Before Pope Leo lands in Algeria, advocates want the world to know what Christians face there
GENEVA — Before Pope Leo XIV is expected to set foot in Algeria, a side event conference at the United Nations Human Rights Council heard testimony and insights that paint a troubling picture of what awaits him: a country where Christians cannot freely practice their faith, where churches have been shuttered by the state, and where conversion from Islam remains a criminal offense.
The March 18 conference was organized by the European Centre for Law and Justice in collaboration with Jubilee Campaign and Christian Solidarity International. It brought together experts who described a systematic pattern of legal and administrative repression against Christians in the North African nation.
A constitution that no longer protects them
Algeria’s 2020 constitution removed any explicit reference to freedom of conscience. Only the country’s Islamic identity is given constitutional recognition, while conversions to Christianity are subject to criminal prosecution. The legal opening of new churches has become practically impossible under a 2006 ordinance governing non-Muslim worship and a 2012 law on religious associations.
Pastor Youssef Ourahmane, vice president of the Protestant Church of Algeria, addressed the gathering as a representative of a denomination that has seen 47 of its churches closed by the state. The church’s historic legal status, recognized since 1972, has also come under challenge.
Djamila Marie Djelloul, a former Muslim who converted to Christianity and is of Algerian origin, shared her insight alongside Ali Ait Djoudi, president of Riposte Internationale. Nicolas Bay, a member of the European Parliament, and Charlotte Touati, a historian and affiliated researcher with the University of Lausanne, Switzerland, also addressed the session.
The Catholic Church has not been spared either. Caritas Algeria, the Church’s humanitarian service arm that served the broader population of Algeria regardless of religion, was closed at the request of Algerian authorities on Oct. 1, 2022.
‘An Algerian can only be a Muslim’
Speaking to EWTN News, Ait Djoudi explained that the repression of Protestant churches in the country is rooted in a political conception of national identity that leaves no room for religious minorities.
He quoted former Minister of Religious Affairs Bouabdellah Ghlamallah, who stated in 2010 that “no one wants there to be religious minorities in Algeria, because that could serve as a pretext for foreign powers to interfere in the country’s internal affairs under the guise of protecting minority rights.” Ghlamallah also asserted plainly that “an Algerian can only be a Muslim.”
“Any religious activity outside officially authorized venues is prohibited,” Ait Djoudi said, describing administrative church closures as legally framed but politically motivated. On the ground, he explained, this translates into closures of places of worship, legal proceedings, fines, and even imprisonment alongside acts of intimidation and desecration.
On the question of the papal visit, Ait Djoudi, while expressing hope that the visit could open dialogue, warned against taking the government’s messaging at face value. “We observe a double standard,” he said. “A display of openness to the outside world but a policy of control and restriction maintained internally.” In 2025, he noted, Algeria ranked among the lowest-scoring countries globally on religious freedom for Christians.
Geopolitics shields Algeria from accountability
The Algerian government would “surely try to use the pope’s visit for their own PR purposes,” Joel Veldkamp, advocacy director of Christian Solidarity International, told EWTN News. He explained the visit could still serve Algeria’s Christians in practical ways. “Harsh crackdowns are more likely to be noticed internationally if they occur close to a papal visit,” he said, suggesting it may provide at least a temporary shield.
He also pointed to a telling precedent. When Pope Francis visited neighboring Morocco in 2019, King Mohammed VI used his welcome address to describe Christians as “guests,” placing them firmly outside of Moroccan society.
Algeria, Veldkamp noted, operates with a similar logic. But he pushed back on the premise. “Of course, Christians were in Algeria long before Muslims were,” he said. “This is the land of St. Augustine.” He noted a growing Christian revival among Algeria’s Indigenous Berber population, who are rediscovering pre-Islamic roots. “Pope Leo has an opportunity to emphasize this part of Algeria’s identity,” he said, “which is hardly acknowledged by the authorities.”
Regarding Algeria’s place in the global persecution spectrum, Veldkamp explained that Christians there have been spared the extreme violence seen elsewhere in the Arab world. Yet they face what he called “suffocating state control” — including blocked Bible imports, closed bookstores, prohibited evangelization, and systematic harassment of converts.
Currently Algeria is a key energy supplier for Europe, a counterterrorism partner for the United States, and a major arms buyer for Russia. “None of these actors are eager to upset Algeria,” Veldkamp noted. Yet precisely because the Christian community is so small, he argued, the government’s insistence on suppressing it is indefensible. “The Algerian government cannot possibly believe that it poses a threat. A little pressure from the outside world might go a long way.”
What the conference asked for
Recommendations proposed at the conference called on Algeria to restore freedom of conscience to its constitution, permit the legal functioning of Protestant churches, review criminal provisions on proselytism, and allow Caritas to resume operations.
