Ss. Cyril and Methodius Ukrainian Catholic Church

FBI investigators arrive at the scene where a pickup truck crashed into a work lift after allegedly driving into a crowd of New Year’s revelers in the French Quarter of New Orleans on Jan. 1, 2025. / Credit: MATTHEW HINTON/AFP via Getty Images

CNA Staff, Jan 1, 2025 / 11:50 am (CNA).

Archbishop Gregory Aymond of New Orleans offered prayers Wednesday morning after the driver of a pickup truck drove into a crowd of people at a New Year’s celebration on the city’s famed Bourbon Street, killing at least 15 and injuring dozens of others. The incident is being investigated by the FBI as an act of terrorism, according to the Associated Press.

“Our prayers go out to those killed and injured in this morning’s horrific attack on Bourbon Street,” Aymond said in a brief statement released on the archdiocese’s website and Facebook page. “This violent act is a sign of utter disrespect for human life.”

According to police, the driver — who was identified by the FBI on Wednesday afternoon as 42-year-old Shamsud-Din Bahar Jabbar, a U.S. citizen from Texas — sped through a crowd on Bourbon Street at about 3:15 a.m. Wednesday as partygoers were celebrating the start of the new year. At least 15 people were killed and 35 others were injured and taken to five area hospitals. After the vehicle stopped, the suspect reportedly exchanged gunfire with police and was killed, the AP reported. At least two officers were wounded and taken to a local hospital.

“I join with others in the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of New Orleans in offering prayerful support to the victims’ families,” Aymond’s statement continued. “I give thanks for the heroic duty of hundreds of law enforcement and medical personnel in the face of such evil.”

Police Commissioner Anne Kirkpatrick said the driver was “hell-bent on creating the carnage and the damage that he did” and tried “to run over as many people as he could,” according to the AP.

Officials said the truck Jabbar drove had on it a flag of the Islamic State. The vehicle also had weapons and a “potential” explosive device, the New York Times reported, and other potential explosives were found in the French Quarter.

The city of New Orleans is host to this year’s college football Sugar Bowl game between No. 2-ranked Georgia and No. 3 Notre Dame. On Wednesday afternoon it was announced that the game, which was scheduled to be played that evening, would be postponed, the Times reported.

Wednesday’s incident comes a couple of weeks after a car driven by a Saudi Arabian immigrant rammed into a crowd at a Christmas market in the central German city of Magdeburg, killing five people, according to media reports.

This story was updated on Jan. 1, 2025, at 1:57 p.m. ET with information on the identity of the driver, at 2:26 p.m. ET with information about the Sugar Bowl, and at 6:14 p.m. ET with the updated death toll.

Supporters of former president Donald Trump watch as he holds a rally in the historically Democratic district of the South Bronx on May 23, 2024, in New York City. / Credit: Spencer Platt/Getty Images

Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Jan 1, 2025 / 09:00 am (CNA).

Both Latino and white Catholic voters shifted toward President-elect Donald Trump in the 2024 presidential election, according to the first post-election survey that breaks down Catholic voters by their ethnicities.

Trump defeated Vice President Kamala Harris with 312 Electoral College votes compared with her 226 Electoral College votes and won the national popular vote by nearly 2.3 million people. Exit polls showed that he won the overall Catholic vote by a double-digit margin on Election Day after losing that demographic to Joe Biden in 2020.

According to a survey published by the Public Religion Research Institute (PRRI) in December 2024, a large portion of Trump’s improved performance among Catholics came from Latino voters while a smaller part came from white voters.

The survey was conducted Nov. 8–Dec. 2, 2024, and included a sample of 4,757 adults who said they had voted in the 2024 election. The margin of error for the full sample is +/- 1.9 percentage points.

Large shift from Latino Catholic voters

Although Trump still lost the Latino Catholic vote, the survey suggests a much narrower win for Harris than other Democrats have claimed in recent history. The poll found that Harris won 55% of Latino Catholic voters, with Trump winning 43% of that demographic.

Harris’ 12-point margin of victory among Latino Catholics was much narrower than Biden’s victory among the demographic in 2020. That year, Biden claimed a massive 35-point margin with 66% of the Latino Catholic vote compared with Trump’s 31%, according to the Pew Research Center. If those numbers are accurate, this suggests a 23-point shift in Trump’s favor over just four years.

This is also a large shift from former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s margin of victory with Latino Catholics, which she won by a 59-point margin by securing about 78% of the vote with Trump only winning 19%, according to a separate Pew poll. This suggests a 47-point shift in the president-elect’s favor over eight years.

Trump’s support from Latino Catholic voters in the 2024 election was also much larger than the support received by former Republican nominees in recent years.

Former President Barack Obama won the Latino Catholic vote by a 46-point margin in his 2008 presidential victory and by a larger 54-point margin in his 2012 reelection, according to the Pew Research Center. Former President George W. Bush lost the Latino Catholic vote by 32 points in the 2000 election and in the 2004 election.

Smaller growth among white Catholic voters

Trump’s support from white Catholics also grew in the 2024 election, according to the PRRI survey. 

The president-elect won 59% of the white Catholic vote compared with Harris, who received just 39% of that demographic — a 20-point margin of victory. This was a five-point improvement over his 15-point margin of victory in 2020 when he secured 57% of white Catholic voters compared with Biden’s 42%, according to Pew. 

Trump failed to match his 2016 margin of victory, when he won the white Catholic vote by 64% compared with Clinton’s 31%, based on Pew numbers. In that election, Trump won white Catholics by a larger 33-point margin.

Previous years also showed white Catholic voters supporting Republican nominees. According to Pew numbers, former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney won the white Catholic vote by 19 points in 2012 against Obama. Former Sen. John McCain won the demographic by only five points against Obama in 2008. 

In 2004, Bush won white Catholics by a 13-point margin, and in 2000 he won the demographic by a seven-point margin. 

