“First of all, we are committed to being with people,” Márquez told “EWTN News In Depth” on July 10. “Bishops and priests and deacons and religious personnel of all different congregations, we are on the street talking to people, conveying hope, and giving them consolation from all the pain and distress that they are suffering.”

“We accompany the pain of our people,” he said. “We don’t leave them alone.”

Márquez said that in Caracas, where he serves, around 20 to 25 churches and parish houses have been destroyed. While he said Caracas has seen “a lot of damage in many buildings,” the more heavily affected area is La Guajira.

“La Guajira is the poor diocese of Venezuela,” he said. “It’s the sister diocese of Caracas. La Guajira was hit really, really bad and they have much, much more damage than we suffer here.”

“Though we’ve been hit by nature, we don’t lose our hope because our hope is set on Christ the Lord, and he had victory over death and destruction, and we know that we join him in this pain,” Márquez said.

The auxiliary bishop’s remarks come as Catholic aid organizations, including Catholic Relief Services (CRS) and Caritas Venezuela, are working together to mobilize relief efforts across the country.

CRS Senior Technical Adviser for Humanitarian Operations John Service told “EWTN News Nightly” on July 10 that CRS and Caritas have channeled their assistance “down to the most affected area, which is La Guajira.”

“Weʼve been sending food, water, hygiene materials, and medical supplies,” he said. “Itʼs been a massive mobilization, a big effort, and weʼve been able to get a lot of trucks going. And itʼs nonstop. Literally in this place where Iʼm standing right now, which is their main office, we get the materials, we process them, we put them into packages that are easy to deliver, and then the trucks go out daily to these different sites.”

Service described the mood on the ground in Venezuela as “sad, frustrated, angry together, and determined.”

“The reality is thereʼs quite a big trauma thatʼs hit these populations. Theyʼve lost loved ones. They still have loved ones they canʼt find. So it is a very difficult process for them to come to grips with whatʼs happened,” he said.

Service said many Venezuelans faced financial hardship before the earthquakes, depleting the resources they might have used to offset the present crisis.

“People donʼt have a big safety net,” he said.

“We’re deeply honored to be recognized with the religious liberty prize,” Becket President and CEO Mark Rienzi told EWTN News.

“We’re honored to be able to be part of fighting to protect something that is very important for our country and the Church,” said Reinzi, who accepted the award at the July 8 conclusion of Notre Dame’s sixth annual Religious Liberty Summit in Chicago.

Becket — established in 1994 to provide cost-free legal counsel to those whose religious liberties were violated — has an undefeated record at the Supreme Court.

Its lawyers represented the Little Sisters of the Poor and Hobby Lobby against contraception mandates, defended the rights of Maryland parents to opt their children out of gender-related coursework that conflicted with their religious beliefs, and backed a Catholic foster care agency that only placed children with opposite-sex married couples.

G. Marcus Cole, a dean and professor of law at Notre Dame, said during the award ceremony that when the university started giving out the award, “we always imagined that it would go to one person.”

“But when we think about the Becket Fund, it is an entire team of lawyers, led by Mark Rienzi, who have made a difference in our world, who have made our lives better,” he said. “And for that reason, we thought it only appropriate to give the award to the Becket Fund as an entity."

Ongoing fights for religious liberty

The most recent victory secured by Becket came in Mahmoud v. Taylor, which ensured parents in Montgomery County, Maryland, had a right to opt their children out of coursework that included material related to gender that conflicted with their religious faith.

Rienzi told EWTN News that “parents don’t give up the right to [raise] their children when they drop their kids off at the schoolhouse gates.” He added: “Your children don’t belong to the state just because you use a public school.”

Becket represented Catholic, Ethiopian Orthodox, and Muslim parents in the lawsuit. Rienzi said religious parents have a right to “operate equally as a full citizen and full member of the public” by utilizing the public school system while maintaining the right to instill religious values in their children.

“[This was] the most important case in at least 50 or 100 years in establishing that principle,” he said.

Becket also secured the 2020 victory for the Little Sisters of the Poor in which the Supreme Court ruled in favor of federal regulations that exempted the religious sisters from mandatory contraception coverage in insurance plans.

The sisters, however, are back in court after the governments of Pennsylvania and New Jersey challenged those exemptions on separate grounds than those on which the court previously ruled. This case is now in an appellate court, which heard oral arguments on July 7. Becket is representing them again and Rienzi is the lead attorney on the case.

“It’s outrageous that governments keep volunteering for the beating they get when they keep [going after] the Little Sisters of the Poor,” Rienzi said.

He said “the law is really, really clear” that Pennsylvania cannot remove their exemptions from the mandate.

Becket is also representing a coalition of Catholic preschools in Colorado that is suing the state because they were excluded from a “universal” tuition program. The U.S. Supreme Court has agreed to hear the case.

Notre Dame awarded Becket the prize less than one week after Americans celebrated the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence, which culminated in the adoption of the U.S. Constitution and the Bill of Rights, which secured religious freedom.

“God created everybody equal and equally free and gave them rights,” Rienzi said, adding that religious freedom is “essential to the declaration’s idea of who we are as a country and … [it] is crucial for maintaining it.”

“It’s a shame that you still have to fight about it,” Rienzi said. “But on the other hand, it’s worth fighting for.”

Congress sent the measure to the president’s desk on June 29, and he refused to sign it to leverage lawmakers to address restrictions on voter identification and mail-in ballots. Without a veto, the measure becomes law 10 days later, excluding Sundays, under the Constitution.

The legislative push comes as federal data shows homelessness has begun to fall nationwide.

According to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD)’s annual Point-In-Time (PIT) report, 745,652 people were homeless in the U.S. in 2025, including 266,320 people living on the street on a single night in January 2025. While the total number of homeless people in the U.S. has increased by 27% since 2013, the number decreased by 3% from 2024 to 2025.

Under federal law, HUD also is mandated to release another annual report on homelessness. HUD has yet to release the Annual Homelessness Assessment report (AHAR), despite legal requirements and congressional pressure. HUD did not immediately reply to a request for comment.

Rep. French Hill, R-Arkansas, sponsored the bill, (HR 6644), titled “The 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act.”

The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) has repeatedly said the government has a legitimate role in ensuring access to safe, affordable housing, especially when market forces fail vulnerable families. The Catholic Church recognizes housing is a basic human right that must be available to all persons so that they may lead a life that reflects their God-given dignity, U.S. bishops said.

“The necessity of housing dictates that individuals, community and religious institutions, the private sector, and the government must all work together to make safe and decent housing affordable to all, especially people who are most vulnerable,” the USCCB said in its fact sheet on affordable housing.

Catholic Charities USA has long maintained that coordinated federal, state, and local efforts, paired with community‑based ministries, can reduce homelessness when sustained over time.

In June, Catholic Charities USA praised provisions in the housing measure related to zoning reforms, increased private investment in the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit program, a higher public welfare investment cap for banks, changes to homeless assistance programs, and the reauthorization of the Community Development Block Grant-Disaster Recovery program.

“The rate of homelessness in the United States continues to rise. On any given night last year, roughly 650,000 people were unsheltered. That is a 12% increase compared to the prior year and the largest level of homelessness since the federal government began tracking that statistic,” Catholic Charities said in its 2024 housing report. “At the same time, there is a national shortage of more than 7 million affordable rental homes for our nation’s roughly 10.8 million extremely low-income families.”

“This represents an urgent crisis that gets ignored far too often by the government and the media,” the report added. “With so many families living on the brink, Catholic Charities USA and its member agencies are providing short- and long-term solutions.”

“Our greatest concern with the current draft is with the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), our nation’s core nutrition program,” the bishops said in the letter sent to the leadership of the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry.

The letter was signed by Louisville, Kentucky, Archbishop Shelton J. Fabre, chair of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ (USCCB) Domestic Justice and Human Development Committee, and Bishop A. Elias Zaidan, chair of the USCCB Committee on International Justice and Peace.

The bishops cautioned the draft of the farm bill released June 23 by the Senate Agriculture Committee “does not sufficiently strengthen or modernize SNAP.” They warned “it shifts focus away from addressing hunger itself and toward additional administrative and compliance requirements.”

Specifically, they urged lawmakers to delay a plan to shift costs to the states for two years to “allow states adequate time to plan and fix error rates and would help prevent disruptions in access to nutrition assistance for vulnerable households.”

Additionally, they asked Congress to eliminate a restriction on SNAP that bans access to some people with felony convictions. They wrote: “Removing this restriction would better support successful reentry, reduce food insecurity, and promote family stability without compromising program integrity.”

The House passed its version of the measure in April. It would reshape U.S. global food aid programs by shifting more resources toward purchasing food closer to crisis regions rather than shipping U.S. commodities overseas.

The bishops urged senators to align with the House version by allowing Puerto Rico to move from the Nutrition Assistance Program (NAP) to full SNAP participation over a 10-year transition, saying the phased shift would better match benefits to need, strengthen responsiveness during downturns and disasters, and advance parity for U.S. citizens in the territories.

“SNAP remains our nation’s most effective and responsive tool to combat hunger, particularly during periods of economic uncertainty, rising food costs, and persistent poverty,” the bishops added. “Policies that weaken its reach or add unnecessary barriers ultimately harm low-income families, seniors, people with disabilities, and children who rely on these programs to meet their basic nutritional needs.”

Last year, the bishops took issue with SNAP requirements added in the reconciliation bill, which shifted federal government cost to states, raised the work requirement age from 54 to 64, and imposed stricter eligibility verification rules.

Alternatively, the bishops welcomed some farm bill provisions related to SNAP, such as a provision to make online purchasing a permanent option; the reauthorization of the Commodity Supplemental Food Program, which supports seniors in rural communities; and the inclusion of cost-sharing waivers for counties with high poverty rates.

Leadership of Catholic Relief Services, Catholic Charities USA, Catholic Rural Life, and National Council of the U.S. Society of St. Vincent de Paul joined the bishops in signing the letter.

The letter states that these organizations, along with the bishops, are united in “our shared commitment to alleviate hunger and urge Congress to pass a farm bill that furthers this goal.” They quoted Pope Leo’s address from Oct. 16, 2025, related to the World Day of Hunger.

“Hunger … is a cry that rises to heaven and requires a swift response from every nation, every international organization, every regional, local, or private body,” Leo said. “No one can remain on the sidelines in the fight against hunger.”

Additional priorities

The bishops and other signatories expressed appreciation for continued funding of international food assistance programs, including the Food for Peace, McGovern-Dole Food for Education, Food for Progress, Farmer-to-Farmer, and the Bill Emerson Humanitarian Trust.

As Congress considers possible changes to how Food for Peace is administered, the bishops declined to take a formal position on potential reforms, so long as “operations continue” without impediment through any transition.

“We recommend maintaining a focus on the most hungry and malnourished places around the world using market-appropriate food aid,” they wrote. “We also support efforts to ensure cooperation and consultation between [federal agencies] and other relevant stakeholders as policy changes and award decisions are made to this program going forward.”

The bishops also expressed support for the draft bill’s inclusion of rural development funding, which they said strengthen health care, new farmers, scholarships, and infrastructure. They similarly told lawmakers they support the draft bill’s reauthorization of conservation funds, which include research programs on soil health and technology to prevent and respond to climate change.

“We encourage members to work together to advance nutrition, rural development, and conservation policies that are practical, compassionate, and responsive to current challenges,” the bishops wrote.

“We stand ready to work with the committee in a constructive and collaborative manner to ensure that the final farm bill reflects our shared responsibility to protect vulnerable families, support thriving communities, and promote the common good,” they added.

The Vatican declared July 2 that six prelates involved in the SSPX’s unauthorized July 1 episcopal consecrations incurred automatic excommunication. Despite repeated warnings, SSPX bishops consecrated four new bishops without a pontifical mandate — an act of open disobedience to the authority of the pope that carries automatic excommunication for the six bishops involved.

Lay faithful who formally adhere to SSPX are also considered schismatic and can incur excommunication by continuing to attend SSPX services after the Church’s formal pronouncement of a schism.

Various Catholic bishops with SSPX locations in their dioceses are explicitly forbidding Catholics from attending SSPX Masses, instructing them to avoid the now-illicit sacraments and to withdraw their children from SSPX-affiliated schools while also urging frequent attendees and SSPX priests to seek spiritual guidance and return to the Catholic Church.

Abuse of the Eucharist

Bishop Michael Burbidge of Arlington, Virginia, instructed Catholics to “avoid participating in the activities of the SSPX.”

Burbidge emphasized in a July 8 letter to his flock that “as a result of the SSPXʼs schismatic act, any celebrations of the sacraments of confession and matrimony by the SSPX are invalid, and the administration of other sacraments is illicit.”

Bishop John Iffert of Covington, Kentucky, explained what it means for these sacraments to be “illicit.”

“This means that the celebrations are not permitted by the law of the Church and the cleric offering the sacrament commits the canonical and moral fault of disobedience in each instance,” Iffert said.

“The Masses these priests celebrate are an abuse of the Eucharist, insofar as they make the sacrament of unity into an occasion of division within the Church, and so they should be firmly rejected and avoided by all the Catholic faithful,” Iffert said.

“Together with the priests of the diocese, I invite all Catholics who have been attending the SSPX liturgy to practice their faith in one of the parishes, missions, or chapels of the diocese,” Iffert said. “You will find the Catholic Mass and the sacramental life celebrated faithfully and respectfully throughout the Diocese of Covington.”

Who is in schism?

Burbidge clarified that not all attendees of SSPX are necessarily in schism but must simply return to sacraments and ministries in union with the Church.

“I encourage any persons locally who have been attached to the SSPX and who desire the spiritual nourishment of the Church and the extraordinary form of the Mass to become active in any one of the eight locations in our diocese where this is currently possible,” Burbidge said.

“Although lay faithful who formally adhere to the SSPX are considered schismatic and excommunicated, this does not apply to lay faithful ‘who do not reject the magisterium of the authority of the Roman pontiff’ and have engaged with the SSPX for solely liturgical or spiritual reasons,” Burbidge said. “Such persons must simply resolve not to continue to participate in future SSPX sacramental worship or pastoral ministries.”

“The Holy See, in the spirit of conciliation, has outlined the procedure necessary for SSPX priests and lay faithful to return to Catholic communion,” Burbidge explained.

Bishop Manuel de Jesús Rodríguez of Palm Beach, Florida, issued a decree reiterating the Holy See’s excommunication and instructing the faithful to separate from SSPX in any "ecclesiastical ministry” or “diocesan entity.”

Rodríguez also provided instructions for any Catholics who wish to leave SSPX “and enter into full communion with the Catholic Church."

How SSPX’s schism affects education

The schismatic acts of SSPX have a trickle-down effect, even affecting the education of children.

In Covington, Kentucky, two schools are affiliated with SSPX. Iffert has instructed Catholics to withdraw their children from the schools due to the schismatic nature of the group.

“Because Assumption Academy and Our Lady of the Sacred Heart Academy are associated with the SSPX, Catholic parents should not enroll their children in these schools,” Iffert said in a letter. “To do so is to entrust the religious formation of children to those who participate in schism against the Roman Catholic Church.”

He encouraged parents to reach out to the diocesan Catholic schools office for “appropriate placement in a local Catholic school.”

Praying for return

The bishops prayed for union and for society members to return to the Church.

“I pledge to pray for the bishops and priests of the SSPX and for their faithful return to regular order in the Catholic Church,” Iffert said. “I also assure the lay faithful who have been attached to the SSPX of my prayer for their good and for the restoration of unity in the Church.”

Burbidge prayed especially for SSPX priests.

“To my brother priests in the SSPX, please know of my prayers for you and my heartfelt desire for your return to full communion with the Church,” Burbidge said. “I invite all the faithful to join me in prayer for the end of all division and schism and for the unity of the Church, so that she may better fulfill the divine commission to make disciples of all nations.”

“I ask all faithful Catholics to pray for restored unity and order in the Church and in our diocese,” Iffert said. “Please beg the intercession of Pope St. Pius X, that his name may always give glory to God and never be a sign of division in the Eucharistic community that he cherished.”

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the 1st Circuit on July 2 ruled against St. Dominic Academy in the Diocese of Portland, denying the school’s request for an injunction against Maine’s LGBT-related nondiscrimination rules. If granted, the injunction would have allowed the school to access public funding streams.

The school had argued against requirements that it facilitate student “gender transitions” and had said it would not require staff to refer to students by opposite-sex pronouns.

The court, however, said that “combatting sexual-orientation and gender-identity discrimination” is a “legitimate governmental pursuit” and that requiring publicly funded schools to follow those rules “rationally relates” to that pursuit.

Such schools are also required to publicly affirm the “gender identity” of their students, the court said.

The ruling comes several years after the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that Maine could not ban students from using public student aid to attend religious schools. The high court ruled that the state in its policy “identif[ied] and exclude[d] otherwise eligible schools on the basis of their religious exercise.”

A “neutral benefit program in which public funds flow to religious organizations through the independent choices of private benefit recipients” does not violate the U.S. Constitution, the court held in the 2022 case Carson v. Makin.

Adèle Keim, an attorney with the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty, which is representing the Catholic school in the suit, told EWTN News that ahead of the Carson decision Maine moved to alter its public funding policy to include the rules regarding gender and sexuality nondiscrimination.

“They knew it would be a red line for the schools that had been suing the state,” she said.

Keim said this month’s appeals court ruling was partially favorable to St. Dominic Academy; it found, for instance, that the state cannot dictate faith-related hiring practices and cannot dictate religious expression rules on school campuses.

Yet the appeals court ruled that schools enjoy “no constitutional protection” related to the nondiscrimination policies, she said. She argued that the decision runs afoul of multiple Supreme Court decisions, including the Carson ruling along with the landmark 2025 decision in Mahmoud v. Taylor.

The schools could mount a bid to the Supreme Court over the appeals decision, she said.

A similar lawsuit had been brought by the nondenominational Crosspoint Church, which runs a K–12 Christian school. The appeals court had partly combined the suits of the respective churches into one ruling.

Keim said that Catholic education had been publicly funded for decades in Maine before lawmakers in the early 1980s targeted Catholic schools for exclusion.

“It’s a [sparsely populated] state,” she said. “Its population is spread out over a large territory. The government has always partnered with private schools to get the job done of meeting the state constitutional guarantee of free education for all kids.”

She said the parts of the appeals court ruling that found in favor of the Catholic schools were “terrific.” But the nondiscrimination portion of the ruling “really jumped off a cliff,” she argued.

On X, meanwhile, Becket attorney Eric Rassbach said after the appeals ruling that the Supreme Court will consider a similar case in October related to nondiscrimination rules and public funding of religious schools.

Governments “cannot evade [Supreme Court precedent] by relabeling discrimination against religion as ‘nondiscrimination,’” he wrote. “The Constitution demands more.”

The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of New York said in a press release that Father Jeffrey Nowak of Lackawanna, New York, was arrested and charged with both the receipt and possession of child pornography.

The charges “carry a mandatory minimum penalty of five years in prison and a maximum of 20 years,” the attorney’s office said.

Nowak has been the subject of investigations by authorities as far back as 2019, when he was placed on administrative leave that year after a seminarian reported that the priest had sexually harassed him.

The U.S. attorney’s office said Nowak was also the subject of “allegations of inappropriate contact with children.”

The priest was also linked to an email address reportedly connected with child sexual abuse material, according to the prosecutor’s office. A two-year FBI investigation into the matter was ultimately closed.

The FBI reopened its investigation into Nowak in March of this year, the prosecutor said. On July 8 a search warrant was executed at Nowak’s residence during which investigators found child pornography on his electronic devices.

U.S. Attorney Michael DiGiacomo said in the release that the priest “hid behind a keyboard and took part in the tragic exploitation of one of society’s most vulnerable populations, our children.”

“Nowak has now been exposed and can no longer hide and will be held accountable for his disgraceful behavior,” the prosecutor said.

A spokesman for the Diocese of Buffalo, meanwhile, said in a statement on July 9 that Nowak “was placed on permanent leave in 2019 and has not been permitted to function as a priest since then.”

“We are not aware of any attempt by law enforcement officials to contact the diocese regarding these allegations,” the statement said.

The diocese “has just learned of the allegations against him and will cooperate fully with any inquiry by law enforcement officials,” it added.

In May, the Republican governor suspended Carruthers’ execution for one year after the medical team failed to find a vein when trying to set up the backup IV line of lethal drugs. They tried to set up the IV line for more than an hour.

“The Department of Corrections did exactly what they were supposed to,” Lee told reporters. “I decided to suspend the execution. I have the authority to do that. I’m the only one who can.”

“Given the circumstances of not being able to find a vein, I made that decision,” the governor added. “But the protocol itself and the process for the death penalty in this state — which is the law of Tennessee that the people have decided — but the protocol itself still stands, as it should.”

After the botched execution, eight Republican lawmakers wrote a letter to the governor, which urged him to review the death penalty protocol, according to the Tennessee Lookout. The letter called the incident a failure “to carry a lawful sentence of its own courts,” but the lawmakers still expressed support for the death penalty.

Krisanne Vaillancourt Murphy, executive director of the Catholic Mobilizing Network — a group that works with the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops on opposition to the death penalty — expressed disappointment in Lee’s comment in a statement to EWTN News.

