Ss. Cyril and Methodius Ukrainian Catholic Church

Cathedral of the Sacred Heart, Rochester, New York. / Credit: DanielPenfield via Wikimedia (CC BY-SA 3.0)

CNA Staff, Sep 8, 2025 / 12:37 pm (CNA).

One of the nation’s largest sexual abuse settlements unfolded in a federal bankruptcy court in Rochester, New York, on Friday, bringing about resolution for the nearly 500 survivors of child sex abuse by clergy within the Diocese of Rochester.

After a six-year legal battle, the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Western District of New York approved a $246 million settlement, which will average approximately $500,000 per survivor.

The settlement concludes a process that began when the diocese filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in 2019 following the passage of the New York Child Victims Act, which allows abuse victims to file civil lawsuits until they are 55 years old. The law temporarily lifted the statute of limitations, enabling survivors to pursue claims against their abusers.

Bankruptcy attorney Ilan Scharf described the day as a “milestone for survivors in the Rochester area after being the first bankruptcy filed in New York” after the passage of the Child Victims Act.

Survivors expressed a mix of emotions, with many ready to move forward.

Gregory Stanley noted: “The healing can start now, which is more important than the money. I’m just glad it’s over.” Merle Sweet echoed this sentiment, saying: “Relief. It’s all finally over,” while John McHugh added: “I am actually, for the first time, excited for the future.”

Attorney Mitchell Garabedian, representing 97 victims, emphasized the survivors’ resilience, stating in a press release that the process validated their experiences and contributed to a safer world for children, setting an example of determination for others globally.

Survivor Carol Dupre shared the profound impact on her community. “This was a real wounding of a lot of people and their families. There’s literally thousands upon thousands of people that have been negatively affected by what happened to us,” she said.

Bishop Salvatore Matano of the Diocese of Rochester addressed the media after the settlement, offering a message of hope and regret. “I pray that this is certainly a step toward their healing,” he said of the victims. “I apologize to them. I deeply regret what transpired in their lives, which, as the judge said, never should have happened.”

He continued: “While this process legally concludes today, I take them in my heart every day of my life, and every time I approach the altar, they will be in my memory, asking the good Lord to give them the strength and the courage to continue on, and that they be blessed in the years ahead.”

Matano issued a letter the same day in which he said the “settlement provisions can be effectuated” in the next several weeks. Of the $246 million settlement, $55 million will be paid by the diocese and affiliated entities, according to the letter, and the rest by the diocese’s insurers.

The bishop concluded the letter addressing abusers, saying he entrusts “them to Jesus, the final judge, and I pray they have acknowledged their offenses and used their remaining years to seek his mercy and have prayed fervently for those they have hurt.”

Tom Vander Woude with two of his grandchildren, Michael and Bobby Vander Woude (from left to right). The Diocese of Arlington, Virginia, is investigating Tom Vander Woude’s cause for sainthood almost two decades after he died saving his son. / Credit: Photo courtesy of the Tom Vander Woude Guild

CNA Staff, Sep 8, 2025 / 06:00 am (CNA).

Suffocation awaited a young man with Down syndrome when the eroded surface of a toxic sewage tank crumbled beneath his feet.

Joseph Vander Woude would have died alone in the cramped tank surrounded by toxic fumes, but his father jumped in, pushing him toward the surface with his last breath.

Even as his lungs filled with toxic gases, Tom called out to the farmhand who was trying to pull Joseph out.

“You pull, I’ll push,” he said.

Tom eventually faded into unconsciousness, still propping Joseph up until emergency responders pulled them both out of the 7-foot-deep tank.

By the time they did, Tom was dead.

It was Sept. 8, 2008, when Tom, 66, left behind his wife and seven sons. But Tom’s legacy wouldn’t end there.

Seventeen years later, a group of Catholics is now working with the Diocese of Arlington, Virginia, to open his cause for sainthood.

“You’re shocked that he’s gone, and you miss him, and you don’t know what’s going to replace that void, if it ever will be replaced,” his fifth son, Chris Vander Woude, told CNA. “But then you’re like, that’s a hero.” 

More than 1,500 people attended Tom’s funeral Mass, including the local bishop, more than 75 priests, and more than 60 altar boys.

Tom’s story continues to resonate. A guild founded in his name is interviewing those who knew him, while the diocese has named a postulator and vice postulator to investigate his cause for sainthood.

Depending on what they find, his case could go to Rome.

Signs of holiness

In the Catholic Church, three things can put you on the path to sainthood: martyrdom, heroic virtue, and now — after a 2017 move by Pope Francis to expand sainthood — a sacrificial death. 

Keith Henderson never knew Tom, but as he learned about him, he was inspired to found the Tom Vander Woude Guild that is advocating for his cause by sharing his story. Alongside the guild, the Diocese of Arlington has taken several preliminary steps to open his cause, including naming a postulator and vice postulator, who are investigating and promoting the cause.

