Bishop Kevin Kenney shared a message of peace, joy and healing during a Mass April 23 at the Cathedral of St. Paul in St. Paul welcoming a statue of the Blessed Virgin Mary from Mexico City — the Madre Peregrina — to the Twin Cities.

Translated in English to Pilgrim Mother, the Madre Peregrina is a three-dimensional, life-sized replica of the image of Our Lady of Guadalupe left on St. Juan Diego’s tilma in 1531 in Mexico City. The statue is on a worldwide tour from the Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe in Mexico City as the 500th anniversary of the apparition of Mary approaches.

The statue was installed at the Cathedral April 22 and will remain there until April 26, when it will be moved to Incarnation in Minneapolis from April 27 to May 10.

Before coming to the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis, the statue was in Stevens Point, Wisconsin, the last of seven Wisconsin cities that were part of the tour.  Archbishop Bernard Hebda presided at Mass at the Cathedral, with Bishop Kevin Kenney doing the homily and concelebrating with Bishop Michael Izen. A local mariachi band provided the music.

In his homily, Bishop Kenney said the Madre Peregrina statue in the Twin Cities is like Mary visiting Elizabeth. She comes with news of hope and joy, the bishop said.

“Our Lady of Guadalupe appears as an Indigenous woman, pregnant, because she wanted the Church, the new world, to give hope to all peoples. She wanted peace to exist. She wanted people to see that they were all children,” Bishop Kenney said.

Having the statue travel to New York City, Chicago, Milwaukee and other cities in the United States indicates the nation needs the Blessed Virgin Mary’s intercession, Bishop Kenney said.

“(Madre Peregrina) has been traveling throughout the U.S. for the last few months,” Bishop Kenney said. “Back in October, we received an invitation for her to stop here. We accepted that invitation, but at the end of November, when (Operation) Metro Surge started in the Twin Cities, we decided that it wasn’t the time for her to come. So as temperatures went down in the area, she was in Wisconsin (and) we said yes.”

After Mass and a video that told the story of Mary appearing to St. Juan Diego, two long lines of people formed to venerate the statue. One volunteer, Marie Zellner, helped usher people up the stairs to the sanctuary and the statue. Zellner wore a broach on her collar depicting the image of Our Lady of Guadalupe. She got the broach while visiting the real tilma at the Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe.

“She touches your heart, for sure,” Zellner said, admiring the statue from one of the front pews. “Especially if you’ve been to the basilica (in Mexico City). There’s nothing like it.”

Two friends, Aiden Schmidt and Luther Steen, attended Mass at the Cathedral April 23. Schmidt was confirmed on Easter 2026. Steen isn’t a practicing Catholic but said he attends a lot of events and Mass at the Cathedral with Schmidt.

“We were going to come to Mass anyways,” Schmidt said. “We completely forgot that there was going to be Our Lady of Guadalupe until we came in here,” he said. “We were caught completely by surprise.”

Together, after Mass, the two friends wrote prayer petitions on a strip of white ribbon and brought the prayers to a basket set before the statue.

The strips of white ribbons were available to anyone who wished to write their prayer intentions. The ribbons will be delivered to the Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe in Mexico City where St. Juan Diego’s tilma is kept for veneration.

Estela Villagrán Manancero, the director of the archdiocese’s Office of Latino Ministry, said she brought 10 spools of white ribbon thinking it would be enough for one night. But 10 spools were not enough.

Our Lady of Guadalupe holds a special place in Zellner’s life. She’s a parishioner of Our Lady of Guadalupe (OLG) in St. Paul and took pilgrimages to Mexico City — her parents’ birthplace — with Bishop Kenney when he was pastor of OLG. She’s visited the basilica and tilma throughout her life, often traveling with her husband.

“My husband died a year ago … it was one of the many beautiful things that we did together,” Zellner said. “As a Catholic family, we brought our kids every now and then, but mainly just he and I, we would go as often as we could to Mexico City. It holds very special meaning to me, because he was with me at that time.”

She looked up at the statue again, and said, “I know now she’s taking care of him up there. And my mom and dad. The four us went a lot (to Mexico City). It was always beautiful.”

Zellner has four children, 10 grandchildren and 10 great-grandchildren.

The feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe is Dec. 12, honoring the Virgin Mary’s appearance to St. Juan Diego. On that day at OLG, a statue of Mary is given a crown made of gold. Years ago, Zellner said, her uncle from Mexico City made that crown of gold. It was presented during a Mass with Bishop Kenney, then the pastor, presiding.

“My mom and dad presented it at the altar, and it was blessed,” Zellner said. “That same crown is at Our Lady of Guadalupe church now, and she’s crowned every year with that crown on December 12.”

Zellner used to lead summer faith formation programs at OLG. Schoolchildren from around the Twin Cities were bused to the parish. She shared the history of Our Lady of Guadalupe and told the story of the apparition.

“It was always a lot of fun to do,” Zellner said. “Our Lady is rooted deeply in me.”

Zellner recruited her coworker at the Minnesota Twins ticket office, Dawn Belko, a parishioner of St. Gerard Majella in Brooklyn Park, to volunteer with her to help during the statue’s stay at the Cathedral. She told Belko, “Okay, you’re going to learn about Our Lady of Guadalupe.”

In addition to the statue placed in the Cathedral’s sanctuary, a side chapel held two large paintings of St. Juan Diego and the image of Our Lady of Guadalupe on his tilma. People were invited to pray there as well. Free rosaries were blessed and available for all who wanted one.

