Catholic News

Christians and rights advocates in Pakistan have welcomed the acquittal of a blind Catholic man who spent nearly 10 months in jail on a blasphemy charge carrying a mandatory death sentence.

A sessions court in Lahore, the capital of Punjab province, on June 22 cleared 49-year-old Nadeem Masih, who is blind by birth, of charges under Section 295-C of Pakistan's blasphemy law, which criminalizes insults against the Prophet Muhammad.

Additional District and Sessions Judge Saad Salman Khan dismissed the case after finding insufficient evidence to support the prosecution's allegations.

Masih had been in custody since August 2025. His family alleges the accusation stemmed from a dispute with contractors at Nawaz Sharif Park, where he earned a living operating a weighing scale for visitors. The family said the contractors harassed him and demanded money.

Fearing reprisals, relatives have since moved to a shelter and were unavailable for comment.

Defense attorney Javed Sahotra said the prosecution's own evidence undermined its case.

"The police report stated they received information about the alleged blasphemy at 11 p.m., although the park closes at 9 p.m. Two prosecution witnesses also gave statements that raised serious questions about the allegations," he told EWTN News.

Sahotra said imprisonment had been especially difficult for Masih because of his disability.

"He spent 10 distressing months in prison. Simple daily tasks such as using the toilet and obtaining food were major challenges," the lawyer said.

"The case demonstrates how vulnerable people can become entangled in serious criminal accusations. Even a poor blind man was not spared."

Blasphemy remains one of Pakistan's most sensitive issues and has frequently triggered mob violence against religious minorities, including attacks on homes and places of worship.

According to the annual report of the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan, 812 people were imprisoned on blasphemy-related charges in Punjab during 2025, including 796 men, 15 women, and one juvenile.

Christian advocacy groups say eight Christians, including two women, were acquitted or granted bail in blasphemy cases during the first half of 2026, all in Punjab province.

Over the past five years, Christian Solidarity International (CSI) has helped secure the acquittal of 15 people accused of blasphemy — 10 Christians and five Muslims, including three women.

Anjum James Paul, a CSI partner who helped coordinate legal and financial support for Masih's family, attributed many acquittals to careful legal preparation.

"We maintain a low profile during such trials because of the sensitivity of these cases," Paul said.

"One of the lawyers representing Masih is a Hafiz-e-Quran [a person who has memorized the entire Quran]. Having Muslim lawyers on defense teams can help reduce pressure because some district bar associations discourage lawyers from taking blasphemy cases."

Paul also called for authorities to implement court directives requiring the involvement of qualified religious scholars and senior police officers in preliminary blasphemy investigations.

A support group formed by families affected by alleged false blasphemy accusations welcomed the verdict in a social media statement issued hours after the ruling.

The Voice of the Victims of Blasphemy Business Group described the acquittal as a rare example of a lower court dismissing a blasphemy case and expressed hope that courts were becoming less vulnerable to public pressure in such cases.

The group alleged that Masih had been falsely accused following a dispute with park management and said the verdict offered encouragement to other families fighting blasphemy allegations.

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Widows have a place of privilege and special care in the Judeo-Christian tradition, according to biblical texts. On International Widows' Day, annually observed on June 23, the Church has the opportunity to honor these women who, throughout the ages, have meaningfully supported their families and communities after the loss of their spouses.

Widows in Scripture

In St. Luke's Gospel, Jesus' encounters with widows began in his infancy, when he was presented in the Temple of Jerusalem, and continued into the years of his public ministry as a teacher and healer.

These various meetings recorded in the Gospel highlighted the strength of a widow's faith and prayer before God, as well as Jesus' particular compassion for her needs and well-being.

Anna, the 87-year-old widow who "worshipped night and day with fasting and prayer," recognized the divinity of Jesus when Mary and Joseph brought him into the Temple.

According to Luke, Anna was a prophetess and one of the first women to praise Jesus as the Messiah. She "spoke about the child to all who were awaiting the redemption of Jerusalem."

When Jesus saw the widow of Naim mourning the death of her only son, accompanied by others, during the funeral procession, the Gospel said Our Lord was "moved with pity" when he saw her tears.

Without being asked to perform a miracle, Jesus approached the widow without hesitation, raised her only son back to life from the dead and "gave him to his mother."

