“The Catholic community stands with the people of Chicago in speaking out in defense of the rights of immigrants and asylum seekers,” he continued. “Similarly, if the reports are true, it should be known that we would oppose any plan that includes a mass deportation of US citizens born of undocumented parents,” as well as attempts by “government agencies to enter places of worship for any enforcement activities.”

Cardinal Cupich added that “government has the responsibility to secure our borders and keep us safe.” Still, “people of faith are called to speak for the rights of others and to remind society of its obligation to care for those in need. If the indiscriminate mass deportation being reported were to be carried out, this would be an affront to the dignity of all people and communities, and deny the legacy of what it means to be an American.”

”This ceasefire is a turning point,” the cardinal said. “So it’s about time to take courage to come here. We are waiting for you.”

In a video message? which he recorded along with Father Francesco Patton, the Franciscan Custos of the Holy Land (a title that the Patriarch once held), Cardinal Pizzaballa reminded the faithful: “The source an origin of hope is here at the Holy Sepulchre with Jesus, the risen Lord.”

Father Patton added his own encouragement for Catholics planning Jubilee pilgrimages. “Please, don’t fear,” he said. “Don’t be afraid. Come!”

“The Catholic Church’s foundational teaching calls us to uphold the sacredness of human life and the God-given dignity of the human person,” she said shortly after the president’s inauguration. “This means that the care for immigrants, refugees, and the poor is part of the same teaching of the Church that requires us to protect the most vulnerable among us, especially unborn children, the elderly and the infirm.”

“The bishops’ conference will work with the Trump Administration as well as the US Congress to advance the common good for all, which will include instances of agreement, as well as disagreement,” she added.

“I offer cordial greetings and the assurance of my prayers that Almighty God will grant you wisdom, strength and protection in the exercise of your high duties,” the Pope wrote. “Inspired by your nation’s ideals of being a land of opportunity and welcome for all, it is my hope that under your leadership the American people will prosper and always strive to build a more just society, where there is no room for hatred, discrimination or exclusion.”

The Pope added:

At the same time, as our human family faces numerous challenges, not to mention the scourge of war, I also ask God to guide your efforts in promoting peace and reconciliation among peoples. With these sentiments, I invoke upon you, your family, and the beloved American people an abundance of divine blessings.

“Please, God bless America, please mend her every flaw,” Cardinal Timothy Dolan said at the conclusion of his prayer. “You are the God in whom we trust, who lives and reigns forever and ever. Amen!”

Father Frank Mann, a priest of the Diocese of Brooklyn, delivered the benediction. Rev. Franklin Graham, Rabbi Ari Berman (president of Yeshiva University), and Lorenzo Sewell (pastor of Detroit’s 180 Church) also offered prayers.

Sister Petrini, who is currently secretary-general of the governorate, will take the top spot when Cardinal Fernando Vergez Algaza retires when he reaches his 80th birthday on March 1.

”You cannot discriminate against an LGTBI citizen and require him to choose wither his faith or his sexual condition,” said Redondo, insisting that this would be “contrary to the Spanish constitution.”

Redondo was responding to a controversy in the town of Torrecaballeros, where Mayor Ruben Garcia said that his parish priest had denied him Communion.

A January 20 statement from the SCV acknowledged the accuracy of reports that the Vatican had announced the dissolution of the movement during a general assembly of the SCV in Brazil. The statement said, however, that public reports of the Vatican action had included some inaccuracies?but did not provide further details.

A report issued earlier this week had indicated that the SCV?which has been under Vatican investigation for months?had been suppressed because of abuses of leadership and financial mismanagement. That unconfirmed report said that Msgr. Jordi Bertomeu Famos, who has headed the Vatican investigation of the movement, will supervise the formal dissolution of the SCV.

In the January 20 statement, the SCV said that the earlier reports had been leaked to reporters by two members of the group, who had now been “definitely expelled” from the SCV for violating the confidentiality of the general-assembly meeting.

Seminarians end up going astray, the Pope answered, when they do not cultivate closeness to God, the bishop, the people, and one another.

In the Vatican’s English translation of the Pope’s remarks, the Pope also said, “The courage of St. Paul VI placed synodality as the aim of the Council” (emphasis added)?a statement not borne out by the historical record. In Pope Francis’s original Italian, Pope Francis said that Paul VI inserted synodality “alla fine del Concilio,” or at the end of the Second Vatican Council (in 1965)?a statement that is historically accurate.

“The Holy Child has been our constant source of hope and joy over the years,” said Archbishop Jose Palma of Cebu. “In His childlike form, we see innocence and the enduring power of love that sustains us through all hardships. His presence assures us that we are never alone, and through Him, we are given the strength to endure.”

In September, the bishops’ conference opened its archives on the priest to historians and journalists, following serious new charges of sexual abuse.

Ordained to the priesthood in 1938, Abbé Pierre took part in the French resistance against the Nazis during World War II and was a member of the French parliament from 1945 to 1951. Known for his ministry to the poor and homeless, he became a beloved figure in France. He was also a critic of Catholic teaching on sexual morality.

In an article for the January 20 edition of the Vatican newspaper, Chris Griswold, policy director of American Compass, wrote that “if international observers want to understand what is happening in American politics and why Donald Trump is back in the White House, it may be helpful to know that America’s political, economic, and business elites have often failed to ask what those words [independence, opportunity, and freedom] mean to working-class Americans and their families.”

“The American ideal requires community cohesion, a cohesion that is too often lacking,” he continued. “It is rootedness and connection that Americans most desire, not economic and social advancement. Too often, they experience the opposite, as financial pressures rob them of the ability to invest in their most important relationships.”

Griswold added:

The degradation of family and community cohesion, economic security, and social stability by the choices of the American elite is the broad context in which American politics now operates. And so is the contempt that the same elite has continued to show for the expressions of discontent by working-class Americans over this failure. This is a recipe for political upheaval.

American Compass, according to its website, seeks to develop “the conservative economic agenda to supplant blind faith in free markets with a focus on workers, their families and communities, and the national interest.”

The study by the Center for Applied Research in the Apostolate (CARA), covering abuse charges that have been filed in the past 20 years, puts the overall cost of the scandal a just over $5 billion, including legal fees.

The study finds that the number of sex-abuse complaints has dropped, with only 3% of the cases involving incidents that occurred after 2000. More than 90% of the cases covered in the study dated back to before 1989; in many such cases the alleged perpetrator was already deceased.

The CARA study confirmed that 80% of the abuse complaints involved male victims, with a vast majority (80%) involving adolescent or teenage boys.