Archbishop of Liverpool condemns Manx Bill for Assisted Dying

Archbishop John Sherrington, the lead bishop for life issues was profoundly “saddened” by news that the bill for Assisted Dying in the Isle of Man had received Royal Assent.

“The passing of this legislation marks a watershed on the Island as the choice to end one’s life will now be permitted in certain circumstances”, he said in a message following the announcement made by the Tynwald or Manx parliament on 20 October.

The law will enable adults who have resided for a minimum of five years on the island and have a life expectancy of 12 months or fewer to request assisted death.

No date has yet been agreed for the law to be implemented: “The Act will not come into force until all practical, clinical and safeguarding arrangements have been agreed”, said the Tynwald in a statement.

 “This… marks the start of a careful process, not the end of one. There is still a great deal of detailed work to do before the law can come into force, and this will take time to get right,” it added.

The Manx department of Health and Social Care will set up “a formal policy and implementation programme with clear governance and accountability”.

 This involves “working out the practical details, from the training and support needed for healthcare professionals, to how medicines will be safely managed, to the safeguards and independent oversight that will keep people protected”.

The Tynwald added: “Some of this work depends on other safeguarding laws being in place first. .. Assisted dying cannot begin until specific parts of the Capacity Act are in force, which is currently expected by April 2028”.  

Archbishop Sherrington whose archdiocese, Liverpool, includes the Isle of Man said : “I recognise that further work is needed before the law can be enacted. However, I share the deep concerns expressed by the Isle of Man Medical Society which ‘maintains its firm and steadfast position regarding the profound risks this legislation poses to healthcare, vulnerable patients, and the medical profession across the island’”.

Sherrington added: “The Catholic Church continues to teach that life is a most precious gift of God and that we are stewards entrusted with this gift to protect it, treat illness, and care for the good of life. As such, a person should never intentionally end his or her life”.

“Catholic teaching, shared by many Christians… proposes a different approach from that which has been passed into law by the Tynwald. The parable of the Good Samaritan teaches us the importance of being deeply present to the one who is sick, seeking to alleviate pain and ensuring the best possible care until one’s last breath”.

Pope names six new venerables, including Padre Pio’s spiritual son

Pope Leo XIV has authorized decrees recognizing the heroic virtues of a group of Catholics from all walks of life -- from a Peruvian bishop to an Italian spiritual son of St. Padre Pio.

They all showed steadfast faith in times of suffering and were close to their flock in their daily routines.

During an Oct. 24 audience with Cardinal Marcello Semeraro, prefect of the Dicastery for the Causes of Saints, the pope declared venerable two missionary bishops, Friedrich Kaiser Depel and Oreste Marengo; Focolare member Margarita Bavosi; Italian priests Fathers Domenico Pogliani and Alessandro Vitetti; and Capuchin Brother Daniele of San Giovanni Rotondo.

Bishop Friedrich Kaiser Depel: A pioneer of the biblical apostolate in Peru

Bishop Kaiser Depel was born on May 24, 1903 in Dülmen, Germany, and grew up in a deeply Catholic family. According to the biography published by the Dicastery for the Causes of Saints, he entered the seminary of the Missionaries of the Sacred Heart in 1919 and made his perpetual profession in 1930.

He was ordained a priest on Aug. 10, 1932. In April 1939, he was sent to Peru, where his congregation had established a new mission. He served as spiritual director and teacher at the seminary in Huánuco, before becoming rector and parish priest of the chapel attached to the missionary community.

Much of his ministry was spent in Lima. In 1957, he was appointed provincial administrator of his congregation and, on Nov. 21 that year, Pope Pius XII named him the first prelate of Caravelí.

After an earthquake struck the region in 1960, he worked to provide water supplies for local communities and rebuild the cathedral. The following year, he founded the Pious Union of the Missionary Sisters of Jesus, Word and Victim. Made up of young local women, the community sought to address the shortage of priests and bring the faith to communities in the Andes.

He attended all four sessions of the Second Vatican Council, between 1962 and 1965, and was ordained a bishop on Dec. 7, 1963.

Ill health led him to resign as prelate in May 1971. He then devoted himself to the theological and spiritual formation of the sisters, whose community St. John Paul II recognized as a congregation of pontifical right on Sept. 14, 1982.

Bishop Kaiser Depel died in Lima on Sept. 26, 1993 and was buried in the sisters' chapel in Caravelí. His steadfast faith and commitment to making sacred Scripture more widely known earned him recognition as a pioneer of the biblical apostolate in Peru.

Bishop Oreste Marengo: a 'foreigner' embraced by India

Bishop Marengo was born on Aug. 29, 1906 in Diano d'Alba, in the Italian province of Cuneo, into a farming family with a strong Christian faith.

At 13, he moved to Turin to begin his Salesian formation, meeting some of the earliest members of the congregation founded by St. John Bosco.

In 1923, he traveled to north-eastern India with eight other novices. Alongside his studies in philosophy, he worked in villages, preparing catechumens and supporting the first Catholic communities. He was ordained a priest on April 2, 1932.

In 1951, he was appointed the first bishop of the newly established Diocese of Dibrugarh. His episcopal ordination took place in Turin's Basilica of Mary Help of Christians on Dec. 27 that year.

He led the diocese until 1964, when he became bishop of Tezpur, and later served as apostolic administrator of Tura.

Throughout his ministry, he established mission centers and helped people fleeing Pakistan during its war with India. To address the shortage of priests, he welcomed clergy from other parts of the country, including Kerala.

After stepping down as apostolic administrator at age 70, he continued to offer his support to local priests.

He died on July 30, 1998, after repeated stays in the hospital, surrounded by the affection of the people he had served. That bond was particularly significant at a time when foreigners in India could encounter suspicion or rejection.

Bishop Marengo encouraged vocations to the priesthood and recognized the vital contribution of laypeople to spreading the Catholic faith.

Margarita Bavosi: 'Luminosa' who lived in the 'present moment'

Bavosi was born on Sept. 19, 1941, in Buenos Aires, Argentina, into a prosperous family of Italian immigrants. Her mother died when she was 10.

After graduating in history, she felt increasingly drawn to placing God at the center of her life.

She found her vocation in the Focolare movement, learning about its "charism of unity" directly from its founder, Servant of God Chiara Lubich.

