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Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Aug 29, 2025 / 08:00 am (CNA).

The shooter who killed two children and injured 17 others at Annunciation Catholic Church in Minneapolis on Aug. 27 voiced some regret over his effort to "transition" into a girl when he was a minor, according to handwritten notes he displayed in a YouTube video before the attack.

Robin Westman, who was named "Robert" at birth, legally changed his name when he was 17 years old to reflect his self-identified status as a transgender girl. Court documents show that his mother signed off on the name change.

Westman published videos to YouTube shortly before the attack, which contained written notes, some of which were in English and others using the Cyrillic alphabet. Several Slavic languages use the Cyrillic script, but Westman was not writing in any of them. Rather, he tried to match the sounds of the Cyrillic letters to form English-language words when read aloud.

According to a partial translation published by the New York Post, Westman wrote: "I regret being trans," and added: "I wish I was a girl. I just know I cannot achieve that body with the technology we have today. I also can't afford that."

The Post's translation states that Westman also wrote he wished "I never brainwashed myself," but kept his long hair "because it is pretty much my last shred of being trans."

"I can't cut my hair now as it would be an embarrassing defeat, and it might be a concerning change of character that could get me reported," he wrote. "It just always gets in my way. I will probably chop it on the day of the attack."

According to the translation, Westman also wrote: "I know I am not a woman but I definitely don't feel like a man."

Jason Evert: Westman did not get 'mental health care he needed'

Chastity Project Founder Jason Evert, who authored "Male, Female, Other? A Catholic Guide to Understanding Gender," told EWTN News that he believes Westman "was not receiving … the mental health care that he needed."

Evert noted that many people who struggle with gender dysphoria often suffer from other mental health conditions, such as major depressive disorder or borderline personality disorder, or have experienced bullying, isolation, and social distress.

"If they're being told, 'Well, hey, you need to change your outfit or change your name, and you'll feel at home in your own body,' … it's depriving the young people to have opportunities to live in their bodies and get the clinical intervention that they actually need to receive," he said. 

Evert explained that doctors in the United States primarily follow the "Dutch protocol," which is to "affirm" a person's self-asserted transgender identity and then provide minors with puberty blockers, cross-sex hormones and eventually transgender surgeries. However, recent studies have shown that most children outgrow transgender inclinations and that surgeries do not solve their mental health issues.

"It's not working," he added. "We're actually contributing to a mental illness instead of actually treating it. We're depriving these young people of opportunities and strategies to learn how to live in their bodies. And instead of that, we're giving them hormones and telling them that they can hurt their body in order to be their authentic selves."

Yet, Evert urged caution against suggesting that Westman's gender dysphoria was the reason for the attack, emphasizing that "most people who do experience gender dysphoria would never commit an atrocity like this and most people who have committed school shootings do not identify as trans."

"I think it's careful that we at least explain that, so as to not stir up animosity amongst young people who might be struggling with their sense of sexual identity," Evert said.

What we know about the shooter's motive

Police have not identified a clear motive up to this point, but FBI Director Kash Patel announced that the agency is investigating the tragedy as "an act of domestic terrorism and hate crime targeting Catholics."

Videos Westman recorded before the shooting demonstrate some anti-Catholic motivation.

The videos show that Westman had attached an image of Jesus Christ wearing the crown of thorns to the head of a human-shaped shooting target. He also wrote anti-Christian messages on his guns and loaded magazines, which included "Where's your God?" and a comment that mocked the words of Christ by writing "take this all of you and eat" on a rifle.

Some of the drawings also appeared Satanic, including an inverted pentagram and an inverted cross.

Other messages showed hatred toward Jewish people, Black people, Hispanic people, Indian people, and Arab people. The messages also included threats against President Donald Trump.

Some of Westman's writings highlight a struggle with depression and suicidal thoughts. He also apologized to his family for the trouble his attack would cause them but made clear he was not sorry to the children he wanted to murder. He showed a strong affinity for mass murderers.

Westman was baptized and raised Catholic. He attended the church and school he attacked and his mother previously worked at the parish as a secretary before retiring.

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Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Aug 29, 2025 / 09:00 am (CNA).

Time Magazine included Pope Leo XIV in its 2025 list of the "World's Most Influential People in Artificial Intelligence" on Thursday, Aug. 28, praising the pontiff's focus on the ethical concerns related to the emerging technology.

The magazine listed the top 100 influential people in artificial intelligence (AI) in four categories: Leaders, Innovators, Shapers, and Thinkers. Leo XIV is among the 25 most influential thinkers in the field, according to Time.

