Catholic News

Pope Leo XIV's visit to Lourdes this week will be key to his message of respect for human life in all stages and conditions, which is the theme of his Sept. 25–28 pastoral visit to France. Images of the pontiff meeting ailing pilgrims will complement the trip's official motto: "That the World May Have Life."

But the visit to the world-famous shrine will also be the moment where he will most directly address clerical sexual abuse, a crisis that has cast a shadow over the Church in France since a landmark abuse report in 2021.

Lourdes will be the setting Sept. 27 for the pope's private meeting with sex abuse victims and a speech to the French Catholic bishops, who continue to deal with fallout from the abuse crisis. The shrine itself has been touched by controversy in recent years due to the prominent display there of artwork by a priest accused of sexual and spiritual abuse.

In a survey conducted in France ahead of the Sept. 25–28 visit, the topic of clerical sexual abuse loomed large.

For 15% of respondents, the fight against abuse and its prevention within the Church was the topic they most wanted the pope to address while in France. It was the second-most popular answer after "peace and conflict in the world."

The Church in France has been grappling with the repercussions of abuse in the wake of the findings of an independent commission that found that likely hundreds of thousands of children had been abused over the past 70 years.

The Independent Commission on Sexual Abuse in the Church (CIASE) published a nearly 2,500-page final report in October 2021, estimating that 216,000 children were abused by priests, deacons, monks, or nuns in France from 1950 to 2020.

It added that when abuse by lay Church workers was also taken into account, "the estimated number of child victims rises to 330,000 for the whole of the period."

Some of these victims will take part in a private meeting with Pope Leo at the Sanctuary of Our Lady of Lourdes on Sept. 27.

According to the French bishops' conference, the seven victims represent people abused as minors or adults in different contexts, including churches or Catholic schools.

The seven people issued a joint declaration, published in AFP on Sept. 16, stating: "To engage in dialogue [with Pope Leo] does not mean to endorse. To be received does not mean to renounce our demands."

Five of the seven revealed their identities. Among them is Bertrand Virieux, a victim of ex-priest Bernard Preynat, who died in 2024 but in 2020 was sentenced to five years in prison for assaults on young scouts in the Archdiocese of Lyon.

According to the victims' declaration, they met on Sept. 14 to prepare for the papal audience and to "share the fundamental questions" they wish to pose to the pope.

The encounter during the papal trip, which will also include stops in the cities of Paris and Metz, ignited controversy among several abuse support groups in France who criticized the format of the meeting and the choice of whom to include — especially the exclusion of victims' groups. A spokesman for the Bétharram victims' collective, which represents former student victims from the Notre-Dame de Bétharram school near Lourdes, called the decision to include only individuals in the meeting with Leo an instance of "institutional contempt," according to InfoVaticana.

Responding to the frustration, the bishops of France have promised to hold other gatherings for victims and to accept their letters after the papal trip.

Earlier on the same day that he meets the victims, Leo will take part in a closed-door meeting with France's bishops. Given the importance of the abuse issue to the bishops in recent years, it is likely that the pope will address it in his remarks, Cyprien Viet, a Vatican journalist for I.Media, said.

Lourdes and Rupnik mosaics

The Lourdes shrine, one of the most visited Catholic sites in the world, is an evocative backdrop for the meeting with abuse victims, since it is among the first shrines to take definitive action to cover artwork by the accused sexual abuser Father Marko Rupnik, currently on trial at the Vatican.

Bishop Jean-Marc Micas of Tarbes and Lourdes announced in August that mosaics by Rupnik on the façade of the Basilica of the Rosary would be covered ahead of the pope's visit. In 2025, the mosaics had been partially covered.

"My role is to ensure that the shrine welcomes everyone, especially those who are suffering," Micas told La Dépêche du Midi. "Among them are victims of sexual abuse and assault, both children and adults."

Rupnik's mosaics also grace the chapel of the apostolic nunciature in Paris, where Pope Leo will stay the night of Sept. 25–26, though no public events will take place there.

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Ten years ago, Elena Lorenzo, a life coach in Spain specializing in personal identity, received the first legal complaint lodged against her by the LGBT lobby there. Now fully a decade later and after several administrative proceedings were dismissed, she is once again facing criminal charges for "discriminatory messages" and awaiting trial.

Following an extensive professional career in teaching, training, and personal and spiritual development across various countries, in 2013 Lorenzo began working "with men and women who have chosen and decided to delve deeper into their personal identity whether due to doubts about their identity or because they experience same-sex attraction and wish to live out their heterosexuality," as stated on her website.

Throughout this time, she has never been reported by any of her clients.

"I accompany people in their personal development journeys, regardless of sexual orientation. My work is carried out freely in an atmosphere of freedom and with absolute confidentiality," she explained to ACI Prensa, the Spanish-language sister service of EWTN News.

"Those who come to me do so, it goes without saying, of their own free will, seeking a space to explore issues related to their identity and emotional life. I never make clinical diagnoses, as I am neither a psychologist nor a psychiatrist," she pointed out.

Past complaints

In August 2016, the group Arcópoli filed a complaint against Lorenzo, alleging that she had violated the Madrid regional government's Comprehensive Law against LGBTI-phobia. Lorenzo said the complaint was based on "a covert recording made by someone posing as a client." Despite the media attention the case attracted, it was ultimately dismissed.

In 2019, the same association filed another complaint, claiming that her website contained offensive language. She was fined over $22,000 and had to launch a fundraising campaign to cover the penalty.

"Many clients, grateful for the service provided over the years, helped me out," the life coach said. Ultimately, the fine was overturned, and the amount was refunded three years later.

In February 2020, Arcópoli alleged that Lorenzo had engaged in the "promotion of therapies to cure or induce aversion to homosexuality" through her online course "Path to Heterosexuality." This complaint was also dismissed in May 2023.

