Pope Leo XIV listens to the choir during an audience with participants of an event organized by the Domenico Bartolucci Foundation on June 18, 2025. / Credit: Vatican Media

ACI Prensa Staff, Jun 19, 2025 / 17:03 pm (CNA).

At an event sponsored by the Domenico Bartolucci Foundation on Wednesday, Pope Leo XIV said that polyphony is a musical form “full of meaning” for prayer and Christian life, and cited the works of the famous Italian composer Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina as an example.

The Holy Father offered his praise to polyphonic music while welcoming participants at the June 18 event commemorating the 500th anniversary of the birth of Palestrina, a great composer of sacred music of the 16th century who directed institutions such as the Sistine Chapel, the Lateran Chapel, and the Liberian Chapel.

“Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina was, in the history of the Church, one of the composers who most contributed to the promotion of sacred music, for ‘the glory of God and the sanctification and edification of the faithful’ in the difficult yet passionate context of the Counter-Reformation,” Leo XIV said.

Among Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina’s best-known works are “Tu es Petrus,” “Missa Papae Marcelli,” and “Missa brevis” (“You are Peter,” “Mass of Pope Marcellus,” and “Brief Mass”).

“His solemn and austere compositions, inspired by Gregorian chant, closely unite music and liturgy, ‘both by giving prayer a sweeter expression and fostering unanimity, and by enriching the sacred rites with greater solemnity,’” the pontiff added.

In this regard, Leo XIV said that polyphony “is a musical form full of meaning, both for prayer and for Christian life,” since “it is inspired by the sacred text, which it seeks to clothe with an appropriate melody so that the faithful may better understand the text.”

The pope explained that polyphonic music “achieves this goal by entrusting the words to several voices, each of which repeats the words in its own unique way, with varied and complementary melodic and harmonic movements.”

“Finally, everything harmonizes thanks to the skill with which the composer develops and interweaves the melodies, respecting the rules of counterpoint, echoing them, sometimes even creating dissonances that later find resolution in new chords,” he noted.

Leo XIV said that “the effect of this dynamic unity in diversity — a metaphor for our common journey of faith under the guidance of the Holy Spirit — is to help the listener enter ever more deeply into the mystery expressed by the words, responding, if appropriate, with responsories or in alternations.”

The pontiff noted that “thanks to this richness of form and content, the Roman polyphonic tradition, in addition to having bequeathed us an immense artistic and spiritual heritage, remains even today, in the musical field, a reference to which we can turn, albeit with the necessary adaptations, in sacred and liturgical composition.”

In this way, through song, the faithful will be able to participate “fully, consciously, and actively in the liturgy, profoundly involving voice, mind, and heart.”

Pope Leo XIV held up the “Mass of Pope Marcellus” as an example of excellence “as well as the precious repertoire of compositions bequeathed to us by the unforgettable Cardinal Domenico Bartolucci, the illustrious composer and, for almost 50 years, director of the Sistine Chapel Choir.”

The Holy Father recalled the words of St. Augustine, who, “speaking of singing the Easter Alleluia, said: ‘Let us sing it now, my brothers ... As wayfarers sing, but walk ... Go forward, go forward in good ... Sing and walk! Do not stray from the path, do not turn back, do not stop!’”

“Let us make his invitation our own, especially in this sacred time of joy. My blessing to all,” he concluded.

This story was first published by ACI Prensa, CNA’s Spanish-language news partner. It has been translated and adapted by CNA.

An 1889 rendition by architects Bullard & Bullard of the National Emancipation Monument proposed for Springfield, Illinois (Library of Congress), superimposed on a 34-star U.S. flag dating to the Civil War. / Credit: Wikimedia Commons

Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Jun 19, 2025 / 16:33 pm (CNA).

Catholic churches are celebrating the national holiday of Juneteenth this week by honoring the freedom won by formerly enslaved Black Americans at the end of the Civil War.

The National Museum of African American History calls the commemoration of Juneteenth, a federal holiday celebrated on June 19, the nation’s “second independence day.” The holiday marks General Order No. 3 that enforced the Emancipation Proclamation freeing enslaved African Americans in Texas in 1865 when Union soldiers arrived in Galveston, Texas, and announced that enslaved people were now all free.

