A student workshop at The College of St. Joseph the Worker. / Credit: College of St. Joseph the Worker

Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Jul 1, 2025 / 07:00 am (CNA).

A lawsuit that seeks to block West Virginia from offering a Catholic trade college a $5 million grant will move forward after a judge rejected the college’s motion for a dismissal last week.

The lawsuit, filed by the West Virginia American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) on behalf of the American Humanist Association (AHA), is asking a Kanawha County Circuit Court judge to block the grant awarded to St. Joseph the Worker College.

The College of St. Joseph the Worker, based in Steubenville, Ohio, teaches trades related to construction — carpentry, HVAC, electrical, and plumbing — combined with a bachelor’s degree in Catholic studies. The school intends to use the grant money to create a nonprofit construction company in West Virginia and expand its job training and education programs into the state.

The West Virginia ACLU contends in its lawsuit that taxpayer money should not be spent to support a grant to a religiously affiliated college. The lawsuit was filed against the West Virginia Water Development Authority (WVDA), which is the government body that approved the grant for economic development purposes. The college is not a defendant in the lawsuit.

“Our case challenging a $5 million grant in water development funds to a ‘radically Catholic’ school in Ohio can move forward,” the West Virginia ACLU announced in a statement posted on Bluesky.

“Thousands in West Virginia lack clean water,” the statement read. “Forcing them to fund this school’s religious mission with money meant for infrastructure is wholly inappropriate.”

Both the nonprofit construction company and the additional training programs the college wants to establish would be located in Weirton, West Virginia, once a booming steel town. The city sits in the northern tip of the state and borders Ohio, where the college is primarily based.

The proposed construction company would employ students and focus on revitalization projects for sites of historical or cultural significance that for-profit companies would likely pass on.

As part of the grant funding agreement, St. Joseph the Worker would recruit students from West Virginia and develop partnerships with West Virginia-based tradesmen and contractors to help place students in jobs located in the state after graduation.

A spokesperson for St. Joseph the Worker did not respond to a request for comment. 

In January, when the ACLU first filed its lawsuit, a spokesperson for the WVDA told CNA it “will not comment to the media” about the lawsuit but that all comments “will be made in public court filings.”

A student workshop at The College of St. Joseph the Worker. / Credit: College of St. Joseph the Worker

Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Jul 1, 2025 / 07:00 am (CNA).

A lawsuit that seeks to block West Virginia from offering a Catholic trade college a $5 million grant will move forward after a judge rejected the college’s motion for a dismissal last week.

The lawsuit, filed by the West Virginia American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) on behalf of the American Humanist Association (AHA), is asking a Kanawha County Circuit Court judge to block the grant awarded to St. Joseph the Worker College.

The College of St. Joseph the Worker, based in Steubenville, Ohio, teaches trades related to construction — carpentry, HVAC, electrical, and plumbing — combined with a bachelor’s degree in Catholic studies. The school intends to use the grant money to create a nonprofit construction company in West Virginia and expand its job training and education programs into the state.

The West Virginia ACLU contends in its lawsuit that taxpayer money should not be spent to support a grant to a religiously affiliated college. The lawsuit was filed against the West Virginia Water Development Authority (WVDA), which is the government body that approved the grant for economic development purposes. The college is not a defendant in the lawsuit.

“Our case challenging a $5 million grant in water development funds to a ‘radically Catholic’ school in Ohio can move forward,” the West Virginia ACLU announced in a statement posted on Bluesky.

“Thousands in West Virginia lack clean water,” the statement read. “Forcing them to fund this school’s religious mission with money meant for infrastructure is wholly inappropriate.”

Both the nonprofit construction company and the additional training programs the college wants to establish would be located in Weirton, West Virginia, once a booming steel town. The city sits in the northern tip of the state and borders Ohio, where the college is primarily based.

The proposed construction company would employ students and focus on revitalization projects for sites of historical or cultural significance that for-profit companies would likely pass on.

As part of the grant funding agreement, St. Joseph the Worker would recruit students from West Virginia and develop partnerships with West Virginia-based tradesmen and contractors to help place students in jobs located in the state after graduation.

A spokesperson for St. Joseph the Worker did not respond to a request for comment. 

In January, when the ACLU first filed its lawsuit, a spokesperson for the WVDA told CNA it “will not comment to the media” about the lawsuit but that all comments “will be made in public court filings.”

Actor Jonathan Roumie, who portrays Jesus in “The Chosen.” / Credit: EWTN News/Colm Flynn/Screenshot

CNA Staff, Jul 1, 2025 / 06:00 am (CNA).