Her spontaneous, optimistic personality earned her the nickname "Luminosa."

In May 1966, she was given responsibility for the movement in Paraná, Argentina. In 1970, Lubich entrusted her with joint responsibility for its work in Spain, and later in Montevideo, Uruguay.

In June 1981, she began to show symptoms of atypical pulmonary fibrosis. She died on March 7, 1985, when she was 43.

Lubich said of her: "Her life, steeped in Gospel love lived ... in the present moment, was a swift race towards God."

Domenico Pogliani: a life devoted to people in need

Born in Milan on Dec. 18, 1838, Pogliani grew in faith at the San Luigi oratory.

He was ordained a priest on May 26, 1861, and served in Rosate, Lecco and Trenno before being appointed an assistant priest in the parish attached to Milan Cathedral.

He later became parish priest in Cesano Boscone, where, with the support of a benefactress, he opened a nursery school and an oratory for girls.

He also founded a care home which, by the outbreak of the First World War, was accommodating 400 people. It included a department for boys with intellectual disabilities and several workshops.

He died on July 25, 1921, and his tomb soon became a place where people gathered to pray.

Alessandro Vitetti: 'I cannot see, I cannot hear, but I believe'

Father Vitetti was born on Oct. 12, 1915 in Cirò, in the province of Crotone in Italy's Calabria region, and was ordained a priest on June 16, 1940.

He served in the Diocese of Cariati as a cathedral canon and seminary teacher. He remained in Calabria throughout World War II, becoming known for his care for those most in need.

Over the years, he held several diocesan posts, including chancellor, director of the administrative office, chaplain to young Catholic women and Catholic graduates, coordinator for the missions and defender of the bond at the diocesan tribunal.

A close collaborator of Bishop Orazio Semeraro, he accompanied him to Rome during Vatican II.

In 1964, he joined the Secular Institute of Missionary Priests of the Kingship of Christ, founded by Father Agostino Gemelli, and took the vows prescribed by the institute.

He was much sought after as a confessor and spiritual guide, drawing people from beyond Calabria.

In his final years, diabetes left him blind and unable to move. He faced his suffering with exemplary faith, expressed in the words: "I cannot see, I cannot hear, but I believe."

He died in Cariati on Feb. 24, 1995.

Daniele of San Giovanni Rotondo, a spiritual son of Padre Pio

Brother Daniele was born Michele Natale on March 11, 1919, in San Giovanni Rotondo, in the Italian province of Foggia.

He worked as a shepherd boy from an early age and was known for his cheerful disposition and ready smile.

At 14, he felt called to join the Capuchin friars. An encounter with St. Pio of Pietrelcina on June 4, 1933, strengthened his vocation: The saint blessed him and offered him words of encouragement.

In 1934, he moved to the friary of Sant'Anna in Foggia, where he served as sacristan and porter. On March 25, 1935, he entered the novitiate in Morcone, taking the name Brother Daniele. He chose to remain a lay brother.

He made his temporary profession in 1936 and his perpetual profession on May 12, 1940.

During this time, his bond with St. Pio deepened, and he became one of his spiritual sons.

Back in Foggia, he worked tirelessly to help the wounded and bury the dead during the bombings of 1943.

From 1952 onward, a series of illnesses led to frequent stays in hospital. Despite his suffering, after Padre Pio's death he devoted himself to establishing and supporting prayer groups in Italy and abroad, drawing many faithful. He died on July 6, 1994.

5 Bishops issue apology, clarifications on Trump meeting

Five of the 12 bishops photographed praying over President Donald Trump on October 22 have distanced themselves publicly from any political interpretations of the gathering, issuing an apology or statement or giving an interview clarifying their intentions.

The meeting, which was reported to have been organized by Mario Enzler of the Heritage Foundation, though the Foundation said that was not the case, was billed as a conversation about issues important to Catholic voters. 

The bishops were invited to “discuss matters of importance to the Church and our people, including immigration enforcement, religious worker visas, and human dignity,” according to attendee Archbishop Jeffrey Grob of Milwaukee.

After this discussion, which was held privately, the bishops were invited to pray with the president in the Oval Office. Others were present, including Paula White-Cain, an evangelical pastor who serves as Senior Advisor to the White House Faith Office, which the president established last year. A photo and video of that prayer were shared online, initially by White House staff. At least two of the bishops said they did not consent to the images being shared.

As the event took place just 12 days before crucial U.S. midterm elections, the online reaction quickly became a firestorm of controversy and criticism. 

A U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops spokesperson, Chieko Noguchi, told media sources that the meeting was “not affiliated with the conference.”

The bishops and their reactions

The White House meeting on October 22 included the following American Catholic prelates (those in red are the ones whose positions have been noted in this article):

• Archbishop James Golka of Denver

• Archbishop Jeffrey Grob of Milwaukee

• Retired Archbishop Joseph Naumann of Kansas City, Kansas

• Bishop Edward Burns of Dallas

• Bishop James Wall of Gallup, New Mexico

• Bishop Steven Raica of Birmingham, Alabama

• Bishop Thomas Hennen of Baker, Oregon

• Bishop Michael Barber of Oakland, California

• Bishop Scott Bullock of Rapid City, South Dakota

• Bishop William Joensen of Des Moines, Iowa

• Bishop Francis Kalabat of the Chaldean Catholic Eparchy of St. Thomas the Apostle in Detroit

• Bishop Elias Zaidan of the Maronite Catholic Eparchy of Our Lady of Lebanon of Los Angeles

Archbishop Grob issued a public apology. In his October 25 statement, he said in part:

The meeting was in no way an endorsement of the president, his policies, or his party ... Permission for the public distribution or posting of either the video or photos was not given by the bishops ... 

We should never have been put in that position by the White House. I did not go without reservations. I wish I had heeded them. Please know that I have heard these concerns, understand how I caused them, and I apologize for any damage my actions have done.

Bishop William Joensen of Des Moines spoke of regretting his decision to participate in the event, saying in a statement:

There are many things tied to this present Administration that are blatantly at odds with our Catholic faith... 

None of us bishops were unaware that our meeting was on the cusp of a national election. Yet in no way did any of us intend by our involvement to endorse any political party or any individual candidate.  

