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Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Jun 6, 2025 / 17:57 pm (CNA).

On Wednesday at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in Washington, D.C., seven Dominican brothers were ordained to the priesthood by Archbishop Anthony Fisher, OP, who leads the Archdiocese of Sydney, Australia.

"We are overjoyed at the ordination of seven of our brothers to the priesthood of Jesus Christ,"  Father Allen Moran, OP, prior provincial of the Dominican Friars of the Province of St. Joseph, told CNA.

"I, and all the friars of the Province of St. Joseph, look forward to the good work that God will do through them in our parishes, campus ministries, intellectual apostolates, hospital chaplaincies, and digital evangelization efforts."

The newest Dominicans joining the community as priests are Louis Mary Bethea, Gregory Marie Santy, Bertrand Marie Hebert, Basil Mary Burroughs, Titus Mary Sanchez, Nicodemus Maria Thomas, and Linus Mary Martz.

"May God bring the good work he has begun to completion," Moran said at the June 4 ordination. "Thanks be to God for the gift of these seven new priests!"

Fisher ordained the priests in a three-hour-long Mass and ordination ceremony. "Now seven of Dominic's sons will become the fantastic seven," Fisher said. "All part of a team of 400,000 priest presbyters sanctifying our world."

Fisher served as the ordaining bishop and was joined by Archbishop James Green, who ordained Pope Leo XIV a bishop in 2014. 

Auxiliary Bishop Evelio Menjivar-Ayala of Washington and Archbishop Borys Gudziak, the metropolitan archbishop of the Ukrainian Catholic Archeparchy of Philadelphia, also concelebrated the Mass.

At the end of the liturgy, Fisher asked for "a word of thanks" for all "who have influenced and supported the priests on their vocational journeys" and those "who have helped them in discernment and formation."

"Seven is a very Catholic number," Fisher continued.

"Not just for clergy but for sacraments, virtues, hills of Rome, and deadly sins," he joked.

"You can work out which of our new priests is best identified as Father Baptism or Father Confession, and the rest. And who is Father Prudence, or Father Temperance, Father Hope. Which is more aventine or escaline. But of course none of them would be Father Gluttony or Father Sloth," he continued.

"Dominican Province of St. Joseph and the Church universal rings out with joy today; the Church has seven new priests," Fisher said. "Yet the flock of Jesus Christ needs many new shepherds if we are to fulfill Christ's injunction to lead the sheep and nurture the lambs. So I ask you all to pray for more like these."

Fisher offered a message to the young men of America: "People are crying out for words of life and sacraments of grace to transfigure their hearts and lives. You might be the very one by God's grace to offer them this as a Dominican priest."

"May our new priests inspire you to give yourself over to God's plan for you," Fisher said. 

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Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Jun 6, 2025 / 08:00 am (CNA).

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

Petition to Pope Leo XIV to remove German cardinal gains over 60K signatures 

A petition launched by a Munich priest to Pope Leo XIV calling for the dismissal of Cologne, Germany, archbishop Cardinal Rainer Maria Woelki has gained 60,130 signatures, CNA Deutsch, CNA's German-language news partner, reported on Wednesday. 

The German-language petition accuses Woelki of moral corruption and argues that he has lost all credibility in the public sphere and the Church at large after investigations of the cardinal were discontinued after the payment of a 26,000-euro (about $29,700) fine. The petition cites the cardinal's alleged failure to deal with sexual abuse by Church officials as legal basis for dismissal under canon law. 

Attempted suicide bombers killed outside Ugandan Martyrs' Day memorial event

Ugandan Bishop Christopher Kakooza of the Lugazi Diocese urged pilgrims participating in Martyrs' Day celebrations on Tuesday to carry on the legacy of the Ugandan martyrs as local authorities intercepted and killed two alleged terrorists, including a female suicide bomber, outside the event.

During his homily at the event, the bishop encouraged the congregation to "endure just like the martyrs who suffered with hope for what was to come." 

A local news outlet reported that a counterterrorism unit "intercepted and neutralized" a man and a female suicide bomber on a motorbike headed toward the commemorative event after an explosive detonated about midway to the church. 

