Year: 2025

VATICAN CITY (CNS) – All human beings need consistent, lasting and healthy experiences of authentic love, Pope Leo XIV said.

Consecrated men and women, who abandon themselves “like children into the arms of the Father,” spread “the ‘fresh air’ of authentic love throughout the world,” he said in his homily during Mass in St. Peter’s Square Oct. 9, marking the Jubilee of Consecrated Life.

Thousands of men and women religious, monks, contemplatives, members of secular institutes, consecrated virgins, hermits and people belonging to “new institutes” came to Rome from all over the world for their Oct. 8-9 Jubilee.

God is “the fullness and meaning of our lives,” said the pope, who joined the Augustinian religious order in 1977 and served as its leader, or prior general, for 12 years in Rome.

“For you — for us — the Lord is everything,” he said. “Without him, nothing exists, nothing makes sense, nothing is worthwhile.”

“He is everything in different ways: as Creator and the source of existence, as love that calls and challenges, as the strength that impels and inspires us to give,” he said. “Living out your vows means abandoning yourselves like children into the arms of the Father.”

The Catholic Church “entrusts you with the task of being living witnesses to God’s primacy in your lives,” the pope said.

“By stripping yourselves of everything, you help the brothers and sisters you meet to cultivate this friendship themselves,” he said. “After all, history teaches us that an authentic experience of God always gives rise to generous outpourings of charity.”

Some people believe that “it is vain to serve God,” he said.

“This way of thinking leads to a genuine paralysis of the soul,” the pope said. “We end up settling for a life made up of fleeting moments, superficial and intermittent relationships and passing fads — things that leave a void in our hearts,” and do not lead to true happiness.

“Instead, we need consistent, lasting and healthy experiences of love,” he said, and members of consecrated life have a role to play in that through their example.

“Dear brothers and sisters, the Lord, to whom you have given everything, has rewarded you with such beauty and richness, and I would like to urge you to treasure and cultivate what you have received,” Pope Leo said.

“Do not seek to be numbered among the ‘learned and clever,'” he said, quoting St. Paul VI’s 1971 apostolic exhortation “Evangelica Testificatio.”

“Be truly poor, meek, eager for holiness, merciful and pure of heart,” he said, quoting the late pope. “Be among those who will bring to the world the peace of God.”

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (OSV News) – Pope Leo XIV sent a letter commending the work of Catholic Charities USA, the domestic charitable arm of the Catholic Church in the U.S., to mark its 115th annual gathering Oct. 6-9 in San Juan.

“Dear friends, I express my heartfelt gratitude for all that you and those who work with your networks do each day to put into practice the Lord’s admonition to see and serve him in the poor, hungry, homeless, and people in any kind of need (cf. Mt 25:31-46),” Pope Leo wrote. “May Christ continue to accompany you and give you his joy and peace.”

The organization said its annual gathering was held for the first time in a U.S. territory, Puerto Rico, in concert with Cáritas de Puerto Rico, a member agency that serves the island. Pope Leo encouraged CCUSA in its work “providing food, shelter, medical care, legal assistance, and many other gestures of kindness,” and highlighted in particular its work “assisting displaced persons.”

“It might be said that through assisting displaced persons to find their new homes in your country, you also act as bridge builders between nations, cultures and peoples,” Pope Leo wrote. “I encourage you, then, to continue helping the communities who receive these newly arrived brothers and sisters to be living witnesses of hope, recognizing that they have an intrinsic human dignity and are invited to participate fully in community.”

Kerry Alys Robinson, president and CEO of CCUSA, said in a statement, “We are profoundly grateful to Pope Leo XIV for the Apostolic Blessing he has imparted upon the Catholic Charities network, and we are inspired and invigorated by the solidarity and encouragement he offered in his letter.”

“As we celebrate our 115th anniversary during this Jubilee Year of Hope, our network leaves our annual gathering resolutely committed to serve, in the words of the Holy Father, as ‘agents of hope’ for our vulnerable and suffering sisters and brothers across the United States,” she said.

CCUSA, which has 168 independent Catholic Charities member agencies, said its annual gathering brought together about 600 staff, volunteers and supporters from around the country.

SCRANTON – On Saturday, Oct. 11, 2025, the Most Rev. Joseph C. Bambera, Bishop of Scranton, will designate eight deacon candidates for the Diocese of Scranton as Lectors in the Rite of Institution of Lectors.

