ST. JOHN THE EVANGELIST, SLATERSVILLE RI

null / Credit: Photographee.eu/Shutterstock

CNA Staff, Nov 6, 2025 / 07:00 am (CNA).

Claim: Laws requiring minors to notify their parents if they are getting an abortion “threaten young people’s health and safety and undermine their human rights,” claims a report by the Human Rights Watch.

CNA finds: CNA finds a strong pro-abortion bias in the report. Experts say parental notification laws help protect girls from predators and put girls in a better situation by ensuring family support. 

Breakdown: Parental notification laws vary across states, but most require the abortion provider to notify a parent before the abortion takes place, unless it’s a medical emergency or the minor obtains a court order.

For instance, in Colorado, a written notice must be delivered to the parent’s home by someone from the abortion clinic, a sheriff, a clergy member, or other person. The law contains a built-in exemption if the minor is in an abusive home.

Colorado, Delaware, Georgia, Iowa, Montana, and New Hampshire all have notification laws with judicial bypass options. States such as Florida, Illinois, Michigan, and Minnesota have parental consent laws, which require the parent to approve the abortion before it takes place.

Women seeking abortion face a variety of challenges, often including coercion or pressure from others in their lives. Several studies have found that women have a higher likelihood of mental health struggles after an abortion.

The U.S. Catholic bishops require every diocese to have mental health and counseling resources for women who have had abortions in an initiative known as Project Rachel. 

In the Archdiocese of Denver, Rachel’s Vineyard Colorado operates healing programs, support, and care for women who have gone through abortions. 

Lori Frank, executive director of Rachel’s Vineyard Colorado, told CNA that abortion is “an emotional, moral, and spiritual trauma.”

“Many women feel shame, guilt, and regret after experiencing abortion, and they often do not have mental health support,” Frank said. 

Rachel’s Vineyard Colorado sees women who struggle with post-abortive problems including depression, grief, emotional numbness, anxiety, panic attacks, nightmares, eating disorders, drug and alcohol abuse, and other challenges including spiritual and relationship difficulties.  

Frank noted that abortion can be especially harmful to minors, especially because “youth generally have fewer resources to draw upon with unexpected pregnancy.” 

“As a society, we need to provide real loving support to women of all ages when they are pregnant and help them understand the real risks of abortion as well as the support they need overall in their lives during this time,” she said. “Using abortion as a quick fix is not the solution.” 

Several experts expressed concerns for girls who may be in abusive or dangerous situations, such as an abuser using abortion to cover his crimes. 

Dr. Ingrid Skop, a spokesperson for the Charlotte Lozier Institute and an OB-GYN, told CNA that notification laws protect minors from a variety of concerns, including “abortion coercion or pressure from an abuser.”

“Sadly, the damage from coercive abortions goes beyond the brutality of the abortion itself,” Skop said, citing a study documenting mental health impacts on women who are pressured to abort. 

“Parents must be aware if their daughters are in abusive relationships or engaged in risky sexual behavior so they can intervene to prevent negative, long-term consequences on their health and well-being,” Skop said.

“Parents, who know their daughters best, are critical to help and support them in the midst of such a substantial, life-changing decision,” Skop said. 

Christina Francis, who heads the American Association of Pro-Life Obstetricians and Gynecologists, emphasized the importance of safeguards around abortion. 

Francis told CNA that “removing regulations on chemical abortion pills” makes them more “easily accessible to abusers.” 

“Eliminating parental involvement only deepens that risk,” she added. 

“Parental notification laws protect minors, not threaten them,” Francis said. “Involving parents in critical decisions involving their children’s health ensures truly informed consent and excellent care.”

Michael New, senior associate scholar at Charlotte Lozier Institute and assistant professor of practice at The Catholic University of America, also noted that these laws can help prevent abuse. 

“Parental involvement laws may prevent child predators from sexually abusing minor girls — since many child predators use abortion to cover up their sexual misconduct,” New told CNA. 

In addition, the report by Human Rights Watch “has a strong pro-abortion bias,” New said. 

According to New, the report “ignores a substantial body of academic research which shows that pro-life parental involvement laws improve health outcomes.”

In addition, “the report relies largely on anecdotal evidence from health care providers, attorneys, people working for abortion funds, and public health researchers,” New said.

What about dysfunctional families? 

Parental notification laws provide an option for a judicial bypass, meaning that minors, if they seek it, can be exempt from the requirement. 

In addition, some states provide explicit exemptions for minors in abusive homes or allow another adult to be notified instead of a parent if the minor wishes. 

Father Tadeusz Pacholczyk, neuroscientist and senior ethicist at the National Catholic Bioethics Center, said that “underage mothers should not be expected to navigate, by themselves, serious matters of their health and the health of others who depend on them, like their unborn child.” 