A fourth proceeding, similar to the previous ones, was initiated in July 2022, this time led by the Spanish Association Against Conversion Therapies (AECTC, by its Spanish acronym). Three months later, Lorenzo was once again fined over $22,000. However, the penalty was rescinded after it was determined that there had been a "procedural defect resulting in a denial of the right of defense for the party under investigation."

That same year, the AECTC filed another complaint against Lorenzo, alleging four offenses: incitement to hatred, illicit association, practicing a profession without a license, and consumer fraud.

The prosecutor's office did not find a basis for most of the accusations, although it considered the possibility that a crime was committed due to "discriminatory messages" contained in a section of her website dedicated to so-called homosexual obsessive compulsive disorder (homosexual OCD). Lorenzo has been forced to take down that section from her website because of a preliminary injunction ordered by the court, pending the trial.

Homosexual OCD is defined as an anxiety disorder of heterosexual persons that is characterized by the fear of experiencing same-sex attraction.

"The prosecution is seeking a sentence of several years in prison, a financial penalty, and being barred from practicing my profession," stated Lorenzo, who charged she has been subjected to a "smear campaign over the last 10 years."

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 president of the Uruguayan Bishops' Conference, Bishop Milton Tróccoli, said the apostolic visit of Pope Leo XIV scheduled for Nov. 6–8 will awaken a "spiritual springtime" in the country. Located in the Southern Hemisphere, the season of spring is also just beginning in Uruguay.

"The pope's visit will be a renewal of faith; many people may sometimes have a faith that is a bit dormant, or they are very practicing Catholics who will come and listen attentively to the message the pope will bring to us," the bishop stated in an interview with "EWTN Noticias," the Spanish-language broadcast edition of EWTN News, following his Sept. 18 meeting with the pontiff at the Vatican.

"I believe it will bring about a renewal, a kind of spiritual springtime, for all of Uruguay," Tróccoli emphasized.

Uruguay's bishops were in Rome last week for their ad limina visit to the Vatican, a trip that included various meetings at the dicasteries of the Roman Curia.

The pope received them for an hour and shared one of his primary concerns: how to transmit the Gospel.

"Today, we see a sort of breakdown in the transmission of the Gospel, especially within the family. We can no longer take for granted that families are the ones encouraging their children or teenagers to attend church or receive the sacraments; indeed, the number of child baptisms in Uruguay has dropped significantly," the Uruguayan prelate noted.

However, he noted that much like in other secularized countries such as France, Uruguay is also experiencing an unprecedented phenomenon: a rise in young adults seeking Christian initiation.

"Baptisms for adults are on the rise, specifically young adults requesting the sacrament of baptism and the full process of Christian initiation: baptism, confirmation, and the Eucharist. For us, this is very encouraging," he commented.

An increasingly secularized country

Uruguay is often described as one of the most secularized countries in Latin America. For instance, it is the only country in the region where Holy Week is not recognized by the government; instead, it was renamed "Tourism Week" by law in 1919.

According to data from the Uruguayan Bishops' Conference, in a country of barely 3 million inhabitants, approximately 35% of the population identifies as Catholic. Within that group, according to Tróccoli, "we can say that approximately 10% attend Mass every Sunday or frequently receive the sacraments."

There are also "many who call themselves believers without a religion, that is, without institutional affiliation, who believe in God but do not belong to any specific religion; this is a group that has been growing in recent years."

He also noted that approximately "40% of the population currently falls into this category, while others declare themselves agnostic or nonbelievers."

In this context, evangelization constitutes, according to the bishop, "a very great challenge." The local Church considers Uruguay "a mission country where we must proclaim the Gospel extensively."

"We must place strong emphasis on the initial proclamation of the Gospel, while the Church also works extensively through various social and human development initiatives, naturally bringing the Gospel and acting out of faith in Jesus Christ, and working for the common good, though these efforts often go unnoticed," Tróccoli explained.

Drug trafficking, childhood poverty, and suicides

During his meeting with the Uruguayan bishops, Leo XIV showed interest in learning firsthand about the country's social situation.

Tróccoli lamented the extent of "social fragmentation" and the fact that Uruguay is "a society tending toward polarization, just as our world is polarized."

He also noted the issue of "rising violence stemming from drug trafficking, something we were not accustomed to experiencing. Well, perhaps the rate is very low compared to other countries, but for our society, it is something new and something that deeply affects families."

The bishop also highlighted concerns regarding children living in poverty and the rise in youth suicides, issues he linked to "a lack of a more transcendent perspective."

"The number of suicides, especially among young people, represents a high percentage, the highest in Latin America. This deeply questions and challenges us as a Church," he stated.

For the Uruguayan Church, this reality presents the challenge of proclaiming a message of hope. "We must do a better job of proclaiming the Gospel so that it can offer hope, give meaning to life, and provide reasons, truth, for living, growing, and developing as a person."

A visit marked by devotion to the Virgin of the 33

The visit of the Uruguayan bishops to the Vatican took place less than two months before the apostolic journey with which Pope Leo XIV will begin his Latin American tour.

The pontiff will arrive in Latin America on Nov. 6, lead an event in Montevideo, and meet with President Yamandú Orsi. The following day, he will travel to Paysandú and subsequently return to Montevideo to visit various charitable works of the Church and celebrate a Mass at Centenario Stadium.

On Sunday, Nov. 8, before departing for Argentina, he will celebrate the Mass of the Virgin of the 33, Uruguay's national patroness, in the city of Florida.

The National Shrine of the Virgin of the 33 is located there, situated about 60 miles from Montevideo. Indeed, the coincidence of dates with the country's principal Marian celebration was one of the factors influencing Leo XIV's decision to begin his tour of Latin America there.

