Macron commemorates French priest killed by Islamic extremists 10 years ago
French President Emmanuel Macron commemorated Father Jacques Hamel, an elderly priest murdered 10 years ago in his church during Mass by two Islamist terrorists on July 26, 2016, and whose cause for beatification is currently underway.
“We have not forgotten Father Jacques Hamel. Ten years ago today, he was cowardly murdered by two Islamist terrorists — targeted because he embodied the rejection of hatred, as well as fraternity and hope,” the French leader wrote on his X account on July 26.
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“To his loved ones, his parishioners, all the inhabitants of Saint-Étienne-du-Rouvray, and the Catholics of France, I extend the nation’s faithful, fraternal greetings,” Macron emphasized.
“His memory places a duty upon us. It compels us to tirelessly defend the freedom of conscience that the Republic guarantees and protects,” the French president continued, concluding: “In the face of Islamist terrorism, France remains united. True to its foundational values. Resolute not to yield anything to those who seek to divide us.”
Hamel’s murder
On July 26, 2016, two young Islamic State terrorists stormed the church of Saint-Étienne-du-Rouvray in Rouen, France, and murdered 86-year-old Father Jacques Hamel while he was celebrating Mass.
Shouting “Allahu Akbar” (Arabic for “God is great”), the killers entered the church and began destroying religious images. The priest tried to stop them but was unable to do so. The terrorists attempted to force him to his knees, but he refused.
One of the killers stabbed him, and Hamel cried out, “Begone, Satan!” These were his last words, and they slit his throat.
The cause for Hamel’s beatification
The cause was announced on April 13, 2017, and officially opened on May 20 of that year.
The diocesan phase of the cause concluded on March 9, 2019, at Our Lady of the Annunciation Chapel of the Archdiocese of Rouen.
During that stage, 66 hearings were held, with testimony from the five witnesses to the murder, 51 summoned witnesses including siblings, friends, parishioners, and priests as well as five witnesses the tribunal called “ex officio” to ensure the process was not one-sided.
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.
U.S. moves to revoke citizenship of Mexican friar convicted of child abuse
The U.S. Department of Justice has filed a complaint to revoke the U.S. citizenship of a Mexican Capuchin Franciscan friar convicted in 2019 of sexually abusing minors while serving in Washington, D.C.
According to U.S. authorities, Urbano Vázquez Ortega, 53, obtained U.S. citizenship in 2017.
“Vázquez Ortega was convicted of multiple counts of second-degree child sexual abuse while employed as a priest at a Washington, D.C., church,” U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services announced in a press release.
“In 2019, he was sentenced to 15 years in prison. The United States filed a five-count complaint seeking to revoke his citizenship, alleging he committed these crimes before, during, and after his naturalization,” the text indicates.
Vázquez Ortega is one of 10 individuals facing the revocation of their citizenship after being convicted of various serious crimes, including the sexual abuse of minors, fraud, and drug trafficking.
4 charges of abuse in 2019
In August 2019, a jury in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia found Vázquez Ortega guilty of four counts of child sexual abuse involving two minors at the Shrine of the Sacred Heart Parish in northwest Washington, D.C., where he had been serving since 2014.
According to evidence presented during the trial, between April and May 2015, he molested a 13-year-old girl in a parish office.
Additionally, between June 2016 and August 2017, he abused another minor aged between 9 and 10 in various places on church grounds, according to the evidence.
A third adolescent also testified during the legal proceedings, stating that Vázquez Ortega kissed her in a church conference room.
Removed from ministry after first allegation
When the allegations came to light in 2018, the Archdiocese of Washington stated that this was the first allegation of sexual abuse received against Vázquez Ortega and that, “immediately upon learning of this serious allegation, the archdiocese immediately removed Father Vazquez from ministry and suspended his priestly faculties.”
