VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- The "barbarity of war" and forced displacement of people have to end, and civilians and places of worship have to be protected, Pope Leo XIV implored.

"Tragic news continues to arrive these days from the Middle East, especially from Gaza," he said after reciting the Angelus with those gathered outside the papal palace in Castel Gandolfo July 20.

"I again call for an immediate end to the barbarity of the war and for a peaceful resolution of the conflict," he said.

"I renew my appeal to the international community to observe humanitarian law and to respect the obligation to protect civilians, as well as the prohibition of collective punishment, the indiscriminate use of force and the forced displacement of the population," he said. 

He expressed his "profound sorrow for the Israeli army's attack on the Holy Family Catholic Church in Gaza City" July 17, which killed three Christians and seriously wounded others.

"I pray for the victims: Saad Issa Kostandi Salameh, Foumia Issa Latif Ayyad and Najwa Ibrahim Latif Abu Daoud, and I am particularly close to their families and to all the parishioners," the pope said.

"Sadly, this act adds to the continuous military attacks against the civilian population and places of worship in Gaza," the pope said.

Before praying the Angelus, the pope spoke to reporters waiting near the entrance to the papal villa after he celebrated Mass in nearby Albano Laziale.

They asked him about the Middle East conflicts, particularly in Gaza, and he said there is a need for parties to "go to the table to dialogue and to put down their weapons because the world can't take it anymore."

"There are so many conflicts, so many wars; there is a need to really work for peace, to pray with trust in God, but to also work" toward those efforts, he said.

When asked about his telephone call with Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu July 18, the day after the raid, the pope said, "We insisted on the need to protect the holy places of all religions," and to work together in this regard.

But he added, there is a need for "true respect for people, for sacred places and to try to leave behind so much violence, so much hatred, so many wars." 

After praying the Angelus, the pope addressed all of "our beloved Middle Eastern Christians."

"I deeply sympathize with your feeling that you can do little in the face of this serious situation," he said. "You are in the heart of the pope and of the whole church. Thank you for your witness of faith."

He prayed Our Lady intercede to "protect you always and accompany the world towards the dawn of peace."

When greeting visitors from different parts of the world gathered in the small square, the pope thanked the International Forum of Catholic Action for promoting the "Prayer Marathon for Leaders."

"The invitation, addressed to each one of us, is to pause today between 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. to pray for just one minute, asking the Lord to enlighten our leaders and inspire in them projects for peace," he said.

Jesus stands at the door and knocks. Will you let him in? God loves you. He brought you to life. He sustains you in life. He invites you to eternal life in communion with him, sharing in his beatitude and glory. But he does not simply wait for you in heaven. He comes to you […]

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A Daily Quote to Inspire Your Catholic Faith “Open the door to the workshop at Nazareth so that we may learn to contemplate you, together with your holy Mother Mary, and the holy Patriarch St. Joseph…”  – Saint Josemaría Escrivá, Friends of God Image (inset) credit: “St. Josemaría Escrivá” (detail) | Oficina de Información de […]

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Saint Margaret of Antioch, also known as Marina, was born in the late 3rd century in Antioch, Syria. Raised as a Christian, Margaret dedicated herself to God from a young age and vowed to remain chaste. She refused marriage proposals and faced persecution under the Roman Emperor Diocletian for her Christian faith. According to tradition, […]

ENCOUNTERING THE WORD — YOUR DAILY BIBLE VERSES “Behold, I stand at the door and knock; if any one hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and eat with him, and he with me.” – Revelation 3:20 Please help spread the Gospel. Share this verse with family and friends on […]

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Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Jul 19, 2025 / 11:30 am (CNA).

Bishop William Shomali, the auxiliary bishop for the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem, said this week the community has been “very distressed” following the bombing of Holy Family Church in Gaza, with the prelate calling for the protection of nearby Christian villages. 

On July 17, the Israeli military bombed the only Catholic parish in Gaza. The strike killed three and injured nine, including the parish priest Father Gabriel Romanelli. 