“Tony Carruthers’ botched execution reminds us that every execution — regardless of the method or the procedures that take place — is a barbaric act that disregards the sanctity of life,” she said. “I am heartbroken to hear that Gov. Bill Lee has decided to let current lethal injection procedures stand.”

Murphy noted that Republican lawmakers urged the governor to commission an independent review of how the execution was botched.

“It is helpful to pause in times like this and ask ourselves: To what lengths will the state go to seek revenge?” she said. “There is nothing appropriate in this situation. The only way to avoid perpetuating more violence and harm is to step back from executing people altogether.”

The report, titled ”The Demographic Dead End: 2026 State of Fertility Report,” presents estimates of fertility trends for every state dating back to 1917. As part of the nation’s 250th anniversary, researchers also reconstructed birth rates in Massachusetts dating to 1660, offering one of the longest historical views of American fertility ever compiled.

According to the report, the U.S. fertility rate has fallen to about 1.6 children per woman, well below the replacement level of about 2.1 needed to maintain a stable population without immigration. Researchers said the decline is no longer a temporary consequence of delayed childbearing but reflects a sustained demographic shift.

The authors projected that if trends continue, the U.S. population will likely peak during the 2050s before entering a prolonged period of decline. They contend that many mainstream demographic forecasts underestimate the pace of falling fertility and assume a rebound that has yet to materialize.

The report notes fertility has declined in nearly every state over the past two decades, though the pace varies geographically. States with higher levels of religious participation, marriage, and family stability generally continue to post comparatively higher birth rates than states with lower rates of marriage and family formation.

Although Americans’ desired family size has remained relatively stable, the gap between how many children they want and how many they ultimately have continues to widen. Surveys consistently show Americans expect to have about two children and ideally would like to have an average of 2.4.

Catherine Pakaluk, professor at The Catholic University of America and author of “Hannahʼs Children: The Women Quietly Defying the Birth Dearth,” cautioned against interpreting that gap as entirely unmet demand.

“I’d be careful treating that gap as pure unmet demand — people fall short of almost everything they say they want, and stated desires are aspirations measured before the real tradeoffs arrive,” Pakaluk told EWTN News. “What ‘I want 2.4’ mostly reflects is a preference stated in the abstract, which softens once a child is weighed against everything else a life can hold.”

Why are fewer Americans having children?

Pakaluk said economic pressures and delayed marriage play a role but are not the primary cause of declining birth rates.

“Cost and later marriage matter at the margin, but they aren’t the engine,” she said. “The driver is a shift in the relative value placed on children.”

She added that prolonged low fertility could reshape American society, leading to “an older population, a thinner worker-to-retiree ratio that strains Social Security and Medicare” as well as “thinner kin networks and more people aging without family nearby.”

Limits of government policy

Researchers argue reversing the trend will require more than financial incentives for parents. Pakaluk agreed that public policy has limits.

“The most honest thing I can say is that the levers government actually controls aren’t the ones that move completed family size,” she said. “Policy can clear obstacles at the margin, but the decisive factors live in culture, faith, and community, where government has a light touch.”

She said measures such as expanding housing supply, strengthening the child tax credit, and removing marriage penalties may help families but cautioned that “no wealthy country has policy-engineered its way back to replacement.”

Global demographic challenge

The findings come as concerns over declining birth rates are growing worldwide. More than two-thirds of countries have fertility rates below replacement, prompting governments across Europe, Asia, and North America to examine ways to encourage family formation.

For the Catholic Church, concern over declining birth rates has long been connected to its teaching on marriage, openness to life, and support for families. Recent popes have repeatedly warned that demographic decline carries not only economic consequences but also cultural and social implications for future generations.

Wise — who was born in 1888 in Cadiz, Ohio, and died in 1948 in Canton, Ohio — was a laywoman and a mystic who received visions of Jesus Christ and St. Thérèse of Lisieux. In 1939, she reported a miraculous healing of her stomach cancer and a wound that doctors told her was incurable.

She was raised Protestant but was introduced to Catholicism by religious sisters during her hospital stay, where she developed a strong devotion to the rosary and St. Thérèse.

After news of the miracle spread, hundreds of people visited her home weekly, with whom she would pray. Hundreds of those who visited her home both during and after her lifetime reported miraculous, unexplained healings, including EWTN Founder Mother Angelica, who developed a close friendship with Wise after being healed of a stomach ailment.

Wise also had a visible stigmata — which resembles the wounds Christ had at the Crucifixion — that appeared on her body from noon until 3 p.m. for two and a half years, from 1942 to 1945.

On July 7, Father John Sheridan — liaison between the Diocese of Youngstown, Ohio, and the Rhoda Wise House in Canton, Ohio — announced that the Vatican had received the formal “positio,” which is a collection of documents that details the holiness of her life and makes the case for why Pope Leo XIV should consider her beatification.

Valentina Culurgioni, the postulator tasked with preparing the document, gave the paperwork to the dicastery several months ago, but it was first announced by Sheridan during the Diocese of Youngstown’s annual Mass for the cause of beatification of Wise.

Following the Mass, Sheridan delivered the news to the faithful gathered by reading a letter he received from Culurgioni.

“Testimonies of healings and graces received through the intercession of Rhoda Wise continue to arrive at the shrine, which testify [to] her growing reputation of holiness and signs, and I would like to entrust to all of you two prayer intentions for this year, related to the progress of the cause in the Vatican,” Culurgioni wrote in the letter.

“First, that all the experts — historians and theologians — who will be called upon to study and evaluate the ‘positio’ may be enlightened by the Holy Spirit in their valuable and delicate work,” she added. “Second, that among all the reports of graces and healings we receive, suitable cases may be identified for investigation as alleged miracles.”

“Do not stop praying to God, asking for the spiritual or material graces you need through the intercession of Rhoda, and continue to share and bear witness to the wonders of his powerful love in your lives,” Culurgioni wrote.

Next steps

Ryan Schweitzer, assistant director of the Rhoda Wise House and Grotto, told EWTN News that the next step is the dicastery’s review of the “positio,” which includes evaluations by theologians, historians, and Catholic hierarchy. The dicastery will provide its conclusions to the Holy Father, who will determine whether to beatify her and grant her the title “venerable.”

He said there’s no real estimate for the timeline of this process but asked Catholics to “continue to pray for Rhoda’s intercession and continue to pray for her beatification.”

Schweitzer called the news of this development “exciting.” He said if Leo elevates her status to “venerable,” “that’s a very small group of individuals on their pathway to canonization.” He said that would increase her visibility and “Our Lord can utilize that visibility and knowledge of Rhoda to pray for her intercession.”

Rhoda Wise’s legacy

The Rhoda Wise House and Grotto continues to host visitors and frequently receives reports of miraculous healings on a regular basis, now nearly 80 years after her death

According to Schweitzer, hundreds of people still visit Wise’s home weekly, many of whom come “because they’re seeking healing,” whether that be physical, mental, or spiritual. He said many of the visitors come because “they heard that something happened to a friend, some healing” and some visitors return to share stories of their healing.

Wise had a strong friendship with Mother Angelica — then Rita Rizzo — when she was just 19 years old, before entering religious life. Schweitzer noted that Rizzo “suffered from a really debilitating stomach ailment,” and her mother took her to see Wise.

Rizzo began praying a nine-day novena to St. Thérèse of Lisieux with Wise and continued to pray it each day until its conclusion, at which point she was healed of her ailment. Schweitzer said this experience served as “a catalyst to become serious about her spiritual life” and Rizzo became close friends with Wise, who served as a mentor to her.

Schweitzer said one of the most important things to know about Wise is that she was “a very humble housewife,” a person who is “not someone who is unreachable” for the average person.

“She really reflects troubles that many people today are associated with,” Schweitzer said.

Johnson sent a formal letter July 1, shared exclusively with EWTN News, that welcomed the nuncio to his diplomatic mission in the United States and affirmed Congress’ respect for the Holy See’s role in promoting peace, human dignity, and care for vulnerable communities.

“On behalf of the United States House of Representatives, I’d like to extend my heartfelt congratulations on your recent appointment as apostolic nuncio to the United States of America,” Johnson wrote. “It is my great honor to welcome you to Washington, D.C., during this semiquincentennial year as we commemorate 250 years of American independence.”

The letter follows Caccia’s appointment to the position in March, succeeding Cardinal Christophe Pierre, who turned 80, the retirement age for cardinals, in January.

“As our country celebrates its 250th anniversary, we are reminded of our long-standing commitment to the principles of human dignity and religious liberty, enshrined most famously in the Declaration of Independence,” Johnson said. “These ideals were shared and practiced by Archbishop John Carroll, our nation’s first Catholic bishop.”

Johnson cited Carroll’s commitment to integrating faith into American civil life, stating that he believed the bishop “would be proud to know that today, nearly 150 members of Congress and six of our nine justices on the U.S. Supreme Court are Catholic.”

“In a spirit of goodwill, I pray that your service and mission as apostolic nuncio will continue to foster a deep friendship between the United States and the Holy See,” he said, adding: “Please accept my warmest welcome and congratulations.”

In Washington, D.C., Cardinal Robert McElroy ordained Bishop Gary Studniewski and Bishop Robert Boxie III into the order of bishops there. Both prelates will serve auxiliary roles in the archdiocese.

McElroy at the ordination Mass said the archdiocese had “been blessed by our Holy Father,” Pope Leo XIV, who made the appointments on May 1. Studniewski and Boxie had previously served as priests in the archdiocese.

“All of us gathered today have the joy and the privilege of witnessing the grace of Spirit come upon these two men and set them aside in their new ministry as bishops,” McElroy said at the ordination, which was livestreamed.

The Mass was held at the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception and was attended by around 2,500 people. Among the attendees were Apostolic Nuncio Gabriele Caccia; Cardinal Donald Wuerl; Richmond, Virginia, Bishop Barry Knestout; Baltimore Archbishop William Lori; and numerous other local Church leaders, along with hundreds of lay faithful.

Speaking to the new bishops, Caccia at the Mass told them: “Each of you have followed the Lord along a distinctive path of service.”

He urged them to “always walk in faith, hope, and love.”

Wheeling-Charleston receives new bishop from Washington

Also in attendance at the archdiocesan ordination Mass was Bishop Evelio Menjívar-Ayala, who himself formerly served as an auxiliary bishop in the archdiocese and who was installed as bishop of the Diocese of Wheeling-Charleston, West Virginia, on July 2.

Pope Leo XIV had also announced Menjívar-Ayala’s appointment on May 1. The newly installed bishop is a native of El Salvador and is the first Salvadoran bishop in the history of the United States.

At his own installation Mass, the bishop referenced the classic John Denver folk song “Take Me Home, Country Roads,” which in its opening strains refers to West Virginia as “almost heaven.”

He joked that the scorching heat wave affecting much of the U.S. made West Virginia feel “more like purgatory.” But he said the song’s lyrics “express something deeply present in every human heart — the longing to be at home, the longing to belong.”

Reflecting on his decades-long journey that began in Central America, Menjívar-Ayala said God “brought me from a distant life in El Salvador, the land of St. Oscar Romero, to this country.”

“I could never have imagined then the path he was preparing for me,” he said.

The prelate said he prayed that the faithful would “walk together in ministry, not merely along country roads, but along the way of the Gospel.”

In taking the role of bishop in Wheeling-Charleston, Menjívar-Ayala replaced Bishop Mark Brennan, who served in that role from 2019 until this year.

The dispute goes back to a 2011 federal regulation imposed by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), which requires employers to include coverage of contraception in healthcare plans offered to employees, as part of rules implementing the Affordable Care Act.

Although the Little Sisters of the Poor already won two Supreme Court cases — which found the federal government must protect the religious freedom of those who object to contraception and that the federal government has the authority to create exemptions — the state governments of Pennsylvania and New Jersey are challenging federal exemptions on grounds that the Supreme Court has not yet ruled on.

A lower court ruled in favor of the two states, against the Little Sisters of the Poor, finding that the federal exemptions are arbitrary and capricious. The sisters filed an appeal, which is being considered by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 3rd Circuit.

Aimee Thomson, who represented the two states, argued that the broad exemptions — which allow both religious and moral objectors to avoid the mandate — are “arbitrary and capricious” and that the exemptions “swept well beyond all religious employers” who first objected to the mandate.

Under the rule, employers who have moral or religious objections can opt in to an accommodation in which the federal government subsidizes contraception coverage in their plans. Employers who also have moral or religious objections to the accommodation can sidestep contraception coverage altogether.

She told the panel of judges that the exemption exceeds the scope that is required under the Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA). She said the regulators failed to show that these exemptions were necessary to solve the religious liberty issue and expressed concerns over employers potentially getting exemptions even though their objections are not sincere.

Thomson said it’s unclear “how many women have been impacted” by insincere objections, but “expecting female employees” to study policies and litigate an employer’s insincere objections is burdensome.

“That is an incredible burden to place on employees and on women,” she said.

Mark Rienzi, president of Becket and lead attorney for the Little Sisters, argued that the federal government sought to “choose a middle ground” that created a mandate but protected religious freedom, based on Supreme Court guidance: “Nothing about that is even close to arbitrary and capricious.”

“This law is about the federal government … accommodating religion with its own mandate,” he said.

Rienzi said a rule does not become arbitrary and capricious just because the scope is “a hair more than what’s required” under RFRA.

The Little Sisters of the Poor are also receiving support from the Department of Justice. Deputy Assistant Attorney General Eric McArthur argued on behalf of the federal government, in favor of the exemptions, saying RFRA does not require the exemptions to be the “bare minimum.”

He said HHS chose to “set everything aside and take a fresh look at everything” and decided “an exemption was the most appropriate administrative response” to objections. He said this was adopted “as a policy matter … even if RFRA does not compel it.”

McArthur argued there is “no good reason” for someone to insincerely request an exemption because the employer can request the accommodation “at zero cost.” Yet, if the court decides the exemptions are too broad, the court could strike down “one line in the rule” rather than “take down the entire rule,” as the two states have requested.

Mother Loraine Marie Maguire of the Little Sisters of the Poor said in a statement after the oral arguments that the states’ lawsuit to eliminate the exemptions is threatening their mission to serve the poor and the elderly.

“This is our God-given mission,” she said “For nearly 200 years we have welcomed the elderly poor and dying into our homes, and with the population of seniors rapidly growing we cannot allow a government lawsuit to stop us from carrying out our mission. Pennsylvania and New Jersey can keep fighting if they want. All we want is to keep serving.”

“The recent passage of House Bill 2632 by the Pennsylvania House of Representatives poses a serious threat to school children and families throughout the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania,” Archbishop Nelson Pérez of Philadelphia said in a June 23 statement. If passed, the bill would eliminate the Educational Improvement Tax Credit (EITC) and the Opportunity Scholarship Tax Credit (OSTC) programs, a change he described as “devastating for school children and their families.”

State Rep. Nikki Rivera, D-Lancaster, introduced the bill, which the Pennsylvania House passed on June 22. Senate consideration is next.

Rivera said in a statement: “A $680 million annual scholarship tax program should be transparent and include detailed reporting. This bill would ensure that everyone can see how well EITC programs are working, whom they are helping, and whether students in private and parochial schools are receiving tuition relief.”

“This bill would not cut one penny from the $680 million EITC program,” she said.

While Rivera said the bill would only change reporting and oversight requirements, not the program’s funding authorization, Catholic education leaders said eliminating the statutory framework for EITC and OSTC effectively ends the programs.

“If enacted into law, this bill would negatively impact tens of thousands of students across Pennsylvania who currently rely on these scholarship programs. EITC and OSTC scholarships are funded by companies and individuals who see value in providing families with educational choice,” Pérez said. “These programs are vibrant, successful, and reduce taxpayer burdens when it comes to educating our young people, particularly those who come from challenging financial circumstances and live in underserved communities.”

The archbishop called on elected officials to preserve the programs, saying they are “vital” and that “no one can afford to see them disappear.”

Victor D’Ascenzo, vice president for development at the Foundation for Catholic Education, which partners with the archdiocese and the Office of Catholic Education in advancing the mission of Catholic education, said his office has reached out to state representatives in Philadelphia “but have received very little response.”

Noting that while he does not have statewide figures, D’Ascenzo said the Foundation for Catholic Education supports the 102 elementary schools in the Archdiocese of Philadelphia and the approximately 33,000 students who attend them. About one-third of those students receive EITC funds for tuition assistance, he said.

“We are hopeful that any resolution that is passed in Harrisburg will have as little negative effect [as possible] on those wishing to pursue a Catholic education in the Archdiocese of Philadelphia,” he said.

Estrella del Paso, formerly known as Diocesan Migrant and Refugee Services, has seen its cash reserves depleted since payments stopped arriving in December 2025, according to executive director Melissa Lopez.

Lopez told EWTN News Estrella del Paso offers a broad range of services, providing every type of legal immigration representation, including aiding asylum seekers, those in immigration detention seeking to be released on bond, and people applying for residency and naturalization.

The organization serves more than 40,000 people annually and is one of the largest providers of legal services to unaccompanied immigrant children in the country.

The group is currently providing legal help to around 300 minors, though the number fluctuates frequently, Lopez said.

She warned that “a significant number of people will be impacted if the program ceases to exist,” leaving tens of thousands of immigrants without representation in complex immigration proceedings.

“Navigating the immigration system right now is incredibly difficult,” she continued. “Even when someone is represented, outcomes are not always ideal.”

Many of those currently being helped would face deportation and even worse consequences, Lopez said.

“The outcome of many cases without some form of legal assistance is very dire,” she said. “We are talking about life and death consequences for some individuals we currently provide services to, if we were to cease to exist.”

The ministry was founded in 1986 and began specializing in cases involving unaccompanied children in 2007. It operates as one of the primary nonprofit immigration legal aid providers in the El Paso region.

A preliminary injunction issued by U.S. District Judge Araceli Martínez-Olguín in the Northern District of California in April 2025 had blocked the Trump administration’s attempt to cut funding for legal services for unaccompanied minors. However, advocates say the government has continued to withhold payments in violation of that order.

Estrella del Paso and 10 other legal aid providers have asked Martínez-Olguín to hold the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) in contempt of court. A hearing on the request is scheduled for July 16.

A 2008 federal law aimed at protecting victims of human trafficking requires the government to ensure, “to the greatest extent practicable,” that unaccompanied children in the custody of the Department of Homeland Security have access to legal counsel in immigration proceedings. Without the access the law provides, minors would be responsible for navigating the immigration court system by themselves.

However, the Trump administration has argued that funding for these services is discretionary rather than mandatory.

The situation is particularly urgent because unaccompanied minors are reportedly being detained and deported at roughly three times the rate seen during the first Trump administration, according to a recent analysis by ProPublica.

Lopez emphasized the broader issues impacting not only minors but also “all of the vulnerable people who come to us seeking legal representation.”

“It is an issue of family unity, keeping families together, and ensuring people are treated with dignity and respect,” she said.

Estrella del Paso has launched an emergency fundraising campaign to try to bridge the funding gap caused by the withheld reimbursements.

Lopez said she hopes to raise about $500,000 through private donations as well as through grants and requests to philanthropic organizations.

“We don’t want people to feel they have to make a huge donation,” she said. “Even a small donation makes an impact.”

The Administration for Children and Families at HHS told EWTN News it does not comment on matters subject to ongoing litigation.

The Trump administration defunded Planned Parenthood via the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, but the defunding was scheduled for one year rather than the permanent or 10-year defunding hoped for by activists.

Advocates for unborn children criticized the administration for failing to maintain the defunding of the abortion giant.

“As we celebrated the 250th anniversary of our nation founded on the right to life, funding resumed to the Big Abortion businesses that profit from stripping that right away from a record number of Americans and increasing our top cause of death year after year,” Kelsey Pritchard, communications director at SBA Pro-Life America, told EWTN News.

“It is the default expectation of the pro-life movement for Congress to renew the defunding of Planned Parenthood and abortion businesses, and the politically smart thing for Republicans who must energize the base to win in November,” Pritchard said.

Pritchard noted that her organization is investing “$160 million in 2026 and 2028 for Republican pro-life candidates.”

“[N]ow Republicans must do their part in doing everything they can to once again defund Big Abortion,” Pritchard said.

Dr. Christina Francis, president of the American Association of Pro-Life OBGYNs, said she “sees Congress' failure to keep our tax dollars from subsidizing the abortion mill of Planned Parenthood as a blow to the essential liberties of preborn children.”

“Adding insult to injury, their funding stream resumed on Americaʼs 250th birthday,” Francis told EWTN News. “Guided by our commitment to our profession and our patients, AAPLOG will continue to oppose the funding of Planned Parenthood, the abortion industry, and the medical institutions that have traded sound medical practice for abortion ideology that is antithetical to the true purpose of medicine — health and healing.”

Live Action President Lila Rose criticized the refunding in a statement shared with EWTN News.

“On America’s 250th birthday, Congress had the chance to honor the founding promise that every human being has a God-given right to life,” Rose said. “Instead, by failing to extend the defunding of Planned Parenthood, lawmakers have allowed taxpayer dollars to flow back to the largest abortion chain in the nation.”

“This is a moral failure and an urgent betrayal of preborn children, women, and American taxpayers,” Rose said.

