President Donald Trump during signing session of Executive Orders in the Oval Office on Feb. 10, 2025. / Credit: Official White House photo by Daniel Torok

Washington D.C., Feb 22, 2025 / 17:39 pm (CNA).

U.S. President Donald Trump celebrated an end to what he called ?transgender insanity? during his Feb. 22 speech to the 2025 Conservative Political Action Conference.

Thousands of conservatives gathered for the annual three-day conference, which was largely themed around Trump and his wide-ranging agenda. Many speakers, including Trump, took a celebratory approach to his 2024 comeback victory and the electoral ?mandate? Trump received to govern according to his campaign agenda.

?It?s all out now ? critical race theory and transgender insanity,? Trump declared, referring to his executive actions to curtail gender ideology in public life. 

?It?s all gone from our schools and from our military and I believe it?s gone too,? the president said. ?...I believe that it?s all gone.?

Since taking office, Trump has banned biological men from women?s sports in K-12 and college athletics, prohibited transgender surgeries on children, halted schools from facilitating social gender transitions for children, and ended transgender-related anti-discrimination mandates imposed by former President Joe Biden?s administration on private entities.

?I made it the official policy of the United States government that there are only two genders: male and female,? Trump said. ?That was easy.? 

The president recounted his various executive actions on gender ideology and said, ?Can you imagine making a speech like this 10 years ago?? 

?People would say what the hell is he talking about, right?? Trump said. ?This is a sickness that came with critical race theory and all of the other things we had to put up with.?

During his speech, Trump also criticized Gov. Janet Mills of Maine, who helped lead a lawsuit against Trump?s ban on biological men in women?s sports in K-12 and college athletics.

?She?s fighting to keep men in women?s sports,? Trump said. ?You ever see what happens to a woman when a woman boxes with a man who transitioned to womanhood? Did you ever see what happens? It?s not pretty.?

The country?s 47th president claimed opposition to biological men in women?s sports is ?like a 90-10 issue and I can?t figure out who the 10% are ? nobody can.?

Trump also celebrated the release of 23 pro-life activists who he pardoned within his first week in office. Trump said the activists, many of whom received years in prison for violating the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances (FACE) Act, were ?political prisoners.?

During the annual conference, many speakers promoted Trump?s policy agenda on various issues, including gender ideology, school choice, immigration, and the economy.

Religious sisters and faithful gather at Gemelli hospital to pray the rosary for Pope Francis on Saturday afternoon, Feb. 22, 2025. / Credit: Daniel Ibáñez/CNA

Vatican City, Feb 22, 2025 / 14:20 pm (CNA).

Pope Francis was admitted to Rome?s Gemelli Hospital on Friday, Feb. 14, to undergo testing and treatment for bronchitis, the Vatican said. After a full week in medical care, the Vatican announced Feb. 22 the Holy Father had suffered a respiratory crisis and required a blood transfusion. 

Follow here for the latest news on Pope Francis? health and hospitalization:

Pope Francis attends the general audience at the Vatican on Feb. 12, 2025. / Credit: Daniel Ibáñez / EWTN News

CNA Newsroom, Feb 22, 2025 / 14:11 pm (CNA).

Pope Francis remains in critical condition and ?is not out of danger,? the Holy See Press Office announced Saturday evening in Rome.

The 88-year-old pontiff ?experienced an asthma-like respiratory crisis of prolonged intensity? Saturday morning that required the administration of high-flow oxygen, according to the Vatican?s medical update.

Blood tests revealed a low platelet count (thrombocytopenia), associated with anemia, which required blood transfusions.

While the Holy Father remains alert and spent the day in an armchair, he is ?more uncomfortable than yesterday,? the statement said, describing the prognosis as guarded.

The Vatican confirmed earlier Saturday that the pope will not lead the traditional Sunday Angelus prayer on Feb. 23. During a press conference at Gemelli Hospital on Friday, the medical team caring for the pontiff had described his condition as serious, noting that Pope Francis was fully aware of his situation.

Prayerful presence marked the scene outside Rome?s Gemelli Hospital on Saturday afternoon as religious sisters and faithful gathered to petition for Pope Francis? recovery through the intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary.

Altar of the Chair in St. Peter's Basilica, where Bernini's gorgeous bronze monument to the Chair of Peter acts as a massive bronze reliquary for the historic wooden chair. / Credit: Vatican Media

Vatican City, Feb 22, 2025 / 11:00 am (CNA).

Every year on Feb. 22, the Catholic Church celebrates the feast of the Chair of St. Peter, a tradition that dates back more than 1,600 years.

The feast honors not just a physical chair but what it represents: the authority of St. Peter, the first pope, and the unbroken line of his successors.

References to the ?Chair of Peter? date back to the early centuries of Christianity. St. Jerome, a biblical scholar of the fourth century, wrote in a letter: ?I follow no leader save Christ, so I enter into communion with ? the Chair of Peter, for this I know is the rock upon which the Church is built.?

The feast itself has been celebrated on Feb. 22 since at least A.D. 336, according to Monsignor Tiziano Ghirelli, a canon of St. Peter?s Basilica. By the fifth century, its importance had grown, with the imperial family participating in celebrations at the old St. Peter?s Basilica in Rome in 450 and 467.

The word ?cathedra? refers to the seat of the bishop, which is why the mother church of a diocese is known as a cathedral. The bishop of Rome, as Peter?s successor, holds a unique role in guiding the Church.

Pope Benedict XVI explained in a 2006 catechesis that the Chair of Peter ?is the symbol of the bishop?s authority and in particular, of his ?magisterium,? that is, the evangelical teaching which, as a successor of the apostles, he is called to safeguard and to transmit to the Christian community.?

The phrase ?ex cathedra? ? Latin for ?from the chair? ? is still used to describe the pope?s most authoritative teachings.

?Celebrating the ?chair? of Peter means attributing a strong spiritual significance to it and recognizing it as a privileged sign of the love of God, the eternal Good Shepherd, who wanted to gather his whole Church and lead her on the path of salvation,? Benedict said.

Yes, there is actually a chair relic kept in St. Peter?s Basilica

In addition to the symbolic meaning, there is also a physical relic known as the Chair of St. Peter housed in St. Peter?s Basilica.

The wooden chair, dating back to the ninth century, was displayed for public veneration last fall amid the restoration efforts underway in the basilica.

Prior to that, the chair was last publicly exhibited in 1867, when Pope Pius IX allowed it to be seen for 12 days to mark the 1,800th anniversary of the martyrdom of Peter and Paul. Before that, the chair had not been seen since 1666 when it was first encased inside Gian Lorenzo Bernini?s monumental bronze sculpture under the stained-glass Dove of the Holy Spirit window at the basilica?s apse.

Historical records indicate that the wooden chair was likely a gift from Holy Roman Emperor Charles the Bald to Pope John VIII in 875. It features ivory panels depicting scenes from Greek mythology, including the labors of Hercules.

During the Middle Ages, the popes were solemnly enthroned on the chair. Innocent III used the wooden chair for his consecration on Feb. 22, 1198. 

?Since the 11th century, the feast of Feb. 22 has been celebrated in Rome, and at the Vatican Basilica, with particular emphasis,? Ghirelli explained.

Bernini?s monument

In the 17th century, Pope Alexander VII commissioned Bernini to create an elaborate reliquary to house the chair. Bernini?s design, completed in 1666, features a gilded bronze throne elevated above the ground crowned by a stained-glass window depicting the Holy Spirit as a dove.

The structure is supported by statues of four doctors of the Church ? two from the West, St. Augustine and St. Ambrose, and two from the East, St. John Chrysostom and St. Athanasius ? symbolizing the unity of the Church through the ages, bringing together the teachings of both the Latin and Greek Church Fathers.

Above the throne, cherubs hold a papal tiara and keys, a reference to the authority given to Peter in the Gospel of Matthew: ?You are Peter, and upon this rock, I will build my Church.?

Though the chair relic is once again enclosed within Bernini?s sculpture, visitors to St. Peter?s Basilica continue to pause before this symbol of the special mission of Peter and his successors to pray for the pope and his intentions.

?As we contemplate it with the wonder of faith,? Pope Francis said, ?let us remember that this is the chair of love, unity, and mercy, according to Jesus? command to the Apostle Peter not to lord it over others but to serve them in charity.?

Moms for America President Kimberly Fletcher. / Credit: Courtesy of CPAC/Screenshot

Washington D.C., Feb 22, 2025 / 08:00 am (CNA).

Speakers at the 2025 Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) praised U.S. President Donald Trump?s efforts to root gender ideology out of the American public education system and expressed high hopes for the major expansion of school choice in the country.

?The public education system in America has literally failed the American people,? Erika Donalds, who serves on the boards of Moms for Liberty and the Independent Women?s Forum, said during a panel discussion at CPAC on Friday.

?It hasn?t lived up to the promise where we parents were told if you send your child to this school for eight hours a day, we?re going to teach them to read and do math and achieve their own American dream ? that was a lie,? said Donalds, who is the wife of Rep. Byron Donalds, R-Florida.

Jack Brewer, a former NFL player and official in the first Trump administration, said on the same panel that the American education system was not created to ?indoctrinate [children] to make them believe they could be transgender and be any gender they wanted to choose.?

He credited Trump for standing for ?biblical truth? through his executive orders, adding: ?God created man and woman and that?s it.? 

Shortly after his inauguration on Jan. 20, Trump signed an executive order that prohibits K?12 schools that receive federal funds from helping facilitate the gender transition of a child. This includes actions like using pronouns inconsistent with his or her biological sex or permitting a child to use a restroom or locker room inconsistent with his or her sex.

Trump also signed an executive order that prohibits biological boys and men from participating in girls? and women?s sports.

?Everything that we asked for, we?re getting,? Kimberly Fletcher, the president of Moms for America, said in a separate speech later that afternoon.

Fletcher said mothers who have religious faith should be more active in the political process ?if we want to continue to win? and warned ?there?s a real threat to our country and it?s not going away.?

?Do not think that the devil sleeps,? Fletcher said. ?They have just gone back underground. And this is our opportunity to make sure that ground never opens up again.?

The speakers also urged stronger school choice in the country, including Brewer, who said it was important for churches to run more schools and day cares and to empower organizations that support school choice.

Sviatoslav Shevchuk is major archbishop of Kyiv-Galicia and primate of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church. / Credit: Screenshot/EWTN News Nightly

Washington D.C., Feb 22, 2025 / 07:00 am (CNA).

The head of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church during a visit to Washington, D.C., this week advocated for a lasting peace in Ukraine ?that does not appease dictators? as the U.S. begins negotiations with Russia.

?Putin?s objectives are clear: He wants to erase Ukraine, its people, and its church,? Major Archbishop Sviatoslav Shevchuk stated during a panel discussion at the Hudson Institute on Thursday.

?If Russia succeeds in occupying Ukraine, our church will not survive. For us, it?s a matter of life and death,? Shevchuk said. 

He continued: ?History teaches us that whenever Russia takes control of territories with Eastern Catholics, it enforces them into the Russian Orthodox Church, drives them into exile, or sends them to perish in prison camps.?

Shevchuk?s visit comes as the Trump administration begins to open diplomatic channels to Russia in an attempt to end the Ukraine war. Top U.S. and Russian diplomats met in Saudi Arabia on Tuesday, marking the first major communication between Washington and Moscow since the start of the war three years ago. Ukrainian diplomats were notably excluded from the meeting. 

During the discussion, which also included the metropolitan archbishop of Philadelphia, Borys Gudziak, and Archpriest Marc Morozovich, Shevchuk warned of the danger to Ukraine and to other nations if Ukraine is occupied by Russia.

?We seek a just peace, not a temporary ceasefire that lets the aggressor return stronger,? Shevchuk said during the discussion. 