The event also called on the United Nations to remind Algeria of its obligations under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and to encourage an official visit by the U.N. special rapporteur on freedom of religion or belief, Nazila Ghanea.
The pope is expected in Algeria from April 13–15. The visit also marks the 30th anniversary of the martyrdom of the monks of Tibhirine, who were killed on May 21, 1996. For Algeria’s Christians, the hope is that the pope’s visit amounts to more than a photo opportunity.
Plaintiff discusses landmark settlement curbing government social media censorship
In an exclusive interview with EWTN News, Dr. Aaron Kheriaty, a plaintiff in last week’s landmark settlement in the Missouri v. Biden case, described it as a hard-fought victory that sets an important legal precedent against federal government pressure on social media platforms to censor constitutionally protected speech.
The settlement agreement, reached in the form of a consent decree and approved by U.S. District Judge Terry Doughty on March 26, bars the U.S. surgeon general, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency from threatening or directing major platforms — including Facebook, Instagram, X, LinkedIn, and YouTube — to suppress constitutionally protected content.
Kheriaty, who is a Catholic bioethicist and psychiatrist and one of the named plaintiffs in the case, told EWTN News the outcome, while narrower than he hoped, still delivers a meaningful blow to what he called “the largest government-sponsored censorship effort in the digital age.”
“It would have been nice to bar all the other agencies named in the consent decree from censorship,” he said. “People should bring other lawsuits and keep fighting this machinery.”
Among others, the White House, the FBI, and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security were also accused of involvement in the alleged censorship efforts, but only the three named agencies are barred from censorship subject to the specific permanent injunction in last week’s decree.
The high-profile Missouri v. Biden case centered on the Biden administration’s alleged campaign to silence and suppress on social media viewpoints it opposed.
The case, originally filed in Louisiana federal court, gained national attention after it advanced to the U.S. Supreme Court under the name Murthy v. Missouri.
In June 2024, however, the Supreme Court ruled that the individual plaintiffs — who along with Kheriaty included Jill Hines, Jim Hoft, Missouri and Louisiana state accounts (as well as former co-plaintiffs Drs. Jayanta Bhattacharya and Martin Kulldorff, who later joined the Trump administration) — lacked standing to pursue the preliminary injunction. Despite that setback, the plaintiffs continued litigating in district court, leading to last week’s settlement.
‘An important precedent’
The decree set what Kheriaty called an “important precedent” in a case that, with its “massive level of censorship,” is the “first of its kind during the digital age.”
The settlement agreement was negotiated on behalf of individual plaintiffs alone and does not apply to all Americans or all speech, and it does not prevent other agencies (like the FBI or State Department) from the types of actions alleged in the original lawsuit.
“Unfortunately, we had to negotiate the settlement agreement so that it only applies to us, the plaintiffs, not to everyone in the country,” Kheriaty said. “So what about everyone else? Are we the only citizens whose free speech is protected?”
Not exactly, he said. “While the settlement is limited to the plaintiffs, it functions like a court ruling, which means it’s now a precedent in federal court, which is the main thing we wanted.”
“There were no precedents before this. Having a legal precedent isn’t trivial,” he said.
The consent decree explicitly recognizes that simply labeling speech as “misinformation” or “disinformation” does not strip it of constitutional protection.
Kheriaty said it was important to win the case in court, as well as in the court of public opinion. “The main thing our case accomplished was to help the public learn what the Biden administration was doing,” he said. “There were 20,000 pages of discovery. Our case and the Twitter files put this on the map for the American people,” he said. “Elon Musk got involved. Americans learned of the public-private partnerships, nonprofits, and universities involved in the government’s censorship.”
“It even became an issue in the presidential election,” he said, citing Vice President JD Vance’s response during the vice presidential debate, where Vance said the censorship engaged in by the Biden administration was a “threat to democracy” on “an industrial scale.”
Kheriaty also lauded President Donald Trump’s executive order stating that the Biden administration had “infringed on the constitutionally protected speech rights of American citizens across the United States in a manner that advanced the government’s preferred narrative about significant matters of public debate.”
Kheriaty said discovery from the Missouri v. Biden case led to Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg, in a letter to Jim Jordan and in an appearance on the Joe Rogan podcast, to admit “to what we were alleging in our case,” Kheriaty said. “Zuckerberg said censorship was happening at Facebook because the government pressured them. He apologized, said it was a mistake.”
“That’s a big deal.”
‘Plenty of evidence’ to show censorship
Kheriaty’s successful suit against the federal government stemmed from the censorship of his social media posts regarding an earlier lawsuit he filed against his employer, which gained national attention in 2021. In the suit, he publicly opposed the COVID-19 vaccine mandate at the university, challenging it on the constitutional grounds of equal protection and due process.
