Author: Eric Deabill

WILLIAMSPORT – Fifty years ago, the people of Saint Boniface Parish faced unimaginable loss.

A catastrophic fire on Tuesday, Dec. 5, 1972, reduced their beloved church – a city landmark – to smoldering ruins.

The evening newspaper headlines stunned residents of Lycoming County and beyond with the headlines: ‘St. Boniface Church Destroyed by Fire’ and ‘Spectacular Early Morning Blaze Ruins City Landmark.’

But from that heartbreak rose a renewed spirit.

On Aug. 2 and 3, 2025, parishioners of Saint Boniface joyfully celebrated the 50th anniversary of the dedication of its new church building, which was formally dedicated on Aug. 3, 1975.

To mark the golden milestone, the Most Rev. Joseph C. Bambera, Bishop of Scranton, celebrated the Vigil Mass for the Eighteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time, joined by current pastor, Father Glenn McCreary, who also presided over Sunday morning’s anniversary liturgy.

“Quite immediately they began worshipping in the gymnasium (of Saint Boniface School),” Father McCreary said, noting the resiliency of parishioners right after the fire. “There was a sign up there that said: Saint Boniface Church is alive and active.”

FROM ASHES TO ACTION

The rebuilding process was not merely a construction project. It was an effort to shape the future direction of the faith community.

Then-pastor Monsignor Eugene J. Clark led with vision and collaboration, forming the first parish pastoral council in the diocese, which empowered parishioners to help plan and guide the new church’s development.

Parishioners traveled to other communities to explore church designs and formed committees focused on finance, construction, and even organ research.

“It really became a project that the parish itself owned,” Father McCreary added. “It wasn’t a matter of just calling somebody up and saying build us a church in this spot.”

Some precious relics of the past still remain: weathered statues of Saint Boniface and Saint Joseph, a refurbished image of the Good Shepherd, and even a chalice that survived the fire and was used for the 50th anniversary celebrations.

A CHURCH BUILT ON PEOPLE

For lifelong parishioners like Arnold Betts, who served the final Mass in the old church and the very first in the school gym, the memories remain vivid.

“I watched the steeple burn from my parent’s bedroom,” he recalled. “The parish got together and said, ‘we will rebuild,’ and this is the result of it.”

Steve Sholder, another lifelong member, echoed that sentiment.

“It was devastating. It was like losing an old friend, quite honestly,” Sholder said. “It was a great building, but Monsignor Clark said the church is not really a building. He said the church is the people and that’s the way he wanted us to continue.”

During his homily, Bishop Bambera reemphasized that message and challenged parishioners to continue living that identity.

“I’m very grateful to be a part of this 50th anniversary because I watched this church being built,” Rosemary Dincher, a Eucharistic Minister, who has been part of the parish since her marriage in 1950, said. “I always felt like I was part of this new church.”

A LIVING, GROWING COMMUNITY

While the parish is steeped in history, dating back to the 1830s and the first German Catholics to settle in Williamsport, it is also looking ahead. Saint Boniface Parish remains a vibrant center of faith and outreach in the city.

“When you come here, you feel like you are family. Everybody picks you up,” Tom Engel said.

Even newer parishioners, like Joyce Jones, feel the warmth of the invitation being extended to all.

“Saint Boniface has become an icon in this community,” Jones explained. “They’re accepting and I’m comfortable here.”

For many, the 50th anniversary celebration is not just about looking back. It’s a recommitment to the mission of the parish.

“We’re celebrating the continuation of God’s grace flowing through Saint Boniface and all the people that have come through here,” Engel said. “We continue God’s work.”

“We’re moving forward with God’s will,” Betts added. “It’s a wonderful parish.”

HONESDALE – Saint Mary Magdalen Church, a worship site of Saint John the Evangelist Parish in Honesdale, welcomed a special visitor earlier this month.

On the evening of Aug. 7, a traveling icon of the Sacred Heart of Jesus made a special stop at the Wayne County church for a reverent and prayerful Holy Hour.