Israel Defense Forces subsequently apologized for the strike, stating that “fragments from a shell fired during operational activity in the area hit the church mistakenly.” Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa later seemed to imply that the strike was intentional, telling an Italian newspaper that “everybody [in Gaza] believes it wasn’t” a mistake.

The day after the strike, Pizzaballa and Greek Orthodox Patriarch Theophilos III visited Gaza, providing “spiritual comfort, moral comfort, and also material comfort, which is much needed.” 

In an interview with “EWTN News In Depth” on Friday, Shomali — who serves as general vicar and patriarchal vicar for Jerusalem and Palestine — said the patriarch and his colleagues were able to bring one of the wounded back to Jerusalem where he is now “under treatment.”

As the Vatican is now urging a ceasefire, Shomali said it is “great in itself” that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu spoke on the phone with Pope Leo XIV following a written message from the Holy Father offering prayers. 

Shomali said the Holy See has asked “frequently” for a ceasefire “during the time of Pope Francis and even now with Leo XIV.” He reflected on Pope Francis’ “very close” relationship with Romanelli and the people in Gaza.

Pope Francis “knew every detail about the life of the Christian community in Gaza,” he said. It was “unique, to say the truth. Every pope has his own style. The style of our Holy Father is different, but we know that he asks a lot about Gaza, and the telegram he sent yesterday showed his closeness to Father Gabriel and to the community.”

During the interview, Shomali said the situation in the West Bank continues to be “critical” for a number of reasons. He highlighted the “daily confrontation between Palestinians and the settlers.”

“We are suffering now because in two of our Christian villages, Taybeh and Abu, settlers enter almost every day to conquer more land and to enlarge the settlements,” Shomali said.

He explained that they have asked Israel Defense Forces “to prevent settlers from coming to the Christian village of Taybeh” and now are “waiting [for] the answer.”

“We hope they can do something,” Shomali said. “But … the settlers have weapons and I don’t believe that the army would like to be in confrontation with the settlers, who are more than 700 people in the West Bank.” 

“It is really difficult to convince them to change their mentality, which is very … ideological because they consider all the land in the West Bank theirs and it’s a matter of time for them to take it without any sense of guilt,” the prelate said. 

“So really we are in front of an ideological conflict with two narratives where a negotiation for peace [is] very difficult,” he added.

Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Jul 19, 2025 / 11:30 am (CNA).

Bishop William Shomali, the auxiliary bishop for the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem, said this week the community has been “very distressed” following the bombing of Holy Family Church in Gaza, with the prelate calling for the protection of nearby Christian villages. 

On July 17, the Israeli military bombed the only Catholic parish in Gaza. The strike killed three and injured nine, including the parish priest Father Gabriel Romanelli. 

Israel Defense Forces subsequently apologized for the strike, stating that “fragments from a shell fired during operational activity in the area hit the church mistakenly.” Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa later seemed to imply that the strike was intentional, telling an Italian newspaper that “everybody [in Gaza] believes it wasn’t” a mistake.

The day after the strike, Pizzaballa and Greek Orthodox Patriarch Theophilos III visited Gaza, providing “spiritual comfort, moral comfort, and also material comfort, which is much needed.” 

In an interview with “EWTN News In Depth” on Friday, Shomali — who serves as general vicar and patriarchal vicar for Jerusalem and Palestine — said the patriarch and his colleagues were able to bring one of the wounded back to Jerusalem where he is now “under treatment.”

As the Vatican is now urging a ceasefire, Shomali said it is “great in itself” that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu spoke on the phone with Pope Leo XIV following a written message from the Holy Father offering prayers. 

Shomali said the Holy See has asked “frequently” for a ceasefire “during the time of Pope Francis and even now with Leo XIV.” He reflected on Pope Francis’ “very close” relationship with Romanelli and the people in Gaza.

Pope Francis “knew every detail about the life of the Christian community in Gaza,” he said. It was “unique, to say the truth. Every pope has his own style. The style of our Holy Father is different, but we know that he asks a lot about Gaza, and the telegram he sent yesterday showed his closeness to Father Gabriel and to the community.”

