School District violated federal law in ways that prevented assistance for academically struggling students in the Archdiocese of Los Angeles. The decision could restore millions of dollars to Catholic schools. The Archdiocese filed a complaint in 2019 after the district blocked all but 17 of the more than 100 previously eligible Catholic schools from receiving Title 1 funds. These funds assist underperforming students with math, English and counseling.

The Diocese of Calgary has promised compensation for survivors of local residential schools. The diocese said the fund is one way it hopes to bring about justice and healing to Canada’s Indigenous population. Hundreds of unmarked graves were recently discovered at the sites of several former Catholic-run residential schools.

A New Mexico state senator said he was denied Communion this weekend because of a political matter. His diocese of Las Cruces has said he was privately warned he should not approach Communion, due to his support for a pro-abortion bill. The senator’s parish pastor similarly warned the senator in private not to approach Communion.

A request has been made to open the beatification cause of the co-founder of the Neocatechumenal Way. Carmen Hernández died five years ago at the age of 85. The ecclesial movement draws its inspiration from the practices of the early Catholic Church, providing “post-baptismal” Christian formation in some 40,000 small parish-based communities. The movement has an estimated membership of more than a million people across the world.

Today is the feast of Saint Margaret of Antioch, a virgin and martyr.

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Diocesan bishops are considering how to implement the pope’s motu proprio on the use of the Traditional Latin Mass. The Archbishop of San Francisco has said the Traditional Latin Mass will continue to be available in his local Church. The Diocese of Arlington will allow all parishes that had planned on offering Masses in the Extraordinary Form to continue. The Diocese of Little Rock will limit the celebration of Traditional Latin Mass to two parishes administered by the Priestly Fraternity of Saint Peter.

The Diocese of Norwich in Connecticut filed for bankruptcy last week, amid several sexual abuse lawsuits related to a former school administered by the diocese. More than 60 lawsuits have been filed related to alleged abuse at Mount Saint John School, a former residential school for troubled boys an hour south of Hartford. Norwich’s bishop described the school, which was funded and audited by the state, as a “ministry” of the diocese.

Pope Francis prayed for Cuba on Sunday, in his first Angelus address since undergoing surgery. The pope promised his closeness to the Cuban people, after the largest protests in decades in the communist country. Cubans are struggling with inflation, food shortages, and the coronavirus pandemic.

Today is the feast of Saint Arsenius. The 5th-century saint was a tutor to the son of a Roman Emperor. But he gave it all up to live a life of prayer in the desert.

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Today Pope Francis issued a document restricting Masses celebrated in the extraordinary form of the Roman Rite. Among many provisions, the document requires that groups celebrating the Extraordinary Form of the Mass do not deny the validity of Vatican II and the Magisterium. It also imposes new requirements for newly ordained priests wishing to celebrate the Extraordinary Form, and instructs bishops to verify that already-established parishes that celebrate the Extraordinary Form “are effective for their spiritual growth and to determine whether or not to retain them.” It further instructs bishops to “take care not to authorize the establishment of new groups” that celebrate the Extraordinary Form. The Pope wrote the document in response to a 2020 survey of bishops, and explained that he was saddened by what he sees as a rejection of the liturgical reforms of the Second Vatican Council.

catholicnewsagency.com/news/248392/breaking-pope-francis-issues-restrictions-on-extraordinary-form-masses-in-new-motu-proprio

The top bishop of Ireland on Thursday criticized a plan from the government of the United Kingdom to end all future investigations and prosecutions related to the 20th-century religion-fueled conflicts known as the Troubles. The proposition, brought by Northern Ireland Secretary of State Brandon Lewis, would impose a statute of limitations that would effectively ban legal proceedings on all Troubles-related incidents. Archbishop Eamon Martin of Armagh wrote in a July 15 letter that in light of the UK government’s plan, “it is disturbing that victims and survivors, those who have paid the highest price for the fragile peace we all enjoy today, once more feel marginalised and neglected.”

https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/248389/n-irish-bishop-criticizes-uk-plan-to-end-inquests-prosecutions-related-to-the-troubles

The Knights of Columbus on Thursday expressed sorrow that the proposed appropriations bill, which funds the Departments of Health and Human Services, Labor, and Education, does not include the usual prohibitions on abortion funding. The $253.8 billion proposal does not include the Hyde Amendment, federal policy since 1976 that prohibits funding of most elective abortions in Medicaid. During his 2020 presidential campaign, President Joe Biden called for an end to the use of the Hyde Amendment, in a reversal of his previous support of the policy.

https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/248390/knights-of-columbus-disappointed-by-advancement-of-funding-bill-without-hyde-amendment

The diocese of Assisi in Italy announced July 15 that the reopening of Blessed Carlo Acutis’ tomb had been postponed due to COVID-19, with a promise that it would reopen permanently in the future. During Acutis’ beatification ceremonies last year, visitors to the Church of St. Mary Major in Assisi were able to see the Italian teen dressed in tennis shoes and jeans through a viewing glass on his tomb. While currently unable to view his body, visitors can still pray at the closed tomb and venerate the first millennial to be beatified.

https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/248384/blessed-carlo-acutis-permanent-reopening-of-tomb-postponed

Today, the Church celebrates the feast of Our Lady of Mount Carmel. The formal beginnings of the Carmelite religious order are attributed to a group of monks who, in the 13th century, began living and praying on the mountain, which sits in the plain of Galilee. They venerated the Virgin Mary as Our Lady of Mount Carmel. The feast of Our Lady of Mount Carmel was instituted by the Carmelites sometime between 1376 and 1386.

https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/saint/our-lady-of-mount-carmel-523

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Bishops in South Africa are calling for an end to violence and looting following the imprisonment of former President Jacob Zuma. More than seventy people have died in the violence. The bishops attributed the crisis in part to extreme economic inequalities and high unemployment. The mass looting began on July 8th, after the former president was imprisoned for refusing to testify in an investigation into allegations of corruption.

