Catholic News
- UK rattled by killing of pro-life Catholic politician Ann Widdecombe (NBC News)
An English pro-life Catholic politician was found dead with serious injuries on July 9, prompting a murder investigation. A convert to Catholicism, Ann Widdecombe, 78, was a Member of Parliament (1987-2010) and a Member of the European Parliament (2019-20). She was also Minister of State for Employment (1993-95) and Minister of State for Prisons (1995-97) under Prime Minister John Major. Bishop Nicholas Hudson of Plymouth told BBC that Widdecombe “was a woman of faith and a great public servant.” “Our prayers, the prayers of all the community, across Plymouth Diocese, in Devon, Cornwall, Dorset, are very much with her and with her family and friends,” he said. - Ukrainian bishops in Poland express 'deep regret' for World War II massacres (Greek Catholic Church of Poland (Polish))
The bishops of the three Ukrainian Greek Catholic eparchies in Poland lamented the massacre of some 100,000 Poles by the Ukrainian Insurgent Army between 1943 and 1945. The massacre has helped lead to recent tensions in Polish-Ukrainian relations. “On the eve of the Day of Remembrance of the Victims of the Volyn Massacre, we convey words of sympathy and grief to the families who lost their loved ones as a result of Ukrainian military actions,” the bishops said. “We join you in your pain and express our deep regret for the bloody events that took place at that time.” The bishops also said that “both Ukrainian crimes against Poles and Polish crimes against Ukrainians should be condemned,” and called on Polish and Ukrainian officials to “assist in finding all the graves, in identifying the victims and in their dignified burial.” “It is up to Polish and Ukrainian historians to reliably explain the circumstances of those tragic events and to determine the actual number of victims on both sides,” the prelates added. - Bishop says Nigerian government 'unserious' about combating terrorism, warns of God's judgment (EWTN News)
A Nigerian bishop charged that the nation’s government is “unserious” about fighting terrorism. “In the security challenges that we are facing, we all know that the government is unserious,” Bishop Stephen Dami Mamza of Yola said to a journalist on July 7. “You cannot say that the government doesn’t have a hand in what is happening since the government is not prepared to resolve these issues and also give the military full authority to get rid of the terrorists.” “We have air power, we have land power, and we have all the necessary advantages that we need in order to get rid of the insurgency,” Bishop Mamza continued. “But there is no will, there is no seriousness, there is no commitment, and there is too much politics in it.” Bishop Mamza also warned that “both perpetrators of violent terrorism and those who fail in their responsibility to protect lives will face divine accountability ... God knows. His judgment is just and fair.” - Cardinal McElroy: Exorcist role should be 'private' after priest's removal tied to UFO controversy (CNS)
Weeks after he removed Msgr. Stephen Rossetti as an archdiocesan exorcist, Cardinal Robert McElroy of Washington, D.C., said in an interview that the dismissal ultimately “wasn’t touching on the question of UFOs” and that “my major objection is that I think the traditional role of an exorcist is a very private one. It’s a sacred one.” At the time of Msgr. Rossetti’s removal, Cardinal McElroy said that “statements made by Monsignor Rossetti linking UFOs to demonic presence and the Center’s recent use of social media gravely undermine the Church’s very precise teaching on the devil, demons and exorcism.” - US bishops, Catholic organizations weigh in on Farm Bill (USCCB)
Echoing a February letter to leaders of the House Agricultural Committee, the chairmen of two committees of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops warned that the Senate’s current Farm Bill proposal “falls short of the Farm Bill’s historic bipartisanship.” Archbishop Shelton Fabre, chairman of the Committee on Domestic Justice and Human Development, and Bishop A. Elias Zaidan, chairman of the Committee on International Justice and Peace, weighed in on various aspects of the bill in a July 9 letter to the chairman and ranking member of the Senate Committee on Agriculture. The head of Catholic Relief Services, Catholic Charities USA, Catholic Rural Life, and the National Council of the United States Society of St. Vincent de Paul joined the two prelates in signing the letter. - German 'Church tax miracle' continues with revenues up, membership down (Pillar)
Despite the loss of 307,117 Catholics in 2025, German dioceses received additional revenue from the Kirchensteuer (Church tax). Revenue rose from 6.628 billion euros ($7.58 billion) in 2024 to 6.751 billion euros ($7.72 billion) in 2025. “In Germany, religious communities that are corporations under public law have a right to levy taxes on their members,” The Pillar explained. “Every person in Germany who is officially registered as a member of the Catholic Church is required to pay church tax equivalent to 8-9% of their income tax liability, depending on the region in which they live.” - India's Latin-rite bishops clarify norms on biritual faculties (Catholic Connect)
