Author: Eric Deabill

ORLANDO, Fla. (OSV News) – The future of religious life depends on different congregations, with different charisms, working together like a symphony, the president of the United States’ largest leadership conference for Catholic sisters told the group’s members.

The Leadership Conference of Women Religious, which represents about two-thirds of the nation’s nearly 35,000 sisters, held its annual assembly Aug. 11-14 in Orlando. More than 1,300 congregational leaders and their guests were in attendance.

LCWR’s outgoing president, Sister Vicky Larson, a member of the Presentation Sisters of South Dakota, told attendees in her Aug. 12 presidential address that the assembly’s theme, “Many Charisms, One Spirit, One Call” can best be seen through a musical lens. Good music requires the group to listen to each other.

“The Holy Spirit is asking us to lead by listening,” Sister Vicky said. “Not indifferent listening. Not surface listening. But deep, contemplative, Spirit-led synodal listening — the kind that changes us.”

A song with only one note on one instrument would be “flat, lifeless and unrecognizable,” she said.

“Yet when we weave many different notes together — when melody meets harmony, something far more beautiful emerges,” Sister Vicky said. “Something layered, textured and alive.”

The suffering world needs the melody and harmony of religious life, she said.

“Look for bridges and connections with one another. Listen for harmony,” said Sister Vicky, whose one-year term as president was to end with the close of the assembly. “Just as a choir or symphony brings together many diverse voices or instruments, each taking its turn to carry the melody — we need all charisms in religious life, as well as all people in all vocations around the world, to come together to create the integrated music of humanity.”

Even dissonance — when notes seem to clash against each other — is part of music, forcing patience as your ear waits for resolution, she said. Dissonance can be a problem or it can be part of the story the music tells.

“We live in a world filled with dissonance between people, political parties and nations,” Sister Vicky said. “I believe that we can help the world learn to either create space to hold dissonance or else help the world move through it toward resolution.”

Music also has context, and the context of religious life in the United States right now is one of change, especially demographically.

Sister Vicky talked about how her own congregation has had to let go of many of its sponsored ministries, closing its college and deconstructing its motherhouse. At its chapter in March, the congregation discerned it would be their final one, as they will not have enough members with capacity for another in 2030. They will move toward an appointed leader, or commissary, by 2028.

“This is not a sad song. This is a courageous act of listening to the future,” Sister Vicky said before being interrupted by applause. “This is a courageous act of recognizing that we are part of a bigger picture of God’s call to the world and the Spirit’s unity.”

And all of it is part of how God uses religious life.

“The profound transformation of religious life is part of a continual cycle — growing in some places, merging in others and coming to fulfillment in still others,” she said. “This is not a sign of decline. This is a natural sign of evolution.”

And religious life, just as music is meant to be shared, is not about serving itself.

“The call we hear is not for ourselves alone. Religious life has never existed for its own sake. It exists for the transformation of the world,” Sister Vicky said. “We are called to listen to the cries of the Earth and the cries of those made poor. We are called to stand with migrants, survivors of violence and those who are marginalized.”

Religious life, she said, has always shaped itself to the needs of the time, and the needs of this time require unity and harmony.

“We have the opportunity to create music together none of us could compose alone,” Sister Vicky said. “The Spirit is drawing us into a shared rhythm — not a uniform sound, but a courageous weaving of our distinct charisms into a living, evolving symphony. Harmony gathers our differences into something more beautiful and whole.”

As the second day of the LCWR assembly opened, Pope Leo XIV sent a video message encouraging the sisters to foster vocations to religious life in the United States.

“The work of fostering religious vocations is of vital importance,” noting that despite secularization, there is also “a growing hunger for God” among the young.

“As many of us have personally experienced, Christ’s call to follow him with an undivided heart through vows of poverty, chastity and obedience brings joy, peace and fulfillment,” he said.

The morning also included an address by Xavière Missionary Sister Nathalie Becquart, undersecretary of the Synod of Bishops at the Vatican, on synodality and religious life.

“As consecrated women and men coming from so many different places and congregations across the Americas, you are not on the margins of the synodal journey. You are at its heart,” Sister Nathalie said.

