Mother Angelica knew from experience that "God works through humble, unexpected instruments to spread his Gospel," said the principal celebrant at the Mass, Father Michael Baggot, LC.
A memorial Mass at St. Peter's Basilica was held on the 10th anniversary of the death of Mother Angelica, the foundress of EWTN, the world's largest Catholic media network.
The principal celebrant at the Mass, Father Michael Baggot, LC, a bioethics professor, recalled in his homily in the basilica's Chapel of the Choir that Mother Angelica "conveyed the faith with wit and wisdom."
"Her message was both consoling and challenging," he said.
Father Michael Baggot, LC, delivers the homily at the memorial Mass for Mother Angelica celebrated at St. Peter's Basilica on March 27, 2026. | Credit: Daniel Ibáñez/EWTN News
"Mother Angelica understood that the fruitfulness of the apostolate depends on union with the Lord. What she proclaimed on air, she first pondered in adoration," Baggot continued. "Mother Angelica also knew from experience that God works through humble, unexpected instruments to spread his Gospel."
During the homily, Baggot praised Mother Angelica's determination and repeated one of her famous quotes about serving the Lord, even when it seems difficult and frightening.
"As Mother said, 'You want to do something for the Lord … do it. Whatever you feel needs to be done, even though you're shaking in your boots, you're scared to death — take the first step forward. The grace comes with that one step and you get the grace as you step. Being afraid is not a problem; it's doing nothing when you're afraid.'"
Baggot said it is "fitting" to honor Mother Angelica just two days after the celebration of the Annunciation and in a chapel "dedicated to Our Lady." He said the Blessed Mother was also "deeply troubled by the angel's message" and both "afraid" and "scared," but she trusted God.
"Before such a daunting mission, she abandoned herself to Divine Providence. She was sustained by a love greater than any fear," he said.
Attendees at the memorial Mass for Mother Angelica at the Vatican on March 27, 2026. | Credit: Daniel Ibáñez/EWTN News
In view of the testimony of the Virgin Mary — whom he defined as the "definitive bearer of the Eternal Word" — the priest highlighted that Mother Angelica's life also reflected the paschal mystery, including her suffering following a stroke in 2001. "Mother knew from Mary that the 'fiat' given in youth must be renewed at the foot of the cross," Baggot noted.
Baggot added that because Mother Angelica followed God's calling, EWTN is accessible in hundreds of millions of homes in more than 160 countries and territories, and "its programs reach areas where conflict or persecution deprives citizens of other means of religious formation."
He further commended the network for continuing to be a beacon of beauty and inspiration.
Although EWTN "has outgrown its first Alabama garage," he said, "it has never outgrown — and could never outgrow — the reliance on Divine Providence that characterized Mother Angelica's life."
In addition to the Mass at St. Peter's Basilica, EWTN marked the anniversary with special programming throughout the day, including "Remembering Mother Angelica, 10 Years Later."
The EWTN Global Catholic Network is broadcasting these events across its television and digital platforms — including its YouTube channel, the streaming platform EWTN+, and live and on-demand at www.ewtn.com — making the tribute to Mother Angelica's life and legacy accessible to viewers worldwide.
Catholic leaders reacted after India's Supreme Court allowed the withdrawal of life support for a man in a vegetative state for 13 years.
NEW DELHI — Two weeks after the Supreme Court of India issued the country's first ruling approving passive euthanasia, the man at the center of the case — who had been in a vegetative state for 13 years — died March 24 after doctors withdrew his medical support, including clinically assisted nutrition, as the court had ordered.
"I am very sad to hear about the death of Harish Rana, first victim of euthanasia in the country," Archbishop Raphy Manjaly, the chairman of the doctrinal commission of the Catholic Bishops' Conference of India, told EWTN News March 26.
"Catholic Church considers life sacred from conception to natural death. No one has the right to take the life of other human being," said Manjaly, archbishop of Agra, a city in northern Uttar Pradesh state known for the Taj Mahal.