Trump’s pitch to Catholic voters

During the last few weeks of his 2024 presidential campaign, Trump made a strong push to garner support from Catholic voters.

In a speech, Trump accused Harris of being “destructive to Christianity” and said that Catholics were “treated worse than anybody” by Democrats. He also criticized Harris for skipping the annual Al Smith dinner, which is hosted by Cardinal Timothy Dolan of the Archdiocese of New York, calling it “deeply disrespectful to the event and in particular to our great Catholic community.” 

Vice President-elect JD Vance, a convert to Catholicism, said during a speech that many Catholics “rightfully feel abandoned” by Biden and Harris. He also penned an op-ed that accused Harris of having prejudice against Catholics for her record on religious liberty and hostile questions directed toward judicial nominees for being members of the Knights of Columbus.

St. Peter’s Basilica. / Credit: Thoom/Shutterstock

ACI Prensa Staff, Jan 1, 2025 / 06:00 am (CNA).

On foot, by bicycle, and even on horseback, throngs of pilgrims arrive each day at the tomb of St. Peter in the Vatican, the goal of a journey undertaken by many as an act of faith. There are a number of routes that pilgrims can take on their journey to Rome, and one of the most iconic is the Romea Strata, a historic road that has guided travelers from Central and Eastern Europe to Rome.

Before becoming a pilgrimage route, it was used for multiple purposes, including trade, and was traveled by historical figures such as Copernicus, Kepler, and Galileo Galilei as well as other figures who spread Christianity.

For the Jubilee Year 2025, the experience of arriving in the Eternal City will take on a new direction thanks to the fact that the last stage of the journey has been completely reconfigured with the reconditioning of a disused stretch of railway and a permanent reception center at the entrance to the basilica.

Rome is preparing to welcome more than 30 million pilgrims from all over the world during the jubilee year. But what steps should pilgrims take when arriving in the Eternal City? The Romea Strata project provides an answer.

Volunteers will assist the pilgrims

First of all, those who wish to make visiting the tomb of St. Peter the high point of their pilgrimage can go to the reception and assistance service located on one of the sides of the basilica, next to “Angels Unawares,” a large sculpture depicting migrants and refugees.

There, volunteers from the Romea Strata initiative, promoted by the Fabric of St. Peter (responsible for conserving and maintaining the basilica and for visitors) and the Homo Viator-San Teobaldo Foundation of the Diocese of Vicenza, will guide the pilgrims to exclusive access to the basilica during the celebration of the daily pilgrim Mass, thus avoiding the long lines of tourists.

In addition, a system for digitizing and systematizing travelers’ data has been implemented, and those who have traveled at least 60 miles will be able to obtain the “Testimonium,” a certificate on parchment with the images of St. Peter and St. Paul.

This service to pilgrims, which began last May, will be maintained permanently during the jubilee. According to the Fabric of St. Peter, 3,700 Testimonia were issued between June and October 2024.

Cardinal Mauro Gambetti, archpriest of St. Peter’s Basilica and president of the Fabric of St. Peter, noted that this “attention [to needs] and outreach allows them to feel more welcomed and received at this unique place, beloved by all the faithful of the world.”

“In this way, recollection and the time of interiority that come about during the silence of the long journey of faith are encouraged,” he emphasized.

The new route

One of the most significant innovations of the project is the change made to the last stretch of the route that bypasses the Via Trionfale for a new, simpler, safer, and more pleasant journey.

According to the Fabric of St. Peter, this way allows a new entrance to the basilica, significantly improving the experience and offering an incomparable view of the city.

“This new access will not only improve security but will offer a unique experience, allowing us to intensely experience the spirituality that characterizes our journey toward the New Jerusalem,” said Father Raimondo Sinibaldi, president of the Homo Viator Foundation.

The RFI (Italian Railway Network) and the city government are working to recondition a disused stretch of the railway, including the Monte Ciocci tunnel, closed for almost a decade. This project not only aims to enhance the landscape but also to create an appropriate atmosphere for the arrival at St. Peter’s.

The presentation of the new Romea Strata guide will be announced soon. It will include a detailed description of over 600 miles of the route, highlighting not only its historical significance but also points of sociocultural interest and the landscape. It will be an essential tool for all pilgrims, offering practical and narrative details.

This story was first published by ACI Prensa, CNA’s Spanish-language news partner. It has been translated and adapted by CNA.

Andrei Rublev, “The Nativity,” 1405. / Credit: Public domain

National Catholic Register, Jan 1, 2025 / 04:00 am (CNA).

As a Catholic feast day, Jan. 1 has historically brought various strands together. For a long time, it was called the “Circumcision of the Lord” because, on the octave day of Christmas and in accordance with Jewish law (Gn 17:12; Lk 2:21) Jesus was circumcised. From the time of Abraham forward, circumcision was the sign of inclusion in God’s covenant with Israel. 

Starting on Jan. 1, 1968, Pope Paul VI also designated Jan. 1 as “World Day of Peace,” eventually even introducing an optional votive Mass for the observance.

What the Church has not observed on Jan. 1 is the beginning of the civil new year. The ecclesiastical new year begins on the first Sunday of Advent when the Church year returns to the beginning of the life of Christ by marking preparation for his birth. Historically, the civil new year began on various days, including March 25 (the solemnity of the Annunciation, marking Jesus’ conception and nine months before Christmas). While many European countries switched to Jan. 1 in the 16th century, Britain and the 13 colonies kept the Marian-focused new year correlated to Jesus’ conception until 1752.

Since the Roman Calendar Reform of 1969, the Church observes Jan. 1 as the solemnity of Mary, Mother of God. This is not, however, an observance pulled out of whole cloth. Honoring Mary as the mother of God on Jan. 1 is, in fact, the earliest celebration of this date in the Roman Church. 