The event, hosted by the local Knights of Columbus Council 363, centered on the love and mercy of Christ symbolized in the Sacred Heart.

“We were privileged enough to have the traveling icon of the Sacred Heart visit our area,” Donald Vivacqua, Grand Knight of the Honesdale Council, said. “Our District Deputy arranged it. They were looking for a place and we said, bring it here, so we had this wonderful event tonight.”

Vivacqua described the experience as humbling and deeply moving.

“It was a visual representation of how much Jesus loves us. (It’s) an image that I can use in my prayer when I think about the Sacred Heart,” he added.

The icon depicts the most famous image of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, painted in 1767 by Pompeo Batoni and is now venerated in the Church of the Gesù in Rome.

The reproduction bears the blessing of Pope Francis, through the Papal Almoner, and is one of more than 300 icons traveling the world for veneration and use in prayer services.

For Vivacqua, the icon’s presence served as more than a religious symbol, he sees it as a teaching tool.

“The more exposure that we get and the more we talk about it – especially some of the prayers that we went through tonight – illustrated how people can view the Sacred Heart and how the Sacred Heart is for all of us,” he added. “Christ is just there for us to adore, and His heart loves us.”

Thomas Kurtek, District Deputy of the Knights of Columbus, was instrumental in bringing the icon to Honesdale.

“I just hope it will encourage devotion to the Catholic faith,” Kurtek stated. “It makes me feel there is hope in this world.”

Both Kurtek and Vivacqua expressed gratitude to Father William J.P. Langan, pastor, Saint John the Evangelist Parish, for hosting the event.

Following the event, families were encouraged to enthrone the Sacred Heart in their homes by placing an image of the Sacred Heart in a place of honor. This devotion was inspired by Jesus’ promise to St. Mary Margaret Alacoque to “bless every place in which an image of [his] Heart is exposed and honored.”

SCRANTON – With arms raised and voices lifted in praise, approximately 700 people from across the country gathered at The University of Scranton Aug. 1-3, 2025, for the annual 2025 Catholic Charismatic Renewal Conference in the Diocese of Scranton.

This year’s theme, “Repent – Renew – Revive,” echoed through three days of spirited worship, stirring talks, Eucharistic adoration, and healing prayer.

Those attending this year’s event say the message was clear – no matter where you are on your faith journey, God is calling you deeper.

“God is alive. God is good and we meet God here,” Anne Marie Pierre of Brooklyn, N.Y., who has been attending for more than three decades. “It’s like going up the mountain to meet with the Lord.”

Participants came from throughout the Diocese of Scranton and beyond – New York, New Jersey, Philadelphia – as well as across the east coast.

Deborah DeRosia, a speaker from Trinidad and Tobago, encouraged attendees to embrace God’s mercy and respond to His call to relationship.

“God runs out to meet them because of His love. Therefore, they can’t stay away from Him. He wants to be reconciled. That’s why He sent His son,” she said.

The weekend was filled with testimonies and teachings designed to help Catholics grow in their relationship with Christ, especially through the power of the Holy Spirit.

Father Gus Ricciardi, the conference’s spiritual moderator, called it a “spirit-filled” experience.

“We give a lot of glory and praise. There are different speakers, witness talks and a healing service,” he explained. “It’s something people need to experience.”

The energy and love for Christ is palpable each year.

“I get so inspired and uplifted and it brings you back to the first time you came to know the Lord. It’s wonderful,” Karen Burkavage from Saint John the Evangelist Parish in Honesdale, said.

During his homily at the Closing Mass on Sunday, the Most Rev. Joseph C. Bambera, Bishop of Scranton, reminded the faithful of the cost – and the reward – of true discipleship.

“None of us will find a life of meaning, purpose and lasting peace if we refuse to look beyond ourselves, our own needs and our own priorities,” he said.

Reflecting on a personal encounter with a homeless man, Bishop Bambera challenged everyone to live the Gospel authentically.

