Catholic theologian takes job in Trump’s Department of Homeland Security
A prominent Catholic theologian who has previously defended the Trump administration’s immigration policies on theological grounds has joined the Department of Homeland Security, the agency confirmed.
Chad Pecknold, who has taught theology at The Catholic University of America (Catholic University) since 2008, is now the principal director of public outreach for the department’s Office of Public Engagement.
In a statement provided to the National Catholic Register, the sister news partner of EWTN News, Pecknold said he was “excited” to confirm he had taken the position.
“It is truly an honor to serve my country in this capacity,” he added.
The Department of Homeland Security was established in 2003 in response to the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks and is responsible for protecting the United States against terrorist attacks and other threats to its security. The department also serves as the enforcement arm of U.S. immigration policy, overseeing both U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS).
According to Pecknold’s LinkedIn page, he is “on leave for public service” from Catholic University. His profile also describes his new position as focused on “cultural outreach” and indicates that he began the role in August.
The Catholic theologian’s appointment to the department comes amid ongoing clashes between the U.S. bishops and the Trump administration over immigration enforcement.
The Trump administration has prioritized curbing illegal immigration, including carrying out a mass deportation campaign, securing the border, and making legal immigration and asylum claims more selective and difficult.
In response, the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops took the rare step of issuing a joint statement in November 2025, expressing opposition to “the indiscriminate mass deportation of people” and calling for an end to “dehumanizing rhetoric and violence” against both immigrants and law enforcement.”
Shortly after, Pope Leo XIV commented on immigration enforcement in the U.S., urging those involved “to look for ways of treating people humanely, treating people with the dignity that they have,” while following legal protocols.
Views on immigration
On the issue of immigration, Pecknold has consistently argued that defending the country’s borders is not in contradiction with Catholic teaching. Rather, he argues, it is necessary to achieve the common good.
The Catechism of the Catholic Church, he told EWTN News in 2023, “teaches that nations have the right to borders and self-definition, so there is no sense in which Catholic teaching supports the progressive goal of ‘open borders.’”
“There is a ‘duty of care’ which is owed to those fleeing from danger,” he said, “but citizenship is not owed to anyone who can make it across a national border, and illegal entry or asylum cannot be taken as a debt of citizenship.”
In a recent essay for The American Mind, Pecknold took issue with the U.S. bishops’ amicus brief submitted to the Supreme Court in defense of birthright citizenship for the children of undocumented migrants.
In the article, Pecknold argues that in asserting that every child has a “natural right” to citizenship, the bishops are committing a “logical fallacy.” They are confusing, he writes, “conventional rights — how a nation determines who is and is not eligible for citizenship — with natural rights, which come from God and which inhere in human beings as such.”
Pecknold has also endorsed a February statement released by a Christian think tank in Hungary that contends that “mass deportations may be a legitimate response to mass migration.”
And in April 2024, amid Catholic criticism of a Texas state law that gave local authorities authorization to make immigration-related arrests, Pecknold cited St. Thomas Aquinas’ theology as a basis for immigration restrictions, noting that Aquinas distinguished showing hospitality to wayfarers from offering permanent resettlement.
“Every human being having dignity does not immediately and obviously supersede the sovereignty of nations,” Pecknold told EWTN News at the time. “Statesmen have a sacred duty to safeguard the political common good of their country, and this will sometimes mean restricting who can legally enter and remain in their countries.”
Postliberal theologian
The Catholic University professor is part of what some refer to as the “postliberal” movement, which contends that American politics have been overly focused on individual liberty at the expense of the common good. Pecknold co-founded the Substack “Postliberal Order” with Notre Dame political science professor Patrick Deneen and Harvard constitutional law scholar Adrian Vermeule.
Pecknold is also known to be close to Vice President JD Vance, a Catholic convert and self-described postliberal. The background image of the professor’s X social media profile is a photo of Pecknold with Deneen and Vance.
Pecknold is the author of several books that examine cultural and political questions through the lens of St. Augustine’s philosophy and theology, including “Transforming Postliberal Theology” (2005), “The Promise of Scriptural Reasoning” (2006), “Time, Liturgy, and the Politics of Redemption” (2008), and “Christianity and Politics” (2010).
In a roundtable published in the Register in 2023, Pecknold argued that Catholics have a duty to engage in politics.
“Catholics who are well-formed by the laws of the heavenly city must pray and work for the peace of our very troubled country — for even the nations are restless until they rest in God. Catholics have a duty to intercede, to cure, and to govern,” Pecknold said.
It is not clear what Pecknold’s duties will be as director of public outreach at the federal department. The agency did not respond to a request for an explanation of his new role in time for publication, and Pecknold did not respond to a request for an interview.
This story was first published by the National Catholic Register, the sister partner of EWTN News, and has been adapted by EWTN News.
Controversial ‘Creed of the Ecclesial Base Communities’ included at Mass in Brazil
On Sept. 7, Bishop José Valdeci Santos Mendes of Brejo, Maranhão, Brazil, celebrated Mass as part of a national Cry of the Excluded event.