“They need support and assistance in what is a very fear-filled moment when they discover they have become pregnant,” Pacholczyk told CNA. 

Pacholczyk noted that underage girls who are pregnant may face difficult situations at home. 

In some cases, the mother of the daughter “will encourage her daughter to get an abortion,” while in other cases “she may believe she cannot tell her mom about her unexpected pregnancy without facing severe consequences” and “might fear being kicked out of the house” or damaging family relationships.

But Pacholczyk noted that eliminating parental notification only increases dysfunctionality in a home and distances underage girls from their much-needed support systems.

“It is also important to note that in many instances, the fears of the young girl may not be rooted in reality, and she may be surprised to learn how her parents are actually more open than she imagines to her new situation,” he said.

Pacholczyk recommended that parental notification be done “in a roundabout manner” through counselors or pregnancy resource centers so as to connect the girl and her family with resources such as adoption services, support, and even temporary living quarters if needed.

“The clinic’s staff have a vested financial interest in seeing the abortion take place and really should not act as mediators between the underage girl and her family,” he said.

“Parental involvement and support … should be the default position we seek to promote as a caring and civilized society,” Pacholczyk said.

The verdict: Parental notification laws protect girls from abuse and enable parents to support their daughters in a difficult time in their lives, as the decision they make could go on to affect their mental health and well-being in the future.

The Spalding Institute in the Diocese of Peoria, Illinois, is being transformed into “The Fulton J. Sheen Experience,” an expansion of the Sheen museum, which has been open since 2008.  / Credit: “EWTN News Nightly”/Screenshot

CNA Staff, Nov 6, 2025 / 06:00 am (CNA).

The Diocese of Peoria in Illinois on Oct. 19 broke ground for a cultural center honoring Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen. The Spalding Institute is being transformed into “The Fulton J. Sheen Experience,” an expansion of the Sheen museum, which has been open since 2008. 

The new center has an estimated construction cost of $9 million to $11 million, all of which is being raised from private donations. Visitors will be able to see interactive exhibits, artifacts, and large archives of television and radio work from the archbishop’s life. 

“We are thrilled to transform the historic diocesan high school building into this new facility,” Bishop Louis Tylka of Peoria said in a press release. “We believe this project will draw even more visitors to the city to grow in their knowledge and love of the man who is arguably Peoria’s greatest son and through his witness draw closer to Jesus Christ.”

Currently, the Sheen museum draws roughly 4,000 visitors a year. The new center is predicted to increase tourism with roughly 11,000 to 15,000 visitors a year.

“Archbishop Fulton Sheen was not only a son of Peoria but a voice for the Church that touched millions across the world,” Tylka said. “With the Fulton J. Sheen Experience, we are creating a place where visitors can encounter his faith, vision, and enduring witness. This center will inspire future generations to live boldly for Christ, just as he did.”

Monsignor Jason Gray, executive director of the Fulton Sheen Foundation, told “EWTN News Nightly” in an interview that the event was a “great day for the development of the Sheen cause.”

The cause for the beatification of Sheen was paused in 2019 due to concerns raised about his tenure as bishop of Rochester, New York (1966–1969), especially in light of the New York state attorney general investigation into diocesan handling of abuse cases. After careful research and a presentation to the then-Congregation for the Causes of Saints, it was deemed Sheen handled them correctly.

“For a long time, we’ve been working on the cause itself and trying to bring that forward, but today was about making sure that we can perpetuate the cause,” Gray said. “We want to keep the legacy of Fulton Sheen alive. It’s so important that we welcome people who want to come and express their devotion to Sheen.”

He explained that people from all over the world come to visit the museum, and they’re running out of space to be able to accommodate all those who wish to visit. 

Due to this issue, Gray said he believes that “it’s important that we provide a larger facility to really allow people to get to know Sheen better and through Sheen to encounter Jesus Christ.”

Dolores Sheen, a niece of Sheen, was also in attendance at the groundbreaking ceremony. She called the event “very exciting.”

“I’m behind them expanding because there’s so much that still needs to come out and be in that museum. And of course, the fact that it was the place where he walked. I think that’s very important,” she added. 

Dolores Sheen is married to Sheen’s nephew John and spent time with the beloved archbishop on several occasions. She recalled spending Sheen’s 80th birthday with him and the numerous times they spent time together as a family. 

“I’d call him and I’d say, ‘Bishop, what do you want to do?’ He’d always say, ‘I want to be with family. I want to be with family,’” she recalled. “So we’d gather the family together, that was in Peoria, the cousins, and we would just have a wonderful, wonderful day.”

“I feel honored that I can share some of these things in regard to him, that he was just very real. He was just a very down-to-earth person.”

As for her hopes for the new center, Dolores said she hopes visitors see that “the bishop was very much in love with Christ and Mary.”

