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Vatican finances, the balance sheets of the IOR and of the St. Peter's Obligation

There is an intrinsic relationship between the budgets of the Oblates of St. Peter's and the Institute for works of Religion.

Andrea Gagliarducci-July 12, 2024-Reading time: 4 minutes

There is a close relationship between the annual declaration of the St. Peter's obolus and the balance sheet of the Istituto delle Opere di Religione, the so-called "Vatican bank". Because the Obolo is destined to the charity of the Pope, but this charity is also expressed in the support of the structure of the Roman Curia, an immense "missionary budget" that has expenses, but not so many incomes, and that must continue to pay salaries. And because the IOR, for some time now, has been making a voluntary contribution of its profits precisely to the Pope, and these profits serve to lighten the budget of the Holy See. 

For years the IOR has not had the same benefits as in the past, so that the portion allocated to the Pope has decreased over the years. The same situation applies to the Obolo, whose income has decreased over the years, and which has also had to face this decrease in the IOR's support. So much so that in 2022 it had to double its income with a general divestment of assets.

That is why the two budgets, published last month, are somehow connected. After all, the Vatican finances have always been connected, and everything contributes to helping the Pope's mission. 

But let's look at the two budgets in more detail.

The St. Peter's Oblong

Last June 29, the St. Peter's Oblates presented their annual balance sheet. Revenues were 52 million, but expenses amounted to 103.4 million, of which 90 million were for the apostolic mission of the Holy Father. Included in the mission are the expenses of the Curia, which amount to 370.4 million. The Obolo thus contributes 24% to the budget of the Curia. 

Only 13 million went to charitable works, to which, however, must be added donations from Pope Francis through other dicasteries of the Holy See totaling 32 million, 8 of which were financed directly through the obolo.

In summary, between the Obolus Fund and the funds of the dicasteries financed in part by the Obolus, the Pope's charity financed 236 projects, for a total of 45 million. However, the balance deserves some observations.

Is this the true use of the St. Peter's Obligation, which is often associated with the Pope's charity? Yes, because the very purpose of the Obligation is to support the mission of the Church, and it was defined in modern terms in 1870, after the Holy See lost the Papal States and had no more income to run the machine.

That said, it is interesting that the budget of the Obolus can also be deducted from the budget of the Curia. Of the 370.4 million of budgeted funds, 38.9% is earmarked for local Churches in difficulty and in specific contexts of evangelization, amounting to 144.2 million.

Funds earmarked for worship and evangelization amount to 48.4 million, or 13.1%.

Dissemination of the message, that is, the entire Vatican communication sector, represents 12.1% of the budget, with a total of 44.8 million.

37 million (10.9% of the budget) was allocated to support the apostolic nunciatures, while 31.9 million (8.6% of the total) went to the service of charity - precisely the money donated by Pope Francis through the dicasteries -, 20.3 million to the organization of ecclesial life, 17.4 million to the historical heritage, 10.2 million to academic institutions, 6.8 million to human development, 4.2 million to Education, Science and Culture and 5.2 million to Life and Family.

Income, as mentioned above, amounted to 52 million euros, 48.4 million of which were donations. Last year there were fewer donations (43.5 million euros), but income, thanks to the sale of real estate, amounted to 107 million euros. Interestingly, there are 3.6 million euros of income from financial returns.

As for donations, 31.2 million came from direct collection by dioceses, 21 million from private donors, 13.9 million from foundations and 1.2 million from religious orders.

The countries that donate the most are the United States (13.6 million), Italy (3.1 million), Brazil (1.9 million), Germany and South Korea (1.3 million), France (1.6 million), Mexico and Ireland (0.9 million), Czech Republic and Spain (0.8 million).

IOR balance sheet

The IOR 13 million to the Holy See, compared to a net profit of 30.6 million euros.

The profits represent a significant improvement over the €29.6 million in 2022. However, it is necessary to compare the figures: they range from the 86.6 million profit declared in 2012 - which quadrupled the previous year's earnings - to 66.9 million in the 2013 report, 69.3 million in the 2014 report, 16.1 million in the 2015 report, 33 million in the 2016 report and 31.9 million in the 2017 report, to 17.5 million in 2018.

The 2019 report, meanwhile, quantifies profits at 38 million, also attributed to the favorable market.

In 2020, the year of the COVID crisis, the profit was slightly lower at 36.4 million.

But in the first post-pandemic year, a 2021 still unaffected by the war in Ukraine, it returned to a negative trend, with a profit of only €18.1 million, and only in 2022 did it return to the €30 million barrier.

The IOR 2023 report speaks of 107 employees and 12,361 customers, but also of an increase in customer deposits: +4% to €5.4 billion. The number of clients continues to fall (they were 12,759 in 2022, even 14,519 in 2021), but this time the number of employees also decreases: they were 117 in 2022, they are 107 in 2023.

Thus, the negative trend of clients continues, which should give us pause for thought, bearing in mind that the screening of accounts deemed not compatible with the IOR's mission ended some time ago.

Now, the IOR is also called upon to participate in the reform of Vatican finances desired by Pope Francis. 

Jean-Baptiste de Franssu, president of the Council of Superintendence, highlights in his management letter the numerous accolades the IOR has received for its work in favor of transparency over the past decade, and announces: "The Institute, under the supervision of the Authority for Supervision and Financial Information (ASIF), is therefore ready to play its part in the process of centralizing all Vatican assets, in accordance with the Holy Father's instructions and taking into account the latest regulatory developments.

The IOR team is eager to collaborate with all Vatican dicasteries, with the Administration of the Patrimony of the Apostolic See (APSA) and to work with the Investment Committee to further develop the ethical principles of FCI (Faith Consistent Investment) in accordance with the Church's social doctrine. It is crucial that the Vatican be seen as a point of reference."

The authorAndrea Gagliarducci

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The World

Catholic parish in Gaza comes under bombardment, Leo XIV calls for immediate ceasefire

The only Catholic parish in Gaza was hit by an Israeli tank and seven parishioners were wounded. The Pope demands in a telegram an immediate cease-fire.

Maria José Atienza-July 17, 2025-Reading time: < 1 minute

The Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem reported in a brief statement the attack on the Holy Family parish, the only Catholic parish in the Gaza Strip, in which seven people were wounded, including two elderly people.

The communiqué stresses that "for the moment there is no confirmation of casualties", but only of injuries.

According to initial reports, an Israeli tank fired at the church, which serves the approximately 500 Christians remaining in Gaza. The army points to a "shooting error" in which also the parish priest, Gabriel Romanelli, suffered a minor leg wound, but was able to attend to the more seriously wounded before being treated and discharged from the Al-Ahli Arab Baptist hospital.

Pope Leo XIV's request for peace

This attack on the only Catholic church in the Strip adds to the untenable situation of the community.

Pope Leo XIV sent a telegram to the Catholic community in the area, emphasizing his "profound sadness" over the attack and assuring them of his prayers for "the consolation of those who mourn and for the recovery of the wounded."

The pontiff made an "appeal for an immediate ceasefire", as he has been doing since his election, with "hope for dialogue, reconciliation and lasting peace in the region".

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  • Opus Dei launches a healing and listening office in Spain
Spain

Opus Dei launches a healing and listening office in Spain

With members and former members of the Work as interlocutors, the Office aims to "channel these processes in a structured way and better respond to the requests received".

Maria José Atienza-July 17, 2025-Reading time: 2 minutes
RelatedRelated NewsSome common questions about Opus DeiRelated NewsOpus Dei clarifies rumors regarding Torreciudad agreement

– Supernatural Prelature of Opus Dei has published on its web site the launching of a new healing and listening office to attend to former members of the Prelature or former attendees of its activities who may feel hurt or have complaints of an institutional nature. 

The Healing and Listening Office of the Opus Dei in Spain, created by a decree of the Regional Vicar of the Prelature dated May 13, 2025, continues the line of interlocution marked by the protocols that the institution put in place more than 10 years ago to deal with possible cases of abuse and which have been progressing and taking shape over the years.

This type of office already exists in many dioceses and religious institutions in Spain and, according to Opus Dei, this new office aims to "promote healing processes" with former members of the Prelature or former attendees of its activities who may feel hurt or have complaints of an institutional nature. 

It is not the first of these offices that Opus Dei has, since 2022, in Argentina, there is the Office of Healing and Resolution, with a similar objective in the American region. Since 2024, the Prelature has also had an Office of Healing and Resolution in Argentina, with a similar objective in the American region. channel to receive requests or complaints related to their time at the Work through an e-mail. 

Former members of the listening team

This office is intended to be one more step in the task of "channeling these processes in a structured way and to better attend to the requests received". To this end, the Prelature has formed a team that includes professionals in the fields of psychology, spirituality, education, social work and pastoral accompaniment. 

Among these people, there are men and women, some belonging to the institution, some without government positions, and people who previously belonged to the Work in order to offer a "space of trust that allows each case to be attended with empathy and respect". 

In fact, the office has operational independence with respect to the government of the Prelature and it is these persons who act as interlocutors between the Work and those affected and who are responsible for "transferring to the Prelature, if necessary, the requests or suggestions for forgiveness or reparation that, in agreement with the claimant, are deemed appropriate." The communiqué does not clarify the type of reparation referred to, or whether the possibility of economic restitution is even contemplated in some cases.

Repair and healing

Through the attention given to the persons who come to the office, this office will gather information "to understand what happened, assess the magnitude of the case and seek the best way to offer assistance and healing". The Prelature itself points out that "the office team can count on external advice - for example, for legal orientation or institutional mediation - always with the express consent of the person attended to."

Preparation for the centenary of Opus Dei

The office was born from a path of work, listening and learning of the Prelature of Opus Dei, together with that of the entire Catholic Church, in dealing not only with cases of abuse (sexual or of conscience) but also in welcoming people who have been wounded or confronted with the religious institution. 

In addition to different cases of disgruntled former members that have directly affected the institution founded by St. Josemaría Escrivá, the Work emphasizes its desire to "improve personal attention, especially towards those who have left the Work" and that this type of action will serve to prepare for the centenary of the foundation of Opus Dei, which will take place in 2028. 

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RelatedRelated NewsSome common questions about Opus DeiRelated NewsOpus Dei clarifies rumors regarding Torreciudad agreement
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Evangelization

Saints Hedwig, Queen of Poland and Lithuania, and Theresa of St. Augustine

On July 17, the Church celebrates St. Hedwig, young queen of Poland and Lithuania. With her husband, the king of Lithuania, she had great influence in the evangelization of that country. She founded the Faculty of Theology of the University of Krakow, "the Jaguellonian" (Poland)". The Blessed Teresa of St. Augustine and 15 Discalced Carmelite nuns, martyrs in France, are also commemorated today.

Francisco Otamendi-July 17, 2025-Reading time: 2 minutes

The liturgy today commemorates St. Hedwig, or Hedwig, who inherited the throne of Poland (1382-1399) upon the death of her father, Louis I of Hungary. The saint was historical figure important in the union of Poland and Lithuania. She married King Ladislaus Jaguellon of Lithuania, converted to Christianity as Ladislaus II, and her husband, evangelized the country.

The 'Roman Martyrology' defines it this way: 'In Krakow, city of Poland, saint Hedwig, queen, who, born in Hungary, inherited the kingdom of Poland and married Jagiellon, great lord of Lithuania, who received in baptism the name of Ladislaus, and with whom she implanted the Catholic faith in that territory of Lithuania († 1399)'." Jadwiga Andegaweńskain Polish, was noted for his charitable work, founding of hospitals and his role in the Christianization of Lithuania. 

Faculty of Theology at the University of Krakow

St. Hedwig took an active part in the life of the huge Polish-Lithuanian state. She promoted culture and founded the Faculty of Theology at the University of Krakow ("the Jaguellonian"), one of the oldest in Europe. Saint John Paul IIwho studied there, would teach that "the real wealth of a country is its universities". 

Queen Hedwig, who died at the age of 25, has been admired for centuries. She was beatified in 1987, and canonized ten years later, by the holy Polish Pope. And her relics were transferred to the altar of Christ Crucified in the Cathedral of Krakow.

Martyrs in the French Revolution

Blessed Teresa of St. Augustine, prioress, and 15 Discalced Carmelite nuns of the Carmel of Compiègne, were guillotined in Paris in 1794, during the French Revolution. Therese of St. Augustine was born in Paris in 1752 and entered the Discalced Carmelite monastery of Compiègne, some 65 km north of Paris. Through her inspiration, all the Carmelites offered themselves to the Lord as victims of atonement to ask for peace for the Church and for their country.

Also celebrated today is St. Alexius, 4th century, who left his home to become a beggar who begged for alms incognito. Saint Hyacinth, martyr in Asia Minor (today Turkey). Saints Justa and Rufina, sister martyrs of Seville (Spain), whose memory is recorded in the most ancient martyrologies. O St. Leo IVPope (847-855), buried in St. Peter's.

The authorFrancisco Otamendi

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The World

Bishop Dunia appeals for help in the face of attacks and kidnappings in Nigeria

The Bishop of Auchi (Nigeria), Gabriel Ghieakhomo Dunia, has appealed for national and international help in the face of attacks and attacks in his diocese. A few days ago, gunmen attacked the Immaculate Conception Minor Seminary in Auchi, in the Nigerian state of Edo, killing a security officer and kidnapping three seminarians.      

OSV / Omnes-July 17, 2025-Reading time: 4 minutes

- Auchi, Nigeria (OSV News)

In response to the attack by gunmen a few days ago at the Minor Seminary of the Immaculate Conception, Diocese of Auchi (Nigeria), Bishop Gabriel Dunia has asked for prayer and help, spiritual or human, to help contain the insecurity. On this occasion, the assailants killed a security officer and kidnapped three seminarians, reported the diocese of Auchi and Aid to the Church in Need (ACN). Help has also been requested from the authorities.

ACN has strongly condemned the attack. And it joins the diocese of Auchi, "in mourning the loss of Mr. Aweneghieme and in fervent prayer for the safe and speedy release of the kidnapped seminarians." 

"We stand in solidarity with the families affected and the Christian community, which continues to suffer the consequences of violence and instability," ACN said. This pontifical foundation supports local churches around the world that are struggling with religious persecution.

Diocese of Auchi, in contact with aggressors

Bishop Gabriel Dunia of Auchi has asked all priests in the diocese to celebrate masses, offer blessings, and lead the faithful in the rosary to ask for divine protection for the entire state of Edo.

Describing the attack in a message sent to ACN, he said, "They came in large numbers, and it was impossible for the guards to stop them." He further stated that the diocese is "connected with aggressors through mediators".

The bishop confirmed that the kidnapped seminarians are between 14 and 17 years old. The entire seminary community, students and professors, have been evacuated to nearby parishes until security measures are tightened. There are also plans to erect a protective fence around the seminary grounds.

A high ransom is not feasible

Although there has already been contact with the kidnappers, paying a high ransom is not feasible. "The students and their families live in extreme poverty. And the Auchi diocese itself depends on outside help, including from ACN, to cover the basic expenses of priestly formation," Bishop Dunia said. In addition, church authorities in Nigeria follow an official policy of not paying ransom, in part to avoid encouraging more kidnappings.

The Immaculate Conception Minor Seminary, founded in 2006, has formed more than 500 students for the priesthood, and "continues to be a beacon of hope for the local Catholic community," ACN noted.

Violence in Africa's most populous country

Nigeria, Africa's most populous country, is experiencing deadly violence in various parts of the country. In particular by internationally recognized terrorist groups such as Boko Haram, mainly herdsmen, bandits or Islamic Fulani (ethnic) gangs.

The groups have invaded farmland, threatening farm owners and forcing Christians to leave. Analysts have described this as a slow but silent persecution that, so far, authorities have not classified as terrorism.

Pope Leo XIV prays for the victims

In mid-June, scenes of horror unfolded after some 200 people were "brutally murdered" in Yelwata, Benue State, Nigeria. Pope Leo XIV prayed for the victims, calling it a "terrible massacre". On the occasion of this attack, Omnes denounced the silence of the Spanish general press, which barely echoed the tragedy.

In addition, earlier in the same month, at least 85 people were killed in coordinated waves of attacks in the space of a week in Benue state. The Nigerian church is also experiencing numerous abductions of priests.

Father Alphonsus Afina, assigned to several Alaskan parishes from September 2017 through 2024, was abducted June 1 in Nigeria, his home country, along with an unspecified number of fellow travelers while in Nigeria's Borno state near the northeastern city of Gwoza. Faithful on two continents are praying for his safe return. As of July 15, he was still being held hostage.

Two million sequestered in one year (2023-2024)

In December, Nigeria's National Bureau of Statistics released a report showing that more than 2 million people had been kidnapped between May 2023 and April 2024 alone. Around 600,000 Nigerians have been killed, and around $1.4 billion has been paid in ransom. An average of $1,700 per incident during that period.

Despite ongoing persecution, 94 % of self-identified Nigerian Catholics said in a survey that they attend weekly or daily Mass. The data was published in an early 2023 study by Georgetown University's Center for Applied Research in the Apostolate.

Bishop's Appeal

Speaking to ACN, Bishop Dunia made an emotional appeal for solidarity, both within Nigeria and internationally. "I call on everyone, every person, to come to our aid: to pray for us, to make any effort, whatever it may be, material, spiritual or human, that will help us to contain the insecurity. Our local efforts are being overwhelmed," he said.

The bishop also expressed frustration at the lack of concrete protection from local authorities. "We are asking the civilian government to come to the site," Bishop Dunia added. "They assured us that they would stay to protect the area. But we have not seen any concrete action so far."

Attacks against Christians

Although the exact motives of the attackers are still unclear, Bishop Dunia told ACN that the situation in his diocese, located southwest of Abuja, Nigeria's capital, has been worrisome for some time. This is not the first attack on the Immaculate Conception Minor Seminary. In March 2025, the rector of the seminary was kidnapped and one of the seminarians was killed.

These repeated attacks highlight the systematic threats that Christian institutions in Nigeria are increasingly facing. According to the prelate, the attackers come from the north and are believed to be members of the Fulani ethnic group.

"We don't even know for sure what they want. But we see a growing pattern of attacks targeting Christian communities and institutions," said the bishop, who expressed concern that this may be an attempt to occupy land or drive the Christian community out of the area.

—————

This news is a translation of the original OSV News in English, which can be consulted here. here.

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The authorOSV / Omnes

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  • Faith and life: leadership in the Church and in society
ColumnistsLupita Venegas

Faith and life: leadership in the Church and in society

Fe y vida does a necessary and commendable work inviting Catholics to know Jesus better, to love Him more and to serve Him better.

July 17, 2025-Reading time: 3 minutes

"Strong men create good times, good times create weak men, weak men create hard times, hard times create strong men." The above sentence appears in Michael Hopf's novel "The Remainers". In it, the author reflects on human nature and the cycle of history. His narrative leads us to confirm that difficulties forge character, it is in them that man knows his strength and scope.

And we can recognize throughout history that it is precisely in the storms that heroes emerge. For example, Nelson Mandela, who after living in prison for 27 years, became a symbol of reconciliation and hope. Or Mahatma Gandhi who led the struggle for the independence of his country in a peaceful way. St. Francis of Assisi who "renewed" the decadent Church in its conduct through his witness of holiness. Anne Frank, Malala Yousafzai, Cardinal Van Thuan... there are many examples of heroism arising from injustice and pain.

I think we can agree that we live in difficult times (wars, hunger, drug trafficking, injustices for immigrants, violence, lies...) and that this must motivate us with power to become strong men and women. This is what our times need! May the Church give us Christian leaders!

Rediscovering our value

Certainly, science and faith together provide answers to our deepest questions and are the key that opens the door to the meaning of life. The crisis of today's man is rooted in the lack of meaning. The excess of sensations and the madness of the immediate prevent postmodern man from reflecting and deepening the value of his being and existence. We need a healthy and holy leadership, we need coherent Christians to save the whole world that is going downhill. 

I had the grace to be invited by the movement Faith and Life to participate in their annual leadership program. The experience I had was inspiring. I was able to see that our Church is alive and that it wants to go out to the peripheries so that everyone knows they are not alone, that everyone feels relief from their burdens and sees light on their paths.

I was invited to give a workshop with Ferney Ramirez on "mental health". They explained to me that there is a need to give an effective response to this problem that is growing in a palpable way in families. They asked us to equip them with tools for life.

Faith and life

We did a job that gave us a lot of satisfaction. The reasons?

  • Fe y Vida is an institute that trains pastoral agents, youth leaders and parents for the New Evangelization of Latino youth in the United States. 
  • It promotes the Christian lifestyle, which is based on values made life. The practice of virtues and love as a powerful driving force.
  • It is not a self-referential institute, it is a coordinated effort that trains leaders from all parishes so that they can carry out their pastoral work with professional preparation, improving their effectiveness for the good of many.
  • They make a formidable team of laity and religious united for the same purpose, living together as an organized, united family, where each one contributes his or her talent, enriching the work and its fruits. 
  • Integral formation is given to all church leaders in their various ministries: music, catechesis, transmission of the Word, liturgy, prayer and piety, family formation, parenting schools...and on this occasion the work of promoting mental health was introduced because it is considered to be a current and urgent need of young people and their families.
  • In this way we forge character and wish to make of our life an epic: a long narration of heroic deeds.

I am convinced and hopeful by these words of Alexandre Dumas: "Good is slow because it goes uphill, evil is fast because it goes downhill"; and my ears hear this divine call: "Let us not grow weary in doing good, for if we do not lose heart, we shall reap in due season" (Gal. 6:9).

I thank God because this Church of His is alive and embraces and welcomes every person, from its many initiatives to bring us all closer to Him. Faith and Life does a necessary and commendable work, I invite you to know everything it offers and how you can prepare yourself with them to know Jesus more, to love Him more and serve Him better.

The authorLupita Venegas

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Gospel

Hospitality and Holy Trinity. 16th Sunday in Ordinary Time (C)

Joseph Evans comments on the readings for Sunday the 16th Sunday in Ordinary Time (C) corresponding to July 20, 2025.

Joseph Evans-July 17, 2025-Reading time: 2 minutes

Today's first reading is one of those mysterious Old Testament episodes in which the Holy Trinity is glimpsed, hinted at. The Trinity is only fully revealed in the New Testament, and for good reason. In a world where people worshipped almost anything, God had to make it clear that there was only one God. But once that was done-at least to Israel-he could reveal the Trinity, which he did through Jesus. However, he could still leave some clues along the way and prepare the ground. And that is what we do today.

What is striking in this episode is that because Abraham is generous in showing hospitality to these unknown visitors-or was he just a visitor? - God blesses him with the son he and Sarah had always longed for. The Lord leaves telling him that within a year Sarah will conceive, and so she does. His generosity bore fruit, and the best fruit of all, a human being. In a mysterious way, her generosity gave life to a child. Abraham did not know the Trinity, but unwittingly embraced it. 

Today's Gospel also speaks to us of hospitality. Jesus goes to the home of Martha and Mary; Martha is busy serving him and his disciples, while Mary merely sits at his feet to listen to him. When Martha complains about her sister's inactivity, instead of Jesus scolding Mary, it is Martha who receives a loving rebuke. 

This episode also tells us about the true nature of hospitality, so important in biblical times and in the ancient world. It was considered sacred. Perhaps we have lost some of that in our busy, individualistic Western world. Perhaps we should be more willing to show hospitality to others, generously, not grudgingly. But hospitality is not just about running around doing lots of things for guests, as Martha did, although that can show a lot of love and affection. it is about recognizing the dignity and worth of the one who has come to visit.

In the New Testament there is a text in the letter to the Hebrews that states: "do not forget hospitality: by it some have unwittingly entertained angels." (Hebrews 13:2). It seems to refer to this episode of Abraham welcoming these three men. Sometimes in the Old Testament it is not clear whether it is God or an angel: God seems to speak through an angel, but ends up being Himself. When we welcome others, we are welcoming angels, or even God. Jesus told us: "every time you did it to one of these, my least brothers and sisters, you did it to me.".

The reason he scolded Martha was that she did not really realize whom she had at home. She did not realize, at least not yet, that God himself had come to her house in human form. But perhaps Mary did, and that is why she sat down to listen to Him. She knew He had words of eternal life. She knew that nothing she could do for Christ could compare with what He was giving her in His teachings. True hospitality consists in appreciating the dignity of the visitor and that, in every visitor, we are visited by Jesus, our Lord and God.

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Evangelization

Our Lady of Mount Carmel, Mother and Queen of the Carmelites

A very popular invocation of the Virgin Mary is Our Lady of Mount Carmel, which the Church celebrates on July 16. The Discalced Carmelites of the Convent of St. Joseph (Avila), write for Omnes about Our Lady of Mount Carmel. They address, for example, the vision of St. Simon Stock, and the devotion of St. Teresa of Jesus to the Virgin of Mount Carmel.

Discalced Carmelites. St. Joseph of Avila-July 16, 2025-Reading time: 4 minutes

One of the most popular invocations of the Virgin is undoubtedly that of Our Lady of Mount Carmel, the motherly and loving Virgin holding the Child Jesus in one of her arms while offering with her hand the holy Scapular. 

Patroness of the Sea, of many towns and churches, patroness of the Order of Carmel and special advocate for those who are about to depart for the afterlife. But where did this title come from, this familiar and endearing icon, these ancient promises of salvation and assistance even for those in Purgatory?

Is it just a legend that is represented in so many pictures and images, which depict her among vaporous clouds, angels and flowers, handing the Scapular to an old Carmelite man with a gray beard? Or spreading her white cloak over a choir of friars and nuns dressed as their Queen and Patroness? 

The prayer of St. Simon Stock

However, there is nothing more real than this Marian fact around which the whole history and spirituality of the Carmelites revolves. This singular and mysterious medieval Order, which arose, it is not very well known at what time or in what way, from an eremitical movement in the Holy Land, which began to take canonical form in the early thirteenth century, has its crowning moment in this sweetest scene. 

A Superior General from England, Simon StockHe is worried and despondent about the future of his Order. He asks and begs the Virgin with a prayer that has become famous, to protect and protect his children:

Flos Carmeli - vitis florigera

Splendor coeli - Virgo puerpera singularis

Mater mitis - sed viri nescia

Carmelitis - da privilegia

Stella maris

What privilege did the venerable Superior ask for? That of being able to continue that profoundly contemplative way of life that existed since the beginnings of the Order. That of being able to remain faithful to the original charism in a canonically very complicated situation, which would have threatened the survival of Carmel. It is then that Our Lady responds, offering more than what was asked of her.