She also thanked the men and women religious of the United States she met while studying at the Chicago Theological Union and Boston College.

“I come to this conversation not as an outsider explaining synodality to you, but as a sister among sisters and brothers who shares the same vocation, and who has had the extraordinary privilege of accompanying the synodal journey of the whole church from the inside, doing so aware of how much I have received from many women and men religious in the United States,” Sister Nathalie said.

“I would not be the woman religious I am today, serving at the Vatican, without the support, the formation and the accompaniment I received from so many U.S. sisters and other religious,” she added. “And I am here to listen to what you carry — because the exchange of gifts is not a metaphor. It is what this assembly is actually for.”

With the close of the assembly the evening of Aug. 14, LCWR’s new president was to begin her one-year term: Sister Debra Sciano, 68, provincial leader of the School Sisters of Notre Dame’s Central Pacific province.

Whether representing abused children as a prosecutor, navigating years of tension between U.S. Catholic sisters and the Vatican, or helping lead one of the country’s largest communities of Catholic sisters, colleagues told Global Sisters Report that Sister Debra approaches every challenge with the same attentiveness, empathy and instinct to listen.

(OSV News) – Numismatists take note. The Vatican City State Mint has issued a new set of coins to mark Pope Leo XIV’s pontificate and the Jubilee Year of St. Francis of Assisi.

The inaugural euro coin set of Pope Leo’s pontificate features both the face and coat of arms of the 267th successor of Peter. The set also includes a special five-euro commemorative coin depicting the moment that St. Francis renounced his worldly possessions before the bishop of Assisi to mark the 800th anniversary of the death of St. Francis of Assisi on the opposite side of Pope Leo’s visage.

It is the first time that the Vatican has issued coins featuring a pope’s portrait in nearly a decade. In 2017, Pope Francis requested that his portrait no longer appear on Vatican coins, making the Vatican at the time the only euro-issuing state without a depiction of its head of state on circulating coins.

The euro became Vatican City’s official currency in 2002. Vatican euro coins garner considerable collector premiums due to limited minting quotas and high demand for the smallest mintages of all euro coins, according to Coins Weekly.

The current commemorative coin set, whose nominal value is 3.88 euros, is currently on sale for 39 euros (about $45) on the official website of the Vatican’s numismatic office. In 2009, the Vatican agreed to put at least 51% coins minted into circulation at face value, rather than only as collectors’ items, leading the gift shops in the Vatican Museums and other businesses in the microstate to begin giving the 50-cent coins with the papal coat of arms as change.

Sister Raffaella Petrini, a Franciscan Sister of the Eucharist, who is president of the Governorate of Vatican City State, recently described the Vatican City State Mint as “not merely a place of production, but also a repository of historical and economic memory because, through the processes of engraving, casting, and minting, it creates coins that imprint on metal a message of universal significance.”

Distinctive elements from Pope Leo XIV’s coat of arms is featured on the new two-euro Vatican coins, which depict a lily symbolizing purity and Marian devotion, and the flaming heart pierced by an arrow above an open book, emblematic of Augustinian spirituality.

The design of the new Vatican coins is by Italian artist Daniela Longo, who also designed the coins for Pope Francis, Benedict XVI and the special “sede vacante” coins issued in 2005 upon the death of John Paul II. “Sede vacante” is the period when the see of Rome is vacant before the election of a new pope.

(OSV News) – Jordan announced the start of its preparations for the historic 2,000th anniversary of the Baptism of Jesus Christ in 2030 at the site where it took place at Bethany Beyond the Jordan, also known as Al-Maghtas.

So far, four popes have visited the site of great religious importance, including St. Paul VI in 1964, followed by St. John Paul II, Pope Benedict XVI and Pope Francis. Jordan is the only country to host visits of the four popes, all affirming the site’s significance.

Jordanian Prime Minister Jafar Hassan signed agreements Aug. 12 to begin work on the development of the lands adjacent to the Baptism Site to commemorate the second millennium of Christ’s baptism in 2030 at the direction of Jordan’s King Abdullah II.

Projects totaling $120 million include the construction of a Baptism museum and a pilgrim’s and visitor’s village as well as the development of ecological walking trails near the World Heritage site, in line with UNESCO recommendations for the site’s conservation.

