In this life, we encounter innumerable struggles. They can range from struggles against sin to serious illnesses and even persecutions for the Faith. Many, if not most, of these struggles cause us to suffer. Thankfully, God’s grace gives our struggles and sufferings meaning and gives us countless opportunities to grow in grace. When we embrace […]

In spring 2012, I found out that I was pregnant. It was my second pregnancy after my daughter and her miscarried twin. The Lord placed a deep desire within my heart to offer a son (or all the sons He gave me) to the priesthood. I saw the need. There is a great shortage of […]

Romuald, born in Ravenna, Italy, in 950 AD, lived amidst the political and moral turmoil of medieval Europe. Despite being born into privilege, Romuald was deeply affected by the violence and corruption of his time. Seeking solace and guidance, he turned to the Church and embarked on a spiritual journey that would shape his life […]

Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Jun 18, 2025 / 18:43 pm (CNA).

The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) is commemorating 2025 Religious Freedom Week with the theme “Witnesses to Hope,” according to a June 18 announcement.

Religious Freedom Week, which the USCCB first launched in 2018, begins on Monday, June 22 — the feast of Sts. Thomas More and John Fisher — and runs through Sunday, June 29 — the solemnity of Sts. Peter and Paul.

The USCCB is urging Catholics to “pray, reflect, and act to promote religious freedom” during the week. The conference is also asking the faithful to contact their senators in support of school choice in the Senate budget reconciliation bill, which could benefit Catholic schools.

In its announcement, the USCCB stated that the theme “builds on the annual [religious freedom] report released earlier this year by the conference’s Committee for Religious Liberty that highlights the impact of political polarization on religious freedom.”

The USCCB’s Jan. 16 annual report on the state of religious liberty expressed concerns about policies on immigration, gender ideology, abortion, and in vitro fertilization (IVF).

In the January report, the bishops wrote that Catholic nongovernmental organizations are being “singled out for special hostility” and referenced the El Paso-based Annunciation House, which Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton is seeking to shut down. After the report was issued, President Donald Trump’s administration stripped some federal funds from Catholic organizations that provide foreign aid and domestic services for migrants.

The report also criticized proposed rules that push gender ideology onto schools and hospitals, which Trump has reversed. The bishops also expressed concerns about potential bills to impose abortion, contraception, or IVF coverage mandates for health insurance policies.

In its June 18 news release, the USCCB also announced a religious liberty essay contest the bishops organized with the Secretariat of Catholic Education and Our Sunday Visitor Institute. According to the bishops, the top essays from the competition will be published during Religious Freedom Week.

Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Jun 18, 2025 / 18:43 pm (CNA).

The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) is commemorating 2025 Religious Freedom Week with the theme “Witnesses to Hope,” according to a June 18 announcement.

Religious Freedom Week, which the USCCB first launched in 2018, begins on Monday, June 22 — the feast of Sts. Thomas More and John Fisher — and runs through Sunday, June 29 — the solemnity of Sts. Peter and Paul.

The USCCB is urging Catholics to “pray, reflect, and act to promote religious freedom” during the week. The conference is also asking the faithful to contact their senators in support of school choice in the Senate budget reconciliation bill, which could benefit Catholic schools.

In its announcement, the USCCB stated that the theme “builds on the annual [religious freedom] report released earlier this year by the conference’s Committee for Religious Liberty that highlights the impact of political polarization on religious freedom.”

The USCCB’s Jan. 16 annual report on the state of religious liberty expressed concerns about policies on immigration, gender ideology, abortion, and in vitro fertilization (IVF).

In the January report, the bishops wrote that Catholic nongovernmental organizations are being “singled out for special hostility” and referenced the El Paso-based Annunciation House, which Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton is seeking to shut down. After the report was issued, President Donald Trump’s administration stripped some federal funds from Catholic organizations that provide foreign aid and domestic services for migrants.

