Priests, laypeople, Poor Clare nun among 124 20th-century martyrs beatified in Spain

Detail of the commemorative painting of the 124 martyrs of Jaén, Spain, beatified in 2025. / Credit: Diocese of JaénACI Prensa Staff, Dec 12, 2025 / 16:03 pm (CNA).The Diocese of Jaén in Spain will celebrate on Dec. 13 the beatification of 109 priests, 14 laypeople, and one Poor Clare nun martyred during the Spanish Civil War.With the addition of these 124 new blesseds, the number of 20th-century martyrs in Spain recognized by the Catholic Church rises to 2,254, 11 of whom have been canonized.The beatification ceremony will be presided over by Cardinal Marcello Semeraro, prefect of the Dicastery for the Causes of Saints, and will take place in Assumption Cathedral in Jaén, where some of the new blesseds spent their last days before being murdered out of hatred for the faith. Bishop Sebastián Chico of Jaén in the pastoral letter published on the occasion of the beatification stated that "their blood, far from being sterile, has become a fertile seed that today nourishes the...

Bishops call Illinois assisted suicide law signed by Gov. Pritzker 'heartbreaking'

Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker at Chi Hack Night on July 12, 2017. / Credit: Chi Hack Night, CC-BY-3.0CNA Staff, Dec 12, 2025 / 16:52 pm (CNA).Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker signed into law an assisted suicide bill that Catholic leaders have ardently opposed.Pritzker, who met with Pope Leo XIV on Nov. 19, cited "freedom," "choice," and "autonomy" as his reasons for signing the bill, which allows doctors to give terminally ill patients life-ending drugs if they request them. According to the law, patients must be mentally capable and have a prognosis of six months or less to live. Cardinal Blase Cupich of Chicago and other Illinois bishops had urged Pritzker to veto the bill. The Catholic Conference of Illinois, which speaks for the Catholic bishops in the state, condemned the law, calling it a "dangerous and heartbreaking path." Other jurisdictions with assisted suicide laws include: California, Colorado, Delaware, Hawaii, Maine, New Jersey, New Mexico, Oregon, Vermont, Washing...

Pope Leo XIV entrusts pontificate to the Virgin of Guadalupe

Pope Leo XIV honors Our Lady of Guadalupe during the Mass on her feast day, Dec. 12, 2025, in St. Peter's Basilica at the Vatican. / Credit: Vatican MediaVatican City, Dec 12, 2025 / 17:46 pm (CNA).On Dec. 12, Pope Leo XIV presided over his first Mass on the solemnity of Our Lady of Guadalupe, whom he asked to come to his aid "so that she may confirm in the one true path that leads to the blessed Fruit of your womb all those who have been entrusted to me."A large number of the faithful, mostly from the Mexican community residing in Rome as well as clergy and members of the Roman Curia, attended the ceremony held in St. Peter's Basilica at 4 p.m. local time.The Holy Father delivered a homily in Spanish in the form of a prayer addressed to the patroness of Mexico and empress of the Americas.The pontiff recalled that Mary allows the Word of God "to enter her life and transform it," bringing "that joy wherever human joy is insufficient, wherever the wine has run out." For the ...

Prayer rally protests Vienna exhibition depicting 'crucified frog and transgender Mary'

Official appearance of the exhibition in Vienna from Vienna Künstlerhaus website. / Credit: Vienna Künstlerhaus websiteCNA Deutsch, Dec 12, 2025 / 10:11 am (CNA).On Dec. 8, the solemnity of the Immaculate Conception, a prayer rally against an exhibition called "Du sollst dir ein Bild machen" ("You shall make yourself an image") took place in front of the Vienna Künstlerhaus Vereinigung, a cultural center for artists. The prayer rally's organizers said the show, which includes a crucified frog and a depiction of the Virgin Mary as a transgender woman, is an attack on the Catholic faith.Organized by the Austrian Society for the Protection of Tradition, Family, and Private Property (TFP), the rosary rally featured participants carrying placards calling for an immediate stop to blasphemy. Protesters said the exhibition strikes "at the heart of the Catholic faith with abominable depictions, including a crucified green frog mocking Our Lord, a bearded man dressed as the Mother of God...

Pope Leo calls for promoting 'cultural diplomacy' to overcome borders and prejudices

Pope Leo XIV receives members of the Pontifical Institute of Christian Archaeology on Dec. 11, 2025, in the Clementine Hall of the Vatican. / Credit: Vatican MediaVatican City, Dec 11, 2025 / 18:30 pm (CNA).Pope Leo XIV on Dec. 11 emphasized the academic, cultural, and ecclesial value of archaeology and called for the promotion of "cultural diplomacy" to overcome borders and prejudices.Receiving members of the Pontifical Institute of Christian Archaeology in an audience, the pope emphasized that its literary and monumental sources constitute an essential part of the "roots" of European society and nations."Take part through your studies in that cultural diplomacy that the world so desperately needs in our day," the pope urged, addressing the faculty, students, and staff of the center.To introduce his reflection, he referenced the motu proprio I Primitivi Cemeteri ("The Primitive Cemeteries"), published exactly a century ago by Pius XI, in which he emphasized the Church's respon...