Before dying on the cross, Jesus entrusted the care of his own widowed mother, Mary, to the "disciple whom he loved."

"He said to his mother, 'Woman, behold, your son,'" St. John wrote. "Then he said to the disciple, 'Behold, your mother.' And from that hour the disciple took her into his home."

In the Acts of the Apostles, the evangelist Luke also sheds light on how certain ministries were formed to support widows in the early Church.

The ministry of deacons was established by the Twelve Apostles to resolve the dispute among their Hebrew and Greek disciples regarding the care of widows, as outlined in Acts 6.

St. Luke also mentions how these women supported the various spiritual and material needs of the first Christian communities.

In Acts 9, Peter promptly visited the widows of Joppa who mourned the death of their friend Tabitha, also known as Dorcas, who was "completely occupied with good deeds and almsgiving."

"When he arrived, they took him to the room upstairs where all the widows came to him weeping and showing him the tunics and cloaks that Dorcas had made while she was with them," the evangelist wrote.

After kneeling down and praying beside her, Peter "raised her up" and "presented her alive" to her Church community.

St. Augustine's letter to a Roman widow

According to Augustinian Father Kolawole Chabi, the Church's concern and reverence for widows continued over the centuries, exemplified in St. Augustine's letter to Proba written in A.D. 412.

The Roman noblewoman's supplication to St. Augustine led him to write an ancient treatise on Christian prayer that remains relevant today, the professor at Rome's Patristic Institute Augustinianum told EWTN News.

"The letter to Proba spoke of continuous praying," Chabi said in an April 27 interview. "Augustine said that inasmuch as you continue desiring God, you are praying. Your prayer stops when your desire for God stops."

In the bishop of Hippo's written response to the Roman noblewoman, he praised the widows mentioned in the Gospel whose ceaseless prayers were heard and heeded by God and encouraged her to continue living a pious life for the benefit of her family and community.

"[Proba] became, also, a leading figure in the Christianization of the Roman aristocracy," Chabi told EWTN News.

Before becoming a prominent Church leader, Augustine owed his own widowed mother St. Monica for his conversion. Through her persistent prayers and example of holiness, he was baptized by St. Ambrose during the Easter Vigil in A.D. 387 at the age of 32.

St. Monica continues to be a popular Catholic patron for married women, mothers, and widows.

Widows' ministries in the Church today

From ancient times to the present day, widows continue to have a significant apostolic role and place of care in Catholic archdioceses around the world.

Among several widows' groups formed within the Church, the Order of Widows (Ordo Viduarum) has seen a recent revival in parts of the U.S.

Carlotta Stricker, assistant servant leader for the Widows of Prayer, spoke to EWTN News about the unique vocation and how women who have lost their husbands are keeping the faith.

"As a Widow of Prayer, we live our lives with God as our focus," she explained. "Responsibilities include daily Mass, Eucharist, rosary, adoration, Liturgy of the Hours (morning and evening), and Divine Mercy Chaplet. All other forms of prayers and spiritual reading are encouraged."

"In spite of our promise and vows, we are still mothers, grandmothers, and great-grandmothers and still have an active role in our families lives," she said.

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Catholic bishops across the United Kingdom say they need to see more legislative detail before supporting government proposals to ban social media for youth under 16.

On June 15, Secretary of State for Science, Innovation, and Technology Liz Kendall announced to the House of Commons that the government "will ban social media companies providing their services to under 16s."

Kendall said that the UK would be following the same model as Australia, which was the first country in the world to ban social media for youth under 16. The UK ban is due to come into effect early next year.

In an email response to EWTN News on June 17 regarding whether bishops of England and Wales support the proposed ban, a spokeswoman for the Catholic Bishops' Conference for England and Wales said: "Until the government publishes further details it's hard to give a yes or no answer."

But Bishop John Arnold, the lead bishop for communications for the conference, "is very keen to ensure that the safety and protection of the dignity of young people online is a central concern for all," the statement said.

In a separate email to EWTN News, Bishop Arnold wrote that the "safety of children and young people in the digital world is paramount. Young people face many pressures today, which are often exacerbated by unrealistic and harmful material which they have accessed online."

"When it comes to the responsible and appropriate use of technology, the protection of children and young people is a shared responsibility among parents, schools, government and society," he said.