Wendi Williams, executive director of cultural diversity and outreach for the Archdiocese of Washington, D.C., noted many parishes started their Juneteenth celebrations early.

“This past weekend, dozens of parishes celebrated Juneteenth liturgies, as a Sunday Mass, and the various kinds of activities, gatherings, and fellowship that would follow the Mass,” she told CNA.

In Reston, Virginia, St. John Neumann Catholic Church celebrated the holiday on Saturday, June 14, with children’s activities, an interactive story time, a lecture, food, music, and dance. 

“This is our third year having a Juneteenth celebration,” said Elizabeth Wright, communications director for St. John Neumann Catholic Church. “It’s a combination of education and celebration. There’s history around the lunch and the foods we serve, trying to honor Black culture, African American culture, in every way.”

Spencer Crew, a professor of history at George Mason University and former interim director of the Smithsonian African American History Museum, hosted a lecture at the parish titled “Journey to Freedom: A Community Celebration.”

Wright emphasized that in their outreach they invite not just parishioners but the entire community.

North of the nation’s capital, meanwhile, in Sandy Spring, Maryland, multiple Christian denominations came together to host a community event earlier today called “Juneteenth: Freedom, Resilience, and Pursuit of Equality,” which featured music, dance, and the spoken word. 

Among the participating groups were the Africa and Diaspora Ministry of St. Augustine Catholic Church and the Anti-Racism Initiative of St. Camillus Parish. 

Steve Yank, leader of St. Camillus’ Anti-Racism Initiative, referenced a 2018 pastoral letter from the U.S. bishops for inspiration for the Juneteenth event.

“The bishops’ letter, ‘Open Wide Our Hearts,’ makes clear that racist acts are sinful … Sinful because they fail to acknowledge human dignity,” he explained. “In that spirit, the anti-racism initiative of the St. Camillus Justice Peace Integrity of Creation Ministry observes Juneteenth, a day to reflect on the evils of slavery and to celebrate freedom for enslaved Africans in America. It’s part of our charge to recognize life and human dignity as sacred.”

Williams connected the celebration of Juneteenth to synodality, a theme the late Pope Francis promoted. 

“Synodality is walking with people. Synodality is bringing people together. Discussions shape dialogue. Bringing different speakers that are fluent in particular subjects helps the faithful learn from different vantage points,” she said.

“We invite the faithful and the broader community to commemorate the emancipation of enslaved African Americans to reflect on the dignity of every human person. [Juneteenth is] a sacred opportunity for us to affirm our shared human dignity while also celebrating the rich heritage of African Americans.”

Early photo of Robert Prevost from the Midwest Augustinian Province of Our Lady of Good Counsel. / Credit: Courtesy of the Midwest Augustinian Province of Our Lady of Good Counsel

Vatican City, Jun 19, 2025 / 16:03 pm (CNA).

Pope Leo XIV celebrated the 43rd anniversary of his priestly ordination today. On June 19, 1982, Robert Prevost was ordained a priest by Belgian Archbishop Jean Jadot in St. Monica Chapel, located just outside the Vatican. He was 26 years old. He entered the Augustinian order in 1977 and took his first vows on Sept. 2, 1978.

St. Monica Chapel, located next to the Plaza del Santo Oficio — where the pontiff currently resides — holds particular symbolic value for Leo XIV. Not only was it the place of his ordination, but it was also the titular church assigned to him as a cardinal in September 2023, about a year and a half before his election to the papacy on May 8 of this year.

According to Vatican News, the commemorative holy card for his ordination includes an image of the Last Supper, taken from 15th-century Russian iconography, and words from St. Augustine that still resonate powerfully in his ministry today: “I cannot feed you with ordinary bread, but this Word is your portion. I feed you with the same table that feeds me. I am your servant.”

These words — taken from the bishop of Hippo’s 339th sermon — defined the spirituality of the young Augustinian priest, who would soon be sent as a missionary to Peru, where he ministered for almost two decades.