"It is strange and a contradiction that the medical science that is supposed to support life assisted to take away life," lamented Manjaly, referring to the March 11 order of the Supreme Court that "the medical treatment, including clinically assisted nutrition and hydration (CANH) being administered to the applicant, shall be withdrawn/withheld."
Rana, an engineering student, had been in a vegetative state since 2013 following a fall from the balcony of his fourth-floor accommodation.
"The Church is shocked and appalled by this verdict," Manjaly said. A previous Supreme Court bench, led by the chief justice of India, had rejected the same family's demand for euthanasia.
Calls for palliative care
Acknowledging that "it is difficult for the family and I do not condemn them," the prelate said: "What is required is more and more compassionate institutions to offer palliative care to terminally ill patients. [The] Church has several institutions. There are many people of goodwill also doing it."
He cited the 2011 verdict of India's apex court in a similar case — a plea for mercy killing for Aruna Shanbaug, a nurse in a comatose condition for 37 years after a brutal assault in a Mumbai hospital while on duty. In that ruling, the Supreme Court said: "Right to life guaranteed by Article 21 of the Constitution does not include the right to die."
Shanbaug was 25 in November 1973 when a sweeper at the hospital where she worked sexually assaulted her and strangled her with a dog chain, interrupting the flow of oxygen to her brain and inducing the coma.
The mercy killing plea "to die with dignity" was then opposed by the attorney general of India — the highest law officer in the government — as well as the staff of King Edward Memorial (KEM) Hospital in Mumbai, where Shanbaug had been leading a "persistent vegetative life" under their care. She died of pneumonia in 2015.
"The whole country must learn the meaning of dedication and sacrifice from the KEM hospital staff. In her 37 years [of comatose existence], Aruna has not developed a single bed sore," the Supreme Court said at the time.
Pro-life activists raise alarm
"A deep sense of unease is spreading across sections of Indian society following recent developments that could redefine the meaning of life and dignity in the country," Sunny Kattukaran, one of the country's prominent lay pro-life activists, told EWTN News.
"India has upheld life as sacred for ages — protected not only by law but also by deeply rooted cultural and spiritual values. Yet today, there are growing concerns that evolving legal interpretations and scientific advancements are moving faster than the ethical boundaries that once guided them," said Kattukaran, who leads Christian Movement of India with pro-life activities.
With the media glorifying the decision of the Rana family to donate his corneas and heart valves for transplant, Kattukaran cautioned that "more and more such euthanasia demands will come up now."
Mary Waldorf is rallying her town to petition against second-trimester abortions offered by Enloe Medical Center.
Mary Waldorf didn't know anything about organizing petitions, but when a hospital worker and fellow parishioner told her that staff were forced to participate in second-trimester abortions, she felt called to do something.
Enloe Medical Center in Chico, California, about 80 miles north of Sacramento, is the primary hospital in the area.
"It's the only hospital in a huge county. We all have to use it," Waldorf told "EWTN Pro-Life Weekly."
Waldorf still remembers how she felt the day she found out about the abortions being performed there.
"I spent the rest of the day just bawling because I know what a second-trimester abortion is," she said.
"Everybody was shocked," she added.
Waldorf went with a small group to peacefully protest in front of the hospital, holding signs. Hospital staff approached, asking why they were there.
"They didn't even know" about the later-term abortions being performed at the facility, Waldorf said.
Waldorf claimed that local media will not cover the controversy. She said she has sent several letters to the editor of local papers but described the situation as a "media blackout."
A pediatrician at the hospital told her the hospital administration might reconsider if there was enough concern. "Why she told me, God only knows," Waldorf said. "But I thought, well, if that's the case, then what if we do a petition?"
"I'm just somebody who goes to church, has grandkids, goes to work — I don't know how to do [a petition]," she told "EWTN Pro-Life Weekly."
"I am not a media [figure]. But when God gives you an opportunity, you got to go for it."