Kenyan bishop appeals for unity among warring communities after priest's murder

Bishop Dominic Kimengich of the Kenyan Diocese of Eldoret is urging warring factions in the bandit-infested Kerio Valley to end violence and division following the murder of a local priest, Father Allois Cheruiyot Bett, reported ACI Africa, CNA's news partner in Africa, on Tuesday. 

In a heartfelt plea on the sidelines of the requiem Mass for the priest on Monday, June 2, the bishop appealed for an end to the long decades of violence and division in the territiry. "We speak the same language … So, what are these? Where is the problem?" he said, adding: "Can we not sit down and be serious once and for all?"

Cheruiyot Bett was fatally shot by assailants while returning from Mass at his parish on May 22. 

Patriarch Younan meets Pope Leo XIV, calls for support of Middle East Christians

In their first official meeting, Syriac Catholic Patriarch Ignatius Joseph III Younan met Pope Leo XIV at the Vatican to discuss the plight of Christians in the Middle East, ACI MENA, CNA's Arabic-language news partner, reported.

Younan shared concerns over emigration, the loss of youth, and the need for continued spiritual and humanitarian support. He highlighted his church's efforts in pastoral care both in the East and in diaspora communities while calling for deeper ecumenical cooperation, especially with the Syriac Orthodox Church. 

Monastic order appeals for return of seized lands in Mosul

The Antonine Hermizdian Chaldean Order is appealing to Iraqi authorities to return more than 1,400 dunams (346 acres) of land that it claims were unjustly confiscated during Saddam Hussein's regime, ACI MENA reported. The call comes after a recent government initiative reallocated part of that land for a housing project for Christian returnees — without acknowledging its original monastic ownership. 

The order, led by Abbot Samer Sourisho, says it is willing to donate hundreds of plots of land to Christian families if the full land is restored. Despite multiple legal attempts since 2003 — including a rejected lawsuit in 2012 — the monastic order says the Iraqi state continues to ignore historical land claims. 

Sourisho criticized the local government for "generously giving away what it does not own" and described the situation as emblematic of how past injustices are being entrenched instead of corrected. 

The monks called on the state to recognize their rightful ownership and support the return of displaced Christians by empowering religious institutions, not sidelining them.

Over 10,000 Vietnamese Catholics participate in Marian jubilee pilgrimage 

Over 10,000 Vietnamese Catholics from across the Da Nang Diocese took part in a jubilee pilgrimage to the Marian Shrine of Our Lady of Tra Kieu, according to Agenzia Fides. 

The pilgrimage took place on the solemnity of the Visitation of the Blessed Virgin Mary, May 31. Archbishop Joseph Dang Duc presided over Mass, which was concelebrated by hundreds of priests. The archbishop described the event as one "of love, faith, commitment, and service, an opportunity to profess one's faith in the face of the challenges of the present time."

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Vatican City, Jun 6, 2025 / 09:35 am (CNA).

A group of European bishops have turned to Pope Leo XIV and the Holy See for help as the Court of Justice of the European Union reviews a Belgian court case about the cancellation of names from baptismal records.

In a May 23 audience at the Vatican, Pope Leo XIV "told us that he considers the issue very important. He mentioned it right from the start. He said, 'I really want to hear your opinion,'" Alessandro Calcagno, a lawyer and assistant general secretary of the European Union bishops' conference (COMECE), told ACI Stampa, CNA's Italian-language news partner.

The Court of Justice of the European Union is currently hearing a case brought by the Brussels Court of Appeal, which asked for clarification about whether the Catholic Church's refusal to erase names from baptismal records when requested is in violation of Europe's General Data Protection Regulation.

That rule has regulated the processing of personal data within the European Union since May 2018. The ruling of the European court is expected at the end of 2026 or in 2027.

Calcagno told ACI Stampa that when a baptized Catholic would ask to be removed from a register, usually a note was written in the margin of the document stating "formal apostasy from the faith." The record that baptism had taken place would remain as a historical fact. 

But at the end of 2023, in the Diocese of Ghent in Belgium, someone asked for all of their data to be completely removed from the register, which was opposed by the diocese.

