Catholic News

A new report by leading human rights groups says entrenched corruption throughout Pakistan's criminal justice system disproportionately harms the country's poorest religious minorities, particularly Christians accused under its controversial blasphemy laws.

The study — titled "Under the Bench: Mapping Corruption Risks in Pakistan's Justice System" — was released July 8 by the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH) and the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP).

"Ethnic and religious minorities continue to face rampant discrimination in Pakistan — issues that are compounded by the fact that they also come from low-income communities," the report states.

"Many of the victims in cases targeting Christians, for example, are sanitation workers or daily laborers, meaning that their resources to pay legal representation with necessary social and political connections or to pay bribes are very limited, if not absent, in effect widening the gap in access to justice."

The report is based on 30 interviews conducted by FIDH and HRCP in February and March with lawyers, journalists, civil society activists, academics, and judges.

Several interviewees said anti-minority and anti-poor bias was evident in the language used by some judges in their rulings.

Bribes and stalled trials

Its findings echo those of a 2025 report by Human Rights Watch, which said blasphemy accusations were increasingly being used for financial gain, with some police officials allegedly demanding bribes from victims to avoid the registration of false first information reports.

The report also cited figures from the National Commission for Human Rights, a government human rights body, showing a sharp increase in blasphemy prosecutions. It said 767 people were detained on blasphemy charges as of July 25, 2024, compared with 213 in 2023, 64 in 2022, nine in 2021, and 11 in 2020.

Behram Francis, legal adviser for the Catholic bishops' National Commission for Justice and Peace, said the findings matched what he has seen on the ground.

"Police start dealing with families of blasphemy victims after an accusation is made and the case is publicized. Given the security risk, sensitivity, and public sentiment associated, the usual bribe rate in such cases starts from at least 50,000 rupees [$180]," Francis told EWTN News.

"Trials in lower courts can drag on for years, and the victim continues suffering in prison, as the accuser can easily get the next hearing postponed by paying 15,000 rupees to the court reader. Our lawyers usually encounter prejudice against Christians during trials."

Concerns in the courtroom

Riaz Anjum, president of the Christian Lawyers Association of Pakistan, said procedural delays and intimidation inside courtrooms remained among the biggest obstacles to defending Christians accused of blasphemy.

"These cases are often not listed in the regular cause list, forcing us to file separate applications just to obtain a hearing," Anjum told EWTN News.

"Muslim lawyers sometimes openly threaten us in front of judges and mobilize madrassa students outside courtrooms. The risk of external pressure and mob intimidation influencing judicial proceedings remains very high."

Pakistan ranked 123rd out of 143 countries in the World Justice Project's 2025 Rule of Law Index for absence of corruption, placing it second from the bottom in its regional rankings.

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Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee told reporters in Knoxville on Tuesday that there will be no changes to the protocol for capital punishment in the state following the botched execution attempt of death row inmate Tony Carruthers on May 21.

In May, the Republican governor suspended Carruthers' execution for one year after the medical team failed to find a vein when trying to set up the backup IV line of lethal drugs. They tried to set up the IV line for more than an hour.

"The Department of Corrections did exactly what they were supposed to," Lee told reporters. "I decided to suspend the execution. I have the authority to do that. I'm the only one who can."

"Given the circumstances of not being able to find a vein, I made that decision," the governor added. "But the protocol itself and the process for the death penalty in this state — which is the law of Tennessee that the people have decided — but the protocol itself still stands, as it should."

After the botched execution, eight Republican lawmakers wrote a letter to the governor, which urged him to review the death penalty protocol, according to the Tennessee Lookout. The letter called the incident a failure "to carry a lawful sentence of its own courts," but the lawmakers still expressed support for the death penalty.

Krisanne Vaillancourt Murphy, executive director of the Catholic Mobilizing Network — a group that works with the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops on opposition to the death penalty — expressed disappointment in Lee's comment in a statement to EWTN News.

"Tony Carruthers' botched execution reminds us that every execution — regardless of the method or the procedures that take place — is a barbaric act that disregards the sanctity of life," she said. "I am heartbroken to hear that Gov. Bill Lee has decided to let current lethal injection procedures stand."