The holy Scapular

One of the best historians of the figure of S. Simon Stock She describes the scene as follows: "... To whom the Blessed Virgin appeared, assisted by a multitude of angels, carrying the scapular in her blessed hands. And she gave it to him saying: "This will be for you and for all Carmelites a grace: whoever dies with it will not suffer eternal fire. Send brothers to the Roman Pontiff Innocent, that I will return it to you favorably, and he will confirm your privileges....". (Ildefonso of the Immaculate, St. Simon Stock. Historical claim, p. 100. Valencia 1976).

But there is more. In the Carmelite Order, especially during the 14th and 15th centuries, there was a growing awareness of being, par excellence, the Order of Mary Most Holy. Great poets like Bautista Mantuano or Arnoldo Bostio. Theologians and writers such as John of Hildesheim, John Grossi, Thomas Bradley or John Paleonidore. Superiors and historians of the Carmelite Carmel put their thoughts and pens at the service of Marian devotion. 

The great celebration of July 16

A devotion that little by little was concretized in the great feast of July 16, in which all the great previous tradition was gathered and given a new impulse. The feast of Mount Carmel was initially called the feast of "the benefits of Our Lady for her Order". Later it was called the feast of the Scapular. And finally, as we know it today: "Our Lady of Mount Carmel", whom the religious honored as Mother, Sister, Patroness, model, intercessor and the most precious jewel of their Order.

The multitude of physical and spiritual miracles worked by means of the holy Scapular (devotion that spread very soon and with great acceptance by the faithful people) made of this invocation, as we have said before, not only a beloved treasure of the Carmelites. It was also something truly ingrained in the heart of the People of God.

Devotion of St. Teresa of Jesus to Our Lady of Mount Carmel

There has been little study of the devotion of Saint Teresa of Jesus to the Virgin Mary. We should not be surprised, since in his writings the allusions he makes to Her are very scattered and a careful look is necessary to discover them. 

However, the great Reformer of Carmel was not only a profoundly Marian soul, but a true theological place. Where the mystery of Mary is found with such richness, such a variety of nuances and in such a complete way that the Saint deserves a place of honor among the singularly Marian saints. 

The recitation of the Rosary and a long etcetera.

The recitation of the Rosary, which he learned from the lips of his mother Beatriz de Ahumada. The mysteries and feasts of the Virgin, which are all related to some important event in her life. To consider Carmel as the Order of the Virgin in every little detail, are already an indication of this tender and deep devotion. In the blue and white shadow of the Immaculate Conception he manages to convert the priest of Becedas. On the day of the Assumption he receives three portentous mystical graces, two of them in relation to the Barefoot Reform; he likes to renew his profession on the feast of the Nativity of the Virgin... And so on and so forth.

The vision of Our Lady's protection

The Order of the Virgin, the houses or dovecotes of the Virgin, the habit of the Virgin or the Rule of Our Lady are habitual expressions in her. The mercy received in the primitive choir of St. Joseph of Avila, in which she sees the Virgin protecting the first community founded by her with her white cloak, is completely emblematic. It is perhaps the only time he refers to the Virgin of Mount Carmel, but not as the Virgin of the scapular. But as the one who guards in a very special way that first convent whose dwellers will have "a high degree of glory" (Book of Life 36, 24).

To cite a particularly expressive paragraph of her writings, this one from the Book of the Moradas can serve as a golden brooch. In it she places before the eyes of her nuns the Virgin as Patroness and ideal of their life:

"For you have such a good Mother."

"Your Majesty well knows that I can only boast of your mercy, and since I cannot cease to be what I have been, I have no other choice but to come to her and trust in the merits of her Son and of the Virgin, his Mother, whose habit I unworthily wear and you wear." 

"Praise Him, my daughters, you are truly this Lady's, and thus you have no reason to reproach yourselves that I am wretched, since you have such a good Mother. Imitate her and consider how great the greatness of this Lady must be and how good it is to have her as Patroness, for my sins and my being what I am have not been enough to tarnish this Sacred Order in any way" (Third Moradas 1, 3).

 

The authorDiscalced Carmelites. St. Joseph of Avila

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ColumnistsAntonio Moreno

There is only one mother

There is only one mother, and Carmen speaks to us of an absolutely countercultural spousal relationship, but one that is extremely important for the development of the human being.

July 16, 2025-Reading time: 3 minutes

Virgin, Mother and Wife: these are by no means the values that are most promoted in today's women. It is striking, however, how thousands of men and women will go out these days close to July 16 to honor the one who best represents them: Our Lady of Mount Carmel.

It seems unbelievable, but it is so. Towns and cities all over the world celebrate patronal feasts, festivals, maritime-terrestrial processions, novenas, triduums and all kinds of religious and civil celebrations to commemorate the feast of the Blessed Virgin Mary of Mount Carmel, which is its original name.

Moreover, the scapular of Our Lady of Mount Carmel is one of the most popular sacramentals and countless faithful wear it and impose it on themselves every year. Those two small pieces of brown cloth joined by two ribbons or cords that are hung around the neck, symbolize the wearer wearing the habit of Mary and, therefore, the adhesion to her figure not only externally, but also internally.

Wanting to be like Mary and imitate her in her virtues is what is meant when she dresses, although, of course, few people know it and many wear it only as a kind of amulet.

It is curious that the multitudes who admire, according to the "like" counts on social networks, a model of woman totally contrary to the one Maria represents, such as that of the empowered woman, who lives for herself, free from the burden of motherhood and living for others, then go out to cheer her and have her as a reference and support in their daily lives. They remind me of those teenagers who are ashamed of their mother in front of their friends, because of the way they dress or speak, but who, when one of them betrays them, run to take refuge in their mother's comforting arms, which they know never fail.

There is only one mother, and Carmen represents, in the collective subconscious of our people, that mother that from the purest biological sense we have all needed. Someone who has lived virginity, in the sense of consecration and total surrender, because for nine months she consecrated herself totally to us. She was the only person in the world who knew us, who gave us her oxygen, her nutrients, who carried us with her everywhere and who suffered the pains of childbirth to give us life.

There is only one mother, and Carmen is the ancestral image of motherhood that we all need in the depths of our soul to feel protected and cared for. She is that lap in which we feel safe, that inexhaustible ear in which to unload our sorrows, that breast in which to satiate and comfort us, that warm voice with which to calm us...

Motherhood also makes us members of a family, of the great human family. Our Lady of Mount Carmel unites us to our closest brothers and sisters and to the extended family that is the community. Our Lady builds people, city, nation, universality.

There is only one mother, and Carmen speaks to us of an absolutely countercultural nuptiality, but very important for the development of the human being. A spousal relationship like the one the Church proposes to Christian couples, which involves literally giving one's life ("I give myself to you" they both say to each other in the ceremony), as she did, being "the handmaid of the Lord".

Being a wife or husband for life clashes head-on with the narcissism that our society glorifies. Husbands and wives do not look at themselves, but at each other. Just as human mothers break their natural tendency to overprotect their children, allying themselves with an authority other than their own - that of the father - to break the umbilical cord and find a reference that sets the limits; Mary always points to her son, who is God himself, telling us: "Do whatever he tells you".

The feast of Our Lady of Mount Carmel reconciles us with the most intimate part of our being human, which is precisely to be divine. Mary is that ideal of Virgin Woman, Mother and Bride, with capital letters, which is so difficult to promote out loud today, because the great dragon of the Apocalypse is determined to persecute her and "make war on the rest of her descendants" (Rev 12:13-18).

Mary, of Carmen or any other invocation with which we address her, is, in short, a woman admired not superficially as the current model of women, but from the depths as will be seen these days in the streets and beaches. Mary is unique, because there is only one Mother.

The authorAntonio Moreno

Journalist. Graduate in Communication Sciences and Bachelor in Religious Sciences. He works in the Diocesan Delegation of Media in Malaga. His numerous "threads" on Twitter about faith and daily life have a great popularity.

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Culture

Catholic scientists: Guadalupe Ortiz de Landázuri, Ph.

On July 16, 1975, Guadalupe Ortiz, doctor of Chemical Sciences and Spanish professor beatified in 2019, died. This series of short biographies of Catholic scientists is published thanks to the collaboration of the Society of Catholic Scientists of Spain.

Luis Felipe Verdeja-July 16, 2025-Reading time: 2 minutes

Guadalupe Ortiz de Landázuri (December 12, 1916 - July 16, 1975) began her studies in Chemistry in Madrid in 1933. One Sunday in 1944, while attending Mass, she felt "touched by the grace of God". She met St. Josemaría Escrivá, founder of Opus Dei, who taught her that Christ can be found in professional work and in ordinary life. He joined Opus Dei a few months later, traveled to Mexico and Rome to help launch apostolic and educational initiatives, and returned to Spain, to Madrid, in 1958. There he taught physics at the Ramiro de Maeztu Institute and also began his doctoral thesis at the CSIC under the direction of Piedad de la Cierva.  

His thesis, "Insulating refractories with rice husk ashes", sought to "avoid the useless waste of thermal energy by keeping the temperature high and reducing heat dispersion". Specifically, it was decided to use a product from the calcination of an agricultural residue, rice husks, a more efficient material than diatomaceous earth, the raw material used until then. Moreover, the use of rice husks means giving an industrial use to an agricultural waste, thus closing the rice production circuit in a recoverable and efficient way. It is circular economy and energy saving in the middle of the 20th century.

Guadalupe also wanted to find and develop organic molecule-compounds capable of adhering to dirt (stains on textiles), through one end of the molecule. In this way, stained fabrics could be cleaned and removed, with the corresponding savings in water, detergents and energy.

In 1967, she became a professor at the Escuela Femenina de Maestría Industrial. In addition, she was assistant director and professor of Textile Chemistry at the Centro de Estudios e Investigación de Ciencias Domésticas (CEICID).

Her joy, strength and commitment to all those around her, her strong love for the Eucharist and Our Lady characterized her. She suffered from heart disease for many years and died at the age of 58. She was beatified in Madrid in 2019 and is thus presented to us as a model for lay people in general and scientists in particular.

The authorLuis Felipe Verdeja

University of Oviedo. SCS-Spain.

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Evangelization

St. Bonaventure, Bishop and Doctor of the Church

On July 15, the Church celebrates St. Bonaventure, Franciscan bishop and cardinal, named doctor of the Church by Pope Sixtus V, together with St. Thomas Aquinas. Also commemorated are St. Ansuero and 29 martyrs of the Benedictine community, and Ignatius of Azevedo and 39 Portuguese Jesuit martyrs, killed in 1570 on their way to Brazil.  

Francisco Otamendi-July 15, 2025-Reading time: 2 minutes

Born in Bagnoregio, near Viterbo, in 1218, John Fidanza, the future St. Bonaventure, who would become a bishop, cardinal and doctor of the Church, was the son of a physician. He did not want to follow his father's path. According to a legend, the decisive factor would have been a meeting with St. Francis of Assisi who, as a child, would have cured him of a serious illness by marking his forehead with the cross and exclaiming, "Oh, good fortune!". 

At the age of 18 he went to Paris, studied philosophy and theology, and entered the Order of Friars Minor. After teaching at the same university, he was elected Minister General of the Order in 1257. He governed it with prudence and wisdom, becoming a sort of second founder. Appointed bishop of the diocese of Albano and cardinal, he worked hard for the union of the Eastern and Western Churches at the Second Council of Lyon, where he died on July 15, 1274.

Seraphic Doctor

He bequeathed numerous theological and philosophical, spiritual and mystical works, which earned him the title of Seraphic Doctorfor his ardent love of God. His 'Legenda maior', the official biography of St. Francis, from which Giotto drew his inspiration, has been important in Franciscan history. 

In 1588 Pope Sixtus V placed him among the Doctors of the Church - six at that time - together with St. Thomas Aquinas, distinguishing St. Bonaventure as Seraphic Doctor and St. Thomas as Angelic Doctor.

Among its contributionsAccording to the Vatican agency, the need to subordinate philosophy to theology can be emphasized, following the thought of St. Augustine, according to the Vatican agency. And the elaboration of his Trinitarian theology. He was canonized in 1482 by Pope Sixtus IV.

Germanic, Portuguese, Vietnamese Martyrs

The liturgy also celebrates on this day, among others, St. Ansuerus and 29 monks of the Benedictine community of St. Georgenberg, near Ratzenburg (Germany). They were stoned to death by a tribe of the Vendos, pagans, who rebelled against the monks' work of evangelization. 

The Portuguese Blessed Ignatius of Azevedo and 39 Jesuit martyrs, killed in 1570 while on their way to Brazil on missionary work, are also commemorated. The Vietnamese saints Peter Nguyen Ba Tuan and Andrew Nguyen Kim Thong Nam, persecuted for evangelizing. And to St. Vladimir the Great or of Kiev (present-day Ukraine), who died in 1015.

The authorFrancisco Otamendi

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Family

Will Robertson, learning God's plan through baseball

Will Robertson, left fielder for the Toronto Blue Jays, now with the Chicago White SoxHe has clear priorities in his life: faith and family. His wife Morgan, and her youngest daughter, Jonnie, travel with him from city to city to watch him play. "We're living the dream with him," she said, and learning God's plan.

OSV / Omnes-July 15, 2025-Reading time: 6 minutes

Left fielder Will Robertson (Left fielder), he plays at home wherever he goes. His Loose Creek (Missouri) native wife, Morgan, and young daughter, Jonnie, travel with him to watch him play baseball, and live his dream. With the Toronto Blue Jays, and now the Chicago White Sox, he says "faith and family are No. 1."

On June 11, after playing minor league baseball, Will was called up to the Toronto Blue Jays. But almost a month later, Toronto traded him to his favorite team of the Pope Leo XIVThe Chicago White Sox, according to a July 10 report by Sportsnet, a Canadian news outlet.

Will graduated from Immaculate Conception School in Loose Creek, Fatima High School in Westphalia, Missouri, and Creighton University in Omaha, Nebraska.

He was drafted by the Toronto Blue Jays in the fourth round of the 2019 MLB draft. For the past two seasons, he played for the Buffalo Bisons, Toronto's Triple-A affiliate of the Toronto Blue Jays. He got the call "to the bigs" while the Blue Jays were in St. Louis playing the Cardinals.

Debut in the major leagues 

"I didn't play in the game, but I was on the active roster," he said in a late June interview with 'The Catholic Missourian,' Jefferson City's diocesan media outlet. "It was a very special moment to be at Busch Stadium.

"I've attended a lot of games at Busch," he noted. "But experiencing it from the opposing dugout is a very different feeling."

Will Robertson made his major league debut two days later against the Philadelphia Phillies, and earned his first big league hit in the less-than-friendly confines of Citizens Bank Park.

Proud Central Missouri Catholics

Will's wife and daughter were in the stands in Philadelphia when he took the field. "When we started going long distance, we said, 'No matter where, we're taking our family with us to these wonderful places we'd never get to without baseball," Morgan said.

"We've decided to make it all about family." she said. "So, home is not just a place for us. It's where we are when we're together." "We're very proud to be Central Missouri Catholics," added Will, who said his faith is paramount: "I wouldn't be here without it." 

The couple grew up in an environment of large Catholic families. "Morgan and I were raised very traditionally by our parents," Will said. "The small German towns in central Missouri."

"And with both of us belonging to very large extended families - grandparents, aunts and uncles who grew up in the church - everyone has played a role in our upbringing over the years," he said.

Love of sports in family life

The two first met while in kindergarten. The lesson was, "Teach your children to be kind to other children," she said. "Sometimes, your kindergarten crush could be your wife!".

Will has "something like 18 cousins on my dad's side and about 12 on my mom's side."

"We all play sports," he said. "Baseball and sports in general are definitely deeply ingrained in our families". 

He believes his first "home run" (note: 'home run,' a play in which the batter hits the ball and manages to go around all the bases (first, second, third and home) to score a run), came during a family game of 'wiffle ball' in his grandparents' backyard. "Growing up with a bunch of cousins, we played a lot of wiffle ball," he recalled. "Even in the field behind the church on Loose Creek. It was definitely a family affair. That's where it all started." Everyone played for fun.

Will Robertson, a Catholic native of Loose Creek, Missouri, and left fielder for the Toronto Blue Jays, made his major league debut on June 13, 2025, at the plate in Philadelphia against the Phillies. On July 10, he was traded to the Chicago White Sox (OSV News photo/courtesy of Dennis Kennedy).

Baseball and education

Only while playing varsity baseball in high school did he begin to think it might help him further his education, and perhaps turn into a career. His mother and father were around to encourage him. "Growing up, your parents are always on top of you," he said. "They're the ones who help you reach your goals."

Will is convinced that kids learn valuable lessons and forge lifelong friendships while participating in sports together. "I still have a lot of connections with kids I played ball with from the time I was 10 years old."

Robertson went to Creighton on a baseball scholarship, learning to navigate the challenges of balancing school, faith and America's hobbies. "For the first time, you have to fend for yourself," he says. "A lot of your maturity comes from going out on your own and figuring things out for yourself."

Later, he suffered serious injuries after embarking on his professional baseball career. "It was certainly a setback, and I wasn't sure what the future would hold," he recalled. He chose to trust God and keep working at it.

"God has a plan."

Morgan said her husband's mental and emotional strength is one of the things that attracted her to him. "Baseball is not for wimps," she noted, having played softball and basketball. "Until I started traveling with Will, I really didn't understand the magnitude of what he does every day."

"Baseball is a sport where you fail a lot and it's a mental game," he continued. "Most of the time, you get knocked out. And you have to go out on the field and deal with it. It's hard for me just to watch it, let alone have to go through it. But Will always walks off the field with his head held high."

She recalled something Will's father often tells her, "God has a plan." "I think Will takes it seriously," she said. "It's made him the guy he is. How mentally strong he is. That's why I'm with him."

Having a daughter has helped Will reinforce the idea that God has a plan, and it's much bigger than the present moment. "Some days you can hit 5 out of 5 or miss 5 out of 5," he said. "You just have to keep doing your best and focusing on what really matters."

Travel: the challenge of sacramental life

"Whatever happens in baseball, I still have my family and I still have my faith," he said. Will added that participating in the sacramental life of the church can be difficult with all the travel and a 162-game season.

"Sometimes, you have a Saturday night game at 6:30 p.m., followed by a day game at noon, and you have to be at the stadium by 9," he said.

Technology helps the couple find the closest weekend Masses they can attend. When it doesn't work, the couple finds a Mass where it is streamed online, and they make a point of attending Mass the next day. Being in the car gives them time to pray their daily rosary together.

Bearing witness as a baseball family

Morgan said they don't want people, especially the friends they grew up with, to treat them differently. At the same time, Will firmly believes that people in the public eye need to set a good example.

"I think you have a clear responsibility to the next generation," he said. "As an athlete, you have a responsibility to project a positive image."

He said baseball has given him a lot: "the opportunity to meet a lot of incredible people and live experiences that I would never have been able to live. So, you have to give back what you have received."

A good partner 

Morgan said the proudest moment so far in her husband's career was an award that his baseball teammates on the Blue Jays' minor league teams voted to bestow on him: for being a good teammate.

"That tells me a lot about him," he said. "And at the end of the day, what people are going to remember is your character and how you treat others and how you stay on the field."

Will wears his gratitude on his sleeve. "I wouldn't be here without my parents, without Morgan, without my grandfather, certainly not without God," he said.

Of all people of faith, he asks for prayers for health and safety on the road, and also for people in central Missouri who are "fighting some tough battles," with hardship and illness.

One thing the couple loves about home is that the major league baseball player is just Will to everyone who knows him.

"We are normal people returning home."

"We're normal people and that's what we love most: coming home and spending time with family and friends, and having stability with our parishes, going to mass at our church on Sundays," Will said.

Morgan said it's good to know that when her husband's career comes to an end, there's a lot waiting for them at home.

Her husband agrees.

"We have a family that loves us, a great community, a great parish," he said. "So, if the worst thing that can happen to us is that my baseball career comes to an end, our worst day might actually be our best day."

——————–

Jay Nies is editor of 'The Catholic Missourian'. This story was originally published by 'The Catholic Missourian', a media outlet of the Diocese of Jefferson City, and distributed through a partnership with OSV News.

This report is a translation of the original OSV News report that you can see here.  here.

———————

  

The authorOSV / Omnes

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  • Transmitting the faith to our children: sowing deep in the heart 
Family

Transmitting the faith to our children: sowing deep in the heart 

Opening for our children the door to dialogue with transcendence is a task that parents have to assume with different facets at each moment.

Leticia Sánchez de León-July 15, 2025-Reading time: 7 minutes

There is no doubt that we find ourselves in a difficult cultural and social moment for the transmission of the faith in general. Today's culture increasingly leaves aside the anthropological vision of man, where interiority is important, and in social relations the material (what one has, what one produces) takes precedence over the immaterial: who you are, what your dreams and projects are, what makes you happy....

A profoundly materialistic society and culture is compounded by people's inability to think. The loss of values, relativism, the lack of humanistic training in general, technological evolution, the acceleration of the pace of life or social polarization are some of the causes.

In this complex context, it is normal that as a society we have been drifting towards a culture of rapid response where there is almost no room for reflection and dialogue.

And yet in such relevant topics as the transmission of faith, education in values or human formation in general, time, dialogue and reflection are essential. 

Researcher and writer Catherine L'Ecuyer, an expert in psychology and education, in the book that made her famous, Educating in awe, speaks of the convenience of children coming into contact with nature, because there they discover and experience the silence, the slow growth of plants, the slow walking of ants or the careful pollination of flowers in spring.

What L'Ecuyer says has a great deal to do with the process of transmitting the faith to our children: when we talk about God to our children or pray with them, we are "sowing" in them small seeds in their hearts, something that undoubtedly requires time and care.

Faced with a social panorama that is not free of obstacles, faith, which fulfills every person's desire for transcendence, can be sown in fertile soil, if we know where and when to sow the seed.

Parents, interpreters of the world for their children

In opening the door to dialogue with transcendence for our children, we parents have a certain advantage: our children, especially in their first years of life, are naturally open to whatever we want to show and teach them. They make us their interpreters of the world. From the age of "why", around the age of 3, our children want to understand what surrounds them and they come to us precisely because we are their parents.

It could be objected, not without reason, that we cease to be true interpreters when our children reach adolescence, and yet, also at that stage, what we say to them is important together with the example we set for them.

It's true that adolescents are always dissenting from our interpretation of the world, and this is a good thing: our teenagers are beginning to develop their own thoughts and it is therefore quite logical that they do not simply accept what we tell them, but that they reflect and develop on their own.

However, following the saying: "two don't argue if one doesn't want to", parents, at this stage, are very necessary for them to elaborate their conception of life and the world; without our interpretation of the world, they would have no one to talk to, no one to talk to, and no one to talk to. against who confronting each other. 

In this sense, we should ask ourselves what interpretation we want to give them: how we look at the world and people will necessarily influence them.

If our outlook is pessimistic, they will also have a pessimistic conception of what surrounds them and, even worse, they will distrust the people around them; if our outlook is, on the contrary, positive and hopeful, they will also be able to see the positive in difficulties, they will see opportunities for growth in crises, they will be able to see the Good in the midst of so much evil. 

Faith from freedom

As I have already said, the fact that we parents are interpreters of the world for our children does not mean that they will accept our vision just like that, and here we enter into another essential point in the transmission of faith: freedom. The transmission of faith requires freedom. It is useless for us to try to impose it: it will not find fertile ground on which to cling.

We parents must count on the freedom of our children when we speak to them about God, because it is they themselves who have to experience Him, we cannot experiment for them. We can transmit to them how much faith has helped us in our own difficulties, in the pains we have had, in the crises we have gone through, and thus show them how nothing has really prepared us for God's presence in our lives. in full to face life's disagreements. 

In a meeting on faith that I attended, the famous Roman priest Fabio Rosini said: "I have never been to a meeting on faith.Many times we think that faith depends on us, on what we do: "I have to have more faith to face this problem" or "I have to pray more or make this or that sacrifice" thinking that perhaps God will reward us with more or less faith according to how we have behaved. No, in that sense, faith is given by God, but how does our faith grow then?

And he continued: "When we take advantage of the occasions that He allows, to trust in Him. God increases your faith from your problems - and frailties - if you let Him, that is, if you take advantage of those difficulties to lean on Him. It is God who gives us faith but man has to be willing to accept it."

It seemed to me a necessary reflection: faith becomes, then, not a set of contents and dogmas but an experience, a letting God do, a leaning on Him when the legs falter.

It is absurd to think of leaning on God when difficult moments arrive if we do not establish a personal relationship with Him beforehand. 

Sowing deep in the heart 

All of the above corresponds to a dimension of the transmission of faith that we could call "active", where we parents manage to sow that faith in their young hearts.

Sometimes it will be the devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesusa family visit to the cemetery on All Saints' Day; a daily offering to Our Lady, prayers before bedtime recited with great attention, teaching them to recite the Rosary...

Obviously, the more seeds we sow, the more likely it is that faith will take hold in the soil. On the other hand, as our children grow, that seed can be something more intellectual: it can be teaching them that there is something beyond the material, that we must always do good and love and respect everyone, that God loves them like a mother and a father, that he cares for them, that he protects them.

Our role, in short, is to open a door to faith as an experience of God, which is both an instrument on which to rely and a source of happiness, because we cannot forget that our relationship with God gives meaning to our existence: feeling that we are his children fills our lives with color, strength, self-esteem and purpose.

The seed that we can sow must take root in the hearts of our children, not in their behavior. To put the focus of the transmission of faith on external behaviors is in a way equivalent to saying that faith is only something external: a series of things to do in order to feel satisfied and to make God "happy" with us.

The parable of the sower speaks of this superficial sowing: "(...) some of the seed fell by the roadside, and the birds came and ate it up. Another part fell among the stones, where there was not much earth, and soon sprouted, because the earth was not deep; but as soon as the sun rose, it was burned and withered, because it had no root." 

Faith must be "buried" in the deepest part of our children's hearts, where they are formed as persons and where they unconsciously store memories and experiences that shape their innermost being and from where they will draw water as adolescents or adults when they feel the aridity of the world and its difficulties.

As Pope Francis wrote in his latest encyclical, Dilexit us, to speak to the heart is "point to where each person, of all kinds and conditions, makes his or her synthesis; where concrete beings have the source and root of all their other powers, convictions, passions, choices, etc.."

Saying without saying 

The second dimension of the transmission of faith to children, which we will call the "passive" dimension, has much to do with the example we give, because children watch everything we do and are able to grasp the depth of our actions.