He further asserted that the Baltic countries, Poland, Georgia, Armenia, and other central Asian countries would also soon be in danger of occupation should Russia prevail over Ukraine. ?Putin wants to rebuild the Russian Empire ? if Ukraine falls, others will be next,? Shevchuk said.

?We cannot afford to be naive,? he continued. ?As the Apostle Paul warns, ?While people are saying peace and security, then sudden disaster comes upon them.?? 

President Donald Trump recently signaled his administration?s intention to definitively pull back U.S. support for Ukraine. In a social media post on Wednesday, he said that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, whom he described as a ?modestly successful comedian? had manipulated the U.S. into spending $350 billion ?to go into a war that couldn?t be won.? 

Trump further shifted blame for the conflict?s duration and its death toll on Zelenskyy, asserting that the Ukrainian president ?has done a terrible job,? leaving his country ?shattered.?

Shevchuk expressed that he believed Trump?s statements mirrored ?Russian propaganda talking points? and that Ukraine?s future, and that of the church, depends on a lasting peace. 

He cited the example of how in December 2022, Russian authorities declared the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church illegal, outlawing Caritas Ukraine and the Knights of Columbus. He also spoke of two Ukrainian priests who suffered ?brutal torture? over the course of 18 months of Russian captivity. Their release, he said, was ?thanks to the special effort and mediation of the Holy See.? 

?But at least 10 others, Protestants, pastors, are in the same condition and they are tortured right now, at this moment. We have to remember them and speak up on behalf of their release,? he noted. 

?Despite Russian propaganda that falsely claims Ukraine suppresses religious freedom, the truth is quite the opposite,? Shevchuk continued. ?Ukraine guarantees religious liberty, allowing all faiths to practice freely. Meanwhile, in Russian-occupied territories, religious groups not aligned with the Russian Orthodox Church are persecuted.?

Shevchuk described the forced deportation of Ukrainian children as ?one of the most horrifying crimes of this war.? 

?Thousands have been taken from occupied territories and placed in Russian families, orphanages, or so-called reeducation camps,? he said. ?These children are forced to forget their Ukrainian identity; many aren?t even back from Russia. Many are even given new names.?

?Each deported child represents another family torn apart by war,? Shevchuk reflected. 

To end the war in Ukraine, he said, Ukraine ?must have a clear strategy for peace, one that does not appease dictators.? 

The Ukrainian patriarch likened the Russian political concept ?Ruskiy Mir,? or ?Russian World,? to that of radical Islamism. ?The ideology of the ?Russian world? is Russian jihadism,? he said. ?The whole ideology of the war is to come back to the times of the Soviet Union.?

For this to occur, Shevchuk said, would be for Ukrainians to return ?back to the catacombs.?

null / Credit: alexkich/Shutterstock

Rome Newsroom, Feb 22, 2025 / 06:00 am (CNA).

The theme of the 2025 Jubilee Year is ?Pilgrims of Hope.? For those who wish to embark on a spiritual pilgrimage through reading and prayer during the Lenten season ? or anytime during this sacred year ? here is a list of recommended books, essays, and encyclicals that explore the theme of Christian hope.

Spes Salvi (Saved in Hope) by Pope Benedict XVI

This encyclical beautifully explores the Christian understanding of hope as rooted in the promise of eternal life. Benedict XVI writes: ?The one who has hope lives differently; the one who hopes has been granted the gift of a new life.?

Spes Non Confundit (Hope Does Not Disappoint) by Pope Francis

The papal bull for the 2025 Jubilee Year begins: ?To all who read this letter, may hope fill your hearts.?

?Crossing the Threshold of Hope? by Pope John Paul II

In this book-length interview, John Paul II addresses the challenges and questions of the modern world in a deeply personal and philosophical conversation on faith and hope.

?Faith, Hope, Love? by Josef Pieper

A classic meditation on the theological virtues, the treatise on hope was written in 1934 in response to the general feeling of despair he perceived at that time.

?Hope? by Alice von Hildebrand

A chapter in the book called ?The Art of Living? was co-authored with her husband, Dietrich von Hildebrand. The book has been praised by Peter Kreeft as ?a masterpiece? of spiritual wisdom.

?The Portal of the Mystery of Hope? by Charles Péguy

Theology professor Jennifer Newsome Martin called this narrative poem on the theological virtue of hope a ?book that changed my life.?

?Prayers of Hope? by Venerable Cardinal Francis-Xavier Nguy?n V?n Thu?n

Benedict XVI described this work by the late Vietnamese cardinal who was imprisoned for 13 years as ?a precious little book.?

?Life Everlasting and the Immensity of the Soul? by Reginald Garrigou-Lagrange

This profound theological treatise on the four last things ? death, judgment, heaven, and hell ? offers a contemplative perspective on our ultimate hope.

?Advent of the Heart: Seasonal Sermons and Prison Writings? by Father Alfred Delp

The writings of a German Jesuit priest who was imprisoned and martyred in a Nazis camp in 1945 reflect on our journey toward a meeting and dialogue with God. 

?Summa Theologiae?by St. Thomas Aquinas (II-IIae,Questions 17-18)

These questions in the Secunda Secundae deal with the theological virtue of hope.

?End of Time: Meditations Towards a Philosophy of History? by Josef Pieper

This philosophical exploration of what Christians truly hope for in the end times distinguishes authentic eschatological hope.

?An Act of Hope? by Father Jacques Philippe

A short meditation on hope and prayer found in the book ?Prayer: Oxygen for the Soul.?

?Is It Possible to Live This Way? An Unusual Approach to Christian Existence: Hope? by Luigi Giussani

This work is dialogue on what it means to live with authentic Christian hope in everyday life.

American Principles Project President Terry Schilling. / Credit: Courtesy of CPAC/Screenshot

Washington D.C., Feb 21, 2025 / 19:50 pm (CNA).

In the wake of the 2024 election and with Republicans in full control of the White House, Senate, and House of Representatives, social conservatives gathering at the 2025 Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) said they are relishing the opportunity to switch from a defensive to offensive posture on several policy fronts.

Mercedes Schlapp, a senior fellow at the American Conservative Union (ACU) Foundation and wife of ACU chairman and CPAC organizer Matt Schlapp, told CNA Friday she believes that specifically, ?the death of wokeism and gender ideology has been a crucial part of President [Donald] Trump?s victory and the Republicans? victory.? 

?[Trump] talks about the revolution of common sense when he?s talking about two genders,? said Schlapp, who is Catholic. Schlapp said Trump?s focus on gender ideology ?really hit home for parents,? including Catholic and other Christian parents, and their desire to ?protect their children.? 

?I think it really hit home to so many Catholic families who are teaching their children Catholic values,? she said. ?And that?s why you saw this shift, I think, where more Catholics ended up voting for Donald Trump.?

?The Democrats lost the common sense ? and their loss is our gain,? Michael Knowles, a Catholic political commentator for The Daily Wire, declared during a Thursday afternoon speech at the event.

Knowles emphasized the importance of Trump winning the popular vote, which he did not win in his first presidential victory in 2016, calling the election ?a mandate for common sense.?

During the campaign, Trump leaned heavily into criticisms of gender ideology, including transgender surgeries for children, biological men in women?s sports, and regulations that imposed ?gender identity? constructs in public life. Since taking office, he has initiated executive actions to end all those federal policies.

Pope Francis has referred to gender ideology as ?one of the most dangerous ideological colonizations? in the world today.

Knowles said that until recent years, ?transgenderism did not exist in public life at all,? arguing that ?LGBT gender-bending ideology? was ?forced upon us? and ultimately rejected by voters.

He said American society has historically been based on God and referred to the current secularist trends as an ?aberration and a national scandal [that] needs to be reversed.? He noted God is mentioned in the Declaration of Independence, on American money, and in the full version of the national anthem.

?Religion is not just some private privilege,? Knowles said. ?Religion is a public right. Our very country is predicated on the idea that God exists and we are made in his image.?

An emboldened social conservatism

During a CPAC panel titled ?Culture Warriors: Take Your Truce and Shove It,? American Principles Project President Terry Schilling, who is Catholic, called Trump the ?most pro-family president? in American history for signing executive orders to ?protect our children and families.?

Speaking on the same panel as Schilling, Concerned Women for America President Penny Nance pointed out that although Trump?s executive actions against gender ideology are welcome, the United States Congress still needs to pass laws to enact the same policies to prevent a future administration from reversing Trump?s orders.

?We cannot give up until we are actually able to codify this policy,? said Nance, who is an evangelical Christian. 

Some speakers also went further than Trump has on other cultural issues.

Knowles, for example, criticized the federal sanctioning of homosexual marriage, noting that most Democrats were against it until the 2000s. He said marriage ?is a natural institution? of a man and a woman and there?s ?nothing bigoted about that observation.?

?That is the only definition of marriage that distinguishes it from other types of relationships,? Knowles said. 

Schilling and Nance both criticized cultural norms leading to a decline in marriage and having children. 

?Being a father ? it?s the most amazing thing,? said Schilling, who has seven children. 

Specifically, Schilling criticized the prevalence of pornography and the popularity of marijuana among other cultural vices, which he said distract from ?important things like getting married.?

Nance also expressed concern over falling fertility rates in the United States, saying: ?We?re not at replacement rate for our children, for our families.? She said that although not everyone can get married, ?it?s OK to realize and to state that it?s the ideal.?

?I would suggest there?s some real systemic causes of [the declining marriage and fertility rates] that we have to deal with,? Nance added.

Schlapp told CNA that society will ?prosper? and ?thrive? when ?you have families who pray to God and have a religion,? adding: ?It is how you can have a stable community, and quite frankly, a stable society and a stable nation.?

?We always believe that at CPAC, it is a spiritual warfare because we?re fighting against evil,? she added.

?We are fighting against diabolical influences,? she said. ?And when you?re dealing with ? taking down the communists and ? taking down the globalists, these are people who do not believe in God and they hate the Catholic Church, and they hate Christian values.?

EWTN?s Raymond Arroyo interviews Father Tad Pacholczyk, senior ethicist at the National Catholic Bioethics Center, about the moral concerns inherent in IVF on Feb. 20, 2025.  / Credit: EWTN News/The World Over

Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Feb 21, 2025 / 17:45 pm (CNA).

Father Tad Pacholczyk, senior ethicist at the National Catholic Bioethics Center (NCBC), discussed on EWTN this week the moral concerns and risks of in vitro fertilization (IVF) following the Trump administration executive order promoting access to the treatment.

In a Feb. 20 interview on EWTN?s ?The World Over with Raymond Arroyo,? Pacholczyk said IVF is ?called a pro-life, pro-family technology, but at its core, it?s not.?

?I think it?s good to start out and emphasize that it?s good to hear the president seeing the importance of family formation,? Pacholczyk said. However, he continued, ?there are a number of concerns that arise in the wake of this technology ? that has just galloped forward largely driven by commercial concerns.?

IVF concerns

Pacholczyk detailed numerous moral concerns with IVF that do not align with Catholic teaching.

?There is this propensity to produce extra embryos, many of whom will either be discarded or frozen. Sometimes they get caught in stasis for literally decades or forever,? he said. ?They?re never rescued out of that freezing situation.?

?You?ve certainly heard of the situations when people are implanted with three or four embryos,? Pacholczyk continued.

?What happens if they all take? Well, then you have to have what?s called selective reduction, and they go in and destroy one or two of the growing babies in that case to help with the pregnancy for the remaining two babies,? he said.

Pacholczyk has previously addressed this concern in his NCBC column ?Making Sense of Bioethics,? where he referred to discarded or frozen embryos as the ?collateral damage? of IVF.

In the interview, Packolczyk also highlighted the moral issues involved when families opt for sex selection of embryos during the IVF process.