“The cost of discipleship comes at a considerable price … but it is the only way in which we will find our peace.”

For many attendees, that message – of radical, self-giving love – is why they keep coming back.

“The Lord keeps reminding me of what goes on here. He won’t let me stay home. It’s really wonderful. It’s very inspirational. This has been a fantastic weekend,” Dianne Spotts, from Lansdale, explained.

Dara Dirhan, a parishioner of Saint Maria Goretti Parish in Laflin, said the conference offers exactly what many in the world are seeking: “rest and restoration in our Lord Jesus Christ.”

“It makes me feel really joyful to see other Catholics being so expressive with their faith. There’s nothing better than being able to throw our hands up with praise and worship to the Lord and sing the songs we sing together as a group,” Dirhan said.

As the weekend ended, attendees said God revived their spirit over the course of the weekend and they are returning home to share His love with the world.

“I wish every church was like this,” Audrey Branz of Berwick said.

QUEBEC, CANADA – The fifth session of the seventh phase of the Catholic-Pentecostal International Dialogue took place at the Monastere des Augustines, Quebec City, Quebec, Canada, from July 11-17, 2025.

The Vatican’s Dicastery for Promoting Christian Unity and the Pentecostal World Fellowship’s Christian Unity Commission co-sponsor this Dialogue.

During this session the participants continued their work on the theme, Lex Orandi, Lex Credendi (the law of prayer is the law of faith).

The goal of the Dialogue, started in 1972, is to promote mutual respect and understanding in matters of faith and practice.

The group started to prepare the Final Draft of the current phase which includes among its topics: kerygma/proclamation and Christian faith; prayer/worship and Christian life; as well as sacramentality and Christian living.

The report will be finalized and presented to the respective constituencies by 2026.
Meeting in Quebec City gave the opportunity for participants to become acquainted with the Pentecostal Assemblies of Canada.

Participants acknowledged with gratitude the assistance provided by Rev. Gary and Gwen Connors as local hosts.

Particularly significant was the Sunday worship and visit at a local Francophone PAOC congregation, Le Carrefour Chrétien de la Capitale, led by Rev. Jean-Frederic Laroche, as well as worship facilitated by the Pentecostal team at the Chapel of the Monastère des Augustines.

The participants also engaged in a meaningful learning experience as they were exposed to the history and faithful ministry of the L’Ordre des Augustines du Miséricorde de Jesus in Quebec.

During the meeting, entirely devoted to the Final Report, the participants were informed about the participation of Rev. David Wells and Rev. Opoku Onyinah at the inauguration of the ministry of Pope Leo XIV. Morning and evening prayers each day were led alternately by Catholics and Pentecostals.

Co-Chairs of the Dialogue were the Most Rev. Joseph C. Bambera, Bishop of Scranton, and Rev. Cecil M. Robeck, Jr, Senior Professor of Church History and Ecumenics, Fuller Theological Seminary, Pasadena, California, USA (Assemblies of God).

They were assisted by Rev. David Wells, Chair of the PWF CUC, as well as by Rev. Prof. David Cole, Liaison to the Greater Christian Community for the Pentecostal/Charismatic Churches of North America, and by Msgr. Juan Usma Gómez, DPCU, who served as co-secretaries.

Regarding this year’s session, Bishop Bambera said, “Our time in Quebec City has afforded us the opportunity to experience the fruits of the tenant of faith upon which we’ve reflected the past seven years: Lex Orandi, Lex Credendi – As we worship, so we believe! From our experience of a vibrant Pentecostal community to the very halls where we lived and worked in the Monastere des Augustines, whose founders established the first hospital in North America in 1639, we have been blessed to witness the fruits of discipleship lived in and through a deep respect and reverence for our brothers and sisters in Christ. Reflecting the heart of the work of Christian unity, Pope Leo XIV, shared these words on the day following his inaugural Mass with representatives of other churches and ecclesial communities. Recalling his episcopal motto, ‘In the One – that is Christ – we are one,’ Pope Leo encouraged us “to pray and work together to reach this goal, step by step, which is and remains the work of the Holy Spirit.”