In the same statement, the archdiocese reported that after reviewing the case, it determined that the then-pastor of the Sacred Heart Shrine, Friar Moisés Villalta, “failed to follow appropriate protocols related to reporting allegations of abuse to civil authorities and the Archdiocese of Washington” and for this reason, “has been removed as pastor.”
Additionally, the parish’s child protection coordinator was placed on administrative leave, according to the statement issued at the time.
In addition, a complaint was filed against Marcin Stanislaw Garbacz, 47, former Roman Catholic priest from Poland convicted of wire fraud, filing a false tax return, and engaging in illicit sexual conduct with a minor in a foreign country, crimes he committed as a priest and hid during the naturalization process.
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.
‘The Chosen’ unveils emotional Season 6 trailer depicting Christ’s passion
“The Chosen” released its first official teaser of Season 6 on July 27. The upcoming season of the hit series focuses on the 24 hours of Good Friday — culminating in the crucifixion of Christ.
The trailer offers viewers a glimpse into the scourging at the pillar, Jesus’ arrest and trials, the walk to Calvary, and his final, powerful words on the cross.
Season 6 of “The Chosen” will include six episodes — the first three of which will debut on Nov. 15 on Prime Video, followed by the release of a weekly episode through Dec. 6.
The season finale will be a stand-alone theatrical release on March 12, 2027.
The show’s star, actor Jonathan Roumie, has spoken about his experience portraying Jesus’ passion and crucifixion.
In an interview with EWTN News at ChosenCon on Feb. 20 he said: “For the first few months afterwards going to Mass — and even thinking about it now — I just get weepy. I get emotional. It’s hard. It’s left an indelible impression on me — mentally and emotionally sharing even just a percentage, a micron of a percentage, of the Lord’s passion; playing it and reenacting it has left me absolutely humbled and moved.”
The show’s cast spent three weeks filming the crucifixion in Matera, Italy, in June 2025. In a press conference held at the Vatican at the end of that time, the show’s creator, writer, and director, Dallas Jenkins, called the three weeks “the most challenging and difficult we had in filming,” requiring him to surrender everything to Christ.
Ahead of the release of Season 6, 5&2 Studios — the production company behind “The Chosen” — alongside Capitol Christian Music Group will release a new album this fall with original songs inspired by “The Chosen.” The first single, titled “All I Need Is You,” is performed by country star Tyler Hubbard and will be released on Aug. 7. The full artist lineup will be revealed in the weeks ahead.
“My wife, my three kids, and I have a nightly ritual of watching ‘The Chosen.’ We really got into it! Itʼs a show that I love and am connected to, so I was really excited to personally be a part of the show and part of the music,” Hubbard said in a press release.
“‘All I Need Is You’ is a song thatʼs out of my normal country music box. Itʼs a song that hits close to home. I think a lot of people can relate to the need for Jesus. To write a song about something that really matters is extra special,” he said.
Watch the full trailer for Season 6 below.
Lebanon celebrates historic beatification of Maronite Patriarch Elias Hoyek
The Maronite Catholic Church gathered on the evening of July 25 at the Maronite patriarchate’s summer residence in Dimane, northern Lebanon, to celebrate the beatification of Patriarch Elias Hoyek, marking an extraordinary moment for both the Church and the Lebanese nation.
Cardinal Bechara Boutros Rai, the Maronite patriarch, presided over the official liturgical celebration. Cardinal Marcello Semeraro, prefect of the Vatican’s Dicastery for the Causes of Saints, attended as the representative of Pope Leo XIV alongside patriarchs, bishops, and Lebanese officials, including President Joseph Aoun and Prime Minister Nawaf Salam.
The ceremony began with a formal petition presented to the pope’s representative by Bishop Mounir Khairallah, Maronite bishop of Batroun and petitioner for the beatification cause, requesting that Hoyek be declared blessed.
Bishop Hanna Alwan, patriarchal vicar general and postulator of the cause before the Holy See, then read the official biography of the new blessed, recounting the principal stages of his life.
