Catholic News

• Pope makes surprise visit to his Augustinian brothers in Rome (Vatican News)
  Pope Leo XIV made a private visit to the general curia of the Order of St. Augustine on May 13, celebrated Mass in the chapel there, and joined members of the order for lunch. The Pontiff, who was prior general of the Order of St. Augustine from 2001 to 2013, “told us we must always stay close to one another, and live in communion, just as Saint Augustine calls us to do,” said Father Alejandro Moral, the current prior general.
• At Jubilee of Eastern Churches, Armenian Catholic Patriarch prays for peace (Vatican News)
  The head of the Armenian Catholic Church, Patriarch Raphaël Bedros XXI Minassian, prayed for peace as he celebrated the Divine Liturgy in Rome during the Jubilee of the Eastern Churches. “We, children of the Eastern Armenian Catholic Church, witnesses to centuries of faith and martyrdom, are called today, in this time of ongoing wars in the Middle East and throughout the world, to bear witness with our lives and our blood to our fidelity to Christ, strengthening our faith rooted in charity and Christian love,” he added. In describing the Armenian Catholic Church as a “unique pearl,” Cardinal Claudio Gugerotti, prefect of the Dicastery for the Eastern Churches, said, “You are so close to the cross of the Lord, with whom you have shared a series of sufferings.”
• Africa will be 'central to the pontificate of Leo XIV,' Augustinian leader says (Vatican News (Italian))
  Father Edward Danaing Daleng, procurator general of the Order of St. Augustine and the order’s general counselor for Africa, said that Pope Leo XIV has a heart for the continent. Pope Leo “has visited all of our African missions several times and has come to my country, Nigeria, on at least ten occasions,” said Father Daleng. “Nigeria became a province [of the order] precisely when Robert Francis Prevost was elected prior general in 2001,” he continued. “Unfortunately, there was a period in which the government requisitioned all our educational centers and for years we had many problems. In 2006, thanks to the future Leo XIV, who cared a lot about projects in the country, we were able to inaugurate a new college for many boys and girls.” The priest added: I believe that Africa will be central to the pontificate of Leo XIV. He has always shown particular attention for our continent, as I said he loved to visit it and meet, understand and listen. I can say with certainty that among his best skills are the ability to listen, to always remain humble, to put himself at the service [of others]. I know him well.
• Assassination attempt against St. John Paul commemorated at Mass in St. Peter's Basilica (Vatican News (Italian))
  Cardinal Stanisław Dziwisz, the retired archbishop of Kraków, celebrated a special Mass in St. Peter’s Basilica on the evening of May 13, the feast of Our Lady of Fátima and the anniversary of the 1981 assassination attempt against Pope St. John Paul II. Vatican News recalled that Cardinal Dziwisz, St. John Paul’s longtime personal secretary, “was next to Pope Wojtyła when he was shot.” At the conclusion of the Mass, Cardinal Dziwisz led a procession to the Pontiff’s tomb.
• Trappist abbot sees 'consonances' between Pope Leo's election, Algerian martyrs (L'Osservatore Romano (Italian))
  Father Thomas Georgeon, OCSO, abbot of the Abbey of La Trappe and postulator of the canonization cause of the 19 blessed martyrs of Algeria, remarked on the “consonances” between Pope Leo’s election and the martyrs, who were slain between 1994 and 1996: Pope Leo was elected on May 8, the feast day of the blessed martyrs. Pope Leo is a member of the Order of St. Augustine, and St. Augustine was bishop of Hippo, in modern-day Algeria. Two of the 19 martyrs were Augustinian nuns. Upon his election, Pope Leo described Christ’s peace as a “peace that is unarmed and disarming.” One of the martyrs, Blessed Christian de Chergé, OCSO, upon meeting an Islamist militant, prayed, “Lord, disarm me, and disarm him.” Father Georgeon also discussed echoes of the words of other Algerian martyrs in Pope Leo’s words. (Georgeon, however, overlooked another “consonance”: Prévost was the last name of one of the 19 martyrs, Blessed Odette Prévost.)