Zellner said she hopes to travel back to see the tilma but hasn’t been able to in recent years.

“With the troubles that this world is in these days, it’s a little difficult to travel. It’s been kind of scary to travel, so that has stopped me these last probably four, five years, but I sure would love to (visit again),” she said.

“We know of the protection of Our Lady, we know of the love of her son, Jesus Christ,” Bishop Kenney said during his homily. “Let us pray for that peace, let us pray for that hope, the healing that so many in today’s world need, but especially here in our archdiocese.”

Fernando Mendoza often talks about the importance of setting his priorities straight.

On the biggest night of his football life, he proved it.

Mendoza — a committed Catholic, the 2026 Heisman Trophy winner and the quarterback who led Indiana University to its first NCAA Division I national championship — became the No. 1 overall pick in the NFL draft on April 23, selected by the Las Vegas Raiders.

But while the football world gathered in the draft’s host city of Pittsburgh, Mendoza chose not to attend. Instead, he remained home in Miami, surrounded by family and close to the person who has shaped him most: his mother.

After NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell announced the pick, Mendoza was unavailable for interviews. That absence spoke for itself.

“I wanted to stay and make the memory with everybody who poured into my football journey,” Mendoza said on “The Rich Eisen Show” on April 20. “Mentors, coaches, family, friends. Being able to share that memory with all of them is going to be the best memory that I can make, rather than limit it to 10 or 12 people in Pittsburgh.”

For Mendoza, this was not simply a career milestone. It was a moment of gratitude and presence.

At the center of that decision was his mother, Elsa, who has long battled multiple sclerosis, an autoimmune disease that affects the central nervous system and has confined her to a wheelchair. The physical strain and logistics of travel made the choice practical.

“It’s a lot easier for us with the family situation,” he said.

But the reasoning goes deeper.

“I see her fighting every single day, and with a smile on her face,” Mendoza told Eisen. “So there’s no excuse for me to have a bad day, bad play or bad game. I’m always trying to have an optimistic approach, give the best and serve the best to my teammates.”

That perspective — shaped not by highlight reels but by daily witness — forms the foundation of his life. It is inseparable from his Catholic faith, which he practices openly and consistently.

Among the on-field vignettes that define Mendoza, back on Jan. 19 at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, Mendoza delivered one of the defining moments in recent college football history. Facing fourth-and-four at the 12-yard line in the national championship game, he ran into a wall of defenders, absorbed multiple hits, and dragged himself across the goal line for a touchdown that helped secure a 27–21 victory and cap a perfect 16-0 season.

Moments later, amid the celebration, he redirected the spotlight.

“This moment is bigger than me,” he said. “First, I want to thank God.”

It was not a one-time sentiment.

At the Heisman Trophy ceremony on Dec. 13 in New York City, Mendoza again placed faith at the forefront.

“First, I want to thank God for giving me the opportunity to chase a dream that once felt a world away,” he said, his voice breaking.

Then he turned to his mother.

“Mami, this is your trophy as much as it is mine,” he said. “You’ve always been my biggest fan. You’re my light. You’re my ‘Why.’ You’re my biggest supporter. Your sacrifice, courage, love — those have been my first playbook, and the playbook that I’m gonna carry through my entire life.

“You taught me that toughness doesn’t need to be loud. It can be quiet and strong. It’s choosing hope. It’s believing in yourself when the world doesn’t give you much reason to.”

Those words reflect a path shaped by patience and resilience. Mendoza was a two-star recruit out of Christopher Columbus High School in Miami, a Catholic school run by the Marist Brothers.

After beginning his college career at the University of California, Berkeley, Mendoza transferred to Indiana, where he became the centerpiece of a remarkable turnaround. Just two years removed from a 3–9 season, the Hoosiers surged to a national championship with Mendoza leading the way.

His arrival in the NFL carries similar expectations. The Raiders have struggled for stability at quarterback. Mendoza steps into that uncertainty as a potential cornerstone — a player expected to restore direction to a franchise searching for it.

Yet for all the pressure that comes with being the top pick, Mendoza’s identity remains unchanged.

Those close to him describe a steady, lived faith. He reportedly prays the rosary every Friday, listens to Mass before games, and avoids hype music to maintain focus. He attends Mass regularly and embraces the sacraments not as routine, but as grounding.

Dominican Father Patrick Hyde, pastor of St. Paul Catholic Center at Indiana University, has seen that consistency firsthand.

“Fernando backs up his talk on TV by giving glory to God at Sunday Mass,” Father Hyde wrote on X. “He shows up out of love for God, not human praise.”

On Christmas Eve, Mendoza brought his Heisman Trophy to St. Paul Catholic Center — not for display, but as an act of gratitude.

Weeks later, after the national championship, he stood on the field again — confetti falling, history secured — and embraced his mother. Both were in tears.

“I want to give all the glory and thanks to God,” he said.

In an era defined by spectacle and self-promotion, Mendoza’s draft-night choice stood in quiet contrast.

No stage. No spotlight.

Just home.

John Knebels writes for OSV News from suburban Philadelphia.

The Basilica Block Party music festival — which began in 1995 and was a staple of the Twin Cities’ music scene — had its final run in 2024, organizers recently announced on the festival’s website.

“For over 25 years, the Basilica Block Party brought together an extraordinary spirit of music and community in the Twin Cities,” the announcement read at basilicablockparty.org. “We are deeply grateful for the fans, the artists, and the support shown for our beloved Basilica. The final Block Party was held in 2024, concluding an incredible run and leaving a lasting legacy in our community.”