?Do you want a boy? Do you want a girl? There?s this quality control, which is, of course, just a fancy word for eugenics that is part and parcel of this entire technology.?

The priest called IVF a ?two-edged sword.? He said: ?There?s a death-dealing edge to the sword that pops up throughout the entire practice of in vitro fertilization.?

Pacholczyk also said there are risks to surviving embryos. 

?There is known to be a higher risk of birth defects in the babies that are born this way,? he said.

Pacholczyk said that even in cases where women adopt embryos from other couples and implant them in their own wombs, it is still morally wrong. He explained that embryo adoption contributes to the commercialization of human life by creating a demand for embryos.

?So you actually feed into the cycle of cooperation in evil by promoting something like this,? he said. 

Pacholczyk added that the Alabama Supreme Court law that ruled embryos created via IVF are children under state law brought ?some coherence to this issue.?

?We?ve been in this situation where we?re calling the embryo different things depending on what it is we want. I think the Alabama decision cut through that and said: ?No, we can?t do that. We?ve got to be consistent and coherent here,?? he said.

Suggested regulations

Pacholczyk told Arroyo that if he were advising the Trump administration on IVF policies he would urge ?regulation? rather than ?cooperation or encouragement of this practice.?

He suggested drafting regulations that limit the number of embryos that can be created and require that all of them must be implanted in the mother. He said he would urge the administration to set up a system similar to the Human Fetal Tissue Ethics Advisory Board that was in effect during Trump?s first term.  

Pacholczyk, who was a member of the board, said: ?We made decisions about funding for experiments that used fetal tissue. It was amazing the work that they did. We need some more advisory commissions like that.?

Pacholczyk emphasized funding and developing treatments for infertility must take priority over IVF to figure out the ?underlying causes? of why couples are unable to have babies. 

?That whole approach gets sidelined. As soon as you offer the IVF industry to couples, they go down that road almost immediately,? Pacholczyk said. 

The offices of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese for the Military Services, USA, in Washington, D.C. / Credit: Farragutful, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

CNA Staff, Feb 21, 2025 / 17:05 pm (CNA).

Pope Francis appointed Father Gregg Caggianelli, an Air Force veteran and Florida priest, as auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese for the Military Services, USA, on Friday.

Caggianelli, 56, has served on active duty and in the reserves for more than 30 years. He currently works at the U.S. Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, Colorado, as a mobilization assistant to the Air Force Academy chaplain.

Caggianelli is a priest of the Diocese of Venice, Florida, and has served as vice rector of a Florida seminary since 2013. Cardinal Christophe Pierre, apostolic nuncio to the U.S., announced his appointment on Feb. 21. 

Caggianelli shared that he was both ?humbled and grateful? for the appointment. 

?After the initial shock and disbelief, and much time begging for God?s mercy, I was filled with true praise and thanksgiving to God,? he said in a Feb. 21 statement. 

Caggianelli said he has had a lifelong desire to serve as a priest and in the military.

?Since I was a little boy, there have only been two things I have wanted to do in life,? Caggianelli said. ?At age 11, I started thinking of being a priest and at age 14 I had a great desire to serve in the military.? 

Caggianelli was born on Aug. 2, 1968, in Kingston, New York. He obtained a bachelor?s degree in aerospace engineering from the University of Michigan in 1990 and a master?s degree in mechanical engineering from the University of Dayton four years later. Caggianelli was ordained to the priesthood on Oct. 25, 2002.

Caggianelli said his time ?wearing the uniform in one capacity or the other, and as a priest, serving as a chaplain in the Air Force Reserve? has been joy-filled. 

?All of this has been a life-giving experience that has been filled with joy,? he said. 

Caggianelli was commissioned in 1990 as an Air Force line officer, serving at the Air Force Research Laboratory in Ohio. He left active duty in 1996 to study to become a priest at St. Vincent de Paul Regional Seminary in Boynton Beach, Florida, where he later became vice rector in 2013. 

?Throughout the Scriptures, for some reason, God chooses the most unlikely of people,? Caggianelli reflected. ?Jesus called a motley lot of fishermen, tax collectors, and sinners as his disciples. He simply asked them to follow him. God continues to call each of us to follow him in a unique way, and we trust in his promise to remain with us always.?

After his ordination in 2002, Caggianelli served as a parochial vicar at Incarnation Parish in Sarasota until 2010. He also headed the vocations and seminary formation for the Diocese of Venice as associate director from 2006 to 2007 and director from 2007 to 2010. He later became the administrator of St. Francis Xavier Parish in Fort Myers from 2010?2013. 

Caggianelli shared his excitement to serve those in the military. 

?As I begin this new journey, I look forward to assisting Archbishop [Timothy] Broglio and the other bishops, chaplains, and good people who serve the Archdiocese for the Military Services,? Caggianelli said. ?Most of all, I look forward to giving my life in service of Our Lord in the care of our soldiers, sailors, airmen, coastguardsmen, guardians, veterans, and diplomats throughout the world.?

The Archdiocese for the Military Services, USA, was founded by Pope John Paul II to serve Catholics in the U.S. military and government employment outside the United States. Based in Washington, D.C., the archdiocese serves an estimated 1.8 million Catholics. 

Statue of St. Peter in front of St. Peter's Basilica. / Credit: Vatican Media

Vatican City, Feb 21, 2025 / 16:30 pm (CNA).

A ruling by the High Court of England and Wales published Feb. 21 has confirmed that the Vatican Secretariat of State was deceived by Italian financier Raffaele Mincione in the irregular purchase of a London building.

For this transaction that ended in fraud Mincione was sentenced in December 2023 by a Vatican lower court to five years and six months in prison for financial crimes related to the case.

In addition, he was ordered to forfeit 200.5 million euros (about $210 million), one of the largest financial penalties ever imposed in the Vatican courts.

In that trial, Cardinal Angelo Becciu was also sentenced to five and a half years in prison for embezzlement of public funds.

According to the ruling, Becciu arranged the acquisition of property located on Sloane Avenue when he was deputy secretary of state from 2011 to 2018.

To do so, he used a third of the reserved funds of the Secretariat of State: that is, $200 million that was paid between 2013 and 2014 at the request of Becciu.

This amount was used to buy shares through a fund managed by the Italian intermediary Mincione, who was also convicted along with Becciu by the Vatican lower court for money laundering, embezzlement, and corruption.

Following the sentence, Mincione filed a lawsuit against the Vatican Secretariat of State in British court in June 2020, and the court published its ruling Feb. 21.

The Italian financier?s aim was to obtain a series of legal declarations in his favor regarding his handling of the buying and selling of the Sloane Avenue building.

Mincione argued that his conduct in the transaction had been transparent and in accordance with the standards of good faith. However, the British court rejected his allegations, confirming that the Vatican had reasons to consider itself the victim of a damaging financial scheme.

According to Judge Robin Knowles? 50-page ruling, Mincione and his companies withheld key information and misrepresented the value of the London property, causing significant harm to the Vatican.

The court found that Mincione made ?unrealistic? statements, inflating the price of the property and taking advantage of the Vatican?s lack of experience in such investments.

Much of the lengthy summary of the verdict focuses on the reconstruction of the irregular transaction.The British court made it clear that the Vatican Secretariat of State was deceived, which coincides with the primary thesis of the Vatican court, which had previously convicted Mincione of money laundering, embezzlement, and corruption.

As a lower court ruling, Mincione has the possibility of appealing the decision.

For the Vatican, the ruling ?has important implications not only for Mincione but also for future cases involving the financial operations of the Holy See,? according to a Vatican News editorial on the subject.

According to Vatican journalist Andrea Tornielli, the ruling ?establishes an important precedent by recognizing that the Vatican was the victim of financial fraud in one of its most important real estate investments.?

He also confirmed that according to the Vatican ?the lack of transparency and ethics with which Mincione and his entourage operated could influence other ongoing judicial proceedings.?

The sentence reinforces, Tornielli said, ?the conclusions of the Vatican tribunal, which had already convicted Mincione for crimes related to fraudulent investments of funds of the Holy See.?

Tornielli also referenced a statement by the Vatican promoter of justice, Alessandro Diddi, expressing his satisfaction with the British court?s ruling against Mincione.

?The British judges have shared the view of the Vatican tribunal and have confirmed that Raffaele Mincione did not act in good faith as required in this type of transaction. With this ruling, it is clear that the Vatican court acted correctly in its assessment of the case,? Diddi said.

This story was first published by ACI Prensa, CNA?s Spanish-language news partner. It has been translated and adapted by CNA.

Kobe Bryant with the United States Olympic basketball team in 2012. Bryant, who died in a plane crash in 2020, will be among those included in a proposed ?National Garden of American Heroes.? / Credit: Christopher Johnson, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons

CNA Staff, Feb 21, 2025 / 15:30 pm (CNA).

Statues of dozens of prominent American Catholics ? including numerous saints and popular figures such as the late basketball star Kobe Bryant ? will be among those included in a proposed ?National Garden of American Heroes,? a project President Donald Trump unveiled during his first term and revived following his inauguration last month.

During a Black History Month gathering at the White House on Thursday, Trump promised to honor a number of African American figures in the proposed garden, the final site for which is being picked ?now,? he said. Trump said the garden will ?honor hundreds of our greatest Americans to ever live.?

The list of honorees, first announced during Trump?s previous term, includes several Catholic saints: St. Junípero Serra, St. John Neumann,St. Katharine Drexel, St. Elizabeth Ann Seton, and St. Kateri Tekakwitha, as well as several Catholics whose sainthood causes are ongoing: Venerable Fulton Sheen, Venerable Augustus Tolton, and Servant of God Dorothy Day.

Also included is the popular spiritual writer Father Thomas Merton; March for Life founder Nellie Gray; and John P. Washington, a Catholic priest and one of the ?Four Chaplains? ? a band of men of different faiths who all sacrificed their lives to save others on a torpedoed ship during World War II. 

Political figures on the list include John F. Kennedy, the nation?s first Catholic president; Antonin Scalia, a longtime Supreme Court justice; 20th-century playwright and Congresswoman Clare Boothe Luce; William F. Buckley Jr., conservative commentator and writer; and Archbishop John Carroll, SJ, the first Catholic archbishop in the United States, and his cousin Charles Carroll, the only Catholic signer of the Declaration of Independence. 

In the world of popular culture and sports, the list includes Catholics such as film director Frank Capra, who directed ?It?s a Wonderful Life?; wild west entertainer William F. ?Buffalo Bill? Cody; football coach Vince Lombardi; ?Jeopardy!? host Alex Trebek; and Bryant, who died in a January 2020 helicopter crash in Southern California along with his 13-year-old daughter, Gianna, and seven other people.

Trump?s original order, issued Jan. 18, 2021, in the very last days of his previous term, outlined plans for building the National Garden of American Heroes. Building upon a previous order to establish a statuary park that honors figures throughout American history who embody the ?American spirit,? the order expressed concern over what it describes as ?anti-American extremism? seeking to dismantle the country?s history.

The plan for the garden aims to counteract this by creating a space where citizens can ?renew their vision of greatness? through the stories and statues of selected American heroes, the order said. President Joe Biden nixed Trump?s original order shortly after he took office, canceling the project. 

Trump revived the garden plan on Jan. 29, directing that the assistant to the president for domestic policy shall ?recommend to the president additional historically significant Americans for inclusion in the National Garden of American Heroes, to bring the total number of heroes to 250.?

While the place where these new statues will be is yet to be determined, there are already a number of existing statues honoring Catholics with important roles in American history located in Washington, D.C. Most notably, the U.S. Capitol?s statuary hall includes images of St. Damien of Molokai, Mother Mary Joseph Pariseau, Father Jaques Marquette, and Serra, among others.