He argued at that time that his prior infection with COVID-19 (contracted in July 2020) provided robust natural immunity, making the vaccine requirement unnecessary and discriminatory for him and others in similar situations.
The university, where he directed the Medical Ethics Program and chaired the hospital ethics committee, first placed him on investigatory leave, then unpaid suspension, “and then eventually fired me,” he said.
“I didn’t really have a Plan B if I got fired,” Kheriaty said. “It was a wild ride.”
“God took care of us,” he continued. “My wife was supportive. She didn’t tell me what to do, but she told me now that lots of people were watching my case, I should ‘strongly consider finishing’ what I started.
“That was all I needed. Immediately I knew, I’m not going to back out of this fight.”
According to Kheriaty, the university was, without saying it, hoping he would file a religious exemption, which he never did. “It would have made the case go away, and I would not have gotten fired. But then I would not have had standing to bring the case,” he said.
He said he was “wavering at the end. I asked myself, ‘Is this responsible? I have five kids in private school, two of those in college. I won’t be able to get a job in another hospital having just sued my employer,” he said with a laugh.
Although he lost his case, the university eventually stopped enforcing its vaccine mandate policy.
“I don’t regret it. I would do it again,” said Kheriaty, who is now director of the Bioethics, Technology, and Human Flourishing program at the Ethics and Public Policy Center and in private practice.
In the meantime, however, “I had plenty of evidence to show censorship was happening. People told me they couldn’t see things I had just posted on social media [about the vaccine mandates].”
The New Civil Liberties Alliance, which represented Hines and Kheriaty, noted in a press release that two related censorship lawsuits remain ongoing: one against the U.S. State Department on behalf of The Federalist and The Daily Wire, and another concerning vaccine-injured individuals censored on Facebook.
Leo XIV: The most difficult circumstances can be transformed by the power of love
At the Vatican on Monday of Holy Week — known in some places as “Authority Monday” — Pope Leo XIV recalled Jesus’ cleansing of the Temple in Matthew 23:21-27, saying that through the paschal mystery, the Lord shows “that even the most difficult and challenging circumstances can be transformed from within by the power of love.”
‘The resurrection of Jesus is the ultimate source of hope’
“The resurrection of Jesus is the ultimate source of hope for all who believe in Christ and await the promise of eternal life,” the pontiff said during an audience with the Illinois Municipal League, an association of municipalities that advocates for the interests of local governments in Illinois, the pope’s home state.
Acknowledging that suffering cannot be avoided or eliminated, the Holy Father affirmed that one can “find a redemptive meaning” in it that restores lost dignity and “opens the door to a new life.”
The Holy Father also recalled that “the victory of the risen Lord over death” reveals that the heart of authentic authority is service: “His service and obedience to the will of the Father have led to a sure hope and lasting peace for all humanity.”
“Thus,” the pontiff added, “the victory born of Christ’s gift of self stands as both a beacon and a challenge for all of us today.”
He invited members of the state association “to be attentive to the needs of the weakest and most vulnerable in order to assist them toward integral human development.”
He cited as an example the Venerable Giorgio La Pira, who served as mayor of Florence, Italy, encouraging the group “to reduce and alleviate the suffering and hardships of their citizens in every possible way, through every measure that love suggests and the law provides.”
“The dignity of every individual must be recognized and upheld, because their municipalities are not anonymous places but rather possess faces and stories that must be cherished as valuable treasures,” he said.
Listening to the poor and to immigrants
The pope asked the group to listen to the poor, to immigrants, “and to all the least among you” in order “to promote the common good for the benefit of all.”
In this way, he emphasized, “each of your municipalities can become a place of genuine encounter among all citizens, providing opportunities for every individual to flourish.”
Pope Leo XIV also recalled that “those who exercise authority are also servants of God” and entrusted the association members to the intercession of St. Frances Xavier Cabrini, who for many years assisted the most vulnerable in Chicago “with great love and dedication.”
This story was first published by ACI Prensa, the Spanish-language sister service of EWTN News. It has been translated and adapted by EWTN News English.
White House defends praying for U.S. troops after pope condemns using prayers to justify war
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said military leaders and the president urging prayers is “a very noble thing to do,” pushing back after Pope Leo XIV said God rejects prayers of leaders who wage war.
Leavitt, when asked March 30 by a reporter to respond to the pope’s statement that God “does not listen to the prayers of those who wage war,” said: “I think our nation was a nation founded, 250 years ago almost, on Judeo-Christian values. And we’ve seen presidents, we’ve seen the leaders of the Department of War, and we’ve seen our troops go to prayer during the most turbulent times in our nation’s history.”
“I don’t think there’s anything wrong with our military leaders or with the president calling on the American people to pray for our service members and those who are serving our country overseas. In fact, I think it’s a very noble thing to do,” said Leavitt, who is Catholic.
