Catholic Relief Services urges lawmakers to prioritize global hunger as farm bill vote nears
WASHINGTON, D.C. — As the U.S. House of Representatives nears a crucial vote on the farm bill, Catholic Relief Services (CRS) is urging lawmakers not to sideline international hunger relief.
In a recent advocacy appeal, the organization called on Americans to contact their representatives in support of global food aid programs, emphasizing that such efforts reflect a commitment to human dignity, solidarity, and the common good. The House is expected to take up the farm bill (H.R. 7567) during the week of April 27.
“Hunger is a daily reality for families around the world — and the decisions Congress makes right now will shape the future of our global family,” the statement reads. “With the House vote approaching, a narrow window offers a critical opportunity to speak up.”
In an emailed statement to EWTN News, CRS emphasized that U.S. international food assistance — particularly Food for Peace — must remain strong and flexible as “around the world, needs are rising, and these programs are often the difference between families getting through a crisis or not.”
The organization said it is “particularly concerned about anything that would limit flexibility or reduce resources at a time when global hunger is already at historic levels.”
“Programs like Food for Peace have a long track record of saving lives,” it continued, “and it’s critical they remain well funded and able to adapt to complex emergencies.”
It added that in “fast-moving crises, delays or limitations can mean families go without food when they need it most” and framed the issue more broadly: “At its core, this is about human dignity. Hunger isn’t just a policy issue — it’s a moral one.”
“CRS is encouraging both Catholics and policymakers to keep the needs of the most vulnerable at the center of these decisions,” the organization said.
The push comes as lawmakers will decide whether to vote on more than 300 amendments to the legislation, revealing sharp disagreement over whether the bill should focus primarily on domestic nutrition programs or maintain a significant role in global humanitarian food assistance.
Much of the debate has centered on the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), the nation’s largest anti-hunger initiative. Some proposed changes would tighten eligibility requirements, alter benefit structures, or restrict the types of foods eligible for purchase, including sugar-sweetened beverages and ultra-processed foods. Other proposals would expand access through measures such as universal school meals, increased nutrition incentives, and additional support for food-insecure communities.
Together, the competing proposals highlight differing visions for federal food policy — whether it should be narrowly focused on alleviating hunger or also used to influence dietary outcomes and public health.
Rep. Glenn “GT” Thompson, R-Pennsylvania, chair of the House Agriculture Committee, has led Republican negotiations on the bill, while Rep. Angie Craig, D-Minnesota, the committee’s ranking Democrat, has served as the lead Democratic negotiator.
In a statement shared with EWTN News, a House Agriculture Committee aide for Thompson said the “Food for Peace program has a long history of helping both American farmers and hungry communities around the world.”
“The House Committee on Agriculture was proud to include a provision in the Farm, Food, and National Security Act of 2026 that designates the United States Department of Agriculture as this program’s permanent home,” the statement continued. “Chairman Thompson continues to advocate for this program in the halls of Congress as debate on the farm bill advances.”
Craigʼs office did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Catholic teaching frames hunger as global responsibility
Catholic organizations have long emphasized that hunger policy extends beyond national borders, a theme reflected in recent advocacy surrounding the farm bill.
In February, a joint Catholic letter to Congress from the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB), CRS, Catholic Charities USA, Catholic Rural Life, and the Society of St. Vincent de Paul urged lawmakers to strengthen both domestic and international food assistance programs.
The letter highlighted initiatives such as Food for Peace, which provides U.S. food aid abroad; McGovern-Dole Food for Education, which supports reducing hunger and improving literacy and primary education in low-income countries; and Food for Progress, which helps developing nations strengthen agricultural systems.
The letter’s emphasis on global responsibility reflects broader Catholic teaching on hunger, echoed in recent remarks by Pope Leo XIV.
Speaking at the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) in Rome for World Food Day in October 2025, the pope noted that “whoever suffers from hunger is not a stranger. He is my brother, and I must help him without delay.”
He expanded on that theme more recently while speaking to reporters aboard the papal flight returning from Africa on April 23, reflecting on the responsibility of wealthier nations to address conditions in poorer regions of the world.
“I ask myself: What are we doing in richer countries to change the situation in poorer countries?” he said. “Why can we not try, both through state aid and through the investments of large wealthy companies and multinationals, to change the situation in countries like those we visited on this visit?”
I ask myself: What are we doing in richer countries to change the situation in poorer countries?”
Pope Leo XIV
Faith-based organizations, including CRS, have pointed to such statements in urging policymakers to maintain international food assistance as part of U.S. humanitarian leadership.
Amendments reflect long-standing debates
Several amendments reflect long-standing debates — often highlighted in Catholic advocacy — over how U.S. policy should balance domestic nutrition programs with international hunger relief.
