Catholic News
- Jesus is the treasure, the pearl, and the net, Pope tells pilgrims (CWN)
Pope Leo XIV told pilgrims gathered in Liberty Square in Castel Gandolfo for his Sunday Angelus address (video) that Jesus is “the hidden treasure, the pearl of great price, the net that gathers those who are scattered.” - Pope renews appeal for peace in Holy Land, Middle East (CWN)
At the conclusion of today’s Angelus address, Pope Leo XIV renewed his appeal for peace in the Holy Land and throughout the Middle East. - Maronite Patriarch Hoayek, father of Greater Lebanon, is beatified (L'Orient Today)
Patriarch Elias Peter Hoayek (1842-1931), the head of the Maronite Catholic Church, father of Greater Lebanon, and founder of the Maronite Sisters of the Holy Family, was beatified on July 25 in Dimane, where the Maronite Patriarch resides during the summer. Cardinal Béchara Boutros Raï, O.M.M., the current Maronite Patriarch, preached the homily at the beatification Mass (video). Cardinal Marcello Semeraro, prefect of the Dicastery for the Causes of Saints, was among the other prelates who were present. Pope Leo XIV paid tribute to Blessed Hoayek at the conclusion of today’s Sunday Angelus address: For more than 30 years, he led the Maronite Church with great dedication and pastoral sensitivity. A man of dialogue and hope, he was an outstanding ecclesial, social and political leader, so much so that he came to be known as the “Father of Greater Lebanon.” May the prayers and intercession of the new blessed always accompany the Maronite faithful throughout the world, and obtain the gift of peace for all the people of Lebanon, a country dear to my heart. - Never lose your missionary zeal, Pope tells Brazilian Catholic youth (CWN)
Pope Leo XIV praised the annual Halleluya Festival for “bearing good fruits of evangelization: confessions, conversions, priestly and religious vocations,” and encouraged participants in this year’s festival never to lose their missionary zeal. - Pope encourages Peruvian Catholic youth to be missionaries and serve the forgotten (CWN)
In a July 25 video message to a Peruvian prelature’s youth conference, Pope Leo XIV said that “Jesus does not want young people settled into their armchairs, lulled to sleep or content with the comfort of ‘that’s how it’s always been done.’“ - Pope expresses closeness to wildfire victims, recalls World Day for Grandparents and the Elderly (CWN)
At the conclusion of today’s Angelus address, Pope Leo XIV expressed closeness to the victims of European wildfires and recalled the World Day for Grandparents and the Elderly. - Sedevacantist bishop illicitly consecrated in Scotland; Aberdeen bishop announces excommunication (CWN)
Father Michael Mary Sim, founder and rector major of the Sons of the Most Holy Redeemer (Transalpine Redemptorists), was illicitly consecrated a bishop on July 25 on the Scottish island of Papa Stronsay. - French bishops commemorate 10th anniversary of Father Hamel's slaying (Église catholique en France)
French bishops commemorated the tenth anniversary of the slaying of the Servant of God Jacques Hamel (1930-2016) by Islamist terrorists as he celebrated Mass in his parish in Normandy. The commemorations culminated in a July 26 Mass in Father Hamel’s parish in Saint-Étienne-du-Rouvray (video); the celebrant was Cardinal Jean-Marc Aveline of Marseille, France, president of the French episcopal conference. - East African bishops commit to stronger youth formation, mental health support (ACI Africa)
At the conclusion of their weeklong meeting, the bishops of the Association of Member Episcopal Conferences in Eastern Africa (AMECEA) adopted ten pastoral priorities on July 26, including strengthening youth chaplaincies and mental health support, deepening catechesis, transparent leadership, and forming digital missionaries. The theme of the plenary assembly—the 21st since AMECEA’s founding in 1961—was “AMECEA’s Synodal Journey with Young People: Building Bridges of Communion, Hope, Justice and Good Governance.” - Nigerian bishop laments Muslim-Muslim presidential ticket (Nigeria Catholic Network)
A Nigerian prelate lamented the prospect of the election of a Muslim president and Muslim vice president in 2027, as was the case in 2023. “Presenting this ticket is a slap on the face of Christians in Nigeria; the implication is that the [ruling] party cannot find any Christian worthy to vie for the vice presidential ticket,” Auxiliary Bishop Ernest Obodo of Enugu said in his capacity as chairman of the Enugu State Chapter of the Christian Association of Nigeria. The nation of 243 million (map), the most populous in Africa and sixth most populous in the world, is 47% Muslim, 46% Christian (11% Catholic), and 7% ethnic religionist. - Franciscan official decries 'unofficial war' in the West Bank (Vatican News)
