Catholic missionaries in Nigeria urged to persevere amid insecurity, restrictions on worship
ABUJA, Nigeria — Catholic missionaries in Nigeria have been encouraged to persevere in proclaiming the Gospel despite the threat of attacks and restrictions that prevent some Christian communities from acquiring land and building churches.
In an Oct. 13 interview with ACI Africa, the sister service of EWTN News in Africa, the national director of the Pontifical Mission Societies in Nigeria, Father Solomon Patrick Zaku, described the challenges facing evangelization in the West African nation and urged missionaries to draw strength from their faith in Christ.
“Even though we are facing challenges, those who want to go on a mission or those who want to preach the good news should not give up or be discouraged, but they should go,” he said.
Zaku spoke on the sidelines of a media chat organized by the Pontifical Mission Societies national office ahead of the centenary celebration of World Mission Sunday.
“In Nigeria today, we have the security challenge. Insecurity is almost in every part of this country,” he said.
“When people are going for mission animation, trying to go to places to preach the good news, they are afraid of what will happen in the next place because either on the road they can be attacked or in their places of worship they can experience attacks,” he added.
The national director also lamented restrictions that prevent Christians from acquiring land or building churches in certain locations, leaving some communities traveling long distances to worship.
“Church is supposed to be where people are living, but in many places, people don’t have a comfortable place to worship, and they have to go to a very far place,” he said.
Drawing on St. Paul’s teaching that nothing can separate believers from the love of Christ, Zaku encouraged prospective missionaries who fear for their safety because of reports of kidnappings and killings.
“Know that Jesus is with you,” he told missionaries serving in Nigeria. He assured them that anyone who dies bearing witness to Christ, even while preaching the good news, will “definitely receive his reward.”
Reflecting on the centenary of World Mission Sunday, the priest described the occasion as an opportunity to thank God for a century of prayer, financial contributions, and practical assistance to missionary territories. He credited Pontifical Missions Societies support with helping sustain the Church and education in Nigeria.
Zaku said the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Nigeria (CBCN) had directed that World Mission Sunday collections be sent to the Pontifical Missions Societies fund to support missionary territories beyond Nigeria.
“The Church in Nigeria, too, is not only a receiving Church but also a giving Church,” he said.
“My message to all Catholics and Nigerians in particular as we celebrate World Mission Sunday is for them to know that you are not alone, but we are together on this mission. We are praying for you,” he added.
In a separate interview at the same event, the national coordinator of Nigeria’s Young Missionary Movement, Peter Oluwasanmi Adubi, said the movement was strengthening missionary formation and catechesis to help young people understand that their Christian calling extends beyond attending church services.
“We try to intensify what we call the missionary communion, missionary catechesis, and all that, to make sure that they are not just young people like others; they are special people called to be missionaries through their life, through their actions, and through their prayer,” he said.
Adubi also emphasized that those who cannot travel to evangelize can support others who do.
“There is a saying that some give to the mission by going, while others go to the mission by giving. And without both, there is no mission,” he said.
Addressing concerns about social media and other distractions affecting young people’s commitment to their faith, he called on the Church to listen to them and provide opportunities for them to contribute their talents.
“Firstly, we encourage the Church to be a place where they listen to young people. Young people have enormous needs, and there are a lot of things that threaten them, especially when it comes to media,” he said.
Adubi called for a media team in each parish where young people can volunteer and participate in the Church’s mission. He said such opportunities could help them use their interest in digital technology to spread the Christian message.
This story was first published by ACI Africa, the sister service of EWTN News in Africa, and has been adapted by EWTN News.
Guadalupan Institute established in San Antonio, looks to be replicated throughout U.S.
A new Guadalupan Institute has taken its first steps in San Antonio with the aim of researching, providing education on, and disseminating the Guadalupe event, as well as becoming a model for replication throughout the United States.
Father Rafael Becerra, pastor of Our Lady of Guadalupe Parish in the San Antonio suburb of Helotes, Texas, explained to EWTN News Español, the Spanish-language sister service of EWTN News: “We want to research, provide formation on, and raise awareness about the entire Guadalupan event.”