Speaking of Mary as “Theotokos,” the “God-bearer” or “mother of God,” is not just simply a nice way of stating the obvious. The title was tied up with the early Church’s Christological disputes.

Nestorius was a fifth-century heretic. He rejected the title “Theotokos” because of his underlying (and deficient) Christology. Catholic theology teaches that Jesus Christ is one person who has two natures — divine and human. Jesus is completely God and completely man by virtue of two, complete natures. But Jesus is not two people; he is one person. 

Nestorius rejected that teaching. According to him, Mary is “mother of Jesus” the man but not “mother of God.” 

Nestorius’ position is schizophrenic, turning Jesus into two persons — one divine, one human. The early heretics who held to such views basically adopted positions akin to the ancient Gnostics who, regarding the body as evil, sought to escape it. The almost universal common thread running through the early heresies in Christianity was an effort to deny some aspect of Jesus’ humanity, making that humanity in some way incomplete or inoperative. Put simply, all those visions founder on the clear teaching of Scripture that Jesus was “a man like us in all things but sin” (Heb 2:17).

Because Mary’s son is truly one person — “true God and true man” as the Council of Chalcedon would later teach — the Person to whom Mary gave birth was both fully human and fully divine. And because he is both, she is “Mother of God.”

“Nature” is, after all, something of an abstract concept. Because we all have human “nature,” we share common characteristics of humanity, e.g., being subject to space and time, being flesh and spirit and, since the Fall, being weakened as a result of sin. But we do not encounter abstract “natures” running down the street. We only meet real persons with human natures (because there are no nature-less persons). So why would we think Mary gave birth to an abstraction?

If Jesus is not true God, he cannot save us. He’s a wise teacher, a gentle model, and maybe an all-round-good-guy, but he’s not God and, if he’s not, he’s as impotent as every other human being to save us. 

If Jesus is not true man, he cannot save us. He may be the Almighty God, but he cannot stand in for, represent, or do anything in our name. God’s relation to us would be wholly extrinsic. But God wants us involved in the work of our redemption.

Either the person Jesus is “true God and true man” — and Mary is the mother of that person, or Christmas is a lie.

Catholic teaching has held together the mystery of “one person/two natures” from the beginning. That is why, already at the Council of Ephesus in A.D. 431, the council fathers called Our Lady what we celebrate today: “Theotokos, Mother of God.”

These are not just ancient debates. What we say about Christology also expresses what we believe about human anthropology, who we are. Our modern culture often divides the human person from human nature, reducing our nature — which is an integral part of our humanity — to something thought to be “subpersonal,” instrumental, subject to manipulation. Catholic theology resists this because what our quasi-Gnostic mentality calls “subpersonal” is actually quite personal, and since persons should be loved and not used, attacks on human nature are hardly “loving.” They are attacks on the human person, integrally considered. St. John Paul II worked tirelessly to emphasize that truth.

Today’s feast is represented in the 15th-century icon “The Nativity,” prayed by Andrei Rublev. In the Orthodox tradition, sacred images of icons are not “painted,” “made,” or “created,” but they are written and “prayed,” trusting that God’s inspiration is guiding the earthly hand. Rublev prayed this icon for the Orthodox Cathedral of the Annunciation in Moscow.

Like medieval Western art, icons do not adhere to the simple canons of space and time that “realistic art” does. Because an icon speaks of spiritual realities, its depictions gather multiple symbols, concepts, and events together to express the spiritual truth the icon represents. Icons are a glimpse at heavenly realities, and our human understanding of heaven is limited. Because icons are a glimpse of heaven, this is typically why they are golden and limited to spiritual realities, without added “extras” like landscapes or temporal scenes. 

In the “Theotokos” icon, the Mother of God is front and center. She is the largest person in the icon, on her birthing bed. Her Son, wrapped in swaddling clothes, is in the adjacent manger, animals closest to him, angels above him. The manger is in a cave, symbolizing the darkness of human sinfulness that, in entering this world, Jesus comes to save us from. The shepherds approach on the right, passing by a plant that Orthodox commentators say is a “Jesse Tree,” affirming Jesus’ Davidic lineage. In the upper left, the three Wise Men are also approaching. Help and assistance is also found on the right: in the upper right, angels adore and wait to minister, in the lower right, Orthodox commentators say are human midwives. Where that notion would come from, given the abandonment of Mary and Joseph in overbooked Bethlehem, I cannot say. Furthermore, since tradition holds that Mary’s giving birth was painless (since pain in childbirth is presented in Scripture (Gn 3:16) as part of the punishment of sin, i.e., that nature and even one’s body rebels against and resists the person), one further wonders where this Orthodox notion may have come from. In the bottom left is Joseph, somewhat isolated since his role is that of foster father, not father. Again, some Orthodox commentators say that the figure adjacent to him is a devil, tempting his pride about his limited role in these events.

Rublev is honored by art historians for being the start of a new and distinctive style into Russian icons, one softer and less severe, particularly in color. Perhaps his best-known icon in the Western world is the “Icon of the Holy Trinity,” in which the three Persons are represented by the three angels mentioned (Gn 18:1-13) as visitors in Abraham’s tent who promise that, within a year, Sara and Abraham would have a son. 

The Church calls her sons and daughters at this beginning of the new year to honor the Mother of God — who is also our mother (see John 19:27). The redemption of humanity began with Mary, who agreed to be the mother of the Lord. There is no better person for good beginnings.

This story was first published by the National Catholic Register, CNA's sister news partner, on Jan. 2, 2022, and has been adapted by CNA.

Participants pray during a peace walk in Baltimore promoted by the Archdiocese of Baltimore, Monday, Dec. 30, 2024. / Credit: Yvonne Wenger

CNA Staff, Dec 31, 2024 / 14:00 pm (CNA).

Catholics in the Archdiocese of Baltimore gathered on Monday night to participate in an interfaith community prayer service in the city memorializing victims of homicide there. 