Semeraro subsequently read the apostolic letter issued by Pope Leo XIV formally enrolling Patriarch Elias Peter Hoyek among the blessed. The decree granted the petition of the Maronite Church, its bishops, and its faithful and designated June 5 as the date of his annual liturgical memorial.
The pope’s representative also presented the Maronite Church with five original copies of the decree as official documentation of the occasion.
A large official icon of the new blessed was then unveiled. His relics were brought forward in a solemn procession accompanied by 32 lit candles, symbolizing the 32 years Hoyek served as Maronite patriarch, from 1899 to 1931.
In his homily, Rai said: “Hoyek entrusted himself completely to divine providence until he became a radiant sign in the history of the Church and of Lebanon.”
“The Church today is not raising a man to earthly glory,” he continued, “but bearing witness to the glory God brought about in him. Holiness is not an honor bestowed by the earth but a divine gift granted to those who live the Gospel faithfully to the end.”
Addressing Semeraro, Rai said the cardinal’s presence embodied the depth of communion between the Maronite Church and the Church of Rome. He added that it carried a message of love and appreciation from Pope Leo XIV to a Church that has remained faithful to the faith and to its witness to Christ in the Middle East.
Rai emphasized that “the new blessed lived by his famous motto, ‘My God, may your will be done.’ He was a man of divine providence, combining in his person the vigilance of a shepherd, the wisdom of a leader, the heart of a father, and the faith of a saint.”
“He never sought personal glory,” Rai added, “but rather the glory of God and the good of the human person, believing that Lebanon is a message and that the human person is its greatest treasure.”
At the conclusion of the Mass, Aoun was presented with a cedar tree carved from Lebanese stone bearing the likeness of the new blessed and containing one of his relics.
Following the final blessing, Hoyek’s relics were carried in procession through the aisles among the faithful.
This story was first published by ACI MENA, the Arabic-language sister service of EWTN News. It has been translated and adapted by EWTN News English.
The peace proposed by Pope Leo XIV is not a naive hippie ideal, expert says
The peace proposed by Pope Leo XIV is “not abstract, ideological, or naive” but one that “passes through the pain, contradictions, and wounds of the world,” according to Alessandro Banfi, communications director of the Oasis Foundation and coordinator of a new book collecting the pope’s teachings on peace.
“Disarmed and Disarming: Peace Is a Gift” is the first anthology to bring together the pontiff’s principal texts on peace since his election May 8, 2025.
Published last week in Italian by the Vatican Publishing House, the volume contains speeches, messages, and other interventions on one of the central themes of Leo’s pontificate. It also includes a previously unpublished foreword written by the pope.
An English-language edition is expected soon.
In an interview with ACI Prensa, the Spanish-language sister service of EWTN News, Banfi said the project was intended to provide “an agile volume, accessible to everyone, that would bring together the great teaching of the first year of this pope’s pontificate on the subject of peace.”
Banfi said the book’s introduction offers one of the principal keys to understanding Leo’s thought.
Christ’s peace passes through suffering
“When we carefully reread the opening lines of his introduction, we see something very significant,” Banfi said. “He says that he began his ministry by proclaiming to the world the risen Christ, the Prince of Peace. But he immediately recalls that the peace of Christ passes through suffering, through the Passion and through the cross.”
That statement, Banfi said, reveals the depth and scope of the pontiff’s proposal.
“The peace proposed by the pope is not the abstract, naive, or ideological concept of the hippies,” he said. “It is a peace that passes through the pain, contradictions, and wounds of the world.”
Responding to those who dismiss pacifism as unrealistic or merely idealistic, Banfi said the Christian vision of peace is grounded in a concrete experience.
“Pacifism is often ridiculed because it is considered utopian or unrealistic, incapable of confronting the complexity of reality,” he said. “But the peace proposed by the Church is born of a concrete experience. Before anything else, it is the proclamation of a gift that precedes us. Peace is a gift.”
Building peace therefore requires both personal and collective responsibility, he said.