Kristan Hawkins, president of Students for Life of America, urged advocates for unborn children to continue fighting abortion.

“Planned Parenthood is once again eligible to receive taxpayer dollars after Congress failed to keep them out of our healthcare spending,” she said in a post on X. “That isnʼt the end of the story. Itʼs a reminder that the fight for life isnʼt won in a single vote. Itʼs won by refusing to quit. It’s time for us to get back to work.”

Planned Parenthood did not respond to a request for comment by the time of publication.

The Vatican declared July 2 that six prelates involved in the SSPX’s unauthorized July 1 episcopal consecrations incurred automatic excommunication. Despite repeated warnings, SSPX bishops consecrated four new bishops without a pontifical mandate — an act of open disobedience to the authority of the pope that carries automatic excommunication for the six bishops involved.

The SSPX is a fraternity of priests known for its celebration of the Traditional Latin Mass and opposition to the reforms of the Second Vatican Council.

Various Catholic bishops with SSPX locations in their areas are explicitly forbidding Catholics from attending SSPX services while also urging frequent attendees or SSPX priests to seek spiritual guidance and return to the Catholic Church.

Invited ‘home’

Archbishop Bernard Hebda of St. Paul and Minneapolis urged SSPX families in his community to stay with the Catholic Church.

“In the 10 years that I have led this local Church, I have met many sincere people who worship regularly or occasionally at the chapels of the SSPX within the territory of our archdiocese,” Hebda said. “I have been impressed by the strength of their families and their commitment to traditional Catholic values.”

“It is my hope they will not follow the above-mentioned bishops in separating themselves from the successor of Peter, Pope Leo XIV, and from the Church that he humbly leads,” Hebda continued. “Throughout the centuries, our Catholic Church has consistently echoed the teaching of St. Ambrose: Ubi Petrus ibi ecclesia (Where there is Peter, there is the Church).”

“At this difficult moment, we are blessed that the same traditional Eucharistic liturgy beloved by those who have worshipped with the SSPX in the past continues to be celebrated in six locations throughout the archdiocese,” Hebda said. “I am confident that those who prefer the Traditional Latin Mass could find a home here."

Bishop Terry LaValley of Ogdensburg, New York, noted that in light of the “formal schism,” the disobedience “gravely harms the unity of the Church for which Christ so fervently prayed the night before he died.”

LaValley said in a statement that Catholics are “forbidden” to participate in SSPX sacraments, the only exception being “when there is danger of death.” He noted that the schism “is not simply about the celebration of the Mass.”

“The SSPX repudiates and denounces the teaching of the Second Vatican Council, in particular, ecumenism, religious liberty, collegiality of the bishops with the pope, and the Church’s understanding of and relationship with Judaism,” LaValley noted.

LaValley instructed the faithful to avoid participation with SSPX and invited SSPX priests to remain with the Church.

In a similar vein, Bishop Frank Caggiano of Bridgeport, Connecticut, invited anyone who previously worshipped with SSPX to come “home.”

“The Holy See has made clear that the clergy of the society are now to be regarded as schismatic,” Caggiano said in a statement. “This means that, from this day forward, the sacraments they celebrate are illicit and, most significantly for the faithful, the confessions they hear and the marriages at which they preside are considered invalid by the Church.”

“I know these words are difficult to hear, especially for those among us who have worshipped, whether regularly or on occasion, at liturgies celebrated by priests of the society,” Caggiano said. “Over the years I have come to know some of these families. I have been moved by their love for the beauty of the sacred liturgy, their devotion to our Catholic tradition, and the seriousness with which they seek to raise their children in the faith.”

“My heart goes out to them at this painful moment, and I want them to know that they remain very much a part of our diocesan family,” Caggiano said.

“I also wish to offer a word of reassurance. This excommunication does not fall upon those who have simply attended these liturgies out of a sincere desire to worship and who have never intended to reject the authority of the Holy Father or the teaching of the Church,” Caggiano said. “What the Church now asks is straightforward: Knowing the situation as it now stands, the faithful of the Catholic Church can no longer take part in the liturgies of the society, for to do so knowingly would be to share in a separation from the successor of Peter.”

Caggiano noted that the “vetus ordo,” also known as the Traditional Latin Mass, is still celebrated in his diocese at several parishes throughout the diocese.

He emphasized that the diocese also welcomes any SSPX priest who wants to return to full communion “with open arms and great tenderness.”

Bishop James Johnston of Kansas City-St. Joseph, Missouri, said he will “be preparing guidance to assist our clergy, lay faithful, and especially any of the lay faithful who have worshipped locally with the SSPX at St. Vincent de Paul Kansas City.”

“While it is imperative to not abandon future efforts toward full communion and to fervently pray for such, those who wish to maintain communion with the Catholic Church, including valid reception of the sacraments of matrimony and penance (confession), will no longer find that possible within the SSPX,” Johnston said in the statement.

“In this moment, I wish to reassure the members of the SSPX within this diocese of my pastoral concern as a shepherd with a desire to assist you in this time of crisis,” Johnston said.

Schism ‘wounds’ the body of Christ

Bishop Douglas Lucia of Syracuse, New York, emphasized that the announcement “forbids Roman Catholics of good standing to participate in and to receive the sacraments from bishops and priests associated with the Society of St. Pius X.”

“[F]ormal adherence to schism is a grave offense against God and carries the penalty of excommunication decreed by the Churchʼs law,” Lucia wrote July 2.

“I grieve over the wound that has been inflicted on Christʼs body, the Church, and its effect on the spiritual good of the faithful,” Lucia said. “Although todayʼs action relates to a specific event, I would caution that such wounds occur in the Church, when peopleʼs pain and concerns are ignored and the universal call to holiness is subjugated to personal agenda.”

“I regret that the communion and trust that has been built in my seven years as bishop here in Syracuse is now so imperiled, but there cannot be accord when discord has been sown,” Lucia said.

Bishop Donald Hying of Madison, Wisconsin, instructed Catholics “to refrain from attending Mass at any SSPX chapels.”

“The Catholic faithful should attend Mass at a Catholic church with a Catholic priest where they can receive licit and valid sacraments,” Hying said.

“For many years, the Church has been in dialogue with the leadership of SSPX in the hope that the group would return to full communion with the Catholic Church,” Hying said. “Their continued rejection of papal authority and decision to undertake blatantly schismatic acts have harmed these discussions and wounded the path to unity.”

Archbishop Shawn McKnight of Kansas City, Kansas, called the bishopʼs consecrations "a source of profound sorrow for the whole Church because it wounds the visible unity that Christ desires for his body.” He noted that Pope Francis and Pope Benedict XVI took several steps toward communion and acceptance of the society.

“Fidelity to sacred tradition is never opposed to fidelity to the successor of Peter,” McKnight said in his letter. “Rather, both are gifts entrusted by Christ to his Church and serve together to safeguard the deposit of faith and promote the salvation of souls.”

“The Church’s living tradition is preserved by remaining close to the successor of Peter, by adhering to the apostolic faith handed down through the centuries and safeguarded within the communion of the Church,” McKnight said.

Jin, who was arrested by Chinese authorities on Oct. 10, 2025, was reunited with his family in Los Angeles on July 3 ahead of America 250 celebrations.

“I am profoundly grateful that Pastor Ezra Jin has been released and reunited with his family,” Rep. Chris Smith, R-New Jersey, a Catholic, said in a July 5 statement. “I especially thank President Trump for personally raising Pastor Jin’s case with CCP [Chinese Communist Party] General Secretary Xi Jinping and for ensuring that U.S. diplomats remained committed in pressing for his freedom.”

Trump said following his visit to China in May that President Xi Jinping was “giving very serious consideration to the pastor,” referring to Jin. Congress had urged Trump to use the U.S.-China summit to advocate for Jin’s release alongside Jimmy Lai, the jailed Catholic media tycoon and democracy advocate. Trump noted China’s president was less likely to release Lai.

A statement issued to reporters by the pastor’s family said: “We truly witnessed a miracle and we are feeling so overwhelmed with joy. We thank God for this tremendous miracle. We also thank President Trump and his administration for their tremendous leadership. We hope this is a signal of a positive turn for people of faith in China and relations between our two nations.”

Jin was among nearly 30 people arrested by Chinese Communist Party authorities during a sweeping crackdown across nine cities on the underground Zion Church, of which he is the founder.

Frances Hui, policy and advocacy manager at the Committee for Freedom in Hong Kong Foundation, wrote on social media: “Incredible to hear that [Jin] is free, has just arrived in L.A., and is finally reunited with his family.” Hui was among advocates who rallied on behalf of those imprisoned in China ahead of Trump’s visit.

Hui described standing beside Jin’s daughter, Grace Jin Drexel, as “a privilege,” noting that she and her husband, Bill Drexel, had advocated for Jin’s release while preparing for the birth of their third child.

Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chair Sen. Jim Risch, R-Idaho, said in a statement: “Despite months of imprisonment, Pastor Jin stayed true to his faith. Yet again, President Trump has demonstrated his ability to stand up for persecuted Christians worldwide.”

Former vice president Mike Pence said in a statement: “President Trump should be commended for securing Ezra Jin’s release by raising the case with Xi Jinping in Beijing this year. Truly treasure in heaven to see this godly man of faith set free.”

The case, St. Mary Catholic Parish v. Roy, challenges Colorado’s requirement that schools participating in its universal preschool program comply with state policies that the Catholic schools say would force them to violate religious beliefs about marriage, sexuality, and employment to receive public funding.

The U.S. solicitor general joined more than 20 states and 43 Republican members of Congress urging the high court to rule against Colorado’s “discriminatory exclusion” of the faith-based schools. The solicitor general argued that Colorado’s policy discriminates against religious exercise, imposes unconstitutional conditions on participation in a public benefit, and conflicts with recent precedents.

Colorado forces petitioners to choose, the solicitor general wrote. “They can either adhere to their faith, which precludes enrolling families who refuse to adhere to Catholic teachings, and lose the subsidy, or obtain the subsidy but abandon their religious beliefs,” the brief said.

Supreme Court to hear case

Represented by the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty, St. Mary Catholic Parish in Littleton and St. Bernadette Catholic Parish in Lakewood, part of the Archdiocese of Denver, along with several Catholic families, argue that the state cannot deny otherwise available public benefits simply because the schools remain faithful to their religious mission.

The Supreme Court agreed to hear the case this fall after the 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals upheld Colorado’s policy in September 2025 to exclude Catholic preschools because of their religious beliefs.

Broad coalition of support

Support for the Catholic families has continued to grow ahead of oral arguments. A total of 29 friend-of-the-court briefs have been filed urging the justices to rule in favor of the schools, including briefs by more than 20 states, religious liberty scholars, education advocates, and a broad coalition of faith groups.

Among those filing briefs is the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB).  U.S. bishops stated that “if that decision stands, it will provide a roadmap for governments to circumvent this court’s decisions, directly threatening the free exercise rights of religious adherents and organizations.”

Dan and Lisa Sheley, Catholic parents of seven whose children attend St. Mary’s, said they were encouraged by the widespread support.

“We’re grateful that so many people from across the country are rallying behind our case,” they said in a statement provided by Becket. “Colorado promised preschool for all but then showed Catholic families the door. That’s unfair to parents, unfair to children, and contrary to the spirit of the Constitution’s promise of religious freedom.”

Previous religious liberty cases

Eric Rassbach, vice president and senior counsel at Becket, said in a statement the coalition demonstrates the significance of the case.

“Colorado has united a diverse array of Americans around a simple point: It’s wrong to promise preschool support to every family in the state and then yank it away from Catholic families,” Rassbach said. “This broad coalition shows just how egregious and unlawful Colorado’s religious discrimination has become. We’re confident the court will remind Colorado — once again — that the First Amendment protects religious people too.”

The case follows a series of Supreme Court decisions strengthening protections for religious schools, including Trinity Lutheran Church v. Comer, Espinoza v. Montana Department of Revenue, and Carson v. Makin, all of which held that states generally may not exclude religious institutions from publicly available benefits because of their religious identity. A decision in St. Mary Catholic Parish v. Roy could further define the constitutional protections afforded to religious schools participating in government education programs.

“People want to know why they are braving the heat to follow a canopy,” he explained to EWTN News. “I’ve already explained to three people what the Eucharist is. They are curious about the monstrance, and this gives a chance to evangelize.”

Evangelization was the chief mission of the National Eucharistic Pilgrimage 2026, which ended Sunday after passing through 18 dioceses since it began on May 24 in St. Augustine, Florida.

The final stop in Philadelphia took on a patriotic theme in the City of Brotherly Love as about 2,000 believers squeezed into the Cathedral Basilica of Sts. Peter and Paul for Mass. Beforehand, sisters knelt before the relics of St. Katharine Drexel, one of America’s first saints. This year’s pilgrimage placed special emphasis on the American saints who have contributed not only to the Church but also to the American story.

Pope Leo XIV delivered remarks by video at the beginning of Mass encouraging his fellow Americans to “cultivate a Eucharistic life … with eyes fixed on the heavenly one.” Leo mentioned Sts. Elizabeth Ann Seton, Katharine Drexel, and John Neumann, among others.

The pilgrimage has drawn both believers and those who want to believe in something higher than themselves. This is what drew Erin Daly and her two daughters, Elsa and Lydia, to join the procession immediately following the Mass on Sunday. They were at Pope Leo’s first Corpus Christi Mass in Rome last June and wanted to be in town for this special occasion. Elsa, a student at the University of Dallas, was one of many young people holding signs with spiritual messages of hope and faith.

Another banner waver, Amear Mottley, explained that he had been to Mass that weekend, was curious to know more, and joined the procession because he wanted to be close to Jesus. Asked if he was Catholic, he responded: “I don’t know what I am.”

Marchers came from neighboring dioceses and from across the country. Deacon Dave Matour was with his wife, Sue, and 25 people from their parish in Norristown, Pennsylvania, and the Diocese of Oakland, California, was represented by 28 Catholics in matching pink T-shirts.

Many chose to wave American flags and wear their patriotism on their sleeves. Kevin and Janet Daly from Michigan were among those who wore the “One Nation Under God” motto.

The procession eased down Broad Street under a sweltering sun with Philadelphia’s City Hall behind it. A loudspeaker bellowed the Hail Mary in English and Spanish through the air while pilgrims withstood the heat, not complaining, and offering one another water, being vigilant of the elderly walkers who may have needed extra attention.

The procession turned on Girard Avenue for the final stretch to the National Shrine of St. John Neumann, the pilgrimage’s final stop where the final Benediction would take place. Trumpets greeted marchers as they made their way up the steps into the church, waving their Mass programs as makeshift fans.

When the monstrance was held aloft and blessed the crowd, the heat inside the church subsided for a moment, and the exhausted gatherers got a sense of refreshment.

“We made it,” joked Philadelphia Archbishop Nelson Perez, who carried the Blessed Sacrament for the entire last leg of pilgrimage on Sunday and concluded the day with remarks mixed with levity and awe at the impact the processions have had on the communities visited: “The pilgrimage is over, “he said, “but our journey continues because Christ walks with us.”

Goodwill Greater Milwaukee & Chicago recently announced a major partnership with Catholic Charities Fort Worth (CCFW) to bring the innovative Padua program to the greater Englewood community in south Chicago.

Named after St. Anthony of Padua, patron saint of the poor, the program pairs participants with a team of two dedicated caseworkers for long-term, client-led support, with no arbitrary time limits. The only eligibility requirements for the program are that the client be 18 years old and willing to work.

The collaboration marks a significant expansion of the model, which was developed in 2015 by CCFW and validated through a randomized controlled trial by the University of Notre Dame’s Lab for Economic Opportunities (LEO).

Participants in the study were 25% more likely to achieve full-time employment, earned 46% higher incomes, and were 64% more likely to secure stable housing.

Brendan Perry, director of Padua National at Catholic Charities Fort Worth, told EWTN News that the program was in response to the nonprofit “seeing a lot of repeat customers,” which, “in the nonprofit world is not a good thing.”

“We weren’t truly creating economic mobility,” Perry recalled of the organization’s earlier efforts. “Padua was our answer to that challenge.”

Perry said the program was born from a simple but powerful question: What if?

“What if the way we’ve always addressed poverty isn’t the way it has to be?” he explained. “What if we created a program where clients set their own goals, timelines were built around people instead of funders, and we holistically addressed a client’s root issues instead of just the symptoms of their poverty? And what if we could prove it through research and create a model that was replicable?”

Unlike many short-term workforce programs, Padua’s two-person case management teams (a case manager and caseworker) provide holistic support in employment, housing, education, and emotional resilience. Clients define their own goals and remain in the program for as long as needed.

Perry said that people begin their journey with Padua from many different places and often come from a place of crisis. While Padua “is not a crisis program,” Perry said the program helps clients get to a place of stability.

“Once theyʼre there, weʼre gonna be sticking with you for the long haul to get to a point of strength and of prosperity.”

One client who has benefited from the Padua program is Lisa, a divorced mother of three who faced single parenthood, housing instability, unemployment, and mental health issues among her children.

“When I was in my marriage, there was a lot of breaking up and getting back together,” Lisa said. “There was a lot of moving around, and I believe thatʼs how my son developed separation anxiety, which led to depression, and [he] became highly suicidal.”

Lisa’s caseworker helped her find counseling for her son as well as for Lisa, who learned coping skills that helped her better care for her son.

“I pour into his life daily by reminding him that you are handsome, you are smart, you are capable, you have a mum and a family that loves you. You are loved, you deserve to be alive. This world needs you,” she said.

The Padua program helped her attend culinary school and taught her financial skills like budgeting and saving.

Lisa is now employed, has a stable home for her children, and has attended a culinary arts program with dreams of becoming a catering and private chef.

She gives credit to her caseworker, Taelor: “I call her my guardian angel because … sheʼs just been so loving and supportive.”

Perry added that the partnership with Goodwill reflects a shared commitment to human dignity.

“We’re not just expanding the program — we’re ensuring more families have access to the tools they need to build bigger, brighter futures.”

Clayton Pryor, chief mission officer for Goodwill Greater Milwaukee & Chicago, emphasized how naturally the program aligns with their existing work.

“At Goodwill, we believe lasting change starts with meeting people where they are,” Pryor told EWTN News. “Padua allows us to go deeper with individuals who need more intensive, long-term support. It’s client-led, research-backed, and focused on real stability — not just a job, but a foundation for life.”

The Illinois program is scheduled to launch in October out of Goodwill’s new Neighborhood Opportunity Center in Englewood. Pryor said the organization aims to serve 50 clients in the first year, scaling to more than 200 over five years.

The pilgrimage, which carried the theme “One Nation, Under God,” began in St. Augustine, Florida, in May and went as far north as Portland, Maine, before turning south and finishing in Philadelphia.

In a video message played at the concluding Mass at the Cathedral Basilica of Sts. Peter and Paul, Leo XIV — the first pope in Catholic Church history from the United States — said the pilgrimage, which traced a route through the original 13 colonies that rebelled against England in 1776, was “particularly appropriate” to commemorate the country’s 250th anniversary of its founding.

The U.S., the pope said, “has been imbued with a sense of faith that recognizes God’s sovereignty even before its formal establishment.” The Holy Father cited a Mass of Thanksgiving held in 1583 in St. Augustine, Florida, by Spanish explorers.

“This historical event, accompanied by many others, attests to the strong, though largely unknown, Eucharistic heritage of the United States of America,” the pope said. “This heritage, far from being forgotten, must continue to serve as a source of both renewal and unity.”

That history, the pope told the pilgrims, “has continued to bear fruit by leading new generations of American Catholics to Jesus Christ.” He also cited the examples of U.S. martyrs and U.S.-born saints, including St. Kateri Tekakwitha, St. Elizabeth Ann Seton, and St. Katharine Drexel.

“The intense apostolic activity of these holy men and women, and others like them, would not have been possible without the strength they drew daily from moments of silent prayer before the tabernacle,” he said.

The pope said the Eucharistic pilgrimage helps “carry on this great legacy of faith.” The Eucharist is “an invaluable gift,” he said, one that the Church in the U.S. will use to “find strength to carry on her charitable service to the wider society.”

Leo urged the pilgrims to “place your lives under God’s loving providence as you return to your homes.” He also urged them to “cultivate a strong Eucharistic life among your families, friends, and communities.”

After the U.S. pilgrimage began on Pentecost in St. Augustine — the site of the 1583 Thanksgiving Mass referenced by Pope Leo XIV — it worked its way up the Eastern Seaboard, stopping at multiple U.S. dioceses and holy sites.

The route drew thousands of pilgrims in locations including Williamsburg, Virginia; Baltimore; and Boston. On June 6 the pilgrimage passed through the streets of Washington, D.C.

Along the way the pilgrimage gave recognition to uniquely American aspects of Catholicism, such as the Georgia Martyrs, who are scheduled for beatification on Oct. 31.

In a July 3 “EWTN News in Depth” interview with Catherine Hadro, Kathleen Sprows Cummings of the University of Notre Dame and Christopher Shannon of Christendom College reflected on the complex history of Catholicism in the United States.

Cummings, director of Notre Dameʼs Global Catholic Research Initiative, said it is difficult for many Americans today to imagine the level of hostility Catholics once faced.