The Commission for Canon Law and Legislative Texts of the Latin-rite Conference of Catholic Bishops of India (CCBI) clarified canonical norms on biritual faculties, according to Catholic Connect, a CCBI website. The commission stated that bishops do not have the authority to confer biritual faculties but must seek permission from the Apostolic See. Such faculties are to be granted for only a five-year period, and priests should seek them only to meet a genuine pastoral need, rather than because of “devotional attraction.” - Archbishop Gudziak warns of lack of priestly missionary spirit, shortage of bishop candidates (Ukrainian Catholic Archeparchy of Philadelphia)
Speaking at a worldwide meeting of the bishops of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church, Archbishop Borys Gudziak of Philadelphia warned of a “lack of missionary spirit among priests.” “We serve our own people well, close to home,” Archbishop Gudziak said. “But Christ’s call is, ‘Go and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.’ Maybe we haven’t fully heard that yet. This is a great challenge: understanding Christianity as more than a cultural identity.” The prelate also described the “shortage of candidates for the episcopacy” as “one of the major problems facing the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church globally.” “In 1900 there were two bishops; today there are 56,” he said. “The overall number of faithful is roughly comparable. If it was three million then, today it is four and a half million.” - Parish becomes relief center in earthquake-ravaged La Guaira (Vatican News)
A parish in La Guaira, Venezuela, that survived the recent earthquakes has become a key center for relief efforts. “The cathedral suffered extensive damage, and several churches will have to be demolished because of the effects of the earthquakes,” Vatican News reported. Immaculate Heart of Mary Parish remains structurally sound despite damage to the altar and the fall of statues from their niches. “Never stop praying for Venezuela,” said Father Antonio Rella, the parish priest. “Not everyone can help materially, but a daily prayer for us is worth so much, because it reaches the throne of God, where it bears fruit.” - Last Mass this weekend at 76 Iowa Catholic churches (Radio Iowa)
Seventy-six Catholic churches in the Archdiocese of Dubuque, Iowa, are holding their final Sunday Masses this weekend. In April, the archdiocese announced that it would halt Sunday Mass at 84 of its parishes as it consolidates its parishes—163 in number, according to The Official Catholic Directory—into 24 pastorates. - US, Canadian Jesuits announce reduction in novitiates (Detroit Catholic)
The five Jesuit provincials in Canada and the United States announced the reduction of the number of novitiates in the two nations from five to two. One will be based in Culver City, California; the other, in Detroit, Michigan. “Running five novitiates takes an awful lot of Jesuit staff of very good people,” said Father Joseph Daoust, S.J., superior of the Detroit Jesuit community. “You have to have three or four Jesuits in each of the novitiates, who usually are more senior Jesuits who serve as the formators of the novices. If we could put the novices in only two novitiates rather than five, we would save an awful lot of very valuable manpower for other works of the Society of Jesus.” - Vatican newspaper claims Panama Canal is symbol of world's climate crisis (CWN)
In the most prominent article in its July 10 edition, the Vatican newspaper asserted that the Panama Canal has become a new symbol of the world’s climate crisis. - Irish Primate, Anglican leader denounce burning of mosque replica (Irish Catholic Bishops' Conference)
The Primate of All Ireland and the head of the Anglican Church of Ireland issued a joint statement today denouncing the burning of a mosque replica in a bonfire. “Jesus tells the story of the Good Samaritan to teach his disciples that they have a duty to those who differ from them in terms of religious belief and cultural tradition,” said Archbishop Eamon Martin of Armagh and Anglican Archbishop John McDowell. “Jesus teaches that people who differ from us are not simply to be tolerated; they are to be respected, cared for and loved.” “The targeting of the Muslim community through crude symbols and threats of violence by sinister forces undermines these Gospel principles of respect and compassion as well as freedom of religion which is a fundamental principle of a democratic society,” the prelates continued, adding: Christians of all traditions would be aghast at the wanton destruction of Christian imagery. Likewise, we should be appalled at the provocative denigration of symbols associated with faiths that are sincerely held by others. - Vatican diplomat: GDP fails to capture climate-related risks to island nations (Holy See Mission)