Gray added that he hopes visitors appreciate Sheen’s “personal insight into Jesus Christ and the way in which he would pray and be united with him in prayer. We want people to discover that and what a precious gift that is to the Church.”

A Catholic delegation attempts to bring Communion to detainees at the Broadview, Illinois, immigration facility and was not admitted Nov. 1, 2025. / Credit: Bryan Sebastian, courtesy of Coalition for Spiritual and Public Leadership

Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Nov 5, 2025 / 18:58 pm (CNA).

A Chicago-based federal judge on Wednesday ordered the Trump administration to maintain strict cleanliness and hygiene requirements for migrants detained at an Illinois facility.

The court also ordered the administration to provide detainees with access to legal representation.

The temporary restraining order entered Nov. 5 by Judge Robert W. Gettleman, who was appointed to the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois in 1994 by President Bill Clinton, did not address the plaintiff’s concerns about a lack of religious accommodations, including the ability to receive holy Communion.

Gettleman’s order Nov. 5 directed the administration to provide adequate food, water, and hygiene practices to detainees along with prescribed medications.

“Plaintiffs and members of the putative class have suffered, and are likely to suffer, irreparable harm absent the temporary relief granted,” said the order, which will be in effect until a Nov. 19 status hearing.

Gettleman required detainees to be provided with soap, towels, toilet paper, oral hygiene products (including toothbrushes and toothpaste), and menstrual products.

The order said: “Defendants shall provide each detainee with at least three full meals per day that meet the U.S. recommended dietary allowance … Defendants shall provide each detainee with a bottle of potable water with each meal and bottled water upon request free of charge.”

It specified that papers provided to detainees “should include an accompanying Spanish translation.”

‘Squalid living environment’

The judge’s order followed an hourslong hearing on Nov. 4 featuring argument between lawyers for detainees and Trump administration attorneys, and testimony from former detainees at the U.S. Immigration and Customs Broadview facility located at 1930 Beach St.

On Oct. 30, the American Civil Liberties Union of Illinois, together with the MacArthur Justice Center — a self-described nonprofit civil rights law firm based in Chicago — filed a civil suit (Moreno Gonzalez v. Noem) in federal court alleging detainees at the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Broadview facility faced overcrowded, “inhumane” conditions, insufficient nutrition, inadequate medical care, lack of privacy, and a squalid living environment.

“The food provided to detainees is insufficient and lacks nutrition,” according to the complaint filed last week by lawyers for several detainees. “At most, detainees receive two to three small, cold sandwiches per day.”

The detainee’s lawyers say in their lawsuit: “The physical conditions are filthy, with poor sanitation, clogged toilets, and blood, human fluids, and insects in the sinks and the floor.” The complaint says overcrowding, “unhygienic conditions, lack of medical care, and deprivation of adequate food” has turned the Broadview ICE facility into “a breeding ground for illness to spread.”

“The toilets are filthy and often get clogged, resulting in urine and dirty water on the floor where detainees are forced to sleep,” according to the detainees’ attorneys in their complaint.

The lawyers argued the ICE Broadview facility was designed to serve only as a short-term (roughly 12 hours) “holding facility” where people are briefly held for processing before being moved to a longer-term detention facility. But in the wake of the Trump administration’s crackdown on illegal immigration in the Chicago area, the federal government, including the Department of Homeland Security and ICE, “are now warehousing people at Broadview for days on end,” the detainees’ attorneys said. “The consequences have been dire, and wholly predictable,” including a lack of adequate access to legal representation.

“Everyone, no matter their legal status, has the right to access counsel and to not be subject to horrific and inhumane conditions,” said Alexa Van Brunt, director of the MacArthur Justice Center’s Illinois office and lead counsel on the suit, in an Oct. 31 statement.  

The complaint also alleges the detainees have been unconstitutionally denied access not only to their attorneys but also to faith leaders and members of clergy, “who have provided religious services at Broadview for years but are now denied the ability to provide pastoral care under defendants’ command.”

“For many years, faith leaders and members of the clergy … provided pastoral care to individuals detained inside Broadview,” the detainees’ lawyers told the court.

“Now, no one is allowed inside Broadview. Faith leaders seeking to provide religious services are blocked from providing Communion and spiritual support to detainees, even from outside.”

Catholic leaders in Chicago sought to bring holy Communion to Broadview detainees Nov. 1. Auxiliary Bishop Jose María García-Maldonado and others were not admitted despite requesting access weeks in advance and attempting to follow U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s guidelines.

Pope Leo XIV on Tuesday said the spiritual rights of migrants in detention must be considered by government authorities. “I would certainly invite the authorities to allow pastoral workers to attend to the needs of those people,” the pontiff said. “Many times, they’ve been separated from their families for a good amount of time. No one knows what’s happening, but their own spiritual needs should be attended to.”

