News

Catholic Vote – President Donald Trump declared Nigeria a “country of particular concern” Oct. 31, answering calls from Catholic and other leaders for the U.S. government to confront the persecution of Christians there… “Christianity is facing an existential threat in Nigeria. Thousands of Christians are being killed. Radical Islamists are responsible for this mass slaughter,” Trump said in a strongly worded statement posted to Truth Social. “I am hereby making Nigeria a ‘COUNTRY OF PARTICULAR CONCERN’…”… “But that is the least of it. … When Christians, or any such group, is slaughtered like is happening in Nigeria (3,100 versus 4,476 Worldwide), something must be done!”

Author Don Schwager, Servants of the Word – Luke 14:1, 7-11 – 1 One sabbath when he went to dine at the house of a ruler who belonged to the Pharisees, they were watching him. 7 Now he told a parable to those who were invited, when he marked how they chose the places of honor, saying to them, 8 “When you are invited by any one to a marriage feast, do not sit down in a place of honor, lest a more eminent man than you be invited by him; …

By Joseph Pearce, Crisis Magazine – As we celebrate All Saints and All Souls, it is a good time to remember that these Feast days specifically call to mind all the forgotten Saints and holy souls… If Christ so honors these humble souls by raising them from the tomb into His Kingdom in Heaven, it is surely incumbent upon us to honor them also. In doing so, and in doing what they did, we might hope to be where they are. Through their prayers and by the grace of God, we might hope to join the unsung heroes of Christendom in the song of songs that never ends.

By Jonah McKeown, National Catholic Register – This process essentially creates a ‘three-parent embryo.’… Regarding the conception of human children: What if mothers could be removed from the equation?… It’s a thought experiment that points to an idea so preposterous and unnatural that it seems almost incoherent. But researchers at Oregon Health & Science University in Portland published a paper Sept. 30 chronicling a process that could lead to exactly that — human eggs created from other human cells, such as skin cells, rather than produced naturally by a woman’s body.

By Matt Boose, Chronicles – Mamdani belongs to a generation of leftist politicians with tenuous ties to the nation they inhabit and would presume to rule. Mamdani, at least according to his mother, is “not American at all.” To his credit Mamdani has charisma … Mamdani’s parents came to the US legally in 1998, although their move clearly did nothing to inculcate a sense of loyalty or national pride in them or their then-seven-year-old son… Demographic change has transformed America since the immigration reforms of the 1960s. The Trump administration is now trying to play catch up for decades of mistakes, and is facing serious obstruction carrying out promised mass deportations. …

By Kelli Keane, Live Action News – John Pisciotta went from being a pro-life “fan” to an activist in 1994… Pisciotta, then an economics professor at Baylor University, told Live Action News that he “debated whether to attend or not,” but then “the Holy Spirit nudged me to show up.” Thomas’ and Benham’s words about the horrors of abortion changed the course of Pisciotta’s life… “I decided that day, fighting abortion would become a part of my life. From a small mustard seed, Pro-Life Waco grew over three decades to be a diverse and unflinching community action organization,” he said.

By Joy Pullmann, The Federalist – According to demographer Nicholas Eberstadt, for the first time in human history since the bubonic plague in the medieval 1300s, global population is declining. The world’s fertility rate just hit a 60-year low, and it’s set to keep decreasing. The nations with replacement-rate fertility are largely terrible places where people die young, such as Somalia, the Congo, and Afghanistan.

By Franciscan Media – The Story of the Solemnity of All Saints – The earliest certain observance of a feast in honor of all the saints is an early fourth-century commemoration of “all the martyrs.” In the early seventh century, after successive waves of invaders plundered the catacombs, Pope Boniface IV gathered up some 28 wagon-loads of bones and reinterred them beneath the Pantheon, a Roman temple dedicated to all the gods. The pope rededicated the shrine as a Christian church. According to Venerable Bede, the pope intended “that the memory of all the saints might in the future be honored in the place which had formerly been dedicated to the worship not of gods but of demons”

By Anthony DeStefano, Crisis Magazine – The entirely Catholic “All Hallows’ Eve” is the beginning of a three-day feast known as “All Hallowtide.” Here’s how to take it back from the hollowed out secular celebration… Ours is the only culture in history that mocks the devil while pretending he doesn’t exist… Every Halloween, we flirt with the infernal, pretending it’s all make-believe—until something evil happens, and then we stand astonished that the line between play and peril has worn so thin. Halloween is, strangely enough, the one night when modern secular man admits he believes in something beyond himself—only he chooses to believe the wrong thing. Having lost his saints, he now settles for skeletons.

By Elise Winland, Catholic Vote – Speaking to more than 10,000 students at the University of Mississippi Oct. 29, Vice President JD Vance offered a defense of Christianity’s role in American public life and urged students to strengthen the nation’s culture through marriage and family — echoing the message of the late Turning Point USA (TPUSA) founder Charlie Kirk… “I could just hear Charlie in my heart,” Erika Kirk said, opening the night. “I could just hear him say, go reclaim that territory, babe. Go to the battles that God’s love conquers. …

By Elise Winland, Catholic Vote – Some of the nation’s top airlines are calling on Congress to end the government shutdown and pay air traffic controllers, joining Republican lawmakers in pressing Democrats to vote with the GOP for a “clean continuing resolution” (CR) and reopen the government… Speaking outside the White House Oct. 30, United Airlines CEO Scott Kirby said lawmakers need to “get into a room behind closed doors and negotiate hard on real substantive issues that the American people want our politicians on both sides of the aisle to solve.”

By Steven Ertelt, LifeNews – New York Gov. Kathy Hochul announced Friday that the state will redirect more than $35 million in taxpayer funds to the Planned Parenthood Abortion business to offset federal Medicaid cuts, a move pro-life advocates decried as a blatant subsidy for the nation’s largest abortion company at the expense of vulnerable women and unborn children. The funding, allocated across five Planned Parenthood affiliates operating 47 clinics statewide, aims to sustain the abortion giant after defending under the bill Congress passed this year.

By Gayle Somers, Catholic Exchange – On the Feast of All Souls, when we remember with love all those who have died, the Church gives us a reading taken from the Bread of Life discourse in St. John’s Gospel (Jn. 6:22-71).  The context is familiar, then, as we hear portions of it throughout the liturgical year.  It’s best known for its teaching on Jesus giving His own Flesh and Blood for the life of the world, the food and drink of our salvation; however, there are other teachings in this great passage that deserve our attention, and the Church presents us with one of them now.

Author Don Schwager, Servants of the Word – Luke 14:1-6 – 1 One Sabbath when he went to dine at the house of a ruler who belonged to the Pharisees, they were watching him. 2 And behold, there was a man before him who had dropsy. 3 And Jesus spoke to the lawyers and Pharisees, saying, “Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath, or not?” 4 But they were silent. Then he took him and healed him, and let him go. …

By John Zmirak, The Stream – But the climate in our country is more toxic and divisive than it has been since the Vietnam War. That’s not because Trump’s actions have been outside of presidential norms, but because his political enemies decided on election night 2016 to treat him and his supporters like Nazis, and don the mantle of the “Resistance.” You see, Barack Obama’s election was meant (in his own words) to “fundamentally transform” America. To redeem it, if you will, from its foul and immoral heritage, and render it (again in Obama’s words) a “normal country,” like … Belgium.

By Hannah Brockhaus, Catholic News Agency, ( Catholic World Report) – The Vatican’s doctrine office announced Thursday it will release a document on Nov. 4 about titles of Mary that refer to her “cooperation in the work of salvation.”… Mary’s contribution to human salvation, specifically the title of “Co-Redemptrix” (“Co-Redeemer”) has been a point of theological debate for decades — with proponents calling for Mary’s role in redemption to be declared a dogma but critics saying it exaggerates her importance and could damage efforts for unity with other Christian denominations. …

By M.D. Kittle, The Federalist – ‘Autopen by Default’… Titled, “The Biden Autopen Presidency: Decline, Delusion, and Deception in the White House,” the report provides copious evidence of the former president’s incredibly shrinking cognitive and physical abilities, his “inner circle of loyalists attempting to mislead the nation to ignore what people’s eyes plainly showed them,” and the constitutional crisis his decline and the cover-up created… Ultimately, the committee report concluded that all of Biden’s executive actions signed by the autopen “without proper, corresponding, contemporaneous, written approval traceable to the president’s own consent” are “void.”

By John Mac Ghlionn, The American Spectator – More and more Americans are watching horror, not just in October but all year long. The genre has outgrown its season. Horror now floods summer streams, rules box-office charts, and stalks every corner of social media. In a culture cushioned by convenience, fear often feels refreshing… The great irony is that Hollywood can’t tell a scary story without raiding the Church. It has spent decades ridiculing saints, priests, and celibacy, but drops to its knees whenever it needs a box-office miracle.

By Solène Tadié, National Catholic Register – Can the boundary between this life and the afterlife ever blur in ways the Church has not fully defined? Each year, All Souls’ Day and the Month of All Souls renew age-old questions about life, death and the mystery that unites both… In popular culture, ghosts are often imagined as spirits trapped between two worlds, wandering among the living. This image differs significantly from the concept of “wandering souls,” who — according to theologians and exorcists — are not condemned to roam indefinitely, but may instead be souls in purgatory temporarily permitted by God to seek prayers or express repentance….

By Phil Lawler, Catholic Culture – To date Pope Leo has not replaced a single dicastery head. His only major appointment has been that of Archbishop Filippo Iannone to fill the seat that the Pope himself had held, as prefect of the Dicastery for Bishops… Nor has the new Pope been energetic in bringing in his own men at lower tiers of Vatican officialdom. text Vatican-watcher Andrea Gaggliarducci observes: “Leo XIV continues—so far—to work with the structure that preceded him, with the same ghostwriters as Pope Francis.”

By Brian Lonergan, Chronicles – SNAP was not designed as a global buffet for recent illegal border-crossers; it’s a taxpayer-funded safety net created explicitly for U.S. citizens and legal residents in genuine need. Federal law bars illegal aliens from direct eligibility, a rule enshrined since the 1996 welfare reforms and reaffirmed in 2025 U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) guidance: “SNAP is not and has never been available to undocumented non-citizens.”… The program’s architects intended that it should combat domestic food insecurity, not subsidize lawbreaking or reward evasion of immigration laws. Benefits are calculated based on eligible household members only: specifically, U.S.-born children or qualified legal immigrants. But here’s the rub: loopholes and lax enforcement have turned this safeguard into a sieve, draining billions from coffers meant for struggling Americans.

By Franciscan Media – Wolfgang was born in Swabia, Germany, and was educated at a school located at the abbey of Reichenau. There he encountered Henry, a young noble who went on to become Archbishop of Trier. Meanwhile, Wolfgang remained in close contact with the archbishop, teaching in his cathedral school and supporting his efforts to reform the clergy… At the death of the archbishop, Wolfgang chose to become a Benedictine monk and moved to an abbey in Einsiedeln, now part of Switzerland.

By Brianna Lyman, The Federalist – Arctic Frost was an investigation led by the Biden administration to, as The Federalist’s Margot Cleveland explained, “target Republicans in key battleground states.” Then FBI Director Christopher Wray sent a memorandum to then-Attorney General Merrick Garland claiming that “fraudulent certificates of electors’ votes were submitted to the Archivist of the United States” for Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, and Wisconsin. Wray also asserted that these votes were part of a grand conspiracy to obstruct the certification of the 2020 election. …

By Victor Davis Hanson, The Daily Signal Media – The old guard of Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and Rep. Nancy Pelosi are very worried about this young group of more radical, Jacobin, younger people who want to shut down the government… That was the impetus behind the shutdown: “Do not cooperate whatsoever with President Donald Trump. And then, take the House and the Senate.”… The problem that these people have is they are not in the mainstream of American politics.

By Catholic Herald,  by Staff – Chicago’s Blase Cupich has asserted that the Traditional Latin Mass was “more of a spectacle rather than the active participation of all the baptised”… In a reflection on the liturgical reforms which came from Sacrosanctum Concilium, one of the four constitutions of the Second Vatican Council, the cardinal argued that the document drew on scholarly research which revealed “adaptations that were introduced over time, which incorporated elements from imperial and royal courts.” …

Fr. Shenan J. Boquet, Human Life International – A recent headline on an article published by the BBC is astonishing. “China offers parents $1,500 in bid to boost births,” it reads… Wait a minute. China’s Communist government is now paying for couples to have children? The same Communist Party that, for decades, enforced the most brutal population control regime on earth?… It’s worth briefly reminding ourselves of just how extreme, how barbaric, how iron-clad China’s population control measures were.

By Fr. David Nix, Padre Peregrino – There’s a few things to notice here. First, all three Chicagoans, Cardinal Bernadin (top left) and Bishop Prevost (middle) and Cardinal Cupich (top-right) all promoted the “Seamless Garment” theology of bioethics, also called “the consistent ethic of life.” This is not merely my suspicion or a conspiracy theory. You can hear that Prevost literally promotes “Bernadin” and “Cupich” and “consistent ethic of life” in the above two links and quotes with those exact words in bold.

Patriot Post – “Repeal that [welfare] law, and you will soon see a change in their manners.” —Benjamin Franklin (1753)

By Madalaine Elhabbal, Catholic News Agency – Catholics who do not gather for anti-enforcement rallies organized by high-ranking Catholic prelates are a “silent majority,” according to conservative Catholic immigration experts… As the Trump administration’s immigration enforcement efforts continue to intensify, Catholics across the country have committed to observe days of prayer and public witness for migrants through efforts such as the One Church One Family initiative spearheaded by the western Jesuits. However, according to some conservative Catholic immigration experts, the number of Catholics who are opting out of such vigils are “a silent majority.”

By Andrew Likoudis, National Catholic Register – Across the country, a growing number of sacred music apostolates are rediscovering this ancient vocation, using beauty to draw hearts toward God… St. John Paul II, in his 1999 “Letter to Artists,” affirmed this essential missionary function: “The link between good and beautiful stirs fruitful reflection. In a certain sense, beauty is the visible form of the good, just as the good is the metaphysical condition of beauty.”

By Stephen P. White, The Catholic Thing – In June of 1577, an Englishman by the name of Cuthbert Mayne was taken under arrest by the High Sheriff of Cornwall and imprisoned in Launceston Castle to await trial for high treason. Mayne was born in Devon, in southwest England, and had been a Protestant cleric as a young man. But during his subsequent studies at Oxford, he converted to Catholicism.

By Edward Feser, UnHerd – The Catholic Church is on a collision course with the Trump administration. And likewise with governments across the developed world that are tightening their borders and carrying out — or at least, threatening — mass deportations of illegal immigrants. In an address on Thursday, Pope Leo XIV denounced “inhuman measures” and “serious crimes” against migrants, even as he granted that “states have the right and duty to protect their borders.”

Author Don Schwager, Servants of the Word – Luke 13:31-35 – 31 At that very hour some Pharisees came, and said to him, “Get away from here, for Herod wants to kill you.” 32 And he said to them, “Go and tell that fox, `Behold, I cast out demons and perform cures today and tomorrow, and the third day I finish my course. 33 Nevertheless I must go on my way today and tomorrow and the day following; ….

By John Zmirak, Chronicles – The demon Screwtape depicted by C. S. Lewis wants us at each other’s throats in this world and in eternal flames in the next, so he plays both extremes like a fiddle. He urges us to dive in and recklessly indulge our fallen passions. When that results in the inevitable dire consequences, he goads us to the opposite error and demands we just suppress them. Sooner or later, that fails, and he nimbly reminds us that wallowing is still an option. And round and round we go.

By Phil Lawler, Catholic Culture – “Nigeria is the most deadly place in the world to be a Christian,” says Jeff King, the president of International Christian Concern (ICC), a group that tracks religious-freedom violations. According to ICC, at least 50,000 Christians have been killed in Nigeria since the start of the 21st century… Robert Royal, the author of The Martyrs of the New Millenium, provides equally stunning figures: “from 2019 to 2023, 33,000 Christians of various denominations and several thousand moderate Muslims were killed by Islamic extremists…”

By Steven Ertelt, LifeNews – Seven Democrat states have pledged tens of millions of dollars in taxpayer funds to prop up Planned Parenthood amid federal defunding under Congress and President Donald Trump. The move is drawing sharp condemnation from pro-life advocates who say the states are propping up the nation’s biggest abortion company… The taxpayer-funding commitments from New York, California, Oregon, Washington, Illinois, Massachusetts and Hawaii come in response to a one-year moratorium on Medicaid reimbursements for nonprofits that kill babies in abortions, enacted as part of Trump’s “Big Beautiful Bill” signed in July.

By Sr. Mary Catherine Blanding, Catholic Exchange – I feel so alone!… This aching cry—whispered in a hospital bed, shouted in despair, or left unspoken in a sleepless night—asks a simple question: Is anyone really there? Many of us have witnessed this plea, and perhaps even felt it ourselves. In a world of fewer shared meals, less face-to-face conversation, and heavy reliance on texting and social media, loneliness has become epidemic… Empathy shines as a quiet light. Society values it as a sign of friendship and leadership, but faith reveals a deeper truth: attentiveness to others’ hearts is a spiritual gift. St. John Henry exemplifies this, offering guidance both practical and profound.

Franciscan Media – Tragedy and challenge beset today’s saint early in life, but Alphonsus Rodriguez found happiness and contentment through simple service and prayer… Born in Spain in 1533, Alphonsus inherited the family textile business at 23. Within the space of three years, his wife, daughter, and mother died; meanwhile, business was poor. …

By Cassy Cooke, Live Action News – In a Stat News op-ed, Arthur Caplan expressed horror that every one of the women’s rights groups with whom he met in an online Zoom conference opposed surrogacy… “Every single speaker condemned the practice as exploitative, coercive, and inconsistent with the view that the birth mother is the ‘real’ mother of every baby,” he said. “I later found out more than 250 women’s organizations from 18 countries have called for a total ban on surrogacy — even altruistic surrogacy, when a sister, family member, or close friend assists for free.”

By John Zmirak. The Stream – Remember when the presidential autopen signed thousands of pardons in the name of a checked-out President Joe Biden, protecting Anthony Fauci, Chinese spies, and child pornography addicts? Yeah, maybe all that wasn’t kosher. Or even halal. That’s the conclusion of the House Oversight Committee, as Gateway Pundit reports: The Biden autopen scandal has taken a new turn, and the Department of Justice may soon get involved. … The House Oversight Committee, led by Rep. James Comer (R-KY), released a 100-page report today declaring all of Biden’s autopen executive actions “null and void.”…

By Scott Ventureyra, Crisis Magazine – In 2023, beloved actress Suzanne Somers succumbed to breast cancer. She was best known for her starring roles as Chrissy Snow in Three’s Company and Carol Foster Lambert in Step by Step. She also authored a number of books and was known for advertising the legendary ThighMaster device… This October, her husband, Alan Hamel, announced something both astonishing and quite unsettling: he had created an artificial-intelligence “clone” of his late wife. According to reports, this digital and robotic re-creation mimics Somers’ voice, appearance, and even her conversational habits with eerie precision. Day by day, what we once thought was science fiction is becoming more and more a reality.

By Robert Royal, The Catholic Thing – And on the less scandal-sheet level, consider the recent controversy over Cardinal Parolin’s remarks about the persecution of Christians in Nigeria. A spokeswoman for Aid to the Church in Need, which issued a report last week on the persecution of Catholics around the world, defended the Cardinal’s contention that Nigerian Catholics were often the victims of social – not religious – conflict. (the spokeswoman) characterized this as an off-the-cuff remark, just intended to acknowledge the complexity of the situation… it’s precisely what a person in a high position of responsibility – Parolin  is the Vatican’s Secretary of State – says almost randomly that’s revealing.

Author Don Schwager. Servants of the Word – Luke 13:22-30 – 22 He went on his way through towns and villages, teaching, and journeying toward Jerusalem. 23 And some one said to him, “Lord, will those who are saved be few?” And he said to them, 24 “Strive to enter by the narrow door; for many, I tell you, will seek to enter and will not be able. 25 When once the householder has risen up and shut the door, you will begin to stand outside and to knock at the door, saying, `Lord, open to us.’ He will answer you, `I do not know where you come from.’ ….

By Marcello Riccobaldi, Catholic Exchange – The publication of the summary document of the CEI synodal journey, entitled Lievito di pace e di speranza (“Leaven of Peace and Hope”), is causing quite a stir… The most serious aspect of this situation, apart from the inconsistency of wanting to be Catholic while continuing to live in a state of mortal sin and without the slightest intention of trying to change one’s life, is that it is now clear that among some Catholics, including those at the top of the Vatican hierarchy, the idea has taken hold that there is a homosexual identity… and not a disordered tendency ….

By Daniel B. Gallagher, The Catholic Thing – This October marks five years since the biggest bungle of the Francis pontificate. Sadly, it is closely connected to the very name Jorge Bergoglio chose upon his election to the See of Peter. Interpreting Saint Francis, his legacy, and the charism he bequeathed the Church has always been difficult. Fratelli Tutti massively compounded that difficulty… Most criticisms of Francis’s 2020 encyclical focus on a specific item in the laundry list of issues he presents as crucial to our time: racism, immigration, interreligious dialogue, the dignity of women, capital punishment, and others. But I’ve seen very few critiques of the document’s foundational principle.

By Thomas Griffin, National Catholic Register – St. Teresa of Ávila (1515-1582), a Carmelite nun, devoted herself to prayer and to teaching others about how to grow closer to God through it. The following are some of her most powerful quotes, centering on how prayer brings us into deep contact with the person of Christ and allows us to act for him in the real world… Teresa wrote that “prayer is nothing else than being on terms of friendship with God. … Mental prayer in my opinion is nothing else than an intimate sharing between friends; it means taking time frequently to be alone with him who we know loves us.” Making time for him is the starting point and can be the most challenging for us. Our calendars are so full that we often neglect to make time for Jesus.

By Tyler Arnold for CNA, Catholic World Report – About three-fourths of states scored less than 50% on Napa Legal Institute’s religious freedom index, which measures how well states safeguard religious liberty for faith-based organizations… The “2025 Religious Freedom Percentage” was part of Napa’s Faith & Freedom Index published Oct. 27. Napa Legal Institute is an organization that assists faith-based nonprofits with legal compliance… Alabama scored highest, and Michigan scored lowest.

By Elise Winland, Catholic Vote – Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ordered his military Oct. 28 to immediately launch “powerful” strikes on Gaza, threatening to unravel the U.S.-brokered ceasefire between Israel and Hamas… “Following security consultations, Prime Minister Netanyahu instructed the military echelon to carry out powerful strikes in the Gaza Strip immediately,” Netanyahu’s office said in a statement posted to X.

By Christopher Nadon and Kathleen O’Toole, The American Spectator – Last September, professors at elite American colleges finally began to admit what has been apparent for the last dozen years: Their students cannot read. No, they are not illiterate. But they cannot read books, at least not the kind of dense and nourishing fare that once constituted the curriculum for entering freshmen. Their response to this discovery has been to stop teaching them. Professor Andrew Delbanco at Columbia removed Moby Dick to accommodate his students’ inability. Professor Victoria Kahn at Berkeley now requires only excerpts from the Iliad rather than the whole thing. Georgetown English Department Chair Professor Daniel Shore finds his students struggle to focus on the entirety of a fourteen-line sonnet.

