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Washington D.C., Apr 8, 2025 / 15:39 pm (CNA).

The U.S. Senate confirmation hearing for CatholicVote president Brian Burch to serve as the U.S. ambassador to the Holy See took place Tuesday morning, with Burch facing questions on how he plans to represent the Trump administration's foreign aid cuts to the Vatican as well as his position on the Holy See's relationship with China.

"I am deeply honored and humbled to be nominated by President [Donald] Trump to serve as the United States ambassador to the Holy See," Burch told the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. "This is a role of great significance, and I am grateful for the trust President Trump and Secretary [of State Marco] Rubio have placed in me."

Burch described the U.S.-Holy See relationship as "both unique and vital," highlighting its character as being rooted not in traditional diplomacy but rather in "shared commitments to religious freedom, human dignity, global peace, and justice."

The hearing took place alongside those of Trump's ambassadorship nominees to Croatia and Chile. Burch, a Catholic father of nine, answered questions from a handful of committee members, including committee chairman Sen. James Risch, R-Idaho; Sen. Jeanne Shaheen, D-New Hampshire; Sen. Pete Ricketts, R-Nebraska; and Sen. Rick Scott, R-Florida.

"This is going to be a very challenging issue," Burch told the committee in response to questions regarding the Trump administration's widespread cuts to foreign aid. "The secretary has made clear when he took office that he was recharging and refocusing our foreign aid on places that would make America safer, stronger, and more prosperous."

"I think those criteria have to be met by these places," he continued. "Of course, again, I think the partnership with the Holy See can be a very good one, but I think those partners have to understand that our foreign aid is not endless, that we can't fund every last program."

During the hearing Shaheen repeatedly pressed Burch on his support for the Trump administration's foreign aid cuts and their impact on Catholic nonprofit organizations abroad. 

At one point the New Hampshire senator asked Burch if he knew how much the U.S. spends on foreign aid, and whether he could name any programs that were not in keeping with American foreign policy interests. 

Burch stated that he was "unaware of the exact numbers" and further stated that he had "read some of the stories" about superfluous foreign spending, citing one about alleged "transgender mice experiments," a claim Shaheen disputed.

Burch said the situation regarding foreign aid "is going to be a process" and noted several aid organizations he had spoken to had had their grants reauthorized, while others are still pending. 

Ricketts asked Burch for his thoughts on the Vatican-China deal, expressing concern that the communist-ruled government should be allowed to appoint Catholic bishops and that the arrangement encourages the continued persecution of religious minorities in the country. 

"I think it's important for the Holy See to maintain a posture of pressure and of applying pressure to the Chinese government around their human rights abuses, particularly their persecution of religious minorities, including Catholics," Burch stated. 

"I would encourage the Holy See as the United States ambassador, if I'm confirmed, to resist the idea that a foreign government has any role whatsoever in choosing the leadership of a private religious institution," he said.

Scott, meanwhile, asked Burch what he believed he could achieve through diplomacy with the Vatican for hostages, including American citizens, still being held by Hamas in Gaza. 

Burch said he believed the Holy See "can play a very significant role" by being "a partner in that conversation and [delivering] the necessary moral urgency of ending this conflict and hopefully securing a durable peace."

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Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Apr 8, 2025 / 16:12 pm (CNA).

Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly on Monday vetoed legislation that would have protected the religious liberty of adoptive parents and faith-based adoption centers on issues related to gender identity and sexual orientation.

The bill, which passed the state Senate 31-9 and the House 84-38, would have prohibited the Kansas Department for Children and Families from enacting policies that require a prospective adoptive parent or foster parent to first affirm support for gender ideology and homosexuality if they want to qualify to adopt or foster children.

The vetoed bill would have ensured a person could not be denied a license to adopt or foster children and could not be refused selection for adopting or fostering children because he or she holds "sincerely held religious or moral beliefs" that conflict with the state government's ideology on those subjects.

The bill would have still allowed the state to consider an adoptive or foster parent's beliefs on those subjects for the placement of a specific minor who identifies as transgender or has same-sex attraction, but it would have prevented a blanket ban on people with those beliefs adopting or fostering children.