The coalition of faith leaders and other community organizers met at St. Joseph’s Monastery Parish in the city’s Irvington neighborhood before holding a prayer walk to My Brother’s Keeper, a nonprofit community resource service run by Catholic Charities. 

The names of the city’s homicide victims were read aloud during the 15-minute walk. The city has recorded roughly 200 homicides throughout 2024, down from earlier years but still significantly higher than the national average. 

The walk was facilitated in part by the Archdiocese of Baltimore’s Grief Ministry, which works to “accompany families who have lost a loved one to violence.”

Yvonne Wenger, a spokeswoman for the archdiocese, told CNA that the 2024 event was the second such walk. A similar prayer service was held last year. 

In a press release the archdiocese said the grief ministry works “through partnerships with the Baltimore Police Department and Roberta’s House, a nonprofit family grief support center.”

The prayer event was “also part of the ongoing efforts of Health By Southwest to improve and reform the social drivers of health through a partnership with St. Joseph’s Monastery, Catholic Charities, My Brother’s Keeper, Mount Saint Joseph High School, the archdiocese, and Ascension Saint Agnes Hospital,” the archdiocese said. 

The archdiocese has for years been active in promoting peace initiatives in Baltimore, which for decades has been one of America’s most violent cities. The city infamously went from 1978 to 2012 with yearly homicides in excess of 200, peaking in 1993 at 353.

In 2023 the archdiocese launched a gun buyback program in an effort to get dangerous weapons off the streets. Church officials obtained over 360 guns at the cost of about $50,000.

In a second gun buyback program in August, the archdiocese aimed to get even more guns out of the city. The program ultimately raised $70,000 to buy back the guns, with remaining funds going to the grief ministry. 

In total the programs took nearly 650 weapons off the streets, “including over 50 semi-automatic guns and a handful of stolen weapons,” the archdiocese said.

St. Mary’s Basilica in Phoenix. / Credit: Sarunyu L/Shutterstock

CNA Staff, Dec 31, 2024 / 13:30 pm (CNA).

Two of Arizona’s Catholic bishops joined last week with a group of other Christian leaders in the state to express their “grave concern” over “the threat of mistreatment of undocumented persons who are our neighbors and contribute to our communities.”

“While we recognize the lawful right of nations to monitor and control their borders, we also recognize that in many ways our current U.S. immigration laws do not uphold individuals’ rights to a dignified life, family unity, and safety,” wrote a group of 10 Arizona Christian leaders in a Dec. 28 AZ Central column. 

“[G]rounded by the demands of the gospel of Jesus Christ and love of our neighbors — our deeply held religious beliefs — we urge our elected officials and community leaders to stand with us to protect family unity and human dignity by refusing to participate in any deportation efforts that violate these most basic human rights.”

The signers of the op-ed included Bishop John Dolan of the Diocese of Phoenix and Bishop Edward J. Weisenburger of Tucson as well as several other Christian leaders of various denominations. 

Of “special concern,” the leaders wrote, are reports that President-elect Donald Trump plans to end a long-standing U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) policy requiring ICE agents to seek their superior’s approval before arresting people at “sensitive locations” such as churches, hospitals, or schools. 

The “sensitive locations” policy began in 2011 with a memo from then-ICE director John Morton, which precludes ICE agents from carrying out immigration enforcement actions in locations like hospitals, places of worship, schools, or during events such as weddings or parades unless there is an urgent need, such as a person who poses an imminent threat, or if the agents have sought higher approval to do so.

Unconfirmed reports suggest Trump plans to rescind the policy as soon as his first day in office, following recommendations put forth in the influential Project 2025 document, which says ICE should rely on “the good judgment of officers in the field to avoid inappropriate situations.”

The Arizona Christian leaders argued that raids at “sensitive locations” like churches would violate basic human rights, including religious freedom and the right to family unity, and undermine societal stability by discouraging undocumented immigrants from seeking essential services.

“While the practice of religion is a basic human right recognized by most international organizations, we note that for those living in America it is part of the very foundation upon which our nation was built,” the leaders wrote. 

“We find it unacceptable that undocumented persons might be intimidated from going to a church and thereby exercising their right to the practice of religion. We also assert that the disruption of any religious gathering for deportation purposes is equally an assault on our own right to the free exercise of our religion.”

Further, the leaders wrote, law enforcement personnel — federal, state, or local — should “​​​consider how their actions might be seen in the eyes of God,” and those who conscientiously object to deportation raids that they deem unjust ought to be respected and not forced to take part in them. 

“We likewise reiterate the call to our nation’s federal legislature to create an immigration system that is fair, reasonable, and recognizes the human dignity of all persons,” the op-ed concludes. 

The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, as well as individual bishops and state bishops’ conferences, have spoken frequently to urge the government to reform the immigration system with “fair and humane treatment” of immigrants.

Trump, meanwhile, has frequently touted a planned program of mass deportations of illegal immigrants, a plan that bishops and other Catholic leaders have criticized as inhumane.

Eucharistic Adoration at Lucas Oil Stadium during the National Eucharistic Congress in Indianapolis, July 17-21, 2024. / Credit: Jonah McKeown/CNA

CNA Staff, Dec 31, 2024 / 09:00 am (CNA).

2024 was filled with memorable and impactful moments for Catholics around the world. 

The faithful witnessed the beauty of Jesus in the Eucharist crisscrossing the United States, bringing tens of thousands together at the National Eucharistic Congress in Indianapolis. There was also the exciting news of the canonization dates of two beloved soon-to-be saints — Carlo Acutis and Pier Giorgio Frassati. And Catholics everywhere were reminded of the Church’s universality as Pope Francis embarked on his longest papal trip to date visiting Southeast Asia and Oceania.

Here are some of the top Catholic news stories from 2024.