That said, in retrospect, I would have done well to be more mindful of Jesus’ admonition: “Behold, I am sending you like sheep in the midst of wolves; so be shrewd as serpents and simple as doves” (Matthew 10:16).  

I wish I had been more shrewd and less simple, like those who exploited our meeting for partisan political purposes. I pray I am more prudent and wise going forward...

Archbishop James Golka of Denver, who led the prayer, released information about the meeting the day it occurred. See Aleteia's initial report from that information here. He has since further clarified his intentions and said he was "heartbroken" in an exclusive interview with Denver Catholic, in which he said:

I understand that many people saw the video, posted by the Administration twelve days before an election, as an endorsement. That was never my intention.

The bishops of the United States teach that the Church cannot champion any candidate or party. I hold to that. However you vote, you ultimately belong to Jesus who loves you infinitely more than you can imagine...

I’m heartbroken that people are hurt, and that there are people intentionally using this moment to sow disunity. 

Bishop Scott Bullock of Rapid City, South Dakota, meanwhile, told the National Catholic Reporter in an interview that the bishops' decision to attend was motivated by Scripture rather than electoral politics, saying, “I'm going to work pretty hard to divorce it from the midterm elections because that's not why we went there.”

A spokesperson for retired Archbishop Joseph Naumann also clarified his position, telling RNS on October 26, "The bishops were assured that no photographs would be made public. They came to have a discussion on important policy matters." 

Meanwhile the current archbishop of the Kansas City archdiocese, Archbishop Shawn McKnight, told OSV, “Archbishop Emeritus Naumann’s attendance to the White House on October 22 was done on his own behalf. His actions and presence at that event were not representative of myself or the Archdiocese of Kansas City in Kansas.”

Other reactions

When asked whether the bishops consented to releasing the photos and video of the event, the White House press office did not respond directly, but spokesperson Taylor Rogers said, "There has never been a greater president for Catholic Americans than President Trump, and his strong record proves it."

For his part, Trump, asked about the meeting on October 23, said: "It was a great meeting. Well, they prayed. They mostly prayed. It was actually a very nice meeting. They're great. They were great people."

Kelsey Reinhardt, president of the advocacy group Catholic Vote, defended the meeting with a statement on October 25: "These men were there as priests and they prayed as priests do. That is a win for the faith, no matter the man in the presidential chair."

A Pew research study posted October 20 found that 67% of Catholics disapprove of Trump's job performance.

Bishop of Knoxville issues seven-page memorandum on SSPX

Bishop Mark Beckman of Knoxville has warned Catholics against attending an unauthorised Traditional Latin Mass mission affiliated with the Society of Saint Pius X (SSPX), saying participation places the faithful in a “near occasion of schism” and is “gravely imprudent”.

In a seven-page memorandum dated 22 October, the Bishop of Knoxville set out the canonical concerns surrounding the mission, identified as Saint Francis of Assisi Traditional Latin Mass Mission, and called on those involved to return to full communion with the Catholic Church.

The document follows an earlier diocesan notification withdrawing all faculties, permissions and authorisations from Father David Mary Engo after he informed Bishop Beckman of his decision to associate with the SSPX as a “Priest Friend”. Father Engo also entered into an arrangement to provide pastoral care for the newly established mission.

The memorandum states that Father Engo is not authorised to exercise public priestly ministry anywhere within the Diocese of Knoxville. He is incardinated in the Diocese of Fort Wayne–South Bend, whose bishop has also suspended him from the exercise of Holy Orders. The suspension does not remove his priestly ordination, but prohibits him from exercising his ministry according to the terms of the applicable decree.

Bishop Beckman has also rescinded Father Engo’s previous permission to reside in the diocese as a hermit and directed him to make prompt arrangements to leave its territory.

The memorandum states that Father Engo’s declared association with the SSPX and his ministry at the affiliated mission raise “the grave question of formal adherence to schism”.

However, it distinguishes between the question of his individual canonical status and the restrictions already imposed upon his ministry. “A determination concerning his individual penal status belongs to competent ecclesiastical authority applying the relevant facts and law,” the document states. It adds that, irrespective of that determination, Father Engo is not authorised to exercise public priestly ministry in the diocese and is liable to the penalty despite his protestation to the contrary.

The Bishop’s instruction refers to a 2 July declaration by the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith, which stated that sacred ministers belonging to the SSPX are in schism and subject to the excommunication prescribed by canon 1364 §1. It also reaffirmed that lay Catholics who formally adhere to the schism incur the same penalty under the conditions established by the Holy See.

The memorandum cautions, however, that attendance at the mission does not automatically establish that an individual has incurred excommunication.

“Formal adherence involves a free and conscious choice to place allegiance to the schismatic movement above obedience to the Pope, together with an outward manifestation of that choice,” the document states. Each person’s intentions, actions, knowledge and circumstances must be assessed individually under canon law.

Nevertheless, Bishop Beckman urges the faithful not to attend the mission’s Masses, sacramental celebrations, retreats, conferences or other religious activities. He also instructs them not to provide financial, material or organisational support for the ministry or for the establishment of an SSPX apostolate in the diocese.

The memorandum states that Saint Francis of Assisi Traditional Latin Mass Mission has not been erected or approved by Bishop Beckman and is not an authorised apostolate of the Diocese of Knoxville or any other legitimate ecclesiastical authority. The use of Catholic terminology or the celebration of an older form of the liturgy does not confer ecclesiastical authorisation.

Pope Leo XIV Accepts Retirement of Catholic Archbishop in Madagascar, Names Successor

Pope Leo XIV has accepted the retirement of of Archbishop Fulgence Rabemahafaly from the pastoral governance of Madagascar’s  Catholic Archdiocese of Fianarantsoa.

In the latest administrative changes made public on Sunday, October 25, by the Holy See Press Office, the Holy Father named Archbishop Jean Nicolas Rakotojaona, who has served as Coadjutor of the Malagasy Metropolitan See, as Archbishop Rabemahafaly’s successor.

Born in January 1973 in the Archdiocese of Antananarivo, Archbishop Rakotojaona was ordained a Priest for the same Archdiocese in August 2002 after completing his philosophical and theological studies at St. Paul the Apostle Major Seminary of Philosophy and St. Theresa of the Child Jesus Major Seminary, respectively.