In this dimension, we parents will tell without telling, we will show our children how and with what intensity we pray and live our faith. This dimension is undoubtedly the most important because what is the point of telling stories of Jesus' life to our children if we do not bring the Gospel to life? How will they learn to pray if they do not see us do it? How will they understand that our relationship with God is our strength if we do not show it to them? 

I remember that once, when I was 21 years old, I confided to my father a situation that was causing me a lot of anguish. He, after listening to me, did not propose a solution to the problem, but told me about a complicated situation at work that made him suffer and told me how he prayed and how he spoke to God about that difficulty. His words touched my heart and I still remember them many times today and they help me to pray. 

Like this anecdote, I could tell many others. For parents, reaching the hearts of our children should not be so difficult. What helped me from what my father told me that day was not the situation he was going through or knowing that my father is a person of faith who prayed for the situation to be resolved. What helped me was that my father opened his intimacy to me and showed me his fragility and how he was leaning on God from that fragility of his. What my father did that day was to let me see a little piece of his relationship with God, a relationship that I understood to be real, strong, deep, virile. 

And yet, there is nothing more powerful than a mother or father who speaks to their children from their most intimate experience, even if it reveals them in all their nakedness.

It would definitely be worse for our children to perceive that we block our intimacy -also spiritual- behind a wall and from which we only show what is good and right in our actions. Is that what we want our children to perceive of us: perfect parents who do not make mistakes, who are clear about everything and whose faith does not waver?

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Pope Leo XIV receives Zelenski at Castel Gandolfo

Pope Leo XIV received on July 9, 2025, Zelenski, President of Ukraine, at Castel Gandolfo, where the Pontiff is spending a few weeks of the summer.

Editorial Staff Omnes-July 14, 2025-Reading time: < 1 minute
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Pope celebrates first Mass for "the care of Creation".

Pope Leo XIV celebrated the first Mass for "the care of Creation" on July 9.

Rome Reports-July 14, 2025-Reading time: < 1 minute
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Despite his vacation period, Pope Leo XIV celebrated in Castel Gandolfo the first Mass for "the care of Creation".

The ceremony took place in the gardens of the papal residence and was attended by approximately 50 people, including workers who assist the Pontiff during these weeks and some officials of the Curia.

Now you can enjoy a 20% discount on your subscription to Rome Reports Premiumthe international news agency specializing in the activities of the Pope and the Vatican.

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Caring for others is the "supreme law," Pope says at Angelus

Serving life by caring for others is "the supreme law" that comes before all norms of society, Pope Leo XIV said before reciting the Angelus with thousands of visitors gathered outside the papal summer villa at Castel Gandolfo on July 13. 

CNS / Omnes-July 14, 2025-Reading time: 4 minutes

- Carol Glatz, Vatican City, CNS

"To live eternally, it is not necessary to cheat death, but to serve life. That is to say, to care for the existence of others in the time we share. This is the supreme law, which is above every social norm," Pope Leo XIV said yesterday in the Angelus in front of thousands of people at Castel Gandolfo.

"Imitating the example of Jesus, the Savior of the world, we too are called to bring consolation and hope, especially to those who are experiencing discouragement and disappointment," added Leo XIV. 

The human longing for eternal life

Pope Leo arrived in the small town on the hilltop south of Rome on July 6 for a brief vacation until July 20. He celebrated Mass in the church of St. Thomas of Villanova yesterday, July 13, and then recited the noon prayer from the steps in front of the papal villa under a sky that swung between dark clouds and bright bursts of sunshine.

In his reflection before the prayer, Pope Leo spoke about the human longing for eternal life, that is, "for salvation, for an existence free from failure, evil and death."

"What the heart of man hopes for is described as a good that is "inherited". It is not a matter of conquering it by force, nor of imploring it as servants, nor of obtaining it by contract. Eternal life, which God alone can give, is transmitted to man in inheritance as from father to son."

Doing God's will

"That is why Jesus tells us that, to receive God's gift, we must do his will," the Pope said, which is to love "the Lord your God with all your heart" and "your neighbor as yourself."

"God's will is the law of life that the Father himself was the first to follow, loving us unconditionally in his Son Jesus," Pope Leo said.

Jesus "shows us the meaning of authentic love for God and for others," he said. "It is a love that is generous, not possessive; a love that forgives without question; a love that reaches out and never abandons others."

"In Christ, God became a neighbor to each and every man and woman. That is why each of us can and must become a neighbor to everyone we meet," he said.

By opening our hearts to God's will, he said, "we will become artisans of peace all the days of our lives".

Numerous groups in the square

After greeting the many groups present in the square, including members of the pastoral community of Santísimo Agustín de Tarano from Colegio S. Augustin in Chiclayo, Peru, the Pope shook hands with several special guests who were standing by the wooden barricades between the entrance of the villa and the square.

It was the first Angelus address at the summer villa of Pope Leo, who returned to the tradition of taking a summer break at the villa of Castel Gandolfo.

Pope Francis, on the other hand, had spent his summers residing in the Vatican and had addressed only one Angelus from the papal villa on July 14, 2013.

Instead of giving the blessing from the villa's balcony, like his predecessors, Pope Francis had addressed the crowd at street level from the villa's open front door. The Pope Leo did the same.

"Dear brothers and sisters, I am pleased to be with you here in Castel Gandolfo," Pope Leo said to great applause. He greeted those present and thanked "everyone for your warm welcome."

After the Angelus: praying for those affected by the war

During the summer months, numerous initiatives are carried out with children and young people, and I would like to thank the educators and animators who dedicate themselves to this service, the Pope said. In this context, he recalled "the important initiative of the 'Giffoni Film festival', which brings together young people from all over the world and which this year will be dedicated to the theme 'Becoming Human'".

"Brothers and sisters," the Pope appealed, "let us not forget to pray for peace and for all those who, because of violence and war, find themselves in a situation of suffering and need."

Beatification of a Marist Brother in Barcelona

Yesterday, in Barcelona, was beatified Licarione May (whose given name was Francesco Beniamino), a friar of the Institute of the Marist Brothers of the Schools, killed in 1909 for hatred of the faith, the Pope said.

"In the midst of hostile circumstances, he lived his educational and pastoral mission with dedication and courage. May the heroic witness of this martyr be an encouragement to all, particularly to those who work in the education of young people."

Jesus did not ignore the needy, and neither did Christians.

Prior to the Angelus, Pope Leo XIV celebrated Mass in the small church of St. Thomas of Villanova, just across the main square of the papal villa in Castel Gandolfo. 

In its homily the Pope focused on the day's Gospel reading from the parable of the Good Samaritan. The Good Samaritan met the wounded man who had been walking along the road from Jerusalem to Jericho, Pope Leo said. 

Today, that road is "traveled by all those people who are dispossessed, robbed and plundered, victims of tyrannical political systems, of an economy that forces them into poverty and of wars that kill their dreams and their very lives," he added.

To follow Christ is to learn to have a heart that is touched

"What do we do: do we look around and walk, or do we open our hearts to others, like the Samaritan? Are we sometimes content simply to do our duty, or to consider as our neighbors only those who are part of our group, who think like us, who share our same nationality or religion?" asked Pope Leo.

"To believe in and follow a loving and compassionate Christ is to allow him to enter one's heart and take on one's own feelings," Leo XIV explained. "It means learning to have a heart that is moved, eyes that see and do not look away, hands that help others and soothe their wounds, shoulders that bear the burden of those in need."

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This chronicle is a translation of the original information that you can find here. here.

The authorCNS / Omnes

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Integral ecology

Disability as a gift: a call to rebuild humanity

Disability is revealed as a gift that challenges us to rebuild humanity from tenderness and inclusion, in the face of a culture that discards fragility. Testimonies such as those of Andrea and José María show how faith and community transform the way we look at things.

Javier García Herrería-July 14, 2025-Reading time: 3 minutes
RelatedRelated NewsNolan Smith: "I love my faith. I want to be part of the Church, to participate in its activities."Related NewsCaring for people with disabilities: a perspective on the meaning of life.

Francisco's kiss on the tumor-covered forehead of Vinicio Riva - the man disfigured by neurofibromatosis - resounded like a silent manifesto. It was not compassion: it was a recognition of human dignity embodied in a historic image. That gesture, which moved the world in 2013, has its roots in the 4th century, when St. Basil founded a large charitable complex on the outskirts of Caesarea, which included a hospital, leprosarium, flophouse, hospice and orphanage.

The Church's work with people with disabilities is not new, but today it is a beacon amidst the fog of a world that idolizes efficiency, bodily perfection and individualistic well-being. The recent Declaration of the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith, "Dignitas Infinita"(2024) proclaims it clearly: "One criterion for verifying real attention to the dignity of each individual is, obviously, the attention given to the most disadvantaged. Our time, unfortunately, is not distinguished by such attention".

True stories

In a world that often marginalizes frailty, the Catholic Church deepens its commitment to people with disabilities, recalling that dignity does not depend on utility.

Andrea, 29, was born with Down syndrome and severe heart disease. Baptized in the barracks of the Santa María de Caná parish in Madrid, her name included "María" as a supplication: "We were aware that she was going to need a lot of help from the Virgin". Today, Andrea is the first woman with Down syndrome to obtain a black belt in karate in Madrid (2019), Spanish champion in 2022 and 2023, and bronze medalist in European championships. After graduating from the Autonomous University of Madrid thanks to the Prodis Foundation, she works at Accenture, where, according to her mother, "she is integrated and valued. She is an important pillar. Her faith is active: she participates in the parish choir and is "a fan of the Caris," as she calls the Charismatic Renewal. "She is cheerful, outgoing, very empathetic. Family life revolves around her," celebrates Beatriz, her mother, who sums up her struggle: "Andrea is a miracle... in the ICU we never imagined this".

Nolan Smitha 25-year-old from Kansas, was part of the group of people who participated in the development of the document "The Church is our Home. This young man with Down syndrome explains that he has helped his church in various ways. "I have served as an altar server, I have helped in teaching religious education with my father, and I serve as a lector at this time. I have also helped with the Christmas Eve children's pageant and have also decorated the church at Christmas and Easter time," notes Nolan.

The power of prayer

José María is the seventh child of Teresa Robles, who also has a son with autistic traits. José María has also been fighting, for years, a leukemia in whose fight he encountered medical prejudice: "We were encouraged to go to palliative care... we appreciate little value for the life of a person with a disability". Teresa founded the Instagram account @ponundownentuvida, which mobilized more than 40,000 followers and a global prayer network. "The best social network is the Communion of Saints," she says. Teresa describes the "José María effect:" "They transform hearts without violence. One day, an angry driver saw José María smiling... and his face changed." For her, her son came "to change people's look, to make a better world".

The power of prayer and community are pillars: Teresa Robles experienced "the power of prayer, which is physically noticeable". When José María could not receive the transplant, "I noticed a superhuman strength". This network included ecumenical gestures: two Muslim women wrote to her: "They were going to pray for José María because they prayed to the same God... That touched me very much".

Making the difference visible

Initiatives such as the Cafés Joyeux in Paris, employing people with disabilities just a few meters from the Arc de Triomphe, demonstrate that inclusion in the workplace is possible. Its founder, Yann Bucaille-Lanrezac, received the Boston Consulting Group's Social Entrepreneur Award.

Cilou, a French artist who composed a song and choreography for Louis, a child with trisomy 21, points out that "the joy of Down syndrome leads us to be authentic". This authenticity is what Pope Francis promoted under the so-called "revolution of tenderness": an antidote to the throwaway culture. Healthy societies integrate everyone into the "we". Cilou, for example, felt the desire to compose a song inspired by Louis, called "Viva la difference".

Pastoral care for the disabled

Following the guidelines of the bishops' conferences, parishes are beginning to adapt the rites and spaces so that children and adults with intellectual disabilities can experience the sacraments in a way that they can better understand them. For example, for catechesis, pictograms are used to explain the rite in a visual way, allowing a better understanding of gestures, symbols and words. The celebrations are intimate, with reduced seating capacity, to avoid sensory over-stimulation.

The sacrament of penance is also transformed. In some parishes, confessions include drawings that help to understand concepts such as sin, forgiveness or reconciliation. There are support guides who mediate communication, and silent spaces have been created, free of luminous or sound stimuli, to favor an atmosphere of recollection. "It is not enough to set up ramps. We need to change the way we look at church life," says the mother of a disabled son.

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RelatedRelated NewsNolan Smith: "I love my faith. I want to be part of the Church, to participate in its activities."Related NewsCaring for people with disabilities: a perspective on the meaning of life.
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Culture

Maria Callas: the Divine

Maria Callas was a great woman and a great artist, but she dreamed of being a wife and a mother. She was not given to be everything she wanted to be, but perhaps we can venture that hers is a motherhood that has given many artist children.

Gerardo Ferrara-July 14, 2025-Reading time: 5 minutes

A few days ago I saw the film "Maria", directed by Pablo Larrain and starring Angelina Jolie, centered on the last days of Maria Callas' life: an intimate portrait of the sad and lonely end of one of the most iconic and talented personalities of the 20th century, a great woman, "divine", as she was called, who clings to her memories and searches, without ever finding it, that immensity that made her the most famous opera voice of all time.

Between New York, Athens and Italy

Larraín's film makes no shortage of references to specific episodes in the life of the artist, who was born in New York on December 2, 1923, the second child of Greek immigrant parents. The family spent her early years in Queens, later moving to Manhattan. There were frequent disagreements between Callas' father and her mother, always hard and controlling with her youngest daughter.

With her mother and sister, Maria returned to Greece at the age of 13 and at the Athens Conservatory began her musical training in earnest, studying singing with the great Spanish soprano Elvira de Hidalgo. Already at an early age, her voice was distinguished by its power, extension and color, able to move naturally from dramatic to operatic or light registers.

He had the opportunity, during the Nazi occupation, to perform several times in Greece, but returned to his father, in New York, to look for scripts, before arriving in Italy, where his career could definitely take off, with his decisive debut at the Arena di Verona in 1947, under the direction of Tullio Serafin, who would become one of his mentors.

In the meantime, she met her manager and later husband, the Veronese businessman Giovanni Battista Meneghini, who was many years her senior.

Her debut at the Maggio Fiorentino was also memorable, and then she went on to the Fenice in Venice, the San Carlo in Naples and, above all, to La Scala in Milan, where she became the undisputed queen (her rivalry with the Italian Renata Tebaldi, who preferred to leave Italy and settle in New York to escape from her, is well known).

Maria Callas, the diva

In the 1950s, at the height of his career, he starred in operas such as Standard and La Sonnambula (Bellini), Tosca (Puccini), Lucia di Lammermoor (Donizetti) La Traviata (Verdi), returning in many cases to the Scala repertoire and other masterpieces that had ceased to be performed for lack of interpreters capable of enhancing their vocal technique and dramatic quality. In this, in fact, Callas was even chameleonic: capable of tackling a vast repertoire, from Bellini to Verdi, from Puccini to Wagner, with a powerful vocal instrument combined with an unparalleled stage presence and interpretative ability.

She was also chameleon-like in her physical transformation throughout her career, which led her to lose 36 kg and to have the graceful and ethereal figure with which she is also remembered in the fashion world: she lost some 36 kg (from the initial 90 to 54) in a relatively short period, becoming a style icon.

Callas and Onassis

In 1957, when a difficult period was beginning for her due to voice loss and accumulated stress, an encounter took place that was destined to change her life and career forever. A guest on the yacht of another famous Greek, the tycoon Aristotle Onassis, she and her husband took part in a cruise along with other prominent personalities, including Winston Churchill and Onassis' own wife.

From then on, it was not only Callas, but Callas and Onassis: a stormy relationship developed between the two, always at the center of the society news, which led the singer to leave her husband, and neglect her career for Onassis, with whom she remained until 1968, when he left her to marry (out of interest) Jacqueline Kennedy. Maria found out from the newspapers and was devastated.

The last few years

Meanwhile, her career faded, as did her voice and her happiness: she made few public appearances (the last and memorable Tosca directed by Franco Zeffirelli, in London, in 1964; a film with Pasolini, Medea, in 1969; a master class in New York between 1971 and 1972; and a last and troubled world tour with tenor Giuseppe Di Stefano, with whom she had also fallen in love, in 1973-74).

A period of isolation followed, locked up in her apartment on Avenue Georges Mandel in Paris, accompanied only by her dogs and servants, well documented in Larraín's film. Even more alone than the heroines she had played, such as Violetta Valéry, Tosca, Mimì, in 1977, Callas died at the age of 53, officially of a heart attack, but many spoke of a slow and conscious agony, of a broken heart. Today it is known that, in addition to her unhappiness, what caused her death was atherosclerosis, a degenerative disease of the arteries that also causes damage to the vocal cords and that would affect, and hasten the end, of another great voice of the twentieth century: Whitney Houston.

The work and legacy

Opera is a complete art form: it combines music, singing, theater and scenography to tell universal emotions and stories. Born in Italy at the end of the 16th century, it is one of Italy's most typical cultural elements.

Unfortunately, today it is in decline, but I remember that, when I was a child, it was very often broadcast on radio or television and so many people, from all cultural and social strata, were enraptured by the music of Verdi, Rossini, Puccini and so many others. In fact, practically every family had its own improvised opera singer, gifted with a particularly beautiful voice, who would liven up a dinner party or a village feast with a famous aria.

It was in this context, marked by the postwar period and the subsequent economic boom, that Maria Callas' art found such a favorable humus. Italians, and not only Italians, adored her and, among opera connoisseurs, either loved or hated her: she had a voice that was not exactly perfect by operatic standards, dark in the low tones but capable of reaching the overtones of light sopranos. In addition, Callas had a stage presence and an ability to "act with her voice" that endowed her characters with an unprecedented vitality.

She was also a great professional: she rehearsed for hours and hours, she was never satisfied, but the final result was something that enraptured the audience.

Those who, like me, have not had the opportunity to hear her live, appreciate her video recordings (or the numerous records and performances of operas or entire concerts), including a famous concert in Paris in 1958, in which she performed "Una voce poco fa" from Rossini's Barber of Seville.

Rosina, the protagonist, is a sweet and apparently fragile girl, but very determined, and in fact she sings: "I am docile, I am respectful; I am obedient, sweet and affectionate. But if you touch me where my weakness is I'll be a viper and a hundred traps I'll lay". Callas, firm in her stance, can only move her eyes and hands to bring a character to life, consciously. She herself declared that one movement too many in the theater runs the risk of compromising the entire performance and that one must know how to dose the use of the hands, taking care to always remain faithful to the story and the score as conceived by the composer.

Maria Callas, success and loneliness

As Montserrat Caballé, the great Spanish soprano who adored Callas and was herself admired, said of her, María "had success as her only companion... And when this success was eclipsed, she was left alone".

And Caballé was the opposite of Callas, from certain points of view, because she knew how to find the right balance between art, motherhoodmarriage and work. This helped her, paradoxically, to have a much, much more enduring career than Callas, who would also have dreamed of being a wife and mother (she is said to have become pregnant by Onassis in the early 1960s without being able to carry the pregnancy to term).

Maria Callas was a great woman and a great artist, divine, but she dreamed of being a wife and a mother. She was not given to be everything she wanted to be, but perhaps we can venture that hers is a motherhood that has given many children artists and many people who today, almost 50 years after her death, still love her.

I imagine her still there, greeting us with the words of a famous Catalani aria: "Ebben, I will go far away, as the echo of the pious bell goes away".

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Initiatives

WYD 2025 in Covadonga: Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament with young people from 28 countries

The second Eucharistic Marian Youth Day (JEMJ), celebrated in Covadonga at the beginning of July, was "an immense grace," according to the organizers. The response of the thousands of young people (almost 1,700 from 28 countries) to the invitation to Eucharistic adoration was so great that a perpetual adoration chapel had to be set up.  

Francisco Otamendi-July 13, 2025-Reading time: 4 minutes

Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament during the Eucharistic Marian Youth Day (JEMJ) of Covadonga at the beginning of July was "an immense grace. Above all, to see the Lord at work in the hearts of the young people," who this year numbered about 1,700, of 28 nationalities, with 200 volunteers and 40 priests.

WYD 2025 offered participants a novelty that was not available last year: a perpetual adoration chapel. where, "at any time of the day or night, young people could pray before Jesus in the Eucharist". 

"The initiative has proved to be a real success," notes the Sister Beatriz Liaño. "The Blessed Sacrament was exposed in the adoration chapel located in front of the Basilica of Covadonga and it was impressive to try to enter and not find material space where to kneel".

The young people wanted to remain close to the Blessed Sacrament

"The young people wanted to remain close to the exposed Blessed Sacrament, to the point that we had to set up a second chapel for adoration (in the early hours of the morning) because there was no room for them in the Holy Cave," he explains.

On the night of Saturday, July 5-6, the Blessed Sacrament was exposed in the Holy Cave at the end of the Adoration Vigil. The young people were invited to spend time, in shifts, throughout the night, adoring the Lord. "The response was so great that the priests who were on vigil, offering the young people the sacrament of confession, had to step out and re-expose the Blessed Sacrament in the Adoration Chapel to welcome the young people who wanted to be with the Lord and could not fit in the Holy Cave."

Sister Beatriz comments: "Contemplating them, one could only say: Blessed be the Lord. Objective accomplished. These young people now know where the source is where they can quench their thirst for love and happiness: in the Heart of Jesus in the Eucharist".

Internet down at startup

In fact, the WYD started on Friday despite the last minute unforeseen events, because the Internet was down. "Minutes before the opening of the reception of the young people, the entire internet of the sanctuary of Covadonga was down, threatening to make it impossible to broadcast the events," explained the organization. 

"The night before, an unexpectedly strong storm had forced the cancellation of the final rehearsals of this year's choir and festival. The difficulties did not deter the two hundred volunteers who had been working for days to get everything ready to welcome the 1,700 young people registered from 28 different nationalities", emphasize the promoters. "In fact, the forecasts were exceeded, to the point of exhausting the food packages and almost the capacity of this year's accommodation".

Relic of Carlo Acutis and his legacy

The Holy Mass of opening Juan Carlos Elizalde, Bishop of Vitoria. On the first day, minutes before the start of the solemn entrance of the relic of the Heart of Jesus, Bishop Juan Carlos Elizalde, Bishop of Vitoria, presided. Carlo Acutis on the esplanade, it was possible to listen to the video message sent by Antonia Salzano, mother of the future Italian saint. 

In the evening came the JEMJ Festival presented by Catholic Stuff, which featured the premiere of 'A Famous Nun. Clare Crockett, a life put on stage'. The performance "really touched the hearts of the young people who vibrated to the rhythm of the fears, the illusions, the struggles and the victory of God's grace in the heart of the Irish nun". 

Marco Gaballo, OFM Cap., Rector of the Sanctuary of Despojo (Assisi) and custodian of the relic of the heart of Carlo Acutis. Friar Marco Caballo spoke to the young people on "The Heart of Carlo Acutis".The Eucharistic legacy of Carlo Acutis"and proposed Carlo "as an example of a teenager with a heart full of light".

Panoramic view at the closing Mass of the 2025 World Youth Day, concelebrated by Archbishop Sanz Montes, Archbishop of Oviedo, with 40 priests, next to the Shrine of Covadonga (@Foto JEMJ).

WYD July 2026: "Do whatever He tells you".

Sunday morning, July 6, 2025, began with a time of Eucharistic adoration. Fr. Alonso helped the young participants of the WYD to place themselves in the presence of the Lord with their prayer points. 

At 12:00 noon, the holy mass began Closing Mass Jesús Sanz Montes, Archbishop of Oviedo, with more than forty priests in attendance. At the end of the celebration, Rafael Alonso, who was celebrating his 45th anniversary as a priest, announced the date of the next JEMJOn July 10, 11 and 12, 2026, again in Covadonga, under the motto "Do whatever He tells you". 

"La Santina has already signed up," said Monsignor Sanz jokingly at the conclusion, after the thanksgiving. To the Brothers and Sisters of the Home of the Mother, to all the volunteers and to the Choir of voices and instruments, with whom "we have been able to pray several times, more than the two that St. Augustine owed". To the priests and deacons, to so many sisters of different charisms, to the abbot, priests of the Chapter and sisters who work in the Shrine. Rafael Alonso, for his birthday as a priest.

Young people carry the Virgin of Covadonga, the Santina, during the JEMJ 2025, in July (@Foto JEMJ).
The authorFrancisco Otamendi

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Evangelization

St. Veronica, woman who wiped the face of Jesus with her veil

The Catholic Church remembers St. Veronica, called 'the Veronica', on July 12. She is remembered for the sixth station of the Way of the Cross, which narrates her encounter with Jesus and the impression of the Holy Face of the Lord on her veil.

Francisco Otamendi-July 12, 2025-Reading time: < 1 minute

According to tradition, Saint Veronica was a pious woman who lived in Jerusalem. She was moved by the pains of Christ on his way to Calvary, and came to wipe away the sweat and blood that covered his face. According to tradition, she used her head veil for this purpose, on which was 'imprinted' with blood the face of Jesus, the Holy Face. 

After the Passion of the Lord, Saint Veronica went to Rome carrying with her the veil with the 'Holy Face'. This veil would have been exposed for public veneration, and was permeating the faith of the people. Her action was reflected in the sixth station of the Stations of the Crosswhich is read on Good Friday in the Roman Colosseum. This station is usually entitled: 'A pious woman wipes the face of Jesus'.

Veronica's veil

It has been praised the courage of St. Veronica, for her act of love could have caused her danger from the Romans or the people. But she was moved and made her way through the crowd. Despite the saint's popularity, her name is not found in the current Roman Martyrology. Nor was it in the previous one.  

The veil of Veronica has attracted numerous pilgrims to Rome. It seems to have been moved over the centuries and had been lost track of. However, in 1999, the German Jesuit Heinnrich Pfeiffer, professor of Art History at the Gregorian University (died in 2001), announced who had found it. The place was the Sanctuary of the Friars Minor Capuchin in Manoppello (Italy). Pope Benedict XVI visited this shrine in 2006.

The authorFrancisco Otamendi

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The World

Custos of the Holy Land leaves with gratitude but a bittersweet longing for peace

Father Francesco Patton leaves his position as Custos of the Holy Land, and takes the opportunity to analyze the situation of the holy places and the importance of the Franciscan presence in the Middle East.

OSV News Agency-July 12, 2025-Reading time: 4 minutes
RelatedRelated NewsParish Priest in the Holy Land: "In our parishes there are Christians of Eastern rites, Protestants, Jews and Muslims who honor Mary".