“We have the responsibility to build it, to pray for it, to promote interreligious dialogue and to ask the powerful of the earth to work for it,” Banfi said. “We must act concretely to influence societies and states. But it is equally important not to forget interior peace.”
Banfi said Leo’s positions on peace did not begin with his election as pope but form part of a personal journey shaped by Augustinian spirituality and his missionary experience in Peru.
A pope shaped by St. Augustine
Banfi situated Leo’s thinking within the Augustinian tradition, pointing in particular to the pope’s reference to “The City of God” in his address to the diplomatic corps accredited to the Holy See.
St. Augustine contrasts the earthly city, directed toward power, wealth, and pleasure, with the city of God, made up of those who live in hope, Banfi explained.
“Leo XIV bears witness to a man of great interior freedom in the face of the pressures of the world, the problems of the Church and even its internal divisions,” he said. “Amid the noise of the Church and the world, this pope conveys extraordinary serenity and interior freedom.”
Banfi also recalled that during the years of terrorism by Peru’s Shining Path guerrilla movement, the then-missionary priest Robert Prevost refused to go into hiding or accept a security escort despite threats against members of the clergy.
“I think we often assume that a commitment to peace is limited to opposition to war, but he was also a great witness in the face of terrorism,” Banfi said.
He also cited a photograph from the 1980s showing the young Augustinian taking part in a peace demonstration in Comiso, Sicily, against the deployment of NATO missiles. Prevost appears alongside other priests holding a banner reading “Young Augustinians for Peace.”
Banfi cautioned, however, against confusing the Church’s mission with the promotion of a merely pacifist movement.
The Church, he said, is “the bearer of a proposal for peace that is born of faith in Christ.”
A message for an age marked by war
Banfi said Leo’s message has particular relevance amid a global increase in armed conflicts.
“Today, more than 100 countries are involved in some way in wars or conflicts,” he said. “It gives the impression that the pope is almost the only voice that continues to call for peace, that still believes in the possibility of peace.”
In the book’s unpublished introduction, Leo refers to the Global Peace Index 2026, an annual assessment of peace levels around the world produced by the Australia-based Institute for Economics and Peace.
Banfi said the pontiff is challenging the growing conviction that war is inevitable and that rearmament is the only way to guarantee security.
“What is happening today is that the idea seems to have taken hold that war is inevitable, even necessary, and that rearmament is indispensable,” he said. “The pope is fighting precisely against this dominant mentality.”
Banfi also highlighted the pope’s reference in the introduction to a Bob Dylan song against nuclear war, written in 1962 during the Cuban missile crisis.
“It was a moment of enormous risk for humanity, but it was also a time when there was a widespread sense that peace could be built, nuclear arsenals could be reduced, and negotiated disarmament could advance even in the midst of the Cold War,” Banfi said.
Against today’s backdrop of prolonged conflicts and growing international tensions, Leo takes up Pope Francis’ warning about “a third world war fought piecemeal” and points to the increasing difficulty of bringing contemporary wars to an end.
The conscience that can change history
One passage that particularly struck Banfi was the pope’s reference to Soviet officer Stanislav Petrov, who in 1983 helped prevent a possible nuclear war after suspecting that a warning of an American attack was a false alarm.
The pope writes that “the conscience of one man can be worth as much as the entire world,” Banfi noted.
For Banfi, the statement expresses “a truth that applies to all of us.”
“Society is mistaken when it stops believing that,” he said.
Banfi linked that idea to another major theme of the papal text: a radical confidence in the human person’s capacity to choose what is good.
“It is the same message as his first encyclical, Magnifica Humanitas: an irreducible optimism about humanity,” he said. “It is like when he asks in another passage of the introduction: ‘Is humanity really seriously considering destroying itself?’ It is a profoundly prophetic question.”
The book also addresses disarmament, the importance of dialogue, international law, and the role of multilateralism.
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.
