Catholic News

• Bishops' immigration spokesman defends USCCB stance (National Catholic Register)
  The newly elected chairman of the US bishops’ committee on immigration defended the bishops’ advocacy for immigrants, while acknowledging differences of opinion among American Catholics, in an interview with the National Catholic Register. Bishop Brendan Cahill of Victoria, Texas, said that he hopes American Catholic “will have moved beyond talking past one another and toward a deeper unity rooted in the Gospel: unity that allows for reasonably disagreement without losing sight of the dignity of immigrants.” Bishop Cahill recognized problems posed by illegal immigration. But he said: “A system that relies primarily on mass or sweeping deportation as its solution fails to reflect the balance of mercy that our faith demands and our nation’s history warrants.” He argued that deportation is warranted only when it is humane, allows for due process, respects family integrity, and offers special protection to the vulnerable. Bishop Cahill revealed that the US bishops have “begun undertaking dialogue” with the Trump administration on the immigration issue.
• Liturgy, governance on agenda for January meeting of cardinals (Dianne Montagna)
  Pope Leo XIV has told members of the College of Cardinals that at a special consistory in January, he wants the cardinals to discuss church governance, synodality, and liturgy. These agenda items for the meeting—which is scheduled for January 7 and 8—were disclosed in a letter to the cardinals, according to a report in the Italian daily Il Giornale.
• Pope Leo: The Nativity scene reminds us we are never alone (Dicastery for Communication)
  The Nativity scene is “an important sign: it reminds us that we are part of a wondrous adventure of Salvation in which we are never alone but, as Saint Augustine said, ‘God became man, so that man might become God … so that the human inhabitants of earth might become inhabitants of heaven,’” Pope Leo XIV said on December 13. Addressing actors of the living Nativity scene of the Papal Basilica of Saint Mary Major, Pope Leo added, “Spread this message and keep this tradition alive. They are a gift of light for our world, which so badly needs to be able to continue to hope.”
• Follow Christ and know the divine law, Pope tells priests, religious, and seminarians (Dicastery for Communication)
  In a message to participants in a meeting of Latin American priests, religious, and seminarians who are studying in Rome, Pope Leo XIV emphasized the Lord’s “absolute initiative” in calling someone to follow Him, as well as the “commitment that responding to this vocation entails.” Pope Leo also spoke of “the urgent need for theoretical and practical knowledge of the divine law,” gained “above all through reading the Holy Scriptures, meditating in the silence of deep prayer, reverently welcoming the voice of legitimate pastors, and attentively studying the many treasures of wisdom offered to us by the Church.” “In the midst of joys and difficulties, our motto must be: if Christ went through this, it is also our duty to live what He lived,” the Pope added. “We must not be driven by applause because its echo is short-lived; nor is it healthy to dwell only on the memory of days of crisis or times of bitter disappointment.”
• USCCB president expresses prayerful solidarity with Jewish community following Sydney shooting (USCCB)
  Archbishop Paul Coakley, president of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, told Jewish leaders that the Bondi Beach shooting is “a painful reminder that hatred remains a threat to our lives, our communities, and the bonds that unite us.” Hanukkah, which “commemorates an event in salvation history cherished by Catholics as well as Jews, proclaims the truth that light endures, even when darkness seems overwhelming,” Archbishop Coakley said in his letter, released yesterday. “I wish the Jewish community to know that the Catholic community stands with them in sorrow and in resolve, committed to friendship that does not waver when fear threatens to paralyze us.”
• Papal appeal for peace in DR Congo (Dicastery for Communication)
  Pope Leo XIV appealed for peace in the Democratic Republic of the Congo as the military campaign by the M23 rebel group continues. “I am following with deep concern the resumption of fighting in the eastern part of the Democratic Republic of Congo,” Pope Leo said following his Sunday Angelus address. “While expressing my closeness to the people, I urge the parties in the conflict to cease all forms of violence and to seek constructive dialogue, respecting the ongoing peace process.”