Rev. Robeck also noted, “Prayer is important to all of us. It is a primary means that we use to communicate with God. Are our prayers essentially self-centered or do they move us to greater love for God and for our neighbor? How we pray holds implications for how we face life, especially life in community. This Dialogue has helped us to see such questions more clearly as together, we express our desire for greater unity.”

(OSV News) – The president of the U.S. bishops’ conference called for a special collection to bolster the Catholic Church’s response to a deepening humanitarian catastrophe in the Gaza Strip as the Israel-Hamas war continues to grind on.

In a letter to his brother bishops, Archbishop Timothy P. Broglio, president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, urged them to hold a “special collection to provide humanitarian relief and pastoral support for our affected brothers and sisters in Gaza and surrounding areas in the Middle East” through both Catholic Near East Welfare Association and Catholic Relief Services, the overseas humanitarian relief agency of the Catholic Church in the U.S.

Excerpts of the letter, dated Aug. 12 according to CNEWA, were released by both CNEWA and the USCCB Aug. 20.

“It is with great pastoral concern for the ongoing crisis in Gaza that I write to you today,” the archbishop, who also heads the U.S. Archdiocese for the Military Services, said in his letter. “Our Church mourns the terrible suffering of Christians and other innocent victims of violence in Gaza and surrounding areas who are struggling to survive, protect their children, and live with dignity in dire conditions.”

In July, organizations including the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, the U.N. World Food Program, and UNICEF warned that a hunger crisis was deepening in the devastated area, exceeding famine thresholds, with more than one in three people going days at a time without eating.

Archbishop Broglio noted Pope Leo XIV “continues to call for a ceasefire and for aid to enter the territory, noting with great sorrow that ‘Gaza is starving.'”

He said both CNEWA and CRS have well-established partnerships in the region that allow the Catholic Church to deliver aid quickly and efficiently to the Gaza Strip.

“The situation in Gaza and across the Middle East cries out for assistance of the Catholic community of the United States,” Archbishop Broglio wrote. “I ask that you take up this collection and send funds to CNEWA and CRS as soon as possible.”

(OSV News) – As the Trump administration seeks to end Russia’s multiyear war on Ukraine, Russian attacks on Ukrainian civilians continue, said Metropolitan Archbishop Borys A. Gudziak of the Ukrainian Catholic Archeparchy of Philadelphia.

Archbishop Gudziak traveled to Ukraine two days after the Aug. 15 summit between President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson in Anchorage, Alaska.

Ahead of an Aug. 18 White House meeting among Trump, Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and several European leaders, Russia launched attacks on multiple Ukrainian regions — including an apartment building in Kharkiv, the ruins of which Archbishop Gudziak visited Aug. 19.

In a video provided directly to OSV News and posted on his Facebook page, Archbishop Gudziak stood before the remains of the structure, which had been struck Aug. 18 along with several other buildings in the city of Kharkiv.

The attack left seven dead, most from a single family, and some two dozen injured, with three people still missing.

“Thirty-six hours after the Trump-Putin summit in Alaska, and a day before the summit with President Zelenskyy and the European leaders in Washington, this building of a hundred apartments of families was hit by five Iranian-style drones, killing seven people, five of them members of one family, father, mother, two children and a grandmother,” said Archbishop Gudziak in his video, with the blackened, crumbling remains of the apartment building behind him.

One of the slain children was a toddler, while the other was her 16-year-old brother, said Ukrainian authorities.

Archbishop Gudziak noted that “all hundred families have lost their homes” as a result of Russia’s attack, which also targeted several other sites throughout Ukraine, including the city of Zaporizhzhia, where three were killed and 23 wounded in a ballistic missile strike on an apartment building.

Reuters said one of its reporters had seen medics attempt to revive a toddler at the scene, with the child’s body covered in dust.