An amendment by Rep. Jim Costa, D-California, would increase funding for the administration of Food for Peace, a program that provides U.S. food aid abroad, often using uses American agricultural commodities.
Introduced by Reps. Gregory Meeks, D-New York, and Pramila Jayapal, D-Washington, another amendment would extend Food for Peace through 2031 and expand its scope to address child wasting, a severe form of malnutrition, through the use of specialized therapeutic foods.
Other amendments focus on domestic programs such as one introduced by Rep. Andy Ogles, R-Tennessee, that would expand allowable SNAP purchases to include sliced meats and cheeses from delis.
Reps. Kim Schrier, D-Washington, and Suzanne Bonamici, D-Oregon, proposed creating a grant program under the Emergency Food Assistance Program (TEFAP) to support purchases from small and undeserved agricultural producers for distribution through emergency feeding organizations.
The House Rules Committee is set to decide April 27 whether to allow floor votes on any of the amendments.
Expert highlights food system links
Speaking more broadly about the farm bill debate, Stephanie Scott, a senior policy analyst at the Georgetown Center on Poverty and Inequality, said domestic nutrition programs and international food assistance are more closely linked than they are often treated in policy discussions.
“I think when it comes to the food priorities for both domestic and international, they’re kind of the same in what we as a nation would like,” she told EWTN News, noting that programs such as SNAP and international food aid both function as core tools for addressing hunger.
Scott said international food assistance programs also respond to crises driven by conflict, climate shocks, and economic instability, and raised concerns about whether funding levels are sufficient to meet rising need both domestically and abroad.
“Prioritizing international food security,” she added, “is not only a human right and a basic need but a strategic one.”
British mother to travel to Switzerland to die by assisted suicide after son’s death
A 56-year-old British mother is traveling to Switzerland to end her life by assisted suicide after the death of her only son.
Wendy Duffy told the New York Post she paid $13,500 to the Swiss assisted-dying nonprofit the Pegasos clinic.
Duffy’s son, Marcus, died at age 23 four years ago after choking on a tomato lodged in his windpipe while sleeping. Nine months later, unable to cope with her grief, she attempted suicide by overdose and was placed on a ventilator for two weeks.
She told the Daily Mail suicide is the only way her “spirit can be free.” She also said no amount of medication or therapy can make her whole again, and she “can’t wait” to die. She added: “I could step off a motorway bridge or a tower block but that would leave anyone finding me dealing with that for the rest of their lives.”
She said she has chosen her deathbed outfit and requested that Lady Gaga and Bruno Mars’ “Die With A Smile” play as she dies. Her belongings will be donated afterward.
Duffy said she plans to call her four sisters and two brothers from Switzerland to say goodbye. “It will be a hard call where I’ll say goodbye and thank them,” she said. “But they will get it. They know. Honestly, 100%, they know that I’m not happy, that I don’t want to be here.”
Assisted suicide is legal in Switzerland, even for physically healthy people. On its website, Pegasos says it “believes that it is the human right of every rational adult of sound mind, regardless of state of health, to choose the manner and timing of their death."
Duffy’s case follows the recent death by euthanasia of 25-year-old Noelia Castillo in Spain. On March 26, the young woman was euthanized over her father’s objections. The case sparked national debate in Spain, where euthanasia has been legal since 2021.
The Church in Spain called Castillo’s death “a societal defeat.”
In a statement, members of the Spanish Bishops’ Conference’s Subcommittee for the Family and Defense of Life said Castillo’s “story reflects an accumulation of personal suffering and institutional failings that challenge the whole of society.”
Timeʼs up for right-to-die bill in UK
Meanwhile, a right-to-die bill has stalled in the U.K. Parliament. The Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill ran out of parliamentary time and therefore failed in the House of Lords on April 24.
The archbishop of Liverpool, John Sherrington, said he was grateful to “all those Parliamentarians who have worked tirelessly to preserve the dignity of every human life and ensure that end-of life care remains rooted in compassion and respect until the natural end of life.”
The Catholic Church teaches that suicide and euthanasia are gravely immoral.
In a 2024 message to a palliative care symposium, Pope Francis called euthanasia “a failure of love.” He recalled when he said previously that assisted suicide and euthanasia constitute a “false compassion.”
“‘[C]ompassion,’ a word that means ‘suffering with,’ does not involve the intentional ending of a life but rather the willingness to share the burdens of those facing the end stages of our earthly pilgrimage,” he said.
In St. John Paul II’s 1999 address to the Pontifical Academy for Life, “Love and Solidarity for the Dying,” he said: “No one can arbitrarily choose whether to live or die; the absolute master of such a decision is the Creator alone.”