Also in his work “Exposition on the Psalms (Psalm 103, III, 9),” St. Augustine said: “You are a good servant of Christ if you serve those whom Christ has served … May he grant us to perform this service well.”

This spirit of service was evoked by Pope Leo XIV himself in the homily he preached when for the first time as the bishop of Rome he ordained 11 deacons to the priesthood.

“The love of Christ in fact possesses us!” the pope exclaimed. “It is a possession that liberates and enables us not to possess anyone. Liberate, not possess. We belong to God: There is no greater wealth to appreciate and share. It is the only wealth that, when shared, multiplies.”

This story was first published by ACI Prensa, CNA’s Spanish-language news partner. It has been translated and adapted by CNA.

Pope Leo XIV visits Vatican Radio’s transmission center on June 19, 2025, in Santa Maria di Galeria, Italy. / Credit: Vatican Media

Vatican City, Jun 19, 2025 / 15:33 pm (CNA).

Pope Leo XIV visited the Vatican’s radio transmitter station in Santa Maria di Galeria, Italy, on Thursday and thanked staff for their dedicated work in communicating the Church’s mission around the world.

During the June 19 site visit, the Holy Father blessed staff working in the central radio center on the Vatican’s Corpus Christi holiday and reaffirmed the “missionary value” of their work in communication.

Leo told staff he was grateful for Vatican news reports while in Africa and in Latin America as a missionary, the Holy See Press Office indicated in a telegram post on Thursday.

The last pope to visit the Santa Maria di Galeria central radio center was John Paul II in 1991. Pope Pius XII inaugurated the site in 1957, more than two decades after Pope Pius XI pioneered Vatican Radio with Italian engineer and Nobel Prize winner Guglielmo Marconi in 1931.

The Holy Father also shared light refreshments with staff present Thursday morning to celebrate with them the 43rd anniversary of his June 19 priestly ordination. 

As part of his visit to Santa Maria di Galeria, a Vatican extra territory outside of Rome, Leo had the opportunity to examine the project site being studied for an “agrivoltaic system” for farming and solar energy production.

Nearly one year has passed since Pope Francis revealed his plan for the Vatican state to transition to solar energy as its main power source, as outlined in the 2024 motu proprio Fratello Sole, or “Brother Sun.”

Cardinal Vincent Nichols, archbishop of Westminster, England (left), and Archbishop John Sherrington of Liverpool. / Credit: Daniel Ibañez/CNA; SimeonMarcel, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Dublin, Ireland, Jun 19, 2025 / 13:32 pm (CNA).

Cardinal Vincent Nichols and Archbishop John Sherrington warn that the future of Catholic hospices and care facilities is in doubt if Parliament passes the End of Life Bill.

St. Adalbert Parish in Chicago. / Credit: Gregg Nagel

CNA Staff, Jun 19, 2025 / 12:53 pm (CNA).

The Chicago City Council on Wednesday voted to extend protection status to a historic Catholic parish in the city, handing a win to advocates who for years have urged the local government to protect the more-than-century-old structure.

City leaders voted at their June 18 meeting to designate St. Adalbert’s Parish in the Pilsen neighborhood as a Designated Chicago Landmark. The city government says that designated landmarks are subject to stricter development rules, including approval from the government regarding if, and how, they may be altered or changed.

Preservationists hailed the designation on Wednesday. “BRAVO!!” Preservation Chicago wrote in an X post on Wednesday afternoon.

The preservation group has been at the helm of efforts to preserve the church from demolition and development. They noted on Wednesday that the building has appeared on the group’s “most endangered” historic property list multiple times over the years.

Ward Miller, the executive director of Preservation Chicago, told CNA that the vote demonstrates that churches like St. Adalbert’s are “really fabulous monuments in our city.”

“Particularly in Chicago, we had really wonderful architects that did some amazing work here,” he said. “It’s a great stride forward.”

Miller praised the Archdiocese of Chicago for backing the recent landmark designation.

“It’s wonderful to have the Archdiocese of Chicago working with us toward preservation of these great monuments,” he said.

