Catholic News
- Soaring number of priests in Africa, Southeast Asia amid declines in Europe, North America (L'Osservatore Romano (Italian))
In a detailed analysis of priesthood statistics between 2013 and 2024, the Vatican newspaper found that the total number of priests worldwide decreased 1.9% over the 11-year period to 407,421. The number of diocesan priests fell by 0.5%; the number of religious priests fell by 4.9%. In Africa, however, the number of priests soared by 35.8% between 2013 and 2024, and in Southeast Asia, the number of priests increased by 23.2%. In contrast, the number of priests in Europe declined by 17.2%, and the number of priests in North America (classified as the United States and Canada) declined by 14.2%. In 2024, Europe had 20.2% of the world’s Catholic population, 37.5% of the world’s priests, and only 11.7% of the world’s major seminarians. Africa, with 20.3% of the world’s Catholics, had 13.9% of the world’s priests, but 34.5% of the world’s major seminarians. - Ukrainian Catholic bishops from around the world meet to discuss challenges (Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church)
Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church bishops from around the world gathered at the Marian Spiritual Center in Zarvanytsia to discuss the challenges they face. At the July 6 gathering, bishops who minister in Ukraine discussed the challenges that stem from the Russian invasion. Bishops elsewhere in Europe discussed “integrating newcomers into parish life, providing pastoral care in their new communities, maintaining Ukrainian identity, and educating the younger generation,” while North and South American bishops highlighted “secularization, assimilation, a shortage of vocations, and the need to reconsider pastoral models.” - Vatican diplomat calls for 'robust governance' of AI (Holy See Mission)
Addressing the UN’s Global Dialogue on AI Governance, a Vatican diplomat said that “the necessity for robust governance does not mean placing limits on AI as obstacles for their own sake.” Robust governance is “a prerequisite for ensuring that technological progress is meaningfully oriented towards a broader horizon, at the service of all humanity, while respecting the inalienable God-given dignity of all persons and the common good,” Archbishop Ettore Balestrero, apostolic nuncio and Permanent Observer to the United Nations and other international organizations in Geneva, Switzerland, said on July 7. “Good governance requires the responsible use of AI, in a way that does not involve outsourcing or surrendering responsibility to an algorithm,” the prelate added. “Therefore, every critical choice made by an automated system must be subject to human oversight.” - Syro-Malabar leader: In digital media age, seek the truth like St. Thomas (Syro-Malabar Church)
The head of the Syro-Malabar Church wrote in a pastoral letter that “in an age when rumors spread rapidly and truth is frequently obscured, we must become seekers of truth like St. Thomas.” “There is no doubt that social media is beneficial in many aspects of life,” Major Archbishop Raphael Thattil wrote in a wide-ranging letter for the Feast of St. Thomas the Apostle, the Syro-Malabar Church’s patron saint. “Yet it has also become a platform where falsehood, hatred, and defamation are deliberately disseminated.” The Major Archbishop added: When messages that malign others, harm the innocent, and spread falsehood are created or shared indiscriminately, the fifth commandment, “You shall not kill,” is violated, for such actions can wound a person’s dignity, reputation, and well-being. Today, more than ever, we need the prudence and vigilance to examine carefully what we encounter, to verify what we do not know, to refrain from promoting what is untrue, and to courageously oppose falsehood wherever it appears. Based in India, the Syro-Malabar Catholic Church (CNEWA profile) is among the Eastern Catholic churches in full communion with the Holy See. - Nuncio urges Philippine bishops, faithful to advocate for right to life, combat corruption (CBCP News)