A retreat and a Guadalupan certificate program have been the first steps, Becerra said, confident that the project can grow and become “a Guadalupan center for the United States.”
Becerra, a priest of the Archdiocese of San Antonio, noted that the “Truth about Guadalupe” certificate program began on Oct. 5 as an effort to “prepare ourselves for the 500th anniversary of the apparitions of Our Lady of Guadalupe,” which will be celebrated in 2031.
Assisting him in this project is Monsignor Eduardo Chávez, director of the Higher Institute of Guadalupan Studies in Mexico City and who is considered the leading expert on Our Lady of Guadalupe.
Chávez “is the one who teaches and gives this course via video,” he said, noting that the diploma program will conclude in April 2027.
The course is taught in English to around 60 students and in Spanish to nearly 90.
Alongside Chávez, Alberto Mata and Javier Fernández, both experienced in the study and dissemination of the Guadalupe event, are also participating as facilitators for the program.
The initial sessions “have been extraordinary,” noted Becerra, as the participants “are excited, want to keep learning, and above all are impressed by the greatness of the Virgin of Guadalupe and all the graces she has brought not only to Mexico but to humanity.”
Through the course, he said, they aim to “collaborate in this great process of preparation for the 500th anniversary of the apparitions of Our Lady of Guadalupe” and to foster the development of “equipped persons who can then return to their parishes and replicate this diploma course in various parishes across San Antonio.”
Interested persons from Houston and Austin, Texas, have already contacted Becerra about the program, he said, so he hopes this will also serve as a “spearhead” that can be “replicated in the future in different places across the United States.”
This story was first published by EWTN News Español, the Spanish-language sister service of EWTN News. It has been translated and adapted by EWTN News English.
Bishops urge prayer as they continue abortion referendum fights in 4 states
Catholic bishops across four states are asking for prayers as they continue to rally the faithful ahead of ballot initiative votes that would reshape abortion policies in their states.
“Tell your readership how important it is to be praying for the dioceses that are facing this, what I would describe as a very diabolical initiative,” Las Vegas Archbishop George Leo Thomas told EWTN News.
On Nov. 3, the public in three states will vote on referendums to establish a “right” to abortion: Nevada, Virginia, and Idaho. In Missouri, people will vote on a pro-life referendum that would repeal the state’s constitutional right to abortion.
Bishops in each state have advocated against abortion for months. In many cases, this includes statements on the referendums, flyers, and prayer cards at parishes, and asking priests to teach congregations about the sanctity of life. In some cases, it extends to calls for fasting and efforts to register voters and get them to the polls.
American bishops do not endorse political candidates. Yet, bishops have advocated for or against specific ballot initiatives when Church teachings, such as the sanctity of life, are implicated.
Nevada bishops wage ‘uphill battle’
The bishops in Nevada are waging what Thomas called “an uphill battle” to defeat a referendum to establish “a fundamental right to abortion” in the state constitution.
In Nevada, amendments need a majority vote via referendum in two consecutive elections. In the last statewide election in 2024, the referendum won support from 64% of voters. Another majority this year would complete the process.
Thomas said he and Diocese of Reno Bishop Daniel Mueggenborg have worked closely to align their messaging and strategy to defeat the amendment. This includes printed material offered to parishes, created by the Nevada Catholic Conference, and a planned full-page advertisement for newspapers in Las Vegas and Reno.
Both bishops wrote pastoral letters labeling the referendum dangerous. Thomas instructed priests in his archdiocese to read it aloud at Mass for Respect Life Sunday on Oct. 4.
“Unborn children have no voice and cannot defend themselves,” he wrote in the letter, available in both English and Spanish. “As Catholics, our faith requires us to protect the inherent dignity of every human life and to speak for those who cannot speak for themselves.”
Thomas said every priest is obligated to “very clearly and lucidly teach Catholic social and moral teaching in his community,” noting each life is created in the image of God “from conception until natural death.”