Buildings and structures like St. Adalbert’s “were built by people with pennies, nickels, and dimes,” he said.

“It’s not just people of the Catholic faith — we all should be working toward this,” he said. “I think preservation needs to be a perpetual idea.”

Historic parishes struggle to stay open around U.S.

The yearslong preservation effort in Chicago underscores regular ongoing conflicts in cities around the United States where Catholics have fought to preserve historic parishes facing threats of closure and destruction.

Yearslong declines in attendance, financial troubles, and physical deterioration have rendered many once-vibrant parishes emptier and without support, oftentimes becoming liabilities for dioceses who themselves are cash-strapped.

In some cases parishioners have resorted to novel efforts to save their churches. A group of parishioners in the Diocese of Allentown, Pennsylvania, last year acquired a historic church from the diocese, preserving it as a chapel and place of worship.

Earlier this year the Pulte Family Charitable Foundation announced a U.S.-based initiative to provide tens of millions of dollars to Catholic parishes and organizations across the country to “restore and endow” Catholic communities around the country “for generations to come.”

Other parishes have struggled to stay afloat, such as St. Casimir in Buffalo, New York, which has mounted efforts in recent years to pay its considerable bills and remain open as a house of worship and historic site.

St. Adalbert’s has seen similar efforts at preservation. The parish community dates to 1874 and has served Polish immigrants and their descendants as well as the Mexican-American community more recently.

The present soaring Gothic cathedral-style structure — designed by noted Chicago architect Henry Schlacks — was completed in 1914.

Parishioners have been fighting to preserve the structure and its surrounding buildings for years. In 2016 the Archdiocese of Chicago announced that due to “the dangerous state of repair and prohibitive costs of repair and maintenance,” the parish would be “reduced to uses other than divine worship.”

Among the necessary repairs was a $3 million structural restoration of the parish’s two towers, the archdiocese said.

In 2019 the archdiocese announced that the building was “relegated to profane but not sordid use,” meaning the parish would “no longer be a sacred space and may not be used for worship.”

Advocates told CNA last year that the archdiocese had previously offered them the parish for free before withdrawing the deal, though the archdiocese sharply disputed that claim, stating that supporters of the parish “were never able to come up with a realistic plan or viable funding source for the property’s acquisition, upkeep, or redevelopment.”

Though it has been afforded some protection from development, St. Adalbert’s may still be sold for non-Catholic use; a nondenominational church is reportedly seeking to buy the property.

The landmark protection, meanwhile, does not cover the parish’s entire campus, which includes a rectory, school, and convent.

Still, Miller said, advocates are “very pleased that there appears to be a path forward.”

“These are not just faith centers,” he said. “They’re humanitarian centers that provide things from counseling to schools to family dinners. We should all be working together to come to a common ground in preserving them.

Athletes pray before a match organized by the Caritas Cup in Rome, Saturday, June 14, 2025. / Credit: EWTN News

Rome Newsroom, Jun 19, 2025 / 10:36 am (CNA).

In dioceses and schools across Scotland, the Caritas Cup organizes local tournaments that bring together young people from Catholic schools and parishes.

Demand among Catholic families in northern Virginia has spurred the leadership of the St. Jerome Institute, a classical liberal arts high school in Washington, D.C., to announce plans to open a second campus in the Diocese of Arlington. / Credit: St. Jerome Institute

Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Jun 19, 2025 / 09:36 am (CNA).

Demand among Catholic families in northern Virginia has spurred the leadership of the St. Jerome Institute, a classical liberal arts high school in Washington, D.C., to announce plans to open a second campus in the Diocese of Arlington.

The proposed opening of the new school comes six years after the institute first launched in the nation’s capital, where enrollment has grown from three to 65 students. Pending final approval from the Diocese of Arlington, the school will operate independently with an education plan developed by its own curriculum board. 

“The school has been and remains in communication with St. Philip’s pastor and the diocese about the possibility of St. Philip being the location for SJI NOVA and both sides continue to work through the details of the potential arrangement,” Mary Shaffrey, a spokeswoman for the Arlington Diocese, told the Washington Times.