Vatican calls for assessment of synodality implementation ahead of 2028 assembly
Ahead of the 2028 ecclesial assembly for the Synod on Synodality, the Vatican has called on dioceses to provide an assessment of their implementation of synodality.
The General Secretariat of the Synod published the document “Recollecting” on July 27, providing diocesan synodal teams with a resource to draft their reflections on their progress since the diocesan phase began in October 2021.
In the accompanying press release, Cardinal Mario Grech, secretary-general of the synod, explained that the notes are intended to help local Churches “recollect” their synodal journey with gratitude.
“Evaluation is not a technical exercise but an experience of gratitude and truth,” Grech said. “Recollecting means recognizing what the Lord has brought to maturity in the journey of our communities and allowing ourselves to be guided towards the next steps.”
The recollecting phase is part of the 2028 preparation for synodal teams and will culminate in a broader reflection during the first half of 2027. Each diocese is to prepare two documents around that time: a narrative report and a letter to the other Churches.
The document “Recollecting” called for discussions about the challenges facing synodality at the local level, including resistance.
“Particular attention should be given to the difficulties encountered, resistance to renewal, obstacles that have hindered the journey, unsuccessful attempts and questions that remain open,” the document stated.
The recollecting phase of the synod’s implementation path is one of four preparatory stages before the ecclesial assembly in 2028. The other three are “Interpreting” in the second half of 2027, “Orienting” in the first four months of 2028, and “Celebrating” in October 2028.
San Francisco archbishop among new members of Vatican’s highest court
Pope Leo XIV has appointed San Francisco Archbishop Salvatore Cordileone and Kalamazoo, Michigan, Bishop Edward M. Lohse among seven new members of the Apostolic Signatura, the Catholic Church’s highest court.
Cordileone has led the Archdiocese of San Francisco since 2012. Previously an auxiliary bishop of San Diego and bishop of Oakland, California, he is known for his public defense of contested Catholic teachings, including the Church’s teaching on marriage. In 2025, he was appointed to the advisory board of the U.S. Religious Liberty Commission.
Lohse, the bishop of Kalamazoo and apostolic administrator of Steubenville, Ohio, previously worked at the Vatican’s Congregation for the Clergy from 2010 to 2015. He holds a doctorate in canon law from the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome.
The pope also appointed Spanish Bishop Juan Ignacio Arrieta Ochoa de Chinchetru, the former secretary of the Dicastery for Legislative Texts, where he served for nearly 20 years, from 2007 until June 2026.
Arrieta, a priest of Opus Dei who was ordained in 1977, has also served as coordinator of the commission that reformed the Institute for the Works of Religion, commonly known as the Vatican Bank, and as a consultant to the Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples. He holds doctorates in canon law and civil law from the University of Navarra in Spain.
Another Spanish appointee, Father Eduardo Baura de la Peña, is an Opus Dei priest and professor in the Faculty of Canon Law at the Pontifical University of the Holy Cross in Rome. He also holds doctorates in canon law and civil law.
The three other new members are German Jesuit Father Ulrich Rhode, a professor in the Faculty of Canon Law at the Pontifical Gregorian University; Bishop Krzysztof Nitkiewicz of Sandomierz, Poland; and Italian Father Gianpaolo Montini, also a professor in the Gregorian’s Faculty of Canon Law.
The Apostolic Signatura serves as the Church’s supreme tribunal and oversees the proper administration of justice throughout the Catholic Church.
Its members, who include cardinals, bishops, and priests, are appointed by the pope for five-year terms. The court is led by its prefect, French Cardinal Dominique Mamberti, who, as cardinal protodeacon, announced the election of Pope Leo XIV on May 8, 2025.
Among its responsibilities, the Signatura hears challenges to certain decisions of the Roman Rota, including petitions for nullity and requests for the complete restoration of a case. It also considers appeals in cases concerning the juridical status of persons.