Although the referendum allows the state to restrict abortion access after fetal viability, which is the point at which a child can survive outside the womb, the proposal’s definition says this is determined by the “treating health care practitioner," who is often the abortion doctor. It states abortion access extends through the ninth month of pregnancy if needed to “protect the life or health” of the mother, but the measure does not separately define “health.”
Current Nevada law prohibits abortion 26 weeks after the woman’s last menstrual period. The archbishop said the referendum extends abortion rights through “potentially the ninth month of pregnancy,” though courts have not ruled on that interpretation.
The referendum would extend abortion access to “all individuals,” which Thomas argued would eliminate parental notification laws for minors who seek abortion. The referendum permits abortion by “a qualified health care practitioner” and does not specify a “physician.”
“It’s another very serious and damaging expansion of an already liberal law,” the archbishop said.
Virginia bishops push voter registration
The two dioceses in Virginia — Arlington and Richmond — are battling a similar referendum to enshrine “a fundamental right to reproductive freedom,” which includes “abortion care,” in their state constitution, which would be adopted with a majority vote.
Bishop Michael Burbidge of Arlington and Bishop Barry Knestout of Richmond penned a letter instructing Catholics of their “sacred duty to form our consciences prayerfully and correctly, and to vote NO” on the abortion referendum and a separate referendum that would enshrine same-sex marriage in the constitution, which was read aloud at parishes throughout the commonwealth.
Burbidge called Catholics to pray and fast ahead of the vote, and his diocese is operating the Catholics Vote No campaign and encouraging the diocesan faithful to sign on to a pledge to vote no on both referendums.
Amy McInerny, director of Respect Life at the Diocese of Arlington’s Office of Marriage, Family, and Respect Life, told EWTN News: “Some demons are only driven out by prayer and fasting,” citing Christ’s words in Matthew 17.
The dioceses, working through the Virginia Catholic Conference, published prayer cards for “protection from the extreme abortion amendment” and “an end to the grave evil of abortion” for parishes. They provided parishes with flyers about the referendum and abortion laws in the state, along with a flyer containing voter registration information.
“These two ballot questions are moral issues,” McInerny said.
Some parishes are actively registering Catholics to vote and holding voter registration drives. McInerny said there’s a strong effort to “turn out the vote,” and the Arlington Diocese encourages parishes to “check in with their homebound and those who are in nursing homes” and college students “who might need help to get absentee ballots.”
The referendum would allow some abortion restrictions in the third trimester, but not if abortion is necessary to protect “the life or physical or mental health.” It does not define this standard, leaving it to the discretion of the physician, who is often the abortion doctor. The legal right to abortion is extended to “every individual” and not just adults.
McInerny said the language essentially allows abortion “even for healthy babies, up until birth,” though courts have not ruled on that interpretation, and “will include minor girls,” which jeopardizes parental consent laws. She said it would create “a safe space for groomers and predators and traffickers who want to prey on our girls.”
Virginia law allows abortion access through the 26th week of pregnancy.
Idaho’s ‘most important issue’ until November
Diocese of Boise Bishop Peter Christensen is actively engaging with parish priests to ensure pro-life messaging is heard regularly at Mass throughout his diocese, which covers the entire state, ahead of its vote on an abortion referendum.
Unlike Virginia and Nevada, the referendum in Idaho would change state law rather than amend the constitution. It would supersede the current state law, which prohibits most abortion access, and create a right to “reproductive freedom,” which includes “abortion.”
“This is the most important issue for all of us until November,” Christian Welp, director of diocesan projects, told EWTN News.
Welp said the diocese provided a package to every priest offering guidelines on pro-life messaging in homilies and prayer intentions ahead of the vote. It includes prayer cards, which priests are asked to read at every daily and Sunday Mass. The bishop also wrote a letter, which was read aloud at Mass throughout the diocese.
“By coming together as a family in prayer, raising awareness, and taking meaningful action, we can make a powerful difference in responding to this anti-life, anti-family initiative by advocating for the protection of the most vulnerable members of our society,” Christensen wrote.
The referendum would allow lawmakers to restrict abortion at the point of fetal viability, which is determined by the physician, who is often the abortion doctor, but cannot restrict late-term abortion if there is a medical emergency. It would also extend abortion rights to “every person,” not just adults.