The candidates are: William Chechel of Our Lady Queen of Peace Parish in Brodheadsville; Daniel B. Cosacchi of Saint Gregory Parish in Clarks Green; Jeffrey R. Kovaleski of Visitation of the Blessed Virgin Mary Parish in Dickson City; Thomas J. Krzan  of Saint Jude Parish in Mountain Top; Kevin J. Martin of Our Lady Queen of Peace Parish in Brodheadsville; Stephen O. Muntzenberger of Saint Jude Parish in Mountain Top; Justo Paula-Martinez of Saint Teresa of Calcutta Parish in Scranton; and Paul M. Zwolan of Saint Therese Parish in Shavertown. 

The Rite is a major step on the path to becoming a permanent deacon, allowing the candidates to read the Word of God, except for the Gospel, at liturgical assemblies. The next step will be the Rite of Acolyte.

For the men receiving the ministry of Lector, this moment is not merely just another stepping stone in their path to becoming a deacon. In receiving the ministry of Lector, each man is being called to a special recognition of the Word of God in their lives that is essential to the life of the Church. 

The Institution of Lectors Rite will take place at the Cathedral of Saint Peter in Scranton at 10:00 a.m. on Oct. 11, 2025.

The Rite will be broadcast live on CTV: Catholic Television of the Diocese of Scranton, in addition to being available on YouTube and other Diocesan social media links. 

Please join in prayer with these men as they faithfully continue their preparation to serve the people of our Diocese through the Diaconate Formation Program.

(OSV News) – Five months into his pontificate, Pope Leo XIV has promulgated his first official document, making as his own the draft of a text unfinished by his predecessor.

Described as an exercise in “continuity” with Pope Francis, the apostolic exhortation is an ode to the 265th Successor of Peter while at the same time a further indicator of the priorities of the 266th. The title “Dilexi Te” (I have loved you) — taken from an expression of Christ’s love for his people in Rv 3:9 — positions the text as complementary to Pope Francis’ fourth and final encyclical letter “Dilexit Nos” (He has loved us), promulgated in 2024. And in the new text, Leo renews Francis’ invitation to “all Christians [to] come to appreciate the close connection between Christ’s love and his summons to care for the poor.”

At the same time, at about 21,000 words, “Dilexi Te” in many ways further manifests Pope Leo’s desire to bring unity to a fractured church. “I would like that our first great desire be for a united church, a sign of unity and communion, which becomes a leaven for a reconciled world,” Leo said in his homily at the Mass inaugurating his Petrine ministry.

This unity can be found only in conformity to Christ, and conformity to Christ means loving the least among us, as Pope Leo points out when he writes, “Love for the Lord … is one with love for the poor.” This succinct thesis — and even the topic itself — sets up the rest of the document as both an invitation to examine consciences and as a framework for growing in unity with Christ and the church.

Employing what has emerged as characteristically robust Christological underpinnings to support his ecclesial vision — with copious references to Scripture and patristic sources, and a generous survey of historical figures who took seriously the Lord’s words on the topic — Pope Leo squarely situates the love and care due to the poor within the church’s tradition.

“Dilexi Te” not only draws from the magisterium of Pope Francis, but also several other of Pope Leo’s predecessors, particularly Popes John Paul II and Benedict XVI. And in relying on the witness of so many saints and founders of movements — from the familiar St. Francis of Assisi to the lesser-known St. Joseph Calasanz — Leo illustrates the longstanding tradition in the church for taking seriously, in no divisive or polarizing way, faith’s insistence to care for those in poverty. And Leo does not focus exclusively on material poverty, but also on poverty in all of its forms, such as in the realms of health care, migration, education and issues pertaining to human liberty (the imprisoned).

Building upon this foundation, Leo continues to cement the care for the poor as intrinsic to the church’s mission by providing intelligent commentary to comprehend how such themes were portrayed in the early church through to the present day. The text makes implicitly clear that care for the poor should be a unifying issue, as it lies at the heart of orthodoxy and holiness.

To this end, interestingly, Pope Leo positively includes in the exhortation an extended quote from a document produced by then-Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger’s Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith — Instruction on Certain Aspects of the “Theology of Liberation” — which Leo describes as “a document that was not initially well received by everyone,” in subtle reference to that text’s intention to preserve the best of the proposals of Latin American liberation theology while also keeping in doctrinal check many of its perhaps less doctrinally sound champions.