- (OSV News / Judith Sudilovsky)

As he prepared to leave his post as Franciscan Custos of the Holy Land after nine years of service, Father Francesco Patton told OSV News that his time in the Holy Land as superior of all Middle Eastern Franciscans and guardian of the region's Catholic holy sites has been the most important "formative" experience of his life, and has "pushed him to dream" of a world without borders.

"They have opened me up in a very significant way on a mental and spiritual level," Father Patton wrote in an email correspondence, as he completed some final tasks before the arrival of his successor, Father Francesco Ielpo, whose election was approved by the Pope Leo XIV June 24.

"Internationality, encounters and dialogue with people of other religions and cultures have changed me profoundly and pushed me to dream of a world where there are no more walls, checkpoints, borders and the like; a world where people recognize and accept each other as human persons, not on the basis of other requirements," he said.

Following the example of St. Francis

His experience also reinforced his commitment to a pacifist interpretation of the Franciscan mission, Father Patton said, acknowledging that those who came to the Holy Land in peace, following the example of St. Francis and his friars have endured, while those who came with weapons have ultimately failed.

Throughout his tenure, Father Patton has faced major challenges, including the COVID-19 pandemic, the virtual paralysis of pilgrimages to the Holy Land and - for the past 20 months - the Gaza war, precipitated by Hamas' attack on communities in southern Israel on October 7, 2023.

According to the latest figures provided by the Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs on June 22, 2025, 50 of the more than 250 people abducted that day remain captive, 28 of whom are believed to be still alive. According to the Gaza Ministry of Health, 57,600 Palestinians had been killed as of July 8.

Since July 10, hopes for a U.S.-led cease-fire plan have faded as fighting in Gaza has shown no sign of abating while Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met with President Donald Trump in Washington on July 8. "Netanyahu is adamant that Hamas must be destroyed, while Hamas wants a complete end to the war after the proposed 60-day truce," The Associated Press reported.

Israeli-Palestinian conflict

Father Patton expressed his hope that a political solution to the 80-year Palestinian-Israeli conflict will be found, and stressed that such a solution requires "mutual recognition of each side's right to exist," the development of a state structure appropriate to the unique circumstances of the region, and full recognition of the civil, political and religious rights of all citizens, including Palestinians, according to the standards of a "truly civilized and democratic country."

He regretted not having been able to carry out several initiatives aimed at promoting peace, intercultural dialogue and interfaith understanding due to the outbreak of war.

"We were on a good path with many initiatives, but what happened on October 7, 2023, unleashed such hatred and created such physical, psychological and spiritual obstacles that many initiatives were put on hold," he said.

He added: "I hope that they can resume as soon as possible and that we can continue to cooperate towards a culture of reconciliation, fraternity and dialogue, according to the indications given to us by Pope Francis in the Abu Dhabi document and in 'Fratelli Tutti'," he said, referring to the 2019 document on "Human Fraternity for World Peace and Coexistence" and the late Pope's 2020 encyclical on human fraternity.

The "great testimony of faith" of the friars

He also regretted not being able to visit the villages of Knayeh and Yacoubieh, in Syria's Orontes Valley, during his visit to Syria in March 2023 after the earthquake - which devastated northern and western Syria, as well as southern and central Turkey - where the friars continue to give a "great witness of faith and pastoral dedication" in a reality affected by the presence of the Islamic State group and Al Qaeda, he said.

On June 22, a deadly shooting and bombing attack on St. Elias Greek Orthodox Church in Damascus killed 30 Orthodox Christians and injured more than 90 others.

Witnessing the dedication and love for the Holy Land shown by most of the friars has been one of his greatest pleasures, Father Patton said. Reflecting on the Custody, he expressed his special joy at its increasingly international character, especially the growing presence of friars and postulants from Asia and Africa, regions previously underrepresented.

Ethnic and cultural conflicts

This diversity, he noted, reinforces its mission to welcome local Christians, pilgrims and migrant workers in a region often marked by ethnic and cultural conflicts.

He recognized the unwavering dedication of the friars, even in difficult times, and praised the growth of the Holy Land schools, which have become a model of coexistence and academic excellence, he said.

Father Patton also highlighted the restoration of the Church of the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem as a significant achievement during his tenure, made possible through close ecumenical collaboration with Greek Orthodox Patriarch Theophilos III and Armenian Apostolic Patriarch Archbishop Nourhan Manougian.

The "concrete dimension" of the Holy Land

Spiritually, the possibility of praying in the places of the Gospel while touching the "concrete dimension" of the Holy Land allowed him to deepen and reinforce his belief in the mystery of the Incarnation, where the "Son of God became one of us" and shared everything in human existence, he wrote. It allowed him to think of Jesus in a more "personal, concrete and historical" way.

"In particular, the tomb of Jesus has allowed me to reflect deeply on the mystery of his resurrection and ours, as an entry into the very life of God with our humanity transformed by the action of the Spirit, guided by the hand of Jesus who first crossed the border of resurrection," said Father Patton.

He leaves with an overriding feeling of "gratitude and thankfulness", aware that these years have been the "most significant season" of his life, he concluded, although there is also a "feeling of bitterness", as he would have liked to see the Holy Land at peace before ending his service.

This article was originally published in OSV News. You can read the original text HERE.

The authorOSV News Agency

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RelatedRelated NewsParish Priest in the Holy Land: "In our parishes there are Christians of Eastern rites, Protestants, Jews and Muslims who honor Mary".
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  • Alexei Navalny, martyr for freedom in Russia
ColumnistsSantiago Leyra Curiá

Alexei Navalny, martyr for freedom in Russia

Alexei Navalny found comfort in the Bible, especially in the Sermon on the Mount delivered by Christ.

July 12, 2025-Reading time: 4 minutes

The Kremlin's best known critic, Alexei Navalni, was murdered on February 16, 2024 in the IK-3 prison (also known as "Polar Wolf") in Kharp, Yamalia-Nenetsia Autonomous Okrug, where he was being held, according to Russian penitentiary sources. His death occurred one month before the presidential elections, considered a formality to prolong the government held by Vladimir Putin since 1999.

Assassination of Alexei Navalny

Navalni, who was 47 when he died, had led campaigns against corruption in Russia and led mass protests against the Kremlin. He was serving a 19-year prison sentence on charges of extremism in a remote prison. He went on a 24-day hunger strike in prison to protest against the mistreatment he suffered there. According to the Russian Penitentiary Service, he felt unwell after a walk, lost consciousness and efforts to revive him were unsuccessful.

According to Russian newspaper Novaya Gazeta, Navalni's mother, Lyudmila Navalnaya, said on Facebook that she had seen her son in prison on Feb. 12 and that he was "alive, healthy and happy.". Upon hearing the news, several European leaders lamented Navalni's death and blamed the Russian government for the tragedy. Among the leaders were the President of the European Council, Charles Michel; NATO Secretary General, Jens Stoltenberg; Joe Biden's National Security Advisor, Jake Sullivan; and the President of the European Parliament, Roberta Metsola, among others. The UN expressed its outrage and demanded an end to persecution in Russia.

Thousands of people took to the streets around the world to protest Navalni's death, which added to the list of mysterious unsolved deaths in Russia. More than a year after his assassination, there has been silence about this new Putin crime.

In the book of memoirs edited by his family ("Patriot. Memoirs" Alexei Navalni, Peninsula 2024), the Russian dissident states from the prison where he spent the last 3 years of his life: "On my birthday, of course I would like to have breakfast with my family, have my children kiss me on the cheek, unwrap presents and say: 'Oh, that's just what I wanted,' instead of waking up in this infectious hole. But, as life works, social progress and a better future can only be achieved if a certain number of people are willing to pay a price for the right to have their own convictions. The more such people there are, the less everyone will have to pay. And the day will come when speaking the truth and advocating for justice will be the most normal thing in Russia and there will be nothing dangerous about it.".

Origins

Born on June 4, 1976 in Odintsovo (Moscow Oblast, RSFSR of Russia, Soviet Union), Navalni was a Russian lawyer, politician, activist and political prisoner, who in 2011 founded the Anti-Corruption Foundation (FBK). Amnesty International recognized him as a prisoner of conscience and he was awarded the Sakharov Prize for his human rights work. He suffered several convictions and imprisonments and a poisoning attempt in 2020, from which he was saved in a Berlin hospital. In the 2013 Moscow mayoral election, he won 27.24 % of the vote and was never allowed to run for election in Russia again.

Married since 2000 to Yulia Navalnya and with two children, Dasha, 24, and Zakhar, 18, Navalni could have chosen to go into exile from Russia with his family and lead a peaceful existence, but he chose in agreement with his wife to get into trouble and - aware of the danger he was running - to risk his life in his fight against injustice in his beloved country. Realizing that, when the USSR collapsed, power in Russia passed from some criminals to others, from Yeltsin to Putin, he decided to confront these criminals by denouncing their practices and conveying the truth to his compatriots.

In one of the multiple pseudo-legal proceedings against him, Navalni stated: "The fact is that I am a religious man, which constantly exposes me to ridicule at the Anti-Corruption Foundation and from the people around me, mostly atheists. I used to be one too, and quite militant. But now I am a believer and I find that it helps me a lot in my work. Everything is clearer to me... For the Bible says: 'Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied'.". For more than a month, the only book he was left with in prison was the Bible. At that time, Navalni decided to memorize the Sermon on the Mount in Russian, English, French and Latin. After doing so, one day the prisoners were offered to attend Mass and our hero was impressed that the Gospel they read there was precisely the Sermon on the Mount.

Alexei Navalny and the search for the Kingdom of God

Navalni ends his memoirs with the following sentences: "I have always thought, and I say it openly, that being a believer makes life easier for you and even easier to be a political dissident. Faith makes life easier... are you a disciple of the religion whose founder sacrificed himself for others and paid for their sins? Do you believe in the immortality of the soul and everything else? If you can honestly answer yes, what else do you have to worry about, why would you mutter a hundred times under your breath something you have read from a voluminous tome you keep on your bedside table? 'Do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will bring its own worry'. My job is to seek the Kingdom of God and his righteousness, and let the good Jesus and the rest of his family take care of everything else. They will not let me down and will solve all my headaches. As they say here in prison, they'll take the hits for me.".

Alexei Navalny knew that he could be assassinated, but he was not crazy or reckless. He tried to minimize the risks for himself and his family, but in his inner self he thought he was doing what he had to do, the purpose of his life was never to live quietly and comfortably but to fight to the death for a Russia where people are not killed for their ideas, a prosperous and democratic country, where the law prevails and not the tyrant of the day to defend his privileges. For this he was assassinated and for this he offered his life in sacrifice.

The authorSantiago Leyra Curiá

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St. Benedict, founder of the Benedictine Order and patron saint of Europe: desire for peace

On July 11, the Church celebrates St. Benedict of Nursia (Italy), founder of the Benedictine Order and declared patron saint of Europe in 1964 by St. Paul VI. Pope Francis and his predecessors have turned to St. Benedict in search of peace and human coexistence in a wounded Europe.  

Francisco Otamendi-July 11, 2025-Reading time: 5 minutes

Although the Rule of St. Benedict ['ora et labora', pray and work] does not contain an appeal on the theme of peace, "it is an excellent guide for a conscious and practical commitment to peace". In fact, its message goes beyond the walls of monasteries and shows "how human coexistence, with God's grace, can overcome the dangers arising from disputes and discord".

This was stated by Pope Francis in a Message addressed to participants in an ecumenical symposium at the Benedictine Archabbey of Pannonhalma in western Hungary in September 2023, which emphasized two other ideas.

The first is that the patron saint of Europe knew "the complexity of linguistic, ethnic and cultural traces, which represent both a richness and a potential for conflict". However, he had a serene and peaceful vision, because he was fully convinced of the "equal dignity and equal value of all human beings". This applies especially to foreigners, who should be welcomed according to the principle of "honoring all men".

"Pursuit of peace without delay"

This also means "knowing how to take the first step in certain difficult situations", because "discord must not become a permanent state". Establish peace "before sunset," said St. Benedict. This, the Pope reminds us, "is the measure of the availability of the desire for peace". 

And the second, Francis pointed out, is that "the search for peace in justice cannot tolerate any delay, it must be pursued without hesitation." "The St. Benedict's vision of peace  is not utopian, but is oriented towards a path that God's friendship towards mankind has already traced out and which, however, must be traveled step by step by each individual and by the community".

The Hungarian ecumenical event delved into many aspects of the theme of peace, at a time when "globalized humanity is wounded and threatened by a gradual world war which, waged directly in some regions of the planet, has consequences that damage the lives of all, especially the poorest," said the Pontiff according to the official Vatican agency, and in which "the war in Ukraine has dramatically called us to open our eyes and hearts to many people who suffer because of the war".

St. Paul VI called him 'pacis nuntius' (herald of peace). 

"I believe that St. Benedict, called 'pacis nuntius' (herald of peace) by Pope Paul VI when he was proclaimed patron of Europe, would address us with this word: peace! It is not an obvious word, it is not an abstract concept but a truth to be pursued and lived", he said. Mr. Fabrizio MessinaDirector of the State Library of the National Monument of St. Scholastica [twin sister of St. Benedict].

A library that owes its origins to saint Benito, because it is, in fact, the library of the Monastery of Santa Scholastica of Subiaco, one of the twelve monasteries that were founded near the city, in the valley of the Aniene, by St. Benedict himself. 

"The peace that Benedict brings us is the peace of Christ. It is the peace for which Christ gave his life. If we do not open our doors to Christ, we will remain without peace," Don Fabrizio Messina added to the Vatican agency, which asked him how it is possible, in the current European scenario devastated by the war in Ukraine, to walk paths of peace in the footsteps of St. Benedict.

For Ukraine, for Russia...

The library director's response was as follows. First of all, the historical fact: "St. Benedict, when he began his personal search for God, did so by going up to Subiaco and seeking the Lord. This happens to him in an early hermit-like experience. As St. Gregory the Great reminds us, Benedict lives alone with himself under the gaze of God. It is a search for God which is, therefore, a search for peace". 

Then, the illustrious Benedictine entered into the question. "The true search for peace for Europe, for Ukraine, for Russia and for all the countries involved in this senseless slaughter is precisely to find in Christ the source of peace, of light. Just as St. Benedict did. A peace that is not only intimate, but personal. But it is a peace that can truly be given to others because it is the peace of Christ. He himself said it: 'I leave you my peace', not as the world gives it".

Benedict XVI: "From his spiritual leaven Europe was born".

On April 9, 2008, the then Pope Benedict XVI spoke to the faithful of St. Benedict of Nursia in a General Audience. He began by saying. "Today I am going to speak of St. Benedict, founder of Western monasticism and also patron of my pontificate. I begin by quoting a phrase of St. Gregory the Great who, referring to St. Benedict, says: 'This man of God, who shone on this earth with so many miracles, shone no less for the eloquence with which he knew how to expound his doctrine'."

"The great Pope [St. Gregory the Great] wrote these words in 592; the holy monk had died fifty years earlier and was still alive in the memory of the people and above all in the flourishing religious Order he founded. St. Benedict of Nursia, by his life and work, exercised a fundamental influence on the development of European civilization and culture".

A new unit

Continuing with the thread of the argument, Benedict XVI added: "The work of the saint, and in particular his 'Rule, were a true spiritual leaven that changed, over the centuries, far beyond the confines of their homeland and their time, the face of Europe, giving rise, after the fall of the political unity created by the Roman Empire, to a new spiritual and cultural unity, that of the Christian faith shared by the peoples of the continent. Thus was born the reality we call 'Europe'.

Years earlier, in 1999, St. John Paul II wrote a letter to the Abbot of Subiaco, in which he expressed his joy on learning that "the great Benedictine monastic family wishes to remember with special celebrations the 1500 years since St. Benedict began in Subiaco the 'schola dominici servitii', which would lead, in the course of the centuries, countless men and women, 'per ducatum Evangelii', to a more intimate union with Christ".

Heroic virtues of Robert Schumann

On July 11, 2021, Pope Francis, hospitalized at the Gemelli, remembered St. Benedict on social media: "Today we celebrate the feast of St. Benedict, abbot and patron of Europe. An embrace to our protector! We congratulate Benedictines and Benedictine women all over the world." In addition, the Holy Father sent "best wishes for Europe" so that it "may be united in its founding values."

A few weeks earlier, in June, the Pope had recognized the heroic virtues of the French politician and founding father of the European Union, Robert Schuman, by declaring him venerable. On that occasion, the priest Bernard Ardura, promoter of Schuman's cause, gave an interview to the Pope on the occasion. interview to Omnes on his canonization process.

 "Europe must cease to be a battlefield on which rival forces bleed out," Schumann had said in a speech. "On the basis of that realization, which we paid so dearly for, we want to go down new paths that will lead us to a united and definitively pacified Europe," words that are considered vital for the reconciliation of France and Germany.

The authorFrancisco Otamendi

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Leo XIV calls for a "revolution of care" for grandparents and elders

In a message to the whole Church for the Fifth World Day of Grandparents and the Elderly, which will be celebrated on Sunday, July 27, the Pope calls on everyone to engage in a "revolution of gratitude and care". Every parish, association, ecclesial group is called to "be a protagonist, frequently visiting the elderly", and thus break down "the walls of indifference".

Francisco Otamendi-July 11, 2025-Reading time: 3 minutes

The Holy Father Leo XIV has launched the Church into a "'revolution' of gratitude and care, frequently visiting the elderly, creating for them and with them networks of support and prayer, weaving relationships that can give hope and dignity to those who feel forgotten". The occasion is the V World Day of Grandparents and the Elderly.

The Day will be celebrated on Sunday, July 27, with the motto "Blessed is the one who does not see his hope vanish" (Sir 14:2). These are the words of Sirach.

The Pope states in his Message that "a change of pace is needed, witnessing an assumption of responsibility on the part of the whole Church". 

Every parish, association, ecclesial group

"Every parish, association and ecclesial group is called to be the protagonist of the "revolution" of gratitude and care. And he specifies: this can be done "by frequently visiting the elderly, creating for them and with them networks of support and prayer, weaving relationships that can give hope and dignity". 

The Jubilee that we are living "helps us to discover that hope is always a source of joy, at any age. Likewise, when it has been tempered by the fire of a long life, it becomes the source of full beatitude. This is how the Pope begins his words. 

Christian hope, the Pontiff emphasizes, "always urges us to risk more, to think big, not to be content with the status quo. Specifically, to work for a change that restores esteem and affection to the elderly."

Jubilee can be earned by visiting the elderly

Leo XIV then recalls that the Pope Francis’ wanted the World Day of Grandparents and the Elderly "to be celebrated above all by going to the meeting of those who are alone". 

And for this reason, "it has been decided that those who cannot come to Rome this year, on pilgrimage, 'can obtain the Jubilee Indulgence if they go to visit for a suitable time the [...] elderly in solitude, [...] as if making a pilgrimage towards Christ present in them (cf. Mt 25, 34-36)" (Apostolic Penitentiary, Norms on the Concession of the Jubilee Indulgence, III). 

Visiting an elderly person is a way of encountering Jesus, who frees us from indifference and loneliness, the Pope points out, and so he emphasizes Vatican News.

To live with them a liberation from loneliness and abandonment.

The Papal message considers the elderly from a jubilee perspective, and states that "we too are called to live with them a liberation, especially from loneliness and abandonment". 

"God's faithfulness to his promises teaches us that there is a beatitude in old age, an authentically evangelical joy, which asks us to break down the walls of indifference that often imprison the elderly," he adds.

Our societies, in all their latitudes, are all too often becoming accustomed to allowing such an important and rich part of their fabric to be marginalized and forgotten, reflects Leo XIV. 

Love for our loved ones, and transmission of faith

The Pope continues his words by appealing to love and to a vital memory of family members. "Love for our loved ones - for the spouse with whom we have spent a large part of our lives, for our children, for the grandchildren who brighten our days - does not fade when our strength wanes. On the contrary, it is often precisely this affection that rekindles our energies, giving us hope and consolation."

These signs of the vitality of love, he continues, "which have their root in God himself, give us courage and remind us that 'even if our outer man is being destroyed, our inner man is being renewed day by day' (2 Co 4,16). Therefore, especially in old age, let us persevere trusting in the Lord. Let us allow ourselves to be renewed each day by our encounter with him in prayer and at Mass. 

Finally, the Holy Father encourages everyone: "Let us pass on with love the faith that we have lived for so many years, in the family and in daily encounters; let us always praise God for his benevolence, let us cultivate unity with our loved ones, let our hearts embrace those who are farthest away and, in particular, those who live in need. We will be signs of hope, at any age".

Proposal of the Dicastery for the Laity, Family and Life

On the occasion of the Jubilee of Hope, and of this World Day, the Dicastery for the Laity, the Family and Life has prepared a pastoral proposal so that even the elderly who cannot physically participate in pilgrimages can experience the grace of the Jubilee. 

In the pastoral kitThe Jubilee celebration, available on the event's website, suggests a Jubilee celebration that can be experienced in the places where the elderly live. The grace of the Jubilee is always for everyone!

The authorFrancisco Otamendi

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The God of faith: grace and freedom

Without freedom there is no faith. And if freedom is given by Christ, then that faith is one that trusts fully that everything is in God's hands.

Santiago Zapata Giraldo-July 11, 2025-Reading time: 6 minutes

Believing in something that is not perceived with sight may seem illogical to a 21st century society, accustomed to seeking and proving everything through logic, where rational evidence seems to eclipse any belief that cannot be proven. Faith, understood as the ability to believe without having seen, seems to contradict a rationalistic society, where evidence trumps personal convictions. However, these differences do not imply a conflict leading to the destruction of one or the other, but can give rise to a relationship of complementarity.

"I Believe"

Certainly, believing is not simply a passing act. To have the certainty of faith configures the human being, orients him or her toward an ultimate goal, penetrates into the depths of his or her being and it is in this interior that he or she matures. It is not an external act, but something that becomes an essential part of the person. All this must take place in freedom; if the human being is not recognized as having an active role and participation, this freedom would be denied. As far as faith is concerned, without freedom, what is professed loses meaning: it would no longer be faith, but a mere imposed norm.

In relation to freedom, it is often thought that the call to faith implies a total loss of freedom and attacks human dignity, reducing it to a set of norms. However, this vision is a fallacy, since true freedom reaches its fullness precisely through faith.

We see today a struggle for a "freedom" that exalts only the self, and in that individualistic path, authentic freedom is misunderstood or rejected. In contrast to this vision, Christian freedom does not turn people into mere rule-followers, but offers them a goal, a purpose that is a path toward an encounter with the One who is the Way, the Truth and the Life Himself, Jesus Christ, our Lord.

What happens if we do not believe in a supreme good? In fact, if there is no orientation towards God, we are poor men who live without order. The order present in nature is already an evident sign of an omnipotent Creator. We cannot stubbornly deny the action of God in history; to do so implies putting man at the center, displacing God.

However, the relationship between faith and freedom still demands that the person fully assumes his or her own identity. If he does not assume himself, freedom runs the risk of becoming a simple imposition. Leonardo Polo points out: "man has to construct the voluntary act, but he cannot do so without accepting himself in accordance with the understanding of that act" ("Person and freedom", p. 153). The voluntary act requires intelligence: first, to understand who one is; then, to recognize oneself in what one does. In the realm of faith, if we understand ourselves as loved by God and redeemed by Christ, then, with a voluntary act, we can experience that love and freely orient ourselves toward God.

We understand that freedom is something proper to the human being. On the other hand, we recognize the relationship between God and our faith, a relationship that is fully united in the person of Christ. Having freedom does not mean simply having a multitude of paths at one's disposal, where often there is no perceived end, but only means that seek to momentarily satisfy the desire for pleasure. This search, however, is an illusion, since the path to true freedom lies in finding the One who gave it to us.

To completely dissociate the person of Christ as the source of freedom implies denying the action of God in history and the salvation accomplished through the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world (cf. Jn 1:29). It is not a matter of accepting an abstract idea of something unseen, but of living a personal encounter with God, as Christ has revealed him: he has shown the Father so that we may have life in abundance. As Benedict XVI expresses it: "At the beginning of being a Christian there is not an ethical decision or a great idea, but an encounter with an event, with a Person, which gives a new horizon to life and, with it, a decisive orientation" ("Deus Caritas Est", 1).

Without freedom there is no faith. And if freedom is given by Christ, then that faith is one that trusts fully that everything is in the hands of the Father.

The works of God

Secondly, faith is the recognition of God's work in the world. If we have already affirmed that faith implies a personal encounter, this shows that God also acts in human reality. He does so through the Church, the sacraments, the magisterium, as well as through the conversion and sanctification of its members. This reveals a plurality of actions which, nevertheless, respond to a single divine plan: "But while each of these decisions is unique, they all constitute a whole, a divine plan" (Jean Daniélou, "God and Us", p. 113).

The continuous communication of God and mankind is a sign of Love, the Covenant that is Christ assures us of salvation. St. Paul points out the need for both our understanding and our body to be oriented together toward faith in Jesus: "For if you profess with your lips that Jesus is Lord, and believe with your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved" (Rom 10:9).

It is certainly not an easy task to find a meeting point between what I believe and what I profess, especially in an era as rationalistic as the present one. In this context, Benedict XVI's warning during the Mass "pro eligendo Pontifice" in 2005, when he spoke of the existence of a "dictatorship of relativism", resonates strongly. This struggle for coherence of life is not easy, but it is precisely this concordance that authentically manifests the action of the Holy Spirit and assures the path to salvation.

In particular, we find a significant scene of lack of faith in the account of Jesus' appearance to the disciples after the Resurrection (cf. Jn 20:24-25). Thomas did not believe, because the natural human tendency is to trust only what can be demonstrated. To abandon this idea is difficult. This is how the then Professor Joseph Ratzinger in "Introduction to Christianity": "Man tends, by natural inertia, to what is possible, to what he can touch with his hand, to what he can understand as his own" (p. 49). Changing this is a prerequisite for finding faith.

Ultimately, faith is an act that requires grace. It requires a personal - though not visible - encounter with the Creator. The leap into the unknown has always frightened man; that great abyss that is unknown frightens him and makes him recoil. Therefore, this step is not possible without the help of grace. However, this grace does not annul the human being; on the contrary, it elevates and perfects him, directing him fully towards the supreme good, which is God himself. This is reflected in St. Thomas: "Grace does not destroy nature, but perfects it" ("Summa Theologica," I, 1, 8 ad 2).