On Oct. 1, Pope Leo said being “in agreement with the inhuman treatment of immigrants in the United States, I don’t know if that’s pro-life.”

The Homeland Security Department’s Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs Tricia McLaughlin responded to the detainees’ lawsuit and told CNA that the Broadview facility was a “field office,”  not a “detention facility.”

She added: “Illegal aliens are only briefly held there for processing before being transferred to a detention facility. Religious organizations are more than welcome to provide services to detainees in ICE detention facilities.”

McLaughlin said the Broadview facility had recently been the target of numerous attacks and vandalism by anti-Trump administration protesters that presented many public safety dangers, including assaults on law enforcement officers, throwing tear gas cans, slashing tires, firearms possession, and blocking the entrance of the building.

“ICE staff has repeatedly informed religious organizations that due to Broadview’s status as a field office and the ongoing threat to civilians, detainees, and officers … they are not able to accommodate these requests at this time,” she told CNA, adding: “Even before the attacks on the Broadview facility, it was not within standard operating procedure for religious services to be provided in a field office, as detainees are continuously brought in, processed, and transferred out.”

McLaughlin wrote on the X that “religious organizations have ALWAYS been welcome to provide services to detainees in ICE detention facilities. Religious leaders may request access to facilities through proper channels and have those requests approved.”

Tyler Arnold contributed to this story.

Father Guillermo Treviño Jr.’s national profile stemmed from his immigrant rights work with Escucha Mi Voz Iowa (“Hear My Voice Iowa”), a group aiding Latino workers, including immigrants. He is shown here during a meeting earlier this year with U.S. Sen.Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa. / Credit: Photo courtesy of Escucha Mi Voz Iowa

CNA Staff, Nov 5, 2025 / 17:33 pm (CNA).

Father Guillermo Treviño Jr., a 39-year-old priest who advocated for the rights of immigrants in the Diocese of Davenport, Iowa, passed away suddenly on Oct. 31, just hours after returning from a trip to the Vatican. 

His death from sepsis after a fatal stomach perforation was a complication of undiagnosed diabetes, according to his sister, Mariela Treviño-Luna, who had traveled with him to Italy.

Due to a shortage of priests in Iowa, Treviño served as a pastor of St. Joseph Church in Columbus Junction as well as St. Joseph Church in West Liberty, southeast of Iowa City.

Treviño’s national profile stemmed from his immigrant rights work as a founder, board president, and chaplain of Escucha Mi Voz Iowa, a group aiding Latino workers, including immigrants. Treviño had just returned from Rome, where he represented the group at Pope Leo XIV’s World Meeting of Popular Movements.

He fought deportations, notably for his godson, 18-year-old Pascual Pedro, a West Liberty High School soccer star U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) deported this summer despite his Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) status. 

In a statement issued on the day of his death by the Diocese of Davenport, Bishop Dennis Walsh said: “Father Guillermo’s heart was consistently with those in need. Throughout the current migrant crises, he showed great compassion for the many migrants who find themselves on edge due to aggressive immigration enforcement action.” 

As pastor of both St. Joseph churches, Treviño nurtured the meatpacking and farming communities there with “remarkable authenticity,” Walsh said. 

“His voice was becoming a beacon of hope and advocacy on this vital issue, gaining national prominence,” Walsh continued in the statement. “He was recently invited to be part of a panel discussion at Georgetown University and had the distinct honor of traveling to the Vatican as part of the World Gathering of Popular Movements. His leadership and commitment to justice will be deeply missed by the Church and the wider community he so faithfully served.” 

Archbishop Thomas Zinkula of Dubuque recalled Treviño’s “playful and serious sides,” telling the Des Moines Register this week that “Father Guillermo loved movies, Star Wars, and professional wrestling. But he also was passionate about serving and advocating for immigrants. I was inspired by his total commitment to seeking justice and mercy for people on that particular margin of society.”

Born on March 7, 1986, in San Antonio, Texas, to Maria Luna and Guillermo Treviño Sr., Treviño and his family moved to Moline, Illinois, when he was 3. He earned an associate’s degree from Black Hawk College before entering seminary at Conception Seminary College and Mundelein Seminary. Despite an initial rejection, he said at the time that his faith — rekindled after his father’s early death — drove him forward. Ordained on June 6, 2015, he quickly became a force in rural Hispanic parishes.

According to the diocese’s statement, Treviño “received the National 2022 Cardinal Bernardin New Leadership Award. The award recognizes a ‘young faith-filled Catholic who has demonstrated leadership against poverty and injustice in the United States,’ according to the USCCB [U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops].”

“It recognizes the leadership, energy, and diverse skills that young people bring to the anti-poverty work of low-income projects and Catholic parishes. It highlights the gifts of young leaders and their Gospel commitment to the poor,” the statement said.