An essential, yet difficult, aspect of effecting unity in the church — itself willed by Christ (see Jn 17:21) — will be Pope Leo’s treatment of Pope Francis’ legacy. There is no denying that the church Leo now leads is much more divided and polarized than the church inherited by his predecessor. For ecclesial unity to be nurtured, particularly after a pontificate that was content to let divisions simmer, Leo needs to take the best of Francis and situate it squarely within the church’s tradition — something Francis himself often had difficulty doing. Leo must also “thread the needle” as he seeks common ground between the church’s factions and looks for ways to build consensus and communion. From this perspective alone, and to Leo’s great credit, it appears “Dilexi Te” quite adroitly achieves these goals.

While around 40% of the exhortation’s quotes footnote Pope Francis, those which are cited warrant little controversy. And while it seems almost impossible for the pope to say anything in modern times without causing some kind of reaction, the exhortation shouldn’t present intellectual concerns for those who embrace the totality of the church’s social doctrine. To those shaped more by politics, economics or ideologies, however, which might “lead to gross generalizations and mistaken conclusions” on the poor, Leo warns of “the need to go back and re-read the Gospel, lest we risk replacing it with the wisdom of this world.”

An Augustinian friar and priest, Pope Leo has often quoted St. Augustine of Hippo — and “Dilexi Te” is no exception. The section on Augustine is perhaps one of the document’s most original as it considers care for the poor in light of Augustine’s gift to elucidate and effect ecclesial unity.

Closer consideration of what Leo has to say about his beloved saint, whom he describes as “a vigilant pastor and theologian of rare insight,” is warranted — for therein might exist some clues for what lies ahead on Leo’s intended path toward unity. To this end, consider that, amid the church’s many contemporary divisions and challenges, Leo writes: “Today, fidelity to Augustine’s teachings requires not only the study of his works, but also a readiness to live radically his call to conversion.” “Dilexi Te,” a document written from the heart of the church, with a style that encourages communion and with a command to love the poor as Christ did, calls each of us to conformity with Christ – that is, to holiness.

More than all else, attentiveness to Leo’s reflections on St. Augustine, that credible minister of unity and father of the church, might give clearer insight into where he is guiding the church. Leo’s exhortation echoes what Augustine taught: “The Church consists of all those who are in harmony with their brothers and sisters and who love their neighbor.” But even more than inviting the church to live that reality, there might not be anything more timely and needed from a pope than to model it.

VATICAN CITY (CNS) – Many Christians “need to go back and re-read the Gospel” because they have forgotten that faith and love for the poor go hand in hand, Pope Leo XIV said in his first major papal document.

“Love for the poor – whatever the form their poverty may take – is the evangelical hallmark of a Church faithful to the heart of God,” the pope wrote in “Dilexi Te” (“I Have Loved You”), an apostolic exhortation “to all Christians on love for the poor.”

Pope Leo signed the document Oct. 4, the feast of St. Francis of Assisi, and the Vatican released the text Oct. 9.

The document was begun by Pope Francis, Pope Leo said, but he added to it and wanted to issue it near the beginning of his papacy “since I share the desire of my beloved predecessor that all Christians come to appreciate the close connection between Christ’s love and his summons to care for the poor.”

The connection is not new or modern and was not a Pope Francis invention, he said. In fact, throughout the Hebrew Scriptures “God’s love is vividly demonstrated by his protection of the weak and the poor, to the extent that he can be said to have a particular fondness for them.”

“I am convinced that the preferential choice for the poor is a source of extraordinary renewal both for the Church and for society,” Pope Leo wrote, “if we can only set ourselves free of our self-centeredness and open our ears to their cry.”

As he has done from the beginning of his papacy in May, the pope decried the increasing gap between the world’s wealthiest and poorest citizens and noted how women often are “doubly poor,” struggling to feed their children and doing so with few rights or possibilities.

Pope Leo also affirmed church teaching since at least the 1960s that there are “structures of sin” that keep the poor in poverty and lead those who have sufficient resources to ignore the poor or think they are better than them.

When the church speaks of God’s preferential option for the poor, he said, it does not exclude or discriminate against others, something “which would be impossible for God.”