The petition had about 800 signatures as of March 27. Waldorf is aiming for 10,000 — 10% of the size of the town.
Waldorf said staff members have told her that the hospital allegedly has refused to allow some medical workers to opt out of assisting with abortion procedures.
"They were told that the pre-op and the post-op nurses and personnel could not opt out," Waldorf said.
Waldorf runs a local chapter of 40 Days for Life, a nationwide effort aimed at praying for women seeking abortions and for their children, usually in front of abortion clinics during Lent. She says she wants women to have "true choice."
"If the mindset of people is about death, they don't consider the child — and you have to consider both," Waldorf said. "They're not counseling these women. What about giving them true choice?"
"The dignity of the human person is so paramount," Waldorf added. "And I think that that is what's being lost here completely."
Pope Leo XIV erected the Diocese of Joypurhat on March 25, appointing Father Paul Gomes as first bishop of a region whose Catholics are largely Indigenous.
DHAKA — Pope Leo XIV has erected a new diocese in northern Bangladesh, naming a veteran seminary rector as its first bishop in what local Catholics are calling an Easter gift to the region's predominantly Indigenous faithful.
The Diocese of Joypurhat was established March 25, carved out of territories belonging to the dioceses of Rajshahi and Dinajpur and made a suffragan of the Archdiocese of Dhaka. The announcement was made by Archbishop Kevin Randall, apostolic nuncio to Bangladesh.
Father Paul Gomes, 63, a priest of the Diocese of Rajshahi and rector of the Holy Spirit Major Seminary in Banani, Dhaka, has been appointed the diocese's first bishop.
Gomes was born in the Diocese of Rajshahi on Sept. 3, 1962. He studied philosophy and theology at the Holy Spirit Major Seminary and earned a bachelor of arts degree from Notre Dame College in Dhaka. He later completed a master's degree and licentiate in dogmatic theology at the University of Santo Tomas in Manila, Philippines. He was ordained a priest on Dec. 29, 1992, and has served in pastoral and academic roles across the Rajshahi Diocese ever since, including as vicar general and rector of the Good Shepherd Cathedral in Rajshahi before returning to seminary leadership.
Speaking to Radio Veritas after the announcement, Gomes said he would work to strengthen the faith, education, moral and social values, and overall development of the faithful in the new diocese.
"There is no infrastructure here except for the parishes. I have to build a new bishop's house and other infrastructure, and I hope to complete it with everyone's cooperation," Gomes said.
'An Easter gift from Pope Leo XIV'
The new Joypurhat Diocese has 10 parishes and two quasi-parishes, serving approximately 23,000 Catholics, the majority of whom belong to Indigenous communities.
"I think the new bishop and the diocese are an Easter gift from Pope Leo XIV to us. I hope the new bishop will carry out his pastoral work properly with our laypeople," said Hilarius Mardy, a father of two.
Mardy told EWTN News that lay Catholics would provide every kind of support within their means to the new bishop, but he added that the development of the diocese would require cooperation from Catholics across Bangladesh, not only within the new diocese.
Questions over Indigenous representation
With the erection of Joypurhat, Bangladesh now has nine Catholic dioceses. Less than 1% of Bangladesh's approximately 180 million people are Christian; the country's roughly 400,000 Catholics include a large proportion from Indigenous communities.
However, the appointment has prompted some differences of opinion. A 55-year-old Catholic who asked not to be named said an Indigenous bishop would have encouraged more Indigenous people to enter religious life.
"I think the bishop who has been appointed is qualified, but was there no qualified Indigenous priest? If not, then it is a failure of the Church," the Catholic said.
Although Gomes has been formally appointed, his episcopal consecration is scheduled for June 5 in Joypurhat, Chancellor Father Premu T. Rozario of the Diocese of Rajshahi told EWTN News. Since no bishop's house yet exists, the installation will take place at a local parish church near the city of Joypurhat.
"When life hurts, what is truly human is to care, to accompany, and to sustain — not to kill," Elena Postigo, a bioethics specialist said.