“It’s hard to imagine today the extent to which Catholics were seen as not welcome in the United States,” she said. Nineteenth-century Catholic immigrants, particularly those arriving from Ireland, Italy, and Eastern Europe, were often viewed with suspicion because they were poor, came from “undesirable” countries, and were believed to be “loyal to the pope.”

“Anti-Catholicism in the 19th century often meant anti-papist,” Cummings explained, noting that many Americans feared the pope harbored “imperial designs on the United States.”

Despite that prejudice, Catholics gradually demonstrated their loyalty to the nation through military service, civic life, and public leadership, she said.

Shannon, author of “American Pilgrimage: A Historical Journey Through Catholic Life in a New World,” said Catholics ultimately proved themselves to be deeply patriotic, though often “on their own terms.”

“Catholics seem just so darn American now,” he said.

The conversation also highlighted the witness of American saints, including St. Frances Xavier Cabrini, St. Elizabeth Ann Seton, and St. John Neumann, whose lives demonstrated, Cummings said, the harmony between “patriotism and sanctity.”

The historians also discussed Catholic political leaders from Al Smith to President John F. Kennedy, the challenges of living an authentically Catholic public life, and what the election of Pope Leo XIV, the first U.S.-born pope, means for American Catholics.

Calling the moment “truly astonishing,” Cummings said an American pope “would have been a travesty at home and an absurdity in Rome” for much of U.S. history. Yet she emphasized that Catholics should remember Pope Leo “views the world not primarily through an American filter, but through a Catholic lens.”

Since May 24, Flynn has been part of a nine-person team taking the Blessed Sacrament across 18 dioceses as part of the National Eucharistic Pilgrimage, which will finish in Philadelphia on Sunday in celebration of the country’s 250th anniversary celebrations.

Pope Leo XIV will deliver a video message prior to the closing Mass in the  Cathedral Basilica of Sts. Peter and Paul.

The 2026 pilgrimage is under the patronage of St. Frances Xavier Cabrini, the first United States citizen to be canonized. During Pope Leo XIV’s visit to Pavia, Italy, on June 20, he venerated a relic of the heart of St. Frances Xavier Cabrini brought from Codogno, Italy.

The pope’s veneration of St. Frances’ relic occurred the same week that Flynn and his fellow perpetual pilgrims accompanied the Eucharist to a private retreat at the Mother Cabrini National Shrine in Manhattan, where the saint is buried.

The procession crossed the Delaware River in homage to the route George Washington took during his iconic crossing there in 1776.

Another highlight for Flynn was when the monstrance was lifted high in front of the Washington Monument.

“I knew I wanted to do mission work. I saw an application, prayed about it, and applied to be a part of the team,” Flynn, a social media coordinator and photographer, told EWTN News. “I knew I wanted to use my talents for Christ. This is a special opportunity to be with Christ 24/7.”

In this case, “24/7” means taking the tabernacle by van in between pilgrimage stops and accompanying the Eucharist down city streets, country roads — even into retirement homes — and encountering people of “diverse communities,” he said.

When Flynn and the team recently walked through Boston, including down the Freedom Trail, they were joined by some 3,000 fellow believers, the biggest showing on the pilgrimage yet.

Pilgrim Raymond Martinez II, a fourth-year seminarian at Conception Seminary College in Conception, Missouri, said the processions and the timing around the nation’s milestone made him reflect on the history of the Church in America and how far Catholics had come from, being excluded from public office to being able to worship freely like they did this summer.

The closing events in Philadelphia on Independence Day weekend will draw pilgrims to two shrines that speak to the legacy of the Church in America: the tomb of St. Katharine Drexel, the first native-born United States citizen to be canonized, and the shrine of St. John Neumann, the first canonized American bishop.

Martinez and Flynn both said they encountered the occasional heckler as well as commuters annoyed by street closures, but overall, the reception in the processions was positive and conducive to evangelization.

"If youʼve pulled off all these logistics, there must be divine help,“ they recalled an atheist telling them in Georgia.

While Flynn managed social media, Martinez was tasked with missionary work from handing out prayer cards, T-shirts, and food to homeless people watching from the sidelines to answering questions from curious bystanders who had never seen the Eucharist.

Flynn and Martinez said the response they received from non-Catholics — as well as those estranged from the Church — was worth the long days, many in extreme heat.

One bystander told pilgrims he was Catholic but had never actually attended Mass. Another they encountered on a boardwalk explained he had been away from the Church for years but felt inspired to return.

The pilgrimage will continue next year, with the goal of visiting all 50 states. The next National Eucharistic Congress will take place in 2029 and is still collecting prayer intentions from across the country and Holy Hour pledges as part of its goal of offering 250,000 Holy Hours in honor of the anniversary year.

Here are 12 Catholic Americans whose lives and legacies have left a lasting mark on the United States.

1. Archbishop John Carroll (1735–1815)

John Carroll became the first Catholic bishop — and later the first archbishop — in the United States following the American Revolution. He organized the American Catholic Church by establishing dioceses and later went on to found Georgetown College — now Georgetown University.

Carroll believed religious freedom was essential to the new republic and worked closely with the nationʼs founders to ensure Catholics could flourish in America. His leadership laid the institutional foundation for the Catholic Church in the United States.

2. Charles Carroll of Carrollton (1737–1832)

As the only Catholic signer of the Declaration of Independence, Charles Carroll of Carrollton, the cousin of Archbishop John Carroll, occupies a unique place in American history. At a time when Catholics faced legal restrictions and widespread suspicion in the American colonies, Carroll became one of Marylandʼs leading statesmen and a vocal advocate for independence.

He remained a devoted Catholic throughout his life, demonstrating that one could be both faithfully Catholic and deeply patriotic. His public service — including helping ratify the Constitution and serving as one of Marylandʼs first U.S. senators — helped pave the way for greater religious liberty and acceptance of Catholics in American public life.

3. St. Junípero Serra (1713–1784)

A Spanish Franciscan missionary, Junípero Serra arrived in present-day California in 1769 and founded the first of what would become 21 Spanish missions stretching along the California coast. These missions became centers of evangelization, agriculture, education, and community life, playing a significant role in the early development of what would later become the state of California.

While his legacy has been the subject of debate due to the broader Spanish colonial system and its effects on Indigenous communities, many historians acknowledge that Serra often advocated for better treatment of Indigenous peoples within that system and sought to protect them from abuses by colonial authorities. 

4. St. Elizabeth Ann Seton (1774–1821)

Elizabeth Ann Seton became the first American-born saint after converting to Catholicism in 1805. Widowed at a young age, she founded the Sisters of Charity of St. Joseph, the first congregation of religious sisters established in the United States. She also opened the nationʼs first free Catholic school in Maryland.

Her faith inspired a lifelong commitment to educating children and serving the poor. The school system and religious communities she established became the foundation of Catholic education in America.

5. Commodore John Barry (1745–1803)

Irish immigrant John Barry came to the American colonies as a young man and became one of the most accomplished naval commanders of the Revolutionary War. He is often remembered as the “Father of the American Navy.” Barry commanded several important naval victories and later helped build the young nationʼs naval forces.

Barry remained a faithful Catholic throughout his military career, quietly living his faith while serving his adopted country. His example demonstrated that Catholic immigrants could become indispensable leaders in the defense and development of the United States.

6. Archbishop John Ireland (1838–1918)

Archbishop John Ireland led the Archdiocese of St. Paul and became one of the most influential Catholic leaders in late 19th-century America. He championed public education, welcomed immigrants, encouraged civic participation, and promoted the idea that Catholics could be fully American while remaining faithful to the Church.

The development of education was one of Ireland’s defining characteristics. In 1885 he founded the University of St. Thomas, the preparatory school now known as St. Thomas Academy, and the St. Paul Seminary. He also played an important role in establishing The Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C.

7. Daniel Rudd (1854–1933)

Born into slavery in Kentucky, Daniel Rudd became one of the most influential Black Catholic journalists in American history. He founded the American Catholic Tribune, the first national Black Catholic newspaper, and organized the first National Black Catholic Congress in 1889.

Rudd believed the Catholic Church had a unique role to play in promoting racial equality and justice. His writing and advocacy encouraged both Black Catholics and Church leaders to work toward greater inclusion, helping lay the groundwork for future conversations on civil rights within American Catholicism.

8. Venerable Rose Hawthorne Lathrop (1851–1926)

The daughter of famed author Nathaniel Hawthorne, Rose Hawthorne converted to Catholicism after experiencing the loss of her son, Francis, to diphtheria. Devoting herself to work for the Church, she established St. Rose’s Free Home for Incurable Cancer, in honor of St. Rose of Lima, in New York in 1898. In 1900, she became a nun — taking the name Mother Mary Alphonsa — and founded the Dominican Sisters of Hawthorne, a religious community dedicated to caring for poor cancer patients who had nowhere else to turn.

Inspired by Christʼs compassion for the suffering, Hawthorne pioneered a ministry that anticipated many aspects of modern hospice care. Her work transformed end-of-life care for countless Americans while witnessing to the dignity of every human person. Her cause for canonization was opened in 2003 and she was declared venerable by Pope Francis in 2024.

9. St. Frances Xavier Cabrini (1850–1917)

Born in Italy, Frances Xavier Cabrini came to the United States in 1889 after Pope Leo XIII encouraged her to serve the growing population of Italian immigrants rather than travel to China as she had originally hoped. As the founder of the Missionary Sisters of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, she established dozens of schools, orphanages, and hospitals across the country, providing education, healthcare, and spiritual support to thousands of immigrants facing poverty and discrimination.

Canonized in 1946 as the first U.S. citizen to become a saint, Cabrini remains one of the most beloved figures in American Catholic history. Her unwavering faith and tireless service helped countless newcomers build new lives in America while preserving their dignity.

10. Venerable Augustus Tolton (1854–1897)

Born into slavery in Missouri, Augustus Tolton escaped with his family during the Civil War and later became the first publicly recognized Black Catholic priest in the United States. After facing repeated rejection from American seminaries because of his race, he was ordained in Rome before returning to minister in Illinois.

Toltonʼs unwavering faith in the face of racism made him a symbol of perseverance and hope for generations of American Catholics. His cause for canonization was opened by the Archdiocese of Chicago in 2011 and in 2019 Pope Francis declared him venerable.

11. Venerable Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen (1895–1979)

Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen became one of Americaʼs first religious media personalities through his radio broadcasts and Emmy Award-winning television program “Life Is Worth Living.” His engaging style brought Catholic teaching into millions of American homes during the 1950s.

Sheenʼs ability to explain the faith with clarity and humor made Catholicism more accessible to both Catholics and non-Catholics. He helped shape religious broadcasting in America and remains one of the countryʼs most influential evangelists.

Sheen will be beatified on Sept. 24 at The Dome at America’s Center in St. Louis.

12. Servant of God Dorothy Day (1897–1980)

Dorothy Day was a journalist, convert to Catholicism, and co-founder of the Catholic Worker Movement during the Great Depression. Through houses of hospitality, newspapers, and community kitchens, she encouraged Catholics to serve the poor while promoting peace, human dignity, and social justice.

Grounded in the Gospel and Catholic social teaching, Day challenged both the Church and society to care for the marginalized. Her influence continues to shape Catholic charitable work, social activism, and discussions about faith in public life. Her cause for canonization opened in 2000.

The trek took 114 days, about four months, and spanned thousands of miles.

The whole time, Plasberg pushed an 80-pound stroller. It held his supplies but symbolized something more: a reference to mothers who need support. By the end of the 3,000 miles — beginning in San Diego on Feb. 19 and ending in St. Augustine, Florida, on June 13 — Plasberg raised $20,000 for a local pregnancy help center.

“Every day required making many decisions: where to sleep, where to find food, how to navigate the route, and how to stay safe,” Plasberg said. “There were many days when I felt discouraged, exhausted, or overwhelmed.”

“Throughout the journey, I often thought about how many mothers face challenges and sacrifices that are far greater than anything I was experiencing on the road,” he said.

Plasberg donated the money to Front Royal Pregnancy Center, a group local to the college he graduated from, Christendom College in Virginia.

“The run became a way for me to raise awareness and support for a ministry that walks alongside and supports these mothers,” he said.

The run was also a spiritual journey for Plasberg; it gave him time to think about his calling to become a monk. He is currently discerning a vocation to the Carthusian order, a contemplative order of monks founded by St. Bruno in 1084.

“The run continually reminded me that I depend on him [God] for everything,” Plasberg said.

He took inspiration from the Camino de Santiago, a famous pilgrimage in Spain and France. Many people journey along the Camino, whether walking or biking, Catholic or not.

The most famous Camino path runs from France to Spain. Plasberg’s run was from San Diego to Florida, but it was a prayerful pilgrimage of its own.

“I carried many intentions throughout the journey,” Plasberg said. “I prayed for mothers facing unexpected pregnancies, for the unborn, for the supporters and staff of the Front Royal Pregnancy Center, for my family and friends, and for all the people who entrusted me with their intentions along the way.”

When he was a college student, Plasberg would pray the rosary outside abortion clinics on Saturdays with other students.

“The pro-life cause is something dear to my heart because every human life has inherent dignity and worth,” he said.

“During my years in college, I often pondered the saying of Pope Benedict XVI: ‘The world offers you comfort. But you were not made for comfort. You were made for greatness,’” Plasberg said. “Also, St. Pier Giorgio Frassatiʼs phrase ‘Verso lʼalto’ inspired me to pursue true greatness.”

“Verso lʼalto,” meaning “to the heights,” is an Italian phrase coined by Frassati, who loved mountain climbing, which carries a deeper spiritual meaning. 

“As the journey continued, I also found myself praying more for the people I encountered every day,” Plasberg explained.

The stroller was “a conversation starter.”

“People would stop and ask what I was doing, and those conversations often led to opportunities to share the mission of the pregnancy center,” he said.

“I prayed for the drivers passing by, store clerks, families, hosts, priests, fellow travelers, and strangers I would never meet again,” he said.

Carried by God

“The run taught me gratitude for my family, appreciation for the kindness of strangers, and a deeper awareness of God’s providence,” Plasberg said. “It taught me that strength is not the absence of weakness but the willingness to keep moving forward despite it.”

Though Plasberg generally stayed in motels, he sometimes stayed with families along the road.

“One of the greatest gifts of the journey was meeting people whose lives reflected extraordinary generosity and faith,” he said. “I stayed with families who welcomed a complete stranger into their homes, fed me, prayed with me, and treated me like family.”

“I met widows who showed remarkable hospitality despite carrying their own crosses,” Plasberg said. “I met religious communities, priests, cyclists crossing the country, and countless ordinary people who quietly lived lives of virtue.”

“Maybe the greatest lesson I learned from [my] journey is that we are not meant to carry our lives by ourselves,” he said. “Rather, we are meant to let ourselves be carried by God, and sometimes it takes 3,000 miles to learn that.”

Discerning monastic life: ‘I was brought to tears’

His next journey is to France, where he plans to join a Carthusian monastery.

“In many ways, this journey became a preparation for that discernment,” Plasberg said.

Along his run, he met a hermitess — a woman continuing an old practice in a modern world. A priest connected Plasberg with her after a Mass he attended in New Mexico.

“I spent about an hour speaking with Amma Chiara, but that hour left a profound impression on me,” Plasberg said. “She radiated joy, peace, and holiness in a way that immediately drew my attention to God.”

Plasberg had a unique connection to Chiara — she had walked across the United States.

“She shared her own story with me and explained that, before becoming a religious sister, she had actually walked across the United States herself about 30 years earlier.”

“Even now, months later, I still think about that encounter,” he said. “Her example showed me that a life completely dedicated to God is not restricted or empty but deeply joyful and fulfilling.”

“Without many of the distractions of ordinary life, I became more aware of both my weaknesses and my need for God,” he said.

Plasberg has another connection to the hermitess — the order he might join involves living like a hermit.

The Carthusians “are one of the most secluded and prayer-focused religious orders in the Church,” he explained.

“Their vocation combines elements of both the solitary life of a hermit and the communal life of a monk,” Plasberg said. “Most of the day is spent in silence, prayer, spiritual reading, and work within an individual hermitage, while the monks also come together for certain liturgical prayers and community observances.”

“Unlike many religious communities, their lives are largely hidden from the world,” Plasberg explained. “Each monk lives in a small hermitage with a garden and spends much of his day alone with God.”

The monks don’t see themselves as retreating from the world; rather they pray for everyone who needs prayers and are brothers and fathers to one another.

“The silence and solitude are not meant as an escape from the world but as a way of dedicating oneself entirely to prayer for the Church and the salvation of souls,” Plasberg said.

After spending time at the monastery of the Grand Chartreuse in discernment, the monks welcomed Plasberg to be a postulant, the first formal stage in joining a religious order. He will go there after he obtains a long-stay French visa.

The run was formative for his discernment, he said.

“In some ways, this run across America became part of that discernment. Spending nearly four months alone on the road gave me plenty of opportunities for silence, prayer, and reflection,” Plasberg said. “It exposed many of my weaknesses, attachments, and limitations, but it also helped me experience more deeply my dependence on God. I think I realized the importance of humility, gratitude, and trust as a result of this journey.”

“While I still have discernment ahead of me, the journey confirmed my attraction to a contemplative vocation and my desire to give my life completely to God,” Plasberg said.

“Perhaps the most important lesson was learning that holiness is not something we achieve through our own strength,” he said. “Rather, it comes from allowing God to work through our weakness. Holiness starts with allowing God to love us as we are in this present moment, even in our brokenness.

For centuries, the history of Catholicism in America has been written in the shadow of hardship, sacrifice, and perseverance. At the center of that story has always been the Eucharist — the real presence of Christ — which sustained missionaries, settlers, soldiers, immigrants, and pioneers long before Catholicism became a visible part of American life.

As hundreds of thousands of Catholics gather for Eucharistic pilgrimages, congresses, and parish revivals across the United States to celebrate the nation’s 250th anniversary, they are participating in something that stretches back nearly 500 years. The National Eucharistic Revival may be new, but America’s devotion to the Blessed Sacrament is as old as the Church’s presence on this continent.

The first Masses on American soil

Some of the first recorded celebrations of the Mass in what is now the United States took place nearly 500 years ago. These marked the beginning of a Eucharistic presence that would shape the nationʼs Catholic history.

During the Narváez expedition in 1528 and the Coronado expedition in 1540–1542, Spanish missionaries carried the Eucharist into Florida and the American Southwest. In 1565, when Spanish settlers led by Pedro Menéndez de Avilés founded St. Augustine, Florida, Mass and the Eucharist quickly became the center of the new colony’s religious life.

More than two centuries later, St. Junípero Serra would continue that tradition as he established California’s mission system. Serra often traveled hundreds of miles on foot between missions, carrying the Blessed Sacrament to isolated Catholic communities. Every new mission he founded placed the altar and the celebration of the Eucharist at the center of its life.

For missionaries such as the Franciscans, and later the Jesuits, the Eucharist was the heart of their missionary work. Wherever they established a mission, they first erected an altar, making the celebration of the Mass the center of community life.

Hidden altars in Colonial America

Elsewhere in Britain’s American colonies, however, Catholics often practiced their faith in secret.

Anti-Catholic laws frequently prohibited the public celebration of Mass. Priests risked arrest, and Catholic families gathered quietly in manor houses, private homes, and secluded chapels.

One of the many examples of the hardship Catholics endured in early America occurred in the colonial state of Massachusetts. In 1647 and again in 1700, Massachusetts passed laws prohibiting Catholics from settling in the colony, and any priest who entered could be sentenced to death as “an enemy of the true Christian religion.”

At this time, the Eucharist became a symbol not only of faith but also of perseverance. Families sometimes traveled miles through forests to attend clandestine Masses offered by missionary priests.

Freedom after the Revolution

The American Revolution marked a turning point.

Over time, legal restrictions eased, allowing practices that had once been forbidden to emerge into public life. In 1788, Boston celebrated its first public Mass, marking a cautious yet significant milestone in establishing a Catholic presence in the region.

Leading that new beginning was Father John Carroll, who in 1789 became the first bishop of the United States. Under his leadership, parishes, schools, and charitable institutions spread across the new nation, each centered on the celebration of the Eucharist.

The Eucharist on the American frontier

As religious freedom expanded beyond the original colonies, the frontier presented entirely new challenges. Nowhere was this more evident than in Texas.

Following Texas' independence from Mexico, the withdrawal of Mexican diocesan priests left the new republic with only one active Catholic parish north of the Nueces River — San Fernando Church in San Antonio.

In 1838, Pope Gregory XVI authorized Archbishop Antoine Blanc of New Orleans to send missionaries to Texas, appointing Father John Timon as prefect of Texas to oversee their work. Many of these French Vincentian and Oblate missionaries became known as “saddlebag priests” for the hundreds of miles they traveled across the frontier to minister to scattered Catholic communities.

As more settlers pushed westward, priests often rode hundreds of miles carrying the Blessed Sacrament in small pyxes to isolated Catholic families.

Among the most remarkable was Jesuit missionary Father Pierre-Jean De Smet, who traveled tens of thousands of miles across the Rocky Mountains and Great Plains. Carrying the Eucharist with him, De Smet celebrated Mass among Native American tribes and remote frontier settlements, bringing the sacraments to places few other priests had ever reached.