But the phrase is “meant to emphasize God’s actions, which are moved by compassion toward the poverty and weakness of all humanity,” he wrote.

“Wanting to inaugurate a kingdom of justice, fraternity and solidarity,” Pope Leo said, “God has a special place in his heart for those who are discriminated against and oppressed, and he asks us, his Church, to make a decisive and radical choice in favor of the weakest.”

That choice, he said, must include pastoral and spiritual care as well as education, health care, jobs training and charity — all of which the church has provided for centuries.

The document includes a separate section on migrants with the pope writing, “The Church has always recognized in migrants a living presence of the Lord who, on the day of judgment, will say to those on his right: ‘I was a stranger, and you welcomed me.'”

The quotation is from the Gospel of Matthew 25:35, which is part of the “Judgment of the Nations” in which Jesus clearly states that his followers will be judged on how they care for the poor, the sick, the imprisoned and the foreigner.

“The Church, like a mother, accompanies those who are walking” in search of a better, safer life for themselves and their families, Pope Leo wrote.

“Where the world sees threats, she (the church) sees children; where walls are built, she builds bridges,” he continued. “She knows that her proclamation of the Gospel is credible only when it is translated into gestures of closeness and welcome.”

The church knows, he said, “that in every rejected migrant, it is Christ himself who knocks at the door of the community.”

In his exhortation, Pope Leo went through biblical references to the obligation to love and care for the poor and cited saints and religious orders throughout history that have dedicated themselves to living with the poor and assisting them.

A section of the document focuses on the “fathers of the church,” the early theologians, who, he said, “recognized in the poor a privileged way to reach God, a special way to meet him. Charity shown to those in need was not only seen as a moral virtue, but a concrete expression of faith in the incarnate Word,” Jesus.

Of course, for Pope Leo, an Augustinian, St. Augustine of Hippo was included in the document. The saint, “The Doctor of Grace, saw caring for the poor as concrete proof of the sincerity of faith,” the pope wrote. For Augustine, “anyone who says they love God and has no compassion for the needy is lying.”

And while the pope wrote that “the most important way to help the disadvantaged is to assist them in finding a good job,” he insisted that when that is not possible, giving alms to a person asking for money is still a compassionate thing to do.

“It is always better at least to do something rather than nothing,” Pope Leo wrote.

Still, the pope said, Christians cannot stand idly by while the global economic system penalizes the poor and makes some people exceedingly wealthy. “We must continue, then, to denounce the ‘dictatorship of an economy that kills,'” he said, quoting a phrase Pope Francis used.

“Either we regain our moral and spiritual dignity, or we fall into a cesspool,” he wrote.

“A Church that sets no limits to love, that knows no enemies to fight but only men and women to love,” Pope Leo said, “is the Church that the world needs today.”

WASHINGTON (OSV News) – Israel and Hamas “have both signed off” on the first phase of a White House peace proposal for Gaza, President Donald Trump said late Oct. 8 in a social media post.

Trump’s announcement came the day after the second anniversary of Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023, attack on Israel.

During a White House meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu Sept. 29, Trump released a 20-point peace plan to end the Israel-Hamas war. The proposal itself was met with cautious optimism from some world leaders — including Pope Leo XIV — and skepticism from others about whether Hamas, which is designated a terrorist entity by the U.S., would ultimately accept the agreement amid increasing international concern about humanitarian conditions in the Gaza Strip.

“I am very proud to announce that Israel and Hamas have both signed off on the first Phase of our Peace Plan,” Trump wrote on his social media website Truth Social. “This means that ALL of the Hostages will be released very soon, and Israel will withdraw their Troops to an agreed upon line as the first steps toward a Strong, Durable, and Everlasting Peace. All Parties will be treated fairly!”

“This is a GREAT Day for the Arab and Muslim World, Israel, all surrounding Nations, and the United States of America, and we thank the mediators from Qatar, Egypt, and Turkey, who worked with us to make this Historic and Unprecedented Event happen.”

“BLESSED ARE THE PEACEMAKERS!” he added.

Trump’s post did not immediately make clear what the agreement entailed. But Trump’s proposal called for an immediate ceasefire and for Hamas to release all of its remaining hostages within 72 hours, living or dead. The militant group still holds 48 hostages, and Israeli officials believe 20 of them are still alive, AP reported. In exchange, Israel would free 250 Palestinians serving life sentences in its prisons and another 1,700 people from Gaza it detained, including all women and children.