The apostolic nuncio to the Philippines called on the Philippine bishops and faithful to advocate for the right to life from conception to natural death and to combat evils such as corruption. “We need a society that works to eliminate corruption, sin, crime, discrimination, and all those things that weigh us down and degrade our earthly dreams,” Archbishop Charles Brown said during a July 8 homily in Ozamiz Cathedral, as the nation’s bishops gathered for their summer meeting, and the faithful witnessed the crowning of an 18th-century Marian image, the Blessed Virgin of the Fort. - Pakistani Catholic dies in prison after blasphemy accusation; archbishop hails his faith (Fides)
A 60-year-old Pakistani Catholic died in prison on July 1, nearly a year after he was accused of blasphemy against Islam. Fides, the news agency of the Pontifical Mission Societies, reported that the allegation against Amir Peter, the brother of a parish priest, was false. “Amir Peter remained steadfast in his faith until the end,” Archbishop Khalid Rehmat, O.F.M. Cap., of Lahore preached at Peter’s funeral Mass. “He lived his entire life according to the values of the Gospel and remained faithful to the Church. His witness of fidelity to God is an example for his children and for all of us.” - Archbishop Cordileone: California is abusing power against pro-life pregnancy centers (@ArchCordileone)
The archbishop of San Francisco said that the State of California is abusing its power as it uses commercial fraud statutes against pro-life pregnancy centers. “Using commercial fraud statutes to shut down access to full medical information and the full range of freedom of choice is an abuse of power by the state of CA, especially given zero complaints and saved lives,” Archbishop Salvatore Cordileone wrote in a social media post. - Oslo bishop to open Sigrid Undset canonization cause (Pillar)
Bishop Fredrik Hansen of Oslo, Norway, announced that he will open the canonization cause of author Sigrid Undset (1882-1949) this fall. Bishop Hansen said that Undset “lived a faithful Christian life in a world of turmoil. She stood firm in the Catholic faith. She challenged Nazism and strove for Norwegian freedom.” Undset, a convert to Catholicism, won the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1928. Best known for the trilogy Kristin Lavransdatter, she also wrote lives of saints. - 200 poor people to gather for Mass, lunch with the Pope (Vatican News)
The Vatican announced the 200 poor people from Rome will travel to Castel Gandolfo for Mass and lunch with Pope Leo this Saturday. The event will take place at Borgo Laudato Si’. “When the Church places the most vulnerable people at the center, it makes the Gospel visible and bears witness that no one is on the margins of God’s heart,” said Archbishop Luis Marín de San Martín, O.S.A., prefect of the Dicastery for the Service of Charity. - House speaker welcomes new nuncio (Speaker of the House)
Rep. Mike Johnson (R-LA), the Speaker of the House of Representatives and a Southern Baptist, extended congratulations to Archbishop Gabriele Caccia, who was appointed in March as apostolic nuncio to the United States. In his July 1 letter to Archbishop Caccia, Rep. Johnson wrote that Archbishop John Carroll, the nation’s first 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.” - Vatican newspaper highlights UNICEF's work in Venezuela (CWN)
Drawing on a blog post from the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), the Vatican newspaper devoted the most prominent front-page article in its July 8 edition to UNICEF’s work in Venezuela. - Castel Gandolfo's parish priest: 'We hope Pope Leo will enjoy true rest here' (Vatican News)
As Pope Leo began his three-week stay in Castel Gandolfo, the pastor of the parish there said in an interview that “we simply want him to feel at home here and to spend this time peacefully, according to his own wishes.” Father Tadeusz Rozmus, S.D.B., also spoke about the emotion felt by the town’s residents as a result of Pope Leo’s decision to return to Castel Gandolfo. Since 1626, the popes have customarily spent at least part of their summers there. Pope Francis abandoned the custom after 2013; Pope Leo resumed it last year. - Cardinal López Romero accused of molesting at least 5 women (Le Monde)