Dr. Sergio Alfieri (right) and Dr. Luigi Carbone give a press conference at Gemelli Hospital in Rome, where Pope Francis is hospitalized for tests and treatment for bronchitis, on Feb. 21, 2025. Alfieri said the pope asked him to say hat he has ?the mind of a a 50-year-old man.? / Credit: ALBERTO PIZZOLI/AFP via Getty Images

Vatican City, Feb 21, 2025 / 15:00 pm (CNA).

Pope Francis is ?not out of danger? due to his age and fragile health, his medical team told journalists on Friday. 

During a Vatican press conference at Rome?s Gemelli Hospital, both Dr. Sergio Alfieri, head of Gemelli Hospital?s medical team, and Dr. Luigi Carbone, the pope?s referring doctor at the Vatican, said the 88-year-old Holy Father must remain in the hospital for ?enhanced? treatment.

?The hospitalization will be as long as it takes for him to return safely to Santa Marta [his Vatican residence],? Alfieri told journalists on Friday. ?He will stay here at least all next week. He is better, but the situation may change. Here at Gemelli, he is a very good patient.? 

The Holy Father, according to Alfieri, asked him ?to say that he is an old man with chronic diseases with the mind of a 50-year-old man? who wishes to continue his work caring for the universal Church.

?At 88 he is leading the Church and not sparing himself; he has become fatigued,? Alfieri said. ?It has been possible to isolate microorganisms; there are viruses, myocytes, and bacteria [and] there are chronic diseases that can be contained.?

The Gemelli medical team head confirmed that the pope continues to read, work, and sign documents while at the hospital.

Elaborating on the specific details of the Holy Father?s medical condition, Alfieri said: ?He had pus with a respiratory tract infection ? At first there was no pneumonia [but] in the following days we noticed with a CT scan a bilateral pneumonia that is still there.? 

Though the pope is ?not attached to machines,? he occasionally uses oxygen support to assist his breathing. Alfieri added: ?He knows he is in danger, the risk can be that of sepsis, that is, germs passing into the blood. But today there is no such situation.? 

At Gemelli, the pope?s medical reports are written by Alfieri, Carbone, and a team of infectiologists, gastroenterologists, cardiologists, and pulmonologists.

Carbone, the pope?s doctor at the Vatican, told journalists on Friday that the Holy Father ?is fragile and not out of danger [as] it takes very little to have imbalances.? 

?The pope has chronicities, such as asthmatic bronchitis, that can flare up,? he said. ?The pope responds to the therapies that have been enhanced and not changed.?

?The pope is not a quitter,? Carbone told journalists toward the end of the press conference. 

Since Feb. 14, the Holy Father has undergone a series of daily diagnostic tests and complex cortisone antibiotic therapies to treat his respiratory infections and pneumonia alongside his other chronic illnesses.

The outside of the Planned Parenthood Reproductive Health Services Center in St. Louis is seen on March 8, 2022. / Credit: Neeta Satam for The Washington Post via Getty Images

CNA Staff, Feb 21, 2025 / 14:40 pm (CNA).

Here is a roundup of recent pro-life and abortion-related news.

Planned Parenthood offers abortions in Missouri

Planned Parenthood is once again offering abortions in Missouri following the passage of a referendum in November that enshrined a right to abortion in the Missouri Constitution.

Voters passed Amendment 3 in November establishing a right to ?reproductive freedom,? but Planned Parenthood initially held off on offering abortions in the state. Abortion became illegal in the state, except in cases of emergency, after the state?s 2019 ?trigger law? went into effect following the overturning of Roe v. Wade.

The decision to resume offering abortions comes after Jackson County circuit judge Jerri Zhang temporarily blocked abortion restrictions on Feb. 14. Zhang wrote in the three-page ruling that the regulations were unnecessary and the licensing requirement for abortion clinics was discriminatory. 

Planned Parenthood CEO Margot Riphagen celebrated the decision, calling the state licensing requirements ?another politically motivated barrier to prevent patients seeking abortion from getting the care they need.?

But Susan Klein, executive director of Missouri Right to Life, called the decision a ?tragic day for Missouri mothers and unborn children? in a Feb. 17 statement, where she highlighted the potential dangers of limited regulations.

The regulations that were ruled unconstitutional under Amendment 3 include a requirement that only doctors perform abortions as well as an examination requirement to determine the unborn child?s gestational age and any preexisting conditions. Regulations requiring the sterilization of surgical instruments and the ready availability of emergency equipment during the procedure were also ruled unconstitutional. 

Pro-life group criticizes Trump plans for IVF expansion 

A pro-life group criticized the Trump administration?s expansion of access to in vitro fertilization (IVF), saying the cost of life is higher than abortion. 

IVF is a fertility treatment opposed by the Catholic Church in which doctors fuse sperm and eggs to create human embryos and implant them in the mother?s womb. To maximize efficiency, doctors create excess human embryos and routinely destroy undesired embryos.

The pro-life group American Life League (ALL) voiced opposition to the IVF expansion, saying in a Wednesday statement that ?it is not a pro-life decision.?

?The reality is that more babies die from IVF than abortion. This fact is continuously ignored by our lawmakers, who obliviously call IVF a pro-life action, or celebrate ?more babies,?? said ALL National Director Katie Brown. ?This blatant ignorance will cost millions of innocent lives.?

Brown urged President Donald Trump ?to take time to fully understand what IVF is? and to reverse the decision.

Delaware pregnancy centers defend free speech 

A nonprofit religious network of pregnancy care centers filed a federal lawsuit against the state of Delaware last week challenging a recent state Senate bill requiring pregnancy centers to post disclaimers in their facilities and advertising.

The bill requires pregnancy centers to post disclaimers stating that they don?t have a licensed medical provider directly overseeing services and are not licensed as medical facilities. 

In the lawsuit, argued by law firms Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF) and Simms Showers, the National Institute of Family and Life Advocates (NIFLA) maintained that the disclaimers are unnecessary and misleading ? and that they constitute compelled speech. 

Anne O?Connor, vice president of legal affairs at NIFLA, said in a Feb. 13 statement that the bill ?is clearly unconstitutional as it destroys the free speech of pregnancy centers solely because they are pro-life and help women who are facing unplanned pregnancies.?

ADF Senior Counsel Kevin Theriot cited Roe v. Wade?s overturn as a starting point after which ?state attorneys general have ramped up their efforts to silence, censor, and shut down pregnancy care centers across the country.? 

Lawsuit against abortion time off revived 

A U.S. appeals court reopened a lawsuit by 17 states that challenged a federal rule requiring employers to give employees who have abortions the same benefits as mothers who are pregnant or recently gave birth.

The three-judge panel found that the states led by Tennessee had legal standing to sue because they are employers who must comply with it.

This decision by the 8th Circuit Court of Appeals reversed a judge?s dismissal of the lawsuit last year after the rule was enacted last April by the Biden administration.

The 2024 rule ? enacted by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ? required employers to grant sick leave or time off for employees who had abortions.

The rule was designed to implement the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act (PWFA), a law passed in 2022 with bipartisan support. The PWFA was enacted to accommodate workers who were pregnant or had pregnancy-related conditions by granting them sick leave or time off to see doctors, but the EEOC rule extended those related conditions to include getting an abortion or using contraception.

The states argued that the rule went beyond the purview of the PWFA and violated the First Amendment, according to court documents.

The rule applies to all public and private employers with 15 or more workers and is contingent on the accommodations not presenting an ?undue hardship on the operation of the business of the covered entity.?

The Reichstag building in Berlin, where the Bundestag meets. / Credit: jan zeschky via Flickr (CC BY-NC 2.0)

CNA Newsroom, Feb 21, 2025 / 14:10 pm (CNA).

As German voters prepare for federal elections on Feb. 23, the country?s Catholics find themselves navigating unprecedented divisions on issues that cut to the heart of Church teaching, from migration policy to gender ideology and the protection of life.

The elections come at a time when traditional party allegiances are being questioned and multiple Catholic voices are speaking with markedly different emphasis on key moral and social issues.

What do the current polls show?

Recent polls place the Christian Democratic Union (CDU/CSU) at around 30%, followed by the Alternative for Germany (AfD) at approximately 20%. The Social Democrats (SPD) and Greens are polling around 15% each, with the SPD holding a slight advantage. Other parties, including the FDP, the Left Party, and BSW face uncertainty about clearing the 5% threshold required for parliamentary representation.

How have Catholic organizations responded to party positions?

The Central Committee of German Catholics (ZdK) ? the country?s most prominent lay Catholic organization ? has strongly criticized the CDU?s recent ?paradigm shift? on migration policy.

According to an analysis by the Catholic newspaper Die Tagespost using artificial intelligence tools, the ZdK?s political expectations show the strongest alignment with Green Party positions, particularly on ?climate protection? and ?social justice.?

While taking a more nuanced view, the ZdK?s positioning has drawn sharp criticism from prominent Catholic politician and former defense minister Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer (CDU), who left the ZdK over its approach to migration policy and its tone in debates about the CDU?s proposed changes.

?One holds one?s own position as the only correct one,? Kramp-Karrenbauer told the Neue Osnabrücker Zeitung, criticizing what she called an ?apodictic and condemnatory? tone taken by the ZdK.

?When our society becomes increasingly polarized until people face each other irreconcilably, extremist forces have an easy game,? she warned.

What is the bishops? position?

In an ecumenical statement released this month, Bishop Georg Bätzing, chairman of the German Bishops? Conference, along with Protestant and Orthodox leaders called on voters to support parties ?committed to our democracy.? The statement explicitly warned that ?extremism and especially ethnic nationalism are incompatible with Christianity,? reported CNA Deutsch, CNA?s German-language news partner.

The German bishops? conference has previously declared the AfD ?unelectable? for Christians, citing the party?s ?ethnic nationalism? ideology ? a finding the party has categorically rejected, according to CNA Deutsch.

What are the key issues for Catholic voters?

Three major areas have emerged as particularly contentious:

Migration: CDU leader Friedrich Merz advocates for stronger border controls, while the bishops? conference warns against compromising humanitarian obligations. A motion Merz introduced with AfD support has been called an ?unforgivable mistake? by Chancellor Olaf Scholz of SPD. Meanwhile, the AfD calls for mass deportation of migrants.

Life issues: The CDU maintains support for Germany?s current abortion regulations as a ?hard-won societal compromise,? while the SPD and Greens advocate for legalization. Germany currently permits abortion in the first 12 weeks of pregnancy, with mandatory counseling at a state-approved center. The AfD calls for a ?welcoming culture for children? while criticizing current policies.

Gender policy: Addressing a conference in Germany this week, just before the election, the Vatican?s doctrine chief delivered a pointed critique of gender ideology at a theological conference in Germany. The SPD and Greens support ?gender mainstreaming? and changing family law to give various living arrangements and partnerships equal status. The CDU states it supports ?diversity of sexual orientations? but rejects ?gender as an ideological concept.?

The AfD says it wants to stop all subsidies for ?research based on gender ideology.?

After receiving assistance from the Catholic Charities RGV Humanitarian Respite Center, migrant families from Mexico and Central America who have been granted asylum in the United States are processed for their transport to various destinations across the United States at the Central Station Bus Terminal on June 19, 2018, in McAllen, Texas. / Credit: Jahi Chikwendiu/The Washington Post via Getty Images

CNA Staff, Feb 21, 2025 / 13:40 pm (CNA).

A federal judge has denied a request from the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) to block a federal funding freeze that the bishops say will greatly harm refugee aid efforts in the United States. 

The USCCB sued the Trump administration earlier this week over what the bishops said was an unlawful suspension of funding for refugee resettlement and aid programs. The suspension came via one of several executive orders President Donald Trump issued shortly after taking office. 