When Jonathan Roumie, the actor who plays Jesus in “The Chosen,” heard the news of the election of an American-born pope, he said he wept “because I just never thought I would ever live to see the day.” 

Two months later, on June 25, Roumie had the opportunity to meet the new Holy Father during a papal general audience while the actor was in Italy filming the crucifixion scenes for Season 6 of the popular show.

Roumie sat down with EWTN News correspondent Colm Flynn for an interview just hours after meeting Pope Leo XIV to talk about playing Jesus in “The Chosen” as well as what is was like to meet the pope for the first time.

“It was fantastic,” Roumie told Flynn. “He was so kind and so gracious and generous with his time.”

Despite the meeting being a bit of a “blur,” Roumie recalled telling the Holy Father that he was “humbled to be there and it was great to meet him.”

Pope Leo told Roumie that while one of his brothers is a fan of the show, he himself hasn’t seen it yet, to which Roumie replied: “Well, we brought some DVDs to help remedy that.”

Roumie met the late Pope Francis on two separate occasions during his pontificate. In each of those meetings, Roumie had prepared a message in Spanish to share with the pope but in this meeting, he was able to communicate in his own language. 

“When you know you can communicate with somebody in your own language, it makes all the difference,” he said, adding: “For instance, I mentioned — because Pope Leo is from Chicago — I said, you know it’s nice being able to throw out references like ‘Da Bulls’ and ‘Da Bears’ and him understand what I’m referencing.”

“There was just a kindness on his face and just a charity about him that just moved me,” Roumie said.

Speaking about his time filming the Crucifixion scenes in the historic town of Matera in northern Italy, Roumie said: “I’ve never done anything harder than that.”

He added: “The impact that it’s going to have on people — it’s going to be so huge and so life-changing for so many people … I think it’s just going to propagate the name of Jesus at a breakneck speed.”

Despite the many “beautiful moments,” Roumie also said he believes it will be “extremely hard for people” to watch.

“By that point we will have had five and a half seasons of knowing Jesus as our friend, as a miracle worker, as an intimate companion, a colleague, and a teacher, and a rabbi, and having spent 45 hours of story with him healthy and OK and then to see that rapidly decline in a singular season — it’s just going to be devastating.”

Surrendering to Christ amid a career of instability 

Roumie also shared with Flynn his story of surrender to Christ amid a career of instability.

The actor first began his career in New York, where he did voice-over work and commercials. He then moved to Los Angeles, where he had a plethora of jobs while trying to make into the entertainment industry, including driving ride share, food delivery, catering, and painting houses, just to be able to pay the bills. At one point, he found himself with only $20 and didn’t know where his next paycheck would be coming from. It was at this low point that he fully submitted his life and career over to God. 

“Once I committed my career to him and in doing so the entirety of my life, that’s when my life changed,” he shared. 

Three months later, he received the call from Dallas Jenkins, creator and director of “The Chosen,” asking him if he’d like to take part in a crowdfunded series about the life of Jesus and his disciples.

After filming the first four episodes of Season 1, the actor recalled feeling like they were creating something that was “uniquely special” but had no idea just how much success it was going to have.

Now having portrayed Jesus for more than five years, Roumie said he feels there is “always this striving to be more like him in order to be able to play him and being falteringly human — that can feel impossible at times, but I know that I’m here doing this for a reason and I’m just going to continue to give him everything that I have.”

“I’m going to do the best I can and make sure I’m exercising the sacraments and going to confession and receiving the Eucharist,” he added.

The impact of being seen as Jesus

During the interview with Flynn, Roumie also discussed the challenge of having people view him as Jesus. 

“So many people say to me, ‘You’re exactly what I would have pictured if I met Jesus,’” he said, “and so they impose or project that relationship that they have or those ideas or those expectations on a subconscious level, or maybe an even semiconscious level, onto me to an extent.”

When fans of the show start to call Roumie “Jesus,” he explained that he makes sure to say his own name to them “to remind them that there is a line of demarcation.”

He said these experiences also make him much more aware of “an implied level of accountability.”

“If I’m being held to the standards of Jesus, or being seen as somebody that is at least trying to live out those standards in their life, well, that’s great because it’s just better for me spiritually to be living in that manner,” he said.

However, it does make him think how fans might react to roles he takes beyond “The Chosen.” He did point out, however, that he wouldn’t do anything “that goes against my beliefs or anything like that or a character that just doesn’t sit right with me or that I don’t discern with the Lord before I commit to a project.”