There were already some similar cases in Europe in 1995, Calcagno said, but all with national court rulings favorable to the Church.

Now, he said, is "the first time that there have been small attempts to undermine this positive tendency. Because until now, case law stated that the judgment was [to add a] notation, but suddenly the idea of the cancellation [of data] has arrived."

The question of how this can be resolved is open and the subject of a legal tug-of-war between authorities and the Church. 

"In both Belgium and the Netherlands, there is an attempt by secular civil courts to interpret canon law to argue in favor of cancellation," Calcagno noted. "This is a great danger because if you start to enter into a law that is not your own, you start to manipulate [that law]."

COMECE is working with the Holy See to defend the Church's position on the issue of baptismal records.

The role of COMECE has been to "bring together reflections and legal arguments when certain cases arise at the European Union level," Calcagno said, and to hold meetings with various jurists from the national bishops' conferences.

"We gathered many arguments that were then used," he said. "Several member states intervened in the procedure, and there was also work done by the churches at the local level. In addition, there was strong collaboration with the Holy See, and a note was published on April 17, 2025, specifically on cancellations from baptismal registers, and we worked very intensively with the Holy See on this."

The note from the Dicastery for Legislative Texts affirmed that "canon law does not allow the modification or cancellation of registrations made in the baptismal register, except to correct possible transcription errors. The purpose of this register is to provide certainty regarding certain acts, making it possible to verify their actual existence."

The issue has been monitored for years, and solutions that the European Court will accept are being sought. But it should be clarified, according to Calcagno, that "the court is merely drafting a response to questions it has received from a national court. It is not an initiative against the Church by the European Union. It is a response to clarifications requested at the national level."

The answer will take a few years, he explained, because "there has to be a public hearing, then there is an advocate general who gives guidance, called conclusions, and then the ruling comes." 

According to a 2023 annual report, 1,270 Catholics in Belgium requested their names be removed from the baptismal register, due largely to profound fallout and public outrage over the handling of sexual abuse scandals.

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CNA Staff, Jun 6, 2025 / 10:31 am (CNA).

Catholic bishops from Maryland, Delaware, and Washington, D.C., released a pastoral letter this week addressing the rapid rise of artificial intelligence (AI) and the Church's response to the numerous challenges and opportunities the technology presents. 

Signed by Baltimore Archbishop William Lori, Cardinal Robert McElroy of Washington, Wilmington Bishop William Koenig, and Maryland's four auxiliary bishops, the letter, titled "The Face of Christ in a Digital Age," urges Christians to discern "how to speak and live the Gospel amid the new language and powers emerging through artificial intelligence."

Released ahead of the solemnity of Pentecost, the bishops write that Christians should not fear the rapid development of technology, which "is not foreign to the Spirit's work, for God's Spirit moves through history, culture, and human creativity."

However, the bishops write: "Will we allow technology to form us in its image — or will we shape it according to the Gospel?"

The Catholic Church "must be a prophetic voice, calling the world to place the human person, made in the image of God, at the heart of this transformation," the letter states.

"No matter how advanced machines become, they can never replicate the soul, the conscience, or the eternal destiny that belongs to each human being," the bishops argue in the letter.

The letter highlights AI's potential benefits to humanity in the realms of health care, education, evangelization, and humanitarian efforts while warning of its risks, including job displacement and the use of lethal autonomous weapons, as well as the manipulation of truth. 

In order to teach discernment in an era where digitally fabricated content blurs the line between truth and falsehood and reality and fantasy, the bishops strongly emphasize a focus on the development of virtue, especially regarding the formation of conscience. 

"It is essential that we form consciences capable of discernment — especially among young people — so that they may not be manipulated by algorithms but by truth and grace," the prelates write. "Digital tools can inform, but they cannot form the heart."

The bishops call for parishes and families to ground digital engagement and media literacy in Scripture and the sacramental life and admonish the faithful to cultivate real "empathy and authentic relationships." 

Michael Hanby, a professor of religion and philosophy of science at the Pontifical John Paul II Institute for Studies on Marriage and Family, told CNA that while the document "identifies some obvious dangers with AI as well as some good uses to which it can be put," it does not go far enough.

