Stories for August 2024

Ordered from most to least recent.

Released Saturday, Aug. 31

 Background: World Day of Prayer for Creation
 September papal prayer intention: for the cry of the earth

Released Friday, Aug. 30

 African bishops decry Western ‘missionaries of evil’
 Chicago archdiocese introduces ‘green’ burial sites
 Pope speaks on new vision for Pontifical Urban University
 Future of Pontifical Urban University at stake in special Vatican meeting
 Vatican approves devotion to 1876 French Marian apparitions
 Vatican spokesman decries new Afghan law forbidding women from speaking in public
 Pope encourages Catholic community organizers from US to act, move forward
 Archbishop Paglia pens book on old age
 Papal meeting with Spanish governor
 OAS leader meets with Pontiff

Released Thursday, Aug. 29

 Body of St. Teresa of Avila still incorrupt
 Father Rosica faces sex-assault charge
 ‘Vatican Girl’ brother voices no confidence in Vatican probe of her fate
 Abuse scandals in East Timor met by silence, but Pope’s visit brings new attention
 Pope encourages youth to go to Mass, Confession; pays tribute to St. Augustine, prays for peace
 No American groups present at 3 consecutive papal general audiences
 Pope makes quiet visit to St. Monica’s tomb in Rome
 ‘Know yourself, choose yourself, grow yourself, give yourself’: religious community confronts future
 Bishops, in Labor Day statement, lament wage theft, other violations of human dignity

Released Wednesday, Aug. 28

 Biblical faith requires opposition to homosexual agenda, African archbishop says
 Preserve human dignity in a time of ‘anthropological revolution,’ Pope urges
 Keep hope alive, Pope exhorts bishops in Arab countries
 Pope, at general audience, laments plight of migrants, condemns ‘militarization of borders’
 Strengths, pitfalls seen in the rise of the diocesan COO
 Northern Ireland: diocese will welcome 1st seminarian in 6 years
 Papal message on liturgy emphasizes chorality, hymns, silence, ministeriality
 Vatican newspaper: ‘Save the oceans in order to save the planet’
 Cardinal Tagle assesses Pope’s upcoming trip to Asia, defends missionaries from charge of colonialism
 Vatican prefect warns of ‘colonizing invasion of mass media’
 Holy See calls for moratorium on AI weapons

Released Tuesday, Aug. 27

 Sober realism about pro-life political prospects
 Vatican welcomes China’s recognition of bishop
 Rabbi rips Pope, Archbishop of Canterbury, for criticism of Israel
 Protest against ‘shakedown’ of pilgrims, tourists, at St. Peter’s basilica
 Mosque visit will highlight Pope’s trip to Indonesia
 Questioning Vatican silence on Venezuela’s Maduro regime
 Differing from Pope, Ukrainian Catholic leader says ban on Moscow-affiliated church protects religious freedom
 Federal court prevents NY attorney general from taking action against pro-life pregnancy centers
 ‘Hiddenness, fatherliness, and attention to the least’: Pope encourages Oblates of St. Joseph
 Member of movement investigated by Vatican becomes Ecuador’s ambassador to Holy See
 Listen to young people and imitate Christ in forming them, Pope tells Catholic Scout leaders
 Israeli, Palestinian fathers meet with Pope
 Cardinal Parolin: It is useless to construct a society that excludes God

Released Monday, Aug. 26

 Lebanon pays a price for Israel-Palestine conflict, Pope tells families of blast victims
 Chicago pregnancy-help center vandalized after Democratic convention
 Trump would veto national abortion ban, Vance says
 World Council of Churches cautions on Ukraine law against Russia-backed churches
 Nigerian archbishop sees government ‘sitting on a time bomb’
 Luxembourg Catholic charity scandal deepens
 Pope denounces Ukraine’s ban on Moscow-affiliated Ukrainian Orthodox Church
 ‘Renew your hope in Jesus’: papal encouragement for Nicaraguans
 Papal solidarity with monkeypox victims
 Papal Angelus address: Christ alone has the words of eternal life
 Pope calls on Catholic lawmakers to renounce war as a means of solving conflicts
 Barcelona’s mayor meets with Pontiff
 Leading Ugandan lawmaker, accused of corruption, meets with Pontiff
 Papal message: Eucharistic adoration helps you become the Christian you are called to be