In a profile included in the magazine, Time technology correspondent Andrew Chow noted that Leo XIV chose his papal name, in part, based on the need for the Church to address ethical matters related to AI and wrote that the Holy Father is "already making good on his vow."

When the pontiff met with the College of Cardinals two days after he assumed the papacy, he said he took the name in honor of Pope Leo XIII, who had "addressed the social question in the context of the first great industrial revolution."

Leo XIII, who was pope from 1878 until 1903, published the encyclical Rerum Novarum, which discussed the needs of the working class amid the industrial revolution. The text eschewed both socialism and unrestrained market power, opting for cooperation between competing interests that is centered on the dignity of the human person.

The current pope, Leo XIV, said he took the name because of the "developments in the field of artificial intelligence," which he noted pose "new challenges for the defense of human dignity, justice, and labor."

Time's profile noted that the Vatican hosted the Conference on Artificial Intelligence, Ethics, and Corporate Governance in June, and stated: "Leo XIV's keynote speech underlined AI's potential as a force for good, particularly in health care and scientific discovery."

"But AI 'raises troubling questions on its possible repercussions on humanity's openness to truth and beauty, on our distinctive ability to grasp and process reality,' he added," the profile stated, quoting the Holy Father. "And he warned that the technology could be misused for 'selfish gain at the expense of others, or worse, to foment conflict and aggression.'"

Other figures on Time's list include xAI founder Elon Musk, Meta founder Mark Zuckerberg, Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang, Sen. Marsha Blackburn, and Sen. Chris Murphy.

This is the third annual list published by Time focusing on the most influential people in AI.

"We launched this list in 2023, in the wake of OpenAI's release of ChatGPT, the moment many became aware of AI's potential to compete with and exceed the capabilities of humans," Time Editor-in-Chief Sam Jacobs wrote regarding the publication of the list.

"Our aim was to show how the direction AI travels will be determined not by machines but by people — innovators, advocates, artists, and everyone with a stake in the future of this technology," he added. "... This year's list further confirms our focus on people."

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ACI Prensa Staff, Aug 29, 2025 / 10:24 am (CNA).

The dictatorship of President Daniel Ortega and his wife, Vice President Rosario Murillo, in Nicaragua has banned more than 16,500 religious processions and activities in recent years and has perpetrated 1,010 attacks against the Catholic Church.

The statistics are recorded in the seventh installment of the Spanish-language report "Nicaragua: A Persecuted Church" by exiled lawyer and researcher Martha Patricia Molina, released on Aug. 27. 

Regarding the ban on processions, Molina explained that it has worsened since 2022 and that the dictatorship has imposed it throughout the country since then. However, the report does not cover all parish churches or chapels, of which there are 400 in Managua alone.

"So the figure presented in the study could be at least three or four times higher than what is being recorded," she emphasized.

In an interview with the Spanish-language edition of EWTN News, Molina explained that so far this year, only 32 attacks by the dictatorship against the Church have been recorded, a figure that could be much higher.

Reporting attacks against the Catholic Church in Nicaragua

The researcher explained that there are a series of factors that prevent these types of incidents from being reported: "Laypeople are terrified that members of the Citizen Power Council and the paramilitaries, which are organizations affiliated with the dictatorship, will harm them if they decide to report."

Furthermore, Catholic priests "are prohibited from making any complaints, and if by chance any attack is reported in the media, [the dictatorship] simply denies it."

"Another negative aspect we find, and which makes it possible for these attacks to continue to go unreported, is that there is no independent media presence in the country," the expert stated.

An example of this, she said, was the recent confiscation of St. Joseph School run by the Josephine Sisters in Jinotepe: "When people reported it [to the outside free press] several authorities, including Catholic ones, said it was false. But two days later when dictator Rosario Murillo announced the confiscation, it was already known that what was being reported was actually true."

The researcher also noted that her study "has documented the arbitrary closure of 13 universities and educational or training centers" and added that "what the dictatorship is doing is first prohibiting the students who remained at the confiscated school from withdrawing their enrollment," since if they do so, "they will face some kind of retaliation."

Molina also told EWTN News that these schools or educational centers are then used to "indoctrinate young people, children, so they see Daniel Ortega and Rosario Murillo as the saviors of Nicaragua."

So far in 2025, she continued, "24 media outlets and 75 nonprofit organizations have been arbitrarily closed simultaneously," and the dictatorship has confiscated 36 properties, despite the fact that Nicaragua's Political Constitution, "even the one recently reformed in 2025, prohibits this type of action."