The annual event raised funds for the Basilica of St. Mary’s structural needs and was held near the Minneapolis church. Over the years, acts included Ryan Adams, Weezer, Motion City Soundtrack, Spoon and the Avett Brothers.

In 2024, the Goo Goo Dolls, The Fray, Counting Crows, NeedToBreathe, Dean Lewis and Judah and the Lion performed at Boom Island Park in Minneapolis. In addition to structural restoration at the Basilica, proceeds went to the parish’s St. Vincent de Paul outreach, including care for those experiencing homelessness.

The event was canceled in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic but returned in September 2021. Organizers said attendance was down that year as COVID-19 uncertainties continued. Organizers placed the festival on hiatus in 2022 and 2023 as they sought “to reimagine the event for future years.”

According to organizers, the Basilica Block Party was one of the longest-running nonprofit music festivals in the United States.

This spring, the U.S. will see more than 400 men ordained to the priesthood, both diocesan and religious.

What does the latest generation of priests in the U.S. look like, and what factors have shaped their vocation?

To find out, OSV News examined data from the Ordination Class of 2026 Study, conducted by the Center for Applied Research in the Apostolate at Georgetown University.

The annual report, which CARA has overseen since 2006, is commissioned by the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ Committee on Clergy, Consecrated Life and Vocations.

Of the 428 ordinands asked to participate in the Feb. 12-March 20 survey, 334 (78%) responded to CARA.

As in previous years, the latest findings — announced by the USCCB in an April 21 press release — come ahead of the World Day of Prayer for Vocations, observed on the Fourth Sunday of Easter (April 26), which is also known as Good Shepherd Sunday in the Latin Church. The Gospel passage (Jn 10:1-10) for the Mass highlights Jesus’ role as the Good Shepherd.

Here are the top 10 takeaways from CARA’s report:

1. Sixteen is the average age for first considering a priestly vocation.

About half of the survey respondents said they were between the ages of 3 and 16 when they first considered the priesthood, with another half between 16 and 51, for an average age of 16.

But that age was slightly higher for those about to be ordained as priests in religious orders, who were typically 18 when they first thought about the vocation. Half of that cohort was between 3 and 19 years old, and the other half between 19 and 39 years old.

More than one third (39%) of ordinands first contemplated the priesthood while they were still in elementary school, between the ages of 6 and 13.

2. The newest priests will mostly be in their early 30s at the time of their ordination.

The current class of ordinands will, on average, be 33 years old when they are ordained, with half between 26 and 31 years old, and the other half between 31 and 75 years old.

Almost half (49%) of this year’s ordinands are 30 years or younger, with 38% between the ages of 31-40 years old. The latter age group represents 59% of religious institute ordinands, in contrast to 33% of their diocesan counterparts — a difference CARA noted was “statistically significant.”

Most of the ordinands (62%) identified themselves as white, with 17% identifying as Hispanic or Latino, 11% Asian or Pacific Islander, 5% Black or African American, and 2% listing another ethnicity.

3. More than 25% of this year’s class were born outside of the U.S.

More than one quarter of this year’s ordination class was born outside of the U.S. Of those participating in the survey, 26% said they had been born outside of the U.S., with the most common nations listed as Vietnam (5%), Mexico (3%) and Colombia (2%). CARA noted the class of 2026 hailed from 30 different nations.

4. Eucharistic adoration, the rosary, and prayer/Bible groups top the list of prayer practices prior to seminary.

A majority of survey respondents — 81% overall — said they spent time in prayer before the Blessed Sacrament. Diocesan ordinands were somewhat more likely to cite Eucharistic adoration (83%) than their religious order counterparts (75%), but the practice was in the majority for both cohorts.

Close behind adoration was the rosary — 79% overall, with 81% of the diocesan and 70% of the religious order respondents listing the devotion.

Prayer and Bible groups were named by just over half (52%) of those surveyed, with religious order respondents (59%) more likely than diocesan ordinands (50%) to name such practices.

Generally, lectio divina (48%), high school retreats (44%) and college retreats (29%) also proved formative.

5. Most of this year’s class had been altar servers before entering the seminary.

A majority of the survey respondents (79%) said they had been altar servers prior to the seminary, with 81% of diocesan and 72% of religious order participants citing that ministry.

Ordination class members also served as lectors (49%), extraordinary ministers of holy Communion (35%), campus or youth ministers (34%) and catechists (32%).

6. At least one person encouraged them to consider the priesthood — and it was usually a parish priest.

Almost all (92%) of this year’s ordination class said they had been encouraged by at least one person to consider becoming a priest. Overall, 70% of the survey respondents said that person was a parish priest, followed by a friend (49%), mother (46%), parishioner (44%) and father (37%).

Less than half (41%) were discouraged from entering the seminary by another family member (22%), friends or classmates (17%), a mother or father (12% each.)

7. Most of the new priests come from two-parent, multi-sibling Catholic homes, and were baptized Catholic as infants.

Overall, 93% of those surveyed said they had been baptized Catholic as infants, a figure that represents 94% of the diocesan and 89% of the religious order ordinands. The latter group had a higher rate (11%) of those who became Catholic later in life.

A majority (86%) of the 2026 class said both of their parents were Catholic — 88% for the diocesan cohort, and 81% for the religious order ordinands. CARA predicted that if the current trend holds, that overall number is expected to reach 88% in 2031.