Elena Postigo, a corresponding member of the Pontifical Academy for Life, weighed in on the March 26 death by euthanasia tragedy of Noelia Castillo Ramos, a 25-year-old Spanish woman, from the perspective of her scientific field — bioethics — in a post on X.
At the outset of her message, Postigo acknowledged that the young woman's story has deeply affected her: "I have been profoundly moved," she noted, before summarizing the tragedy of Castillo's life.
Noelia Castillo | Credit: Courtesy of Y AHORA SONSOLES
"A young woman — the daughter of divorced parents facing severe difficulties — was taken into the care of Social Services and placed in a juvenile detention center. There, she was gang-raped and received neither the psychological care nor the human support she so desperately needed. Following a failed suicide attempt, she was left wheelchair-bound, plunging even deeper into her pain," Postigo explained.
This story "lays bare the deepest fissures within our system: It reveals a victim of institutional abandonment who was left utterly alone to face her suffering," the specialist asserted.
Her request for euthanasia "is presented as an act of freedom, yet in reality, it expresses the hopelessness of someone who was never truly embraced or treated with the dignity she deserved. We are not dealing with a case of euthanasia here but rather one of assisted suicide."
'A grave failure that sets a precedent'
The Pontifical Academy of Life member emphasized that Castillo did not "suffer from a terminal illness but rather from profound depression stemming from unhealed trauma. Even so, the law permits opening that door without distinguishing between irreversible physical suffering and psychological suffering that can be treated and alleviated."
In her view, this consideration constitutes "a grave failure that sets a precedent: a regulation that is today being applied to individuals who could regain their lives if they received the appropriate help, therapy, and support."
The law — rather than offering genuine compassion — ends up legitimizing the renunciation of life by those who most need support and hope.
Elena Postigo
corresponding member of the Pontifical Academy for Life
"The law — rather than offering genuine compassion — ends up legitimizing the renunciation of life by those who most need support and hope," Postigo observed. "Noelia didn't need to be offered death but rather someone to restore her sense of purpose, provide assistance, and offer the possibility of healing."
Postigo further maintained that Castillo's case is "the reflection of a profound collective failure. When life hurts, what is truly human is to care, to accompany, and to sustain — not to kill."
Sharing her personal perspective, the bioethics specialist said that in such cases, compassion "ought to translate into presence, accompaniment, and care, not into authorization to die."
"The fact that the state would even contemplate assisted suicide for such a young person strikes me as a grave error and, above all, a moral defeat."
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.
The diocese in New York declared bankruptcy just over three years ago.
The Diocese of Albany, New York, will pay survivors of sexual abuse a $148 million settlement in restitution for what Bishop Mark O'Connell called a "shameful chapter" of abuse in the diocese's history.
The diocese announced the settlement in a press release on March 27. The nine-figure amount was still subject to court approval, but the amount itself had been accepted by the committee of survivors suing the diocese.
In the press release, O'Connell admitted a "clear and un-nuanced statement of guilt on the part of the diocese in its handling of our predator priests and others within the diocese."
"It is a shameful chapter in our history, and no monetary settlement such as the one reached today will erase the pain caused to survivors," he said while apologizing.
The bishop vowed to be "exceedingly diligent" in working to "prevent anything like this occurring again."
Representatives of the survivors' committee, meanwhile, said the settlement pointed the way to "closure for all survivors."
The committee said it "looks forward to working further with the diocese to enhance its child protection protocols."
The diocese in its statement said that diocesan insurers may contribute additional funds to the global settlement; the statement noted that it is "typical" for insurance carriers to provide "a significant portion" of abuse settlements.
The diocese had declared bankruptcy in 2023 while facing hundreds of abuse lawsuits under the state's Child Victims Act of 2019.
In April 2025 then-Bishop Edward Scharfenberger announced that the Albany Diocese would launch a campaign to "rechannel [diocesan] efforts and resources" amid a major financial crisis.