The report also criticized proposed rules that push gender ideology onto schools and hospitals, which Trump has reversed. The bishops also expressed concerns about potential bills to impose abortion, contraception, or IVF coverage mandates for health insurance policies.

In its June 18 news release, the USCCB also announced a religious liberty essay contest the bishops organized with the Secretariat of Catholic Education and Our Sunday Visitor Institute. According to the bishops, the top essays from the competition will be published during Religious Freedom Week.

CNA Staff, Jun 18, 2025 / 18:23 pm (CNA).

The National Eucharistic Congress has changed the route and agenda for the conclusion of the 2025 National Eucharistic Pilgrimage in Los Angeles this Sunday, citing safety concerns. 

The culmination of the St. Katherine Drexel pilgrimage route will no longer include a Eucharistic procession through downtown Los Angeles but will instead remain on the grounds of the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels, and the festival that was to follow the procession has been canceled entirely. 

The route adjustment and festival cancellation follows recent riots in Los Angeles over deportations of unauthorized immigrants. The unrest began in early June. More than 350 people have been arrested since, and the Los Angeles mayor only recently lifted a curfew.

The change of plans is designed to ensure the safety of participants while still “providing an opportunity for the people of God to come together in prayer and community,” according to National Eucharistic Congress President Jason Shanks.

“Based upon our conversations with LAPD this week, we feel confident that this new plan ensures the safety of all involved while still bringing the Eucharistic presence of Our Lord to downtown L.A. in this intentional way,” Shanks said in a June 18 statement. 

Organizers noted that “the center of the 2025 National Eucharistic Pilgrimage is not an event but a Person.”

More than 3,000 people from around the U.S. are registered to attend the pilgrimage’s culminating June 22 Corpus Christi Mass and procession, according to organizers. The Mass will still take place at the downtown cathedral on Sunday afternoon along with the scaled-down procession.

The pilgrimage, named for St. Katharine Drexel, which follows the unprecedented four national pilgrimages that took place during the summer of 2024, is organized to bear witness to the presence of Jesus in the Eucharist. 

The 3,300-mile, 10-state trek began in mid-May in Indianapolis and included a group of eight young Catholic “Perpetual Pilgrims.”

The perpetual pilgrims have endured a lot already, encountering anti-Catholic protestors along the route. Nevertheless, the pilgrims endeavored to preserve a spirit of quiet prayer amid the rowdy protests.

According to the updated schedule released by the National Eucharistic Congress, on the final day of the St. Katharine Drexel pilgrimage route Catholics will gather for Mass at the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels at 3 p.m., as originally planned. The apostolic nuncio to the United States, Cardinal Christophe Pierre, will celebrate, while Archbishop José Gomez of Los Angeles will preach the homily. Bishop Andrew Cozzens of Crookston, Minnesota, and all the Los Angeles bishops will concelebrate along with them.

The Eucharistic procession is scheduled to begin after Mass, at approximately 4:30 p.m. Rather than going through the public streets of downtown, the procession will proceed through the cathedral plaza with several stops along the way. 

The bishops will then take the Eucharistic Lord onto Temple Street — a main street in front of the cathedral, which will be closed to traffic — to bless the city. The prayerful event will conclude with a final Benediction inside the cathedral. 

Amid the changes, Shanks said “revival can’t be stopped by circumstance.”

“The flames of Eucharistic faith continue to spread nationwide,” he continued. “Now more than ever, we are calling Catholics across the country to become Eucharistic missionaries: to carry the fire of revival into your homes, your parishes, and your communities.”

CNA Staff, Jun 18, 2025 / 18:23 pm (CNA).

The National Eucharistic Congress has changed the route and agenda for the conclusion of the 2025 National Eucharistic Pilgrimage in Los Angeles this Sunday, citing safety concerns. 

The culmination of the St. Katherine Drexel pilgrimage route will no longer include a Eucharistic procession through downtown Los Angeles but will instead remain on the grounds of the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels, and the festival that was to follow the procession has been canceled entirely. 