“And if you talk to many service members, they will tell you they appreciate the prayers and support from the commander in chief and from his cabinet,” Leavitt said.
The pope, whose father served in the U.S. Navy on a D-Day tank landing ship, sharply condemned war in his Palm Sunday homily and said God cannot be used to justify war. He did not name specific leaders.
God “does not listen to the prayers of those who wage war,” Pope Leo said during Mass in St. Peter’s Square. The pope, who has repeatedly called for a ceasefire to war in the Middle East, presented Christ as the “King of Peace,” contrasting Jesus’ meekness with the violence surrounding him as he entered into his passion.
The pope tied the Church’s contemplation of Christ’s passion to the suffering of people in conflicts today, especially Christians in the Middle East.
The pope recalled: “When one of his disciples drew his sword to defend him… Jesus immediately stopped him, saying: ‘Put your sword back into its place, for all who take the sword will perish by the sword.’”
Leavitt’s response also follows the opening of two lawsuits against the U.S. Departments of Defense and Labor by Americans United for Separation of Church and State regarding prayer services organized by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Labor Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer. Hegseth last week invoked Christian language and prayed for “overwhelming violence of action” against U.S. enemies.
The suits allege that the Christian prayer services abuse taxpayer resources, promote Christian nationalism, violate the separation of church and state, and pressure federal employees to participate.
U.S. communication with Israel
During the press briefing, Leavitt also confirmed that the U.S. communicated with Israel after Israeli police prevented Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, Latin patriarch of Jerusalem, and Father Francesco lelpo, custos of the Holy Land, from enter the Church of the Holy Sepulchre on Palm Sunday.
“I did speak with Secretary [Marco] Rubio this morning and we did express our concerns with Israel with respect to these holy sites being shut down,” Leavitt said.
“We want worshipers to be able to access these holy sites,” she said. “Of course, safety is a top priority, but we understand Israel is working on those security measures, to reopen the sites throughout Holy Week, and that’s something that we’re appreciative of,” she said.
Pope names members with U.S. ties to Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development
Hope Border Institute Executive Director Dylan Corbett is among four U.S. Catholics Pope Leo XIV has tapped to serve in the Vatican’s Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development.
“It was an honor to receive the appointment from the Holy Father,” Corbett told EWTN News. “I think it’s really because the Holy Father is attentive to the presence of God in border communities and in the struggle for the rights and dignity of those who migrate.”
The Holy Father also appointed to the dicastery Father Daniel Gerard Groody, CSC, vice president and associate provost for undergraduate education at the University of Notre Dame; Meghan J. Clark, assistant chair of theology and religious studies at St. John’s University; and Léocadie Wabo Lushombo, IT, of the Jesuit School of Theology of Santa Clara University.
The dicastery is a Vatican entity dedicated to advancing human dignity that was established by Pope Francis in August 2016. It is comprised of the former pontifical councils for Justice and Peace, “Cor Unum,” Pastoral Care for Migrants and Itinerant People, and Health Pastoral Care.
Groody, known for his “theology of migration,” told EWTN News in a statement: “In light of the pressing global challenges facing the world and the cry of the poor and vulnerable, I am humbled and honored by this appointment and hope to contribute everything I have to help make the invisible love of God more visible to the world.”
The Notre Dame priest said his goal while serving as a member of the dicastery is “to lay out the mission of Jesus Christ … so that his love speaks to everyone, especially those who are crucified today and need the hope and healing of the Gospel message.”
Clark, a moral theologian whose work on Catholic social teaching examines the intersection of human dignity, solidarity, and development, echoed her colleagues, telling EWTN News she is “grateful for the opportunity to serve the dicastery and the Church in this new way.”
“I am humbled to be alongside such esteemed colleagues, all deeply committed to promoting and practicing the social teachings of the Church with particular attention to the dignity of the marginalized — especially migrants — of the common good, and integral ecology,” she said.
“I felt very honored,” Lushombo told EWTN News on receiving her appointment. A consecrated member of the Teresian Association, Lushombo emphasized that “our mission has always been the human person” and “care of the vulnerable.”
The Jesuit School of Theology professor said she plans to apply her academic background and research on Catholic social teaching, Christian ethics, migration, the preferential option for the poor, political theology, and liberation theology to her work with the dicastery.
“My objective is to bring the Church to actually consider the weakest, the least, the excluded, and the oppressed, especially women,” she said. “The teaching of the last two decades considers all these aspects very strongly, but my goal will be to bring the Church to actually do it.”
‘A moment of tremendous challenge’ for human dignity
Corbett, who has previously served as an official in the dicastery and on the former pontifical council for migration, emphasized the significance of being “chosen by an American pope at this moment in our history to serve the worldwide Church.”
“The Holy Father clearly has a deep knowledge of the issues confronting the United States right now and a sensitivity for the pain of a lot of people who are experiencing the realities of being undocumented,” he said.