National Eucharistic Congress in Indianapolis

The 2024 National Eucharistic Congress was a capstone event during the third year of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ initiative to renew faith in the Eucharistic Lord. The five-day congress was held in Indianapolis from July 17–21 in Lucas Oil Stadium drawing over 50,000 Catholics of every age and background. 

The gathering was the 10th National Eucharistic Congress in the U.S. but the first since the beginning of World War II. 

A plethora of Catholic figures gave powerful testimonies including Father Mike Schmitz, Bishop Andrew Cozzens, and Sister Josephine Garrett and attendees — as well as viewers from around the world — witnessed the powerful images from the congress.

Paris Summer Olympics

The 2024 Paris Summer Olympics, which took place from July 26 through Aug. 11, made headlines for several reasons. The opening ceremonies included a drag-queen-led parody of the Last Supper, sparking a wave of reactions from Catholic leaders around the world, including the Vatican, which called it an “offense done to many Christians.”

Despite the auspicious beginning to the games, Christian athletes didn’t hide their faith, with several making a point to thank God for their medal wins. Tennis player Novak Djokovic made the sign of the cross several times after his match, in which he won the gold medal, and a Brazilian skateboarder used sign language to quote Scripture before her bronze medal win.

Pope Francis’ longest papal trip

From Sept. 2–11, Pope Francis embarked on his longest papal trip to date visiting Catholics in Indonesia, Papua New Guinea, East Timor, and Singapore. The pope’s tour of Southeast Asia and Oceania was his first international journey of the year following a period of slowed travel due to his age and health issues. 

Along the way, the Holy Father was greeted by the people of these countries who shared their joy at the Holy Father’s presence among them. 

One highlight of the trip was Pope Francis’ Mass in East Timor where 600,000 Catholics were in attendance.

Vatican announces news about Medjugorje 

The faithful received important news from the Vatican regarding Medjugorje, a popular pilgrimage site in Bosnia and Herzegovina. The Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith granted a “nihil obstat” to the spiritual experience at Medjugorje. The authoritative judgment meant that pilgrims may continue to visit and pray at the site, as some 40 million people from around the world have done since the apparitions allegedly first began 43 years ago. 

While the Vatican’s report offered no definitive judgment on the supernatural authenticity of the alleged apparitions, it highlighted the abundant good fruits that have come from Medjugorje.

The Synod on Synodality 

The Synod on Synodality, initiated by Pope Francis in October 2021, was a multiyear process to enhance the communion, participation, and mission of the Church. The final session, which took place in October 2024, produced a final report. 

The 52-page document, approved by 355 synod members in attendance, outlines substantial proposals for Church renewal. The proposals include expanded women’s leadership roles, greater lay participation in decision-making, and significant structural reforms.

Announcement of the canonizations of Carlo Acutis and Pier Giorgio Frassati

On Nov. 20, the Vatican announced the highly anticipated canonization dates of Blessed Carlo Acutis and Blessed Pier Giorgio Frassati. Acutis’ canonization will occur during the Church’s Jubilee of Teenagers taking place April 25–27, 2025, and Frassati’s canonization will take place during the Jubilee of Youth from July 28 to Aug. 3, 2025.

Both soon-to-be saints are beloved by many Catholics for their enthusiastic pursuit of holiness. The two canonizations are expected to bring many young people to the Eternal City in 2025 for the Catholic Church’s Jubilee of Hope.

Reopening of Notre Dame Cathedral

On April 15, 2019, the historic Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris suffered a devastating fire that left it severely damaged. But just a few weeks ago, on Dec. 7, the bells of Notre Dame rang again during the grand reopening of the Catholic landmark. On the following day, Dec. 8, the solemnity of the Immaculate Conception, the first Mass was celebrated in which the altar of the restored cathedral was consecrated.

Some 170 bishops from the country and from around the world concelebrated with the archbishop of Paris, Laurent Ulrich, as well as one priest from each of the 106 parishes of the Archdiocese of Paris and one priest from each of the seven Eastern-rite Catholic churches in the archdiocese.

Creation of new cardinals 

Pope Francis created 21 new cardinals, including the archbishops of Tehran, Tokyo, and Toronto, at a consistory on Dec. 7. Out of the 21 cardinals who were created in Pope Francis’ 10th consistory at the Vatican, 10 new cardinals — almost half — were members of religious congregations or institutes. One cardinal that particularly stood out was Cardinal Mykola Bychok, CSSR, the bishop of the Eparchy of Sts. Peter and Paul in Melbourne for Ukrainian Catholics in Australia, New Zealand, and Oceania. At age 44, he became the world’s youngest cardinal. 

Ascension’s new podcast “The Rosary in a Year” with Father Mark-Mary Ames, CFR, begins Jan. 1, 2025. / Credit: Ascension

CNA Staff, Dec 31, 2024 / 07:00 am (CNA).

First came “The Bible in a Year,” then “The Catechism in a Year” — now comes “The Rosary in a Year,” Ascension’s newest podcast that will begin on Jan. 1, 2025. 

Hosted by Father Mark-Mary Ames of the Franciscan Friars of the Renewal, the podcast will consist of daily 15-minute episodes that will guide listeners through a deeper encounter with all the elements of the rosary.

Ames, who experienced a conversion at age 18, spoke about his own journey with praying the rosary and how he hopes the new podcast might help those who experience barriers while praying the rosary.

Soon after his conversion, Ames said, he began praying the rosary daily. However, “at the beginning, to be honest, it was a little bit of a struggle,” he told CNA in an interview.

“I wasn’t really taught how to do it and so I had this thing I was supposed to do every day, but I [didn’t] really know how to do it,” he explained. “So, what ended up happening is it became ... [a bit like] having a 15-minute phone call on the phone but nobody was on the other line … a one-sided thing. I’m saying these things but there’s not really a connection to God.”