“We see that one of the great problems in American culture is the fragmentation between faith and reason,” Andrew Shivone, president of the St. Jerome Institute (SJI), told CNA regarding the school’s mission. “What we want to do is structure our curriculum, structure our culture, structure even the common life that we live together in the truth of Christ and have that truth ordering everything else that we do at the school.” 

Students at St. Jerome’s participate in small seminar-style classes, engaging with the school’s unique liberal arts curriculum.

“From the epic tales of Odysseus and Beowulf to the quiet heroism of Walter Ciszek in Soviet Russia, from the deceptive simplicity of counting to the surprising complexity of the natural logarithm, SJI presents the inspiring beauty of our world in ways that lead students to deeper understanding and lifelong mastery,” the school’s website states.

Students at the St. Jerome Institute experience a tight-knit and active community, whether it be through their seminar discussions, communal morning prayer, extracurricular activities, or rigorous observance of feast days on the liturgical calendar.

“There are a lot of really good Catholic schools in the Arlington Diocese,” Shivone emphasized. “But for those families who are particularly interested in a Catholic liberal arts education, we fit that niche.”

Much like the founding of the original school, the St. Jerome Institute’s decision to launch plans for its second location in northern Virginia comes at the request of local Catholic parents. 

“The northern Virginia Catholic community already possesses a beautiful parish life and really beautiful, authentic Catholic communities of parents, priests, and … kids,” Shivone said. “This seems to be a perfect addition to a community that already exists.”

A curriculum modeled after classical ‘innovation’

Faculty at the St. Jerome Institute will meet this week for their annual summer curriculum symposium, Shivone told CNA. There, teachers will work with the school’s curriculum board to review what works “and seek even deeper integration, philosophically and theologically, with all of the subjects.”

Integration, Shivone noted, is key to the school’s curriculum model.

“We aspire to cultivate and develop what is most human in our students precisely by incorporating them into the rich tradition of Catholic humanism,” the institute’s education plan states.

It continues: “This is their birthright as Catholics and children of the West. Included in this twofold integration are those aptitudes and attitudes belonging to a well-educated person, fully alive: the capacity for wonder, and the ability to read well, write well, speak well, and think well.”

Ultimately, the structure of the curriculum is modeled according to several themes, Shivone explained: God in nature, God in the person, and God in the community. Students end on a “major in-depth study of the Trinity.”

“It’s not simply that they’re able to translate Cicero or something like that, which is a good thing,” Shivone reflected. He said the institute typically interviews its students a few months after graduation, and what they most often report having retained from their experience is “the habit of wonder.”

Vision for the new school

The new school’s curriculum would contain many of the same “essential” elements as the existing school, according to Shivone.

However, he said, “we want the new school to receive what we are, and then from that, develop it in freedom,” since the aim of the school is to pursue an “education in freedom.”

Its class sizes will be similar to the D.C. school, with 16 to 18 students in a section and two sections per class.

Shivone said he expects the new school to enroll “anywhere between 30 and 60 [ninth- and 10th-grade] students” in the fall of 2026.

Ultimately, St. Jerome will cap its overall student population at 120 to 140 students in order to maintain the ideal class size for its seminar-style courses. If the demand for enrollment goes beyond that number, Shivone said the institute would consider the possibility of opening another school to accommodate.

“For us, a school is a community of people learning together,” he said. “And there is, just by necessity, a certain size to that. Once it gets larger, it ceases to be a community.”

This story was updated on June 19, 2025, at 3:02 p.m. ET with updated information and to note that the plan is still pending approval from the Arlington Diocese.

Galaxy M74. / Credit: NASA/ESA/Hubble Collaboration

Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Jun 19, 2025 / 08:00 am (CNA).

Pope Leo XIV encouraged young astronomy students at the Vatican this week to “be generous in sharing what you learn and what you experience, as best you can and however you can.”

“Surely, this must be an exciting time to be an astronomer,” Pope Leo said to scholars at the Vatican on June 16. The students gathered as part of a monthlong astronomy and astrophysics summer school program hosted by the Vatican Observatory.