Murphy noted that Republican lawmakers urged the governor to commission an independent review of how the execution was botched.

"It is helpful to pause in times like this and ask ourselves: To what lengths will the state go to seek revenge?" she said. "There is nothing appropriate in this situation. The only way to avoid perpetuating more violence and harm is to step back from executing people altogether."

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A priest who has been on administrative leave for more than half a decade, in part over allegations of inappropriate conduct with children, has been charged by federal authorities with possession of child pornography, a U.S. attorney announced on July 8.

The U.S. Attorney's Office for the Western District of New York said in a press release that Father Jeffrey Nowak of Lackawanna, New York, was arrested and charged with both the receipt and possession of child pornography.

The charges "carry a mandatory minimum penalty of five years in prison and a maximum of 20 years," the attorney's office said.

Nowak has been the subject of investigations by authorities as far back as 2019, when he was placed on administrative leave that year after a seminarian reported that the priest had sexually harassed him.

The U.S. attorney's office said Nowak was also the subject of "allegations of inappropriate contact with children."

The priest was also linked to an email address reportedly connected with child sexual abuse material, according to the prosecutor's office. A two-year FBI investigation into the matter was ultimately closed.

The FBI reopened its investigation into Nowak in March of this year, the prosecutor said. On July 8 a search warrant was executed at Nowak's residence during which investigators found child pornography on his electronic devices.

U.S. Attorney Michael DiGiacomo said in the release that the priest "hid behind a keyboard and took part in the tragic exploitation of one of society's most vulnerable populations, our children."

"Nowak has now been exposed and can no longer hide and will be held accountable for his disgraceful behavior," the prosecutor said.

A spokesman for the Diocese of Buffalo, meanwhile, said in a statement on July 9 that Nowak "was placed on permanent leave in 2019 and has not been permitted to function as a priest since then."

"We are not aware of any attempt by law enforcement officials to contact the diocese regarding these allegations," the statement said.

The diocese "has just learned of the allegations against him and will cooperate fully with any inquiry by law enforcement officials," it added.

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A report from the Institute for Family Studies warns that the United States is approaching a demographic turning point, with fertility rates continuing to fall well below replacement levels and population declines increasingly likely in the coming decades unless current trends change.

The report, titled "The Demographic Dead End: 2026 State of Fertility Report," presents estimates of fertility trends for every state dating back to 1917. As part of the nation's 250th anniversary, researchers also reconstructed birth rates in Massachusetts dating to 1660, offering one of the longest historical views of American fertility ever compiled.

According to the report, the U.S. fertility rate has fallen to about 1.6 children per woman, well below the replacement level of about 2.1 needed to maintain a stable population without immigration. Researchers said the decline is no longer a temporary consequence of delayed childbearing but reflects a sustained demographic shift.

The authors projected that if trends continue, the U.S. population will likely peak during the 2050s before entering a prolonged period of decline. They contend that many mainstream demographic forecasts underestimate the pace of falling fertility and assume a rebound that has yet to materialize.

The report notes fertility has declined in nearly every state over the past two decades, though the pace varies geographically. States with higher levels of religious participation, marriage, and family stability generally continue to post comparatively higher birth rates than states with lower rates of marriage and family formation.

Although Americans' desired family size has remained relatively stable, the gap between how many children they want and how many they ultimately have continues to widen. Surveys consistently show Americans expect to have about two children and ideally would like to have an average of 2.4.

Catherine Pakaluk, professor at The Catholic University of America and author of "Hannah's Children: The Women Quietly Defying the Birth Dearth," cautioned against interpreting that gap as entirely unmet demand.

"I'd be careful treating that gap as pure unmet demand — people fall short of almost everything they say they want, and stated desires are aspirations measured before the real tradeoffs arrive," Pakaluk told EWTN News. "What 'I want 2.4' mostly reflects is a preference stated in the abstract, which softens once a child is weighed against everything else a life can hold."

Why are fewer Americans having children?

Pakaluk said economic pressures and delayed marriage play a role but are not the primary cause of declining birth rates.