As Henderson has learned more about Tom, he found that “his entire life was one of tremendous faith and selfless service to everyone he met.”

“His selfless life and death serve as a model for how laypeople can pursue holiness in the 21st century,” he told CNA.

“He was very joyful. His charity abounds,” Chris added. “He was always helping people.”

But at the same time, Tom was ordinary.

Chris remembers his dad as “quiet” and more of a “St. Joseph character.” Born on April 24, 1942, Tom was a “South Dakota farmer boy” who married his high school sweetheart, Mary Ellen. It was a “country boy meets city girl” type of love story, Chris said. 

Tom would go on to become many more things — math whiz, Navy pilot, commercial pilot, farmer, father, and now, potential saint. 

“He was just an ordinary sort of a guy who made an extraordinary impact in so many ways, and on so many people during his life,” Henderson said.

By all accounts, Tom was a busy man: a commercial pilot with a demanding schedule, an attentive father of seven, and a dedicated farmer.

But Tom attended daily Mass often, prayed the rosary every day, and made a weekly Holy Hour from 2 to 3 a.m. — odd hours due to his flying schedule. 

“Dad was the unquestioned leader and protector of the family, and he led spiritually, too,” Chris said. “No matter what dad did that day, if it was flying or farming, he was on his knees saying the rosary.” 

Getting Josie off the sidelines 

For Chris it has been “surreal” to share his father’s story. People are praying for his father’s intercession in all sorts of scenarios — often related to having a child with special needs, Chris said. 

Tom’s third-oldest son, Dan Vander Woude, recalled how Tom went out of his way to ensure that Joseph, affectionately known as “Josie” by his family, was included.

When he was young, part of Joseph’s physical therapy entailed crawling on the ground. Tom was right there with him, crawling on the floor. 

When a grown-up Dan asked his father to coach a JV basketball team, Tom was all in — as long as Joseph could be there, too.

“I thought Joseph would simply do the warm-ups with the team and cheer them on from the bench,” Dan recalled. 

But to Dan’s surprise, during one basketball game, Tom had convinced the other coach and the referees to let Joseph play.

“Joseph went into the game and wasted no time getting a couple of fouls and chucking up some long shots,” Dan said. “Joseph was beaming because Dad had given him the opportunity to play in a real game.”

“I was deeply moved that my dad was always committed to getting Joseph off the sidelines and into the game — in basketball and all areas of life,” Dan said. 

‘Just do the right thing’

After the sewage tank accident, Joseph spent several days at the hospital recovering. Healthy now, Joseph takes care of his 81-year-old mother on the family farm. 

“Seventeen years later, Joseph actually takes care of Mom,” Chris said. “It’s just amazing to see God’s plan and providence.”

Joseph carries the groceries, gets the door for his mom, and offers her his arm when she needs it. 

“You always see Joseph and mom together — very similar to early on, you always saw Joseph and dad together in his last few years,” Chris said. 

Tom’s family continues to grow, with 39 grandchildren and 11 great-grandchildren. His eldest son, Father Tom Vander Woude, is a Catholic priest. 

Chris had decided to spread his father’s story after telling it to a parish in Boston one day. 

“Many people were crying,” he recalled. “They were on the edge of their seats. A lot of it resonates with them.”

“Knowing that people were grateful for being able to hear the story — that was a big catalyst,” he said. “If they were grateful, there’s probably a lot of other people out there that would love to hear his story.” 

Since then, Chris is set on sharing his father’s story. In addition to several podcasts and talks he has given at local Virginia parishes and in Maryland, he plans to speak at parishes in Virginia, Indiana, Ohio, Texas, New York City, and several other states. 

“He’s a very humble man, so he’s probably not very happy with all the notoriety,” Chris said. 

Tom wasn’t one to turn a phrase, but Chris does remember a simple saying of his dad’s. Tom used to say: “Just do the right thing,” Chris recalled. “Usually, that’s pretty simple. We’re the ones that make it more complicated by thinking of all the different circumstances or possibilities.”

“Dad never aimed to do anything extraordinary. He just aimed to live every day as best he can,” Chris said. “And so I think that’s an example for all of us.”

A painting of St. Joachim, the little Virgin Mary, and St. Anne in the Church of San Francesco in Reggio Emilia, Italy. / Credit: Renata Sedmakova/Shutterstock

CNA Staff, Sep 8, 2025 / 04:00 am (CNA).

The Catholic Church celebrates the birth of the Blessed Virgin Mary on its traditional fixed date of Sept. 8, nine months after the Dec. 8 celebration of her immaculate conception as the child of Sts. Joachim and Anne.

The circumstances of the Virgin Mary’s infancy and early life are not directly recorded in the Bible, but other documents, legends, and traditions describing the circumstances of her birth are cited by some of the earliest Christian writers from the first centuries of the Church.