Basilian Sister Lucia Murashko — who along with two fellow women religious has remained at their Zaporizhzhia monastery throughout the full-scale invasion to serve the war-torn city — told OSV News in a message after the attack, “We are well, if I can say so.”

Previously, Sister Lucia and some 80 children had narrowly avoided being killed in a deadly Dec. 6, 2024, strike on Zaporizhzhia as they celebrated a liturgy marking the feast of St. Nicholas. That attack killed 10 and wounded more than 20.

Russia’s overnight Aug. 17-18 attacks also targeted the city of Odesa, where a previously damaged oil depot owned by Azerbaijan was hit again for the second time in as many weeks.

Hours after the Washington summit, Russia launched additional attacks, launching 270 drones and 10 ballistic missiles on central Ukraine and striking the city of Kremenchuk. While authorities did not report casualties, Ukraine’s air force said despite downing 230 drones, 16 locations were hit.

“This, dear brothers and sisters, is the daily image of Russia’s war against Ukraine,” said Archbishop Gudziak in his video.

In a second Aug. 19 video he shared with OSV News and posted to Facebook, Archbishop Gudziak traveled to the remains of Kharkiv’s former Epicenter home improvement mall, which Russia struck with two glide bombs May 25, 2024, killing 19 and wounding 54.

Among those slain were Iryna Myronenko, a first-year catechetical student at Ukrainian Catholic University, and her 12-year-old daughter Mariya. The family had been shopping for a faucet at the store when the missile hit.

Speaking Aug. 19 before an on-site memorial dedicated to the mother and daughter, Archbishop Gudziak — who in September 2024 had visited the gutted structure prior to its demolition — said, “Iryna and Maria ask that you continue to pray, to be informed, to act, to help … stop this war.”

In a nod to Moscow’s oft-repeated calls to address what it calls the “root causes” of its attacks on Ukraine — specifically, a belief that Ukraine’s sovereignty does not exist despite international recognition — Archbishop Gudziak said, “Help people understand what the root causes of this war are: the desire to possess and control the other.

“The victims are innocent,” he said. “Those who oppress should be named.”

Amid Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine — which continues attacks initiated in 2014 and which has been declared a genocide in two joint reports from the New Lines Institute and the Raoul Wallenberg Centre for Human Rights — “the people hold out,” said Archbishop Gudziak in his first Aug. 19 video.

“They believe in the fact that God’s truth will prevail. They help each other. They’re in solidarity,” said Archbishop Gudziak. “And they are grateful to all Americans, to all people of goodwill who support them, with prayer, with accurate information, and with aid.”

He called for unity in bringing a just end to Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, which continues attacks initiated in 2014 and which has been declared a genocide in two joint reports from the New Lines Institute and the Raoul Wallenberg Center for Human Rights.

“Let us stand together. Let us stand for the victory of God’s truth, and not this kind of barbarity — the killing of children, the killing of families, the killing of innocent people who just want to live and be free,” said Archbishop Gudziak.

VATICAN CITY (CNS) – Pope Leo XIV asked Catholics to observe Aug. 22 as a day of prayer and fasting for peace and justice, particularly in Ukraine and in the Holy Land.

At the end of his general audience Aug. 20, the pope noted that the church will celebrate the feast of the Queenship of Mary Aug. 22.

“While our world continues to be wounded by wars in the Holy Land, in Ukraine and in many other regions of the world,” he said, “I ask all the faithful to spend Aug. 22 in fasting and prayer, asking the Lord to grant us peace and justice and to dry the tears of those who suffer because of the armed conflicts underway.”

“May Mary, queen of peace, intercede so that people would find the path of peace,” he prayed.

The night before his audience, as he was greeting people who gathered outside the Villa Barberini in Castel Gandolfo, Pope Leo told reporters the new diplomatic moves aimed at ending Russia’s war on Ukraine are a reason for hope, but much remains to be done.