Speaking to what has made him the most proud of being a part of “The Chosen,” the actor highlighted the “impact of the show and the reality of what it’s doing for people — the reality of how God is using it to encounter people.”

Actor Jonathan Roumie, who portrays Jesus in “The Chosen.” / Credit: EWTN News/Colm Flynn/Screenshot

CNA Staff, Jul 1, 2025 / 06:00 am (CNA).

When Jonathan Roumie, the actor who plays Jesus in “The Chosen,” heard the news of the election of an American-born pope, he said he wept “because I just never thought I would ever live to see the day.” 

Two months later, on June 25, Roumie had the opportunity to meet the new Holy Father during a papal general audience while the actor was in Italy filming the crucifixion scenes for Season 6 of the popular show.

Roumie sat down with EWTN News correspondent Colm Flynn for an interview just hours after meeting Pope Leo XIV to talk about playing Jesus in “The Chosen” as well as what is was like to meet the pope for the first time.

“It was fantastic,” Roumie told Flynn. “He was so kind and so gracious and generous with his time.”

Despite the meeting being a bit of a “blur,” Roumie recalled telling the Holy Father that he was “humbled to be there and it was great to meet him.”

Pope Leo told Roumie that while one of his brothers is a fan of the show, he himself hasn’t seen it yet, to which Roumie replied: “Well, we brought some DVDs to help remedy that.”

Roumie met the late Pope Francis on two separate occasions during his pontificate. In each of those meetings, Roumie had prepared a message in Spanish to share with the pope but in this meeting, he was able to communicate in his own language. 

“When you know you can communicate with somebody in your own language, it makes all the difference,” he said, adding: “For instance, I mentioned — because Pope Leo is from Chicago — I said, you know it’s nice being able to throw out references like ‘Da Bulls’ and ‘Da Bears’ and him understand what I’m referencing.”

“There was just a kindness on his face and just a charity about him that just moved me,” Roumie said.

Speaking about his time filming the Crucifixion scenes in the historic town of Matera in northern Italy, Roumie said: “I’ve never done anything harder than that.”

He added: “The impact that it’s going to have on people — it’s going to be so huge and so life-changing for so many people … I think it’s just going to propagate the name of Jesus at a breakneck speed.”

Despite the many “beautiful moments,” Roumie also said he believes it will be “extremely hard for people” to watch.

“By that point we will have had five and a half seasons of knowing Jesus as our friend, as a miracle worker, as an intimate companion, a colleague, and a teacher, and a rabbi, and having spent 45 hours of story with him healthy and OK and then to see that rapidly decline in a singular season — it’s just going to be devastating.”

Surrendering to Christ amid a career of instability 

Roumie also shared with Flynn his story of surrender to Christ amid a career of instability.

The actor first began his career in New York, where he did voice-over work and commercials. He then moved to Los Angeles, where he had a plethora of jobs while trying to make into the entertainment industry, including driving ride share, food delivery, catering, and painting houses, just to be able to pay the bills. At one point, he found himself with only $20 and didn’t know where his next paycheck would be coming from. It was at this low point that he fully submitted his life and career over to God. 

“Once I committed my career to him and in doing so the entirety of my life, that’s when my life changed,” he shared. 

Three months later, he received the call from Dallas Jenkins, creator and director of “The Chosen,” asking him if he’d like to take part in a crowdfunded series about the life of Jesus and his disciples.

After filming the first four episodes of Season 1, the actor recalled feeling like they were creating something that was “uniquely special” but had no idea just how much success it was going to have.

Now having portrayed Jesus for more than five years, Roumie said he feels there is “always this striving to be more like him in order to be able to play him and being falteringly human — that can feel impossible at times, but I know that I’m here doing this for a reason and I’m just going to continue to give him everything that I have.”

“I’m going to do the best I can and make sure I’m exercising the sacraments and going to confession and receiving the Eucharist,” he added.

The impact of being seen as Jesus

During the interview with Flynn, Roumie also discussed the challenge of having people view him as Jesus. 

“So many people say to me, ‘You’re exactly what I would have pictured if I met Jesus,’” he said, “and so they impose or project that relationship that they have or those ideas or those expectations on a subconscious level, or maybe an even semiconscious level, onto me to an extent.”

When fans of the show start to call Roumie “Jesus,” he explained that he makes sure to say his own name to them “to remind them that there is a line of demarcation.”

He said these experiences also make him much more aware of “an implied level of accountability.”

“If I’m being held to the standards of Jesus, or being seen as somebody that is at least trying to live out those standards in their life, well, that’s great because it’s just better for me spiritually to be living in that manner,” he said.