The alumnus of the Catholic University of Madagascar (UCM), where he obtained a Master's degree in Philosophy of Religion, is the Rector of the Major Seminary of Philosophy of St. Paul the Apostle.

Since his ordination as a Priest, Archbishop Rakotojaona has served as Parish Vicar of Ihazolava; Vicar in Andohatapenaka and Ampefiloha; Parish Priest in Ambanidia; and Rector of the Propaedeutic Seminary Victoire Rasoamanarivo.

The holder of a Doctorate in Theology from the Switzerland-based University of Fribourg has also served as a lecturer of the Social Doctrine of the Church at the Higher Institute of Technology in Antananarivo and of Philosophy in the Minor Seminary.

In May 2023, he was appointed Auxiliary Bishop of Madagascar’s Morondava Diocese. 

Archbishop Rakotojaona was appointed Coadjutor Archbishop of Fianarantsoa in October 2025.

He is currently the Co-President of the Episcopal Commission for the Apostolate of the Laity (CEPAL) of the Episcopal Conference of Madagascar (CEM).

Pope to Assisi Peace Meeting: 'May we be unarmed instruments of God's peace'

In a video message sent to participants in the International Meeting for Peace in Assisi, Pope Leo XIV urges all participants to join him in being "unarmed instruments of the Lord's peace," stressing that "war can never be waged in the name of God."

"War can never be waged in the name of God. For us believers, 'to fight in the name of religion means attacking religion itself.' There is no such thing as a holy war: only peace is holy."

Pope Leo XIV shared this powerful reminder in a video message he sent Tuesday to participants in the International Meeting in the Spirit of Assisi, organised by the Community of Sant'Egidio.

The theme of the 3-day meeting that concludes today in the Umbrian hilltown where  St. Francis was born was "Unarmed and Disarming Peace."

'I would have very much liked to have been with you'

The Pope began by recalling that the participants had gathered in the town of St. Francis forty years after the World Day of Prayer for Peace, held on 27 October 1986, which was initiated by Saint John Paul II.

Following that first historic meeting, Pope Leo said that his predecessor called for us to “continue to live the spirit of Assisi.”

The Pope greeted the organizers, the Patriarchs, religious leaders, and Franciscans who have actively taken part in the various days of prayer and dialogue.

"I would very much like to have been with you at the tomb of Saint Francis on this important anniversary, to see your faces and bear witness together to the fact that living as brothers and sisters is already possible!"

Need to cultivate 'Spirit of Assisi'

Precisely in these times marked by a “culture of power,” Pope Leo noted, "there is a need to cultivate the spirit of Assisi, which entails a rejection of the religious justification of war, a spirit of mediation and dialogue, and contemplative reflection combined with creative action in the service of a future of peace."

In this context, the Holy Father insisted that peace may once again become "the common ideal of all peoples, the guiding star for all our choices, the standard that exposes injustice, and the shared horizon for all."

"We must rebuild peace everywhere, not prepare for more wars," he stressed, reiterating that God's name can never be manipulated to try to justify war.

The journey that began in Assisi as a shared quest for peace, he explained, is, first and foremost, "the path of prayer."

Prayer may seem 'weak,' but is humble strength

"Prayer may seem weak in the face of the powers of the world," Pope Leo acknowledged, "but it is the humble strength of believers."

Thus, he appealed, "Let us turn to God, the giver of peace, that he may touch the hearts of those who seek war and terrorism. Let us not forget that prayer is never in vain."

Emphasizing that the world needs dialogue, the Pope said that "the path of Assisi calls religious leaders to foster a climate of dialogue amongst the faithful and within society, so that the language of arrogance may give way to the language of peace, negotiation and understanding," in order to "gradually lead humanity away from the cycle of violence."

Finally, Pope Leo expressed the hope that "may our prayers obtain from God that peace for the world’s nations for which we long," praying that the Lord "make us unarmed instruments of His peace."

Vatican meeting strengthens Catholic-Buddhist ties with Mongolia

Pope Leo XIV received Venerable Geshe Lhaaramba D. Javzandorj, Supreme Abbot of Mongolia’s Gandanteqchintelen Monastery, in a private audience at the Vatican on Oct. 26, according to Agenzia Fides, the information service of the Pontifical Mission Societies.

Javzandorj was accompanied by Cardinal Giorgio Marengo, Apostolic Prefect of Ulaanbaatar, as he traveled to Rome amid continuing ties between the Catholic Church and Mongolian Buddhists following the transition in papal leadership.

During the meeting, the abbot presented Pope Leo with a custom painting made by master artists from Gandan Monastery’s figurative art workshop.

Born in 1980 in Baruun-Urt, Sukhbaatar Province, Javzandorj traveled to India in 1998 to pursue monastic studies and received full ordination in 2001.

In 2017, he earned the Geshe Lharampa degree, the highest academic qualification in the Gelug tradition of Tibetan Buddhism, ranking first among approximately 1,000 candidates. He later completed advanced tantric studies at Gyuto Monastery.

Javzandorj was appointed in November 2023 as the 30th Khamba Nomun Khan and Supreme Abbot of Gandanteqchintelen Monastery, the principal spiritual center of Mongolian Buddhism in Ulaanbaatar.

His work has included environmental stewardship, social equity and interfaith cooperation.

Through Religions for Peace Mongolia, Javzandorj has also been involved in interfaith initiatives addressing local social support, the protection of Mongolia’s nomadic landscapes and community peacebuilding.

The Vatican meeting follows earlier contacts between Mongolian Buddhist leaders and the Catholic Church.

In January 2025, Javzandorj met with Pope Francis at the Vatican to discuss human ethics, justice and societal well-being.

Gandan Monastery later held sacred text recitations and prayer rituals for Francis during the late pontiff’s illness in early 2025.

In October 2025, Javzandorj led a delegation of Mongolian Buddhist monks to Rome for events marking the 60th anniversary of Nostra Aetate, the Second Vatican Council declaration on the Catholic Church’s relations with non-Christian religions.

Following his audience with Pope Leo, Javzandorj and Marengo traveled to Assisi to join a multireligious prayer commemorating the 40th anniversary of the World Day of Prayer for Peace, first convened by St. John Paul II in 1986.