Released Friday, Aug. 23

 Ukraine’s new law enrages Moscow, splits Orthodox leaders
 Incoming Boston archbishop speaks candidly on abuse, confession, seminary formation
 Pope meets with ousted Peruvian archbishop
 Sister Wilhelmina’s body incorrupt, bishop confirms
 Catholic Democrats endorse Harris-Walz despite abortion advocacy
 Late Cardinals O’Connor, Bernardin declined to address Democratic conventions
 Vatican cardinal says migrants ‘came from hell’
 Sister Theresa Kane, who confronted Pope John Paul II, dead at 87
 Nuncio to Ukraine lauds individual, small-group charitable initiatives
 Olympic bell donated to Notre-Dame de Paris
 Vatican approves devotion to 1945 Spanish Marian apparitions
 Nicaragua ends religious tax exemptions
 Vatican newspaper pays tribute to Kenyan ballet school
 Brazilian priest arrested for abuse; pressured teen to have abortion
 Bankruptcy judge questions whether Archdiocese of New Orleans has financial wherewithal to continue

Released Thursday, Aug. 22

 Sister Agnes Sasagawa, seer of Akita, dead at 93
 Ukrainian Catholic leader backs new law to curb Ukrainian Orthodox Church
 Massachusetts pregnancy center sues governor for misleading ad campaign
 Archeologists identify bones of 9th-century Spanish bishop instrumental in the Camino
 2 Steubenville priests gain legal custody of 2-year-old boy
 Nicaragua extinguishes legal status of several religious orders
 Theme song released for papal visit to Singapore
 Papal tributes to St. Pius X, prayer for catechists
 No American groups present at 2 consecutive papal general audiences
 Pope recalls Archbishop Treanor’s ‘devout and faithful’ service
 Excommunicated Archbishop Viganò fears for life, lashes out at Cardinal Bertone

Released Wednesday, Aug. 21

 Ukraine outlaws Moscow-affiliated Orthodox Church
 English pro-lifer wins payment, apology after arrest for silent prayer
 Pope, at audience, repeats prayers for peace
 At Baptism, Jesus receives ‘fullness of the gift of the Spirit,’ Pope says
 Michigan pro-lifers convicted; face up to 10-year sentences
 Latest study confirms Shroud of Turin is 2000 years old
 Illinois Right to Life raps Cardinal Cupich invocation at Democratic convention
 Bishop Barron rues ‘appalling declension’ of leading Democrats on abortion
 Arizona, Missouri join growing list of states with abortion on ballot
 Colombian bishops lament permanent curfew imposed by Marxist rebels
 Euthanasia has gone ‘from exceptional to routine’ in Canada
 28% of US parishes have Masses in Spanish
 Urging prayer, Jerusalem Patriarch sees ceasefire negotiations at crucial point
 Catholic delegation meets with Malankara Orthodox leader
 Vatican newspaper highlights Bolivian women entrepreneurs

Released Tuesday, Aug. 20

 Chinese priest formally protests of usurpation of jailed bishop’s authority
 Nicaraguan regime seizes assets of 1,500 NGOs
 47% of world’s migrants are Christians
 Supreme Court halts Title IX transgender mandate in schools in 26 states
 Jerusalem Patriarch expresses cautious optimism about ceasefire
 Nicaraguan dictatorship exiles 2 priests
 Cardinal Cupich delivers invocation at Democratic National Convention
 Pope, in book preface, lauds US chaplain, deplores death penalty

Released Monday, Aug. 19

 Incoming Archbishop of Boston scolds Catholic college for Harris-Walz fundraiser
 Seek what is essential, Pope urges Rimini meeting
 Malawi’s president meets with Pope
 Lay group will influence choice of bishop for Swiss diocese
 Ugandan LGBTQ+ activist meets with Pope
 Leading Pakistani prelate placed on ‘sabbatical’ after allegations of abuse, fraud
 Father Rupnik art appears on Vatican website again — and in Pope Francis’s apartment
 Papal gratitude for monthly public Rosary for persecuted Christians
 Renewed papal appeal for prayer for peace
 4 martyrs beatified in DR Congo
 Respond to the Eucharist with wonder and gratitude, Pope tells pilgrims