"Priests and bishops are constantly under surveillance. Some of them are even followed 24 hours a day," she continued.

"The clergy meetings held by bishops and priests are constantly monitored by the police [who] come to take photographs and videos of the religious who attend, and [the Ortega regime's security forces] must be fully informed of everything discussed at these meetings."

Nicaragua and the Vatican

After noting that the dictatorship has not returned the bank accounts confiscated from the Catholic Church and that "heavy fines and high fees are being imposed on religious buildings," the lawyer addressed the relationship with the Holy See.

The latest constitutional reform, she said, "is creating a rift between the Nicaraguan Catholic Church and the Vatican because the dictatorship included in this reform that no interference in these religious activities is permitted. So what this means is that the [Nicaraguan] Catholic Church should not have any contact with the Vatican."

"The relationship between the Vatican City State and the Sandinista dictatorship is nonexistent. It is known that there is no dialogue of any kind, at least not openly," she commented.

Pope Leo XIV's meeting with Nicaraguan bishops

Regarding the meeting that Pope Leo XIV held on Aug. 23 with three exiled bishops from Nicaragua, Molina expressed her joy and emphasized: "Who better than these bishops, who have been exiled and stripped of their citizenship, to attest to the persecution that is unfolding in Nicaragua?"

The Holy Father received at the Vatican Bishop Silvio Báez, whom he confirmed as auxiliary bishop of Managua; Bishop Isidoro Mora of Siuna; and Bishop Carlos Enrique Herrera, bishop of Jinotega and president of the Nicaraguan Bishops' Conference.

Báez wrote on X on Aug. 26: "The Holy Father, Leo XIV, received me in a private audience on Saturday, Aug. 23, together with Bishop Herrera and Bishop Mora. We spoke at length about Nicaragua and the situation of the Church in particular. He encouraged me to continue my episcopal ministry … I am sincerely grateful for his fraternal welcome and his encouraging words."

"The pope needs true, objective information," Molina pointed out, "and I believe that these three bishops who attended this private audience with Pope Leo were very intent on reporting on what is being suffered in Nicaragua and also what we, the migrant community, whether Catholic or not, are going through in other countries as a result of the damage the Sandinista dictatorship is causing in the country."

'There are attacks that cannot be published'

Molina told EWTN News that she also keeps a separate record of "attacks that cannot be published in the media or in studies because of the fear felt by the people who leaked the information."

She said she does send these reports to "the authorities of some countries that monitor freedom, attacks on religious freedom, and also to human rights organizations at the Organization of American States and the U.N., so that they can truly hear from the victims what is happening."

Molina also reported that recently "the seminary that was confiscated from the Diocese of Matagalpa [in January of this year] is being destroyed, dismantled, a place where future priests who would serve the Diocese of Matagalpa were being formed." 

She called on the international community to closely monitor events in Nicaragua so that the people can finally "be free from this criminal dictatorship, because I don't see how the people in Nicaragua can mount any kind of protest because the dictatorship only prescribes jail, exile, or the cemetery for people who demand human rights."

The report can be accessed here.

This story was first published by ACI Prensa, CNA's Spanish-language news partner. It has been translated and adapted by CNA.

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Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Aug 28, 2025 / 17:37 pm (CNA).

Here is a roundup of Catholic world news from the past week that you might have missed:

Ancient cross discovered in Abu Dhabi points to deep Christian roots in region

The Department of Culture and Tourism in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, has announced a new archaeological discovery: a 30-centimeter (11.8-inch) plaster cross unearthed in an ancient monastery on Sir Bani Yas Island about 106 miles southwest of Abu Dhabi, ACI MENA, CNA's Arabic-language news partner, reported.

The artifact was uncovered during excavation work that began earlier this year. According to the Abu Dhabi Media Office, the cross was found in the courtyard of one of the monastery's houses. The cross is believed to date back to the seventh or eighth century A.D. Its eastern-style design resembles crosses found in Iraq and Kuwait, reflecting the historic connections of the Eastern Church and its spread across the gulf in the early centuries of Christianity.

Church in Thailand equips seminarians to minister to the Deaf 

The Catholic Church in Thailand has launched a training program for seminarians at Fatima Minor Seminary in the Archdiocese of Thare-Nongseng to help strengthen their ability to minister to the Deaf, according to Vatican News.