Almost all of the 2026 class members (97%) said they’d been raised by at least one biological parent, and 88% reported being raised by a married couple, living together. Another 5% lived with one parent who was separated or divorced, and 2% with a widowed parent during the most formative part of their childhood.

Another 2% were raised by an unmarried couple living together; those who were raised by an unmarried or married couple living separately, a single unmarried parent, or another individual each totaled about 1%.

The newest priests typically had three siblings, and the largest share (37%) were somewhere in the middle in terms of birth order, with just 5% reporting they were only children.

8. Not all of the class went to Catholic school — but more than 60% attended a parish religious education program.

Overall, 45% of the ordination class attended a Catholic elementary school, with fewer attending a Catholic high school (38%) or college (34%). Another 11% reported they were homeschooled.

A majority of the survey respondents (63%) said they had participated in a parish religious education program. Diocesan ordinands (66%) were more likely to have done so than their religious order counterparts (51%).

9. More than half earned a degree and worked full-time before entering the seminary.

Three in five of the survey respondents, or 61%, said they had received an undergraduate or graduate degree before they entered the seminary. Philosophy, theology, engineering, business, science and math were the most common fields of study.

CARA found that 64% of ordinands had at least some full-time work experience prior to the seminary. Top fields listed were church ministry (18%), education (17%), business (15%), and sales and customer service (12%). One third (33%) of those in the religious order cohort who had worked full time cited education as their field.

10. Educational debt, though significant for some, wasn’t an issue for most when they entered the seminary.

A majority of respondents (79%) said they did not have educational debt when they entered seminary formation. Those who did averaged just over $33,000 in debt, with half having anywhere from $2,000-$25,000, and the other half carrying $25,000-$150,000 in balances.

At the time of their ordination, those with educational debt had balances averaging slightly over $22,000, with one half reporting between $800-$11,500 and the other half anywhere from $11,500 to $150,000. Family members (65%) provided the main assistance in paying down educational debt, followed by religious communities (29%), the Labouré Society (19%), the Knights of Columbus (16%), parishes (10%) and friends or coworkers (10%).

Gina Christian is a multimedia reporter for OSV News.

As supporters of Maryknoll Father Vincent Capodanno’s canonization cause marked the 60th anniversary of the late Navy chaplain’s arrival in Vietnam in 1966, there was renewed hope that the effort was gaining momentum.

The Dicastery for the Causes of Saints is expected to decide whether to recommend to Pope Leo XIV that he declare Father Capodanno venerable in May. In the meantime, Archbishop Timothy P. Broglio of the U.S. Archdiocese for the Military Services approved the creation of a novena for Father Capodanno’s cause.

While the novena took place from March 30 to April 7, to coincide with Holy Week, Father Daniel Mode, who wrote the novena, encourages the faithful to continue to pray it.

“It was an honor to do that,” said Father Mode, a Navy chaplain who is part of the historical committee for the canonization cause. “You can pray (the novena) anytime between now and May, or even after May,” he told The Tablet, the news outlet of the Diocese of Brooklyn.

Father Mode wrote the novena with the Father Vincent Capodanno Guild, a 4,000-member organization helping to promote the cause.

Father Capodanno, a Staten Island native who served as a chaplain during the Vietnam War and was killed in 1967, was declared a “servant of God” in 2006, when his sainthood cause was officially opened. If he is declared venerable, it would mark the second step in his cause.

In general for the next two steps, beatification and canonization, a miracle for each step must be accepted by the church as having occurred through the intercession of the prospective saint.

Father Capodanno arrived in Vietnam during Holy Week in April 1966 and earned the nickname of “The Grunt Padre” for his insistence on living, eating and sleeping in the same conditions as the Marines — known as grunts — with whom he was serving.

He was killed by enemy fire while trying to shield a wounded corpsman with his body during an attack by the North Vietnamese in the Que Son Valley in central Vietnam on Sept. 4, 1967.

His sainthood cause was officially opened on May 19, 2006, by the U.S. Archdiocese for the Military Services, USA, with Father Mode as the original postulator. At that time, he began the process of putting together the “positio” — the primary document to be presented to the Vatican outlining why the person is deserving of sainthood.

Among the documents used for the “positio” was Father Mode’s book “The Grunt Padre: Father Vincent Capodanno, Vietnam 1966-1967,” published in 2000.

“As you can imagine, it is a huge document that includes everything; testimonials, baptismal certificates, timelines,” Father Mode said of the “positio.”

However, the dicastery suspended the canonization process in May 2022 and requested additional information about Father Capodanno, he noted.

Specifically, the dicastery wanted to know more about his life as a priest, “because there were questions about his obedience,” Father Mode told The Tablet. In addition, the dicastery wanted to know about his relationship with his superiors and whether his final sacrifice — using his body to shield an injured Marine from gunfire — was really a free spiritual offer from the heart or simply a patriotic gesture.

To answer the questions, Archbishop Broglio established a second historical commission (the first one was originally formed at the start of the canonization process), which got to work.

The second commission’s answers were submitted in May 2024.

As he awaits the dicastery’s decision, Father Mode said he is optimistic.

“I am always hopeful,” he added.

Mary Preece, vice postulator for Father Capodanno’s cause, said she is hopeful as well. “He walked among us and radiated Christ to so many,” she told The Tablet. “It is us who would benefit from naming him as a saint. But ultimately, God decides.”

Paula Katinas is senior reporter at The Tablet, newspaper of the Diocese of Brooklyn. This story was first published in The Tablet and distributed in partnership with OSV News. Gina Christian, multimedia reporter for OSV News, contributed to this report.