• Vatican newspaper rues Israeli attack on Gaza hospital (L'Osservatore Romano (Italian))
  In the most prominent front-page article in its May 13 edition, the Vatican newspaper lamented the Israeli bombing of Nasser Hospital in Khan Yunis, in the Gaza Strip. “Is it conceivable, on this occasion as on previous ones, that all those who find themselves in hospitals or schools for treatment or ‘simply’ taking shelter are considered ‘terrorists?” wrote Roberto Paglialonga. “In the era of hyper-technological warfare, are there no other ways to prevent or counter those who threaten the security of a State and a population than indiscriminate raids on homes, hospitals and other civilian sites?”
• Jewish US novelist writes front-page Gospel commentary for L'Osservatore Romano (L'Osservatore Romano (Italian))
  The Vatican newspaper has published a front-page commentary by Jonathan Safran Foer on the Gospel reading for the Fifth Sunday of Easter. Commenting on John 13:31-35, the Jewish American novelist writes: Jesus’ command seems almost subversive: love one another as I have loved you. This love is neither naive nor ironic. Jesus speaks those words knowing that betrayal is happening in real time. What he offers here is an ethical alternative to the zero-sum logic that drives much of the world today. While political ideologies demand loyalty, vengeance, or purity, Jesus demands something more difficult: a love that remains committed to brokenness. Last month, L’Osservatore Romano published a tribute to Pope Francis by Safran Foer in the days following the Pontiff’s death.
• Pope visits Marian shrine outside Rome (Vatican News)
  On the evening of May 10, Pope Leo XIV visited the Augustinian Shrine of the Mother of Good Counsel in Genazzano, nearly 40 miles outside of Rome. The Pontiff “was greeted by a cheering crowd of hundreds of people gathered in the square or looking out of windows and balconies,” Vatican News reported. “Many shouted, ‘Leo, Leo,’ and the nearby streets filled up.” After praying the Hail Mary and singing the Salve Regina, he said, “I wanted so much to come here in these first days of the new ministry of carrying out the mission of Successor of Peter that the Church has entrusted to me.” He then met privately with the Augustinian community there.
• Jubilee of Eastern Churches begins with tributes to Coptic Christians, Pope Francis (CWN)
  The Jubilee of the Eastern Churches, part of the 2025 jubilee year, began on May 12 with celebrations of the Divine Liturgy in the Ge’ez rite, the Armenian rite, and the Coptic rite.
• Synod leaders voice confidence in Pope Leo (Synod Secretariat)
  The top leaders of the General Secretariat of the Synod have written to Pope Leo XIV, congratulating him on his election and pointedly calling for the continued growth of “a missionary synodal Church.” The Synod leaders say that they “look with confidence to the directions you will indicate,” and assure the new Pontiff that their office will be “fully available to offer its service in a spirit of collaboration and obedience.” The message is signed by Cardinal Mario Grech, Archbishop Luis Marin de San Martin, and Sister Nathalie Becquart—the secretary and under-secretaries, respectively, of the Synod secretariat. In their message they say that the Synod “involves the entire People of God in a shared process, where each person contributes to discerning the steps to take, according to the charisms, vocations, and ministries received.”
• In 1st Regina Caeli address, Pope Leo recalls Good Shepherd Sunday, calls for peace (CWN)
  In his first Regina Caeli address (video), delivered on May 11, Pope Leo XIV recalled that the day was Good Shepherd Sunday and the World Day of Prayer for Vocations.
• Biden administration covered up slaying of Palestinian Catholic journalist, documentary charges (CWN)
  Three years after the killing of Shireen Abu Akleh, a Palestinian-American journalist and Melkite Greek Catholic laywoman, the makers of a new documentary film charged that she was intentionally shot by an Israeli soldier and that the Biden administration joined in a cover-up of the killing.
• Papal prayer at Santa Maria Maggiore (L'Osservatore Romano (Italian))
  Upon returning to Rome from his visit to Shrine of the Mother of Good Counsel in Genazzano, Pope Leo XIV visited the Papal Basilica of Saint Mary Major. There, he entered the chapel of the Salus Populi Romani and, praying before the beloved Marian image, placed a bouquet of roses on the altar. Pope Leo then prayed at Pope Francis’s tomb and, recalling his predecessor’s devotion to Thérèse of Lisieux, placed a white rose on it. Finally, he stopped before the statue of the Queen of Peace.