The program kicked off with training sessions on Aug. 22–24 led by Father Peter Bhuravaj Searaariyah, director of pastoral ministry for the Deaf of the Diocese of Chanthaburi and of the Catholic Bishops' Conference of Thailand. The sessions included an introduction to religious sign language terminology, participation in a Thai Sign Language (TSL) Mass, and the recitation of the Liturgy of the Word in sign language, Vatican News reported.

Nigerian priest: Surge in child trafficking a 'national emergency' 

A Nigerian Catholic priest is sounding the alarm over the growing trafficking of secondary school children — most often young girls who live in poverty across the west African nation who are taken during and after school hours.

"This is a national emergency. We are dealing with a crisis that threatens the future of our children and the soul of our nation," Father George Ehusani told ACI Africa, CNA's news partner in Africa, in an interview on Monday. "When teenagers who should be in classrooms are lured, moved, and exploited by criminal networks, the entire community is diminished."

Armenian Catholics launch website for St. Maloyan's canonization

The Armenian Catholic Patriarchate of Cilicia has announced the official launch of a website dedicated to the upcoming canonization of Blessed Ignatius Maloyan, ACI MENA reported Thursday. 

The site provides detailed information for the faithful who wish to participate in the celebration, including visa instructions for Lebanese citizens and comprehensive travel packages covering flights, accommodations, and local transportation. The platform also offers specialized services for the Armenian diaspora to facilitate participation in this historic event at the heart of the universal Church.

Climate activists convene in Kenya for interfaith prayer against fossil fuel expansion

Climate activists and faith leaders from across Africa gathered in Kenya's capital, Nairobi, on Aug. 24 for an interfaith prayer session to push for an end to fossil expansion on the world's second-largest continent.

Convened by the continental Laudato Si' Movement at the Holy Family Basilica, the prayer vigil was grounded in prayer and moral witness, ACI Africa reported. The movement's programs manager, Ashley Kitisya, told ACI Africa: "Our goal is to increase moral and spiritual pressure on decision-makers to halt fossil fuel expansion and instead invest in a just and sustainable transition."

Summit cross in Swiss Alps uprooted in act of vandalism

In the Swiss Alps, a cross and a statue of Mother Mary were torn out of the ground in an act of vandalism, CNA Deutsch, CNA's German-language news partner, reported earlier this week. The cross and statue were located in the Basòdino mountain, the second-highest peak in the canton of Ticino.

Roberto Iori, who runs a mountain hut in the area, said: "What also torments me is the fact that the perpetrator of this abominable act probably passed our hut and maybe even slept here. The cross and the Madonna were symbols for mountain lovers … It could be religiously motivated vandalism. It's not the first time someone has destroyed religious symbols on a summit."

British MP: Catholic support for Palestinians in Gaza 'extremely powerful' 

Independent British member of Parliament Shockat Adam said in an interview with Crux this week that support from the Catholic Church for people in Gaza has been "extremely powerful" and emphasized the Church's unique role to play in ending the conflict.

"The Vatican has been doing it, but other Christian denominations and even Muslim leaders haven't been as vociferous and clear on this," Adam said. "The Vatican has a role to play, have played a role, and should continue to do so … The leadership of the Church addressing parliamentarians and legislators and world leaders is a really powerful avenue of making change."

7 Christians jailed after Hindu groups say they violated anti-conversion laws 

A group of seven Christians in the Uttar Pradesh state in India have been jailed following accusations made by "Hindu vigilante groups" that they violated the northern Indian state's anti-conversion laws by "converting gullible people to Christianity," according to a UCA News report.

The arrests took place on Aug. 24 in three separate locations where Sunday prayer services were taking place. Six prayer services were interrupted in total that same day, an anonymous church leader told UCA.

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CNA Staff, Aug 28, 2025 / 15:53 pm (CNA).

A rising senior at a high school in Grand Island, New York, Sabrina Steffans, is now allowed to decorate her school parking space with Christian messages after her high school reversed course after initially rejecting her faith-based artwork.

Grand Island High School allows seniors to paint their parking spots "to encourage students to express themselves through positive artwork, to beautify the campus, to build school spirit, and to create a new and exciting radiation to support senior class activities and events."

When Steffans, a Christian who leads a Bible club at her school, proposed three drawings for her parking space, the school rejected the first two, which had Christian themes.

Steffans said the school approved the third design, "which had no Bible verses, no crosses, or anything."

Steffans said after the school rejected the second proposed drawing, "that's when we kind of decided to take charge and move forward with this [legal action]."