King Abdullah and his government are working with Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, the Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem, and the Council of Church Leaders in Jordan, including Auxiliary Bishop Iyad Twal, the Latin Patriarchal Vicar in Jordan, while coordinating with churches and Christian institutions worldwide.

Organizers said they hope to see millions of Christian pilgrims and other participants coming to Jordan to engage in this historic commemoration of the Baptism Site, the starting point of Christ’s earthly mission after his baptism in the Jordan River.

During a May 18 meeting with King Abdullah and the country’s clerics, Cardinal Pizzaballa stressed that “baptism of the Lord is not just an historical event of the past, but an eternal moment that still speaks to each of us.”

“In it we see the humility of the Son of God who entered the waters of Jordan to sanctify creation and open to all of us the way of salvation,” the cardinal said.

“Baptism marks the beginning: the beginning of the mission of Christ and the beginning of our new life in it,” he said.

Acknowledging King Abdullah’s custodianship of Christian holy sites and peacemaking efforts, Cardinal Pizzaballa said that through the commemoration of Christ’s baptism, “we can make 2030 not just a memory of the past, but a prophetic sign of unity, peace and living faith for the whole world.

“May God accompany us all on this preparatory process for this important event,” he said.

Hassan, Jordan’s prime minister, highlighted Jordan’s message of coexistence, respect for others, peace, love and human fraternity. He also said the second millennium of the Baptism of Jesus Christ reflects Jordan’s historical and religious standing and its role as a global destination for Christian pilgrimage,

Hassan said the government is mobilizing all available resources to support the occasion, describing it as an opportunity to reinforce Jordan’s position as a land of religious heritage and a global destination for Christian pilgrims.

CHICAGO (OSV News) – White Sox baseball fans sporting custom-designed black and gold mitre-style hats celebrated Pope Leo XIV, a fellow diehard Sox fan, at a pope-themed game in Chicago Aug. 11.

Dominican Sister Mary Jo Sobieck of Springfield, Illinois, threw the first pitch, and fans shook hands with the “sign of peace,” led by the Chicago Archdiocese’s Father Tom Hurley, during the fifth inning at Rate Field, home of Pope Leo’s favorite baseball team.

White Sox management handed out “pope hats” to over 38,000 fans who showed up at the third game in a series against the Cincinnati Reds. The promo project started out as a fan giveaway for the first 2,500 tickets, which sold quickly and it added another fast-selling 500.

Management expanded the promo to the full stadium capacity and the tickets flew.

“The only anxiety was: Can we get 40,000 here by the time of this day? So as soon as we figured out we could, it’s been a lot of fun to be part of,” Brooks Boyer, White Sox executive vice president, said in a story about the Pope Leo-themed game written for the team’s website.

“We were talking about this before. Is there anything that has rivaled this where we’d have to say, we have to go to 40,000?” he said from the dugout Aug. 11. “We couldn’t remember anything where we’ve had to put it to 40,000.”

“The place was capacity,” Richard King, a die-hard Sox fan who watched the game on TV, told OSV News.

The game also featured its own familiar penitential rite for Sox fans, as the Reds rallied in the 10th inning to beat the White Sox 5-4, giving Cincinnati a lead in the three-game series that concludes Aug. 13. However, the Sox still lead the American League Central Division.

King, 78, grew up on Chicago’s Southside and has been following his team since he was seven. King, a daily Massgoer and a member of the Knights of Columbus, said the fifth inning “sign of peace” and having Catholicism so openly on display was “great!” He expected the event would raise interest and more curiosity about the Catholic faith.

“Very excited about Pope Night, and obviously a lot of people are excited about it,” White Sox manager Will Venable said in the Sox website story. “Any time we get to celebrate the pope and his fandom of the White Sox is something that we’ll lean into.”

Pope Leo, a Chicago native who grew up in Dolton, Illinois, a south suburb, has been pictured sporting a White Sox baseball cap at the Vatican, and has received multiple Sox-themed presents since his election as pontiff in May 2024.