In his 1995 encyclical Evangelium Vitae, he said: “suicide ... involves the rejection of love of self and the renunciation of the obligation of justice and charity towards one’s neighbor … In its deepest reality, suicide represents a rejection of God’s absolute sovereignty over life and death.” Euthanasia is likewise condemned as “a grave violation of the law of God.”
He also calls euthanasia “a false mercy, and indeed a disturbing ‘perversion’ of mercy. True ‘compassion’ leads to sharing anotherʼs pain; it does not kill the person whose suffering we cannot bear.”
He continued: “Moreover, the act of euthanasia appears all the more perverse if it is carried out by those, like relatives, who are supposed to treat a family member with patience and love, or by those, such as doctors, who by virtue of their specific profession are supposed to care for the sick person even in the most painful terminal stages.”
While the Church says euthanasia and assisted suicide are never permissible, it supports palliative care. According to Dian Backoff, former executive director of Catholic Hospice for Catholic Health Services, palliative care is meant to address “what the whole patient wants during the treatment of an illness,” whether or not the patient is terminally ill or dealing with a long-term affliction.
“Palliative care, then, is a genuine form of compassion, for it responds to suffering, whether physical, emotional, psychological, or spiritual, by affirming the fundamental and inviolable dignity of every person, especially the dying, and helping them to accept the inevitable moment of passage from this life to eternal life,” Pope Francis said in 2024.
White House to bring back firing squads as Pope Leo XIV calls for U.S. death penalty to be abolished
The Trump administration has announced that it will bring back federal firing squad executions in the United States — a move it claims will “strengthen” the national death penalty — while Pope Leo XIV is simultaneously offering support to those seeking to abolish capital punishment in the U.S. and around the world.
The U.S. Department of Justice said on April 24 that it was moving to once again “seek, obtain, and implement lawful capital sentences,” restarting the federal death penalty process that had been indefinitely stalled under the Biden administration.
Among the measures that the Justice Department said it will take include “expanding the protocol to include additional manners of execution such as the firing squad” as well as “streamlining” administrative processes to hasten executions by the federal government.
The government said it would also seek to restart carrying out lethal injections by pentobarbital, a barbiturate that prisoner advocates have said can cause extreme pain and suffering when used in executions.
In an accompanying report released on April 24, the Justice Department called pentobarbital “the gold standard of lethal injection drugs.” It described the drug as “more humane” than other modes of execution and pointed out that it has been used in assisted suicide procedures in the U.S. for those suffering from terminal illnesses.
Pope Leo XIV urges abolition of death penalty
The governmentʼs announcement came roughly at the same time on April 24 that Pope Leo XIV addressed, via video message, a gathering of activists at DePaul University celebrating the 15th anniversary of the abolition of the death penalty in Illinois.
The pope in his message noted that the Catholic Church teaches that “the death penalty is inadmissible because it is an attack on the inviolability and dignity of the person."
The Holy See updated the Catechism of the Catholic Church in 2018 to explicitly call for the abolition of capital punishment worldwide. Leo likewise told the pro-life advocates in his hometown of Chicago that the Church “affirm[s] that the dignity of the person is not lost even after very serious crimes are committed.”
The Holy Father said he joined the advocates in celebrating the stateʼs 2011 abolition of the death penalty; he wrote that he offered his “support to those who advocate for the abolition of the death penalty in the United States of America and around the world.”
“I pray that your efforts will lead to a greater acknowledgement of the dignity of every person and will inspire others to work for the same just cause,” the pope wrote.
Leoʼs message comes one day after he spoke out forcefully against executions aboard the papal plane returning from his apostolic visit to Africa.
Asked about Iranʼs reported large-scale executions, the pope said: “I condemn the taking of people’s lives. I condemn capital punishment. I believe that human life is to be respected and that all people — from conception to natural [death] — their lives should be respected and protected.”
Former Attorney General Bill Barr: U.S military action against Iran meets criteria for ‘just war’
Former U.S. Attorney General Bill Barr made the case for Americaʼs war with Iran as meeting Catholic criteria for a just war.
Barr, a Catholic, said because Iranʼs potential use of nuclear weapons posed a legitimate threat to the U.S., Europe, and the Middle East, the war doesnʼt violate just war doctrine.
Barr said the Iran war doesnʼt clearly violate just war doctrine during an April 23 panel discussion hosted by the Napa Institute.
“The traditional position of the Church was to exhort leaders to take into account all the factors, but not to say, ‘thatʼs wrong’ unless it clearly violated the just war doctrine, which this obviously doesn’t,” Barr said.
‘If we allow this window to go by’
Barr, a former board member at the Catholic Information Center, said the U.S. faces “difficult questions dealing with nuclear weapons” and argued that allowing the window of opportunity to dismantle Iranʼs nuclear capabilities to pass by would result in grave consequences.