Steffans hired lawyers from First Liberty Institute, a nonprofit religious liberty law firm, who wrote a demand letter to the Grand Island school district insisting she had a constitutionally-protected right to freely express her religious beliefs at school.

Days later, attorneys for the school district responded to the demand letter stating that Sabrina could proceed with her original design.

"We are pleased that the school district changed course and will allow Sabrina to truly express her deeply held beliefs in her design," said Keisha Russell, senior counsel for First Liberty Institute. "The First Amendment protects students' private expressions of faith in public schools."

In response to the threatened lawsuit, Grand Island Central School District Superintendent Brian Graham issued a statement last week saying the district takes "seriously our responsibility to uphold constitutional principles, including the First Amendment."

He continued: "While we strongly dispute any assertion that our policies or decisions violated the rights of any student, the board of education and district leadership, after careful consultation with legal counsel, have decided that the student in question will be permitted to proceed with her original senior parking space design."

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ACI Prensa Staff, Aug 28, 2025 / 16:23 pm (CNA).

The Holy See Press Office has published a series of decisions by Pope Leo XIV to bring about unity in the Syro-Malabar Church of India, which has been at serious risk of schism in recent years due to liturgical disputes.

The Syro-Malabar Church is one of the 23 Eastern Churches in full communion with the bishop of Rome and follows the Chaldean liturgical tradition. It is the largest Eastern Church after the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church, and its origins date back to the preaching of St. Thomas the Apostle.

Since 1999, the Church has undergone a long period of division as a result of liturgical reforms that were later confirmed by the synod of the Syro-Malabar Church in 2021.

In July, Pope Leo XIV terminated the 2023 appointment of Archbishop Cyril Vasil' as papal delegate to the Syro-Malabar Church after an internal agreement was reached without his mediation.

Appointments of new bishops

The Vatican reported Aug. 28 that it had accepted resignations, made several episcopal appointments, and created several ecclesiastical provinces in the Syro-Malabar Church.

First, the synod of bishops of the Syro-Malabar Major Archiepiscopal Church accepted the resignation of the bishop of Belthangady, Mar Lawrence Mukkuzhy, and elected as new eparch Claretian Father James Patteril, "to whom the Holy Father had granted prior assent," according to information provided by the Holy See.

Patteril, 63, is a native of Mangalore in the Indian state of Karnataka. He professed his vows in the Congregation of the Missionary Sons of the Immaculate Heart of Mary in 1988 and was ordained a priest in 1990.

After completing his studies in philosophy and theology, he was sent to Germany to study pastoral theology at the Pastoral-Theologisches Institut of the Pallottine Fathers in Friedberg. He has exercised his pastoral ministry in India and Germany.

Carmelite Father Joseph Thachaparambath has been elected bishop of the Eparchy of Adilabad. Born in 1969 in Nalumukku, India, he entered the Carmelites of Mary Immaculate congregation in 1985.

After completing his studies in philosophy and theology, he was ordained a priest in 1997. His pastoral work has focused on parish life and teaching at various educational institutions within his religious institute. Since 2023, he has served as superior of the Mar Thoma Province.

His Beatitude Mar Raphael Thattil, major archbishop of Ernakulam-Angamaly, with the consent of the synod of bishops, has accepted the resignation of Thomas Elavanal of the Missionary Congregation of the Most Holy Sacrament as bishop of the Eparchy of Kalyan.

New ecclesiastical provinces of the Syro-Malabar Church

Regarding the territorial organization of the Syro-Malabar Church, the Holy See has announced the establishment of several ecclesiastical provinces and the assignment of the corresponding metropolitan archbishops.

The ecclesiastical province of Faridabad will be composed of the dioceses of Faridabad, Bijnor, and Gorakhpur. The Diocese of Faridabad will become an archdiocese, with its current bishop, Kuriakose Bharanikulangara, designated as archbishop.

The ecclesiastical province of Kalyan will have the Eparchies of Chanda and Rajkot as suffragans, with Kalyan remaining as the archiepiscopal see. Its first archbishop will be Sebastian Vaniyapurackal, currently bishop of the Major Archiepiscopal Curia.

The ecclesiastical province of Shamshabad, named after the see that is being elevated to a metropolitan archdiocese, will have the Eparchy of Adilabad as its suffragan. Its first archbishop-designate will be Bishop Prince Antony Panengaden, currently the prelate of the same see.

Ujjain is the fourth ecclesiastical province created, taking its name from the Diocese of Ujjain. Its suffragan sees are Jagdalpur, Sagar, and Satna. The current bishop of Ujjain, Sebastian Vadakel, a member of the Missionary Society of St. Thomas the Apostle, was appointed metropolitan archbishop.