These accounts are not included in the canon of Scripture and thus lack authority, but they do reflect some of the Church’s traditional beliefs about the birth of Mary.

One such non-Scriptural source is the early second century “Protoevangelium of James,” an infancy gospel offering pious legends about Mary that nevertheless affirms some of the earliest teachings of the Church on the Blessed Mother.

The Protoevangelium describes Mary’s father, Joachim, as a wealthy member of one of the 12 tribes of Israel. Joachim was deeply grieved, along with his wife, Anne, by their childlessness. “He called to mind Abraham,” the early Christian writing says, “that in the last day God gave him a son, Isaac.”

Joachim and Anne began to devote themselves extensively and rigorously to prayer and fasting, initially wondering whether their inability to conceive a child might signify God’s displeasure with them.

As it turned out, however, the couple was to be blessed even more abundantly than Abraham and Sarah, as an angel revealed to Anne when he appeared to her and prophesied that all generations would honor their future child: “The Lord has heard your prayer, and you shall conceive, and shall bring forth; and your seed shall be spoken of in all the world.”

After Mary’s birth, according to the “Protoevangelium of James,” Anne “made a sanctuary” in the infant girl’s room and “allowed nothing common or unclean” on account of the special holiness of the child. The same writing records that when she was 1 year old, her father “made a great feast and invited the priests, and the scribes, and the elders, and all the people of Israel.”

“And Joachim brought the child to the priests,” the account continues, “and they blessed her, saying: ‘O God of our fathers, bless this child, and give her an everlasting name to be named in all generations’ ... And he brought her to the chief priests; and they blessed her, saying: ‘O God most high, look upon this child, and bless her with the utmost blessing, which shall be for ever.’”

The protoevangelium goes on to describe how Mary’s parents, along with the Temple priests, subsequently decided that she would be offered to God as a consecrated virgin for the rest of her life and enter a chaste marriage with the carpenter Joseph.

St. Augustine described the birth of the Blessed Virgin Mary as an event of cosmic and historic significance and an appropriate prelude to the birth of Jesus Christ. “She is the flower of the field from whom bloomed the precious lily of the valley,” he said.

The fourth-century bishop, whose theology profoundly shaped the Western Church’s understanding of sin and human nature, affirmed that “through her birth, the nature inherited from our first parents is changed.”

This story was first published on Sept. 5, 2010, and has been updated.

The Vatican Gardens at Castel Gandolfo. / Credit: Courtney Mares/CNA

CNA Staff, Sep 7, 2025 / 14:56 pm (CNA).

Pope Leo XIV announced a historic partnership between the Vatican and two famous Chicago restaurateurs, Art Smith and Phil Stefani, to open a restaurant at Borgo Laudato Si’, a 135-acre “zero environmental impact” complex in Castel Gandolfo, Italy. 

Pope Leo XIV inaugurated the project during a livestreamed ceremony on Sept. 5, viewed at a Chicago watch party attended by Stefani, Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson, and other prominent figures.

The new restaurant will be located at Borgo Laudato Si’, which is within the historic Papal Villas, a 17th-century summer residence for popes. The site promotes Pope Francis’ teachings on environmental stewardship.

At the inauguration of Borgo Laudato Si’ village on Friday, Pope Leo XIV said it “is one of the Church’s initiatives aimed at realizing the ‘vocation to be custodians of God’s handiwork.’”

Earlier this year, a committee led by the late Pope Francis selected Smith and Stefani to oversee the unprecedented project, which will debut in spring 2026 as the estate’s sole restaurant and caterer, serving breakfast and lunch, and will include a small market.

The restaurant will serve Italian fare made from fresh, locally-sourced food with international influences, blending Chicago and Peruvian flavors in honor of Pope Leo XIV. 

Ingredients will come from a solar-powered greenhouse within Borgo Laudato Si’, which is modeled after St. Peter’s Square’s colonnade, and other local sources. The complex, which includes gardens, vineyards, training programs in organic farming, pesticide-free winemaking and olive harvesting, will also offer retreats for business leaders and ecology education programs.

The ecological complex also includes state-of-the-art insulation, photovoltaic, and circular water management systems.

Smith, a James Beard Award winner and former personal chef to Oprah Winfrey, is celebrated for his work with Common Threads, a nonprofit, and currently runs Reunion and Blue Door Kitchen & Garden in Chicago. 

Stefani, whose Italian restaurant empire began in 1980 with Stefani’s, operates the Stefani Restaurant Group, running Tavern on Rush, Stefani Prime, Tuscany, Castaways Beach Club, Stefani’s Bottega Italiana, and Broken English Taco Pub. 