The feast of the Virgin of the 33 is celebrated every Nov. 8, although the national pilgrimage traditionally takes place on the second Sunday of the month. In 2026, the two dates coincide, and the pope did not want to miss the occasion.

"For us, it is truly a tremendous gift that the pope could come at this time, especially since it coincides with the feast of the Virgin of the 33, who is the patroness of Uruguay, and the national pilgrimage. The feast day of the Virgin falls on Nov. 8, which is a Sunday this year, and the pope himself will celebrate the Eucharist," Tróccoli explained.

Memories of St. John Paul II

The Uruguayan bishops presented the pope with two books featuring images of various churches from across the country. They also gave him a collection of letters and drawings prepared by both the faithful and nonbelievers.

Leo XIV has never visited Uruguay. However, some Uruguayans knew him when he was still Father Robert Prevost. During his time as superior general of the Order of St. Augustine, he traveled to Argentina on several occasions, where he met Uruguayan Augustinians.

However, memories of St. John Paul II's visits remain very much alive among Uruguayan Catholics. The Polish pontiff visited the country twice — in 1987 and 1988 — at a particularly significant time of democratic consolidation following the military dictatorship.

Tróccoli said he believes the visit of Leo XIV could have a similar impact. "It created a sense of unity not only within the country but also a resurgence of faith and personal devotion. We saw an immediate increase, for instance, in the number of people attending Mass or drawing closer to the faith," the prelate noted.

In this regard, he said he believes Pope Leo XIV's visit will awaken "the most genuine aspects of the search for faith and of religious sentiment, and from there, more people will want to draw closer."

The president of the bishops' conference also stated that the trip will mark a turning point for Uruguayan society: "It will be a visit filled with hope. The pope isn't going to come just for some people; he comes for everyone, and everyone is also invited to feel part of this celebration of encountering him."

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 recent murder of Father Román de la Cruz Hernández in the Mexican state of Hidalgo has once again drawn attention to the violence plaguing the country and has renewed concerns over how organized crime acts with impunity.

De la Cruz, 48, the parish priest of Santa Cruz in Huejutla, Hidalgo, was found dead on a road in the Lolotla district on Sept. 15.

On Sept. 17, Francisco Ángel Fernández Hasbun, chief of staff for the Hidalgo state attorney general's office, stated in a video that the agency is "conducting the appropriate investigations."

According to local media, the priest's body was found with gunshot wounds near a pickup truck, accompanied by a placard bearing a message whose content has not been disclosed by the authorities.

The Mexican Bishops' Conference (CEM) has demanded a "thorough investigation" of the case, while Bishop José Hiraís Acosta Beltrán of the Diocese of Huejutla lamented "the alarming situation of violence being experienced in our country."

Around 600 people marched for peace in Huejutla on Sunday, Sept. 20, and attended a Mass for De la Cruz. During the homily, Acosta called for "a culture of peace and reconciliation," asking for the crime to be solved and urging that "neither this event nor the other crimes that have wounded our Mexican nation be allowed to go unpunished."

On the afternoon of Sept. 21, Acosta and Fernández met and delivered a brief joint statement.

Fernández said important information regarding the case was provided during the meeting and said the two believe the case will resolve quickly, noting the Church's collaboration with the authorities during the inquiries.

'The telltale signs of organized crime'

According to the Catholic Multimedia Center, a group that documents violence against Church members in Mexico, four priests have been murdered so far during President Claudia Sheinbaum's term in office. The total number of priests murdered since 1990 exceeds 60.

The center's director, priest and journalist Father Omar Sotelo, told ACI Prensa, the Spanish-language sister service of EWTN News, that the murder "bears the telltale signs of organized crime."

Sotelo noted that "extortion and threats against priests in the country are an ongoing reality."

He noted that, among those recorded and analyzed by the group, "more than 80% of cases remain unsolved," including the 1993 murder of Cardinal Juan Jesús Posadas Ocampo, archbishop of Guadalajara, a case that stands as "a monument to impunity."

In a 2016 Facebook video, Cardinal Juan Sandoval Íñiguez, then-archbishop emeritus of Guadalajara and Posadas' successor, declared the murder "a crime by the state, perpetrated by the Federal Judicial Police." He even named Rodolfo León Aragón, then-director of the police, as the one behind the murder, who Sandoval said probably got his orders from then-Attorney General Jorge Carpizo, whose death in 2012 ended the investigation.

'This could happen to us, too'

Julieta Appendini, director of the pontifical foundation Aid to the Church in Need (ACN) in Mexico, told ACI Prensa "it is important not to view these murders merely as isolated criminal acts."

The impact of a crime against a priest "goes far beyond the loss of an individual," she said, noting that "the priest often has a very close presence in the life of the community: He knows the families, ministers to the sick, listens to people's problems, celebrates the sacraments, and can also serve as a figure of trust and mediation."

"When he is murdered, the community loses someone who fulfilled many of those roles, and an even greater sense of fear and helplessness can take hold."

She warned that the murder could serve as a warning to other priests: 'This could happen to us, too.'"

'The goal is to sow fear'

"The goal is to sow fear," Sotelo said. The community of Huejutla "is afraid; they have already told us so."

Despite this, he affirmed that, "the clergy of Huejutla will continue working and carrying out their pastoral mission just as they are doing now."

According to Sotelo, this type of murder demonstrates "the ruthless power" of organized crime in the country, "where, regrettably, the authorities have been ineffective in managing the situation and ensuring the safety of the Mexican people."

Appendini pointed out that "a priest working in a community affected by violence does not merely celebrate the sacraments. Often, he is one of the individuals who remains when others have had to leave; he ministers to the families, listens to the victims, defends the vulnerable, and can become a voice denouncing these acts of violence."