The pope being a close follower of the Sox made him an instant hit in the Chicago area and across the country, where people have mentioned how relatable he is. Video footage of then-Father Bob Prevost attending Game 1 of the White Sox 2005 World Series match against the Houston Astros went viral. The Sox swept the Astros 4-0 in the series, ending an 88-year drought famously known as the “Curse of the Black Sox.”

A thanksgiving Mass for the pope’s election led by Chicago Cardinal Blase J. Cupich was held at Rate Field a month after the conclave.

In the months that followed Pope Leo’s election, the ballpark was outfitted with papal reminders including a mural of the pope at the entrance to the section where he sat during the World Series matchup and markers on the chair he sat in. Then, a major shareholder of the White Sox told the media the pope told him “he’d love to” throw the first pitch in a new stadium — “schedule permitting” — that is being envisioned for the team’s future.

Chicago White Sox Charities, the team’s philanthropic arm, gave the Augustinians — Pope Leo’s religious order — a $14,000 donation on the Pope Leo-themed night. Father Tom McCarthy and Brother David Relstab, the prior provincial and vocations director respectively of the Augustinians’ Midwest province, accepted the gift on the ballfield.

(OSV News) – Pope Leo XIV encouraged sisters to foster vocations to religious life in the United States in a video message sent Aug. 12.

Addressing participants in the Leadership Conference of Women Religious assembly taking place in Orlando, Florida, the pope said “the work of fostering religious vocations is of vital importance,” noting that despite secularization, there is also “a growing hunger for God” among the young.

“As many of us have personally experienced, Christ’s call to follow him with an undivided heart through vows of poverty, chastity and obedience brings joy, peace and fulfillment,” said Pope Leo, who entered the novitiate of the Order of St. Augustine at age 21.

“In your interactions with the young people, therefore, try to seek ways to introduce them to your way of life, and help them to hear the voice of the Lord, who speaks to us in the depths of our hearts,” he added.

The pope urged sisters to inspire young people “to be courageous in responding to Jesus, who is never outdone in generosity, so that they too may share the joy that comes from following his call.”

LCWR has nearly 1,270 members who are leaders of different women’s congregations, representing about 66% of the 35,000 religious sisters in the United States.

The conference is celebrating its 70th anniversary this year with its Aug. 11-14 assembly, and this year’s gathering brings together women and men religious from Canada, the United States and Latin America for “an historic encounter.”

The pope emphasized how consecrated men and women throughout history have “helped to make the mission and mystery of the Church visible in our world” through the many charisms bestowed by the Holy Spirit.

“The Church needs you and all of the diversity and richness of the forms of consecration and ministry that you represent, for with your vitality and the witness of a life centered on Jesus, you can contribute to waking up the world,” Pope Leo told the religious, noting “the longstanding contributions of your Institutes in the fields of evangelization, education and caring for the poor and marginalized, to name but a few.”

Speakers at the assembly include Sister Nathalie Becquart, a member of the Institut La Xavière Missionnaire du Christ Jésus and the undersecretary of the Synod of Bishops, and Sister Vicky Larson, a member of the Sisters of the Presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary of Aberdeen, South Dakota, and the president of the conference.
Dominican Sister Mila Díaz Solano, originally from Peru, and Sister Mary Gabriel Devlin, a Sister of Life from New York, are among the facilitators for synodal “Conversation in the Spirit” at the assembly.

Pope Leo commended the assembly’s inclusion of a synodal method of listening, discussion and discernment during the proceedings, expressing hope that “through this format of fraternal and receptive dialogue, you will be able to discern what the Holy Spirit is saying about the present and future of consecrated life in the nations where you serve.”

“All Christians are called to be builders of Christ’s communion, formed in a synodal Church in which everyone cooperates in the same mission according to their own charism and ministry,” the pope said.

“In a special way, those in religious life are called to become experts in synodality due to the opportunities afforded by community life to practice it, as well as the very way that your Congregations are organized.”

VATICAN CITY (CNS) – Pope Leo XIV urged Catholics to gather in person for Sunday Mass and called for working conditions that allow people to attend, saying Sunday is “the foundation and kernel of the whole liturgical year.”