“As a Catholic and Italian, this project is a dream for my family and me,” Stefani said. “To be part of a culinary experience on Vatican property is deeply meaningful to us. But we also share this honor with the city of Chicago. We have the unique opportunity to bring a taste of home, some of that unique Chicago spirit, to a global audience.” 

Johnson called Smith and Stefani “true Chicago legends” and the partnership a “striking and serendipitous win” for the city.

Another Chicago tie is Father Manuel Dorantes, appointed administrative management director of the Laudato Si’ Center for Higher Education in November 2024. Previously pastor of St. Mary of the Lake-Our Lady of Lourdes Parish on Chicago’s North Side, Dorantes joined Pope Leo XIV at Friday’s ceremony.

Carlo Acutis. / Credit: carloacutis.com

ACI Prensa Staff, Sep 6, 2025 / 13:00 pm (CNA).

Domenico Sorrentino, the bishop of Assisi, Italy, where the remains of Blessed Carlo Acutis rest, sent a message of encouragement to young people just prior to Pope Leo XIV’s declaring Acutis a saint of the Catholic Church along with another young Italian, Pier Giorgio Frassati.

“Dear faithful and most beloved young people, let yourselves be guided by Carlo, follow his example, follow in his footsteps, walk his path, because it is the right path, the one that leads to Jesus and, therefore, to love and joy,” the Italian prelate said in a message published Sept. 5.

The bishop of Assisi sent his message just two days before the canonization of Acutis, who will be declared a saint alongside Frassati on Sunday, Sept. 7, at a Mass celebrated by Pope Leo XIV in St. Peter’s Square at the Vatican at 10 a.m. local time.

Sorrentino also said that “today more than ever we need positive examples, exemplary life stories that will help our children not to be carried away by uncomfortable images, violent examples, and passing fads that leave nothing to be desired.”

“Carlo, on the other hand, teaches us to live a normal life, putting Jesus at the center. You, parents, also help your children discover Carlo’s holiness so that they can live a life full of joy, full of Jesus,” he emphasized.

Born on May 3, 1991, Acutis was a young Italian who from a very early age experienced a profound love for God, with a special devotion to Eucharistic miracles, which he compiled in a digital exhibition that he shared online.

Suffering from leukemia, Carlo died on Oct. 12, 2006, at the age of 15. He was beatified on Oct. 10, 2020.

The Diocese of Assisi also reported that some 800 pilgrims will arrive in Rome from Assisi on a special train arranged by the diocese. Twelve volunteers will be on board to distribute backpacks, scarves, and hats, and several priests and religious, led by the rector of the Shrine of the Spogliazione (Dispossession), Father Marco Gaballo, will be in charge of the group.

The Shrine of Spogliazione is the place where Carlo Acutis wanted to be buried, so Assisi welcomes both him and St. Francis.

Relics of the soon-to-be-canonized St. Carlo Acutis at the canonization

The Diocese of Assisi also announced that the relic of the heart of the young man who will become the first millennial saint will be brought to St. Peter’s Square in Rome. It was also announced that another relic of Carlo Acutis will be brought as a gift to Pope Leo XIV.

On Monday, Sept. 8, the day after the canonization, a Mass of thanksgiving will be celebrated in Assisi at St. Mary Major Church by Sorrentino. Carlo Acutis’ parents; Valeria, the young Costa Rican woman who received the miracle leading to Acutis’ canonization; and several civil authorities will be present.

The Diocese of Assisi also reported that, so far this year, some 630,000 pilgrims have come to the Shrine of the Spogliazione to venerate Acutis, with an average of up to 4,000 per day. In 2024, there were almost 1 million visitors.

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

Timothée Croux, a young seminarian from the French Diocese of Meaux, has written a book about Pier Giorgio Frassati. / Credit: Victoria Cardiel/EWTN News

ACI Prensa Staff, Sep 6, 2025 / 12:00 pm (CNA).

Timothée Croux, a young seminarian from the French Diocese of Meaux in the Île-de-France region of the country, says the example of Blessed Pier Giorgio Frassati played a decisive role in his vocational discernment.

Croux said he discovered Frassati, who was from Turin, Italy, and who died in 1925, through scouting and shares many personal affinities with the soon-to-be saint. 

“I delved deeper into Frassati’s personality during my preparatory year, before entering the seminary,” he said. “I discovered that there were many things in his biography that resembled mine. For example, we both have a passion for the mountains.”

“We both sought an authentic vocation, although in the end he decided not to become a priest in order to serve the poor in the mines, studying engineering to better help the miners,” Croux told ACI Prensa, CNA’s Spanish-language news partner.

An adventurer with a true appetite for life

Croux noted that this young man from Turin, set to be canonized Sept. 7 alongside Blessed Carlo Acutis, is highly regarded among French scouts “because he was an adventurer with a true appetite for life.”