During the Mass, the "Creed of the Ecclesial Base Communities” (known as CEBs, by their synonym in Portuguese) was read. This creed, developed in 2016, professes belief in “a God/Goddess present in the diverse experiences of the communities: a God who is close, a liberating and revolutionary God, a God who is a member of the CEBs, who works and struggles just as Jesus of Nazareth did.”
Following the distribution of the Eucharist but before the final blessing, the bishop — who chairs the Episcopal Commission for Social-Transformative Action of the National Conference of Bishops of Brazil (CEPAST-CNBB, by its Portuguese acronym) — introduced the referenced creed. He called it a “supplication from the youth of Latin America, who stand before God asking him to come to meet us,” and entrusted the creed’s recitation to two young men.
“We do not believe in a static, patriarchal, clerical, and hierarchical Church,” stated the text read by the young men at the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Conception. “We believe in an inclusive, intergenerational community with a voice of its own. We believe in this Church that struggles, ‘casting its lot with the poor of the earth’ in the face of a dominant capitalist system.”
“We believe we are daughters and sons of a ‘Great Homeland’ free from racism and free from rules governing love — embracing all sexual diversity, women, youth, Indigenous peoples, Black people, minorities, and all those at the bottom of the social order.”
The Creed of the Ecclesial Base Communities is part of a suggested liturgy outline for Masses, worship services, and public gatherings marking the 32nd Cry of the Excluded — a mobilization bringing together pastoral groups, Catholic organizations, and social movements, held annually on Brazil’s Independence Day. CEPAST has called upon dioceses, pastoral groups, and grassroots movements to strengthen this mobilization within their respective jurisdictions this year.
In a message released in June regarding the 2026 elections, the CNBB (National Conference of Bishops of Brazil) stated that “the Catholic Church does not endorse candidates or political parties” but affirmed that the Church, “driven by the Gospel and the mission to proclaim it, promotes life and human dignity, and serves the building of the common good.”
Elections, the CEB Creed, and prayers
During the penitential rite, Mass participants asked for forgiveness for “times when we did not take the country’s destiny seriously during elections” and for failing to speak out against “candidacies backed by economic power that will harm the people and potentially even impose authoritarian regimes.”
The other parts of the penitential rite address wars, people living on the streets, real estate speculation, housing movements, violence against women, and femicide.
During the Prayers of the Faithful, an intention regarding the elections was also included: “For this election season, that we may have the discernment not to vote for anyone who seeks to jeopardize Brazil’s sovereignty or harbors plans for a coup. May we not vote for politicians and parties that wish to turn the public good into an object of profit. Sovereignty is not negotiable.” The assembly’s response was: “Deliver us, Lord, from all those who use politics to betray the Brazilian people!”
CEPAST states it did not draft the liturgy guide
CEPAST’s communications office told ACI Digital, the Portuguese-language sister service of EWTN News, that the CNBB commission did not participate in drafting the document. “The ‘Cry of the Excluded’ is a coalition formed by various organizations, and CEPAST did not participate in drafting the liturgy guide,” said Juce Rocha of the commission’s communications team.
The National Coordination of the Cry of the Excluded includes among its participants Catholic pastoral groups, organizations, and social movements such as the Pastoral Land Commission (CPT), Caritas Brazil, the Workers' Pastoral, the Migrants' Pastoral Service, Base Ecclesial Communities (CEBs), the Landless Rural Workers' Movement (MST), the Movement of People Affected by Dams (MAB), the Central of Popular Movements (CMP), and the National Confederation of Education Workers (CNTE).
The national map for this year’s “Cry” documented activities in all regions of the country. In Cachoeiro de Itapemirim, Espírito Santo, a march brought together the faithful, pastoral groups, and representatives of social movements, concluding at St. Peterʼs Cathedral, where Bishop Luiz Fernando Lisboa participated in the mobilization. In Santos, São Paulo, the “Cry” was part of the dioceseʼs official agenda and was attended by Bishop Joaquim Giovani Mol Guimarães.
The same order of service was not followed at all Masses linked to the Cry. At the National Shrine of Aparecida in São Paulo, for instance, the Sept. 7 Mass was celebrated within the context of both the 39th Workers' Pilgrimage and the 32nd Cry of the Excluded. The Mass was celebrated by the archbishop of Aparecida, Mário Antonio da Silva; among the concelebrants was the bishop of the Prelature of Marajó, Pará, José Ionilton Lisboa de Oliveira, president of the Pastoral Land Commission.
The Cry was mentioned during the Mass and the homily, but the program used in Brejo was not adopted for the celebration.
The Cry of the Excluded first emerged during the evaluation of the second Brazilian Social Week — promoted by the CNBB in 1993 and 1994 — as a way to continue the reflections from that process. The initiative was also inspired by the 1995 Fraternity Campaign, which featured the theme “Fraternity and the Excluded” and the motto “Was it you, Lord?”