“To sanctify Sunday, it is essential to celebrate the Eucharist,” the pope said at his Aug. 12 general audience in St. Peter’s Basilica. “In this regard, I urge everyone to seek the best possible conditions so that even those who are unable to take time off work on Sundays may take part in Holy Mass.”

Continuing his series on the documents of the Second Vatican Council, Pope Leo reflected on ‘Sacrosanctum Concilium,’ the Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy. The liturgical year is not a static representation of past events, but an ongoing encounter with Christ, he said.

At its core is Easter, when Christ rose from the dead, and for that reason, the pope said, it is “essential for the faithful to sanctify the Lord’s Day by gathering to celebrate the Eucharist.”

“May our active participation and steadfast witness help us to enter ever more deeply into the reality of belonging to Christ, and may we anticipate with hope his coming in glory,” he said in his remarks to English-speaking pilgrims.

Pope Leo recalled St. John Paul II’s description of Sunday as the “weekly Easter” and “the day of the Lord, the day of the Church, the day of man and, finally, the ‘day of days.'”

Even in languages such as English and German, where the name for Sunday refers to the “day of the sun,” Pope Leo said Christians can discern a reference to Christ, “the true ‘sun of righteousness’ who enlightens every person.”

Listening to the word of God, receiving the body of Christ and gathering together on Sundays, the pope said, allow “the Christian community” to make “visible its communion with the Lord” and bear witness to its fidelity to Christ and the Church.

“This assembly cannot be substituted by a solely virtual presence, nor can it be reduced to a merely passive gathering,” he said, stressing that the liturgical assembly is fulfilled through the active participation of the faithful.

Addressing Spanish-speaking pilgrims, Pope Leo also expressed his closeness to people affected by the powerful earthquake that struck western Colombia Aug. 10, killing hundreds and leaving many others injured or missing. Rescue efforts are still underway.

“While I pray to the Lord for the eternal rest of the deceased, I assure you of my prayers for their families and all those affected by this tragedy,” he said. “I express my gratitude to all those working in the rescue efforts and providing assistance to the victims.”

SCRANTON (August 11, 2026) – Mr. Christopher R. Clay, formerly an incardinated priest of the Diocese of Scranton, has been dispensed from the clerical state, effective July 24, 2026, following credible accusations of sexual abuse of a minor.

Mr. Clay is no longer a member of the clergy, nor has any of the privileges or responsibilities of the priesthood. A priest who has been dispensed from the clerical state may not celebrate Mass or confer the Sacraments. He may no longer be called “Father” or wear clerical attire.

Mr. Clay was ordained to the Priesthood in June 1998, by the Most Rev. James C. Timlin, Eighth Bishop of Scranton, and was a member of the Oratory of Saint Philip Neri, a religious community founded in Mount Pocono by Reverend Peter M.J. Stravinskas.

Mr. Clay was originally removed from the exercise of priestly ministry in June 2004, in response to a credible accusation of sexual abuse of a minor. In July 2024, the Diocese became aware of another accusation of sexual abuse of a minor made against Mr. Clay. In both instances, the Diocese of Scranton followed its established protocol of notifying law enforcement of the allegations and reporting all findings to the Holy See.

To be clear, since the original accusation in 2004, Mr. Clay has been prohibited from the exercise of priestly ministry and celebrating the sacraments with any member of the Christian Faithful or anyone else. He has not possessed the faculties to preach the Word of God or hear confessions. He was also placed – and remains – on the Diocese of Scranton’s list of “Credibly Accused Individuals” suspected of sexually assaulting minors.

In March 2026, Mr. Clay submitted a petition to the Most Holy Father, Pope Leo XIV, requesting dispensation from the clerical state, which has been granted and is final.

Mr. Clay now lives privately in Dallas, Texas, and is no longer affiliated with the Diocese of Scranton in any official capacity.

The Diocese of Scranton has contacted both the Diocese of Dallas and the Diocese of Fort Worth to make them aware of the Holy Father’s decision and Mr. Clay’s status.

WASHINGTON (OSV News) – As Todd Blanche was confirmed and sworn in as attorney general, a group of pro-life organizations urged him to follow through on his previous comments that the Trump administration would review a Biden administration policy permitting the shipment of mifepristone by mail.