The head of schools of the Franciscan province in the Holy Land decried the actions of Israeli settlers in the West Bank, as well as the more than 1,000 checkpoints that stifle travel there. “Every corner of this land suffers violence and destruction every day; every inhabitant endures deprivation, restrictions, suffering, and humiliation that grow worse with each passing day,” said Father Ibrahim Faltas, O.F.M., of the Custody of the Holy Land. In an article distributed by Vatican media, Father Faltas added: People are dying in an unofficial war, undeclared but that continues, constant and widespread. There have been countless fires in homes and on land. It is no longer possible to travel from one city to another—even if they’re very close—whether for medical emergencies, to work, to help relatives, or to defend small family properties that have been illegally occupied and seized by aggressive and violent settlers. - New Zealand diocese announces $46M cathedral (Radio New Zealand)
The Diocese of Christchurch, New Zealand, announced plans for a new cathedral that will cost $80 million (46.4 million US dollars). The previous cathedral, damaged in earthquakes in 2010 and 2011, was demolished in 2020. The new cathedral will have “an ancient design, a Romanesque and Gothic hybrid model,” said Bishop Michael Gielen. “So that’s drawing on the best of humanity’s learnings over the centuries” - Philippine cardinals stress importance of friendship in the Christian life (Vatican News)
Speaking at the 12th Philippine Conference on the New Evangelization, two cardinals emphasized the importance of friendship in the Christian life. “We should not discount the role of friendship in making the face of Jesus, the face of the Church, real to people,” Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle, one of the two pro-prefects of the Dicastery for Evangelization, said on July 24, during a public discussion. “What brought us together here is our common friendship with the Lord, who was the first to consider us His friends.” “Mary reminds us that, in true friendship, love never forces but simply accompanies,” Cardinal José Advincula of Manila preached at the conference’s opening Mass. “Jesus has called us to be His friends, not His slaves,” he added. “We are friends who share in His mission.” - Vatican newspaper shines spotlight on Afghan floods (L'Osservatore Romano (Italian))
L’Osservatore Romano devoted the most prominent article in its July 25 edition to flooding in Afghanistan. “The flood emergency demonstrates once again just how closely environmental and humanitarian crises are linked,” staff journalist Francesco Citterich reported. “When an already vulnerable region is struck by an extreme event, the consequences fall most heavily on the poorest segments of the population, who lack safeguards and the means to rebuild.” “For Afghanistan, the immediate priority remains saving lives and delivering aid, but it will be equally necessary to support reconstruction and strengthen the country’s capacity to handle future emergencies,” he added. - Major restoration in Minneapolis aims to renew 'every square inch' of country's oldest basilica (EWTN News)
The Basilica of Saint Mary in Minneapolis, Minnesota, is undergoing a $50-million restoration that includes stained-glass preservation, replastering, and masonry and roof repairs. Pope Pius XI designated the church as a basilica in 1926—the first of over 90 churches in the United States to receive the honor. - Ugandan priest sentenced to 21 years for murder (East News Uganda)
Father Dominic Alinga, a suspended Ugandan priest, was sentenced to 21 years in prison after pleading guilty to the 2024 murder of one man and the attempted murder of another. The murder victim divulged information that had led to the priest’s suspension, East News Uganda reported. - Promote a Eucharistic spirituality, Pope tells Asia's bishops (CWN)
In a video message released today, Pope Leo XIV asked the bishops of Asia to promote a Eucharistic spirituality. - Cardinal Grech calls on Asian dioceses to be synodal (Vatican News)
Cardinal Mario Grech, secretary general of the General Secretariat of the Synod, called upon Asian dioceses to become more synodal with a view to exchanging their gifts with other dioceses in the universal Church. “If a local church fails to contribute, it deprives the universal Church of something vital,” Cardinal Grech told the plenary assembly of the Federation of Asian Bishops’ Conferences, which is taking place in Jakarta, Indonesia. “It is not a matter of talking about synodality, but of seeking how to live it in the ordinary life of our Churches.” - Pope names Lebanese prelate to key diplomatic post (CWN)
Pope Leo XIV today named Archbishop Christophe Zakhia El-Kassis as the new Permanent Observer of the Holy See to the United Nations in New York. - 26 priests tell Cardinal Marx that same-sex blessing guidance creates loyalty conflict (Pillar)
Twenty-six priests of the Archdiocese of Munich and Freising, Germany, said in a letter to Cardinal Reinhard Marx that his recent instruction to priests to facilitate same-sex blessings was creating a loyalty conflict with the “general doctrine and moral teaching of the universal Church.” Die Tagespost reported that the cardinal responded that the guidelines were not canonically binding. The cardinal also reportedly said he would discuss the matter after the completion of a one-year trial period, accordin to The Pillar. - More...