The first edition took place on Sept. 7, 1995, in 170 locations. In 1996, the CNBB adopted the Cry during its general assembly as part of the Toward the New Millennium Project.
Today, the mobilization is led by a National Coordination body comprising the CNBB’s Commission 8, Catholic pastoral groups and organizations, and various social movements and entities — including the CPT, Cáritas Brasileira, the Workers‘ Pastoral, the Migrants’ Pastoral Service, CEBs, the MST, MAB, CMP, and CNTE.
According to the event’s organizers, the choice of Sept. 7 is intended to provide a “counterpoint” to the official Independence Day commemoration. The date has also been identified by the event’s organizers as a moment for “political awareness” and the struggle for a “new national and global order.”
While the movement’s longtime theme is “Life Comes First!”, the slogan for 2026 is: “In defense of the land, peace, and housing, we raise our voices: Women alive and sovereignty!” National demands include ending the “6x1” (six days of work and one day off) work schedule, ensuring dignified housing, agrarian reform, quality public education, and the defense of the SUS (Unified Health System), as well as combating femicide, racism, and what is termed as “LGBTphobia.”
The event’s website states that the choice of Sept. 7 seeks to offer a “counterpoint to the official history of Brazilʼs independence. Contrasting with the civic and military parades that have traditionally marked the day, it calls upon the people — especially the poor and the excluded — to step down from the grandstands, leave passive patriotism behind, and occupy public squares and streets in defense of their rights.”
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.
U.S. Catholic bishops join Southern Baptists in urging Supreme Court to block ‘finality’ rule
The U.S. Supreme Court should reject the broad application of a long-standing administrative rule that can prevent religious liberty lawsuits from progressing through the courts, U.S. bishops argued this week.
The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops joined with the Southern Baptist Convention’s Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission in filing an amicus brief in support of Daniel Grand, who is petitioning the high court to rule in his favor in a legal dispute with the city of University Heights, Ohio.
Grand filed a lawsuit against the city in September 2022 after the city blocked his efforts to convene a minyan, or Jewish prayer group, of about a dozen friends at his home.
A federal district court dismissed his case on the grounds of a legal concept known as “finality,” a legal principle requiring property owners to obtain a land-use decision from local officials before bringing certain federal court challenges. A federal appeals court also ruled against Grand in the dispute.
In June the Supreme Court said it would consider the finality question. Grand is being represented by the legal group Alliance Defending Freedom.
In their filing, the U.S. bishops and the Baptist leaders said the lower courts erred by misapplying certain finality standards to Grand’s case.
“Forcing a religious plaintiff to exhaust an administrative process before vindicating his rights does not prevent premature adjudication; it imposes the very burden the Constitution forbids,” the religious groups said.
Grand’s religious liberty objections are clear regardless of the outcome of the administrative process, the leaders said.
“His rights are priceless and he has already been prevented from praying and continues to be prevented from praying,” they said, describing the injury to his religious rights as “complete” and “immediately knowable.”
The alleged misapplication of the “finality” rule, they said, requires plaintiffs to “complete a potentially years-long administrative process and wait for a final adverse decision even though the act of subjecting [their] religious practice to that process is itself the constitutional and statutory injury.”
The bishops and the Baptist convention urged the court to reverse the lower court rulings, arguing that religious objectors have standing to bring a lawsuit “as soon as a credible threat arises.”
Grand in his filing with the Supreme Court argued that the finality rule offers “a playbook for government-sponsored religious discrimination.”
Numerous other groups, meanwhile, have filed amicus briefs in support of Grand’s case, including the Religious Freedom Institute, the American Hindu Coalition, the American Muslim League, the American Association of Jewish Lawyers, and several others.
Pope to new bishops: The most important mission is to ‘remain with Jesus’
Pope Leo XIV said the first task bishops must place before every other responsibility is to “remain with Jesus,” because, he emphasized, “we are bishops, but first and foremost we are disciples.”
“To speak about him, we need to be with him; to lead his people, we must allow ourselves, every day, to be led by him. Among the many things you will be called to do as bishops, this is the most important,” he explained.
On Thursday, Sept. 10, the Holy Father received at the Vatican 147 bishops from five continents who participated in formation courses in Rome aimed at strengthening ecclesial communion and providing tools for the exercise of their ministry.
Participants in this yearʼs program came from numerous countries in Africa, Asia, Oceania, and Latin America, including Algeria, Bangladesh, Cameroon, Colombia, Côte d’Ivoire, Ethiopia, the Philippines, Ghana, Honduras, India, Indonesia, Kenya, Madagascar, Mali, Myanmar, Namibia, Papua New Guinea, Peru, the Central African Republic, Senegal, Seychelles, the Solomon Islands, Sri Lanka, South Africa, Vietnam, Zimbabwe, Kyrgyzstan, and Thailand.