By  S.A. McCarthy, LifeNews – President Donald Trump and his administration are undoing a Biden-era immigration provision that would have facilitated abortions for children. The Daily Signal reported that the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) is terminating rules and programs that violate the Hyde Amendment, which prohibits the use of federal taxpayer dollars for abortions… The move includes ending a rule change from 2022 affecting the Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR), a division of HHS that deals with unaccompanied children (UACs) encountered crossing the border.

Franciscan Media – Life in second- and third-century Jerusalem couldn’t have been easy, but Saint Narcissus managed to live well beyond 100. Some even speculate he lived to 160… Details of his life are sketchy, but there are many reports of his miracles. The miracle for which Narcissus is most remembered was turning water into oil for use in the church lamps on Holy Saturday when the deacons had forgotten to provide any.

By Elizabeth Troutman Mitchell, LifeNews – Trump administration officials committed to “protect unborn life at all stages” at the five-year anniversary event of a 40-nation coalition of countries that declare that there is no international right to abortion… The Geneva Consensus Declaration “seeks to expand health and thriving for women, and protect the sovereign right of nations to support health, life, and family through national policy and legislation.” The Institute of Women’s Health hosted members of Congress, Trump administration officials, and global leaders to celebrate the anniversary.

By Fr. Jerry Pokorsky, Catholic Culture – We sometimes imagine the Pharisees as priests—the “religious professionals” of their day. But in truth, they were laymen: men of influence, piety, and public standing. Jesus’ rebuke was a warning to all who are tempted to turn holiness into self-importance. And none of us—priest or layman—escapes that temptation for long….
The Litany of Humility.. O Jesus, meek and humble of heart, Hear me.
From the desire of being esteemed, Deliver me, O Jesus.
From the desire of being loved, Deliver me, O Jesus.
From the desire of being extolled, etc.
From the desire of being honored,
From the desire of being praised …

By Mollie Hemingway, Jordan Boyd, The Federalist – “The majority of Americans believe we need more restrictions on the abortion pill,” Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo. said in a statement to The Federalist. “Mifepristone is extremely dangerous and even deadly for women, with nearly 11 percent of women who take it experiencing an adverse health event – sometimes serious enough to send them to the emergency room. Not to mention, the drug is 100 percent lethal to the child. It’s time for the FDA to restore common-sense safety standards to the chemical abortion drug immediately.”

By Scott McKay, The American Spectator – Hakeem “Temu Obama” Jeffries, the House Minority Leader and a congressman from New York City, did not want to endorse Zohran Mamdani… Jeffries especially didn’t want to endorse Mamdani in the middle of a government shutdown that his party caused by filibustering a short-term budget continuing resolution that, in a few days, will result in missed paychecks for essential federal workers and a suspension of benefits for recipients of programs like SNAP, which is what the old food stamp program has become.

By Michael Smith, Patriot Post – Like Frodo in “The Lord of the Rings,” we may not always want to confront the challenges of our time, but the choice we face is what to do with those trials… I tend to look at accusations from the Left about us, Donald Trump, and America, and test my perceptions and logic against them to validate what I think, say, and write. Let’s consider the Left’s accusations of Trump wanting to be a dictator, not for the throwaway, joking quote leftists always screws themselves into a pretzel about, but why they have any basis for it. …

By Auguste Meyrat, The Federalist – As for Pope Leo and other leftist Christians who want to help Muslim immigrants and eliminate borders, they need to honestly reckon with the carnage, destruction, and exploitation that they’ve mindlessly helped to encourage. They don’t necessarily need to launch a new crusade, but neither do they need to apologize for crusades in the past — there is a good reason they happened. Rather, these pastors need to defend their flocks, come to terms with reality, and preach the Gospel for a change. 

By Kevin Wells, Crisis Magazine – This October, my uncle Msgr. Thomas Wells has been resurfacing like a ghost of warm memory from the past. At a golf tournament held in his honor, through invitations to speak at his former parishes, and in chance encounters with his old friends, I’ve been told stories of how he impacted lives. After arriving early for an event at one of his former parishes, I sat on a bench beneath an ancient oak tree, just a few feet from where my uncle’s body rests—high on the hill in the old Sacred Heart Cemetery in Bowie, Maryland. …

By Derek Rotty, Catholic Exchange – God speaks to human beings through beauty. That is, Our Lord uses sensible realities to reach the human psyche, to touch our souls and captivate our hearts. Relying on the classical definition of beauty, made clearest in the thought of St. Thomas Aquinas, a thing is beautiful if it coheres and will not fall apart; if it is balanced and fits well together; if it shines forth a proverbial light that transcends itself. Beautiful things include sunsets, gardens, waterfalls, Gothic architecture, libraries, diligent scientific experiments, and the human person rightly understood, all of which can open a deeper conversation with the divine.

By Matthew Becklo, Catholic World Report – Saint Jude, whose feast the Church celebrates on October 28, is known the world over for his patronage—that of hopeless causes—and for the Children’s Research Hospital named in his honor…. But what some might not know about Jude is that he’s identified, traditionally, as the author of one of the letters of the New Testament. And that unique and power-packed epistle constitutes a kind of schema for identifying false Christian teachers, of any kind, in any age.

By Bishop Joseph E. Strickland, Bishop Emeritus, Pillars of Faith – Pope Pius XII affirmed this sacred duty: “… the Church which Christ Our Lord has appointed guardian and interpreter of the whole deposit of divinely revealed truth.”… At times when this truth is dimmed or confused, old errors rise again. The Church must speak clearly: truth does not evolve; it abides forever in the Person of Jesus Christ, and it is guarded faithfully by His Church… Love indeed is the greatest commandment, but charity must always serve truth – never replace it. Listening is an act of love when it is ordered to conversion and obedience to revelation. The Good Shepherd who listens to His flock also teaches with authority ….

By Craig Bannister, Media Research Center – The virulently anti-Trump American Federal of Government Employees (AFGE) is now calling on Senate Democrats to end the government shutdown by voting to pass a continuing resolution that would temporarily extend funding at previously-approved levels… “Both political parties have made their point,” AFGE President Everett Kelley said… “[I]t’s time to pass a clean continuing resolution and end this shutdown today.”… The federal government has been shuttered since October 1 because Senate Democrats are filibustering a “clean” (unchanged) bill that would keep funding the same as the continuing resolution they voted for the last time funding was about to expire.

By Edward Pentin, National Catholic Register – Thousands of faithful from all over the world took part in a solemn pontifical Mass in St. Peter’s Basilica, celebrated by Cardinal Raymond Burke on Saturday, the culmination of a traditional Rome pilgrimage that saw its best-ever attendance… Part of the annual international “Summorum Pontificum Pilgrimage to the See of Peter,” which began in 2012, the pontifical Mass was suspended in 2022 following Pope Francis’ apostolic letter Traditionis Custodes (Guardians of the Tradition) the preceding year,which had led to sweeping restrictions of the traditional Roman Rite. 

Author Don Schwager, Servants of the Word – Luke 13:18-21 – 18 He said therefore, “What is the kingdom of God like? And to what shall I compare it? 19 It is like a grain of mustard seed which a man took and sowed in his garden; and it grew and became a tree, and the birds of the air made nests in its branches.” 20 And again he said, “To what shall I compare the kingdom of God? 21 It is like leaven which a woman took and hid in three measures of flour, till it was all leavened.”

By Mike McCormick,  Midnight in the Laptop of Good and Evil, Substack – Before tens of thousands of Nigerian Catholics were murdered, there was Parolin… Before millions of illegals immigrants—adults and children—were trafficked through Mexico, there was Parolin… Before the thousands of tons of cocaine and fentanyl were smuggled into the West from Venezuela, there was Parolin… And now that King Charles and Pope Leo have papered over 500 years of Freemason treachery with a meeting in the Vatican, there is Parolin… Please allow me to introduce this cardinal, he’s a man of wealth and taste. He’s been around for a long, long year, stole many a man’s soul and faith.

By Franciscan Media – Saints Simon and Jude’s Story – Jude is so named by Luke and Acts. Matthew and Mark call him Thaddeus. He is not mentioned elsewhere in the Gospels, except of course where all the apostles are mentioned. Scholars hold that he is not the author of the Letter of Jude. Actually, Jude had the same name as Judas Iscariot. Evidently because of the disgrace of that name, it was shortened to “Jude” in English.

By Fr. Paul D. Scalia, The Catholic Thing – “Thank God I’m not like that Pharisee!” Now, if that’s your response to today’s Gospel (Luke 18:9-14), then you probably missed the point. Because there’s more than a bit of the Pharisee in each of us, and not enough of the tax collector. Our Lord presents the parable as two different men in the Temple of Jerusalem. But it might as well be two different men within each of us. They represent the battle between pride and humility that rages in our souls.

By Michael J. Matt – X Post – Something else happened yesterday at the Summorum Pontificum Traditional Latin Mass in the Basilica of St Peter (October 25, 2025) that strikes me as significant. Among the well-known prelates in attendance at the Latin Mass celebrated by His Eminence Raymond Cardinal Burke was the renowned exorcist, Cardinal Ernest Simoni Troshani, who at 97 years of age stood at the pulpit and positively thundered an Exorcism prayer composed by Pope Leo XIII back in 1890.

By Gregory Lyakhov, Patriot Post – Survivors of communism repeatedly warn Americans not to underestimate how quickly promises of equality can turn into authoritarianism… Zohran Mamdani, a leading figure in the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) and now the frontrunner for New York City mayor, calls himself a socialist. His appointments argue he is a communist, and the evidence supports that conclusion… The DSA’s charter makes clear that its goal is not reforming capitalism but dismantling it entirely. …

By Elise Winland, Catholic Vote – CatholicVote has joined more than 50 pro-life leaders in a joint letter urging the Trump administration to permanently block Planned Parenthood from any taxpayer-funded program…. Students for Life Action spearheaded the Oct. 22 letter, which thanked the administration for previous efforts to cut abortion funding but urged a final step: formally debarring Planned Parenthood from every federal program. The coalition included CatholicVote, the American Life League, Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life, and the Family Research Council.

By M.C. Holbrook, Catholic Exchange – M.C. Holbrook is a homeschooling mother of ten and author of the series, The Safe Haven: Scriptural Reflections for the Heart and Home. Originally from New York City, Holbrook received a Bachelor’s degree in Human Development and Family Studies from Cornell University, and a Master’s degree in School Counseling from New York University. Holbrook enjoys meals with her family, prayer with her friends, and a hot cup of coffee each morning with the Word of God… Author’s Note: Excerpt from: The Safe Haven: Scriptural Reflections for the Heart and Home (Ordinary Time Weeks 22-28). To purchase, visit Amazon or The Catholic Company, where all other volumes currently in print are also available.  

By Lapresse, by Staff – “The supreme rule in the Church is love: no one is called to command, everyone is called to serve; no one should impose their own ideas, we all must listen to one another; no one is excluded, we are all called to participate; no one possesses the entire truth, we must all humbly seek it, and seek it together.” … These were the words of Pope Leo XIV during his homily for the Jubilee of Synodal Teams and participation bodies. The Pontiff also urged attention to divisions within the Church, within the Christian community, which transform it into a “judging and excluding” place. …

By Catherine Gripp, The Federalist – “Even my teacher at the first day of class, she said, ‘everything is political,’ and I didn’t understand what she meant until I started doing the content.”… Adrianna Mobley should have been excited to be accepted to Michigan State University’s elementary education program, ranked the top elementary program in the nation. Excited, that is, until she stepped into her “Social Foundations of Justice and Equity in Education” class this fall. Required for all elementary education majors, the class dives deep into the demonization of free market principles, meritocracy, and American values.

By Matthew McDonald, National Catholic Register – San Francisco Archbishop Salvatore Cordileone plans to celebrate a solemn pontifical Latin high Mass at Star of the Sea Catholic Church in San Francisco at noon Saturday, Nov. 1, which is All Saints’ Day… Pontifical Masses are celebrated by a bishop; the “pontiff” in this case refers to any bishop, not just the pope. A solemn pontifical high Mass in the traditional Latin Rite is a rare form of the Mass… The solemn pontifical high Mass is the most elaborate of the Tridentine Rite Masses. A description of it takes up 20 pages in Adrian Fortescue’s 1920 book The Ceremonies of the Roman Rite Described. ….

Author Don Schwager, Servants of the Word – Luke 13:10-17 – 10 Now he was teaching in one of the synagogues on the Sabbath. 11 And there was a woman who had had a spirit of infirmity for eighteen years; she was bent over and could not fully straighten herself. 12 And when Jesus saw her, he called her and said to her, “Woman, you are freed from your infirmity.” 13 And he laid his hands upon her, and immediately she was made straight, and she praised God….

By Lorenzo Prieto, The Daily Signal – President Donald Trump’s plans to build a new White House ballroom continue to send Democrats and the Left into full meltdown mode… Rep. Eric Swalwell, D-Calif., is the latest to suffer from what Republicans are calling Ballroom Derangement Syndrome…. Swalwell blasted the ballroom construction on X, demanding that Democrat presidential candidates vow to destroy the building at first opportunity. “Don’t even think of seeking the Democratic nomination for president unless you pledge to take a wrecking ball to the Trump Ballroom on DAY ONE.”

By Madison LaClare, LifeNews – A letter signed by more than 100 pro-life organizations urged lawmakers to end the Affordable Care Act’s (ACA) so-called “COVID subsidies” that bypassed long-standing protections against taxpayer-funded abortion… These subsidies, which are set to expire at the end of the year, have become a sticking point in the ongoing government funding debate… As the government shutdown drags on with no near end in sight, members of Congress need to ask themselves what the ACA subsidies mean to them. Democratic leaders in Congress are using the extension of these subsidies as leverage to keep the government shut down. They know that Republicans have never voted for the ACA and are unlikely to do so now ….

By Dr. Jeff Mirus, Catholic Culture – There has been a trend among Catholic scholars over the past few years of coming together to publish massive collective studies on difficult contemporary moral and spiritual issues. I have already called attention to three such studies on the gender crisis, and now we have a new one focusing on the widespread tendency among different kinds of “Catholics” to explain away the Magisterium of the Church. Edited by Andrew Likoudis, this new collective study is entitled Faith in Crisis: Critical Dialogues in Catholic Traditionalism, Church Authority, and Reform.

By John Zmirak, The Stream – The Democrats in America are nothing special. They share with the global Left an embrace of open borders, human traffickers, and plans to replace the native populations of Western countries with docile foreign colonists… You’ve read here how more than a dozen Britons each day are arrested and prosecuted for their social media posts, mostly complaints about Islam, immigration, and anti-white bias in government. That crackdown began after one of the thousands of “refugees” recklessly imported and dumped on the public raped a local blue collar girl. …

By Anthony Esolen, Crisis Magazine – You are the company you keep. And here, the more agreeable you are, the more susceptible you are to the infection… The seraph Abdiel has stood up against Satan’s lies to his subordinate angels and warned him to seek pardon from the Father and the Son while there is yet time. But Satan replies with haughtiness and contempt, telling Abdiel he had better get lost: “Fly, ere evil intercept thy flight.” Abdiel must bear up alone because none of all the hosts under Satan’s authority will listen to reason. He leaves, but not before he addresses Satan and his hosts one last time ….

By Franciscan Media – Dominicans honor one of their own today, Blessed Bartholomew of Vicenza. This was a man who used his skills as a preacher to challenge the heresies of his day… Bartholomew was born in Vicenza around 1200. At 20, he entered the Dominicans. Following his ordination, he served in various leadership positions. As a young priest, he founded a military order whose purpose was to keep civil peace in towns throughout Italy. …

By Craig Bannister,  Media Research Center – In a viral video, Democrat Whip Rep. Katherine Clark (D-MA) says that, while Democrats’ government shutdown will cause American families to suffer, it’s worth it because it gives her party leverage to pass its political agenda… “Utterly shameful! The Democrats OPENLY ADMIT they are causing the shutdown—and using hardworking American families as their LEVERAGE,” House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) wrote Wednesday, responding to a social media post of Clark’s statement.

(On) Oct. 23, Pope Leo decried policies that treat migrants “like garbage” and lamented the deadly trafficking of fentanyl, particularly in the U.S… “Ever more inhuman measures are being adopted – even celebrated politically – that treat these ‘undesirables’ [migrants, ed.] as if they were garbage and not human beings,” he added, according to Vatican News. “Christianity, on the other hand, refers to the God who is love, who creates us and calls us to live as brothers and sisters.” …

By Tyler O’Neil, Sr Editor, The Daily Signal – Major tech companies are distancing themselves from the Southern Poverty Law Center, a leftist group that demonizes conservatives and Christians, after facing pressure over previous relationships with the SPLC in the wake of Charlie Kirk’s assassination … Kirk’s alleged murderer said he killed the Turning Point USA founder because he “spreads too much hate.” The assassination took place two months after the SPLC put Turning Point USA on a “hate map” with chapters of the Ku Klux Klan—a “hate map” that had inspired a terrorist attack in 2012. ….

By M.D. Kittle, The Federalist – The fingerprints of top deep-staters in President Joe Biden’s weaponized DOJ all over the launch of the corrupt “Arctic Frost” investigation, according to a document just dropped by Sen. Chuck Grassley… “Just received this doc from DOJ Proof that Biden Atty General Merrick Garland+ Deputy Atty General Lisa Monaco+ FBI Dir Chris Wray all PERSONALLY APPROVED opening Arctic Frost” … “This investigation unleashed unchecked govt power at the highest levels. My oversight will continue,” Grassley added.

By David Clements, The Stream – In this powerful 30-minute video essay, former prosecutor and longtime election integrity crusader David Clements examines the legal and historical precedents which President Trump could use against states that refuse to run honest elections, enforce immigration laws, or respect the Constitutional authority of his office.

By Rob Sexton, Catholic Exchange – In our walk with Christ, we can mistake “sanitizing” our lives for purity. This is especially true in the media we consume. Indeed, there are books, films, and television shows Christians simply should not expose themselves to—but the solution is not to avoid everything that seems questionable. Nor is it to arbitrarily baptize content to permit ourselves to consume it. For example, having a priest in a film does not make it inherently Catholic, but the presence of a Catholic imagination does.

By Olivia Gans Turner, LifeNews – Never has this been the norm in our society, but it has become so in Virginia during this off-year election cycle… “How has this happened?” many of us ask. Why has the Democratic candidate for Virginia Attorney General, Jay Jones, been given a pass by his running mates after it was brought to light that he had texted a colleague about his fantasies involving shooting the Republican House Speaker, as well as his young children?  Is his limp semi-apology enough to make him eligible to be the state law enforcement officer? These are questions only the voters of Virginia can answer this month. ….

By Fr. Mario Alexis Portella, Crisis  Magazine – The Sino-Vatican deal continues to empower the CCP to subjugate Catholicism in China under Marxist ideology… On September 29, 2025, General Secretary of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) Xi Jinping demanded that the pace of Sinicization of religions—that of bringing them in line with the principles of Maoism, which sought the total eradication of religion through the destruction of thousands of houses of worship and the imprisonment, torture, and murder of religious leaders and laypersons—be stepped up.

By Francis X. Maier, The Catholic Thing – This year marks the 30th anniversary of Christopher Lasch’s final book.  Published just a few months after his death, The Revolt of the Elites (1995) capped a series of five extraordinary works starting with his Haven in a Heartless World: The Family Besieged (1977).  An accomplished historian, Lasch was also a penetrating social critic.  He was never religious and always a man of the old, democratic left. 

By Alyssa Murphy, National Catholic Register – Boston Celtics coach Joe Mazzulla is not one to hide his Catholic faith. Known to make Gospel references during press conferences, have special seats reserved courtside for Catholic priests, and carry a gargantuan Rosary around, the NBA coach just revealed the biggest news of all: his desire to become a Catholic deacon… Speaking to Dominican Father Joseph Anthony Kress on the Godsplaining podcast, Mazzulla was asked, “What would you say is your next professional goal?”

Author Don Schwager, Servants of the Word- Luke 12:54-59 – 54 He also said to the multitudes, “When you see a cloud rising in the west, you say at once, `A shower is coming’; and so it happens. 55 And when you see the south wind blowing, you say, `There will be scorching heat’; and it happens. 56 You hypocrites! You know how to interpret the appearance of earth and sky; but why do you not know how to interpret the present time? 57 “And why do you not judge for yourselves what is right? …

Franciscan Media, Oct 24, 2020 – The “spiritual father of Cuba” was a missionary, religious founder, social reformer, queen’s chaplain, writer and publisher, archbishop, and refugee. He was a Spaniard whose work took him to the Canary Islands, Cuba, Madrid, Paris, and to the First Vatican Council…

By Michael Pakaluk, The Catholic Thing – Pope Leo XIV took his name to signal his closeness to Leo XIII, and yet in his recent Apostolic Exhortation, Dilexi te, his statements sometimes seem at odds with his predecessor: on the root of social evils, the remediation of poverty, and private property… For Leo XIV, the root of social ills is inequality.  Reaffirming Francis, he says: “I can only state once more that inequality ‘is the root of social ills.’” (n. 94)  But for Leo XIII, in his first encyclical, “On the Evils of Society” (Inscrutabili Dei consilio), the root of social ills is rather the rejection of Christianity by civil powers: “the source of [social] evils lies chiefly, We are convinced, in this, that the holy and venerable authority of the Church, which in God’s name rules mankind, upholding and defending all lawful authority, has been despised and set aside.” (n. 3)

By Thomas Gallatin, Patriot Post – This (2nd) time around, at least so far, Democrats are shouldering most of the blame. Indeed, Trump’s polling numbers have actually risen slightly, with a slim majority blaming Democrats for the shutdown… The pressure to pass a clean continuing resolution to fund the government before negotiating new budget items has placed Democrats in an unusual situation, in which they are the ones making demands while simultaneously blaming Republicans for the government shutdown. What continues to make that a hard sell is that Senate Majority Leader John Thune has been holding votes to report the government, which Democrats continue to vote down.

By Mark Lambert, Catholic Unscripted, Substack – The Holy See opens its doors to Muslim devotion while sidelining its own liturgical inheritance… No, it’s not a joke, Recent reports show that the Vatican Library has granted visiting Muslim scholars a dedicated space for prayer. The Library’s Vice-Prefect, Father Giacomo Cardinali, confirmed that some Muslim scholars had asked for a room with a carpet for praying and that they had been given it. The sede-vacantist site Novus Ordo Watch, immediately interpreted the move as yet another sign of the Vatican’s shift away from authentic Catholic worship. …

By Kevin & Theresa Burke, Catholic Exchange – One of the appeals of the Sherlock Holmes mysteries is the unique talent of the private detective to see beyond the apparent facts of a crime. He discovers and tests what look like unrelated threads from a criminal event that, in the end, prove essential to the resolution of the case… There is a similar dynamic at work when examining the unrelated threads of the digital tech revolution, the explosion in online gambling and pornography addiction, and complicated grief after abortion.