“Gaza will be redeveloped for the benefit of the people of Gaza, who have suffered more than enough,” the White House plan stated.

Mary Ellen O’Connell, a professor at Notre Dame Law School who specializes in international law and conflict resolution, told OSV News, “Any movement toward peace, release of the Israeli hostages, and emergency aid for Gazans is welcome.”

“But I will be paying close attention to what Prime Minister Netanyahu’s government partners say at their meeting on Thursday,” she said. “If they support the deal, and President Trump is willing to ensure Israeli compliance, there will be room for real hope.”

Previous ceasefire proposals may have succeeded, she argued, if the U.S. had been willing to put enough pressure on Israel.

Reports of the deal circulated prior to Trump’s announcement. Secretary of State Marco Rubio was pictured earlier in the day handing Trump a note at a White House roundtable that read, “You need to approve a Truth Social post soon so you can announce (the) deal first.”

“I was just given a note by the secretary of state saying that we’re very close to a deal on the Middle East, and they’re gonna need me pretty quickly,” Trump said at the time.

In his own post, Netanyahu said only, “With God’s help we will bring them all home,” an apparent reference to the hostages.

In a second post, he said: “A big day for Israel. I will convene the government tomorrow to approve the agreement and bring all our precious hostages home. I thank the heroic IDF soldiers and all the security forces, thanks to whose courage and sacrifice we have reached this day.

“I thank President Trump and his team from the bottom of my heart for their commitment to this sacred mission of freeing our hostages. With God’s help, together we will continue to achieve all our goals and expand peace with our neighbors.”

In its attack on Israel in 2023, Hamas carried out mass killings, kidnapped hostages and provoked Israel to declare war the following day. About 1,200 people were killed in the surprise attack by Hamas, with militants engaging in sexual violence and taking hostages before retreating to Gaza.

In the nearly two years since, the Israeli government’s management of the ensuing conflict has been met with scrutiny and criticism, including from the United Nations, over its actions that led to civilian casualties, mass displacement and famine.

After announcing the proposal, Trump later set a deadline for Hamas to accept the proposal, warning of a “a sad end” if they did not. Hamas indicated Oct. 3 it would negotiate through mediators.

Previously, in comments to reporters Sept. 30 at Castel Gandolfo about the White House plan, Pope Leo said it appeared to be “a realistic proposal.”

“There are elements that I think are very interesting, and I hope Hamas accepts it in the established timeframe,” he said.

WASHINGTON (OSV News) – Court documents show that a New Jersey man arrested Oct. 5 outside of St. Matthew’s Cathedral just hours before the start of the annual Red Mass had a “fully functional” arsenal of explosives that he threatened to detonate.

According to the D.C. Metropolitan Police Department, after officers took Louis Geri — a 41-year-old resident of Vineland, New Jersey — into custody, they discovered he had “multiple suspicious items, including vials of liquid and possible fireworks” inside a tent he erected on the steps of the cathedral.

Geri had previously been barred from the cathedral premises and was encountered when authorities were making a security sweep several hours in advance of the annual Mass to mark the start of the Supreme Court’s new term.

Published reports indicate that Geri had in his tent 200 incendiary devices including handmade grenades, bottle rockets, Molotov cocktails and vials of nitromethane, the compound used in the Oklahoma City bombing in 1995.

Agents from the FBI, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the Metropolitan Police Department’s Explosive Ordnance Disposal and Arson Task Force, were able to take Geri into custody when he stepped away from his tent.

After his arrest, Geri was found to have a lighter and an explosive device on his person. He was charged with unlawful entry, threats to kidnap or injure a person, and possession of a Molotov cocktail, according to authorities.

Court documents show that Geri had expressed hostility and disdain for the Supreme Court, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, the Catholic Church and Jewish people.

The Red Mass is offered each year on the Sunday before the first Monday in October to mark the opening of the Supreme Court’s term and to invoke God’s blessings on those responsible for the administration of justice as well as on all public officials.

The start of the Red Mass was delayed because of the incident. In a later statement, police said the scene had been secured and there was no ongoing threat to public safety. Normally several Supreme Court justices attend the annual Red Mass, but as the security situation unfolded, none of the justices attended this year’s Mass.