Alongside Bishop Mark Seitz of El Paso, Texas, and Auxiliary Bishop Anthony Celino, Corbett met with Pope Leo on behalf of the Hope Border Institute in October 2025, giving the pope a collection of handwritten letters from migrant families expressing fear and faith. They also showed Leo a video with immigrants’ voices saying mass deportations in the U.S. are breaking family bonds and stripping children of safety.
“I think that we’re living right now in a moment of tremendous challenge when you think about issues of human dignity,” he said. “This is the significance of the name Leo. I think that the Holy Father believes, and I believe this, too, that we’re really living in a Rerum Novarum moment.”
“Global institutions are under threat of collapse, and we’re seeing that with the war in Iran, and on a number of different fronts,” he said. “But it’s also a moment when we can repropose the Gospel to the world.”
Seitz reacted to Corbett’s appointment in a statement shared with EWTN News, saying: “I give thanks to God for the appointment of Dylan Corbett ... His recognition affirms Mr. Corbett’s faithful leadership and his witness of faith to our border community, where the dignity of all that is encountered and defended each day.”
“I am confident that Mr. Corbett will bring the voices and experiences of our border region to the universal Church in a meaningful way. His appointment is a sign of hope and a reminder that the Church continues to walk with those most in need, guided by the light of the Gospel,” the bishop said.
Vatican affirms future of Anglican ordinariates: ‘A precious gift and a treasure to be shared’
The Vatican has reaffirmed its support for the Anglican ordinariates, confirming that these communities have a permanent and valued place within the Catholic Church.
On March 24, the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith issued a document titled “Characteristics of the Anglican Heritage as Lived in the Ordinariates Established Under the Apostolic Constitution Anglicanorum Coetibus.”
The document is the fruit of a meeting held March 1–3 in Rome, during which Cardinal Víctor Manuel Fernández, prefect of the dicastery, invited the ordinariate bishops — including Bishop Steven J. Lopes of the Personal Ordinariate of the Chair of Saint Peter, Bishop David Waller of the Personal Ordinariate of Our Lady of Walsingham in England, and Bishop Anthony Randazzo of the Personal Ordinariate of Our Lady of the Southern Cross — to reflect on how they have lived and integrated their Anglican spiritual and liturgical heritage within the Catholic Church.
The document highlights key characteristics of the Anglican patrimony as lived in the ordinariates, including a distinctive “ecclesial ethos” in which both the laity and the clergy participate actively in church governance, and a focus on evangelization through beauty in worship, music, and art.
Direct outreach to the poor is “a defining element of the patrimony,” according to the document, as is a pastoral culture that connects divine worship with daily life in what the document calls an “almost monastic rhythm drawn from the English spiritual tradition” that characterizes ordinariate parish communities.
The bishops said a strong emphasis on the family as the “domestic church,” as “the home is … the first place where the faith is learned and lived” is strongly emphasized.
The document also highlighted Scripture-centered preaching and the importance of spiritual direction and the sacrament of penance.
The bishops noted that, despite the great geographical distances between the three ordinariates, they share “a core shared identity” and offer “a unique reflection of the face of the Church and a distinctive contribution to the living richness of her identity as ‘one, holy, catholic, and apostolic.’”
The Cathedral of Our Lady of Walsingham in Houston serves as the mother church and cathedral of the Personal Ordinariate of the Chair of Saint Peter, which spans the U.S. and Canada. Established by Pope Benedict XVI in 2012, the ordinariate was given its own cathedral when Lopes was ordained and installed on Feb. 2, 2016.
In a message sent to parishioners, Lopes welcomed the document as a significant encouragement, calling it “an exhortation to live this patrimony in all of its richness. We have been given a unique set of tools — the way we worship, the way we structure parish life, the centrality of family life, etc. — which add to the vitality of the Catholic Church. Our ordinariate identity arises from fidelity to this patrimony and this mission. Our diversity does not detract from the underlying communion of the Church… it strengthens it.”
Lopes encouraged parishioners to share the document with family and friends who may wonder why the ordinariate’s experience of Catholic life looks different from the norm.
“Prior to today’s publication of this document, you had to glean descriptions of our patrimony from rather dry legal documents,” he wrote. “Now the Holy See is offering us a much more organic reflection on our identity and mission — and clearly stating that the ordinariate is not just a means to an end but has a long and bright future ahead of it!”
The ordinariates: A brief history
The Anglican ordinariates trace their origins to 1980, when St. John Paul II approved the Pastoral Provision, which allowed married former Episcopal clergy to be ordained as Catholic priests and permitted the formation of Anglican-use communities within existing Roman Catholic dioceses.
This was the first major step in preserving elements of Anglican liturgical and spiritual heritage for those entering full communion with Rome.
