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Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Apr 17, 2025 / 14:03 pm (CNA).

More than 400 men will be ordained to the priesthood in the U.S. this year, and on average they began to consider becoming a priest at just 16 years old, according to an annual CARA survey.

The Center for Applied Research in the Apostolate (CARA) released its 2025 national survey of seminarians who are scheduled for ordination this year. Out of the 405 ordinands asked to respond, 309 participated in the survey from Jan. 10 to March 20.

The report is created in collaboration with the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops' Committee on Clergy, Consecrated Life, and Vocations and CARA to examine information on the men entering the priesthood in the U.S. each year.

The research found more than 80% of respondents are preparing for ordination to a diocese or eparchy, and on average they will be ordained into one they have lived in for 17 years before they entered the seminary. 

On average, ordinands first started to consider becoming a priest at 16 years old, but 35% said they began to think about entering the priesthood in elementary school between the ages of 6 and 13. The survey found the graduating seminarians will be ordained at an average age of 34.

The study showed the ordinands' families and upbringings played pivotal roles in their paths to the priesthood.

The majority of ordinands reported both of their parents were Catholic when they were children and 95% said they were raised by their biological parents "during the most formative part of their childhood."

Nine in 10 responding ordinands (92%) were baptized Catholic as infants. Of those who entered the Church later in life, they converted at an average age of 22.

Half of responding ordinands said they participated in a parish youth group before entering the seminary and 35% said they participated in Catholic campus ministry. About 23% said they  participated in Knights of Columbus or Knights of Peter Claver. The study also found that 21% of ordinates were involved in Boy Scouts in their youth.

The majority of the respondents (73%) served as altar servers. About 46% served as lectors, 34% distributed holy Communion as extraordinary ministers, and 32% taught as catechists. 

Many ordinands were inspired to become a priest by someone in their life. Thirty-one percent reported having, or previously having had, a relative who is a priest or religious who encouraged their entrance to the seminary. 

While 89% reported being encouraged to consider the priesthood by someone in their life, 43% said they felt discouraged by one or more persons when deciding to enter the seminary. The report found that most often that person was a friend or family member. 

In accordance with past years, the most popular region in which men chose to study for the priesthood was in the Midwest, with 37% in seminaries there. Out of the other seminarians, 29% chose to attend a seminary in the South, 16% in the Northeast, and 13% in the West. Only 5% chose to study at a seminary abroad. 

In regard to prayer, Eucharistic adoration remained the most popular form of prayer among the seminarians with 78% of respondents reporting they participated in adoration on a regular basis before entering the seminary. The other most common forms of prayer were the rosary, a form of Bible study, and participation in lectio divina. 

Education was also a contributing factor in the respondents' decision to enter priesthood.

The report stated between 36% and 46% of ordinands attended a Catholic school for grades K-12 and/or at the college level.

The study also found more than 15% were home-schooled at some point in their lives. Out of all ordinates, 58% participated in a religious education program in their parish for an average of six years.

Respondents reported receiving higher education and carrying out full-time work prior to entering the seminary.

More than half (63%) said they completed an undergraduate degree or a graduate degree before becoming a seminarian. The most common fields the men studied were philosophy, engineering, business, science, and math. 

The majority (66%) also reported having some form of full-time work experience prior to entering the seminary, including 6% who served in the U.S. Armed Forces.

About one-quarter of responding ordinands were originally from a foreign country. Out of the 26% born abroad, the majority were originally from Mexico, Vietnam, and the Philippines.

The research found that the majority of responding ordinands were white (69%); 12% were Hispanic/Latino; 12% were Asian, Pacific Islander, or Native Hawaiian; and 6% were Black.

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CNA Staff, Apr 17, 2025 / 14:34 pm (CNA).

Blessed Carlo Acutis, the gaming teenager who had a deep love for Christ in the Eucharist, is about to become the Catholic Church's first millennial saint. Acutis will be canonized during the Church's Jubilee for Teenagers on April 27 in St. Peter's Square.

Catholics can participate in the novena to Acutis starting on April 18 and ending on April 27, the date of his canonization. The novena consists of an opening prayer, daily meditations, and the recitation of five Our Fathers, five Hail Marys, and five Glory Bes, which are meant to thank God for the graces bestowed upon Acutis during the 15 years of his earthly life.

The opening prayer is:

Most Holy Trinity, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, I thank you for all the grace and favors with which you enriched the soul of Blessed Carlo Acutis during his 15 years on Earth. Through the merits of this angel of youth, grant me the grace that I earnestly seek: (ask for the grace that you seek).

Day 1: "Not me but God"

Blessed Carlo Acutis, you who made your life a continual renunciation and setting aside of unimportant things, give me the grace to seek heavenly things and despise that which is transient. Amen.

(Pray five Our Fathers, five Hail Marys, and five Glory Bes.)