“Together you have listened, prayed, celebrated the Eucharist, and shared the hopes and dreams that you carry in your hearts for the Churches that the Lord has just entrusted to your pastoral care. All of this will help you remember something very simple and very precious: No bishop walks alone,” the pope said.
During his address, Leo XIV shared several reflections on the theme of the meeting, “Bishops, Servants of Communion in the Church and in Today’s World.”
A heart of the Good Shepherd
The pope highlighted as a second fundamental aspect the need for bishops to have the “heart of Jesus the Good Shepherd, a heart completely turned toward the Father and, precisely because of this, wholly given to his brothers and sisters.”
“The bishop is a man who learns each day to love his people more deeply: to know the joys and sorrows of his people, to share in their dreams, and to rejoice at the growth of their communities,” he explained.
In this regard, he entrusted them with the task of learning the names of the people who live in their dioceses.
“Learn their names, listen to their stories, enter their homes whenever possible, and pray with them. Especially in young Churches, the presence of the bishop often speaks volumes even before his words do.”
According to the pope, “a visit, a blessing, time given to a priest, listening to a family, dialogue with a young person: These are small gestures, yet they can remain in a person’s heart for a lifetime.”
Another characteristic of the bishop is what tradition calls “sollicitudo pastoralis” — that is, pastoral solicitude or concern.
“This is proper to episcopal fatherhood: having a heart large enough to make room for everyone, carrying your children within you and presenting them each day to the Lord in prayer,” he stressed.
Special care for priests
The pope also invited the prelates to take special care of their priests: “In this regard, dear brothers, I urge you to love your priests. Let each one find in you a father and a brother. Listen to them, encourage them, pray for them, rejoice in the good they accomplish, and accompany them with trust in their ministry. Give particular attention to those who are elderly and ill. Let them feel that they are precious, that the Church is grateful to them, and that the bishop does not forget them. Sometimes a telephone call, a visit, or an affectionate word from you is enough.”
Ministry as a service of love
The Holy Father also recalled another essential dimension of episcopal ministry, described by St. Augustine with a beautiful expression: “amoris officium” — that is, a service of love.
“Our preaching is an act of love, just as listening, prayer, discernment, time given to others, and our presence are acts of love. It is pastoral charity, through which Christ the Shepherd reaches the people he loves through our poor humanity,” he said.
Leo XIV noted that humanity is living through an age marked by rapid change.
“Developments in communication technologies and artificial intelligence have opened possibilities that, until only a few years ago, we could hardly have imagined. Yet they certainly cannot free humanity from sin and its consequences; the crises through which our world is passing tragically demonstrate this,” he said.
In this context, he recalled that the Church celebrated the Jubilee of Hope last year.
“Within a complex and in some respects troubling landscape such as the present one, the Church celebrated last year the Jubilee of Hope. Was this because she lives apart from the world? On the contrary, it is because, through Christ crucified and risen, she is sent to proclaim the Gospel of salvation to everyone. And we bishops are the first recipients of this mandate,” he said.
The pope also referred to his encyclical Magnifica Humanitas, which he said was intended to offer “a vision and a method for addressing the great challenge of safeguarding what is human in the age of artificial intelligence.”
A Church open to everyone
Finally, Leo XIV underscored the missionary dimension of the episcopate and said that bishops must have hearts open to everyone: “not only to those who attend our parishes but also to Christians of other denominations, believers of other religions, people who profess no faith, and all men and women of goodwill.”
“He listens to and respects everyone; he draws close to everyone and knows how to recognize the good that is present in every human heart,” he said.
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.
Synod group calls for gender-equality mechanisms in Church workplaces
The General Secretariat of the Synod on Tuesday, Sept. 8, published the final report of Study Group 6, which presents concrete proposals for renewing relations among bishops, consecrated life, and ecclesial associations, including specific mechanisms to promote greater equality between men and women in Church workplaces.
The document, originally written in Italian and also available in an English translation and a Spanish summary, states: “A clear mechanism for implementing gender equality in the workplace must be developed.”
It also proposes publishing new criteria for approving the establishment of institutes of consecrated life and appointing a delegate for consecrated life in every diocese.
The nonbinding report, which will now be reviewed by Pope Leo XIV, is part of the work undertaken by the 10 study groups created by Pope Francis in 2024 in connection with the Synod on Synodality. The groups are dissolved once their respective final reports have been published.
The working group was coordinated by Cardinal Joseph William Tobin, the archbishop of Newark, New Jersey. Its members included Cardinal Kevin Farrell, prefect of the Dicastery for the Laity, the Family, and Life; Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle, pro-prefect of the Section for the First Evangelization and New Particular Churches of the Dicastery for Evangelization; and Cardinal João Braz de Aviz, prefect emeritus of the Dicastery for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life. Sister Simona Brambilla, prefect of that dicastery, also participated.
One of the report’s main conclusions is that the Church should move toward broader participation by consecrated men and women in discernment and decision-making processes.