Poll: Majority of U.S. Catholics support death penalty despite Catechism

Death penalty. / California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, Wikipedia CC 2.0.Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Dec 11, 2025 / 13:00 pm (CNA).A majority of Catholic voters in the United States support the death penalty for convicted murderers in spite of the Catechism of the Catholic Church calling capital punishment "inadmissible," according to a poll published by EWTN News and RealClear Opinion Research.The survey of 1,000 Catholic voters between Nov. 9 and Nov. 11 found that 55% support the death penalty "for a person convicted of murder." Only 20% said they oppose the death penalty in such situations, and another 25% are unsure.Based on the poll, Catholics who attend Mass regularly are much more likely to say they oppose the death penalty than Catholics whose attendance is less frequent.Among Catholics who attend Mass at least once per week, 52% say they support the death penalty for convicted murderers, 26% say they oppose it, and 22% are unsure. For Catholics who at...

Senate to vote on health care plans as subsidies near expiration

Congress is set to vote on two plans regarding the Affordable Care Act (ACA) premium tax credits that are scheduled to expire Dec. 31, 2025.  / Credit: usarmyband, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia CommonsWashington, D.C. Newsroom, Dec 11, 2025 / 06:30 am (CNA).Congress is set to vote on two plans regarding the Affordable Care Act (ACA) premium tax credits that are scheduled to expire Dec. 31, 2025. The Senate is expected to vote Dec. 11 on a Democratic proposal to extend existing ACA tax credits for three years, as 24 million Americans use ACA marketplaces for health insurance. Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-South Dakota, told reporters Tuesday after a Senate Republican meeting that lawmakers also will vote on a Republican alternative measure. Sen. Bill Cassidy, R-Louisiana, chair of the Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee, and Sen. Mike Crapo, R-Idaho, who leads the Finance panel, announced the legislation on Monday. The measure (S. 3386) would s...

The place where image of Our Lady of Guadalupe appeared on Juan Diego's cloak

Former archbishop's palace in Mexico City. / Credit: Government of Mexico CityPuebla, Mexico, Dec 11, 2025 / 07:10 am (CNA).Although millions of faithful recognize Tepeyac Hill in Mexico City as the site of the apparitions of Our Lady of Guadalupe, not many know that the miracle of the imprinting of her image did not occur there, but in a place that is now practically forgotten.According to tradition, in December 1531, the Virgin appeared to an indigenous man named Juan Diego and asked him to request that the first bishop of Mexico, Friar Juan de Zumárraga, build a "sacred little house," a chapel at the foot of Tepeyac.As a sign for the bishop, the Virgin Mary caused roses to bloom in the middle of winter on the arid hill and asked Juan Diego to carry them in his cloak. When he arrived at the bishop's residence to show the bishop the roses, he unfolded his cloak, and the image of Our Lady of Guadalupe was miraculously imprinted on it.After the miracle, the cloak was placed...

St. Gianna Molla award to go to Catholic father, farmer, potential saint 

Tom Vander Woude with baby Joseph "Josie" Vander Woude. / Credit: Photo courtesy of the Tom Vander Woude GuildCNA Staff, Dec 11, 2025 / 09:30 am (CNA).When Virginia father Tom Vander Woude's 19-year-old son, a boy with Down syndrome, fell into a toxic sewage tank, Tom jumped into the tank with him, pushing him to the surface even as the toxic fumes filled his own lungs.The father of seven, whose sainthood cause is now under investigation, will be posthumously awarded this year's Walk for Life "Saint Gianna Molla Award for Pro-Life Heroism" on Jan. 24, 2026 at the West Coast Walk for Life in San Francisco. "When we heard Tom's story years ago, we were touched by the love of a father for his child," Dolores Meehan, co-chair of the West Coast Walk for Life, told CNA. "The fact that his son has Down syndrome made it all the more important to share his story of love and sacrifice and joy."Unborn children with Down syndrome often become victims of abortion.The award named for St...

Top health officials delayed abortion pill safety review, report claims 

Pro-life advocates are calling for action as top federal health officials deny reports that they are delaying a promised safety review of the abortion pill.  / Credit: Yta23/ShutterstockCNA Staff, Dec 10, 2025 / 18:30 pm (CNA).Pro-life advocates are calling for action as top federal health officials deny reports that they are delaying a promised safety review of the abortion pill. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA), an agency of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, "has delayed a promised review of safety data" until after midterm elections at Commissioner Marty Makary's request, a Tuesday report by Bloomberg Law claimed, citing unnamed sources.  The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has denied the claim, saying it is "baseless." "Assertions that the FDA is slow walking this review for political purposes are baseless," an HHS spokesperson told CNA. "FDA takes the time necessary to conduct comprehensive scientific revie...