However, it does make him think how fans might react to roles he takes beyond “The Chosen.” He did point out, however, that he wouldn’t do anything “that goes against my beliefs or anything like that or a character that just doesn’t sit right with me or that I don’t discern with the Lord before I commit to a project.”

Speaking to what has made him the most proud of being a part of “The Chosen,” the actor highlighted the “impact of the show and the reality of what it’s doing for people — the reality of how God is using it to encounter people.”

Pope Francis was famously not a fan of judging other people, at least not on the individual level. Over the 12-plus years of his pontificate, however, there was one class of people he was ready to make an exception for: arms manufacturers and the people in government who love them. He returned regularly to the […]

The post Record arms spending defies Pope Francis’ final warnings appeared first on U.S. Catholic.

WASHINGTON – Pope Leo XIV has accepted the resignation of Most Reverend Thomas J. Rodi, 76, from the pastoral governance of the Archdiocese of Mobile, and has appointed Most Reverend Mark S. Rivituso, currently auxiliary bishop of Saint Louis, as his successor. 

The resignation and appointment were publicized in Washington, D.C. on July 1, 2025, by Cardinal Christophe Pierre, apostolic nuncio to the United States.

The Archdiocese of Mobile is comprised of 22,969 square miles in the State of Alabama and has a total population of 1,859,393 of which 107,870 are Catholic.

###

Every now and then I slow down enough to experience God. The picture attached to this post was taken by me on the last day of our family vacation, just before my morning run. The sight of the sun behind the clouds took my breath away as it spoke to me of God’s glory and […]

The post A Glimpse of God’s Glory on a Morning Run appeared first on Integrated Catholic Life™.

A Daily Quote to Inspire Your Catholic Faith “I believe in Christianity as I believe that the Sun has risen, not only because I see it but because by it, I see everything else.” – C.S. Lewis, Is Theology Poetry; Lewis was an Anglican; many of his insights were profoundly Catholic. Image (inset) credit: C.S. Lewis | […]

The post Daily Quote — C. S. Lewis appeared first on Integrated Catholic Life™.

null / Credit: Puwadon Sang/Shutterstock

Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Jun 30, 2025 / 16:18 pm (CNA).

New polling from the Associated Press (AP) NORC Center for Public Affairs Research has found that U.S. adults hold “nuanced views about the role of religion in public schools.”

While the majority of adults, about 58%, say they support religious chaplains providing services in public schools, only 40% say they believe teachers should be allowed to lead a class in prayer, according to data from the survey conducted June 5–9.

The survey contained polling of 1,158 U.S. adults in all 50 states and the District of Columbia.

“More people oppose than support policies that would allow religious schools to become tax-funded public charter schools, but there is about equal support and opposition for a policy that would allow school vouchers to be used at private or religious schools,” the survey found.

Results for the AP-NORC polling come after Pew Research Center found that 52% of U.S. adults support allowing Chrisian prayer in public schools as debates about the issue continue across the country.

Though the majority supports designated religious chaplains serving in public schools, 55% of U.S. adults in the AP survey said they did not believe teachers should be allowed to lead a public school class in prayer. 

Sixty percent said public schools should not be allowed to hold mandatory private prayer and religious reading. 

The survey found that regardless of partisan alignment, “attitudes about the role of religion in school are often shared across religious groups, especially white evangelical Christians and non-white Protestants.” 

“White evangelical Christians, non-white Protestants, and Catholics are all more likely than those who are not affiliated with a religion to approve of religious chaplains providing support services, teachers leading prayer in class, and mandatory periods for private prayer and religious reading at public schools,” the report stated, noting that mainline Protestants responded similarly to those without religious affiliation about prayer periods and religious chaplains in public schools. 

Overall, the survey said that “roughly a quarter to a third of the public lack firm opinions” about additional issues regarding religion and public education, including taxpayer-funded vouchers and vaccines.

While polling was less conclusive on these matters because nearly one-third of polled Americans had no opinion, of those who expressed opinions, more respondents said they oppose religious exemptions for childhood vaccines required for public schools. More respondents also said they oppose allowing religious schools to become taxpayer-funded charter schools. 

“People are roughly split on their support or opposition to tax-funded vouchers that help parents pay for tuition for their children to attend private or religious schools instead of public schools,” the report said, noting that Catholics are among the religious groups that were more likely to support taxpayer-funded vouchers, religious exemptions, and religious charter schools.

null / Credit: anonymous/Shutterstock

Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Jun 30, 2025 / 15:47 pm (CNA).