VATICAN CITY (CNS) – Pope Leo XIV’s first papal trip abroad will be to Turkey and Lebanon Nov. 27-Dec. 2, the Vatican press office announced.

The trip was built around Pope Francis’ promise to join Orthodox Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew of Constantinople in celebrating the 1,700th anniversary of the Council of Nicaea and the beginnings of the Nicene Creed, recited by all mainline Christians.

While not releasing a detailed itinerary for the trip, the Vatican said Oct. 7 that Pope Leo would be in Turkey Nov. 27-30, and his visit would “include a pilgrimage to Iznik,” the modern site of the ancient Nicaea.

In an interview in July with the Catholic online news outlet Crux, Pope Leo said that while initial plans were for the Nicaea celebration to be mainly a joint pilgrimage of the pope and patriarch, he requested that it involve other Christian leaders as well. The drafting of the Creed occurred “before the different divisions took place” and so is “a common profession of faith.”

The pope also could go to Ankara, the Turkish capital, to meet government officials and fulfill elements of diplomatic protocol as the leader of the Holy See. And in the past, popes have gone to the Phanar, the headquarters of the Ecumenical Patriarchate, for the Nov. 30 celebration of the feast of St. Andrew, the patron saint of the patriarchate.

The Vatican also said that “in response to the invitation of the Head of State and Ecclesiastical Authorities of Lebanon,” Pope Leo would go from Turkey to Lebanon Nov. 30-Dec. 2.

In addition to visiting government and church officials, the pope is expected to commemorate in some way the 2020 explosion at the port of Beirut, which killed more than 200 people, injured some 7,000 others and displaced more than 300,000. Many of those killed were Christians because the port is near predominantly Christian neighborhoods.

WASHINGTON (OSV News) – The U.S. Supreme Court began its fall term Oct. 6, with cases on its docket that include legal battles over some of President Donald Trump’s policies and use of executive authority.

The justices also will hear challenges to the death penalty; Idaho and West Virginia state laws requiring student athletes to compete on sports teams that correspond to their biological sex rather than the gender they identity with; and an appeal from a group of faith-based pregnancy centers in New Jersey.

“As always, the Supreme Court’s docket so far includes many cases that raise interesting, important and tricky legal questions,” Rick Garnett, a professor of law at the University of Notre Dame, told OSV News.

In three consecutive months, the court will hear cases over Trump’s tests of the limits of his presidential power: In November, the justices will consider Trump’s tariff policy, which he set unilaterally; in December, they will consider whether he can remove personnel at independent agencies; and in January, they will consider his attempt to fire Lisa Cook, a member of the Federal Reserve’s Board of Governors.

Others will likely follow, as the Trump administration asked the high court to weigh in directly on his executive order to end birthright citizenship for children born in the U.S. to parents without legal status or who are temporary visa holders.

The high court began its new term amid a split in public opinion over its work. An Oct. 2 Marquette Law School Poll survey found 50% of the public said they approve of the way the Supreme Court is handling its job, and 50% disapprove.

The Marquette survey also found that more than half of respondents (55%) said they “believe the Court is going out of its way to avoid making a ruling that President Donald Trump might refuse to obey.” Asked about that finding, Garnett replied that it is “not surprising, given the state of political discourse and disagreement in our country, that many people think this.”

“I believe that the justices expect that the president will abide by their rulings, even if he thinks they are mistaken,” he said. “Under our Constitution, presidents and members of Congress take an oath to the Constitution, and are obligated to interpret the Constitution, just as the justices do and are. This does not mean presidents and members of Congress have to agree with the court, but our tradition, except in extremely rare cases, has been for them to comply with the court’s decisions.”

Among the first cases of its term, the court will hear Chiles v. Salazar, a First Amendment challenge to a Colorado law banning professional counseling services that practice “conversion therapy” for minors, efforts intended to change a minor’s gender identity that differs from the young person’s biological sex or to change their sexual orientation.

Opponents of the law argue it restricts their ability to provide counseling to minors experiencing same-sex attraction or gender dysphoria, the feeling of distress that one’s biological sex and gender identity are not aligned. But supporters of the law argue such treatments are discredited and so the ban shields children from treatments they might be forced to undergo by their parents.