Christians in Pakistan are protesting a controversial court ruling that upheld the marriage of a 13-year-old Christian girl to a 30-year-old Muslim man, a case widely known as “Maria’s case.” The girl’s family says she was abducted and forcibly converted.

In response, OSV News learned, the federal government has quietly formed a 37-member national committee — including Catholic and Protestant bishops — to review the case and propose safeguards against forced conversions and marriages.

Officials said committee members have been notified, but a formal announcement “will be issued later,” Akmal Bhatti, a Catholic lawyer and one of the committee members, told OSV News.

On March 25, the Federal Constitutional Court validated the Islamic marriage of a 13-year-old Christian girl, Maria Shahbaz, from Lahore, the capital of Punjab province, to a 30-year-old Muslim man. Maria’s father had filed a petition in court stating that his daughter was abducted in July 2025 and forcibly converted to Islam.

The ruling sparked backlash, with human rights organizations, Church leaders and politicians warning it could set a dangerous precedent.

Alongside Christian political and human rights groups, Catholic bishops organized protest gatherings to voice their concerns over the verdict. On April 10, during a protest rally in southern Punjab, Bishop Yousaf Sohan of Multan condemned the forced conversion and marriage of minor girls from minority communities and called for “justice for Maria.”

Earlier, in a pastoral letter dated April 3, Archbishop Khalid Rehmat of Lahore expressed anguish over the decision, calling it “profoundly disturbing” and “unacceptable.” As head of the country’s largest Catholic diocese, he said the court ruling “represents not only a grave failure of justice in Maria’s case but also sends a dangerous message that undermines the rule of law and weakens protections for vulnerable minority girls across the country.”

Seeking to reassure the Christian community during an Easter gathering in Lahore, Attaullah Tarar, the federal minister for information and broadcasting, promised that the government would address the issue.

Safraz Clement, a Catholic political leader, said that the kidnapping, forced conversion and forced marriage of Christian girls — many of them minors — remain major concerns for non-Muslim citizens. Religious minorities, including Christians, along with human rights organizations, have consistently raised their voices against these abuses affecting a highly marginalized community.

Speaking to OSV News, he said, “Nearly 1,000 non-Muslim women and girls, many of them minors, fall victim each year to forced conversions and marriages in Pakistan.”

According to the Center for Social Justice, a Christian human rights organization based in Lahore, 83 cases of abduction and forced conversion involving Christian girls — including minors — were reported in Punjab province alone in 2024, with many more likely unreported.

In a related development, on April 13, the Punjab Assembly’s Standing Committee on Local Government and Community Development approved a bill setting the minimum marriage age at 18 for both genders under the Child Marriage Restraint Bill 2026. Some conservative Islamic members opposed the measure, arguing it contradicts social and religious Islamic realities.

Father Khalid Rashid Asi, diocesan director of the National Catholic Commission for Justice and Peace in Faisalabad, welcomed the development regarding efforts to curb forced marriages of Christian girls. Speaking to OSV News, he emphasized that Church leaders, theologians and other stakeholders should be consulted on such matters.

Currently, Sindh, Balochistan, and the Islamabad Capital Territory have set the minimum marriage age at 18 for girls, while in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province the minimum age remains 16.

Aftab Alexander Mughal writes for OSV News from London.

A Connecticut diocese has a new fundraising officer on its team, and her name is Maria — but don’t expect to find her sitting at a desk in the pastoral center or making the rounds at parishes.

That’s because she was generated by artificial intelligence.

“We are piloting an AI Virtual Engagement Officer, Maria, to help us discern how technology may support deeper connection and accompaniment,” Bishop Frank J. Caggiano of Bridgeport said in a statement posted to the diocese’s dedicated webpage announcing the initiative earlier this month.

“Technology, when used wisely, becomes a tool of evangelization,” said Bishop Caggiano. “Today, our mission field includes the digital world and artificial intelligence.”

Maria is the centerpiece of a pilot program the diocese has launched to enhance its development strategy — an AI-generated agent who will contact program participants to gauge their pastoral and charitable donation interests, and then connect them with flesh-and-blood diocesan staffers for further follow-up.

Members of the diocese can opt in to participate in the pilot — set to run from one to two years — by providing their name, mobile phone number and parish via the program’s webpage.

“Maria will help us learn how digital tools can deepen our listening and foster more personal responses, while always keeping human relationships at the heart of the Church’s mission,” said Bishop Caggiano in his statement.

The agent was developed in collaboration with the Boston-based firm Givzey, which in 2024 rolled out the autonomous fundraising platform Version2.ai.

The platform uses virtual engagement officers, or VEOs, to expand and streamline donor engagement efforts — something The Catholic University of America did last year when it debuted a Version2.ai-created VEO named Grace.

Transparency is key to that process, said Deacon Patrick Toole, the diocese’s chancellor and secretary of the curia.

“We make it very clear when you’re contacted that Maria is a virtual agent, and that you can decide to opt in and receive messages from Maria or not,” said Deacon Toole. Prior to joining the diocesan staff in 2018, the deacon worked for more than three decades at tech giant IBM, receiving one of the company’s highest technical honors in 2017 for his work.

Maria’s name and blue blazer are a nod to the diocese’s consecration to the Immaculate Heart of Mary, and to Bishop Caggiano’s “deep devotion to Our Lady,” Deacon Toole told OSV News.