Welp said the referendum “allows for abortion up to viability, but then redefines viability,” saying the language could allow abortions “well into the seventh or eighth month of pregnancy.” He said the extension of this right to every person would include minors and effectively “does away with parental consent.”
“Even if youʼre pro-choice, this goes too far,” Welp said. “This is too extreme.”
Missouri seeks to reverse trend
Missouri is the only state in which voters will be presented with a pro-life referendum, which would repeal the state’s constitutional right to abortion that was adopted via referendum in 2024 with support from 51.6% of voters.
“It has been a major focus of all four dioceses and of all four bishops,” Kathleen Lavery, communications director of the Missouri Catholic Conference — which represents the state’s dioceses — told EWTN News.
Lavery said the dioceses are working toward “trying to pass [the] amendment.” The referendum itself would not ban abortions or set a week-based limit but rather allow lawmakers to pass laws to restrict it in most cases. It would only prevent laws that ban abortion in cases of incest or rape within the first 12 weeks of pregnancy or in medical emergencies at any point in pregnancy.
The conference provided printed material, signs, and palm cards for parishes, and a webpage to “help people educate themselves about the amendment,” she said. Speakers from diocesan Respect Life offices are speaking at the end of Mass and visiting Catholic events, such as Knights of Columbus gatherings.
All four bishops unified on the message early, putting out a joint statement that the dignity of the human person is “threatened by the pro-abortion amendment passed in 2024.” They called for Catholics “and all people of good will” to join in prayer and fasting for the referendum’s success.
“We have put together information for our priests as well to help them educate the faithful,” Lavery said.
She noted there are “get out the vote” efforts at the parish level and said: “This amendment’s really going to come down to which side can activate its base and get people to the polls.”
“I’m very cautiously optimistic,” Lavery said. “I think we have a very good chance of winning this.”
U.S. midterm elections spark multiple Catholic voting exhortations
As U.S. midterm elections get into full swing, both the country’s Catholic bishops and outside advocacy organizations are urging voters to participate and “put their faith before politics” in exercising their civic duty.
In an Oct. 14 message, the president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, Oklahoma City Archbishop Paul Coakley, said that while Americans might be feeling discouraged from voting because we live in “a time of deep political division,” such discouragement “is not a Christian virtue.”
Coakley emphasized that for citizens in a representative democracy, “participation in public life — including voting — is both a right and a responsibility.”
“I would ask all Catholics to put their faith before politics,” Coakley exhorted, as he called on the faithful to “judge candidates and elected officials by their actions, not merely their promises, and how those actions promote the common good.”
Meanwhile, the advocacy group CatholicVote on Oct. 15 issued voter guides for key races in seven states. The guides evaluate where the candidates in these races stand on abortion, religious freedom, school choice, gender ideology, judicial appointments, and immigration law enforcement.
“We have chosen seven states — a total of 24 races or ballot initiatives — where we know the Catholic turnout can be the make-or-break difference,” said CatholicVote Director of Political Operations Logan Church. The organization’s guides are targeted to specific races in the states of Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin.
In addition to state-specific information on candidates and issues, the CatholicVote effort includes links to help Catholics register to vote, request an absentee ballot, or find a polling place to vote. As CatholicVote President Kelsey Reinhardt sees it, “if Christians do not take up their duty in political life, we will be governed by those whose values are antithetical to our own.”
At present, the group is urging Catholics to vote early, which “ensures your vote is counted because nothing keeps you away from the ballot box on Election Day.”
The latest USCCB midterms message, meanwhile, features a more general, blanket exhortation to Catholics to form their consciences and listen “to the Gospel call to love God and all our neighbors.”
“May Our Lady of Guadalupe, Patroness of the Americas, bless our nation as we turn once more to elections, that we might respect the dignity of each person and promote the common good of all,” Coakley concluded.
Pope Leo XIV sends message after surgery to Vatican conference, asks for prayers
Pope Leo XIV, recovering from lung cancer surgery in Rome, sent a request for prayers to participants in a Vatican conference.