A member of Congress is seeking a vote to require the Biden Administration to push for a change of venue for the 2022 Winter Olympics. The event is scheduled to take place in Beijing. The U.S. State Department has determined that China is committing ongoing genocide against ethnic and religious minorities.

The Archdiocese of St. Louis announced Monday that face masks will be optional at its Catholic schools this fall. The announcement follows the most recent recommendations from the CDC. The archdiocese also strongly encouraged all eligible for a COVID-19 vaccine to receive one. Missouri is experiencing a surge in virus cases.

Church officials are studying a reported miracle attributed to an Italian Catholic who died in 1964 at the age of 21. Nicola d’Onofrio was diagnosed with cancer in 1963, when he was discerning with the Camillian order in Rome. Those around him were struck by his peaceful demeanor and ready smile as he underwent treatment. He died one year later, after making a pilgrimage to Lourdes.

Today is the feast Saint Bonaventure. The 13th century saint is remembered for his leadership of the Franciscans, and his great intellectual contributions to theology and philosophy.

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Pope Francis returned to the Vatican today, after spending eleven days in a Rome hospital to recover from colon surgery. The pope stopped to pray at the Basilica of Saint Mary Major on his way to the Vatican. He arrived at his residence shortly before noon Rome time.

The Catholic archbishop of Tokyo has asked visiting Olympic athletes and coaches to refrain from attending local Catholic churches, to prevent the spread of COVID-19. The city of Tokyo has already enforced a state of emergency two weeks ahead of the Olympic Games, which are scheduled to begin on July 23. Spectators have also been banned from the Olympic sporting events to curb the spread of COVID-19. A dispensation from the obligation to attend Sunday Masses is still in place in the Tokyo archdiocese, which serves around 100,000 Catholics out of a total population of almost 20 million.

More than 220,000 people left the Catholic Church in Germany in 2020, according to official figures released on Wednesday. The number is almost 19% lower than in 2019, when some 272,000 people left the Catholic Church.

Pro-abortion protestors blocked a pro-life procession in Brooklyn, New York on Saturday morning. Brooklyn’s Witness for Life day of prayer takes place the second Saturday of each month. It includes a rosary procession to the local Planned Parenthood clinic. Brooklyn’s bishop said the attempts to silence the procession were very disturbing and disheartening.

Today, the Church celebrates the feast day of St. Kateri Tekakwitha. She was the first Native American to be canonized. Known as the "Lily of the Mohawks," Kateri lived a life of holiness and virtue, despite obstacles and opposition within her tribe.

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The pope is praying for the victims of a fire today in a coronavirus isolation ward at a hospital in southern Iraq. More than sixty people were killed in the fire, and more than one hundred others injured. Authorities have not yet announced the cause of the fire. The ward opened three months ago.

Pro-life advocates say a draft spending bill would force taxpayers to subsidize abortion on demand. A House subcommittee advanced the bill on Monday without the Hyde Amendment, which bars funding of abortions in Medicaid.

In Cuba, a Catholic priest was beaten and arrested on Sunday during protests against the communist government. The priest was reportedly defending young protesters. He was arrested and accused of public disorder. Cuban Catholics held a peaceful demonstration at the police station on Monday to demand the priest’s release.

Today marks ten days since Pope Francis underwent intestinal surgery at a hospital in Rome. The Vatican said the pope is continuing medical treatment in order to return to the Vatican as soon as possible. A Vatican spokesman had originally announced that the pope would spend around seven days in the hospital, barring complications.

Today the Catholic Church celebrates the memory of Saint Henry the Second. The German king led and defended Europe’s Holy Roman Empire at the beginning of the first millennium.

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Pope Francis will continue to stay in the hospital this week, as he recovers from surgery on his colon. A Vatican spokesman said the pope will remain at the hospital a few more days, to optimize the medical and rehabilitation therapy. Francis was originally expected to stay at the hospital around seven days, barring complications.

Thousands of people took to the streets of major local cities in Cuba this weekend to protest a scarcity of resources and the death toll of COVID-19. Cuba has experienced months of food and medicine shortages. Cuba’s hospitals have collapsed under the pressure to respond to the pandemic. The weekend’s protests were the largest demonstrations in Cuba in more than 60 years of Communist rule. The Christian Liberation Movement called on Cubans to continue to pressure Cuban communist authorities to open general elections.

The pope will visit Scotland in November, for the United Nations Climate Change Conference. Scotland’s bishops said the papal visit will be very short, and the pope will likely spend most of his time at the climate conference. The Conference is scheduled to take place November 1st through 12th.

Pope Francis prayed the Angelus from the balcony of his hospital on Sunday. It was his first public appearance since having surgery on July 4. In his message, Francis said good healthcare should be accessible to all.

Today is the feast of Saint John Gualbert. The Italian was born around the year 993 to a noble family. His older brother was murdered. Saint John worked to avenge his brother’s death. But when he faced his brother’s killer, he had a vision of Christ on the Cross. He went straight to a monastery after his vision and begged to join. Saint John eventually founded his own Benedictine monastery. He became known for his humility, holiness and wisdom.