Kelly, who is a Democrat, said in a statement that the bill would have interfered with children's welfare.

"The top priority of the Kansas Department for Children and Families should be adhering to the 'best interest of the child' standard," she said. "Legislation like this detracts from this standard and stands in the way of best serving those in the child welfare system."

Kelly said she was also concerned the bill could subject the state to "frivolous lawsuits," which would take away "time and resources" from adoptive care and foster care services.

"Children in need of care already face unique and complex challenges," Kelly added. "I will not sign legislation that could further complicate their lives."

Republican lawmakers could have the votes to override the veto, which requires a two-thirds vote by both chambers of the Legislature. The party holds an 88-37 supermajority in the House and a 31-9 supermajority in the Senate.

Senate President Ty Masterson and House Speaker Dan Hawkins, both Republicans, released a joint statement suggesting they may take that action, asserting that "this veto cannot stand" and arguing that the proposed law reinforces the First Amendment's guarantee that every person is free to exercise his or her religious beliefs.

"Our foster care system depends on strong and stable families to care for the children in our system," they said. 

"The last thing any administration should be doing is discriminating against qualified families due to their religious or moral beliefs. It's perplexing that the governor would choose to veto legislation that would ensure First Amendment protections extend to foster parents."

Concerning national trends

In recent years, some states have enacted policies that force prospective adoptive and foster parents to agree that they will affirm a child's transgender identity or same-sex attraction as a condition to adopt or foster any children, even if they would be adopting or fostering a child who has never indicated that he or she identifies as transgender or has same-sex attraction.

Two families in Vermont, who are represented by the legal group Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF), filed a lawsuit against the state after their licenses to foster children were revoked because they refused to agree to a policy that would have required them to affirm a child's transgender "gender identity" or same-sex attraction.

Neither of those families had fostered any children who identified themselves as transgender or had same-sex attraction when their licenses were revoked.

In Oregon, a mother of five who is also represented by ADF is fighting a lawsuit after she was denied the opportunity to foster any children for the same reason. In that state, a prospective foster parent must also agree to support a child's transgender identity or same-sex attraction to receive a certification.

ADF Senior Counsel Greg Chafuen issued a statement expressing concern over Kelly's veto and "hope that the Kansas Legislature will prioritize the state's children and promptly override this veto."

"Kelly's disappointing veto … puts politics over people, excluding caring families and faith-based adoption and foster care organizations from helping children find loving homes — just like we've seen in other states that don't have this protection," Chafuen added.

Chafuen said the proposed law "would help children benefit from as many adoption and foster care agencies as possible, both faith-based and non-faith-based," and that an override of the veto "would mean that more families can open their hearts and homes to children in need of a safe and loving environment — that's keeping kids first."

"Every child deserves a loving home that can provide them stability and opportunities to grow," Chafuen added.

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Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Apr 8, 2025 / 16:42 pm (CNA).

The U.K. Catholic Medical Association (CMA) is warning against a bill seeking to legalize assisted suicide, arguing the measure will cause patients to "fear for their safety" in the medical system.

In an April 7 statement, the CMA indicated that it is "committed to upholding the moral teachings of the Catholic Church as applied to the field of health care" and is "therefore fundamentally opposed to the legislation proposed in [member of U.K. Parliament] Kim Leadbeater's Assisted Dying Bill."

The group argued that it is "always wrong to make a direct attack on innocent human life."

Leadbeater is sponsoring the controversial Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill that would allow terminally ill adults in England and Wales to choose to end their own lives with the help of a doctor. The bill is currently facing a delay in its implementation that could last as long as four years. 

The bill would "allow adults who are terminally ill, subject to safeguards and protections, to request and be provided with assistance to end their own life."

"The term 'assisted dying' is used in a euphemistic way in the bill," CMA said. "What it actually proposes is assisted suicide."

The group argued that although suicide was decriminalized in England and Wales in 1961 because of its relation to mental health issues, "assisted suicide remains a crime which may attract a long prison sentence."

The bill requires "that a person requesting assisted suicide has a clear, settled, and informed wish to end their own life," CMA noted. The bill further stipulates that the decision must be "voluntarily without coercion or pressure from any other person."