The biannual summer program is taking place at the observatory’s headquarters in Castel Gandolfo, Italy, where students come from across the globe to participate. The Vatican Observatory only accepts a small group of students in their final year of undergraduate studies or first year of graduate school.

Each summer the program has a different theme and area of study. The 2025 group is exploring the universe with data from the James Webb Space Telescope, which is currently the largest telescope in space. Pope Leo called it a “truly remarkable instrument,” according to the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops.

“Do not the James Webb images also fill us with wonder, and indeed a mysterious joy, as we contemplate their sublime beauty?” the pope asked. 

Students will focus on the telescope’s contributions over the last three years to the evolution of galaxies, birth of stars, and planetary systems and the origin of life.

“For the first time, we are able to peer deeply into the atmosphere of exoplanets where life may be developing and study the nebulae where planetary systems themselves are forming,” Pope Leo said.

“The authors of sacred Scripture, writing so many centuries ago, did not have the benefit of this privilege, yet their poetic and religious imagination pondered what the moment of creation must have been like.”

Pope Leo discussed scientists’ ability to trace “the ancient light of distant galaxies,” which he said “speaks of the very beginning of our universe.”

Jesuit Brother Guy Consolmagno, president of the Vatican Observatory, told CNA that they “were thrilled that Pope Leo was able to meet with the students and faculty of our summer school.” He said “the students have told me how much they enjoyed, and felt honored by, the chance they each had to speak briefly with him.”

“From his remarks, it’s clear that he embraces our mission to find joy in the study of God’s creation,” Consolmagno said.

He also shared that he “was especially touched” by Pope Leo’s “reference to St. Augustine’s description of the ‘seeds’ God has sown in the harmony of the universe.”

“Each of you is part of a much greater community,” Leo told the young scientists. 

“Along with the contribution of your fellow scientists, engineers, and mathematicians, it was also with the support of your families and so many of your friends that you have been able to appreciate and take part in this wonderful enterprise, which has enabled us to see the world around us in a new way.” 

“Never forget, then, that what you are doing is meant to benefit all of us,” the pope added.

“The more joy you share, the more joy you create, and in this way, through your pursuit of knowledge, each of you can contribute to building a more peaceful and just world,” he said. 

Jesus and the disciples during Season 4 of “The Chosen.” / Credit: The Chosen/Mike Kubeisy

Vatican City, Jun 19, 2025 / 07:00 am (CNA).

On June 23, there will be an exclusive presentation at the Vatican of the fourth episode of the fifth season of “The Chosen,” the successful series based on the life of Jesus Christ and the apostles.

According to the Holy See Press Office, next Monday at 11:30 a.m. local time in Sala San Pio X in the Holy See Press Office, the cast and producers of “The Chosen” will hold a press conference to discuss the innovative and impactful series.

Jonathan Roumie, the actor who plays Jesus, will be in attendance for the presentation of the fifth season, titled “The Last Supper.” Also present will be Dallas Jenkins, creator and director of the series; Elizabeth Tabish, who portrays Mary Magdalene in the series; George Xanthis, who plays St. John; and Vanessa Benavente, who plays the Virgin Mary.

They will also discuss the release of two feature films by “The Chosen” about the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus. The crucifixion episode is currently being filmed in Matera, Italy.

At the press conference, details will be shared about the production and the reasons why the series has achieved international popularity on five continents, even being watched by more than 30% of nonbelievers worldwide.

That same day, at 5 p.m. local time, the Vatican premiere of the fourth episode of the fifth season will take place at the historic Vatican Film Library.

The episode is titled “The Same Coin” and features one of the most powerful scenes in the series’ history: The women’s last supper with the “dayenu,” a beloved song sung during the Jewish holiday of Passover. 

Additionally, the Vatican announced that Roumie will present a gift from “The Chosen” to Pope Leo XIV during the June 25 general audience. Roumie met with Pope Francis twice during his pontificate.

This story was first published by ACI Prensa, CNA’s Spanish-language news partner. It has been translated and adapted by CNA.