Ames admitted that he stopped praying the rosary for a period of time but was able to make it a daily habit again after years of growing in his faith, especially as he entered religious life. 

He pointed out that he has come across a lot of people who struggle to pray the rosary due to a “sort of lack of maybe formation in it or guidance in it” and hopes that “through some accompaniment, some formation and understanding of like what we’re supposed to be doing, what the mysteries mean, that actually it will be something that is a huge source of grace for everybody who’s praying it.”

“The Rosary in a Year” podcast aims to serve as that form of accompaniment and guidance by taking listeners through six phases of deepening their understanding of the rosary. These include looking at what it means to pray in general and focusing on the actual prayers of the rosary and what they mean. The longest phase will be diving deeper into the mysteries of the rosary, practicing “lectio divina” and “visio divina,” reflections from the saints, and finally praying the rosary.

Ames said he hopes these phases will help to build “the muscle of prayer.”

“I think there’s a reason the rosary is so popular across demographics, across centuries, [and it’s] because it is really in many ways a great unmatched means of prayer,” he said.

As the new year approaches and with many people making new year’s resolutions, Ames said an “ongoing, consistent resolution should be ‘I want to make the next best step in my prayer life or develop a prayer life,’ which is really a struggle for a lot of people.”

Ames said he hopes those who listen to the podcast will “grow in their life of prayer and that particularly they fall in love, maybe for the first time, maybe again, with prayer and with the Lord and with Our Lady and with the rosary because they experience the rosary as this privileged doorway in which they get to encounter the Lord.”

“What we have to aspire to is to be saints,” the relatives of the late Belgian King Baudouin recall him urging. / Credit: Photo courtesy of the Baudouin family

Madrid, Spain, Dec 30, 2024 / 11:55 am (CNA).

After praying silently at King Baudouin’s tomb during his recent trip to Belgium, Pope Francis announced the opening of the king’s beatification process, news long awaited above all by those who knew him and witnessed a life dedicated to attaining holiness.

“He saw Jesus in people’s faces. He looked at you as if you were unique in the world, he made you aware of your existence and gave you dignity,” they said. This is the mark that King Baudouin left on those he crossed paths with, even if only for a moment. These are the words of one of the two relatives of Baudouin and of his wife, Fabiola de Mora y Aragón, who spoke to ACI Prensa, CNA’s Spanish-language news partner, and whose names will not be revealed out of respect for the family’s privacy.

In the interview, the relatives reflected on how King Baudouin’s faith helped him to transmit values ​​such as solidarity, respect for human dignity, and the defense of life in all circumstances, becoming a unifying figure in society.

He decided to take Mary as a mother

One of the moments that marked the life of the monarch was the early loss of his mother, Astrid of Sweden, in a car accident when Baudouin was 4 years old.

It was then that he decided to “take the Virgin as his mother,” something he himself explained years later. “From then on, Mary probably protected him in a very special way and guided his spiritual life,” one of his relatives said.

“He really had a very strong relationship with Mary. He used to say that he wanted to be like a fetus in her womb, to be unable to do anything without her and to live only through her, not even to breathe without her, to be totally dependent. He often called out to her and addressed her as mom,” the relative added.

Both relatives highlighted other crucial events in the king’s life, especially during his childhood and adolescence, such as his father’s second marriage and the years of exile after the Nazi invasion during World War II. “It was a very difficult time and it was hard to go through it as a child,” they explained.

Baudouin came to the throne at age 19, and the beginning of his reign was marked by a deep crisis known as the “Royal Question” related to the controversy over the decisions of his father, Leopold III, during World War II.

“He suffered a lot because of all this, but I know that it was his faith that helped him overcome it,” one of the relatives said.

His upbringing was greatly affected by a Dominican priest from Switzerland who “had a great spiritual influence” during his youth. He was also guided by Cardinal Leo Jozef Suenens, whose meeting with him in the autumn of 1959 left a deep mark on him until the day of his death.

The cardinal, together with Veronica O’Brien, a Legion of Mary missionary to whom he was introduced in March 1960, were fundamental in King Baudouin’s spiritual life.

He wanted to be a martyr

“He said that when he got to know Jesus, he wanted to be a martyr. He wanted to go to Africa, Asia, wherever, and die as a martyr. Of course, he couldn’t do that because he knew that one day he would be a king and he had to serve his country. So, he decided to be a saint and a martyr in his own way, in his position,” one of his relatives said.

“And he suffered a lot physically, emotionally, and spiritually. When he suffered, I remember he said: ‘Thank you, Jesus.’ He gave thanks because, through the suffering, he felt that he was helping him carry his cross,” the relative added.

He saw Jesus in people’s faces

One of the relatives remembers that “from a very early age, Baudouin had a personal and special relationship with God, dedicating his life to seeing in others the face of Christ and especially of the abandoned Jesus in those who suffered.”

“The respect he had for each person he met was due to the fact that he saw Jesus in that person, regardless of religion; he respected that person as a child of God, seeing Jesus.”

The relatives said the testimonies of those who knew him agree on the same thing: “He lived in the present moment, he looked at you as if you were unique in the world; he saw Jesus in everyone.”

State visits ended in his private chapel

Baudouin’s faith profoundly influenced his way of governing the country, impacting his official visits and the politicians he met in Belgium, even in very difficult situations.

“Many heads of state and personalities who came to meet him, in the end, regardless of their religion or beliefs, or whether they didn’t believe in anything, ended up in the private chapel with the king. And they were praying together, or he prayed with them. Such an experience would undoubtedly have deeply touched the hearts of these people,” his relatives told ACI Prensa.

They said these personalities accepted the king’s invitation because “they knew there was something about this man. You felt love emanating from him. I think people felt there was something different about the way he treated them. Maybe they didn’t understand it, but there was something supernatural about him, he was extraordinary; he was out of the ordinary. Even if you weren’t a spiritual person or didn’t believe in God, you knew this person was special.”