By John Daniel Davidson, The Federalist – The most important debate in America today is not about immigration policy but about what it means to be an American. Our immigration debate is of course a proxy for that. It’s easier to argue over asylum policy, or ICE enforcement protocols, than it is to tackle the fraught question of who is an American and who isn’t, who really belongs here and who doesn’t… At the heart of this debate are competing historical narratives about our heritage. On the right, there’s a growing willingness to argue straightforwardly and unapologetically that America isn’t just a creed or a proposition but a nation with a shared history and culture.

By John Clark, National Catholic Register – One would be hard-pressed to find an error that has been condemned more often, more strongly, by more popes, for more serious reasons, than socialism… Recently in “America” magazine, there appeared an article titled, “Yes, democratic socialism is compatible with Catholic social teaching.” While it may be exasperating to see pro-socialism columns like these appear again and again, it’s not surprising. As it turns out, the core philosophy we now call “socialism” has been one of the most persistent errors in Church history… While the word “socialism” only found its way into common parlance in the 19th century, its underlying philosophy dates back several millennia.

By John Zmirak, The Stream – I’ve been reporting here regularly on the two-front battle that President Donald Trump and his team are waging against America’s most deadly enemy… It’s slick-looking men with impressive degrees and hefty resumes, whose contacts extend to both parties, who look at their fellow Americans with the steely eyes of secret policemen in East Berlin or Bucharest… They are the biggest threats to American freedom on earth, and we’re still paying most of them salaries. …

Author Don Schwager, Servants of the Word – Luke 12:49-53 – 49 “I came to cast fire upon the earth; and would that it were already kindled! 50 I have a baptism to be baptized with; and how I am constrained until it is accomplished! 51 Do you think that I have come to give peace on earth? No, I tell you, but rather division; 52 for henceforth in one house there will be five divided, three against two and two against three; …

By John J. Waters and Adam Ellwanger, Chronicles – On July 4, 2020, facing a cultural revolution that would transform our country by destroying its monuments, Trump stood before Mount Rushmore and declared: This monument will never be desecrated, these heroes will never be defaced, their legacy will never, ever be destroyed, their achievements will never be forgotten, and Mount Rushmore will stand forever as an eternal tribute to our forefathers and to our freedom… It was a watershed moment in the history of American conservatism, where ideas had always been the center of politics. Trump said the radicals of 2020 wanted not just to tear down statues and memorials, but to “tear down the beliefs, the culture, and identity that have made America.” ….

By John Mac Ghlionn, Crisis Magazine – It’s an old Catholic habit, this romanticizing of suffering. Somewhere between St. Francis stripping naked in the square and the endless talk of “blessed are the meek,” the Church began confusing destitution with decency, as if the less you own, the more your soul shines. It’s a comforting fantasy, especially for those sitting in marble halls. But equating poverty with purity is as false as equating wealth with wickedness. The poor can be cruel, the rich can be kind, and goodness cannot be measured by one’s bank balance or battered boots.

By Chris Bray, The Federalist – Look again at the picture of the minister in Planned Parenthood vestments. She has the cultural authority of the pulpit, and she’s telling you, as a religious authority, that opposition to abortion is ungodly. God wants you to abort your children. Do you submit? She’s wearing a clerical collar, so you agree? “Subsidizing the markers doesn’t produce the traits; if anything, it undermines them.”… That’s how important the long march through the institutions has turned out to be.

By Phil Lawler, Catholic Culture – Every now and then, when I have trouble choosing a topic for commentary, I consult the CatholicCulture archives, to see what I was writing five or ten or fifteen years ago around this time of year. So it was that today I found a piece that I had written in October 2017: The crisis of pastoral leadership… That article, in turn, was prompted by a message from a friend, a priest in a relatively strong American diocese, who complained about the sort of directives he received from the chancery. “Everything is administrative, psychological, or sociological—or simply problem-avoidance,” he said. “Very little is religious or truly pastoral, stressing the urgency of the salvation of souls.”

By Franciscan Media – It has been said the Christian saints are the world’s greatest optimists. Not blind to the existence and consequences of evil, they base their confidence on the power of Christ’s redemption. The power of conversion through Christ extends not only to sinful people but also to calamitous events.

By Elise Winland, Catholic Vote – Vance emphasized the situation remains “difficult” and “unpredictable,” and he urged everyone involved to stay “a little bit flexible” about the timeline for Hamas’ disarmament… Concluding his remarks, Vance said he hopes to visit Jerusalem’s Church of the Holy Sepulchre, which marks the site where Christ was crucified. He asked believers to pray that Christ, “the Prince of Peace, can continue to work a miracle in this region of the world.”

By Michael Swartz, Patriot Post – After pushback from the Trump administration, the United Nations decided — for now — not to pursue its latest climate change income redistribution scheme… After a little-noticed UN proposal for “international tax cooperation” sponsored by African nations passed last year, some of its initial fruit was a proposal to enact a global tax on shipping… “It’s an attempt by climate-obsessed politicians to entrench their agenda before voters in democracies can kill it,” argues the Journal. While even Greta Thunberg has lost interest in the global warming cause now, having sold out for “Palestine” instead, it only takes one vote by the nations of the world that still bow at the altar of Gaia to stick the world’s hands in our wallets yet again.

By Ellie Gardey Holmes,  The American Spectator – Things could have been quite different had former Virginia Governor Terry McAuliffe not uttered these damning words during his gubernatorial debate with now Governor Glenn Youngkin: “I don’t think parents should be telling schools what they should teach.”… Those words came on Sept. 28, 2021, with just weeks to go before the election. The arrogant words flipped all momentum in Youngkin’s favor at a time when many were frustrated with the public school system, and when Youngkin, with his usual earnestness and affable persona, was promising reform.

By Fr. Kevin Drew, Catholic Exchange – Christ told the Jews shortly before He died that they were reading the Scriptures wrong (see Mt. 21). And after He rose from the dead, Christ opened Scripture to show His disciples that it was all about Him—and no one else. Christ, and Christ alone, is the way, the truth, and the life. Because of this, God does not will a plurality of religions. No, the devil wills that in his attempt to divide and conquer us.

Author Don Schwager, Servants of the Word – Luke 12:39-48 – 39 But know this, that if the householder had known at what hour the thief was coming, he would not have left his house to be broken into. 40 You also must be ready; for the Son of man is coming at an unexpected hour.” 41 Peter said, “Lord, are you telling this parable for us or for all?” 42 And the Lord said, “Who then is the faithful and wise steward, whom his master will set over his household, to give them their portion of food at the proper time? 43 Blessed is that servant whom his master when he comes will find so doing. 44 Truly, I say to you, he will set him over all his possessions. ….

By Sheena Rodriguez, Live Action – Created by Elon Musk, xAI’s Grok has introduced AI ‘companions’ — and one of them targeted toward children refers users to Planned Parenthood, likening abortion to simply “turning off a light.”… 72% of teens report using AI companions with 33% reporting to have a perceived “relationship” with the technology. The American Academy of Pediatrics also reports an increased use among young children and teens, noting that chatbots “may tell kids false, harmful, highly sexual, or violent things.” 

By Jules Gomes, The Stream – We all know how Pope Francis lied about the safety and efficacy of the vaccine, masks, and lockdowns during the COVID-19 scamdemic. Francis and Leo both peddle scary fairy tales about climate change and soothing bedtime stories about the benefits of mass migration. Popes and bishops lie like a broken record with a crack like the Grand Canyon when protecting predator priests. And they lie about Islam being a “religion of peace.”… Leo is the global CEO of 1.8 billion Catholics. He’s got a doctorate. He was a diocesan bishop, superior general of the Augustinian Order, and prefect of the Dicastery for Bishops. And yet he asserts that the Roman Church has always defended religious freedom?

By Elizabeth Troutman, The Daily Signal – President Donald Trump said Tuesday that independent New York mayoral candidate Andrew Cuomo has a chance of winning against socialist Zohran Mamdani if the Republican candidate, Curtis Sliwa, drops out… “If he dropped out, maybe Cuomo would have a little bit of a chance, but not much, because it looks like, it’s not a great lead, but it’s big enough that [Mamdani] should be able to win”… “So, I don’t know that I want to get involved. It’s really a question of would I rather have a Democrat or a communist, and I would rather have a Democrat than a communist.”

By Daniel B. Gallagher, Catholic Exchange – I’ve lived long enough to see smoke rise from the Sistine Chapel five times. One of those times, working as a Latin secretary for Benedict and waiting to see who my next boss would be, I could even smell it… Each conclave has been as exciting as the previous, but nothing will match the election of John Paul II in 1978. Never had anyone so young, so vigorous, so dynamic emerged on the balcony of St. Peter’s. I was only eight years old, but my world changed instantly. Suddenly, an accomplished athlete and actor was donning the white cassock; a Pole, a polyglot, a philosopher.

By Paul Kengor, Crisis Magazine – There has been much speculation and anticipation regarding the subject of Pope Leo XIV’s first encyclical. He recently released his first papal document, Dilexi Te, an apostolic exhortation begun by Pope Francis. Leo reportedly made some edits to the document and added some personal reflections, but he largely seemed to leave it intact, apparently wanting to honor his predecessor by releasing the final document that Francis had commissioned. …

By Luis E. Lugo,  The Catholic Thing – The announcement of the appointment of Sarah Mullally as the 106th Archbishop of Canterbury marks a historic first for the Church of England (CoE), which traces its origins back more than 1,400 years to the time of Saint Augustine of Canterbury. In addition to being the head of the CoE, the Archbishop of Canterbury also serves as the spiritual leader of the world-wide Anglican Communion, whose thriving churches of the Global South have become increasingly alienated from the mother church due to the latter’s long-term drift toward theological liberalism. This appointment will surely widen that breach.

By Franciscan Media – “Open wide the doors to Christ,” urged John Paul II during the homily at the Mass where he was installed as pope in 1978… Born in Wadowice, Poland, Karol Jozef Wojtyla had lost his mother, father, and older brother before his 21st birthday. Karol’s promising academic career at Krakow’s Jagiellonian University was cut short by the outbreak of World War II. While working in a quarry and a chemical factory, he enrolled in an “underground” seminary in Kraków. …

By Christopher Manion, Substack – Many American Catholics today observe events in the Church with sorrow, even anger. The residue of the abuse and coverup scandals seems never to end. Billions in payouts and bankruptcies continue, while our bishops never seem ready to provide the “transparency and accountability” that they promised for years. Homosexuals are celebrated while the Traditional Latin Mass is persecuted. Shepherds who were silent on pro-abortion “Catholic Joe” Biden rant and rail at Donald Trump… And why? He’s the most pro-life president in history, right?… But he cut off their government money – countless millions of it in taxpayer dollars.

By Joseph Reciniello, Catholic Exchange – America is lacking in real men. I’m referring to men who are willing to die to themselves completely and serve. That is what a real man is. Not some clueless guy watching television, drinking a beer, and eating pork rinds. That’s Hollywood’s portrayal… A man cannot be a man unless he knows how to serve. What do I mean by that?  If one is to lead his wife and children properly, such a man first and foremost must kneel before God. Our will must bend completely! When that happens, we will learn by and through the Cross to serve our wives and children the way our Catholic Faith instructs us too.

By Brianna Lyman, The Federalist – Don’t blame the enforcement of the law; blame the Democrat lawlessness that made enforcement necessary… It’s apparently “cruel” to enforce immigration law, at least that’s what the left has been telling us for months now… “Instead of targeting real threats, this administration is carrying out a cruel agenda that will disrupt our economy, further erode trust in law enforcement, and sow chaos and fear,” Peters continued… It’s the same narrative we hear time and time again, that enforcing immigration law is inherently “cruel” — not because the laws have changed, but simply because the laws are being enforced.

By Lawrence Reed, The Stream – British economist and charlatan John Maynard Keynes once smugly declared, “In the long run, we’re all dead anyway.” More sage advice came from the likes of American economist Howard E. Kershner: “When a self-governing people confer upon their government the power to take from some and give to others, the process will not stop until the last bone of the last taxpayer is picked bare.”… When partisans of the political Left talk about environmental issues, they harp on the theme of “sustainability.” We shouldn’t do things to air and water that can’t last, they argue. Sounds reasonable. The problem is that those very same people usually support costly welfare state programs and that’s when they toss “sustainability” to the wind.

By Matt Boose, Chronicles – Democrats cannot plausibly deny their party’s support for favorable treatment for illegal aliens, typified by their support of free healthcare for this group. Even the most politically disengaged know that Democrats support illegal immigrants and oppose the government’s earnest efforts to deport them. More than a dozen blue states provide health benefits to illegal immigrants. The immense financial burden of this largesse has even led some ambitious Democratic governors, like Gavin Newsom of California and J.B. Pritzker of Illinois, to backtrack a bit on the scope of the free healthcare. Nevertheless,  they continue to provide these benefits, costing taxpayers billions of dollars.

By James Baresel, Crisis Magazine – Recently, I have been more disappointed than surprised to hear three unimpeachably faithful and admirable priests attempt in their preaching to ground Catholic belief in “experience.” One argued that reception of Communion by supporters of abortion is “incompatible with the ‘experience’ of Catholic truth,” another encouraged those “who have ‘experienced’ God’s truth” to “share the ‘experience’ with others.” I cannot remember details, but the remarks of the third were along similar lines. …

By Steven Ertelt , LifeNews – Planned Parenthood’s abortion empire continued its downward spiral as the abortion organization announced the closure of seven centers in California… That pushes the total number of its facilities shuttered across the country this year to 50 and highlights the mounting financial toll of federal defunding efforts championed by pro-life advocates. Planned Parenthood clearly relies on our tax dollars to prop up its abortion business.

By Edward Pentin, National Catholic Register – Despite continuing suppression of the traditional liturgy — which appears to be concentrated in some dioceses of the United States — four cardinals and an archbishop are to celebrate five traditional pontifical liturgies in Rome and the U.S. over the next month… At 3 p.m. this coming Saturday, Cardinal Raymond Burke will celebrate a pontifical Mass in St. Peter’s Basilica as part of the annual “Summorum Pontificum Pilgrimage” attended by traditional Catholics from around the world. The cardinal last celebrated a pontifical Mass for the same event in the basilica in 2014.

By Carole Novielli, LiveAction – A recent release published at Newsweek noted that the $8 million given to Afaxys came from well-known abortion pill investor, the David and Lucile Packard Foundation, and an “anonymous” foundation. Where we see Packard funding, we often also see funding from the Susan Thompson Buffett Foundation (Warren Buffett), which has been frequently revealed later as the “anonymous” donor… The release also stated that Christian Bloomgren, a “former general manager at Planned Parenthood Federation North America,” will “take over” Afaxys — and he is not the first executive with ties to both Planned Parenthood and Afaxys.

By Fr. Thomas G. Morrow, Catholic Exchange – A woman once told me, “I don’t love my husband anymore.”… I asked her, “Are you concerned for his good?”… “Yes,” she answered…. “Then you love him.”… “That’s the love you vowed when you married him. That’s the same kind of love we need to be saved. The Greek word for it is agape … It sounds like you don’t like him. You don’t have to like your husband. But if you work hard for his good and try to make him happy as best you can, he just might become more likable. However, that shouldn’t be your primary motive. Your first motive should be to fulfill the vow you made before God to pursue his good.”

By Fr. Jerry Pokorsky, Catholic Culture – “When the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on earth?” (Lk. 18:8) Faith in Jesus fulfills and replaces the faith of the Chosen People. Faith accepts what God reveals through the teachings of the Church and responds according to His will. “I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me; and the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.” (Gal. 2:20)

By William Kilpatrick, Turning Point Project – In my last piece I discussed the Church’s latest act of appeasement toward Islam—namely, the U.S. bishops’ guide to Islamophobia. The guide is, to say the least, poorly timed. At a time when most of the world is leaning over backward to avoid offending Islam, the guide urges Catholics to lean even more… One way to avoid offending Islam is to refrain from talking about the bad things that are done in the name of Islam… Another way to placate the many sensitivities of Islam is to talk non-stop about the bad things that are done to Muslim—to portray Muslims as victims of widespread bigotry and persecution. This media tactic also helps to divert attention away  from persecuted Christians. ….

By Douglas Bushman, Catholic World Report – That Jesus taught His disciples to pray for the coming of the kingdom (Mt 6:9–13; Lk 11:2–4) long before they could fully understand its true nature has long intrigued me. Clearly, Jesus intends to lead His disciples into a full understanding of what it means for God’s kingdom to come, and for Him to be its king… And yet, even after all the formation they received from Him, the final question that the apostles put to their Master, on the day of the Ascension, concerns the coming of the kingdom: “Lord, will you at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?” (Acts 1:6). Jesus responds that they will finally fully understand when they receive the gift of the Holy Spirit ….

By Walter Sánchez Silva, CNA – Usury can be defined as charging too much interest on a loan, a practice that has existed since ancient times. Traditionally, the Catholic Church taught that the sin of usury was the act of demanding any benefit or profit for the sole purpose of lending. This understanding has evolved over time, and the Church no longer condemns the general practice of lending with interest, as long as it is moderate… On Oct. 18, the Holy Father received the National Anti-Usury Council of Italy in the Vatican Apostolic Palace. For 30 years, the council has been dedicated to “combating a problem that has a devastating impact on the lives of so many people and families,” according to the Vatican Press Office. …

By John Mac Ghlionn, Crisis Magazine – If anything, Catholics should be allergic to this phrase because it’s a linguistic Trojan horse. It sneaks politics into the pulpit and replaces theology with talking points. Once you start measuring faith by military alliances, you’ve already traded the cross for a flagpole… The first Christians didn’t equate holiness with strategic partnerships. They followed a man who told Peter to put away his sword, not sharpen it for the next preemptive strike… The sad truth is that “Judeo-Christian” has become a nervous tick for Western politicians who don’t believe in either. It’s what they say when they want the shine of faith without the burden of it—like a dieter ordering dessert “for the table.” … Catholics don’t need to borrow anyone’s values. We already have a catechism, a creed, and a calling. That’s enough. …

By Chuck Koach, Catholic World Report – Catholic schools should hire only Catholic faculty. Not out of fear, but out of love: love for students, who deserve teachers who speak truth without compromise. Love for the Church, which deserves institutions that are fully hers. Love for the mission, because Catholic education is not ultimately about college prep; it is about souls… We need joyful, bold, faithful educators. We need saints in the classroom. And they have to be Catholic.

By Philip Kosloski, Aleteia – Here are seven profound quotes from the writings of St. Paul of the Cross that speak to the heart and can inspire us in our daily struggle for sanctity… St. Paul of the Cross was a beautiful soul, deeply devoted to the Passion of Jesus Christ. After receiving a heavenly vision of himself wearing a black habit with a white heart and cross on it, he founded the Congregation of the Passion of Jesus Christ (better known as the Passionists). …

By Melissa O’Rourke, LifeNews – The Trump administration is looking to slash an office at the HHS whose critics say has been a major driver of gender ideology and abortion policies in the federal government… The Office of Population Affairs (OPA) saw roughly 30 employees issued reduction-in-force (RIF) notices Oct. 10, effectively sidelining most of the agency’s staff, individuals familiar with the matter told the Daily Caller News Foundation. The cuts come as White House officials repeatedly warned that staffing reductions could occur if Democrats continue to refuse to reopen the government.

Author Don Schwager, Servants of the Word – Luke 12:13-21 – 13 One of the multitude said to him, “Teacher, bid my brother divide the inheritance with me.” 14 But he said to him, “Man, who made me a judge or divider over you?” 15 And he said to them, “Take heed, and beware of all covetousness; for a man’s life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions.” 16 And he told them a parable, saying, “The land of a rich man brought forth plentifully; 17 and he thought to himself, `What shall I do, for I have nowhere to store my crops?’ ….

By Fr. Ed Broom, OMV, Catholic Exchange – Only once in Sacred Scripture, in the Gospel of Matthew (11:28-30), does Jesus describe the characteristics of His Sacred Heart: “Come to me all you who find life burdensome, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me for I am meek and humble of heart. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”… These are the two essential qualities of His Sacred Heart that Jesus highlights: meekness and humility. From this passage the Church has formulated one of its most beautiful aspirations, which we can take into our hearts and repeat frequently during the course of the day. That prayer is: “Jesus meek and humble of heart, make my heart like unto thine.”

By Elise Winland, Catholic Vote – Kehoe rejected the criticism, saying his pro-life position remains unshaken… “I’ve said forever that I’m a defender of innocent life,” the governor said, according to the outlet. “Those young babies that have never had the chance to make any decisions that unfortunately become the victim of abortions, I’ll always stick up for that life as long as I’m in this office and anywhere else. I think that’s much different than somebody who murdered in cold blood a law enforcement officer, a hero in our state.”

By Fr. Thomas Kuffel, The Catholic Thing – Prayer, an elusive conversation with God, confuses many as St. Paul tells us, “For we do not know how to pray as we ought.” (Romans 8:26) The Spirit, Who prays in us “with sighs too deep for words” (Romans 8:26), searches our hearts, revealing our innermost secrets, fears, dreams, and desires. This inner revelation worries our conscience, for the depth of our sin becomes a reality. …

By Agnes Aineah, CNA – Children from across Africa, including those in countries experiencing persecution and instability, joined their peers in the “One Million Children Praying the Rosary” campaign held on Oct. 7, the feast of Our Lady of the Rosary… The campaign by Catholic Pontifical and charity foundation Aid to the Church in Need (ACN) International is a global prayer initiative inspired by St. Pio of Pietrelcina’s vision of children changing the world through prayer… In Mozambique, a southern African country weighed down by insurgency against Christians, some children prayed the rosary for the first time in their lives.

By Paul Senz, National Catholic Register – We might not all be facing such seemingly insurmountable obstacles as Lu did, and as so many others do today, but sometimes it really can feel that way. We must discern the will of God, and proceed accordingly. We might make enemies, alienate friends and family, or face ridicule — even prison. But regardless, whether in big things or little things, God’s will must be paramount. And we must always live our lives seeking to do his will and spreading the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

By Phil Lawler, Catholic Culture – If you’re not a financial whiz, it can be difficult to follow the details of the Vatican financial scandals. Let me try to make it simple (since I’m not a financial whiz either), and see if you notice the single thread that runs all through the complex history… First the Vatican bank, the IOR, came under fire, with European banking regulators charging that it was open to money-laundering. Vatican officials resisted, but when European banks began cutting off banking privileges, the IOR had no choice, and began a painful process of internal reforms. The IOR has now won a clean bill of health from the regulators.

By John Zmirak, The Stream – Nobody flooded the streets when Barack Obama killed an American citizen by drone strike, because of alleged terrorist ties. No one called it “authoritarian” when the Former Joe Biden’s autopen freed hundreds of criminals, including child porn collectors and Chinese spies. But when President Trump tries to do the federal government’s job of removing illegal aliens, state governors turn Confederate and treat ICE facilities like Fort Sumter.