In 2009, Pope Benedict XVI took this further by issuing the apostolic constitution Anglicanorum Coetibus, which created the personal ordinariates as permanent structures within the Catholic Church.
Each of the three Anglican ordinariates is a personal (non-territorial) jurisdiction, similar to a diocese but defined by people (those with an Anglican background who have entered full communion with the Catholic Church) rather than by strict geographical boundaries.
“Any Catholic may attend ordinariate liturgies and functions, just as members of the ordinariate can attend liturgies and functions at any Catholic parish,” according to the website for the Personal Ordinariate of the Chair of Saint Peter.
The Personal Ordinariate of Our Lady of the Southern Cross encompasses Australia, New Zealand, Japan, Guam, Philippines, and surrounding areas.
The Ordinariate of Our Lady of Walsingham is located in London and encompasses England, Scotland, and Wales.
Cardinal of Tehran prays in Rome for ‘end to violence’ in Persian Gulf
During a vigil for peace on Monday evening in the Basilica of Santa Croce in Gerusalemme in Rome, Cardinal Dominique Mathieu, archbishop of Tehran-Isfahan Mathieu, invoked God as “great and merciful,” affirming his designs of peace and rejection of war.
The cardinal called for an end to violence, describing war as a “spiral” and an “adventure without return,” and pleaded for the cessation of conflict in the Persian Gulf. He also urged divine action in the hearts of leaders, calling for an end to retaliation and vengeance, and emphasized dialogue, patience, and the hope for “days of peace” in the present time.
The vigil was presided over by Cardinal Baldassare Reina, vicar general for the Diocese of Rome, at the basilica, which houses ancient relics of the cross of Christ, on the first day of Holy Week. The gathering was part of a broader spiritual initiative promoted by the diocese, titled “Mission of Peace, Journey in the Spirit,” and was organized in this instance by Azione Cattolica of Rome and Italia Solidale.
Mathieu’s presence carried particular significance. Recently evacuated from Tehran following the outbreak of conflict, he arrived in Rome after witnessing the first days of tensions involving the United States, Israel, and Iran.
The Belgian cardinal leads a small Catholic community in Iran. The Latin-rite Church there has approximately 2,000 faithful — mostly non-Iranians — in a population of around 90 million, largely Shia Muslim. Mathieu is the only priest in his diocese, and his arrival in Rome followed an urgent evacuation from the Iranian capital amid escalating military tensions.
In a meditation following the reading of the Gospel of Christ’s crucifixion according to Luke, Reina greeted Mathieu, “who joins us silently in this moment of prayer, strengthening it and bringing with him the prayer of his people.”
Reina then offered a reflection on the passion of Christ, focusing on the peace the Lord brings. He emphasized that those who suffer because of war are truly brothers and sisters to all, and urged the faithful not to grow weary in praying for peace, addressing Christ as the prince of peace.
The vigil also included different readings, hymns, and moments of silence, maintaining a clear focus on peace rooted in faith.
Mexican bishops: Holy Week reminds us that ‘evil does not have the last word’
The Mexican Bishops’ Conference encouraged the country’s faithful “to live Holy Week with profound faith,” emphasizing that this time reminds us that “evil does not have the last word.”
In a March 28 video message, the Mexican bishops said that “Holy Week invites us to contemplate the mystery of God’s love, which is given for us in Jesus Christ.”
“During these days, we remember his passion, his death, and his resurrection; yet this is not merely about recalling an event from the past — it’s about opening our hearts so that Christ may once again transform our lives and the history of our people,” they said.
“The Church in Mexico walks with its people; it walks with those who suffer, with those who seek hope, with those who cry out for peace, and with those who cry out for justice,” the bishops assured.
The Mexican prelates told the faithful that Holy Week “calls us to pause, to examine our lives with sincerity, and to return to God.” They noted that Pope Leo XIV has reminded us that “this spiritual journey begins by learning once again to listen: to listen to God who speaks to us in his word, to listen to the hearts of our brothers and sisters, to listen to the cry of the poor, of the victims, of those who cannot find their loved ones, or of those who live in despair.”
“God continues to walk with us, even amid trials,” they reminded, noting that “in the face of this reality, the cross of Christ is raised up as a sign of love and hope.”
They further encouraged the faithful to renounce speaking “hurtful words” and to sow “words that build communion.”
“In a world where insults, accusations, and polarization easily multiply, we, the disciples of Christ, are called to speak with truth, with respect, and with charity. The cross of Christ does not divide; it reconciles,” they emphasized.
“Holy Week reminds us of a profound truth: Evil does not have the final word. The suffering of the cross does not end in the darkness of the tomb,” they pointed out, for “God always opens a new path of life.”
