'He's one of us': New short film chronicles Pope Leo XIV's Chicago life before papacy

The outside of Guaranteed Rate Field, where the Chicago White Sox baseball team plays. / Credit: Spirit Juice StudiosCNA Staff, Jun 21, 2025 / 07:00 am (CNA).From popping a wheelie in front of Pope Leo XIV's childhood home to sitting in "the pope's chair" at a favorite local pizzeria, filmmaker Rob Kaczmark appeared to be enjoying every stop along a tour of Pope Leo's childhood stomping grounds in a new short film released by Spirit Juice, a Catholic production company.The film, which Kaczmark called "a tribute to a South Side kid who made it all the way to the Vatican," is now available on YouTube."I'm still in awe of the fact that Pope Leo is from here. He's one of us," Kaczmark says in the film. "No matter where you're from, God can use you. You just have to be open to his call." CEO and President of Spirit Juice Studios Rob Kaczmark films outside of St. Rita of Cascia High School, the high school were Pope Leo XIV taught math. Credit: Spirit Juice StudiosThe filmmaker,...

Pope tells politicians that AI should serve human beings, not replace them 

The pope told the political leaders that "natural law, which is universally valid apart from and above other more debatable beliefs, constitutes the compass by which to take our bearings in legislating and acting." / Credit: Vatican MediaVatican City, Jun 21, 2025 / 09:30 am (CNA).Pope Leo urged political leaders from around the world to promote the common good, warning especially of the threat to human dignity from artificial intelligence (AI).  AI "will certainly be of great help to society, provided that its employment does not undermine the identity and dignity of the human person and his or her fundamental freedoms," the pope said on June 21 to legislators from 68 countries gathered at the Vatican for the Jubilee of Governments.   "It must not be forgotten that artificial intelligence functions as a tool for the good of human beings, not to diminish them, not to replace them," Leo said, speaking in English to the international audience. &...

Argentine businessman Enrique Shaw one step closer to beatification

Venerable Enrique Shaw. / Credit: Acdeano, Public domain, via Wikimedia CommonsBuenos Aires, Argentina, Jun 21, 2025 / 09:00 am (CNA).The cause for canonization of Venerable Enrique Shaw, an Argentine husband, father, and businessman remembered for his vocation of service and his close ties to the working class, took another step forward at the Vatican this week.In January, the miracle attributed to his intercession passed a medical review of its authenticity, and on June 17 the commission of theologians also unanimously approved it, the vice postulator of the cause, Bishop Santiago Olivera, confirmed to the AICA news agency."The cause of Enrique Shaw has already passed the initial stage of medical consultation, and now the theological experts, who are studying the prayers addressed to the 'candidate' and their fruits, have expressed their unanimous opinion this Tuesday regarding the prayer asking for the grace of healing," the prelate explained, encouraging people to continue ...

By disarming Iran, Israel's ambassador to Vatican says his country is preventing World War III 

Yaron Sideman is Israel's Ambassador to the Holy See. / Credit: "EWTN News Nightly"/ScreenshotCNA Staff, Jun 19, 2025 / 21:33 pm (CNA).In a June 19 interview with EWTN News, Israel's ambassador to the Holy See, Yaron Sideman, defended his country's attacks on Iran's nuclear and ballistic missile programs, saying Israel is preventing World War III.Speaking with EWTN News correspondent Colm Flynn, Sideman said that Israel attacked Iran last week in what felt like the "eleventh hour," saying the country had no choice but to protect itself by destroying Iran's weapons programs.When asked if he thought Israel's attacks on Iran are bringing the world closer to a third world war, Sideman responded emphatically that "We are preventing a World War III." "We are preventing further escalation by depriving … the most dangerous regime on earth from the most dangerous deadly weapon on earth.""If we do not eliminate the nuclear program, it will eliminate us," he said.In recent ...

Austria to ordain more priests in 2025 than in previous years

The Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception in Linz, Austria, is the largest church building in that country. / Credit: Dein Freund der Baum, CC BY-SA 3.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0>, via Wikimedia CommonsWashington, D.C. Newsroom, Jun 20, 2025 / 06:00 am (CNA).Here's a roundup of Catholic world news from the past week that you might have missed:Austria to ordain more priests in 2025 than in previous yearsThe Catholic Church in Austria is recording a positive trend in priestly ordinations for 2025, reported CNA Deutsch, CNA's German-language news partner.At least 26 men have been ordained priests across Austrian dioceses, a Kathpress survey estimated, though the number could be much higher. Over the past decade, the average number of ordinations has been 22 per year. Christians in Holy Land face 'systematic displacement' amid war, collapseThe Christian presence in the Holy Land, already a dwindling minority, is under unprecedented threat amid ongo...