The agent’s facial features invoke an array of ethnicities, including Latino, Black, and Italian, reflecting the “really beautiful, diverse” and “magnificent” makeup of the diocese, the deacon said.

“We tried to work with the company to develop someone who could be identifiable with many, many different groups,” Deacon Toole said.

He noted that the pilot program is capped at 1,000 participants, a ratio set by Givzey to allow for optimum human oversight.

“Technologically, an AI agent could speak with a million people,” said Deacon Toole. But with that reach, “there’s no way we could have all of the checks and balances that they and we desire,” he cautioned.

Deacon Toole also stressed that Maria, as a VEO who will communicate through text and email, is not designed to provide any kind of counsel or theological insight — and her human counterparts will swiftly respond to any interactions indicating the need for such support.

“If someone is identified as being in crisis, we need to get them to the appropriate people or authorities immediately. That’s ‘Ministry 101,'” he said.

Bishop Caggiano dedicated the April 15 episode of his podcast “Let Me Be Frank” to an hour-long discussion of the AI initiative, with Deacon Toole and Emily Groccia, Givzey’s vice president of customer success.

The group detailed how the pilot program works, and addressed several moral and ethical questions posed by the use of AI in general.

Speaking during the podcast, Groccia distinguished between AI powered by LLMs, or large language models — such as ChatGPT and Claude, which provide responses to user-generated prompts — and autonomous AI, which allows for the completion of multi-step tasks.

She said the autonomous AI on which VEO platforms rely helps to compensate for the gap between the number of potential donors and fundraising staff. She noted “only about 3% of nonprofit supporters” have actual contact with a fundraiser at an organization they support.

“Organizations could never have a fundraiser for every donor,” said Groccia, adding that VEOs offer “an experience that feels more similar to what those 3% are getting.”

Groccia stressed that this kind of autonomous AI is “additive”: It does not replace a human person, a fundraiser in her example, but it is helping them address an unmet need and has human oversight.

“It’s expanding your team. It’s giving your current supporters something that they could not be getting with humans,” she said.

At the same time, she said, “you have to figure out, ‘How is my autonomous AI going to work in partnership with my humans?'”

Bishop Caggiano — who joked he was “technologically a Neanderthal” — said that concerns over whether autonomous AI could “ever get to the point where it could resist human control” were not related to the diocesan VEO pilot program.

However, he said, that possibility is among the reasons Pope Leo XIV has prioritized AI as an issue for moral and theological reflection.

During the podcast episode, Deacon Toole highlighted the importance of the information on which an AI initiative is trained to interact with humans.

“I think the Holy Father has concerns there, because if you look at some of these general tools, they’re pulling in totally unbridled information from around the globe, and it could be very biased,” said the deacon.

Speaking to OSV News, Deacon Toole said Maria will have the support of her real-life diocesan coworkers.

“We’re blessed with a great team,” he said, “and they were unanimous in that they would like to try this pilot to extend their reach, so that we can reach more people.”

Gina Christian is a multimedia reporter for OSV News.

In letters to Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney and all members of Parliament from the Toronto area, Cardinal Frank Leo asked that they “choose life and not death” and build a civilization that cares when voting on the Right to Recover Act.

The measure, Bill C-218, proposes to amend Canada’s criminal code to permanently prohibit medical assistance in dying, or MAiD, for individuals solely living with a mental illness. The bill aims to reverse the scheduled March 17, 2027, expansion of MAiD eligibility.

Parliament was supposed to debate the legislation in April, but its order of precedence in the House has been pushed back. No date for debate has been set. The measure was introduced last year by Tamara Jansen, a Conservative member of Canada’s Parliament.

In his April 20 letters, Cardinal Leo, Toronto’s archbishop, reminded the prime minister and MPs that a society “is rightly judged” by its care for its most vulnerable members. He said many Canadians are “increasingly troubled” by the expansion of MAiD since legislation was passed legalizing the practice in 2016.

Since then, 100,000 lives have been ended through a medically assisted death as Canada has blown through the original safeguards that would have seen MAiD administered only for someone facing an imminent death.

“Our Catholic faith opposes the taking of any life and it is with great disappointment and anguish that we have seen our country expand (MAiD) at a rapid and alarming rate,” Cardinal Leo wrote. Assisted suicide and euthanasia, he told Carney and MPs, are “contrary to the dignity of the human person.”

Cardinal Leo and the Archdiocese of Toronto are the driving force behind the nationwide Help Not Harm campaign, launched in March. This campaign calls for a letter-writing drive to MPs to vote in favor of Bill C-218.

“We are encouraging parishes and faithful to continue their efforts through the month of April and until a date for the vote is announced,” Neil MacCarthy, director of public relations and communications, told The Catholic Register, Canada’s national Catholic newspaper based in Toronto.

By mid-April, some 5,000 letters had been sent through the Help Not Harm portal.

“There is growing anxiety that the normalization and expansion of assisted suicide risks undermining a culture of compassion, weakening investments in palliative support and diminishing the collective commitment to accompany those suffering,” wrote Cardinal Leo.

The cardinal also called on Carney to allow Liberal MPs a free vote when C-218 comes before Parliament.

“This legislation raises profound questions of conscience that transcend partisan alignment and touch on deeply held moral, ethical and spiritual convictions,” Cardinal Leo wrote. “I ask you to choose life and not death; to help build a civilization that cares for those suffering and does not eliminate them, but instead surrounds them with dignity, compassion and love.”