"That can place him in a vulnerable position vis-à-vis those seeking to control territory or impose silence," she said.

Appendini noted that ACN's 2025 Religious Freedom Report "points to threats, extortion, murders, assaults, and pressure to remain silent directed at priests and other religious leaders in Mexico."

However, she clarified that "not every attack on a priest is necessarily motivated by an intent to attack religion. In Mexico, violence can be linked to territorial control, drug trafficking, extortion, or land disputes."

Religious freedom "comes into play when a person is put at risk precisely for carrying out their mission and ministering to their community," she said.

'We must not normalize these situations'

"Fear also has consequences for religious freedom," Appendini warned, noting that "a person may legally have the right to practice their faith, but if doing so publicly, serving their community, or speaking out against violence puts him in danger, then that right is not being fully exercised."

"That is why, at ACN, we believe we must not normalize these situations or reduce them merely to statistics. When a priest who serves his community is threatened or murdered, we must also ask ourselves what is happening to that community and to the freedom of the people living there," she noted.

Sotelo acknowledged that, in both his priestly ministry and his work as a journalist, "we sometimes feel fear; we know that at any moment we could even lose our lives for speaking about these kinds of circumstances."

However, he affirmed that "God is with us, the Master Jesus is with us, and in the face of that, we have no choice but to continue carrying out our pastoral work as a priest, a journalist, as a reporter."

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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Bishop Daniel E. Garcia of the Diocese of Austin, Texas, said he was "deeply saddened and disturbed" by an ICE officer's shooting of a Venezuelan man in Austin, as federal officials described the encounter as an officer responding to the man's attempt to flee arrest.

In a letter dated Sept. 20, the day of the shooting, Garcia wrote that people in the city are "living in terror and fear because of the increased activity of ICE agents on our streets."

He asked for prayers for the man who was shot, his family, "all who have been involved and for our entire community," and for federal, state, and city authorities to be "transparent and honest about what occurred."

The New York Times reported that ICE agents were checking license plates in north Austin Sunday afternoon when they found a deportation order for Wilber Rafael Garces Perez, pulled him over and told him that he would be arrested. Garces Perez then drove away, according to the Times, and a short chase followed.

The Texas Department of Public Safety said ICE requested help about 12:50 p.m. with a vehicle pursuit of a blue Toyota Corolla. Austin Police Chief Lisa Davis said city police were not part of the ICE operation and that the shooting came before troopers arrived.

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security said it is investigating, with FBI assistance, "the officer involved shooting of an illegal alien from Venezuela" who it said entered the country illegally and had a final order of removal.

DHS said the man's condition is stable and that he is in federal custody pending removal.

Video showed the Corolla and an unmarked Ford SUV stopped under a highway overpass when an officer approached the Toyota, which was moving slowly. Witnesses reported multiple shots. Garces Perez, who his family said was making a DoorDash delivery, was shot in the upper torso, treated at Dell Seton Medical Center, then transferred to ICE custody.

His lawyer, Kate Lincoln-Goldfinch, said at a news conference Monday that he is at the South Texas ICE Processing Center in Pearsall. Garces Perez called his attorney during the conference, saying over speakerphone that a bullet remains near his spine, he is not receiving adequate medical care, and he slept on the floor at the facility.

"I'm not doing well because of the gunshot I received," he said in ?Spanish.

Lincoln-Goldfinch disputed that her client knowingly fled identified agents. She alleged that an unmarked vehicle sideswiped him, he did not know it was ICE, and officers shot him after another collision.

Lincoln-Goldfinch also said her client entered the country legally and had a work permit.

"Many people are often being detained only due to the color of their skin or the language they speak," Garcia wrote.

In a Sept. 22 statement to EWTN News , García said that in his diocese, he is hearing from clergy and parishioners of "specific instances" where people "have been detained as they are going about the ordinary responsibilities of daily life. When good, hardworking people become fearful that they may be targeted because of their ethnicity or appearance, we all have a responsibility to listen and to speak to the human reality that exists within our communities."

He told EWTN News he has dispensed those who are afraid from the obligation to attend Sunday Mass, calling it an "extraordinary step."

"Regardless of a person's immigration status, every person is created in the image and likeness of God and possesses an inherent dignity that must always be respected and protected," Garcia said on Sept. 20. "We cannot allow differences of citizenship to diminish our recognition of the dignity that belongs to every human being."

During National Migration Week, he added, "we are all brothers and sisters. When one person is harmed, all of us are affected." He repeated the call for "comprehensive immigration reform" and "a viable immigration policy that respects the rule of law while recognizing the dignity of every person."

Neither ICE nor DHS responded to a request for comment from EWTN News in time for publication.

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Popular Catholic speaker, podcast host, and author Sister Miriam James Heidland, SOLT, announced on Sept. 21 that she is publicly discerning the establishment of a new religious community called Friends of the Bridegroom.

"After several years of private discernment, I would like to announce to you with great reverence and care that, with the blessing of my religious community the Sisters of the Society of Our Lady of the Most Holy Trinity (SOLT) and the Archbishop of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, his Excellency Jeffrey S. Grob, I am officially entering into a time of public discernment of the foundation of a new religious community, Friends of the Bridegroom," Heidland wrote in a post on X.

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The religious sister explained that her many years working in healing ministry  and working with other religious sisters, priests, and bishops has allowed her "to see and experience the need and ache for the ongoing healing and renewal of our clergy and religious sisters."

Heidland has served as the executive director of Friends of the Bridegroom alongside Father John Burns of the Archdiocese of Milwaukee. According to its website, it is an apostolate that seeks to renew the Church through the healing, renewal, and expansion of consecrated life and the priesthood.