By Elle Purnell, The Federalist – Laughing in the face of transgenderism’s propagandists is a fine start. It would be great to live in a society where full-grown men cosplaying as toddler girls are treated with deserved mockery instead of accommodation. Exposing (pardon the poor word choice!) the movement’s absurdity can help deter would-be victims from falling for it. Studies have shown that many young people, particularly young girls, face massive social incentives to adopt LGBT identities. Reversing those incentives would surely slow the mania.

By Niwa Limbu, Catholic Herald – The Armenian Prime Minister, Nikol Pashinyan, received Catholic Communion in St Peter’s Square yesterday, despite not being a Catholic… According to Catholic teaching, the Eucharist is reserved for those in full communion with the Church — baptised Catholics who affirm this teaching and who are spiritually prepared to receive it. Non-Catholics are normally excluded, except in rare cases where they share the Church’s faith in the Eucharist and cannot access a minister of their own community.

By Most Rev. Michael F. Burbidge, Catholic Diocese of Arlington, VA – The White House yesterday announced new fertility initiatives intended to promote the growth of American families. President Trump announced the creation of a new optional fertility insurance benefit that will allow employers to offer a range of fertility care services alongside longstanding medical, dental, and vision benefits. Certainly, this is a welcome opportunity for all employers, and especially for the Church and its apostolates, to enhance their healthcare coverage by offering new or expanded coverage for ethical fertility care, including treatments like NaProTechnology that address and resolve underlying causes of infertility. Unfortunately, the White House is also promoting unethical and unjust IVF procedures as a part of its fertility initiative.

By Deacon Michael Bickerstaff, Integrated Catholic Life – The wealthier and more comfortable we become, the more we seem to forget the outward-focused life God has called us to live. The two great commandments – love your God and love your neighbor – become lost in a life that is turned in on itself… Many of you would agree that one of the great errors and sins of our time is self-absorption. It would appear from our readings that the same was true in Israel during the life of Christ and also eight centuries earlier when Amos preached and wrote God’s prophetic message.

Author Don Schwager, Servants of the Word – Luke 12:8-12 – 8 “And I tell you, every one who acknowledges me before men, the Son of man also will acknowledge before the angels of God; 9 but he who denies me before men will be denied before the angels of God. 10 And every one who speaks a word against the Son of man will be forgiven; but he who blasphemes against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven. …

By Victor Davis Hanson, The Daily Signal – Victor Davis Hanson: I predict. The Europeans are very volatile. We forget about that. They have no history of a multiracial society like we do, and they’re not capitalist countries anymore, so they don’t have fluidity of class… So, when you bring in people who are antithetical in terms of values, religion from a different region, and they’re not European-looking, they have all these things that are challenges that need to be assimilated, and they can’t or won’t do it. And the people coming in have no desire to do it.

By Brianna Lyman, The Federalist – Today this may mean visiting a mosque. Tomorrow that could mean adopting policies or positions that conflict with the moral and legal frameworks that underpin the nation. Mass migration, combined with limited to no assimilation, risks gradually bending political norms to accommodate values and belief systems that were never intended to govern America… Measuring political legitimacy by a prerequisite of pandering to religious frameworks that are incompatible with republican self-government illustrates how mass migration without assimilation can create systemic pressure on the very foundations of our country. …

By Raymond Arroyo, Arroyo Grande – By Raymond Arroyo, Arroyo Grande – A new purge of the Traditional Latin Mass is spreading across the United States and Europe — but why now? Raymond Arroyo and Fr. Gerald Murray dig into what’s driving this wave of restrictions and whether Pope Leo’s latest teaching document on the poor truly holds up. From the crackdown on the Tridentine rite in Knoxville and Chattanooga to the Vatican’s growing focus on immigration policy, this week’s Prayerful Posse explores the clash between faith, tradition, and politics inside today’s Church. …

By Stephen P. White, The Catholic Thing – This new survey provided an opportunity for a follow-up to the 2022 National Study of Catholic Priests, examining the well-being of our priests, their levels of burnout, confidence in their bishops or religious superiors, and the like. Since every participant in this 2025 study also participated in the 2022 study, we are able to track any changes longitudinally… Our previous studies showed that our priests were, by and large, flourishing. Happily, our new data confirms that American priests are flourishing at levels well above the average for the general population.

By Clifford Angell Bates, Jr., Chronicles – The mechanisms are consistent across these contexts: moral absolutism, cognitive rigidity, and the desire for control. Good intentions, when detached from prudence and responsibility, create tyranny. This is why both large-scale utopian projects and small-scale moral policing are forces of social destruction rather than renewal… The alternative is not to abandon morality but to temper it with humility, realism, and an ethic of responsibility. Healthy political and social communities are built not by imposing utopias but by nurturing voluntary associations, pluralism, and incremental reform.

By Phil Lawler, Catholic Culture – There are, to be sure, passages in the document that will grate on the raw sensibilities of faithful Catholics who have felt the lash of Vatican rhetoric over the course of the past decade. Particularly on the issue of immigration—which American secular reporters quickly chose for their headline stories, Dilexi Te misses some crucial distinctions… Yes, both the Old Testament and the New warn believers that they, and the societies in which they live, will be judged on their treatment of strangers in need. But this apostolic exhortation, like so many recent Vatican pronouncements, makes short shrift of a society’s legitimate right to protect its own culture and enforce its own laws.

By Katrina Trinko, LifeNews – Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy even warned Thursday that the low birth rate poses “a national security threat.”… “When my uncle was president, the fertility rate in this country was 3.5%,” he said. “Today it is 1.6%. The replacement rate—in other words, the amount of fertility that you need in order to keep your population even—is 2.1%. We are below replacement right now. That is a national security threat to our country.”… But while IVF, or in vitro fertilization, gets much of the attention for solutions for infertility, it’s not the only option.

Franciscan Media – Luke wrote one of the major portions of the New Testament, a two-volume work comprising the third Gospel and Acts of the Apostles. In the two books he shows the parallel between the life of Christ and that of the Church. He is the only Gentile Christian among the Gospel writers. Tradition holds him to be a native of Antioch, and Paul calls him “our beloved physician.” His Gospel was probably written between 70 and 85 A.D.

By Jeffrey Mirus, Catholic Culture – the Christian understanding of the human person has long since disappeared from the dominant cultures of our world today. The result is that no significant political, economic, or social barriers any longer stand in the way of the long series of cultural shifts in favor of ever-deeper human depravities—evil done in the name of good—which is both the ancient and the modern hallmark of diabolical influence. …

By John Pisciotta, LifeNews – Planned Parenthood in Tyler closed on July 17. On October 12, the pro-life community of East Texas celebrated. The Tyler facility opened in 2012 as part of the Planned Parenthood of Greater Texas affiliate… The celebration was sponsored by Tyler 40 Days for Life.  Lars Gustafson led 40 Days for the past two years. Lars made a commitment to continue 40 Days for Life in Tyler in 2026, to the cheers of nearly 200 attending. ….

Author Don Schwager, Servants of the Word – Luke 12:1-7 – 1 In the meantime, when so many thousands of the multitude had gathered together that they trod upon one another, he began to say to his disciples first, “Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees, which is hypocrisy. 2 Nothing is covered up that will not be revealed, or hidden that will not be known. 3 Therefore whatever you have said in the dark shall be heard in the light, and what you have whispered in private rooms shall be proclaimed upon the housetops. ….

By Fr. David Nix, Complicit Clergy, (Padre Peregrino) – The author (of ” Dilexi Te”) then misappropriates the Holy Family to argue for open-borders. Clearly, the Bible and the Catholic Church have always opposed chaos on national borders, as the true God is a God of order. But manipulating the Holy Family’s desperate flight to Egypt is also a trick of the leftists so predictable that I wrote against it even months before Dilexi Te was released. …

By Jim Valois, Catholic Exchange – As a child, I enjoyed playing with Silly Putty. When newspaper ink was petroleum-based, I liked using it to pull print or images off the pages. Now, in our current times, is it a stretch to say that some of our leading luminaries consider the immutable Teaching of the Church changeable like Silly Putty? The immutable Teaching of the Church, such as the dogmas and Ten Commandments, can be shaped into whatever we want them to be, these “lights” tell us. Times have changed. So too must the Teachings of the Church change to fit our epoch, some experts insist.

By Tessa Gervasini, National Catholic Register, (Complicit Clergy) – The Diocese of Lexington has developed an ambitious plan to make all of its buildings net-zero by 2030 because, it noted, as Scripture says: “The earth and all in it belongs to God.” The plan includes all buildings of the 59 parishes in the diocese, spanning over 50 counties in central and eastern Kentucky… The plan is a direct response to Pope Francis’ 2015 encyclical Laudato Si’  (“On Care for Our Common Home”), which called on the global Catholic Church to engage in dialogue about the future of the planet. Within the writings, Pope Francis urged the Church to acknowledge environmental challenges.

By Luisella Scrosati, Daily Compass – In 2023, Prevost (Pope Leo XIV) embraced the ‘coherent ethic of life’ expressed by Cardinals Joseph Louis Bernardin (died 1996) and Blase Cupich, both of whom were archbishops of Chicago… An ethic that Prevost summarised as follows: ‘Abortion, war, poverty, euthanasia and capital punishment share a common identity: they are all based on the denial of the right to life’. To these threats against human life, he added ‘other issues, such as the effects of artificial intelligence, human trafficking and the rights of migrants’… In his speech, Prevost criticised the imbalance in the Catholic pro-life movement in the United States, which focuses primarily on fighting abortion and euthanasia at the expense of other important issues such as the death penalty and anti-immigrant policies. …

News by National Catholic Register (EWTN) – Christians in Gaza are relieved by the ceasefire that took effect on Oct. 13 between Israel and Hamas, but they understand that hostilities could break out again at any time, Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, the Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem, told Vatican Radio in an Oct. 15 interview… “We are in daily contact with them. They keep writing that they still cannot believe they were able to sleep through the night without hearing the sound of bombs,” the patriarch said during a visit to Rome …

By John M. Grondelski, Crisis Magazine – In the end, Dilexi Te’s treatment of migration leaves Catholics with serious unanswered questions. The Church may and must remind believers of the moral dignity of every person. But she cannot call Catholics to actions that imply contempt for lawful authority, nor can she treat the existence of sovereign states as a regrettable accident of history. If Rome wishes to speak credibly about migration, it must do so in full awareness that the world of Abraham and Moses is not the world of passports, borders, and visas—and that Catholics, while bound by charity, are also citizens. Between God and Caesar, the Exhortation seems to have forgotten that both still have legitimate claims upon us.

By Beth Brelje, The Federalist – President Donald Trump’s former National Security Advisor John Bolton was indicted Thursday on 18 charges related to his alleged leaking of national secrets while he wrote a book about his work in the White House… The charges include eight counts of transmission of national defense information and ten counts of retention of national defense information… Bolton was the national security advisor from April 9, 2018, through Sept. 10, 2019, during which time he had access to some of the nation’s most highly classified and sensitive national secrets.

By Joseph R. Wood, The Catholic Thing – In His discourse at the Last Supper, Christ teaches the Apostles about three related themes: knowing and seeing God, loving God, and being one with God. He holds out these three as different aspects of a single phenomenon… Christ tells the group, “Where I go you know, and the way you know.” Thomas insists they don’t know where Christ is going. Christ assures him, “If you had known me, you would have known my Father. And henceforth you do know him, and you have seen him.”

By Kate Quiñones, CNA – President Donald Trump is expanding access to in vitro fertilization and other fertility treatments by partnering with pharmaceutical companies and expanding insurance options… According to a White House announcement on Oct. 16, the Trump administration is working with major pharmaceutical companies to bring IVF drugs to the U.S. at lower prices. The administration is also expanding insurance coverage for fertility care… The agreement with leading pharmaceutical group EMD Serono will make IVF drugs available “at very, very heavily reduced prices — prices that you won’t even believe…”

The Catholic Herald – The Pontifical Commission for Vatican City State is responsible for the civil governance of the world’s smallest sovereign entity. Its remit includes public order, health and safety, environmental management, economic oversight, and the administration of the Vatican Museums and their cultural patrimony. … Cardinal Cupich’s appointment comes less than a month after he drew attention in the United States when several bishops criticised his decision to honour Senator Richard Durbin with a lifetime achievement award. His new role in the Vatican’s governing structure will place him in closer proximity to the daily operations of the Holy See and the decisions that shape its administration.

By Franciscan Media – Born in Syria, Ignatius converted to Christianity and eventually became bishop of Antioch. In the year 107, Emperor Trajan visited Antioch and forced the Christians there to choose between death and apostasy. Ignatius would not deny Christ and thus was condemned to be put to death in Rome… Ignatius is well known for the seven letters he wrote on the long journey from Antioch to Rome. Five of these letters are to churches in Asia Minor; they urge the Christians there to remain faithful to God and to obey their superiors..

By Kenneth Craycraft, Catholic World Report – In his very brief tenure as Supreme Pontiff, Pope Leo XIV has demonstrated that he—the first American pope—is not an Americanist pope. Yes, he is America’s pope, but not any more or less than he is the Supreme Pontiff of the Universal Church. As such, he is no less suspicious of American tendencies to compromise the Faith than his illustrious predecessor. The manifestation of Americanist impulses in 2025 is somewhat different from that of the late 19th century. …

By Bishop Joseph E. Strickland, Bishop Emeritus – The hour is too late, and the deception too deep. We are watching the faith of our fathers being dismantled under the pretense of renewal… Cardinal Cupich has publicly opposed the Traditional Latin Mass, has tolerated and even celebrated politicians who advance abortion, and has consistently undermined those who defend the sanctity of life and the fullness of Catholic doctrine. To elevate such a man to one of the governing bodies of the Vatican is to send a message to faithful Catholics across the world: that fidelity to tradition and the moral law is now treated as an obstacle rather than a light.

Patriot Post – “It behooves you, therefore, to think and act for yourself and your people. The great principles of right and wrong are legible to every reader; to pursue them requires not the aid of many counselors. The whole art of government consists in the art of being honest. Only aim to do your duty, and mankind will give you credit where you fail.” —Thomas Jefferson (1775)

By Peter Wolfgang, Catholic Culture – I am grateful to OSV News for reporting on my concerns about the USCCB’s granting of an imprimatur to the New Revised Standard Version updated edition (NRSVue) Bible. I appreciate USCCB Scripture scholar Father Pablo Gadenz responding directly to my concerns. But I found his responses unpersuasive, and I still think the imprimatur should be withdrawn, for the reasons below… First, a recap for readers unfamiliar with the issue. The updated edition of the NRSV, the flagship Bible of Mainline Protestantism, was published in 2022. ….

By Thaddeus G. McCotter, Chronicles – With so much of their dark money and Big Tech contributions gone, Democrats—who eschew thoughts and prayers—can only cling to hope. Beyond that, expect no detours from the old strategy of deflection, projection, twisting and redefining language and standards, and, of course, blaming Trump.

By Shawn Fleetwood, The Federalist – Associate Justice Neil Gorsuch got a lawyer for the NAACP Legal Defense Fund to all but admit support for states intentionally discriminating on the basis of race in the redistricting process… The moment came during (SCOTUS’) Wednesday oral arguments for a pair of cases known as Louisiana v. Callais and Robinson v. Callais, which center on the Louisiana Legislature’s use of race when creating its recent congressional map… the matter first arose “following ‘a previous lawsuit … where plaintiffs argued that the prior map’ put forward by the state ‘violated Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act by diluting minority votes,’ according to Oyez.”

By Dan Hart, LifeNews – As the federal government shutdown stretches into its 14th day, reports from Capitol Hill and the White House suggest that the impasse won’t end anytime soon, with the Trump administration refusing to budge on the Democrats’ demands of expanding COVID-era Obamacare subsidies and other spending by $1.5 trillion. … One Office of Management and Budget (OMB) official told Punchbowl that the agency is “making every preparation to batten down the hatches and ride out the Democrats’ intransigence. Pay the troops, pay law enforcement, continue the RIFs [reduction in force], and wait.”

Author Don SchwagerServants of the Word – Luke 11:47-54 – 47 Woe to you! for you build the tombs of the prophets whom your fathers killed. 48 So you are witnesses and consent to the deeds of your fathers; for they killed them, and you build their tombs. 49 Therefore also the Wisdom of God said, `I will send them prophets and apostles, some of whom they will kill and persecute,’ 50 that the blood of all the prophets, shed from the foundation of the world, may be required of this generation, 51 from the blood of Abel to the blood of Zechariah, who perished between the altar and the sanctuary. ….

By John M. Grondelski, The Catholic Thing – As (Pope Leo XIV’s) predecessor, St. John Paul II (elected 47 years ago today), observed, culture lies upstream from both politics and economics. And our “blessed barrenness” is a cultural problem – both in the larger society and within the Catholic Church… “Neither in the man nor in the woman can affirmation of the value of the person be divorced from awareness and willing acceptance that he may become a father and she may become a mother. . . .If the possibility of parenthood is deliberately excluded from marital relations, the character of the relationship between the partners automatically changes. The change is away from unification in love and in the direction of mutual, or rather, bilateral “enjoyment.”

By Hector O. Chapa, M.D., Live Action – A recent commentary written by a psychiatry resident-in-training and published on October 11, 2025, in MedPage Today, paints natalism (the belief that human reproduction is essential for the continuation and flourishing of society) as “incompatible” with public health… This perspective overlooks a fundamental truth: without natalism, there would be no public at all. The very existence and continuation of society depend on birth rates that sustain or grow the population.

By Kevin Wells, Crisis Magazine – Crisis editor Eric Sammons​ has made written ​and spoken pleas for laity calm in the aftermath of Pope Leo XIV’s odd ice-block blessing and refusal to condemn Cardinal ​Blase Cupich’s decision to award a pro-abortion politician with a lifetime achievement honor. ​Even on gasket-blowing days like yesterday, when the Chicago-native pontiff promoted his fellow Chicagoan Cupich to the Pontifical Commission for the Vatican City State​, Sammons’ call for calm is as wise as it is necessary… But why?… The Roman Catholic Church is facing a spiritual epidemic unlike any it has ever known; it is as large—and mostly unrecognized —as any crisis in today’s American Catholic Church …..

By Constance T. Hull, Catholic Exchange – In the spiritual life, the Lord calls us to mortification. There are entire programs, such as Exodus 90, designed to help Catholics learn more about the ascetical life in an age of hedonism and spiritually destructive abundance. These are all well and good. They serve an important purpose in helping us strip away that which keeps us from God. They lead to a necessary poverty that allows us to be filled by God. However, they are not the most effective means of growth; the saints understood that it is unwilled suffering that is the most effective.

Franciscan Media – Margaret Mary was chosen by Christ to arouse the Church to a realization of the love of God symbolized by the heart of Jesus… Her early years were marked by sickness and a painful home situation. “The heaviest of my crosses was that I could do nothing to lighten the cross my mother was suffering.” After considering marriage for some time, Margaret Mary entered the Order of the Visitation nuns at the age of 24.

By Fr. Shenan J. Boquet, Human Life International – In Forming Consciences for Faithful Citizenship, the U.S. bishops provide ethical guidance on the political responsibilities of Catholics. It assists Catholics, in light of the Church’s teaching, to form their consciences and to learn about Catholic social doctrine on fundamental moral issues, which give shape to political, cultural, and social issues… As a pro-life leader, I am delighted with the strong language in the guide on the topic of abortion. “The threat of abortion remains our pre-eminent priority,” the introduction to the most recent version of the guide states, “because it directly attacks our most vulnerable and voiceless brothers and sisters and destroys more than a million lives per year in our country alone.”

By Sophie Starkova, Patriot Post – Radical Islamist violence in Nigeria is getting renewed attention from the West as more reports come out. As World magazine’s article on the plight of Christians in that country recounts, “This year, Nigerian Christians have faced increasing attacks from jihadist groups. According to the Nigeria-based nonprofit InterSociety, Islamists murdered more than 7,000 Christians — and kidnapped 7,800 — in the country between January and August. This latest violence has refocused international attention on Nigeria over the ongoing attacks and persecution.”

Author Don Schwager, Servants of the Word – Luke 11:42-46 – 42 “But woe to you Pharisees! for you tithe mint and rue and every herb, and neglect justice and the love of God; these you ought to have done, without neglecting the others. 43 Woe to you Pharisees! for you love the best seat in the synagogues and salutations in the market places. 44 Woe to you! for you are like graves which are not seen, and men walk over them without knowing it.”

By Tyler O’Neil, The Stream – The Left has abetted a massive lawlessness crisis that has divided and likely radicalized Americans… Democrats may want us to throw the George Floyd riots of 2020 down the memory hole, but we should remember that those riots cost more than $2 billion in damage and took the lives of at least 26 Americans. The left-leaning media described the riots as “mostly peaceful,” while Democrats demonized even calls for law and order from the president.

By Casey Chalk, Catholic World Report – Prominent Catholics such as Secretary of State Marco Rubio profess “unwavering support” for Israel, while ecumenical (but mostly Catholic) First Things publishes content largely defending Israel. Alternatively, at Crisis Magazine, we read titles such as “America First Does Not Mean Unlimited Support for Israel,” and “Against Catholic Zionism.” In turn, Joe Heschmeyer at Catholic Answers asks: “Is Genesis 12 really saying that we’re to ‘the modern nation of Israel with military aid in its wars?” His answer: “Not according to St. Paul.”

The Editors, National Catholic Register – When the president of the United States says he doesn’t think ‘anything’ can get him into heaven, it’s a teachable moment — a chance to remind him, and ourselves, that Divine Mercy is greater than any human achievement… Trump possesses such heaping reserves of self-confidence that there isn’t a skyscraper on the planet tall enough to contain it. This exasperates his critics, of course. Even some of his most ardent supporters occasionally cringe at his braggadocio… There is, to cite one example, his expressed wish to have his likeness added to Mount Rushmore. “Outrageous!” we might think. …

By Matthew McKenna, Catholic Exchange – Recently, one couple shared their story about discerning the morality of embryo adoption and their final decision to go through with it because they are otherwise infertile.  A significant portion of the article centers around the moral reasoning through which they determined that it was an acceptable choice.  Sadly, and despite their best efforts to find moral guidance, there are serious issues with their reasoning and interpretation of Magisterial teachings which have led them, and may lead others, astray.

By Robert G. Marshall, Catholic Culture – The State of Virginia’s 2025 General Assembly passed a proposed so-called Reproductive Freedom Constitutional Amendment (RFCA) to Virginia’s Constitution (S.J.Res 247) which will be on Virginia’s November, 2026 ballot if passed a second time by Virginia’s 2026 legislature. Other states have faced or will face similar challenges, so the Virginia experience should put all American citizens on their guard.

By Elise Winland, Catholic Vote – During his first official visit with Italian President Sergio Mattarella on Oct. 14, Pope Leo XIV lamented Europe’s falling birth rates and invited renewed efforts to protect and promote the family… “In recent decades, we have witnessed in Europe as we have seen a notable decline in the birth rate,” the Pope said in a speech after the visit. “This calls for a concerted effort to promote choices at all levels in favor of the family, supporting its efforts, promoting its values, and protecting its needs and rights.”