Day 2: "Always to be united with Jesus — that is my life's program." 

Blessed Carlo Acutis, you who have lived in the heart of Jesus, give me the grace to apply Jesus' plan of love to everything. Amen.

(Pray five Our Fathers, five Hail Marys, and five Glory Bes.)

Day 3: "Continuously ask your guardian angel for help. Your guardian angel has to become your best friend." 

Blessed Carlo Acutis, you who saw the company of holy angels while you were already in this world, give me the grace to live righteously, as my guardian angel desires. Amen.

Day 4: "Our soul is like a hot-air balloon... If by chance there is a mortal sin, the soul falls to the ground. Confession is like the fire underneath the balloon enabling the soul to rise again… It is important to go to confession often." 

Blessed Carlo Acutis, you who have lived this sacrament of reconciliation so well, give me the grace constantly to seek confession and the grace of a deep contrition. Amen.

Day 5: "Sadness is looking at ourselves; happiness is looking toward God." 

Blessed Carlo Acutis, you who have never looked away from your great love, Jesus, give me the grace also to live with this happiness in this world. Amen.

Day 6: "The only thing we have to ask God for, in prayer, is the desire to be holy." 

Blessed Carlo Acutis, you who have always asked God for what is essential, give me the grace of a deep desire for heaven. Amen.

Day 7: "The Virgin Mary is the only woman in my life." 

Blessed Carlo Acutis, you who loved the Virgin Mary above all women, give me the grace to respond to her kind and good love. Amen.

Day 8: "The Eucharist is my highway to heaven." 

Blessed Carlo Acutis, you who have always looked for your hidden Jesus in the tabernacle, give me the grace of a deep fervor for the Eucharist. Amen.

Day 9: "I am happy to die because I have lived my life without wasting a minute on those things that do not please God." 

Blessed Carlo Acutis, give me that grace of graces — perseverance to the end and a saintly death. Amen. 

End each day with the following prayer:

Almighty God, father of mercy, we thank you for raising Blessed Carlo Acutis to the glory of the altars in the upcoming Jubilee of Teenagers, so that through him you may be even more glorified. He lived your will in all things. Through his merit, give me the grace that I so ardently desire. Amen.

The novena can also be found on EWTN Travel Jubilee app, which can be downloaded for free on the Apple Store and Google Play store.

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CNA Staff, Apr 17, 2025 / 15:05 pm (CNA).

The National Catholic Education Association (NCEA) this week released the annual report for Catholic school data, which among other things indicated that school choice is on the rise.  

In the 2024-2025 school year, there were 1.6 million Catholic school students and more than 150,000 professional staff members, with a student to teacher ratio of about 11 to 1. Nearly 40% of Catholic schools had a waiting list.

This school year, 63 Catholic schools closed while 24 new Catholic schools opened. This is a slight increase in both closures and openings from last year but marks a continued break from the early 2000s trend, which averaged 130 Catholic school closures per year. 

Of the 5,852 Catholic schools in the United States, 31% use parental school choice programs. 

Sister Dale McDonald, a sister of the Presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary and NCEA vice president of public policy, said that in states with "robust" school choice programs, "we have seen enrollment increases."

The report highlighted that 18% of students use school choice programs, which is up by nearly 5% from last year.

In Arizona, Indiana, Iowa, and Oklahoma, more than half of Catholic school students used school choice programs, Sister Dale noted. In Florida and Ohio, it's more than 80%. 

"We firmly believe that parents, as primary educators of their children, have a right to choose what they see as the best option for the child and that choice should not be conditioned solely on zip code or annual salary," Sister Dale told CNA.

Sister Dale noted that school choice programs "enable a more diverse population to attend our schools," which "enhances our mission of promoting faith and scholarship in a Christian community." 

Three-quarters of Catholic schools serve students with a diagnosed disability and 9% of Catholic school students have a diagnosed disability — a percentage that has grown slightly but steadily in recent years.  

In addition, about 15% of students are eligible for free or reduced lunch and 7% of students receive Title I services, a federal program designed to help struggling students in impoverished areas. 

At Catholic schools, 60% of students are white, nearly 15% are Hispanic, nearly 8% are Black, and about 4% are Asian.  

About 1 in 5 students attending Catholic schools are not Catholic, according to the report. 

"Serving all students who want a Catholic education regardless of their religious affiliation has a long tradition within our mission, particularly serving the poor and marginalized," Sister Dale said. 

For instance, one historic Catholic school in a largely Protestant neighborhood in Cleveland has an all-Black, non-Catholic student body. 

Recently released data revealed that Catholic schools surpassed public schools in reading and math testing scores, according to the Nation's Report Card.

Sister Dale noted that these test scores consistently "have demonstrated that Catholic school students outperform their public school counterparts."

For Sister Dale, this reflects "our commitment to educating the whole student, preparing him or her for leading a moral life and contributing to the common good."

