Author: Eric Deabill

VATICAN CITY (CNS) – Pope Leo XIV condemned the suicide bombing at a Damascus church, calling it “a cowardly terrorist attack” as he appealed to the international community not to give up on Syria.

He also called for dialogue, diplomacy and peace for the whole Middle East, quoting from the prophet Isaiah, “One nation will no longer raise its sword against another nation. They will no longer learn the art of war.”

“Let this voice from the Most High be heard!” he said at the end of his weekly general audience in St. Peter’s Square June 25.

“Let the lacerations caused by the bloody actions of these last days be healed. Let all logic of bullying and revenge be rejected and may the path of dialogue, diplomacy and peace be resolutely chosen” he said.

At least 25 people were killed and 63 others wounded after a suicide bomber opened fire and then detonated an explosive vest at St. Elias Greek Orthodox Church in Damascus, Syria, June 22, during a Sunday Divine Liturgy.

The jihadist group, Saraya Ansar Al-Sunna, claimed responsibility for the attack, according to the AFP June 24. It was the first such attack in Damascus since former President Bashar al-Assad was overthrown by Islamist-led rebels in December, ending 13 years of civil war.

Pope Leo sent a telegram expressing his sadness over the “loss of life and destruction caused by the attack.”

He also expressed his solidarity with and prayers for all those affected by the tragedy in the telegram, sent on the pope’s behalf by Cardinal Pietro Parolin, Vatican secretary of state, June 24.

After offering his greetings in multiple languages at the end of his weekly general audience in the square, the pope said the bombing Sunday was “a cowardly terrorist attack.”

Offering his prayers for the victims and their families, the pope said, “This tragic event recalls the profound fragility that still marks Syria after years of conflict and instability.”

“It is therefore crucial that the international community does not look away from this country, but continues to offer it support through gestures of solidarity and with a renewed commitment to peace and reconciliation,” he said.

Pope Leo then addressed all Christians in the Middle East, saying, “I am close to you, the whole church is close to you.”

“We continue to follow developments in Iran, Israel and Palestine closely and with hope,” he said.

“The words of the prophet Isaiah resonate more urgently than ever,” he said, quoting from the vision of Zion where nations will beat their swords into plowshares and end the art of war.

“Let this voice from the Most High be heard!” he said to applause, calling for a rejection of revenge and a return to dialogue.

VATICAN CITY (CNS) – Do not be afraid to grapple with your innermost thoughts, feelings and problems so that your heart can be filled with God and his compassion, Pope Leo XIV told seminarians.

Also remember to listen to the “voices” of nature, music, poetry, the humanities and the cries of the poor, the oppressed and people who are looking for the meaning of life, he told them.

Learn “to live the style of welcome and closeness, of generous and selfless service, letting the Holy Spirit ‘anoint’ your humanity even before ordination,” the pope said in a reflection June 24.

The pope led a mediation with hundreds of seminarians and those involved in priestly formation from around the world in St. Peter’s Basilica as part of the Jubilee of Seminarians.

When the pope arrived and began walking down the central aisle, the men cheered enthusiastically, ending with a hand-clap chant of “Papa Leone” or “Pope Leo” in Italian.

He thanked them for their joy and enthusiasm, “because with your energy you fuel the flame of hope in the life of the church.”

Speaking in Italian, Pope Leo punctuated a few key points by repeating them in Spanish, such as thanking them for having accepted God’s call to pursue the priesthood and encouraging them to “be brave and have no fear!”

Their journey is saying “yes” with “humility and courage” to Christ’s invitation to become “meek and strong” in proclaiming the Gospel and to become “servants of a church that is open and a missionary church on the move.”

“Jesus, you know, calls you first and foremost to an experience of friendship with him and with your fellow priests” and to deepen this experience in all aspects of life, he said.

“For there is nothing about you that must be discarded, but everything is to be taken up and transfigured in the logic of the grain of wheat to become happy persons and priests, ‘bridges’ and not obstacles to the encounter with Christ for all who approach you,” the pope said. “Yes, he must increase and we must decrease, so that we can be shepherds according to his heart.”