Much more could be said about faith; it is an inexhaustible subject, because the divinity is inexhaustible. Its grace is perpetual and, therefore, we will never fully understand it. Only in the world can we glimpse what we believe in, but we will know it fully when we contemplate it face to face. That is why "I believe" is not simply an external affirmation, but a profound acceptance, an expression of the longing for eternal life. As Joseph Ratzinger affirms: "Faith is a change that must be made every day; only in a conversation that lasts a lifetime can we grasp what the phrase 'I BELIEVE' means" ("Introduction to Christianity," p. 49).

What a great gift it is to have faith! Often we do not realize it. In a single word is enclosed the passage to salvation. How beautiful it is to share a belief in a new heaven and a new earth; in a faith that changes lives; in a common faith that leads to a shared happiness that is to seek Christ and to be continually a praise to his majesty.

Mary, Mother of faith

One cannot speak of faith without mentioning St. Mary. Let us think for a moment of the scene of the Annunciation, that precious image of a humble woman whose only desire was to please God and fulfill the law, as a good Jewess. But, indeed, the Lord becomes incarnate by means of a "yes"; thus begins the new humanity redeemed in Christ. Mary did not know what would happen to her from now on, but this act of faith in God makes her the purest example: "Blessed is she who has believed, for what the Lord has said to her will be fulfilled" (Lk 1:45). To her, Mater Ecclesiae, we direct our prayers, so that one day, through her intercession, we may attain what we have received by faith.

The authorSantiago Zapata Giraldo

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The Sorrowful Virgin of the College: Testimony of unwavering love

The Virgen Dolorosa del Colegio (Ecuador) stands as a beacon of faith, a canvas that tells a story of unwavering love and divine resilience.

Juan Carlos Vasconez-July 10, 2025-Reading time: 7 minutes
RelatedRelated NewsMonsignor Espinoza MateusWe want to renew Eucharistic life in Ecuador".

The image of the "Virgen Dolorosa del Colegio" transcends the mere category of a work of art to become a living testimony of faith, a source of amazement and a focal point of deep devotion for countless believers.

Its presence is not only that of a painting, but of a venerated symbol that occupies a unique place in the hearts of the faithful, particularly in Quito, Ecuadorwhere he is held in deep esteem and veneration.

The mystique surrounding this painting is intensified by the miraculous event associated with it, a prodigy that transformed it from a revered image into a powerful emblem of divine intervention and maternal care. Through its intricate iconography, the painting communicates deep spiritual truths and intense emotions, setting a tone of reverence and appreciation that invites contemplation.

Unwavering faith in persecution

The image of the Sorrowful Mother, representing Mary's profound suffering, serves as a powerful and enduring symbol of the very trials the Church has faced throughout history. Just as Mary remained steadfast at the foot of the Cross, sharing in the Passion of her Son, the faithful are called to unwavering faith and resilience in the midst of periods of intense persecution.

At the beginning of the 20th century, the Catholic Church in Ecuador suffered a violent and relentless persecution, promoted by the government of Eloy Alfaro and accompanied by militant atheism. This offensive manifested itself in various forms, from the expulsion of bishops and religious orders (Salesians, Capuchins, Jesuits, Redemptorists) to the desecration of sacred places and the murder of religious figures and Catholic journalists.

Among the most regrettable events were the assault on the Archbishop's Palace of Quito, the destruction of the library of the Archdiocese, and the brutal murder of Father Emilio Moscoso at the "San Felipe Neri" school in Riobamba. In this last incident, the regime not only assassinated the rector, but also desecrated the Tabernacle and the consecrated forms, shot at the images of saints and simulated an execution of the Virgin Mary, to finally loot the school.

Persecution was not limited to acts of violence. Laws were implemented that diminished the power and influence of the Church: it was deprived of the property tax, the patronage regime was reestablished, submitting the ecclesiastical administration to the State, cemeteries were secularized, official recognition was withdrawn from religious educational titles and an attempt was made to repeal the decrees of Consecration of the Republic to the Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary.

Subsequently, the civil marriage law was issued, which disregarded the legal value of religious marriage and established divorce. The "law of cults" prohibited the foundation of Catholic orders and congregations, suppressed novitiates and dissolved cloistered institutes.

Finally, in 1906, the Catholic Church was stripped of its character as a person of public law and a Police Code was promulgated that repressed all external manifestations of worship.

Our Lady wept for her children

In this context of turmoil and confrontation, the miracle of the Dolorosa in 1906, with the Virgin weeping and blinking on the San Gabriel de Quito schoolThe event took on an even deeper meaning for the Ecuadorian faithful.

Our Lady's tears were interpreted as a sign of her maternal sorrow at seeing the suffering of her children in Ecuador, who were facing the threat to their faith and ecclesiastical institutions. This prodigy reaffirmed Mary's presence and consolation in a time of trial, symbolizing that she "did not want to leave her children" in the midst of the adversity and persecution experienced by the Church in the country.

Witnesses, including my great-grandfather and his brother, described how the Virgin opened and closed her eyes, an active movement that added to the unusual nature of the event.

The rapid validation by the Vatican in the same year underscores that the Church perceived this event not only as a local occurrence, but as a divine affirmation of faith and maternal care at a time of growing skepticism.

This event manifested itself as a universal message of hope and consolation from the Mother of God, a tangible sign that she "did not want to leave her children" in the face of the challenges and turmoil of the times, reinforcing the spiritual connection between Mary and the faithful.

Serenity in the face of pain

When contemplating the face of the Sorrowful Virgin, the first impression is that of "deep suffering". This is the most striking expression conveyed by the painting. However, this pain has a paradoxical nature: it is a "serene and strong pain".

It is not a passing sadness or overwhelming despair, but a deep and abiding affliction tempered by acceptance, fortitude and divine will. It speaks of a sorrow that does not annihilate, but uplifts.

The representation of Mary's suffering in the face of the Sorrowful Virgin, characterized by her serenity and strength, goes beyond the mere expression of human affliction.

This iconography underscores a profound theological affirmation: Mary's sorrow is not a sterile sadness, but an act of unconditional and sacrificial love, a perfect empathy with the agony of her Son. Her suffering is presented as salvific, not hopeless, offering a model for believers to embrace suffering with grace and spiritual meaning.

This approach resonates with the realization that "every pain accepted out of love for Him and united with His passion becomes a salvific, meaningful pain." In this way, the representation elevates her pain from a purely human tragedy to a conscious and active participation in the divine plan of salvation.

The distinction between sadness and love is crucial: "it is not sadness but love that accompanies her Son to the end". Her suffering is an act of unconditional and sacrificial love, a perfect empathy with the agony of her Son, persevering with Him to the end. 

Despite the immense suffering she represents, "her gaze conveys peace and love". Her eyes, despite the tears, radiate an inexplicable inner tranquility and boundless compassion. This gaze invites contemplation and offers comfort, assuring the viewer of her enduring maternal care.

The pierced heart

A central iconographic element of the "Mater Dolorosa" is the representation of her chest adorned with "seven swords, symbolizing her seven sorrows". This image of Mary with her heart pierced by swords (often one or seven) is a well-established tradition for the Sorrowful Mother. This visual representation is derived directly from the prophecy of Simeon, who foretold that "a sword will pierce your soul."

The Prophecy of Simeon, Mary's first sorrow, establishes a fundamental starting point for her role in salvation history. The prediction that "a sword will pierce your soul" is not only a harbinger of future afflictions, but a spiritual pang that marks Mary's soul from the very beginning of Jesus' life. This prophecy provides the direct theological justification for the visual representation of the seven swords.

This initial sorrow consecrates Mary's unique and active role as the "Mater Dolorosa," whose suffering is intrinsically linked to the redemptive work of her Son. It underscores that her suffering was not accidental, but divinely ordained and integral to the plan of salvation, positioning her as co-redeemer with Christ from her infancy, not only at the foot of the Cross.

The Seven Sorrows of Mary are a set of events in her life that are the object of popular devotion and are frequently represented in art. These sorrows should not be confused with the five sorrowful mysteries of the Rosary.

The widespread devotion to the Seven Sorrows, with roots in the Middle Ages and its expression in the "Stabat Mater" attributed to Jacopone of Todi, as well as its liturgical celebration on dates such as "Friday of Sorrows" and September 15, reveals that the Dolorosa is more than an artistic representation. It is a living devotion that promises tangible spiritual benefits to the faithful.

The iconography of the seven swords becomes an invitation to participation in Mary's sorrows, offering a path to deeper faith, greater understanding and divine consolation. This reinforces Mary's active maternal role in the lives of her "children," demonstrating that her suffering is a source of grace and a model for transforming one's own pain into salvific suffering by uniting it to the Passion of Christ.

Hands that hold out hope

The hands of the Sorrowful Virgin are an element of great expressiveness in the painting, described with deep admiration: "Her hands are beautiful. Hard-working: wide and long. They make me fall in love with them."

This description evokes not only beauty, but also a history of service, care and endurance. These are not delicate or inactive hands, but hands that have actively served, nurtured, comforted and suffered.

They symbolize Mary's constant and active participation in the life of her Son, from his infancy (cradling him) to his death (receiving his body). They are hands that have performed countless acts of maternal care, have endured immense pain and yet remain capable of offering comfort and holding the instruments of salvation.

The depiction of the Virgin's hands as "workers: broad and long" suggests a capacity for service and action, beyond mere passive reception. The act of holding the instruments of Christ's Passion, such as the nails and crown of thorns, is a deliberate iconographic choice found in depictions of lamentation.

This not only illustrates Mary's sorrow, but her active participation in the drama of redemption. Her hands, which once cradled the Child Jesus, now present the symbols of her supreme sacrifice, signifying her complete identification with the mission of her Son and her unwavering maternal love that "accompanies to the end."

In her left hand, the Virgin holds the three crucifixion nails. These are direct, tangible and visceral symbols of Christ's Passion. They represent the brutal instruments of his sacrifice and, by extension, Mary's profound co-redemption in witnessing his agony. 

The presence of the nails in her hand connects her directly to the physical reality of her Son's death. In her right hand, she holds a crown of thorns. This symbol of humiliation, unbearable pain and mocked royalty further emphasizes the brutality and indignity of Christ's Passion.

His presence in Mary's hand signifies his intimate connection with her suffering and his willingness to embrace the full scope of his redemptive sacrifice.

A mother who never gives up

The Sorrowful Virgin of the College stands as a beacon of faith, a canvas that tells a story of unwavering love and divine resilience. Through the miracle of 1906, her serene face in the midst of the deepest pain, and the seven swords symbolizing her sufferings, as well as the hands holding the instruments of the Passion, the essence of her motherhood is revealed.

This painting not only commemorates Mary's suffering in accompanying her Son to the end, but also embodies the strength of the Church in the face of persecution.

The Sorrowful Virgin is a perpetual reminder that pain, when accepted with love and united to the Passion of Christ, acquires a salvific meaning. Her gaze, which conveys peace and love, assures the faithful of her constant presence and intercession.

She remains a perfect model of faith and perseverance in suffering, a perpetual source of comfort and strength for those who turn to her. Her image invites contemplation, gratitude and renewed spiritual connection, carrying her message of enduring love and hope in the heart of every believer.

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RelatedRelated NewsMonsignor Espinoza MateusWe want to renew Eucharistic life in Ecuador".
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Vocations

Jean Ramazani Mukwanga: "The future of the Church in Congo is full of hope".

Jean Ramazani Mukwanga is a priest from the Democratic Republic of Congo who is studying Canon Law at the Pontifical University of the Holy Cross thanks to the CARF Foundation.

Sponsored space-July 10, 2025-Reading time: 3 minutes

Jean Ramazani Mukwanga was born in Sama (Democratic Republic of Congo) on October 2, 1992. He comes from a family of nine children and was ordained to the priesthood on June 5, 2022. He is studying Canon Law at the Pontifical University of the Holy Cross and is currently in his third year of studies. He is currently at the Tiberino Priestly College. 

How did you discover your vocation to the priesthood? 

-I discovered my vocation just after my baptism, at the age of 12, that is, in 2005. I was baptized as an adult, because my parents had not yet contracted a religious marriage. At that time, in the Kindu diocese, a child could not be baptized if his parents were not religiously married. Right after the baptism, I joined the altar boys' group and, after a month, I started serving at the altar during Mass. As I sat next to the priests and served at Mass, I felt a great desire to be a priest. That was the major turning point in my vocation story, and after a year I enrolled in the vocation group, so in 2006 and 2007 I entered the minor seminary. 

What was the reaction of your family and friends when you told them you wanted to become a priest? 

-At first, my parents did not want to hear me say that I was going to be a priest. Faced with their attitude, I got angry and did not want to eat or talk to them for three days. When they saw my reaction, they accepted my going to the minor seminary. As for my friends, some were happy, others did not want me to become a priest. 

How would you describe the Church in your country? 

-The Democratic Republic of Congo is one of the African countries with the largest Christian population. About 80-90 % of the population claims to be Christian, divided mainly between Roman Catholics (~50 %), Protestants (Église du Christ au Congo - ECC) (~20 %), renewal churches (Pentecostal, Evangelical, etc.) (~10-15 %), and other Christian groups (such as Jehovah's Witnesses, Orthodox, etc.). 

What are the challenges facing the Church in your country? 

-There are several. Lack of resources, since there are few financial means to support parishes, schools and social works; insecurity and conflicts, since in some regions (especially in the east), violence makes pastoral work difficult. Also widespread poverty, the Church often has to make up for the shortcomings of the State (education, health, etc.). On the other hand, the shortage of priests and religious, especially in rural areas, where some communities do not have regular spiritual accompaniment. There is also corruption and political pressures, since in denouncing injustices, the Church sometimes suffers threats. Finally, there are the challenges in formation, there is a great need to strengthen the formation of the laity, catechists and future priests. 

How do you see the future of the Church in your country? 

-The future of the Church in the Democratic Republic of Congo is full of hope, despite the many challenges. Its future depends on committed Christian youth, growing vocations, closeness to the poor, solid formation and prophetic courage in the face of injustice. 

What do you appreciate most about your training in Rome? 

-What I appreciate most about my formation in Rome is the care with which the Pontifical University of the Holy Cross teaches me, not only intellectually, but also spiritually and humanly. 

How does your vocation as a priest help you in your pastoral work? How does your formation through the CARF Foundation help you in your pastoral work? 

-My vocation as a priest today is a call to serve God's people with humility, joy and hope. Thanks to the CARF FoundationI have received a solid intellectual, spiritual and human formation in a universal ecclesial environment. And this can help me to better serve the Church in my country, with competence, love and fidelity. I am grateful for this opportunity, which makes me a more prepared worker in the harvest of the Lord.

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The Vatican

Leo XIV welcomes back Zelensky

Rome Reports-July 10, 2025-Reading time: < 1 minute
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The Pope received the President of Ukraine for the second time in two months. The meeting took place at Villa Barberini, in Castel Gandolfo, where Leo XIV enjoy a few days of relative rest.

The pontiff expressed to the Ukrainian president his sorrow for the victims, encouraging efforts for the release of the prisoners; he also reiterated the Vatican's availability to welcome Russian and Ukrainian representatives to negotiate.

For his part, the president thanked the Vatican for its efforts in the search for peace in a conflict that is now in its third year.

Now you can enjoy a 20% discount on your subscription to Rome Reports Premiumthe international news agency specializing in the activities of the Pope and the Vatican.

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Evangelization

St. Christopher of Lycia, "Christ-bearer", and martyrs of Syria and Vietnam

The Church celebrates on July 10 St. Christopher of Lycia (Anatolia, present-day Turkey), the place where this "Christ-bearer" (name of Greek origin) was born and martyred. St. Christopher is the patron saint of travelers and drivers. Today we also commemorate two Vietnamese martyrs, and eleven other martyrs, from Damascus, of the Custody of the Holy Land.

Francisco Otamendi-July 10, 2025-Reading time: < 1 minute

Tradition places in Lycia St. Christopher, a popular giantess and martyr of Asia Minor. It was a common belief that it was enough to look at his image for the traveler to be free from danger during the day. Many drivers wear a medal of St. Christopher next to the steering wheel. Here can see a thought-provoking story, when one day he crosses the stream loaded with an "insignificant" child.

The martyrology attributed to St. Jerome states that the memory of St. Christopher is on July 25, a feast that the Roman Martyrology preserves. Although it has been moved in practice to July 10, to coincide with St. James the Apostle on the 25th.

It is said that St. Christopher was baptized in Antioch. He went without delay to preach in Lycia and Samos. There he was imprisoned by King Dagon, who was under the orders of Emperor Decius. He resisted Dagon's blandishments to recant. After several attempts at torture, he was beheaded. According to Gualterius of Speyer, the Syrian nation and Dagon himself converted to Christ. His effigy, always gigantic, decorates numerous cathedrals, such as that of Toledo.

Vietnamese and Damascus martyrs

The liturgy of the day also commemorates Saints Anthony Nguyen Hûu (Nam) Quynh and Peter Nguyen Khac TU, Vietnamese lay catechists, who were martyred in Dong Hoi (Vietnam) on July 10, 1840 during the reign of Emperor Minh Mang.

Blessed Manuel Ruiz and companions, eight Franciscans, all Spaniards except one, and three native lay people, were martyred in Damascus for not renouncing Christianity and converting to Islam. They were members of the Custody of the Holy Land and formed the community of Damascus.

The authorFrancisco Otamendi

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United States

Bishop Barron: Washington state abuse law violates religious freedom

A controversial Washington state law that will force priests to violate the confessional privilege to report abuse "represents an egregious violation of the free exercise clause of the First Amendment," Bishop Robert E. Barron has told OSV News. In his view, the law, which goes into effect July 27, violates religious freedom.

OSV / Omnes-July 10, 2025-Reading time: 6 minutes

- Gina Christian (OSV News)

The Washington state law that will require priests to violate the secrecy of confession to report abuse is "an egregious violation of the free exercise clause of the First Amendment." So Bishop Robert E. Barron of Winona-Rochester, Minnesota, a member of the U.S. Religious Liberty Commission, has told OSV News.

"That the state (of Washington) can interfere in this most sacred discipline of the church should alarm not only Catholics, but all Americans who revere religious freedom," he said in a statement emailed to OSV News July 7.

Writing against the governor and his administration

Bishop Barron, the founder of the media ministry or service of 'Word on Fire.filed an amicus curiae brief (note: those filed by third parties, not directly involved) on July 4. The case was initiated on May 29 by Archbishop Paul D. Etienne of Seattle and other bishops and clergy. 

The action was directed against Washington Governor Bob Ferguson and his administration in connection with the recently passed mandatory whistleblower law. abuseswhich does not provide for exceptions to the confidentiality of confessions.

The Catholic bishops in Washington had supported a version of the bill that included the exception. 

Catholic bishops in Washington state asked the federal court to block a new state law that forces priests to choose between breaking the seal of confession or jail terms (Photo by OSV News/Jason Redmond, Reuters).

The law comes into force on July 27

The law, to take effect July 27, would specifically require clergy - defined as "any regularly licensed, accredited or ordained minister, priest, rabbi, imam, elder" or similar religious or spiritual leader - to report alleged abuse based on information obtained "solely as a result of privileged communication." 

Under the law, other persons considered mandatory reporters in this case, such as school personnel, nurses, counselors, psychologists, and child social service workers, are not required to disclose such information if it is obtained in confidence.

Challenges to Washington state law: separate lawsuit by Orthodox church

In May, the Department of Justice (federal) opened an investigation civil rights on the development and approval of legislation.

In June, the Orthodox Church in America and several other Orthodox churches filed a separate lawsuit against Ferguson and his administration on the law. They stated that "since at least the fourth century A.D., the Christian Church has consistently forbidden priests from revealing what they hear in confession."

Orthodox: violating the secrecy of confession is a canonical crime and grave sin

"The Orthodox Church teaches today that priests have a strict religious duty to maintain absolute confidentiality of what is revealed in the sacrament of Confession," the Orthodox churches said. "Violating this obligatory religious obligation is a canonical crime and a grave sin, with serious consequences for the offending priest, including removal from the priesthood."

In the brief cited above, Bishop Barron, who as auxiliary bishop in Los Angeles had countered similar proposed legislation, said that by moving forward with the bill, "Washington barely concealed its intolerance of the categorical secrecy of confession, openly attacking this religious sacrament, and trampling on our Constitution's promise of religious neutrality."

Surprise elimination of the exception for members of the clergy

Monsignor Barron has said that the law "is manifestly based on a lack of respect for the secrecy of confession," and is at odds with a ""venerable tradition" of honoring clergy-penitent privilege, which has been widely upheld by the nation's courts.

Specifically, Bishop Barron added, "Washington's reporting requirement for supervisors generally exempts communications covered by Washington's evidentiary privileges, including spousal, attorney-client and clergy-penitent privileges." However, "SB 5375 (Washington law) surprisingly eliminates this exception only for 'members of the clergy.'" (Note: Seattle, the state's principal city, had 755,000 inhabitants in 2023).

The case of the Colorado baker

In his report, Bishop Barron quoted extensively from the case brought by Colorado baker Jack Phillips, a devout Christian whose right to refuse a wedding cake order for a same-sex couple was ultimately upheld by the U.S. Supreme Court for reasons of freedom of religion.

Bishop Barron explains sacramental stealth

The bishop noted that "few religious practices are more misunderstood than the sacred secret of confession in the Catholic Church."

Confession, part of the sacrament of Reconciliation, was instituted by Jesus Christ and given to the apostles. It allows "a sinner" access to "the healing and forgiving grace of Christ", with the priest "operating in the very person of Christ". Thus. "the penitent is speaking and hearing from the Lord himself," Bishop Barron wrote.

"Therefore, absolutely nothing must stand in the way of a sinner seeking this source of grace," Bishop Barron said in his report. "This gives rise to the indispensable importance of secrecy. If a penitent is aware that the priest could (much less should) share with others what was given in the most sacred confidence, he or she would be reluctant to approach Confession."

A confessional in a file photo at the Memorial Church of the Holy Sepulcher, located on the grounds of the Franciscan Monastery of the Holy Land in Washington (OSV News/Nancy Phelan Wiechec photo).

"The secret of confession is inviolable."

Canon Law, the principal legal code of the church, holds that "the sacramental secret" of the confessional is "inviolable." And therefore, "it is absolutely forbidden for a confessor to betray a penitent in any way by words or in any manner and for any reason whatsoever."

Even when there is no danger of such a revelation, canon law forbids a confessor to "make full use of the knowledge gained from confession to the detriment of the penitent."

Canon law: historical clashes with the sacramental seal

In 2019, the Vatican's Apostolic Penitentiary issued a note on the importance of the internal forum and the inviolability of the sacramental seal.

The note affirmed that the "inviolable secrecy of Confession comes directly from revealed divine law and is rooted in the very nature of the Sacrament, to the point of not admitting any exception in the ecclesial sphere, much less in the civil sphere".

As a result, any civil legislation that seeks to repeal clergy-penitent protections faces a head-on collision with canon law, said Father John Paul Kimesassociate professor at Notre Dame Law School, to OSV News earlier this year.

P. Kimes: the secret belongs to the sacrament

Father Kimes, who is also the Raymond de Peñafort Fellow in Canon Law at Notre Dame's Nicola Center for Ethics and Culture, added that civil law would assign the privilege to one of the parties - historically, the penitent who has been accused." However, "in canon law, the secret (of confession) belongs to no one," neither the priest nor the penitent, Father Kimes said. "It belongs to the sacrament."

As a result, "in the end, it is an irresolvable conflict between civil law and canon law," said Father Kimes.

The confrontation has a long history, with the first U.S. civil case to address the issue, People v. Philips, dating back to 1813, he adds. In that case, Father Anthony Kohlmann, who had been subpoenaed by a grand jury, refused to break the secrecy of the confessional by testifying against defendant Daniel Philips. The latter indicated that he had spoken to the priest about receiving stolen goods.

Constitutional guarantees would be violated

The then mayor of New York City, DeWitt Clinton, who presided over the court of general sessions, ruled that "it is essential to the free exercise of a religion that its ordinances be administered, that its ceremonies, as well as its essential elements, must be protected."

Clinton emphasized that condemnation of such disclosures would violate the constitutional guarantees of religious freedom, stating that "secrecy is the essence of penance". To compel priests to reveal the revelations of penitents was, in essence, "to declare that there will be no penance." And if such measures were permitted, "this important branch of the Roman Catholic religion would thus be annihilated."

————–

Gina Christian is a multimedia reporter for OSV News. 

This article is a translation of the original article from OSV News, which you can view at here.

The authorOSV / Omnes

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TribuneMarcos Gonzálvez

A family summer proposal

After the effort of the whole year, summer arrives and, with it, the vacations for many people. A key moment to recover, not only physical and mental strength, but also the contact and relationship in families.

July 10, 2025-Reading time: 3 minutes

Stop. Rest. How important it is to know how to rest! Slowing down the pace that those of us who live in large urban centers - and those who don't, on many occasions, too - is a great challenge to dedicate quality time to the family. I am referring to those who live at home with us, we don't have to go much further.

Now that the vacations are upon us, that challenge should cease to be a challenge. We must take the opportunity to strengthen the bonds in the family. Get to know each other. To create irreplaceable and enriching moments. From parents to children, from children to parents. And if there are grandparentsto enter into the equation (trying not to do it during all the vacations... as a recommendation).

Restoring the balance

Retake that vital balance that we often forget during the school year. Slowing down our life during the vacations and encouraging family and friendship meetings will prepare our children to face a new school year with confidence and renewed energy.

The family is the first place where we learn, where we grow, where we are formed. It is very important to dedicate time to activities with our children during this vacation time. Playing, reading, playing sports, long lunches or dinners, breakfasts! Let our children see that we are able to have breakfast without rushing! They won't believe it... We can have a coffee sitting down, without mentioning the dreaded phrase "we're late"! They will freak out.

Not everything has to be about sharing a physical space or common activity. It is also about being emotionally present, listening to the questions and comments they ask us, listening to their illusions, asking them about them. With young children and adolescents, eh? 

It is a good time to grow in generosity. Take a break from screens. Above all, from our smartphones. We, the older ones, the first ones. Let us be an example for the little ones. Let them discover that their looks are more important to us than the screen of our cell phone. Let them forget that we ever had a cell phone...

Enjoy a good movie with the family and then have a simple conversation that continues to form their critical spirit. Let them enjoy -let us enjoy- a good FIFA game with them, and let them see that we can still beat them (in order, of course, as I can see that they will throw me to the lions...).

Getting to know each other

Going out to the countryside. A good hike. Nature. Excursions in the countryside make us observe what surrounds us. Observe and admire the beauty of things, animals, insects, trees, landscapes, summer storms... Have conversations while we walk, stop for a chocolate and get our strength back, drink water, take a dip in the river... What is lazy? Almost everything that does us good and involves effort makes us lazy. If you are offered to go hiking, don't think about it and say yes.