By Michael Haynes, OnePeterFive – It appears that once again, Beijing has delivered another blow to the Holy See by consecrating a bishop to the pivotal Diocese of Shanghai after he was elected during the papal sede vacante… On October 15, Father Wu Jianlin will be consecrated as auxiliary bishop of the Diocese of Shanghai. News of the ceremony came via official notices issued by the schismatic state-approved church, the Chinese Catholic Patriotic Association (CCPA)… Previously vicar general of the diocese, Wu was elected, effectively unopposed, in a vote on April 28.

By Darrick Taylor, Crisis Magazine – I am not at all surprised His Holiness intervened to provide cover for Cardinal Cupich, since he is both a friend and, by all accounts, a benefactor—as Cupich is believed to have played a role in his rise to the throne of St. Peter. But his comments are revealing for other reasons. In them, His Holiness repeated opinions about the death penalty which confirm that, at least on that issue (and others), he is indeed a “progressive” who appears to equate the death penalty with abortion in terms of moral gravity. It is also revealing because of the way he framed the issue using political terms, “prolife” being a term associated with public policy and not Catholic doctrine.

By Steven Ertelt, LifeNews – President Donald Trump posthumously awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom to conservative activist Charlie Kirk on Tuesday, hailing the slain Turning Point USA founder as a “giant of his generation” whose unyielding defense of faith, family and American liberty will echo through history… The ceremony, held in the White House Rose Garden to accommodate a swelling crowd of supporters, fell on what would have been Kirk’s 32nd birthday.

By McKenna Snow, Catholic Vote – A new actor has been cast to play Jesus in the 2027 two-part film The Resurrection of the Christ, Mel Gibson’s long-awaited sequel to the 2004 movie The Passion of the Christ, according to Variety… Finnish actor Jaakko Ohtonen, 36, will be stepping into the lead role, replacing Jim Caviezel, who portrayed Jesus in the first movie… The reason for the changes is reportedly due to expenses… Variety reported that a source close to the production told the outlet that the studio would have had to digitally de-age people’s faces in the sequel, which “would have been very costly.”

By Franciscan Media – By Franciscan Media, October 15 – Saint Teresa of Avila lived in an age of exploration as well as political, social, and religious upheaval. It was the 16th century, a time of turmoil and reform. She was born before the Protestant Reformation and died almost 20 years after the closing of the Council of Trent. … The gift of God to Teresa in and through which she became holy and left her mark on the Church and the world is threefold: She was a woman; she was a contemplative; she was an active reformer.

By Jeffrey Lord, The American Spectator – President Trump has made history — major league world history. One can only pray that the Middle East is on its way out of the horrific decades of mass violence that arose with the formalization of the Jewish state in May of 1948… All of which leads to the obvious question: Can the rest of the world imagine a world without ongoing violence in the Middle East?… The answer to that question is, one suspects, that it has taken President Trump, the man who has made a career of envisioning everything from buildings to the results of presidential elections to peace agreements that the world’s collective political leaders could not envision themselves.

By Gregory Lyakhov, Patriot Post – While Democrats try to deny it, the reason Washington is shut down comes down to a single question: Should Medicaid, a program meant for low-income Americans, be used to subsidize healthcare for people who entered the country illegally?… The fight began with the passage of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act earlier this year. One of its key reforms ended a Medicaid loophole that allowed states to pass the cost of covering illegal immigrants on to federal taxpayers. The law required states to pay those costs themselves, cutting off a practice that blurred eligibility lines and drained billions.

By Ben Johnson, The Stream – Faithful Roman Catholics hoped the first American pope, Leo XIV, would make a decisive break with Pope Francis, but he is already continuing one of his predecessor’s worst habits: putting the moral authority of world’s largest church behind illegal immigration. So far, Pope Leo XIV’s actions and statements signal that he will offer Americans more baptized lawlessness on the border… America First Policies Threaten the the U.S. Bishops’ Taxpayer Subsidies…

By Tony Perkins, LifeNews – When the U.S. Supreme Court handed down the Dobbs decision in June 2022, many in Washington and the media declared that abortion was now a matter for the states. While the ruling did not explicitly say abortion was a state issue, it did affirm that states have the authority to regulate abortion — and in doing so, it appeared to cut the strings of federal control, freeing states to protect the unborn.

Author Don Schwager, Servants of the Word – Luke 11:37-41 – 37 While he was speaking, a Pharisee asked him to dine with him; so he went in and sat at table. 38 The Pharisee was astonished to see that he did not first wash before dinner. 39 And the Lord said to him, “Now you Pharisees cleanse the outside of the cup and of the dish, but inside you are full of extortion and wickedness. 40 You fools! Did not he who made the outside make the inside also? 41 But give for alms those things which are within; and behold, everything is clean for you.

By Nate Guyear, Catholic Exchange – The truth that we need to stop sinning is evident for Christians.  We believe that God calls us to moral perfection, gives us the grace to achieve it, and gives us His Son as the supreme example of holiness.  However, we still make excuses for sinful behaviors, or we find ourselves believing that God cannot perfectly sanctify us in this life.  Therefore, this article will provide a roadmap to complete sanctification.  Let us begin our journeys with certainty about four things.

By John Kainer, The American Spectator – Kirk, therefore, offered a service to universities that they were loathe to offer themselves — a religiously informed defense of America’s founding ideals and principles. Kirk was fearless in saying what he believed to be true given his considerable time spent reading, thinking, and writing about political, cultural, and religious issues. He could have chosen death for his opponents, but he chose dialogue instead. After Auschwitz, that is the responsibility of all people who would live in a free society.

By Gene Thomas Gomulka, Blog at John Eighteen Thirty Seven, (Complicit Clergy) – Catholics tend to project their heterosexuality and their fidelity onto their clergy, just like I did as a seminarian and young priest. It was for this reason that I had no idea that the two young priests with whom I served at my first parish assignment were homosexuals who were preying on our altar boys. Years later, when I discovered that most American-born bishops and priests were homosexuals, I understood why research professor, Rev. Dr. Paul Sullins, reported the following ….

By Brianna Lyman, The Federalist – For years, the Presidential Medal of Freedom has been awarded to celebrities and political allies. But on Tuesday, President Donald Trump will posthumously award Charlie Kirk the highest civilian honor, reviving the medal’s original intent of recognizing those who have made extraordinary contributions to the security, ideals, and freedoms of the country.

By John Zmirak, The Stream – The latest blasphemous stunt by a Catholic priest to promote open borders ought to outrage anyone with respect for the Eucharist, much less for our country’s sovereignty and laws. Left-wing activist Rev. Larry Dowling organized a formal eucharistic procession, complete with smells and bells, and marched it up to the locked gates of an ICE facility on a Sunday, without notifying anyone in advance. Then he made a little scene in front of the fence, as if wicked Donald Trump were intentionally keeping Jesus away from the migrants, or some such nonsense.

By John M. Grondelski, Ph.D., Catholic World Report – Two days ago, on Saturday, October 12th: A delegation of Catholic priests, nuns and lay leaders were among hundreds of people from Chicago and the suburbs who marched from Maywood to Broadview Saturday in hopes of delivering Holy Communion to detainees at the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement processing facility… There has now been much debate and criticism on social media about this “Eucharistic procession”. ….

By Regis Martin, Crisis Magazine – In talking to a pious young priest the other day, one who strives for punctilio in keeping all the rubrics in place while saying Mass, I asked about the length of the pause he observes before beginning the Penitential Rite. I was curious to know why he doesn’t stretch it out a bit, allowing the rest of us more time in order actually to call to mind our sins as Mother Church enjoins us to do. Do we really want to shorten the drama of self-examination to a nanosecond?

By Joseph K. Woodard, Catholic World Report – Only Christian civilization achieved a prodigious overturning of men’s natural drives by insisting on the dignity of women as such, founded in motherhood…. As Tom Holland’s 2021 book Dominion: How the Christian Revolution Remade the World reveals, in every past civilization (even our Greco-Roman forbearers), women were either commodities, guarded by their families as dynastic assets, or simply booty, “sex objects”—as were their children.

Franciscan Media, October 14 – Born in London and raised in Milan, Saint Carlo’s wealthy parents were not particularly religious. Upon receiving his first communion at age seven, Carlo became a frequent communicant, making a point of praying before the tabernacle before or after every Mass. In addition to Francis of Assisi, Carlo took several of the younger saints as his models, including Bernadette Soubirous, Jacinta and Francisco Marto, and Dominic Savio.

By Edward Feser, Public Discourse – While progressive Catholics conclude that Vice President Vance and other Catholic defenders of administration policy are flatly at odds with Church teaching on immigration, I will argue that that is not the case. Indeed, it is clear that Vance is not only well within those boundaries, but is in fact on much stronger ground than those who advocate a virtually “open borders” position in the name of Catholicism.

By Virginia Allen, The Daily Signal – After 738 days in Hamas captivity, the final 20 living hostages crossed the border from Gaza back into Israel. Images of fathers, mothers, wives, brothers, and sisters embracing their loved ones after two years of separation flooded social media… Bar Kupershtein, 23, cried as he embraced his mother. He was working at the Nova Music Festival on Oct. 7, 2023 when Hamas launched its terrorist attack on Israel killing 1,200 and taking another 251, including Kupershtein, hostage.

By Joseph Pearce, Catholic Exchange – Looking after our health is important and looking after our spiritual health is the most important thing of all. Since this is so, the neglect of our health, especially our spiritual health, is perilous to our well-being in this life and the next… Each of us has our own way of trying to stay healthy. Speaking personally, I try to live my daily life in accordance with what I call a healthy trinity. This involves finding adequate time each day for spiritual exercise, intellectual exercise and physical exercise. The first is the most important but it is served by the other two…

By Tessa Gervasini, Catholic News Agency – President Donald Trump renewed the focus of Columbus Day to be celebrated on the second Monday of October, reclaiming the explorer’s “extraordinary legacy of faith, courage, perseverance, and virtue,” according to the president’s proclamation… Since 1971, the second Monday in October has been federally recognized as Columbus Day to commemorate Columbus’ discovery of the Americas in 1492, celebrate Italian-American heritage, and acknowledge the 1891 lynchings of 11 Italian Americans. In 2021, former President Joe Biden issued the first presidential proclamation of Indigenous Peoples’ Day to be observed on the same day, following backlash toward Columbus.

Patriot Post – “It should be our endeavor to cultivate the peace and friendship of every nation.” —Thomas Jefferson (1787)

Author Don Schwager, Servants of the Word – Luke 11:29-32 – 29 When the crowds were increasing, he began to say, “This generation is an evil generation; it seeks a sign, but no sign shall be given to it except the sign of Jonah. 30 For as Jonah became a sign to the men of Nineveh, so will the Son of man be to this generation. 31 The queen of the South will arise at the judgment with the men of this generation and condemn them; for she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon, and behold, something greater than Solomon is here. …

By Kristen Ziccarelli and Joshua Treviño, The Federalsit – If we are to properly set the conditions for a civilizational rebirth, we must accept that realistic rhetoric is the statecraft needed for renewal… Last week, President Donald Trump announced that Israel and Hamas had signed off on the first phase of his Gaza peace plan — one of the most significant diplomatic breakthroughs in the Middle East in years. For our nation and the world, this was a moment of rare convergence, of both clarity and action.

By John Zmirak, The Stream – While Democrats addicted to ideological rage who approve of political violence paint targets on President Donald Trump and his team by labeling them “fascists,” let’s check in on what the embattled Jews of Israel have to say. It’s “Thank you, Trump!” chanted by thousands of grateful Israelis at different events in the streets of Tel Aviv, after the signing of a deal to return Israeli hostages seized by Hamas terrorists on October 7, 2023: President Trump, I say this as a scholar who has published books on fascism and its enemies: You’re doing fascism wrong. ….

By Catholic Vote – Israel’s citizens exploded in expressions of jubilation as 20 living hostages were released Monday morning after being held captive for 738 days by Hamas, the Palestinian terrorist organization… The Jerusalem Post reported that a first batch of seven hostages were released at around 8:15 a.m. local time. A convoy of Red Cross vehicles picked the captives up from a handover site in Gaza City. The hostages are Matan Angrest, brothers Gali and Ziv Berman, Alon Ohel, Eitan Mor, Omri Miran, and Guy Gilboa Dalal.

By Joseph Reciniello, Catholic Exchange – In Matthew’s Gospel, Jesus addresses the scholars of the law using hard-hitting words: “You cleanse the outside of cup and dish, but inside they are full of plunder and self-indulgence.” This leads us to ask ourselves, Is my life purely concerned with surface-level realities or superficial things? How many times in a day do we think about the way our lives look to others, in pictures or on social media? Now ask yourself: how often do I think about t

By Robert Royal, The Catholic Thing – Today is Columbus Day, or (among the alternatively oriented) Native Peoples’ Day, both displaced in any case, as even major Catholic feasts now are, to a different date, so that people will have long weekends, or not be inconvenienced, or something. In any event, it’s a day now redefined in terms that make it unclear what, if anything, we are celebrating, or deploring, in this booming, buzzing confusion that we still (kind of) think of as the twenty-first Christian century.

By Madalaine Elhabbal, Catholic News Agency, (Catholic World Report) – Former Israeli government officials, representatives for the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem, and Catholic advocates for Israel in the U.S. spoke with EWTN News this week following the historic peace deal brokered by the Trump administration between Israel and Hamas… News of the peace agreement came as “a joy for the entire population of Gaza, for the families of the hostages, and for our parish, our little parish there in Gaza,” according to Farid Jabran, the public and government affairs adviser for the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem.

By Dr. Donald DeMarco, Catholic Exchange – On October 13, 1917, as predicted by the three shepherd children in Fatima, a most extraordinary occurrence took place: the “Miracle of the Dancing Sun.”  The miracle would be so great that all would believe in the reality of the apparitions… More than 70,000 people gathered to witness the event at the Cova da Iria and up to more than 100,000 in the surrounding areas.  What many of them reported was, indeed, most extraordinary:  the sun appeared to “dance,” or zig-zag, across the sky as it advanced toward the earth.  It emitted multi-colored light and radiant colors. According to reports, the event lasted approximately ten minutes.

Franciscan Media, October 13 – Canada was one diocese from coast to coast during the first eight years of Marie-Rose Durocher’s life. Its half-million Catholics had received civil and religious liberty from the English only 44 years before… Marie-Rose Durocher was born in a little village near Montreal in 1811, the 10th of 11 children. She had a good education, was something of a tomboy, rode a horse named Caesar, and could have married well. At 16, she felt the desire to become a religious …

By Peter Wolfgang, Catholic Culture – It’s been my opinion these last nine months that, on abortion, President Trump has governed better than he campaigned. He and then-Sen. Vance gave pro-lifers agita with all their Election Year talk about being done with the abortion issue, being just fine with the status quo. My very first column for this site was a cri du coeur against their gutting of the GOP’s pro-life platform.

By Monica Showalter, American Thinker – Commissioning him to bring Church “unity” over the issue of illegal immigration, Pope Leo XIV decided to name El Paso’s Trump-hating, open-borders-advocating, Bishop Mark Seitz as his mouthpiece, not wanting to get into back-and-forth with President Trump himself over the matter the way Pope Francis did… According to Reuters: … Pope Leo told U.S. bishops visiting him at the Vatican on Wednesday that they should firmly address how immigrants are being treated by President Donald Trump’s hardline policies, attendees said, in the latest push by the pontiff on the issue.

By Douglas Andrews, Patriot Post – How did Trump do it? First, by establishing his credibility. And that means saying what he means and meaning what he says. That means greasing Soleimani and obliterating Iran’s nuclear sites, but it also means playing hardball with Bibi Netanyahu… As former U.S. Ambassador to Israel David Friedman put it yesterday: “The Biden and the Obama administrations had a series of perpetual red lines that were made to be breached, and in the Middle East, you can’t do that. Nobody took them seriously. In the Middle East … people look at you and they ask, ‘Does this guy mean what he says? Does he have the courage of his convictions?’ And with President Trump … that’s a guy that means what he says, that you should pay attention to.

Bishop Joseph E. Strickland, Bishop Emeritus, Pillars of Faith – So as we walk through this exhortation – grateful for what is true, but alert to what is a mirage – we see how certain phrases, borrowed from old liberation movements, change the meaning of mercy. We must test every word by the unchanging Gospel of Jesus Christ. Because real mercy – divine mercy – is not a mirage in the sand. It is the living water that flows from the pierced Heart of our Savior…

Author Don Schwager, Servants of the Word – Luke 11:27-28 – 27 As he said this, a woman in the crowd raised her voice and said to him, “Blessed is the womb that bore you, and the breasts that you sucked!” 28 But he said, “Blessed rather are those who hear the word of God and keep it!”

By Nathanael Blake, The Federalist – We were told that the LGBT movement was about adults — giving everyone equal rights and getting the government out of the bedrooms of consenting adults. But this was a lie; LGBT activists were always coming for the children… Just look at the recent kerfuffle over Netflix. Right-wing influencers and activists have drawn attention to the many Netflix shows promoting LGBT content for very young children… Prominent figures such as Elon Musk and Utah Sen. Mike Lee have joined in the denunciations, and the backlash seems to have hurt the company’s stock price.

By Matthew Plese, The Fatima Center – The Errors of Socialism – The Catholic Church has condemned Socialism in all its forms – so-called Christian Socialism as well as atheistic Socialism – without exception. But why? What is the error of Socialism? Is not Socialism about caring for the poor and eradicating evils like poverty? No, it is not… Socialism advances the error that private property is not a human right but can be taken away from individuals by the state and given to others… Socialism, like Communism, advances the view of the state as the supreme authority and therefore inevitably persecutes religion.

By Dominic V. Cassella, The Catholic Thing – Fr. White’s book is a challenging and enriching introduction to Catholic spiritual life that repays careful study. In it, we are introduced to what it means to shed the seeming wealth and power of this life and look upon the true source of happiness: God made man. Our Lord tells us that no one can enter Heaven except the one who came down from Heaven. (John 3:13-17) He has made His Cross a place of transfer by which we might enter into communion with Him and move from the visible to the invisible world.

By Bruce Bawer, The American Spectator – No, it’s not over yet. The trans lobby is still raking in donor money, still has a lockhold on the Democratic Party, and is still regarded as authoritative by the mainstream media. Many circuit court judges, in acts that palpably extend beyond the reach of their powers, have sought to block Trump’s actions. Then there are judges like the one in New Hampshire who ruled in April for a school district that had jettisoned two men from their daughters’ soccer game for wearing “XX” wristbands to protest “trans male” athletes.

By Adam Ellwanger, Chronicles – Over the course of my nearly 20-year career as a professor of rhetoric, I’ve learned that—stripped to its essence—rhetoric is symbolic force. Not all language is forceful. A statement like “His new car is red,” is descriptive, but it exerts no force on the audience. Rhetoric is the type of communication that aims at producing a tangible effect on something real; something outside the self, beyond the symbolic realm of discourse… The left has now spent decades asserting that offensive speech is violence. They are half right: rhetoric, like a punch, is an application of force. But rhetorical force, under the right circumstances, serves as a useful alternative to physical violence. Thus, persuasive force cannot be the same as violence.

By Liberty Counsel, LfeNews – This week, Louisiana filed a lawsuit against the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for allowing dangerous abortion pills to be mailed nationwide which undermines federal law, the 2022 Dobbs v. Jackson decision, and state pro-life abortion laws. Louisiana, and a state resident who survived abortion pill poisoning, are petitioning for the FDA to reinstate a rule that only allows the abortion pill Mifepristone to be dispensed in person. From 2016 to 2021, the FDA under the Obama and Biden administrations deregulated Mifepristone removing nearly all safeguards, including the in-person dispensary requirement under Biden, despite the drug’s questionable safety record.

Franciscan Media – Although few people had as great an impact on the 20th century as Pope John XXIII, he avoided the limelight as much as possible. Indeed, one writer has noted that his “ordinariness” seems one of his most remarkable qualities… The firstborn son of a farming family in Sotto il Monte, near Bergamo in northern Italy, Angelo Giuseppe Roncalli was always proud of his down-to-earth roots.

By Steven Ertelt, LifeNews – Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton announced the arrests of eight individuals Wednesday in a sweeping crackdown on a network of unlicensed abortion centers in the Houston area… “This cabal of abortion-loving radicals has been running illegal clinics staffed with unlicensed individuals who endangered the very people they pretended to help. Beyond being illegal, it is evil. These dens of fake doctors will not be allowed to operate in Texas. Those responsible will be held accountable. I will always protect innocent life and use every tool to enforce Texas’s pro-life laws,” Paxton said in a statement.

By Brian Mark Weber, Patriot Post – Democrats like Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson want the rest of the country to think ICE agents are targeting the innocent for simply being, you guessed it, black or brown… Since the George Floyd riots broke out across the country in 2020, Democrats have made it clear that they’re opposed to the very notion of the Rule of Law. Then, they told us violence was an acceptable remedy for injustice. Now, they’re taking issue with President Donald Trump enforcing federal immigration law by sending agents from Immigration and Customs Enforcement into cities across the country.

By Alyssa Murphy, National Catholic Register – Within a 41-second clip, Netflix is promoting not only transgenderism, but also the spirit world, complete with an animated demon. All for 7-year-olds… It all started with one show… Just last week, the internet was abuzz with an animated show apparently with a target audience of 7-year-olds showing a character all punked out with short blue hair, an earring, and looking ever so androgynous explaining to her friend that she was “trans” now. …

By Angeline Tan, Live Action News – Key Takeaways: A group of House Republicans have reacted to the FDA’s approval of a new generic abortion pill by calling for top FDA officials to be fired… Pro-life groups and others view the move as a betrayal of HHS and FDA’s promise to review the abortion pill mifepristone’s safety… The Trump administration has attempted to explain the generic approval by claiming that they were simply following what is required by law.

Author Don Schwager, Servants of the Word – Luke 11:15-26 – 15 But some of them said, “He casts out demons by Beelzebul, the prince of demons”; 16 while others, to test him, sought from him a sign from heaven. 17 But he, knowing their thoughts, said to them, “Every kingdom divided against itself is laid waste, and a divided household falls. 18 And if Satan also is divided against himself, how will his kingdom stand? For you say that I cast out demons by Beelzebul. 19 And if I cast out demons by Beelzebul, by whom do your sons cast them out?

By Elise Winland, Catholic Vote – Fifty-one Republican senators are calling on the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to reconsider their approval of a new generic version of the chemical abortion drug mifepristone… In a letter sent Oct. 9 to HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and FDA Commissioner Marty Makary, the lawmakers — led by Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C. — warned that they are “deeply concerned” by the drug’s approval and urged the agencies to suspend further authorizations until a full safety review is completed.

By Larry Elder, Chronicles – One more time: There is no such thing as free lunch. Government has no money. It acquires the money used to pay for things one of three ways: taxing, borrowing or printing… Democrat senators, with three exceptions, voted against keeping the federal government fully running because they want to add back spending reduced under the so-called Big Beautiful Bill; they want to spend even more; and they want to extend the expiring Obamacare subsidies.