The Vatican audience and the gathering in Assisi continue a series of exchanges between Catholic and Mongolian Buddhist leaders on interreligious cooperation, peace, environmental concerns, and social issues.

Pope Leo to celebrate All Souls’ Mass at Rome’s Verano Cemetery

Pope Leo XIV is scheduled to celebrate Mass for the Commemoration of All the Faithful Departed in Rome’s Campo Verano Cemetery, as he did in 2025.

During last year’s ceremony, the Holy Father recalled that “Christian faith, founded upon Christ’s Paschal mystery, helps us to experience our memories as more than just a recollection of the past but also, and above all, as hope for the future.”

The Mass on November 2 is the first appointment on the Pope’s liturgical calendar for the next few weeks, including the month of November and the beginning of December 2026.

The calendar of events at which the Pope is scheduled to preside was released by the Office for the Liturgical Celebrations of the Supreme Pontiff on Tuesday, October 27.

Later that same week, on Thursday, November 5, Pope Leo will preside at Mass in suffrage for the Cardinals and Bishops who have died in the course of the past year. The Mass will be celebrated in St. Peter’s Basilica.

From Friday, November 6, through Tuesday, November 17, the Holy Father will be travelling to South America, with stops in Uruguay, Argentina, Peru.

The full itinerary for the Pope’s Apostolic Journey, including information on the various public liturgies celebrated by the Pope, can be found on the Vatican website: Apostolic Journey of His Holiness Pope Leo XIV to Uruguay, Argentina, and Peru. 

A day after his return to the Vatican, Pope Leo will celebrate Mass on Wednesday, November 18, in St. Peter Basilica for the Solemnity of the Dedication of the Vatican Basilica. This year, 2026, marks the 400th anniversary of the Basilica’s dedication.

Finally, on December 8, the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Pope Leo will make his way to Rome’s Piazza di Spagna, where he will lead the faithful in an Act of Veneration of the Immaculate Virgin.

Rome event to explore Holy See's relations with 20th-century totalitarian regimes

The two-day conference “The Holy See and Totalitarian Systems in the 20th Century: New Approaches and Research Perspectives” opens on October 28 at the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome, examining the actions of the Popes and Vatican diplomacy in the face of 20th-century totalitarian regimes.

The conference, “The Holy See and Totalitarian Systems in the 20th Century: New Approaches and Research Perspectives,” was organized by the Institute of National Remembrance – Commission for the Prosecution of Crimes against the Polish Nation (IPN), the Pontifical Committee for Historical Sciences, and the Pontifical Gregorian University.

Cardinal Secretary of State Pietro Parolin will open the two-day event with an address on October 28.

Fr. Adam Szpotański, a researcher at the IPN Branch in Wrocław, Poland, explained that the initiative grew out of questions about the Holy See’s response to systems that oppressed societies and violated the independence of other states.

Poland and other countries of Central and Eastern Europe experienced the violence of more than one totalitarian regime during the last century.

Researchers will examine the reliability of the Vatican’s information about dictatorships' actions, and whether its diplomatic and Church networks enabled it to reach people suffering and provide effective assistance. They will also consider how the Holy See’s policies shaped the course of world events.

From saving the persecuted to reconciliation

The program spans the first confrontations with Bolshevism and extreme nationalism, through the Second World War, to communist regimes.

Topics include the assistance provided by religious sisters to persecuted people in Italy and the role of Vatican diplomacy in saving Hungarian Jews.

Other presentations will examine restrictions on the Church’s freedom in Czechoslovakia, the witness of Catholics in Romania, and the situation in East Germany. The conference will also address the Holy See’s relations with dictatorships in Latin America.

Poland’s experience will feature prominently, including Pope John Paul II’s approach to the communist regime, Archbishop Luigi Poggi’s efforts in the face of disinformation by the authorities of the Polish People’s Republic, and the role of Pope Paul VI and the Holy See in Polish-German reconciliation.

An international response to a difficult history

Fr. Szpotański said organizers received more than 65 proposed topics from around the world.

Researchers from numerous European universities and academic institutions have been invited to take part. Their contributions will allow a comparison of experiences across countries and different perspectives on the Vatican’s actions.

The conference will be accompanied by an Italian-language exhibition prepared by the IPN on the 1966 celebrations of the Millennium of the Baptism of Poland among Polish communities abroad. It will present photographs and documents from the Archive of the Church and Hospice of St Stanislaus Bishop and Martyr in Rome.

The conference will take place on October 28-29 in the Aula Magna of the Pontifical Gregorian University. Admission is free, and no advance registration is required. Papers will be presented in Italian, English and Polish.

Academic and organizational preparation

A Scientific Council and an Organizing Committee have prepared the conference.

The Scientific Council consists of Dr. Karol Polejowski, Deputy President of the Institute of National Remembrance; Fr. Mark Lewis, SJ, Rector of the Pontifical Gregorian University; and Fr. Marek Inglot, SJ, President of the Pontifical Committee for Historical Sciences.

The Organizing Committee includes Professor Emilia Hrabovec of Comenius University in Bratislava and the Pontifical Committee for Historical Sciences; Dr. Pierantonio Piatti, Secretary of the Pontifical Committee for Historical Sciences; Fr. Jan Mikrut and Fr Robert Regoli of the Pontifical Gregorian University; Dr. Sebastian Pilarski, Director of the IPN Historical Research Office; and Fr. Adam Szpotański of the IPN Branch Historical Research Office in Wrocław.

Pope Leo XIV to meet abuse survivors in Latin America

The Holy See Press Office announced on Tuesday that Pope Leo XIV wishes to express his closeness to survivors of clerical sexual abuse during his Apostolic Journey to Uruguay, Argentina, and Peru.

The announcement came a day after the Press Office confirmed the Pope’s November 6–17 visit to the three Latin American nations.

“During the days of the Holy Father’s upcoming Apostolic Journey to Latin America, some meetings are planned with people who are victims of abuse by members of the clergy and the Church,” read the statement. “These meetings respond to the Pope’s desire to express his closeness to those who have suffered and continue to suffer because of this violence, to build with them paths to healing accessible to anyone who needs them, and to ensure that the Church is a safe and spiritually healthy place that lives and communicates the Gospel.”