“As you know, I have been unable to be among you during these days,” Pope Leo wrote in the Oct. 14 message to clergy members and Catholics. “I thank you warmly for your prayers and for the work you have done together. Your sharing of experiences and attentive listening are indeed a gift to the whole Church.”
The pope’s message was read at the conclusion of the conference “10 Years After Amoris Laetitia: Proclaiming the Gospel with Families Today,” a meeting examining the legacy of the apostolic exhortation and how to strengthen family participation in the Churchʼs mission.
“Entrusting each of you to the protection of the Holy Family of Nazareth, I ask you please to pray for me, as I pray for you,” he wrote.
The pope encouraged participants to bring the meetingʼs insights back to their bishops' conferences and dioceses, continue proclaiming the Gospel with families, and ensure families remain active participants in the life and mission of local Churches.
Leo’s homily delivered
At the closing Mass for the conference, Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle, dean of the College of Cardinals, delivered a homily prepared by Pope Leo XIV saying: “The world has no future without strong families open to the gift of children and attentive to their education and growth.”
Families and faith communities should accompany people facing hardship with compassion rather than condemnation, the pope’s homily said.
“Those who are more vulnerable, or who are experiencing difficult circumstances and moments of crisis, will also find support and encouragement, surrounded by affection and shielded from judgment and prejudice. Let us remember that ‘as wounded as the family may be, it can always grow beginning with love,’” Tagle said, delivering the homily prepared by Pope Leo.
Brazilian priests rally in defense of their bishop, accused of being a ‘demon’ by Lula supporter
Ten priests from six municipalities in the Brazilian state of Goiás are pushing back against what they call “shameful attacks, slander, and lies directed against” their bishop, Adair José Guimarães, in the midst of a heated presidential election campaign in the world’s most populous Catholic country.
In a video posted on social media, a resident of Goiás calls the bishop a “representative of Satan” and a “demon,” and accuses him of engaging in politics during his sermons.
According to the priests, “these shameful attacks” are “baseless, filled with hatred, fueled by ideological prejudices, and distorted by uncivil ignorance.”
The 10 priests who signed the joint statement in defense of Guimarães are Fathers Hélio Cordeiro, Ary Ramos, Denis Rodrigues, Deusli Evangelista, Frederico Ornelas, Moacir Santana, Carlos Neves, Mário Vieira, Pablo Veleda, and Renato Silva.
In the video, the man appears wearing a cap bearing the slogan “Lula — Brazil happy again” and criticizes Guimarães’ pastoral work, linking him politically to former President Jair Bolsonaro.
“That Bishop Adair is a Satan — I say it and I repeat it — he is the devil’s representative here on earth,” the man says. In another part of the video, he states: “The guy just goes to church. He doesn’t preach the Gospel; all he talks about is communism.”
Without offering proof, the man also accuses the bishop of receiving money from businessman Daniel Vorcaro to engage in political activity favoring Flávio Bolsonaro, the eldest son of former president Jair Bolsonaro who faces incumbent president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva in an Oct. 25 runoff election for president.
“He must be getting money from Vorcaro to play politics for Bolsonaro,” the Lula supporter says.
Throughout the recording, the man urges the faithful to stop attending churches whose leaders, according to him, support Bolsonaro. “If you see a church where the leaders are Bolsonaristas — where their god is Bolsonaro — don’t get involved; get out as fast as you can,” he says.
The video also features criticism of Bolsonaro and members of his family, along with expressions of support for Lula and comments on labor rights, social programs, and the country’s past military dictatorship.
Statements by Bishop Guimarães
Guimarães has made statements touching upon politics and ideologies on various occasions within the context of reflections on Catholic participation in public life, freedom, and the use of faith for political ends.
In August 2025, during a “Desperta Brasil” (“Awaken Brazil”) Catholic event in Brasilia, Guimarães invoked the intercession of Our Lady of Aparecida for the country and mentioned communism during a blessing. Specifically, the bishop asked God to grant a blessing that “spares us from hunger, war, disease, and communism.”