It therefore calls on Church leaders to “strengthen the relationship between the conferences of major superiors and the episcopal conferences to include consecrated persons in decision-making processes.”
The experts consider the distinctive charisms of religious life an indispensable contribution to the Church’s evangelizing mission and argue that consecrated people should have a greater presence in bodies where pastoral decisions are made.
The document adds that such participation should not be limited to national bodies but should also extend to the diocesan level.
Clear protocols between dioceses and religious congregations
Another issue addressed in the report is the need for clearer procedures governing institutional relations between dioceses and religious congregations.
“There is a need to develop a standard memorandum of understanding model and accompanying guidelines, taking into account current challenges,” the report states.
According to the experts, these agreements should help prevent disputes and guarantee transparent cooperation between both parties.
The group recommends that such protocols clearly define issues including pastoral responsibilities, the administration of assets, the use of property, and financial matters.
“Issues related to property and remuneration should also be clearly and fairly agreed upon in the memoranda of understanding,” the document states, with the aim of avoiding disputes and adequately protecting the rights of everyone involved.
It also says: “The timely resolution of issues, while respecting privacy and confidentiality, should be prioritized and subject to specific deadlines.”
The study group argues that every Church institution should have mandatory dispute-resolution procedures. It therefore recommends that “the establishment of procedures for resolving conflicts should be made mandatory, through the creation of conciliation committees, particularly for matters relating to property.”
These committees should include representatives of both bishops and consecrated men and women, ensuring the participation of both sides in seeking solutions.
Oversight and accountability
The report also addresses the need to establish effective oversight and accountability systems.
“Relevant statutory measures, with specific deadlines, are necessary to ensure oversight and accountability in relations between bishops and consecrated men and women,” the experts state.
They also emphasize the importance of ensuring that future priests are better acquainted with the realities of consecrated life. The report therefore calls on episcopal conferences to “ensure that the formation of the clergy includes knowledge of consecrated life, both in centers of study and in joint missions involving clergy, consecrated persons, and laity.”
Among the report’s most notable proposals is the possibility of expanding the participation of women religious in certain Church selection processes.
The document proposes allowing “women religious to participate in the process of electing bishops responsible for consecrated life at the national and diocesan levels, and in the election of chaplains for the works of communities of consecrated life.”
Although the report does not specify the mechanisms through which this participation would be implemented, the proposal is one of the most significant initiatives to emerge from Study Group 6, pointing toward a greater presence of women religious in areas traditionally reserved to the clergy.
Seven of the Synod’s 10 original study groups have now published their final reports. Reports are still pending from Study Group 1, on relations between the Eastern Catholic Churches and the Latin Church; Study Group 8, on the role of papal representatives; and Study Group 10, on ecumenism.
Final reports are also pending from two additional groups: one on “the liturgy in a synodal perspective” and another on “the status of episcopal conferences, ecclesial assemblies, and particular councils.” Both were created at the initiative of Leo XIV.
The study groups are also accompanied by three commissions: the Canonical Commission, the Eastern Canonical Commission, and the Symposium of Episcopal Conferences of Africa and Madagascar Commission on Polygamy, which published its final report in March. The reports of the other two commissions remain pending.
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.
University of Notre Dame partners with Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem
The University of Notre Dame and the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem are launching an academic forum to “bring together scholars and practitioners from different faith traditions and disciplines to engage with Jerusalemʼs universal mission and its significance for those who reside within the Holy Land and beyond.”
Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa officially launched the forum, “Within Your Gates: The Forum for the Universal Vocation of Jerusalem,” on Sept. 7, according to a university press release on Sept. 1. The launch event will take place at the university’s academic center in Jerusalem.
“The forum will produce applied interdisciplinary research rooted in Jerusalem’s particular realities and oriented toward questions of daily life that resonate beyond the city and the surrounding region, exploring themes such as the theological significance of Jerusalem, the cityʼs universal vocation, the language of conflict and reconciliation, and agency under conditions of constraint,” the release said.
The forum will be led by Daniel Schwake, director of Notre Dame’s Jerusalem campus, while Pizzaballa will serve as chair on the forum’s Board of Promoters.
Ave Maria University celebrates partnership with Cistercian community
Students and faculty at Ave Maria University’s Ireland campus will celebrate the start of a budding friendship with the Cistercian community at Mount Melleray Abbey with a Mass on Sept. 20.
“Home to a Cistercian monastic community for almost 200 years, Mount Melleray Abbey now enters a new chapter through a partnership between the Cistercian community and Ave Maria University,” the university said in a Sept. 9 press release. “Building upon the Abbey’s enduring tradition of prayer, work and hospitality, the partnership will see Mount Melleray welcome Ave Maria University students as part of the University’s new Ireland study-abroad program beginning this autumn.”
The Mass will be celebrated by Bishop Alphonsus Cullinan of Waterford and Lismore.