"I urge all people to work together to protect and place the dignity of the human person, especially children, the young and vulnerable, at the center of technological and legislative developments," the bishop said.

The Bishops' Conference of Scotland, meanwhile, said it would "prefer not to comment directly on the specific policy issue, but rather give a considered response to the noble principles behind online safety measures."

"The bishops support the introduction of any new measures which increase online safety for children and young people," the conference said.

"We have a responsibility to ensure that children and young people are protected from harmful and age-inappropriate content, and from online environments that can negatively affect their wellbeing, relationships and healthy development," the statement continued.

The UK government's proposal includes banning youth usage of platforms like Instagram, YouTube, TikTok, Snapchat,?Facebook,?and X. They do not intend for messaging services like WhatsApp and Signal to be included in the ban.

Livestreamers and strangers being?able to contact children will also be restricted for those under-16 on other online services like gaming.

"Who should take responsibility?"

Edwin Fawcett, a Catholic psychotherapist based in England and Wales, is also unsure about the benefits and drawbacks of the proposal.

"At this point the toll taken on mental and emotional health by social media, especially for developing brains, is virtually undisputed. Who should take responsibility for young people's formation and education?" he told EWTN News.

"The Church's wise answer: parents. Yet in a busy, driven and fragmented society the tsunami of digital hyper-reality is almost impossible to avoid or withstand," he said.

Fawcett argued that there is "a pandemic of relational wounds and deficits in the real world" which "has set the stage for widespread mental health issues, which are being activated and worsened by addictive online behavior — behavior chosen in an attempt to anesthetize the same wounds."

He continued: "Whether the ban is designed to support the rights and responsibilities of the family is hard to say. But let's pray that a deep renewal of family life, communities and culture will begin filling the void which social media has falsely promised to do — a void which may now be exposed by the incoming ban."

Lucy Marsh, a spokeswoman for the Family Education Trust — a secular research body which supports traditional family values — said that the ban has not been sufficiently "thought through."

"Children should not have unsupervised access to social media, but the government's rushed plan to ban under-16s from using certain platforms is the wrong way to go about it," she told EWTN News.

"Rather than educating parents on how to restrict their child's access to the internet and raising awareness about why young children should not have smartphones, the government is trying to introduce digital ID via the back door. This means using facial recognition and biometrics which involve giving even more information to tech companies. In the name of protecting children, those children will be under even more surveillance."

The government "should focus on ensuring tech companies make phones for children which cannot access social media apps, including WhatsApp, which is used by predatory adults to share pornography and groom children," she said.

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Abelardo de la Espriella is the new president of Colombia, according to the preliminary vote count released by the National Civil Registry on June 21.

With 99.9% of polling stations reporting, De la Espriella, of the conservative Defenders of the Homeland party, secured 49.6% of the vote. His opponent, Iván Cepeda of the ruling Historic Pact party, stood at 48.7%. The remaining votes were either null or blank.

De la Espriella said on Instagram that "today marks the beginning of a new chapter for our country, a chapter built upon the free and democratic will of millions of citizens who chose to believe in a Colombia that is great, secure, prosperous, and full of opportunities."

He added that "with God's help and the efforts of all Colombians, the 'Miracle Homeland' will become a reality."

Moments later, in his first public appearance from the northern city of Barranquilla, De la Espriella called on the country to put division aside and pledged to be the president of all Colombians, including those who did not vote for him.

Addressing thousands of gathered supporters, the president-elect concluded his speech by asking God to bless the country. "Long live Christ the King!" De la Espriella declared.

The government's reaction

President Gustavo Petro, who campaigned for his candidate, Iván Cepeda, over the past few weeks, wrote on X that "no one can be proclaimed president" because "it is the official vote count that determines who the president is."

For his part, Cepeda said in his first public appearance that while he accepts the preliminary unofficial vote count, his delegates intend to challenge the results from 33,000 polling stations during the official tally. On election day, Colombians cast their votes at 122,000 polling stations, both domestically and abroad.

Following the announcement of the unofficial preliminary vote count, the official validation process takes place immediately. According to the National Registry, this is "the official process of verifying and counting the votes cast in the ballot boxes, carried out by poll workers and the validation commissions …a process that guarantees the validity and transparency of the election results."