Finally, the Eparchy of Hosur has been designated a suffragan of the Metropolitan Archeparchy of Trichur.

This story was first published by ACI Prensa, CNA's Spanish-language news partner. It has been translated and adapted by CNA.

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CNA Staff, Aug 28, 2025 / 11:30 am (CNA).

The leaders of the Minneapolis Catholic school where two children were shot and killed during a mass shooting incident on Wednesday say the school will remain closed for the time being as the community continues to deal with the "unfathomable" deadly incident.

The shooting took place during the all-school Mass at Annunciation Church in Minneapolis on Aug. 27. The gunman, identified as 23-year-old Robin Westman, born Robert Westman, shot through the church's stained-glass windows with a rifle, killing the two children and injuring nearly 20 children and adults before taking his own life.

The shooting generated global headlines and drew prayers and support from leaders including Pope Leo XIV and President Donald Trump.

In a Facebook post on Wednesday evening, Annunciation Catholic School Principal Matthew DeBoer and parish pastor Father Dennis Zehren described the crisis as an "impossible situation."

"No words can capture what we have gone through, what we are going through, and what we will go through in the coming days and weeks," they wrote. "But we will navigate this — together."

The leaders indicated the school would remain closed for at least the rest of the week and possibly longer. "As we process and navigate this unfathomable time together, we will be in touch this weekend regarding when school will resume," they said. 

The statement noted that law enforcement are still carrying out "essential work" on the school's campus, located several miles south of downtown Minneapolis.

Families in the parish will have access to support services, they said.

"In this time of darkness, let us commit to being the light to our children, each other, and our community," the statement said. "We will rebuild our future filled with hope — together."

Pope Leo XIV after the shooting sent his "heartfelt condolences and the assurance of spiritual closeness" to the victims of the shooting, while Catholic bishops and leaders from around the country likewise called for prayers and support for the school community.

The deadly shooting came after Minnesota's bishops had implored state lawmakers to provide security funding for local nonpublic schools.

Those appeals from the bishops came after deadly school shootings at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas, and at the Covenant School in Nashville, Tennessee.

The prelates had argued that students at Catholic and other nonpublic schools should receive the same level of protection as their public-school peers, though bills to that effect stalled in the state Legislature.

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CNA Staff, Aug 28, 2025 / 12:00 pm (CNA).

A federal bankruptcy court has accepted the Diocese of Syracuse, New York's massive $176 million abuse settlement plan, Bishop Douglas Lucia said this week.

The decision comes after a yearslong negotiation process between the diocese and victims of clergy abuse as well as between the diocese and insurers that will pay into the settlement fund.

Lucia said in an Aug. 27 letter that the diocese will contribute $100 million to the fund, as diocesan leaders first announced in 2023.

Fifty million dollars will come from the diocese itself, with $45 million from parishes and $5 million from "other Catholic entities" associated with the Syracuse Diocese.

The remaining $76 million will be contributed by diocesan insurance companies, the bishop said.

Further "nonmonetary items" in the agreement include provisions such as strengthening diocesan safe environment policies.

The diocese initiated the bankruptcy process in 2020. In his letter, Lucia thanked his fellow Catholics "who throughout these five years have prayed for this resolution and for those whose hearts were broken by the betrayal that came at the hands of Church members."

"Together I now pray we will grow ever more as the body of Christ in this part of the world community," he said.

The Syracuse decision comes amid a wave of high-value abuse settlement payouts from U.S. dioceses, including throughout New York.

Abuse victims in New York last month agreed to a massive settlement from the Diocese of Rochester, which is set to pay $246 million to survivors of clergy abuse there.

The Diocese of Buffalo, New York, earlier this year agreed to pay out a $150 million sum as part of its own abuse settlement.

The largest diocesan-level bankruptcy settlement in U.S. history thus far has been from the Diocese of Rockville Centre — also in New York — which last year agreed to pay $323 million to abuse victims.

The largest Church abuse payout total in U.S. history thus far has been at the Archdiocese of Los Angeles, which last year agreed to a near-$1 billion payment to abuse victims.

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ACI Prensa Staff, Aug 28, 2025 / 12:30 pm (CNA).

Pope Leo XIV on Thursday encouraged Catholic politicians to live coherently as Christians and follow the Gospel, even when performing their public duties in a secular polity. 