The Spanish-born archbishop of Rabat, Morocco, announced that he was “stepping back” from his duties after at least five women accused him of sexual assault. Cardinal Cristóbal López Romero, S.D.B., said that he has been “accused of inappropriate behavior towards adult women” and that “this situation has led the Church to open a preliminary investigation.” “I have committed neither assault nor violence nor sexual harassment,” he added. Father Marc Helt, the archdiocesan vicar general, told Agence France-Presse that “we do not know whether [the reported acts] really amount to sexual assault.” Archbishop Alfred Xuereb, the apostolic nuncio to Morocco, said that the “presumption of innocence must be preserved” until the “facts are established by the competent authorities.” - Share Christ's light with others, Pope tells Iraqi Catholic youth (CWN)
Pope Leo XIV called upon young Iraqi Catholics to share the light of Christ with others. - Buffalo priest arrested on child pornography charges (United States Attorney's Office)
The U.S. Attorney for the Western District of New York announced that Father Jeffrey Nowak, a 46-year-old priest of the Diocese of Buffalo, was arrested and charged with receipt and possession of child pornography. Ordained in 2012, Father Nowak was suspended in 2019 amid allegations of harassment of a seminarian and inappropriate contact with children. Father Nowak denied the allegations and has remained on administrative leave. - Vatican diplomat: Prioritize poverty eradication and enact pro-family policies (Holy See Mission)
Addressing a United Nations forum today, a Vatican diplomat called upon the international community to “prioritize the eradication of poverty” and enact pro-family policies. “The Holy See also wishes to emphasize the vital role of the family as the fundamental unity of society, a ‘primary social good,’ and a crucial source of resilience,” said Msgr. Marco Formica, interim chargé d’affaires of the Permanent Observer Mission of the Holy See to the United Nations. “Policies that strengthen families contribute directly to poverty eradication, social stability and the integral development.” - Pope appoints Diocese of Rome's 1st moderator of the curia (Vatican Press Office)
Pope Leo XIV appointed Father Pier Luigi Stolfi as the Diocese of Rome’s first moderator of the curia. Father Stolfi, born in 1970 and ordained in 1996, is now parish priest of San Lino, a parish with weekly Eucharistic adoration. Confessions are scheduled at the parish for over four hours each weekday, as well as during every Sunday Mass. The July 7 appointment followed the creation of the position in a June 24 apostolic letter. Article 19 of Confirma Fratres Tuos provides that the moderator of the curia, appointed upon the recommendation of the cardinal vicar for a five-year term, coordinates the activities of the diocesan curia. - Holy See is open to dialogue on AI, papal message emphasizes (CWN)
Pope Leo XIV assured participants in the AI for Good Global Summit of the Holy See’s openness to dialogue on artificial intelligence. - Israeli settlers' outpost threatens Palestinian Christian village, West Bank priest warns (Vatican News)
A priest in Taybeh, a Palestinian Christian village in the West Bank, warned of the threat posed by the illegal construction of an Israeli settlers’ outpost. Over the past year, settlers have repeatedly attacked Taybeh. Amid the reported beginning of the outpost’s construction, Father Bashar Fawadleh warned that Christian families “fear living under constant intimidation, while farmers worry they may no longer be able to reach their fields and poultry farms in the eastern part of the village,” according to Vatican News. “The Holy Land cannot be preserved through words alone,” he said. “It must be protected through concrete action ... Do not wait until yet another irreversible reality is imposed. The time to act is now.” - Transalpine Redemptorists are distinct from Redemptorists, superior general clarifies (Scala News)
The superior general of the Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer (Redemptorists), founded by St. Alphonsus Liguori, clarified that the Sons of the Most Holy Redeemer, commonly known as the Transalpine Redemptorists, are not part of the Redemptorist order. Father Rogério Gomes, C.Ss.R., issued his statement prior to the scheduled illicit episcopal consecration of a Transalpine Redemptorist priest. The Transalpine Redemptorists, a traditionalist community founded in 1988, reconciled with the Holy See in 2008 but adopted a sedevacantist position in May. Father Michael Mary is scheduled to be ordained a bishop on July 25 by Bishop Pierre Roy, a former priest of the Society of Saint Pius X who traces his episcopal lineage to a bishop ordained by Archbishop Pierre Martin Ngô Đình Thục. - More...