"Cost and later marriage matter at the margin, but they aren't the engine," she said. "The driver is a shift in the relative value placed on children."

She added that prolonged low fertility could reshape American society, leading to "an older population, a thinner worker-to-retiree ratio that strains Social Security and Medicare" as well as "thinner kin networks and more people aging without family nearby."

Limits of government policy

Researchers argue reversing the trend will require more than financial incentives for parents. Pakaluk agreed that public policy has limits.

"The most honest thing I can say is that the levers government actually controls aren't the ones that move completed family size," she said. "Policy can clear obstacles at the margin, but the decisive factors live in culture, faith, and community, where government has a light touch."

She said measures such as expanding housing supply, strengthening the child tax credit, and removing marriage penalties may help families but cautioned that "no wealthy country has policy-engineered its way back to replacement."

Global demographic challenge

The findings come as concerns over declining birth rates are growing worldwide. More than two-thirds of countries have fertility rates below replacement, prompting governments across Europe, Asia, and North America to examine ways to encourage family formation.

For the Catholic Church, concern over declining birth rates has long been connected to its teaching on marriage, openness to life, and support for families. Recent popes have repeatedly warned that demographic decline carries not only economic consequences but also cultural and social implications for future generations.

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U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson extended greetings to Archbishop Gabriele Giordano Caccia in a letter marking his appointment as apostolic nuncio to the United States.

Johnson sent a formal letter July 1, shared exclusively with EWTN News, that welcomed the nuncio to his diplomatic mission in the United States and affirmed Congress' respect for the Holy See's role in promoting peace, human dignity, and care for vulnerable communities.

"On behalf of the United States House of Representatives, I'd like to extend my heartfelt congratulations on your recent appointment as apostolic nuncio to the United States of America," Johnson wrote. "It is my great honor to welcome you to Washington, D.C., during this semiquincentennial year as we commemorate 250 years of American independence."

The letter follows Caccia's appointment to the position in March, succeeding Cardinal Christophe Pierre, who turned 80, the retirement age for cardinals, in January.

"As our country celebrates its 250th anniversary, we are reminded of our long-standing commitment to the principles of human dignity and religious liberty, enshrined most famously in the Declaration of Independence," Johnson said. "These ideals were shared and practiced by Archbishop John Carroll, our nation's first Catholic bishop."

Johnson cited Carroll's commitment to integrating faith into American civil life, stating that he believed the bishop "would be proud to know that today, nearly 150 members of Congress and six of our nine justices on the U.S. Supreme Court are Catholic."

"In a spirit of goodwill, I pray that your service and mission as apostolic nuncio will continue to foster a deep friendship between the United States and the Holy See," he said, adding: "Please accept my warmest welcome and congratulations."

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In Playa Grande, a neighborhood in the city of La Guaira, Venezuela, Kamar Galíndez was on the top floor of Chipi's Beach Hotel, preparing to start his daily workout in the gym, unaware that his life was about to change forever.

It was Wednesday, June 24, the feast day of St. John the Baptist and a national holiday commemorating the anniversary of the decisive Battle of Carabobo. At 6:05 p.m., the peaceful atmosphere created by the stunning ocean view from the top of the hotel was shattered by the thunderous violence of two consecutive earthquakes that took everyone by surprise, sowing anguish and confusion.

Speaking with ACI Prensa, the Spanish-language sister service of EWTN News, Galíndez, a 53-year-old lawyer, recalled how the heavy gym machines began moving from one side to the other, much like an air hockey puck. Disaster struck within seconds.

"The floor split, and immediately I saw half the building tilting forward while the section I was in collapsed straight down; I felt my feet were no longer standing on anything, and the next thing [I knew], I was trapped in the rubble," he recounted.

Faced with imminent death: 'Lord, have mercy!'

Galíndez recounted that the only thing he managed to do was to seek protection beside a nearby wall. As he felt the building collapsing, what came to his mind was the image of the Lord Jesus as he first appeared to St. Faustina Kowalska on Feb. 22, 1931.