He also asked Carney and Minister of Justice Sean Fraser that they “consider measures that restrict any further expansion of assisted suicide in our country and instead prioritize investments in palliative care, mental health support and resources for those who are increasingly marginalized and isolated, especially seniors and Canadians living with disabilities.”

The Catholic Register is Canada’s national Catholic newspaper based in Toronto. This story was originally published by the Register and distributed through a partnership with OSV News.

Pope Leo XIV said on the papal plane April 23 that the Holy See does not approve of formalized blessings of same-sex couples, while stressing that Church unity “should not revolve around sexual matters” and that all people are welcome in the Catholic Church.

The pope made the remarks during a wide-ranging press conference on the return flight from Malabo, Equatorial Guinea, to Rome, where the papal plane touched down after 7:15 p.m. local time. Speaking in English, Spanish and Italian, Pope Leo answered five questions from journalists ranging from regime change in Iran to the dignity of migrants, in which the pope affirmed countries’ rights to enforce their border laws, while underlining that migrants are human beings who should not be treated like “animals.”

The press conference concluded an 11-day, 18-flight apostolic journey of more than 11,000 miles through Algeria, Cameroon, Angola and Equatorial Guinea, by far the longest trip of his pontificate.

Pope Leo was asked about a decision by German Cardinal Reinhard Marx, the archbishop of Munich and Freising, to authorize the blessing of same-sex couples in his archdiocese the day prior, and how the pope intended to preserve unity in the global Church in light of it.

“First of all, I think it’s very important to understand that the unity or division of the Church should not revolve around sexual matters,” Pope Leo said. “We tend to think that when the Church is talking about morality, that the only issue of morality is sexual, and in reality, I believe there are much greater and more important issues, such as justice, the equality, freedom of men and women, freedom of religion, that would all take priority before that particular issue.”

The pope said the Holy See had already communicated its position to the German bishops.

“The Holy See has made it clear that we do not agree with the formalized blessing of couples, in this case homosexual couples, as you ask, or couples in irregular situations,” he said.

Pope Leo drew a distinction between those formalized blessings and the general blessings “allowed for by Pope Francis in saying, ‘All people receive blessings.'”

“When a priest gives a blessing at the end of Mass, when the pope gives a blessing at the end of a large celebration, like such we had today, there are blessings of all people,” he explained, referring to the Mass celebrated that morning in Equatorial Guinea.

Pope Leo went on to say that Pope Francis’ “well-known expression of ‘Tutti, tutti, tutti'” — meaning “everyone, everyone, everyone” — is “an expression of the Church’s belief that all are welcome, all are invited.”

“All are invited to follow Jesus, and all are invited to look for conversion in their lives,” Pope Leo said. “To go beyond that today, I think that the topic can cause more disunity than unity, and that we should look for ways to build our unity upon Jesus Christ and what Jesus Christ teaches.”

Pope Leo also spoke forcefully on the issue of migration, affirming that states have the right to enforce their borders while insisting that the dignity of migrants must be respected.

“I personally believe that a state has the right to set rules for its borders,” he said. “I’m not saying that everyone should be allowed to enter indiscriminately, sometimes creating situations even more unjust in the places they arrive at than those they left behind.”

He went on to underline that migrants “are human beings, and we must treat human beings humanely — not treat them worse than household pets, animals.”

The pope was responding to a question about African migration to Spain, an issue he is expected to address during a planned visit to the country June 6–12. That trip will conclude on the Canary Islands, the Spanish archipelago that serves as the primary Atlantic entry point for migrants crossing from West Africa.

Pope Leo challenged wealthier nations to address the root causes of migration rather than focusing solely on border enforcement.

“What is the Global North doing to help the Global South and those countries where young people today cannot find a future?” he asked.

“For many people, Africa is seen as a place to go to extract minerals and take its resources for the benefit of others in other countries,” he said.

“Perhaps on a global level we need to work much harder to promote greater justice and equality in the development of these African countries so that there is no need to emigrate to Spain, etc.,” he underlined.

On the Iran war, Pope Leo called for continued dialogue and the protection of innocent civilians, sharing a personal detail to underscore the war’s human toll.

“I carry with me a photo of a Muslim child who, during my visit to Lebanon, was waiting there with a sign saying ‘Welcome Pope Leo’; he was killed in this last part of the war,” he said.

“The issue of Iran is clearly very complex,” Pope Leo said. “In the very negotiations they’re trying to conduct, one day Iran says yes, the United States says no, and vice versa, and we don’t know where it’s headed.”

“It has created a chaotic and critical situation for the global economy, and then there’s also the entire population in Iran, innocent people who are suffering because of this war,” he added.

A journalist also pressed the pope to condemn Iran’s ongoing execution of political opponents. According to the Associated Press, Iran executed another member of the exiled opposition group Mujahedeen-e-Khalq that morning, the ninth such execution since the fighting began.

Iranian authorities executed more than 2,000 people in 2025, the highest annual toll since the late 1980s, according to the Abdorrahman Boroumand Center for Human Rights in Iran.

“I condemn all actions that are unjust. I condemn the taking of people’s lives. I condemn capital punishment,” Pope Leo said, adding that life should be protected from conception to natural death. “When a regime, when a country, takes decisions which takes away the lives of other people unjustly, then obviously that is something that should be condemned.”

Pope Leo also defended the Holy See’s practice of maintaining diplomatic relations with authoritarian governments, saying there is work in the background that promotes justice and humanitarian efforts.

The question arose in the context of his meetings on the trip with President Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo of Equatorial Guinea, who has ruled since seizing power in a 1979 coup, and 93-year-old President Paul Biya of Cameroon, who has governed for more than four decades.