Treviño’s funeral Mass is set for Nov. 7 at Sacred Heart Cathedral in Davenport and will be livestreamed on YouTube. He is survived by his mother, sisters, and extended family.

Empty wheelchairs were used during a Nov. 4, 2025, anti-assisted suicide event in Rome. / Credit: Photo courtesy of ProVita & Famiglia

Rome, Italy, Nov 5, 2025 / 17:03 pm (CNA).

The Piazza del Popolo (People’s Square), one of Rome’s most iconic and monumental spaces, became the stage on Nov. 4 for a powerful campaign against a bill currently under consideration in the Italian Senate to decriminalize assisted suicide. 

Two hundred empty wheelchairs with a rose-colored balloon floating above each one were arranged in meticulously ordered rows in the center of the Italian capital’s expansive urban space by the pro-life ProVita & Famiglia association as part of a flash mob with a direct and unsettling message: “Non mi uccidere” (“Don’t kill me”).

The initiative aimed to denounce what the organization considers a “drift toward assisted suicide” in Italy.

Legislative background

Currently in Italy, anyone who “causes the death of a man with his consent” is punishable by six to 15 years in prison, according to Article 579 of the penal code.

However, in 2019 the country’s constitutional court partially modified this legislation, ruling that no one will be punished for killing “a patient who is kept alive by life-support treatments and suffers from an irreversible condition.”

This ruling came after the trial and subsequent acquittal of Marco Cappato, who was tried for accompanying producer Fabiano Antoniani, better known as DJ Fabo, to Switzerland to obtain assisted suicide in 2017. Antoniani had become quadriplegic and blind after an accident in 2014. 

Three years later, in 2022, Italy’s lower house passed a bill regulating a patient’s right to request medical assistance in dying based on certain conditions, such as being of legal age or suffering from an irreversible illness.

The legislation was then sent to the Senate, which has been debating the proposal for three years. The ProVita & Famiglia campaign aims to prevent its final passage.

According to the organizers, the 200 empty wheelchairs represent the sick, disabled, elderly, and vulnerable people who, in the association’s words, “are asking Parliament for more care, more rights, more dignity but are instead faced with cynical shortcuts to death.” 

“Only 33% of those entitled to palliative care” have access to it, according to data compiled by the organization, “with some Italian regions where coverage drops to as low as 4%-5%.” This figure leaves thousands of families without health care assistance.

Drifting toward assisted suicide

Italy has begun a “drift toward assisted suicide that could lead to a veritable state-sanctioned massacre of the sick, the elderly living alone, the depressed, and people with disabilities,” ProVita & Famiglia stated in a press release. 

“Any national law in this direction would only accentuate the process, reinforcing in public opinion the idea that the state can offer suicide as just another social and health care service,” the group warned.

Massimo Gandolfini, leader of the Family Day movement, also joined the Nov. 4 demonstration, reiterating his rejection of “any form of medically assisted dying.” In his address, he warned that “the experience of the 13 countries that have legalized it is devastating: From a few initial cases, it has grown to thousands every year, including young people with depression.”

Among the participants in the event was Emanuel Cosmin Stoica, a writer, activist, and disabled person. 

“In a moment of suffering,” he said, “I myself might think about death, but it is precisely then that society must help people live and not offer suicide as an escape from pain.” Instead, “the state must invest in assistance, psychological support, inclusion, and social networks that leave no one alone.”

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

Pope Leo XIV leads the faithful in St. Peter’s Square at the Vatican in reciting the Angelus on Nov. 2, 2025. / Credit: Vatican Media

Vatican City, Nov 5, 2025 / 16:33 pm (CNA).

Pope Leo XIV on Wednesday addressed a letter to seminarians of the Archdiocese of Trujillo, Peru, reminding them of the need to be close to Christ while discerning a vocation to the priesthood.

In a long letter to men studying at the “San Carlos y San Marcelo” major seminary, who celebrated the institution’s 400th anniversary on Nov. 4, the Holy Father emphasized that prayer and the search for truth are not “parallel journeys” but a single path that leads to God.

‘Nurture both’

“A piety without doctrine becomes fragile sentimentality; doctrine without prayer becomes sterile and cold,” he wrote. “Nurture both with balance and passion, knowing that only in this way can you authentically proclaim what you live and live coherently what you proclaim.”

As an Augustinian missionary, Leo XIV once served as the seminary’s director of studies. From 1989–1998 he taught San Carlos y San Marcelo seminarians canon law, moral theology, and patristics.

Stressing the importance of forming both the “spiritual and intellectual life” at the seminary, the Holy Father said the combination of study and prayer prepares candidates for a “solid and luminous priesthood.”