The plan included the closure or merging of "perhaps one-third" of the diocese's 126 parishes. The bishop said at the time that, among other things, "clergy health and well-being, quality sacramental ministry, consistent attendance, participation, and volunteerism" were "heading in the wrong direction."
The announcement came just two days after Sarah Mullally's installation as archbishop of Canterbury.
Pope Leo XIV is set to meet with Sarah Mullally, the first female archbishop of Canterbury, as part of Mullally's planned visit to Rome from April 25–28.
The announcement of the visit came from Lambeth Palace just two days after Mullally's installation, which made her the first woman to hold the highest-ranking role in the Church of England.
It is also notable that the ascension of Mullally to that post continues to have significant repercussions within Anglicanism. Earlier this month, the Global Anglican Future Conference — which represents approximately 80% of Anglicans worldwide — announced that its member churches should "remove any reference to being in communion with the See of Canterbury."
On the occasion of her March 25 installation as the highest spiritual authority in Anglicanism, Pope Leo sent a message to Mullally in which he underscored the responsibilities of the office, particularly during "a challenging moment in the history of the Anglican family."
The pope also recalled the progress made in ecumenical dialogue between Catholics and Anglicans and emphasized the need to continue advancing toward Christian unity.
For her part, Mullally expressed her gratitude to Pope Leo XIV for his closeness and prayers, and acknowledged the value of ecumenical dialogue between churches as well as unity among Christians.
She also asked the pope for prayers for the Church of England and for the Anglican Communion as a whole, "so that we may be guided by the Holy Spirit in faithfulness, unity, and charity."
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.
On the day we mark the anniversary of Mother Angelica's entry into eternal life, we recall the unusual circumstances of her first procession and her response: "That's the way God works with me."
If you picture a nun's first profession of vows, you probably picture a serene, peaceful affair with the sisters singing harmoniously and everything running joyfully and smoothly.
However, the day of Mother Angelica's first vows was anything but.
Outside, a blizzard spit snow and ice, snarling roads and delaying the guests — including the presiding bishop, James McFadden.
Inside, different storms were brewing.
As then-Sister Angelica knelt behind the grille, trying to pray before taking her vows, the organist sister and the choir director, Sister Mary of the Cross (with whom Sister Angelica had sparred in the past), began arguing about musical technique, within earshot of the already-arrived guests.
Voices slowly escalated. Suddenly the two nuns were at each other: the organist refusing to play, Mary of the Cross threatening to throw her into the snow if she didn't.
"And I'm sitting there trying to re-collect myself for my vows," Mother Angelica recalled. "The people must have thought we were nuts."
Then came the bug, scampering across the wooden floor in front of the sisters.
Mary of the Cross rose up, lifted the kneeler with both hands, and pounded it on the ground, attempting to annihilate the insect. Like a madwoman with a jackhammer, she repeatedly wielded the prie-dieu (kneeler), hurling it and herself at the crawler. The organist, thinking the display an underhanded critique of her playing, pounded the keys all the harder. Sister Angelica could not believe what she termed "the shenanigans." Then the bishop walked in.
Wet and cold from walking several blocks where he had to leave his stalled car, McFadden requested a fresh pair of socks, which Sister Mary of the Cross sent Sister Angelica to get.
When it came time to place the profession ring on Sister Angelica's fingers, the bishop couldn't fit it past her knuckle — her hand was swollen from a shower handle in the convent that had crumbled and cut her hand several days prior.
"With everything going on there, I'm thinking, 'Oh Jesus doesn't love me.' You know? ... I mean, it was a real spiritual experience!" Mother Angelica said. "But that's the way God works with me. As I look back, before anything big that was coming, something happened to me."
Despite "the shenanigans" of the day, Sister Angelica took her vows seriously, writing in a letter to her mother that "the espoused" and "royal couple" (herself and Jesus) "wished to express their gratitude to their friend and member of their personal court ... The spouse has asked the Bridegroom to fill you with his peace and consolation."
She signed the letter: "Jesus and Angelica."