The tribunal judges administrative disputes referred to it by the pope as well as jurisdictional conflicts between Vatican dicasteries and between dicasteries and the Secretariat of State.
It also supervises the proper administration of justice in ecclesiastical tribunals and may take action concerning ministers, advocates, or procurators when necessary.
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.
New Zealand’s first new Catholic cathedral in 120 years unveiled in Christchurch
The Diocese of Christchurch has unveiled the design of its new Cathedral of the Blessed Sacrament, set to become the first Catholic cathedral built in New Zealand in more than 120 years, and launched the public campaign to fund the 80-million New Zealand dollar (about $46 million) project.
The 800-seat cathedral will rise on Barbadoes Street in central Christchurch, the site of the 1905 original that was demolished in 2020 after suffering irreparable damage in the earthquakes that struck the Canterbury region in 2010 and 2011, killing 185 people and damaging more than half of the diocese’s 68 churches.
Bishop Michael Gielen announced the launch in a pastoral letter read at Masses across the diocese on Sunday, July 26. The 11th bishop of Christchurch said today’s Catholic faithful carry the “responsibility” and “privilege” first shouldered by Bishop John Grimes, who built the original cathedral.
“Our Catholic communities have changed in the decades since Bishop Grimes led our diocese, but our desire for beauty, for welcome, and for honoring God has not,” Gielen said.
Following public consultation, Gielen announced in 2024 that the cathedral would return to the diocese’s traditional home on Barbadoes Street and retain its historic name, alongside a Māori name: Te Hāhi Matua o te Hākarameta Tapu Rawa. The design, developed over two years with architects Warren and Mahoney, also includes a perpetual adoration chapel and the Te Rangimarie community center, with space for 300 people.
“When I arrived in the diocese four years ago, one of the questions I was most often asked was, ‘What is happening with the cathedral?’ That question revealed something profound: the deep love our people have for their mother church,” Gielen said.
‘It’s now our turn’
Tony Brazier, who is leading the cathedral campaign, said about 45 million New Zealand dollars (about $26 million) will come from insurance proceeds and the sale of diocesan assets. Of the 35 million New Zealand dollars (about $20 million) to be raised, more than 19 million New Zealand dollars (about $11 million) has already been pledged.
“Bishop Michael is emulating what Bishop Grimes did — inviting every Catholic family to make a sacrificial offering to build our new cathedral,” Brazier said.
Gielen and many of the diocese’s priests have committed to making weekly contributions over the next five years. No construction date has been announced; the diocese says it will move toward final preparations once half of the remaining 16 million New Zealand dollars (about $9 million) has been raised.
“It’s now our turn to answer the ancient call to build something that will last for generations, and about which those who follow us will also say ‘Those people were generous, those people were courageous, they trusted in God,’” the bishop said.
Three stained-glass windows created in 1912 by the Zettler Studio of Munich for the original cathedral will take pride of place at the entrance of its successor.
Pope Leo XIV to attend musical prayer service with Andrea Bocelli
Pope Leo XIV, having just concluded his vacation at Castel Gandolfo in Italy, will return there on July 29 for a musical prayer service featuring the renowned Italian tenor Andrea Bocelli.
As announced on July 27 by the Holy See Press Office, the pontiff will lead a moment of prayer at the “Canticle of Peace,” sponsored by the Andrea Bocelli Foundation (ABF) and hosted by the Borgo Laudato Si’, part of the Pontifical Gardens at Castel Gandolfo. The pontiff will have recently concluded his vacation there, having stayed from July 5–27.
The music will feature Bocelli and the ABF Voices Of choir, comprising 164 children and young people from war-torn regions, in an effort to promote peace through song.
The event also marks the 15th anniversary of the foundation and the 800th anniversary of the death of St. Francis of Assisi. The pope’s reflection and prayer during the event will draw inspiration from St. Francis’ famous “Canticle of the Creatures.”
In a separate July 22 press release by the ABF, Bocelli described the initiative as an opportunity to transform differences into a harmonious peace-building effort.