The route adjustment and festival cancellation follows recent riots in Los Angeles over deportations of unauthorized immigrants. The unrest began in early June. More than 350 people have been arrested since, and the Los Angeles mayor only recently lifted a curfew.

The change of plans is designed to ensure the safety of participants while still “providing an opportunity for the people of God to come together in prayer and community,” according to National Eucharistic Congress President Jason Shanks.

“Based upon our conversations with LAPD this week, we feel confident that this new plan ensures the safety of all involved while still bringing the Eucharistic presence of Our Lord to downtown L.A. in this intentional way,” Shanks said in a June 18 statement. 

Organizers noted that “the center of the 2025 National Eucharistic Pilgrimage is not an event but a Person.”

More than 3,000 people from around the U.S. are registered to attend the pilgrimage’s culminating June 22 Corpus Christi Mass and procession, according to organizers. The Mass will still take place at the downtown cathedral on Sunday afternoon along with the scaled-down procession.

The pilgrimage, named for St. Katharine Drexel, which follows the unprecedented four national pilgrimages that took place during the summer of 2024, is organized to bear witness to the presence of Jesus in the Eucharist. 

The 3,300-mile, 10-state trek began in mid-May in Indianapolis and included a group of eight young Catholic “Perpetual Pilgrims.”

The perpetual pilgrims have endured a lot already, encountering anti-Catholic protestors along the route. Nevertheless, the pilgrims endeavored to preserve a spirit of quiet prayer amid the rowdy protests.

According to the updated schedule released by the National Eucharistic Congress, on the final day of the St. Katharine Drexel pilgrimage route Catholics will gather for Mass at the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels at 3 p.m., as originally planned. The apostolic nuncio to the United States, Cardinal Christophe Pierre, will celebrate, while Archbishop José Gomez of Los Angeles will preach the homily. Bishop Andrew Cozzens of Crookston, Minnesota, and all the Los Angeles bishops will concelebrate along with them.

The Eucharistic procession is scheduled to begin after Mass, at approximately 4:30 p.m. Rather than going through the public streets of downtown, the procession will proceed through the cathedral plaza with several stops along the way. 

The bishops will then take the Eucharistic Lord onto Temple Street — a main street in front of the cathedral, which will be closed to traffic — to bless the city. The prayerful event will conclude with a final Benediction inside the cathedral. 

Amid the changes, Shanks said “revival can’t be stopped by circumstance.”

“The flames of Eucharistic faith continue to spread nationwide,” he continued. “Now more than ever, we are calling Catholics across the country to become Eucharistic missionaries: to carry the fire of revival into your homes, your parishes, and your communities.”

Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Jun 18, 2025 / 17:53 pm (CNA).

Bishop David Bonnar of the Diocese of Youngstown, Ohio, issued a pastoral letter this month inviting all clergy, religious, and laity in the diocese to rediscover their devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus during this jubilee year.

In his third pastoral letter, titled “Take Heart! Do Not Lose Heart! Behold the Sacred Heart!”, the bishop asked the faithful, when they enter their parishes, to be “intentional” about “acknowledging and praying to the image of the Sacred Heart of Jesus.” 

“At this year’s chrism Mass, the Diocese of Youngstown gifted her priests with an image of the Sacred Heart of Jesus to display in their prayer space especially as they answer God’s call to serve with a shepherd’s heart.”

Bonnar also encouraged Catholics to “extend this same focus to the images of the Sacred Heart in our homes.”

In a press release, the diocese reported that the bishop said he was “inspired by Pope Francis’ last encyclical Dilexit Nos (‘He Loved Us’), which discusses the human and divine love of the heart of Jesus Christ.” 

Bonnar also announced in the letter that on Sept. 28, the “diocese will celebrate an enthronement of the Sacred Heart of Jesus in every church,” corresponding with the end of the 350th Jubilee for the Sacred Heart.

The diocese reported in the press release that “the enthronement ritual involves veneration … of an image of the Sacred Heart to affirm the kingship of Jesus in the life of those participating.”