By Lawrence Reed, The Stream – Two weeks since the murder of Charlie Kirk, the tragedy is still sinking in. I knew Charlie Kirk. In 2015, when he was just 21, he wrote, “Mr. Reed’s lecture on Adam Smith and The Wealth of Nations is still one of my favorite to date. It really changed the way I look at the free market and economics.” He reserved the highest praise for the work of the Foundation for Economic Education, the organization I have been closely associated with for half a century. He encouraged students to attend FEE programs, and I spoke at several of Charlie’s Turning Point conferences and chapter events.

By Casey Chalk, The Catholic Thing – There was a time when German Catholics fought for the faith. One hundred and fifty years ago, half the bishops of Prussia were imprisoned, as were hundreds of parish priests, leaving more than a thousand parishes orphaned. All of them had refused to cooperate with various Prussian laws, often called “May Laws,” intended to suffocate the independence of the Catholic Church in favor of an “ecumenical” brand of Protestantism. German lay Catholics responded by providing hiding places for clergy, paying fines clergymen incurred from the state, and purchasing bishops’ furniture at auction. And they were just getting started.

By D.P. Curtin, Catholic Exchange – In this light, moral failure is not disobedience to a moral precept, but participation in a lie. Evil thrives only to the extent that it can persuade us to confuse shadows for light. To resist it, then, is to embrace truth fully, not only in our speech but in our very being, cleaving to reality as God has made it. Goodness and truth are naturally inseparable forces. Evil, when unmasked, is nothing more than the denial of both.

By Elise Winland, Catholic Vote – Hours after announcing that Israel and Hamas had agreed to the first phase of a Gaza peace plan, President Donald Trump said Oct. 9 that all remaining hostages could be released as early as Oct. 13… Trump first announced the agreement Oct. 8 on Truth Social, saying it ensures that “ALL of the Hostages will be released very soon, and Israel will withdraw their Troops to an agreed upon line as the first steps toward a Strong, Durable, and Everlasting Peace.”… (On) Oct. 9 White House Cabinet meeting, Trump said, “We ended the war in Gaza and on a much bigger basis, created peace, and I think it’s going to be a lasting peace.”

By Dr. R. Jared Staudt, Catholic World Report – The partisan division that runs deep in America has recently taken a violent turn. Political affiliations manifest competing visions for the country’s future, and increasingly, for human life itself… Is freedom absolute in a way that should progress no matter the consequences? Or, are there fundamental truths and goods that should be conserved and respected?… We often speak of the fundamental divide between these general positions as right-wing and left-wing, conservative and liberal, as solely political, without realizing the surprising Catholic connection to their origin. …

The Editors, National Catholic Register – The Register’s annual Catholic Identity College Guide provides high-school students and their parents with information to help them choose a faithful Catholic institution that will form them spiritually as well as intellectually, as they prepare to enter adult life.. The stakes are high — for students as well as the schools offering to educate them… With the dawning of the artificial intelligence era, U.S. Catholic colleges and universities, like all institutions of higher education, must reexamine the capacity of many of their core fields of study …..

By Brianna Lyman, The Federalist – A Virginia grand jury indicted New York Attorney General Letitia James on Thursday, according to reports… A jury of her peers in the Eastern District of Virginia made the decision to indict James, and while the details of James’ indictment were not immediately available, Reuters reported James was indicted for bank fraud, citing a source familiar with the matter… Notably, James was hit with a criminal referral just recently for alleged mortgage fraud.

By Franciscan Media – Today’s saint grew up in an important family in 16th-century Spain, serving in the imperial court and quickly advancing in his career. But a series of events—including the death of his beloved wife—made Francis Borgia rethink his priorities. He gave up public life, gave away his possessions, and joined the new and little-known Society of Jesus.

By John M. Grondelski, Ph.D., Catholic World Report – (In the ) Summa theologiae I–II, question 105, article 3. The question is: “whether the judicial precepts regarding foreigners were framed in a suitable manner.” His answer: Yes… The subject is more serious than the question might suggest at first glance. Too often, Catholic intellectual sloppiness is content to proof-text Exodus 23:9 regarding non-oppression of aliens (see James Martin SJ, on X). Thomas’s treatment is far more subtle and in line with the Catholic theological tradition, though one wonders how many bishops have read and pondered it.

By Fr. Shenan J. Boquet, Human Life International – October is once again Respect Life Month, a time the U.S. bishops set aside each year to remind the faithful of the dignity of every human life. However, for me this year’s Respect Life Month is especially meaningful, since this year we mark the 30th anniversary of Pope St. John Paul II’s great encyclical Evangelium vitae (The Gospel of Life).

By Sarah Cain, Crisis Magazine -A persecution from within always cuts the deepest; but these wounded people are responding as Catholics always have. Shoved into a half-hearted attempt at an ersatz chapel, they pray with only the beauty they have, and with a true unity—a conformity with the Church that has spanned the ages. Above all, they plead to Heaven: “Sing with us, ye Seraphim.” Until we can join the Church Triumphant, we will pray and worship as so many of them once did. 

By Perkin Amlaraj, Daily Mail – A Peruvian bishop accused of having 17 secret mistresses has handed in his resignation after reportedly being exposed by his cleaning lady… Ciro Quispe López, 51, the bishop of Juli in Peru, resigned his prestigious post following an investigation by the Vatican that revealed some of the women nearly physically fought each other after finding out the truth… Paola Ugaz, a Peruvian journalist, said: ‘A nun who was one of Quispe’s lovers was jealous of a lawyer the bishop was also seeing and sent information about his affairs to a third lover who got into a fight with the lawyer.’

It is my hope that the upcoming international summits of the United Nations — the 2025 Climate Change Conference (COP 30), the 53rd Plenary Session of the Committee on World Food Security, and the 2026 Water Conference — will listen to the cry of the Earth and the cry of the poor, families, indigenous peoples, involuntary migrants and believers throughout the world. At the same time, I encourage everyone, especially young people, parents and those who work in local and national administrations and institutions, to play their part in finding solutions for today’s “cultural, spiritual and educational challenges” (Laudato Si’, 202), always striving tenaciously for the common good. There is no room for indifference or resignation.

By Pedro Gonzalez, Chronicles – An old colleague I had not heard from in a long while added me to a group chat on Wednesday. The members were all people who had been in my cohort for the Claremont Institute’s Lincoln Fellowship in 2021, a mixture of media figures, analysts, and activists. Although the group sort of fragmented later, I did make a few good friends with whom I kept in touch even after I began removing myself from that social circle. Still, I thought it was odd. Why now, and why add me after years of silence?… “Charlie got shot.”

The Holy See – 1. “I HAVE LOVED YOU” (Rev 3:9). The Lord speaks these words to a Christian community that, unlike some others, had no influence or resources, and was treated instead with violence and contempt: “You have but little power… I will make them come and bow down before your feet” (Rev 3:8-9). This text reminds us of the words of the canticle of Mary: “He has cast down the mighty from their thrones, and lifted up the lowly; he has filled the hungry with good things, and sent the rich away empty” (Lk 1:52-53).

By Michael Pakaluk, The Catholic Thing – Leo XIII did not define socialism as “State ownership of the means of production,” but rather, as a philosophy that denies that the individual in his economic activity is prior to the State, and denies also that the family is a true society prior to the State. In particular, it denies the authority of the father, who, Leo says, has a claim over the resources of his household at least as weighty as the State’s… Leo grapples with socialism in several of his encyclicals. He clearly regards it as the great menacing problem of our time.

Author Don Schwager, Servants of the Word – Luke 11:5-13 – 5 And he said to them, “Which of you who has a friend will go to him at midnight and say to him, `Friend, lend me three loaves; 6 for a friend of mine has arrived on a journey, and I have nothing to set before him’; 7 and he will answer from within, `Do not bother me; the door is now shut, and my children are with me in bed; I cannot get up and give you anything’? 8 I tell you, though he will not get up and give him anything because he is his friend, yet because of his importunity he will rise and give him whatever he needs…

By Elizabeth Troutman, The Daily Signal – The White House is exposing Democrats’ efforts to give illegal immigrants access to health care under the Biden administration… “This memo discusses specific actions taken by the Biden administration to provide Obamacare and Medicaid benefits to illegal immigrants,” the document says… President Donald Trump’s administration issued the memo on the seventh day of the government shutdown, which Republicans say has been caused by Senate Democrats’ unwillingness to pass a clean budgetary continuing resolution that doesn’t restore funding of health care for illegal immigrants.

By Father Raymond J. de Souza, National Catholic Register – The challenge of using such a framework is that many audiences take Brother Sun and Mother Earth and leave aside Sister Death and the danger of mortal sin… (The first major document)… Dilexi Te is reported to be about care for and service to the poor, and thus Pope Leo XIV has chosen to emphasize that complementary aspect of St. Francis. The text is reported to have begun under Pope Francis, who frequently spoke of listening with care to the “cry of the earth” and the “cry of the poor.”

By Steven Ertelt, LifeNews – The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops will convene next month to elect a new president and six committee chairmen, a routine vote overshadowed by a recent uproar over the Archdiocese of Chicago’s plan to honor pro-abortion Senator Dick Durbin with a lifetime achievement award… The plenary assembly, set for November 10-12 in Baltimore, comes amid lingering fallout from the controversy, which drew sharp rebukes from several bishops who decried the recognition as a scandal undermining the church’s core teachings on the sanctity of life.

By Franciscan Media – This martyr and patron of France is regarded as the first bishop of Paris. His popularity is due to a series of legends, especially those connecting him with the great abbey church of St. Denis in Paris. He was for a time confused with the writer now called Pseudo-Dionysius.

By Sheena Rodriguez, Live Action – Researchers deliberately create motherless human embryos from skin cells… Researchers at Oregon Health & Science University say they have created human embryos without sperm or egg, but with human skin cells — in hopes that this technique could one day be used to create genetically-related children for infertile or same-sex couples… A process known as IVG has been used to make human embryos without using a sperm or egg, but adult skin cells. …

By Sophie Starkova, Patriot Post – Nicholas Roske turned himself in for attempting to murder a Supreme Court justice, but now he claims he’s a woman named Sophie, and the left-wing judge let him off easy… In yet another middle finger in the face of justice, a federal judge handed down a mere eight-year sentence for Nicholas Roske for the attempted assassination of Justice Brett Kavanaugh in the weeks leading up to the Dobbs decision in 2022. Judge Deborah Boardman didn’t even attempt to find a middle ground between the prosecution’s request of 30 years and the defense’s plea for eight. …

Author Don Schwager, Servants of the Word – Luke 11:1-4 – 1 He was praying in a certain place, and when he ceased, one of his disciples said to him, “Lord, teach us to pray, as John taught his disciples.” 2 And he said to them, “When you pray, say: “Father, hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come. 3 Give us each day our daily bread; 4 and forgive us our sins, for we ourselves forgive every one who is indebted to us; and lead us not into temptation.”

By Jim Hoft, Gateway Pundit – The entire world knew Joe Biden was corrupt and conflicted… Now, finally, those in the know are beginning to speak out… Russian President Vladimir Putin’s envoy Kirill Dmitriev told reporters former US President Joe Biden “provoked the war in Ukraine to cover up his family’s corruption.”… Kirill added, “The truth is coming out and justice must follow.”… Kirill Dmitriev is the chief of Russia’s sovereign wealth fund, the Russian Direct Investment Fund since 2011 …

By Andrea M. Picciotti-Bayer, National Catholic Register – Oral argument in the ‘Chiles v. Salazar’ case indicates that a majority of the U.S. Supreme Court’s justices believe the ban is a violation of the First Amendment’s free speech guarantee… After Tuesday morning’s oral argument in Chiles v. Salazar, it is clear that a majority — if not all nine justices — agree that an exacting review known as “strict scrutiny” should apply to Colorado’s ban on so-called “conversion therapy,” given its profound impact on the First Amendment’s free speech guarantee.

By Mat Staver, LifeNews – Hiding behind PR-polished talking points, the Democrats’ highest priority is to USE OUR TAX DOLLARS TO PAY FOR ELECTIVE ABORTIONS… AOC and Chuck Schumer are willing to hurt Americans and leave families without paychecks, all so that they can demand we pay for federally funded abortion in Obamacare… Most Americans oppose taxpayer-funded, elective abortions.

By James Kalb, Catholic World Report – Recent trends in America point toward either tribalism or social disintegration. There is no neat solution to the problem. Still, the Church will be in a position to help mitigate it—not directly, through social engagement of some sort, but simply by being emphatically herself so she can once again be an object of strong and socially functional loyalties that transcend tribal boundaries.

By Fr. Nnamdi Moneme, OMV, Catholic Exchange – A prelate gave a homily some weeks ago about widespread corruption in the government. His homily irritated some of his audience who took to social media to remind him that the Catholic Church too had its own issues of rampant corruption among her clergy. One commentator even cited the ongoing fraud, corruption, and coverup in the Vatican bank. Another commentator questioned the right of the bishop to call out corrupt politicians while ignoring the rot among the priests in his own diocese. In short, the bishop’s wise words about corruption were lost because of the unchecked moral and financial corruption in the Church.

By Francis X. Maier, The Catholic Thing – Every few years, I reread a couple of my favorite authors.  George Orwell, despite his disdain for things Catholic, has always been on my list.  This time I paid special attention to his essay, “The Principles of Newspeak.” He appended it to his dystopian novel 1984.  As Orwell noted in his text, Newspeak – the language of Oceania’s Airstrip One (formerly the UK) – had three distinct vocabularies; A, B, and C.  The B vocabulary “had been deliberately constructed for political purposes.”  Its words “had, in every sense, a political implication.”  They were designed to impose a desired mental attitude upon the user.

By J.C. Miller, Crisis Magazine – There is a stereotype of people losing their faith while attending a secular college. They may be ruined by the pleasures of the world, bullied by atheistic professors, or simply lose their faith as they grow in “wisdom” after being freed from their parents’ brainwashing. As a state university graduate, I can confirm the atmosphere of hostility to faith, but many people lose their faith well before they are college age. While many people do lose their faith during this period, research indicates that a significant number of Catholics abandon their faith before adulthood

By Phil Lawler, Catholic Culture – Responding today to Cardinal Pietro Parolin’s latest criticism of Israel’s military campaign in Gaza, the Israeli embassy to the Vatican complained that the cardinal “focuses on criticizing Israel while overlooking Hamas’ continued refusal to release hostages or stop the violence.” That complaint should sound familiar; it has become the standard response to any question about Israel’s war tactics.

By The Stream – At first, digital IDs are promoted as convenience and security — making life easier, preventing fraud, and modernizing services. But when government holds all the keys — your money, your health, your travel, even your ability to speak freely — it opens the door to control and punishment at the flip of a switch… In this six-minute video, Vlad Savchuk discusses how digital IDs and CBDCs may feel like dress rehearsals, conditioning people to accept government-controlled systems..

By Paul Gottfried, Editor in chief, Chronicles – This identification of black South African tyranny with “the country’s cursed racial logic” rests on a fallacy. It is one driven by political correctness among journalists and historians on both the establishment right and left. The disorder and violence that has come from black majority rule in South Africa are entirely consistent with black rule elsewhere, including in American cities, where black majority governments have done pitifully little to control crime and graft and have routinely engaged in antiwhite rhetoric. …

By Franciscan Media – “I am only one person! Why should I do anything? What good would it do?” Today, as in any age, people seem plagued with the dilemma of getting involved. In his own way, John Leonardi answered these questions. He chose to become a priest… After his ordination, Saint John Leonardi became very active in the works of the ministry, especially in hospitals and prisons. The example and dedication of his work attracted several young laymen who began to assist him. They later became priests themselves.

By Susan Hanssen, Crisis Magazine – Every year, the Feast of Our Lady of the Rosary, October 7, falls within the same week as Columbus Day, celebrated on the second Monday in October. Together, these feasts make up one big festival because of the intimate relation between the events that they celebrate… The Feast of Our Lady of the Rosary is also known as the Feast of Our Lady of Victory because it celebrates the Blessed Mother’s aid in the Battle of Lepanto on October 7, 1571. This battle was a great Christian naval victory over the Muslim Turkish forces in the Mediterranean. Although an increasing number of young Catholics are aware of this major historical event, it is not widely known among the general American public and is rarely covered in public elementary or high school history curricula. 

By Secretary of War Pete Hegseth, Sept. 30, 2025 – An entire generation of generals and admirals were told that they must parrot the insane fallacy that “our diversity is our strength.” Of course, we know our unity is our strength. They had to put out dizzying DEI and LGBTQI+ statements. They were told females and males are the same thing, or that males who think they’re females is totally normal… They were told that we need a green fleet and electric tanks. They were told to kick out Americans who refused an emergency vaccine. They followed civilian policies set by foolish and reckless political leaders. …

Author Don Schwager, Servants of the Word – Luke 10:38-42 – 38 Now as they went on their way, he entered a village; and a woman named Martha received him into her house. 39 And she had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord’s feet and listened to his teaching. 40 But Martha was distracted with much serving; and she went to him and said, “Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me to serve alone? Tell her then to help me.” 41 But the Lord answered her, “Martha, Martha, you are anxious and troubled about many things;

By Rob Sexton, Catholic Exchange – In the Church’s extensive offering of private devotions, none claims more miraculous events or has amassed a more devoted following than the Holy Rosary. From healings to conversions to deliverance from addiction, there is a good reason that saints, popes, and laity all turn to and recommend the Rosary for spiritual struggles and challenging times. I have prayed thousands of Rosaries and can attest to its power over sin and its ability to communicate grace and truth in a way I have not found in other devotions, pious as they certainly are.

By Paul Gottfried, Chief of Chronicles – In his most recent column, Douglas Murray tells us that “Democrats are driving young men to kill ‘Nazis’ who aren’t Nazis.” Murray then goes on to show how one of our two national parties is inciting violence to bring down the Trump administration… The problem is even worse than Murray describes. The European press, particularly the German “antifascist” media, slavishly follows the Democratic Party playbook to smear opponents as “Nazis.” The echoing effect of this incendiary language is designed to lend international respectability to the murderous tactics that Democratic politicians continue to pursue.

By Jim Hᴏft, The Gateway Pundit – Woke Pope Leo XIV blessed a block of ice during an event south of Rome while presiding over what looked more like a pagan Earth-worship ritual than a Catholic gathering… “We will raise hope by demanding that leaders act with courage, not delay,” Pope Leo declared as he blessed the frozen water, before asking the audience: “Will you join with us?”… The theatrics were part of the Vatican’s 10th-anniversary celebration of Pope Francis’ 2015 climate encyclical Laudato Si’, a manifesto that helped launch a global “green theology” movement.

By Steven Ertelt, LifeNews – Virginia Democrats are standing by their nominee for attorney general, Jay Jones, even after revelations that he fantasized in text messages about shooting a Republican lawmaker and wishing harm on the politician’s children… The disturbing messages, sent in August 2022 to former Republican Del. Carrie Coyner, surfaced amid Jones’ bid to unseat incumbent pro-life Republican Attorney General Jason Miyares in the 2025 election, with early voting underway as of September 19.

By Donald DeMarco, Ph.D., National Catholic Register – Given a lifetime’s worth of human tragedy in less than a calendar year in the United States, and in the West on the whole, the current situation is the antithesis of the “Domestic Tranquility” ideal stated in the Preamble of the Constitution… There is, nonetheless, a solution to the widespread mayhem if leaders would only use their intelligence, which remains unimpaired in its essence, to serve the people realistically… One lesson I never tired of teaching to my university students is the practicality of principles. …

By Victor Davis Hanson, The Daily Signal – President Donald Trump is sending federalized troops into Portland, Oregon, because the Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention center and headquarters there is under veritable assault, especially in the night hours… In other words, Antifa-like protesters surround the facility. They make it almost impossible to drive in and out. And they’re trying to disrupt the idea itself that the federal government has a right to apprehend illegal aliens that have warrants out for their deportation.

By Fr. Jerry Pokorsky, Catholic Culture – Among the Demon’s most prominent prophets of Irrational Fear over the last fifty years was Paul Ehrlich, who wrote the wildly popular book, The Population Bomb. Babies were taking over the world and would soon consume all the food like locusts! Those little critters had to be stopped. So we spent billions on population control—peddling condoms, chemicals, and abortion clinics—in honor of a simple diabolical belief: There are way too many of you, but just enough of me… The result? A massive global birth dearth. The fertility rate in the U.S. has fallen to 1.6 per woman, well below the 2.1 replacement rate.

By Nancy Flanders, Live Action – While preliminary data from the pro-abortion Guttmacher Institute estimates that in the first six months of 2025, there was a five percent (5%) decline in “clinician-provided abortions” in states that do not have laws protecting all children from abortion, there is good reason to doubt these numbers… The preliminary data estimates (collected far differently than before the reversal of Roe v. Wade) also show an eight percent (8%) decline in abortions in pro-abortion states for women traveling from pro-life states.

By Nate Jackson, Patriot Post – Given the choice between supporting violent criminals and Donald Trump, Democrats are choosing the violent criminals every time… Democrats are not serious about fighting crime. Donald Trump is… We can certainly debate the merits of Trump’s decisions to deploy the National Guard to help combat crime in Washington, DC, Memphis, Portland, and Chicago. Democrats are absolutely litigating Trump’s moves, fighting harder against that than they do against the crime running rampant on their streets.

By Zelda Caldwell, National Catholic Register – Hours before the bishop of Charlotte’s restrictions on the traditional Latin Mass went into effect, members of a small parish tucked in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains in Tryon, North Carolina, gathered Thursday evening for one final Mass celebrated in the extraordinary form of the Roman Rite… After Mass, as members of the congregation chatted in the church courtyard, several shared with the Register their sense of loss that their regular participation in the liturgy they had raised their children in …

Franciscan Media – Saint Pius V established this feast in 1573. The purpose was to thank God for the victory of Christians over the Turks at Lepanto—a victory attributed to the praying of the rosary. Clement XI extended the feast to the universal Church in 1716… The development of the rosary has a long history. ..

Fr. Richard Heilman, Roman Catholic Man (2018) – Did Archbishop Fulton Sheen prophesy about the condition of our Church today?… “[Satan] will set up a counterchurch which will be the ape of the [Catholic] Church … It will have all the notes and characteristics of the Church, but in reverse and emptied of its divine content.”… We are living in the days of the Apocalypse, the last days of our era. The two great forces – the Mystical Body of Christ and the Mystical Body of the anti-Christ – are beginning to draw battle lines for the catastrophic contest…. The False prophet will have a religion without a cross. A religion without a world to come. A religion to destroy religions. There will be a counterfeit Church… Christ’s Church the Catholic Church will be one; and the false Prophet will create the other.

By Bishop Joseph E. Strickland, Bishop Emeritus, Pillars of Faith – We gather today at a time when the earth trembles beneath the weight of sin, and the heavens seem to cry with the groaning of creation. The very Bride of Christ – the Holy Catholic Church – is being torn and battered, not only by the world, but by those within her walls who should be her guardians… We must speak plainly. The wolves are not at the door – they are in the sanctuary. And we cannot whisper while they devour the flock. We must say with sorrow, but with truth, that even the voice of Peter has been muted. We honor the office of the pope, but we cannot deny the facts: under Pope Francis grave errors were unleashed – the blessing of same-sex unions, the scandalous claim that every religion is a path to God, the assault on the Mass of the Ages. And under Pope Leo XIV, these errors remain uncorrected. …

By Tracey Rowland, Catholic World Report – Perplexing choices for performers – First, there was someone whose stage name is “Jelly Roll,” a rapper who was once convicted for aggravated robbery and drug dealing, but by age 39… “Bam Bam.” Another Google search revealed that Bam Bam is a Thai rapper and singer based in South Korea, and a member of the South Korean boy band Got7… To me, as someone who remembers the 1970s, this has the hallmarks of a warmed-up correlationism—the idea that the best way to evangelize the world is to correlate the faith to whatever is regarded as fashionable.