Pope Leo spent a large part of his reflection on the importance of caring for one’s heart — the inner workings, thoughts and feelings one keeps inside — because that is “where God makes his voice heard and where all the most profound decisions are made.”

“As Christ loved with the heart of man, you are called to love with the heart of Christ,” he said.

The heart must be continuously converted so that one’s whole being “smells of the Gospel,” he said.

Exploring deep inside one’s heart, where God has always left his mark, can sometimes cause fear, he said, “because there are also wounds in there.”

“Do not be afraid to take care of them (these wounds), let yourself get help, because it is precisely from those wounds that the ability to stand with those who suffer will emerge,” he said.

“If you learn to know your heart, you will be increasingly more authentic and will not need to put masks on,” he said.

The best way to enter into one’s inner being is through prayer, he said, which is increasingly difficult in such a “hyper-connected” age, where it is hard to find “silence and solitude.”

“Without the encounter with him, we cannot even truly know ourselves,” he said.

Pope Leo invited the seminarians to “invoke the Holy Spirit frequently, that he may mold in you a docile heart, capable of grasping God’s presence, even as you listen to the voices of nature and art, poetry, literature and music, as well as the humanities.”

As they delve into their theological studies, “know how to also listen with an open mind and heart to the voices of culture, such as the recent challenges of artificial intelligence and social media,” he told them.

“Above all, as Jesus did, know how to listen to the often silent cry of the little ones, the poor and the oppressed, and the many people, especially young people, who seek meaning for their lives,” he added.

“Have a meek and humble heart like that of Jesus,” he said. “May you take on the sentiments of Christ to grow in human maturity, especially affective and relational” maturity.

It is important and necessary “to focus a lot on human maturity, rejecting every kind of masking and hypocrisy,” he said.

“Keeping our gaze on Jesus, we must learn to give a name and voice even to sadness, fear, anguish, indignation, bringing everything into relationship with God,” he said. “Crises, limitations and frailties are not to be hidden; rather, they are opportunities for grace and a paschal experience.”

“In a world where ingratitude and thirst for power often dominate, where the logic of exclusion can prevail, you are called to witness to the gratitude and gratuitousness of Christ, the exultation and joy, the tenderness and mercy of his heart,” Pope Leo said.

VATICAN CITY (CNS) – The huge economic divide between rich and poor today is unacceptable with so much wealth concentrated in the hands of a few, Pope Leo XIV said.

Political leaders have a responsibility to promote the good of the entire community, especially by defending the vulnerable, the marginalized and the poor, he told speakers and members of parliament attending a Rome conference about democracy and interfaith dialogue during the Jubilee of Governments.

“Sound politics,” he said, promotes “the equitable distribution of resources,” which “can offer an effective service to harmony and peace both domestically and internationally.”

The pope met with the group during an audience at the Vatican June 21. The group was made up of people attending the June 19-21 Conference of the Inter-Parliamentary Union in Rome. The conference brought together speakers and members of parliament with representatives of religions, governments, international organizations, faith-based and civil organizations, and academia.

In his speech, the pope said they have a “responsibility to promote and protect, independent of any special interest, the good of the community, the common good, particularly by defending the vulnerable and the marginalized.”

“This would mean, for example, working to overcome the unacceptable disproportion between the immense wealth concentrated in the hands of a few and the world’s poor,” he said. “Those who live in extreme conditions cry out to make their voices heard and often find no ears willing to hear their plea.”

“This imbalance generates situations of persistent injustice, which readily lead to violence and, sooner or later, to the tragedy of war,” he said, calling for a more equitable distribution of resources.

Pope Leo also underlined the importance of religious freedom and interreligious dialogue.

“Political life can achieve much by encouraging the conditions for there to be authentic religious freedom and that a respectful and constructive encounter between different religious communities may develop,” he said.

“Belief in God, with the positive values that derive from it, is an immense source of goodness and truth for the lives of individuals and communities,” he added.

“In order to have a shared point of reference in political activity, and not exclude ‘a priori’ any consideration of the transcendent in decision-making processes, it would be helpful to seek an element that unites everyone,” which, he said, is found in natural law.