Croux, 23, is preparing for the priesthood through his ecclesiastical studies at the Pontifical French Seminary in Rome. In collaboration with Belgian priest Emmanuel de Ruyver, he has published in France and Italy the book “An Adventurer in Paradise,” a spiritual biography of Pier Giorgio Frassati designed especially for young people and students.

“It has a biographical section with many stories about Frassati. At the end of each chapter, there is a meditation on a beatitude, reflection questions, a Gospel excerpt, and a short prayer,” Croux explained.

“By knowing him better, we can give young people the desire for holiness. Being a saint was a daily pursuit for him. Frassati was not a priest and did not die a martyr. But from his most tender years as a child, he strove to live the Gospel consistently and with a disconcerting freedom,” the seminarian emphasized.

Croux also maintains close contact with Frassati’s family, particularly with Wanda Gawronska, the blessed’s niece, who wrote the book’s preface and is scheduled to be present during Sunday’s canonization.

He died young like Acutis

The young man from Turin died at age 24, one week after contracting fulminant poliomyelitis while visiting the poor in their homes. His premature death is a characteristic he shares with Acutis, who died of leukemia at the age of 15.

“Young people may think that you have to die young to be a saint, but that’s not true. The important thing is to live faithfulness, charity, and hope throughout your life,” the French seminarian emphasized.

The poor and most vulnerable always held a special place in Frassati’s heart. When he was just a child, after a poor mother and her barefoot son knocked at his family’s door, he gave them his shoes, asking them to leave quickly before his family found out. Until shortly before his death, he worked to get money or medicine to those in need.

“He said he saw through them a light that we don’t have: the light of Christ. And he understood it deeply, as in Matthew 25: ‘If you visit the poor, the prisoners, the naked, it is I you visit.’ He had understood it. That’s why he calls us not to be afraid to go to the peripheries and visit the poorest,” Croux said.

The Frassati family was very wealthy. His father, Alfredo Frassati, was a senator, ambassador, and director of the Italian newspaper La Stampa. The future saint grew up in the Catholic upper-class environment of Turin. But “it was perfunctory Catholicism, and it wasn’t his parents who encouraged him to serve the poor. They only discovered the scope of his action after his death, when thousands of people wanted to pay tribute to him,” Croux explained.

Love for the poor, rooted in the Gospel

His passion for the poor was rooted above all in his love for the Eucharist, another characteristic he shares with Acutis. At the age of 13, he obtained permission from his mother to go to Mass every day.

“He used to say: ‘Jesus visits me every day in Communion, and I humbly return that visit by going to see the poor.’ He had understood that the Eucharist was the sacrament of charity,” Croux explained.

Frassati’s daily life, marked by faith, service, and evangelical consistency, made him — as St. John Paul II said, when he was still a cardinal in Krakow in 1977 — “the man of the eight beatitudes.”

“He saw in him a model of complete holiness, living every beatitude in his short life,” Croux noted.

Frassati received a strict education. He was not a great student, and his father was very severe with him, expecting him to take over as director of La Stampa. However, the young Frassati directed his life toward the study of engineering so he could be closer to the people working in terrible conditions underground in the mines.

Peace and social commitment

Another essential feature of Frassati’s life was his moral firmness in the face of the totalitarian threat.

Frassati was associated with the Italian Popular Party, inspired by a priest and based on principles of Christian democracy. But he left it when the movement made a pact with the Fascists in 1922. He also resigned from a Catholic student group, Cesare Balbo, after discovering that it had honored Mussolini during his visit to Turin.

“For Pier Giorgio, politics was a service, especially to the poorest, and he could not accept a movement that exalted force,” Croux explained.

His brief but intense life explains why today, 100 years later, Frassati continues to speak to thousands of young people. According to Croux, Frassati’s message to the youth of the 21st century can be summed up in three points: prayer and charity, friendship, and the pursuit of peace.

“He made a connection between the daily Eucharist and charity toward the poorest. Every morning he went to Mass and then visited needy families, offering food, clothing, and a smile,” the young seminarian noted.

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

Jason Adkins, the executive director of the Minnesota Catholic Conference, speaks to “EWTN News In Depth” anchor Catherine Hadro on the shooting at Annunciation Catholic Church in Minneapolis, Friday, Sept. 5, 2025. “Almost everyone ... in our Catholic community has a connection to Annunciation,” he said. / Credit: “EWTN News In Depth.”/Screenshot

CNA Staff, Sep 6, 2025 / 11:30 am (CNA).

A leading Catholic advocate in Minnesota is calling for an “all-of-the-above” approach to school safety and security in the wake of the Aug. 27 mass shooting at Annunciation Catholic Church in Minneapolis that claimed the lives of two children and injured more than 20 children and adults.

Jason Adkins, the executive director of the Minnesota Catholic Conference, told “EWTN News In Depth” anchor Catherine Hadro on Friday that “nonpublic school students” should have access to the same levels of security as those in public schools.