De la Espriella's position on life and family issues

During the election campaign, De la Espriella pledged to change current government policies regarding health, the economy, and public safety by taking an "iron-fist" approach against drug trafficking and armed groups.

Furthermore, he was the only candidate to sign the Commitment to Life and Family promoted by the United for Life platform, pledging to defend not only the family and the right to life but also freedoms related to conscience and worship, as well as the human rights enshrined in the country's constitution and in international treaties ratified by the Colombian state.

Regarding gender ideology, De la Espriella stated on Caracol Radio that he has no issue with the homosexual community but noted that he is an "enemy of gender ideology."

"I do not accept attempts to condition our children or to contaminate them with gender ideology in order to try to change their view of sexuality, or even of sex itself," he said.

Regarding the legalization of marijuana, the president-elect says the plant "is a gateway to other drugs" and "there will be no room" for its legalization under his administration, according to the Defenders of the Homeland website.

Congratulations from leaders

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced on X that he spoke "with Colombia's President-elect, Abelardo de la Espriella, to congratulate him on his electoral victory."

"The Trump Administration looks forward to working closely with your incoming administration to advance regional security cooperation, end illegal immigration to the United States, and strengthen our economic ties. Colombia's best days are ahead," Rubio stated.

The presidents of Ecuador, Daniel Noboa; Argentina, Javier Milei; and Chile, José Antonio Kast, congratulated De la Espriella on the election.

Kast wrote on X that this electoral victory marks "the beginning of a new era of freedom for Colombia that will allow them to regain security and prosperity."

Likewise, Milei noted that, with De la Espriella, "the majority of Colombians chose the path of economic freedom, prosperity, and uncompromising security, and said 'enough' to transnational organized crime and drug trafficking."

Noboa stated, "Today, Colombia chose order over impunity. Congratulations to Abelardo de la Espriella on this victory. We share the conviction that our region deserves security, progress, and governments that confront crime without excuses."

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 Oregon Board of Licensed Professional Counselors and Therapists has withdrawn its disciplinary order against Catholic counselor Frank Canepa and is reconsidering the case in light of a recent ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court, according to a formal notice filed with the Oregon Court of Appeals.

Canepa, a licensed counselor in Beaverton, Oregon, faced nearly $90,000 in fines and other sanctions after telling a longtime client that he could not personally affirm or "bless" her same-sex relationship due to his Catholic faith.

According to Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF), a Christian legal group representing Canepa, the client had pressed the issue for 20 minutes in one session, despite Canepa having seen her 44 times over two and a half years without raising or being questioned about his religious views.

According to the Oregon board, Canepa violated state law as well as the American Counseling Association's Code of Ethics. The board ordered him to attend six hours of continuing education and pay for his own hearing, which cost $89,636.

ADF appealed the board's decision on Canepa's behalf on May 1, arguing that the punishment violated his First Amendment rights to free speech and free exercise of religion, particularly in light of recent U.S. Supreme Court precedents such as Chiles v. Salazar.

Shortly after ADF filed its opening brief, the board voluntarily withdrew its disciplinary actions against Canepa without providing a detailed public explanation.

However, in the Withdrawal of Notice of Proposed Disciplinary Action signed on June 5, the Oregon board cited the Supreme Court's decision in Chiles v. Salazar as a reason for withdrawing the disciplinary action.

In Chiles, the U.S. Supreme Court in an 8-1 decision on March 31 ruled that the state cannot silence counselors' personal or professional viewpoints during talk therapy sessions with clients.

Colorado's law targeting certain viewpoints on sexual orientation and gender identity constituted unconstitutional viewpoint discrimination, the court said in its decision.

"The government can't target counselors for their views and force people to say things that go against their core convictions," said Jonathan Scruggs, ADF senior counsel and vice president of litigation strategy, in a June 22 statement to EWTN News. "The Supreme Court recently took Colorado to task for censoring counselors and mandating orthodoxy in the counselor's office, and Oregon should take notice."

"ADF will continue to ensure that free speech is protected in Oregon — and every state where it's threatened — and halt states' attempts to weaponize their licensure systems," Scruggs said.

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Peru's national legislature has passed a law declaring June Life and Family Month throughout the nation.

Law 32671, approved on June 17 and published in the official gazette El Peruano, states that this declaration is intended to commemorate "life and the importance of the family as a natural and fundamental institution of society."