"I remember thinking of the merciful Christ and praying, 'Lord, have mercy,'" he said, on the verge of tears. "The next thing was feeling the building collapse because with that violent shaking, I kept saying, 'It's going to fall,' and of course, it did."

Galíndez never lost consciousness. He said he felt every blow but that "amid the shock and fear, physical sensations become secondary." Once the confusion of the collapse subsided, he realized he was alive, though his body was completely buried in the rubble and pinned by a massive beam crushing his chest.

He couldn't breathe properly. His head had not been buried, and through that immense mountain of twisted metal, bricks, and earth, he could see the sky, still lit by the last rays of the evening sun. All around, the desperate screams of other people trapped in the rubble could be heard.

Galíndez wiped his face and tried to move to free himself. Then he realized his left arm was broken: "A lot of desperation, a lot of fear" is what he recalled feeling, yet amid the suffering, he didn't hesitate to entrust himself to God's protection.

"Then I prayed to stay calm. What I did was to pray a lot: 'OK, Father God, help me get out of here. Keep me calm' was the first thing I prayed. 'Keep me calm and tell me what I need to do,'" he recounted.

He signaled for help as best he could. He said he has no idea how long he was underneath the rubble, but he knows it "felt like an eternity." Finally, a man who had climbed the mountain of debris helped him break free.

'The Miraculous Medal saved me'

Galíndez made his way down the remains of the collapsed building on his own. Upon realizing the magnitude of the tragedy, which claimed thousands of lives in a split second, he is positive that emerging virtually unharmed was a miracle, one he attributes to Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal, to whom he has always been devoted.

"I was wearing a small chain with a crucifix and a tiny medal of the Miraculous Virgin. Among the things I lost track of, the chain broke, though, of course, I hadn't noticed it at the time," he recalled.

On his way to his home, which was also completely destroyed, a couple of young people helped Galíndez with first aid. While they were tending to him, he became aware of one of those small miracles that holds profound meaning for someone with sincere faith.

He asked the young people to help him put his watch into one of the pockets of his shorts, as he needed to remove it to hold his fractured arm still. And then, the inexplicable happened.

"I was wearing shorts with a small zippered pocket, and when I looked — don't ask me where from, don't ask me how — a piece of the chain and the Miraculous Medal were caught inside."

"Of course, I told the boy: 'Please, put that little medal away for me too, because that was what saved me,'" he said. "I haven't the slightest doubt."

"Absolutely, absolutely," he replied when asked if he truly believes his life is a miracle obtained through the intercession of the Blessed Virgin.

Many people didn't make it out of what was left of the hotel. For Galíndez, having survived is the work of the mercy of God, who listened to his pleas in every instant and granted him his request for a reason he still does not know.

"In the greatest adversity, you begin to see it in terms of what is most basic, because the most basic thing becomes impossible. When the most basic thing is impossible and you manage to do it anyway, you say: 'Only God can do that,'" he reflected.

"There is a God who looks after you in that moment, attending to what you are asking of him and what you need. From freeing up an arm or reminding you of his presence by leaving a small medal hanging from your [shorts]," he said.

He then emphasized what he considers most important following his harrowing experience: "I have the greatest gift God [my dear] Father gave me, which is life."

Galíndez said he feels deeply grateful to be alive. For him, what happened serves as a humbling reminder that what we have comes from the will and mercy of God, who does not abandon his people; who does not abandon Venezuelans, especially during times of greatest suffering.

At the time of publication, the official death toll in Venezuela from the double earthquake has risen to 3,535, while the number of injured has reached 16,740. Estimates by independent organizations indicate that tens of thousands of people are still missing.

This story was first published by ACI Prensa, the Spanish-language sister service of EWTN News. It has been translated and adapted by EWTN News English.

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The canonization cause for Servant of God Rhoda Wise crossed another hurdle after formal documents that outline her life, heroic virtues, and holiness were submitted to the Vatican's Dicastery for the Causes of Saints.

Wise — who was born in 1888 in Cadiz, Ohio, and died in 1948 in Canton, Ohio — was a laywoman and a mystic who received visions of Jesus Christ and St. Thérèse of Lisieux. In 1939, she reported a miraculous healing of her stomach cancer and a wound that doctors told her was incurable.