“Natural law, which is universally valid apart from and above other more debatable beliefs, constitutes the compass by which to take our bearings in legislating and acting, particularly on the delicate and pressing ethical issues that, today more than in the past, regard personal life and privacy,” he said.

The Universal Declaration of Human Rights also “can contribute greatly to placing the human person, in his or her inviolable integrity, at the foundation of the quest for truth, thus restoring dignity to those who do not feel respected in their inmost being and in the dictates of their conscience,” he added.

Lastly, Pope Leo said, politics cannot ignore the challenge of artificial intelligence. “On the contrary, it is called to respond to many citizens who rightly look with both confidence and concern at the issues raised by this new digital culture.”

“The degree of civilization attained in our world and the goals you are charged to achieve are now facing a major challenge in the form of artificial intelligence,” which will be of great help to society as long as it “does not undermine the identity and dignity of the human person and his or her fundamental freedoms,” he said.

“Artificial intelligence functions as a tool for the good of human beings,” he said, and it should not diminish or replace people.

“Our personal life has greater value than any algorithm, and social relationships require spaces for development that far transcend the limited patterns that any soulless machine can prepackage,” he said.

(OSV News) – Christians in Syria are reeling after a suicide bombing struck a Greek Orthodox church in Damascus during a June 22 Divine Liturgy.

At least 20 were killed and more than 60 injured that Sunday after an attacker, reported to be armed and wearing an explosive vest, entered Mar Elias, a Greek Orthodox church in the city’s Dweila neighborhood.

Posting to its official Telegram channel, Syria’s Interior Ministry said the bomber was “affiliated with the terrorist organization ISIS,” and that he had opened fire prior to detonating his vest.

Witnesses quoted by The Washington Post said the attacker, whose face was covered, had been charged by a crowd seeking to eject him from the church.

The outlet quoted Father Fadi Ghattas as saying there were “350 people praying at the church” when the attacker struck.

Another priest, Father Meletius Shahati, reported a second gunman shooting at the church door prior to the explosion.

Churchgoer Issam Nasr said he had seen people “blown to bits,” adding, “We have never held a knife in our lives. All we ever carried were our prayers.”

Photos of the church showed blood-spattered walls and mangled pews, with the altar heavily damaged.

The Syria’s Interior Ministry said that “security units rushed to the scene, cordoned off the entire area, while the competent teams began collecting evidence and investigating the circumstances of the attack.”

The deadly aggression has drawn widespread domestic and international condemnation.

Syria’s information minister Hamza al-Mustafa posted on X, “This cowardly act contradicts the values of citizenship that unite us all. We, as Syrians, affirm the importance of national unity and civil peace, and call for boosting the bonds of brotherhood among all components of society.”

He added, “We will not back down from our commitment to equal citizenship, which seeks to build a homeland of security and stability. We also stress the state’s pledge to exert all efforts to combat criminal organizations and ensure the protection of society from any attacks that threaten its safety.”

Thomas Barrack, U.S special envoy for Syria, extended condolences, on behalf of President Donald Trump and the American people to the victims, families and people affected by the attack.

“These terrible acts of cowardice have no place in the new tapestry of integrated tolerance and inclusion that Syrians are weaving. We continue to support the Syrian government as it fights against those who are seeking to create instability and fear in their country and the broader region,” Barrack said in a June 22 post on X.

Geir Pederson, the United Nations’ special envoy for Syria, also voiced his “strong condemnation of this heinous crime” and called for “a comprehensive investigation and the necessary measures.”

Pederson urged everyone to “unite in rejecting terrorism, extremism, incitement, and the targeting of any group in Syria.”

France, Germany, Lebanon and Qatar also condemned the attack.

Previously, Maronite Archbishop Antoine Chbair of Latakia and Tartus, Syria, told the Catholic Near East Welfare Association — an initiative of the Holy See — that “no one knows the end” of recent deadly violence and “sectarian strife” in Syria.

The archbishop’s remarks followed the killing of at least 800 in March, as Syria’s security forces battled armed supporters of Syria’s ousted former president Bashar Assad.

Assad — whose family ruled Syria for five decades, with brutal crackdowns on dissent and violent repression — fled to Moscow in December after his regime fell to a lightning rebel offensive. That campaign followed 13 years of civil war in which more than 600,000 were killed.