The association is currently advocating for the passage of the Educational Choice for Children Act, a proposed $10 billion nationwide school choice program.

Sister Dale said supporting school choice programs is all about "what is best for the child."

NCEA President and CEO Steven F. Cheeseman noted that these data and trends "help tell the national story of Catholic education."  

"Our hope is that this data will empower our communities with clarity and purpose and inspire the continued growth of Catholic education for generations to come," Cheeseman said in a statement shared with CNA.

"Together, we continue to shine the light of Christ through the lives we form every day."

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CNA Staff, Apr 17, 2025 / 15:31 pm (CNA).

Catholic students at Florida State University have been praying and assiting their fellow Seminoles amid a mass shooting at the campus on Thursday, a ministry leader there told CNA. 

News outlets reported on Thursday afternoon that multiple people had been injured during a shooting on the Tallahassee campus. Officials said the shooter was taken into custody after the incident. The shooting reportedly took place in or near the campus student union.

Sam Nunnally, the Catholic campus ministry director at the university, told CNA via email that the ministry's parish and facilities "are directly across the street from the FSU student union. So we could hear gunshots as the incident occurred."

"Many of the students in that area came running up the hill towards the church and remained in lockdown here for the duration of the event," Nunnally said. 

Campus ministry staff have been serving the students food and drink while waiting for the campus to be declared safe, he said. 

"Many of our Catholic students have been in prayer, saying rosaries, and helping serve the other students that arrived at our facilities," he said.

In a 2:50 p.m. tweet on Thursday, the university told community members to "continue to shelter in place."

"Law enforcement is actively clearing rooms on the main campus," the school said. "Continue to shelter in place until law enforcement contacts you."

Referring to the ongoing prayer and service at the Catholic facility, Nunnally said that, as director of the Catholic ministry, "it brings me great joy, even in the midst of sorrow, to see our Catholic students living out their faith real-time in the midst of such a dire situation." 

"We hope that Catholics everywhere will say a prayer for Florida State, the Co-cathedral of St. Thomas Moore, and Catholic Noles," he said. 

This is a developing story.

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St. Louis, Mo., Apr 17, 2025 / 10:54 am (CNA).

Raised in a conservative Jewish household in New York, David Moss had his bar mitzvah at age 13. In his heart, though, he had lost his faith in Judaism.

What followed was a 23-year period of searching for religious truth and life's meaning, culminating in a dramatic mystical conversion experience that led Moss to embrace the Catholic faith in 1979.

Despite being a happy and committed Catholic today, Moss, 83, has not left his Jewish identity and heritage behind. He is the longtime president of the Association of Hebrew Catholics (AHC), a St. Louis-based group that seeks to provide a welcoming place for Jewish converts to Catholicism and encourage them to preserve their Jewish identity.

When he entered the Church in the 1970s, "I still had a ton to learn. I knew very little … especially how [Catholicism] connected to my Jewish origins. The going narrative was that my Judaism was finished, over," Moss told CNA.

Amid his own reading and research, Moss encountered Father Elias Friedman, a Carmelite friar and founder of the AHC, who he says helped him to understand that rather than obliterating his Jewish identity, "Catholicism is Judaism in its developed, fulfilled form."

"It's like a child that becomes an adult. The adult doesn't replace the child. The adult and the child are one reality. They're just the different phases of their existence," Moss said of his understanding of the relationship between Catholicism and Judaism.

The AHC isn't an official organ of the Church, but its ministry mirrors that of the St. James Vicariate, an association for Hebrew Catholics in the Holy Land that was founded in 1955 and is within the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem, serving about a thousand Catholic faithful living in Israel who are immersed in a Hebrew cultural and linguistic environment.

After Moss took over as president of the AHC in 1993, he would often invite his Catholic friends to celebrate the Passover Seder with him and his family in his home, even once hosting Cardinal Raymond Burke, then the archbishop of St. Louis.

Moss said many "Hebrew Catholics" continue to practice aspects of their Judaism; they continue to eat the Passover Seder with their families and friends, observe Shabbat (the Sabbath), and some even continue to visit the synagogue, the place of Jewish communal prayer and learning. 

"There's nothing that we do that's in violation of anything Catholic," he stressed. "To me, [continuing to observe the traditions of Judaism] just makes Catholicism even greater, because it's all part of God's plan."

"None of the documents talk about what Jews can or can't do as Catholics," he continued. 

"So, while we're waiting for the theologians to work all that out, we're working it out on the ground, and we try to make sure that anything we do doesn't go against any established Catholic doctrine or discipline," he explained.

The Church and Judaism

The Catholic Church has, especially since the Second Vatican Council in the 1960s, taught the importance of the common spiritual heritage of Jews and Christians, and condemned any attempt to implicate the entire Jewish people in the death of Jesus. 