In the Southwest, Archbishop Jean Baptiste Lamy traveled throughout the vast Diocese of Santa Fe, where Catholics sometimes waited months for a priest to arrive. When he finally came, entire villages gathered to celebrate Mass, receive Communion, and adore the Blessed Sacrament.

A Church steps into public view

By the late 19th century, Catholicism had become one of America’s largest religious communities, and Eucharistic devotion increasingly moved into the public square.

That growth reached a dramatic high point in 1926, when Chicago hosted the International Eucharistic Congress.

More than 1 million Catholics participated in outdoor liturgies, Eucharistic processions, Holy Hours, and public acts of adoration. Newspapers described it as one of the largest religious gatherings in American history. Pilgrims traveled from across the world, transforming Chicago into the center of global Catholic life for several days.

For many American Catholics, the congress symbolized something remarkable: A Church that had once worshipped in secret now publicly proclaimed its faith in the Real Presence before the world.

A new Eucharistic Revival

One hundred years after the Chicago Congress, American Catholics are once again gathering around the Blessed Sacrament.

The National Eucharistic Revival was launched by the U.S. bishops in 2022. Amid recent decades of declining Mass attendance and surveys indicating weakened belief in the Real Presence among many Catholics, the revival seeks to renew belief in Christ’s real presence through parish formation, Eucharistic processions, perpetual adoration, and missionary outreach.

The 2026 pilgrimage began in St. Augustine, Florida, near where the first Mass was celebrated. The route continued up the Eastern Seaboard and will conclude over the Fourth of July weekend in Philadelphia.

While today’s pilgrims travel highways instead of frontier trails, their journey echoes generations of Catholics who carried the Eucharist across the U.S.

The circumstances have changed dramatically over five centuries, yet beneath those outward changes lies an unbroken thread stretching across nearly five centuries. The same Eucharist celebrated by missionaries in St. Augustine, carried across the Great Plains, hidden in colonial homes, and proclaimed before millions in Chicago is the Eucharist that gathers Catholics today. The history of Catholicism in America is not simply the story of how the Church grew — it is the story of how the Eucharist sustained that growth, generation after generation.

“I am honored to accept the Liberty Medal of the National Constitution Center in this year that marks the 250th anniversary of the founding of the United States of America with the signing of the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776,” the Holy Father said.

Leo was born in Chicago but earned a bachelor’s degree at Villanova University in the Philadelphia suburbs. The NCC presented the award to the pontiff in person at the Vatican on April 30, ahead of the ceremony.

In his remarks, Leo thanked those gathered in Philadelphia for the occasion. The NCC building overlooks the Liberty Bell and Independence Hall, where the country’s founders developed and adopted the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution, and the Bill of Rights.

“As a son of this great country, founded by courageous men and women who dreamed of liberty and of a better life for themselves and for their children, I join you in asking God’s blessings upon America’s future, that the lofty ideals enshrined at the beginning of the Declaration of Independence may continue to guide the flourishing of the nation in unity, justice, and peace,” Leo said.

“From our youth, most of us have admired the eloquence of those words, with their resounding appeal to the law of nature and to nature’s God as the basis of their assertion that all men and women are created equal and endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable rights, including the right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness,” he said.

The pontiff said that although the text employed “the language of the Enlightenment,” the claim is “ultimately grounded in an understanding of the human person inspired by the great biblical vision of man and woman being created in the divine image.”

“It is indeed here that we discover the basis of human dignity; dignity which precedes the establishment of any state and whose custody constitutes its very purpose,” Leo said.

Respecting the right to life “in every form and condition,” he said, is directly tied to the nation’s vitality. He said society must cultivate a reverence for life that “sways the hearts of individuals and inspires laws that recognize and safeguard this gift from the moment of conception to natural death.”

The right to liberty, the pontiff said, is much deeper than simply doing what one wants. It is “founded upon the human person’s capacity to know the truth and adhere to what is good, even at great cost — a sacrifice well known to many who have labored to shape this country,” he said.

“The desire for truth and freedom, as well as the very pursuit of happiness, continues to inspire people of all generations to ask fundamental questions regarding the meaning of life, our ultimate purpose, and indeed about God, and it is proper for magnanimous hearts to endeavor to answer these questions with sincerity,” Leo said.

The Holy Father said that religious freedom, to be “free from fear and coercion, as enshrined in the First Amendment to the United States Constitution,” is needed to answer those questions.

“It is my hope that this tradition will continue to bear fruit in a public discourse marked by moderation, respect for the views of others, and an ongoing effort to find common ground in promoting the cause of peace and reconciliation, at home and abroad,” he added.

The pope said he is praying that the 250th anniversary of the United States “may be the occasion of a solemn recommitment to these ideals that have made America a country that values peace and prosperity, a country characterized by generosity and nobility of heart.”

Archbishop Perez, Gov. Shapiro speak

The ceremony was attended by a few hundred guests and included other speakers, such as Philadelphia Archbishop Nelson J. Perez, Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro, state Attorney General Dave Sunday, Philadelphia Mayor Cherelle L. Parker, and local Christian, Muslim, and Jewish religious leaders.

Perez said throughout Leo’s life — as priest, bishop, cardinal, and pope — he has defended the “inherent dignity of all people and building pathways to peace,” including a defense of religious freedom.

“True freedom stems from defending dignity and the value of every human being,” he said.

Perez told EWTN News following the event that the pope’s words “bring us back to our origins” as Americans regarding the right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.

“It was wonderful to hear him once again bring us back to center, that we all were created in a very image and likeness of God,” the archbishop said. “Our human dignity and our rights flow from that. They flow from being created in Godʼs image and likeness and from there flows our freedom and the heart that seeks God.”

“Itʼs a wonderful day for Philadelphia,” Perez said. “Itʼs a wonderful day for the country. Itʼs a wonderful day for the world.”

Shapiro congratulated the pope on receiving the award and thanked the Holy Father, on behalf of Pennsylvania, “for using your voice, your power, to advance religious liberty for all people.”

The ceremony included the ringing of a replica of the Liberty Bell just outside the building. It was rung by Sunday, the attorney general, who recalled the words of Benjamin Franklin when the Founding Father was asked what form of government they had created after the constitutional convention: “A republic, if you can keep it.”

“Our Constitution is the rock upon which we will build in the next 250 years,” Sunday said.

In abortion pill reversal, a patient who no longer desires abortion takes the hormone progesterone to save the life of her child after she has taken the first chemical abortion pill. In recent years, abortion pill reversal awareness has been targeted in the states of California and Colorado.

In an open letter, 225 women who have been helped by the Abortion Pill Rescue Network (APRN) expressed their gratitude for being able to access abortion pill reversal.

“The healthcare professionals who spoke with us, whether doctor, nurse, or staff, treated us with compassion and respect,” the letter read. “They provided information about a medical protocol that might help preserve our pregnancies.”

“We were free to accept or decline that care,” the letter continued. “We made our own choices.”

“We reached out because we wanted to know if there was any possibility of continuing our pregnancies after taking mifepristone,” the letter read. “We are grateful that someone answered.”

The women expressed disagreement with the idea that information about abortion pill reversal is harmful.

“Women facing difficult and time-sensitive decisions deserve access to information about all of their options,” the letter read.

The women were responding to allegations in a California lawsuit that abortion pill reversal aid was misleading, according to a press release by the pregnancy help center network Heartbeat International, which manages the APRN.

“More than 40 of those women are Californians, from the very state where Attorney General Rob Bonta is seeking to silence Heartbeat International … and punish its speech about abortion pill reversal,” the press release read.

Abortion pill reversal is not always successful, though Heartbeat International says the success rate is 64%-68%.

“Some of us gave birth to children we cherish today. Others did not experience the outcome they hoped for,” the women wrote. “Yet regardless of the outcome, we are thankful that we were informed of an option and allowed to decide for ourselves.”

Shield laws allow hundreds of thousands of abortion pills to be sent to states that protect life

A recent report found that since 2023 nearly 330,000 abortion pills were shipped to states with laws that protect unborn children.

These shipments came from mail-order abortionists who are protected by shield laws in states such as New York and California.

The report, by the Restoration of America Foundation, estimates that “out-of-state abortionists send nearly 15,000 chemical abortion pills per month into states with pro-life laws,” according to the report shared with EWTN News.

The report calls on the Trump administration to “act swiftly and decisively.”

“If pro-life states have no power to protect their women and babies from rogue abortionists thousands of miles away, the situation they find themselves in is not better than before the Dobbs decision — itʼs worse,” the report read.

U.S. Senate to consider expansion of Mexico City Policy

The U.S. Senate is considering an expansion of the Mexico City Policy, which requires federally-funded aid organizations to refrain from promoting or providing abortions in order to receive federal aid.

The bill, if passed, would prevent U.S. foreign assistance from being used to fund or promote abortion as well as diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) programs, as well as gender ideology.

“U.S. foreign assistance programs have been exploited as a loophole to promote far-left, radical ideology on the dime of American taxpayers for far too long,” said U.S. Sen. Ted Budd, R-North Carolina, who introduced the Promoting Human Flourishing in Foreign Assistance Act.

Army captain sentenced for poisoning his pregnant girlfriend with abortion pill

An Army captain was sentenced to prison for poisoning his pregnant girlfriend with chemical abortion drugs.

Capt. Brandon Jones-Adams was sentenced to 12 years in prison after pleading guilty to killing his unborn child, along with other charges including domestic violence.

Jones-Adams obtained the chemical abortion drugs from an online provider by using a fake name. The unborn baby, who was 13 weeks old, did not survive the forced abortion.

1 in 3 pregnancies end in abortion in England and Wales

The lives of nearly 1 in 3 unborn babies end in abortion, according to recent statistics from England and Wales.

In 2023, a rate of 32.1% of conceptions ended in abortion in England and Wales. Abortion has been on a steady increase there since 2015, according to the statistics from the England and Wales Office for National Statistics.

“The rise in abortions since the pandemic has been linked to the availability of at-home abortions with the ‘pills by post’ scheme,” according to a report by CARE, a London-based Christian organization that aims to bring truth and grace into politics. “This allows women to receive medication to terminate a pregnancy up to 10 weeks after a phone or online consultation with a medical professional.”

Delaware Catholics battle abortion, celebrate wins

Delaware Catholics are opposing an abortion amendment; meanwhile, the state has made a legal agreement not to target pregnancy centers.

The Delaware Catholic Advocacy Network urged Catholics to oppose a recently proposed abortion bill that would enshrine a right to abortion in the state’s constitution.

Meanwhile, Delaware officials agreed to a court order banning them from enforcing a law against pregnancy centers, settling a lawsuit brought by the centers.

Only 1 Planned Parenthood clinic to remain in Iowa

Planned Parenthood will shrink to a single clinic in Iowa at the end of this month, the organization announced earlier this week.

Planned Parenthood North Central States officials cited “declining and unstable funding streams” as well as a recent Trump administration move to defund the organization through the Teen Pregnancy Prevention program.

Long before the First Amendment guaranteed the free exercise of religion, in many of Britain’s American colonies, Catholics were barred from holding public office, restricted from voting, and often prohibited from openly practicing their faith. Anti-Catholic laws, rooted in centuries of conflict between England and the Catholic Church, left many Catholics viewed with suspicion, their loyalty questioned simply because of their faith.

Yet within a generation, a Catholic priest would become the first bishop of the United States, a Catholic would sign the Declaration of Independence, and the nation’s first president would push Congress to officially recognize and authorize Catholic and Protestant chaplains.

As the United States marks its 250th anniversary, historians say the American Revolution marked a dramatic turning point for religious liberty — especially for Catholics.

Washington’s push for chaplains

When Gen. George Washington assumed command of the Continental Army in 1775, the colonies were religiously diverse but overwhelmingly Protestant. Nevertheless, Washington understood that faith was essential to the lives of the soldiers under his command.

At his urging, the Continental Congress voted on July 29, 1775, to appoint a chaplain for every regiment in the Continental Army.

The measure was practical. Chaplains preached, celebrated worship services, comforted the wounded, buried the dead, and reminded soldiers of the moral principles for which they fought.

But it also represented something larger.

For perhaps the first time in American history, the revolutionary government acknowledged that citizens serving their country should not have to abandon their religious convictions.

Although nearly all of the early chaplains were Protestant ministers, the principle established by Congress — that the government should accommodate the religious lives of its soldiers rather than suppress them — set an important precedent for religious freedom.

Father John Carroll and a new place for Catholics

Born in Maryland in 1735, John Carroll belonged to one of the few Catholic families that had managed to flourish despite legal restrictions.

Unable to receive a Catholic education in the colonies, he studied in Europe with the Jesuits before returning home as a priest.

In 1776, the Continental Congress asked Carroll to accompany Benjamin Franklin, Charles Carroll — John Carroll’s cousin — and Samuel Chase on a diplomatic mission to Canada.

His presence was deliberate.

Congress recognized that a Catholic priest could help build trust among French-Canadian Catholics and demonstrate that the American Revolution was not a Protestant movement hostile to the Catholic faith.

Although the mission ultimately failed to persuade Canada to join the Revolution, it sent an important message: Catholics had a place in the American experiment.

Catholics prove their loyalty

The Revolution gave Catholics the opportunity to challenge long-held prejudices against them.

Many colonial Protestants had inherited generations of anti-Catholic sentiment from England. Catholics were often portrayed as politically unreliable because of their allegiance to the pope.

The Revolution, however, forced Americans to reconsider those assumptions.

The patriot cause depended upon an alliance with Catholic France. The Continental Congress sought support from the largely Catholic population of Quebec. And American Catholics demonstrated that they, too, were committed to independence.

One of the clearest examples was Charles Carroll of Carrollton, the only Catholic to sign the Declaration of Independence.

A wealthy Maryland planter, Charles Carroll had long faced legal restrictions because of his faith, including limits on holding public office under British rule. By affixing his name to the Declaration, he risked both his considerable fortune and his life in support of the patriot cause.

Charles Carroll’s signature became a powerful answer to those who questioned whether Catholics could be loyal citizens of the new republic, demonstrating that devotion to the Catholic faith and commitment to American independence could go hand in hand.

Washington’s vision of religious liberty

Washington’s commitment to religious liberty became even clearer after the Revolution.

Writing in 1790 to the Hebrew Congregation in Newport, Rhode Island, Washington rejected the idea that religious minorities merely deserved tolerance. Instead, he wrote that the government of the United States “gives to bigotry no sanction, to persecution no assistance.”

Those words represented a profound departure from the European model, where governments often granted limited tolerance while still favoring one established religion.

Washington envisioned something different: equal protection for citizens regardless of their faith.

For Catholics, whose ancestors had endured generations of legal discrimination under British rule, the promise carried enormous significance.

Carroll becomes first American bishop

That same spirit shaped the future of the Catholic Church in the United States.

In 1789, Pope Pius VI appointed Father John Carroll the first bishop of the United States.

Rather than viewing American democracy with suspicion, Carroll embraced the opportunities offered by constitutional protections for religious liberty.

He established Georgetown College, promoted Catholic education, encouraged the formation of parishes, and urged Catholics to become active participants in civic life.

Carroll believed the Church could flourish precisely because the government neither established nor persecuted religion.

His confidence proved well-founded.

Within decades, the Catholic Church would grow from a tiny and often mistrusted minority into one of the nation’s largest religious communities.

A legacy for the next 250 years

The American Revolution did not eliminate anti-Catholic prejudice overnight. Catholics continued to face discrimination well into the 19th century.

Yet the Revolution fundamentally changed their legal status.

The same nation that had once inherited England’s suspicion of Catholics gradually embraced the principle that citizenship did not depend upon religious affiliation.

Washington’s support for military chaplains, his rejection of religious prejudice, and his vision of equal liberty helped lay that foundation. Bishop John Carroll, in turn, demonstrated that Catholics could faithfully serve both the Church and the new republic.

Together, their stories remind Americans that religious freedom was not simply one of the nation’s founding ideals — it became one of its greatest achievements.

Washut, who is the daughter of Wyoming Catholic College President Kyle Washut, emerged triumphant from among 20 finalists and over 8,000 students from all 50 states and territories who entered the competition.

Washut, along with the second and third place winners, met with President Donald Trump in the Oval Office July 1 alongside U.S. Secretary of Education Linda McMahon.

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McMahon said the award “recognizes students who have demonstrated a deep understanding of America’s founding principles and enthusiasm for learning America’s story. What better way to celebrate 250 years of this great nation than by honoring those who will carry us into the next 250!”

University of Mary launches graduate school of theology in Arizona

The University of Mary has announced it will open a graduate school of theology in Phoenix in the fall.

The satellite graduate school will offer a four-year master of divinity degree and a 36-credit master of arts in theology, taught in person at the Arizona Center, located across from St. Mary’s Basilica and the diocesan pastoral center, the university announced on June 30.

The university described the move as a further development of its “long-standing partnership with the Diocese of Phoenix and Nazareth Seminary,” and an expansion of its Arizona mission.

“What originally started as undergraduate formation for the seminarians of the diocese has blossomed into an academic program that now includes master’s-level work,” said Eric Westby, associate professor of theology at the university. “This formation will help students know their faith more deeply and be equipped to pass it on in a variety of settings,” he added.

Benedictine College to open Independence Hall-themed library 

Benedictine College in Atchison, Kansas, will hold a soft-launch opening of its new library, built to resemble Independence Hall in Philadelphia, on July 4.

The interior of the new library includes an exact replica of Independence Hall’s historic Assembly Room, where America’s Declaration of Independence was debated and signed. The Assembly Room will be open to the public from 9 a.m. to noon, the college said in a press release. Visitors to the library, which is in the final stages of construction, will also be able to view a replica of the Liberty Bell.

Visitors will also have the opportunity to view a collection of historic documents through an exhibit titled “Celebrating the American Experiment.”

“Thirty-nine documents trace the story of the American founding and its origins in centuries of Western political thought,” the exhibit page states. “Among them are works by Aristotle, Cicero, John Locke, and Algernon Sidney, as well as the Declaration of Independence, the Federalist Papers, and a rare 1788 printing of the Constitution of the United States, one of only five known copies in existence.”

DeSantis blocks funding for security improvements at Catholic schools

Republican Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis has vetoed a bill that would have allocated $15 million in state funding for security improvements at Catholic schools in Miami-Dade County. The veto came after the Florida Legislature passed the bill on May 29.

The Archdiocese of Miami expressed its disappointment with the veto and thanked lawmakers for their efforts to pass legislation to protect its more than 37,000 students.

“Security enhancements are not a luxury; they are an essential component of providing safe environments where students can learn and thrive,” the Archdiocese of Miami said in a June 29 statement. The archdiocese noted that it does not receive any funding to offset security costs, despite other privately-run public charter schools in the state receiving government aid.

In a defiant move and despite repeated pleadings from Rome not to move forward, the SSPX went ahead on July 1 with the consecration of four new bishops without a pontifical mandate — an act of open disobedience to the authority of the pope that, under canon law, carries automatic excommunication for the six bishops involved.

The SSPX is a controversial fraternity of priests known for their strict traditional celebration of the Latin Mass and opposition to the reforms of the Second Vatican Council.

The animating principle of the group is “the priesthood and all that pertains to it and nothing but what concerns it,” SSPX says on its website. The group was founded in 1970 by Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre, a French prelate who was a sharp critic of many of the changes brought about by Vatican II.

In addition to the modern revisions of the Mass, Lefebvre also opposed “ecumenism — a viewpoint which considered all religions as beneficial and valid — and collegiality — which insisted that the Church be ruled primarily by the democratic process and bishops’ conferences,” according to the group’s website.

The group runs priories, chapels, and missions around the world as well as seminaries. It commands several hundred priests and a few hundred more seminarians.

Perhaps the group’s most controversial moment came in 1988 when Lefebvre consecrated four bishops in Écône, Switzerland, in explicit defiance of Pope John Paul II. Within hours the Vatican declared that Lefebvre and the four bishops had incurred excommunication on themselves.

In his motu proprio Ecclesia Dei, John Paul argued that it was “impossible to remain faithful to the tradition while breaking the ecclesial bond with him to whom, in the person of the apostle Peter, Christ himself entrusted the ministry of unity in his Church.”

Pope Benedict XVI lifted this excommunication in 2009, though he explained in a letter that SSPX does not have canonical status and therefore “its ministers do not exercise legitimate ministries in the Church.”

Pope Francis further expanded the group’s privileges, ordering during the 2015–2016 Extraordinary Jubilee of Mercy that confessions heard by SSPX priests were valid; he subsequently extended this order indefinitely.

In 2017, meanwhile, he ​​approved a way for the group’s priests to witness marriages validly, giving diocesan bishops or other local ordinaries the ability to authorize such decisions.

Ahead of the schismatic consecrations on July 1, Pope Leo XIV issued a final appeal to the society not to proceed with the ceremony.

The Holy Father urged the group to “consider the spiritual good of the faithful carefully,” as the schismatic act “would deprive them of the licit and, in some cases, even valid reception of the sacraments, which they love and seek for their sanctification.”

The Dicastery for Doctrine of the Faith, meanwhile, on July 2 released guidance to bishops around the world for welcoming back former adherents to the SSPX after the schismatic act.