The Catholic group countered that it will "prove difficult or impossible to establish that these provisions have been strictly observed," as it is "clear from experience in countries which have legalized assisted suicide that abuse of the regulations is not at all uncommon."

CMA said this could lead patients "to fear for their safety within health services."

"For Christians and non-Christians alike, the ancient, fundamental principle of absolute respect for human life has always been officially upheld," CMA said. "In the Hippocratic Oath, which dates to several hundred years before the time of Christ, it states: 'I will give no deadly drug to any, nor will I counsel such.'"

The bill, meanwhile, would "overturn the ethical basis of medicine" by forcing medical professionals "to take the lives of their patients."

"The CMA would not endorse this under any circumstances and will always advocate for health workers to be allowed to act in accordance with their Christian principles."

The group instead called for greater access to palliative care for the dying, which was originally developed in the U.K. but which the group said is "extremely poorly resourced by the government." 

CMA "believes that adequate medical and nursing care during a person's final illness is at least as important as at any other stage of life," the group said. 

Rather than assisted suicide, the organization urged "major investment in palliative care services such that they become available to all who need them in the U.K., 24 hours a day."

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CNA Staff, Apr 8, 2025 / 17:12 pm (CNA).

The accused killer of a Kansas Catholic priest shot the clergyman last week "intentionally" and with "premeditation," a prosecutor has said. 

Gary Hermesch was taken into custody last week at the Nemaha County Jail and charged with first-degree murder in the shooting of Father Arul Carasala, the Nemaha County Sheriff's Office said. 

Carasala was shot at Sts. Peter and Paul Catholic Church in Seneca on April 3. The priest later died from his injuries at Nemaha Valley Community Hospital.

Nemaha County Attorney Brad Lippert's office said in a press release that the murder was planned beforehand. Hermesch is being held on a $1 million bond at the county jail. 

The exact motive of the shooting remains unclear, though local news outlet KSNT reported that Hermesch had previously written letters to the local paper that contained both political and religious remarks. 

"[M]aybe if we just follow Donald Trump's example we'll 'make the Church great again,'" Hermesch reportedly wrote in one of the letters in which he also alleged that "the faith" is "not being taught."

In other letters he reportedly referenced a "fake Catholic Church" and spoke negatively of the Second Vatican Council. 

The priest had served in the archdiocese for more than 20 years. Kansas City Archbishop Joseph Naumann said after the shooting last week that Carasala "was a devoted and zealous pastor" who "faithfully served" the archdiocese. 

"His love for Christ and his Church was evident in how he ministered to his people with great generosity and care," the archbishop said. "His parishioners, friends, and brother priests will deeply miss him."

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Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Apr 7, 2025 / 16:22 pm (CNA).

The Trump administration has directed the U.S. National Institutes of Health (NIH) to begin a research initiative to study "regret" among individuals who undergo so-called gender transition treatments.

In March, the White House canceled multiple NIH grants involving gender identity along with diversity, equity, and inclusion. Now, the administration is ordering the NIH to resume some transgender research but with the goal of examining the potential negative consequences the hormonal and surgical treatments can have.

Theresa Farnan, a fellow at the Ethics and Public Policy Center, discussed with CNA why this research is needed to help individuals who experience regret after transitioning treatments.

Farnan said many people who report negative consequences after medical gender transitions were already struggling with a mental health issue, trauma, or a form of autism before they transitioned. She said they are often "not really presented with alternative explanations for their feelings or less invasive treatments."

She explained that when transitioners do feel regret, "it is nearly impossible, outside of a few dedicated physicians (many of whom are Catholic or Christian physicians), to find a doctor who will supervise the process of detransitioning from hormones."

"This research should Illuminate the need for ongoing medical care addressing the needs of detransitioners and insurance coverage," Farnan continued, saying she hopes it will reveal "the damaging effect of social transition, which is misleadingly presented as a period of exploration but in reality locks children into a 'transgender' identity."

Farnan said she anticipates that "the NIH research will be vigorously opposed by the gender clinic industry."