• Pope, addressing conductor Muti and concert performers, speaks of importance of music (CWN)
  Pope Leo XIV has twice paid tribute to music in recent days.
• Federal court sides with New Orleans archdiocese, against priest who alleged discrimination (Religion Clause)
  Citing the ministerial expection, a federal district court dismissed a lawsuit filed by Father Kesiena Obienu against the Archdiocese of New Orleans. The Nigerian-born priest, who was ordained in 2022, alleged discrimination that led to “wrongful termination, failure to promote, failure to allow him to complete the training necessary for promotion, unequal terms and conditions of employment, and retaliation,” according to the court ruling (p. 4). The priest also maintained that he was ordained “against his express wishes” (p. 2).
• Thai desire for military glory is fomenting conflict, Cambodian prelate says (Fides)
  The apostolic prefect of Battambang, Cambodia, attributed the Cambodia–Thailand conflict to the Thai government’s desire for military glory. Father Enrique Figaredo Alvargonzález, a Spanish Jesuit missionary prelate, told the Fides news agency that “political dynamics [in Thailand] are prompting the military to strive for national glory, even through this war with an external enemy, which they hope will restore unity to the country. But we also see in Thailand that the youth do not share this approach and are calling for peace.” “We are experiencing this time of trial during Advent and placing our precarious situation and our pain in God’s hands,” added the prelate, who expressed gratitude for Pope Leo’s recent appeal for peace.
• Pontifical academy president believes late physicist's theories point to Christianity (L'Osservatore Romano (Italian))
  The president of the Pontifical Academy of Theology said that the theories of the 20th-century physicist David Bohm point to Christianity. “The visions of Bohm and other holistic scientists are not in contradiction with the Christian faith; on the contrary, they find in Christian theology their most complete and profound explanation,” said Bishop Antonio Staglianò, in an article in yesterday’s edition of the Vatican newspaper. The prelate explained: Quantum physics shows us the “how” of the extraordinary interconnectedness of being. Christianity reveals to us the “who” and the “why”: everything is united because everything is created and redeemed In Him, the One, and in Him alone we find our true identity of being One.
• Michigan AG releases report on alleged abuse in Diocese of Grand Rapids (Michigan Dept. of Attorney General)
  Attorney General Dana Nessel of Michigan released “Diocese of Grand Rapids: A Complete Accounting,” a 335-page report on allegations of clerical sexual abuse in the diocese. “The investigation into the Diocese of Grand Rapids did not reveal any allegations of the sexual abuse of a minor regarding priests in active ministry,” the diocese said in its response. “No criminal charges resulted from this investigation.”    The diocese added: During the 75-year period in the report, more than 1,000 priests served in our diocese. The report details the reported abuse of 152 victim-survivors by 51 priests. The sexual misconduct allegations of 14 priests involve adults. While immoral, these actions are not in violation of Michigan law. The Attorney General has not filed criminal charges against any of these priests. The vast majority of reported abuse cases in our diocese are very old, with most occurring from 1970-1979. The fact that no charges were filed against priests in the Diocese of Grand Rapids and that all alleged conduct involving a minor occurred before 2002 is evidence that our safe environment programs are working.
• United Airlines settles suit with Catholic flight attendant (CNA)
  A Catholic flight attendant who sued United Airlines for wrongful termination, saying that he was fired because of his opposition to gender ideology, has settled with the airline. Ruben Sanchez charged that United Airlines dismissed him because he had defended Catholic moral teachings in social-media posts. He also sued his union, the Association of Flight Attendants, for failing to protect him. Sanchez was supported in his legal case by X (Twitter), which cited its corporate stand for free speech.
• Vatican security forces hold jubilee (Vatican News (Italian))
  Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the Secretary of State of His Holiness, celebrated Mass on the evening of December 13 for participants in the Jubilee of the Swiss Guard, the Gendarmerie (police), and the Fire Department of Vatican City State. Reflecting on the first reading of the Gaudete Sunday Mass, Cardinal Parolin preached that “the Lord comes and visits us in our existential deserts: He does not make the problems disappear, but helps us to face them together with Him. And it happens as when the steppe suddenly blossoms!”