Author Don Schwager, Servants of the Word – Luke 10:25-37 – 25 And behold, a lawyer stood up to put him to the test, saying, “Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?” 26 He said to him, “What is written in the law? How do you read?” 27 And he answered, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your strength, and with all your mind; and your neighbor as yourself.” 28 And he said to him, “You have answered right; do this, and you will live.” …

By Catholic Vote, by Staff – NBC News reported Oct. 2 that Democratic Sen. Dick Durbin was “overwhelmed” by Pope Leo’s comments about the Archdiocese of Chicago’s plans to award the pro-abortion politician with a lifetime achievement award… The outlet claimed the Holy Father had offered “support” for Durbin amid widespread criticism from bishops and faithful Catholics, who opposed Cardinal Blase Cupich’s decision to honor Durbin despite his rejection of Church teaching on the sanctity of life.

By Hannah Hiester, Catholic Vote – Theologian Scott Hahn recently offered a reflection on the value and importance of praying the Rosary, saying that reciting the Rosary is not only an extraordinary prayer but a fulfillment of a prophecy found in Scripture… Hahn pointed out that praying the Rosary allows the faithful to say “Blessed are you among women” at least 50 times, fulfilling Mary’s prophecy in her Magnificat that “all generations will call me blessed.”… “To repeat these words is a delight, because they’re rich with meaning, amplified by the Gospel scenes that are the focus of our meditations,” Hahn wrote.

By Casey Chalk, Crisis Magazine – Did you miss it? I almost did. It’s not even a feast day the Church actively celebrates as part of the liturgical calendar. I’m talking, of course, about the feast day of St. Joseph of Cupertino, which technically is on September 18, though, per the USCCB website, it is simply listed as the “Thursday of the Twenty-fourth Week in Ordinary Time.”… Though I’ve been a Catholic for 15 years, I confess the only reason I first learned about St. Joseph of Cupertino was because of the children’s book by Tomie de Paola—The Little Friar Who Flew. It’s an endearing story about an innocent, if somewhat hapless, 17th-century Italian friar named Joseph who starts flying all over the place, much to the consternation of his fellow brothers who are almost more annoyed than amazed by his sudden airborne abilities.

By Catholic Vote – A New Jersey man was arrested early Sunday, Oct. 5, on the steps of St. Matthew’s Cathedral in Northwest Washington, DC, hours before the city’s annual Red Mass, after police say they discovered he had suspicious items and potential explosives… As first reported by 4News Washington, officers of the Metropolitan Police Department assigned to provide security at the cathedral confronted the man, identified as 41-year-old Louis Geri of Vineland, NJ, at around 6 a.m. after he refused to leave the property. Geri was reportedly attempting to set up a tent on the cathedral steps. He had previously been barred from the site.

By Edward Welsch, Chronicles: A Magazine of American Culture – The American right has tried talking with the left; the left has responded with violence. This was demonstrated in gruesome detail last month in Utah, when a young man radicalized online by left-wing, trans ideology murdered Charlie Kirk, the most prominent conservative practitioner of peaceful dialogue, in front of a stadium full of students… A long trail of left-wing violence precedes that shocking event. Just days before, another trans ideologue shot up a church full of children in Minneapolis, killing two kids. And, just days after, a rooftop sniper who left behind anti-ICE messages opened fire on the Dallas ICE detention center, shooting three people and killing one.

By Shawn Fleetwood, The Federalist – There are significant consequences that come with importing masses of foreign nationals from cultures incompatible with Western Civilization. Yet, Europeans seem content with learning this lesson the hard way… On Thursday, the United Kingdom experienced a tragic terror attack when 35-year-old Jihad Al-Shamie allegedly rammed his truck into a crowd at a Manchester synagogue before getting out and stabbing Jewish congregants. Al-Shamie is of Syrian descent and became a British citizen in 2006 after entering the country as a young child, according to Fox News.

By Bishop Athanasius Schneider – Bishop Schneider leads three other bishops at the CIC Conference in Pennsylvania, USA in making reparation for Vatican desecration. Watch the full CIC Conference HERE. The four bishops: Bishop Athanasius Schneider, auxiliary of the diocese of Astana, Kazakhstan; Bishop Robert Mutsaerts, auxiliary of the Diocese of Hertogenbosch, The Netherlands; Bishop Joseph Strickland, emeritus of the Diocese of Tyler, USA; Bishop Marian Eleganti, emeritus auxiliary of the Diocese of Chur, Switzerland ….

By Steven Ertelt, LifeNews – The Church of England has named Dame Sarah Mullally as the first female Archbishop of Canterbury in nearly 500 years, marking a historic moment for the Anglican Church… The appointment is a controversial one – and not only because Mullally is a woman… Sarah Mullally, the newly appointed Archbishop of Canterbury, supports abortion… Mullally, 63, who has served as Bishop of London for the past seven years, succeeds Justin Welby, who resigned in 2024 following a scandal.

By Fr. Shenan J. Boquet, Human Life International – In our increasingly disturbed, frantic, violent world, many people are looking for grand solutions to our problems. Surely, the United Nations can save us. Or perhaps it will be the NGOs, funded with the money of billionaires, that will implement the systems that will produce peace… Government cannot heal our societies, but the “fundamental cell of society,” the “cradle of the future of humanity” can. And that begins with you, today, in your home, with your children.

By Ben Kew, Gateway Pundit – Speaking in front of thousands of pilgrims at St. Peter’s Square on Sunday, Leo warned that migrants must not be treated with “the coldness of indifference or the stigma of discrimination.”… Without singling out any country in particular, Leo said that Catholics should “open our arms and hearts to them, welcoming them as brothers and sisters, and being for them a presence of consolation and hope.”… Leo explained that the church was living through a “new missionary age” that tasked its members with providing “hospitality and welcome, compassion and solidarity” to migrants coming to the West.

Franciscan Media, October 6 – This saint has the honor of having founded a religious order which, as the saying goes, has never had to be reformed because it was never deformed. No doubt both the founder and the members would reject such high praise, but it is an indication of the saint’s intense love of a penitential life in solitude.

By David G. Bonagura, Jr., Catholic World Report – The modern epoch has sought to strip Francis of his religious zeal, just as it has deliberately ignored Jesus’ divinity in reducing Him to a “great moral teacher.”… Renowned worldwide for his radical poverty and profound humility, St. Francis of Assisi is among the most famous of God’s saints. It is no wonder, then, that, like his master Jesus of Nazareth, Francis has been misunderstood and deliberately misappropriated for various causes that depart from—and often ignore—the singular cause that inspired Francis’s every move: unquenchable love for God.

By Nancy Flanders, Live Action News – The FDA has just approved a new generic version of the Mifeprex (mifepristone 200mg) abortion pill, as evidenced by a letter sent to Evita Solutions, LLC, on September 30…. According to Dun & Bradstreet, the principal for Evita Solutions — a pharmaceutical manufacturer — is Robert Patane, and the business is located in Glen Allen, Virginia. According to Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America, Evita Solutions describes its mission as one to “normalize abortion” and make it “accessible to all.”

Author Don Schwager, Servants of the Word – Luke 10:17-24 – 17 The seventy returned with joy, saying, “Lord, even the demons are subject to us in your name!” 18 And he said to them, “I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven.19 Behold, I have given you authority to tread upon serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy; and nothing shall hurt you. 20 Nevertheless do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you; but rejoice that your names are written in heaven.”

By Gayle Somers, Catholic Exchange – This Sunday, the apostles ask Jesus to increase their faith.  More faith sounds like a reasonable request.  Jesus doesn’t think so.  Why?… What prompted the apostles to ask Jesus to increase their faith in this reading?  In the verses preceding ours, Jesus had been talking about forgiveness:  “Take heed to yourselves, if your brother sins, rebuke him, and if he repents, forgive him; and if he sins against you seven times in the day, and turns to you seven times, and says, ‘I repent,’ you must forgive him” ….

Vatican News, Oct. 4, 2025 – The Holy See Press Office announces that Pope Leo XIV signed his first Apostolic Exhortation Dilexi te on Saturday morning. The document will be presented on Thursday, 9 October, at a press conference… The document will be presented on Thursday, 9 October, at 11:30 at the Holy See Press Office. Signed on the feast of St. Francis of Assisi, the document is Pope Leo’s first apostolic exhortation.

By Breccan F. Thies, The Federalist – Virginia Democrat Attorney General candidate and former Del. Jay Jones fantasized in conversations with a former colleague about assassinating then-state House Speaker Todd Gilbert, a Republican, and “wished” death upon Gilbert’s children, a new report revealed Friday… The news comes after Republican state House Del. Kim Taylor, who is running for reelection in Virginia, said she received a death threat last week after Virginia Democrat gubernatorial candidate Abigail Spanberger told her supporters to “let your rage fuel you.”… That kind of rhetoric has long been deployed by the assassination left to pre-justify and inspire violence against their political opponents.

By Virginia Grace McKinnon, LifeNews – With less than five weeks before Virginia’s statewide elections, a new poll finds the Republican gubernatorial nominee, Lt. Gov. Winsome Earle-Sears, trending upward and closing the gap with her opponent, Democrat Abigail Spanberger… The poll conducted by A2 Insights found Earle-Sears trailing Spanberger, a former three-term member of Congress, by 3.1 points—marking the closest margin Virginians have seen in the race to succeed term-limited Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin.

By John Zmirak, The Stream – Sometimes reality is at once so horrifying and so … on the nose and heavy-handed, that you wonder if God is winking at us. Yesterday saw a sickening terror attack in Britain that sums up what’s wrecking that country in a manner that beggars comment… Yesterday, on the high Jewish holiday of Yom Kippur, a Syrian Muslim colonist — sorry, “British citizen of Syrian descent” — contributed to British society in the way that only Muslims can. He committed a jihad attack. The target was a synagogue thronged with worshipers, who tragically thought they lived in a land with religious freedom for all. The BBC reports: ….

By William Kilpatrick, The Stream – Talk about poor timing! On the same day that news broke of an Islamist attack on a Catholic Parish in the Congo that left 64 dead and many wounded, the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops published a 15-page booklet, “Islamophobia: A Guide for U.S. Catholics on Anti-Muslim Bigotry.”… The purpose of the booklet is to warn Catholics about “the rising tide of anti-Muslim sentiment.” I’m not aware of any “rising tide” of anti-Muslim bigotry in the U.S., but I wouldn’t be surprised if there was a rising tide of anti-Muslim sentiment in Africa — where the burning of churches and the slaughter of Christians is an everyday affair.

By Daniel J. Flynn, The American Spectator – The group Third Way released a memorandum late this summer to “All Who Wish to Stop Donald Trump and MAGA” titled “Was It Something I Said?”. It overflows with what Democrats lack: common sense… “For a party that spends billions of dollars trying to find the perfect language to connect to voters,” the memo begins, “Democrats and their allies use an awful lot of words and phrases no ordinary person would ever dream of saying.”… The unsolicited advice concedes that such words, which were intended to “broaden, empathize, accept, and embrace,” have instead unleashed the opposite effect. 

By Hannah Brockhaus, Catholic News Agency – Pope Leo XIV encouraged the world to unify around care for the planet as he took the stage at a climate justice conference headlined by actor and former California governor Arnold Schwarzenegger outside of Rome on Wednesday… “We are one family, with one Father, who makes the sun to rise and sends rain on everyone (Mt 5:45),” Leo said Oct. 1 at a conference center in Castel Gandolfo, Italy. “We inhabit the same planet and must care for it together. I therefore renew my strong appeal for unity around integral ecology and for peace!”… The pontiff and Schwarzenegger addressed the opening day of the Oct. 1–3 “Raising Hope for Climate Justice” conference, held at a center near the papal villa of Castel Gandolfo. …

By Shawn Fleetwood, The Federalist – Legacy media have spent years perpetuating some of the biggest hoaxes in modern history — and it appears the American public is continuing to notice… On Thursday, Gallup released the results of its annual survey of Americans’ confidence in media. The poll’s baseline finding is that trust in the country’s “Democracy dies in darkness!” crowd is at the lowest point ever recorded.

By David Warren, The Catholic Thing – So how do we “reconquer” the Muslims?… “We can’t,” is the answer from all our smug, post-Christian liberals… Yet victory is nigh. For the invasion of Europe and America by Muslim immigrants is proving to be Islam’s biggest mistake. People who came from societies in which 99 percent of Muslims stayed Muslim have come to places where at least 20 percent convert, and most go Christian when they can, even in Iran. They were the best Muslims and become impressive Christians.

By Nate Jackson, Patriot Post – As Democrats force a government shutdown over extending “emergency” ObamaCare spending, the comedian-in-chief does some epic trolling to make fun of them… Democrats are always shrieking with indignant self-righteous outrage about something, and this time, it’s a couple of AI videos President Donald Trump posted on social media… Dems have been calling Republicans Nazis and fascists for decades, leading to not one but two assassination attempts on Trump and a successful assassination of Charlie Kirk, but they’re upset over a humor video? Give me a break.

By M.C. Holbrook, Catholic Exchange – Much like St. Ignatius of Loyola, St. Francis of Assisi lived a life of worldliness and frivolity before his conversion. Although he was not seriously wounded in battle as was Ignatius, Francis became critically ill following his release as a prisoner of war, and both men, during their recuperation, became profoundly aware of the wanton, meaningless lifestyles which they had been living before the time of their affliction.

By Catholic Vote – Durbin, “one of the highest-ranking Democratic Catholics in U.S. office, told NBC News on Wednesday that he was ‘overwhelmed’ by the support he received from Pope Leo XIV… Durbin told NBC news he had chosen to decline the award “because the reaction has been so controversial against the Cardinal who proposed it, and I see no point in going forward with that.”… As CatholicVote reported, Pope Leo suggested Sept. 30 that, “while he was not very familiar with the controversy, it seemed suitable to honor Durbin for his 40 years of public service unrelated to abortion.”

Author Don Schwager, Servants of the Word – Luke 10:13-16 – 13 “Woe to you, Chorazin! woe to you, Bethsaida! for if the mighty works done in you had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago, sitting in sackcloth and ashes. 14 But it shall be more tolerable in the judgment for Tyre and Sidon than for you. 15 And you, Capernaum, will you be exalted to heaven? You shall be brought down to Hades. …

By Mark Wiltz, LiveAction – As the possibility of a government shutdown looms, the real battle is not about procedure or partisan politics but about whether taxpayer dollars will be used to fund abortion coverage and radical gender interventions under the guise of health care… At the center of the fight are proposals to extend and expand Obamacare’s “premium tax credits.” Supporters claim these credits are necessary to make health insurance more affordable. But in practice, they open the door for federal subsidies to flow into health plans that include elective abortion and ‘gender-affirming’ procedures.

By Kenneth Craycraft, Catholic World Report – Senator Durbin’s “ideological isolation” is contrary to Catholic moral doctrine, according to Cardinal Cupich’s own words… On September 30, Senator Dick Durbin announced that he is declining a “Lifetime Achievement Award” offered to him by the Archdiocese of Chicago. The heated controversy surrounding the episode illustrates two related crises in American Catholic public life… The first is that so-called cafeteria Catholics can be found at either end of the spectrum of moral doctrines. …

By Daniel Payne, Catholic News Agency –  The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) this week approved a new abortion pill made by a company that explicitly says it seeks to “normalize” abortion… A Sept. 30 letter obtained from the office of Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Missouri, said the FDA approved the abbreviated new drug application for “mifepristone tablets” from Evita Solutions, a Virginia-based pharmaceutical company. …

Dr. Jeff Mirus, Catholic Culture – In commenting on the Durbin-award controversy, when Pope Leo XIV made comparative remarks about related contemporary moral positions, he put it this way: Someone who says I’m against abortion but is in favor of the death penalty is not really pro-life. Someone who says I’m against abortion but I’m in agreement with the inhuman treatment of immigrants in the United States, I don’t know if that’s pro-life. …

By The Stream – This 48-minute video from Salem Media features the late Voddie Baucham, the martyred Charlie Kirk, and the memorable Eric Metaxas at the National Religious Broadcasters convention in 2021, debunking the fashionable idea that the Church’s job is to promote leftist notions of “social justice.” Instead, we must fight for Biblical justice, which (as they explain) is a very different thing. …

By Msgr. Charles Pope, National Catholic Register – We begin with a text from Exodus in which the Lord says: Behold, I am sending an angel before you to protect you along the way and to bring you to the place I have prepared. Pay attention to him and listen to his voice; do not defy him, for he will not forgive rebellion, since My Name is in him. But if you will listen carefully to his voice and do everything I say, I will be an enemy to your enemies and a foe to your foes. For My angel will go before you and bring you into the land (Exodus 23:20-23). …

By Franciscan Media – Trust in God’s Providence enabled Mother Theodore to leave her homeland, sail halfway around the world, and found a new religious congregation… Born in Etables, France, Anne-Thérèse Guérin’s life was shattered by her father’s murder when she was 15. For several years she cared for her mother and younger sister.

By Matthew Plese, OnePeterFive – From the very beginning of salvation history, miracles have been among God’s most powerful tools to confirm divine revelation. Moses confronted Pharaoh with the ten plagues, Elijah called down fire upon Mount Carmel, and Christ Himself demonstrated His divinity through cures, resurrections, and His own Resurrection from the dead. The Catholic Church, established by Christ and perpetuated through His Apostles, has continued to be marked by miracles throughout her two-thousand-year history.

By Leila Miller, Crisis Magazine – In the end, of course, a woman’s decision to veil is between her and God. Whether I am at Mass with a thousand people, or whether I am alone in the Adoration chapel with no one but Christ to see me, I cover my head. My veiling is for Him—not for others, and not for show. Presenting myself before the Lord with my head covered has changed the disposition of my heart and changed the way I pray. Ultimately, by reminding me of who I am, veiling reminds me of who He is.

By Steven Ertelt, LifeNews – Hours before radically pro-abortion Senator Dick Durbin declined to receive a controversial reward from Catholic Cardinal Blase Cupich, Pope Leo weighed in on the controversy… A reporter asked him an awkwardly-worded question about Cupich’s decision to give Durbin an award despite his decades-long support for unlimited abortion… “One thing that has become a very, very divisive subject in the U.S. right now is Cardinal Cupich giving an award to Senator Durbin. …

By T. S. Flanders, OnePeterFive – Faithful Catholics compare today’s bishops with the saintly bishops of old and they find the former woefully lacking in manly courage. They do not seem to act like men of God should – with zeal, filled with faith and charity… I am willing to hazard that there are many orthodox bishops out there. But it seems to me that most of those orthodox bishops are cowardly. They think of themselves as “vicars of the Roman Pontiff” (a concept that Vatican II condemned in Lumen Gentium 27), and they are afraid to excommunicate and issue the anathema, as did the saintly bishops of old. …..

Author Don Schwager, Servants of the Word – Luke 10:1-12 – 1 After this the Lord appointed seventy others, and sent them on ahead of him, two by two, into every town and place where he himself was about to come. 2 And he said to them, “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; pray therefore the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest. 3 Go your way; behold, I send you out as lambs in the midst of wolves. 4 Carry no purse, no bag, no sandals; and salute no one on the road. …

By Mary Stroka, Catholic Vote – Israel has warned residents in Gaza to flee or become military targets… Israeli Minister of Defense Israel Katz said in a post on X at 8:07 a.m. ET, Oct. 1, that the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) had surrounded Gaza City. Anyone leaving southward will be “required to pass through the IDF’s inspection checkpoints,” Katz warned, adding: “This is the last opportunity for Gaza residents who wish to do so to move south and leave Hamas terrorists isolated in Gaza City itself, facing the IDF’s ongoing operations at full force. Those who remain in Gaza will be considered terrorists and terror supporters.”

By Bishop Joseph E. Strickland, Pillars of Faith – There is much confusion surrounding remarks from the Holy Father regarding the sanctity of human life and the moral clarity of the Church’s teaching. While some may call these “complex ethical issues,” I must affirm without hesitation that on matters of life and death, the truth is not complex – it is clear, revealed, and unchanging… The Catholic Church has always taught that every human life, from the moment of conception until natural death, is sacred. Abortion is the deliberate taking of innocent life. The Catechism of the Catholic Church states plainly: “Human life must be respected and protected absolutely from the moment of conception” (CCC 2270). There is no ambiguity here.

By Jayd Henricks, Catholic World Report – The lay perception that “synodality” is sometimes a veil for predetermined outcomes is also shared among many bishops. Some of them have felt in recent years that only certain topics are open for discussion, and only certain viewpoints can be heard at the table… Bishops will certainly talk, when they gather in November, about the rancor of the past few weeks. But some believe they can only be open and honest in side conversations among friends. They fear going unheard or marginalized if they push back against scolding about a synthetic, superficial unity that does not challenge brothers with the truth.

By Elizabeth Troutman Mitchell, The Daily Signal – Democrats shut down the government because Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer is afraid he will lose his Senate seat to radical leftist Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez in a party primary, Vice President JD Vance said at a Wednesday press briefing… “Why did this happen? Why did the Democrats shut down the government despite, as [White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt] said, voting on the exact same piece of legislation six months ago?” Vance asked rhetorically.

By Steven Tucker, Crisis Magazine – While older Christian leaders act as if they’re still in the 70’s, young Christians around the world are taking up the sign of the Cross… Suddenly, crosses are everywhere on the streets of Great Britain. And the automatic main response of the Christian church in that country is to complain… Apparently, the problem is that those carrying the crosses are the “wrong kind” of Christians: patriotic ones, who actually believe in Christianity and don’t want to hand the whole country over on a plate to Islam.

By Melissa O’Rourke, LifeNews – Planned Parenthood officially shut down its last two clinics in Louisiana on Tuesday, leaving the state as the most populous in the country without any of the abortion provider’s locations… With the closures in Baton Rouge and New Orleans, Louisiana joins Wyoming, North Dakota, and Mississippi as the only states without any Planned Parenthood clinics. The shutdowns follow major federal funding cuts for abortion providers under the Republican-passed One Big Beautiful Bill Act.

By Walker Larson, Catholic Exchange – In addition to her much-beloved Story of a Soul, St. Therese of Lisieux wrote many poems during her earthly sojourn. She wrote them for herself, to express the longings of her heart, but due to her worldwide fame following her death, we are blessed to have the chance to read these meditations of her soul… The original French versions, according to The Complete Therese of Lisieux, reveal that “Therese’s poetry demonstrates considerable skill as well as a high level of education. Many of the poems were composed to be sung to hymn tunes that were familiar to late nineteenth-century French worshippers.”