She was raised Protestant but was introduced to Catholicism by religious sisters during her hospital stay, where she developed a strong devotion to the rosary and St. Thérèse.

After news of the miracle spread, hundreds of people visited her home weekly, with whom she would pray. Hundreds of those who visited her home both during and after her lifetime reported miraculous, unexplained healings, including EWTN Founder Mother Angelica, who developed a close friendship with Wise after being healed of a stomach ailment.

Wise also had a visible stigmata — which resembles the wounds Christ had at the Crucifixion — that appeared on her body from noon until 3 p.m. for two and a half years, from 1942 to 1945.

On July 7, Father John Sheridan — liaison between the Diocese of Youngstown, Ohio, and the Rhoda Wise House in Canton, Ohio — announced that the Vatican had received the formal "positio," which is a collection of documents that details the holiness of her life and makes the case for why Pope Leo XIV should consider her beatification.

Valentina Culurgioni, the postulator tasked with preparing the document, gave the paperwork to the dicastery several months ago, but it was first announced by Sheridan during the Diocese of Youngstown's annual Mass for the cause of beatification of Wise.

Following the Mass, Sheridan delivered the news to the faithful gathered by reading a letter he received from Culurgioni.

"Testimonies of healings and graces received through the intercession of Rhoda Wise continue to arrive at the shrine, which testify [to] her growing reputation of holiness and signs, and I would like to entrust to all of you two prayer intentions for this year, related to the progress of the cause in the Vatican," Culurgioni wrote in the letter.

"First, that all the experts — historians and theologians — who will be called upon to study and evaluate the 'positio' may be enlightened by the Holy Spirit in their valuable and delicate work," she added. "Second, that among all the reports of graces and healings we receive, suitable cases may be identified for investigation as alleged miracles."

"Do not stop praying to God, asking for the spiritual or material graces you need through the intercession of Rhoda, and continue to share and bear witness to the wonders of his powerful love in your lives," Culurgioni wrote.

Next steps

Ryan Schweitzer, assistant director of the Rhoda Wise House and Grotto, told EWTN News that the next step is the dicastery's review of the "positio," which includes evaluations by theologians, historians, and Catholic hierarchy. The dicastery will provide its conclusions to the Holy Father, who will determine whether to beatify her and grant her the title "venerable."

He said there's no real estimate for the timeline of this process but asked Catholics to "continue to pray for Rhoda's intercession and continue to pray for her beatification."

Schweitzer called the news of this development "exciting." He said if Leo elevates her status to "venerable," "that's a very small group of individuals on their pathway to canonization." He said that would increase her visibility and "Our Lord can utilize that visibility and knowledge of Rhoda to pray for her intercession."

Rhoda Wise's legacy

The Rhoda Wise House and Grotto continues to host visitors and frequently receives reports of miraculous healings on a regular basis, now nearly 80 years after her death.

According to Schweitzer, hundreds of people still visit Wise's home weekly, many of whom come "because they're seeking healing," whether that be physical, mental, or spiritual. He said many of the visitors come because "they heard that something happened to a friend, some healing" and some visitors return to share stories of their healing.

Wise had a strong friendship with Mother Angelica — then Rita Rizzo — when she was just 19 years old, before entering religious life. Schweitzer noted that Rizzo "suffered from a really debilitating stomach ailment," and her mother took her to see Wise.

Rizzo began praying a nine-day novena to St. Thérèse of Lisieux with Wise and continued to pray it each day until its conclusion, at which point she was healed of her ailment. Schweitzer said this experience served as "a catalyst to become serious about her spiritual life" and Rizzo became close friends with Wise, who served as a mentor to her.

Schweitzer said one of the most important things to know about Wise is that she was "a very humble housewife," a person who is "not someone who is unreachable" for the average person.

"She really reflects troubles that many people today are associated with," Schweitzer said.

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Two U.S. dioceses welcomed three new bishops this month with ordinations and installations in both the Archdiocese of Washington, D.C., and the Diocese of Wheeling-Charleston.