She called her time working with the apostolate "a profoundly blessed time" and added that "the Lord has continually stirred a desire in all of us in the apostolate to discern the foundation of a new community of priests, religious sisters, and laity who would work toward this important renewal."

"During this time of public discernment, the Friends of the Bridegroom ministry and my public activities connected with this discernment will remain under the pastoral care and oversight of Archbishop Jeffrey Grob, Archbishop of Milwaukee," she explained. "I am deeply grateful for his willingness to accompany and guide this discernment during this important time."

Heidland will remain a sister in good standing with SOLT and will continue to wear the order's habit.

"I am truly grateful for the support of so many people over the years and I continue to count on your prayers and support as we discern this very important step … Once again, I extend my tremendous gratitude to Sister Mary Aloysius of Jesus, SOLT General Sister Servant, her General Council, and Archbishop Jeffrey Grob," she wrote.

Heidland was placed for adoption by her 17-year-old unmarried biological parents. After spending some time in foster care, she was adopted by a Catholic couple and raised in Woodland, Washington.

It was her adoptive parents who gave her a foundation in the faith. However, at age 11 she was sexually assaulted and at 13 she was raped. She has never publicly named her abuser.

During her teenage years, Heidland focused her time on sports. When she was a senior in high school she was offered a full scholarship to play volleyball at the University of Nevada, Reno. While she remained an important part of the team, she was an alcoholic by the age of 21 and embraced the partying lifestyle.

Completely estranged from her faith and feeling broken, a priest entered into her life and made a lasting impact. Heidland's mother also began to pray and fast for her daughter, asking the Lord to guider her becoming a nun.

In 1998, Heidland entered the Society of Our Lady of the Most Holy Trinity after she felt Jesus calling her to become his bride. Today, she speaks openly about the healing and restoration Jesus has done in her life and shares her powerful testimony with others around the world.

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The Vieira family from Blumenau, Brazil, has been home-schooling their seven children for over a decade, an approach that the parents, Diego and Patricia, view as an educational mission focused on human, spiritual, and academic formation.

"We have a well-structured routine. We value sound pedagogical planning. Each child has a plan tailored to their age, and we prioritize personalized education for each of them," the family explained to "EWTN Noticias," the Spanish-language nightly newscast of EWTN News.

For the Vieiras, home schooling is not merely an academic alternative but a mission directly linked to Christ's call to become holy.

"That is the goal of Catholic education: heaven, the pursuit of virtue, the pursuit of holiness, and the acquisition of wisdom to truly contemplate the truth," they stated.

Personalized family-based education

The children's daily schedule is organized according to their needs. In the mornings, they study the subjects in their educational plan, while in the afternoons, they engage in musical, athletic, and cultural activities, as well as practice chess.

However, this form of home schooling ended up in court.

In late July, a trial court judge ordered that four of Diego and Patricia's children be enrolled in and attend a traditional school. Additionally, the couple was ordered to pay a fine of nearly $13,000.

The parents said they believe the decision is linked to their public role in advocating for home schooling.

"Because we are public figures and are actively pushing for regulation, we firmly believe this is a case of persecution against leaders of the movement, as the persecution has escalated with each passing year," they stated.

They also noted that their Catholic identity has influenced how their stance is perceived.

"Because, whether we want to or not, we always uphold the banner of canon law, parental authority, and the family's authority in the education of children. And when we demonstrate this, we encounter a great deal of prejudice in various situations," they explained.

'Home schooling is unstoppable'

Diego Vieira is the president of the Santa Catarina Association of Homeschooling Families and serves on the board of the National Association for Homeschooling. For years, he has supported other families facing legal challenges for educating their children at home.

Together with Patricia, he also spearheads the "Educating for Heaven" project, which offers guidance and materials to families interested in home schooling.

The couple has been promoting this educational approach for over a decade. Their eldest son, Igor, 19, was home-schooled and is currently studying literature and history at a university; he also teaches classes and is a national chess master.

The young man noted that being home-schooled allowed him to develop his abilities at his own pace.

"I was taught to read and write at home, and from a very young age, my parents encouraged me to study. Being able to study at home gave me the freedom to develop at my own pace and have a flexible routine; I could devote more or less effort to tasks I found difficult and truly focus on studying what I enjoyed most," he stated.

A family active in their community

Despite criticisms leveled at home schooling, members of the Blumenau community highlighted the Vieira family's social engagement.

City councilman Flavio José Linhares stated that the family maintains an active presence in the city, particularly through sports and culture.

"In chess, the family has already won over 300 medals representing the municipality in the game. So, they lead an active life in the community," he noted.

The official also expressed his opposition to the court ruling against the family.

"When we saw the decision ordering the family to pay a fine equivalent to 40 minimum wages, we were outraged. We appreciate the quality, care, and love they show for their children's education," he stated.

The debate on home schooling in Brazil

There are no official statistics in Brazil regarding the number of families who home-school. The National Association for Homeschooling estimates there are more than 75,000 families and 150,000 students, although these figures come from the organization itself rather than government records.

Currently, home schooling is not regulated by federal law.

In 2018, Brazil's Supreme Federal Court ruled that, for the time being, families do not have a recognized legal right to educate their children exclusively at home. However, the court also noted that the constitution does not prohibit home schooling and that it is up to the congress to establish regulations.

A bill to regulate home schooling was approved by the Chamber of Deputies (lower house) and is proceeding through the Senate.

For Diego and Patricia, their defense is grounded in religious and legal principles as well as a matter of conscience.

"We base our position on our faith, our beliefs, Church law, natural law, and human rights. All treaties guarantee this freedom, as well as the primacy of parents," they stated.

"We're not doing anything wrong. Therefore, we have a clear conscience regarding this matter and will continue to fight. Home schooling is unstoppable," they added.