“Music has this gift. It does not erase differences but transforms them into harmony,” Bocelli said.
The “Canticle of Peace” will be Leo XIV’s second summer concert at Castel Gandolfo, the other being a July 18 concert in his honor offered by the nearby Diocese of Albano. It will also be Bocelli’s second performance for the pope, having sung at the inauguration of the Borgo Laudato Si’ in 2025.
Catholic book clubs: Tips for building community and growing in faith
More and more young people are looking for opportunities to deepen their faith and build community. In this context, Catholic book clubs are becoming a way to combine a shared love for books with spiritual growth.
Initiatives such as the Betania Club de Lectura Católico (Bethany Catholic Book Club) and El Carmelo Descalzo (The Discalced Carmelite) shared their experience with ACI Prensa, the Spanish-language sister service of EWTN News, and offered some recommendations for those who want to start a similar project in their parish, university, or community.
Entrust it to God
For José Jorge Domínguez, who started the Bethany Catholic Book Club, the first step is to begin with prayer and “entrust the project to God.”
“He always sees the intention of the heart,” he added.
He also recommended presenting the initiative to the parish priest so that he is aware of the project and, if possible, can offer spiritual guidance and support.
Common thread
Another fundamental element for keeping a book club going is having a defined goal.
Sara Gisela Sánchez Ureña, a member of The Discalced Carmelite, explained that it’s “easier to keep up attendance when the book club has a common thread.”
Their project originated within a group of single adults with a Carmelite spirituality who seek to purify “their own life experience in order to better determine whether their vocation is single life or marriage, approaching this through the lens of spiritual growth and with the maturity of the adults that we are.”
To that end, this year they organized a program based on the works of St. John of the Cross, alternating with authors who address themes related to the experience of the “Dark Night of the Soul.”
Meeting dynamics
For Sánchez, a key factor is ensuring that the meetings do not become merely forums for literary analysis but rather occasions for connection and personal reflection.
He explained that the Discalced Carmelite meetings begin with a conversation about the general impressions left by the book. Afterward, participants answer questions designed to relate the reading to their own experiences.
He also recommended taking the time to learn a bit more about the author. “It’s not just a matter of choosing an author but also of getting to know him better,” he noted.
Domínguez highlighted that one of the main objectives is to create a forum where participants can share their experiences and hear the perspectives of others.
The intention, he explained, is for people “to be able to share their point of view and life experience, and to create a space where God is at the center of everything.”
Virtual or in person?
Regarding the format of the gatherings, both organizers agree that it depends on the specific circumstances of each community and the participants' availability.
The Bethany group opted for in-person meetings at various locations across Mexico City. Domínguez explained that the group “goes like pilgrims from place to place in the city, visiting different venues such as cafés or designated meeting points.”
Meanwhile, the Discalced Carmelite group found that virtual meetings offered a way to accommodate their members' schedules. For Sánchez, the format matters less than the goal of “getting to know one another and building a sense of fellowship.”
Fostering dialogue
Although each initiative operates differently, both share the view that a book club should not limit itself to the act of reading; instead, it should help members apply those reflections to their daily lives.
Domínguez said each endeavor should have a concrete spiritual impact, noting that it is not merely a matter of reading for the sake of reading but rather of “making each reading one’s own, discerning it in light of one’s own life, and allowing it to bear fruit.”
He said one of the great riches of those times together is the ability to proclaim to new generations “that there is a God who loves them, understands them, and listens to them.” In his view, “reading in community is an excellent means to achieve that goal.”
Some book recommendations
For those wishing to start a Catholic book club, Domínguez recommended beginning with works that help deepen oneʼs spiritual life, such as “The Book of My Life” by St. Teresa of Ávila.
Sánchez suggested turning to authors like St. John of the Cross while also combining spiritual reading with other writers such as C.S. Lewis, who inspire reflection on the human experience from a Christian perspective.
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.