During the interview, Shomali said the situation in the West Bank continues to be “critical” for a number of reasons. He highlighted the “daily confrontation between Palestinians and the settlers.”

“We are suffering now because in two of our Christian villages, Taybeh and Abu, settlers enter almost every day to conquer more land and to enlarge the settlements,” Shomali said.

He explained that they have asked Israel Defense Forces “to prevent settlers from coming to the Christian village of Taybeh” and now are “waiting [for] the answer.”

“We hope they can do something,” Shomali said. “But … the settlers have weapons and I don’t believe that the army would like to be in confrontation with the settlers, who are more than 700 people in the West Bank.” 

“It is really difficult to convince them to change their mentality, which is very … ideological because they consider all the land in the West Bank theirs and it’s a matter of time for them to take it without any sense of guilt,” the prelate said. 

“So really we are in front of an ideological conflict with two narratives where a negotiation for peace [is] very difficult,” he added.

CNA Staff, Jul 19, 2025 / 10:45 am (CNA).

From Detroit to California to Florida, Catholic clergy are rallying to show support and solidarity for immigrants facing deportations.

While the Tennessee bishops and Bishop Alberto Rojas of San Bernardino, California, recently granted dispensations to the Sunday Mass obligation for those who fear arrest, other Catholic clergy are attending marches to show solidarity and support for immigrants.

In Detroit, one Catholic priest took a unique approach — delivering a letter to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).

Father David Buersmeyer, ​the ​ombudsman of the Office of the Archbishop of Detroit, shared his growing concerns about immigration enforcement operations in a letter addressed to ICE’s Detroit field office and its director Kevin Raycraft.

“Over the last few months, not only in Detroit but throughout the nation, we have been seeing Immigration and Customs Enforcement personnel become more confrontational [and] less transparent, in ways that have created more fear and chaos among many of our immigrant communities,” Buersmeyer told CNA.

Buersmeyer is a chaplain for Strangers No Longer, a Michigan-based Catholic grassroots immigration advocacy group. Earlier this week, the group held a prayerful march to the local ICE office to deliver the letter, which was signed by Buersmeyer and the group’s board president, Judith Brooks.

Archbishop Edward Weisenburger of Detroit also joined the march, which was made up of several hundred people, including Catholic clergy, women religious, Protestant clergy, and Jewish leadership, according to Buersmeyer.

The procession began with prayer at Most Holy Trinity Church — which Buersmeyer calls “a longtime symbol” for immigrants and those in need — and ended at the nearby ICE office. 

Though the office refused to accept the letter at the door, Buersmeyer said the advocates passed the correspondence on to a congressman and a senator who agreed to deliver it to the director. 

The letter cited concerns about face masks and lack of identification of ICE agents during immigration action, urging the director to enforce ID requirements and ban face masks. Additionally, the letter urged ICE to not act without a federal warrant and to communicate with local police during enforcement.

Finally, the letter criticized the separation of families when ICE arrests men, leaving women and children behind.

The Department of Homeland Security said in a statement this week that “rather than separate families, ICE asks mothers if they want to be removed with their children or if the child should be placed with someone else safe the parent designates.”

Despite being turned away at the door by ICE staff, Buersmeyer said he hopes for “dialogue.” 

“Our hope is that enough people will come to see that the current procedures in place for treating immigrants leads too easily to inhumane, unjust, and unnecessary actions,” Buersmeyer said.

“That in turn can lead to a dialogue about national policies that can provide a more just and less knee-jerk framework for handling immigration cases.”

The subject of masking and identification is being discussed in Michigan and around the U.S. Earlier this week, the Michigan attorney general and other attorneys general sent a letter urging federal lawmakers to prohibit ICE officers from wearing masks. 

Several federal Democrat legislators recently proposed a bill that would require ICE agencies to better identify themselves. 

But in the same week, the Department of Homeland Security reported a spike in assaults and doxxing of ICE agents and expressed concern over “charged” rhetoric in the media.  