"There are other dangers," Hanby continued, "especially the reduction of human intelligence ordered to understanding the truth, to a 'functional intelligence without thinking or understanding,' that the letter doesn't really address."

"It is built into the logic of technology, and especially technologies as powerful as this, that there are dangers that we simply cannot foresee.  We have not yet fully comprehended this new kind of power," Hanby said.

The Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith and the Dicastery for Culture and Education addressed the same concerns as Hanby in a note issued in January titled "Antique et Nova: Note on the Relationship Between Artificial Intelligence and Human Intelligence."

"The Christian tradition regards the gift of intelligence as an essential aspect of how humans are created 'in the image of God' (Gn 1:27)," the note stated, emphasizing that "one of the goals of this technology is to imitate the human intelligence that designed it."

The dicastery acknowledged fears that AI could achieve a kind of superintelligence that "could one day eclipse the human person," though some welcome this possibility.

"We do not know yet whether AI is simply a 'tool' that can be used or shaped according to the Gospel," Hanby told CNA. "I wish the letter had emphasized more strongly the need for more philosophical thinking about this, and I wish it had taken a little more care to distinguish the movement of the Spirit, which is a mystery, from the history of technological progress. But then again, the letter presents an open-ended challenge, not the final word."

Drawing parallels to other historical technological shifts like the invention of the printing press and the advent of the internet, the bishops in their letter encourage Catholics to approach AI with courage and hope, invoking the Holy Spirit to "renew the face of the earth" (Ps 104:30).

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Vatican City, Jun 6, 2025 / 06:00 am (CNA).

When will Carlo Acutis be canonized? That is the question Catholics are asking after the ceremony scheduled for April 27 was postponed due to the death of Pope Francis.

The young millennial, who suffered from leukemia and whose astonishing life and love for the Catholic Church sparked worldwide interest, died on Oct. 12, 2006, and was buried in Assisi, according to his wishes, due to his admiration for St. Francis.

Acutis was declared venerable in 2018 and blessed on Oct. 10, 2020. On May 23, 2024, Pope Francis paved the way for the youth to be elevated to sainthood after approving a second miracle attributed to his intercession.

The scientifically inexplicable event that allegedly occurred with Acutis' intervention concerned a 21-year-old Costa Rican woman, Valeria Valverde, who miraculously survived a serious bicycle accident that left her on the verge of death with a severe head injury.

Last July, Pope Francis convened an ordinary public consistory to confirm several causes for canonization. This ceremony determined the final step of the canonization process through a vote. In addition to Acutis, the canonizations of Blesseds Giuseppe Allamano, Marie-Léonie Paradis, and Elena Guerra were also approved.

However, although the consistory approved Acutis' canonization, the pontiff did not determine the exact date on which he would be proclaimed a saint.

The long-awaited announcement came a few months later, last November, when Pope Francis indicated at the end of a general audience that the young man known as "God's influencer" would be elevated to the altars on April 27, 2025, coinciding with the Jubilee of Teenagers.

The news was received with great enthusiasm by the faithful — and especially by teenagers from around the world, tens of thousands of whom made plans to travel to Rome to be part of this historic event. However, the ceremony had to be postponed following Pope Francis' death on April 21.

Now, following the path forged by Francis, Pope Leo XIV has convened his first consistory for June 13 to confirm the canonization of eight blesseds whose processes were initiated by his predecessor. However, Acutis' name is not included on the official list of blesseds.

The date is not voted on: The pope announces it

Asked about the reasons why Acutis is not among these names, Monsignor Alberto Royo, promoter of the faith at the Dicastery for the Causes of Saints, explained to ACI Prensa, CNA's Spanish-language news partner, that "his canonization was approved in the last consistory [on July 1, 2024], so he is no longer included in this one."

In this regard, he clarified that the canonization date "is not something that is approved in the consistory, but rather the pope normally announces it on that occasion, although not necessarily," he added.

"In the case of Carlo Acutis, the pope did not announce the date at the consistory, and it was announced later by the Secretariat of State," he continued.

Therefore, Royo pointed out that at the next consistory on June 13, "it could happen that the pope takes the opportunity to announce the new date of the canonization, but it could also happen that he doesn't announce it and that it will be the Secretariat of State that does."