“There have been people who have been so impacted by his gaze that even years later, they still have in their hearts the way he looked at them. He radiated love, the love of God radiated through his gaze.”

They also pointed out that “he always promoted dialogue and peace, because he prayed a lot, he never stopped doing so, he always prayed before the Blessed Sacrament before receiving any personality.”

They also pointed out that “he was very open to the inspiration of the Holy Spirit and was very humble; he was an instrument of peace and dialogue in this country, because he had the ability to unite people for the common good, something that is not always easy in a political situation or when forming a government with different parties.”

“I think people never left an audience with the king the same — something changed in their hearts, and I am sure that it also influenced the political mentality. He left no one indifferent. Even though he was a king, in the end you felt at ease, although he was also zealous for his privacy and his spirituality, which he referred to as ‘his secret garden.’”

‘He told me about his love for God and that marked me forever’

One of the relatives got emotional when remembering how she felt drawn to him since she was a child. “I don’t know how to explain it, but I always wanted to be by his side. And at 17 years old I understood it, because he told me about his love for God, and that marked me and changed my life forever.”

“It was the first time someone told me about his personal relationship with God; it was very impressive, at that moment I understood why I felt drawn to him and that was when I converted, because I knew that God existed, but I didn’t know that I could have a relationship with him, and I understood that it was possible… He explained it to me and encouraged me to live this faith.”

They emphasized that in the family “everyone was drawn to him” and that he always “tried to evangelize with respect, both with the different personalities and with our family. For us it was a privilege to know him,” they added.

One of the most special places for King Baudouin was “Villa Astrida,” his summer home in the town of Motril in Granada province, Spain, where he died on July 31, 1993, at the age of 62 from a sudden heart attack.

“There he always tried to evangelize by sharing his faith, especially during the summers, with his example, with what he said and with the prayer groups that he organized especially with the youngest members of the family.”

Both relatives smiled as they recalled his joy: “He had a great sense of humor and always tried to make the family enjoy themselves. Motril was like a piece of joy; when people talk about Motril, they all say it was a paradise.”

“What was also special was being able to go to Mass in the chapel every day and pray the rosary. There was a long corridor and we could put out all the chairs for those who wanted to come. The invitation was always freely given,” they explained.

They emphasized that everyone in the family “was touched in some way” and that, in fact, several nephews and nieces, now priests or nuns, discovered their vocation thanks to him. “But many of us, with different vocations, were somehow transformed.”

The ‘extraordinary’ marital union of the royals

Regarding the marriage of the royals, the relatives said their example was “extraordinary.”

“They were a very close couple, above all because of their tenderness; they were not afraid to show it even with gestures of affection. They looked at each other with such tenderness, holding hands, by the arm.”

They remembered that Baudouin “didn’t mind hugging her in public and would give her a big kiss on the cheek and say things like, ‘You are the life of my heart and the heart of my life.’”

“I have never seen anything like that. Never. They had a tenderness and a spiritual love, because they both wanted to serve Jesus and both saw Jesus in the other. They were very aware that they had the mission of bringing Jesus to others as a couple, in their position.”

He ‘asked Jesus to act through his hands’

During his audiences, official visits and meetings with the people, Baudoin would shake hands with a large number of people. He was aware of this and “asked Jesus to act through his hands.”

“He wanted people to know Jesus when he greeted them, with the touch of his hands, so he prayed to be an instrument and to be able to transmit Jesus; especially when shaking hands, he asked to be a means to bring Christ to others.”

Baudouin, according to his relatives, was aware of this, and that is why he said: “I use my hands, when the people touch me, so that I can transmit the Lord. And who knows, the Lord can use them in different ways, even to heal or convert.”

“He was very specific about this. I don’t know if we will ever know, but I think that many people were converted and were healed spiritually, emotionally, and who knows if physically, through his hands,” one of them commented.

A shepherd to his people

The relatives remembered how people who were suffering attracted Baudouin “like a magnet,” since he had “a special sensitivity toward them — he tried to transmit Jesus to them, to love them and make them see that they were children of God and immensely loved by him.”

“I remember in particular how deeply he was affected by the victims of human trafficking. In the context of the Convention on the Rights of the Child at the U.N., Baudouin was able to talk to people who explained to him the reality of this tragedy.”

“He told us, and I know he did,” the relative continued, “that he would go and see in private, without anyone knowing, people who were suffering from this. The king went to Antwerp and met in private with women who had been victims of prostitution and human trafficking. He went to see them to comfort them, listen to them, hug them, and cry with them.”

It was one of them, a Filipina, who shared her testimony at the king’s funeral. “However, she was unable to do so because she kept crying. She said she had lost a friend.”

They pointed out that he also went to see people in palliative care, dying and sick people, without telling the press. “At home it was the same, I remember when I heard him say that he was going to see the cook’s wife, who had cancer. He went to see her at night in the hospital.”

“The same way in the government. A minister lost his son and he went to console his family, very discreetly. He was the shepherd of his people; everyone was important to him, as Cardinal Godfried Danneels described him in the homily at his funeral.”

Beatification process

The relatives said the news of the opening of Baudouin’s beatification process was received by the family “with great joy; we couldn’t believe it, it’s incredible.” Pope Francis, one of them added, “could have made the decision on his own and so it happened. In the family we also understood that it was probably the best decision and that he really didn’t do it randomly.”

“How long will the process take? Who knows. That’s not in our hands. But we can no longer turn back, that is certain,” they said.

The day before the announcement, Sept. 28, was the “Global Day for Access to Legal and Safe Abortion,” something that, they say, “probably gave Pope Francis the impetus.”

“He decided to speak very forcefully about abortion, with very tough words, which really disturbed many people,” the relatives said and praised the king for his brave stance on this issue.