Released Friday, Aug. 16

 Irish military chaplain stabbed; motive unclear
 Nigerian bishops decry liturgical abuses
 Record numbers join in annual Lourdes pilgrimage
 Arizona court approves ‘unborn human being’ language for ballot measure
 Amazon founder and girlfriend meet with Pontiff
 Amid ‘daily terror,’ many parishes in Haiti’s capital are closed
 In Bolivia, 3 Jesuit provincials indicted for covering up alleged abuse by deceased archbishop
 USCCB urges appeals court to uphold Boy Scouts’ bankruptcy settlement
 Cardinal Zuppi, Chinese government representative discuss war in Ukraine
 On Assumption, Pope entrusts war-torn countries to Mary’s care
 The Virgin Mary ‘goes before us on the journey,’ Pope tells pilgrims

Released Thursday, Aug. 15

 CWN closed for feast of the Assumption

Released Wednesday, Aug. 14

 Vatican expels Peruvian founder from influential lay movement
 US bishops want role in commission on Indian boarding schools
 Ecumenical Patriarch weighs in on East-West schism, Russian invasion of Ukraine, recent popes
 Report: Croatia’s leading prelate violated Vos Estis
 Pontiff has special opportunity to shape Brazilian hierarchy in 2025
 Lebanon ‘on the brink of the abyss,’ leading theologian warns
 Scottish Parliament considers assisted dying bill
 Nicaraguan regime seizes assets of diocesan Caritas, other NGOs
 Vatican releases official medal for pontificate’s 12th year
 ‘Gender apartheid’: Vatican newspaper deplores plight of Afghan women, imposition of burqa

Released Tuesday, Aug. 13

 Court bars ‘baby bonus’ proposal from ballot in Baltimore
 Church of England priest ousted for questioning transgender ideology
 National Eucharistic Congress as watershed for revival among women religious?
 Nigerian diocese boasts 417 active priests
 Hong Kong court rejects Jimmy Lai’s appeal
 Cardinal Parolin: Ukrainian advance into Russian territory is ‘very worrying’
 Respect ceasefire agreement, DR Congo bishops urge
 Sudanese bishops call for dialogue amid humanitarian emergency
 Seoul archbishop, in Assumption message, rues materialism, praises Mary’s listening
 Dictatorship in Nicaragua arrests 2 more priests and 2 laywomen
 New review board chair: ‘We can’t be satisfied’ until there is zero abuse in Church
 In Syria’s hinterlands, the US wages a hidden campaign against a resurgent Islamic State
 Russian troops destroy Ukrainian Catholic church
 Argentina’s 73 dioceses have only 57 new seminarians

Released Monday, Aug. 12

 Vatican Secretary of State speaks with Iran’s president
 Franciscan leader in Holy Land asks prayers for peace on August 15
 Andorra: abortion issue raises question for bishop’s traditional role
 Pope speaks on discernment to religious preparing for chapter meetings
 Illinois governor signs law requiring hospitals to provide some abortions
 Canadian bishops, in letter, express ‘renewed Catholic commitment to Indigenous reconciliation’
 In interview, Pope expresses desire to visit China
 ‘In harmony with Creation’: papal tweet hails wisdom of indigenous peoples
 Indiana diocese welcomes burgeoning Latin Mass community of nuns
 ‘Beautiful’ papal friendship with Poor Clare monastery
 Pope recalls WWII atomic bombings, appeals for peace in war-torn countries
 True faith and prayer open the heart, Pope tells pilgrims

Released Friday, Aug. 9

 Pope urges hope, patience for Chinese Catholics
 New Vatican document rejects ‘disproportionate intervention’ to prolong life
 Nicaragua, Brazil break diplomatic ties over crackdown on Church
 Nicaragua expels 7 more Catholic priests
 Christian aid groups cancel ecumenical trip to Holy Land, condemn Israeli violence
 Anti-bullfighting activists arrested after interrupting Pope’s general audience
 Knights of Columbus report rise in membership
 Federal court permits Maine to exclude Catholic schools from tuition reimbursement program
 Kenyan splinter groups create ‘Married Bishops’ Conference’
 Synod theologian lashes out at Church in United States, upholds German Church as model
 US Christian leaders appeal for persecuted religious minorities in India
 USCCB responds to claims about Catholic organizations serving migrants