The results of the suspension have been ?devastating,? the bishops said, with the prelates reporting ?millions of dollars in pending, unpaid reimbursements for services already rendered to refugees? along with ?millions more each week.?

In their suit the bishops had asked for a temporary restraining order against the White House. In a decision on Thursday, U.S. District Judge Trevor McFadden denied that request.

McFadden in the decision said restraining orders are ?an extraordinary remedy.? Courts only grant them, he said, when plaintiffs show ?likely success on the merits, likely irreparable harm in the absence of preliminary relief, a balance of the equities in its favor, and accord with the public interest.?

?The court finds that plaintiff has not made the requisite showing and will thus deny plaintiff?s motion to the extent that it requests a temporary restraining order,? McFadden ruled.  

The bishops had requested a ?preliminary injunction? in addition to the restraining order. In his ruling McFadden said the court would set ?an expedited schedule for additional briefing? to consider the injunction request, though the order did not say when the next briefing would occur. 

The U.S. bishops have been warning for several weeks on the potential fallout surrounding the Trump funding freeze, which has impacted numerous programs both domestically and internationally. 

In January they asked Catholics to reach out to their members of Congress and request the resumption of foreign aid funding following the White House?s freeze. 

The pause ?will be detrimental to millions of our sisters and brothers who need access to lifesaving humanitarian, health, and development assistance,? the bishops said at the time.

Earlier this week, following the filing of the lawsuit, USCCB spokeswoman Chieko Noguchi said the bishops have for years partnered with the U.S. government and ?helped nearly a million individuals find safety and build their lives in the United States.?

?We are urging the government to uphold its legal and moral obligations to refugees and to restore the necessary funding to ensure that faith-based and community organizations can continue this vital work that reflects our nation?s values of compassion, justice, and hospitality,? she said. 

The Justice and Peace Commission of the Southern African Catholic Bishops? Conference has called for ?racial reconciliation? in response to ongoing land reform disputes between South Africa and the United States government. / Credit Photos courtesy of SACBC

ACI Africa, Feb 21, 2025 / 11:50 am (CNA).

The Justice and Peace Commission of the Southern African Catholic Bishops? Conference (SACBC) has called for ?racial reconciliation? in response to ongoing land reform disputes causing tension between South Africa and the United States government.

In early February, South Africa President Cyril Ramaphosareportedly signed the Expropriation Act into law, permitting the government there to seize land without compensation. This policy aims to address historical land disparities favoring the country?s white minority.

President Donald Trump criticized the move, stating: ?South Africa is confiscating land and treating certain classes of people very badly.? In response, he issued an executive order suspending all aid to South Africa, citing concerns over alleged discrimination against white Afrikaners.

In an interview with the SACBC communication office, the director of the SACBC Justice and Peace Commission, Father Stan Muyebe, OP, said the recent dispute between the two governments has reopened the wounds of land injustices during the apartheid era in the southern African nation.

He said that South Africa is still trying to recover from its ?painful past of apartheid, painful history for a lot of people.?

The development in South Africa concerning land, he said, ?is a very complex and very sensitive issue that calls for genuine reconciliation.?

?Racial reconciliation in South Africa cannot be comprehensive if the land matter is not handled properly,? Muyebe said in a Feb. 17 interview. He decried what he described as the ?manufacturing of facts and misrepresentation? surrounding South Africa?s post-apartheid land reform, calling it a highly sensitive issue that has been ?unfortunately exploited by recent developments in global geopolitics.?

?Hearing what has been presented by the United States, but also in the media, there are some aspects that are facts, but there?s also manufacturing of facts, misrepresentation,? he said.

Muyebe made reference to the country?s constitution and explained that any land restitution should not undermine food security or economic productivity.

He said further in reference to the constitution: ?Although the government has introduced new legislation to accelerate land redistribution, controversy remains regarding the extent and manner of compensation.?

?We are confident that this matter will be addressed when the legislation is taken for review at the constitutional court, which will most likely happen,? the priest said.

Muyebe expressed optimism that the planned national dialogue on land reforms in South Africa would provide a collective solution to land issues and other areas of contention in the country.

According to a Reuters report, the U.S. administration?s disapproval of South Africa?s land reform policies has jeopardized the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA), a trade agreement allowing South African agricultural products tariff-free access to U.S. markets.

According to the report, the potential revocation of AGOA benefits could adversely affect South African industries, including wine and citrus producers. Some U.S. lawmakers advocate for terminating AGOA benefits due to South Africa?s land policies, arguing that the reforms discriminate against white farmers.

In the Feb. 17 interview with the SACBC communications office, Muyebe also weighed in on the suspension of U.S. foreign aid to South Africa, describing the move as a wake-up call to African leaders to address ?dependency? and ?find a way in which critical programs that we have in Africa should be funded internally.?

This story was first published by ACI Africa, CNA?s news partner in Africa, and has been adapted by CNA.

Marcin Bogacki of Warsaw, Poland (far right) prays before walking through the Holy Door of St. Peter's Basilica with his mother and 4-year-old son on Feb. 21, 2025. / Credit: Hannah Brockhaus/CNA

Vatican City, Feb 21, 2025 / 11:20 am (CNA).

Local Catholics and jubilee pilgrims in Rome are praying for Pope Francis? recovery as he marks one week in the hospital for treatment for pneumonia and bronchitis.

Pilgrim groups and individuals from around the world continue to travel to Rome for the 2025 Jubilee Year, and though they won?t catch a glimpse of the pontiff, he is close to their hearts.

As they prepared to walk through the Holy Door of St. Peter?s Basilica, a group of about 50 pilgrims from Our Lady of Nantes Parish in France told CNA they are praying for the pope?s full recovery.

The group was planning to attend the Angelus with the pope on Feb. 23, but now, ?we pray for him and we hope that everything will be OK,? seminarian Aymeric Dor said.

Dor recalled that one of the conditions to receive the Holy Door plenary indulgence is to pray for the pope?s intentions, which he said they are doing: ?We are praying for his health too.?

Agata Eccli, who is part of a pilgrimage of 57 people from different parishes and towns in Poland, said her group is not only praying for Pope Francis during their visit to St. Peter?s Basilica but also at each of the stops they make on an Italy-wide pilgrimage, including the tomb of St. Anthony in Padua, St. Francis in Assisi, St. Peter in Rome, and St. Pio of Pietrelcina in San Giovanni Rotondo.

Families are also keeping the ailing pontiff in their prayers, including Italian couple Andrea Paradisi and Chiara Costa, who brought their 4-month-old baby Margherita on a pilgrimage to Rome over the weekend for the jubilee. 

Marcin Bogacki of Warsaw, Poland, told CNA he has fond memories of visiting Rome as a child during the Jubilee Year in 2000 and wanted to have the same experience with his own young family. 

Though his wife is expecting their second child and was unable to fly at this time, Bogacki brought his mother and his 4-year-old son. He said they are praying for Pope Francis, for the Church, for a private family intention, and for his wife and their unborn baby.

Rome prays

Across Rome, local Catholics are offering Masses and special prayers for Pope Francis? health. 

The chaplain of Gemelli Hospital ? where the pontiff is receiving treatment ? is offering Mass for Francis every day at 1 p.m. in the hospital?s chapel.

On Feb. 22, the feast of the Chair of St. Peter ? a day that commemorates the authority Jesus gave to the pope ? a group of Catholics will gather outside Gemelli Hospital to pray a rosary for the pope?s health.

At the Basilica of St. Mary Major, every Mass is being offered for the pope, the basilica?s communications director told CNA, including Masses celebrated in the chapel of the ancient Salus Populi Romani image of Mary ? a favorite of Francis, who spends time in prayer in the chapel before and after every international trip.

null / Credit: Rohane Hamilton/Shutterstock

Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Feb 20, 2025 / 17:45 pm (CNA).

The chairman of the U.S. bishops? pro-life committee and chairman of the committee for laity, marriage, family life, and youth criticized the new Trump administration order expanding in vitro fertilization (IVF) access.

Bishop Daniel Thomas of Toledo, Ohio, and Bishop Robert Barron of Winona-Rochester, Minnesota, released a joint statement issued by the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops opposing the president?s order and urging more humane options for infertility.

?As pastors,? the bishops said, ?we see the suffering of so many couples experiencing infertility and know their deep desire to have children is both good and admirable; yet the administration?s push for IVF, which ends countless human lives and treats persons like property, cannot be the answer.? 

The executive order calls for White House advisers to submit policy recommendations to protect access to IVF and to reduce its out-of-pocket costs. 

?The IVF industry treats human beings like products and freezes or kills millions of children who are not selected for transfer to a womb or do not survive. Tuesday?s executive order promoting IVF is thus fatally flawed and stands in regrettable contrast to the promising pro-life actions of the administration last month,? they said.

The bishops clarified that ?every human person is a precious gift with infinite dignity and worth? regardless of how he or she was conceived. 

?People born as a result of IVF have no less dignity than anyone else. It is our moral responsibility to uphold the dignity of their brothers and sisters who are never given the chance to be born.?

The bishops emphasized that the focus should be on solving infertility issues rather than promoting IVF.

?For the sake of couples trying to bring precious new life into the world,? they said, ?we look forward to working with the administration to expand support for restorative reproductive medicine that can help ethically treat often-overlooked root causes of infertility.?

?However, we will strongly oppose any policy that expands destruction of human life or forces others to subsidize the cost,? the statement concluded.

null / Credit: RasyidArt/Shutterstock

CNA Staff, Feb 20, 2025 / 17:15 pm (CNA).

A $50 million school choice bill long in the works is awaiting approval from Idaho?s governor after the state Senate passed the measure on Wednesday.

The bill would establish a $50 million parental choice tax credit beginning in the 2025-2026 school year, helping parents send their children to nonpublic schools, including private religious schools.

After years of attempts by school choice advocates in the Idaho Legislature, the bill passed in a 15-10 vote in the Senate.

If approved, qualifying students would be able to claim a refundable tax credit worth up to $5,000 to attend a nonpublic school. Students with disabilities could qualify for up to $7,500.

The tax credit covers qualifying expenses such as nonpublic school tuition as well as textbooks, tutoring, and other costs. The school choice measure would prioritize families earning up to 300% of the federal poverty level.

The program also ensures that nonpublic schools maintain independence in their admissions policies, curriculum, and other areas.

Gov. Brad Little hasn?t yet made a statement on the bill, though he voiced support for school choice earlier this year.

At his State of the State speech, Little proposed a $50 million private school choice program, provided the program be ?fair, responsible, transparent, and accountable? while also preserving public school funding.

But Idaho Education Association President Layne McInelly called on the governor to veto the bill, saying it doesn?t hold private schools accountable. McInelly called instead for ?ending the state?s chronic underfunding of education.?

McInelly criticized the bill for not ensuring compliance with state and federal discrimination laws, saying the bill is not transparent and fair ?in the same ways public schools are accountable to elected officials, parents, and taxpayers.?

Notably, private religious schools are not always able to implement various government requirements. Similar restrictions have prevented Catholic schools from being able to participate in school choice programs in Colorado and Maine.  

But the bill has received praise from organizations including the American Federation for Children.

?With today?s vote, families in Idaho are on the verge of experiencing a dramatic expansion in private school choice, and we are eager to see it signed into law,? Ryan Cantrell, vice president of government affairs at the federation, said in a statement. 

President Donald Trump also expressed his support for the Idaho measure in a statement on Truth Social earlier this week. 

?Congratulations to Gov. Brad Little, and Idaho legislators, who are fighting to bring school choice to their beautiful state,? Trump said. ?$50 million to empower parents to provide the very best education for their child ? GREAT news for Idaho families. This bill, which has my complete and total support, MUST PASS!? 