“If somethingʼs obviously out of bounds, you can say the Nazis, you know, should not have invaded this, or, you know, Saddam Hussein should not have invaded Kuwait. But thatʼs not the situation we face,” he said.
“We face these very difficult questions dealing with nuclear weapons,” Barr said. "We’ve tried for a long time to deal with it, and if we allow this window to go by, the costs in the future are much higher, and the likelihood will be that the people won’t be willing to pay that, and nuclear weapons will be deployed by Iran.”
“Youʼre basically weighing these imponderables and risks,” he said. “If the cost of dealing with it later and allowing them more time to reach a certain level of conventional force will make it almost impossible to deal with it without massive losses, including in Europe, certainly in the Middle East and certainly among Americans, then those future costs have to be taken into account and say thereʼs a window now.”
“When youʼre faced with some of these difficult issues, itʼs very easy to stand back and say, turn the other cheek, or take an absolutist position [that] ‘you shouldnʼt be violent,’” Barr said. “But that begs the question, that doesnʼt really solve the problem, and deal with the real issue at stake that other people have to deal with.”
Barr also said he believed “the primary temptation of religious people is self-righteousness,” which he said Pope Francis “was very good to call attention to.” He said he has seen Catholics on both ends of the political spectrum fall into “virtue signaling,” which he said, “is not coming to grips with the real moral choices and the real practical reality.”
Reflecting on his upbringing, Barr said his father got him interested in St. Augustine, the fourth- to fifth-century theologian who developed criteria morally limiting when war may be justified.
“My parents always said, ‘Think things through, donʼt just take your belief like itʼs a suit off a rack in a store and say, ”OK, Iʼm putting this coat on, this is what I believe.“ Understand why you believe it,’” he said.
Barr’s remarks come as Leo calls for peace and Church officials question the justification of the war on the basis of just war doctrine. Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin and Archdiocese of Washington, D.C., Cardinal Robert McElroy have said they do not believe the war fits just war criteria.
Leo has said the Iran war fails to align with just war theory, citing failure to exhaust all diplomatic resources, disproportionate civilian harm, and lack of clear moral objectives. The U.S. bishops have publicly backed Leo, stating that just war teachings do not morally authorize unchecked military violence.
Popes seldom issue blanket rulings but Pope Benedict XV made clear World War I lacked moral legitimacy given its scale, civilian toll, and lack of proportionate ends. Pope John Paul II warned the Gulf War did not meet just war criteria. And the Vatican also formally stated in 2003 the Iraq invasion failed just‑war standards.
Pope Leo XIV urges peace
The Holy Father has said “God does not bless any conflict” and said that “anyone who is a disciple of Christ, the Prince of Peace, is never on the side of those who once wielded the sword and today drop bombs.”
On Palm Sunday, Leo stated that Jesus “does not listen to the prayers of those who wage war, but rejects them, saying: ‘Even though you make many prayers, I will not listen: Your hands are full of blood.’”
Coalition letter urges U.S. Senate to extend defunding of abortion industry
A coalition of pro-life groups urged the U.S. Senate in a letter to extend the defunding of abortion providers into 2026 and beyond.
The Trump administration defunded Planned Parenthood and other abortion providers for one year; this letter asks the Senate to continue this defunding for 10 years.
Signed by Live Action Founder Lila Rose, Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America President Marjorie Dannenfelser, March for Life Action President Jennie Bradley Lichter, and more than 30 others, the letter urges the Senate to ban abortion funding in the 2026 budget reconciliation package.
“Without further congressional action, federal funding for the abortion industry will resume after July 4, 2026, and taxpayer dollars will once again flow to organizations whose core business model relies on abortion,” the letter read.
“The financial stakes are significant,” the letter continued. “Planned Parenthood alone receives over $830 million annually in taxpayer funding, primarily through federal health programs. Ending this funding would represent one of the most meaningful pro-taxpayer reforms Congress can enact.”
Pennsylvania court rules state Medicaid program must cover abortion
A Pennsylvania Commonwealth Court ruled that the state constitution guarantees a right to abortion and that state Medicaid funds must cover abortion.
The April 20 decision struck down a decades-old law that protected taxpayer money from being used to cover abortion through Medicaid.
The case could still be appealed to Pennsylvania’s Supreme Court.
In addition to Pennsylvania, 21 states in the U.S. use Medicaid funds to cover abortion, and an additional seven states sometimes do in certain circumstances.
Pennsylvania joins 12 other states that have enshrined a right to abortion in their state constitutions.
In Pennsylvania, abortion is legal through 23 weeks of pregnancy.
U.S. senator urges Federal Trade Commission to investigate ‘misleading’ claims by abortion drug groups
Sen. Jim Banks, R-Indiana, urged the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to investigate abortion drug manufacturers’ claims that the drugs are “safer than Tylenol.”