"The last thing they want is a spotlight on what really goes on in gender clinics. Detransitioners are compelling witnesses to the unethical and dangerous nature of this industry," she said.

Catholic deacon and retired medical doctor Patrick Lappert told CNA that during his time as a plastic and reconstructive surgeon, he performed multiple reversal surgeries on people who experienced regret after transitioning.

"The regret itself, the emotional, psychological process the person has endured … deserves a lot of examination and support," he said. "The NIH can definitely get involved in the research of what is in the long-term."

Lappert specified that the NIH research should examine the long-term effects of medications and surgeries that he said "we have little to no information" on. He said this includes puberty blockers, high-dose cross-sex steroids, fertility harms, heart disease, hypertension, and diabetes.

He explained that if there is research to help further understand these issues, "we will better serve the persons who are detransitioning." Then the next steps can be "research into surgical techniques for, in some measure, reversing the effects of the surgery," he said.

Lappert said Europe has conducted research on gender ideology and transitioning, especially with children, and found that the process "does not help, it hurts."

"It's a result because the Europeans have a medical database that can be examined and you can see the long-term effects," he said. "The American process of practicing medicine has a lot of scattered medical records. Everybody keeps their own records, hospital systems, medical systems. It's very hard to interrogate that."

Dr. Roy Eappen, a senior fellow at Do No Harm, told CNA that he views the new NIH research initiative as "a huge step towards dismantling and exposing the lies propping up the transgender industry."

"For too long the United States avoided asking the real questions surrounding sex-change issues, and it's because transgender activists in leadership positions … didn't want them to be asked," Eappen said.

"Meanwhile, Europe conducted studies into these harmful practices and subsequently abandoned them due to the lack of scientific support," he said.

The Trump administration and the NIH have not yet released specific details pertaining to the research or how it will be conducted.

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CNA Staff, Apr 7, 2025 / 16:47 pm (CNA).

A shooting in northwest Detroit on Monday morning resulted in a stray bullet breaching the newly dedicated Catholic chapel at Loyola High School, reportedly while about 40 students were inside.

Police said the bullet entered St. Peter Claver Chapel at around 7:50 a.m. on April 7. There were no reported injuries, and police are canvassing the neighborhood seeking information on what led to the shooting and who was involved.

CNA reached out to the Detroit Police Department for further information, inquiring as to whether there are any suspects in the shooting, but did not receive a response by publication time.

The Catholic boys high school in Detroit, which is under the care of the Jesuits Midwest Province, dedicated the new chapel last week. The archdiocese says it is the first Catholic worship space constructed in the city of Detroit since the mid-1960s.

Deborale Richardson-Phillips, Loyola High School's principal, said in a statement to local news on Monday that the bullet penetrated the chapel wall shortly before the school's regularly scheduled morning prayer. She said the school is "deeply grateful to report that no one was injured."

"As a precaution, all students are currently being held safely in the gym. For everyone's safety, while the investigation is ongoing, students will be permitted to leave with a parent or guardian, students who drove will only be released with parental consent, and no student will be allowed to walk home," the principal continued. 

"We will continue to monitor the situation closely and will keep you informed with any updates as they become available. Please join us in prayer for the continued safety of our entire school community."

According to the Detroit Catholic, the newspaper of the archdiocese, the 225-seat chapel was dedicated April 2 after a $9 million fundraising campaign, which launched in 2023. 

Archbishop Edward J. Weisenburger — himself newly appointed in February and installed as archbishop last month — presided over the dedication alongside leaders of Loyola High School, the Detroit Jesuit community, and donors to the campaign. 

The chapel features sacred items donated from across the Archdiocese of Detroit, including chairs from St. James Parish in Novi, Stations of the Cross from the former St. Philomena Parish in Detroit, a statue of Our Lady from the former St. Ladislaus Parish in Hamtramck, and a tabernacle from St. Daniel Parish in Clarkston.

During the dedication, Jesuit Father Thomas McClain, superior of the Detroit Jesuit community, presented Richardson-Phillips with a relic of St. Ignatius of Loyola, founder of the Society of Jesus, as a reminder to the school "to look to Christ as the model to follow."