A priest who leaves the fraternity must find a diocesan bishop or a major superior willing to receive him, after which he must “write by hand a letter to the Holy Father” asking for the remission of the excommunication.

The priest must also provide his certificate of ordination and make both a profession of faith and a formula of adherence.

The dicastery will move to remit the censure “as soon as it receives the documents,” after which the priest, under the bishop who received him, will be subject to a probationary period “of at least one year and no more than three.”

Penalties for the lay faithful, meanwhile, “cannot be presumed automatically but must be assessed case by case.”

Though historically the faithful have not been strictly prohibited from attending SSPX Masses, Church leaders have in several instances warned Catholics against doing so except in serious circumstances.

“The Masses they [SSPX] celebrate are also valid, but it is considered morally illicit for the faithful to participate in these Masses unless they are physically or morally impeded from participating in a Mass celebrated by a Catholic priest in good standing,” Monsignor Camille Perl, then-secretary of the Pontifical Commission Ecclesia Dei, said in 1995.

A 1998 letter by Perl noted that the “schismatic mentality” of SSPX led the pontifical commission to “consistently [discourage] the faithful from attending Masses celebrated under the aegis of the Society of St. Pius X.”

The archdiocese on July 1 announced the release of its own report into whether an internal investigation commissioned by Seton Hall — the latter known as the “Latham report” — revealed that Reilly knew about abuse allegations at the university and yet failed to report them. Reilly was appointed president of the school in 2024.

Archbishop Cardinal Joseph Tobin said in the July 1 announcement that the archdiocese’s report, which was launched in February 2025 and performed by the law firm Ropes & Gray LLP, revealed that Reilly “was not implicated in the Latham report.”

The archdiocesan report reveals that Reilly “responded promptly to allegations of sexual harassment involving seminarians at [Seton Hall’s] Immaculate Conception Seminary in 2012,” though Reilly “did not follow the university’s Title IX reporting requirements” because he had not been trained on them, Tobin said.

The Latham report, which has never been made public, was expected to examine whether Reilly, then-rector of Seton Hall’s Immaculate Conception Seminary, knew about sexual misconduct allegations against now-deceased former cardinal Theodore McCarrick and failed to report them.

The Ropes & Gray inquiry, however, states that the Latham report “contains no findings or allegations that Monsignor Reilly … witnessed or received reports of any sexual misconduct by McCarrick (or any other individuals) at any time,” including during a stint as McCarrick’s secretary in the early 1990s.

Among its findings, the Ropes & Gray report said Reilly in 2012 removed a seminarian from the school’s seminary after the younger man was found to have engaged in sexual harassment.

Reilly was “not involved” in a separate 2014 dispute over inappropriate conduct involving two adults, meanwhile.

In his announcement on July 1, Tobin said that “nothing in [the] thorough report changes my firm view that Monsignor Reilly is a good priest with formidable experience and a deep commitment to a Catholic institution serving the Church and the world.”

“He is highly regarded across the Seton Hall community and has my full respect and confidence,” the archbishop said.

The Latham report was commissioned by Seton Hall in 2019 and produced by the law firm Latham & Watkins; the school ordered it after bombshell allegations involving McCarrick, who died in 2025.

A New Jersey appeals court ruled in June that Seton Hall would not have to fully disclose the report as part of ongoing clergy abuse lawsuits.

The appeals court did rule that one section of the report regarding the university’s sexual harassment policies could be disclosed in court, though parts of that section could be subject to redactions depending on the contents.

Sister Leticia Ugboaja, a member of the Daughters of Mary Mother of Mercy and a registered nurse at South Texas Health System, was arrested by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers on June 28 as she headed to Mass at Our Lady of Sorrows Church in McAllen, Texas, just miles from the U.S.-Mexico border.

Parish officials quickly shared news of the arrest on social media, which drew significant attention and led to outreach from lawmakers, including U.S. Reps. Monica de la Cruz and Henry Cuellar, the latter of whom said his office communicated with Department of Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin and border czar Tom Homan to secure Ugboaja’s immediate release.

By Sunday evening, Ugboaja, who volunteers as an extraordinary minister of holy Communion at Our Lady of Sorrows, had been released from custody and returned home.

U.S. Rep. Henry Cuellar told EWTN News that he was told at first that she could not be released until Monday because of staffing issues but that Homan made her earlier release happen.

“[Homan] said he’d take care of it. I want to thank the DHS secretary and Homan for helping her get released” on Sunday, Cuellar said.

The congressman said he now knows why Ugboaja was initially detained but is not at liberty to speak about it.

“This is not the way they should have picked her up,” he emphasized. “If ICE had any questions, there would have been more appropriate ways to deal with her situation.”

Cuellar said the image of a nun in full habit walking to church on a Sunday morning “lowers a curtain of fear in the community … We should not have people being picked up on the streets in America. That’s not America.” 

“If there’s fear, it should be focused on criminals,” the Democratic congressman said. “Those are the ones who should fear ICE.”

Brenda Riojas, a spokeswoman for the Diocese of Brownsville, Texas, told EWTN News in a statement the diocese was “grateful also for the quick response of local representatives who reached out to the Department of Homeland Security to get Sister Leticia released from custody.”

She noted the diocese is still gathering information about the circumstances regarding Ugboaja’s detainment by ICE.

In the statement, Bishop Daniel Flores of Brownsville said the nun “is a well-known source of goodness and hope in our community, and I am grateful she has been released.”

He said there remain “many questions” about her arrest.

“For now, it is clear that Homeland Security enforcement protocols that make it possible for a religious sister, or anyone, to be detained and handcuffed while peacefully walking to church on a Sunday morning are wildly disturbing and need to be reformed.”

The League of United Latin American Citizens, the oldest and largest Hispanic civil rights organization in the United States, started a petition addressed to Texas Sens. Ted Cruz and John Cornyn, calling for an immediate investigation into why the nun was detained.

“This incident highlights the concerns that advocates, faith leaders, and community organizations have raised for months about unlawful enforcement practices and the lack of oversight,” the petition reads.

The incident comes amid heightened immigration enforcement under the Trump administration, which has included operations near houses of worship.

An ICE spokesperson told EWTN News in July 2025 that while the agency is “not subject to previous restrictions on immigration operations at sensitive locations, to include schools, churches, and courthouses,” it nevertheless “does not indiscriminately take enforcement actions at these locations.”

“U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement arrests aliens who commit crimes and other individuals who have violated our nation’s immigration laws,” the spokesperson noted, adding: “All aliens in violation of U.S. immigration law may be subject to arrest, detention, and, if found removable by final order, removed from the United States.”

In January, the Department of Homeland Security removed places of worship from its sensitive locations list, allowing ICE agents to carry out immigration enforcement procedures.

Following a lawsuit from a group of 27 religious organizations, ICE was temporarily blocked in March 2025 from carrying out deportations in places of worship. However, one month later, a federal judge found the organizations did not have legal standing, thereby allowing operations to continue.

Bishops in South Texas have reported increased anxiety among parishioners, with some opting to attend Mass virtually or requesting assistance with errands to avoid leaving their homes.

Bishops in other parts of the country have issued dispensations from Mass attendance for those who fear deportation.

San Antonio Archbishop Gustavo García-Siller told EWTN News in January that instead of dispensing the Mass obligation, he wants to “reach out to those who are hidden.”

“That’s our work. We will go and find them in their homes, bring catechists and Communion to their homes,” he said.

Reached for comment, ICE referred EWTN News to the Homeland Security department, which did not respond by the time of publication.

This story was updated at 3:13 p.m. ET on July 1, 2026, with the quotes from Rep. Cuellar.

University Heights resident Daniel Grand had asked the Supreme Court to rule on the question of “finality,” a legal principle requiring property owners to obtain a land-use decision from local officials before bringing certain federal court challenges.

Grand brought the suit against University Heights in 2022 after the city blocked his efforts to convene a minyan, or Jewish prayer group, of about a dozen friends at his home. The city directed that he would have to acquire a special-use permit to host the group.

Both a federal district court and an appeals court dismissed Grand’s case on the grounds that he had not properly followed “finality” rules before filing, specifically that he did not complete the permitting process before bringing the suit.

On June 30, the Supreme Court said it would consider the case, which it will take up during its next term.

Grand is being represented in part by the legal group Alliance Defending Freedom. John Bursch, a senior attorney with the group, said on June 30 that University Heights’ policy “underscore[s] a troubling trend of weaponizing zoning laws against people of faith.”

“Every American has the right to host a prayer gathering in his home, and he certainly doesn’t need a city permit to do so. When government officials forbid that, courts must hold those individuals accountable, immediately,” Bursch said.

Ahead of the Supreme Court’s decision, Grand’s lawsuit received backing from the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, which filed an amicus brief in appeals court arguing that Grandʼs religious liberty claims should be considered without being subject to “finality.”

Religious plaintiffs have standing to sue “as soon as a credible threat arises,” the bishops said in their filing, arguing that court processes that play out over “months or years” due to finality rules serve as a “constitutional harm” in and of themselves.

The Supreme Court will begin its next term in October.

The university will host the inaugural meeting of the “Interface Between Quantum Science and Technology, Philosophy, and Catholic Theology” where topics will include quantum entanglement, quantum indeterminacy, hylomorphism, and electromagnetic radiation — with Catholic theology integrated into most lectures. Daily Mass will also be celebrated. All talks will be recorded and made available afterward.

Organizers include Professor Vincenzo Tamma, founding director of the Quantum Science and Technology Hub at the University of Portsmouth in the U.K., and Jesuit Father Robert Spitzer, director of the Magis Center, host of EWTN’s “Father Spitzerʼs Universe,” and a prolific writer on faith and science. Local organizers include Chapman professors Andrew Jordan and Daniele Struppa, both from Chapman’s Institute for Quantum Studies.

A ‘call’ to bring people across disciplines together

The idea for the gathering was conceived when Tamma first visited Chapman.

“I was in contact with Father Spitzer when Dr. Jordan invited me to visit the Institute of Quantum Studies at Chapman, and then I realized Father Spitzer was based very close,” Tamma told EWTN News. “So we met in person for the first time, and I shared with him my desire — what felt more like a call — to bring together people across disciplines and to build a community … to take away the false understanding that science and faith are in opposition.”

Faith, science, and technology collaborations are hardly new. Besides the work of many Catholic scientists throughout history, thousands of scientists belong today to the Society of Catholic Scientists, which recently held its annual convention at Mundelein Seminary outside of Chicago. The event at Chapman, however, is the first to focus specifically on quantum science and technology, a field only about a century old — and which some scientists say rips shreds in a purely materialistic worldview.

“At the very beginning of this field, physicists — the fathers of quantum mechanics — like Einstein were very, very interested in philosophy and what we can call ‘the ultimate questions,’” Tamma said in an interview with EWTN News. “We’ve lost, a little bit, that sense of interdisciplinary collaboration. I share in the same desire — and sense of wonder — of many other physicists, to open deeper questions.”

Tamma pointed to St. Augustine’s image of “the book of nature” and “the book of revelation,” two different ways of knowing truth that are fundamentally complementary.

“Together, they can help us understand the truth of reality and why we are here and the purpose of creation,” he said.

The gathering’s 3 goals

Organizers said the conference’s purpose is threefold: informing the public, initiating fellowship, and advancing knowledge.

“We want to inform the public that there exists an excellent intersection between faith and science,” Spitzer told EWTN News. “We want to use this conference as a starting point to form an international organization dedicated to having Ph.D. scientists, philosophers, and theologians interacting with each other in a fellowship of both faith and their academic disciplines.”

To that end, a public keynote titled “Is the Notion of God Meaningful to Scientific Culture? The Openness of Science to the Quest for Truth and Meaning” will be delivered by Father Giuseppe Tanzella-Nitti of Rome’s Pontifical University of the Holy Cross who is also an adjunct scholar at the Vatican Observatory. The lecture is free but registration is required.

Beyond that public lecture, the conference itself is invitation-only, gathering some of the world’s leading scientists, philosophers, and theologians. “This is not a lightweight group,” Jordan said.

Physics is an area of science remarkably appealing to Catholics, revealing as it does the created world’s order and intelligibility. A number of famous physicists have been deeply religious Catholics, including Georges Lemaître, a Belgian priest and astrophysicist who first proposed the big bang theory; Victor Hess, who won the Nobel Prize for discovering cosmic rays; and modern scientists like Cornell’s Jonathan Lunine, Vanderbilt’s Robert Scherrer, and the University of Delaware’s Stephen Barr, who will deliver a keynote at Chapman.

“By bringing together various research organizations, without losing their identity, they can contribute to the common knowledge,” Tamma said. “They can come in dialogue to really work together and the results can be a gift to society and to the Church.”

Advancing the existing body of knowledge across various disciplines through this focused collaboration is the third major goal of the event.

“Can we make further progress? Can we advance our knowledge, both about our work and our faith?” Jordan said. “I would love to see new insights come out of this meeting, such as new scientific, philosophical, and theological articles and books published. We hope to deepen our knowledge about faith and science together.”

Spitzer highlighted that many scientific fields point toward Catholic beliefs, citing the argument for “fine tuning” in the field of cosmology, the theories of emergence and convergence in biology, and the argument for a “mind-like universe” proposed in philosopher Thomas Nagel’s book “Mind and Cosmos.”

His examples reveal how many disparate scientific fields offer their own support of St. Augustine’s words: “If any man could hear [the earth and sea and air and heavens], he should hear them saying with one voice, ‘We did not make ourselves, but he made us who abides forever.’”

Quantum physics — which is foundational to scientific understanding and widely known in popular culture — lends itself particularly well to the growing faith-science dialogue. “Quantum science is foundational for the whole of physics and therefore for the rest of science,” Spitzer said, “so it’s a good place to start.”

Three decades of rapid progress in quantum physics have filtered into pop culture through science fiction, but beneath the hype, scientists say the field definitively opens the door to something greater than what science can know.

“A lot of people know about quantum mechanics, but they have a flawed understanding of what it is,” Tamma said. “There are laws of quantum mechanics that are well defined — and these laws point to questions that cannot be answered by physics alone.”

“We’ve been accused of that, and it’s not correct,” he told EWTN News. In 2021 the diocese allowed federal immigration officials to build an access road and place motion sensors on diocesan-owned land that runs alongside Mexico, an arrangement the diocese renewed in 2023.

“They’ve had that ever since,” Winder said. “We think that’s adequate. I don’t think any people can get through there with that system.”

The U.S. federal government, however, is attempting to seize that land outright from the diocese and build a much more substantial border wall there. It is so determined to do so that it seeks to seize the land through eminent domain.

Las Cruces is fighting the government’s attempt in court, putting the diocese at the forefront of the current U.S. immigration debate.

Quite literally at the apex of the dispute is Mount Cristo Rey, a small mountain with a nearly-century-old statue of Jesus Christ atop it that has been a pilgrimage site for decades. The diocese says the government’s proposed border security at the base of the mountain would negatively affect pilgrims coming to the site.

The Trump administration’s immigration policy has come under fire from numerous elements of the U.S. Catholic Church over the past 18 months, including the U.S. bishops and multiple dioceses that have witnessed enhanced immigration enforcement. Various Church leaders have urged the administration to balance its border security efforts with more mercy and discretion.

Winder stressed that the diocese is supportive of immigration security. But, he said, “we see the border wall as more of a political tool — something that the administration wants to do to show that they’re tough on immigration.”

Winder said the disputed stretch of land near El Paso, Texas, is not ideal for illegal immigration. Mount Cristo Rey, he said, is “really rough. It’s not super tall but it’s rough. To try to go over the mountain to get in the United States — it’s a pretty effective barrier in and of itself.”

“It’s nice flat ground on either side of it, for hundreds of miles,” he said. “[The government] patrols it. They’ve got vehicles parked there. I don’t think it’s a real high-volume place,” he observed, for illegal immigration crossings.

Statue of Christ arose from priest’s vision

Amid the ongoing court battle, Las Cruces Bishop Peter Baldacchino held a Mass atop Mount Cristo Rey on June 28, drawing hundreds of faithful to the sun-baked top of the mountain with Christ towering over them.

Mount Cristo Rey sits near the now-vanished town of Smeltertown within what Winder called a “unique” tip of land in New Mexico, one that is surrounded both by the state of Texas and the nation of Mexico. Both El Paso, Texas, and Juarez, Mexico, are roughly southeast of the mountain.

An informational website says the towering statue of Christ took shape from 1933, when local priest Father Lourdes Costa “[looked] out the back window of his residence in the community of Smeltertown [and] envisioned erecting a monument at the summit of this glorious mountain.”

The 29-foot-tall limestone statue was dedicated in 1940. It has since become a regular pilgrimage site, with the faithful hiking up the short summit to the base of the monument.

Winder said the decision to hold the Mass on June 28 was “completely apolitical.”

“It wasn’t meant as a protest,” he said. “It was a Mass. It was meant for prayer, to bring people together, to practice unity, to pray for the Church, and to pray for government leaders.”

The response to the Mass was “very good,” the deacon said.

“It was very hot. It’s not a great time to climb mountains in southern New Mexico. But about 400 people showed up and made the climb. They came from all over. Some from El Paso, some from our diocese, some from Albuquerque and beyond.”

The mountain has served as a significant site for local Catholic worship for nearly a century, Winder said. He compared the geography of the area to the “Four Corners” monument where Utah, Colorado, Arizona, and New Mexico all meet.

“This is a place where there’s this unity of two nations and two states,” he said. “There’s a symbolism of that unity in Christ the King standing above it. But it’s also a pilgrimage site.”

“It’s just a special place,” he said. “It’s very powerful. It’s a magnificent place to have Mass.”

The diocese was dealt a blow in June when a federal district court said the government could put down a six-figure deposit on the land as a pretext to obtaining it. The dispute is still ongoing, Winder said, with another hearing anticipated in late July.

The diocese has filed numerous motions against the government’s effort, he said. He described the proposed border wall as more of a political symbol than a really practical measure, one that would mar the sacredness of the site.

“If you go to the mountain and hike to the top, you’ll see a 30-foot-tall image of Christ the King,” he said. “And if the government builds this wall, and you turn your head slightly [from Christ], you’ll see a 30-foot ‘Keep Out’ sign below.”

“It’s an affront,” he said.

The sacred relics are traveling as part of a pilgrimage sponsored by the Knights of Columbus to mark the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence following the June 11 Mass that consecrated the U.S. to the Sacred Heart of Jesus.

While the relics are in Maryland, Archbishop William E. Lori will celebrate Mass on July 5 at the basilica to commemorate the nation’s anniversary and welcome the faithful to venerate the relics.

The relics, which are usually housed in the Chapel of the Apparitions at St. Margaret Mary’s French convent, were flown from Paris to New York on June 2.

The reliquary that is touring the U.S. weighs nearly 150 pounds with its protective case. It contains St. Margaret Mary Alacoque’s clavicles, two of her ribs, and a small piece of her brain.

St. Margaret Mary Alacoque was a 17th-century French religious sister who experienced visions of Jesus revealing his Sacred Heart for over a year.

While praying in 1673, Margaret heard Jesus tell her that he wanted to show his love for people by encouraging a special devotion to his Sacred Heart.

Christ revealed ways to venerate his Sacred Heart and explained the immense love he has for humanity, appearing with his heart visible outside his chest, on fire, and surrounded by a crown of thorns.

She was canonized a saint for her works including her strong devotion in 1920.

Relics to continue U.S. journey

The relics previously traveled to Orlando, Florida, for the Mass consecrating the U.S. to the Sacred Heart. The U.S. bishops consecrated the nation as part of their plenary meeting on June 11.

In his homily at the consecration Mass, Lori said: “We cannot come to the heart of Christ while pretending we have no need of his mercy.”

“The Sacred Heart does not divide; it reconciles,” he said. “It does not harden hearts; it transforms them. It does not simply invite us to receive love; it sends us forth to share it.”

Enclosed in the reliquary, the first-class relics were available for public veneration at the Blessed Michael McGivney Pilgrimage Center in New Haven, Connecticut, from June 24–27.

In celebration of Independence Day, the relics will visit two cities significant to America’s 250th anniversary including Washington, D.C., where they will be June 29 to July 4 at the St. John Paul II National Shrine.

On July 5 and 6, the relics will visit the Baltimore basilica until they return to New Haven, where they will be until July 18. More stops on the relics’ journey may be added while they are in the United States before returning to France.

The court ruled in a consolidated set of cases out of Idaho and West Virginia that federal Title IX rules permit schools to “provide separate women’s and men’s sports teams defined by biological sex,” meaning schools can prohibit men from playing on women’s teams even if those men believe they are women.

The court had taken up the issue in July 2025 when it agreed to hear the two cases, which arose after the two states moved to block males from playing on female sports teams.

Both cases arose from lawsuits brought by, or on behalf of, young men who identify as female and who sued against the states’ respective bans on males competing in females’ sports.

In the June 30 ruling, the court rejected arguments from the plaintiffs that Title IX requires schools to let males play in women’s leagues. The court said “safety and competitive fairness” are “important interests” for equal protection concerns, and sex-separated teams are “substantially related” to furthering those interests.

Schools “may determine eligibility for women’s and girls’ sports based on biological sex,” the court said.