ROME (CNS) – In carrying Jesus through the city streets in a Corpus Christi procession, Christians are called to be witnesses of his love, sharing both their material and spiritual gifts, Pope Leo XIV said.

A procession with the Eucharist is a way to present Jesus “to the hearts of those who believe, so that they may believe more firmly” and “to the hearts of those who do not believe, so that they may reflect on the hunger present within them and the bread that alone can satisfy it,” the pope said in his homily June 22.

Pope Leo celebrated an early evening Mass outside Rome’s Basilica of St. John Lateran for the feast of the Body and Blood of the Lord before joining thousands of people — including children who had recently received their first Communion — for the Corpus Christi procession to the Basilica of St. Mary Major, about a mile away.

Pope Leo carried the monstrance with the consecrated host under a golden canopy held by eight members of the Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem. When he reached the Marian basilica about 45 minutes later, he presided over Benediction.

The Gospel reading for the Mass was St. Luke’s account of Jesus multiplying five loaves of bread and two fish to feed a crowd of thousands.

“Jesus responds to the appeal of hunger with the sign of sharing: he raises his eyes, recites the blessing, breaks the bread and feeds all present,” the pope said.

“The Lord’s actions are not some complicated magical rite,” he said. Rather, “they simply show his gratitude to the Father, his filial prayer and the fraternal communion sustained by the Holy Spirit.”

“Jesus multiplies the loaves and the fish by sharing what is available. As a result, there is enough for everyone,” Pope Leo said. “In fact, more than enough. After all had eaten their fill 12 baskets-full were gathered up.”

The Gospel account speaks to people’s hunger for meaning, for God and for eternal life — all of which are fulfilled when Jesus gives himself for the salvation of all, the pope said.

But, he said, the miracle also is a response of compassion to the physical hunger of the crowd.

“Today, in place of the crowds mentioned in the Gospel, entire peoples are suffering more as a result of the greed of others than from their own hunger,” the pope said. “In stark contrast to the dire poverty of many, the amassing of wealth by a few is the sign of an arrogant indifference that produces pain and injustice.”

“Especially in this Jubilee Year,” he said, “the Lord’s example is a yardstick that should guide our actions and our service: we are called to share our bread, to multiply hope and to proclaim the coming of God’s kingdom.”

The Eucharist, the pope said, is the pledge that Jesus not only sates physical hunger, but he can save everyone from death “because his body is the bread of eternal life.”

“By offering himself completely, the crucified and risen Lord delivers himself into our hands, and we realize that we were made to partake of God,” he said. “When we partake of Jesus, the living and true bread, we live for him.”

The grace of the Eucharist satisfies the deepest human hunger, he said.

Pope Leo quoted St. Augustine: “Christ is truly ‘panis qui reficit, et non deficit; panis qui sumi potest, consumi non potest’ — he is bread that restores and does not run short; bread that can be eaten but not exhausted.”

In the Corpus Christi procession, the pope said, all those involved give witness to how Jesus’ real presence in the Eucharist transforms them and leads them to become his body, united in the church.

“Together, as shepherds and flock, we will feed on the Blessed Sacrament, adore him and carry him through the streets. In doing so, we will present him before the eyes, the consciences and the hearts of the people.”

VATICAN CITY (CNS) – “It is urgent that there take root throughout the church a culture of prevention that does not tolerate any form of abuse: of power or authority, of conscience or spiritual or sexual,” Pope Leo XIV wrote to a Peruvian journalist.

“This culture will only be authentic if it is born of active vigilance, of transparent processes and sincere listening to those who have been wounded,” the pope wrote to Paola Ugaz, who has been sued and repeatedly taken to court for her attempts to expose the various forms of abuse that took place within the Peru-based lay movement, Sodalitium Christianae Vitae.

Pope Francis suppressed the movement at the end of January.

A Vatican official read Pope Leo’s message to Ugaz June 20 at a performance in Lima, Peru, of Proyecto Ugaz, a theatrical performance honoring the journalist for her reporting. The pope’s letter was not published on the Vatican website but was covered by Vatican News and released by Ugaz herself.