Moreover, the Church has reaffirmed that despite Christ's New Covenant being the fulfillment of the Jewish Old Covenant, the Old Covenant has never been revoked (Catechism of the Catholic Church, No. 121) and the Jews remain God's chosen people.

Chief among the Church's teachings regarding Judaism is Nostra Aetate, written by St. Paul VI in 1965, which addressed the Church's stance toward all non-Christian religions. In paragraph 4, the document acknowledges the "great … spiritual patrimony common to Christians and Jews," recommending a stance of "mutual understanding and respect which is the fruit, above all, of biblical and theological studies as well as of fraternal dialogues."

Nostra Aetate also strongly articulates the Church's condemnation of hatred and violence against Jews and Judaism, noting that the Jewish people as a whole are not to be held responsible for Christ's death and decrying all "hatred, persecutions, displays of antisemitism, directed against Jews at any time and by anyone."

Later on, in 1985, the Congregation (now Dicastery) for Promoting Christian Unity released a document that spoke of a "permanent reality of the Jewish people." 

Drawing extensively from a 1982 speech by St. John Paul II, the document notes that Jews and Christians are "linked together at the very level of their identity"; the document said that an "awareness of the faith and religious life of the Jewish people as they are professed and practiced still today can greatly help us to understand better certain aspects of the life of the Church."

And in a 1988 document, the U.S. bishops went a step further by explicitly encouraging Catholics to reverently take part in Holocaust (Shoah) memorials and even in Passover Seders, citing the "educational and spiritual value" of doing so. 

The bishops warned, however, against attempting to "baptize" the Seder by ending it with New Testament readings about the Last Supper "or, worse, turn it into a prologue to the Eucharist."

"Such mergings distort both traditions," the bishops wrote, saying that any attempt by Christians to participate in Passover celebrations should be done to "acknowledge common roots in the history of salvation." The tradition of the Seder "truly belongs" to the Jews, however, whereas the Christian celebration of the Triduum is the appropriate "annual memorial of the events of Jesus' dying and rising."

Popular works published in recent years such as Brant Pitre's "Jesus and the Jewish Roots of the Eucharist" and Scott Hahn's "The Fourth Cup" have contributed to many Catholics' understanding of the Jewish roots of the Catholic faith and the Eucharist in particular.

Lawrence Feingold, a former agnostic who converted to Catholicism in 1989 and today serves as director of theology for the AHC, told EWTN's "The Journey Home" in 2019 that he was estranged from his Jewish upbringing for many years; only after he became Catholic did he begin to connect back to his Jewish faith and become interested in preserving and practicing it.

"It's so tragic that it's so often understood as an either/or," Feingold said, referring to the way many people view Jewish and Catholic identity.

"Whereas for us [Feingold and his wife, Marsha], becoming Catholic opened up the way to the Old Testament," he continued, saying that after he and Marsha became Catholic, they lived for a time in Jerusalem to learn Hebrew, with the Church of the Holy Sepulcher — the traditional site of Jesus' resurrection — as their "home parish." Feingold said he views God's calling and preparation of the Jewish people the work of "the ultimate artist."

"You can't do the perfect thing without perfectly preparing. And the perfect thing is that God became man … and he's got to prepare for it. And he prepares it in a properly human way by calling a people in which he's going to become man, and forming that people with all of their particularity … so that he can become man in them."

Facing antisemitism

Jewish organizations have sounded the alarm in recent years over an apparent rise in antisemitic incidents and attitudes, especially since the start of the Israel-Hamas war in October 2023. The American Jewish Committee, in a February report examining all of 2024, reported that 77% of American Jews say they feel less safe as a Jewish person in the U.S. following Hamas' attacks and their aftermath. 

The Catholic bishops of the United States, as a body, have condemned in recent years what they call a "reemergence of antisemitism in new forms." In a statement released before the start of the current Israel-Hamas conflict, the bishops called on Christians to join them in opposing acts of antisemitism and reminding the faithful of Christianity's shared heritage with Judaism. Individual bishops have also spoken out.

Moss commented that he has encountered antisemitic attitudes among fellow Catholics over the years, particularly from those who criticized his stance that one can be a fully observant Catholic while still practicing Jewish traditions — though rarely could any of those Catholic critics provide any official Church teaching to support their claims, Moss said.

He emphasized the need for Catholics to study the Old Testament to fully understand God's plan of salvation and address misconceptions about Jewish-Catholic identity.

"One of the things that all Catholics should do is read the Old Testament as well as the New, and get commentaries that treat the Old Testament seriously with lessons for us today, with lessons that Christ himself built on to preach his message," Moss said. 

For example, "Jesus didn't come up with a new set of Ten Commandments. They were already in existence. He didn't come up with the notions of mercy and love. They were already there in the Old Testament."