On Jan. 15 of this year, in a video reflection, Guimarães criticized ideologies and dictatorial regimes. “It is impossible for us to be foolish enough to believe that ideology — that dictatorship — brings well-being to people. It brings hunger, misery, and suffering,” he said. He also criticized communism, fascism, and Nazism, stating that these regimes “stifle peopleʼs freedom.”
On Sept. 28, the bishop commented on the circulation of a false report regarding a supposed proposal to strip Our Lady of Aparecida of her title as patroness of Brazil. “Those who use Our Lady of Aparecida for personal gain — of whatever nature — will not fare well,” he said.
The false information linked the alleged proposal to Sen. Flávio Bolsonaro, who denied supporting any such initiative.
More recently, on Oct. 2, Guimarães urged Catholics to participate in the elections and examine the track records of the candidates. “If you cast a null vote or do not vote at all, you are empowering the worst politicians, because they benefit from your absence,” he said. The bishop also advised voters to consider the candidates' stances on abortion, family, and faith.
‘We live in a democratic country’
In the statement, the priests of Formosa also emphasized that political disagreements are part of democratic life but do not justify attacks on others' honor.
“We live in a democratic country; as such, and as citizens, we are free to disagree on partisan political issues,” they said. The priests also cited a phrase attributed to St. Augustine: “In essentials, unity; in doubtful matters, liberty; in all things, charity.”
As the priests explained, “partisan politics falls within the realm of the debatable; thus, the fact that we hold divergent positions in this arena does not necessarily make us enemies, let alone give us the right to attack anyone’s honor.”
In closing, the priests asked for the intercession of Our Lady of Aparecida for peace and reconciliation in Brazil.
“May the Virgin of Aparecida, Queen and Patroness of Brazil, intercede for our country and for all the Brazilian people, so that we may find and build paths of peace, justice, and reconciliation.”
This story was first published by ACI Digital, the Portuguese-language sister service of EWTN News. It has been translated and adapted by EWTN News English.
Firing squad execution of Fort Hood shooter will not be livestreamed, Trump says
President Donald Trump announced the execution of Fort Hood shooter Nidal Malik Hasan will not be livestreamed.
The president said in a Truth Social post on Oct. 15 that while he still believes “streaming the execution for all to see might have been a strong deterrent for the World to witness how America deals with Terrorists and SCUM like Hasan … many very good and well meaning people would rather not watch him die, through streaming, or through any other visual device.”
Trump said the execution of the convicted mass shooter will still take place by firing squad on Dec. 3 and the victims’ immediate families will still be allowed to attend.
Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell had announced Oct. 5 on X that Trump had approved Hasan’s execution. On Oct. 8, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said in an interview with Real Americaʼs Voice that the execution would be livestreamed from Fort Hood in Killeen, Texas, where Hasan, a psychiatrist and former Army major, killed 14 people, including an unborn baby, and wounded 32 others in the terrorist attack.
The U.S. bishops have strongly opposed the decision to livestream the execution. Archbishop Timothy Broglio of the Archdiocese for the Military Services, USA, issued a joint statement with the Texas Catholic bishops Oct. 12 urging the president to reconsider the decision, which he characterized as “barbarically killing our adversaries.”
Broglio reiterated the Church’s revised position on capital punishment, saying “the dignity of the human person is at stake.”
In a social media post on Oct. 10, World Day Against the Death Penalty, Pope Leo XIV wrote: “The death penalty is inadmissible because it attacks the inviolability and dignity of the person.”
Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin stated on Oct. 9 that plans to broadcast the execution live are unacceptable. “It is truly incomprehensible that anyone would want to resort to this method in this day and age,” he said.
Broglio also wrote that he was obliging “any Catholics assigned to the firing squad to request to be excused from this action contrary to the teaching of the Church.”
Bishop Daniel E. Garcia of the Diocese of Austin, which encompasses Fort Hood, said the public broadcast of Hasan’s execution “would make a spectacle of death.”
Archbishop Paul S. Coakley, president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, wrote of his “shock and great sorrow” of the government’s decision to livestream the execution in an Oct. 9 statement.
Trump also faced backlash from members of both political parties concerning the decision.