“We’ve been consistent advocates for [security] policies that include, and are nondiscriminatory against, nonpublic school students,” he said.

“We think that when the state makes a commitment to protecting students and to promote public safety, [that it’s] a basic public safety issue that should be available to all students, irrespective of where they go to school,” he argued further.

Adkins noted that Minnesota Catholic leaders in the past have implored state lawmakers to provide security funding for local nonpublic schools, though those calls went unheeded prior to the Aug. 27 shooting. “People have noticed that,” he said.

“Looking at school safety programs, nonprofit security grants, all these things — we have to take an all-of-the-above approach to looking at public policy solutions that limit gun violence in our communities,” he said.

Focusing just on guns will ‘fall short’

The Annunciation shooting once again touched off what is a regular debate in U.S. politics regarding school safety and gun crime. Some advocates have called for broad new gun control laws, while others have argued for arming teachers in classrooms.

In a statement this week amid a special session of the Minnesota Legislature, Adkins acknowledged that “continued discussion is warranted about access to certain weapons and high-capacity magazines.”

“At the same time, a special session that focuses only on gun regulations will fall short, as the issue runs deeper than firearm access,” he argued, calling for a focus on school security measures “that ensure the safety of all students.”

Adkins told Hadro, meanwhile, that policymakers and leaders “have to have honest conversations and take a look at every facet of this problem and explore creative solutions.”

In addressing the problem, meanwhile, he said those seeking solutions “have to see with the eyes of Christ.”

“Ultimately, there’s no political solution to what’s a theological and spiritual problem,” he said. “The answer to all these problems and challenges is ultimately the call to holiness.”

The duke and duchess of Kent stand on a balcony at Buckingham Palace during the annual Trooping the Colour Ceremony on June 15, 2013, in London. / Credit: Carfax2/CC BY-SA 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons

National Catholic Register, Sep 6, 2025 / 09:00 am (CNA).

Her royal highness the duchess of Kent, who became the first senior British royal to be received into the Catholic Church since the 17th century, has died at the age of 92.

In a statement, Buckingham Palace said the duchess died peacefully on Thursday evening at her Kensington Palace home surrounded by her family.

“The king and queen and all members of the royal family join the duke of Kent, his children and grandchildren in mourning their loss and remembering fondly the duchess’ lifelong devotion to all the organizations with which she was associated, her passion for music, and her empathy for young people,” the statement read.

Renowned for her natural charm, compassion for the sick and downtrodden, and commitment to serving others, the duchess was a much-loved and hardworking British royal whose popularity was enhanced by her own personal suffering and self-effacing nature.

Born into a notable aristocratic and landowning family, Katharine Lucy Mary Worsley was raised an Anglican and, in 1961, married Prince Edward, duke of Kent, a grandson of King George V and a first cousin of Queen Elizabeth II.

The first woman without a peerage or princess title at birth to marry a royal duke in over a century, Katharine devoted herself to a life of service and often, together with the duke, represented the queen at charity and state events at home and abroad.

Her journey to the Catholic faith was historically significant and born out of considerable personal loss and suffering.

While pregnant with her fourth child in 1975, the duchess contracted measles and, following her doctors’ advice, terminated the pregnancy for medical reasons. In 1977, when happily pregnant again, she gave an address to the British Congress of Obstetrics in which she declared human life was a gift from God and uniquely valuable as every birth is a miracle. She also paid tribute to those who fight to protect life and the family.

But some weeks later, the duchess lost the baby at 36 weeks; she described the experience as “devastating” and viewed the miscarriage as punishment for the abortion two years earlier.

The duchess went on to express deep empathy for others who had suffered similar tragedy and turned to her faith, making the first of several regular visits to the shrine of Our Lady of Walsingham with the then-Anglican archbishop of Canterbury, Robert Runcie.

But some years later, seeing the uncertainties and internal struggles of the Church of England, which was then grappling with whether to accept women clergy, she was drawn to Catholicism.

Her journey culminated with being received into the Catholic Church in January 1994 by Cardinal Basil Hume, then-archbishop of Westminster. Up until then, no senior royal had publicly been received into the Church since 1685. The Act of Settlement of 1701 also barred royals who became or married Catholics from the line of succession.

She described her conversion as a “long-pondered personal decision” and that she was attracted by the solace and clarity of the Catholic faith. “I do love guidelines and the Catholic Church offers you guidelines,” she once told the BBC. “I have always wanted that in my life. I like to know what’s expected of me.”

As a Catholic, she made regular visits to Lourdes with her local parish and often attended Mass at the Brompton Oratory in London, close to her Kensington Palace home.

In 2001, the third-eldest of her four children, Lord Nicholas Windsor, followed her into the Catholic Church, becoming the first male blood member of the British royal family to become a Catholic since King Charles II’s probable deathbed conversion in 1685.