Encounters in Spain and France

Pope Leo met with groups of survivors during his recent Apostolic Journeys to Spain and France, when he held similar encounters in Madrid on June 8 and in Lourdes on September 27.

Both meetings were held behind closed doors and were marked by dialogue and listening to the painful testimonies of men and women who had suffered abuse—something Pope Leo XIV has described on other occasions as a “scourge,” a “scandal,” and a “real wound.”

In Madrid, the Pope received a group from Proyecto Repara, an initiative of the Archdiocese, at the Apostolic Nunciature.

He assured them of his closeness and that of the entire Church community, and of “the commitment to ensuring that the proposals received serve as a foundation for further efforts and that the Church can truly be a safe and spiritually healthy place where wounds find comfort and healing.”

In Lourdes, during a two-hour meeting described as “intense” by five of the seven participants at a subsequent press conference, the Pope called for “utmost vigilance” and “utmost determination” in continuing along the path of truth, justice, forgiveness, and reparation, in order to establish “a culture of prevention and protection against such crimes.”

Afterwards, responding to journalists during the return flight from Metz to Rome, he added: “Sexual abuse is first and foremost a human problem. When it happens within the Church, it actually has another whole dimension added to it, because people's lives of faith are deeply wounded and sometimes even destroyed.”

“The Church, I think, is an important part of helping them to find healing,” the Pope added.

Previous meetings

Papal meetings with abuse survivors have been a regular feature of various Apostolic Journeys, from Pope Benedict XVI’s visit to the United States in 2008 and subsequent visits to the United Kingdom, Australia, and Germany, to Pope Francis’ visits to Chile, Ireland, Portugal, and Belgium.

For Pope Leo XIV, Madrid marked his first meeting abroad with people who had suffered abuse within the Church.

However, in the preceding months, he had already received at the Vatican members of the board of Ending Clergy Abuse, fifteen survivors of abuse in Belgium, and David Ryan, who was abused as a child at a college in Dublin, Ireland.

Abuse victims, diocese enter final stages of longest-ever Catholic bankruptcy case

The Buffalo Diocese appears to be entering the home stretch of its marathon Chapter 11 case.

Voting by more than 850 child sex abuse claimants continues until 5 p.m. Nov. 3 on whether to approve a nearly $327 million settlement plan with the diocese and its parishes.

Deals with insurance companies to foot about $177 million of the settlement tab recently received tentative approval from Chief Judge Carl L. Bucki, who is overseeing the case in U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Western District of New York. 

The deals are contingent upon a plan of reorganization being confirmed by the court.

And the first of what will be several phases of a confirmation hearing is set for Tuesday inside the Robert H. Jackson U.S. Courthouse.

The bankruptcy case began Feb. 28, 2020. Lawyers for the diocese, parishes, and the creditors committee have all expressed a desire to finish it by the end of this year, although given the number of complications and delays the case has faced over the past six years and eight months, it would be of little surprise if it continued into 2027.

Here are some additional questions and answers about the case.

Do all abuse claimants need to vote in favor of the plan for it to be confirmed by the judge?

No. The goal of lawyers for the diocese and the creditors committee is to get 100% of voting claimants to vote in favor of the plan of reorganization, which would be a powerful statement to the judge that the plan should be confirmed without further delay. 

But the reality is that the Buffalo case has more claimants than any other diocese bankruptcy to date and getting them all on the same page is unlikely.

With a judge’s approval of disclosure statement, sex abuse claimants will soon get a chance to vote on $326 million settlement plan.

Under bankruptcy rules, abuse claimants are considered a class of unsecured creditors. The class is deemed to have accepted the plan if at least two-thirds of ballots returned are in favor of it. And even if the class rejects the plan, it could still proceed to confirmation through a process known as a cram down.

How much will each abuse claimant receive in the settlement?

The total number of people who filed abuse claims in the Buffalo Diocese bankruptcy is at least 850, although court papers recently filed indicate the number could be as high as 924. So, on average, that would amount to a range of $353,848 to $384,654 per abuse claimant.

But claimants won’t receive the same amounts. Some will get less than the average amount and some will receive more. Lawyers developed an “allocation protocol” that will guide how settlement funds get distributed.

An experienced mediator will serve as the reviewer of the abuse claims, first determining if there is “credible evidence” that a priest or other parish or diocese employed abused the claimant and then evaluating the severity and impact of the abuse. The mediator will determine an award amount based on a scoring system under the allocation protocol.

If an abuse claimant voted against the plan, is he or she excluded from the settlement?

No. A claimant who voted against the plan will still receive a settlement amount, if the plan gets confirmed and he or she signs a legal document releasing the diocese, parishes and insurers from any liability in connection with the abuse.

What is the status of parishioner appeals to the Vatican objecting to the amounts their parish boards of trustees have agreed to contribute to the settlement?

The Vatican’s Dicastery for Clergy has responded to some parishioner appeals regarding parish payments by issuing several decrees ordering the diocese to return any parish money that was transferred for the purposes of paying into a settlement. 

But a lawyer for the parishes has said that no funds had been transferred out of a parish’s control, and proper Vatican approvals were still being sought.

By contributing to the settlement, parishes no longer will have to defend against child sex abuse lawsuits, said William Heuer, who is representing the parishes. Other dioceses also have relied on significant amounts of parish money to help fund settlements, so it doesn’t appear that the Vatican opposes this strategy for dealing with sex abuse liability.

In the Diocese of Rockville Centre, for example, 136 parishes were contributing $103.1 million in cash and other assets over five years, about a third of the $323 million settlement total. 

The Archdiocese of San Francisco in June reached a settlement of $395 million to cover 530 sex abuse claims and asked parishes to pay $1 million to $5 million each toward covering the settlement.

“It’s not like Catholic dioceses have bank vaults full of cash behind the altar. They just don’t,” said Marie T. Reilly, an attorney and retired Penn State University law professor who studies Catholic bankruptcy cases. Dioceses in Chapter 11 for three or four years typically spend at least $20 to $30 million in fees to lawyers and other professionals, she added. “That’s all cash. That’s cash off the top that’s coming out of operating surplus,” said Reilly.

When are the parishes filing for bankruptcy protection as co-debtors in the diocese’s case?