“There is hope. We still have to work hard, pray hard and seek the way forward,” the pope told reporters late Aug. 19 as he prepared to leave the villa and return to the Vatican.

Encountering the pope the day after U.S. President Donald Trump met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and a delegation of European leaders, the reporters asked Pope Leo if he had heard from any of the leaders.

“I hear from some of them from time to time,” the pope said, but he did not respond to a journalist who asked if he speaks with Trump.

Pope Leo, who marked the 100th day of his papacy Aug. 16, also was asked how that was going.

It has been “a blessing from God,” he said. “I receive so much. I really believe in the Lord’s grace, and I am so thankful for the reception I have received.”

Ending his short, second stay at Castel Gandolfo, Pope Leo said he would return. “It’s a grace to be here.”

(OSV News) – Six pro-life activists, a majority of them Catholics including two recently pardoned by President Donald Trump, are now facing state charges for a July 31 Red Rose Rescue abortion clinic “rescue” in Upland, Pennsylvania, near Philadelphia, that temporarily disrupted its activities.

The protest took place at the Delaware County Women’s Center in the Crozer Chester Medical Center.

The facility does not perform surgical abortions, but provides first trimester medication-based abortions using mifepristone and misoprostol. The two drug-regimen is commonly used in first trimester abortions, as well as some early miscarriage protocols.

Abortion is legal in Pennsylvania up through the 23rd week of an unborn baby’s gestation.

On Aug 14, an arraignment hearing scheduled for magisterial district court in Brookhaven, Pennsylvania, was postponed until Aug. 21.

Among the six defendants are Joan Andrews Bell, 77, of Montague, New Jersey, and William Goodman, 55, originally from Madison, Wisconsin. Both Bell and Goodman had been pardoned by Trump for their convictions under the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances Act, or FACE Act, for their participation in clinic blockades known as “rescues.”

They and four others face charges of biosecurity trespassing — entering a medical treatment area without adhering to biosecurity procedures — and disorderly trespassing. Both are misdemeanors and could bring jail terms of up to one year as well as fines.

Also charged were ChristyAnne Collins, 70, of Texas City, Texas, who was well-known in the Washington area in the ’80s and ’90s for her participation in clinic protests; Monica Miller, 72, of South Lyon, Michigan, who heads Citizens for a Pro-Life Society, a group affiliated with the Red Rose Rescues; Patrice Woodworth-Crandall, 61, of Winona, Minnesota; and William Holmberg, 71, of Steubenville, Ohio.

All the defendants are Catholic, except Collins, who is evangelical. Magistrate court records accessed by OSV News show all six posted bail at $20,000 each. In an email to supporters sent Aug. 7, Miller said $2,000 was raised per rescuer for their bail.

The Upland borough police report described a chaotic, but nonviolent, afternoon on July 31.

According to the report by the arresting officer, a security guard at the Crozer Center told police there were two people in the elevator refusing to leave the property. One of the people was identified as Collins. In the building’s second elevator, the report said, were Bell and Holmberg. The officer’s report stated Holmberg told him that “they were there to aid women in different opportunities other than abortion.”

When the officer “attempted to explain to all parties that while I understand they are there to help people,” Collins he wrote, “interrupted me stating that I should go speak to the women upstairs and explain that they are committing murder. I replied by informing her that abortions are legal here, and entirely the women’s choice. Furthermore, I would not be going upstairs and speaking with anyone.”

A nurse had set off the fire alarm in an attempt to get the protesters to leave, but they refused.
Upstairs, police found Miller, Woodworth-Crandall and Goodman.

According to the arresting officer’s report, “They were allegedly there with a young female who came in for an appointment. The young female checked in and three protesters all checked in with her. The young female stated she had to make a phone call, left the room and never came back.”

The report then relayed that the trio “then began pouring an unknown liquid and salt-like substance” (which they identified as holy water and holy, or blessed, salt) all over the floor, and informed a staff member that they would “rather burn in hell than leave.”