Regarding Pier Giorgio Frassati, the young "mountaineer" whose canonization will be celebrated on Aug. 3, Royo recalled that Pope Francis "directly announced his canonization before the consistory had even been held," which is why his name appears on the June 13 list.

The Vatican official referred to this gesture as one of Pope Francis' "spontaneous actions" that "preempted the consistory process, as also happened with José Gregorio Hernández," the first Venezuelan saint. "After all, he had the authority to do it," he emphasized.

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, Jun 6, 2025 / 07:00 am (CNA).

This month the National Shrine of St. Elizabeth Ann Seton is hosting two pilgrimages to commemorate the 50-year anniversary of the canonization of the first American-born saint. 

The Footsteps of Mother Seton pilgrimage and the Camino of Maryland will both offer a chance for the faithful to walk together in prayer and travel through some of the same places that Seton did more than 200 years ago.

"As the late Pope Francis once said, 'Making a pilgrimage to the National Shrine of St. Elizabeth Ann Seton is one of the most eloquent expressions of the faith of God's people,'" the executive director at the shrine, Rob Judge, said in a press release.

"We see every day how our sacred and historical spaces at the shrine enable pilgrims to encounter Our Lord, grow in their faith, and receive answers to their prayers," Judge said. 

Footsteps of Mother Seton

Footsteps of Mother Seton is a four-day pilgrimage organized by the shrine that will guide pilgrims along the same path Seton took from Baltimore to Emmitsburg, where she founded the first community of religious sisters in the U.S., the Sisters of Charity of St. Joseph. 

The pilgrimage will begin on June 19 with a Mass at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Assumption in Baltimore and then proceed on the 61-mile trek to the shrine in Emmitsburg, Maryland.

The shrine was "inspired" to do the pilgrimage "because even before the jubilee was announced, we knew it was going to be the 50th anniversary of Mother Seton's canonization," Becca Corbell, associate director of programs for the shrine, told CNA.

"It's totally God's timing because we're in a jubilee year," Corbell said. 

Throughout the journey, pilgrims will stop at three jubilee sites and four parishes to pray with parishioners and to share and reflect on Mother Seton. Along the way, participants will have the opportunity to attend Eucharistic processions, Holy Hours, adoration under the stars, Mass, and community meals.

"We wanted to do things that help people encounter God the way Elizabeth Ann Seton did, and we thought this might be a good fit. The parishes along the way have been super supportive and [are] excited to partner with us. They're just as big of a part of it as we are," Corbell said. 

There are expected to be 12-15 pilgrims who will walk the full four days, but the pilgrimage is accessible for those who want to join for only parts of the travels or just the evening events. 

"We wanted to structure it in such a way that even people that can't walk long distances are still pilgrims. We didn't want there to be any barrier to entry with that type of spirituality program."

"It's more to us about the spirituality of pilgrimage. That [is] something a lot of people don't know about Elizabeth Ann Seton, she really was focused on 'this world is not our home, eternity is.'"

"That's why she made the decision to convert to Catholicism," Corbell said, because "eternity was "a real guiding light for her."

The Camino of Maryland 

The Camino of Maryland hosted by the Avalon School in Wheaton, Maryland; the Brookewood School in Kensington, Maryland; and the shrine is also taking place this month. The two-week-long pilgrimage begins June 9 at Point Lookout in southern Maryland and will end at the shrine. 

The Camino of Maryland journey will cover 218 miles as pilgrims travel through multiple landscapes in Maryland and the nation's capital. They will have access to daily Mass, confession, and time for the rosary. They will stop at seven jubilee sites throughout the route.

The camino's "mission is to not only provide a unique experience of physical and spiritual growth but to also foster an environment of friendship, understanding, and appreciation of the beauty that surrounds us," the pilgrimage's website indicated. 

The camino will also end on June 22, the feast of Corpus Christi, which Corbell shared was unintentional but rather "God's timing." The two pilgrimages will come together and end with a solemn Eucharistic procession together on the historic shrine grounds.  