“Mount Melleray Abbey has been a place of prayer and hospitality for generations, and we are honored to have the opportunity to contribute to the next chapter in its remarkable history,” Daniel Schreck, chief strategy officer for Ave Maria University, said in the release. “The Abbey forms part of the cultural and spiritual heritage of Ireland, and we take very seriously the responsibility entrusted to us through our partnership with the Cistercian community. The Mass on Sept. 20 represents an important moment for the Cistercians, Ave Maria University, and our many friends in Ireland as we work together to preserve the living tradition of Mount Melleray.”
The launch of the program this fall comes after Ave Maria acquired the abbey following its January 2025 closure due to dwindling numbers among the Cistercian community.
National Catholic Educational Association launches faith-based STEM series
The National Catholic Educational Association (NCEA) and the professional development organization Eduscape are launching a summit series to promote the integration of religion into STEM education for Catholic schools across the country.
The “STREAM Made Simple Summit Series” is a professional development program for Catholic school teachers and principals that “adds religion to the familiar STEAM disciplines of science, technology, engineering, arts, and math,” according to a Sept. 8 press release.
“Summits will be held across the country with many hosted in partnership with a Catholic diocese and each designed to serve up to 300 educators,” the release said.
“The barrier for many Catholic schools has never been conviction. It has been capacity. Teachers are often asked to lead integrated instruction they were never trained to deliver,” the release said. “The STREAM Made Simple approach starts from the opposite end: it invests in teachers first rather than equipment, and it is built so that a school can begin on Monday with the classrooms already in place.”
University of Mary to host fifth annual St. Gianna Medical Professionals Conference
The University of Mary in Bismarck, North Dakota, has announced that the theme of its annual Catholic medical bioethics conference will be “Accompanying the Vulnerable: Catholic Bioethics in a Time of Technological Change.”
“Advances in medicine and technology must always serve the person, especially those who are most vulnerable,” Mary Dockter, dean of the College of Health Professions at the University of Mary, said in an Aug. 31 press release. “While our graduates must be competent in technological advancements, our hope is that they always ask themselves, just because we can do something, should we?”
The Dec. 4-5 conference will feature nine speakers, including Marilyn Coors, associate professor emerita of bioethics at the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus; Mariele Courtois, director of the Center for Technology and Human Dignity and assistant professor of moral theology at Benedictine College; and Natalie King, a palliative medicine physician, according to the release.
The speakers will address artificial intelligence, genetic engineering, end-of-life care, reproductive loss, mental health, and the relationship between technology and human dignity.
New EWTN travel series takes viewers to the birthplace of Christianity
Beginning Sept. 17, a new travel show by EWTN Studios will take viewers on a journey to key places where Christianity began. The series, “The Road Less Traveled,” is hosted by Dave Stotts and its first season takes place in Turkey.
Viewers will get a unique look into places like Antioch, the birthplace of Christianity, the underground cities of Cappadocia, Ephesus, Constantinople (present-day Istanbul), and other key spots where the early Church was formed.
Stotts is a longtime on-location storyteller who has spent more than 20 years exploring the world, most notably in his series “Drive Thru History” aired on TBN. With a deep passion for the story of Christianity and how it has spread across the world, he brings viewers face-to-face with the places that have shaped the faith and invites audiences to rediscover the important figures and saints who impacted modern Christianity.
In an interview with EWTN News, Stotts explained that during his time doing “Drive Thru History” he “experienced firsthand the impact that Christian history can have.”
“In ‘The Road Less Traveled,’ we go even further — down forgotten roads and off the beaten path — to come face-to-face with the lives of saints, martyrs, and heroes of the Catholic past. Seeing their witness has the power to ignite our own faith in powerful ways today,” he said. “We wanted to explore this history on location and inspire viewers through a fast-paced, adventurous learning experience.”
The travel-show host explained that the first season of “The Road Less Traveled” begins “where the Gospel first spread — Syrian Antioch, where believers were first called ‘Christians’ and where the Cave Church of St. Peter still stands.”
“From there, we follow the roads to the underground churches of Cappadocia, then to the breathtaking ruins of ancient Ephesus, where St. Paulʼs preaching turned the cityʼs paganism upside down. Next, we travel to the seven churches of Revelation and explore each of the letters St. John wrote to them in the Book of Revelation,” Stotts explained.
While in ancient Myra, the show uncovers the story of St. Nicholas, the fourth-century bishop whose legacy lives on today as Santa Claus.
Viewers are then taken to ancient Nicaea, where the Church formulated Christianityʼs most foundational creed.
“Finally, we end the series in ancient Constantinople — present-day Istanbul — where we stand in the breathtaking Hagia Sophia and discover how the Christian faith helped shape history itself,” Stotts said.
Recalling one of the most impactful moments he had while recording the series, Stotts spoke about descending nearly 200 feet to the lowest level of Derinkuyu in ancient Cappadocia.