Trump signed an executive order on Jan. 30 to expand educational freedom and opportunity for families by expanding school choice.

School choice programs help low- and middle-income families send their children to private schools of their choice, including the nearly 6,000 Catholic schools across the nation. Following a record expansion of state school choice programs in 2023, the National Catholic Educational Association found that more than 1 in 10 Catholic school students used school choice programs to help them attend Catholic school in the 2023-2024 school year. 

While the number of states offering school choice programs has rapidly risen in recent years, these programs are only in select states. Catholic leaders have voiced support for efforts to implement school choice on a national level through a $10 billion federal school choice program.

Jesuit Father Antonio Spadaro. / Credit: Antoniospadaro, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Vatican City, Feb 20, 2025 / 16:45 pm (CNA).

Speaking on Pope Francis? current health crisis, Jesuit Father Antonio Spadaro, a personal friend of the Holy Father, said in an interview on Wednesday that ?the situation is delicate, but I [haven?t] seen any cause for alarm.?

?Francis is an 88-year-old man who has had a serious problem but who is now undergoing treatment. It?s not a simple treatment and will require time,? said Spadaro, 58, who for 12 years was director of the Jesuit magazine La Civiltà Cattolica (Catholic Civilization) and is currently undersecretary of the Vatican Dicastery for Culture and Education. He emphasized that the pontiff has ?an extraordinary vital energy.?

?He is not someone who lets go or gives in easily, and that?s a very positive aspect; we have seen this in the past as well,? he said in an interview with the Italian daily Il Corriere della Sera (The Evening Courier).

?My impression is that the situation has improved, and I hope that he will soon recover completely,? Spadaro continued. ?Francis is a man of great intelligence, and he knows that he must take the necessary time to recover. He has been visibly affected in recent days. The important thing is that he now takes the necessary time in a protected environment.?

The pope?s state of health

Pope Francis was admitted to the Gemelli Polyclinic Hospital in Rome on Feb. 14 at 11 a.m. after having done everything on his schedule for that day. However, the Holy Father began to show the first symptoms of his illness at the beginning of the previous week. On Wednesday, Feb. 5, he announced that he was suffering from ?a bad cold? and apologized for not being able to read his catechesis during the general audience in Paul VI Audience Hall.

Subsequently, on Thursday, Feb. 6, the Holy See confirmed that it was bronchitis, caused by inflammation of the lining of the bronchi, which made it difficult for him to breathe.

?Due to the bronchitis he is suffering from these days and in order to be able to continue with his activities, Pope Francis? audiences on Friday the 7th and Saturday the 8th of February will take place at St. Martha?s House,? the Vatican said in a brief statement.

The delay in his hospitalization has caused some perplexity and has led to questions about how the medical team at the Vatican is managing his care.

A pope who never stops

Spadaro pointed out that, although Francis has been prescribed ?absolute rest,? it is difficult for him to comply with it completely.

?Indeed, he has never allowed himself absolute rest. Since the 1970s, when he was a young priest in Argentina, he had difficulty disconnecting. Perhaps now he will take a few days to rest, but soon he will feel the need to do something, to occupy himself with something,? the priest commented.

However, he emphasized that the pope is striking a balance where ?acceptance of the illness is essential.?

?Even these days, he continues reading the newspapers, taking care of some work, and making phone calls. He always shows extraordinary vital energy. Deep down, it?s typical of a Jesuit to keep working while he?s alive and die in the trenches,? he explained.

?He never spares effort?

Spadaro emphasized that the Holy Father ?never spares effort? and that, furthermore, ?he has no problem letting his weak condition show.?

He was referring to Sunday, Feb. 9, when the pope celebrated the Mass for the Jubilee of the Armed Forces in St. Peter?s Square and, not feeling well, ?had no problem reading only part of the homily.?

?He could have pretended that he was finished with his discourse, but he preferred to delegate it. He lives with great tranquility about his physical limitations. At the same time, he never stops giving himself completely in everything he does, because that is also the essence of his spirituality. In the past, when he had other health problems, he pressed on in the same way,? Spadaro said.

Could he resign like Pope Benedict XVI?

Asked whether Francis could make the same decision as his predecessor, Pope Benedict XVI, Spadaro answered clearly: ?He is aware, as he has said in the past, that one governs with the head and not with the legs.?

?Certainly, it?s a question of taking stock of how much energy he can still exert. If he ever feels that he no longer has the strength to lead the Church, he will resign. But as long as he feels that he has the energy, a temporary health problem will not be an obstacle for him,? he explained.

Spadaro said that if Pope Francis feels he still has the strength, a passing illness will not stop him. ?Benedict XVI opened up the possibility of resigning, and Francis has never excluded that option. He has thought about it, he has reflected on it, he has internalized the ministry of the pope and he lives it,? he said.

This story was first published by ACI Prensa, CNA?s Spanish-language news partner. It has been translated and adapted by CNA.

null / Credit: Inked Pixels/Shutterstock

CNA Staff, Feb 20, 2025 / 16:15 pm (CNA).

The Catholic bishops of Kentucky are backing proposed legislation that would require a court to consider alternative sentencing for convicted criminals who have young children.

The measure states that Kentucky wishes to ?promote, strengthen, and encourage family life for the protection and care of children? and ?maintain the family unit with an emphasis on the parent-child relationship.?

Parental incarceration is classified as an ?adverse childhood experience,? the bill notes, which can lead to poor mental and physical health outcomes and increase a child?s chances of criminal activity in turn.

The bill would require courts to consider a convicted criminal?s ?status as a primary caretaker of a dependent child? before imposing a sentence. A court would be required to ?consider an alternative sentence? in such circumstances while weighing the parent?s criminal history, the seriousness of the crime, and other factors. 

Violent offenders would be excluded from the rule, as would criminals whose victims were children as well as those who are ineligible for probation. ?Strong consideration? would be given to parents whose children are ?infant, preschool, or school-age.? 

Convicts will be allowed to present alternative sentence proposals to the court as well as read a family impact statement before the judge. The court, meanwhile, may ?require the defendant to participate in programs or services with a focus on parent-child unity or supporting the parent-child relationship.?

In an alert to supporters this week, the Catholic Conference of Kentucky said the state ?ranks second in the nation in the percentage of children with an incarcerated parent.?

?Sometimes, a parent may be a risk, and separation is necessary, but often it is not, and it leads to negative outcomes for the children involved,? the conference said. ?It also puts a significant strain on our foster care system.?

Catholic Conference of Kentucky Executive Director Jason Hall said that ?keeping families together is something we value very highly.? 

?When you have a person who is a primary caregiver of a child and that person is incarcerated, if they don?t have another family member who can take them, that child ends up in the foster care system and that can be traumatic,? Hall told the Record, the newspaper of the Archdiocese of Louisville. ?You see negative outcomes for those children.?

He said the bill is meant to ?do right by Kentucky?s kids.? 

?Our view is the criminal justice system exists to keep people safe,? he told the paper. 

?Incarcerating a parent and putting a child into the foster care system in a lot of cases does not lead to improved public safety down the road; it does harm to Kentucky?s children.? 

This is not the only prison-related measure recently backed by Catholics. The Missouri Department of Corrections recently launched a nursery program for incarcerated mothers who have children while in prison. The Missouri Catholic Conference had supported the measure when it was first proposed. 

Eligible mothers in that program are allowed to stay in a special unit with their babies for up to 18 months and attend family and parenting classes while there. 

The Kentucky Catholic Conference is backing several other bills this session, including one that strengthens religious liberty protections in the state and one that requires hospitals to offer palliative care services to women who receive a diagnosis indicating that their baby may die before or shortly after birth.

U.S. Vice President JD Vance speaks with Mercedes Schlapp at the 2025 Conservative Action Political Conference on Feb. 20, 2025, in National Harbor, Maryland. / Credit: Courtesy of Conservative Action Political Conference/YouTube screenshot

Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Feb 20, 2025 / 15:45 pm (CNA).

U.S. Vice President JD Vance advocated for government policies and cultural values that encourage Americans to ?choose life? and ?start families? during an interview on the main stage of the 2025 Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) on Feb. 20 in National Harbor, Maryland.

?[People need to] stop thinking about babies as inconveniences to be discarded,? Vance said in a Thursday morning interview with Mercedes Schlapp, a senior fellow at the American Conservative Union (ACU) Foundation and the wife of ACU chairman and CPAC organizer Matt Schlapp.

?We?ve got to start thinking of them as blessings to cherish,? Vance said.

During the interview, Vance noted that the United States Supreme Court decision to overturn Roe v. Wade completely changed the abortion debate in the country by allowing the ?will of the people to speak on the life issue? and removing it from ?unelected bureaucrats? and ?unelected judges.?

Vance suggested advancing a culture of life by supporting pro-life pregnancy centers, enacting policies to bring costs down so people can afford to raise families, changing perceptions about abortion, and encouraging people to choose life.

?Maybe they?ll start thinking of babies as the blessings that we all know that they are,? Vance said.

Vance referred to President Donald Trump as the ?most pro-life president in American history? for nominating three of the justices who joined the majority opinion to overturn Roe v. Wade. However, he did not address the concerns pro-life advocates have raised with Trump?s recent executive order to expand and reduce the costs of in vitro fertilization (IVF), a fertility treatment in which human embryos are routinely destroyed.

Discussing his faith, the vice president, who is a convert to Catholicism, described himself as ?very pro-life? and ?a devout Christian.?

?We put our faith in God above, we put our faith in the grace of God, and we try our best to do his will,? Vance said.

Vance discusses immigration, the economy, and energy

During the interview, Vance said the 2024 election gave Trump a ?historic mandate on a few issues,? specifically on his efforts to deport immigrants who entered the country illegally, his plans to expand domestic energy and improve the economy, and his actions to reduce waste, fraud, and abuse within the government.

?The American people gave us a window to save the country and that?s exactly what we?re going to do,? the vice president said.

Vance spoke about Trump?s deportation efforts, his restrictions on border crossings, and his decision to designate drug cartels as foreign terrorist organizations. He said his message to drug traffickers is for them to ?get the hell out of our country.?

?Your free ride is over because President Trump is back in the Oval Office,? Vance added. 

The vice president said Trump intends to ?unleash American energy? with policies such as more drilling for oil on American land. This, he said, will ?do more than anything? to help the economy because high costs of fuel increase costs for other things. 

He also said Trump will ensure ?other countries stop taking advantage of us,? extend his tax cuts, and end taxes on tips. He praised the work of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) to stop ?wasting [taxpayer money] on garbage.? 

?We want your children and grandchildren to be able to raise a family in security and comfort in the country we all love,? Vance said. 

Schlapp?s interview with the vice president kicked off CPAC?s three-day conference. Other figures scheduled to speak at the annual event include Trump, Tesla CEO Elon Musk, Republican lawmakers and administration officials, foreign leaders, and various conservative media personalities.

?The Chosen: Last Supper,? which focuses on the events of Holy Week, will be released in theaters starting on March 28, 2025. / Credit: 5&2 Studios

CNA Staff, Feb 20, 2025 / 15:15 pm (CNA).

The official trailer for Season 5 of ?The Chosen: Last Supper? was released Feb. 20 teasing several important moments from the week leading up to the death of Jesus ? including his triumphal entry into Jerusalem, the cleansing of the Temple, Judas? betrayal, and the Last Supper.

?The Chosen: Last Supper? will be released in theaters in three parts ? Part 1 on March 28, Part 2 on April 4, and Part 3 on April 11.

It was also announced on Feb. 16 by the show?s creator and director Dallas Jenkins that Amazon?s Prime Video will be the exclusive U.S. streaming partner for ?The Chosen.? This comes as part of a new deal between Jenkins? 5&2 Studios and Amazon MGM Studios, which includes a theatrical release component for the next two seasons of the hit series.