• Rejoice, for Jesus is our hope, Pope tells pilgrims on Gaudete Sunday (Dicastery for Communication)
  Addressing pilgrims gathered in St. Peter’s Square for yesterday’s Sunday Angelus address, Pope Leo reflected on the Gospel reading at Mass (Matthew 11:2-11) and said that Christ “opens the eyes of man to the glory of God.” Christ “gives voice to the oppressed and to those whose voices have been silenced by violence and hatred,” Pope Leo said. “He defeats ideologies that make us deaf to the truth. He heals the ailments that deform the body.” The Pope concluded, “Let us rejoice, since Jesus is our hope, especially in times of trial, when life seems to lose meaning and everything appears darker, words fail us, and we struggle to understand others. May the Virgin Mary, model of expectant hope, attentiveness, and joy, help us to imitate the work of her Son by sharing bread and the Gospel with the poor.”
• 'Let no one be lost,' Pontiff preaches at Jubilee of Prisoners (Dicastery for Communication)
  Pope Leo XIV celebrated Mass in St. Peter’s Basilica on Gaudete Sunday, the final day of the Jubilee of Prisoners, one of the events of the 2025 jubilee year. “Working on one’s own feelings and thoughts” is “necessary for those deprived of their freedom, but even more so for those who have the obligation of representing them and making sure that they are treated justly,” Pope Leo preached. “The Jubilee is a call to conversion and, as such, it is a source of hope and joy.” The Pope added, “Let no one be lost! Let all be saved! This is what our God wants, this is his Kingdom, and this is the goal of his actions in the world.”
• On Guadalupe feast day, Pope prays that leaders shun lies, hatred, division, disrespect for life (CNS)
  Pope Leo XIV celebrated Mass in St. Peter’s Basilica (video) on December 12, the Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe. The Pontiff prayed that the Blessed Virgin “teach nations that want to be your children not to divide the world into irreconcilable factions, not to allow hatred to mark their history or lies to write their memory.” “Instruct their leaders in their duty to safeguard the dignity of every person during all stages of their life,” he added.
• Record 12.8 million pilgrims visit Guadalupe shrine (Zenit)
  A record 12.8 million pilgrims visited the Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe in Mexico City for the December 12 feast day of the Patroness of the Americas. Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum spoke with Pope Leo by phone on the feast day and renewed her invitation to the Pontiff to visit Mexico.
• Sydney's Archbishop Fisher blasts anti-Semitism after mass murder (CNA)
  Archbishop Anthony Fisher of Sydney condemned the “brazen and callous disregard for human life” in a shooting spree that killed 16 people at a Hannukah celebration, and the “unspeakable evil” of anti-Semitic hatred. The archbishop said that “public anti-Semitism has festered” in Australia in recent years, and “must be repudiated by every Australian.”
• Cardinal Parolin: Violence in Mozambique has 'fundamentally religious root' (Vatican News)
  Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the Secretary of State of His Holiness, celebrated Mass on December 13 for participants in the Jubilee of Italian Diplomacy, days after his visit to an Islamist insurgency hotspot in Mozambique. Cardinal Parolin spoke of a “tragic reality” of killing, “often by decapitation”—a tragedy that has “a fundamentally religious root” and is “almost completely ignored at the international level.”
• Hong Kong court finds Jimmy Lai guilty (New York Times)
  In a ruling that was fully expected but still widely denounced, a Hong Kong court on December 15 found democracy activist Jimmy Lai guilty on charges that are likely to bring a life sentence. The Lai trial has been roundly condemned by international observers. The former media tycoon, who has been imprisoned for five years, declined to leave Hong Kong in order to challenge draconian “national-security” laws that effectively make criticism of the government illegal. The British government, the former colonial ruler of Hong Kong, decried the verdict. US President Trump has promised to push for Lai’s release.
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