And I leave the most important thing for last: continuing to get to know our spouse. That really makes vacation quality time. Walking together. Alone. The two of us. Hand in hand. If you can do it every day, all the better. That's the best family investment you can make. And listen. And ask. And keep listening. To get to know him or her even better. And so our admiration grows for that person with whom we have decided and committed to share life until the end.

This is the key. The two of us being a team. And that our children see it. Let them see that the other is our priority, that we really love each other, with words, phrases, looks, smiles, kisses. Really, it's essential, but don't be so sweet. Naturalness, please. But let it be seen and be seen.

Thus, next year, as a team, together, we will overcome all the adversities and difficulties that may cross our path.

10 tips

I leave you a top 10 tips for the vacations:

1) Set aside a specific time each day for your spouse.

2) Sleep well.

3) Simplify meal preparation and take the time to savor the good things.

4) Divide household chores among the family, trusting each other (without over-controlling).

5) Agree on a minimum of daily order and organization.

6) Handle and use things gently and moderate tones of voice; peace is contagious, you'll see.

7) Please turn off the cell phone.

8) Give up doing everything, seeing everything, achieving everything (perfectionist complex). If you wanted to make a plan and it didn't work out, have peace.

9) If possible, spend a large part of the vacations away from your parents' or in-laws' home to be alone with your spouse and children.

10) In the last week of vacation, set goals, together with your spouse, for the coming year. As many as you want. Of any kind.

The authorMarcos Gonzálvez

Director of Foro de la Familia (Spain)

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Gospel

The Church, house of mercy. Fifteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time (C)

Joseph Evans comments on the readings of the 15th Sunday in Ordinary Time (C) corresponding to July 13, 2025.

Joseph Evans-July 10, 2025-Reading time: 2 minutes

We could approach today's Gospel in many ways. The most obvious is that it is a parable about mercy, which we are all called to live. It is shocking that a priest and a Levite, ministers of religion, show no mercy, while the stranger, a Samaritan, hated by the Jews, does. And the Samaritans hated the Jews as much as the Jews hated them. But this Samaritan does not check the identity card of the man in need. What Our Lord means is that mercy has no limits or boundaries. Mercy demands that we go beyond our prejudices, in a sense that we scandalize even ourselves.

But let us focus on what the parable has to say about the Church. As several ancient Church writers taught, Jesus Christ is the true Good Samaritan. We, mankind, are that man attacked by robbers, beaten and left half dead. We were attacked by the devil, Satan, when he made our first parents sin. That sin introduced death into the world. And when we sin, we not only hurt others, we also hurt ourselves. Every sin, especially serious sins, makes us more like that man: wounded, broken, dying.

But Jesus, the divine Samaritan, came to earth. The Old Law, represented by the priest and the Levite, could not help us. It was tied to its own rigid laws and to its narrow fanaticism, which thought that good religion implied excluding people. True religion, true Catholicism, does not consist in excluding people, but in bringing them in, with all their wounds. In fact, we are all wounded, and he who thinks he is not wounded suffers the worst wound of all: the blindness of pride.

Jesus, the Samaritan, meets the man and washes his wounds with wine and oil. This tells us about the sacraments of the Church. The wine suggests the blood of Christ (Jesus turned the wine into his blood). We are washed by his blood, first in Baptism, then in the Eucharist and in Confession. Also in Baptism he begins to anoint us with oil and does so even more in Confirmation. And he takes us to the inn, which is the Church, where we are taken care of. There are good innkeepers, who represent and serve Christ, who take care of us in his apparent absence. "Take care of him."he says, "and whatever you overspend I'll pay you back when I get back.". He tells us all: take care of one another until I come again at the end of time, and I will reward you (see Matthew 25:31-46). In the inn of the Church we are safe: our wounds are healed and we are given the nourishment we need.

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Evangelization

Montse Grases, a friend who had many friends

Montse Grases gives us a lesson of love for Jesus Christ in everyday life, without anyone realizing it, but in a complete process of identification.

José Carlos Martín de la Hoz-July 10, 2025-Reading time: 4 minutes

One of the marvels of having known the Venerable Servant of God Montse Grases (1941-1959) when I was young is that I have been able to experience many times that the saints are eternally grateful, because every time I write a favor received from her, I experience that she immediately does me others, because she really is eternally grateful.

Some time ago a journalist from a well-known radio station phoned me to ask me shamelessly why the Catholic Church would make the mistake of canonizing a 15-year-old boy when we all know that at that age children are quite "dull".

I immediately replied that Carlo Acutis is one of the great saints of the recent history of the Catholic Church, on a par with the Venerable Servant of God Montse Grases, St. John Paul II, St. Teresa of Calcutta or Padre Pio, to name a few outstanding examples.

The prayer of complicity

What is the characteristic note that makes Carlo Acutis be proposed as a model and intercessor for the Christian people? What makes him worthy of the title of champion of the faith, as Benedict XVI called the saints? Quite simply, Carlo Acutis, like the great saints in the history of the Church, prayed a true prayer of "complicity".

We have all learned to distinguish between the prayer of need that leads us promptly to turn to God's mercy, as Pope Francis has taught us, to solve our material and spiritual needs. In addition, we have had a few years with the pandemic, the philomena, the DANA in Valencia and Malaga and, as if that were not enough, the blackout of April 28 that has demonstrated the fragility of human life.

For this reason, it is impressive to discover Carlo Acutis beginning his preparation for his first communion by moving forward like a giant in his life of prayer, simple, trusting, complicit, like a friend with a friend: "talking to God as a friend," as St. Josemaría liked to say.

Carlo Acutis and the Eucharist

Immediately, we will remember that, since his first communion, Carlo began to attend Holy Mass daily and to receive Holy Communion, because, as he confided to his mother: that was the highway that would lead him to heaven.

In fact, the extraordinary thing about Carlo Acutis is that he spent his day going here and there, doing what a boy of his age does: classes, studying, playing with the computer, being with friends, helping around the house, skateboarding, but in all of this he was taking and picking up the thread of the conversation with Jesus.

That is why, when Acutis began to feel the symptoms of the leukemia that would lead to his death in a few days, he tried, with God's help, to keep smiling and encourage his mother. In fact, when they entered the hospital, he commented that he would never leave. Logically, Jesus was already preparing him to continue the conversation in Heaven.

The youth of the 21st century

Montse's prayer is like that of Carlo Acutis, and they will have met in heaven and greeted each other with great affection and will be delighted to help the young people of the 21st century to be as happy as they were.

Montse gives us a lesson of love for Jesus Christ in everyday life, without anyone realizing it, but in a complete process of identification. As Francis recalled in the "Gaudete et exultate" of March 18, 2018: "Holiness does not make you less human, because it is the encounter of your weakness with the power of grace" (n. 34).

Let us recall the scene of the wedding feast at Cana in Galilee narrated by St. John. The miracle takes place because we obey Our Lady. "Do whatever he tells you" (Jn 2:5). Then we do what we know how to do: put water and He works the miracle. If we put the water of our love for God and for others, it will become happiness.

Montse discovered her vocation by Opus Dei loving Jesus Christ and loving her parents, her brothers and sisters, her friends, the people of Opus Dei throughout the world with whom she shared her dialogue with Jesus Christ.

She reached holiness as identification and complicity with Jesus Christ and knew how to carry her illness with grace, because she tried to maintain the thread of conversation with Jesus throughout the day. One can dance a sardana while praying, play basketball while praying or prepare to act in a theatrical performance or walking through the Catalan Pyrenees in Seva or wherever.

Montse Grases, friend of the Amigo

Montse Frases was a friend who had many friends. She was also a close friend of Jesus Christ. Therefore, she was very comfortable with her.

Fernando Ocáriz, who studied brilliantly in Barcelona at the Faculty of Sciences, often reminded us that "we do not do apostolate, we are apostles". That is what Montse teaches us: to be normal with Jesus, to charm him and make him fall in love, and then, to love our friends, to be aware of their needs, to listen, to be interested.

As Benedict XVI said in a conversation with Cardinal Julián Herranz a few years ago: "Do you know which point of The Way I like the most? The one that says "Charity is more in giving than in understanding" ("The Way", 463).

Large hearts

If we are very normal and we love Jesus Christ very much, we will have hundreds of friends and the best thing will be that we will know how to spread our happiness to our friends, to our girlfriends, so that with the passage of time they will want to be with that Jesus who is in your soul and who comes to the surface.

Precisely, another saint of our time who died in Manchester at the age of 21, saw that the nurses who brought the chemotherapy bags to the residence where he lived, disputed the joy of being there for a few hours, because in Pedro Ballester's room it was very good. Because with God, with Montse, with Acutis, with the saints, one is very well. The purpose of today is to ask Montse for many things so that we can prove that we have a friend in heaven and she, who is eternally grateful, will teach us to have a heart as big as hers.

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Evangelization

Virgin of the Rosary of Chiquinquira, Queen and Patroness of Colombia

The Colombian city of Chiquinquirá is experiencing a day of deep faith on July 9, on the occasion of the 106th anniversary of the coronation of the Virgin of the Rosary of Chiquinquirá as Queen of Colombia. This is one of the most important the most important employers' associations of the Colombian country.

Francisco Otamendi-July 9, 2025-Reading time: 2 minutes

The Virgin of Chiquinquirá is a Marian devotion highly venerated in Colombia, whose main festivity is celebrated in the municipality of Chiquinquirá, in Boyacá. Pope Pius VII proclaimed her patron saint of Colombia in 1829, and she was crowned Queen of the country on July 9, 1919.

Thousands of pilgrims flock to her Basilica every July 9th. It is a Virgin that preserves a special story since 1585 in Chiquinquirá, where an original canvas with the image of the Virgin arrived in very bad condition. Some time later it was miraculously restored with its original colors and brightness. You can consult more details here o here.

– Supernatural celebration The main event on the 9th is a Mass in the Plaza de la Libertad. The Eucharist will be attended by bishops and priests, and is part of the festive program organized by the community of Dominican friars of the Basilica. 

Among the special events of the day is the Jubilee of the Clergy of the Diocese of Chiquinquira and the Episcopal Conference of Colombia, which will be celebrated on Saturday, July 12 in the Basilica.

Martyrs of Gorcum (The Netherlands)

The July 9 saints' calendar includes St. Nicholas Pick and companions, known as the martyrs of Gorcum (Holland). In 1572, the Calvinists seized Gorcum (Holland) and arrested the Franciscan friars of the convent and other religious and priests, explains the directory Franciscan. 

After taking them through towns and villages subjected to mockery and ridicule, they tried to force them to deny the Catholic faith. In particular of the Eucharist and the primacy of the Roman Pontiff. By remaining firm in the faith, they were hanged on July 9, 1572 in Brielle. The group of martyrs consisted of a Dominican, two Premonstratensians, a regular canon of St. Augustine, four secular priests and eleven Franciscans.

Blessed Marie Anne Madeleine de Guilhermier and Marie Anne-Marguerite de Rocher are also in the saints' calendar of the day. They were two nuns of the Order of St. Ursula guillotined in Orange (France), during the French Revolution, on July 9, 1794. 

The authorFrancisco Otamendi

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"Clues" and steps to implement the Synod in the dioceses

The General Secretariat of the Synod has published a Document, approved by Pope Leo XIV, for the purpose of implementing the Synod in the dioceses. It is addressed to all the People of God, and is entitled 'Guidelines for the implementation phase of the Synod, 2025-2028'. The Jubilee of the Synod Teams will be October 24-26.

Francisco Otamendi-July 9, 2025-Reading time: 4 minutes

The "Guidelines" have been prepared by the General Secretariat of the Synod, directed by Cardinal Mario Grech, are addressed to the entire People of God, and have been approved by Pope Leo XIV. The Document is part of the support service for the implementation phase of the Synod, and has a twofold purpose. 

On the one hand, to offer the local Churches throughout the world a shared frame of reference to facilitate their journey together. In addition, they promote the dialogue that will lead to to the whole Church towards the Ecclesial Assembly of October 2028.

Addressed to all the People of God

One of the most relevant aspects of the Document is that the ".TracksThe "invitation is addressed "to all the People of God, who are the subject of the synodal journey and, in particular, to the Bishops and eparchs, to the members of the synodal teams and to all those who are involved in various ways in the implementation phase, in order to make them feel our support and to continue the dialogue that has characterized the entire synodal process".

In the first greeting of Leo XIV

The Letter of Cardinal Mario Grech recalls the first greeting of Leo XIV, pronounced on May 8, just elected Pope, from the central loggia of St. Peter's Basilica. We are "a missionary Church, a Church that builds bridges through dialogue, always open, like this square, to welcome with open arms all those who need our charity, our presence, dialogue and love" (Leo XIV).

"The intention is to ensure that we proceed with the unity of the Church at heart," adds Cardinal Mario Grech, "harmonizing reception in the various ecclesial contexts, without undermining the responsibility of each local Church. Mario Grech, 'harmonizing reception in the various ecclesial contexts,' without undermining the responsibility of each local Church. By placing itself 'in line with the indications of the Final DocumentThe objective is to concretize the perspective of the exchange of gifts among the Churches and in the whole Church (cf. FD, nn. 120-121).

Implementation phase clues

1. What does this phase consist of?

This is the last of the three phases of the Synod. It follows the phase of consultation and listening to the People of God (held between 2021-2023), and the celebratory phase, in which the two Sessions of the Synod took place. Synod Assembly of Bishops (October 2023 and October 2024).

The implementation phase was inaugurated by Pope Francis with the Accompanying Note of November 24, 2024, by which the Final Document (FD) was delivered to the whole Church. 

In a unprecedented event in the history of the synodal institution, declares that the FD "participates in the ordinary Magisterium of the Successor of Peter (cf. EC 18 § 1; CCC 892)" and asks that it be received as such. Therefore, it is the FD, in its entirety, that is the point of reference for the implementation phase, points out the Document made public on July 7.

"The implementation phase aims at experimenting with renewed practices and structures, which will make the life of the Church ever more synodal, starting from the integral perspective outlined in the FD, in view of a more effective realization of the mission of evangelization."

2. Who participates in the implementation phase? 

"The implementation phase is an ecclesial process in the full sense, involving all the Churches as subjects of the reception of the FD. And therefore, the whole People of God, women and men, in the variety of charisms, vocations and ministries with which it is enriched. And in the different articulations in which its life is concretely developed (small Christian communities or basic ecclesial communities, parishes, associations and movements, communities of consecrated men and women, etc.)". 

Since synodality is a 'constitutive dimension of the Church' (FD, n. 28), it cannot be a path limited to a nucleus of "enthusiasts". On the contrary, "it is important that this new process contribute concretely 'to broadening the possibilities of participation and the exercise of the differentiated co-responsibility of all the baptized, men and women' (FD, n. 36), in a spirit of reciprocity".

3. How to use the Final Document in the implementation phase?

"The FD is the point of reference for the implementation phase: for this reason, it is cited here so abundantly," it is noted. "Consequently, it is essential to promote its knowledge, particularly on the part of the members of the synodal teams and of those who, at different levels, are called upon to animate the implementation process. 

Above all, the reading of the FD must be sustained and nourished by prayer, both communitarian and personal, centered on Christ, master of listening and dialogue (cf. FD, n. 51) and open to the action of the Spirit. "The FD proposes, in fact, to the whole Church and to each baptized person, the perspective of a journey of conversion: 'the call to mission is, at the same time, the call to conversion of each local Church and of the whole Church'" (FD, n. 11).

Some specific areas

In this sense, and without prejudice to the responsibility of each local Church in the contextualized implementation of the FD, the document notes, "it is already now possible to foresee, in the light of the path taken at Synod 2021-2024, that the local Churches will be invited to share the steps taken in some specific areas, in the forms and modalities considered most opportune."

Nine of these areas are listed below, which can be consulted in the text now disclosedSection 3.2.

4. What method and instruments should be used in the implementation phase?

"The synodal method cannot be reduced to a set of techniques for managing meetings, but constitutes a spiritual and ecclesial experience that involves growing in a new way of being Church, rooted in the faith that the Spirit bestows his gifts on all the baptized, starting from the sensus fidei (cf. FD, n. 81)."

Stages of the synodal process

These are the stages of the synodal process, communicated on March 15, and reconfirmed. 

-  October 24-26, 2025Jubilee of the synodal teams and participatory bodies, the organization of which has been entrusted to the General Secretariat of the Synod.

- June 2025 - December 2026The implementation itineraries in the local Churches and their groupings;

- First half of 2027: Evaluation assemblies in the Dioceses and Eparchies;

- Second half of 2027Evaluation Assemblies in the national and international Episcopal Conferences, in the Eastern Hierarchical Structures and in other ecclesial groupings;

- First quarter of 2028Continental evaluation assemblies.

- October 2028Ecclesial Assembly at the Vatican.

Two more study groups

On the other hand, Pope Leo XIV established two new Study Groups at the Ordinary Council meeting in Rome a few days ago. He confirmed the Study Groups established by Pope Francis last year. He also added two newOne on 'The Liturgy in Synodal Perspective', and the other on 'The Status of Episcopal Conferences, Ecclesial Assemblies and Particular Councils'.

The authorFrancisco Otamendi

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Evangelization

Saints Aquila and Priscilla, collaborators of St. Paul, and 15 martyrs of China

On July 8, the Church celebrates Aquila and Priscilla, a married couple who collaborated with St. Paul, as recorded in the New Testament, and 15 martyr saints from China. These were St. Gregory Grassi and seven companions, and St. Mary Herminia of Jesus and six companions, of the Franciscan Family.

Francisco Otamendi-July 8, 2025-Reading time: 2 minutes

Today's liturgy celebrates Aquila and Priscilla, a Christian couple whom St. Paul met in Corinth. They had come from Rome and then moved to Ephesus with St. Paul. They were collaborators and effective helpers for the Apostle in his apostolic mission, who lived and worked with them. Acts of the Apostles. Also celebrated on July 8 are 15 Chinese martyr saints, 8 men and 7 women, all Franciscans.

"Just as already at the beginning of Christianity," he says. Aquila and Priscilla presented themselves as a missionary couple, so too the Church today bears witness to her unceasing newness and vigor with the presence of Christian spouses and families. Families that (...) go to mission lands to proclaim the Gospel, serving mankind, for the love of Jesus Christ", wrote St. John Paul II in 'The Gospel of Christ'.Familiaris consortio' (n. 54). In his Letter to the Romans, St. Paul praises them and reveals that Aquila and Priscilla did not hesitate to expose their own lives for him.

Martyrs of China in 1900

St. Gregory Grassi and seven companions from China are remembered together today, although they died on different dates in early July 1900.

Their names, according to the franciscan directory (next to the date of martyrdom), were: Gregorio Grassi (July 9), Francesco Fogolla (July 9) and Antonino Fantosati (July 7), bishops. Cesidio Giacomantonio (July 4), José María Gambaro (July 7), Elías Facchini (July 9) and Teodorico Balat (July 9), priests. And Andres Bauer (July 9), professed brother. 

St. Mary Herminia and their companions were martyred on July 9, 1900, but their memory is also celebrated on July 8. They are seven Franciscan Missionaries of Mary who shared the palm of martyrdom with St. Gregory Grassi and his companions in Taiyuanfu (China). 

Canonization of 120 Blesseds 

The seven Franciscans were named Maria: Maria Herminia, Maria de la Paz, Maria Clara, Maria de Santa Natalia, Maria de San Justo, Maria Amandina and Maria Adolfina. They are the protomartyrs of their Congregation and had arrived the previous year at the mission of Taiyuanfu. They were canonized by St. John Paul II in 2000. 

The Polish Pope canonized that year to 120 blessed martyred in China. San Juan de Triora and 29 others belonged to the Franciscan Family. Eight Friars Minor (three bishops, four priests and one lay brother). Seven Franciscan Missionary Sisters of Mary, as noted above. Eleven Chinese Secular Franciscans, five of whom were seminarians. And three Chinese lay faithful. All were killed by the 'boxers' in early July 1900.

The authorFrancisco Otamendi

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Evangelization

Ronald Bown: "My dream is that there will be Fe Joven Congresses in every country in the world".

The Fe Joven Congress was born out of the conviction that the subject of Religion deserves its own space, where young people and teachers can share and live the faith together.

Javier García Herrería-July 8, 2025-Reading time: 3 minutes

In a world where new generations are searching for meaning, community and truth, initiatives such as the Young Faith Congress become beacons of light. This meeting, which will bring together hundreds of young people from Chile, is shaping up to be a moment of encounter, reflection and celebration of the living faith that encourages a youth determined to leave its mark.

Today we talk with Ronald BownThe event's main organizer, Mr. José Luis M. M., shares with us the spirit that animates this event, the challenges of mobilizing youth around the faith and the novelties that this year's edition will bring.

What was the main motivation behind the organization of the Fe Joven Congress and what differentiates it from other youth meetings?

The main motivation was the conviction that Religion is the most important subject of all and that, therefore, it deserved to have a Congress, Seminar, theme week, etc. like the other subjects in the school. This is different from other youth meetings in which the young people participate together with their Religion teachers.

The theme of this year's congress is "Firm in faith, pilgrims of hope". How does this translate into the concrete experience that the young people will live?

Hundreds of young people from dozens of different schools sharing a whole morning around our faith, together with their Religion teachers, is in itself an experience full of hope. It is a theme, therefore, that is "worked" but especially lived.

What role does spirituality and sacramental life play in the activities of the congress?

It is the protagonist of the day since the presentations and testimonies of the young people are based on their faith experiences. In addition, there is the possibility of attending the Holy Mass, and this year we will close in the best way with an Exposition to the Blessed Sacrament in which we will pray together all those present.

How has the reception been from the participating schools, movements and parishes?

It has been surprising, wonderful and hopeful. 600 attendees - teachers of Religion with their students - from all over Chile who have given a testimony that seeks to be replicated this year in other cities in the country and abroad: Puerto Varas, Villarrica, Lima and Sao Paulo.

What lessons have you learned from previous editions of the congress?

Mainly that young people seek, want and promote encounters of faith and hope. That if their teachers trust them, they bring out the best of themselves to be witnesses of faith and joy.

In a youth context often marked by religious indifference, what strategies does the congress use to connect with today's youth?

At the Fe Joven Congress we defined a very general theme for the presentations - happiness in 2023, forgiveness last year, and this year hope - but the specific focus is decided by each school. And it has been a pleasant surprise to see the variety and depth achieved by the schools' presentations.

What do you hope young people will take away from the congress, both on a personal and community level?

The young people return home very happy, having experienced that faith is joy, hope and love. And a very clear example of this is that the Fe Joven Congress is crossing borders and by 2025 there will be versions in Chile, Brazil and Peru. My dream is that there will be Fe Joven Congresses in all the countries of the world.

Young Faith Congress
Young Faith Congress
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Pope's teachings

Parables and ecclesial movements

What do the parables of the Gospel have in common with the ecclesial movements? Well, in both cases the Holy Spirit acts to foster personal conversion and the mission of the Church.

Ramiro Pellitero-July 8, 2025-Reading time: 7 minutes

To what extent do we allow ourselves to be surprised by the preaching of Jesus in the Gospels? Are we aware of the impulse that the Holy Spirit is imprinting on the Church through ecclesial movements? These are two questions that can be the focus of some of the teachings of Leo XIV in these weeks.

The Pope's magisterial activity continues to gain strength and intensity, attending to the needs of the People of God and civil society, which are not few. In this way, he continues to strike the "first chords" of his pontificate, which invite him to lavish himself in his solicitude for everyone. And all this in the context of the Jubilee Year, which brings together in Rome the Catholic faithful and other people of various walks of life, often grouped according to the services they render to the Church and the world.

We present here his three catecheses on some of the parables of Jesus and the speeches he gave to the ecclesial movements on the occasion of his participation in the Jubilee.

Parables challenge us

Jesus wishes to personalize his message and therefore his teachings have a character that today we could call anthropological or personalistic, experiential and at the same time questioning, for each one of those who listened to him and also today for us. 

In fact, Leo XIV notes that the term parable comes from the Greek verb "paraballein", which means "to throw before": "The parable throws before me a word that provokes me and pushes me to question myself".

At the same time, it is interesting that the pope notes certain aspects of the Gospel passages that are always surprising.

The terrain is us

The parable of the sower (cfr. General Audience 21-V-2025) shows the dynamics of the Word of God and its effects. "In fact every word of the Gospel is like a seed that is thrown into the soil of our life. Many times Jesus uses the image of the seed, with different meanings". 

At the same time, this parable of the sower introduces a series of other "little parables", in relation to what happens in the field: the wheat and the tares, the mustard seed, the treasure hidden in the field.

What, then, would this land be? "It is our heart, but it is also the world, the community, the Church. The word of God, in fact, fecundates and provokes every reality".

Jesus sows for all, his word awakens the curiosity of many, and acts in each one in a different way. 

On this occasion he presents a sower, quite original: "he goes out to sow, but he does not worry about where the seed falls": on the road, among the stones, among the thorns. "This attitude," Pope Prevost underlines, "surprises the listeners and leads them to ask: why?". We should also be surprised.

First, because "we are accustomed to calculate things - and sometimes it is necessary - but this is not valid in love!". Therefore, "the way in which this 'wasteful' sower throws the seed is an image of the way in which God loves us.",  in any situation and circumstance in which we find ourselves, trusting that the seed will flourish. 

Secondly, in telling how the seed is bearing fruit, Jesus also speaks of his own lifeJesus is the Word, he is the Seed. And the seed, in order to bear fruit, must die". Therefore, "this parable tells us that God is willing to 'waste himself' for us and that Jesus is willing to die to transform our lives".

Compassion and non-rigidity

On the following Wednesday, May 28, the Pope addressed the parable of the good Samaritan (cf. Lk 10). In it we can see how the lack of hope can be due to the fact that we rigidly close ourselves up in our point of view. This is what happened to that doctor of the Law who asks Jesus how to "inherit" eternal life, "using an expression that considers it as an unequivocal right". He also asks him who the "neighbor" is. 

In the parable, neither the priest nor the Levite stopped, even though they were serving in the Temple, perhaps giving priority to returning home.. "The practice of worship," Pope Leo observes, "does not automatically lead to compassion. In fact, before being a religious question, compassion is a question of humanity! Before being believers, we are called to be human." 

The Samaritan paused, expressing compassion with concrete gestures, "because," he says, "if you want to help someone, you can't just think about keeping your distance, you have to get involved, get dirty, maybe even contaminated. 