Following the theatrical release of Season 5, Prime Video will have exclusive streaming rights for 90 days. After the 90-day period, Season 5 will be released on ?The Chosen? app for free. All five seasons of ?The Chosen? will be available on both Prime Video and the Chosen app. 

In July 2024, CNA visited the set of ?The Chosen? in Midlothian, Texas, and took part in a press junket speaking to several of the cast members including actor Jonathan Roumie, who plays Jesus in the series.

Roumie spoke openly about how he prepared to portray the important events that take place during Holy Week, which viewers will see in Season 5, and how his relationship with Jesus has changed over the years as he has portrayed him on the show.

When asked how he prepared himself for the impactful moments of Season 5, such as the Last Supper and betrayal in the Garden of Gethsemane, Roumie said: ?I get on my knees.?

?It?s a lot of time spent in front of the Blessed Sacrament and asking for more strength than I think I have and ultimately trusting that God has brought me to this point, to my circumstances, to my struggles, and my fears and my worries,? he shared. ?He?s brought me to all of them knowing that he?s got me. I just have to remember that and just leave it all at the foot of the altar.?

At the time of the interview, Roumie was preparing to film the Last Supper and the events that took place in the Garden of Gethsemane ? scenes he called ?gargantuan.?

?I?m just doing a lot of praying right now as I work on the scenes,? he shared. 

He added that for any particularly difficult scenes, he tries to ?stay completely grounded and fully present in the moment at hand and what is to happen and what?s on the page and giving everything I can to that and then when it?s done, there?s a massive sigh of relief.?

However, fully aware of what?s still to come, Roumie said: ?I think the hardest ones are still ahead for me.?

When asked how his relationship with Jesus has changed over the years while portraying him on ?The Chosen,? the Catholic actor said ??deepened? doesn?t quite describe the extent of it. I think it?s brought me to a place where I know that I can?t really do anything without Jesus and I?m reminded of that constantly.? 

?My aim in my daily life is to try to live up to the principles and the bar that Christ himself set as a fully human, fully divine man walking the earth and knowing that I will never reach that bar and being OK with it and knowing that this is part of the journey,? he added. ?Aspiring towards sainthood and failing and falling every step of the way, but just keeping Jesus in front of me as I go. That?s my main goal these days.?

The trailer for ?The Chosen: Last Supper? can be viewed below.

Pope Francis greets Archbishop Vincenzo Paglia, the president of the Pontifical Academy for Life, on Feb. 20, 2023. / Credit: Vatican Media

Vatican City, Feb 20, 2025 / 14:30 pm (CNA).

While acknowledging that concern about Pope Francis? health is understandable, Archbishop Vincenzo Paglia, president of the Pontifical Academy for Life, called the narrative that fuels speculation about the seriousness of his condition and the pre-conclave atmosphere ?morbid.?

Speaking with ACI Prensa, CNA?s Spanish-language news partner, the bishop emeritus of the Diocese of Terni-Narni-Amelia in Italy said it is ?right to be concerned? about the health of the Holy Father, who at 88 is suffering from bilateral pneumonia and has been hospitalized in the Gemelli Hospital in Rome since Feb. 14.

However, he pointed out that this concern ?must be kept within limits,? and he regretted that a lot of speculation about his health has created a ?morbid atmosphere.?

?The situation is certainly delicate and the pope has kept on working, unfortunately, from a certain point of view,? the prelate said before emphasizing that the pontiff ?is recovering and will return to the Vatican in a few weeks.?

On Wednesday evening, the Vatican reported a ?slight improvement? in Pope Francis? health. Although he is suffering from ?a complex clinical picture? and his conditions ?are stationary,? blood tests show a slight improvement, especially in inflammatory indices.

Earlier that same day, the Holy Father received Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni in his room on the 10th floor of the ?popes? hospital.? Meloni said he was ?alert and receptive? without losing his sense of humor. This morning, the pope was able to get up and had breakfast in an armchair.

Paglia also said that he continues to pray ?that the pope can soon resume his work, which is more than valuable at a time like this. I would say almost indispensable, given how complex the world situation is and the lack of positive visions,? he said.

?If there are some hopeful signs today regarding peace, it is even more important that the pope support them and again call everyone back to justice, equality, and dialogue,? Paglia said in reference to the war in Ukraine and the situation in the Holy Land.

The prelate also emphasized that the current state of these conflicts is ?extremely fragile? and requires a joint effort by many other parties in order to secure a lasting peace.

This story was first published by ACI Prensa, CNA?s Spanish-language news partner. It has been translated and adapted by CNA.

Migrants argue with Panamanian National Border Service members as they try to cross the border between Panama and Costa Rica while trying to return to Venezuela at Paso Canoas between the Panama-Costa Rica border on Feb. 11, 2025. Dozens of Venezuelan migrants crossed the border from Costa Rica into Panama in a small caravan as they gave up the journey to the United States. / Credit: PAUL MONTENEGRO/AFP via Getty Images

CNA Staff, Feb 20, 2025 / 13:55 pm (CNA).

President Donald Trump on Wednesday night ordered the federal government to cease allowing taxpayer dollars to ?facilitate? illegal immigration.

The president in his executive order directed that ?taxpayer resources? and ?taxpayer-funded benefits? should be blocked from going to ?illegal aliens? and ordered that federal payments to states must not ?facilitate the subsidization or promotion of illegal immigration.?

The order also says taxpayer dollars should not ?abet so-called ?sanctuary? policies that seek to shield illegal aliens from deportation.? It further states that federal agencies should enhance their eligibility verifications ?to the maximum extent possible? to ensure that tax-funded benefits are not directed toward illegal aliens. 

?My administration will uphold the rule of law, defend against the waste of hard-earned taxpayer resources, and protect benefits for American citizens in need, including individuals with disabilities and veterans,? Trump said in the order.

The directive, which cites federal law forbidding illegal immigrants from obtaining most taxpayer-funded benefits, is the latest of numerous executive orders Trump has issued since taking office, many of which seek to fulfill campaign promises on immigration and other major issues.

Shortly after taking office last month, the president signed a series of executive orders on immigration, including several that put into motion his campaign promise to carry out mass deportations of people residing in the U.S. illegally.

Among the earlier orders were a declaration of a national emergency at the southern border, a reinstatement of the controversial ?Remain in Mexico? policy from his previous term, and a designation of drug cartels as ?foreign terrorist organizations.?

In a Feb. 10 letter, Pope Francis urged the U.S. bishops to support vulnerable migrants, calling for humane treatment for those who ?in many cases have left their own land for reasons of extreme poverty, insecurity, [or] exploitation.?

The measures have also drawn rebukes from the U.S. bishops who have, both individually and as a group, criticized the Trump administration?s plans for mass deportations.

U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops president Archbishop Timothy Broglio responded to Pope Francis? recent letter to the bishops with a call for the Holy Father?s prayers.

?Boldly I ask for your continued prayers so that we may find the courage as a nation to build a more humane system of immigration, one that protects our communities while safeguarding the dignity of all,? the archbishop wrote to the pope.

Vice President JD Vance, meanwhile, waded into the controversy last month when he suggested that U.S. bishops speaking out in support of migrants were ?worried about their bottom line? instead of humanitarian concerns. The U.S. bishops receive $100 million from the federal government annually to help resettle and aid refugees and immigrants in the United States.

Responding in part to Vance, Los Angeles Archbishop José Gomez wrote earlier this month that the Catholic Church has been ?a good partner? with the government in helping with immigration. 

The Church ?did not break the nation?s immigration system,? he said, ?but every day we deal with the human damage caused by that broken system.?

Robert F. Kennedy Jr. testifies during his Senate Finance Committee confirmation hearing at the Dirksen Senate Office Building on Jan. 29, 2025, in Washington, D.C. / Credit: Win McNamee/Getty Images

CNA Staff, Feb 20, 2025 / 13:05 pm (CNA).

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) stated Wednesday that ?there are only two sexes, female and male,? defining sex as ?unchangeable and determined by objective biology.? 

The announcement comes in the wake of President Donald Trump?s Executive Order 14168, which affirms the biological reality of sex, as well as Robert F. Kennedy Jr.?s confirmation last week as secretary of the HHS.

?There are only two sexes, female and male, because there are only two types of gametes,? the Feb. 19 HHS statement read. ?An individual human is either female or male based on whether the person is of the sex characterized by a reproductive system with the biological function of producing eggs (ova) or sperm.?

Affirming the existence of biological sex is essential for protecting women?s spaces and for the government as a whole, the HHS noted.

?Recognizing the immutable and biological nature of sex is essential to ensure the protection of women?s health, safety, private spaces, sports, and opportunities,? the statement read. ?Restoring biological truth to the federal government is critical to scientific inquiry, public safety, morale, and trust in government itself.?

The statement noted that sex is ?determined genetically at conception? and highlighted that sex cannot be changed.

?The use of hormones or surgical interventions do not change a person?s sex,? the announcement said.

The HHS acknowledged the possibility of sexual development disorders, noting that a person with this kind of disorder ?does not produce gametes other than eggs or sperm.?

?Rare disorders of sexual development do not constitute a third sex because these disorders do not lead to the production of a third gamete,? the statement noted.

The announcement also noted the importance of acknowledging the two sexes in medical research. 

?The department has long recognized that the biological differences between females and males require sex-specific practices in medicine and research to ensure optimal health outcomes and rigorous research, including by considering sex as a biological variable,? the statement read.

In the statement, the HHS defined several terms relating to sex including female and male, mother and father, man and woman, and girl and boy.

The HHS defined sex as ?a person?s immutable biological classification as either male or female.? It defines female as ?a person of the sex characterized by a reproductive system with the biological function of producing eggs (ova)? and male as ?a person of the sex characterized by a reproductive system with the biological function of producing sperm.? 

The HHS defined a mother as ?a female parent? and a father as ?a male parent.? In addition, it defines a woman as an ?adult human female? and a man as ?an adult human male.? A girl is defined as ?a minor human female? and a boy as ?a minor human male.? 

Under the initiative, the HHS launched a new webpage for the Office on Women?s Health titled ?Protecting Women and Children.? The page includes a video of Riley Gaines ? a swimmer who gained attention for speaking out about being forced to compete with a male ? speaking about keeping men out of women?s sports. 

The new page also includes links to guidance on gender-related issues. For instance, the webpage has a section on ?defending women,? directing federal agencies to recognize the two sexes and update their policies to reflect that. In addition, the webpage also has a section on ?protecting children? from chemical and surgical mutilation.

Candles are set at the feet of a statue of Pope John Paul II on Feb. 20, 2025, outside Gemelli Hospital in Rome, where Pope Francis is hospitalized for tests and treatment for bronchitis. / Credit: STEFANO COSTANTINO/AFP via Getty Images

Vatican City, Feb 20, 2025 / 12:35 pm (CNA).

Pope Francis? medical condition has stabilized after nearly one week of medical treatment since being admitted into Rome?s Gemelli Hospital on Feb. 14, the Vatican said.

On Thursday morning, the Holy See Press Office informed journalists: ?Pope Francis has had a restful night and this morning, got out of bed and had breakfast in an armchair.? 

Since Feb. 14, the Holy Father has undergone a series of diagnostic tests and complex cortisone antibiotic treatments for bronchitis, respiratory infections, and pneumonia affecting both lungs. 

Previous Vatican updates indicated that the 88-year-old pontiff has been able to receive the Eucharist, rest, read, work with his ?closest collaborators,? and receive private guests on some days while at Gemelli.

Crux reported Wednesday that sources said the Holy Father has received the sacrament of anointing of the sick. Though ?complex,? the pope?s condition is not considered grave.