Milagros Jáuregui de Aguayo, the author of the bill, stated that "the family remains the primary setting for personal formation and the most important pillar of our society. Defending it means building a Peru with greater unity, solidarity, and hope," according to a statement.

During the parliamentary debate, Jáuregui further emphasized that "strengthening the family means strengthening the foundations of the nation, fostering a society with greater cohesion, solidarity, and commitment to the common good."

"This law takes on special significance in a context where Peru is facing a worrying birth-rate crisis and a progressively aging population, phenomena that jeopardize the country's future development," Carlos Polo, director of the Latin America office of the Population Research Institute, told ACI Prensa, the Spanish-language sister service of EWTN News.

"The family, comprising father, mother, and children, constitutes the primary setting where life is passed on, values ??are instilled, new generations are educated, and responsible citizens committed to their community are formed," added Polo.

The pro-life leader stated, "promoting and strengthening the family means creating the cultural conditions necessary to ensure the continuity, stability, and prosperity of our nation."

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 U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops is inviting dioceses across the U.S. to join in observing Religious Freedom Week through prayer, reflection, and action.

"Religious freedom allows the Church, and all religious communities, to live out their faith in public and to serve the good of all," the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) website says. Religious Freedom Week in the U.S. begins each year on June 22, the feast of St. Thomas More and St. John Fisher.

This year, Catholics are invited to pray, reflect, and act on the following intentions: political and anti-religious violence, immigration enforcement, Africa, gender ideology, religious discrimination, parental choice in education, federal grants, and Nicaragua.

Each day, the U.S. bishops ask Catholics to pray for the day's intention in a specific way, offer a brief reflection on how Catholics should think about the issue, and provide suggestions on concrete actions Catholics can take to improve religious freedom in that particular area.

So far, the dioceses of Arlington, Kalamazoo, Savannah, Toledo, and the Archdiocese of Miami have posted information about the week on their websites.

In a statement on the week's patrons, the USCCB praised More and Fisher for exemplifying "faithful citizenship," and expressed hope that "their example continue to illuminate the path for us, as we seek to faithfully serve our Church and country.'

"It is good to love one's country, but ultimate loyalty is due only to Christ and his kingdom," the USCCB said. "They never rose up to incite rebellion or foment revolution. They were no traitors. But when the law of the king came into conflict with the law of Christ, they submitted to Christ. These men gave their lives for the freedom of the Church and for freedom of conscience. They bear witness to the truth that no government can make a claim on a person's soul."

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Archbishop Thomas Wenski of Miami and bishops across Ohio are calling for extended Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for Haitians living in the United States and are urging a more permanent solution to care for refugees.

In April, the U.S. House of Representatives passed legislation, H.R. 1689, that would extend TPS for Haitians for three more years, which is "a critical lifeline for those desperate to avoid returning to the chaos on the island nation," Wenski said in a column for the Archdiocese of Miami. Senate consideration is next.

TPS is an immigration status granted to eligible foreign nationals from designated countries that are unsafe to return to due to ongoing conflict, environmental disasters, or other extraordinary conditions.

In 2025, then-Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem terminated the TPS designation for migrants from Syria, Haiti, and other countries.

To combat the termination, the bill, which needs Senate approval to take effect, would provide "a reprieve to the more than 350,000 Haitians who today live and work legally in the United States under the protection of TPS," Wenski said.

"Every single day, I see the human consequences of often unintended public policy decisions that result in chronic uncertainty, fear, and the disruption of families and entire communities. It's up to the Senate now to vote 'yes' on extending TPS protections for Haitians," he said.

Wenski said Haiti "remains a country on the brink," noting the "widespread gang violence and kidnapping, a rampant cholera epidemic, and spreading food insecurity."

"The lack of functioning state institutions has resulted in a general breakdown of security, with attacks on women and children becoming commonplace," he said.

"It would be an act of abject cruelty for the United States to send families back to such dangerous and unsafe conditions" and it would "exacerbate Haiti's ongoing humanitarian crisis," Wenski said.

Haitians in the U.S. "are hard workers filling jobs that, were it not for them, would go unfilled," Wenski said. "The sudden expulsion of Haitian TPS holders would have devastating consequences for our nation's economy."