The ruling was divided largely 6-3, though three of the court’s four female justices — Sonia Sotomayor, Elena Kagan, and Ketanji Brown Jackson — filed partial concurring opinions.

Sotomayor wrote that though she was sympathetic to concerns of fairness in women’s sports, the ruling “inflicts a hardship” on athletes who identify as the opposite sex.

She argued that the U.S. Constitution requires a “fair and full opportunity” for the plaintiffs to litigate the dispute. However, she said the Supreme Court’s decision treats the issue as a “winner-takes-all” situation and makes it too easy for sex-based rules to be upheld without enough careful review.

Jackson, meanwhile, argued that definitions of “sex” in Title IX rules includes the concept of “gender identity.” A law banning male participation in female sports “might well run afoul” of those regulations, she said.

In September 2025, Lindsay Hecox — the plaintiff in the Idaho case — asked the Supreme Court to dismiss the challenge to that state’s law. Idaho moved to oppose the dismissal; a U.S. district judge ultimately ruled against the request, claiming that Hecox was attempting to “avoid Supreme Court review.”

The debate around transgender participation in opposite-sex sporting leagues has exploded in recent years, with LGBT advocates arguing that athletes should be permitted to compete on sports teams of the opposite sex and critics arguing that female athletes should not be forced to compete against males.

The International Olympic Committee in March announced a new policy under which men who believe themselves to be women will be forbidden from competing in the women’s category.

In 2025, meanwhile, the NCAA announced a ban on men competing in its women’s categories, though the league issued the decision only in response to an executive order from President Donald Trump threatening federal funding loss for schools and universities that fail to divide sporting leagues by biological sex.

Trump signed the order on his first day in office, prompting immediate legal challenges based on the 14th Amendment, which guarantees automatic citizenship to anyone born in the country and “subject to the jurisdiction thereof.” The U.S. bishops opposed Trump’s directive, saying the “immoral” order would harm families, destabilize communities, and undermine human dignity.

The executive order was blocked by courts before it went into effect, so children born to parents who lack legal immigration status were not being denied citizenship. The Supreme Court ruling in Trump v. Barbara maintains the legal framework that existed before Trump’s executive order, essentially voiding the president’s actions.

A 6-3 majority on the court found that Trump’s executive order was unlawful. Justice Brett Kavanaugh, who sided with the majority, dissented in part. He agreed Trump exceeded his authority but disagreed with the constitutional claims.

With five justices agreeing on the constitutional claims, the decision solidifies that the citizenship clause of the 14th Amendment protects citizenship for those children, closing the door to the president or Congress taking that right away.

Anna Gallagher, executive director of the Catholic Legal Immigration Network (CLINIC), praised the ruling in a statement provided to EWTN News.

“We are relieved and grateful that the Supreme Court has upheld this right that is so important for our identity as a nation and for safeguarding justice and human dignity,” she said.

“In our amicus brief, we explained how the values of Catholic social teaching, the particular realities of undocumented immigration in the United States, and our nation’s legal history make upholding the tradition of birthright citizenship the most just outcome of this case,” she added. “We are glad to receive a decision that will bring relief to immigrant families and our network. This is a win for immigrants and a win for justice.”

Reaffirming precedent

The administration’s legal team had argued that birthright citizenship only applied to people who were legally in the country and “domiciled” with the intent to remain. The executive order was part of Trump’s broader immigration crackdown, which includes mass deportations of people in the country unlawfully and extends beyond people accused of violent crimes.

The court rejected this, stating that children born to parents who lack legal immigration status are indeed “amenable to the jurisdiction of the country” and therefore their U.S.-born children are citizens under the 14th Amendment.

The ruling reaffirmed the 1898 precedent set in U.S. v. Wong Kim Ark, which found there to be only a small number of limited exceptions to birthright citizenship: those born to foreign diplomats and occupying enemy forces.

Wong Kim Ark also rejected birthright citizenship for certain Indigenous Americans, although this exception became irrelevant after every Indigenous American was granted citizenship with the Indian Citizenship Act of 1924.

“What the court held in Wong Kim Ark was simple: The citizenship clause incorporated the common law and granted citizenship to nearly all children born in the United States,” the opinion written by Chief Justice John Roberts stated.

“Not surprisingly, then, in the 128 years since, we have repeatedly understood the rule of Wong Kim Ark to guarantee citizenship to all children born in the United States and subject to its power,” it said.

The court found that the administration’s view — that birthright citizenship applied only to children whose parents were “domiciled” — was based on “scant evidence” and called the position a “dramatically revisionist view” of the 14th Amendment.

“The question is whether a person is ‘subject to the jurisdiction’ of the government of the country in which he is physically present, even if he is only there temporarily,” the opinion added. “He is (unless he falls under one of the familiar exceptions, such as for ambassadors).”

Justice Clarence Thomas, dissenting, argued that the administration’s position — that birthright citizenship applies only to the children of people who are “domiciled” — is consistent with the nation’s historical interpretation of the 14th Amendment.

“The citizenship clause was enacted for people who were born in this country and called it home,” he wrote in his dissent. “It was enacted for freed slaves such as Dred Scott, who had ‘a domicil’ here and therefore were entitled to sue as citizens.”

Visa applicants to face pregnancy question?

Andrew Arthur, a resident fellow in law and policy at the Center for Immigration Studies and a former immigration judge, told “EWTN News Nightly” that the court essentially found the president’s executive order improper “because constitutional amendments can only be changed by constitutional amendments.”

He said the ruling could lead the State Department to crack down on “birth tourism,” which he called “the main weaponization” of birthright citizenship — when women travel to the United States solely to give birth so their children gain U.S. citizenship.

“I think one of the things we’re going to see is that the State Department is going to be cracking down on nonimmigrant visas, temporary visas for people coming to the United States,” Arthur said. “And there will probably be an additional question on the questionnaire: ‘Are you pregnant or do you plan on becoming pregnant?’ I think we’ll also see those restrictions carry over to the ports of entry.”

In February, the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops petitioned the Supreme Court to protect birthright citizenship, urging the court to preserve long‑standing constitutional interpretation to protect human dignity and social cohesion.

“At its core, this case is not solely a question about citizenship status or the 14th Amendment,” the court filing read. “It is a question of whether the law will affirm or deny the equal worth of those born within our common community — whether the law will protect the human dignity of all God’s children.”

This story was updated at 11:40 a.m. ET on June 30, 2026, to include comments from Anna Gallagher, executive director of the Catholic Legal Immigration Network (CLINIC); at 12:50 p.m. ET on June 30, 2026, to include quotations from the opinion; and further updated at 3 p.m. ET on June 30, 2026, to include comments from Andrew Arthur of the Center for Immigration Studies.

The Quest Atlanta Catholic Radio has set up a Catholic hospitality booth at the ATL Experience — Atlanta’s official local merchant marketplace for the 2026 World Cup, which features over 90 local businesses ranging from food and drink to clothing and art. The ATL Experience is taking place in three different locations in the Atlanta area, with The Quest booth located between the State Farm Arena and the old CNN Center.

Allison Dalloul, a co-host on The Quest’s morning show and outreach coordinator, told EWTN News that when she heard that the World Cup was coming to Atlanta, she thought, “What a great opportunity for us to just have our booth out there and sharing our smiles and our personal presence out there.”

Visitors to the booth will find information about local churches, Mass schedules, information about the Catholic faith, brochures, prayer cards, religious images, rosaries, and a wheel people can spin to win prizes.

Dalloul shared that the prayer cards were made by The Quest team to feature St. Luigi Scrosoppi, the patron saint of soccer.

The booth is open the day before matches take place in Atlanta and on game day and is run by volunteers from the Archdiocese of Atlanta, parishioners from the many parishes, and those who work at The Quest Atlanta. Clergy from the archdiocese as well as the St. Paul Street Evangelization team are also present at the booth.

“It has just been such a great way to evangelize, even the Catholics here, even the people that are volunteering, because not many people get the opportunity to be a part of something like this,” Dalloul said.

She added that a plethora of different kinds of people with different backgrounds have come up to the booth. For example, a woman who recently lost her husband visited the booth and a member of the St. Paul Street Evangelization team prayed with her. Many couples have also come up to the booth to ask the priests in attendance for a blessing on their marriage.

“People are coming up hungry [for the faith], people are coming up not knowing anything about the Church, people are coming up going, ‘Oh, Iʼm Catholic. This is so neat that this is here,’” Dalloul said.

A moment that impacted Dalloul personally took place on the first day at the booth between her and the daughter of one of the other vendors at the ATL Experience. She explained that she was roughly 12 years old and went over to see what The Quest’s booth was all about. Dalloul shared who they were and asked her if she had any prayer intentions.

“I donʼt think she fully understood what that was. So I said, ‘Is there anything going on in your life that you would like God to assist you with?’ And she was like, ‘Oh!’ And was diligently writing things down on those cards,” Dalloul recalled.

“That alone, that first encounter, the innocence of a child — Iʼm a cradle Catholic. I was born into this. So many people are not born into this. So, just the excitement she had writing those prayer intentions down with all her might, I was like, ‘Thank you, Jesus.’”

She added: “So, weʼre not evangelizing only to the folks attending the World Cup but also the vendors who are actually working in the different areas.”

Speaking to the many moments of faith seen on the field so far, Dalloul emphasized that it has been “a beautiful witness to all that are watching.”

“It makes my heart so happy when I see men out there that are faith-filled, living their faith out, not ashamed, not embarrassed to make the sign of the cross,” she said. “In our society, I feel sometimes many people are afraid to say grace before a meal in a restaurant and make the sign of the cross because somebody might look at me weird or strange. We have got to be unapologetically Catholic. We should never be afraid to share our faith, wherever we are.”

As for her hopes for all those visiting The Quest’s hospitality booth, Dalloul said she hoped they experience “the love of Christ.”

She also highlighted the importance of The Quest’s mere presence at the event.

“I feel that just our presence of being there is the key, with smiles on our face, just talking [to people] … our presence of Christ there,” Dalloul said. “I just want them to encounter Christ when they meet us, because we have no idea what is going on in the lives of others … We donʼt know what theyʼve gone through. We donʼt know what theyʼre going through. And you never know, the Lord might be prompting them to do something or go to church or go to Mass.”

“Thereʼs so much that we can be doing and we just have to not be afraid and let Christ work through us and ask the Holy Spirit for guidance to not be afraid.”

The National Shrine of Our Lady of Champion in Champion, Wisconsin — the only approved Marian apparition site in the United States — is hosting an exhibit honoring holy men and women from the United States. The Catholic Saints of America Exhibit will run from July 1–9 and will feature the stories of 76 saints, blesseds, venerables, and servants of God with American ties.

There will also be daily Mass, several presentations, relics available for veneration, representatives from 35 different causes, and a special Mass celebrated on July 5 commemorating the anniversary of the death of Servant of God Adele Brice, the visionary of Our Lady of Champion.

The shrine is also encouraging not only visitors but also American Catholics everywhere to join in the Novena for Our Nation beginning on July 1.

Father Tony Stephens, the rector of the shrine, told EWTN News that the inspiration for the exhibit came in the fall of 2025 as the holy site was coming up with ideas about how to celebrate the 250th anniversary of the U.S.

“Some of our staff had the idea — since we were anticipating the visionary here at the shrine, Adele, potentially being elevated to the the level of servant of God and the canonization process opening — we thought, well, it’d be neat to have some of these servants and maybe venerables and maybe some saints come together here at the shrine, but particularly those who had grown holy in America and were holy Americans,” he said.

He added: “So it just grew from there. Then [we] realized, well, what if we did all the servants of God, and then all the venerable, and all the blesseds, and all the saints? So itʼs been a very extensive process. It started small and itʼs just one of those things you know the Holy Spirit was driving.”

The priest added that the team drew inspiration from the “Eucharistic Miracles of  the World” exhibit designed by St. Carlo Acutis. Stephens explained that each holy person will have his or her own large foam board with that person’s story, images, and important dates in their lives.

There will also be a 15-foot-long timeline of the 250 years of the U.S. highlighting important dates in both American history and the Catholic Church in the country.

“We want to celebrate the 250th birthday of our nation,” he said. “Faith and reason go together. We love our country and we love our faith. And they can certainly go together — one nation under God.”

Some of the relics on site will include those of St. Kateri Tekakwitha, St. Francis Xavier Cabrini, St. Elizabeth Ann Seton, St. John Neumann, Blessed Solanus Casey, and Blessed Stanley Rother, among others.

Stephens emphasized that the driving force behind creating the exhibit was that “weʼre proud to be Americans, but weʼre Catholics first, so these are some of our holy ones who lived faithfully as Catholic Americans.”

Speaking about the novena, Stephens shared that he wrote it specifically for the event. He explained that it’s not only about praying for the nation but also that people also “recognize our shortcomings, and we thank God for the many blessings that heʼs given us in 250 years.”

The petitions include praying for families, for the vulnerable in society, for the protection of religious liberty in our country, for a spirit of generosity among all U.S. citizens, for elected leaders, for those who interpret and enforce laws, for those who educate others, for those in the armed services, and for those who died protecting the nation.

Stephens said his main hope for those who visit the exhibit is that they would leave believing “that holiness is attainable for me as a Catholic in 21st-century America.”

He added: “These were holy Catholic Americans who lived in this country and … this is something that is attainable because they persevered in their faith. And thatʼs something that all of us can do as well.”

Under the law, adopted in 2023, shelters that house runaway youth cannot immediately tell parents when a child is “seeking or receiving” gender transition medical services. It allows the state to refer the child for “behavioral health services” but does not change parental consent laws generally required for hormone therapy or surgeries.

The law directs shelters to notify the Washington Department of Children, Youth, and Families when housing a runaway child who is seeking gender transition services and “offer services designed to resolve the conflict” between the child and the parents before the parents will be notified and before the department works toward family reunification.

The legal challenge comes from parents whose children exhibit gender dysphoria. Lower courts ruled the parents did not have standing to sue because their children are not currently in a youth shelter, but the Supreme Court has agreed to review that decision.

In the lawsuit, five sets of parents express concern their child may run away and seek gender transition services. The parents argue the law violates their 14th Amendment right to direct the upbringing of their children. The Supreme Court has affirmed this right as protected under the amendment for more than a century.

“This statute allows shelters and homes to keep children at locations without their parents’ knowledge and refer those children for health interventions without their parents’ knowledge or approval,” it states. “It does not require children to be returned on any particular timetable or under any particular conditions.”

It also argues that the law restricts some of the parents’ First Amendment rights to the free exercise of religion, including at least one set of parents who are practicing Catholics.

The original lawsuit cites the Catechism of the Catholic Church: “Those plaintiffs … adhere to the doctrine of the Roman Catholic Church when it teaches, ‘By creating the human being man and woman, God gives personal dignity to the one and the other. Each of them, man and woman, should acknowledge and accept his sexual identity’” (No. 2293).

The parents are joined in the lawsuit by two advocacy groups: International Partners for Ethical Care and Advocates Protecting Children.

A spokesman for International Partners for Ethical Care told EWTN News the organization is “heartened that the Supreme Court will finally hear a case that addresses the rights of all parents to protect their children from harmful medical interventions.”

“We hope this case will not be cast as a religious liberties issue but as a safeguarding issue for parents and children of any or no faith,” the spokesperson said. “Parents should not have to live in fear of the state taking custody of their children if they disagree with a deceptive ideology and dangerous treatments.”

Mike Faulk, deputy communications director for Washington Attorney General Nick Brown, told EWTN News the lower courts found that the families did not show how they were “likely to be injured by the law” and “we will be prepared to successfully defend it at the Supreme Court.”

“This law was passed to give runaway youth and their families access to reunification and behavioral health services,” he said. “The law makes clear that the Department of Children, Youth, and Families must make good faith attempts to contact families with a goal of reunification.”

The law has received opposition from the Washington Catholic Conference, which represents the bishops of the state’s three dioceses. It criticized the bill when it was being considered in a 2023 newsletter, saying the social teachings of the Catholic Church affirm “the family is the most central social institution, and it must be supported and strengthened.”

“[This bill] undermines families,” the statement added. “In line with the bishops’ legislative priorities to protect children and families and respect life, the [conference] opposes [the bill].”

Archbishop Salvatore Cordileone said on June 29 that the proposed $395 million settlement would “resolve all lawsuits related to child sexual abuse” brought against the archdiocese under California’s expanded statute of limitations.

Cordileone said the archdiocese in the past has helped parishes, schools, and other archdiocesan entities absorb the cost of sex-abuse lawsuits, but he said the “current environment” of abuse lawsuits is “much more challenging.”

Schools and parishes “will need to contribute funds” to the settlement both in order to ensure their own legal safeguards and to “share in the work of making amends for the harm of the past,” he said.

The archdiocese announced it was filing for bankruptcy in August 2023 in response to more than 500 civil lawsuits filed against it.

The voluminous lawsuits were brought against the archdiocese under California’s 2019 Assembly Bill 218, which significantly expanded the statute of limitations in the state regarding civil sex abuse lawsuits.

In a separate release, the archdiocese said it would seek to “preserve the vital ministries of Catholic education and parish life” even as it moves to pay out the major nine-figure settlement.

The archdiocese has “no current plans to close schools or parishes to reach the proposed settlement,” it said.

The settlement has yet to be finalized in federal bankruptcy court. The archdiocese said that all litigation involving the lawsuits has been paused while the parties “work in good faith on the details of a consensual Chapter 11 plan of reorganization.”

The settlement represents one of the larger abuse payout amounts in U.S. Catholic history, though a few others have been considerably larger. In October 2024 the Archdiocese of Los Angeles announced an $880 million clergy abuse settlement, while the New York Archdiocese in May said it would pay out $800 million to abuse victims.

Cordileone on June 29 acknowledged that “no financial settlement can erase the painful legacy of these past actions.”

But “we believe this proposal offers a path toward fair compensation for survivors who have carried the burden of this abuse for a lifetime,” he said.

The archdiocese “remain[s] committed to fostering healing and reconciliation and to accompanying all who deserve our unwavering respect, attention, and prayers,” he said.

“Weʼre here as shepherds and as pastors to walk with people, to listen to people, and to be well together with the people of God here at the border,” Bishop James Misko of Tucson, Arizona, said at the event.

“We call ourselves Christians. To be called a Christian means to be like Christ — to be living a life as conformed to Christ as possible. And we know that justice is being in right relationship with God and one another,” Misko said.

Organized by the dioceses of Tucson and Phoenix in partnership with the Kino Border Initiative, the Hope Border Institute, and the Center for Migration Studies, the June 26 event included a conversation on immigration with U.S. Catholic bishops, Mass at Sacred Heart Church in Nogales, Arizona, and a rosary procession across the international line.

The pastoral conversation on migration and human dignity “was a great conversation with five bishops about what the Church holds to be true when it comes to migration and human dignity,” Misko said.

Misko and Bishop John Dolan of Phoenix were joined in conversation by Archbishop John Wester of Santa Fe, New Mexico; Bishop Mark Seitz of El Paso, Texas; and Bishop Emeritus Gerald Kicanas of Tucson.

“As we mark the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence, we are reminded that we are made by our Creator with certain inalienable rights. Theyʼre given by God,” Seitz said at the event.

“That is a fundamental reality that we in the Church always have in mind and that no policy, no executive order or Supreme Court decision can take away,” Seitz said.

After the bishops celebrated Mass, the procession began at the Arizona parish and concluded at Parroquia De Pa Purísima Concepción — a Catholic church in Nogales, Sonora, Mexico. The group ended the event with a meal with migrants hosted by the Kino Border Initiative.

Mexican bishops José Luis Cerra Luna of Nogales and Enrique Sanchez Martinez of Mexicali also participated in the binational event.

U.S. bishops have ‘almost complete unanimity’ on immigration matter

“What is discouraging for me is that as a country, we have not yet been able to address the issue of immigration,” Kicanas said. “The conference of bishops has been clamoring, crying out, for comprehensive immigration reform, and we have not yet been able to accomplish that.”

“We have to address the immigration policy of our country — as [do] most countries around the world today. Itʼs a serious concern. All of us want this situation to improve,” Kicanas said.

“The bishops have been advocating for comprehensive immigration reform for a long, long time,” and Border Mass 250 “was just one more example of that,” Wester said.

The event followed other calls for reform including pastoral letters on immigration and a special message from the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops highlighting their opposition to “the indiscriminate mass deportation of people.”

The bishops approved the message at their 2025 fall plenary assembly on Nov. 12, 2025, where the motion passed with support from more than 95% of the American bishops who voted.

“One of the key principles of Catholic social teaching is solidarity — that weʼre together,” Wester said. “But this is an issue, Iʼd say, that enjoys almost complete unanimity in the bishops’ conference.”

The bishops are addressing the matter as communities across the country “are looking for a clear moral response to the human cost of mass detention and deportation,” Dylan Corbett, executive director at Hope Border Institute, told EWTN News.

“In union with Pope Leo XIV, who will soon go to Lampedusa, the border Mass in Nogales was a way for the Catholic community to name the suffering, affirm the dignity of those affected by these policies, and commit to working for reform,” said Corbett, who is also a member of the Vatican Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development.