In an April 20 letter to FTC Chairman Andrew Ferguson, Banks asked the commission to investigate “misleading” claims made by those selling abortion drugs, as the trade commission can intervene in “deceptive trade practices.”
“Many online clinics — including online clinics that ship to women in Indiana — explicitly state on their websites that abortion drugs are safer than Tylenol,” Banks said. “Others claim that abortion drugs almost never cause serious complications.”
“At best, these statements are misleading,” Banks continued.
“Emerging evidence indicates that abortion drugs are more dangerous than manufacturers and dispensers claim and cause serious medical complications in a concerning number of cases,” Banks said.
Banks urged the commission to “act swiftly and without delay,” noting that “companies that profit from abortion drugs should be honest about their risk.”
Thousands gather for Virginia March for Life
Thousands of Virginians gathered for a March for Life on Wednesday in Richmond, Virginia.
Speakers included national March for Life President Jennie Bradley Lichter, leaders from the American Association of Pro-Life OB-GYNs, and the Catholic dioceses of Richmond and Arlington, among others.
On the day of, The Family Foundation Action, which partnered with other organizations to host the March for Life, also held a training session for pro-lifers designed to equip them to talk about abortion.
“We had about 1,000 people attend the training, which is remarkable,” Victoria Cobb, president of The Family Foundation of Virginia, told EWTN News. “We had four different trainings: one for ministry leaders, students, medical professionals, and pro-life activists. Attendees were thrilled to be equipped to be more than just a voter but an influencer.”
Richmond Bishop Barry Knestout led the closing prayer of the rally before the march.
“Father, we ask you for grace today, for all those entrusted with the responsibility of leadership in our commonwealth, that they have the courage to turn away from the darkness of the culture of death and turn toward the light of the Gospel of life,” Knestout prayed.
Written protocols are not enough, says archbishop at first Caribbean abuse prevention meeting
More than 60 bishops, priests, religious, and laypeople participated in the first Caribbean abuse prevention meeting in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, with the aim of strengthening the culture of care within the Church.
The event, held April 19–22 at the Manresa Ignatian Spirituality Center, brought together participants from Cuba, Puerto Rico, and Haiti in addition to the Dominican hosts.
The meeting served as an opportunity to discuss the prevention of abuse, taking into account its pastoral, psychological, and legal dimensions, according to a statement from the Dominican episcopate.
Archbishop Héctor Rafael Rodríguez of Santiago de los Caballeros, president of the Dominican Bishops’ Conference (CED, by its Spanish acronym), emphasized that “as evangelizers, we must ensure safe environments where every person, especially the most vulnerable, is respected.”
“Written protocols are not enough unless they are embodied in concrete attitudes,” the prelate emphasized.
Furthermore, Auxiliary Bishop Lizardo Estrada Herrera of Cusco, Peru, secretary-general of the Latin American and Caribbean Bishops’ Council (CELAM, by its Spanish acronym), stated that “the prevention of abuse in the Church is neither a strategy nor an option; it is a commitment of the Gospel.”
Therefore, the bishop added, “it is fundamental that we commit ourselves to working together on prevention and on the protection of the most vulnerable.”
Auxiliary Bishop José Amable Durán Tineo of Santo Domingo, president of the Dominican bishops’ National Commission for Pastoral Ministry for the Culture of Care, encouraged continued work in the region, “applying the knowledge acquired under the guidance of the Holy Spirit.”
The Latin American and Caribbean Network for the Culture of Care is composed of bishops and delegates from the offices, commissions, and councils of bishops’ conferences as well as other Latin American ecclesial bodies, the statement from the CED noted.
It was formed during the first meeting held in Chile in 2023. Its second meeting was held in Colombia in 2024, and its third meeting took place in the Dominican Republic in 2025. The network serves as a vehicle to coordinate abuse prevention within the Church.
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.
Connecticut diocese debuts ‘Maria,’ an AI fundraising personality ‘rooted in the Church’s mission’
The Diocese of Bridgeport, Connecticut, will be supplementing its fundraising activities with an AI tool meant in part to solicit donations from local Catholics in what the diocese is billing as the “worldʼs first virtual engagement officer.”
The diocese announced the rollout of “Maria” this month. It describes the tool as a means of “thoughtfully exploring how new technologies can support more attentive listening, more consistent communication, and more personal engagement with those we serve.”
Bishop Frank Caggiano says on the programʼs website that the digital tool will “help us discern how technology may support deeper connection and accompaniment.”
“Maria will help us learn how digital tools can deepen our listening and foster more personal responses, while always keeping human relationships at the heart of the Church’s mission,” he said.
Ethical safeguards, ‘huge potential’
On the April 15 edition of his weekly podcast “Let Me Be Frank,” Caggiano jokingly described himself as “technologically a Neanderthal,” but he expressed excitement that the tool could be used “not just to raise money but to evangelize.”