The duchess of Kent gave her time and energy to various good causes, including becoming patron of the Samaritans, a charity that tries to deter people from committing suicide, and co-founding a charity called Future Talent, which supports young musicians from poor backgrounds.

After retiring from public service, she taught music to children at a primary school in the 2000s for over a decade in complete anonymity. Known simply as “Mrs. Kent” at the school, she said in a 2022 interview that “only the head knew who I was. The parents didn’t know, and the pupils didn’t know. No one ever noticed. There was no publicity about it at all — it just seemed to work.”

Many of the children at the school in Hull, northern England, came from single-parent families and very deprived areas. “It was very, very rewarding,” the duchess said. “The music did such wonderful things. It really did.”

Many in Britain remember seeing the duchess’ compassion visibly shown when, as the presenter of trophies at Wimbledon, she broke with protocol to comfort Jana Novotná, a Czech tennis player who cried on her shoulder after narrowly losing the Wimbledon women’s singles final.

In a statement, Cardinal Vincent Nichols of Westminster recalled “with fondness her presence in our community, especially her participation in the pilgrimage to Lourdes, as well as her lifetime of public service.”

The prince and princess of Wales said the duchess worked “tirelessly to help others” and would be a “much missed member of the family.”

Writing on X, British Catholic broadcaster Colin Brazier wrote that “in a world of bombast, self-promotion, and vanity, Katharine Worsley was that rarest of things: a public figure of genuine humility, even holiness.”

The late duchess of Kent’s funeral — the first Catholic funeral for a member of the royal family in modern British history — will take place at Westminster Cathedral in the coming weeks.

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

Blessed Pier Giorgio Frassati, who died at the age of 24 in 1925, is beloved by many Catholic young people today for his enthusiastic witness to holiness that reaches “to the heights.” / Credit: Public domain

CNA Staff, Sep 6, 2025 / 08:00 am (CNA).

Soon-to-be saint Pier Giorgio Frassati, born on April 6, 1901, to a prominent and wealthy Italian family, became a popular role model soon after he died on July 4, 1925, at the age of 24. He will be declared a saint on Sept. 7 in Rome by Pope Leo XIV alongside the Church’s first millennial saint, Carlo Acutis.

According to the website dedicated to Frassati by the U.S. Catholic bishops, for years Frassati has been “a significant global patron for youth and young adults — and has a special place in the hearts of young people across the United States as well. St. John Paul II declared him a patron for World Youth Days and deemed him ‘the man of the beatitudes’ as he exemplified those blessings in his everyday life.”

Here are 12 amazing facts about his short but very intense life:

1. His childhood was full of acts of charity.

Despite being raised by agnostic parents, Frassati’s inclinations to help others manifested in his childhood. Once, as a child, he answered the door to find a mother begging with her son who was shoeless. He took off his own shoes and gave them to the child.

2. His devotion to the Eucharist started early.

At an early age, he joined the Marian Sodality and the Apostleship of Prayer and obtained permission to receive daily Communion, which was rare at the time.

3. He had a very playful side.

At the same time, Frassati was known among his friends as “Il Terrore” (“The Terror”) due to his fondness for practical jokes.

4. He served the poor through the St. Vincent de Paul Society.

At 17, he joined the St. Vincent de Paul Society and dedicated much of his spare time taking care of the poor, the homeless, the sick, and the demobilized servicemen returning from World War I.

5. He spoke out against Mussolini and fascism.

In 1919, Frassati joined the Catholic Student Foundation and the Popular Party, whose principles were based in the social doctrine of the Church. He strongly opposed the rise of fascist leader Benito Mussolini and was jailed in Rome after joining the protest of the Catholic Workers’ Association.

6. He was known for his radical generosity and love for the poor.

Pier Giorgio became known for giving literally everything he had to the poor. He would even use his bus fare for charity and then run home to be on time for meals.

7. He loved the mountains.

An avid and accomplished mountain climber, he saw many parallels between Catholic life and his favorite pastime. He would regularly organize trips into the mountains with occasions for prayers and conversations about faith on the way up or down from the summit.

8. A simple note he wrote became a famous motto.

After what would become his final climb, he wrote a simple note on a photograph: “Verso L’Alto” (“To the heights”) — a phrase that has become a popular Catholic motto.

9. He died of polio.

At 24, Frassati became very ill with polio. Some of his friends believed that he contracted the disease from the people in the slums of Turin. In his last days, he whispered the names of people who still needed assistance to his family and friends who gathered at his bedside. He died on July 4, 1925.

10. He was beatified by Pope John Paul II.

Pier Giorgio Frassati was declared “blessed” in 1990 by Pope John Paul II, who called him a “man of the beatitudes” and a “joyful apostle of Christ.” A year before, after visiting his tomb, John Paul II revealed that he also had felt in his own youth “the beneficial influence of his example.”