“In this moment, moral clarity must be matched by ongoing action that recognizes the contributions of immigrants to our country and the urgent need to work for justice,” he said.

The Holy Father’s message will be shown Sunday, July 5, at the opening of the closing Mass and Eucharistic procession in Philadelphia, where thousands of pilgrims are expected to gather after a six-week journey across the eastern United States.

According to organizers, Pope Leo XIV’s address will reflect on the legacy of Catholicism in the United States while encouraging the faithful to seek renewed unity, peace, and hope through Jesus Christ in the Eucharist.

The National Eucharistic Pilgrimage’s closings events in Philadelphia during  Independence Day weekend will also draw pilgrims to two shrines that bear witness to the legacy of Catholicism in the United States: the tomb of St. Katharine Drexel and the shrine of St. John Neumann. Drexel was the first native-born citizen of the United States to be canonized, while Neumann was the first canonized American bishop.

“This message from Pope Leo XIV will be a profound gift to the Church in the United States and to all who seek peace, unity, and hope,” Philadelphia Archbishop Nelson Pérez said.

“We are deeply grateful that the Holy Father will speak to the faithful gathered here, in the City of Saints, and to those joining around the world, reminding us that Christ in the Eucharist is the source of our unity and the heart of the Church’s mission,” Pérez added.

“The National Eucharistic Pilgrimage is a public invitation to encounter Jesus Christ in the Eucharist and to carry his presence into the life of our nation,” said Jason Shanks, president of the National Eucharistic Congress. “To receive a message from Pope Leo XIV at the culmination of this journey, as the United States marks its 250th anniversary, is more than a landmark moment — it is a call to renewal for the Church in our country,“ Shanks noted.

EWTN Global Catholic Network, in partnership with Vatican Media, will serve as the global distribution partner for the papal message.

“EWTN is honored to serve as the global distribution partner for the Holy Father’s message and for the closing events of the National Eucharistic Pilgrimage in Philadelphia,” said EWTN Chairman of the Board and CEO Michael Warsaw.

“This historic moment will allow viewers around the world to join in prayer, witness, and thanksgiving as the Church in the United States celebrates the enduring gift of the Eucharist during this milestone in the country’s history.”

The closing Mass of the National Eucharistic Pilgrimage and the papal video message will be livestreamed on EWTN’s YouTube channel, on the EWTN streaming apps (EWTN +), and on linear broadcast, and made available on the National Eucharistic Congress’ Manna App. 

2026 National Eucharistic Pilgrimage

The 2026 National Eucharistic Pilgrimage began May 24 and has carried the Blessed Sacrament through much of the original 13 colonies, reaching as far north as New Hampshire and Maine.

Nine perpetual pilgrims are traveling with the National Eucharistic Pilgrimage for the entire journey, which began in St. Augustine, Florida, and will conclude on the Fourth of July weekend.

The pilgrimage is being held under the patronage of St. Frances Xavier Cabrini, the first U.S. citizen to be canonized.

The regatta started in 2018 when the advisory council for Catholic Charities Terre Haute was looking for a new way to engage with the local community, specifically through a fundraising event. One of the council members was familiar with the Cincinnati Freestore Foodbank Duck Regatta and suggested they reach out to find out how the event is done.

Realizing they could take advantage of the town’s natural resource, the Wabash River, the council members decided to move forward. The duck regatta is now held every Fourth of July alongside the town’s Independence Day celebrations, which include a concert, fireworks, and now, the duck regatta.

“The first couple of years I was so surprised because I thought, ‘Well, maybe because people are coming to the concert we might get a few people spill over and come and watch the race,’ but no, we had a lot of people that actually came to watch the race that I think then fed into staying for the concert. So I think itʼs been a little bit of give and take for both,” Jennifer Tames, assistant agency director for Catholic Charities of Terre Haute, told EWTN News in an interview.

Tames explained that “duck season” began on May 21 — the day when people can start “adopting” rubber ducks for the race. The ducks are available for $5 and can be found at 20 different locations in the area. Then one lucky duck is chosen at the end of the race and whoever that duck belongs to wins $10,000.

While the race used to be held in the Wabash River, it is now done in a man-made, large waterslide due to safety concerns from the unpredictability in water levels. Despite this change, the community continues to show strong support for the event.

“The community has really gotten behind the event and they enjoy it. The kids love coming to watch the race itself even though weʼre no longer on the river,” Tames said.

She shared that roughly $45,000 is raised from the regatta each year and all proceeds go directly to the work Catholic Charities does in the area.

Catholic Charities Terre Haute has four “service lines”: nourishing the body, providing safe shelter, offering quality youth programs, and providing the spirit of Christmas — all supporting children, adults, families, and seniors.

Through the Terre Haute Catholic Charities Foodbank, the equivalent of 3.8 million meals are provided throughout the year to seven counties in west-central Indiana.

The Ryves Youth Center runs year-round and provides tutoring, mentoring, counseling, and recreational activities such as field trips and a summer camp. Additionally, there is a full-time preschool program that runs year-round and all children who participate in any of the programs at the youth center are provided with meals.

The Bethany House Emergency Shelter houses single women, married couples, and families. The staff works as case managers to help understand what led the individual or the family to homelessness and help them set goals to be able to work to become self-sufficient again.

Lastly, the Christmas Store in Terre Haute provides hygiene products, clothing, toys, and household items to those needing help with their Christmas. Thanks to retail partners, local community groups, and individual donations, the shelves of the Christmas Store remain filled with new gifts year-round.

“I donʼt think anybody gets into nonprofit work for the wealth,” Tames said. “We all get in it because we believe in what we do and we believe in the change that we can make in our community and the change that we can make in a single life.”

She added: “Even though in my role Iʼm not necessarily working with each of our neighbors every day, I can go home and know that the work that I do in raising funds for Catholic Charities, in raising awareness about Catholic Charities and the programs that we operate, is making a meaningful difference in somebody elseʼs life. You don’t get that everywhere.”

Tames shared that when it comes to the duck regatta, their hope “would be to increase the number of ducks … so that we can put more of those funds into the resources that we provide every year.”

The Irish-born priest is revered for his revolutionary approach to caring for homeless children in the 20th century, leading him to be declared “venerable” by Pope Leo XIV in March.

Following the advancement of Flanagan’s canonization cause, Thomas Lynch, who serves as the historian and director of community programs for Boys Town, told EWTN News that the priest’s life serves as an example of “how children can be treated and how to treat your fellow man too.”

“Venerable Father Flanagan was born and raised in Ireland in a very devout Catholic family, and he had a great devotion to helping people from the examples of his mother and father,” Lynch said.

He was born in County Galway in 1886 and moved to America in 1904. His journey through seminary was put on hold due to poor health, but he was eventually ordained in 1912.

While the priest is known for rescuing homeless children and housing them at Father Flanaganʼs Boys Home, his work went beyond aiding children at the village now known as Boys Town.

Flanagan had “special ideas and concepts in childcare … that were so radical,” but it came “from his concepts of being a Catholic priest of love and dignity for the individual,” Lynch said. “It changed the way children were treated around the world.”

Flanagan was “a great champion for civil rights,” Lynch said. “He traveled across America advocating equality regardless of a personʼs race or religion. He felt that [was] one of the greatest stains in America — any type of religious or racial discrimination.”

“Many people donʼt realize he went out of his way to help Japanese Americans during World War II. During the internment, he helped around 200 to 300 of them leave the camps and begin new lives, and he brought a number of them to live in the village of Boys Town.”

Creating Boys Town ‘with love’

“When Father Flanagan created Boys Town in 1917, unfortunately, in America, there were no childcare programs existing that were standard across the country,” Lynch said. “There were reform schools,” but they were “terrible places.”

In the schools, “children would commit suicide because the guards would be so violent,” he said. Many of the children were also in orphanages, but “when you became a teenager, you were expelled.”

To combat the issue, Flanagan “came forward and said: ‘Theyʼre going to live with me. Theyʼre going to have love, education, a spiritual life, and be taught a trade. Itʼll be done. No corporal punishment. No verbal abuse. Theyʼll live as a family.’”

To start Boys Town, Flanagan used “the borrowed $90 he had,” Lynch said. “He had no money and no one really believed in him except for a few people in the city of Omaha.”

“But he always said God would provide.”

At Boys Town, “he created one of the first intentionally integrated communities in America … and he did it all with love,” he said. “He referenced love almost every day, in every sermon, and in every prayer.”

Flanagan’s success caught the attention of people across the globe, leading his life and legacy to be immortalized in the 1938 movie “Boys Town,” starring Spencer Tracy, who won an Oscar for his portrayal of the priest.

Flanagan’s work was also esteemed by multiple presidents and leaders.

“President Franklin Roosevelt said America needed 49 more Father Flanagans, one for every state and territory, because his ideas were so far forward and proving successful,” Lynch said.

In 1947, Flanagan was even invited by Gen. Douglas MacArthur, who was leading the allied occupation of Japan, to review the child welfare conditions in Japan and Korea.

After the trip, Flanagan culminated a report, “Children of Defeat,” which included findings on the devastating conditions of children left homeless and abandoned by World War II across Asia. He presented it to President Harry Truman at the White House on July 11, 1947.

Flanagan was also invited to do a similar assessment in Austria and Germany the following year, but while in Germany Flanagan suffered a heart attack and died on May 15, 1948.

Following his death, Flanagan’s successors continued many of the same principles and practices of his celebrated work.

Flanagan’s principles still present today

Flanagan often said, “‘I do not have all the answers on childcare,’ but he learned from every child that came to him, and he did extensive research with children and families,” Lynch said.

Boys Town now operates nine sites including its home campus in Nebraska and locations in Florida, Iowa, Louisiana, Nevada, and New England.

"Itʼs the largest residential care facility in America” with “300 boys and girls living with us,” Lynch said.

The “programs we serve touch the lives of around 2 million children and families every year across the United States, through our medical programs, our counseling programs, [and] our psychiatric programs.”

“We do strategic planning, and we review our programs about every five years and determine whatʼs the next area we should move into based on whatʼs going on in society,” he said.

Boys Town offers in-home family services, “where we actually go into a home and work with a family that are having issues,” he said. It provides “foster care programming,” which “trains foster parents across America in the basic theories and concepts of Father Flanagan.”

To help students, Boys Town operates its Well-Managed Schools. Lynch said: “We teach schools and students the concepts of Father Flanagan — of respecting each other and how to get along in the classroom.”

Boys Town’s National Research Hospital offers aid and specialized care. It is  conducting “advanced work on autism and Parkinsonʼs disease” and “working with special MRI machines,” Lynch said.

The organization also started a residential treatment center to help families struggling with a troubled child who is experiencing behavior problems.

It’s for “boys and girls that canʼt live at home because … maybe theyʼre violent or have severe mental issues,” Lynch said.

Cause for canonization

“The cause for Father began many years ago; some of our alumni felt that Father Flanagan should be a saint in the Catholic Church,” Lynch said.

“When he created Boys Town, he created it on his Catholic theology, his training in his life,” Lynch said. “It is an example to the world of what Catholic teaching and theology can do to help the lives of not just children but society.”

“He took the Catholic tenets of love, inclusion, and acceptance, and he brought that to the care of children in America, when really no one had even thought of it before,” Lynch said.

In “2012, a Mass was held at Boys Town on St. Patrickʼs Day, and thatʼs when the Archdiocese of Omaha officially opened Father Flanaganʼs cause.”

Pope Leo XIV declared the “heroic virtue” of Flanagan alongside four other holy men and women on March 23, 2026.

Mehan is associate dean and professor of government studies at Hillsdale College’s Washington, D.C., campus. He holds a doctorate in literature from the University of Dallas and recently authored “The American Book of Fables,” a book for all ages that reflects Mehan’s desire to contribute to national renewal.

The fables are set in the American landscape, framed by the Declaration of Independence, and accompanied by historical documents illustrating the country’s history, complexity, and geographical regions.

In interviews with EWTN News, the author and scholar said the book grew out of his broader efforts to promote culture renewal through educational reform.

“In a sense, it is an unsurprisingly Catholic endeavor of ‘fides et ratio,’” he said. “I wanted something like in church, where there is a papal flag and an American flag, representing faith, morals, love of country, and love of neighbor.”

“I’ve always thought that way. I’ve also thought a lot about a combination of those things, with beautiful images and beautiful moral sentiments, and how those come together. So when the semiquinquicentennial was coming up, I thought it would be a great gift to the country.”

Mehan won the America 250 Innovation Prize from the Heritage Foundation for the work.

The educator and father of eight said he shares the concerns of many teachers and parents dismayed by the current culture and how education has failed to cultivate virtue, civic pride, and responsibility.

He and his wife founded a school cooperative in Reston, Virginia, that now has 38 participating families. He has also designed curricula for schools across the country.

The role of educators is essential, Mehan said, while noting that doctorates are now the equivalent of 19th-century master’s degrees in terms of academic formation.

“Catholic academics don’t know their own traditions very well,” he argued. “They know Greek philosophers, and the moderns who reject the Greco-Roman, Judeo-Christian, and Catholic vision of Western civilization and human nature, and may know the ‘Summa Theologica’ and St. Augustine. But what they don’t know is the poetical and rhetorical tradition which moves people toward a common vision, which is an indispensable part of good letters and a healthy citizenry.”

“And they don’t know the Romans,” he added. Drawing on the classical tradition, Mehan noted that Roman thinkers such as Cicero and Seneca prepared the “good soil,” the intellectual antecedents that inspired America’s founders.

“Cicero, for instance, was taught in all seminaries until the 1900s,” while Seneca was praised by St. Jerome, he said. And ideas found in Cicero were the underpinnings of the theory of natural rights that informed later Catholic philosophers.

Seneca’s “De Clementia,” for example, contributed to concepts of constitutional democracy and rights that shaped the American experiment in government. These classical authors, he argued, still have relevance and deserve renewed attention in universities and seminaries.

Asked about the future of Catholic education and how it can play a role in a national renewal, despite the closing of Catholic parishes and schools, Mehan said: “Catholic education is displaying a nascent energy.”

“It’s very dynamic and full of people who have reoriented education towards what the Christian humanists of the Catholic tradition understood as their goal, which is to help students have a clean conscience and thus have the most joyful life possible in this life and the next,” he said.

For Mehan, moral formation must take precedence over the mere transmission of information. He argued that Catholic education drifted from this mission in the 20th century as it increasingly followed secular models of education.

Subjects such as calculus, computer coding, and the sciences are valuable, he said, but they should not be the primary focus of Catholic schools.

“If you aim at them, ironically, you won’t get them. If you aim high, you’ll get the high and the low. If you aim for the low, you’ll get nothing. That is why education has collapsed except where the moral life is, ideally, centered around Christ.”

Catholics holding doctorates who complain that tenured positions at colleges and universities are scarce should look to K–12 schools to make national renewal a reality, Mehan said.

The renewal of Catholic education, and how it can contribute to national renewal, depends on placing Christ at the center and embracing the universal call to holiness emphasized by the Second Vatican Council, he argued.

Movements such as Opus Dei and the Neocatechumenal Way serve as “an enormous engine,” Mehan said, to plant holiness in students and encourage teachers themselves to be saints. It will change “how people teach, how they design curricula, and how they bring forward the richness of the Catholic faith and tradition.”

“Actually, I’m very hopeful,” he said.

To Catholics who may think of themselves as strangers in the United States, Mehan said: “No, brother, you built this too.”

“Your people, your religious tradition, are at home here,” he said. “And you are meant for republican self-government. Augustine’s ‘City of God’ laid the groundwork, St. Thomas Aquinas built the scaffolding, and St. Thomas More made it shine. American Catholics built this country with sweat, blood, and their arms.”

“This is your patrimony too,” he said.

The procession, which lasted two hours and 15 minutes, went by portions of the Freedom Trail, a 2 ½-mile-long red line of paint and bricks begun in 1951 that helps visitors find many of the most famous sites in the city, including many associated with the American Revolution.

Boston Archbishop Richard Henning pointed out to the crowd before the procession began that they would be walking by some of the most historic places in the country. But then he added: “We will make history.”

“Because this will be the first time that we journey along the Freedom Trail as the people of God, led by our Lord and savior, Jesus Christ,” Henning said.

A National Eucharistic Pilgrimage official estimated the crowd at 2,500 to 3,000. Archbishop Henning said later that whenever he turned around from the front he could never see the end of it in the back.

Jason Shanks, president of National Eucharistic Congress, which oversees the National Eucharistic Pilgrimage, said the crowd in Boston was the largest since this year’s version up the East Coast began May 24 in St. Augustine, Florida.

“It was a beautiful moment to see the people of God sort of show up for Jesus, and you could really hear their voices,” Shanks said during a press conference Saturday afternoon at the Cathedral of the Holy Cross in the South End of Boston.

Hymns and prayers through a portable loudspeaker were led by Polish, Latino, Vietnamese, and Cape Verdean groups, among others, along with English speakers.

Participants experienced the sights and sounds of the city. When Archbishop Henning spoke at the beginning, near the visitors center on Boston Common, he occasionally competed with a jackhammer on nearby Tremont Street.

The beginning point was about a two-minute walk from where another group of organizers was setting up a Hare Krishna festival, and about a three-minute walk away from where St. John Paul II celebrated Mass on Oct. 1, 1979 before an estimated 1 million people in the pouring rain.

Saturday’s procession included a portion of the route on Commercial Street that the canonized pope took in an open vehicle through the North End more than 46 years ago.

The procession also proceeded from the top of Old South Meeting House, the former Congregational church (now museum) where the Boston Tea Party began in December 1773, and on a house in Charlestown, near where the Battle of Bunker Hill took place in June 1775.

The walk began on Boston Common at about 10 a.m. amid sunny skies and with the temperature at 72 degrees, with a slight breeze. It turned warmer as the morning went on. Unseasonal fog covered large portions of Boston Harbor near the North End, but procession route remained clear, with high visibility.

Participants said the first three decades of the Joyful Mysteries of the rosary on waterside sidewalks along Commercial Street, near where the molasses flood of January 1919 killed 21 people after a poorly constructed tank collapsed during a thaw.

As the rosary blared out over an artificial turf field along the harbor, players on a women’s softball team occasionally looked away from a team huddle to watch. A short distance to the north, sunbathers on the outfield grass of a Little League field also took notice.

The people

EWTN News spoke with several participants, including some who noted that the United States is about to celebrate the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence on July 4.

Nancy Goggin, a parishioner of Immaculate Conception and St. James in Stoughton, which is southwest of Boston, was asked why she came.

“Because I love our Lord. And I just think it’s really such a beautiful thing to celebrate our 250th anniversary of the country in this way,” Goggin said. “To process with Jesus through the Thirteen Colonies is so important.”

English Puritans who wanted to purify the Church of England from all Catholic influences founded Boston in 1630 and laid out Boston Common, where the Eucharistic pilgrimage began, in 1634. Goggin was asked what the Puritans would make of a Catholic procession of the Blessed Sacrament.

Goggin, who was passing out rosaries as a member of the World Apostolate of Fatima, said she is a descendant of an English Separatist Puritan who sailed to the then-new Plymouth Colony in the early 1620s, not long after the Pilgrims arrived.

“They came here for religious freedom, and they came here to worship God,” she said. “And so I think it’s really fitting.”

Asked what she hoped will come from the Eucharistic procession, she corrected the question.

“It’s not ‘come from it.’ It’s happening,” she said. “There’s a resurgence in the Catholic Church that is so beautiful. So many people are entering.”

Tho Dinh, 57, who lives in Quincy, attended with a contingent from St. Ambrose, a Vietnamese parish in Dorchester, which is the largest section of Boston.

He told EWTN News he left Vietnam as one of the Boat People after Communist North Vietnam took over South Vietnam, spending three years in a refugee camp in Malaysia and then six months in the Philippines learning English and American culture before coming to Boston in September 1991.

“We have to worship God and thank God for all the blessings we have,” Dinh said, explaining why he came for the procession.

He said a Eucharistic procession far from church has different meaning from ordinary parish worship.

“It’s community, so it’s more connection. It’s unity of the Church, so it’s good,” he said.

“We hope for peace in the world. And we pray for peace, and people unified with each other,” Dinh said. “We hope for a better future for young children. And people coming back to the Church.”

Valentina Zamora, 15, a member of St. Anthony’s in Everett, whose parents are from El Salvador, said she hoped the faith would become “stronger than it already is” because of the procession.

She also told EWTN News the outdoor setting, which included the grass and trees and hills of Boston Common, was a good place for it.

“Because this is what God created, so it would be nice to hear more about God in his creation,” she said.

Marice Moline, 57, of St. Michael the Archangel Parish in Winthrop, said the procession offers people a chance to see Jesus in the Eucharist who might not otherwise see him.

“It’s an opportunity for public display of Christ,” Moline said.

“To remind people that there’s hope. To remind people that there’s something greater in the world than themselves right now,” she added.

Filomena Brandao, 69, of Randolph, who told EWTN News she came to the United States from Cape Verde alone at age 22, said she came to the Eucharistic procession in Boston partly out of patriotism.

“Because we’re celebrating independence — 250 years. All the history, all the stories. As an immigrant, I wanted to experience it much more,” said Brandao, who now has a husband, four children, and six grandchildren.

“We have a lot to thank God for,” she said.