“Why not become a missionary yourself, my child?” With these words, Pope Leo XIII challenged an ardent, young, American woman, Katharine Drexel. The year was 1887, and Drexel had been granted a private audience with the pope. Drexel had come to Rome to tell Pope Leo XIII of the need for religious—men and women—to staff…
Vatican News—The legal representative of the Secretariat of State, Paola Severino, quantifies the severe “injury” caused by the Sloane Avenue affair – the sale of a London property that made news in 130 countries: The Holy See was “severely damaged” by “merchants in the temple to whom representatives of the institution opened the doors.” “Squandering”,…
Pope Francis recently announced 21 new cardinals. Each has chosen a new spiritual motto reflecting their inner devotion and priorities. CNA—Episcopal mottos selected when a Catholic priest is consecrated as a bishop are traditionally found at the base of his coat of arms and often remain unchanged when a cardinal becomes pope. Chosen Mottos of…
Today, many people say—and teach, even to young children—that religion has no business in science and vice versa…that science demands hard evidence, whereas religion is so-called “blind faith,” which they say is contradictory. But, oh my, are they WRONG!!! ” Take a look at the charger your cell phone,” says Brother Guy Consolmagno, head of…
CNA—Brother Robert Macke, known to many of his colleagues as “Brother Bob,” is a Jesuit astronomer at the Vatican Observatory and one of the world’s foremost experts in the study of meteorites. So, when Dr. Andy Ryan, one of the leads for NASA’s OSIRIS-REx mission, needed help constructing a device to study some of the…
Parental rights are on the chopping block in California, yet the state’s Attorney General Rob Bonta ignores the supremacy of federal law and federal courts. People v. Chino Valley Unified School District In a September 26 letter issued to school district superintendents and members of boards of education, titled “Guidance Regarding Forced Disclosure Policies Concerning…
NotreDameNews—In recognition for its support of Ukrainian Catholic University (UCU), the University of Notre Dame has been awarded the 2023 Institute of International Education (IIE) Heiskell Award for Strategic Partnerships. Heiskell Award The Heiskell Award is presented annually to a college or university, recognizing innovative partnerships that foster international education and demonstrate strong, sustainable links…
Catholic youth in Ukraine. In this brief and moving video, Magda Dymyd, a young Ukrainian woman and sister of fallen hero Artem Dymyd, articulates with passion and utter clarity how the pain and trauma that Ukrainian youth are living through calls them to embrace the fullness of life with all the energy and strength that…
CTP—In the hot, humid weather of a Philadelphia summer, delegates wrangled, tempers flared over the one issue they could not resolve—how states should be represented in the national government. Finally, after delegates from Delaware, New Jersey, and Maryland threatened to return home, Roger Sherman again stood up and again offered his plan—proportional representation in the…
Saint Andrew Kim. CNA—Pope Francis on Saturday invited Catholics in Korea to emulate the zeal of their patron saint, St. Andrew Kim Tae-gŏn, as his statue was blessed at St. Peter’s Basilica. “[St. Andrew Kim Tae-gŏn’s] figure invites us to discover the vocation entrusted to the Korean Church, to all of you: You are called…
CNA—After hitting their lowest recorded levels since the start of the pandemic in early summer, COVID-19 cases have begun to increase again, raising the specter of new mask mandates and recalling the early days of the pandemic, when fears of COVID outbreaks led much of society to shutter — including, controversially, many churches around the…
I share an inherited appreciation for Fr. Flanagan thanks to my father. Boys Town and similar organizations were always close to my dad’s heart and among the top of his donation pile, next to our local parish church fund. The reason is that he was sent to spend the last few years of high school…
Home energy audit tax credit. When considering making energy-saving home improvements, it may be helpful to have a home energy audit done. Fortunately, there is a federal income tax credit available equal to 30% of the amount paid for home energy audits, up to $150 per tax year. (There are also credits available for many…
CNA—Mexican actor, producer, and founder of the Viva México Movement, Eduardo Verástegui ,registered Sept. 7, 2023, as an independent candidate for the presidency of Mexico in the 2024 elections. According to electoral regulations, after expressing his intention to run for president to the National Electoral Institute (INE), Verástegui must gather, in no more than 120…
CNA—Few young people can claim to have distinctly felt the healing touch of God or to have survived major bouts of serious cancer. Fewer still can say they’ve launched a foundation meant to help other young cancer survivors as they struggle through their own medical battles. Bryce Newman can claim all three. And he’s not…
The extraordinary story of the Ulma family is one of faith, courage, and heroic love of neighbor. Józef and Wiktoria Ulma risked their lives to protect three Jewish families during the Holocaust. On the night of March 24, 1944, German Nazis raided their farmhouse and cruelly shot all of the Jews the Ulmas were hiding…
Vatican News—A political analyst engaged in helping Mongolia implement democracy and human rights shines a light on the current socio-political challenges in the country, and upholds its commitment to protect freedom of religion and the rights of religious minorities. Pope Francis’ historic Apostolic Visit to Mongolia would have been unimaginable during Mongolia’s communist period “where…
Pope Francis is visiting Mongolia from Aug. 31–Sept. 4. Mongolia is one of the world’s largest landlocked nations, sandwiched between its much larger and more powerful neighbors, China and Russia. It has one of the smallest Christian communities in the world with 1,450 Catholics. Here are a few highlights: A special Virgin Mary statue Pope…
CNA—Ninety-six loans and just over $96 million. That’s the track record thus far of Catholic Finance Corporation (CFC), a Minneapolis-based Catholic firm that has issued tens of millions of dollars in loans to regional Catholic organizations and groups over the past few decades. Michael Laughery, the group’s director of partner services, told CNA that the…
CNA—The back-to-school season for many parents comes as something of a relief: It’s quieter around the house, the family slips into a routine schedule, the happy chaos of summer turns to the welcome predictability of the fall. Yet the U.S. education landscape has in recent years been anything but quiet or predictable. Schools have become…