“The Chiles case is being described as involving a state’s ban on ‘conversion therapy,’ but the law at issue actually sweeps much more broadly, and prohibits talk-therapy that is consensual and that reflects the religious commitments of both the counselor and the client,” Garnett said. “A lower court had approved the ban, on the theory that the counseling in question is ‘conduct’ and not ‘speech.’ This theory is not plausible, though, and the justices are likely to reject it.”

Garnett argued the law “singles out and censors particular viewpoints and perspectives about gender-identity issues, and the rule is not carefully targeted at potentially coercive or dangerous practices.”

The high court will also hear an Alabama case over a man on death row convicted of a 1997 murder who is considered intellectually disabled based on IQ testing, and how courts should determine such a designation in death penalty cases. Existing Supreme Court precedent found executing an intellectually disabled person violates the U.S. Constitution’s Eighth Amendment prohibition on cruel and unusual punishment. The case comes as the Trump administration has sought to expand the use of capital punishment.

First Choice Women’s Resource Centers, a group of faith-based pregnancy centers in New Jersey, has challenged an investigation by that state’s attorney general alleging they misled people about their services and sought information about their donors. The court took the case up, but has yet to schedule oral arguments.

Near the end of its last term, in a June 18 ruling in United States v. Skrmetti, the court found a Tennessee law restricting gender transition treatments, including puberty blockers for minors, did not violate the equal protection clause of the 14th Amendment. The Biden administration had challenged the law, Senate Bill 1.

On the heels of that decision, the court in its new term will consider related laws in Idaho and West Virginia that restrict student athletics to biological sex. Those cases — Little v. Hecox, and West Virginia v. B.P.J. — have been taken up but have yet to be scheduled for oral arguments.

 

(OSV News) – Catholics involved in interfaith efforts have offered their condolences to the members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints on the death of their president, Russell M. Nelson, Sept. 27 at age 101.

Nelson’s death came the same weekend as a Latter-day Saints church in Michigan was attacked by a gunman who also lit the building on fire in which five people were killed and eight people injured.

“The Catholic community in the U.S. joins members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in mourning the passing of President Russell M. Nelson, and as a Church, we offer our deep sympathy and prayers at the loss of life and the destruction of the LDS church in Michigan on Sunday,” said Bishop Joseph C. Bambera of Scranton, Pennsylvania, chair of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ Committee on Ecumenism and Interreligious Affairs.

While the USCCB does not maintain an official theological dialogue with the Latter-day Saints, Bishop Bambera said, “we have worked with the church on some shared policy concerns and are grateful for the church’s support of local Catholic initiatives that have benefitted people in need.”

When Nelson met Pope Francis in 2019, he became the first head of his Salt Lake City-based church to meet with a sitting pope. Nelson’s tenure as the church’s president marked an increase in interfaith relations, including with the Catholic Church.

“As a man of faith in God and conviction to his calling from God he is beloved by people the world over. There are many accolades attributed to President Nelson’s leadership, but one in particular that stands out is his friendship and care for those who are suffering and in need,” said Father John Evans, vicar general for the Diocese of Salt Lake City in a statement.

“The Catholic Church in Utah and, through his leadership, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints have long worked together to care for the poor and vulnerable here in Utah and beyond,” the priest said. “President Nelson has been an inspiration for many and a steady leader to truly minister for the good and to see the dignity in others.”

As president, Nelson was viewed by Latter-day Saints as their prophet. He was the 17th man to lead the 17.5-million-member church.

During the historic meeting between Nelson and Pope Francis March 9, 2019, in Rome, the two world faith leaders discussed where their churches had common ground, such as their concern for suffering people, religious liberty, the importance of the family, increasing secularization in the world and the need for people to have faith in Jesus Christ.

“We had a most cordial, unforgettable experience with His Holiness. He was most gracious and warm and welcoming,” Nelson said at the time. “What a sweet, wonderful man he is, and how fortunate the Catholic people are to have such a gracious, concerned, loving, and capable leader.”

Although both churches proclaim faith in Jesus Christ, baptism in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is not recognized by the Catholic Church because of different understandings of the Trinity.

“There is not in fact a fundamental doctrinal agreement. There is not a true invocation of the Trinity because the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, according to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, are not the three persons in which subsists the one Godhead, but three gods who form one divinity,” reads a document from the Congregation, now Dicastery, for the Doctrine of the Faith on the subject. “One is different from the other, even though they exist in perfect harmony.”