The arresting officer then described how after refusing a lawful order to leave or face arrest, “all 3 protesters began to kneel or lay on the floor” before being physically removed from the premises.

A similar scene played out with the remaining rescuers who laid themselves down and acted as dead weight. Holmberg was placed into a patrol vehicle, while Collins and Bell were taken out in wheelchairs before being placed into a different patrol vehicle.

In her account of the day sent by email Aug. 7 to Citizens for a Pro-Life Society supporters, Miller wrote that the rescuers were “arrested while peacefully offering roses and resources to mothers.”

She also wrote that they “peacefully offered words of support and alternatives to abortion as well as information on abortion pill reversal,” which refers to the attempt to stop a medication-based abortion with progesterone after a woman has taken the first dose of mifepristone.

According to Miller, “About 90 minutes into the rescue, the staff announced that they were ‘closing the clinic for the day,’ and all abortion appointments for the eight women who had arrived to kill their unborn children were canceled.”

Miller said that because the parking-lot location of the center made sidewalk interventions impossible, “thus only by entering the building itself could the women scheduled for abortion be reached.”

The Catholic Church opposes abortion because it holds that all human life is sacred from conception to natural death. The church also has a tradition of nonviolent advocacy to give witness to the truth, while making clear that all advocacy for justice must make use of only moral means, with St. John Paul II teaching in his 1993 encyclical, “Veritatis Splendor,” that a person cannot “intend directly something which of its very nature contradicts the moral order … even though the intention is to protect or promote the welfare of an individual, of a family or of society in general.”

Red Rose Rescue was founded in June 2017, with its first clinic intervention held that September.

Although the FACE Act is still on the books, on Jan. 24 the Justice Department ordered federal prosecutors to cease enforcement of that law barring “extraordinary circumstances” or in cases presenting “significant aggravating factors.”

A bill to repeal the act, sponsored by Rep. Chip Roy, R-Texas, was voted out of the House Judiciary Committee June 10.

ROME (CNS) – Spending the day with the poor, Pope Leo XIV prayed that Catholics would make sure their parishes are welcoming of all people and would be “on fire” with God’s love.

“We are the church of the Lord, a church of the poor – all precious, all active participants, each one bearing a unique word from God,” the pope said Aug. 17 as he celebrated Mass at the Shrine of Santa Maria della Rotonda in Albano Laziale with about 110 clients and volunteers of the Diocese of Albano’s Caritas programs, including people experiencing homelessness and residents of its shelter for families.

“Let us not leave the Lord outside of our churches, our homes or our lives,” the pope said in his homily at the Mass. “Rather, let us welcome him in the poor – and then we will make peace even with our own poverty, the kind we fear and deny when we seek comfort and security at all costs.”

After the morning Mass, Pope Leo returned to Castel Gandolfo – less than two miles away – to lead the recitation of the Angelus prayer and then to host lunch for the Caritas clients and some of the volunteers.

The luncheon was held in the Borgo Laudato Si’, a project for education and training in integral ecology begun by Pope Francis in the gardens of the papal summer villa. Waiters in white shirts and black trousers served the guests a meal that included vegetable lasagna, eggplant parmesan or roast veal, fruit salad and dessert provided by local restaurants.

Cardinal Fabio Baggio, director general of Borgo Laudato Si’, welcomed the pope and said the lunch with the poor was a beautiful way to celebrate Pope Leo’s first 100 days in office and affirm Catholic teaching that “unites care for creation with care for every person.”

Pope Leo was seated at a round table placed at the junction of two long tables that formed an “l” under an awning to protect guests from the sun. At the table with him were: Rosabal Leon, a migrant from Peru, whose husband and two children were seated nearby; and Gabriella Oliveiro, 85, who lives by herself on the outskirts of Rome.

Before blessing the food, the pope said the setting was a reminder of the beauty of God’s creation, especially God’s creation of human beings in his image and likeness — “all of us. Each one of us represents this image of God. How important it is to always remember that we find this presence of God in every person.”