Peter's successor asks us: "When will we too be able to interrupt our journey and have compassion?" And he goes ahead to answer:  "When we have understood that that wounded man on the road represents each one of us. And then, the memory of all the times Jesus stopped to care for us will make us more capable of compassion."

God's justice

The third parable, on which the Pope focused on June 4, was that of the laborers in the vineyard (cf. Mt 20). It reflects situations in which we do not find meaning in our lives, and we feel useless or inadequate. Here too there is a figure, the owner of the vineyard, who behaves in an unusual way. He goes out to fetch his workers several times every three hours, but also one hour before the end of the day. What is the point of this?

That owner of the vineyard, who is God, does not exercise justice in the foreseeable way, paying each one according to the time he has worked. Because for him "It is right that everyone should have the necessities of life. He has personally called the workers, he knows their dignity and, according to it, he wants to pay them. And he gives everyone a denarius". He wants to give everyone his Kingdom, that is, full, eternal and happy life. 

Like the first-hour workers, who feel disappointed, we too might ask: "Why start working right away? If the pay is the same, why work more?". 

To this question Pope Leo XIV replies: "I would like to say, especially to young people, not to wait, but to respond with enthusiasm to the Lord who calls us to work in his vineyard. Do not put it off, roll up your sleeves, because the Lord is generous and will not disappoint you! By working in his vineyard, you will find an answer to that profound question you carry within you: what is the meaning of my life?

Ecclesial movements and their charisms

On the occasion of the Jubilee of movements, associations and new ecclesial communities, the Pope addressed them on three occasions. 

The first time was in a speech to the moderators on June 6. He first emphasized that the life of associations is at the service of the Church's mission. In this regard, he evoked the conciliar decree on the apostolate of the laity, which stresses the importance of the associated apostolate in order to bear greater fruit.

He pointed out that the charisms are gifts of the Holy Spirit that represent, together with the hierarchical dimension, "an essential dimension of the Church" (cfr. "Lumen gentium", 4; Letter "Iuvenescit Ecclesia" of 2016, n. 15).

In a second part of his speech, Pope Leo insisted on unity and mission as two priorities of the Petrine ministry. This ministry must be a leaven of unity. And the charisms of the movements are meant to serve the unity of the Church as a "leaven of unity, communion and fraternity". As for the mission, it is an aspect, he pointed out, that "has marked my pastoral experience and shaped my spiritual life". 

Today the movements, he said, have a fundamental role to play in evangelization. "It is a patrimony that must bear fruit, remaining attentive to the current reality with its new challenges. Put your talents at the service of the mission, whether in places of first evangelization or in parishes and local ecclesial structures, to reach so many who are far away and who, sometimes without knowing it, are waiting for the Word of life". 

The charisms, he concluded, are centered on Jesus, are a function of the encounter with Christ, of the human and spiritual maturation of persons and the edification of the Church and its mission in the world. 

Unity and synodality 

The following day, June 7, the Pope presided over the Pentecost Vigil with the movements, associations and new communities. Through Baptism and Confirmation, he noted, we have been anointed with the Holy Spirit, the Spirit of unity, to be united to the transforming mission of Jesus. 

Secondly, he emphasized that we are a People that walks driven by the Holy Spirit: "Synodality reminds us of the way -odós- because where the Spirit is, there is movement, there is a way" And "the year of grace of the Lord, of which the Jubilee is an expression, has in itself this ferment".

And the successor of Peter adds, linking the charisms of the movements with synodality and care for the common home: "God created the world so that we could be together. Synodality' is the ecclesial name for this awareness. It is the path that asks each one to recognize his own debt and his own treasure, feeling that he is part of a totality, outside of which everything withers, even the most original of charisms. Look: all of creation exists only in the modality of existing together, sometimes dangerously, but always together".

From there he exhorted those present in two directions. First, to unity and participation, fraternity and contemplative spirit, with the impulse of the Holy Spirit.

Secondly, "to be linked to each of the particular Churches and parish communities where they nourish and spend their charisms. Close to their bishops and in synergy with all the other members of the Body of Christ, we will then act in harmonious harmony. The challenges facing humanity will be less frightening, the future less dark, discernment less difficult, if together we obey the Spirit".

The Holy Spirit opens frontiers

Finally, on Sunday, June 8, Mass was celebrated on the Solemnity of Pentecost, also with the presence and participation of the movements. 

As at Pentecost, the Spirit opens the frontiers, first of all, within us. "The Holy Spirit comes to challenge, within us, the risk of a life that atrophies, absorbed by individualism".

Secondly, the Holy Spirit opens the frontiers also in our relationships with others. "When the love of God dwells in us, we are able to open ourselves to our brothers and sisters, to overcome our rigidities, to overcome our fear of those who are different, to educate the passions that rise up within us". It overcomes misunderstandings, prejudices, instrumentalization and violence. It matures authentic and healthy relationships, and opens us to the joy of fraternity. This is a condition of life in the Church: dialogue and mutual acceptance, integrating our differences, so that the Church may be a welcoming and hospitable space for all. 

Thirdly, the Holy Spirit opens the frontiers also between peoples, sets us all on a journey together, breaks down the walls of indifference and hatred, and teaches us and reminds us of the meaning of the commandment of love. 

"Where there is love there is no room for prejudice, for the distances of security that distance us from our neighbor, for the logic of exclusion that we see emerging unfortunately also in political nationalisms." 

But the Pope concludes by directing his gaze and his hope to the Holy Spirit: "Through Pentecost the Church and the world are renewed!

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Leo XIV greets children participating in Vatican camp

Before retiring to Castel Gandolfo to rest, Pope Leo XIV wanted to greet the children who will participate in the camp organized by the Vatican.

Editorial Staff Omnes-July 7, 2025-Reading time: < 1 minute
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Pope Leo XVI arrives at Castel Gandolfo

Pope Leo XIV arrived at Castel Gandolfo at the beginning of July to rest for a few days before resuming his schedule.

Rome Reports-July 7, 2025-Reading time: < 1 minute
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Pope Leo XVI took advantage of the last part of the journey to the summer residence of Castel Gandolfo to walk through the streets of the city and greet the crowd of neighbors who had come to see the Pontiff.

Shortly after entering the residence, the Pope once again leaned out of a window to say goodbye to the people at the beginning of his period of rest.

Now you can enjoy a 20% discount on your subscription to Rome Reports Premiumthe international news agency specializing in the activities of the Pope and the Vatican.

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The Vatican

Leo XIV asks to "pray to the Lord of the harvest", and arrives at Castel Gandolfo

Pope Leo XIV said at Sunday's Angelus in St. Peter's Square that to be "disciples in love" with the Lord "does not require too many pastoral concepts." "One needs, above all, to pray to the Lord of the harvest, to cultivate dialogue with Him." In the afternoon, he arrived at his residence in Castel Gandolfo to applause and cheers.

Francisco Otamendi-July 7, 2025-Reading time: 3 minutes

In the last Angelus Pope Leo XIV meditated on Sunday's Gospel, in which Jesus sends out 72 disciples. "To work every day in God's field," "one does not need too many theoretical ideas about pastoral concepts," he said. "One needs, above all, to pray to the Lord of the harvest, the relationship with the Lord, to cultivate dialogue with Him." 

"Then He will make us His workers and send us into the field of the world as witnesses of His Kingdom," he continued.

Pope Leo turned to our Mother, and encouraged the faithful: "Let us ask the Virgin Mary, who gave herself generously, saying 'I am the handmaid of the Lord,' and thus participated in the work of salvation, to intercede for us. And may she accompany us on the path of following the Lord, so that we too may become joyful workers in the Kingdom of God".

All called, the harvest is plentiful

Earlier, the Pontiff had focused on three issues. First of all, "today's Gospel (Lc 10:1-12.17-20) reminds us of the importance of mission, to which we are all called, each according to his vocation and in the concrete situations in which the Lord has placed him".

Secondly, the words of Jesus, in which he reveals that "the harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few. Ask the owner of the fields to send out laborers for the harvest" (v. 2). "There is something great that the Lord wants to do in our life and in the history of humanity, but few are those who realize it, those who stop to welcome the gift, those who announce it and bring it to others," the Pope stressed.

"Laborers willing to work are needed."

And thirdly, "the Church and the world do not need people who fulfill their religious duties by displaying their faith as an outward label; they need, instead, workers eager to work in the mission field, disciples in love who bear witness to the Kingdom of God wherever they are."

Perhaps there is no lack of "Christians of occasion", said the PopeBut there are few who are willing to work every day in God's field, cultivating in their hearts the seed of the Gospel and then taking it to daily life, to the family, to the workplace, to study, to the various social environments and to those in need.

And to do this, "we do not need too many theoretical ideas about pastoral concepts; above all, we need to pray to the Lord of the harvest. In the first place, then, is the relationship with the Lord, cultivating a dialogue with him".

Condolences for the catastrophe in Texas, and prayers for peace

After praying the Angelus, Leo XIV greeted "all of you, faithful of Rome, pilgrims of Italy and of various countries. With the great heat of this period, your journey through the Holy Doors is even more courageous and admirable".

In a special way, the Holy Father expressed "my sincere condolences to all the families who have lost loved ones, especially the girls who were at the summer camp during the catastrophe caused by the flooding of the Guadalupe River in Texas, United States. Let us pray for them.

He has also prayed for peace. In this sense, he encouraged to ask "the Lord to touch the hearts and inspire the minds of those in power, so that they may replace the violence of arms with the search for dialogue".

Finally, he commented that in the afternoon he would be transferred to Castel Gandolfowhere I plan to stay for a short period of rest. I wish everyone to enjoy some vacation time to replenish their physical and spiritual strength".

The authorFrancisco Otamendi

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Evangelization

St. Fermin, bishop, and Blessed Peter To Rot, of Papua New Guinea, martyrs

On July 7, the Church celebrates St. Fermín, first bishop of Pamplona and bishop of Amiens (France), martyr and co-patron of Navarre together with St. Francis Xavier. Also commemorated is Blessed Martyr Peter To Rot, of Papua New Guinea, defender of marriage and the family, who will be canonized on October 19 by Pope Leo XIV.

Francisco Otamendi-July 7, 2025-Reading time: 2 minutes

The liturgy celebrates St. Fermín, the first bishop of Pamplona, on July 7. His cult is not documented until the 12th century, when he was imported from the French city of Amiens, where he was bishop and suffered martyrdom after baptizing thousands of people, according to has been written.

Among other saints and blessed, the Church also celebrates on July 7, the blessed martyr Pedro To RotHe was a defender of marriage and the family in Papua New Guinea. He was a catechist martyred in a concentration camp and will be canonized on October 19 by Pope Leo XIV.

San Fermín was born in Pamplona at the end of the 3rd century A.D. However, the first surviving documents about his life and the cult of this saint date back to the 8th century, which has led to some a hesitate of the character. However, San Fermin is one of the best known saints.

Untiring missionary activity

The Navarrese saint is known not so much for his life, his episcopate, his apostolic works or his passion and martyrdom, but for the festivities that the city of Pamplona, in Navarra (Spain), celebrates every year from July 6 to 14, known as Sanfermines. So writes José Antonio Goñi Beásoain de Paulorena, in the St. Lawrence Parish website, chapel of San Ferminin Pamplona.

With the title "San Fermín, between history and legend", José Antonio Goñi has written about 'Who was San Fermín'. "According to tradition, Saint Fermin lived in the second half of the third century and was the first bishop of Pamplona, his native city, and later of Amiens (France), where his tireless missionary activity led him. There he suffered martyrdom by beheading during the persecution of the Diocletian emperor".

Saint Saturninus and Saint Fermin

The news of his life has come down to us, he adds, through the 'Acts of the life and martyrdom of St. Fermin'. They were "probably written around the 6th century in their most essential part, which would have been expanded later, and from the medieval breviaries. In them the historical reality appears mixed with legendary elements on the life of the saint, fruit of the devotion of the faithful people".

It should be noted that the patron saint of Pamplona is Saint Saturnino. San Fermín is co-patron saint of Navarre along with the Jesuit St. Francis XavierThe feast of St. Saturninus, patron saint of missionaries, together with St. Therese of Lisieux. The feast of St. Saturninus is celebrated on November 29. Saint Saturninus was bishop of Toulouse and preached Christianity in Pamplona. The baptism of the first Christians in the city is attributed to him, as well as to San Fermin and his parents, according to tradition.

Blessed Peter To Rot, next saint

Blessed Peter To Rot, was a martyred lay catechist, husband and father of Papua New Guinea. Born in 1912, he was arrested in 1945 during the Japanese occupation in World War II and was killed by lethal injection while in prison. 

The Holy See has announced that Pope Leo XIV will canonize Blessed Peter To Rot on October 19along with other Blesseds. "He will be the first native Papuan saint, a fervent defender of marriage and the family, a catechist committed to the mission of the Missionaries of the Sacred Heart and, consequently, his sanctity the fruit of the close collaboration of priests and laity in evangelization," according to the Vatican agency.

The authorFrancisco Otamendi

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ColumnistsGuillermo Villa Trueba

That baby who cries at mass 

The participation of the little ones in the Mass not only brings gifts for them and their families, but also benefits the entire parish.

July 7, 2025-Reading time: 3 minutes

For those of us who profess the Catholic faith, the arrival of a child into the world is invariably a blessing from God, a tangible manifestation of divine love that reverberates in the innocence of a new soul. However, this joy also carries with it an overwhelming responsibility, for the soul entrusted to us is an even greater treasure than those in the parable of the talents.

It is not enough, then, to provide food and shelter for the new member of the family, or even to shower him with affection or laughter: it is necessary to nourish his spirit, to lead him along the narrow path of the Gospel in a world that will often offer him idols of clay and gold. And what better way to offer him this nourishment than at Mass, where the Eucharistic sacrifice takes place, which, in the words of the Lumen Gentiumis "the source and summit of the whole Christian life" (n. 11)?

However, it's a long way from words to deeds, and parents quickly realize the logistical difficulties involved in bringing an excited, jaded, squirming, shaking and screaming to church without saying "water under the bridge" (all in the space of a minute).

As the proud father of a one-year-old child, I can attest that his short linguistic register does not prevent him from participating "actively" in the Mass -not often at the top of his lungs. That's just the way it is. And then, with his face flushed with embarrassment and his arm numb from carrying the child, one begins to shuffle some subterfuge: "Is there any point in bringing the child? If he behaves badly, he must be bored. Maybe it is better to leave him, after all, he is still too young to know what is going on".

And is it really so small? Who is obliged to hear Mass? Let's not get tangled up, first things first. Canon 11 of the Code of Canon Law stipulates that the ecclesiastical laws oblige the baptized who have the use of sufficient reason, an assumption that is updated at the age of seven. Therefore, here is the first answer of this article: if our son has already reached that age, he has the duty to hear Mass, so let us not hesitate any longer and let us take him, however overwhelming it may be.

Having resolved this question, let us now consider the case of infants and children under the age of seven. On the one hand, it is undeniable that their tender age exempts them from the canonical obligation to hear Mass; on the other hand, there is no magisterial (or pastoral) provision that forbids their wearing - or even discourages it - and there is a certain consensus among people of proven prudence and right judgment on the advisability of this practice. The words of St. John Paul II in his apostolic exhortation Ecclesia in America are clear: "The child must be accompanied in his or her encounter with Christ, from baptism to first communion, since he or she is part of the living community of faith, hope and charity" (n. 48). In the final analysis, we are dealing with a purely prudential question.

After this clarification, I now allow myself - out of prudence, for the record - to break a lance for the participation of the little ones in the Holy Mass. First, because human beings are creatures of habit and, just as babies recognize their home as a safe and stable refuge in which their parents dwell, they should also feel comfortable in the temple, where their heavenly Father dwells.

Second, because, as all of us who have young children (or remember our passage through childhood) know, long before they are of sound mind, little ones begin to inquire about the activities to which they are exposed.

Perhaps the child is not able to abstract the mystery of transubstantiation, but he can understand that the clouds that the mouth of the botafumeiro gives off are our prayers rising towards God or that, if we genuflect, it is because we are before Someone to whom we owe the most absolute reverence and the greatest respect.

Moreover, as with baptism, it is not necessary to understand something perfectly in order to reap its spiritual benefits. And third, because going to Mass together instills grace into the family unit and deprives us of excuses for skipping out on Sundays - and holy days - for as the Irish priest Patrick Payton, a servant of God, wisely noted: "The family that prays together stays together".

On the other hand, the participation of the little ones in the Mass not only brings gifts for them and their families, but also benefits the entire parish. Their mere presence is a living testimony that there are still people willing to sanctify themselves through a marriage open to procreation, in accordance with the Genesis mandate to be fruitful and multiply.

Let us not forget that the Church, the mystical body of Christ, does not end with us, but extends also to our descendants, to whom we must hand on the traditions that have been handed down to us since apostolic times.

So the next time we hear that baby crying at Mass, let us not snort with disgust or roll our eyes. Rather, let us rejoice in the knowledge that the Church is throbbing and alive, and that the gates of hades shall not prevail against her.

The authorGuillermo Villa Trueba

Lobbyist for the Missouri Catholic Conference(USA) and researcher in legal history. D. in Economics and Government from the UIMP and Master in Law from the UIMP. University of Notre Dame.

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Family

Experts call for a more realistic portrayal of old age in TV and movies

The fifth edition of the report by The Family Watch Foundation, in collaboration with Methos Media, on cinema and series in Spain, calls for an evolution towards a "more inclusive, realistic and enriching image of old age". Prepared by researchers from the universities Antonio de Nebrija, Rey Juan Carlos and Europea de Madrid, the report also notes an unfamiliarized image of the silver generation (+60).

Francisco Otamendi-July 6, 2025-Reading time: 4 minutes

The Foundation The Family Watch'.in collaboration with Methos Mediahas presented the fifth edition of the report on movies and series in Spain, entitled "Grandparents and the elderly in the most watched movies and series in Spain in 2024".

The text proposes the evolution towards a "more realistic and enriching image of old age, challenging prejudices" and without ageism, that is, without discrimination or prejudice based on age.

In 2030, Spain will have a life expectancy of 83.1 years and 30 % of the population will be over 60 years of age, the so-called silver generation, although this concept sometimes includes people from the age of 55. 

For this reason, Family Watch (TFW) and researchers from the universities Antonio de Nebrija, Rey Juan Carlos and Europea de Madrid, have prepared a comprehensive report, in which they analyze a total of 129 film and series characters, with the "narrative role, gender, social class, diversity, the presence of stereotypes, the treatment of welfare and ageism". 

Seniors over 65 watch an average of 7 hours of TV per day

The objective of the research has been to systematically understand what kind of older characters appear in these contents and how they could influence the social perception of old age. 

For context, the authors cite various sources that provide the following data, among others: 

 - television leads the way in senior entertainment. It is watched daily by 80 percent of those over 60, compared to only 29 percent of young people.

 - those over 65 years of age are the ones who spend the most time watching television: 7 hours a day on average (Barlovento Comunicación, 2024).

- Regarding Internet use, the elderly use the network to: read news (54.3 %); contract with public administrations (48.7 %); make video calls (48.1 %).

Stereotypes persist

The researchers of the report, Carmen Llovet (BELSILVER Nebrija-L'Oréal Groupe Chair), Sergio Rodriguez Blanco (same Chair), Cristina Gallego-Gómez (Rey Juan Carlos), and Gema López-Sánchez (U. European University), conclude that "although the audiovisual content analyzed in 2024 reflects the growing demographic weight and purchasing power of the Spanish senior population, as well as, in part, their active role and family support, it also shows that there is an under-representative number of seniors and that stereotypes associated with this age group persist".

This is particularly marked, they add, "in the representation of older women - there is a higher proportion of women at older ages - and in the omission of realities such as dependency or unwanted loneliness, despite this being a prevalent problem in southern Europe".

Breakdown of main findings

These are the most important conclusions:

1) In the analysis of 129 characters in 40 audiovisual products, Spain leads the most watched production by over-60s in 2024, with 53.8 % in both series and movies, followed by the US (30.8 %).

2) Older people are clear about their main themes: the drama genre (32.2 %), followed by comedy (18.4 %) and romantic comedy (10.5 %).

3) The family situation of the elderly is not identified in 38.8 % of the series, which is associated with autonomous profiles that are not dependent on their family members, but are also not their providers.

4) People over 60 belong mostly to an upper-middle stratum in 69.8 % of the cases, coinciding with the silver generation trend, who have stability and can support their families.

5) In 11.5 % of the cases, the characters are engaged in SMEs or large businesses and in the same proportion in security and defense forces.

Ageism 

The report points out that "the path towards a full representation without ageism still presents significant challenges, so recommendations are made on the diversity of the experience of older adults in Spain in audiovisual content".

It is necessary that cinema and television, as "cultural mirrors," they add, "evolve to offer a more inclusive, realistic and enriching image of the world. old agechallenging prejudices and normalizing the heterogeneity of this vital stage".

Intergenerational linkages, active aging

For example, "creators are encouraged to portray the intergenerational links that help the exchange of values and knowledge, promote representations where their family situation in this time of change and welfare as a result of their social contribution is made visible".

According to María José Olesti, general director of The Family Watch Foundation, "the main objective of this report is to analyze the demographic, socioeconomic and social reality of older adults in Spain, and how this "silver generation" is represented in the audiovisual media and in fiction. 

From TFW We also wanted to give visibility to "positive longevity" and "active aging", which are realities that already exist in all countries of the world.

 And also "to promote the fact that this is a stage where learning continues and where many activities continue to be developed with a very positive impact on both physical and emotional health. And for this it is essential to count on the family and especially with young people".

Rankings and some characters

The study includes a lot of information about movies and TV series in Spain. For example, the ranking of series premiered in 2024. In the ranking, 'Zorro', the most watched premiere series in 2024, on La1, is at the top of the list. It is followed by 'Entre tierras' and the telenovela 'Sueños de libertad', both on Antena 3. And in fourth place, 'Las abogadas', also on La1.

As for some characters, comedy, in particular, is a space in which "ageism is normalized under the excuse of white or family humor. Felipe, in 'A todo tren: destino Asturias', acts irresponsibly and causes an accident with family consequences. In 'Padre no hay más que uno' (4), the elderly appear as a burden for their children. Added to this is the stereotype of the 'dirty old man', which persists in characters such as Pedro and Lucas ('Vaya par de gemelos'), or the aforementioned Felipe, whose sexuality becomes the butt of the joke".

The authorFrancisco Otamendi

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Integral ecology

Religious freedom is the safeguard of our dignity

Religious freedom safeguards our dignity and reaffirms the value of living one's convictions. At the same time, it has the potential to be a source of peace while offering the possibility of increasing economic growth, reducing community conflict and promoting the common good.

Bryan Lawrence Gonsalves-July 6, 2025-Reading time: 6 minutes
RelatedRelated NewsTo guarantee religious freedom in all its manifestations and everywhere.

Religious freedom is not just a concern for the faithful; it is a fundamental human right that strengthens the very fabric of democratic society. In an era of increasing polarization, where beliefs and ideologies often clash, the ability to freely practice or reject religion remains a cornerstone of human dignity and social harmony.

For believers and non-believers alike, religious freedom is deeply intertwined with other essential rights, such as freedom of expression and freedom of association. These rights do not exist in isolation, but are mutually reinforcing. When one is undermined, the ripple effect weakens the broader framework of civil liberties. This is why repressive government crackdowns on religious expression, whether through censorship, imprisonment or violence, are more than just attacks on faith. They signal a dangerous erosion of human rights.

As the modern world grapples with issues of identity, governance and coexistence, the role of religious freedom must remain prominent in cultural and political discourse. It is not just a privilege for the devout, but a necessary condition for justice, the peace and human flourishing.

How do we define religious freedom?

Religious freedom and what it entails from a legal perspective is articulated in Section 1, Article 9 of the European Convention on Human Rightswhich states that "Everyone has the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion; this right includes freedom to change his religion or belief, and freedom, either alone or in community with others and in public or private, to manifest his religion or belief in worship, teaching, practice and observance.

To deepen this definition. We must understand that religious freedom consists of two fundamental aspects, "freedom from" and "freedom to". The first refers to the fact that individuals are free from coercion to practice or not practice religion against their convictions. Neither governments, nor societies, nor individuals can force people to act against their conscience. Simultaneously, the second refers to positive guidance for individuals to seek and act in accordance with the religious truths they follow.

Since humans are social beings and live in society, it is the role of society as a whole and of governments to encourage the practice of religion. Religious freedom implies that families, communities and institutions have the freedom and responsibility to help people carry out their religious convictions.

The duty

Fundamentally, freedom implies duty. Freedom of speech entails a duty to protect someone's good name, freedom of economic initiative entails a duty to contribute economically to the common good, likewise, freedom to practice one's religion entails a duty to safeguard another person's freedom to worship God according to his or her innermost convictions.

The exercise of true religion must always safeguard the innate dignity of the human person and promote the common good. This is the test of validity of religious practices: Does it promote respect for the innate dignity of every human person? Therefore, in answering this, we morally rationalize that practices such as infanticide, polygamy, slavery, psychological abuse, war making, forced conversions and others cannot be part of the right to practice religion, even if they are done in the name of God. Why? Because they harm our intrinsic human dignity and damage the common good.

Our inherent human right to religious freedom requires that society refrain from unduly interfering with people's religious practices and establish an environment conducive to healthy religious expression. A free society is one in which people can actively seek religious truth and live it out in public and private. Religious freedom is a universal human right, not a special claim of privilege by one denomination or possession of one faith over others. Having said all this, why should religious freedom matter in our society?

Religious freedom fosters family values and human dignity

Religious freedom allows people to live fruitfully the veneration they wish to give to God. Respect for God implies respect for each person as a child of God, which recognizes the intrinsic dignity of persons. This recognition is the safeguard and basis of all fundamental human rights: the right to life, to education, to economic initiative, and so on.

This essential understanding of the rights and responsibilities of each person usually develops at an early age, primarily within the family. How? Under the care of their parents, children learn the importance of promoting the good of the family within their own family; they learn the value of love, respect and fidelity. At the same time, they are taught that love extends to people beyond their families; this social love is manifested by helping those in need, defending the rights of the oppressed and promoting access to universal rights.

The natural dignity of every human being is not a random accommodation made by society or governments, human dignity is inherent exactly because it is innate and an inner core of the human being. This understanding of the value of each person is learned primarily in a loving and stable family, which conveys the conviction that it is a gift from God, not from any human institution. True religion does this automatically, and the influence it exerts on parents and children forms a culture of respect, which influences the values of each person in a society, this in turn, has a positive impact on social activity, including politics, which ultimately helps shape society at large.