Pope Leo wrote that the play “gives voice and face to a pain silenced for too long.”

“This play is not only theater: it is memory, denunciation and, above all, an act of justice,” the pope wrote.

The production helps “the victims of the defunct spiritual family of Sodalitium and the journalists who have accompanied them — with courage, patience and fidelity to the truth — illuminate the wounded but hopeful face of the church,” Pope Leo wrote.

“Your struggle for justice is also the struggle of the church,” he said. “For as I wrote years ago, ‘a faith that does not touch the wounds of the human body and soul is a faith that has not yet known the Gospel.”

Many of those wounds, he said, were inflicted by members of the church on “so many children, young people and adults who were betrayed where they sought comfort; and also on those who risked their freedom and their name so that the truth would not be buried.”

Pope Leo thanked Ugaz and others “who have persevered in this cause, even when they were ignored, discredited or even persecuted judicially.”

“Prevention and care are not a pastoral strategy,” the pope insisted. “They are the heart of the Gospel.”

Pope Leo said he prayed the play would be “an act of remembrance, but also a prophetic sign. May it awaken hearts, stir consciences and help us to build a church where no one else must suffer in silence, and where the truth is not seen as a threat, but as a path to liberation.”

WASHINGTON (OSV News) – Three years after a landmark decision by the U.S. Supreme Court to overturn its prior abortion precedent, states have enacted or considered differing legislation surrounding the issue of abortion.

Since the Supreme Court’s Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization decision was issued June 24, 2022, 12 states have banned abortion, while another six limit it at some point between six to 12 weeks gestation.

“As we are celebrating, we are also getting ready for the work that we have left to do,” said Kelsey Pritchard, state public affairs director for SBA Pro-Life America, a pro-life advocacy organization.

“We recognize how much work is ahead, with the number of abortions increasing since the Dobbs decision, because we’re now at 1.1 million abortions annually,” she said.

According to the Guttmacher Institute, in 2024 there were 1,038,100 clinician-provided abortions in the United States, an increase of less than 1% from 2023.

The Dobbs case involved a Mississippi law banning abortion after 15 weeks, in which the state directly challenged the high court’s previous abortion-related precedents in Roe v. Wade (1973) and Planned Parenthood v. Casey (1992). The Supreme Court ultimately overturned its own prior rulings, undoing nearly a half-century of its own precedent on the issue and returning it to state legislatures.

“There is a federal role broadly on the issue of abortion,” Pritchard said, pointing to ongoing federal funding for Planned Parenthood, the nation’s largest abortion provider, and that “those in Washington should be emboldened by the pro-life progress made by their legislators in their states, and be equally committed to act boldly.”

While many states have wrapped their regular legislative sessions for the year, Pritchard pointed to some that have enacted laws her organization supports, including what advocates call a medical education or “med ed” bill that directs the state to clarify the state’s abortion regulations for health care professionals and the general public.

“Those are bills that essentially make it clear that if you are in a pro-life state under your pro-life law and you are pregnant, you can continue to receive emergency care for ectopic pregnancy, for miscarriage, for any other medical emergency, as you did prior to the Dobbs decision,” Pritchard said, noting one such bill in Texas was approved by the Legislature but has yet to be signed by Republican Gov. Greg Abbott.

In April, Tennessee’s Republican Gov. Bill Lee approved legislation supporters said would clarify medical exceptions to the state’s ban, but opponents said would further restrict abortion. In March, Kentucky lawmakers overrode Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear’s veto of House Bill 90, similar legislation.

Arkansas, which has an abortion ban in place, also approved legislation in April to prohibit abortion based on the race of the unborn child. That bill was designed to be in place in the event the overall abortion ban was blocked or overturned.

Conversely, other states have moved to reduce barriers to abortion. Gov. Jared Polis, D-Colo., signed legislation in April that enshrined access to abortion in the state constitution and permitted the use of public funds for abortions.

Asked about her concerns about efforts concerning the issue of abortion at the state level, Pritchard said, “We can expect some more bad abortion ballot measures in 2026.”