“That is why Easter is humanity’s great hope. The risen Christ shows us that life is stronger than death, that love is stronger than hatred, and that hope is stronger than fear,” they emphasized.
This story was first published by ACI Prensa, the Spanish-language sister service of EWTN News. It has been translated and adapted by EWTN News English.
Palm Sunday attack in Nigeria’s Jos Archdiocese leaves 11 dead, curfew imposed
JOS, Nigeria — At least 11 people are feared dead and several others injured following a deadly attack by suspected gunmen in Gari Ya Waye community Angwan Rukuba, served by Nigeria’s Catholic Archdiocese of Jos.
The attack occurred on the night of March 29, Palm Sunday, at about 7:50 p.m. local time.
Eyewitnesses said the assailants stormed the area and opened fire on unsuspecting civilians before fleeing the scene. Security personnel, including the Nigerian Army, reportedly arrived at around 8:45 p.m. to restore order and secure the affected community.
Casualty figures from other affected areas remain unclear, as some victims were evacuated during the attack while others were taken to nearby mortuaries.
In response, the Plateau state government imposed a 48-hour curfew across Jos North, effective from midnight on March 29 through April 1, in a bid to prevent further breakdown of law and order.
In an interview with ACI Africa, the sister service of EWTN News in Africa, on March 30, Archbishop Matthew Ishaya Audu of the Archdiocese of Jos underscored the importance of relying on verified information amid conflicting reports.
“I think the details are not there. If I make a statement, I should do so with conviction and provide a clearer position,” he said.
Making reference to early reports about the number of deaths, the archbishop warned against relying on unverified figures circulating, particularly on social media.
“It’s true that yesterday … unarmed men, that’s what they say, attacked one place, and the reports are saying about 11 people were killed, but we don’t know the details,” Audu explained.
He noted that the curfew imposed by the Plateau state government has limited movement and made independent verification difficult.
“Since the morning, I have not been able to even come out. I cannot even say to my own JDPC that they can brief me better,” he said, referring to the Church’s Justice, Development, and Peace Commission.
Audu expressed concern about misinformation, warning that inaccurate reports could worsen tensions. “Sometimes these people, with social media, just write anything,” he said.
He also cautioned that while the curfew is intended to restore order, it could create vulnerabilities if not carefully managed.
“There is heavy restriction… not even movement of anybody, except maybe the police. They don’t even want to see you walking. As a result, if they don’t [manage the curfew well], other people can take advantage… and then more killing will take place, and more innocent people will die,” he warned.
The archbishop urged security agencies to remain vigilant and ensure residents are protected during the movement restrictions.
The timing of the attack — coinciding with the beginning of Holy Week — has heightened anxiety among residents.
However, Audu refrained from attributing the violence to religious motives despite circulating rumors.
“There were talks… that after fasting, they are going to attack us, the Christians ... I don’t know what it is,” he said.
Remaining cautions, he added: “Please, I don’t want to add more problems to what we already have.”
Amid the uncertainty, the Church leader called on residents — especially Christians observing Holy Week — to turn to prayer. “Let them pray… That is what we need now.”
Drawing on the spiritual significance of the season, he added: “The cross is only a way to the Resurrection. We believe all the challenges of life, including what we are facing now, will become a thing of the past.”
Audu continued: “If we let ourselves hope and believe, just like God raised Jesus from the dead, he will raise us above our challenges.”
He also joined his prayers with those for peace across Nigeria.
“We pray that God will restore peace to our country,” he said.
The Angwan Rukuba incident adds to ongoing security concerns in Plateau state, a region that has experienced recurrent episodes of communal and ethno-religious violence. Authorities are yet to release a comprehensive official account of the situation as investigations continue.
Gov. Caleb Manasseh Mutfwang condemned the attack, describing it as “barbaric and unprovoked,” and assured the public that security agencies are actively pursuing those responsible.
Following a visit to the affected community on Monday, the governor expressed deep sorrow over the incident.
“Today, I visited Angwan Rukuba in Jos North Local Government Area with a heavy heart following the heinous attack on innocent citizens,” he said. “I stood with grieving families, listened to their pain, and shared in their loss. No words can truly capture the depth of sorrow in moments like this, but I want every affected family to know you are not alone. Your pain is my pain, and the pain of Plateau state.”
He pledged justice for the victims, stating: “I assure you that those responsible for this evil act will not go unpunished. My administration will pursue justice relentlessly until the perpetrators are brought to book.”
Mutfwang also outlined measures to support victims and their families.
“We will also ensure that the lives lost are honored with dignity through a befitting burial. Furthermore, the Plateau state government will take full responsibility for the medical treatment of all those currently receiving care as a result of this attack,” he said.
Calling for unity, he urged citizens and community leaders to collaborate with authorities.