In Washington, D.C., Cardinal Robert McElroy ordained Bishop Gary Studniewski and Bishop Robert Boxie III into the order of bishops there. Both prelates will serve auxiliary roles in the archdiocese.

McElroy at the ordination Mass said the archdiocese had "been blessed by our Holy Father," Pope Leo XIV, who made the appointments on May 1. Studniewski and Boxie had previously served as priests in the archdiocese.

"All of us gathered today have the joy and the privilege of witnessing the grace of Spirit come upon these two men and set them aside in their new ministry as bishops," McElroy said at the ordination, which was livestreamed.

The Mass was held at the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception and was attended by around 2,500 people. Among the attendees were Apostolic Nuncio Gabriele Caccia; Cardinal Donald Wuerl; Richmond, Virginia, Bishop Barry Knestout; Baltimore Archbishop William Lori; and numerous other local Church leaders, along with hundreds of lay faithful.

Speaking to the new bishops, Caccia at the Mass told them: "Each of you have followed the Lord along a distinctive path of service."

He urged them to "always walk in faith, hope, and love."

Wheeling-Charleston receives new bishop from Washington

Also in attendance at the archdiocesan ordination Mass was Bishop Evelio Menjívar-Ayala, who himself formerly served as an auxiliary bishop in the archdiocese and who was installed as bishop of the Diocese of Wheeling-Charleston, West Virginia, on July 2.

Pope Leo XIV had also announced Menjívar-Ayala's appointment on May 1. The newly installed bishop is a native of El Salvador and is the first Salvadoran bishop in the history of the United States.

At his own installation Mass, the bishop referenced the classic John Denver folk song "Take Me Home, Country Roads," which in its opening strains refers to West Virginia as "almost heaven."

He joked that the scorching heat wave affecting much of the U.S. made West Virginia feel "more like purgatory." But he said the song's lyrics "express something deeply present in every human heart — the longing to be at home, the longing to belong."

Reflecting on his decades-long journey that began in Central America, Menjívar-Ayala said God "brought me from a distant life in El Salvador, the land of St. Oscar Romero, to this country."

"I could never have imagined then the path he was preparing for me," he said.

The prelate said he prayed that the faithful would "walk together in ministry, not merely along country roads, but along the way of the Gospel."

In taking the role of bishop in Wheeling-Charleston, Menjívar-Ayala replaced Bishop Mark Brennan, who served in that role from 2019 until this year.

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Pope Leo XIV on Tuesday named Rome priest Father Pier Luigi Stolfi the first moderator of the curia for the Diocese of Rome, as the pontiff continues to reform the diocese's central organization in the wake of administrative upheaval.

Recent changes by Leo restore autonomy to his appointed leaders of the diocese after Pope Francis had centralized much of the power at the Vatican.

Born in Rome, Stolfi, 55, has previously held an array of administrative positions in the diocese's hierarchy — including vice rector of both the minor and major seminaries, director of the Office for Religious Buildings, and head of the Section for Sacred Art and Cultural Heritage — before serving as pastor of St. Linus Parish in west Rome since 2020.

Adding the position of moderator of the curia was one of several changes Leo made last week to the constitution In Ecclesiarum Communione of the vicariate, or hierarchy, of the Diocese of Rome — of which he is the head.

The pontiff, as bishop of Rome, does not manage the diocese like a typical diocesan bishop. A cardinal vicar general, vice regent (deputy), and auxiliary bishops are responsible for the ordinary running of the diocese.

Last year, Leo brought back the central sector, one of five total sectors, of the diocese, which had been eliminated by Pope Francis, and in February of this year, the pontiff appointed four new auxiliary bishops — filling yearslong vacancies in the vicariate's top administration.

On Feb. 25, the pope also announced the creation of a working group to revise In Ecclesiarum Communione, introduced by Pope Francis in January 2023.

"After carefully considering the guidance I have received, I believe it is appropriate to make some amendments," Leo wrote on June 30, "so that the Vicariate of Rome may respond ever more effectively to the needs of the evangelizing mission, foster a deeper ecclesial communion, and support the pastoral ministry of the Church in Rome."