During an Aug. 28 meeting with a delegation of political representatives and civic leaders from the Diocese of Créteil, France, accompanied by Bishop Dominique Blanchet, the Holy Father stated that "a more just, more human, more fraternal world" can only be "a world more imbued with the Gospel."

Thus, he added, "in the face of the various deviations present in our Western societies, we can do nothing better, as Christians, than to turn to Christ and ask for his help in carrying out our responsibilities."

For this reason, the pope highlighted the importance of political and social leaders being committed to acting in coherence with their faith, because "beyond mere personal enrichment, it carries great importance and usefulness for the men and women they serve." 

In this regard, he underlined that such determination "is all the more praiseworthy considering that, in France, due to a sometimes-misunderstood secularism, it is not easy for an elected representative to act and decide consistently with their faith." 

'Christianity cannot be reduced to a mere private devotion' 

Because the Christian message embraces every dimension of the human person, Leo XIV stressed that "Christianity cannot be reduced to a mere private devotion, since it entails a way of living in society infused with love for God and neighbor, who in Christ is no longer an enemy but a brother." 

To face social challenges, the Holy Father said Catholic politicians must rely "on the virtue of charity that dwells within them since baptism," a gift of God that, as he cited from the Compendium of the Social Doctrine of the Church, constitutes a "force capable of inspiring new paths to address today's problems and to renew profoundly from within structures, social organizations, and legal norms," bringing charity from the personal realm into the social and political one because "it makes us love the common good and leads us to effectively seek the good of all." 

Pope Leo XIV also noted that the Christian politician "is better prepared to face the challenges of today's world, provided, of course, that he lives and bears witness to his faith in him, to his personal relationship with Christ." 

In this sense, he warned against the temptation to promote values "however evangelical they may be, but 'emptied' of Christ, their author," since they will be "incapable of changing the world." 

Responding to Blanchet's request for advice to Catholic politicians, Leo XIV replied: "The first and only one I will give you is to unite yourselves more and more to Jesus, to live and bear witness to him." 

Coherence in public life 

"There is no split in the personality of a public figure: There is not, on one side, the politician and, on the other, the Christian. Rather, there is a politician who, under God's gaze and before his conscience, lives his commitments and responsibilities as a Christian!" he added.

To achieve such coherence of life, the pope recalled the call for Catholic politicians "to strengthen themselves in faith, to deepen their knowledge of doctrine — especially social doctrine — that Jesus taught the world, and to put it into practice in carrying out their duties and in drafting laws." 

He also affirmed the enduring validity of natural law, a norm "that all can recognize, even non-Christians. Therefore, we should not fear proposing it and defending it with conviction: It is a doctrine of salvation that seeks the good of every human being, the building of peaceful, harmonious, prosperous, and reconciled societies."

Courage in the face of difficulties 

At the end of his address, the pope acknowledged that "an openly Christian commitment by a public official is not easy, especially in certain Western societies where Christ and his Church are marginalized, often ignored, and at times ridiculed." 

Such a commitment also means facing political pressures, including that of "ideological colonization," Leo said, using a term coined by his predecessor Pope Francis to refer to campaigns by wealthy countries and organizations to influence the values of developing nations.  Leo said that Christian public officials "need courage: the courage sometimes to say 'no, I cannot,' when the truth is at stake." 

"Only union with Jesus — Jesus crucified! — will give you that courage to suffer for his name," the pontiff declared, recalling Christ's words: "In the world you will have tribulation, but take courage: I have overcome the world." 

In conclusion, the pope expressed his support for Catholic politicians and encouraged them not to lose hope in a better world: "Remain certain that, united to Christ, your efforts will bear fruit and receive their reward."

This story was first published by ACI Prensa, CNA's Spanish-language news partner. It has been translated and adapted by CNA.

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National Catholic Register, Aug 28, 2025 / 06:00 am (CNA).

After a pair of out-of-state school shootings in 2022 and 2023 shocked the nation, Minnesota's bishops implored state lawmakers to provide security funding for local nonpublic schools. 

Now, two years after their appeals went unheeded, tragedy has struck one of their own.

On the morning of Aug. 27, a gunman opened fire during an all-school Mass at Annunciation Catholic Church in Minneapolis, killing two students, aged 10 and 8; 14 other students and three adults were injured.

The tragedy comes after the Minnesota Catholic Conference (MCC), the public policy voice of Minnesota's six dioceses, made requests to state officials to extend funds for security upgrades and emergency-response training to nonpublic schools in both 2022 and 2023.

