Most Popular News Within Last 30 Days
Latvia’s president, Pontiff discuss peace
President Edgars Rinkēvičs of Latvia discussed peace during a September 4 audience with Pope Leo XIV. “It was an honor to meet His Holiness Pope Leo XIV,” President Rinkēvičs said in...Fire destroys historic Canadian church; man charged with arson
A 68-year-old man was charged with arson after a fire destroyed the Catholic church in Saint-Simon, New Brunswick, in Canada.CBC Radio-Canada reported that the church was “believed to be the largest wooden church left in New Brunswick.”
“This event has plunged us into deep sorrow,” said Bishop Michel Proulx, O. Praem., of Bathurst. “What an immeasurable loss! So many memories are tied to this beautiful wooden church: baptisms, weddings, funerals, and so many other significant events. Several generations of Christians celebrated their faith there, and it was the precious legacy of our ancestors.”
Kenyan man arrested for pretending to be a priest
A Kenyan husband and father was arrested after reportedly pretending to act as a priest in the Diocese of Lodwar.The man reportedly used forged documents and simulated the celebration of Mass in three churches, including the cathedral, before he was apprehended.
Cameroon archbishop drafting catechism on peace following abductions of priests
An archbishop in strife-torn Cameroon is drafting a catechism on peace, partly as a response to the abduction of priests.Archbishop Andrew Nkea Fuanya described the situation in the Archdiocese of Bamenda, where some parishes and other Catholic institutions were temporarily closed because of the abductions.
The separatists who abducted priests “were young people from the community itself,” he said. “Many of their parents were Christians, and some of them also considered themselves Christians. They could attend Mass on Sunday and shortly afterwards kidnap a priest.”
Seeing a need to “start again,” Archbishop Fuanya said that “we want to build a new culture. A culture based on respect for the human person, the value of life, reconciliation, and peace.”
Iraqi PM wants Christians to return
Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi of Iraq said that the “return of Christians who were forced to leave the country due to the difficult circumstances Iraq endured is a national and government priority.”“Iraq’s true strength lies in its national, religious, and cultural diversity, and in the unity, integration, and social cohesion of its people,” the prime minister said during a recent meeting with the new Chaldean Catholic Patriarch, Paul III Nona. “Christians are an active component, an essential part of Iraqi society, and a key partner in building the state and shaping Iraq’s history and future.”
Texas bishop establishes 1st parish named after Ghanaian ISIS martyr
The bishop of Fort Worth, Texas, announced the establishment of the “first Ghanaian National Catholic parish in the United States and the first Catholic parish anywhere in the world to be established under the patronage of Saint Matthew Ayariga, the Ghanaian Catholic migrant whose courageous profession of faith in Jesus Christ led to his martyrdom in Libya in 2015.”“Not much is known about Matthew Ayariga other than that he was Ghanaian and a migrant worker in Libya,” Bishop Michael Olson wrote in an August 28 letter. “He was among the group of Christian men abducted and murdered by ISIS on the shores of the Mediterranean Sea.”
“Twenty of his coworkers were Egyptian Coptic Orthodox Christians,” Bishop Olson continued. “His captors offered Matthew an opportunity to be released when they asked him if he was a Christian. His response in the face of certain death was heroic.”
Pope provides for expansion of Vatican Archive and Library
Pope Leo XIV issued a chirograph, “Il notevole incremento,” that provides for the expansion of the Vatican Apostolic Archive and the Vatican Apostolic Library. Citing the...Man arrested following disruption of Mass in New Mexico
A man was arrested on charges of disturbing the peace in connection with the disruption of a Sunday Mass at St. Thomas Aquinas Church in Rio Rancho, New Mexico.“He jumped up out of the pew,” a deacon said. “He was coming towards Father, I stepped in front of him, and a bunch of other men had come up at the same time. And so we just kind of pushed him to the side and he was fighting, fighting, fighting.”
The man who was arrested described himself as a Christian and said, “I have been sent here by God to preach to the Catholics.”
The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops has documented over 400 acts of vandalism, arson, and other destruction at parishes and other Catholic sites in the United States since 2020. A tracker at CatholicVote.org lists additional attacks.
Brazilian bishops issue report on violence against indigenous peoples
The Brazilian bishops’ Indigenous Missionary Council (CIMI) released a 254-page report on violence committed against indigenous peoples in the South American nation in 2025. “In 2025,...Nigerian bishops decry Islamist attack on mosque
Nigeria’s bishops condemned the abduction of over 60 worshippers from a mosque in Borgu.Residents attributed the abduction to Lakurawa, an affiliate of the Islamic State.
“Whether in a mosque, a church, a marketplace, or the quiet of their homes, Nigerians are still being slaughtered, traumatized, and displaced with impunity,” the bishops said in a statement released on August 27. “An attack on any place of worship constitutes an attack on our collective humanity.”