Nelson presented Pope Francis with a miniature replica of the Christus statue sculpted by Danish sculptor Bertel Thorvaldson, which has become a symbol associated with the Latter-day Saints. Pope Francis presented Nelson with a copy of “Amoris Laetitia” (“The Joy of Love”), his 2016 post-synodal apostolic exhortation following the 2014-2015 Synods on the Family.

“The differences in doctrine are real,” Nelson said at the time. “They are important. But they are not nearly as important as things we have in common.”

Nelson was born Sept. 9, 1924, in Salt Lake City. Before his ecclesiastical career, Nelson was an accomplished cardiothoracic surgeon, helping develop the heart-lung bypass machine used in the first open heart surgery on a person. In 1955, he performed the first such procedure in Utah, the first west of the Mississippi River.

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints relies on volunteers for local leadership. During his medical career, Nelson served in several local leadership positions before being ordained as a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles — similar to the College of Cardinals — in 1984.

In 2016, while still a member of the quorum, Catholic Community Services of Utah honored Nelson during its annual Humanitarian Awards Dinner.

“It is especially meaningful to me because it comes from valued friends who are themselves such stalwart examples of dedication to people in need,” Nelson said upon accepting the award. “I spent my entire professional career endeavoring to save lives — physical lives — as a heart surgeon. I feel right at home among you, as you are also saving lives — saving lives from deprivation, despondency and despair.”

Father Christopher Gray, rector of the Cathedral of the Madeleine in Salt Lake City, noted that locally, Latter-day Saints service missionaries assist Catholic Community Service’s efforts to serve those in need, particularly with refugee services.

“Under President Nelson’s leadership, the relationship between the Catholic Church and the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has been very much fortified by the commitment of the LDS Church to work together with the Catholics for the sake of the poor and vulnerable in the world,” Father Gray said.

St. Lawrence Catholic Church in Heber City, Utah, had a Mass for the repose of Nelson’s soul Oct. 2. The liturgy drew 250 people to the small church, according to Deseret News.

As the longest-serving member of the quorum, he ascended to the presidency of the church Jan. 14, 2018, following the death of his predecessor, Thomas S. Monson. He immediately began discouraging the use of “Mormon,” a popular nickname long applied to the church and its members. He emphasized the use of the church’s full name.

During the papal transition earlier this year, Nelson and the other members of the church’s First Presidency, the Latter-day Saints’ highest governing body, offered their condolences on the death of Pope Francis and gave a message of support for Pope Leo XIV.

“As the world pauses to remember his example of forgiveness and service, we feel deep gratitude for the goodness of a life well lived and rejoice in the hope of a glorious resurrection made possible through the atoning sacrifice of Jesus Christ,” Nelson said when Pope Francis died.

On Pope Leo’s election, he wrote that “we deeply appreciate our longstanding relationship with the Catholic Church and the many ways we have worked together to relieve suffering around the globe. We look forward to continuing our work towards a world where peace, human life and dignity and religious freedom are cherished and protected. We share your commitment to follow the example of Jesus Christ and welcome further opportunities to collaborate in caring for those in need.”

During Nelson’s tenure, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has encouraged interfaith partnerships in serving those in need, locally and globally. Sean Callahan, president and CEO of Catholic Relief Services, offered his condolences, adding that he is grateful for the organization’s longstanding partnership with the church.

“We are honored to have stood alongside President Nelson and the Church in serving those most in need,” Callahan said. “At this time of loss, we extend our deepest condolences to the Latter-day Saints community and to all those who mourn his passing.”

Collaborative efforts between CRS and the LDS Church date to the 1980s in helping with food distribution during the Ethiopian famine. Recent projects include a joint effort to provide safe and reliable running water to more than 2,000 people in a Liberian community.

“His vision and unwavering commitment to humanitarian service inspired and strengthened our shared mission, expanding access to clean water, improving health and nutrition and enabling urgent emergency response around the world,” Callahan added.

Following succession procedures for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Elder Dallin H. Oaks — as the longest-serving member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles — will take over as the global leader of the church. Following the Oct. 1 broadcast of a tribute to Nelson, funeral services for him were to be held Oct. 7.