“Because our city has a major ICE field office we wanted to let him know that there are large numbers of community leaders who have the pulse of the people being affected by these newer enforcement procedures and that there are ways to both respect the work that ICE needs to do and to lessen that fear and work more positively,” Buersmeyer said.

For Buersmeyer, the march was also about “solidarity” and living out Catholic social teaching.

“We wanted to publicly witness to our support of such communities,” he said.

Across the country in Los Angeles, a local Catholic priest had a similar goal — he hoped to bring spiritual guidance to his flock amid the unrest.

Jesuit Father Brendan Busse, the pastor at Dolores Mission Church, said that intensified activity from Immigration and Customs Enforcement has deeply shaken the people he serves.

In the largely Hispanic neighborhood of Boyle Heights, people are filled with “anxiety” and have to make “hard decisions,” Busse explained.

“We’ve received calls here at the parish — you know, ‘Father, I’m not sure our family feels safe coming to Mass,’” Busse told EWTN News President Montse Alvarado on “EWTN News In Depth” this week. “I think it’s affected everybody."

Busse participated in a June 10 peaceful gathering in Los Angeles’ Grand Park as well as a procession to a federal building, along with other faith leaders including Los Angeles Archbishop José Gómez, who has repeatedly called for action on immigration reform.

“We walked between protesters and National Guardsmen in a moment that was very tense,” Busse recalled. “And we brought into that place a spirit of peace.”

The Diocese of San Bernardino faces similar challenges, leading to the archbishop’s decision to dispense Mass attendance for those affected by ICE activity. 

John Andrews, a spokesman for the San Bernardino Diocese, said ICE has come onto parish property twice that he is aware of, including for the arrest of a parishioner of Our Lady of Lourdes in Montclair. 

“A man who was doing landscaping work on the parish property was taken into custody there, arrested, and was later taken to an immigration facility in Texas,” Andrews told “EWTN News In Depth.”

In Florida, meanwhile, concerns have proliferated over the state’s so-called “Alligator Alcatraz,” a detention facility for illegal immigrants in the Everglades. State leaders have touted the facility’s remote location as well as its being surrounded by dangerous wildlife.

Venice, Florida, Bishop Frank Dewane said earlier this month that it was “unbecoming of public officials and corrosive of the common good” to speak of the threat of alligators and other dangerous animals in the context of the immigrants housed there.

Miami Archbishop Thomas Wenski, meanwhile, told “EWTN News In Depth” this week that his “greatest concern is the health and care of the people that are being detained there.”

“It’s in a very isolated place far away from medical facilities. It’s in a swamp that is very hot on a tarmac, which makes it even hotter,” the bishop said. 

The archbishop said that advocates are calling for “a minimum of standards” and that “one of those standards should be access to pastoral care.” 

He described the difficulty of arranging Masses and spiritual care at the detention center, claiming that the Florida state government and the federal government are “arguing among themselves who is accountable for this place.”

The prelate said people should be aware of the difference between illegal immigration and “violent crime or felonies.”

“Most of the the immense majority of these people,” he said, “are here and working in honest jobs and trying to make a living for themselves and their families, trying to just have a future of hope for themselves and their families.”

CNA Staff, Jul 19, 2025 / 10:45 am (CNA).

From Detroit to California to Florida, Catholic clergy are rallying to show support and solidarity for immigrants facing deportations.

While the Tennessee bishops and Bishop Alberto Rojas of San Bernardino, California, recently granted dispensations to the Sunday Mass obligation for those who fear arrest, other Catholic clergy are attending marches to show solidarity and support for immigrants.

In Detroit, one Catholic priest took a unique approach — delivering a letter to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).

Father David Buersmeyer, ​the ​ombudsman of the Office of the Archbishop of Detroit, shared his growing concerns about immigration enforcement operations in a letter addressed to ICE’s Detroit field office and its director Kevin Raycraft.

“Over the last few months, not only in Detroit but throughout the nation, we have been seeing Immigration and Customs Enforcement personnel become more confrontational [and] less transparent, in ways that have created more fear and chaos among many of our immigrant communities,” Buersmeyer told CNA.