Speaking on the podcast to diocesan chancellor Deacon Patrick Toole, who spent years as an executive with the technology giant IBM, Caggiano asked if an AI agent can “ever get to the point where it could resist human control.”
Toole acknowledged that such a scenario was “possible,” though he noted that AI companies institute “huge safeguards” to ensure that AI personalities are trained properly.
The deacon said that the diocesan chancery has been holding discussions about “how to use artificial intelligence for the good of the mission” and that diocesan fundraising “seemed like a good opportunity to try it in an area where we donʼt have the resources.”
“My primary motivation was that weʼre doing so many really exciting things and itʼs hard to get the message out,” he said.
Emily Groccia, a vice president at the tech company Givzey, which helped design Maria, said on the podcast that the program was rolled out to 1,000 donors in late March.
She said part of the toolʼs programming will be to “graduate” donors to actual human workers under some circumstances, such as when someone wants to significantly upgrade a donation, or if they raise intimate personal questions better addressed by a fellow human being.
“We are very cautious on allowing our [AI] to engage in lines of conversation that are outside of those traditional fundraising conversations,” she said.
The bishop said that AI fundraising represents “huge potential” for the nearly 200 dioceses in the United States. But he stressed the need for “guidelines” to ensure that AI agents do not take the place of human beings.
“Just off the top of my head, if someone reveals a death, I would not want the assistant to respond at all,” he said. “I want a human person to respond. ... Because again, as a Church, weʼre a unique reality.”
Diocesan spokeswoman Marie Oates shared with EWTN News several examples of Mariaʼs interactions with local Catholics. In one, a parishioner expresses interest in volunteering with immigrants, for which Maria was able to provide information on local Catholic Charities immigration services.
In another, a mother asks Maria for opportunities to get involved in diocesan programs with “other moms like me.” Maria offers to connect the mother to parish programs with mothers' groups and family ministries.
Oates said both interactions “highlight our goal for the program,” which she said focuses on “using AI [not] as a way to replace human relationships but as a tool to help us connect more personally.”
“[We want to use] AI to bridge the gaps in our ability as a Church to communicate directly with everyone, with the goal of fostering more personal and human connection and interaction, so that we as humans can better accompany each other,” she said.
On the bishopʼs podcast, meanwhile, Toole said that Catholics “have the opportunity to bear great fruit” with AI technology “as long as we align it to the One and make sure we stay true to that with Christ at the center.”
Caggiano described AI innovation as representing “an epochal shift in human life” comparable to the development of the printing press.
“Thereʼs no one on Earth alive — even these great architects of [AI] — who really know where all of this will go,” he said. “We need to answer the question, where should it go?”
Kicked out of Mass as a mischievous child, Pope Leo will ordain him Sunday
The Diocese of Rome shared the testimonies of eight seminarians who, on April 26, Good Shepherd Sunday, will be ordained priests by Pope Leo XIV. Among them is Christian Sguazzino, who as a child was once kicked out of Mass by a priest because he was causing "chaos.”
Sguazzino, together with Deacon Danilo Defant and Sister Ester Maddalena Iapenna, will share their testimonies on Friday, April 24, at St. John Lateran Basilica, the cathedral church of Rome, during the prayer vigil for vocations.
Sguazzino discovered his vocation at St. John of the Cross Parish. “When I was a child — after having made my first Communion — I would go play soccer and then attend Mass every day, always bringing a friend along,” the future priest recounted.
“At that time, there wasn’t even a proper church building; instead, services were held in tents. My friends and I, naturally, caused a bit of chaos. So, one day the assistant pastor kicked us out and told us we would be excommunicated!” he shared with a smile.
Recalling that time of mischief, Sguazzino said that “even then — despite everything — I felt the joy of being in church; I loved looking at the altar and the tabernacle.” Along his journey, he emphasized, it was crucial to meet “so many priests who were happy to be priests. Their witness was fundamental.”
An uncle who was a priest always supported him
Yordan Camilo Medina is Colombian and has an uncle who is a priest. As a child, he recounted, “I used to accompany him to take Communion to the mountain communities, and the joy of the faithful upon receiving the body of Christ was incredible.”
“Now he, too, is in Rome, and I have followed him here on my path of priestly formation. He has always supported me,” he added.
He dreamed of becoming a friar
Giovanni Emanuele Nunziante is 32 years old. He was born in Rome but spent part of his childhood in England. “If I had to tell you how my vocation began, my earliest memory dates back to when I was a child,“ he said. ”I didn’t yet fully understand what it meant to be a priest, but I dreamed of being close to the Lord and toyed with the idea of becoming a friar. Then, it all faded into oblivion!”
