Catholic News
- Archbishop Iannone named prefect of Dicastery for Bishops (Vatican Press Office)
In his highest-ranking curial appointment to date, Pope Leo XIV today named Archbishop Filippo Iannone, O Carm, 67, as prefect of the Dicastery for Bishops—the dicastery led by the future Pontiff from 2023 until the death of Pope Francis. Archbishop Iannone professed his solemn vows as a Carmelite in 1980 and was ordained to the priesthood in 1982. Pope St. John Paul II named him auxiliary bishop of Naples, Itay, in 2001; Pope Benedict XVI named him bishop of Sora-Aquino-Pontecorvo (2009) and vicegerent of the Diocese of Rome (2012). Since 2018, Archbishop Iannone has led the Dicastery (formerly Pontifical Council) for Legislative Texts. Pope Leo also confirmed Archbishop Ilson de Jesus Montanari as secretary, and Msgr. Ivan Kovač as undersecretary, of the Dicastery for Bishops; they will serve in their positions for another five years. Archbishop Montanari was appointed to his position in 2013; Msgr. Kovač, in 2023. - Pope Leo praises La Civiltà Cattolica, offers guidance to its staff (CWN)
Pope Leo XIV received members of the editorial staff of La Civiltà Cattolica as the influential Jesuit journal commemorates the 175th anniversary of its founding. - Vatican foreign minister warns of AI arms race (Holy See Mission)
Addressing a UN Security Council meeting on artificial intelligence, international peace, and security, Archbishop Paul Richard Gallagher warned of “the emergence of a new arms race marked by the integration of AI into military systems, including space assets and missile defense systems.” “Such developments risk altering the nature of weapons and warfare, creating an unprecedented level of uncertainty, due to the possibility of miscalculation,” the Holy See’s Secretary for Relations with States and International Organizations continued. “Notably incorporating AI into nuclear command and control introduces new unknown risks that extend far beyond the already fragile and morally troubling logic of nuclear deterrence.” Archbishop Gallagher also called for an “immediate moratorium” on the development of lethal autonomous weapons (“killer robots”), as well as a treaty “to ensure that decisions over life and death remain under meaningful human control.” - Care for creation is an expression of faith and humanity, Pope tweets (@Pontifex)
On September 25, Pope Leo XIV tweeted that “in a world where the most vulnerable are the first to suffer the devastating effects of climate change, deforestation, and pollution, care for creation becomes an expression of our faith and humanity. #SeasonOfCreation” The Season of Creation, an ecumenical initiative, begins on September 1—the World Day of Prayer for Creation in the Orthodox churches (since 1989) and the Catholic Church (since 2015)—and concludes on October 4, the feast of St. Francis of Assisi. The Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development and Pope Francis lent their support to observance of the season, as has Pope Leo. - Romanian Cardinal Mureşan dies at 94; led Eastern Catholic church for decades (CWN)
Cardinal Lucian Mureşan, the most prominent prelate in the Eastern-rite Romanian Catholic Church from 1994 until his death, passed away on September 25 at the age of 94. - Intersection of science and spirituality is 'existential necessity,' Ecumenical Patriarch says in Templeton address (Ecumenical Patriarchate)
Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew of Constantinople, who holds a primacy of honor among the Orthodox churches, received the Templeton Prize in New York on September 24. In his Templeton Prize address (“Where Heaven Meets Earth: A Meditation on Faith, Science, and our Planet”), the Ecumenical Patriarch said that “through the centuries, we have witnessed a tragic alienation—religion withdrawing to its sanctuaries, science retreating to its laboratories, each suspicious of the other’s claims upon truth ... Yet this separation was never meant to be.” “Let me propose not answers but an appeal—to see the intersection of science and spirituality not as an intellectual exercise but as an existential necessity,” he concluded. “The future of our planet depends on our capacity to bring together the precision of scientific method with the perception of spiritual vision, the urgency of prophetic witness with the patience of contemplative practice.” Past winners of the Templeton Prize—originally known as the Templeton Prize for Progress in Religion—include Mother Teresa, Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn, the physicist Father Stanley Jaki, and Jonathan Sacks, the chief rabbi of the United Kingdom. - In show of unity, bishops of new, former Chinese dioceses concelebrate Mass (Fides)