The Trump administration has sought to pause multiple state lawsuits seeking to roll back Biden administration-era eased restrictions on mifepristone, a drug commonly used for first trimester abortion, but which is also used in some miscarriage care protocols. The Trump administration has thus far left that regulation in effect while seeking to block those challenges, pending a promised FDA safety review, prompting frustration from pro-life advocates.

Advancing American Freedom, the think tank founded by former Vice President Mike Pence, said it led 35 organizations in sending a letter Aug. 7 to Blanche prior to his confirmation, calling on him to “honor his commitment to review President Biden’s Office of Legal Counsel’s December 2022 opinion on the Comstock Act.”

The Comstock Act of 1873 bans lewd materials, including contraceptives and abortifacients, from being sent through the mail, although it has not been enforced in recent decades. Some have suggested that the law, still on the books, could be used to ban abortion pills even in states that permit their use.

But the 2022 DOJ memo referenced by the AAF letter argued the law “does not prohibit the mailing of certain drugs that can be used to perform abortions where the sender lacks the intent that the recipient of the drugs will use them unlawfully.”

In their letter, the pro-life groups argued that during his hearing, Blanche said he would review the finding and should do so promptly.

“We thank you for pledging to evaluate whether the OLC opinion is consistent with the statute Congress actually passed and look forward to the result of your review,” they said.

Signatories on the Aug. 7 letter included Tim Chapman, AAF president, as well as representatives from SBA Pro-Life America, Students for Life of America and Americans United for Life.

Supporters of allowing mifepristone to be distributed by mail have argued that the law has long been considered antiquated, unenforceable, or unconstitutional. But some have argued it should be repealed.

Prior to his confirmation Aug. 8, Blanche signaled on a call with a predominantly Protestant Christian ministry that the Trump administration would be “putting practices and policies in place” to stop shipment of mifepristone by mail.

During a private call in late July, hosted by the White House Faith Office, Blanche told the group Intercessors for America that the Justice Department was “working hand in hand” with federal agencies and the White House “so that the Dobbs decision becomes permanent in every single state.”

He was referring to Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, the 2022 Supreme Court ruling that overturned the 1973 Roe v. Wade decision, which had found that abortion was a constitutionally protected right, and returned the matter of restricting or regulating abortion to the legislative branch. A recording of the Blanche call, which appears to have since been removed from YouTube, was first reported by Politico.

“If states have said, ‘We are going to protect the unborn and we’re going to protect every life from the moment of conception,’ we’re putting practices and policies in place so that other states and other organizations can’t attack that,” Blanche said on the call. “They can’t do things like they’re doing with mailing in mail-order drugs.”

A spokesperson for the Justice Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment from OSV News. But a Justice Department statement to The Hill claimed Blanche’s “comments have been mischaracterized and need to be understood in their full context, which was with respect to mail order abortion drugs, not a broader expansion of federal control over states.”

In an Aug. 8 statement regarding Blanche’s confirmation, Alexis McGill Johnson, president and CEO of Planned Parenthood Action Fund, said, “The Trump administration and its backers in Congress have, once again, shown people across the country that they will never stop their attempts to make it harder for people nationwide to get an abortion and will make it more dangerous to provide that care.”

“That’s exactly the opposite of what people want and the consequences could be deadly,” she argued.

Blanche, who was previously President Donald Trump’s personal attorney, was sworn in Aug. 10 as attorney general after a contentious confirmation process during which Republican senators raised issues including a controversial $1.8 billion “anti-weaponization fund” sought by Trump; objections to the way the Department of Justice handled the release of the Epstein files; and its approach to state challenges to a policy permitting distribution of mifepristone by mail, calling into question whether they would have the votes to confirm him without Democratic support.

But the Senate narrowly confirmed Blanche as attorney general in a 49-50 vote in the early hours of Aug. 8.

Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, who is seeking reelection in a swing state in November, and Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, declined to support Blanche.

Without any Democratic support for Blanche’s nomination, and with Sen. Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., still absent from the upper chamber, every other Republican was needed for the confirmation. Sen. Bill Cassidy, R-La., who was among the senators seen as key swing votes in the process, effectively allowed the confirmation to move forward by stating on the Senate floor he would vote to confirm Blanche.

