World News

Ukraine’s leading prelates emphasized prayer and forgiveness in separate interviews with Vatican News, the news agency of the Vatican’s Dicastery for Communication. ... read more

Because of declining vocations, at least 20 women’s religious institutes in the United States are now led by Vatican-appointed commissaries who belong to other communities. Sister Dawn Tomaszewski, superior of the Sisters of Providence of St. Mary-of-the-Woods, is also commissary for the Our Lady of Victory Missionary Sisters. She “said one of the great ... read more

A French government report found that there were 843 anti-Christian incidents in France in 2025, up 9% from the previous year. The report, issued by the minister of the interior, found 734 attacks on property and 109 attacks on individuals. “Physical violence targeting members of the Christian community doubled,” according to the report. ... read more

The Vatican newspaper devoted the most prominent article in its July 18 edition to the challenges faced by maritime workers. L’Osservatore Romano reported that workers aboard fishing vessels in countries like Indonesia often “fall victim to financial fraud, psychological abuse, and physical violence.” Father Ansensius Guntur, C.S., a chaplain of the Apostleship of ... read more

The Vatican’s Supervisory and Financial Information Authority (ASIF) and Germany’s central bank signed a cooperation agreement on July 17. “By signing this memorandum of understanding, we reaffirm our shared commitment to the principles of integrity, transparency, and international cooperation,” said Burkhard Balz of Deutsche Bundesbank. “This agreement provides a framework for ongoing exchange and ... read more

My eldest son plays in our town’s Little League. He’s no prodigy on the short list for a future MLB contract, but he’s a good player—he understands the game, plays hard, and keeps his cool under pressure. Last summer, he was invited to try out for the local travel team. It wasn’t terribly expensive, so ... read more

Pope Leo XIV visited the Abbey of Monte Cassino today and had lunch with Benedictine monks there. Prior to lunch, the Pontiff “paused to pray at the tomb of St. Benedict, entrusting to him his plea for peace in those regions of the world marked by bloodshed and conflict,” according to a statement from ... read more

Addressing a recent forum on the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals, a Vatican diplomat acknowledged that “economic growth has been real and has lifted billions out of extreme poverty,” but said that such growth “is marred by serious dysfunctions such as increasing inequalities (both between and within countries) and new forms of poverty.” ... read more

The Russian military launched heavy missile strikes on Kyiv, Ukraine’s capital, from 1:25 to 2:45 AM on July 19. Some of its missiles and drones struck the neighborhood of the apostolic nunciature, where Archbishop Paul Richard Gallagher, the Holy See’s Secretary for Relations with States and International Organizations, was spending the night. Archbishop Gallagher ... read more

The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops’ NFP Awareness Week began on July 19 and concludes on July 25, the anniversary of Humanae Vitae, Pope St. Paul VI’s 1968 encyclical letter on the regulation of birth. This year’s theme is “Natural Family Planning, Designed by God, Guided by Love, Open to Life.” The bishops’ ... read more

Archbishop Paul Richard Gallagher marked the 35th anniversary of the restoration of the Latin-rite hierarchy in Ukraine at a solemn Mass on July 19 at the National Shrine of the Mother of God of the Scapular in Berdychiv. ... read more

In a July 19 letter addressed to the faithful of the Society of Saint Pius X, Father Davide Pagliarani decried the Vatican response to the consecration of four bishops without a pontifical mandate. “Right up until the last day, I hoped for a gesture of goodwill, or at least of simple understanding, ... read more

At the conclusion of a concert held in his honor, Pope Leo XIV said that “music, art, and beauty are means that help us look upward, moving toward God.” ... read more

The Washington Post compiled a list of the 25 most influential works of culture in U.S. history. Perusing the list, you would have no idea that religion has been a consistently important cultural force in the U.S. ... read more

The project was a test of whether Portsmouth Abbey and its school were willing to act on environmental values. "This is kind of a put-your-money-where-your-mouth-is kind of deal," says Br. Joseph Byron. ... read more