The family has already filed an appeal against the ruling and stated that, if the decision stands, they will take the case to higher courts.

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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Thousands of pro-life demonstrators took to the streets of Berlin and Cologne on Saturday, Sept. 19, for Germany's annual March for Life, which for the fourth time was held in both cities at once. Organizers put the combined turnout at about 6,000.

At the start of the Cologne rally on the Neumarkt square, counterdemonstrators threw paint at an information stand.

The Cologne rally, organized by Mona Schwaderlapp, a 27-year-old occupational therapist and mother of three, opened at 1 p.m. under the motto "The Right to Life Is a Human Right." The route passed the Basilica of the Holy Apostles and ran along Zeughausstrasse through the city center before returning to the Neumarkt, where the march ended around 4 p.m.

Paint, smoke, and blockades in Cologne

The paint was thrown by two counterdemonstrators who had obtained the green vests worn by the pro-life marchers and moved unnoticed to the stand of the pro-life foundation Stiftung Ja zum Leben, according to the Catholic weekly Die Tagespost. CNA Deutsch, the German-language sister service of EWTN News, observed on the scene in Cologne that the attackers also set off purple smoke bombs.

During the stage program, several counterdemonstrators pushed to the front of the stage with a banner. One counterdemonstrator, who sprayed the banner with paint during the march, faces a criminal complaint for property damage.

Cologne police said the march had been registered for 3,000 people and that the "pro-choice" counter-event was likewise expected to draw 3,000. Police gave no figures for actual turnout.

CNA Deutsch observed officers using drones to monitor the march. Apart from two sit-in blockades, the procession through the city center passed without major disruption.

"We are here today because there are people who need our help," said Ludwig Brühl of the federal board of the pro-life group Aktion Lebensrecht für Alle at the rally. He warned: "Surrogacy arrangements are being sold in the middle of Cologne."

Brühl said he and fellow campaigners had gone undercover to track down people taking in large sums from the business. "They know how to get around our laws," he said. "We have to stop these people."

Surrogacy and Down syndrome in Berlin

The group's federal chairwoman, Cornelia Kaminski, also spoke against surrogacy, in Berlin.

The 22nd March for Life took place in Berlin at the same time, drawing 4,200 people according to the German pro-life group Bundesverband Lebensrecht. Berlin police put the figure at about 2,200.

Five Bavarian bishops took part in the Berlin march, reported the Diocese of Regensburg. They were Bishop Rudolf Voderholzer of Regensburg, Bishop Stefan Oster of Passau, Auxiliary Bishop Josef Graf of Regensburg, Auxiliary Bishop Florian Wörner of Augsburg, and Bishop Emeritus Gregor Maria Hanke of Eichstätt.

Cologne Auxiliary Bishop Dominikus Schwaderlapp took part in the march there. Several other bishops had sent written greetings to the organizers ahead of the marches.

"In all, well over 6,000 people (4,200 Berlin, 2,100 Cologne) of all generations set out today to take to the streets for the right to life of every human being from conception to natural death," the Bundesverband Lebensrecht said.

The group's chairwoman, Alexandra Linder, said: "Democracy means universal human dignity, the right to life from conception to natural death, and a prohibition on the killing of the innocent."

This story was first published by CNA Deutsch, the German-language sister service of EWTN News, and has been translated and adapted by EWTN News English.

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For the first time in seven centuries, Aquileia, a city in northeastern Italy with a fascinating past, has reunited the three scattered fragments of a sixth-century manuscript that for centuries was venerated as if it were the Gospel written by St. Mark's own hand.

The author of the Gospel that bears his name was St. Peter's interpreter and secretary. He followed the apostle to Rome, where he witnessed his preaching in the homes of the first followers of Christ, who dared to defy the Roman Empire's laws governing worship.

St. Mark carefully recorded every courageous word of that early catechesis, and his notes became a firsthand source for the story of Jesus' life.

Today, Aquileia, a small town of just over 3,000 inhabitants, treasures St. Mark's memory as the founder of one of the most flourishing Christian communities of the Middle Ages.

After the Edict of Milan in A.D. 313, the city, situated at the crossroads of East and West and serving as a bridge between the Mediterranean world and Slavic culture, became a center for the spread of Christianity into Central Europe and the Balkans.

By the fifth century, it had even been honored with the title of apostolic city, and its bishop held the rank of patriarch. That privilege was reserved only for dioceses that traced their origins to the preaching of an apostle.

"We preserve extraordinary medieval frescoes in the basilica depicting St. Mark arriving here to found the city's first Christian community. That is why we believe he truly came to Aquileia," Aquileia tour guide Anna Sairu told "EWTN Noticias," the Spanish-language broadcast edition of EWTN News.

The codex that became a relic

One of the principal witnesses to this tradition is the "Codex Forojuliensis," also known as the "Cividale Gospel Book." The sixth-century manuscript, written in uncial script, the calligraphy reserved for sacred texts, originally contained all four Gospels in St. Jerome's Latin translation.

Scholars believe it was most likely produced in Ravenna, Italy. From there it arrived in Aquileia during the second half of the ninth century, where it was authenticated by the signature of Theodemar, patriarch of Aquileia.

The presence of the codex strengthened the tradition linking St. Mark to the evangelization of the region. Its significance became so great that in 827 the Synod of Mantua recognized Aquileia's ecclesiastical supremacy over Grado.

Venice looked with suspicion on the growing religious prestige of its neighbor. Just a year later, in 828, Venetian merchants brought the relics attributed to the evangelist from Alexandria to the city on the lagoon. In doing so, "The Most Serene Republic" of Venice gained a patron of apostolic rank and strengthened the religious and political foundations of its power.