The call returned with force in 2016, during the Fourth Sunday of Easter. “Upon hearing the Gospel of the Good Shepherd, that desire to be close to the Lord in a special way returned ... I realized that my deepest desire was to offer my life just as Jesus did — the Good Shepherd,” he said.
The influence of the Neocatechumenal Way
Antonino Ordine, 27, related that his vocation was born within the faith formation program known as the Neocatechumenal Way: “I was born and raised in a very practicing family, and this led me to appreciate the beauty of the work the Church carries out on a daily basis. I was fortunate enough to meet priests and missionary families especially during a mission in Sweden who were fundamental to my discernment.”
He had wanted to become a doctor and after having served on missions in Latin America, the Middle East, and India, he realized that God was calling him to give himself completely out of love for him.
He was born in Africa into a non-Catholic family
Jos Emanuel Nleme Sabate was born in Cameroon. “My father was Protestant and we often prayed at home,” he said. “When I was 11 years old, I entered the minor seminary of my home diocese because it had a reputation as an excellent school. It was there that I learned about Catholicism.”
“I was baptized at the age of 12 and I believe it was during that rite, which was unfamiliar to me at the time, that I decided to become a priest,” he shared. He is now studying sign language and helping people with disabilities.
He was a pianist of international stature
“I come from a Catholic family,” Daniele Riscica related, “and I have always participated in parish activities; however, I studied at the Frosinone Conservatory and completed my piano studies in classical music. From there, I continued my career as a concert pianist.”
Regarded as a rising star of the international piano scene by the age of 24, he said, “I had already achieved many goals in life, yet I was not satisfied. I felt that God was calling me to something more. So I tried entering the seminary — almost as a test ... and there I felt happy.”
He is grateful for his parents' faith
Giorgio Larosa is 30 years old and said that his “vocation was born out of attending the parish, thanks to the faith my parents instilled in me.”
His parents' example, as well as “the example of other Christians, laypeople and priests, was also very powerful. In their stories, I saw the power of the Gospel,” he recounted.
He left his job and entered the seminary
Guglielmo Lapenna is 35 years old and worked in a liquor factory before beginning his formation for the priesthood.
“During World Youth Day 2016 in Kraków, I decided to leave my job and enter the seminary,” he shared, adding: “And the Lord has reaffirmed my vocation every day.”
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.
1 in 6 face infertility; Catholic author urges faith-filled support
During this yearʼs National Infertility Awareness Week (NIAW), Leigh Fitzpatrick Snead, who personally carries the cross of infertility, spoke about the difficult topic with the hope of making others experiencing it feel less alone.
NIAW runs from April 19–25, bringing attention to the high numbers of people — now 1 in 6 globally — who experience infertility at some point in their lives, according to the World Health Organization.
Snead, a fellow at The Catholic Association, tackles the topic in her book “Infertile But Fruitful: Finding Fulfillment When You Canʼt Conceive.” Through her story and the stories of other women, she wrote the book to be “the voice of a friend who has been where you are now and made it through in one piece.”
Snead said the book was “a chance for me to add to the growing conversation and awareness about infertility, especially among Catholics for whom in vitro fertilization (IVF) (the standard ‘cure’ for infertility) is not an option.”
In an interview with EWTN News, Snead shared her perspective and offered encouragement and advice for couples navigating the grief of infertility.
EWTN News: What might people not know about infertility?
Leigh Snead: For sure, how many people are suffering from it. For good reasons, this is a particularly private cross — it involves the most intimate parts of your marriage, for one. But marriage is public, and people can easily see if you do or donʼt have children, or, in most cases, whether or not youʼre expecting.
There is a lot of hard stuff experienced in silence and even shame. It might be hard to understand if you havenʼt been through it, but it can feel almost humiliating when you canʼt conceive and so you tend to slap on a smile and pretend nothing is wrong.
Itʼs too bad when we give in to this temptation to isolate ourselves from others who really only want to help. Yes, their concern can feel like even more pressure on top of what you may already be feeling internally, but you should open yourself up to their prayers.
In the same way, pray for married couples and couples you think might be carrying the cross of infertility, even before they ask you.
What do you wish you knew when you began navigating infertility, and what would you tell couples who are going through it now?
I wish I hadnʼt overlooked and underestimated the relief and comfort I could have received by being more open about my physical and emotional struggles when facing infertility. The more I kept it a secret, the more shameful it all felt, which led to isolation and even more secrecy and shame.
Privacy is one thing, but purposefully forgoing the love and prayers of those who only care for you out of shame over something you have little to no control over — nothing good can come of that.
What steps can couples who are going through infertility take?
Seek good medical care that aligns with your values. Learn and develop a good understanding of what the Church teaches, especially about the prohibition of IVF. Understand the “why” — not just the fact that itʼs “not allowed.” Communicate with each other and make time to enjoy your marriage even though youʼre struggling.