Loyola's campus used to be home to the former St. Peter Claver Church, but the church roof collapsed in January 2018, forcing the school to celebrate Mass and prayer time in the school's gym, which is located inside the edifice of the former St. Francis de Sales Parish.

"The transition from praying in a gym, where we play and we laugh and eat popcorn, to this beautiful new space on our campus where there's a different [sense] of reverence is really exciting for our students," Richardson-Phillips, the school's principal, told the Detroit Catholic. 

"It's really exciting for our students, and it's exciting for me to see them connecting at what I consider to be the heart of our mission, which is faith formation."

The school's campaign saw the construction of the new chapel complex and a student courtyard as well as the construction of a welcome center, a $1.5 million student tuition assistance fund, and a $1 million faculty development fund.

"On behalf of the archdiocese, I want to say to our benefactors and donors, these things would not have happened without you," Weisenburger said at the April 2 dedication. 

"God sees these things, and for those of us who are called to leadership, this and the way that you have made this possible matters. Our God sees it."

Daniel Meloy of the Detroit Catholic contributed to this story.

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Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Apr 7, 2025 / 17:29 pm (CNA).

The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) has made what it is calling the "difficult decision" to not renew cooperative agreements with the federal government amid policy changes from President Donald Trump's administration to cut funding from refugee programs.

"While this marks a painful end to a life-sustaining partnership with our government that has spanned decades across administrations of both political parties, it offers every Catholic an opportunity to search our hearts for new ways to assist," USCCB President Archbishop Timothy P. Broglio said in an April 7 statement.

The archbishop wrote that the funding cut "forces us to reconsider the best way to serve the needs of our brothers and sisters seeking safe harbor from violence and persecution."

For about four and a half decades, the USCCB partnered with the federal government to provide services that help resettle refugees and support minors who entered the country without a parent or guardian or are separated from their families.

"All participants in these programs were welcomed by the U.S. government to come to the United States," Broglio said. "These are displaced souls who see in America a place of dreams and hope."

During the Biden administration, the federal government provided more than $100 million annually to the bishops, who redirected those funds to affiliated Catholic organizations that provided services. In recent years, the federal funding covered more than 95% of the expenses.

The Trump administration, which alleges that these programs strain both federal and local social services and facilitate unsustainable migration into the United States, has halted the entry of new refugees and ended federal support for programs that fund USCCB affiliates and other nongovernmental organizations that provide migrant and refugee services.

In February, the USCCB sued the administration over the funding freeze and laid off 50 employees due to the funding shortfall. Numerous Catholic organizations have also announced layoffs due to the administration's cuts to both domestic and international programs. 

Broglio said the USCCB "simply cannot sustain the work on our own at current levels or in current form." He added that the bishops "will work to identify alternative means of support for the people the federal government has already admitted to these programs."

"Our efforts were acts of pastoral care and charity, generously supported by the people of God when funds received from the government did not cover the full cost," he added. "The Gospel's call to do what we can for the least among us remains our guide. We ask you to join us in praying for God's grace in finding new ways to bring hope where it is most needed."

The archbishop noted that the USCCB, since its founding, "has been concerned with helping families who are fleeing war, violence, and oppression." In 1920, he noted, it established a Bureau of Immigration to help displaced families find new opportunities in the United States.

"Many of us can trace our own parents, grandparents, or great-grandparents to these very families," Broglio pointed out.

The USCCB president indicated that the organization "will continue advocating for policy reforms that provide orderly, secure immigration processes, ensuring the safety of everyone in our communities" and will "remain steadfast in our commitment to advocating on behalf of men, women, and children suffering the scourge of human trafficking."

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Vatican City, Apr 7, 2025 / 18:01 pm (CNA).

Pope Francis has donated to Ukraine four ambulances that will be deployed in hardest-hit areas in a concrete gesture of his closeness and concern for those suffering the devastating effects of the war there. The vehicles bear the Vatican's coat of arms.

According to the Dicastery for the Service of Charity on Monday, Cardinal Konrad Krajewski, papal almoner, will be responsible for delivering the ambulances, which are in addition to the medical equipment that has been donated in the past.