Mother Mary Angelica of the Annunciation died on March 27, 2016, after a lengthy struggle with the aftereffects of a stroke. She was 92 years old.
EWTN Global Catholic Network was launched by Mother Angelica in 1981 and now reaches over 425 million households in more than 160 countries and territories. As the world's largest religious media network, it operates 11 global TV channels 24/7, along with extensive radio, digital, and print platforms, as well as EWTN Publishing. It also offers a religious goods catalogue.
EWTN is the parent company of EWTN News, which operates electronic and print news services, including EWTN News English (a news wire service formerly called Catholic News Agency), the National Catholic Register, and the ACI group (global Catholic news services around the world including Africa, the Middle East, Latin America, Germany, and Brazil).
This story first ran on March 28, 2016, and has been updated.
Catholics who are helping those affected by war in Lebanon are calling for peace and diplomatic solutions as more than 1,000 people have died and more than 1 million people are displaced.
Catholic organizations in the Middle East are helping provide aid, food, and shelter to people in Lebanon who are displaced by the ongoing military conflict, and some people remain concerned that a possible full-scale invasion by Israel could exacerbate the crisis.
Lebanon was pulled into the regional conflict when Iranian-backed Hezbollah fighters launched missiles into northern Israel and Israel Defense Forces (IDF) returned fire in their strongholds, primarily southern Lebanon.
Monalisa Freiha, associate editor and deputy editor-in-chief at An-Nahar Al Arabi, spoke to "EWTN News Nightly" on March 26 with concerns for Lebanese people, saying they "did not choose this war" and "are not part of the decisions that led to this war."
"[We] are paying the price every single day, living under bombardment, fear, and uncertainty," she said.
Israeli forces launched incursions into southern Lebanon to establish a security zone near the border, and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on March 25 it will move deeper into Lebanon to expand this zone. Hezbollah fighters are scattered throughout the region, but most of their attacks still come from rockets and drones, while ground clashes are limited.
Israeli officials ordered evacuations for areas south of the Litani River, which is primarily Shia Muslim but also home to Catholic, Eastern Orthodox, and Sunni Muslim minorities. Hezbollah and Iranian leadership are Shia.
More than 1,000 people in Lebanon have been killed. More than 1 million people have been displaced, and tens of thousands of civilians have remained in conflict zones despite evacuation orders.
Situation on the ground
Cedric Choukeir, Catholic Relief Services (CRS) country representative for Lebanon, told EWTN News the evacuations were "very challenging" for people and said the process was "very chaotic" because people did not have "a lot of choice or clarity around when they needed to evacuate, what timeline they were allowed to leave, [or] which routes they should be taking."
During the initial attacks, he said people "found themselves stuck in traffic with airstrikes around them." He said people were ordered to leave villages, but then "you'll find yourself in the next village which was also ordered to evacuate," and said travel to Beirut was taking anywhere between 14 to 24 hours.
The Lebanese government and humanitarian organizations are providing shelter, food, medical services, and other forms of aid to those affected. Some organizations involved include CRS, Jesuit Refugee Service (JRS), and Caritas Lebanon.
Choukeir, working out of Lebanon's capital Beirut, told EWTN News that CRS and Caritas have assisted 145,000 people who have been affected by the conflict so far.
He said CRS is working closely with Caritas and other faith-based partners to provide food kits, medicine, mattresses, blankets, pillows, and other forms of medical assistance to those housed in shelters. As the conflict continues, CRS is also working to make shelters "more dignified" by improving sanitation, access to hot water, and providing supplies "so people can prepare their own meals," he said.
With many children displaced during the school year, Choukeir said CRS is helping children deal with the trauma of the conflict.
In conjunction with Caritas, he said CRS is also working to provide assistance to the war zones: "We have a stock available of lifesaving assistance and commodities that we are sending to these areas."
Choukeir noted that some people who evacuated their villages remain stuck in southern cities, such as Tyre. Others chose not to evacuate, he said, because "they don't have anywhere to go, they don't have money to go, and they'd rather stay even if it means they're risking their lives."