Sen. Thom Tillis, R-North Carolina, said in a social media post that “Public executions are what oppressive dictatorships like Iran and Afghanistan do,” calling it “beyond disgusting.”
Sen. Chris Murphy, D-Connecticut, called the decision to broadcast the execution “disgusting” and “medieval.”
‘Do we understand truth anymore?’: Conference in Rome discusses distrust in age of AI
A dinner conference in Rome on Wednesday brought together clergy, business leaders, journalists, and scholars to discuss how to communicate the truth amid distrust in the age of artificial intelligence (AI).
The Acton Institute, a faith-based think tank promoting free markets and limited government, held the “Communicating Truth in an Age of AI” convivium: a conversation among representatives of Catholic media and secular academia about the challenges AI poses to the communications industry.
Andreas Thonhauser, vice president and chief global officer at EWTN, and Jenn Lindsay, a communications professor at Rome’s John Cabot University and CEO of So Fare Films, led the discussion.
Among those present was Yurash Andrii Vasyliovych, the Ukrainian ambassador to the Holy See.
Truth in the modern media era
Among the topics considered at the conference was the challenge of distinguishing truthful news from false information. In his opening remarks, Thonhauser, who joined EWTN in 2021, described the challenge as “cutting through the noise.”
“In the age of AI, communication is truth, which is not so easy when we think about it, about how much noise is already out there, and AI is a wonderful instrument to create even more of that kind of communication and to add to the noise,” Thonhauser said.
“AI might become a challenge for us, who are also the audience who are the recipients of communication,” Thonhauser added.
Lindsay said truth-telling is central to storytelling in film, even amid AI manipulation.
“Truth already has an odd status in documentary storytelling,” Lindsay said in her opening remarks. “In fact, it is the definition of documentary storytelling: the creative treatment of actuality.”
“We are already dealing with many layers of strategy and manipulation. AI intensifies the questioning of that, but it is nothing new.”
Optimism or pessimism in AI-driven future?
Another concern discussed at the conference was whether one ought to be optimistic or pessimistic in the age of AI.
Lindsay, who has taught at John Cabot since 2018, said she thought the world was “in a safer place” as individuals increasingly choose not to use AI to avoid effort, particularly students.
“I feel that we are in a safer place,” Lindsay said. “A year ago, I was super pessimistic because, as a university professor, the rate of cheating and plagiarism [with AI] was sky-high. I am happy to report that it is going down; it seems like its popularity is cooling with the younger ones.”
Thonhauser, in response, acknowledged AI’s many benefits for global development while noting that the human experience will still matter, citing Pope Leo XIV’s encyclical Magnifica Humanitas.
“AI is remarkable, and it is helping us greatly also in our work,” Thonhauser said. “I do agree with Pope Leo that it is not neutral, but what is ever neutral? It is up to us to regulate this so that it is helpful for the human being as such and for the future.”
“I really see that it will be important that the human element remains in communication and helps to guide us through what is relevant, what is meaningful, and ultimately also what is true.”
Doctors confirm Pope Leo XIV’s operated lung is recovering well
VATICAN CITY — In a medical update on Thursday, the Vatican confirmed that the right lung of Pope Leo XIV, who underwent surgery for lung cancer on Oct. 13, is recovering favorably.
The bulletin, prepared by the pontiff’s personal physician, Luigi Carbone, and the surgeon who performed the operation, Stefano Margaritora, highlights that Leo XIV’s postoperative progress on the second day after surgery has been positive.
“The chest X-ray showed a good recovery of the operated lung,” the statement said.
The Vatican also reported that the Holy Father underwent routine follow-up examinations, including blood tests and a chest X-ray, “the results of which were normal.”
“He independently carried out his daily activities. The physical therapy session included full motor activity,” the medical note added.
Overall, “the postoperative course continues to progress regularly,” the physicians explained.
Earlier Thursday, the Vatican had already reported that Leo XIV spent a “good” second night at Rome’s Gemelli Hospital, where he remains hospitalized after undergoing surgery Tuesday to remove a pulmonary adenocarcinoma.