“He left the world rather young,” he said, “but he made a mark upon our entire century.”

11. His sister wrote a tribute to him.

In her biography of her brother, Frassati’s sister, Luciana, wrote that “he represented the finest in Christian youth: pure, happy, enthusiastic about everything that is good and beautiful.”

12. He is a patron of youth and students around the world.

Pier Giorgio Frassati’s popularity is big among young people, especially in America. Many apostolates have been created with his name, and he is regarded as the patron of students (mainly because he wasn’t good at school), young Catholics, mountaineers, youth groups, Catholic Action, Dominican tertiaries (he became one), and World Youth Day.

This story was first published on July 4, 2021, and was updated on Sept. 5, 2025.

A view of damaged houses in the Annalee Street area of North Belfast, Northern Ireland. A spokesman for the Diocese of Down and Connor strongly condemned intimidation and attacks on Catholic families there that have led all families but one to flee their homes. The families were living in a housing development bordering a predominantly loyalist district in the north of the city. / Credit: Colum Lenehan/The Irish News

Belfast, Northern Ireland, Sep 6, 2025 / 07:00 am (CNA).

A spokesman for the Diocese of Down and Connor, Father Eddie McGee, has strongly condemned intimidation and attacks on Catholic families in Belfast, Northern Ireland, that have led all families but one to flee their homes. 

The families were living in a housing development bordering a predominantly loyalist district in the north of the city.

“The continued attacks and intimidation experienced by local residents of Annalee and Alloa Street in Belfast are cowardly and threatening faceless acts of sectarian discrimination,” McGee told CNA. “It is abhorrent that families in Northern Ireland today continue to have to leave the security of their homes in a society that is strongly committed to the pathway of peace and reconciliation.”

The sectarian attacks in this area of north Belfast began in May when a number of Catholic family homes were targeted by masked men, with windows broken and vehicles vandalized. It is estimated that, following renewed attacks in the last few days, only one Catholic family remains in what was intended to be a mixed development.

Protestant residents were unwilling to speak to local media for fear of reprisal by loyalist paramilitary groups. 

The Sunday World newspaper reported that the attacks were coordinated by individuals linked to drug dealing and loyalist paramilitaries who vowed to continue their harassment and intimidation.

“The Diocese of Down and Connor joins alongside the many other church and public representatives in calling for those who perpetrate these attacks to end this campaign of intimidation and to calmly engage with their local representatives to address the underlying tensions that give rise to such conflict,” McGee said.

“The ongoing intimidation of vulnerable families to leave their homes is a reminder that it is incumbent upon all of us not to become complacent in achieving communities where everyone is respected and protected, without exception. We need to continue to engage across the wider community to pursue pathways of dialogue rather than building walls of sectarian and racial discrimination fueled by fear and aggression.”

At a meeting on Sept. 4, the Police Service of Northern Ireland’s Assistant Chief Constable Davy Beck said while Ulster Defence Association (UDA) elements have been responsible for events that have seen Catholic families targeted in the Oldpark area of the city, he said there was no intelligence to suggest the leadership of the loyalist paramilitary organization had sanctioned them. The UDA is an illegal loyalist paramilitary organization with a long history of sectarian attacks.

Irish News in Belfast reported that one resident who has been living in the area since December 2024 is now taking legal action against the Clanmil Housing Association, which is responsible for the properties, claiming that it has “failed to take reasonable steps to protect” her and her children. The woman alleges she was later threatened and assaulted by a man and called a “Fenian bastard” — a standard term of abuse for Catholics by loyalists. She said the same individual threatened her two children, ages 10 and 5, in a local park. 

Jack Murphy of McIvor Farrell Solicitors, the legal representative for the resident targeted in the latest attack, said in a statement: “We have now issued pre-action correspondence against Clanmill Housing Association and are considering further legal action against relevant state bodies who, in our view, have neglected their duty to safeguard our client, her children, and other Catholic families in the area from paramilitary violence.”

McGee expressed the support of the entire Down and Connor Catholic community, saying: “We stand in solidarity with the families who have had to leave their homes. Such actions leave a scar of unresolved hurt and pain not only upon those victims experiencing the masked threats and attacks directly but also upon the wider community in which this intimidation occurs. These families have a right to live in peace in a society that is committed to a pathway of dialogue and reconciliation.”

A spokeswoman for Clanmil Housing Association said: “Everyone should be allowed to live in peace and feel safe in their home, free from intimidation or threat.”

As the situation deteriorated it emerged that victims campaigner Raymond McCord, whose son was killed during the Troubles (known internationally as the Northern Ireland conflict) had emailed the first and deputy first ministers of Northern Ireland in June urging them to visit vulnerable householders in north Belfast, but his appeal remained unanswered.