Focusing on the centrality of Jesus Christ, the pope said the “first task” of all seminarians is “to be with the Lord, to let him form you, to know and love him, so that you may become like him.” 

In the letter, he explained that the Church has always wanted seminaries to be places to help foster their personal relationship with Jesus and “prepare those who will be sent to serve the holy people of God.”

“For this reason, before anything else, it is necessary to allow the Lord to clarify one’s motivations and purify one’s intentions,” he wrote. “The priesthood cannot be reduced to ‘achieving ordination’ as if it were an external goal or an easy way out of personal problems.” 

The priesthood as ‘a total gift of one’s existence’

“It is not an escape from what one does not want to face, nor a refuge from emotional, family, or social difficulties; nor is it a promotion or a shelter, but a total gift of one’s existence,” he added.

Underscoring the importance of freedom in the discernment process, the pope said it is not possible for a man “bound by interests or fears” to freely offer his life for others through the priesthood.

“The will is truly free when it is not a slave,” he wrote in his letter, quoting St. Augustine’s “The City of God.”

“The decisive thing is not to be ‘ordained’ but truly to be priests,” he said.

Warning that the priesthood should not be confused with a “personal right” or a “mere prerogative or bureaucratic function,” Leo said a genuine vocation “arises from the choice of the Lord” to share in his saving ministry.

“Seminary life is a journey of inner rectification,” he said. “Rectitude of intention means being able to say every day, with simplicity and truth: ‘Lord, I want to be your priest, not for myself, but for your people.’”

Encouraging seminarians to be configured to Christ, the Holy Father urged them to devote time to encountering the Lord through dedicated times to prayer and study using sacred Scripture. 

‘Those who do not speak enough with God cannot speak of God’

“Time spent in prayer is the most fruitful investment of one’s life, because it is there that the Lord shapes our feelings, purifies our desires, and strengthens our vocation,” he said. “Those who do not speak enough with God cannot speak of God!”

Speaking about the importance of the magisterium, the pope said: “The Church has always recognized that the encounter with the Lord needs to be rooted in intelligence and to become doctrine.”

“Without serious study there is no true pastoral ministry, because the ministry consists in leading people to know and love Christ and, in him, to find salvation,” he wrote.

Before concluding his letter with his apostolic blessing, the Holy Father said Eucharistic union and communion with others is essential to understand Jesus’ “priestly fatherhood” and “the unity between ministry and sacrifice.”

“Dear sons, in conclusion, I want to assure you that you have a place in the heart of the successor of Peter,” he said. “The seminary is an immense and demanding gift, but you are never alone on this journey.”

Archbishop José Ángel Saiz Meneses of Seville, Spain. / Credit: Photo courtesy of Archdiocese of Seville

ACI Prensa Staff, Nov 5, 2025 / 15:19 pm (CNA).

The Archdiocese of Seville in Spain has announced that a young woman with Down syndrome who was initially prohibited from being a godmother at a baptism will be able to fulfill that role after “high-level” consultations with experts in canon law and pastoral care.

In late October, the offended family took their case to the media because a priest had refused to accept Noelia, a 19-year-old woman with Down syndrome, as a godmother.

In a Nov. 4 statement, the archdiocese explained that since the controversy broke out, it has gathered “all the relevant information and testimonies,” and “in agreement with the pastor and the family of the child being baptized, the archdiocese authorizes the celebration of the sacrament of baptism on the scheduled date, allowing the parents to put forward the godparents they had initially chosen.”

ACI Prensa, CNA’s Spanish-language news partner, confirmed through archdiocesan sources that one of the auxiliary bishops and the chancellor of the archdiocese participated in meetings with the family and the pastor.

The archdiocese reiterated that the Church wants to “foster the inclusion of all people in the ecclesial community, based on pastoral accompaniment and prudence,” saying it regretted “the harm caused by the handling of this situation” and calling “for harmony and dialogue based on the communion that should characterize the life of a parish community.”

At the initial meeting with Noelia and the baby’s parents, the pastor of Our Lady of the Snows Parish in Benacazón asked Noelia some questions about the baptism and the meaning of being a godparent.

Noelia, who was confirmed in the Seville cathedral by Archbishop José Ángel Saiz Meneses, has “a serious difficulty expressing herself,” despite being independent in managing her daily life — for example, traveling to Seville by bus on her own.

The situation was also complicated because Noelia had not enrolled in the formation program for prospective godparents provided by the parish, which requires several biweekly sessions as well as Mass attendance there every Sunday, but had instead enrolled in another parish that offers a shorter preparation period.

The pastor, who, according to the same sources who spoke to CNA, “is not an expert in canon law but is very competent in pastoral care,” initially consulted the archdiocese. 