In a show of unity, the bishops of the new Diocese of Zhangjiakou, the suppressed Diocese of Xuanhua, and the suppressed Diocese of Xiwanzi concelebrated Mass. “We must embrace reality with obedience, set aside prejudices, unite wholeheartedly, and work together to promote a speedy return to the ordinary pastoral life of the diocese,” said Bishop Joseph Ma Yan’en, formerly bishop of Xuanhua and now auxiliary bishop of Zhangjiakou. Bishop Augustine Cui Tai, the former bishop of Xiwanzi, also spoke at the Mass; he had disappeared in 2021 after refusing to join the government-run Chinese Patriotic Catholic Association. - Work to ensure that every life is protected, bishop writes in Respect Life Month statement (USCCB)
Bishop Daniel Thomas of Toledo, Ohio, the chairman of the US bishops’ Committee on Pro-Life Activities, issued a statement for Respect Life Month (October). “Every day we witness the overwhelming disregard for human life: through rising rates of abortion and assisted suicide; the killing of innocent school children, even at prayer; the mistreatment of our immigrant sisters and brothers as they endure an environment of aggression; and political and ideological violence inflicted against unsuspecting victims,” he wrote. “Despite these realities, the gift of human life exists as a sign of hope to our world today, defying the powers of darkness and the culture of death,” he continued. “It is of the utmost importance that we work to ensure that every life, in every stage and circumstance, is protected in law.” - 20,000 expected at Jubilee of Catechists (Zenit)
Twenty thousand pilgrims from 115 countries are expected in Rome for the Jubilee of Catechists. The jubilee, one of the events of the 2025 jubilee year, begins on September 26 and culminates in Mass in St. Peter’s Square on September 28. - Cardinal Parolin pays tribute to late Archbishop Rugambwa (L'Osservatore Romano (Italian))
Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the Secretary of State of His Holiness, celebrated the funeral Mass of Archbishop Novatus Rugambwa in St. Peter’s Basilica on September 25. The Tanzanian prelate, who died at 67, served as apostolic nuncio in Angola, Honduras, New Zealand, and other Pacific nations between 2010 and 2024. He retired after suffering a stroke. Cardinal Parolin preached that the late nuncio “offered a beautiful example with his solid life of piety, his discretion, and at the same time his firm defense of the principles of justice and respect for the person.” “Sensitivity to the voice of the least fortunate, a flame of which Archbishop Novatus kept alive in his heart, is not an optional adornment of Christian life, but is, at its root, as a privileged place of encounter with God,” Cardinal Parolin added. - Ukrainian Catholic leader deplores Russian destruction of parishes in Donetsk (Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church)
In his weekly video address, the head of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church drew attention to the plight of the faithful in the eastern Ukrainian region of Donetsk, most of which has been occupied by Russian forces. “Our Donetsk Exarchate has suffered the most in this war: more than half of our parishes and churches located in the occupied territory have been virtually destroyed,” he said. “Religious life of our Church is forbidden there.” - Peruvian prelate resigns at 51 following Vatican investigation (CWN)
Pope Leo XIV accepted the resignation of Bishop Ciro Quispe López, a 51-year-old Peruvian bishop who has led the Territorial Prelature of Juli since 2018. - Pope Leo expresses 'profound closeness' to Palestinian people in Gaza, renews peace appeal (Dicastery for Communication)