“We don’t always make great proclamations, criticizing, judging or condemning. But there’s an awful lot of work that goes on behind the scenes to promote justice, to promote humanitarian causes, to look for, at times, situations where there may be political prisoners and finding a way for them to be freed,” Pope Leo said.

“The Holy See, by maintaining, if you will, a neutrality … (is) actually trying to find a way to apply the Gospel to concrete situations, so that the lives of people can be improved,” he said.

Before taking questions, Pope Leo reflected on the journey itself, noting that while interest in the trip tends to focus on political questions, the primary purpose of an apostolic trip is to be close to the people of God.

“The trip is to be interpreted above all as an expression of the desire to proclaim the Gospel, to proclaim the message of Jesus Christ, and it is a way to draw near to the people in their joy, in the depth of their faith, but also in their suffering,” he said.

At the end of his final Mass on the continent earlier that day, the pope offered a closing reflection on what Africa had given him.

“I leave Africa with an immeasurable treasure of faith, hope and charity: a great treasure consisting of stories, faces and testimonies, both joyful and sorrowful, which will greatly enrich my life and ministry as the Successor of Peter,” he said.

“As in the early centuries of the Church, Africa today is called to make a decisive contribution to the holiness and the missionary character of the Christian people.”

Courtney Mares is Vatican editor for OSV News.

Pope Leo XIV, who has repeatedly called for peace and dialogue in the Middle East, went a step further April 23, condemning the unjust taking of life by governments as violence continues in Iran.

Speaking to reporters aboard the papal flight back to Rome after an 11-day trip to Africa, the pope said, “As a shepherd I cannot be in favor of war,” while addressing the escalating conflict involving Iran.

Since the start of the conflict Feb. 28, when the United States and Israel launched strikes in Iran, more than 3,000 people have been killed, including an estimated 1,700 civilians, according to human rights groups and Iranian media. A fragile ceasefire remains in place, even as tensions continue to rattle global markets and oil flows through the Strait of Hormuz.

Until now, Pope Leo had limited his public remarks on the conflict to appeals for peace and dialogue. On the return flight, however, he directly addressed the moral implications of state violence.

“If there is regime change or no regime change, the question is how to promote the values in which we believe without the death of so many innocents,” he said, responding in Italian. “The question of Iran is evidently very complex.”

Responding to a similar question in English, asking whether he directly condemned the reported state violence aimed at Iran’s citizens, he said, “I condemn all actions that are unjust. I condemn the taking of people’s lives. I condemn capital punishment. I believe that human life is to be respected and that all people, from conception to natural birth, their lives should be respected and protected.”

“So when a regime, when a country takes decisions which takes away the lives of other people unjustly, then obviously that is something that should be condemned,” he said.

Continuing his broader call for peace rooted in dialogue, he said in Italian, “I would like to encourage everyone to make efforts to look for answers that come from a culture of peace and not from a place of hate and division.”

The comments came after a week of criticism from U.S. President Donald Trump, who said the pope was “terrible for foreign policy” and questioned his stance on the conflict. Pope Leo declined to engage directly.

“I have no intention of getting into a debate,” he said April 18, adding that he would continue to advocate for peace.

Throughout the in-flight press conference April 23, the pope also reflected on themes that emerged during his Africa trip, including governance, and he answered questions on migration and the blessing of same-sex couples.

The pope reaffirmed the position spelled out in the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith’s publication of “Fiducia Supplicans” (“Supplicating Trust”), which allows Catholic priests to bless a same-sex or other unmarried couple. However, it cannot be a formal liturgical blessing, nor give the impression that the church is blessing the union as if it were a marriage.

The pope was asked how he intended to preserve the unity of the global church on the matter, given a recent decision by Cardinal Reinhard Marx of Munich and Freising to allow priests to bless same-sex couples in his archdiocese, and the clear opposition to such practices by a number of church leaders, particularly in Africa.

“First of all, I think it’s very important that the unity or division of the church should not revolve around sexual matters,” he said.

“We tend to think that when the church is talking about morality, that the only issue of morality is sexual, and in reality, I believe there are greater and more important issues, such as justice, equality, freedom of men and women, freedom of religion, that would all take priority before that particular issue,” he said.

Pope Leo underlined that the Vatican does not agree with more “formalized” blessings of homosexual couples or couples in “irregular situations,” as is spelled out in the Vatican document.

He recalled the meaning behind Pope Francis’ expression of “todos, todos, todos,” meaning “everyone,” as being “an expression of the church’s belief that all are welcome, all are invited, all are invited to follow Jesus, and all are invited to look for conversion in their lives.”

“To go beyond that today, I think that the topic can cause more disunity than unity, and that we should look for ways to build our unity upon Jesus Christ and what Jesus Christ teaches,” he said.

In another question, the pope defended the Vatican’s practice of maintaining diplomatic relations with political leaders, including those criticized by human rights groups, saying such engagement can create opportunities to advocate privately for justice and humanitarian concerns.

“We are actually trying to find a way to apply the Gospel to concrete situations so that the lives of people can be improved,” he said.

On migration, he questioned the role of wealthier nations in driving global inequality.

“What does the global North do to support the global South, and those countries where young people today find no future?” he said, pointing to economic disparities that fuel migration.

While acknowledging the right of nations to control their borders, he stressed that migrants must be treated with dignity.

“We need to treat human beings in a humanitarian way and not treat them worse than house pets,” he said.