In his homily at the Mass, the pope had said that whether seeking assistance or providing it, in the church “each person is a gift for others. Let us tear down walls.”

Pope Leo thanked the people in Catholic communities around the world who “work to facilitate the encounter between people of different origins and economic, psychological or emotional situations: only together, only by becoming one body in which even the most fragile has full dignity, do we truly become the body of Christ, the church of God.”

The day’s Gospel reading, Luke 12:49-53, began with the words, “Jesus said to his disciples: ‘I have come to set the earth on fire, and how I wish it were already blazing!'”

The fire Jesus was speaking of, the pope said, was “not the fire of weapons, nor the fire of words that burn others down. No. But the fire of love — a love that stoops to serve, that responds to indifference with care and to arrogance with gentleness; the fire of goodness, which doesn’t cost like weapons do, but freely renews the world.”

The price may be “misunderstanding, ridicule, even persecution, but there is no greater peace than having his flame within us,” the pope said.

The Shrine of Santa Maria della Rotonda is built in the round on the site of a first-century pagan temple. The shape, Pope Leo said, “makes us feel welcomed into the womb of God.”

“From the outside, the church, like every human reality, can appear rigid. But its divine reality is revealed when we cross its threshold and experience its welcome,” the pope said. “Then our poverty, our vulnerability, and above all our failures — for which we may be despised and judged, and sometimes we despise and judge ourselves — are finally welcomed into the gentle strength of God, a love without sharp edges and without conditions.”

“Mary, the mother of Jesus, is for us a sign and foretaste of God’s maternity,” he said. “In her, we become a motherly church, one that generates and regenerates not by worldly power, but by the virtue of charity.”

Pope Leo prayed that Catholics would allow Jesus’ fire to burn away “the prejudices, the caution and the fears that still marginalize those who carry the poverty of Christ written into their lives.”

(OSV News) – Pope Leo XIV will have a “real-time digital encounter” with participants attending the National Catholic Youth Conference this fall.

The news was announced Aug. 15 by the annual conference’s host, the National Federation for Catholic Youth Ministry. The Washington-based organization, launched in 1981 with the support of the U.S. bishops, fosters collaboration among the country’s Catholic youth ministry leaders.

During the gathering, which will take place Nov. 20-22 in Indianapolis, the pope will address an expected crowd of 15,000 or so young people ages 14-18.

The digital appearance – scheduled for Nov. 21 at 10:15 a.m. (ET) amid the event’s general session – will feature a 45-minute dialogue with a pre-selected group of young people. Details of that selection process will be released at a later time, said organizers. EWTN will broadcast and livestream the exchange.

“This historic moment will mark a powerful opportunity for young people to witness the universal Church’s care and concern for their voices, experiences, and hopes,” said the NFCYM in its press release, noting that it had timed the announcement’s date with that of the Aug. 15 feast of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary as part of “entrusting this event to the Blessed Mother.”

While it did not issue a formal announcement of the pope’s scheduled appearance, the Vatican press office distributed copies Aug. 15 of the national federation’s press statement in English, Spanish and Italian, according to OSV News partner Catholic News Service Rome.

NFCYM executive director Christina Lamas said her organization was “humbled and thrilled to welcome the Holy Father” to the upcoming conference.

“His presence is a profound reminder that young people are at the heart of the Church and that their voices matter,” said Lamas.

“Even in a globalized world, the Church can seem far away for young people,” said Archbishop Nelson J. Pérez of Philadelphia, episcopal adviser and board member of NFCYM. “The Holy Father’s choice to encounter the American youth in this way is an expression of his closeness to Catholic youth, following in the footsteps of his predecessor Pope Francis who called the youth the ‘now of God.'”

NFCYM described Pope Leo’s participation in the event as “inspirational,” adding that it will “build on the hope-filled encounters with millions of young people both online through the first-ever Digital Influencers Jubilee, and in person at the recent Jubilee for Youth in Rome.”