Moss, in his mid-80s, said he is on the search for his successor to lead the AHC. Meanwhile, the organization continues to grow slowly, working within the Church's framework while advocating for the recognition and integration of Jewish traditions in Catholic practice — above all, encouraging Jews who become Catholics not to lose their identity. 

After all, Moss concluded, the New Covenant is the means of salvation, but the Old Covenant has never passed away.

"[Jewish converts] can do everything a Catholic does, but they have their own traditions as well, and they shouldn't have to give them up," he said.

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CNA Staff, Apr 17, 2025 / 11:28 am (CNA).

Here is a roundup of recent pro-life and abortion-related news:

Hundreds join St. Louis March for Life

On Saturday an estimated 700 pro-lifers marched on the Gateway Arch for the eighth annual St. Louis March for Life run by Coalition Life. 

Before marching through the streets of downtown St. Louis to the 630-foot-tall stainless steel monument, various pro-life leaders and politicians gave speeches encouraging Missourians to fight for life. 

Heavy on the minds of speakers was last November's vote to enshrine a right to abortion in the state constitution, an amendment that led to the reversal of many of the state's pro-life laws.  

Reagan Barklage, the national field director of Students for Life, encouraged people to carry on "after suffering such a big blow" last November.

"Let this be the motivation to undo what has tragically happened," Barklage said.

Speakers also included Lt. Gov. Dave Wasinger; Rev. Andy Becker, manager of family ministry for the Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod; Mary Varni, the director of the Respect Life Apostolate of the Archdiocese of St. Louis; and Tim Jones, the former speaker of the Missouri House of Representatives.

"Together, we proclaimed the importance of defending the sanctity of life and standing for justice in our society, remembering that every person is made in the image of God, our creator," Coalition Life said in a statement.

Nebraska lawmakers debate over respectful treatment of aborted human remains

Nebraska lawmakers spent more than three hours on Monday debating whether the remains of aborted babies should be treated with dignity.

The debate took place over a bill that would require clinics to bury or cremate the remains of aborted children. That measure is currently under consideration in the Legislature. 

Proposed by state Sen. Ben Hansen, the bill would require health care facilities "to respect the dignity of aborted unborn children and dispose of their remains." The bill wouldn't require clinics to give notice to mothers about the method of disposition. It would not cover human remains from chemical abortions.

At least 15 other states have similar laws protecting the remains of unborn children who die by abortion.

Hansen this week argued that aborted human remains "are human bodies, and as such, they deserve to be treated with human respect," according to local media.

Hansen noted that in cases of miscarriages, the remains are "treated humanely and securely for public health reasons," but for abortions, "our current statute makes an exception."

An opponent of the bill, state Sen. Ashlei Spivey, maintained that the measure was "about shaming and stigmatizing care" and "removing patients' control."

"No matter what you personally believe about abortion, proposing this type of requirement without the patient having a say is wrong and insulting," Spivey claimed. 

Spivey previously filed a motion to postpone the bill indefinitely, but it failed.

Texas House approves additional $70 million to support life-affirming pregnancy centers 

The Texas Legislature is considering increasing the state fund supporting life-affirming crisis pregnancy centers by $70 million over the next two years. 

The Republican-led state House voted last week to set aside $210 million to a state fund known as the Thriving Families program to promote childbirth and fund pregnancy centers. 

If agreed upon by the state Senate and signed by Gov. Greg Abbott, the spending plan would entail a $70 million increase for life-affirming pregnancy support over the next two years coming from the state's Medicaid budget.

Proponents such as state Rep. Tom Oliverson maintain that the program helps provide much-needed support for pregnant women and their children, while opponents like state Rep. Donna Howard argue that the funds should be spent on direct health care or to address maternal mortality. 

Texas state law protects the lives of all unborn children from abortion except in cases where the mother's life is at risk.

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Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Apr 16, 2025 / 18:36 pm (CNA).

An ecumenical Palestinian Christian organization doubled down on criticism of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) this week, accusing the body of dismissing concerns of Palestinian Christians and portraying opposition to the Israeli government as antisemitic.

The organization, Kairos Palestine, is led by Catholic Patriarch Emeritus Michel Sabbah and is composed of Catholic, Orthodox, and Protestant Christian Palestinians. The group supports "nonviolent resistance" to Israeli policies in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank, which includes boycotts, divestment, and sanctions against Israel.

"As Palestinian Christians living through one of the darkest periods in our history, we are compelled to speak the truth," Kairos Palestine's leaders wrote in an April 14 letter to the USCCB.

The dispute between the two groups is rooted in the USCCB's partnership with the American Jewish Committee (AJC) to create a Catholic edition of AJC's "Translate Hate" document, which is meant to condemn antisemitism and educate Catholics on antisemitic phrases and beliefs.

Defining antisemitism

Kairos Palestine affirmed in a March 25 letter to the American bishops that "our criticisms of Israel's policies and the actions of its leaders are not directed at Jewish communities or Judaism itself," but it expressed disapproval of a few elements of the "Translate Hate" document related to Zionism and the State of Israel.