(OSV News) – Pope Leo XIV said he was deeply saddened by the loss of life and destruction following a powerful earthquake that struck Colombia, leaving more than 100 dead and dozens of collapsed buildings.

The pope offered prayers “for the eternal rest of the deceased and raises his prayers to the Lord for the speedy recovery of those affected by this tragedy,” said a telegram to Archbishop Francisco Javier Múnera Correa of Cartagena, president of the Colombian Bishops’ Conference, signed by Cardinal Pietro Parolin, Vatican secretary of state.

The earthquake struck in the morning Aug. 10, with hundreds of videos posted online of people fleeing outdoors as the ground below them violently shook.

The Colombian Association of Capital Cities reported that the death toll rose to 132, with more than 570 injured. The association, which is a network of Colombia’s major cities, said the number is expected to change as damage assessments continue in the affected areas.

In his message, which the Vatican published Aug. 11, Cardinal Parolin conveyed the pope’s condolences “to the families who, in this hour of deep sorrow, mourn the loss of their loved ones.”

“In the same way, he assures his spiritual closeness and expresses his gratitude to all those who, with generous dedication, are working in the search, rescue, and assistance efforts for those affected,” the message read.

“Through the intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary, he asks the Lord to pour out upon the beloved Colombian people the gifts of spiritual strength and Christian hope,” said the message.

According to Colombia’s Geological Service, the quake’s epicenter was the northwestern department of Chocó, and the intense magnitude made it “the strongest earthquake felt in Colombia in the last decade.”

The Geological Service also reported that, as of Aug. 10 in the afternoon, the country has recorded 18 aftershocks with magnitudes between 1.4 and 4.8 since the initial earthquake.

In a message published Aug. 10, the Colombian Bishops’ Conference expressed its closeness to the victims of the deadly 7.4 magnitude quake, as well as those who have been displaced.

“We pray for those who have lost their lives, that God may grant them eternal rest; for the persons who are still missing; for the injured, and for the affected families,” the bishops said.

The bishops also prayed for relief and medical personnel, as well as military and government authorities, “and all those who, with generosity and courage, are working in search, rescue, and care efforts for those affected.”

“This painful moment reminds us that no one can face an emergency of this magnitude alone,” the statement read. “Colombia is called, once again, to recognize itself as one family and to respond to the suffering of its brothers and sisters with generosity, responsibility, and solidarity.”

Among the videos of the destruction wrought by the earthquake were that of the Cathedral Basilica of Our Lady of the Rosary in Manizales, as well as several churches that were heavily damaged in the aftermath.

The Archdiocese of Manizales also shared a 10-second video showing a Mass taking place as the earthquake struck in the morning.

In a video message to the city’s faithful, Archbishop José Miguel Gómez of Manizales said that while the archdiocese continues to assess the damage to churches, “the most important thing is you, the faithful, the priests, and all our neighbors who suffered the same.”

“God, our Lord, never abandons us, and it is in these moments when, lifting our eyes to Him, we must all, with humility and simplicity, ask Him for the graces we need to live through these difficulties,” Archbishop Gómez said.

The archbishop also invoked the intercession of Our Lady of the Rosary, asking her to “console and comfort” those affected by the natural disaster. He also urged people to follow guidelines given by the authorities.

“And, following those instructions, always seek to be attentive to those who suffer the most, so that no person is left without care in these difficult times,” he said before imparting his blessing.

The Colombian bishops’ conference said dioceses across the country are setting up collection points to ensure food distribution to shelters, hospitals and communities in the affected areas.

Caritas Colombia, the conference said, activated its National Emergency Service “to raise funds to directly help the jurisdictions and communities that were most affected by this tragedy.”

(OSV News) – Recent security issue disclosures from major artificial intelligence developers Anthropic and OpenAI point to a need for even greater human oversight of the technology, two Catholic experts told OSV News.

“What the Church brings to this is not a technical control. It is the refusal to let responsibility be transferred onto the tool,” said Matthew Harvey Sanders, CEO of Longbeard, the technology firm behind Magisterium AI, a Catholic “answer engine” trained on official and other authoritative Church teaching sources.