“During our upcoming clergy convocation, I will celebrate with our priests an enthronement of the Sacred Heart of Jesus,” Bonnar explained in the letter. “Together as a presbyterate, we will pray to the Sacred Heart for strength and grace as we teach, sanctify, and lead the people of God in our portion of the Lord’s vineyard always with a shepherd’s heart.”

“Together, as a community of believers, we will behold the Sacred Heart of Jesus,” he wrote. “I pray that the life and love that flows from the Sacred Heart will empower us to be a more loving and unified Church.”

Bonnar’s letter also addressed how the election of Pope Leo XIV and his connection to St. Augustine has encouraged the “world to embrace and be embraced by the Sacred Heart of Jesus.”

The bishop said his hope is that “this long, intentional gaze at Jesus and his Sacred Heart” will encourage “more vocations to the priesthood, consecrated life, and married life.”

“I also pray that our commitment to the Sacred Heart of Jesus will enliven us to open our hearts more to one another in a spirit of empathy, compassion, and forgiveness so that we ourselves embody the heart of Jesus,” he said.

Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Jun 18, 2025 / 17:53 pm (CNA).

Bishop David Bonnar of the Diocese of Youngstown, Ohio, issued a pastoral letter this month inviting all clergy, religious, and laity in the diocese to rediscover their devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus during this jubilee year.

In his third pastoral letter, titled “Take Heart! Do Not Lose Heart! Behold the Sacred Heart!”, the bishop asked the faithful, when they enter their parishes, to be “intentional” about “acknowledging and praying to the image of the Sacred Heart of Jesus.” 

“At this year’s chrism Mass, the Diocese of Youngstown gifted her priests with an image of the Sacred Heart of Jesus to display in their prayer space especially as they answer God’s call to serve with a shepherd’s heart.”

Bonnar also encouraged Catholics to “extend this same focus to the images of the Sacred Heart in our homes.”

In a press release, the diocese reported that the bishop said he was “inspired by Pope Francis’ last encyclical Dilexit Nos (‘He Loved Us’), which discusses the human and divine love of the heart of Jesus Christ.” 

Bonnar also announced in the letter that on Sept. 28, the “diocese will celebrate an enthronement of the Sacred Heart of Jesus in every church,” corresponding with the end of the 350th Jubilee for the Sacred Heart.

The diocese reported in the press release that “the enthronement ritual involves veneration … of an image of the Sacred Heart to affirm the kingship of Jesus in the life of those participating.”

“During our upcoming clergy convocation, I will celebrate with our priests an enthronement of the Sacred Heart of Jesus,” Bonnar explained in the letter. “Together as a presbyterate, we will pray to the Sacred Heart for strength and grace as we teach, sanctify, and lead the people of God in our portion of the Lord’s vineyard always with a shepherd’s heart.”

“Together, as a community of believers, we will behold the Sacred Heart of Jesus,” he wrote. “I pray that the life and love that flows from the Sacred Heart will empower us to be a more loving and unified Church.”

Bonnar’s letter also addressed how the election of Pope Leo XIV and his connection to St. Augustine has encouraged the “world to embrace and be embraced by the Sacred Heart of Jesus.”

The bishop said his hope is that “this long, intentional gaze at Jesus and his Sacred Heart” will encourage “more vocations to the priesthood, consecrated life, and married life.”

“I also pray that our commitment to the Sacred Heart of Jesus will enliven us to open our hearts more to one another in a spirit of empathy, compassion, and forgiveness so that we ourselves embody the heart of Jesus,” he said.

Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Jun 18, 2025 / 17:23 pm (CNA).

The abortion pill reversal (APR) drug supplied by Abortion Pill Rescue Network (APRN) has saved the lives of more than 7,000 unborn children since 2007, according to estimates from Heartbeat International.

Heartbeat International, a pro-life organization that operates APRN, announced the milestone in a June 12 article posted on “Pregnancy Help News,” a website the organization runs. 