If people wish to participate, but are not local to either pilgrimage, the shrine's website is accepting prayer intention submissions and the pilgrims will "carry those and pray for them every day," Corbell said.

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CNA Staff, Jun 5, 2025 / 16:09 pm (CNA).

A Nigerian-born priest who served in the Diocese of Fairbanks, Alaska, for more than half a decade has been captured by the terrorist group Boko Haram after returning to his home country. 

Fairbanks Bishop Steven Maekawa, OP, said in a statement this week that Father Alphonsus Afina was "captured by Boko Haram as he was serving the Church in the Diocese of Maiduguri" in the Nigerian state of Borno.

Afina served in the Alaskan diocese for six and a half years before returning to Nigeria last April, the bishop said. 

"Pray for his freedom from captivity and for his physical and spiritual strength," he wrote. The bishop said he planned to offer a special Mass at Sacred Heart Cathedral in Fairbanks for Afina. 

The papal charity Aid to the Church in Need reported on Thursday that Maiduguri Auxiliary Bishop John Bagna Bakeni said the priest was taken on Sunday, June 1. 

Afina and two others were kidnapped in the Gwoza region while traveling to Maiduguri, the prelate said. The party with which they were traveling was reportedly "caught in a crossfire between Nigerian soldiers and terrorists," with multiple fatalities resulting. 

Bakeni told the charity that the diocese was contacted by Boko Haram, which offered proof that the kidnapped priest was still alive. 

The Fairbanks Diocese did not respond to a query on Thursday regarding the incident. Father Robert Fath, the vicar general of the diocese, told local media that the diocese was "hopeful that [our] prayers, our intercessions … will soften [Boko Haram's] hearts to release him."

"There's not much we can do" except pray, Fath said. 

"It's the most powerful thing that we can do at this point; pray for his strength during this time of captivity and persecution, but also [that] he'll hopefully, God willing, one day be freed."

Aid to the Church in Need said Afina is the 15th religious to be kidnapped in Nigeria this year.

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CNA Staff, Jun 5, 2025 / 17:34 pm (CNA).

Here is a roundup of recent pro-life and abortion-related news:

Kentucky ACLU drops suit challenging state's near-ban on abortion 

The American Civil Liberties Union of Kentucky recently dropped a lawsuit it filed last year challenging Kentucky's protections for unborn children.  

The ACLU filed a motion last Friday to voluntarily dismiss the lawsuit and did not give a reason.  

The organization filed the suit, Poe v. Coleman, last year in a state court in Louisville on behalf of a woman identified under the pseudonym Mary Poe for her privacy. She was seven weeks pregnant at the time.

The suit challenged Kentucky's laws that protect unborn children from abortion: namely the state's trigger law prohibiting most abortions after Roe v. Wade was overturned and a separate law protecting unborn children after six weeks of life. Kentucky law allows abortions only when the mother's life or health is at stake. In 2023, the state recorded only 23 abortions. 

ACLU of Kentucky Executive Director Amber Duke said in a statement that the group "will not be providing additional details about the dismissal," noting that "decisions about health care are and should remain private." But Duke pledged that the group "will never stop fighting to restore abortion access" in the state.

Kentucky Attorney General Russell Coleman celebrated the withdrawal in a post on X, saying that "Kentuckians can be proud that our pro-life values won the day today and innocent lives will continue to be saved as a result."

Pro-life protesters file free speech lawsuit 

A young pro-life couple from Ohio recently filed a free speech lawsuit after the husband was arrested for speaking on a megaphone outside of an abortion clinic.  

Zachary and Lindsay Knotts filed the lawsuit on May 30, saying that their freedom of speech and religion was violated. 

Since December 2024, the Knotts have spent Saturday mornings participating in sidewalk advocacy to save the lives of the unborn at the Northeast Ohio Women's Center, an abortion clinic in Cuyahoga Falls, according to the lawsuit. 

Zachary Knotts was arrested on a charge of disorderly conduct. He had been using a megaphone to amplify his voice over the noise pro-abortion escorts were making to drown him out.  

The lawsuit noted that abortion escorts used whistles and kazoos to drown out the Knotts' speech, but "only Mr. Knotts was given a citation and prosecuted for disorderly conduct." 