• Pope names personal secretary (Peruvian bishops' conference (Spanish))
  Pope Leo has named a Peruvian priest, Father Rimaycuna Inga, to be his private secretary. Father Inga is a native of Chiclayo, the diocese where Pope Leo served until 2023, when he was named prefect of the Dicastery for Bishops. He studied under the future Pontiff at the seminary of St. Toribio de Mogrovejo, an institution named after the 16th-century Spanish priest who became Archbishop of Lima. Father Inga later continued his education in Rome and the Pontifical Biblical Institute. In 2023, shortly after beginning his work at the Congregation for Bishops, then-Archbishop Prevost asked Father Lima to join him in Rome as his secretary—a role that he will now continue under Pope Leo.
• Church worker murdered in South Sudan (Fides)
  Paul Tamania, the coordinator of the Catholic Organization for Development and Peace in South Sudan, was shot and killed on May 8 at a parish in Tombura County. The same parish—of St. Mary Help of Christians—saw the murder of its choir director last December. Police are investigating the crimes.
• Jubilee of Bands culminates in outdoor Mass (Vatican News (Italian))
  The Jubilee of Bands and Popular Entertainment, part of the 2025 jubilee year, culminated in an outdoor Mass in Piazza Cavour on May 11. “In the Scriptures, it’s not so much about the growing number of believers but about spreading the word of God,” preached Archbishop Rino Fisichella, one of the two pro-prefects of the Dicastery for Evangelization. “And it is our mission to spread it.” The jubilee pilgrims then paraded to St. Peter’s Square for Pope Leo’s first Regina Caeli address.
• Vatican announces schedule of papal Masses (Vatican Press Office (Italian))
  The Holy See Press Office has announced that Pope Leo XIV will preside at the following Masses: May 18, St. Peter’s Square: beginning of the Petrine ministry May 20, Papal Basilica of St. Paul Outside the Walls May 25, Archbasilica of St. John Lateran; later that evening, he will visit the Papal Basilica of St. Major May 31, St. Peter’s Basilica: priestly ordinations
• Pakistani prelates welcome ceasefire, averting 'very dangerous' conflict (Pillar)
  Bishop Samson Shukardin, the president of the Pakistani episcopal conference, has welcomed a ceasefire arranged by US President Donald Trump, saying that the agreement may have prevented a “very dangerous war” between the two nuclear powers of the Asian subcontinent. The ceasefire ended four days of attacks launched by Indian and Pakistani forces in the disputed region of Kashmir. Archbishop Joseph Arshad of Islamabad-Rawalpindi also gave thanks for the “glad tidings” of the accord. “This moment should be seized as an opportunity to build lasting stability in the region,” he said.
• Dean of College of Cardinals pledges to Pope Leo his fidelity, collaboration (L'Osservatore Romano (Italian))
  The Vatican newspaper has published the remarks of Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re, dean of the College of Cardinals, to Pope Leo before the Pontiff’s May 10 address to the cardinals. “I would like, speaking on behalf of all the cardinals, to assure you of our closeness, above all to assure you of our fidelity, our desire to collaborate; to collaborate so that, as you said yesterday, the Church may be an ‘ark of salvation’ and also a ‘lighthouse’ in the darkness of the night,” said Cardinal Re. Cardinal Re also spoke of “all the problems of the world, at this time when the world is gripped by so many wars ... unfortunately, despite the deaths and destruction, they do not end. And I will stop now, because now they want to hear not me, but Your Holiness!”
• Cardinal Re, at Mass for election of Roman Pontiff, emphasizes Church's unity in fidelity to the Gospel (CWN)
  Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re, the dean of the College of Cardinals, celebrated the Mass for the election of the Roman Pontiff in St. Peter’s Basilica on the morning of May 7 (booklet, video). The Mass took place hours before the 133 cardinal electors were scheduled to enter the conclave that will elect the 267th pope.
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