He attempted to resolve the matter according to the guidelines of the Instruction on Christian Initiation in effect in the diocese since 2015 with a unique proposal: Noelia could have a prominent role in the ceremony but would not be registered as the godmother. 

The decision displeased her family, however, and they appealed.

Now that the pastoral issue has been resolved, the outcome of the campaign undertaken by Noelia’s father, demanding the pastor’s removal “and a public apology,” remains to be addressed.

The archdiocese told ACI Prensa that the pastor is a “well-liked person who is doing very well and working very well with his team” in a social context where rules can be “difficult to understand.”

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

On Nov. 4, 2025, the Catholic Diocese of Auchi in Nigeria announced the release of two seminarians who were abducted in July during an armed attack on Immaculate Conception Minor Seminary in Ivianokpodi while confirming the death of a third victim. / Credit: Catholic Diocese of Auchi

ACI Africa, Nov 5, 2025 / 14:04 pm (CNA).

The Catholic Diocese of Auchi in Nigeria has announced the release of two seminarians who were abducted in July during an armed attack on Immaculate Conception Minor Seminary in Ivianokpodi while confirming the death of a third victim.

In a statement issued Tuesday, the assistant director of communications of the diocese, Father Linus Imoedemhe, recalled that during the July 10 incident, seminarians Japhet Jesse, Joshua Aleobua, and Emmanuel Alabi were abducted.

“We are grateful to God for the safe release of Japhet Jesse much earlier and, most recently, Joshua Aleobua, who regained his freedom on Nov. 4,” Imoedemhe said in the statement shared with ACI Africa, CNA’s news partner in Africa. “However, with deep sorrow, we announce the passing of seminarian Emmanuel Alabi, who lost his life in the course of the ordeal.”

Imoedemhe went on to extend the condolences of the bishop of Auchi to the families of the victims.

“Most Rev. Gabriel G. Dunia has expressed his deep pain and sorrow over the loss of the young seminarian and has called on security agencies to intensify efforts toward protecting the lives and property of all citizens,” Imoedemhe said.

The bishop has cautioned political leaders against “turning a blind eye on the worsening insecurity situation in the nation,” urging them to prioritize the safety and well-being of the people over political ambitions ahead of Nigeria’s 2027 elections.

In his statement, Imoedemhe invited the people of God to “join us in praying for the repose of the soul of Emmanuel Alabi, and for the peace, healing, and security of our people and land.”

“The Diocese of Auchi remains committed to the values of faith, peace, and justice, trusting in God’s infinite mercy to bring comfort to the bereaved family, the seminary community, and all those affected by this tragedy,” he said. 

“May the soul of Emmanuel Alabi, and the souls of all the faithful departed, through the mercy of God, rest in peace. Amen,” Imoedemhei added.

The July 10 attack also claimed the life of Christopher Aweneghieme, a security guard at the seminary.

On Aug. 14, the Diocese of Auchi confirmed the authenticity of a viral video showing two of the three abducted seminarians.

The footage shows the two young seminarians with what appears to be a human skull, crying and pleading for their release while surrounded by gun-wielding individuals believed to be their captors.

Following the abduction, Dunia urged the families of the three seminarians to remain steadfast in prayer.

In a July 13 interview with ACI Africa, Dunia addressed the seminarians’ parents, saying: “Do not be crushed by fear, threats, or intimidation.”

“These things are not happening only at the seminary,” he said. “Some seminarians have even been kidnapped from their homes while on holiday. We must remain vigilant and do all we can to protect them,” the bishop said.

Dunia appealed to all levels of government — local, state, and federal — to take decisive action to address the challenge of insecurity. 

“There is a vast forest stretching between Edo and Kogi states, and that forest is where these criminals hide and launch their attacks. The government knows how to deal with this — they have the intelligence and the resources — but they must act.”

He warned: “If nothing is done, communities will be abandoned, and these criminals will take over our land. We must not allow this to happen.”

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

Holy Ghost Catholic Church in Dubuque, Iowa, is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. / Credit: Farragutful, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

CNA Staff, Nov 5, 2025 / 12:50 pm (CNA).

The Archdiocese of Dubuque, Iowa, is in the midst of a restructuring plan called the “Journey in Faith” initiative that will result in parish mergers and other major changes due to declining church attendance, financial pressures, and priest shortages.

At a homily he gave at the beginning of September, Archbishop Thomas Zinkula cited “dramatic shifts in population, culture, and finances within our archdiocese. We are using only 37% of our church capacities each weekend. Since 2006, Mass attendance is down 46% throughout the archdiocese.”

According to archdiocesan data, Catholic marriages have declined 57% and infant baptisms are down 22% since 2006. The only liturgical celebration that has increased is Catholic funerals, up 3% in the same time period.