“I call on all citizens — our traditional rulers, religious leaders, and community stakeholders — to work with us. Security is a shared responsibility, and together, we must rise above division and confront this challenge with unity and resolve,” he said.
The governor reaffirmed his administration’s commitment to peace and stability in the state, adding: “Let me reaffirm: My administration remains fully committed to restoring peace, strengthening security, and rebuilding trust across Plateau state.”
Residents have been advised to remain calm and cooperate with security agencies by providing useful information to support ongoing investigations into the attack.
Abah Anthony John contributed to this story.
This story was first published by ACI Africa, the sister service of EWTN News in Africa, and has been adapted by EWTN News.
Adult conversions soar in dioceses across U.S.
Many U.S. dioceses are expecting heavy increases in people joining the Catholic Church at Easter 2026, including some with record highs, a survey by the National Catholic Register, the sister partner of EWTN News, found.
“Something’s happening,” said John Helsey, director of communications for the Archdiocese of Oklahoma City, which is expecting a 57% increase in unbaptized people becoming Catholics at Easter — from 635 in 2025 to nearly 1,000 in 2026.
In most places, this year’s increases aren’t a one-off but follow significant increases in recent years.
One example is the Archdiocese of Newark, New Jersey, which had record highs attending liturgies several weeks ago that were meant to welcome would-be converts who have been preparing to enter the Church in recent months and to formalize their status.
Newark is expecting a 30% jump in converts in 2026 (at 1,701) over 2025 (at 1,305). The 2026 figure is 60% higher than the 1,064 converts in 2019, the year before the COVID-19 pandemic.
In the Archdiocese of Mobile, Alabama, the number of converts in 2025 (447) was the highest since at least 2014, and the number in 2026 (603) is 35% higher than in 2025.
The Register recently contacted all 175 Latin-rite territorial dioceses in the United States, seeking numbers of people planning to join the Catholic Church at Easter 2026.
Seventy-one, or 40% of U.S. dioceses, responded. In some cases, the Register used published sources to supplement the data it used in its analysis. In all cases, the Register attempted to make apples-to-apples comparisons, with the caveat that 2026 numbers aren’t set yet.
Just five of the 71 dioceses expected a drop in converts this year, most of them slight. The remaining 66 are expecting increases — in many cases, significant ones.
This year’s expected increases in converts in the United States include regions where the Church has been growing rapidly in recent decades, such as Florida, where the Diocese of St. Petersburg is expecting an 84% jump, and Texas, where the Diocese of Austin is expecting a 53% jump.
But it also includes highly secularized New England, where the Archdiocese of Boston has 55% more catechumens (unbaptized) this year than last year. The Diocese of Manchester, New Hampshire, reported a 54% increase (including already-baptized and unbaptized); the Diocese of Providence has 76% more converts; and the Diocese of Norwich, Connecticut, is recording a 112% spike.
In Pennsylvania, the dioceses of Harrisburg (77%) and Altoona-Johnstown (84%) are seeing big increases. Across the country, the Diocese of Pueblo, Colorado, is expecting a 105% increase.
In the Archdiocese of Philadelphia, which is expecting a 60% increase in converts in 2026 over last year, a priest who oversees conversion programs said people seeking to join the Catholic Church tend to come to Mass and have an active prayer life before they ever attend formal sessions with catechists and that they tend to accept Church teachings earlier in the process than their predecessors did.
“I have noticed over the last several years that there is a greater commitment to conversion, a greater commitment to the Church, when they arrive,” said Father Dennis Gill, director of the Office for Divine Worship for the Archdiocese of Philadelphia and rector of the Cathedral Basilica of Sts. Peter and Paul.
Other factors
As for why it’s happening, diocesan officials offered various theories.
Immigration, particularly from the surge during the Biden administration, is a factor in some places. Some suggest the election in May 2025 of Pope Leo XIV, the first American pope, who describes Church teachings with a native accent unfiltered by translation, might also be a draw for some non-Catholics. Some diocesan officials shared a new emphasis on outreach to non-Catholics.
Bishop Frank Dewane, who leads the Diocese of Venice, Florida, which is expecting a 94% increase in converts, noted that some places outside the United States are also seeing big increases this year, including England and France.
He told the Register the Church is enjoying what he called “a golden age of Catholic resources,” including podcasts and other online sources that get information about the Church to people who would ordinarily never set foot in it and yet come to find Catholicism unexpectedly attractive.
“Our modern culture has not borne good fruits, and I think people see that. They recognize that. They know that,” Dewane said.
But ultimately, he and other Church officials the Register spoke with attributed the bountiful harvest to God.
“It’s the Holy Spirit,” Dewane emphasized. “Yes, we follow promptings, also. But I think it’s the work of the Holy Spirit right now in society and in the Church.”
This story was first published by the National Catholic Register, the sister partner of EWTN News, and has been adapted by EWTN News.