The appeals, which came after deadly school shootings at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas, and at the Covenant School in Nashville, Tennessee, argued that students at Catholic and other nonpublic schools should receive the same level of protection as their public-school peers.

"We need to ensure that all our schools have the resources to respond to and prevent these attacks from happening to our schools," wrote Jason Adkins, MCC's executive director, in an April 14, 2023, letter to Gov. Tim Walz and Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan, who are both Democrats. The letter was also signed by Tim Benz, president of a Minnesota independent school organization.

If MCC's request had been granted, Catholic schools like Annunciation would have been able to use state funds for enhancements like secure entries to facilities or even to hire school resource officers. 

But the Minnesota bishops' appeals were rebuffed in both years, as related bills stalled in the state Legislature, resulting in no additional funding for nonpublic school security. Meanwhile, for the 2023 legislative session, Minnesota enjoyed a historic $17.6 billion surplus.

In the aftermath of the Annunciation school shooting, the issue will assuredly be revisited — including why lawmakers failed to act on the bishops' request.

Responding to a request for comment, Walz's office underscored that the governor "cares deeply about the safety of students" and has "signed into law millions in funding for school safety." The National Catholic Register, CNA's sister news partner, confirmed, however, that none of the previously signed funding bills applied to nonpublic school safety.

"We remain committed to working with anyone who is willing to work with us to stop gun violence and keep our students safe," said the spokesman, noting that Walz meets with MCC on a regular basis.

Meanwhile, Republican state Sen. Julia Coleman told the Register that the tragedy is prompting her to reflect on her "responsibility as an elected official."

"There are no easy answers, but I know our children — our most precious assets — must be protected," said Coleman, a Catholic. "Now is the time to make school security funding a priority."

In his first public remarks following the shooting, Archbishop Bernard Hebda of St. Paul and Minneapolis begged for prayers for those affected. He also called for an end to gun violence.

"Our community is rightfully outraged at such horrific acts of violence perpetrated against the vulnerable and innocent," he wrote in a statement. "They are far too commonplace."

Adkins declined to comment at this time.

Previous requests

The Minnesota bishops' efforts to secure school security funding came after state lawmakers had passed "Safe Schools" legislation in 2019 that provided money for security enhancements to public schools but not to nonpublic ones.

In 2022, after a bill to expand the funding to nonpublic schools stalled, Minnesota's bishops urged Walz to call a special session and pass an expansion to Safe Schools. The measure would have provided $44 per student for security costs, regardless of their school's affiliation.

"Although no legislation can stop the manifestation of evil, this Safe Schools legislation is an important, commonsense first step to establishing an ongoing funding source for schools to increase security staff, enhance building security, and strengthen violence prevention programs and mental health initiatives," Hebda wrote in a May 2022 letter.

The House version of the bill was supported by multiple members of the Democrat-Farmer-Labor Party, the Minnesota affiliate of the national Democratic Party, indicating bipartisan support. However, Walz did not call a special session to pass the legislation.

The following year, MCC implored Minnesota's lawmakers to make nonpublic schools eligible recipients of a $50 million security grant program included in the state's education finance bill. 

The 2023 letter cosigned by MCC described "the exclusion of one sector of schools" from security funding as "a discriminatory act against our students."

An attack on any school, whether it is a public, nonpublic, charter or another school site, cannot be tolerated or allowed to happen in Minnesota," the letter writers said.

Meeting, but no funding

According to comments Adkins made to The Daily Wire, Minnesota's bishops had raised their concerns with Walz, a former public school teacher, in a meeting. 

"He communicated his belief that people should feel safe in their schools and places of worship," Adkins said. "But the appropriation was not created."

As governor, Walz exerts significant influence over the budget process, including by proposing the initial biennial budget legislators are tasked to work with.

The Daily Wire article suggested that Walz focused on other priorities that year, such as securing Minnesota's status as a "trans sanctuary" state.

MCC's support for nonpublic school security in 2022 and 2023 is part of a more comprehensive effort to reduce gun violence. The bishops have also supported "red flag" orders, which temporarily restrict firearm access to individuals who pose a risk to themselves or others, and expanded background checks.

The Minnesota bishops did not take a public stance on security funding for Catholic schools in 2024 or 2025. Instead, MCC's Catholic school-related efforts in those years included opposing the exclusion of religious colleges from postsecondary enrollment programs and securing religious exemptions from new legislation that included "gender identity" as a protected class under state law.

This story was first published by the National Catholic Register, CNA's sister news partner, and has been adapted by CNA.

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