It hasn’t happened yet, and an exact date has not been determined. However, a hearing is scheduled for Dec. 8, at which time lawyers are expected to request what is called an 1129 approval from Bucki confirming the reorganization plan. 

Attorneys for the parishes could then immediately file petitions as part of a “rapid, pre-packaged” bankruptcy procedure. As part of the procedure, parishes would be able to emerge from Chapter 11 within 24 to 48 hours, with little to no disruption of their financial operations.

“We would come back (to the court) a few days later, however that works, still with the goal of getting this done during this calendar year,” said Stephen A. Donato, lead attorney for the diocese.

What are some remaining obstacles to a confirmed reorganization plan?

Not many, assuming claimants approve the plan through their ballots. The Office of the U.S. Trustee has filed an objection to confirmation. Assistant U.S. Trustee Joseph W. Allen argued in court papers that the plan would give liability releases to insurers without the consent of the individual abuse claimants, which he said isn’t allowed.

Allen’s objection also seeks more clarity in the plan regarding releases to non-debtor entities that are contributing to the settlement.

An abuse claimant also wrote to Bucki saying survivors "are getting screwed" and asking him not to confirm the plan. The abuse victim said a priest had raped him more than 100 times when he was a child and he was not getting justice under the current plan.

In previous court hearings, Bucki raised questions about the plan’s feasibility, because the diocese hasn’t spelled out in detail where it is getting $150 million to cover the non-insurance portion of the settlement. 

The judge has indicated he wants a line-by-line accounting of the sources of the $150 million. If he’s not convinced all the money is there to make the plan work, Bucki could decline to confirm it.

Diocese in Guatemala investigates alleged Eucharistic miracle involving host with reddish stains

A multidisciplinary team is investigating an alleged Eucharistic miracle that took place in Cuilapa, Guatemala, after a consecrated host remained undissolved in a glass of water and developed reddish stains.

Father José Alejandro García, parish priest at the Cathedral of the Child Jesus in the Diocese of St. Rose of Lima, within whose jurisdiction the events took place, explained in an interview with EWTN News Español, the Spanish-language sister service of EWTN News, that his bishop, José Cayetano Parra, has assembled a team of specialists to investigate the case.

The group consists of a biologist, a physician with experience in similar cases, a psychologist, a nurse, a layperson chosen from among the faithful who participate in the community, and a priest who is not part of the local parish clergy.

As the priest explained, one of the team’s objectives is to determine “whether the reddish stain is blood” and to understand how it is that “a piece of bread may be found to have certain human properties or characteristics.”

What happened to the consecrated host?

During a Mass celebrated on July 30 at a school in the city of Cuilapa, the celebrant noticed that one of the young people had removed the Eucharist from his mouth; the priest approached him to prevent him from tossing it on the floor. 

After retrieving the host, the priest took it and later placed it in a glass vessel containing water, located in the chapel in the cathedral’s rectory.

The intention was for the host to dissolve naturally. However, on Aug. 6, it was observed that this had not occurred; instead, red stains had appeared on it.

Since then, the case has sparked interest among the faithful.

Prudence, prayer, and reflection

García emphasized that this is a matter that “will require time for study and reflection,” clarifying that neither the multidisciplinary team nor the bishop can confirm whether this is a Eucharistic miracle. Any eventual authorization for public veneration rests with the Holy See.

For now, he asked the faithful to use this time for “exercising prudence, for prayer, and reflection,” and to avoid drawing hasty conclusions that could “hinder the investigation.”

On behalf of Parra, the priest invited the community to maintain “great faith, much prayer, and patience.”

Increased participation by the faithful

García said that since the news became known, there has been “greater participation by thousands of people” who have come to the church to attend Mass, go to confession, and take part in Eucharistic adoration.

The priest noted that the chapel set aside for adoration has begun to fill with more people than usual, so it is now open from 5 a.m. until midnight.

He also noted that there is “an increase in people looking to go to confession.”

“We offer confession, especially on Sundays, and we have ministered to a large number of people, including some who had not been to confession for years,” he added.

“For my community, it has been a rebirth,” the priest stated, pointing out that this awakening has been reflected in a strengthening of “faith in Jesus in the Eucharist, which is evident in the increased attendance of the faithful at Mass and at Eucharistic adoration.”

For the priest, what occurred is a call for Catholics to “strengthen our faith,” and for those who are not yet Catholic, “it is a cry from Jesus telling us: I am alive; I am the bread that has come down from heaven.”

White House meeting and the bishops’ meeting

When a group of U.S. bishops visited the White House last Thursday for a meeting they were told would include Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Vice President JD Vance, it’s not clear what they were expecting.

Few, it seems, expected that the meeting would become the subject of widespread media attention, or that at least one of their number would be apologizing for even attending in the first place. 

In fact it’s not even clear how many of them were expecting to meet the President of the United States, or to pray over him in the White House.

But the propriety of the meeting has become the subject of fierce debate among some Catholics. And even what exactly happened is still up for debate, with the bishops themselves offering somewhat conflicting accounts of how they got in the room in the first place.

Discussion of the gathering is not on the agenda for next month’s fall plenary meeting of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops. But it does seem certain to be discussed in hallways and behind closed doors — with at least some questions raised about the bishops’ conference itself. And the bishops’ conference also seems the most likely forum at which Pope Leo’s views on the matter will be expressed.

Video of a group of bishops praying over President Donald Trump emerged on social media Thursday afternoon, published first by communications personnel in the White House.

The prayer offered by Archbishop James Golka of Denver was not specific to Trump. It prayed in general for the United States and its government, and for national protection against evil, without offering any kind of endorsement for Trump personally.

In fact, the words appeared to be carefully chosen to avoid the appearance of partisanship or endorsement of the president as a political candidate. And clerics watching the video probably had a sense of what was going on — that the bishops suddenly found themselves asked to offer a public prayer in a potentially volatile situation, and were aiming to do so without offering words that might be misinterpreted or misunderstood.

On the whole, that seems to track with the most likely account of what happened on Oct. 22: A group of bishops went to the Executive Office Building for a meeting with high-level administration officials. At the end of the meeting, they were invited to meet with Trump in the Oval Office. From there, the idea of some prayer seemingly emerged, and then camera phones came out. And while the bishops were still probably being ushered through the de facto Oval Office gift shop, the video was cut and posted on social media by Trump staffers.