Franciscan Media – Perhaps no aspect of Catholic piety is as comforting to parents as the belief that an angel protects their little ones from dangers real and imagined. Yet guardian angels are not only for children. Their role is to represent individuals before God, to watch over them always, to aid their prayer, and to present their souls to God at death.

By Peter Wolfgang, Catholic Culture – I wrote an article for Catholic Answers three years ago trying to stop, or slow down, an imprimatur for the NRSVue. In my article I quote Robert A.J. Gagnon, a Protestant Scripture scholar whose work is respected across denominational lines, particularly on the Bible and homosexuality. It was Gagnon who first warned that the NRSVue “gaywashes” the Bible, writing in a January 5, 2022 Facebook post: They have now changed ‘sodomites’ to the nebulous ‘men who engage in illicit sex,’ [in 1 Corinthians 6:9] which does not indicate to English readers the connection to homosexual practice provided by the Greek word, contrary to both morphology and context. A textual note added by the NRSVue committee claims that the term is unclear. It isn’t.

By Daniel Payne, Catholic News Agency – U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Illinois, will decline an award from the Archdiocese of Chicago after global backlash over his strong pro-abortion views that included comments from Pope Leo XIV and criticism from U.S. bishops… Chicago archbishop Cardinal Blase Cupich announced Durbin’s decision in a Sept. 30 statement, revealing that Durbin informed the prelate that he “decided not to receive [the] award” at the archdiocesan Keep Hope Alive celebration on Nov. 5. Durbin was scheduled to receive a “Lifetime Achievement Award for support to immigrants” at the event.

By Sophie Starkova, Patriot Post – Since the 1960s and accelerating with the late ‘70s establishment of the Department of Education — federally funded education nationwide — the education system has been in devastating decline and infiltrated from the very beginning with deceptive dogma. Many of the very same revolutionaries from the 1960s, steeped in Marxism, even those who had served time for crime, later became teachers in public schools and professors in higher education. Academic measures were then allowed to suffer because it was essential to re-educate in the “acceptable” dogmas of the day, which were secularism and Marxism.

By John Zmirak, The Stream – As Democrat mayors praise cop-killing terrorists and the Democrat governor of California paints an assassination target on a White House aide, the Left’s street militias are arming themselves and conducting riots against federal law enforcement. And the Trump administration is responding with something more than “thoughts and prayers” such as Democrats like to mock. It’s cracking down on sedition, which in the short run is likely to provoke even more violence — so get ready, fellow citizens. There’s a bumpy ride ahead.

By Elise Winland, Catholic Vote – Congressional leaders have been trading blame over the likely Oct. 1 government shutdown, with Republicans pushing for a short-term funding bill through Nov. 21 and Democrats demanding long-term health care provisions. But many Americans likely view the whole debate with some confusion. Here are a few points of clarity… A government shutdown happens when Congress fails to pass either all the usual annual appropriations bills (or a continuing resolution to temporarily extend funding while budget work continues).

By Jules Gomes, The Stream – Nearly two thousand years later, in an epochal U-turn, the world’s most powerful empire amplified its unalloyed allegiance to the cross. At Charlie Kirk’s memorial service — arguably the biggest event of its kind in U.S. history — preachers and politicians exalted Cicero’s crudelissimum taeterrimumque supplicum as the sole instrument of salvation for all humanity… Almost every speaker asserted with unswerving assurance that Charlie is in heaven not because he was a great man who had done great deeds, but because, two millennia ago, a Jew had suffered a Roman execution on a cross.

Author Don Schwager, Servants of the Word – Luke 9:57-62 – 57 As they were going along the road, a man said to him, “I will follow you wherever you go.” 58 And Jesus said to him, “Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests; but the Son of man has nowhere to lay his head.” 59 To another he said, “Follow me.” But he said, “Lord, let me first go and bury my father.” 60 But he said to him, “Leave the dead to bury their own dead; but as for you, go and proclaim the kingdom of God.” …

By Dawn Beutner, Catholic World Report – Why are there so many statues of Saint Thérèse of Lisieux in Catholic churches?… Obviously, crucifixes and other representations of Jesus Christ are the focus of attention in any Catholic church. It also makes sense to include statues of the Blessed Mother, Saint Joseph, and the titular saint of the church. Statues of Saint Michael the Archangel, Saint Francis of Assisi, and Saint Anthony of Padua are popular with Catholics for good reasons. …

By John Daniel Davidson, The Federalist – A recent news article about Britain’s National Health Service managed, in a few lines, to capture just how dire the situation is in that country and how divorced from reality its political leadership has become… The article was about guidance the NHS published recently, “extolling the benefits of first-cousin marriage despite the increased risk of birth defects.”… the NHS England’s Genomics Education Programme seemed to endorse incest, saying first-cousin marriage is linked to “stronger extended family support systems and economic advantages.”

By Jonah McKeown, National Catholic Register – For many parents, the dangers and downsides of giving their children smartphones — the time wasted scrolling online, potential exposure to inappropriate content, and the anxiety and depression that can come from social-media addiction — are obvious… What is far less obvious to many parents, in a society saturated with smartphone use among adults and children alike, is how to say “No” when their son or daughter asks for one… One Catholic-founded Texas-based group is attempting to offer a solution: banding school parents together under a pledge to keep smartphones and social media out of their kids’ hands, based both on a Catholic vision of the human person …

By Phil Lawler, Catholic Culture – In rolling out the shopworn “seamless garment” approach, the Pope suggested that some other unnamed politicians should not be classified as pro-life. American Catholics have been debating that issue for 40 years. But right now the issue is not the status of those other hypothetical politicians. The question is whether Durbin is pro-life. By the Pope’s own statement, he is not. “The Church teaching on each one of those issues is very clear.” Therefore Durbin should not be honored by a Catholic institution. Case closed.

By Elise Winland, Catholic Vote – In a Sept. 30 address delivered to hundreds of senior military leaders, Secretary of War Pete Hegseth unveiled major changes to internal military policy, declaring an end to diversity programs and promising to restore a “warrior ethos” across U.S. armed forces… Speaking in Quantico, Virginia, before a packed hall, Hegseth repeatedly denounced what he described as years of “decay” brought on by weakened standards, political agendas, and diversity mandates… “We became the woke department. But not anymore,” Hegseth said, later adding, “No more identity months, DEI offices, dudes in dresses, no more climate change worship. No more division, distraction, or gender delusions. No more debris. We are done with that.” ….

By Steven Ertelt, LifeNews – The Planned Parenthood abortion business will close two centers in Louisiana today – making it so the southern state is totally free of the nation’s biggest abortion business… Both Planned Parenthood facilities in Louisiana will close their doors effective today… Notably, the New Orleans facility was constructed with the stated goal of becoming a regional abortion center, intending to perform nearly 2,844 abortions per year. With Louisiana banning abortions and a new federal law defunding Planned Parenthood, babies across the state are protected and that goal was not achieved.

By Natalia Mittelstadt, Just The News – As many as 400 Iranians will be deported from the U.S. back to Iran in the coming weeks, according to the country’s foreign ministry on Tuesday… Iranian state television cited director-general for parliamentary affairs at Iran’s Foreign Ministry, Hossein Noushabadi, regarding the 400 Iranians that will return to Iran as part of the deal with the U.S. Noushabadi said the majority of those Iranians had crossed into the U.S. from Mexico illegally, while some faced other immigration issues.

Franciscan Media, October 1 – Saint Thérèse of Lisieux’s Story – “I prefer the monotony of obscure sacrifice to all ecstasies. To pick up a pin for love can convert a soul.”.. These are the words of Thérèse of Lisieux, a Carmelite nun called the “Little Flower,” who lived a cloistered life of obscurity in the convent of Lisieux, France. And her preference for hidden sacrifice did indeed convert souls. Few saints of God are more popular than this young nun. ….

By Luis E. Lugo, The Catholic Thing – Chesterton once said that there are two ways of getting home. One of them is to stay there. The other is to walk round the whole world till we come back to the same place. Since the Church is our true home, we could say that the first is a good description of a cradle Catholic, the second of a revert like me.

By Steven Ertelt, LifeNews – Archbishop Joseph Naumann is the latest Catholic leader to condemn the award Cardinal Blasé Cupich is giving to pro-abortion Senator Dick Durbin… As LifeNews has extensively reported, Cupich faces heavy criticism from millions of Catholics and even fellow Catholic Church leaders for his decision to bestow a Lifetime Achievement Award on Durbin… In a statement released to the National Catholic Register, Naumann said it is a “source of scandal” to give an award to Dubin and reward him for his decades-long promotion of abortion, calling it a case of “pastoral neglect.”

By Peter M.J. Stravinskas, Catholic World Report – Let us give some specific consideration to St. Michael as the great defender of the honor of God and the protector of the Church’s faithful, who find themselves under the assault of the Evil One in so many ways… There are the assaults that come from without, done by the hands of those who hate God and/or His holy Church. Here we think of what our co-religionists suffer in places like Communist China, in so many countries of the Middle East, but also through the militant secularists of Western Europe and North America, yes, even in our own country, thanks to the aggression of the neo-pagans in our midst and groups like the ACLU.

By Amira Abuzeid, Catholic News Agency – Bishop Michael Martin of the Diocese of Charlotte, North Carolina, said the Traditional Latin Mass (TLM) must cease at four parishes and will be only be permitted at a chapel beginning Oct. 2… After delaying the restrictions three months, Martin said in a Sept. 26 letter that the Chapel of the Little Flower in the St. Therese Parish in Mooresville, North Carolina, which was recently renovated by the diocese and can seat just over 350 people, will have two Masses each Sunday and on holy days of obligation, both of which will be said by Father Brandon Jones, the recently appointed chaplain.

By Kevin & Theresa Burke, Catholic Exchange – Prolifers see the issue of protecting human life in the womb as the foundation of all social justice. This leads them to support conservative candidates and policies that limit abortion and reject the public funding of abortion services… Sadly, viewing these two valid Catholic perspectives as opposed to one other has led us to esteem our political affiliations more than the profound communion we share as brothers and sisters in Christ… Is there a way to embrace a third perspective—one that sees the issue of abortion from both a social justice and a prolife perspective?

By Randy Hain, Integrated Catholic Life – Do we sometimes feel overwhelmed in the face of the relentless assault on the Church, our beliefs and our families by the media and modern culture? Is it difficult to stand up for what we believe? Do we ever feel like we can’t make a difference? Many Catholics I encounter are struggling through daily battles to live out their faith and protect their loved ones… all in the midst of very divisive and difficult time for the Church. It would be easy to throw in the towel and give up or remain silent, but that is not an option for us. We are called to do more.

Author Don Schwager, Servants of the Word – Luke 9:51-56 – 51 When the days drew near for him to be received up, he set his face to go to Jerusalem. 52 And he sent messengers ahead of him, who went and entered a village of the Samaritans, to make ready for him; 53 but the people would not receive him, because his face was set toward Jerusalem. 54 And when his disciples James and John saw it, they said, “Lord, do you want us to bid fire come down from heaven and consume them?” …

By Brianna Lyman, The Federalist – Charlie Kirk was murdered less than three weeks ago by a deranged leftist who inscribed anti-fascist slogans on bullet casings. Kirk’s murder should have been a wake-up call that inflammatory rhetoric smearing conservatives as “fascists” or “Nazis” or “Hitler” has deadly consequences. Instead, it’s only emboldened the left to increase such rhetoric… Nowhere is that more apparent than California Gov. Gavin Newsom’s official press account, which spent the weekend calling White House Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller a “fascist” and demanding Miller kowtow to the left if he wants to stop being slandered.

By Robert P. George, The Catholic Thing – As the Pope makes clear in Evangelium Vitae, the pro-life imperative also entails political responsibilities. This is most evident in the case of public officials—legislators, judges, and others charged to shape and apply our laws. Public officials are bound to act in conformity with the great truth of our Declaration of Independence that all human beings are “created equal” and “endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights,” including, in the very first place, the “right to life.” “As far as the right to life is concerned,” Pope John Paul II writes, “every innocent human being is absolutely equal to all others”

By Douglas Andrews, Patriot Post – When a woefully unpopular political party runs out of ideas, all it can do is lie and smear and demonize the opposition — in this case, with a term bereft of its meaning… Time was when Republican presidents were supposedly either stupid or evil. Ike and Reagan and W were stupid. Nixon and Trump were evil… Those were the days — the days when Democrats restricted their petty and pathetic name-calling to either of two convenient categories. Donald Trump, though, has flummoxed the Democrats by defying that easy categorization. …

By Randall Smith,  The Catholic Thing – So, Cardinal Cupich has decided to honor pro-abortion Senator Dick Durbin. The chancery office says that they are honoring him for things other than his support for abortion, but that’s like honoring Bill Cosby for the wonderful things he did other than his mistreatment of women. No one would accept that. The obvious conclusion would be that you just don’t care about the mistreatment of women – or at least not as much as you should… there should be no real mystery about what the Cardinal has done. He is like the unfaithful steward in Luke 16 who, realizing that he is soon to be out of a job, does some favors for his master’s debtors to gain their favor after his dismissal. …

By Fr. Kevin Drew, Crisis Magazine – My friends, we are not Quakers. When our homes, families, or churches are attacked, we have a duty to defend those things. It is not mercy to stand by and watch good things be destroyed, it is cowardice. A Christian puts a stop to mindless evil destruction. Then he forgives. For he desires that all men, friend and foe alike, attain eternal life… Christ told us to conquer the world by baptizing it. Christ did so first, conquering Satan with the same weapon Satan used to trap our first parents—a tree. So, we glory in that tree. We glory in the Cross of Jesus Christ. We glory in the sweet wood and the sweet nails that deliver us and set us free.

By John Horvat II, Chronicles – Historically, the left thrived by crafting words and expressions that resonated with the public, inflamed passions, and engendered sympathy for their cause. Their ideological wordsmiths understood the importance of using words to mask their dark agenda… However, something has recently changed in the American left; they no longer express themselves well. Their expressions offend and belittle ordinary citizens. They push their unattractive programs without bothering to mask their intentions.

By John Zmirak, The Stream – This political violence is not a series of isolated incidents and does not emerge organically. Instead, it is a culmination of sophisticated, organized campaigns of targeted intimidation, radicalization, threats, and violence designed to silence opposing speech, limit political activity, change or direct policy outcomes, and prevent the functioning of a democratic society. A new law enforcement strategy that investigates all participants in these criminal and terroristic conspiracies — including the organized structures, networks, entities, organizations, funding sources, and predicate actions behind them — is required. …

By Rachel Greszler, The Daily Signal – By 2034, there will be more seniors than children for the first time in our country’s history. Meanwhile, the federal debt has exploded and will be the equivalent of a second mortgage for today’s youth… Young people, in turn, will be called on to produce more to support an aging population and will be forced to pay more to cover past and current government largess… Even more troubling, millions of young Americans are drifting without the skills, discipline, and opportunities they need to succeed.

By Newsmax – YouTube has agreed to pay $24.5 million to settle a lawsuit that President Donald Trump brought against the company over the suspension of his account following the January 2021 U.S. Capitol breach, a court filing showed on Monday… The deal makes Google the last of the three big tech companies to resolve lawsuits Trump brought in July 2021 accusing them of unlawfully silencing conservative viewpoints… Trump had also sued Twitter, now known as X, and Facebook owner Meta, as well as Alphabet’s Google ….

Franciscan Media, September 30 – Most of the saints are remembered for some outstanding virtue or devotion which they practiced, but Jerome is frequently remembered for his bad temper! It is true that he had a very bad temper and could use a vitriolic pen, but his love for God and his son Jesus Christ was extraordinarily intense; anyone who taught error was an enemy of God and truth, and Saint Jerome went after him or her with his mighty and sometimes sarcastic pen.

By Shannon Mullen, National Catholic Register – Another U.S. bishop has publicly rebuked Chicago Cardinal Blase Cupich for his plan to honor pro-abortion Sen. Richard Durbin with a lifetime achievement award… In a statement released to the Register on Saturday, Archbishop Joseph F. Naumann, the recently retired ordinary of Kansas City, Kansas, said it is a “source of scandal” for the cardinal to recognize the Illinois senator in this way, calling it a case of “pastoral neglect.”… Archbishop Naumann is the latest American prelate to chastise Cardinal Cupich for deciding to honor Durbin — a Catholic politician whose own bishop banned him from receiving Communion in the Diocese of Springfield, Illinois …

By Parker Thayer, The Federalist – In the wake of Charlie Kirk’s assassination, conservatives and moderates alike are crying out for the decimation of hyper-politicized nonprofit organizations and the “NGO complex” that many believe enables and encourages left-wing extremism. The sentiment is correct, but the righteous anger is currently directionless, leading to dubious comments about “hate speech,” vague notions of charges under the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, and talk of investigations into Antifa funding, with no real sense of where to strike first.

By Elise Winland, Catholic Vote – A gunman drove into a Mormon church in Grand Blanc, Michigan, on Sept. 28 and opened fire on hundreds gathered, killing four people and injuring at least eight before police fatally shot him, authorities said. Investigators believe the suspect also intentionally set fire to the church. .. (stated at a press briefing) the suspect, 40-year-old Thomas Jacob Sanford from the city of Burton, rammed his vehicle into the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints at around 10:25 a.m. during Sunday services before unleashing gunfire with an assault rifle. …

By Anne Hendershott, Catholic World Report – Earlier this month, Texas Governor Greg Abbott signed new anti-abortion legislation to end the availability of the “abortion pill” in his state. Acknowledging that more than 19,000 abortion pills are shipped into Texas each year—with many of them used to circumvent the state’s heartbeat law and other protections—the Governor signed HB-7, a bill known as the “Woman and Child Protection Act.”

Author Don Schwager, Servants of the Word – Luke 9:46-50 – 46 And an argument arose among them as to which of them was the greatest. 47 But when Jesus perceived the thought of their hearts, he took a child and put him by his side, 48 and said to them, “Whoever receives this child in my name receives me, and whoever receives me receives him who sent me; for he who is least among you all is the one who is great.” …

By Fr. Paul D. Scalia, The Catholic Thing – The haunting story of the rich man and Lazarus (Luke 16:19-31) is perhaps best understood in reverse, through the lens of where we find them at the end of the story. The status of each in the afterlife – the rich man’s suffering and Lazarus’s peace – reveals the reality of who they are. Without the trappings and clothing and disguising of this world, we see the rich man’s poverty and Lazarus’s wealth. We see most keenly the peril of riches.

By Michael MacKinnon, Catholic Exchange – Despite the dominant secularism of the age, Gen Z (those born between 1997 and 2012) are showing increasing signs of openness to the Faith. We—all parishioners—must be ready to accompany them in this journey of faith. They are seeking the relationship, love, and truth that God offers, and we must cooperate with His grace to help them find their spiritual home… Contrary to the popular narrative of decline, many young people today are not abandoning the Faith out of rebellion, but out of a lack of connection. They hunger for meaning, truth, and a relationship with God.

By Marco Mancini, CNA, ACI Stampa – Pope Leo XIV announced on Sunday that he will proclaim St. John Henry Newman a doctor of the Church on Nov. 1, the Solemnity of All Saints… “I will confer the title of doctor of the Church on St. John Henry Newman, who gave a decisive contribution to the renewal of theology and to understanding Christian doctrine in its development, in the context of the Jubilee of the world of education,” the Pope said after celebrating Mass for the Jubilee of Catechists in St. Peter’s Square.

By Amy Furr, Breitbart – A California pastor who was close friends with Turning Point USA founder Charlie Kirk is seeing a spiritual revival after Kirk was assassinated on September 10… Calvary Chapel Chino Hills Pastor Jack Hibbs told “Fox and Friends First” recently that people are asking his church for answers, the outlet t reported on Sunday… “People are coming to us, and they are saying, ‘I want to know the meaning of life, the purpose. Why am I here?’” he said. The Fox report said people are calling the movement the “Charlie Kirk Effect.”

By John Mac Ghlionn, Crisis Magazine – A nation’s strength is seen not in words but in works. Roads, bridges, power grids, and factories reveal its character more than any speech or summit. By that measure, China has moved far ahead. High-speed rail links its provinces, solar fields cover its deserts, and factories bring ideas to life with remarkable speed. These are the fruits of engineers, who are honored for their work… Dan Wang, in his book Breakneck, describes this ascent well. Yet he errs when he argues that America’s answer is to bring in more talent from abroad. …

By Daniel Payne, Catholic News Agency – Many Catholics can, at the drop of a hat, recite the prayer to St. Michael the Archangel — the famous petition to that venerable saint to “defend us in battle” and “cast into hell Satan.”… In the culture of the Church, Michael is often accompanied by his two fellow archangels — Sts. Gabriel and Raphael — with the three forming a phalanx of protection, healing, and petition for those who ask for their intercession. The Church celebrates the three archangels with a joint feast day on Sept. 29. …

By by Bridget Sielicki, Live Action News – In May, two abortion businesses filed a lawsuit to overturn several pro-life protections in the state. They argued that a state amendment passed last fall in which abortion was enshrined as a constitutional “right” means that there should be no restrictions on abortion at all… The lawsuit targeted a number of laws, including those that prohibit abortion due to the preborn child having genetic anomalies, informed consent laws requiring a 24-hour waiting period and an ultrasound prior to the abortion, and laws prohibiting mail-order abortion pills. …

By John Zmirak, The Stream – Rhetoric Has Consequences: Now we have Democrat politicians calling ICE agents “the Gestapo,” and equating their use of masks (to protect their families from harassment) with the crimes of the Ku Klux Klan. Catholic bishops are comparing ICE officers (I wish I were making this up) to Nazi war criminals and slavecatchers — who presumably deserve to be resisted by violent force. What happens when putative authorities issue such blank checks for illegal violence? Here are just a few of the most recent atrocities:

By Franciscan Media, September 29 – Angels—messengers from God—appear frequently in Scripture, but only Michael, Gabriel and Raphael are named… Michael appears in Daniel’s vision as “the great prince” who defends Israel against its enemies; in the Book of Revelation, he leads God’s armies to final victory over the forces of evil. Devotion to Michael is the oldest angelic devotion, rising in the East in the fourth century. ….

By Shaun McAfee, National Catholic Register – St. Pio’s life of holiness stands as a powerful testimony to the redemptive nature of suffering.
St. Pio of Pietrelcina, born Francesco Forgione on May 25, 1887, in Pietrelcina, Italy, is one of the most revered saints of the Catholic Church. From a young age, he demonstrated a deep devotion to God, often experiencing visions and spiritual phenomena that set him apart from his peers. He joined the Capuchins at 15 and took the name Pio in honor of Pope Pius I.

By Steven Ertelt, LifeNews – Health and Human Services Secretary Robert Kennedy has sent a letter to the governors of 22 states, who are worried about the dangers of the abortion drug mifepristone, telling them he has opened a “real-world” review of it. The high-level study of the drug was initially announced earlier in the week… The abortion pill has killed dozens of women and injured tens of thousands more – and of course it has killed millions of babies… Kennedy and FDA Commissioner Marty Makary wrote to 22 Republican attorneys general informing them of the review, which they said will examine “real-world outcomes and evidence, relating to the safety and efficacy of the drug.”