Approximately 1,000 unborn lives have been saved over the last seven months alone, according to the organization’s numbers.

“Instead of taking a year to add another 1,000, it’s only taken about half that time,” Heartbeat International President Jor-El Godsey said in a statement, adding: “The APRN team reached 7,000 faster than expected.”

“Since November of last year, we’ve seen a marked increase in women finding us with the hope of changing the path they had previously chosen,” he added. “Milestones like this are important as we see chemical abortion exploding across the U.S. It’s only natural that with more abortions, there will be more women who regret making — or being forced into — that decision.”

APR is intended to reverse the effects of the abortion pill mifepristone and save the pregnancy.

Mifepristone, which is the first drug taken for a chemical abortion, attempts to kill the unborn child by blocking the hormone progesterone, which cuts off the child’s supply of oxygen and nutrients. A second pill, misoprostol, induces contractions to expel the child from the mother’s body.

If a woman has only taken mifepristone but has not yet taken misoprostol, the reversal drug could save her unborn child’s life by restoring the hormone progesterone. APR is often offered at pro-life pregnancy centers, also known as pregnancy resource centers.

Heartbeat International calculates the number of lives saved by combining individually tracked cases with statistical estimates, according to a spokesperson. Tracked cases, which account for thousands of lives, are women whose pregnancy was tracked after taking APR drugs.

For the unconfirmed outcomes, the group estimates the number of lives saved based on the success rate of APR drugs, which was calculated in a study by George Delgado, the medical director of Culture of Life Family Services and an APRN medical adviser.

“It’s very exciting to see that it has been successful that many times because it’s offering an option to women who begin a chemical abortion and change their minds,” Dr. Karen Poehailos, a Catholic pro-life doctor who serves on the medical advisory board for APRN, told CNA.

Poehailos, who also works as a family physician, said she has overseen more than 80 APR treatments for women. She said she still keeps in touch with the family of the first child she helped save with APR, who is now 9 years old and “doing well.”

She said APR treatments are “basically a matter of receptor competition” in which APR drugs try to restore progesterone while the mifepristone works to block it. She added that it’s “a very safe medicine to use in pregnancy” and has been prescribed by doctors to reduce the risks of miscarriages and premature labor for about 50 years.

“[Progesterone is] a very normal hormone for pregnancy and is present in large amounts throughout the pregnancy,” Poehailos noted.

Political and legal efforts to curtail access

There have been numerous political and legal efforts to curtail access to APR and restrict the operations and speech of pro-life pregnancy resource centers that often provide them.

California Attorney General Rob Bonta sued Heartbeat International and affiliated pregnancy resource centers over use of the drug. The lawsuit claimed that there is no scientific evidence to support the claim that the drugs can reverse the effects of a chemical abortion pill.

The lawsuit alleged that advertisements promoting the abortion pill reversal drugs are fraudulent and misleading, labeling the actions of pregnancy resource centers as “predatory and unlawful.”

New York Attorney General Letitia James filed a similar lawsuit in her state, claiming that pro-life pregnancy centers are engaged in false advertising in their promotion of the medicine.

Other efforts include Colorado Gov. Jared Polis signing a bill that would have banned the drug had it not been halted by a judge. Additionally, the Massachusetts Department of Public Health launched an “education campaign” against pregnancy centers, alleging they spread misinformation.

Some women who say APR has saved their children’s lives have fought back against efforts to prevent access. Mackenna Greene, who said her daughter was saved by APR treatments after she took mifepristone, was involved in a lawsuit against the Colorado ban.

Poehailos told CNA she’s “not certain why it has become such an issue” since the hormone has been in use for more than five decades.

She pointed to the 2018 Delgado study of more than 750 women that found two-thirds of women who took progesterone after taking mifepristone gave birth to the child. Alternatively, women who take mifepristone but skip the second chemical abortion drug misoprostol only give birth to the child about 20%-40% of the time, according to the study.

“It’s statistically significant,” Poehailos said.