The fragmented Gospel

Between the 12th and 13th centuries, the seven quires — folded sheets of paper stitched into booklets — containing the Gospel of Mark were separated from the rest of the codex, rebound independently, and covered with an elaborate gilded silver binding that transformed the book into an object of veneration resembling a reliquary.

From that point on, the manuscript ceased to be viewed as merely an ancient copy and began to be regarded as an autograph written by St. Mark himself. Medieval inventories of the Patriarchal Treasury of Aquileia reflect this belief.

"The Gospel was fragmented when it was removed from the Gospel book containing all four Gospels and began to be regarded as an autograph of the evangelist himself. This is connected to the tradition that St. Mark evangelized this region of Italy, Aquileia, and its surrounding territory. During the 12th and 13th centuries, the Gospel of Mark acquired a life of its own and came to be regarded as an extraordinary relic," Cristiano Tiussi, director of the Aquileia Foundation and curator of the exhibition, told "EWTN Noticias."

The emperor who wanted a piece of St. Mark

The fame of the supposed authentic Gospel of St. Mark quickly spread across Europe. In 1354, while traveling to Rome to receive the imperial crown, Charles IV of Luxembourg stopped in Aquileia. At the time, his half-brother, Nicholas of Luxembourg, served as patriarch there.

The emperor requested part of the revered manuscript and received two of the seven quires that comprised the Gospel of Mark. Those pages were taken to Prague, where they were deposited in St. Vitus Cathedral alongside the relics of St. Wenceslaus. Over the centuries, they became the oldest written document preserved in Czech libraries.

The exhibition even displays the original documents recording Charles IV's request to the patriarch of Aquileia.

"Possessing part of the Gospel of St. Mark meant owning not only a religious relic but also a symbol of prestige, legitimacy, and power," Tiussi noted.

The conquest of Venice

The remainder of the manuscript remained in Aquileia until May 30, 1420, when Doge Tommaso Mocenigo conquered the city. Venice then claimed the remaining fragments, arguing that they belonged beside the evangelist's tomb in the Basilica of St. Mark.

Their transfer symbolized Aquileia's definitive incorporation into the Venetian sphere.

The gesture also carried an unmistakable political significance. If Venice had claimed custody of the evangelist's body since 828, it now also acquired part of the manuscript believed by tradition to have been written by his hand.

As a result, the Gospel of Mark became permanently divided among the cities of Cividale del Friuli, Venice, and Prague.

For the manuscript itself, however, the consequences proved devastating. Humidity from the Venetian lagoon gradually damaged the pages until they became almost illegible. Today, those remnants are preserved in a reliquary display case within the Treasury of St. Mark.

A medieval Facebook

The exhibition offers visitors a second surprise. Before it was dismantled, the manuscript served as a "Liber Vitae," or "Book of the Living." More than 1,500 names were entered into its pages by people who wished to be remembered in the prayers of the monastic community that safeguarded the codex.

"This is one of the features that makes this Gospel book exceptional. In Italy, we know of only two Carolingian-era 'libri vitae.' This is one of them. These inscriptions, written in a hand different from the original uncial script, were initially simple liturgical annotations. They are notes written on the Gospel between the seventh and eighth centuries indicating which passages should be read during particular periods of the year or providing other instructions for the book's liturgical use," said Luca Villa, another curator of the exhibition.

Beginning in the second half of the ninth century, the names of benefactors, nobles, pilgrims, and distinguished visitors were added.

Among them were figures as notable as Emperor Louis II the Younger and his wife Engelberga, the Moravian prince Svatopluk, and envoys from the newly Christianized Kingdom of Bulgaria.

"There are more than 1,500 important figures who wrote their names in the Gospel, not merely to leave a record of themselves but because they believed that by doing so they would share in the liturgical celebrations every time the book was used in the church where it was kept," Villa told "EWTN Noticias."

For historians, these lists provide an extraordinary window into medieval Europe. They reveal a network of contacts, pilgrimages, and cultural exchanges linking distant regions centuries before the emergence of modern nation-states.

A European story

Now, for the first time in roughly 700 years, the three surviving portions of the Gospel have been reunited.

The quires preserved in Prague have left the Czech Republic for the first time. The fragments kept in Venice have temporarily departed St. Mark's Basilica. Together with the pages preserved in Friuli, they reconstruct a story that had remained fragmented since the Middle Ages.

Czech curator Martina Dlabajová said she believes the reunion also symbolizes the very essence of Europe.

"What is beautiful is that, while acknowledging that each fragment has had a different history and followed a different path, by bringing them together we have chosen to embrace that shared history. That is why the exhibition's title speaks of 'Seven Centuries, Three Fragments, One European Story,' because the three fragments never ceased to be part of a common narrative, and that narrative is a European one," she explained.

"I also like to emphasize that Europe itself should recognize differences, accept that distinct histories exist, and understand that those different histories from various countries enrich our shared history," she added in comments to "EWTN Noticias."

The exhibition, "The Gospel of Mark: Seven Centuries. Three Fragments. One European Story," will remain open through April 2027. Due to the fragility of the parchment, however, restrictions are necessary. The original manuscripts will be on display only during the exhibition's first six weeks. They will then be replaced by high-resolution digital reproductions.

This report was made possible thanks to the support of the Aquileia Foundation.

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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Pope Leo XIV flies to France on Friday, where across four days in three cities he will proclaim Catholic teaching to the heart of secular Europe on matters that include end-of-life questions, immigration, and artificial intelligence.

The visit "will truly be a moment in which Leo's project of making the Church's social doctrine better known can take shape," said Father Patrick Valdrini, a former rector of the Institut Catholique de Paris.