Charles Camosy, associate professor of moral theology and ethics at The Catholic University of America, warned of a “kind of prisoner’s dilemma” in which AI development firms across the globe are finding themselves locked in a relentless competition.

He noted that “Magnifica Humanitas,” Pope Leo XIV’s encyclical on AI, “called for ‘disarming’ AI and this also meant disarming this very race.”

In an email to OSV News, Sanders — whose firm uses frontier AI models developed by the two companies — clarified and contrasted two incidents self-reported by OpenAI and Anthropic, which saw models from each company appear to demonstrate a startling – and troubling — level of initiative during testing.

On July 21, OpenAI — the company behind ChatGPT — announced that a combination of its models had broken out of a sandboxed testing environment to “obtain open Internet access” while solving a task.

Essentially, the models had hacked the open-source AI development platform Hugging Face, exploiting what OpenAI called a “previously unknown zero-day vulnerability,” meaning the weakness was unanticipated.

Hugging Face had revealed the breach on July 16, with OpenAI realizing shortly afterward that several of its models were responsible.

In a July 28 update, OpenAI said a “pre-release model” that was partly at fault “was never intended for public release,” and had been deactivated after the incident. The company has stressed it continues to work with Hugging Face and external advisors to review the incident.

Following the OpenAI disclosure, Anthropic — the AI developer responsible for Claude, and the firm among those on hand for the release of Pope Leo XIV’s encyclical on AI — examined its own track record.

In a July 30 post to its website, Anthropic said it had identified three incidents in which a Claude model had “gained unauthorized access to the real systems of three different organizations.”

Like OpenAI, Anthropic said it was actively addressing the issue, “approaching the fixes as if the responsibility were ours alone.”

Sanders said the two incidents “are not the same event.”

“In OpenAI’s case, the containment was real and the models defeated it,” even “going to extreme lengths” to attain the goal, he explained.

However, “in Anthropic’s case, the model never escaped and never needed to,” since it regarded “the real companies it was breaking into” as “part of the exercise it had been given,” said Sanders.

“In both cases the systems did exactly what they were built to do, with more competence than their builders had planned for,” he said. “That is not rebellion. It is obedience, and it ought to worry us more.”

Sanders stressed media coverage describing the incidents as examples of AI going rogue are inaccurate, since that perspective “hands these systems a will they do not have.”

Moreover, such a view “quietly moves responsibility away from the people who made the decisions,” he said.

Both OpenAI and Anthropic had “deliberately switched off the safeguards that stop a deployed model from carrying out cyberattacks,” he said, adding, “That is a defensible research decision.”

But, said Sanders, “the design choice that failed” in both cases has to do with “how much containment is enough around a model whose restraints you have deliberately removed.”

Ultimately, OpenAI failed “to anticipate capability,” while Anthropic erred in its “failure to check” on the incidents, which took place in April, until late July, and then only after OpenAI made its disclosure, said Sanders.

“Neither is an accident of the technology,” he said, adding that Pope Leo’s “encyclical does not allow us to describe them as one.”

Both Sanders — who commended the two AI firms for their respective disclosures — and Camosy pointed to the critical need to bring a Catholic perspective to bear on the rapidly evolving technology.

“The Church has spent two thousand years declining to let people describe their own choices as fate, and that is exactly the discipline this moment needs,” said Sanders. “Every account of these incidents that reaches for the image of a machine breaking free is, whether it means to or not, an argument that nobody is answerable. Somebody is always answerable. That is good news rather than bad, because a decision a person made is a decision a person can make differently.”

Camosy urged Pope Leo XIV “to make a trip, very soon, to Silicon Valley” to “convene local Silicon Valley companies and global AI companies as well” to ensure humans remain in control of AI.

“That kind of dramatic move, as far as I can tell, is the only thing that could possibly move the needle culturally and globally for this kind of problem,” said Camosy. “He’s got the worldwide clout to do so, and so many people of so many different perspectives have welcomed his moral leadership on this issue in particular.”

And, Camosy added, “The time to set up something like this is now. We likely have months, not years, to act.”