In 2024, voters approved most of the referendums to expand legal protections for abortion in Arizona, Colorado, Montana, Nevada, Missouri, and related measures in Maryland and New York. But Florida, Nebraska and South Dakota rejected such measures, defying a trend from elections in 2022 and 2023.

A potential 2026 ballot measure in Virginia would amend the Virginia Constitution to establish a right to reproductive freedom, which it would define as “the right to make and effectuate one’s own decisions about all matters related to one’s pregnancy.” In Virginia, amendments to the commonwealth’s constitution must be approved by the General Assembly twice in at least two years, after which the public can vote by referendum.

Pritchard said SBA plans to work against the ballot measure’s passage in Virginia.

“There’s potential, really, for any abortion ballot measure in any state that has a process that allows citizens to pass amendments or laws that way,” she said.

The Catholic Church teaches that all human life is sacred from conception to natural death, and as such, opposes direct abortion. After the Dobbs decision, church officials in the U.S. have reiterated the church’s concern for both mother, and child and called to strengthen available support for those living in poverty or other causes that can push women toward having an abortion.

(OSV News) – Solidarity with refugees and migrants “is not optional,” but rather “a living testimony of the Gospel,” said Bishop Mark J. Seitz of El Paso, Texas, chairman of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ Committee on Migration.

Bishop Seitz shared his thoughts in a statement issued on World Refugee Day, which has been globally marked on June 20 since 2001.

Established by the United Nations General Assembly, the day was initially launched to commemorate the anniversary of the 1951 Refugee Convention.

While often used interchangeably, the terms “migrant” and “refugee” are separately defined under international law, with refugees specifically protected due to perilous conditions — such war or persecution — that make returning to their country of origin impossible. In contrast, no uniform definitions of “migrant” or “forced migration” exist at the international level, according to the United Nations, although migrants are nonetheless protected as human persons under international human rights law.

According to the U.N. Refugee Agency, by the end of 2024 more than 123 million people — or one in every 67 persons — worldwide had been forced to flee their homes due to persecution, conflict, violence, human rights violations and instability.

Of those, just under 43 million were refugees, with more than 73 million others displaced within their own countries, and another 8.4 million classified as asylum seekers. Additionally, the U.N. counts 4.4 million stateless persons, who have been denied a nationality and its attendant rights.

This year’s observance of World Refugee Day focuses on solidarity, with the U.N. stressing the need to defend refugees’ right to seek safety, as well as ending conflicts that drive them to flee their homelands while ensuring they have opportunities and resources to thrive in their host communities.

“Above all, solidarity means saying, clearly and courageously, that refugees are not alone and that we will not turn our backs,” said the U.N. Refugee Agency on its website.

“In their journey, refugees embody the hope we are called to share as Christians. As we welcome them, we reflect on our own pilgrimage toward the eternal home promised to us,” said Bishop Seitz in his statement. “Their resilience and faith challenge us to serve others more deeply and to build a world where every person is treated with dignity and can live in peace and freedom.”

Bishop Seitz also commended the “profound witness” of those “who open their hearts and homes to those seeking safety — welcoming the stranger, healing wounds, and restoring hope.”

He echoed a June 16 statement released by Archbishop Timothy P. Broglio of the U.S. military archdiocese, the president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, who ahead of the USCCB’s weeklong retreat in California issued a reflection assuring migrants and refugees of the bishops’ support as the Trump administration makes changes to U.S. immigration policies and their enforcement.

“We bishops of the United States remain resolute in our call for the consistent protection of refugees amid their disparate treatment by our government,” said Bishop Seitz in his statement.

Following through on a campaign pledge, President Donald Trump has cracked down on immigration to the U.S. Among the administration’s efforts are terminating protected status for migrants from several conflict-wrought nations, fully or partly banning travel to the U.S. from several nations, ordering Immigrations and Customs Enforcement to meet daily arrest quotas of 3,000, halting visa interviews for foreign students, attempting to end birthright citizenship and deporting persons without permanent legal status in the U.S. to third countries in defiance of court orders.

While the administration claims to target criminal actors in its sweeps, several high-profile arrests and deportations have impacted individuals with no demonstrated criminal record. Some 44% of the more than 51,000 in ICE detention facilities as of June 1 are estimated to have no criminal record, other than entering the U.S. without permission, according to the Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse at Syracuse University.