Buersmeyer is a chaplain for Strangers No Longer, a Michigan-based Catholic grassroots immigration advocacy group. Earlier this week, the group held a prayerful march to the local ICE office to deliver the letter, which was signed by Buersmeyer and the group’s board president, Judith Brooks.

Archbishop Edward Weisenburger of Detroit also joined the march, which was made up of several hundred people, including Catholic clergy, women religious, Protestant clergy, and Jewish leadership, according to Buersmeyer.

The procession began with prayer at Most Holy Trinity Church — which Buersmeyer calls “a longtime symbol” for immigrants and those in need — and ended at the nearby ICE office. 

Though the office refused to accept the letter at the door, Buersmeyer said the advocates passed the correspondence on to a congressman and a senator who agreed to deliver it to the director. 

The letter cited concerns about face masks and lack of identification of ICE agents during immigration action, urging the director to enforce ID requirements and ban face masks. Additionally, the letter urged ICE to not act without a federal warrant and to communicate with local police during enforcement.

Finally, the letter criticized the separation of families when ICE arrests men, leaving women and children behind.

The Department of Homeland Security said in a statement this week that “rather than separate families, ICE asks mothers if they want to be removed with their children or if the child should be placed with someone else safe the parent designates.”

Despite being turned away at the door by ICE staff, Buersmeyer said he hopes for “dialogue.” 

“Our hope is that enough people will come to see that the current procedures in place for treating immigrants leads too easily to inhumane, unjust, and unnecessary actions,” Buersmeyer said.

“That in turn can lead to a dialogue about national policies that can provide a more just and less knee-jerk framework for handling immigration cases.”

The subject of masking and identification is being discussed in Michigan and around the U.S. Earlier this week, the Michigan attorney general and other attorneys general sent a letter urging federal lawmakers to prohibit ICE officers from wearing masks. 

Several federal Democrat legislators recently proposed a bill that would require ICE agencies to better identify themselves. 

But in the same week, the Department of Homeland Security reported a spike in assaults and doxxing of ICE agents and expressed concern over “charged” rhetoric in the media.  

“Because our city has a major ICE field office we wanted to let him know that there are large numbers of community leaders who have the pulse of the people being affected by these newer enforcement procedures and that there are ways to both respect the work that ICE needs to do and to lessen that fear and work more positively,” Buersmeyer said.

For Buersmeyer, the march was also about “solidarity” and living out Catholic social teaching.

“We wanted to publicly witness to our support of such communities,” he said.

Across the country in Los Angeles, a local Catholic priest had a similar goal — he hoped to bring spiritual guidance to his flock amid the unrest.

Jesuit Father Brendan Busse, the pastor at Dolores Mission Church, said that intensified activity from Immigration and Customs Enforcement has deeply shaken the people he serves.

In the largely Hispanic neighborhood of Boyle Heights, people are filled with “anxiety” and have to make “hard decisions,” Busse explained.

“We’ve received calls here at the parish — you know, ‘Father, I’m not sure our family feels safe coming to Mass,’” Busse told EWTN News President Montse Alvarado on “EWTN News In Depth” this week. “I think it’s affected everybody."

Busse participated in a June 10 peaceful gathering in Los Angeles’ Grand Park as well as a procession to a federal building, along with other faith leaders including Los Angeles Archbishop José Gómez, who has repeatedly called for action on immigration reform.

“We walked between protesters and National Guardsmen in a moment that was very tense,” Busse recalled. “And we brought into that place a spirit of peace.”

The Diocese of San Bernardino faces similar challenges, leading to the archbishop’s decision to dispense Mass attendance for those affected by ICE activity. 

John Andrews, a spokesman for the San Bernardino Diocese, said ICE has come onto parish property twice that he is aware of, including for the arrest of a parishioner of Our Lady of Lourdes in Montclair. 

“A man who was doing landscaping work on the parish property was taken into custody there, arrested, and was later taken to an immigration facility in Texas,” Andrews told “EWTN News In Depth.”