But the question being asked is whether the bishops should have been in the room in the first place.

And however much the assembled bishops wanted to avoid controversy, they didn’t. The video was posted and promoted by members of the Trump administration, two weeks ahead of a midterm election that does not look likely to go well for Trump’s party. It came out the same day that JD Vance appeared on the Raymond Arroyo television program — a moment when the Trump administration was apparently aiming to reactivate Catholic support for the president’s party.

And indeed, it was taken in some corners as at least an implicit endorsement of Trump’s GOP. Some Catholics asked online whether bishops would have allowed themselves to be similarly filmed surrounding Biden with prayer two weeks before a major party election. Some strong Trump critics said that the bishops simply allowed Trump within the Overton window of acceptable political choices, a move they felt inappropriate for a political leader they oppose strongly. And some Catholics from the MAGA side of the aisle took the opposite tack, arguing that the bishops were — of course — meeting with Trump because his agenda most aligns with Catholic social teaching.

It seemed soon apparent that near everyone would have an opinion on that particular nexus of Church and state.

Some Catholics — and indeed, at least one bishop in attendance — emphasized that praying with people is good, and that a cleric should choose an opportunity to pray with a national leader whenever he’s offered it.

“I knew that it could be shared and that some might use it for political purposes,” Denver’s Golka said recently. “But as I prayed about it, I thought that this is what Catholics do. We pray for people. No matter whether we agree or disagree on anything, we always pray for our country and leaders.”

“I was being a Catholic priest,” Golka said. “We pray for people.”

But others — including at least one bishop in attendance who apologized for going — have said that the prelates at the meeting were “manipulated” into giving a “political photo opportunity” that might imply endorsement.

The prudence of the meeting itself might be debated ad nauseam.

So might be the provenance of the meeting. The Pillar confirmed, with bishops in attendance and others close to the meeting, that invitations for prelates came from Mario Enzler, a former Swiss Guard and disgraced former academic who is now an official at the pro-Trump Heritage Foundation.

After The Pillar broke the news of Enzler’s involvement, the Heritage Foundation denied that Enzler organized the meeting, and one bishop-attendee offered that his invitation came from (unnamed) “officials connected with the White House Faith Office.”

After that denial, The Pillar again confirmed that several attendee bishops were invited to the gathering directly by Enzler.

Indeed, however it’s finessed or framed by Heritage, some — if not all — bishops were invited to the White House meeting by Enzler, a high-ranking staffer from a political think tank.

And to some observers, that ought to have increased the bishops’ awareness that the meeting would be politicized, and was not only a synodal conversation with administration officials.

Still, while bishops are Americans — and offer plenty of commentary on the world of American electoral politics — they don’t live entirely in that world either, and most don’t see the world through its lens. Some attendees were doubtlessly warned that the meeting could be an attempt to politicize them, and seemingly felt the presence of prayer in the White House was worth that possibility, or decided not to allow the risk of being politicized to deter them from an opportunity to raise issues of concern to the Church, to find areas of common ground with the administration, or to spread the Gospel.

It is obvious that some of the debate on the subject is obvious posturing, including a great deal of opportunistic faux outrage from commentators with clearly stated political priorities. Some defenses of the bishops have been no less nakedly partisan, often breathlessly so.

In short, the internet’s gonna internet.

But whether the meeting was imprudent, two weeks ahead of an election, is actually a matter for legitimate conversation. But debating it intelligently does require understanding that many bishops are less actually focused on the political process, and the way the game is played, than they’re usually presumed to be. Whether that’s a significant liability on their part, however, and what could be done about it, is again a reasonable subject for discussion.

In short, the meeting has become the subject of some debate among Catholics, and of international media coverage, but agreement on its meaning, and on whether bishops should have attended, seems unlikely.

Amid that speculation are questions about how Pope Leo, who has had sharp exchanges through the media with the Trump administration, might perceive the meeting.

That topic will likely generate questions among closed-door episcopal conversations next month, and is likely to see questions put to the bishop-attendees about why they chose to attend the meeting.

It is likely to be especially noted that as a matter of protocol, bishops ordinarily engage with the federal executive through the government affairs office of the bishops’ conference, which was not in attendance at the meeting, and not involved in its planning.

But The Pillar has confirmed that at least some senior officials of the conference were aware of the meeting with administration officials before it took place, and some had concerns about how it might be used politically. And in November, at least some prelates are likely to ask conference leadership whether they could, or should, have intervened to dissuade bishops from attending.

All of that is laden with long-standing disagreement among the U.S. bishops about how to engage with recent presidential administrations — how bishops should engage with the pro-abortion Biden White House, and how they should engage with a Trump White House that has been critical of Pope Leo and the USCCB itself on immigration, and at odds with the bishops on the death penalty, in vitro fertilization, marriage, and several other issues.

Any criticism about whether prelates ought to have attended last week’s meeting is likely to draw comparison with the calls from corners of the episcopate to “dialogue” and finding “common ground” with the Biden administration — especially if the bishops criticizing attendance at the Trump meeting are the same ones who called for that dialogue in the last administration.

Still, it seems almost certain that questions will be raised about whether there were internal USCCB staff discussions about their approach to the Oct. 22 White House meeting. Staffers will likely emphasize that the USCCB is not an authoritative body, staffers do not tell bishops what to do, and that its protocol for engaging with civic officials is at the level of an implied moral agreement, at best, between American bishops.

And actually, most bishops in the room will know that whatever the views of USCCB staffers, there is little power at the conference to dissuade bishops from doing what they choose to do. If there is discussion about whether conference staffers ought to have intervened in some way, it is most likely best understood as a polite proxy pretext by which to have disagreement about whether bishops should have gone to the meeting in the first place.

To the extent it happens, that discussion will shake out behind closed doors. But far more public will be the second address to the bishops of new apostolic nuncio Archbishop Gabriele Caccia, whose very job at these meetings is to communicate to the bishops the pope’s priorities and the manner in which he’d like to see them addressed.

When Caccia takes the microphone, Pope Leo XIV’s views on the meeting could well be spoken or implied. And on all sides of the issue, U.S. bishops will certainly be listening.