Citing Pope Leo’s encyclical Magnifica Humanitas, a Vatican diplomat called upon the international community to “move beyond development metrics tied to gross domestic product,” especially with regard to Small Island Developing States (SIDS). Addressing a UN discussion on SIDS, Msgr. Marco Formica, interim chargé d’affaires of the Permanent Observer Mission of the Holy See to the United Nations, said on July 9 that small island nations’ “exposure to climate-related disasters, environmental degradation, and external economic shocks repeatedly unmask deep structure vulnerabilities that GDP-metrics fail to capture.” - 'Besieged by bombs and hunger': Vatican newspaper shines spotlight on El-Obeid, Sudan (CWN)
The Vatican newspaper drew attention to the dire situation of Sudanese civilians in and around El-Obeid, a strategic city in the nation’s civil war. - Nigerian Archbishop Akubeze dies at 69; remembered as 'pillar of orthodox truth' (CSN Media)
Archbishop Augustine Akubeze, the president of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Nigeria from 2018 to 2022, died on July 9 at the age of 69. “He firmly stood as a pillar of orthodox truth,” said Father Michael Banjo, secretary general of the Catholic Secretariat of Nigeria, the administrative arm of the bishops’ conference. “His voice did not tickle ears but fed souls, bringing to light his episcopal motto: ‘Ut Testimonium perhibeam veritati’ (Jn 18:37), which means ‘That I may bear witness to the Truth.’” “He demonstrated always by his gentleness and quiet disposition that genuine authority in the church is not measured by power but by service and this was a result of his deep level of spirituality,” Father Banjo added. Archbishop Akubeze was appointed founding bishop of Uromi in 2005 and archbishop of Benin City in 2011. - Archbishop Gänswein renews call for repeal of restrictions on traditional Latin Mass (Il Giornale)
Echoing an appeal he made last week, Archbishop Georg Gänswein, the former prefect of the Papal Household and private secretary of the late Pope Benedict, renewed his repeal for the lifting of restrictions on the traditional Latin Mass. Archbishop Gänswein, now apostolic nuncio to three Baltic nations, said in an interview that Summorum Pontificum, Pope Benedict’s 2007 document permitting wider celebration of the extraordinary form, bore fruit “especially for young people, and this can be seen first of all in the increasing numbers of the Paris-Chartres pilgrimage every year.” “These young people are nourished by the beauty of the liturgy; they are not at all opposed to the Second Vatican Council,” he continued. “It is not true that those who have a traditional liturgical sensibility and participate in the Tridentine Masses are anti-conciliar.” In 2021, Pope Francis repealed the provisions of Summorum Pontificum when he issued Traditionis Custodes, his 2021 document restricting the extraordinary form of the Mass. - 3,344 candidates for sainthood in Spain (L'Osservatore Romano (Italian))
Citing a report from the Spanish Episcopal Conference, the prefect of the Dicastery for the Causes of Saints said that there are currently 3,344 candidates for sainthood in Spain. In his overview of Spanish canonization causes, Cardinal Marcello Semeraro said that the 3,344 candidates are included in 53 causes of martyrdom (48 from the 20th century), 292 causes of heroic virtue, one cause for the offering of one’s life, and one for equipollent canonization. 148 of the candidates have been declared venerable. Cardinal Semeraro added: Significant, too, is the number of causes concerning founders: 71 from religious institutes and 11 from secular institutes. The total number of Blesseds (including those recognized via martyrdom decrees as of 2026) stands at 2,449; of these, 2,404 are martyrs from the religious persecution in Spain during the 20th century. The remaining 45 causes are based on heroic virtue and include 2 cardinals, 1 diocesan bishop, 7 diocesan priests, 4 religious priests, 2 male religious, 22 female religious, and 7 laypeople. Cardinal Semeraro encouraged other episcopal conferences to follow the example of the Spanish Episcopal Conference, which established an Office for the Causes of Saints in 2001. - Caritas Venezuela distributes 7,000 tons of food, water to earthquake victims (Vatican News)
Caritas Venezuela, the charitable agency of the Church in Venezuela, reported that it has distributed 4,031 tons of water and 3,247 tons of food to more than 8,000 families affected by the recent earthquakes. The agency also report that it has received 14,700 tons of humanitarian aid. - Latin American, Caribbean dioceses advocate against mining abuses (Fides)
Fides News Agency, the agency of the Pontifical Mission Societies, reported on recent efforts by Latin American and Caribbean dioceses to advocate for communities adversely affected by mining. “Our only concern is to safeguard the life of every human being,” said Bishop Rafael Valdivieso of Chitré, Panama. “Anything that endangers human health and life represents a serious risk.” - More...