The document adopts the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) definition of antisemitism, which states that manifestations of antisemitism "might include the targeting of the state of Israel" and lists as examples any claim that "the existence of a state of Israel is a racist endeavor" and the application of "double standards" against Israel. It notes that not all criticism of Israel, however, is antisemitic.

According to the "Translate Hate" document, the IHRA definition was used because alternative definitions defend "anti-Israel and anti-Zionist expressions" as not being forms of antisemitism.

Zionism refers to the political movement founded in 1897 aimed at creating a Jewish national homeland and a Jewish state in the Holy Land; international recognition was achieved in 1917 with the Balfour Declaration, followed by the creation of the State of Israel in 1948.

The "Translate Hate" document refers to anti-Zionism as "the belief that the Jewish people do not have the right to a national home in their ancestral homeland" and states that it is widely believed to be "a form of antisemitism."

Additionally, the document states that calling Zionism inherently racist is antisemitic and alleging that Zionism is a form of "settler colonialism" with the mission of "ethnic cleansing" of Palestinian people is antisemitic and "categorically false." It states that Jews are "native and indigenous to the land" and that Zionists "never had the goal of eliminating the Arab population living in the region."

In its March 25 letter to the USCCB, Kairos Palestine referenced these aspects of the "Translate Hate" document as the reasons for their objections, asserting it "dangerously equates Zionism with Judaism" and ignores "overwhelming evidence" of an ethnic cleansing of Palestinians.

"It equates Palestinian resistance with antisemitism, a dangerous conflation that distorts reality and undermines legitimate criticism of Israeli racist laws and policies," the Palestinian Christian group argued. "We categorically reject all forms of antisemitism, just as we reject any attempt to use this charge to justify oppression and to criminalize our legitimate struggle for our basic rights and our right for self-determination."

Kairos Palestine's letter says the USCCB "has alienated the indigenous Christians of the Holy Land, causing deep pain to a community struggling for survival" by signing onto this document and is "ignoring their unalienable rights to live in their ancestral homeland and offering the State of Israel a justification for their forced displacement."

USCCB's answer and Kairos Palestine's response

Archbishop Timothy Broglio, the president of the USCCB, provided a response less than one week later on March 31, telling Kairos Palestine in a letter that the USCCB "partnered with the Jewish community … to develop a Catholic commentary on the Translate Hate educational resource authored by [AJC]" in response to rising antisemitism, the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas attack on Israel and the subsequent Israeli invasion of Gaza.

"Here in our country, there are some who stand with Jewish Israelis and others who stand with Palestinians," he continued. "Too often, people of a side or camp do not want to hear that our hearts are broken for all the lives that have been lost, all the worlds that have been destroyed. Empathy has thus become a further casualty of this war."

Broglio wrote that the USCCB is also working on a document to combat Islamophobia with Muslim partners. He added that the USCCB does not try "to speak on behalf of Palestinian Christians" but rather speaks "to and on behalf of the Catholic community in the United States."

"I know that, as Christians who have experienced great suffering yourselves, you understand the imperative to stand with all who suffer and to combat hatred wherever it is expressed," he wrote.

The letter did not directly respond to the specific objections about the definition of antisemitism or the examples that Kairos Palestine criticized.

Kairos Palestine followed up with the USCCB this week, sending another letter calling Broglio's response "unacceptable," stating that "nowhere in the bishop's letter is there any indication that the USCCB intends to 'stand with' their Palestinian siblings to prepare a document describing the extent of the suffering we are experiencing."

"We are grieved and disheartened by the complete erasure of the Palestinian Christian voice in their response," the Kairos Palestine leaders wrote.

"The Palestinian people in Gaza and in the West Bank are enduring what can only be described as a war of extermination, a genocide and ethnic cleansing," they continued. "Entire families have been annihilated. Homes, churches, and hospitals have been destroyed. Over 50,000 people, the majority of whom are women and children, have been killed. This is not a conflict between equals. It is a campaign of destruction carried out by a powerful apartheid state, supported militarily and financially by the United States and a number of European countries."

The follow-up letter accuses the Catholic Church in the United States of being "silent about this devastation" and asserts "it shares in the responsibility for our suffering." It adds: "It is not enough to condemn hate. You must also condemn the systems and powers that perpetuate injustice."

"We categorically reject the conflation of our legitimate struggle for freedom, dignity, and human rights with antisemitism," they added. "We are not anti-Jewish, anti-Judaism, or anti-Semitic. We are a people resisting occupation, apartheid, and dispossession. Equating this with hatred is both theologically and morally wrong."

CNA reached out to the USCCB for comment on Kairos Palestine's April 14 response but did not receive a response by the time of publication.