The USCCB and Catholic Charities USA are among some 200 non-governmental organizations named in a congressional probe for allegedly aiding immigrants its leaders call “inadmissible aliens” during former President Joe Biden’s administration.

In his statement, Bishop Seitz summarized Catholic teaching on immigration, saying, “The Church recognizes the right of each country to control its borders, while also affirming the right to seek refuge when life-threatening circumstances deny people the foremost right to remain in their homeland.”

Pointing to recent insights from Pope Leo XIV, Bishop Seitz said, “the temptation to turn inward, to isolate ourselves from the needs of our brothers and sisters around the world, is incompatible with a Christian vision for the common good.”

Bishop Seitz paraphrased Christ’s exhortation as recorded in Luke 12:48, saying, “We must remember Christ’s exhortation in Luke’s Gospel: to whom much is given, much is required.”

SCRANTON – After years of prayer, discernment, and formation, two transitional deacons who have already devoted their lives to service in the Church are preparing to take their final step toward the priesthood.

Rev. Mr. Thomas J. Dzwonczyk and Rev. Mr. Andrew T. McCarroll will be ordained to the Sacred Priesthood for the Diocese of Scranton on Saturday, June 28, 2025, at 10 a.m. in the Cathedral of Saint Peter in Scranton.

The Most Rev. Joseph C. Bambera, Bishop of Scranton, will serve as principal celebrant, homilist, and ordaining prelate.

The Ordination Mass, one of the most joyful celebrations in the life of the local Church, will mark the culmination of each man’s seminary journey and the beginning of a lifetime of priestly ministry.

“I’m looking forward to taking those gifts and talents that I’ve nourished in my time in formation in seminary and being able to share them with the people of God,” Rev. Mr. McCarroll said.

Rev. Mr. Dzwonczyk echoed those sentiments, saying he is most looking forward to sharing the Holy Eucharist with the faithful that have supported him along his journey.

“It’s the Eucharist, the celebration of the Mass, that drew me most forcefully into the attraction of the priesthood and now to be that humble, yet unworthy minister of Jesus Christ … I honestly tremble just thinking about it,” he said. “I pray that God may make me a worthy minister of his mysteries at the altar.”

Both men were ordained as transitional deacons by Bishop Bambera on May 25, 2024. At that time, the Bishop reminded them that love, rooted in Christ’s self-giving on the cross, is the essential call of ordained ministry.

“In short, God’s people will look to you to see Jesus,” Bishop Bambera said in his homily that day. “They will look to see Jesus in your prayerfulness, in your words, in your hard work, in the simplicity of your life, and in your love.”

Over the past year, Rev. Mr. Dzwonczyk and Rev. Mr. McCarroll have tried their best to live those words.

Both men have been serving faithfully in their diaconal roles while completing their theological studies. They have preached the Gospel, celebrated the Sacraments, and walked with parishioners in moments both joyful and challenging.

As they prepare for their ordination to the priesthood, both men say they are especially grateful for the support they’ve received from their families, friends, and the parish communities they have served.

“If I can express my gratitude in one-tenth of what they’ve shown to me, it will be a worthwhile ministry,” Rev. Mr. Dzwonczyk said.

Both Dzwonczyk and McCarroll have similar vocation stories. Both men were approached about pursuing a path to the priesthood by former Diocesan Vocations Director, Father Don Williams, while attending a local Catholic high school.

“I vividly remember in high school being called out of second period to meet with a priest because I was told that some of the faculty members at Holy Cross High School thought I might have a vocation. I didn’t really know what to expect,” Rev. Mr. Dzwonczyk said. “I would meet with Father Don regularly. We had a group of young men who were asking the same questions. We called it the ‘God Squad.’ We would meet once every two weeks just to discuss it, to pray, to read about vocations, and it really blossomed from there. I started to get more interested, and I stayed connected with Father Don throughout my time in college.”

After being heavily involved in his home parish since a young age, Rev. Mr. McCarroll had already thought about becoming a priest when Father Don approached him while attending Holy Redeemer High School in Wilkes-Barre.