Although 130,000 people are housed in shelters, Choukeir said most people must find "other solutions," such as staying with relatives, which can mean cramming dozens of people into homes. Many others are "staying in their cars [and] laying out tents in the streets," he said.
"There aren't enough collective shelters to host everyone who is displaced," Choukeir explained.
He said the displacement of people "is very visible around central Beirut," on the sea front, and in any neighborhood with a large Shia population.
Jesuit Father Daniel Corrou, the Middle East and North Africa regional director for JRS, is also based in Beirut, near Choukeir. He told EWTN News that he opened up his parish, St. Joseph, for migrant workers and ethnic minorities who need shelter during the attacks. The building holds about 200 people.
As he spoke about a recent Israeli attack that destroyed a building just 300 meters from the parish, he said: "I can hear Israeli drones flying overhead" during the phone interview, which he described as an everyday occurrence for people living in the city.
In addition to housing primarily migrant workers as a shelter, he said that population makes up most of the congregation and most of the volunteers helping refugees.
Corrou said many of the workers "make very little money," much of which they send back to their families. When speaking about the generosity of the volunteers, he said: "That's where I just stand back in awe."
Concerns about escalation
Choukeir expressed concern about a potential large-scale ground offensive from Israel in southern Lebanon, noting "there's still a significant amount of people there."
He said he is also concerned about Israel's destruction of bridges out of the region, stating that "if they want to evacuate," there needs to be "a way for them to be able to do so." He is worried about "further waves of people being displaced — not for the first time, but for the second time."
Corrou also expressed concerns and some pessimism, saying there's a "general fear" that even if the United States and Iran reach a peace agreement, it "would not end the conflict that's going on here [because] … Israel has different desires in Lebanon."
He said he has concerns for Shia Muslims because some shelters won't house them out of a fear they could "become targets." He also expressed concern for Catholics in the south, some of whom remain in the war zone out of fear "they wouldn't be able to get their land back" if they leave and Israel begins a lengthy occupation.
Corrou attended a security briefing for nongovernmental organizations and said it appears that Israel is not "targeting Christian areas" but that "Christian areas have been hit." He warned: "It's hard to say that they're safe, even if they remained in their Christian village."
He echoed the calls for peace that came from Pope Leo XIV and said "war is not going to solve this."
"This has to be about coming to some sort of conversation — a compromise," Corrou said. "This has to [have] a diplomatic solution."
Choukeir similarly invoked the Holy Father's call for peace and said "we would like to see the violence end and things to be resolved through diplomatic channels."
"We want to make sure that civilians are protected, we want to make sure that humanitarian workers are protected in this conflict, including health care workers and paramedics and unfortunately, I think more can be done on this front," he said.
Pastor Ezra Jin was detained along with dozens of other church leaders in October 2025.
In a bipartisan letter, federal lawmakers from both the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives urged President Donald Trump to use an upcoming U.S.-China summit to advocate the release of Christian leaders being detained by China's communist regime.
In the March 24 letter, U.S. Sens. Ted Budd, R-North Carolina, and Tim Kaine, D-Virginia, and Reps. Riley Moore, R-West Virginia, and Thomas Suozzi, D-New York, along with 29 other senators and House members asked Trump to push Chinese President Xi Jinping to release Christian leaders who have been arrested during recent crackdowns on churches not authorized by the communist People's Republic of China's (PRC).
The letter specifically urges Trump to "seek resolution of the case of Ezra Jin Mingri," founder and head pastor of Zion Church, who was arrested on Oct. 10, 2025, alongside other church leaders. He is still awaiting a trial.
"We encourage you to advocate for their release and request the PRC to allow Mr. Jin to leave China," the leader reads.
The lawmakers also urged Trump to raise "concerns regarding the ongoing unjust imprisonment and persecution of Christians, Tibetans, and Uyghurs, among other religious and ethnic minority groups across China."