Religious freedom promotes social harmony

In a secular society, it can be easy to overlook what religion brings to the community, and for people who are not religious it can be difficult to appreciate why faith is so important to individuals. The freedom to practice one's religion also includes the freedom of believers to live out their beliefs in the services and acts of charity they provide to the wider community.

Individuals and organizations motivated by their faith and deep religious convictions care for the neglected in society, call attention to social injustices that need to be addressed, and work in dangerous situations to bring about peace. Therefore, as with other fundamental rights, religious freedom must be at the heart of diverse democratic societies, not on the margins.

When people are free to practice their religion without fear of persecution or discrimination, they can fully express their beliefs and live in accordance with them. This, in turn, helps to foster a sense of self-worth and dignity. 

In addition, religious freedom fosters respect for others and peace, because it contributes to the development of a society that values individual differences.

When people of different religious beliefs work together for the common good, it is a positive sign that difficulties and differences can be overcome for the good of all. This atmosphere of mutual respect based on shared beliefs helps to promote social cohesion and stability within a growing society. In support of this assertion is a study that notes that religious freedom has positive effects on a nation's democratic governance and freedom of expression, while reducing the likelihood of civil war and armed conflict.

Religious freedom fosters economic growth

Research suggests that religious freedom may be correlated with economic development. For example, a study published by the Interdisciplinary Journal of Research on Religion found that countries with higher levels of religious freedom tend to have higher levels of economic development. The authors of the study suggest that religious freedom can create an environment conducive to entrepreneurship and business growth, promote social peace and business stability, reduce state corruption, foster creativity, and drive technological progress.

Other studies have also found a positive correlation between religious freedom and economic development. A study published by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 2020 examined evidence from more than 150 countries and found that an increase in religious freedom is associated with a greater likelihood that an individual will prosper in society along with a higher state of overall well-being. It also noted that the suppression of religious freedom would hinder entrepreneurship, innovation and social welfare.

However, it should be noted that the relationship between religious freedom and economic development is complex and multifaceted, and also depends on a country's social capital, government institutions and many other factors that can also contribute to economic development.

Safeguarding dignity

In short, human rights are universal, since the inherent dignity of the person is an objective human truth, based on morality and philosophy, which does not depend on a person's race, ethnicity, age or sexuality. It allows people to believe and practice the religion of their choice, or to have no religion at all.

Taken together, religious freedom safeguards our inherent dignity and reaffirms the value present in living one's convictions as human beings, its interdependence with other human rights solidifies its place in a thriving democratic society, and, at the same time, it has the potential to be a source of intercommunity peace while offering the possibility of increasing economic growth, reducing community conflict and promoting the common good. In particular, it deepens the possibility of hope and peace in a world that optimistically strives for such values.

The authorBryan Lawrence Gonsalves

Founder of "Catholicism Coffee".

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The Vatican

Archbishop Verny becomes new President of the Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors

Pope Leo XIV has appointed Archbishop Thibault Verny as the new President of the Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors.

Paloma López Campos-July 5, 2025-Reading time: 2 minutes
RelatedRelated News'Tutela Minorum' urges "path of healing" from abuses

French Archbishop Thibault Verny is the new President of the Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minorsby choice of the Pope Leo XIV. The prelate replaces Cardinal Sean O'Malley and comes with experience in this field, since he was in charge of the fight against sexual crimes against minors in the French Episcopal Conference.

Archbishop Verny dedicated some of his first words to his predecessor. The new President thanked the Cardinal for his "courageous and prophetic leadership" that "has left an indelible mark not only on the Church, but on society as a whole".

Archbishop Verny and the fight against abuse

O'Malley, the archbishop said, "has strongly defended the primacy of listening to the voices of abuse survivors, giving them space to be heard, believed and accompanied in their search for truth, justice, healing and meaningful institutional reform." For all these reasons, he concludes, "his legacy is one of courageous fidelity to the Gospel and to the dignity of every human person."

For his part, the Cardinal highlighted Archbishop Verny's "dedication to the prevention of abuse in the life of the Church," noting "his important contributions to the work of the Commission" and his "years of deep experience working with law enforcement, other civil authorities and Church leaders to ensure accountability for serious failures in the Church in France." In addition, O'Malley called it "a blessing for all people that Pope Leo has entrusted the leadership of the Commission to the Archbishop."

Commission Priorities

The new President of the Commission also referred to the Pontiff, thanking him for his confidence and accepting his charge to "help the Church to be ever more vigilant, responsible and compassionate in her mission to protect the most vulnerable among us."

Finally, Archbishop Verny said that, under his mandate, the work of the Commission "will focus on supporting the Churches, especially those that are still struggling to implement adequate safeguarding measures. We will promote subsidiarity and the equitable sharing of resources so that all parts of the Church, regardless of their geographical location or circumstances, can maintain the highest standards of safeguarding."

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Evangelization

Chinese martyrs, English and Irish Blesseds, and St. Anthony Zaccaria

On July 5, the Church celebrates three women martyrs -two Chinese virgins, Saints Teresa Chen Jinxie and Rosa Chen Aixie-, and one Libyan -Ciprila, from Cyrene-. The liturgy also commemorates four English martyrs (one born in Boston), and four Irish. And the priest St. Anthony Mary Zaccaria, defender of frequent communion and Eucharistic adoration.

Francisco Otamendi-July 5, 2025-Reading time: < 1 minute

The Catholic saints' calendar celebrates on July 5 at chinese santas Teresa Chen Jinxie and Rosa Chen Aixie, virgins and martyrs. They were sisters belonging to the Christian community of Huangeryn (Hubei, China), whose lives were taken in 1900. Also celebrated is Saint Cyprilla, a Christian woman from Cyrene (Libya), widow, whose refusal to worship the Roman gods cost her martyrdom in the time of Emperor Diocletian (303). 

Eight martyrs faithful to the Roman Church

The Church also commemorates four martyrs Englishmen hanged in Oxford in 1589 because of their Catholic faith (two of them priests). They are Blessed George Nichols, Richard Yaxley, Thomas Belson and Humphred Pritchard. 

The Irish Blesseds Matthew Lambert, Robert Meyler, Edward Cheevers and Patrick Cavanagh also appear in the catalog on this day. One was a baker and the other three were sailors. For being faithful to the Roman Church and helping persecuted Catholics, they were hanged in Vexford (Ireland) in 1581. The event took place during the reign of Elizabeth Idaughter of the king Henry VIII of England and of Anne Boleynhis second wife. 

Zaccaría, advocate of frequent communion

St. Anthony Mary Zaccaria was an Italian presbyter of the 16th century. known for his apostolic zeal and his defense of frequent communion and Eucharistic adoration. He studied medicine and was ordained a priest in 1528. He went to Milan in 1530 and founded the Congregation of the Clerics Regular of St. Paul, also called Barnabites after their motherhouse in Milan (dedicated to St. Barnabas). She also founded the community of the Angelicas of St. Paul and the Married Clerics of St. Paul. She died on July 5, 1539.

The authorFrancisco Otamendi

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The Vatican

Pope Leo XIV prays to the Holy Spirit in the July Summer Video

Pope Leo XIV prays in English an unpublished Prayer to the Holy Spirit to discern the ways of our heart, in the video with the prayer intention for July. Its title is 'For formation towards discernment'. This Sunday, the 6th, he will lead the last Angelus before his summer break, which begins in the afternoon at Castel Gandolfo.

Francisco Otamendi-July 5, 2025-Reading time: 4 minutes

The Video of the Pope with the prayer intention for the month of July is entitled 'For Formation Towards Discernment'. As usual, it has been produced by the Pope's Worldwide Prayer Networkin collaboration with the Diocese of Brooklyn. In two minutes, the voice and an unpublished prayer of Leo XIV to the Holy Spirit accompany the journey of a young girl in a forest, who needs to find her way. 

The young woman looks around, stops, and walks again with a compass and a map. She stops again, opens the Gospel, and finds a statue of Mary. Prayer, in silence and in listening, shows her the way.  

Pope Leo XIV's prayer to ask the Holy Spirit for guidance and discernment in the path of our heart concludes with an Augustinian-inspired plea. 'Grant me to know better what moves me, so that I may reject that which leads me away from Christ, and thus love and serve him more.'

The Pope's prayer to the Holy Spirit

"Let us pray that we may learn more and more to discern, to know how to choose life's paths and to reject everything that leads us away from Christ and the Gospel". This is how the Pope begins his prayer in the Video, whose voice-over is the only one that can be heard. 

He then turns to the Holy Spirit, while the young woman is seen on the road:

"Holy Spirit, light of our understanding,
sweet encouragement in our decisions,
give me the grace to listen attentively to your voice
to discern the secret ways of my heart,
in order to capture what's really important to you
and free my heart from its afflictions.

I ask for the grace to learn to stop
to become aware of the way I act,
of the feelings that dwell in me, of the feelings that I have, of the
thoughts that invade me, and that, many times,
I am unable to recognize.

I want my choices to
lead me to the joy of the Gospel.
Even if I have to go through moments of doubt and fatigue,
even if I have to struggle, reflect, search and start all over again...
Because, at the end of the day,
your comfort is the fruit of the right decision.

Grant me to know better what moves me,
to reject that which leads me away from Christ, so that I may love and serve Him more.
Amen

Pauses for prayer

The art of discernment, already recommended by St. Paul (Rom 12:2) at the beginning of the Church's history, is today more necessary than ever, assures the World Network of Prayer in a note.

"In the midst of the rush of daily life, we must learn to pause and create sacred moments for prayer," comments Msgr. Robert J. Brennan, Bishop of Brooklyn. "It is in these quiet spaces of attentive listening," the prelate continues, "that we discover which paths truly matter. Thus we find the discernment to choose what truly leads to the joy that comes only from God."

Training, fundamental

The international director of the Pope's World Prayer Network, Fr. Cristobal Fones, S.J., explains that "formation for discernment is fundamental for navigating a complex world. It includes prayer, personal reflection, Scripture study and spiritual accompaniment. Cultivating a deep relationship with Jesus is most important. In this way we can recognize his voice in the midst of so many voices in the world and have the clarity needed to make our decisions based on a more human purpose and horizon."

Leo XIV's rest at Castel Gandolfo

On the afternoon of Thursday, July 3, the Pope visited Castel Gandolfo, where he will spend a period of rest in July from Sunday, in principle until July 20, although he will return between August 15 and 17.

Castel Gandolfo is the summer residence of the Popes, except for Francis, who chose to stay at the Vatican during his years as Pontiff. It is located about 25 kilometers southeast of Rome, in the Lazio region of Italy, overlooks Lake Albano, and is just a few minutes by helicopter from the Vatican. Its temperatures are cooler.

Leo XIV's visit focused on examining the state of the works a few days before his move to Villa Barberini, in the Borgo Laudato Si' of Castel Gandolfo. He will therefore reside in this villa, not in the Palace, which is still a museum.

Apostolic Palace in Castel Gandolfo, about 25 km from Rome (Marco Velliscig, Wikimedia Commons).

Pope's public agenda

About the public appearances of the Pope in these days, the Vatican has reported the following:

- Sunday, July 6, Angelus in St. Peter's Square.

- Sunday, July 13, at 10:00 a.m., Holy Mass in the Pontifical Parish of St. Thomas of Villanova in Castel Gandolfo. At 12:00 noon, Angelus in Piazza della Libertà, Castel Gandolfo.

- Sunday, July 20, at 9:30 a.m., Holy Mass in the Cathedral of Albano. At 12:00 noon, Angelus in Piazza della Libertà, Castel Gandolfo. 

In the afternoon, the Holy Father will return to the Vatican.

- Friday, August 15, at 10:00 a.m., Holy Mass in the Pontifical Parish of Castel Gandolfo, on the Solemnity of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary. At 12:00 noon, Angelus in Piazza della Libertà.

- Sunday, August 17 at 12:00 noon, Angelus in Piazza della Libertà, Castel Gandolfo. 

In the afternoon, the Holy Father will return to the Vatican.

The Holy See communiqué informed that in July all private audiences are suspended, as well as the general audiences on Wednesdays 2, 9, 16 and 23. 

Youth Jubilee: July 28-August 3, Tor Vergata

On Wednesday, July 30, the general audiences will resume. But before that, on July 28, the first of the Youth JubileeThe main events of which can be consulted at here.

As can be seen, after the welcoming Holy Mass on Tuesday, July 29 in St. Peter's Square, a Vigil with Pope Leo XIV will take place on Saturday, August 2 at Tor Vergata at 8:30 pm. 

Then, on Sunday, August 3, Holy Mass presided by the Pope at Tor Vergata, at 9:00 a.m., at the conclusion of this Jubilee of Youth.

The authorFrancisco Otamendi

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ColumnistsMiriam Lafuente

It is no coincidence

A plane carrying 242 people crashed in India, leaving only one survivor. Stories like this one invite us to reflect on the mystery of life, destiny and apparent coincidences.

July 5, 2025-Reading time: < 1 minute

On June 12, 2025, a Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner took off from Ahmedabad at 13:38 local time bound for Gatwick Airport. On board were 242 people, including passengers and crew members. The plane failed to land in London and crashed into a building used as accommodation for doctors at the Byramjee Jeejeebhoy Medical College and Civil Hospital. All the people on board were killed except Vishwash Kumar Ramesh, 40, who was occupying seat 11A.

The man told the Indian broadcaster that he could not believe he had emerged alive from the wreckage through an opening in the fuselage.

Ramesh was able to call his relatives to say that he was "fine," but did not know the fate of his brother Ajay, who was traveling with him.

God's choice? A miracle? I don't know what the survivor will think of his life from that day on, but he is aware that there could have been 242 dead.

While others may talk about the law of probabilities, news like this leads me to think that we do not live or die by chance, that life is a gift for which we must give thanks and for which we will be accountable.

I met the man who was to become the man of my life on a flight (Milan-Madrid) one day in July 2003. Sitting next to each other, we started talking in a cordial way when the trays with food were brought to us. Our story began in the heights and we have always been reluctant to think that we met by chance.

The authorMiriam Lafuente

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Family

Naprotechnology offers an alternative to IVF for couples struggling with infertility

Naprotechnology not only restores health, but also evaluates and addresses mental, spiritual and marital health.

OSV News Agency-July 5, 2025-Reading time: 5 minutes
RelatedRelated NewsNaprotechnology. An answer to fertility or female cycle problems.

-(OSV News / Katie Yoder)

Dr. Naomi Whittaker was in the middle of her obstetrics and gynecology rotation when she realized that she no longer wanted to continue practicing in the field of women's health. woman. She was sick of seeing patients suffer trauma after trauma due to lack of science and compassion, among other things.

However, everything changed when he found himself in the operating room with the surgeons of Naprotechnology.

"This is good medicine, this is what women need: this heals them, this heals their hearts," she remembered thinking.

Today, Whittaker is a Naprotech surgeon. She and other obstetrician-gynecologists who practice Naprotechnology, which stands for Natural Procreation Technology, spoke with OSV News.

They defined it as a treatment model or women's health science that evaluates, diagnoses and treats the underlying causes of infertility and other gynecological and reproductive problems through a natural family planning, or NFP, approach called the Creighton Model.

These doctors wanted couples struggling with infertility to know: NaPro technology offers answers.

"Even if we don't get a baby, at least they feel better about having answers," says Whittaker, who is based in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania.

Natural family planning

His comments came on the eve of National NFP Awareness Week, July 20-26. This week is being celebrated around the anniversary of the encyclical "Humanae VitaePaul VI's 1968 "The Dangers of Artificial Contraception" warning against the dangers of artificial contraception. NFP methods such as the Creighton Model collaborate with this teaching by allowing couples to avoid or achieve pregnancy by monitoring the fertile window of the woman's cycle.

Dr. Christopher Stroud, an obstetrician-gynecologist who practices Naprotechnology and founder of the Fertility & Midwifery Care Center and Holy Family Birth Center in Fort Wayne, Indiana, described Naprotechnology as the treatment side of the Creighton Model, particularly the surgical treatment side.

"When a couple starts using NFP to get pregnant and doesn't get pregnant," he explains, "that's when someone like me comes in with the NaPro technology and says, 'Oh, look, you have polycystic ovarian syndrome, you have untreated thyroid disease, you have endometriosis. And we have to operate on you to (treat the endometriosis) or you have blocked fallopian tubes' or some of these other things that come to light because of NFP."

These physicians claim to treat patients with infertility and other gynecological problems by looking at their Creighton Model charts. The various methods track different biological signs, or biomarkers, to follow the phases of a woman's cycle. The Creighton Model is based on tracking cervical mucus.

"That's the beauty of how we're designed," said Whittaker, who talks about the benefits of Naprotechnology on social media, including on Instagram, where she has more than 30,000 followers. "Our blood flow, our cervical mucus, our cycle length ... even our temperature can tell us about the nature of the body."

An alternative to IVF

Infertility is common, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Approximately 1 in 5 married American women between the ages of 15 and 49 who have not had children struggles with infertility or fails to become pregnant after a year of trying.

A growing number of couples struggling with infertility are turning to in vitro fertilization, or IVF, a procedure in which embryos are created in a laboratory and then transferred into a woman's uterus. Doctors who spoke to OSV News said IVF - which the Catholic Church condemns in part because innocent human lives are lost when "leftover" human embryos are discarded or frozen - does not recognize infertility as a symptom of an underlying disease.

"The body is telling us, 'I shouldn't be pregnant, I have these problems,'" says Dr. Teresa Hilgers, an obstetrician-gynecologist and associate medical advisor at St. Paul VI Institute in Omaha, Nebraska.

Naprotechnology, he said, aims to address these problems.

The origins of nanotechnology

Both Catholic and non-Catholic patients turn to Naprotecnology, which was inspired by Catholic doctrine. Hilgers says his father, Dr. Thomas W. Hilgers, founder and director of the St. Paul VI Institute, was one of the creators of the Creighton Method and developed Naprotechnology after reading "Humanae Vitae" as a medical student.

After the Creighton Model was created, couples approached her father with various problems, from abnormal bleeding and miscarriages to infertility.Their charts "followed similar patterns when they presented with abnormalities in their medical care," Hilgers said her father realized. "He understood that the charts were actually telling him something, and he was able to coordinate medical care with the charting system."

As a physician and surgeon specializing in restorative reproductive medicine, Whittaker says that Naprotechnology falls under the umbrella of restorative reproductive medicine.

"He really was the first to see that biomarkers are a sign of health or not and quantified it scientifically and showed that studies can be done very well that way," he said. "Then they developed a surgical component."

Currently, there are Naprotech-trained physicians on every continent except Antarctica, Hilgers says. The three doctors who spoke to OSV News were trained at St. Paul VI Institute and now see patients who travel to them from all over the country and even the other side of the world.

"I think it's the same for all of us in the Naprotech world," Stroud says. "People will wait a long time to see you and will travel to see you...it's humbling."

An unexpected path

The physicians who spoke to OSV News never planned to practice NaProTechnology, they said.

Hilgers wanted to avoid his father's work until he felt God tapping him on the shoulder. Whittaker thought NFP was unscientific and unreliable until he learned about the Creighton Model and attended a St. Paul VI Institute conference when he was a medical student. Stroud, a convert to Catholicism, went from making IVF, contraception and sterilization referrals to practicing NaProTechnology after a priest in the confessional told him to make a change.

At the time, Stroud expected his career to come to an end; instead, he exploded. For every patient he lost, two more appeared. Today, the walls of his practice are covered with photos of his patients' babies.

Comparison and contrast with IVF

These physicians likened Naprotechnology and IVF to apples and oranges. IVF masks a symptom, while Naprotechnology identifies and treats the underlying disease.

Stroud made an analogy: he imagined a cardiologist prescribing a patient Percocet pills to relieve pain because that patient experiences cardiac pain on the treadmill. Instead of treating the cardiac problem, the doctor masks the symptom or pain.

"In gynecology, that happens every day," Stroud says. "The woman says, 'I'm not pregnant,' and they say, 'Let's do IVF, you'll get pregnant.' And the woman says, 'But aren't they interested in why I'm not pregnant?'"

Whittaker made a similar analogy, adding that a physician may order an electrocardiogram from the patient to measure and record the heart's activity. The electrocardiogram for a cardiologist is like a woman's cycle chart for a Naprotech doctor, he said.

For Catholic couples, Hilgers discussed the philosophical difference between NaProTechnology and IVF.

"Naprotechnology is fully in line with Church doctrine in the fact that a married couple's intercourse has a procreative and unitive impact," he said, adding that IVF separates the procreative and unitive aspects.

A source of healing

Whittaker said that Naprotechnology not only restores health, but also assesses and addresses mental, spiritual and marital health. For her part, she said it nurtures her patients' maternal impulse and reminds them that they are worthy of healing.

"When she walks in the door and asks to be a mother, you have to tell her, 'You are a mother. Look, you're here fighting for this baby,'" she said of women struggling with infertility.

Naprotechnology sends a message, she says, that makes women feel empowered and loved: "I trust you to tell me what's wrong with your body so I can help you work with it."

This article is a translation of an article originally published in OSV News. You can read the original text HERE.

The authorOSV News Agency

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RelatedRelated NewsNaprotechnology. An answer to fertility or female cycle problems.
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Integral ecology

Pope approves form for Mass for the Care of Creation

Pope Leo XIV has approved, and has ordered to include in the Roman Missal and disseminate the form of the Mass for the Care of Creation ('pro custodia creationis'), with quotations from St. Augustine, Pope Benedict XIV and Pope Francis' encyclical 'Laudato si'. The readings are from the Book of Wisdom, Colossians 1:15-20, and the Gospel of St. Matthew.

Francisco Otamendi-July 4, 2025-Reading time: 4 minutes

The Supreme Pontiff Leo XIV has approved and ordered to divulge the form of the Mass for the care of creation ('pro custodia creationis'), with quotations from St. Augustine, Pope Benedict XIV and the encyclical '....Laudato si' of Pope Francis, on the care of the common home, published on May 24, 2015, ten years ago now.

According to the Decree of the Dicastery for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments, dated June 8, 2025, the Solemnity of Pentecost, Leo XIV, after its approval, "has ordered this form to be promulgated together with the appropriate biblical readings". The Decree is written in Latin, is attached to the text, and "now the Dicastery for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments promulgates it and declares it to be a typical text".

The text is signed by Card. Arthur Roche, Prefect of the Dicastery, and the Archbishop Secretary, Monsignor Vittorio Francesco Viola, O.F.M., who spoke this morning at a press conference at the Vatican, together with Cardinal Michael Czerny, Prefect of the Dicastery for the Service of Integral Human Development. 

San Agustín, referent 

The Decree introduces a biblical quotation and another from the Father of the Church, St. Augustine. "Your works praise you (cf. Pr 31:31; Dn 3:57), so that we love you, and we love you so that your works praise you (Augustine, Confessions, 13:33)".

"The mystery of creation is the beginning of the history of salvation, which culminates in Christ and from the mystery of Christ receives the decisive light; in fact, manifesting his goodness, "in the beginning, God created heaven and earth" (Gen 1:1), since from the beginning he was thinking of the glory of the new creation in Christ," the text continues.

Creation under threat (Pope Francis)

"Sacred Scripture exhorts men to contemplate the mystery of creation and to give unceasing thanks to the Most Holy Trinity for this sign of His benevolence, which, like a precious treasure, must be loved, guarded and, at the same time, promoted and handed down from generation to generation."

At this time, the text continues, citing Pope Francis' encyclical, "it is evident that the work of creation is seriously threatened by the irresponsible use and abuse of the goods that God has entrusted to our care (cf. Laudato si', n. 2)".

For this reason, "it is considered opportune to add to the Missae 'pro variis necessitatibus vel ad diversa' of the Roman Missal the form of the Missa 'pro custodia creationis'".

Benedict XVI: creation tends to divinization

In the Eucharist, "the world, which came from God's hands, returns to him in joyful and full adoration: in the Eucharistic Bread, "creation tends towards divinization, towards the sacred wedding, towards unification with the Creator himself," Benedict XVI pointed out in a homily at the Mass of Corpus Domini, June 15, 2006. 

"For this reason, the Eucharist is also a source of light and motivation for our concerns for the environment, and orients us to be stewards of all creation" (Laudato si', n. 236)."

Mass Readings for the Care of Creation

In parallel to the diffusion of the decree, the new form of the Mass for the Care of Creation ('pro custodia creationis') was presented by Cardinal Michael Czerny, Prefect of the Dicastery for the Service of Integral Human Development, and Monsignor Vittorio Francesco Viola, O.F.M., O.F.M., mentioned above.

The Mass 'pro custodia creationis' includes precise prayers for the introit, the collect, Communion antiphon, etc., foresees readings from the Book of Wisdom (Sap 13:1-9), from Col 1:15-20, and from Mt 6:24-34 and Mt 8:23-27 for the Gospel.

The new form includes texts from the encyclical 'Laudato si' of Pope Francis, which is not only an ecological encyclical, as has been said, but "an eco-social encyclical," said Archbishop Viola. The archbishop stressed the theological-liturgical dimension of creation, which is reflected in the form. Asked about the authorship, he said that several dicasteries collaborated, but the author is Scripture, the Fathers and Laudato si'".

"Cuiding creation, a matter of faith and humanity".

Yesterday was announced the Message of Pope Leo XIV for the Journey World Prayer for the Care of Creation 2025, which takes place on September 1. 

In his words, the Pontiff recalled the need for words to be turned into deeds, for urgent action for environmental justice. In a world where the most fragile are the first to suffer the devastating effects of climate change, caring for creation becomes a matter of faith and humanity, the Pope said.

Environmental justice is no longer an abstract concept or a distant goal, but an urgent need that goes beyond simple environmental protection, the Pope adds. In fact, it concerns social, economic and anthropological justice: "For believers, moreover, it is a theological necessity, which for Christians has the face of Jesus Christ, in whom everything was created and redeemed. In a world where the most fragile are the first to suffer the devastating effects of climate change, deforestation and pollution, care for creation becomes a matter of faith and humanity". 

Leo XIV recalled the 'Borgo Laudato si' project at Castel Gandolfo as "an example of how to live, work and build community by applying the principles of the encyclical. Laudato si'".

The hope is that Pope Francis' encyclical will continue to be a source of inspiration so that "integral ecology will be more and more chosen and shared as a path to follow", and to multiply seeds of hope to "guard and cultivate".

The authorFrancisco Otamendi

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