Also on Thursday, like the previous evening, the pontiff was able to spend a few minutes in the temporary chapel set up at the hospital to concelebrate Mass with one of his collaborators, according to Matteo Bruni, director of the Holy See Press Office, speaking to journalists.
Bruni also said that the pope has continued working during his recovery. In fact, he received Archbishop Paolo Rudelli, deputy for general affairs of the Secretariat of State, this afternoon, according to Vatican sources.
As a sign that the Vatican’s ordinary activity continues despite the pontiff’s recovery, the Holy See on Thursday announced two new bishop appointments, signed by Leo XIV from the hospital.
They include the appointment of Italian priest Father Paolo Andreolli as bishop of Ponta de Pedras, Brazil, and Father Ignazio Ding Zuyao, “whom the Holy Father appointed bishop of Haimen (Jiangsu Province, China) on Aug. 24, 2026, after approving his candidacy within the framework of the Provisional Agreement between the Holy See and the People’s Republic of China.”
The Vatican is expected to soon announce whether the pope will preside over the public Angelus prayer from Gemelli Hospital on Sunday, as some of his predecessors did during periods of hospitalization.
Regarding the international trip the pontiff is scheduled to make to Uruguay, Argentina, and Peru from Nov. 6–17, Bruni referred to comments Leo XIV made during last Sunday’s Angelus address, when he announced that he would undergo surgery for a lung nodule.
The pope made explicit reference to his upcoming trip to Peru while greeting members of the Brotherhood of the Lord of Miracles present in St. Peter’s Square.
“Thank you for your prayers for the pastoral visit that I will make to Peru,” he said.
At that time, it was not yet publicly known that the pontiff was suffering from pulmonary adenocarcinoma. The diagnosis was confirmed following surgery, during which the lower right lobe of his lung was removed.
Prayers for the pope
Following the call to pray for the pope’s recovery, the Vicariate of Rome has confirmed that this Sunday a special intention for the Holy Father will be offered in all the parishes of the Diocese of Rome during Mass. The initiative reflects the communion of the Church of Rome with its bishop and the spiritual support being offered to Leo XIV during this period of convalescence.
This atmosphere of prayer will be accompanied by another gesture of closeness later tonight. At 8 p.m. Rome time, Cardinal Angelo Comastri will lead a rosary invoking Mary Undoer of Knots at the Pontifical Parish of St. Anne in the Vatican.
This story was first published by EWTN News Español, the Spanish-language sister service of EWTN News. It has been translated and adapted by EWTN News English.
Another bishop in China consecrated under deal with Vatican
Father Ignatius Ding Zuyao was consecrated on Thursday, Oct. 15, as bishop of Haimen in eastern China, a diocese that had lacked a bishop for more than three years.
Zuyao is the ninth Chinese bishop consecrated under Pope Leo XIV following procedures established by the provisional agreement between China and the Holy See governing bishop appointments. The pontiff appointed Zuyao bishop of Haimen on Aug. 24, having approved his candidacy under the agreement.
Zuyao’s consecration, announced by the Vatican on Thursday, also highlights a pattern in which the Vatican does not announce episcopal consecrations in China until the day they occur. He is also the 19th bishop to be selected under the Vatican-China deal.
However, some of the Chinese bishops Leo appointed were not immediately recognized by the Chinese government. Two of the bishops had already been consecrated and were part of the so-called underground Church — the Catholic community not officially recognized by Chinese authorities. The communist government later recognized both, thereby regularizing their ecclesiastical and civil status.
A decade of pastoral work
Zuyao was born in August 1986 in Qidong, Jiangsu Province, and was ordained to the priesthood on Oct. 27, 2011.
From 2001-2004, he studied at the Jiangsu Section of the Sheshan Seminary in Shanghai. He later attended Beijing Theological Seminary to study theology and philosophy and earned a bachelor’s degree.
After Zuyao’s ordination in 2011, he served as pastor in Haimenzhen, Linjiang, and Caojiazhen, all in the Diocese of Haimen. From 2023, he served as pastor of Qingnian Donglu Parish in Nantong until his appointment as a bishop.