“There we explored what was once a hidden, rock-hewn, cross-shaped church— carved entirely out of volcanic rock,” he recalled. “It was inspiring to see the lengths, and depths, that persecuted Christians were willing to go to practice their faith. I came away challenged to live my own faith with that same kind of courage today.”
He added: “It can be easy to take the faith weʼve inherited for granted. But exploring history has the power to give us a fresh appreciation for the faith we practice today.”
Stotts said he hopes viewers “will not only see the world-shaping impact of the early Christians but also be inspired to pattern our own lives after their courageous witness.”
“The Road Less Traveled” debuts on Sept. 17 and can be watched for free on EWTN+ and on EWTN.com.
Catholic mother denied vaccine exemption in New York
The U.S. Supreme Court this week denied an emergency request that would have allowed a Catholic mother in New York to send her 5-year-old son to kindergarten without the vaccinations required by state law.
The mother, identified in court papers as Jane Doe, wanted her son, C.F., to start at Waverly School in Eastchester this month and is seeking a religious exemption to required vaccines. New York dropped religious exemptions from school vaccine rules in 2019 after a measles outbreak, however, though medical exemptions remain.
Doe had asked the Supreme Court for a temporary injunction so C.F. could start school as the fight continues in court.
Two other courts had already denied her request for a temporary injunction. A federal judge in New York and then a three-judge U.S. Court of Appeals for the 2nd Circuit panel turned her down. The application was then presented to Justice Sonia Sotomayor, the circuit justice for the 2nd Circuit, who referred it to the full Supreme Court, which denied it. Justices Samuel Alito and Neil Gorsuch said they would have granted it.
The unsigned order does not address the case’s merits, and Doe’s underlying appeal remains pending in the 2nd Circuit.
State officials have said a religious carve-out would undercut efforts to keep disease from spreading among children, pointing to an earlier appeals court ruling that left the vaccine law in place.
Doe, who is Catholic, says the state policy puts her faith and her child’s schooling at odds. In an April statement she gave the school, she wrote that her beliefs now “require me to categorically refuse vaccination for myself and for my children.”
Referring to the abortions from which fetal cells were taken to produce the original vaccines, she said: “The taking of an innocent human life is a grave sin. My Catholic beliefs have always held this.” She said that for her and her son, vaccination would be “a genuine, serious sin.”
“I will not do it,” she stated.
She also expressed serious reservations about other aspects of vaccine development: “Defiling the blood by mixing it with the blood of animals, with the remains of aborted human beings, or with foreign biological material, violates God’s Word,” she said, according to her statement of religious beliefs filed in the case. “Vaccination injects biological material derived from unclean sources directly into the bloodstream. My faith forbids this.”
Church teaching on conscience and vaccination
While the Church does not teach that the use of biological materials from nonhuman animals is categorically wrong, it absolutely condemns abortion and the use of tissue from aborted fetuses used to create the original cell lines. It teaches that a parent may receive or give a child a vaccine developed with those cell lines when there is no alternative and there is a serious health reason. The vaccine recipient’s participation in the evil act of abortion, the Church teaches, is “remote,” and therefore permitted.
However, in the 2008 instruction Dignitas Personae, the Church said that Catholics utilizing vaccines have “a duty” to let drugmakers and their healthcare providers know they oppose the way the vaccines were developed and demand vaccines created without the use of aborted fetal cells.
A 2020 note from the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith says vaccination “is not, as a rule, a moral obligation and that, therefore, it must be voluntary.” Those who refuse for reasons of conscience, it adds, should take other steps so they do not spread disease.
New York law has a provision that children unvaccinated for medical reasons must stay at home during outbreaks, and Doe agreed to abide by that if granted an exemption.
According to the Catechism of the Catholic Church, a person must not be forced to act against a conscience formed well through Scripture, reason, and Church teaching, even when others would make a different choice. Forcing one to act against his or her conscience could be a sin against charity, which calls for others to respect the consciences of others.
The catechism also teaches that “[m]an has the right to act in conscience and in freedom so as personally to make moral decisions. ‘He must not be forced to act contrary to his conscience. Nor must he be prevented from acting according to his conscience.’”
U.S. bishops urge Supreme Court to rule against indefinite detention of noncitizens
The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) is asking the U.S. Supreme Court to rule in favor of stronger due process rights for noncitizens who are facing deportation proceedings and against indefinite detention without judicial review.
In a legal filing to the Supreme Court, the USCCB and the Catholic Legal Immigration Network (CLINIC) argued that stronger due process protections would help uphold the human dignity of noncitizens and safeguard the common good, based on Catholic teaching.
The bishops sent the petition in relation to the ongoing case Genalo v. Keisy G.M., in which a U.S. permanent resident from the Dominican Republic argues that Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) violated his Fifth Amendment right to due process.
Keisy G.M., whose full name is not public, was detained for 21 months. Although he did appear before a judge, he did not receive a bond hearing to determine whether he could be released on bond.
In spite of his permanent residency status, he faced deportation proceedings after he was convicted of felonious assault. He was later pardoned by the State of New York, ending the threat of deportation.