France is statistically more secular than it was in 2008, when Pope Benedict XVI made a pastoral visit to the country. The latest data on religious identity in France, in 2019-2020, found that 51% of adults in France say they have no religious affiliation, an 8% increase from a decade before. While 29% of the population identifies as Catholic, the survey found only 8% say they go to Church regularly, according to the Institut National D'Etudes Démographiques.

Yet according to Cyprien Viet, a journalist with the French agency I.Media, the country has become more open to Catholicism in recent years. The reasons for this shift include sympathy for Christianity following attacks on churches and the 2016 killing by Islamist terrorists of Father Jacques Hamel, enhanced appreciation for France's Christian heritage after the 2019 burning of Notre-Dame Cathedral, and gratitude for the Church's charitable service during the COVID-19 pandemic.

More recently, "Pope Leo's encyclical on artificial intelligence [Magnifica Humanitas] has had a fairly strong impact in France, and people recognize that there is a need to explore these issues more deeply. The pope is helping greatly in providing points of reference," Viet said.

The challenge of laïcité

During his Sept. 25–28 visits to Paris, Lourdes, and Metz, Leo's approach to sharing the Catholic Church's teaching on political and social issues will draw wide attention, not least because of France's tradition of "laïcité," a strict legal separation of Church and state.

This policy has always involved a certain distrust, even hostility, toward the idea that faith can contribute something good to society, Valdrini said.

"The concept of 'laïcité' emerged especially during the French Revolution, rooted in the view that religion hinders freedom and reason, that it is something burdensome rather than liberating," he said.

Among the most sensitive issues that the pope is expected to address are end-of-life questions. France legalized assisted suicide and euthanasia this summer, becoming the fifth European country to do so after Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxembourg, and Spain. In addition, Switzerland and Austria permit assisted suicide.

Euthanasia is the intentional ending of a person's life to relieve suffering. It differs from assisted dying, in which the patient takes life-ending drugs himself, under a physician's guidance. Both practices are prohibited by Catholic teaching.

Charles Personnaz, France's ambassador to the Holy See, says he expects the pope to speak out on the issue but to leave the political debate to the French bishops, who were already outspoken in their vigorous condemnation of the euthanasia bill before it passed in July.

"I think the pope will certainly repeat what is the Catholic doctrine: the preservation of life from the beginning to … the natural end," the ambassador said. "But he will also leave to … the French Catholic Church the debate with the political parties in France and the institutions. That is the subsidiarity that is at the heart of Catholic doctrine as well."

A message about human dignity

On a visit to the Sanctuary of Our Lady of Lourdes, Pope Leo is expected to deliver a message about the inherent dignity of every human person, even when suffering from illness or disability.

Meeting and praying with the sick and vulnerable at one of the most visited Catholic shrines in the world, the Holy Father will give a concrete sign of faith in the value of every human life.

At the shrine he will also meet privately with victims of abuse in the Catholic Church in France and with the country's bishops.

Leo is expected to address the global challenges posed by artificial intelligence when he speaks at the headquarters of UNESCO, the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization, in Paris on Sept. 25. On his last day, he will reflect on interreligious dialogue and the future of Europe at meetings in Metz.

The pope's visit to a migrant integration center run by the Archdiocese of Paris will touch on one of the most volatile political issues in Europe and beyond, and one closely tied to next year's presidential election in France, in which the anti-immigration politician Marine Le Pen is the current frontrunner.

Personnaz said he expects the pope's comments on immigration to be well received, calling the pontiff's previous statements on the topic "very balanced" with a focus on the responsibility of nations to help people stay in their homeland.

State visit or apostolic journey?

Pope Francis visited France three times during his pontificate, but Leo will be making the first state visit by a pope to France since Benedict XVI's apostolic journey in 2008.

The French Catholic newspaper La Croix has reported that the Holy See has refused some requests by the government, including a proposal that President Emmanuel Macron accompany the pontiff into Notre-Dame Cathedral for a prayer service on Sept. 25. The Holy See Press Office and the Élysée Palace, the official residence and office of the French president, did not respond to requests for comment on the report.

According to Valdrini, Leo is following in the tradition of St. Paul VI, who sought to emphasize the pastoral character of his travel — the visit to a local Church by the successor of Peter — rather than his role as a head of state.

"It will still be a state visit, and there will be official ceremonies, but it is clear that the pope wanted to emphasize, as previous popes did, this [apostolic] dimension of the journey," Valdrini said.

Catholicism grows

Despite a lack of religious practice in France, enthusiasm for Pope Leo's visit is high, as demonstrated by the response to his events with the public in France's capital.

Adolescents and young adults have snapped up tickets for a prayer vigil in the 81,000-seat Stade de France and an open-air Mass in Place de la Concorde. Paris' largest public square may draw some of the biggest crowds of his pontificate thus far, with 600,000 people expected to fill the square and a nearly two-mile stretch of avenue connecting to the Arc de Triomphe. This enthusiasm is also reflected in an atypical outpouring of donations to the dioceses to cover organizational costs.

Leo will address France's Catholics at a critical juncture in their history, as they welcome rising numbers of converts. He is likely to encourage the nation traditionally known as "the eldest daughter of the Church" to rediscover her Catholic roots.

This Easter, France recorded more than 20,000 adult and adolescent baptisms, a 20% increase from the already record-high number in 2025, which saw a 45% increase from 2024 figures.

The phenomenon has prompted the bishops of Île de France, the ecclesiastical region that includes the Archdiocese of Paris, to convene a special council on how to respond to the huge influx of Catholic converts.

"Today people have not inherited their faith ... and so they are kind of ignorant about the Catholic heritage," Personnaz said. "But when they discover it, they have no prejudices about it. And in a world where the youth are searching for a sense to [their] life, the Catholic proposal remains very interesting."

Francis X. Rocca and Victoria Cardiel contributed to this report.

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