On other occasions, the pope has blessed the ambulances before the trip, but the Holy See press office did not specify if he did so this time.

"The Holy Father has decided to send his eminence to Ukraine again to donate four ambulances, equipped with all the necessary medical equipment to save lives, which will be deployed in war zones," the statement read.

Krajewski will be assisted by three other drivers from Ukraine during his trip, which will include visits to areas where there is active fighting. The cardinal is also traveling to the country "to be with the people so tested by the conflict, to pray with them, and to be an expression of the pope's closeness," the Vatican reported.

The Polish cardinal, who since 2013 has been papal almoner, the person in charge of carrying out charitable works in the name of the Holy Father, has already visited the country more than a dozen times since the outbreak of the war in 2022.

The press release quotes Pope Francis from his Easter Day 2024 urbi et orbi message: Only Jesus "opens the doors to life," the pope said, "those very doors we keep shutting with the wars spreading throughout the world."

For the Vatican, the pope's words "become action to break down the barriers and bring the Easter light into the shadows of darkness." 

The pontiff''s donation comes at "this time of Easter rebirth," in which the pope wanted to make "a gesture of closeness in one of the most painful places where war has been raging for three years: tormented Ukraine."

"Three years that for the Holy Father are a 'painful and shameful anniversary for humanity.' Pope Francis always remembers the Eastern European country, both in the Angelus prayer and in his appeals for peace, which constantly refer to other dramatic situations such as in Palestine, Israel, Myanmar, Kivu, and Sudan," the statement reads. "The gift of the four ambulances thus becomes a sign of jubilee hope anchored in Christ."

Last Friday, in a new diplomatic effort between the Vatican and Russia, Archbishop Paul Richard Gallagher, the Holy See's secretary for relations with states and international organizations, telephoned Sergei Lavrov, minister of foreign affairs of the Russian Federation.

The Holy See press office stated that the conversation focused on "the overall picture of world politics" with "particular attention to the situation of the war in Ukraine" and "some initiatives aimed at stopping the military actions."

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

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Cambridge, Massachusetts, Apr 7, 2025 / 13:01 pm (CNA).

Professor Scott Hahn on Friday, April 4, spoke to Harvard's Catholic Church, St. Paul's, about the saving truth of Scripture. 

Hahn, one of today's most well-known American Catholic scholars, has authored over 40 books on theology and apologetics. He is founder and president of the St. Paul Center for Biblical Theology and is devoted to equipping Catholics with a deeper understanding of Scripture and Catholic doctrine.

Returning to Boston for the event hosted by the Harvard Catholic Forum, Hahn noted the city "still feels like a second home" to him after attending Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary and previously living in the area.

"The Christian community, especially the Catholic community, is so unique. It's good to be back, and it's good to see it growing and getting better," Hahn said, reflecting on the Harvard Catholic Forum. "It's a gem."

Hahn said his hope for the lecture — and his main prayer request in anticipation of the event — was to build bridges.

"In an intellectual community as high-powered as Harvard, you have many gifted people from a wide range of backgrounds," he said. His goal was to have the truth of Scripture resonate with each person, regardless of their background, education, or faith tradition.

His lecture was titled "Veritas: The Saving Truth of Scripture." As he began, Hahn clarified that a more fitting title would be "Veritas: The Saving Truth and Humility of God's Word."

Hahn began by tracing Harvard's history of "Veritas," from its original motto of "In Christi Gloriam," meaning "For the glory of Christ," in 1650 to its 1692 motto, "Veritas Christo et Ecclesiae," translated to "Truth for Christ and the Church." Today, only "Veritas" remains: "Truth."

The university prides itself on its academic integrity and pursuit of truth across disciplines. As Catholics, Hahn argued, we are called to do the same in our faith.

"As Catholics, we recognize the unique authority of Scripture. At the same time, we don't reduce God's word simply to the sacred page," he said. "Our faith is not a religion of the book, but it is a religion of the word. The word is, first of all, a person: the Word made flesh."

Through Jesus, especially in his humility, we can better understand Scripture, the inspired word that reflects the mystery of the Incarnate Word. Scripture, Hahn said, both communicates this mystery and participates in it.