The letter motu proprio, Confirma Fratres Tuos ("Strengthen Your Brothers"), takes its title from Jesus' direction to his disciples in Luke Chapter 22, that he has "prayed that your own faith may not fail; and once you have turned back, you must strengthen your brothers."

Pope Francis' reform of the Diocese of Rome

Pope Francis' reform of the vicariate centralized everything, at least formally, under the control of the pontiff.

When In Ecclesiarum Communione was first promulgated in 2023, it was the first major change in 25 years and launched a series of organizational shifts for the ecclesiastical territory, many involving personnel. For some priests of the diocese, who spoke to EWTN News last year, the changes and instability in the diocesan curia were challenging.

The constitution also deeply diminished the role of the cardinal vicar general and made the pope the formal presider over the episcopal council, a new body established as an "expression of synodality," expected to meet at least three times a month and to report all meeting minutes to the pope. If the cardinal vicar wanted to take a different decision from the unanimous opinion of the council, he needed to discuss it first with the pope.

With the 2026 modifications introduced by Leo, the episcopal council becomes an "advisory body" convoked by the cardinal vicar and presided over by him.

Moderator of the curia

The moderator of the curia, appointed by the pope for a five-year renewable term, oversees the performance of the duties of the diocesan staff.

According to universal Church law, the moderator of the curia is a priest "who, under the authority of the bishop, is to coordinate those things which pertain to the treatment of administrative affairs and to take care that the other members of the curia properly fulfill the office entrusted to them."

In many dioceses, the vicar general, or one of them if there are more than one, is also the moderator of the curia.

In Rome, Leo decided to add the moderator as a separate figure, giving him the responsibility over the administrative functions formerly carried out by the vice regent, whose position will now be more closely tied to the cardinal vicar, assisting him in his duties and exercising his powers in his absence when necessary.

An additional change: An Independent Supervisory Commission established by Pope Francis, in the new version of the constitution, removes the detailed requirements for members and the requirement to report to the pope once a year after monthly meetings, simply stating that the regulations of the internal oversight body are to be approved by the pope.

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Pope Leo XIV has urged Iraqi Christians to be the light of Christ amid worsening persecution and insecurity.

In a video message published by the Vatican on July 8 for the Ankawa Youth Meeting in Ankawa, Iraq, the pope greeted the young Christians present and encouraged them to trust in God during these challenging times for the country.

"Dear young people, never doubt the goodness of God, and do not be afraid of the plan the Lord has for each of your lives," Leo said in the video message. "The prophet Jeremiah also had to face difficult moments, and he
bears witness that the Lord's plans are 'for your welfare and not for harm, to give you a future with hope' (Jer 29:11)."

Prolonged Christian persecution and emigration from Iraq

Iraq continues to experience sectarian violence and terrorist attacks, forcing waves of Christians to emigrate. As reported by ACI MENA, the Arabic-language sister service of EWTN News, and the Chaldean Catholic Patriarchate of Baghdad, two-thirds of Christians have left the country, with most fleeing to the United States and Australia.

The report also states that since the Iraq War in 2003, the Christian population has declined from 1.5 million to approximately half a million. The patriarchate attributed this to the number of Christians who were kidnapped and killed by the Islamist militant organization al-Qaida.

Encouragement from Pope Leo

Leo XIV encouraged the Iraqi Christians gathered in Ankawa to persevere in faith, assuring them of his closeness and that of the Church in these times.

"I am with you; the Church is with you. Place your trust in Jesus; listen to him in prayer and through the guidance of others, and allow him to lead you," Leo said.

The pope also called on them to radiate the light of Christ and to work for peace at a time of conflict.

"Rooted in charity, you are particularly called to be peacemakers, to unite those around you, and to instill in others the hope of a future marked by lasting peace."

"It is not always easy to be a light in the world (cf. Mt 5:13). Indeed, at the present time, you are called to radiate this light in a situation that has often been marked by war and instability. The Lord has placed great trust in you in bestowing upon you this mission, and I too have great confidence in all of you," the pope said.

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