“The conversation naturally rolled from there and it was through talking and meeting with Father Don that I realized, maybe the next step was to go into a formation program right out of high school to college seminary,” Rev. Mr. McCarroll stated. “One year became two years and two years became nine years and here I sit before you.”

The Ordination Mass on June 28 will include the Laying on of Hands and the Prayer of Ordination by Bishop Bambera – the essential rite through which the men will be consecrated priests. Each will then be vested in priestly garments – a stole and chasuble – and have their hands anointed with sacred chrism oil as a sign of their priestly identity.

In the days following the ordination, the newly ordained priests will celebrate their First Mass of Thanksgiving at their respective home parishes – Saint John Vianney Parish in Montdale for Dzwonczyk and Saint Robert Bellarmine Parish for McCarroll.

Everyone is invited to attend the Ordination Mass on June 28. For those unable to attend in person, CTV: Catholic Television of the Diocese of Scranton will broadcast the Mass live and livestream the liturgy on the Diocese of Scranton website, YouTube channel and across all Diocesan social media channels.

 

SCRANTON – Thirteen devoted priests were honored for their collective 625 years of service to the Church during the 2025 Mass for Priest Jubilarians, held at 12:10 p.m. on Thursday, June 12, 2025, at the Cathedral of Saint Peter in Scranton.

The Most Rev. Joseph C. Bambera, Bishop of Scranton, served as principal celebrant and homilist for the joyful liturgy, which was attended by fellow clergy, family members and parishioners from across the Diocese. The Mass was also broadcast live by CTV: Catholic Television of the Diocese of Scranton and streamed on the Diocese’s website and social media platforms, allowing the wider community to participate in honoring the faithful service of these priests.

“Today the Church of Scranton has the unique and blessed privilege of honoring a group of men who have sought to live their lives and their love for Jesus Christ as faithful witnesses,” Bishop Bambera said during his homily.

The longest-serving honoree, Reverend John J. Turi, was recognized for an extraordinary 70 years of priestly ministry. Ordained on June 4, 1955, Father Turi’s dedication has touched countless lives over the decades.

During the Mass, Father Turi received a special round of applause and afterward many of his former parishioners crowded around him to take photos and congratulate him.

Father Turi, along with jubilarians celebrating 65, 60, 50, and 25 years since their ordinations, received the heartfelt gratitude and admiration of many.

Among those honored was Monsignor John A. Bergamo, who reflected on his decision to enter the priesthood with characteristic humility and grace.

“All my life, even when I was very young, I thought, ‘I want to be a priest,’” Monsignor said. “I think a lot of it was my own family, the influence of my family but also the pastor of our parish, Father Michael Vetter. He was just a wonderful man, and he was such an example of what a priest was all about.”

As he reflected on 60 years of service, Msgr. Bergamo said being with parishioners has been his greatest joy.

“Being able to celebrate the liturgy of the Mass, to celebrate the Sacraments with them. The priest gives the blessing to the people, but it works the other way too. The priest is blessed by the people that he serves. That is one of the wonderful things of 60 years, for me to actually receive blessings from the people just because of the relationships and the interaction.”

For Father John A. Doris, one of the 50-year jubilarians, the greatest joys of his priesthood have also come from walking with the people in every season of life.

“The priesthood is a real gift, but it comes from the people,” Father Doris stated. “I have had so many joys with it.”

As he looked out into the crowd at Mass to see all those gathered to wish him well, Father Doris felt grateful, and immediately through of Pope Leo XIV’s reflection on the unification of the Church.

“We don’t do this individually. It’s the sharing of all the gifts of the Spirit becoming one. The more we have those gifts, the more the shepherding and the priesthood becomes apparent in all of us,” he added.

Following the Mass, the honorees gathered for photos and personal greetings from parishioners, many of whom had driven long distances to share in the special day.

“On behalf of the people of the Diocese of Scranton, I congratulate our Jubilarians and I thank them, and all of our priests, many of whom join with them today, and all of our priests throughout our 11 counties for their service to the Church and to the Lord Jesus, who is its heart and its very life,” Bishop Bambera said.