Wenski said he understands that "'temporary' should mean temporary," but "without any other workable alternative, TPS is what's available."

It is "an imperfect tool," and "cannot substitute for the hard work of immigration reform that Congress has to undertake sooner or later," he said.

Senate passage of the bill would "give Haitians a reprieve" and "lawmakers time to explore more durable, more workable solutions."

Ohio bishops 'deeply grieved' by situation of Haitian neighbors

The Ohio bishops similarly spoke out on the matter, calling the situation "a moral and social failure unfolding before our eyes."

The Catholic Conference of Ohio released a statement on June 22 urging action as the bishops are "deeply grieved by the situation of our Haitian neighbors in Ohio."

Ahead of the 250th anniversary of the U.S., "we recall the great declarations in our founding documents to establish a free country where people can flourish," the bishops wrote. "Therefore, as proud and faithful citizens of the United States, we need to take responsibility to support the common good of our country and to love our neighbors as ourselves."

The bishops "have witnessed the upstanding lives Haitian families have built in Ohio."

"They work hard, support their families, worship God regularly, and seek to live in peace. Now, they await the U.S. Supreme Court's decision, likely on technical grounds, on whether TPS will continue," they said.

The Supreme Court is reviewing the government's effort to end TPS as lower courts previously blocked the termination after determining the administration's process for ending the protections was unlawful.

The court heard oral arguments in April and is expected to make a decision in the coming months on whether the Trump administration can end the TPS program for Haitian and Syrian nationals.

The bishops "find no moral justification for terminating their [TPS] without an alternative way to adjust their immigration status," they said.

While the bishops affirmed "the nation's right and responsibility to regulate immigration and protect its borders," they said the U.S. "has continued to fail in its attempts to achieve comprehensive reform of our immigration policy."

"We should have the political and social will to establish and maintain an orderly immigration process while providing a place in the U.S. for those fleeing violence or severe economic hardship," they said.

The bishops called on Catholics in Ohio and all people of goodwill "to pray for America at 250 years and to reflect on our responsibility as citizens and followers of Jesus Christ."

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Bishop Michael Burbidge of the Diocese of Arlington, Virginia approved a chaplaincy to serve Catholics attached to the Traditional Latin Mass (TLM) in accordance with the Missale Romanum of 1962.

The "Chaplaincy of Our Lady of Victory," announced June 19, will be officially established on July 1. According to the diocesan announcement, the chaplaincy is being formed "to serve the needs of those who attend Mass and receive other sacraments in the Extraordinary Form."

The chaplaincy will be administered by two priests from the Priestly Fraternity of Saint Peter (FSSP) appointed from Front Royal, Virginia, about 70 miles west of Washington, D.C.: Father Jonathan Romanoski and Father John Audino.

"As a Chaplaincy, rather than a parish, this agreement allows for Fr. Romanoski and Fr. Audino to live the fraternity that is part of the FSSP charism and to serve primarily in Front Royal while periodically assisting elsewhere in the diocese," the diocesan statement read.

According to the diocese, the chaplaincy formalizes an arrangement that had already been in place, as an FSSP priest has been assisting Arlington clergy. It does not add more locations for the TLM.

Access to baptism, confirmation, and matrimony in the traditional form remain available only to those "who have a particular pastoral connection to the community and who participate regularly in this form of the liturgy with the consent of the local pastor and the local ordinary," in line with the current rules, according to the diocese.

"The Priestly Fraternity of St. Peter is grateful to His Excellency, Most Reverend Michael F. Burbidge, Bishop of Arlington, for establishing the Chaplaincy of Our Lady of Victory to serve the needs of those who attend the traditional form of the Latin Liturgy beginning on July 1, 2026," Father Daniel Powers, the provincial secretary of FSSP's North American Province, said in a statement to EWTN News.

"We are looking forward to working in the Diocese of Arlington and serving the faithful there," he said.

Noah Peters, a board member and the president emeritus of The Arlington Latin Mass Society (ALMS), expressed "sincere appreciation" to the bishop on behalf of the society for entrusting a chaplaincy to the two priests.

"ALMS believes that this is an enormously positive step that will help ensure access to the traditional sacraments: baptisms, matrimony, confirmation, and the rites for the sick," he told EWTN News. "We pray for Bishop Burbidge, the FSSP priests, and all the faithful, and we pray that this chaplaincy will be the seed from which broader access to the treasures of Traditional Catholicism grows."

