Stories for week of March 15, 2026

Ordered from most to least recent.

Released Saturday, Mar. 21

 Pope encourages virtuous ecological practices, sustainable development research
 Over 300,000 Germans left the Church in 2025
 Record number of converts reported in Richmond
 Refrain from disrespectful speech, leading Kenyan bishop urges politicians
 English bishops lament Parliament’s approval of abortion to moment of birth
 Belgian bishop announces plan to ordain married men as priests
 In Iceland, priest under police investigation for remarks on homosexuality
 Nicaraguan regime bans ordinations in four dioceses
 ‘We must not live by lies,’ Philippine bishop tells lawmakers
 Leading Nigerian bishop issues goodwill message to Muslims
 US bishops back commission on Indian boarding schools
 Pontifical commission president emphasizes importance of listening to abuse survivors
 Vatican launches campaign to encourage divestment from mining industries
 Vatican diplomat decries ‘selective termination’ of unborn children with Down syndrome
 New president of Amazon ecclesial conference vows to promote Pope Francis’s vision
 Cardinal Parolin sees three ‘defining traits’ in Pope Leo’s pontificate
 Papal preacher devotes third Lenten sermon to evangelization
 Spanish king, queen meet with Pontiff
 ‘A tragedy beyond all imagination’: Vatican newspaper laments plight of displaced Lebanese

Released Friday, Mar. 20

 Milwaukee parish vandalized
 Our people are dying, Nigerian bishops tell the Pope
 Termite company to pay $25.8M to Alabama archdiocese
 Cesar Chavez Mass canceled in Los Angeles archdiocese following abuse allegations
 Church of the Holy Sepulchre remains closed
 Cardinal Gugerotti says civilization faces catastrophe, laments plight of Middle East Christians
 New regulations for Pope’s Worldwide Prayer Network
 Taybeh: West Bank Christian town under renewed settler incursion
 Pope marks anniversary of Amoris Laetitia, convokes meeting of world’s episcopal conference presidents
 US bishops’ religious liberty chairman decries anti-Semitism
 Texas senator sparks controversy over social media post critical of Catholic integralism

Released Thursday, Mar. 19

 Leading African, Latin American, Asian bishops issue manifesto on transition from fossil fuels
 Georgian Orthodox Patriarch Ilia II dies at 93
 Reread Amoris Laetitia in light of synodality, John Paul II Institute president writes
 Spanish king to become basilica proto-canon
 Vatican media highlight Chesterton Schools Network
 Illinois parish school classmates meet with Pope Leo
 Leading Holy Land Franciscan: ‘We are in the grip of a bellicose madness’
 Cardinal Parolin to President Trump, Israel: End the war as soon as possible
 Israeli ambassador to the Vatican describes Iran war as the ‘most just war conceivable’
 Cardinal Czerny calls Church in Amazon to pastoral, synodal, and ecological conversion
 Pope Leo says that universal health coverage is a ‘moral imperative’
 Pope Leo: ‘The Christian is called to be an instrument of peace’

Released Wednesday, Mar. 18

 Scottish lawmakers reject assisted suicide
 Pope, in audience on Vatican II, reflects on Church as a priestly and prophetic people
 Archbishop Caccia condemns Islamophobia
 Jerusalem cardinal criticizes US Defense Secretary Hegseth’s use of Psalm
 Founder of Little Brothers of Jesus Caritas dies at 91
 Father Juan Ochagavía, theological advisor at Vatican II, dies at 97
 Vatican official says digital missionaries should be rooted in prayer, Scripture
 In election statement, Peru’s bishops warn against polarization
 Vatican City appeals court finds partial mistrial in ‘trial of the century’
 Pope Leo to receive Liberty Medal, deliver livestream talk to Americans on July 3
 Proclaim the Gospel and safeguard life, Pope tells leaders of Church in the Amazon
 Vatican newspaper rues hospital airstrike in Afghanistan-Pakistan conflict

Released Tuesday, Mar. 17

 Primate highlights youth interest in faith in St. Patrick’s Day message
 Author critical of Opus Dei meets with Pope Leo
 Reject ideological preconceptions and shun propaganda, Pope tells TV journalists
 Abuse prevention is a ‘constitutive dimension’ of the Church’s mission, Pope tells pontifical commission
 Cardinal Parolin: St. Francis of Assisi offers ‘effective therapy’ for our world
 Vatican newspaper op-ed condemns killing of Palestinian children in West Bank
 Christians in the Holy Land ‘have never faced anything like this,’ Catholic official says
 Palestinian president, Pope Leo speak about ‘alarming’ situation in Middle East
 Program announced for Pontiff’s African apostolic journey
 Let us not be blind to others’ suffering, Pope Leo preaches on Laetare Sunday
 Continue to manifest the love of the Sacred Heart, Pope tells Roman parish

Released Monday, Mar. 16

 Bishop Seitz: Mass detention, deportations are ‘grave moral evil’
 Pope Leo takes possession of apartment in Apostolic Palace
 Vatican diplomat highlights surrogacy’s exploitative nature
 Vatican spokesman questions ever-higher levels of military spending, calls for disarmament
 Pontiff meets second group of Nigerian bishops in Rome
 Pope Leo: Economic activity is called to serve the good of persons
 Justice should be rehabilitative, Cardinal Parolin preaches to Vatican City judges
 Justice in the Church is ‘a constant search for truth in charity,’ Pope tells Vatican City State jurists

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Sat21 March
Lent

Saturday in the Fourth Week of Lent

Image for Saturday in the Fourth Week of Lent

Saturday of the Fourth Week of Lent in the early ages of Christianity, was called Sitientes, taken from the first word of the original Introit of the Mass meaning "Thirsting." The Church was addressing her catechumens in the words of Isaiah and invites them to thirst after the grace to come and receive it…

Learn more about this day.

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