In Florida, meanwhile, concerns have proliferated over the state’s so-called “Alligator Alcatraz,” a detention facility for illegal immigrants in the Everglades. State leaders have touted the facility’s remote location as well as its being surrounded by dangerous wildlife.

Venice, Florida, Bishop Frank Dewane said earlier this month that it was “unbecoming of public officials and corrosive of the common good” to speak of the threat of alligators and other dangerous animals in the context of the immigrants housed there.

Miami Archbishop Thomas Wenski, meanwhile, told “EWTN News In Depth” this week that his “greatest concern is the health and care of the people that are being detained there.”

“It’s in a very isolated place far away from medical facilities. It’s in a swamp that is very hot on a tarmac, which makes it even hotter,” the bishop said. 

The archbishop said that advocates are calling for “a minimum of standards” and that “one of those standards should be access to pastoral care.” 

He described the difficulty of arranging Masses and spiritual care at the detention center, claiming that the Florida state government and the federal government are “arguing among themselves who is accountable for this place.”

The prelate said people should be aware of the difference between illegal immigration and “violent crime or felonies.”

“Most of the the immense majority of these people,” he said, “are here and working in honest jobs and trying to make a living for themselves and their families, trying to just have a future of hope for themselves and their families.”

Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Jul 19, 2025 / 09:00 am (CNA).

In the wake of an Israeli missile strike on Gaza’s only Catholic church this week that left three dead, the regional director of the Jerusalem field office for the Pontifical Mission, Joseph Hazboun, spoke with “EWTN News Nightly” on July 18 about the situation facing the people there. 

Citing Pope Leo XIV’s phone call Friday with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Hazboun told “EWTN News Nightly” anchor Tara Mergener that he hopes “more pressure will be put to end this tragic and meaningless war that has taken so many lives.” 

Pope Leo in a telegram as well as on social media also issued a call for an immediate ceasefire after the deadly attack.

The director for the Pontifical Mission, a Vatican-sponsored charity, noted that the attack on Holy Family Church in Gaza has sparked “a lot of solidarity internationally,” which he called “very good.”

Israel said the church was “mistakenly” hit and that it “regrets” the damage caused to the city’s only Catholic parish. Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said in a statement on X that the parish had been hit by “fragments from a shell.” The church has been sheltering more than 600 people since the war broke out, including Catholics, Orthodox Christians, and Muslims. 

“The cause of the incident is under review,” the statement read. “The IDF directs its strikes solely at military targets and makes every feasible effort to mitigate harm to civilians and religious structures, and regrets any unintentional damage caused to them.”

The Pontifical Mission has been operating in Gaza for “decades,” according to Hazboun. In recent years, the charity has provided critical aid such as water, food, and psychosocial support for mothers and children through various local partners. 

Most recently, the organization was able to purchase fresh vegetables from a local market in Gaza — which Hazboun said due to widespread food scarcity was “surprising to us” — and distribute them in cooperation with the Near East Council of Churches to over 500 families. The Pontifical Mission was also able to buy and distribute five and a half tons of flour, which it also gave to over 500 families. Hazboun noted “the tragic news of people going to the distribution centers and getting killed just for some kilos of flour.”

According to Hazboun, the Christian community in Gaza was very active prior to the war that started in the wake of the Oct. 7, 2023, attacks. “There were once around 17 centers providing services,” he said, including several hospitals, schools, cultural centers, and various scouting troops.

“It was a very vibrant community,” he said. “Unfortunately, during the war many of the institutions were targeted and now they are inoperational.”

“The YMCA is dysfunctional,” he continued. “The Arab Orthodox Cultural center is destroyed — and so unfortunately we are not sure how things will look after the war. It all depends on how many will remain in Gaza.”

Nevertheless, Hazboun said he is “confident” that many Christians will remain in Gaza.

He stressed that the Pontifical Mission’s message to Gazans, especially to youths, has been that “as long as you see Gaza as a homeland, we will support you and we will provide everything that we can so that you can have a dignified life and see a future for yourself in Gaza.”

“If you decide that you no longer have a future in Gaza,” he said, “that’s your decision; we respect it and we ask for God’s blessing wherever you decide to go.”