Regarding the priest shortage, there is currently only one priest for every two parishes in the northeastern Iowa archdiocese of about 182,000 Catholics, with 85 priests actively serving in the archdiocese. The number is expected to continue to decline.

Zinkula told CNA on Nov. 5 that he understands that it is upsetting to parishioners to see, in the initial models of the initiative, their parishes without weekend Masses. 

He said, however, that the cancellation of Masses “is not the same as ‘closing’ a church, as those churches may still be used for other liturgical celebrations, such as funerals, weddings, and weekday Masses. They also can continue to serve as hubs for charitable outreach in the community and offer opportunities to grow in faith.”

“We are exploring models for grouping archdiocesan parishes into ‘pastorates,’” Zinkula continued, “and eventually merging each pastorate into a single parish, which typically utilizes multiple churches for weekend Masses. These models focus on strengthening relationships so we can share human and material resources.”

In a video message issued Sept. 2, Zinkula told the faithful: “I desperately want and need to hear from you.”

As part of the restructuring initiative’s three-month public input process, in September the Archdiocese of Dubuque held 34 regional informational sessions for parishioners to learn more about the process. Those meetings preceded the next step, local parish input sessions, that began in October and have allowed parishioners to provide verbal feedback through Nov. 21 as well as written feedback via the initiative’s website.

The archbishop explained to CNA that “the models currently under review are not decisions. They are starting points — designed to elicit reactions and perspectives. They have certainly done so, which is a good thing! I’m glad there is so much passion. It would greatly concern me if there was widespread apathy on this important topic.” 

Mark Tillman, a parishioner in Dubuque, told KWWL this week that he’s concerned “these draconian cuts to the rural parishes will be morally and spiritually devastating to our parishes and our communities will suffer.”

Tillman said his parish and the ones around it are financially stable. “It would rip my soul out to have my parish close,” Tillman said. “I’ve developed relationships. I have friends. I’ve worked with the parish. I go to confession. I do everything the church has asked me to do, and they want to take it away for me. I’m sorry.” 

Zinkula said in a statement in September that he knows how “difficult” it is to lose one’s parish: “My own home parish was once merged into a neighboring parish, so I understand the sense of loss this can bring. And yet, I believe with all my heart that this journey is worth it — because it can reenergize our parishes, draw back our children and grandchildren, and strengthen our mission to proclaim the Gospel.”

Group photo of Congregation of Jesus (CJ) sisters and Father Arturo Sosa after Mass on Nov. 4, 2025. The CJ and the Institute of the Blessed Virgin Mary (IBVM) have officially merged into one congregation. / Credit: Photo courtesy of Congregatio Jesu

Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Nov 5, 2025 / 11:56 am (CNA).

The Congregation of Jesus (CJ) and the Institute of the Blessed Virgin Mary (IBVM) unified about 1,800 sisters across 40 countries after officially merging into one congregation on Tuesday.

The two congregations of apostolic women merged “after years of prayer, collaboration, and shared ministry,” IBVM said in a statement. “We now share one name, one vision, and one spirit — continuing Mary Ward’s legacy together as a single, international congregation.”

The merger decree became official on Nov. 4 at a Mass and celebration in Loyola, Spain, presided over by Father Arturo Sosa, the general superior of the Jesuits. The Mass will be followed by a Nov. 5 symposium called: “Women of the Dawn: On the Threshold of New Beginnings.”

In 1609, Ward founded an apostolic institute of religious women modeled on the framework of the Society of Jesus. She wanted to create a community of sisters who were not cloistered, had no specific religious dress, and focused on God’s compassion. The institute broke off into two branches, but both remained dedicated to Ward’s mission.

IBVM members, also known as Loretto Sisters, will now be religious women of the Congregation of Jesus. Despite the change in name, the sisters said they remain who they have always been: “women inspired by the Gospel and dedicated to serving God’s people.”

As one unified congregation, the sisters said they will continue “working in education, social justice, pastoral ministry, and advocacy for women and those on the margins.” They will live out Ward’s belief that “women in time to come will do much.”

“We are very happy that we can finally fulfill Mary Ward’s dream of a united congregation of women religious with the same constitutions as those of the Society of Jesus,” said Sister Veronica Fuhrmann, general superior of CJ, in a press release. “We share the same charism, the same values, and the same understanding of mission.”

“Union of minds and hearts, which St. Ignatius has so aptly described and held in the highest esteem, is the bond that deeply connects us,” Fuhrmann said.

“In a fractured world, our members have freely chosen to become one congregation as a witness to Christ’s Gospel message of peace and harmony,” said Sister Carmel Swords, CJ, former institute leader of IBVM. “We have listened to the promptings of the Spirit and embark on this journey with renewed missionary zeal.”

“We believe that together we are stronger,” Swords said. “We move forward filled with gratitude and a desire to serve God’s people in freedom and joy.”