Italy?s Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said the Holy Father was ?alert and responsive? during her visit on Wednesday, saying: ?He has not lost his legendary sense of humor.?   

In light of the pope?s ?slightly improved? health status, Pontifical Academy for Life president Archbishop Vincenzo Paglia said he is hopeful the pope ?will return to the Vatican in a few weeks.?

?[His work] is more than valuable at a time like this,? Paglia told ACI Prensa, CNA?s Spanish-language news partner. 

Referring to the fragile political situations of Ukraine and the Holy Land, Paglia said: ?It is even more important that the pope supports them and calls everyone back to justice, equality, and dialogue.? 

As Catholics around the world unite in prayer for the head of the universal Church, parishes and religious communities in the Diocese of Rome continue to offer Masses and times of silent prayer for the pope. 

?As one big family we ask that the Lord will give our bishop the strength he needs to face this delicate moment,? vicar general for the Diocese of Rome, Cardinal Baldassare Reina, said on Wednesday.  

Groups of the Catholic faithful have also gathered outside Gemelli Hospital throughout the week to pray and leave written notes with well wishes for the Holy Father. 

Other Christian leaders, including Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew of Constantinople, have also united with the Catholic Church in prayer, Orthodox Times reported. 

To date, the Vatican has not indicated when the pope could potentially be discharged from the hospital.

?Lord, give me the grace to be faithful to you and to the Church until eternity? is the daily prayer of retired Archbishop Ramón Benito de la Rosa y Carpio. / Credit: Anthony García, assistant to the archbishop emeritus

ACI Prensa Staff, Feb 20, 2025 / 08:00 am (CNA).

Archbishop Ramón Benito de la Rosa y Carpio was born on Sept. 19, 1939, a little over 85 years ago, in the town of Higüey in the Dominican Republic, the country where he has spent himself and wore himself out for the faithful entrusted to him. 

The midwife who attended to his Mami Nena, as he affectionately calls his mother, was his great-grandmother Damiana Cedano, who that day prophesied what would later come true: ?Nenita, your son is a boy and he will be a priest.?

Sharing in this marvelous way how his story began, the archbishop expressed his gratitude to those who participated in the celebration of his 60 years of priesthood, which was held at the cathedral of Santiago de los Caballeros, an archdiocese he pastored from 2003 to 2015.

?Thank you, Mommy Nena, for teaching me from the time I was in your womb to pray, to love God and his mother, and to not be afraid of anything, clinging to the redeeming cross of Christ. Thank you, Papa Beno, for teaching me to be a man like you, capable of commitment, of being responsible and of having the right intention in my conduct.?

The archbishop, who was also auxiliary bishop of Santo Domingo and bishop of Our Lady of Alta Gracia in Higüey, said he felt the call of God in January 1954, when he was 14 years old, while reading the book ?El Drama de Jesús?(?The Drama of Jesus?) by Jesuit priest José Julio Martínez and that he also made ?the octave of Altagracia for my priestly vocation, going every day to its shrine.?

?If I were 14 years old again and if at that age I had to make a decision, I would be a priest again, I would choose the Lord as my only inheritance. I feel completely fulfilled,? he emphasized.

On Jan. 23, 1965, at the age of 25, De la Rosa was ordained a priest at the shrine of Our Lady of Altagracia by Bishop Juan Félix Pepén. On Jan. 6, 1989, at age 49, he was consecrated a bishop by Pope John Paul II in Rome.

His final words on the day of the celebration of his 60 years as a priest were: ?When I look back, I feel good. I don?t know how many days, months, or years the Lord will give me among you, but every day I do pray to him and say this prayer: Lord, give me the grace to be faithful to you and to the Church until eternity.?

?On Jan. 23, 1965, I was ordained a priest at the feet of this blessed image of [Our Lady of] Altagracia, venerated by all the Dominican people as Mother Protectress. Sixty years later, as one more pilgrim, I have climbed up [the stairs] again to her altar, located in the basilica, her home and everyone?s home.? 

On the occasion of his 60th anniversary as a priest, De la Rosa shared with ACI Prensa, CNA?s Spanish-language news partner, 10 pieces of advice for all priests and those who discover a vocation or open themselves to the possibility of one to persevere in it.

1. God called you ? never doubt it.

?First, remain sure that it was God who called you. Never doubt it. I have always been sure for 60 years that God has called me and I have never felt a temptation or thoughts contrary to this vocation. I have felt sure, I have never doubted. That is why I remain sure and I feel as happy now as I did 60 years ago with my time in the seminary,? the Dominican archbishop emphasized.

 2. Go where you are sent.

?The second idea that occurs to me is this: Wherever they send you, go. Always be open to the ministerial mission, open to universality,? he recommended. ?Wherever they send you, go. Always feel open to the universal mission.?

3. Value the powers you have received.

?Third idea: Always value the powers you have received. It is wonderful what the Lord grants to a priest,? the prelate emphasized.

?The first thing that draws my attention is the power of the Eucharist and not only being able to say Mass and being able to see that I can celebrate the Eucharist, changing the bread into the body of Christ and the wine into the blood of Christ, but I see that it is really so, by the fruits that are seen.?

In addition, De la Rosa referred to the ability a Catholic priest has to administer other sacraments, such as the anointing of the sick.

4. Remember that there will be ?envy and gossip.?

?Fourth point: People will be envious and gossip. People will be envious, as happened to Cain. I think that it happens to everyone, to all human beings, in all ministries. You will be gossiped about inside the Church and outside the Church.?

?But always remember what Jesus Christ said, woe to you if everyone speaks well of you. The important thing is to carry out the ministry, to do what we have to do and to bless,? the archbishop encouraged.

5. There will be problems.

The archbishop pointed out that the problems in the life of the priest ?are not vocational but of another type? and that work must be done to find a solution.

6. Leaving the priestly ministry doesn?t solve the problems.

After reiterating that the priest?s problems ?are not vocational or of celibacy,? the archbishop emphasized: ?Never look for a solution to priestly problems by leaving the ministry. I always believe that those who have left the ministry had a vocation.?

So he recommended that, in these situations, the priest has to ?do what has to be done.?

7. Always say yes.

The prelate said he saw many fruits in his life by always saying yes and ?never saying no.?

?One time I made the decision to say no to people because they were failing me. I said so to a woman who was telling me, ?Come celebrate my daughter?s 15th birthday at my house.? I said, ?I can?t, I won?t go, I have pastoral ministry to do.?? However, because of the woman?s insistence, he finally went and thus understood the importance of not refusing the call of his flock.

8. Greet everyone.

?An eighth point that occurs to me is to greet everyone. I always remember my father who told me: ?Ramón, until the last old lady is greeted, you will not have greeted everyone.? I still maintain that position after 60 years.?

9. ?God has a way?: Trust in providence.

?Ninth, when faced with life?s problems, I have to say what I learned from my great-grandmother, which I told my mother: ?God has a way.? There wasn?t a cent in the house to enter the seminary, but ?God has a way,? my great-grandmother told my mother, and the means were found,? he recounted, emphasizing that he was always able to find a solution to complicated financial situations.

?God has a way, God has a way to find solutions,? he added, and advised: ?Work and you will never die of hunger.?

?The shirts that I wear now, with 60 years gone by, I haven?t bought any of them, people give them to me. Which is why I can say that God has a way. Divine providence takes care of you,? he said.

10. Priestly loneliness?

?People talk to me about the loneliness of the priest. I am always surprised by this question, because I have never felt alone. I cannot speak of priestly loneliness,? the Dominican archbishop shared with ACI Prensa.

?I have always had people who accompany me,? he added. After emphasizing that he always seeks to be ?attentive and available,? the prelate said ?I?m not alone, I have communities that accompany me,? such as the faithful of the parishes, of his ?domestic church.?

De la Rosa affirmed: ?I thank God every day and I?m still alive. And I say, Lord, I will be alive to fulfill the mission that you give me. I repeat many times, I will always be a priest. A priest in everything, a priest forever.?

This story was first published by ACI Prensa, CNA?s Spanish-language news partner. It has been translated and adapted by CNA.

null / Credit: KieferPix/Shutterstock

Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Feb 20, 2025 / 07:00 am (CNA).

A group of pro-life philanthropists in the United States has launched a $30 million Pro-Life Venture Fund to support projects aimed at making abortion ?unavailable and unthinkable,? according to its founder.

The new group, called the Life Leadership Conference, was formally announced on Tuesday, Feb. 18. The intention, according to the executive director, David Bereit, is to reduce overlap and redundancies among pro-life groups and create ?a team dedicated to advancing the entirety of the movement.?

?This is what the pro-life movement has needed, in my opinion, for decades,? Bereit told CNA.

Although Bereit said ?everything is still in the very earliest stages? and ?we have not begun the process of formal invitations and establishing the membership,? the Life Leadership Conference is already backed by influential pro-life leaders.

Bereit previously founded and led the international pro-life 40 Days for Life and serves as a member of the Equal Rights Institute?s board of advisers. The Life Leadership Conference is also supported by Leonard Leo of the Federalist Society, Princeton professor Robert George, and retired businessman Ray Ruddy.

?[We need to] bring our very best efforts to solving one of the greatest cultural problems,? Bereit added.

Bereit said the Life Leadership Conference is still finalizing its membership criteria but that the coalition will hopefully include major pro-life nonprofits as well as newer and emerging pro-life leaders. 

A coordinated effort post-Dobbs

The launch of the Life Leadership Conference was announced in a Feb. 18 letter outlining its goals that was sent to numerous pro-life organizations.

According to the letter, Bereit will build membership, create channels of communication among pro-life groups, and manage a budget to facilitate gatherings, support research and polling, and wage pro-life campaigns.

?The Life Leadership Conference is our way of working to ensure that the pro-life movement?s ideals are fully and faithfully operationalized, to the end of winning more and losing and compromising less,? the letter states. 

?Membership in the conference will be extended to those organizations and influencers who know how to achieve genuine victories as well as to philanthropists and donors with a significant interest and stake in seeing progress towards our goal of building an America in which every child is protected in law and welcomed in life,? the letter adds.

The pro-life movement secured major legislative wins after the Supreme Court ruled in Dobbs v. Jackson Women?s Health Organization in 2022 that states and the federal government can restrict abortion. However, the movement has struggled to win at the ballot box when the issue of abortion is put directly in front of voters through referendums.

?More people are ? in general ? opposed to what they perceive to be the pro-life movement?s position at this moment in time than they were five to 10 years ago,? Bereit acknowledged. 

?We can?t keep operating in a pre-Dobbs world,? he said. 

The letter states that ?pro-life organizations need to adapt to an altered landscape and new set of challenges? given the circumstances.

?Some groups have adapted and are charting winning strategies,? the letter adds, but warns that ?some are posting more losses than gains and are redefining what it means to win in ways that risk making the movement weaker and less effective.?

Building a culture of life

The letter states that the Pro-Life Venture Fund will be ?spent on member projects that will actually reduce the killing of unborn children.? Its goals include making abortion less available, engaging younger generations, and providing women with assistance and resources to help them choose life. 

While the specifics are still in the works, Bereit said the mission is to make abortion ?unavailable and unthinkable,? adding that an essential part of that effort is ?reducing the supply of and the perceived demand for abortion.?

Although Bereit said some efforts will be legislative, he also emphasized the need ?to raise awareness about the injustice perpetrated by the abortion industry? and to ?strengthen [pro-life] pregnancy centers? and ?bring about much, much greater awareness of these resources? that are available to pregnant women. 

Bereit also emphasized the need to work with younger activists and influencers, noting that young people are ?the target of the abortion industry.?

?We need young people educated and then able to educate their peers, and that?s going to be a major thrust of this,? he said.

The pro-life movement ?can achieve so much more? when organizations successfully work together, Bereit said.