“I remember an anecdote from years ago, when a friend of mine had the opportunity to give Pope Francis during a general audience the first book written about the king by Cardinal Suenens, [‘Baudouin, King of the Belgians: The Hidden Life’]. It was quite a few years ago, and when giving it to him, Pope Francis said to him: ‘How long will it take to make him a saint?’”

They also pointed out that the Holy Father knew the life and testimony of King Baudouin because the well-known Queen Fabiola University Clinic was located in Córdoba, Argentina.

His opposition to abortion

One of the most significant moments of Baudouin’s reign was when, on April 3, 1990, he found himself in the position of having to sign the law that decriminalized abortion in the country.

The relatives pointed out that, despite what the majority claims, he did not resign, but rather “the government devised a solution” in which the council of ministers noted the impossibility of reigning for reasons of [conflict of] conscience, which was addressed in Article 82 of the Constitution.”

“After declaring the king’s inability to reign, the law was ratified, and then the House of Representatives had to vote again if they considered that the inability to reign had ended,” they explained. Therefore, they emphasized that “he made the decision anyway and assumed all the consequences,” since he stopped reigning for 36 hours.

They remembered that “those days he suffered a lot, both [he and his wife] suffered a lot, because they were in a position where they didn’t know what was going to happen, and also because he knew that not signing the abortion law could bring even greater division to the country.”

He asked, they added, “that people support him by prayer in making a decision. But he was fully aware that he had made the decision with God and with his conscience, which was very impressive.”

They recalled with emotion how in those days, a woman who worked at the palace of Laeken and who had an appointment with a doctor to have an abortion “cancelled the appointment when she heard what the king had done.”

“When he heard what had happened, he said: ‘Just for this, everything I have been through has been worth it.’”

Defender of the dignity of women

The relatives lamented that there are people who think that, in making this decision, the king did not take into account women’s rights. “I think it is very important to establish the truth — the king had enormous respect for the dignity of women.”

“I know this from all the women he went to see in difficult situations, but also because he held meetings with women from different fields, writers, scientists, politicians, etc. He was very aware of the suffering of women in certain situations. The episode about abortion was a decision made with God and his conscience to defend life.”

As an example of his defense of women’s dignity, they cited an initiative he took to organize a summit aimed at promoting rural women.

“He asked the secretary-general of the United Nations to organize it and brought together almost all the women heads of state and government from around the world in Geneva.”

The relatives reiterated that he had “the mission of really helping women to be respected, to get out of poverty, to be able to climb the social ladder, to promote their work… He always defended women and their dignity.”

A life of holiness

The decision not to sign the abortion law was certainly an episode that marked the king’s life. However, they stressed: “It‘s not the only one that could be used to declare him a saint, because to take such a step, with all the consequences, means that you have to have led an incredibly deep spiritual life beforehand. It was his life of prayer, his spiritual maturity, and his love for God, which prepared him, without knowing it, to make such a decision. It was not something sudden.”

They particularly highlighted his life of prayer: “He would spend hours in front of the Blessed Sacrament. We usually had Mass early in the morning and, if you arrived earlier, he would be sitting there in front of the Blessed Sacrament. And many times, during the night, he would wake up and simply go to the chapel to pray. And in Motril too, you would enter the chapel and he would be there. His whole life was a witness to the living Christ.”

“As he said, what we have to aspire to is to be saints. So he really wanted that and he tried to live that holiness throughout his whole life,” one of them added.

If he were to be recognized as a saint, they said, “we would like him to be remembered as the ‘shepherd king,’ for his simplicity and humility. And for him to be an example for all heads of government and heads of state, as Pope Francis said.”

This story was first published by ACI Prensa, CNA’s Spanish-language news partner. It has been translated and adapted by CNA.

Blessing of a plane at Dublin Airport. / Credit: Dublin Airport Authority (DAA)

Dublin, Ireland, Dec 30, 2024 / 09:30 am (CNA).

Dublin Airport’s tradition of blessing aircraft entered a new chapter in 2024 with the appointment of a Nigerian-born priest as chaplain, ensuring the continuation of a custom that dates back 77 years.

The ceremony, which was moved from its traditional Christmas Day timing to earlier in December this year, maintains its role as a significant moment in the airport’s calendar. The arrival of Father Justin Obijuru made this possible after a six-month vacancy following the departure of longtime chaplain Father Des Doyle.

“I’m quite excited to take up this particular role as chaplain,” said Obijuru, who is currently pursuing a master’s degree at Maynooth Pontifical University.

“When the appointment came, I was really happy; it gave me a sense of belonging.”

Earlier concerns about new aviation security protocols threatening the ceremony’s future were resolved in April when the Dublin Airport Authority (DAA) confirmed its continuation. The DAA emphasized the inclusive nature of this year’s ceremony by inviting representatives from various faiths.

Doyle, who served as chaplain for 16 years, recalled conducting the blessings each year after the final Christmas Mass.

“It always had a tremendous positive reaction,” he said. He noted how the ceremony has adapted to reflect changes in modern Irish society while maintaining its core purpose.

The blessing’s rich history is documented in Ireland’s national archives.

RTÉ, the national broadcaster, preserves notable footage from May 1967 showing a guard of honor formed by Aer Lingus flight and ground crews lining the tarmac. The silent newsreel captures the local parish priest, Father Daniel Barrett, performing the blessing alongside Father John Fenelon, the airport chaplain. A choir appears, singing as a litany of Irish saints is recited. The depicted May ceremony would be the last of its kind, as the blessing would move to Christmas Day later that year.

The Irish Film Institute’s archives include additional historical documentation, notably a 1962 Radharc Series documentary about Catholic saints and the Aer Lingus fleet.

Obijuru’s appointment and the ceremony’s adaptation to current airport operations demonstrate the continued evolution of this distinctive Dublin Airport tradition, which began in 1947 with the blessing of a single Aer Lingus aircraft.