A coalition of 20 American Catholic bishops and religious leaders from other faiths has signed on to a letter urging lawmakers to vote against a proposed budget bill because of provisions to increase funding for immigration enforcement.

“From our various faith perspectives, the moral test of a nation is how it treats those most in need of support,” the letter read. “In our view, this legislation will harm the poor and vulnerable in our nation, to the detriment of the common good.”

The letter’s signatories included Cardinal Robert McElroy of the Archdiocese of Washington, D.C., and Cardinal Joseph Tobin of the Archdiocese of Newark, New Jersey. Phoenix Bishop John Dolan, Seattle Archbishop Paul Etienne, St. Louis Archbishop Mitchell Rozanski, and Sacramento, California, Bishop Jaime Soto were also among those who signed.

In addition to the bishops, other signatories to the letter included the leadership team of the Sisters of Mercy of the Americas. Some Lutheran, Episcopalian, Presbyterian, Muslim, and Jewish faith leaders also signed the letter.

“Our faith organizations have long favored the creation of legal avenues for migration and a legalization program for immigrants who have lived in the U.S. for years and contributed their hard work to our economy,” the letter stated. “We believe the adoption of these policies, instead of the implementation of a mass deportation campaign, would not only benefit immigrant workers and their families but be in the best interest of our nation.”

The budget reconciliation bill, called the “One Big Beautiful Bill Act,” includes a funding hike for Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Customs and Border Protection. The proposal includes money earmarked for deportations, hiring more ICE and border patrol agents, the construction of a border wall, and various other immigration enforcement measures.

An earlier version of the bill would have penalized states for offering Medicaid benefits to immigrants who are in the country illegally, but this was removed from the current Senate version under consideration. Other proposed Medicaid changes, including work requirements for able-bodied recipients, remain in the proposal.

“We believe that the changes made by the U.S. Senate to the legislation are insufficient and do not significantly mitigate its adverse effects,” the letter read.

The letter criticized funding for “a mass deportation campaign,” which they said “will separate U.S. families, harm U.S.-citizen and immigrant children, and sow chaos in local communities.” It warned of “immigration raids across the nation,” which authors said would harm “hardworking immigrant families essential to our economy.”

According to the letter, the funding boost could also harm faith communities. The authors noted that the government “has removed places of worship from its sensitive locations list, allowing ICE agents to enter them for enforcement purposes.”

“We have already witnessed a reduction in attendance at many of our religious services in our denominations, as the threat of enforcement has deterred many families from practicing their faith,” the letter attested.

Additionally, the letter expressed concerns about the proposed border wall between the United States and Mexico, which the authors wrote “will drive migrants into the most remote regions of the border and lead to an increase in migrant deaths. It also would hurt the local environment along the border and force desperate asylum-seekers seeking safety to increasingly rely on human smugglers.”

The authors of the letter also criticized proposed reforms to Medicaid and food assistance programs, saying they would harm “low-income citizens and legal residents, including asylum-seekers and refugees, driving them deeper into poverty.”

Andrew Arthur, a former immigration judge and current fellow at the Center for Immigration Studies (CIS), criticized the interfaith letter in an interview with CNA. He said the letter supports “amnesty” for immigrants who are in the country illegally.

CIS labels itself as a “low-immigration, pro-immigrant” think tank. The group is aligned with many of President Donald Trump’s immigration policies.

“They don’t want any immigration enforcement because they want to legalize the status of everyone in the country illegally,” Arthur, who is Catholic, told CNA.

Arthur also balked at the suggestion of immigration raids at places of worship, saying: “They never actually reference any real enforcement actions taking place in any Catholic churches.” He said it’s possible that a dangerous criminal could be targeted for enforcement at a church but that “it’s not like they’re going to sweep through Sunday Mass looking for people.”

On the subject of the border wall, Arthur said a barrier would “deter people from coming into the United States illegally.” He noted the high rates of migrants who already hire smugglers, saying they “put their lives and safety in the hands of criminals” and that a border wall makes it “less likely that people are going to come” illegally with this method or any other method.

Chad Pecknold, a professor of theology at The Catholic University of America, expressed dissatisfaction with the letter as well, noting that it does not mention the teaching in the catechism that a country has a right to regulate its borders.

“Broad, religiously ecumenical statements which oppose the policies of a democratically elected government are curious things,” Pecknold said. “The authors are clearly aligned with one political party and not another. They make spurious claims about how the bill will separate families, and they seem to disregard entirely that nations have a right [to] defend their borders and a duty to uphold their laws.”