Released Thursday, Aug. 8

 Severely premature babies can survive, but parents not always told
 New undercover videos expose Planned Parenthood involvement in body parts
 Pope offers thanks, encouragement to Knights of Columbus
 Vatican reveals theme for World Day of Peace message
 Chaldean prelate: ISIS ideology still a threat
 Survey: 71% of Americans favor euthanasia
 Leading South African prelate deplores Olympic parody, lends support to married priesthood
 Archdiocese of Dublin has 1 seminarian
 Court rules against jail guard who was fired after objecting to LGBTQ training
 No American groups at Pope’s general audience
 Pontifical academy president explores need for ‘pop theology’
 Papal almoner oversees new shipment of food, medicine to Ukraine
 Over 82,000 sex abuse claims against Boy Scouts

Released Wednesday, Aug. 7

 Pope tells Afghan visitors: religion must not divide
 Minnesota bishops’ conference congratulates Walz on VP selection
 Venezuelan prelate fears ‘social explosion’ over contested election
 Priest promptly released after arrest in Chad
 Venezuelan cardinals: government election report inaccurate
 Pope’s plea: end ‘unbearable’ situation in Gaza
 Baltimore police make arrest in brutal 2023 assault of elderly pro-life activists
 Polish bishop backs protest over religion class cuts
 Pope resumes Wednesday general audience, discusses Holy Spirit’s role in Redemption
 Nicaraguan seminary rector arrested
 Cardinal Fernández pays tribute to Marian shrine in India
 Judge upholds Ohio’s Saving Adolescents from Experimentation Act
 USCCB committee, Catholic Charities back Second Chance Reauthorization Act

Released Tuesday, Aug. 6

 Church in Chad protests priest’s arrest
 Indonesian police thwart attacks on Catholic churches ahead of papal visit
 English bishops’ spokesman condemns rioting, defends migrants
 In leaked letter, Venezuelan cardinals call for ‘civic resistance’ against Maduro
 After the end of Roe, a new beginning for maternity homes
 Pope transfers French archbishop to smaller diocese
 Italian Catholic schools leader arrested for sexual abuse of a minor
 Utah Supreme Court prevents pro-life law from taking effect
 Vatican diplomat: St. John XXIII’s Pacem in Terris remains ‘a compelling plea to establish peace’
 Be amazed at the Mother of God, Pope preaches

Released Monday, Aug. 5

 12 Nicaraguan priests arrested in new government campaign
 Luxembourg’s Catholic charity crippled by alleged fraud
 US funds used to promote atheism in Asia?
 Papal letter encourages seminarians, all Christians to read literature
 Pope pleads for peace in Venezuela
 Cardinal O’Malley of Boston retires, succeeded by Bishop Henning
 17th-century Maronite Patriarch beatified
 Love shares, and material things do not fulfill us: papal Sunday Angelus address
 Holy See ‘saddened’ by Olympic Last Supper parody
 ‘Be men of integrity’: papal encouragement for Spanish seminarians

Released Friday, Aug. 2

 Cardinal Hollerich warns against ‘lobbying’ on women’s ordination
 Anti-Christian incidents on the rise in Israel
 Turkey’s Erdogan speaks to Pope, urges ‘unified response’ to Olympic blasphemy
 NY archdiocesan official: Republican Party betrays pro-life principles
 Lutheran-Orthodox statement calls for recitation of the Creed without the Filioque
 Pope creates new Angolan diocese
 New Ohio law accommodates students’ religious beliefs
 Papal adviser, head of Microsoft talk ethics and AI
 Vatican issues clarification on Holy Doors during 2025 Jubilee
 Retired FBI agent to chair US bishops’ National Review Board

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Tue20 January
Ordinary Time

Tuesday of the Second Week in Ordinary Time; Opt Mem of St. Fabian, Pope & Martyr; Opt Mem St. Sebastian, Martyr

Image for Tuesday of the Second Week in Ordinary Time; Opt Mem of St. Fabian, Pope & Martyr; Opt Mem St. Sebastian, Martyr

St. Fabian and St. Sebastian have always been paired together, with their names coupled in the ancient martyrologies, and still paired in the Litany of Saints. The Church today celebrates separate Optional Memorials for Sts. Fabian and Sebastian: St. Fabian (d. 250) was Pope from 236 to…

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