At the conclusion of his September 24 general audience, Pope Leo XIV expressed his “profound closeness to the Palestinian people in Gaza, who continue to live in fear and to survive in unacceptable conditions, forcibly displaced—once again—from their own lands.” “Before God Almighty, who commanded ‘Thou shalt not kill,’ and in the sight of all of human history, every person always has an inviolable dignity, to be respected and upheld,” Pope Leo told pilgrims in St. Peter’s Square. “I renew my appeal for a ceasefire, the release of hostages, and a negotiated diplomatic solution, fully respecting international humanitarian law.” The Pope also invited the pilgrims to “join in my heartfelt prayer that a dawn of peace and justice may soon arise.” - Bethlehem mayor meets with Pontiff, discusses plight of Christians there (Vatican News)
Maher Canawati, the mayor of Bethlehem, discussed the plight of the West Bank city’s Christians during a September 24 meeting with Pope Leo XIV. Referring to Christians as living stones, Maher Canawati, himself a Christian, said that he told Pope Leo “how important it is to intervene in what’s happening in Palestine, in Gaza, in Bethlehem, and to preserve the living stones of the Holy Land, because the Holy Land without the living stones is just a mere museum.” - Cardinal Parolin: Padre Pio has 'great importance' in history of Christian spirituality (L'Osservatore Romano (Italian))
Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the Secretary of State of His Holiness, celebrated an evening Mass at San Salvatore in Lauro on September 23, the memorial of Padre Pio. The Roman parish, which houses a shrine to the beloved saint, was filled to overflowing, with people filling the square in front of the church despite the rain. In his homily, Cardinal Parolin highlighted Padre Pio’s suffering, prayer, and mystical phenomena. “It is no exaggeration to say that Padre Pio occupies a place of great importance among the great men of prayer in Christian spirituality,” he said. - Australian bishop returns to ministry after abuse claim 'not sustained' (Pillar)
Auxiliary Bishop Richard Umbers of Sydney, Australia, returned to ministry after an abuse allegation was “not sustained.” “The report from the independent investigator highlighted information given by the complainant that was inconsistent with other evidence obtained and therefore, the investigator could not be satisfied that the alleged conduct occurred,” Father Samuel Lynch, the archdiocesan vicar general, wrote in an email. - Leading Italian prelates appeal for peace in Holy Land (CEI (Italian))
The permanent council of the Italian Episcopal Conference issued an appeal for peace in the Holy Land. “We strongly demand that all forms of unacceptable violence against an entire people in Gaza cease and that the hostages be released,” the prelates stated on September 24. “International humanitarian law must be respected, putting an end to the forced exile of the Palestinian population, attacked by the offensive of the Israeli army and pressured by Hamas.” - Vatican newspaper highlights Myanmar's 'forgotten people' (L'Osservatore Romano (Italian))
With the headline “Myanmar: La solitudine di un popolo dimenticato” [Myanmar: The solitude of a forgotten people], L’Osservatore Romano devoted the most prominent article in its September 24 edition to the Southeast Asian nation, which is experiencing civil war and suffered a deadly earthquake. “The world seems largely unaware of the conflict in Myanmar,” wrote staff journalist Guglielmo Gallone. “In August alone, over 200,000 people were displaced from their homes by either fighting or floods. The efforts of the local Church and humanitarian agencies are enormous, even though 6.3 million people in the areas affected by last March’s earthquake are in need of immediate assistance.” - Commission: Protecting religious freedom can help prevent genocide (USCIRF)
The US Commission on International Religious Freedom has published a report exploring the relationship between religious freedom violations and acts of genocide. “Promoting religious freedom is a crucial tool in preventing atrocities, including genocide, and rebuilding societies in their aftermath,” the commission concluded. “Countries with dismal religious freedom records are often at risk for mass atrocities, presenting some of the greatest national security challenges to the United States.” - Pope Leo outlines his vision of synodality as he opens Diocese of Rome's pastoral year (CWN)
In an address for the beginning of the Diocese of Rome’s pastoral year, Pope Leo XIV outlined his vision of synodality at the diocesan level. - More...