Widow, mother of 4 nuns and a priest, takes perpetual vows

Sister Maria Zhang made her perpetual vows as an Augustinian Recollect on May 13, 2025. / Credit: Diocese of SalamancaMadrid, Spain, Jun 20, 2025 / 10:29 am (CNA).Sister Maria Zhang Yue Chun made her perpetual vows on May 13 at the convent of the Augustinian Recollects in Vitigudino, Salamanca province, Spain. Her prioress, Sister Berta, said she is "an example" for her community.Born in Shangqiu, Henan province, China, Maria lived without any connection to Catholicism. She was married and took care of her five children. During a serious illness, however, the support provided to her by a community of active Augustinian Recollects opened her eyes to the faith.On July 1, 2007, she was baptized along with her four daughters. Her husband and son followed in her footsteps at Christmas that year. The following year, Maria was widowed. One by one, her daughters joined a community of Augustinian nuns who have had a presence in the Asian country since 1931. This past April 25, her only ...

Pope Leo XIV names Bishop Anthony Ireland as new archbishop of Hobart in Australia

Bishop Anthony Ireland was appointed the new archbishop of Hobart in Tasmania, Australia, on June 20, 2025. / Credit: Australian Catholic Bishops' ConferenceCNA Newsroom, Jun 20, 2025 / 09:29 am (CNA).Pope Leo XIV has appointed Bishop Anthony Ireland, auxiliary bishop of Melbourne, Australia, as the new archbishop of Hobart, marking the second major Australian archdiocesan appointment this week following the naming of Bishop Shane Mackinlay to Brisbane on June 19.The 68-year-old Ireland will succeed Archbishop Julian Porteous, who is retiring after nearly 12 years leading Tasmania's Catholic community.The appointment was announced Friday by the Australian Catholic Bishops' Conference."With a heart full of quiet joy, I have received the news of this appointment, humbled and grateful for the trust placed in me to shepherd a diocese," Ireland said in a statement."As a parish priest, I found deep fulfillment in the pastoral relationships formed through shared faith and mission. I n...

By disarming Iran, Israel's ambassador to Vatican says his country is preventing World War III

Yaron Sideman is Israel's ambassador to the Holy See. / Credit: "EWTN News Nightly"/ScreenshotCNA Staff, Jun 19, 2025 / 21:33 pm (CNA).In a June 19 interview with EWTN News, Israel's ambassador to the Holy See, Yaron Sideman, defended his country's attacks on Iran's nuclear and ballistic missile programs, saying Israel is preventing World War III.Speaking with EWTN News correspondent Colm Flynn, Sideman said Israel attacked Iran last week in what felt like the "eleventh hour," saying the country had no choice but to protect itself by destroying Iran's weapons programs.When asked if he thought Israel's attacks on Iran are bringing the world closer to a third world war, Sideman responded emphatically: "We are preventing a World War III." "We are preventing further escalation by depriving … the most dangerous regime on earth from the most dangerous deadly weapon on earth.""If we do not eliminate the nuclear program, it will eliminate us," he said.In recent months, Sideman said, Ir...

Auction for the sale of pope's childhood home extended

The childhood home of Robert Prevost, now Pope Leo XIV, in Dolton, Illinois. / Credit: Michael Howie, Attribution, via Wikimedia CommonsCNA Staff, Jun 20, 2025 / 14:41 pm (CNA).The auction for the childhood home of Robert Francis Prevost, now Pope Leo XIV, has been extended by a month and will now close on July 17, according to the auction house selling the home. The extension comes as the village of Dolton, Illinois, continues its efforts to acquire the 1,050-square-foot home located at 212 E. 141st Place in Dolton.Dolton village attorney Burt Odelson told CNA on June 19 that the auction has been extended because the city has not finalized negotiations with the home's owner, Pawel Radzik, to purchase the home but expects to close the deal "very soon."Odelson told CNA that on the chance the deal falls through, however, the village of Dolton is still prepared to seek ownership of the house through eminent domain.Steve Budzik, the house's listing agent, told the Chicago Trib...

Religious Liberty Commission chair shares outlook after first hearing

Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, chair of the United States' recently created Religious Liberty Commission, talks with Raymond Arroyo on "The World Over" on June 19, 2025. / Credit: "The World Over with Raymond Arroyo"/ScreenshotWashington, D.C. Newsroom, Jun 20, 2025 / 14:11 pm (CNA).As the work of the presidential Religious Liberty Commission gets underway, the commission's chairman, Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, said he sees two major sets of domestic threats to religious liberty in the United States.The first set of threats, he said, has its origins in several mid-20th-century court decisions, while the second set of threats is due to apathy by people of faith, "because if you don't fight for it, you can lose it."Patrick made these observations during a June 19 interview on "The World Over with Raymond Arroyo" following the commission's opening June 16 hearing in Washington, D.C.Patrick said the commission's inaugural convocation addressed a range of topics including the intent of...