The starting point to enter into this mystery, Hahn said, is humility.

"The foolishness of divine condescension urges that we lay aside our educated conceit in approaching the biblical words," he said. "It calls for intellectual humility in which the mind bows before the mystery."

This humility is perfectly reflected in the life of Jesus, from his birth as a baby to his death on the cross. "The power of God works through human weakness," Hahn said.

Hahn used the example of Luke 24 to exemplify Jesus' humility after the Resurrection. In the story, Jesus prevents two followers, Cleopas and an unnamed friend, from seeing who he is. He walks seven miles with them, explaining the Scriptures. After he finally reveals himself to them, Jesus disappears, leaving them to share the full truth that he has given them.

Hahn explained that the unidentified character in the story is not a mystery to be solved but rather "an invitation to the reader to identify ourselves as that, walking on the road and sharing this unique experience of Jesus."

As we walk along this path, we learn about the Word Incarnate through the written word. The Scripture that Jesus explained to Cleopas and the unnamed friend, the Old Testament, is essential for us to understand Jesus, who is the fulfillment of this Scripture.

"The New Testament is quite unintelligible theologically apart from the whole," Hahn said. The early Church understood Jesus within the context of the Old Testament, and we are called to do the same, he said.

While Jesus exemplified extreme humility in his earthly ministry, he continues to come humbly to us today, as Hahn reminded the audience: "The Eternal Word also gives himself to us as common bread."

To reject this truth of Jesus in the Eucharist is to reject Scripture, he said. "Ignorance of Christ's real presence in the Eucharist is a form of ignorance of Christ himself," Hahn said, quoting Pope Benedict XVI.

In the pursuit of veritas, both at Harvard and in our Catholic faith, Hahn closed the talk with an invitation: "I would conclude by inviting all of us, Christians or not, to take the Lord at his word, and above all to open our hearts to the Word made flesh."

The full lecture can be seen below.

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CNA Staff, Apr 7, 2025 / 15:22 pm (CNA).

The Catholic University of America (CUA) has announced that Bishop Robert Barron of Winona-Rochester, Minnesota, is set to speak at its 2025 commencement ceremony. 

Barron, a university alumnus, is known for his work evangelizing digital media through his nonprofit global media apostolate Word on Fire and his YouTube channel, which has reached nearly 2 million subscribers.

With its campus in the nation's capital of Washington, D.C., CUA is the national university of the Catholic Church in the United States.

Barron will receive an honorary degree alongside five others: U.S. Rep. Christopher Smith; former March for Life president Jeanne Mancini; Archbishop Vicken Aykazian of the Eastern Diocese of the Armenian Church of America; Monsignor John Enzler, former president of Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Washington; and Steven Muncy, alumnus and founder of the humanitarian nonprofit Community and Family Services International.

In a statement, CUA President Peter Kilpatrick praised Barron's work in education and evangelism. "Bishop Barron has spent his life illuminating Catholic teachings and making them accessible to millions of people around the world through his books, videos, and social media presence," Kilpatrick said.

In addition to founding Word on Fire, Barron is a No. 1 Amazon bestselling author and host of the "Catholicism" documentary series that aired on PBS.

"His ability to engage modern culture while faithfully presenting the richness of the Catholic intellectual tradition embodies what we strive to instill in our students," Kilpatrick continued. "His call to evangelize through beauty, goodness, and truth will provide powerful inspiration for our graduating class as they prepare to lead with light in their future endeavors."

Sharing his gratitude for the opportunity to return to his alma mater, where he earned master's degree in philosophy in 1982, Barron said: "I am honored to accept The Catholic University of America's invitation to deliver an address during this year's commencement ceremony." 

In recent years, Barron has delivered multiple commencement addresses, including at University of St. Thomas in Houston in 2021, Benedictine College in 2022, and Hillsdale College in 2023. Barron has also spoken at the headquarters of Google and Facebook, and has appeared on various networks, including CNN, Fox News, and EWTN. 

Commencement will take place on May 17 at 10 a.m. ET. Approximately 1,300 degrees are scheduled to be awarded to graduate and undergraduate students.

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