The lawsuit called the arrest "retaliatory" and said it violated free speech because the ordinance was not equally applied, banning amplified speech based on the nature of the speech.

Attorneys general call for expansion of chemical abortions

The attorneys general of Massachusetts, California, New Jersey, and New York this week called on the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to eliminate restrictions on the abortion drug mifepristone following the FDA's recent announcement that it would review the drug for safety concerns. 

In a joint petition on June 5, the four states' attorneys general called on the FDA to remove prescriber certification, patient agreement forms, and pharmacy certification requirements. 

New York Attorney General Letitia James said the drug has a "25-year safety record" and that the FDA should "lift these unnecessary barriers."

The petition follows the recent commitment by the FDA to review the drug for safety concerns in the wake of a study that found that about 11% of women suffer at least one "serious adverse event" within 45 days of taking mifepristone for an abortion.

A chemical abortion takes place via a two-pill regimen. The first pill, mifepristone, kills the child by blocking the hormone progesterone, which cuts off the child's supply of oxygen and nutrients. A second pill, misoprostol, is taken between 24 to 48 hours after mifepristone to induce contractions meant to expel the child's body from the mother, essentially inducing labor.

In April, a first-of-its-kind study by the Ethics and Public Policy Center found that of 865,727 mifepristone-taking abortion patients over six years, thousands were hospitalized, more than 1,000 needed blood transfusions, and hundreds suffered from sepsis. Nearly 2,000 had a different life-threatening adverse event.

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Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Jun 5, 2025 / 18:13 pm (CNA).

President Donald Trump's order this week to restrict foreign nationals in 19 countries from entering into the United States will impact six countries with a majority Catholic population and four other countries with a heavy presence of Catholics or other Christians.

According to the order, some of the countries are facing restrictions based on national security concerns and a high terrorism risk. Others were chosen due to high rates of people from those countries overstaying their visas for entry into the United States and remaining in the country unlawfully.

The order includes a near-total ban on three countries with a majority Catholic population: the Republic of the Congo, Equatorial Guinea, and Haiti. There are also partial restrictions on three others with Catholic majorities: Burundi, Venezuela, and Cuba.

The near-total ban will also affect Eritrea, where about half of the population is Christian. The largest denomination in Eritrea is the Eritrean Orthodox Tewahedo Church. The partial restrictions will affect Togo, as well, where about half of the population is Christian and the largest Christian segment is Catholic.

Chad, a Muslim-majority country with a large Christian minority, is also facing a near-total ban on entry. More than 40% of the population is Christian, half of whom are Catholic. The majority Muslim country Sierra Leone will be subject to partial restrictions. More than 20% of the people who live there are Christian, most of whom are Protestant.

Six other Muslim-majority countries with very small Christian populations are also subject to the near-total ban: Afghanistan, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, and Yemen. Burma, where most of the population is Buddhist, is also facing a near-total ban. Turkmenistan, a majority Muslim country, is facing partial restrictions, as is Laos, which is mostly Buddhist.

In a statement to CNA on Thursday, Bishop Mark Seitz, chairman of the Committee on Migration at the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB), criticized the new restrictions.

"Our country's proud tradition as a land of opportunity for people from all walks of life is increasingly contradicted by a system that makes legal immigration impossible for far too many," said Seitz, who has frequently criticized Trump's immigration policies.

"A broad ban on nationals from these countries further erodes trust in our legal immigration system and marginalizes entire peoples," the bishop said. "I pray that these restrictions will be lifted in due course."

The travel restrictions imposed by Trump include several exceptions. Those exempted include people who are lawful permanent residents of the United States, those who obtain immediate family immigrant visas, and adoptions, among others. Special exemptions are also granted to those suffering religious persecution in Iran and those who have worked directly alongside American forces in Afghanistan.

"[I] hope that the stated exceptions in the proclamation, such as those for Afghans who supported our country, immediate family members, and people seeking humanitarian protections, are honored," Seitz said.

Anna Gallagher, the executive director of the Catholic Legal Immigration Network (CLINIC), also criticized the order. CLINIC works closely with the USCCB. 