Bear this burden together. Find parish support groups or a group online. Pray together and choose a saint to accompany you. Youʼre probably going to feel and think some dark things, so frequent confession, spiritual direction, and counseling is a good idea.
What does the Catholic Church offer couples who struggle with this? What do you think the Church can do to further help them?
The teachings on marriage, sexuality, and procreation the Church gives us are such a gift, but we need to be reminded of them regularly. Iʼd like to see more priests and seminarians become fluent in the language of Catholic infertility. I think making a discussion about the possibility of infertility should be included in marriage prep courses.
The Catholic infertility ministry Springs in the Desert is a great resource not only for those carrying the cross of infertility but for those, like priests, hoping to support them.
What advice do you have for couples who are being pushed to try IVF and other methods that do not align with Church teaching?
Seek medical care from a doctor who respects or, even better, shares your views on marriage, sexuality, procreation, and human dignity. This is true for whatever type of medical care you may be seeking and is not limited to fertility care. If you feel mistreated by your physician, just walk out. There is another doctor out there who will provide you with the care you deserve.
You and your husband eventually became parents though adoption. What would you want people to know about adoption?
I think itʼs important to keep in mind that infertility and adoption are not to be lumped together, and I try to not conflate the two in my work. Thatʼs not always easy for me because I have four beautiful sons through the great gift of adoption.
Not everyone with a diagnosis of infertility will be called to adopt a child. There are so many ways to be fruitful! We shouldnʼt limit our idea of a fruitful marriage to the raising of children, and no one should feel obliged to adopt because theyʼre unable to conceive. And if they donʼt hear that call to adopt it does not mean that they didnʼt “really” want a child, or that they arenʼt suffering.
In a similar fashion, adoption fulfilled my call to motherhood but the arrival of my sons did not “cure” my infertility, nor did it take away the scars infertility can leave behind. Itʼs one of those messy parts of life where you feel all the feelings at once.
Health and Human Services Secretary Kennedy calls assisted suicide laws ‘abhorrent’
Robert F. Kennedy Jr., secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), called assisted suicide laws “abhorrent” during budget discussions this week.
During HHS budget discussions on Wednesday, Sen. James Lankford, R-Oklahoma, pressed Kennedy about assisted suicide, noting that in several states, disability groups have filed lawsuits saying that their assisted suicide laws are discriminatory.
“Disability groups are filing against some of the assisted suicide laws because it seems to target those with disabilities and the Americans with Disabilities Act passed in 1990: That act has worked to protect those with disabilities, not incentivize them to take their own life,” Lankford said.
“We’ve now seen a rise of people with eating disorders that are given access to assisted suicide, and this is just wrong a multitude of ways,” Lankford added.
“What is HHS doing to protect those with disabilities that may be targeted by those assisted suicide laws?” Lankford asked.
“To me, I think those laws are abhorrent,” Kennedy responded. “And we just see in Canada today, I think the No. 1 cause of death is assisted suicide, and as you say, it targets people with disabilities and people who are struggling in their lives.”
Euthanasia is the fifth-leading cause of death in Canada, accounting for an estimated 1 in 20 deaths in Canada. The country is currently considering expanding medical assistance in dying (MAID) to individuals whose sole underlying condition is mental illness.
In the United States, assisted suicide is legal in 12 states and Washington, D.C. A recently-compiled database found that at least 14,000 Americans have died by assisted suicide since 1997; the actual number is likely much higher because not all states provide data.
“I don’t think we can be a moral society — we can’t be a moral society around the globe if that becomes institutionalized throughout our society,” Kennedy told Lankford. “So, I am happy to work with you in whatever way we can.”
Three ongoing lawsuits allege that their state’s assisted suicide laws are discriminatory against people with disabilities.
Most recently in December 2025, several disability and patient advocacy groups filed a lawsuit alleging that Delawareʼs new assisted suicide law discriminates against people with disabilities.
The Delaware lawsuit maintained that “people with life-threatening disabilities” are at “imminent risk” because of the new law.
“Throughout the country, a state-endorsed narrative is rapidly spreading that threatens people with disabilities: Namely, that people with life-threatening disabilities should be directed to suicide help and not suicide prevention,” the lawsuit read.
“At its core, this is discrimination plain and simple,” the lawsuit continued. “With cuts in health care spending at the federal level, persons with life-threatening disabilities are now more vulnerable than ever.”
In another recent lawsuit in July 2025, United Spinal v. Colorado, a coalition of advocacy groups claimed that Colorado’s assisted suicide law is unconstitutional because it allegedly discriminates against those who suffer from disabilities.
In 2023, a similar California lawsuit challenged California’s assisted suicide law, saying it puts people with disabilities at greater risk.