Dignity of the human person
In their legal brief, the bishops argued that due process protections are consistent with the law, American tradition, and Catholic teaching, saying “executive detention has never been wholly insulated from judicial scrutiny,” adding that “this accords with Catholic social teaching, which recognizes both the legitimate authority of the state and the dignity of the individual.”
“Indefinite confinement without individualized review by a neutral tribunal is anathema to our constitutional system and the ordered liberty it enshrines,” the bishops said. “The consequences of abandoning that system are severe and concrete.”
“Prolonged detention can cost people their jobs, homes, health, and the ability to participate meaningfully in their own legal proceedings,” they said. “It can separate parents from children, destabilize entire families, and inflict harms that cannot be undone by eventual release. Although such detention may at times be necessary to further important state interests, such as ensuring public safety, it must be subject to justification before a neutral tribunal.”
In the court filing, they cited Pope John XXIII’s 1963 encyclical Pacem in Terris, which teaches that “the common good is best safeguarded when personal rights and duties are guaranteed.”
Quoting from the document, they said authorities must “ensure that these rights are recognized, respected, co-ordinated, defended and promoted, and that each individual is enabled to perform his duties more easily” because “safeguard[ing] the inviolable rights of the human person” and “facilitat[ing] the performance of his duties” is “the principal duty of every public authority.”
The bishops also quoted Archbishop Paul Gallagher, the Holy See’s secretary for relations with states, from his statement during the general debate at the opening of the 80th session of the United Nations General Assembly’s high‑level week.
In his statement, Gallagher said the “principles of equality before the law, accountability, the equitable application of the law, the separation of [four] powers, legal certainty, due process, the prevention of arbitrariness, as well as transparency in both procedural and legal matters, must always be observed.”
“Those principles,” the bishops continued, “are effectuated by procedures that require the government to justify significant deprivations of liberty based on individualized circumstances rather than categorical assumptions.”
Oral arguments for the case are scheduled for Oct. 13. Keisy G.M. is represented by the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and other civil liberties organizations.
Love is not a feeling but a decision, Pope Leo XIV tells couples
Pope Leo XIV reflects on human love in the prologue to the new edition of “YouCat: Love Forever,” emphasizing that it is not a fleeting feeling but rather “a decision, a journey, and a lifelong covenant.”
This version of the catechism, aimed at young people preparing for the vocation of marriage, is scheduled for release in November. The first edition of this catechism was published one week after the passing of Pope Francis in May 2025.
“Your heart longs for love, a deep, passionate, and enduring love,” notes Leo XIV, emphasizing that this desire is no accident but rather “a sign that you were created for love.”
Reflecting on this teaching, Pope Leo emphasizes that "God himself can make his presence felt within human love and transform it," such that “he endows us with the capacity to love as he loves: by serving through a generous gift of one’s self, and if necessary, by forgiving."
Regarding love between a man and a woman, the pope says it “may pierce the heart like an arrow, swiftly and impetuously,” yet it does not stop there, for “it is not an ephemeral or fleeting sentiment.”
“It is much more,” the pope adds. “It is a profound ‘yes’ to the other, a decision, a journey, and a lifelong covenant,” when it reflects Godʼs love.
He further explains that “solid, deep relationships are built together on mutual trust, on that ‘forever’ that beats at the heart of every vocation,” with a love that “asks first: ‘How can I love as Christ has loved?’ and puts the question ‘What will I receive?’ in the background.”
Loving to the point of death: ‘The DNA of Christianity’
The Holy Father also takes the opportunity to explain to young people that something of the divine mystery is revealed in marriage: “When a man and a woman give themselves completely to one another in love, God comes alive in their midst. Their fidelity, their forgiveness, and their daily striving for the good are a reflection of Christʼs love for his Church.”
He also encourages young people not to fear the depth of the “great love” to which they are called, because “it is strong enough to overcome difficulties and great enough to sustain you throughout your entire life.”
This love “is not perfect, but grows in the light of faith”; it is “a gift from God, and we cannot produce it on our own.” Unlike human love, often clouded by selfish desires, it “is selfless, patient, and kind, possessing all those wonderful qualities St. Paul lists in the Letter to the Corinthians.”
The pontiff writes that “we behold the most beautiful image of true love when we look at the cross of Jesus Christ,” which confirms that “he loves us so much that he was willing to die for us. This is the DNA of Christianity, the commandment of Christ.”
Finally, Pope Leo expresses his appreciation for the new edition, which features numerous testimonies from young people in over 30 countries, testifying “that the ideal to which Christ calls us is a fascinating treasure” and constitutes an invitation to open oneʼs heart “to a plan greater than any human dream.”
It serves as preparation for a “yes” that is good not just for a day, but for a lifetime; a “yes” that, like Godʼs love, is tireless and faithful, the pope explains, saying he prays that young people respond “with confidence and courage to the most beautiful of all vocations: the vocation to love.”
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.