"We are particularly concerned about how this policy will affect families trying to reunite in the United States," Gallagher told CNA. 

"This was a primary concern of ours with previous travel bans implemented under the first Trump administration," she continued. "We have already seen the devastating impact that cancellation of refugee and humanitarian immigration opportunities has had so far this year in terms of keeping families apart, and this policy will only deepen and extend that harm."

Upon announcing the travel restrictions on Wednesday, Trump said they were motivated by "extreme dangers posed to our country by the entry of foreign nationals who are not properly vetted as well as those who come here as temporary visitors and overstay their visas."

The president cited the recent terrorist attack in Colorado, in which an Egyptian man who overstayed his visa admitted to throwing molotov cocktails at people attending a vigil for Israeli hostages. 

"We've seen one terror attack after another carried out by foreign visa overstayers from dangerous places all over the world and thanks to [former President Joe] Biden's open door policies," the president said. "Today, there are millions and millions of these illegals who should not be in our country."

Trump imposed a similar travel ban during his first term in office, which was mostly focused on restricting travel from certain countries based on national security concerns.

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CNA Staff, Jun 5, 2025 / 11:45 am (CNA).

The International Committee of the Red Cross said its 60-bed field hospital in Rafah, Gaza Strip, was nearly overwhelmed by a mass casualty event on Tuesday that brought 184 patients through its doors.

The aid group said Tuesday's influx of patients was the highest the hospital has seen in one day since its opening more than a year ago. Nineteen of those patients were dead on arrival, and an additional eight died shortly thereafter, mostly from gunshot wounds. 

The same day, International Committee of the Red Cross President Mirjana Spoljaric told the BBC that Palestinians have been stripped of their human dignity and international humanitarian law is being ignored, saying "humanity is failing" and the situation in Gaza is "worse than hell on earth."

After responding to five mass casualty events in Gaza in the last week — four of them in the last 96 hours alone — the group is calling for the "respect and protection of civilians," who should not have to confront danger when trying to reach humanitarian assistance. 

Steve Dorsey, the U.S. head of communications and public affairs at the Red Cross committee in Gaza, spoke with "EWTN News Nightly" anchor Erik Rosales on Wednesday evening, telling him the situation in Gaza "is unbearable. We are at a breaking point." 

Dorsey told Rosales that Tuesday's mass casualty incident is the "latest illustration" of the Palestinian people's desperation to access aid and relief, including food and medical care.

Those who survived Tuesday's attack said they were trying to reach an aid distribution site run by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, the aid organization backed by the U.S. and Israel and the only one currently allowed to operate in Gaza.

Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said its troops fired on civilians who were "deviating from the designated access routes," leading IDF to designate the distribution site as a "combat zone."

The distribution site was closed on Wednesday for "update, organization, and efficiency improvements works," according to IDF. It reopened on Thursday.

Distribution site closures have prevented the delivery of the former popemobile-turned-ambulance for children donated by Pope Francis before his death. 

According to Dorsey, humanitarian workers and civilians in Gaza are "entering a new dangerous time." He told Rosales the Red Cross' limited access to the region and dwindling supplies have forced them to shut down the majority of community kitchens that fed thousands of people a day. 

Millions of Palestinians are at risk for starvation, according to the United Nations. 

On June 4, the head of humanitarian relief at the U.N., Tom Fletcher, condemned IDF's attacks on civilians who were "simply trying to eat."

Fletcher also called for independent investigations into the attacks near aid distribution sites, urging Israel to allow more aid and relief into Gaza.

Pope Leo XIV in the first general audience of his pontificate last month appealed for an end to hostilities in Gaza and for the entrance of humanitarian aid into the Gaza Strip.

In addition to providing medical care and food, Dorsey said his organization has been rebuilding sanitation and water systems in the area.

The International Committee of the Red Cross serves as the custodian of the Geneva Conventions, specifically the Fourth Geneva Convention, adopted in 1949 after the atrocities of World War II. 

It focuses on protections for civilians, including those in occupied territories, prohibiting acts like torture, collective punishment, and attacks on civilian infrastructure. It also mandates humane treatment for displaced persons, access to medical care, and the right to family communication.

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