Simone Rizkallah, the director of Philos Catholic at The Philos Project, told CNA the "Translate Hate" Catholic edition "is pastoral in nature and shows that the bishops are not tone deaf to the sufferings of our fathers in faith." The Philos Project is a pro-Israel nonprofit that also works to support persecuted Christians in the Middle East and "a revival of Western values rooted in the Hebraic origins of our faith."

"Antisemitism was on the rise before the war, and certainly now after the war," Rizkallah said. "In no way is protecting American Jews dismissing the right of Palestinians to live in safety and security. We are praying for our brothers and sisters in Palestine, we are praying for the release of the 59 remaining hostages and their families who recently visited the United States, the release of which would end the war immediately but which the Hamas terrorists refuse to do."

Rizkallah said the document does not dismiss "the suffering of our Palestinian brothers and sisters" and that the intended audience is "American Catholics who are picking up a dangerous anti-Jewish and antisemitic spirit."

"The aggressors in this conflict hate not only Jews and Israel, but Christians and Americans and the West," she added. "We categorically reject the conflation of fighting an American pastoral issue with the war in Israel and Gaza."

Kairos Palestine's 'open call' to the USCCB

In the April 14 letter, Kairos Palestine issued an "open call" to American bishops to "see and stand with us," adding that "we demand to be seen" and "we demand to be heard."

Kairos Palestine asked the USCCB to "recognize the suffering of Palestinian people including Palestinian Christians and publicly denounce the illegal Israeli occupation, apartheid, and genocide against our people." They also asked the bishops to urge the United States government to halt military funding for Israel "until it complies with international laws."

The Palestinian Christian organization urged the USCCB to engage with them to create a resource that "reflects the experience of Palestinian Christians under the Israeli occupation and apartheid." They also requested that the USCCB revisit Kairos Palestine's foundational document and "respond theologically and practically to our messages and calls."

Additionally, Kairos Palestine requested that the bishops meet with Palestinian Christians in Gaza or the West Bank, adding "we will be happy to be your host."

"While we are approaching Easter, we continue to hold firm to our faith and to the hope of resurrection," they added. "We call on our brothers and sisters in Christ to act now, not only in prayer, but in prophetic witness."

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Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Apr 16, 2025 / 08:00 am (CNA).

Heritage Foundation President Kevin Roberts is calling on Americans to become more open about their faith as a means to "revitalizing" religious belief in the United States. 

"I think it's important, as we are on the brink of Easter during Holy Week, to encourage people of all faiths, whether they're Christians like me or Jews or Muslims, to speak about their faith," said Roberts during a Tuesday appearance on "EWTN News Nightly."

"This is an opportunity here in the United States, not just for political and policymaking success, but more importantly, for the revitalization of our faith as individuals and also as a country," he said. 

Earlier this week Roberts penned an op-ed for the Daily Signal in which the former Wyoming Catholic College president highlighted "the distinct importance that America's Founding Fathers placed on Christianity, particularly Our Lord's passion and resurrection." 

Roberts in that op-ed called for the return of religious practice to the public sphere. 

"As Christians around the country reflect on that same story this Easter, we should resolve to transform our gratitude — for the political freedoms that our Founding Fathers fought for and the spiritual freedom that Christ died for — into action," he wrote. 

On Tuesday, meanwhile, Roberts told EWTN News Capitol Hill Correspondent Erik Rosales that President Donald Trump has "done two things exceptionally well thus far."

"The first is he's been unabashed about speaking about America's religious roots," he said. "The second thing that he's done — and it's both in the State Department and across the administration and other agencies — is end the Obama-Biden-era practice of running roughshod over religious liberty."

"It's not that we want to establish one particular religion as the official one," he said. "It's that we, just as people of faith, want to be able to do more than just have private religious thoughts. We actually want to live out our faith in the public square."

Roberts insisted that for America to experience a true "cultural awakening," it must be willing to practice religion publicly. 

"That awakening is not going to come from politics and policy, it's going to come from each of us," he said. "We can make [politicians'] jobs easier as it relates to policymaking if we live out our respective faiths with zeal, with a real passion, with a persuasiveness to bring people to the truth."

Ultimately, he said, the "golden age of America" will not be ushered in merely by economic policies or by reforming Washington.

"Most importantly, it's going to be because each of us plays a role in revitalizing the religious institutions in our lives and our communities," he said.

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Vatican City, Apr 16, 2025 / 10:13 am (CNA).

Pope Francis on Wednesday said the Gospel is a "message of hope" founded on the belief that God is a merciful father and not a slave master.

Using Rembrandt's oil painting "Return of the Prodigal Son" as a source of inspiration for his April 16 catechesis, the Holy Father said God's love is like that of a father who goes out in search of his lost children. 

"In this we find the heart of the Gospel of Jesus, namely God's mercy," the pope said in his written reflection on the parable of the merciful father with two sons.