The letter urges Trump to "utilize existing authorities, including target sanctions and visa restrictions" against those in the communist government "responsible for severe violations of religious freedom."
The lawmakers listed abuses such as "arbitrary detentions, lengthy prison sentences, forced closures of places of worship, destruction of religious property, and surveillance and intimidation of clergy and congregants."
"Through the International Religious Freedom Act, the administration is empowered to use targeted sanctions and increase reporting and diplomatic engagement to support your efforts to address severe violations of individuals' right to freedom of religion," the letter says.
Jin wanted to 'let Christ be the center of our church'
Jin, 56, served as an ordained pastor in Beijing's state-sanctioned Three-Self Patriotic Movement churches from the early 1990s until 2002. In 2002, he moved with his family to the U.S. to pursue a doctoral degree at Fuller Theological Seminary in California.
Two of his three children, all of whom are American citizens, were born during that time, "bucking the one-child policy," said Grace Jin Drexel, Jin's oldest child.
After completing his studies, he returned to Beijing in 2007 and, together with a small group of fellow believers, established Zion Church as an independent Protestant congregation.
Drexel, 31, told EWTN News that her father founded the Zion Church as an unregistered "house church" deliberately outside of the authorized channels.
She said her father and the other leaders chose not to register Zion Church because they wanted "to serve God and let Christ be the center of our church."
China's religious regulations require all Protestant churches to register with the government and affiliate with the state-controlled patriotic movement. Registered churches must accept government oversight, including approval of pastors, monitoring of sermons, installation of surveillance equipment, and alignment with official "Sinicization" policies that subordinate Christian faith to communist party ideology.
"I wouldn't say there are no real Christians in government churches," said Drexel, who grew up in China but now lives outside Washington, D.C., with her husband and children. "But ultimately, it's a church in captivity. You're always having to split your loyalty between God and the Communist Party."
"They were not being political," she said of her father and the other founders of the underground Zion Church. But after the Regulation of Religious Affairs law started to be enforced in 2018, "the government became less tolerant."
The Regulations on Religious Affairs is the primary national framework governing religion in China. In 2018, it expanded government powers over all aspects of religious organizations.
Key features require all religious groups, venues, and clergy to register with the government; religious activities must not harm national security, social stability, or ethnic unity, and there is a strong emphasis on preventing "foreign infiltration."
The patriotic movement for Protestants and the Chinese Catholic Patriotic Association operate under government oversight through the State Administration for Religious Affairs, now under the Chines Communist Party's United Front Work Department. Unregistered or independent groups, often called "house churches," operate in a legal gray area or are deemed illegal.
Zion Church began as a small house church meeting in homes or rented spaces. It grew rapidly, reaching about 1,500 members and over 20 pastors by 2018, with its own modern worship space, coffee shop, and bookstore in an office building.
It later expanded into a network of congregations across more than 40 cities in China, with estimates of 5,000-10,000 total participants, including online services.
Though technically illegal under Chinese law, Zion maintained its autonomy for years, until 2018, when the authorities shut down Zion's main Beijing building after the church refused to install government surveillance cameras in the sanctuary.
Drexel said her father's personality "isn't confrontational in general," so after the government's shutdown of the church, "he tried to find a middle road and went to a hybrid online/offline model."
Because of its online presence, the church was already poised to adapt to the COVID-19 pandemic, and it grew quickly at that time because "our church was the only one that had that structure, so instead of disappearing, it blew up," Drexel said.
She said the persecution that began in earnest in 2018, resulting in her father's arrest last fall, would have been "unthinkable" in the early 2000s.
"At the time, we in China thought, [after] the cultural revolution, 'We don't do that kind of thing in China anymore.' Now, so many Christians are in prison. It is bizarre that it is happening again."
Drexel has joined with Claire Lai, daughter of imprisoned publisher and Catholic Jimmy Lai, to advocate for the release of both their fathers and all unjustly detained Chinese citizens.