Arlington, like many dioceses globally, faced Latin Mass restrictions over the past few years, in line with the rules set in Pope Francis's 2021 motu proprio Traditionis Custodes, which limited access to the older form of the Mass. However, the pontiff granted FSSP, which will administer the chaplaincy in the diocese, an exemption from those rules.

FSSP was founded in 1988 by priests who broke away from the Society of Saint Pius X (SSPX), when then-Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre, who led SSPX, defied the Holy See by appointing bishops without papal approval and faced excommunication. FSSP was founded to maintain those liturgical traditions while remaining loyal to the papacy.

In Arlington — where the TLM remains popular, especially among young adults — Burbidge secured dispensations approved by the Holy See for three parishes and five non-parish church locations when Traditionis Custodes went into effect. These were temporary dispensations, but have been extended and remain in place.

This is still a reduction in locations for the diocese, which had 21 locations that offered the TLM prior to the motu proprio. Some Arlington locations also saw an influx of worshipers from the neighboring Archdiocese of Washington, D.C., which limited access to three locations — one in the city itself and two in Maryland.

In March, Pope Leo XIV described divisions surrounding liturgical unity as "a painful wound" in the church.

In his communication with French bishops, Leo encouraged concrete solutions, under the guidance of the Holy Spirit, that allow for "the generous inclusion" of Catholics attached to the TLM "in respect for the directions desired by the Second Vatican Council in matters of liturgy."

Leo has not issued far-reaching documents related to the TLM, nor has he changed any of the rules established under Francis. He did, however, approve Cardinal Raymond Leo Burke's celebration of the TLM last year at St. Peter's Basilica in Vatican City.

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A 60-day Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) — which strengthens the ceasefire between the U.S. and Iran and seeks to pave the way for permanent peace — has garnered applause from the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB).

Bishop A. Elias Zaidan,?who chairs the USCCB Committee on International Justice and Peace, commended both President Donald Trump and Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian on the progress and expressed hope for a long-term deal in a June 17 statement.

Both countries' leaders, Zaidan said, have taken a "vitally important step," which is aimed at "ending hostilities" and "advancing deeper dialogue for lasting peace in the region." He added that "preventing further proliferation of nuclear weapons is critically important for avoiding a dangerous escalation of conflict in the Middle East."

Zaidan asked all parties involved to engage in good faith and pray for Pope Leo XIV's intention that "this agreement may help strengthen mutual trust, security and stability in the Middle East, promoting paths of dialogue and cooperation among peoples."

The bishop, who was born in Lebanon and serves as eparch of the Eparchy of Our Lady of Lebanon of Los Angeles, encouraged the U.S., Iran, and Israel to prioritize peace efforts in Lebanon, which is meant to be covered by the U.S.-Iran deal but is still facing Israeli strikes in spite of the MOU.

"I call on the United States, Iran, and Israel to?now also prioritize?an end?to the fighting in Lebanon," Zaidan said.

"The disarming of Hezbollah is necessary for peace and development in Lebanon," he said. "Over one million people have been internally displaced, including?400,000 children, and thousands have fled to neighboring Syria, potentially adding to the region's instability. If?the fighting and humanitarian catastrophe?continue?in Lebanon,?I fear that peace across the wider Middle East will remain unreachable."

The bishop urged prayers for a resolution to the conflicts.

"Let us pray that the Holy Spirit, creator and vivifier,?may breathe wisdom, compassion, and perseverance into the minds and hearts of the?negotiators,?so that?peace in the region may finally become a reality," Zaidan prayed.

The agreement between the U.S. and Iran puts a hold on military combat and reopens the Strait of Hormuz, an important waterway for international trade. Both the U.S. and Iran agreed not to prevent the passage of any ships. There is gradual sanction relief for Iran, which has already resulted in Iranian oil sales, and a $300 billion fund for development in Iran supported by private investment.

Iran must agree it will never develop a nuclear weapon, which is aligned with its position since 2003 when former Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei issued a fatwa declaring the development of nuclear weapons as inconsistent with Islamic law. Questions about whether Iran will be allowed to enrich uranium — or to which level nuclear enrichment will be permitted — will be decided in the 60-day window.

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