"The Gospel is intended to give us a message of hope, because it tells us that wherever we are lost, and however we are lost, God always comes looking for us!" he added.

In his catechesis, the Holy Father said the eldest son who "does not share his father's joy" in the parable "represents those for whom the parable is told" — those who judge others and do not realize that they are also lost.

"He is the son who always stayed at home with his father yet was distant from him, distant in heart," he said. "This son may have wanted to leave too, but out of fear or duty he stayed there, in that relationship." 

"When you adapt unwillingly, however, you begin to harbor anger within you, and sooner or later this anger explodes," he added. "Paradoxically, it is precisely the eldest son who in the end risks being left out."

Reflecting on the situation of the younger son who "hits rock bottom" after squandering his inheritance, the pope said his father did not refuse to welcome him back home even though his son "got tired of being in a relationship that he felt was too demanding."

In his written catechesis, the Holy Father added that it was the merciful father's gratuitous love that freed his son from the "distorted belief" that he needed to earn back his father's respect or beg for his affection when he returned home.

"Only those who truly love us can free us from this false view of love," the pope said. "In the relationship with God, we have precisely this experience."

"The young man's head is shaven, like that of a penitent, but it also looks like the head of a child, because this son is being born again," the Holy Father said, commenting on Rembrandt's painting.

Asking his readers to "take a position" and ask "where am I in the story?" the pope prayed: "Let us ask God the Father for the grace that we too can find our way back home."

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Paris, France, Apr 16, 2025 / 06:00 am (CNA).

A new survey in France illuminates the surprising pathways bringing young people to the Catholic faith in unprecedented numbers at the coming Easter vigil.

The Catholic Church in France will welcome a record number of adults into the faith this weekend, with particularly strong growth in the numbers of young adults and teenagers, according to newly released statistics from the country's Conference of Bishops (CEF).

A survey of 900 French catechumens conducted by Catholic media outlets Famille Chrétienne and Aleteia has revealed that social media plays a crucial role in attracting young adults to Catholicism, with 78% saying social media played a role in the discovery or deepening of their faith, while 84% said they follow Christian content creators or "influencers."

Examples given were Dominican Father Paul-Adrien d'Hardemare, who has 481,000 subscribers on YouTube, and Le Catho de Service, which features a lay apologist named Victor who says his goal is to "motivate a generation of saints to re-evangelize France." He has more than 200,000 followers on TikTok.

However, 54% said it was a priest, a religious, or a catechist who "helped them the most in their faith journey," while 32% said it was friends.

A striking finding was that 65% said they did not grow up in a religious family, with 50% claiming they had discovered the faith on their own. Catechumens said they came to the faith initially through personal research (40%), through family (23%), or through friends (14%). About 40% said they had a "founding spiritual experience that pushed them to take their journey further," the report said.

The French bishops reported that 10,384 adults will be baptized this year on Easter Saturday evening, a 45% increase from the previous year. They will stand alongside more than 7,400 adolescents aged 11 to 17, also considerably higher than the year before.

This continues a trend of increased interest in the Catholic faith among young French people that was also seen over Easter 2024.

"These results, which further exceed the record figures collected last year, are the highest ever recorded since the CEF began this survey more than 20 years ago," said a statement from the French bishops.

It added that 13 dioceses will more than double the number of baptized adults. As well as the surge in catechumens, the CEF said there had been an increase in the number of adults who were baptized as children and are now choosing to be confirmed in the faith.

The data revealed that the trend in adult baptisms is particularly strong in women and those under 40. The conference said 42% of catechumens this year are in the 18-24 age group and nearly two-thirds of catechumens are female. 

"We can already see it as encouragement from the Lord, reminding us that he is the master of the mission; he is the one who draws us to himself, touches hearts, and reveals himself," said Archbishop Olivier de Germay of Lyon, who is also member of the Commission for Initiation and Christian Life, in a statement.

"Let us give thanks to God," he said, stressing the importance of discipleship for the new converts.  

Over the English Channel in the United Kingdom, there is also evidence of a surge of interest in Christianity in young adults and suggestions that online content might be influencing them, too. 

A recent report from the Bible Society, a charity based in England that promotes reading Scripture, found that churchgoing had increased significantly in the youngest adult age group over the past six years, with 16% of 18- to-24-year-olds saying they are monthly churchgoers compared with 19% of those over 65. That makes young adults the second most likely age group to attend church in the U.K., and the trend is particularly strong in young men. 

This year across England there were increased numbers of catechumens and candidates at the Rite of Election at the start of Lent. Anecdotally, many of these new entrants are young men, their interest sparked by social media such as content from U.S.-based Bishop Robert Barron and Father Mike Schmitz. 

Young adults in the U.K. are now twice as likely to attend Catholic churches than the Church of England, as only 20% of churchgoers identify as Anglican compared with 41% identifying as Catholic and 18% as Pentecostal, the Bible Society said.

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