Crimes against churches and Christians in Germany on the rise

Cologne Cathedral in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. / Credit: Rudolf Gehrig/CNA DeutschWashington, D.C. Newsroom, May 23, 2025 / 09:00 am (CNA).Here is a roundup of Catholic world news that you might have missed this week:New statistics show increase in crimes against churches and Christians in GermanyThe Federal Ministry of the Interior and the Federal Criminal Police Office found that attacks against German churches increased by 20% in 2024, with a total of 111 registered crimes, reported CNA Deutsch, CNA's German-language news partner. Crimes against religious communities also increased, reaching 8,531 in 2024, compared with 7,029 in 2023. A 22% increase was reported in crimes against members and representatives of religious communities, jumping from 6,122 in 2023 to 7,504 in 2024. The German government reported that from the start of 2024 to Dec. 10, 2024, a total of 228 crimes with the subtopic "anti-Christian" were registered, including one homicide, 14 assaults, a...

Catholic Church strives to reduce violence in Mexico 

Bishop Francisco Javier Acero with the mothers of the disappeared and priests. / Credit: Photo courtesy of Bishop AceroPuebla, Mexico, May 23, 2025 / 08:00 am (CNA).Amid a wave of violence that has shaken Mexico, including the murder this week of two high-ranking officials in the capital, the Catholic Church is redoubling its efforts to restore peace.Through the National Dialogue for Peace and more than 300 initiatives across the country, bishops, priests, and laypeople are working to train mediators, provide mental health care, and support victims, taking risks and embracing hope, even though, as Church leaders themselves warn, "you can't dialogue with organized crime."The bishops of Mexico, along with various organizations, launched the National Peace Dialogue initiative following the 2022 murders of Jesuit priests Javier Campos and Joaquín Mora. While various initiatives promoted by the Catholic Church already existed in the country, this proposal sought to strengthen all th...

2 Mexican officials assassinated: The Church expresses 'profound consternation'

Police patrol in Mexico City. / Credit: David Ramos/ACI PrensaPuebla, Mexico, May 21, 2025 / 19:22 pm (CNA).The Mexican Bishops' Conference expressed its "profound consternation" following the assassination of two senior officials of the Mexico City government, which occurred Tuesday in the Mexican capital.The victims of the shooting are Ximena Guzmán, private secretary to Clara Brugada, Mexico City's mayor, and José Muñoz, adviser to the city government. "We join in the grief of their families, friends, and colleagues. To them, we express our closeness, prayers, and solidarity, asking God to grant them comfort, hope, and strength in the face of this painful loss," the Mexican bishops expressed in a message following the assassinations.The Mexico City government reported in a statement that the "direct attack" occurred in the Moderna neighborhood of the Benito Juárez borough, approximately four miles south of Mexico City's historic Zócalo (main square)."Personnel from the ...

Synod undersecretary: Leo XIV 'doesn't govern from his office, he goes out to meet people'

Spanish Augustinian Bishop Luis Marín de San Martín and Cardinal Robert Prevost, now Pope Leo XIV. / Credit: Courtesy of Bishop Luis MarínVatican City, May 22, 2025 / 07:00 am (CNA).The undersecretary of the general secretariat of the Synod of Bishops, the Spanish Augustinian Bishop Luis Marín de San Martín, is among those who have collaborated most closely with Pope Leo XIV.In 2008, Marín moved to Rome because the then-prior general of the Augustinians asked him to take charge of the order's archives. The past 17 years of association allow him to make a clear prognosis of what Pope Leo's pontificate will be like."He's not a person who governs from his office; he goes out to meet people," the bishop told ACI Prensa, CNA's Spanish-language news partner. He also noted that Pope Leo XIV is a son of the Second Vatican Council: "He embraces its theological development, above all, the ecclesiology of the constitution Lumen Gentium, which is a point of reference for synodality, althou...

Canada's lack of disabilities minister criticized by pro-life advocates

null / Credit: BUTENKOV ALEKSEI/ShutterstockCNA Staff, May 22, 2025 / 06:00 am (CNA).The Canadian government's abolishment of a government ministry for disabled citizens underscores the government's "demeaning attitude" toward disabled people, advocates say, particularly after the country opted to expand the national euthanasia program to include those with disabilities. Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, the Liberal Party leader who assumed office in March, unveiled his new cabinet last week vowing a government that will promote "new ideas, a clear focus, and decisive action." Notably missing from the cabinet, however, was any minister charged directly with administering to the needs of disabled Canadians. The position was held most recently by Kamal Khera, who served as the country's minister of diversity, inclusion, and persons with disabilities until March before she became the Canadian minister of health. Direct support for disabled Canadians has been...

Town where Pope Leo XIV grew up seeks to acquire his childhood home

The childhood home of Robert Prevost, now Pope Leo XIV, in Dolton, Illinois. / Credit: Michael Howie, Attribution, via Wikimedia CommonsCNA Staff, May 22, 2025 / 09:21 am (CNA).The village of Dolton, a suburb just south of Chicago and the hometown of Pope Leo XIV, is seeking to acquire his childhood home for use as a historical site.Steve Budzik, the home's listing broker, told CNA he and the home's current owner, Pawel Radzik, are eager to work with the village and come to an agreement. "The seller wants to sell and the village wants to buy," Budzik told CNA. "The question is: How do we determine what is fair market value for something so unique, so rare? There are no comps, there is nothing else like this."According to Budzik, they received a letter from the village last week indicating its interest in purchasing the home. The letter said the Archdiocese of Chicago is also working with the city to acquire the home. The archdiocese did not respond to a request for comment...

'Send a message to the Holy Father' initiative elicits supportive video messages for new pope

Those who want to participate can visit the eCatholic website to "take a moment to offer a message of prayer, encouragement, or support" and submit a video. / Credit: "EWTN News Nightly"/ScreenshotWashington, D.C. Newsroom, May 22, 2025 / 08:00 am (CNA).Tech company eCatholic is collecting video messages of prayer, encouragement, and support from Catholics across the globe this month to create a montage of "blessings" for Pope Leo XIV.Jason Jaynes, CEO of eCatholic, said the initiative was born during a meeting earlier this month when a team member asked: "Wouldn't it be a really great and cool initiative [if] we could let Catholics all over the world share their blessings with the new pope?"The effort, launched shortly after Pope Leo XIV's election, has already received submissions from "every continent across the globe," Jaynes told "EWTN News Nightly" anchor Catherine Hadro.Planning for the initiative started during the first day of the conclave, when eCatholic emp...

Pope Leo XIV appoints nun as secretary of Dicastery for Institutes of Consecrated Life

From the popemobile, Pope Leo XIV greets thousands of people lined up along Via della Conciliazione on the morning of his inaugural Mass, Sunday, May 18, 2025. / Credit: Vatican MediaVatican City, May 22, 2025 / 14:18 pm (CNA).Pope Leo XIV has appointed Sister Tiziana Merletti as secretary of the Dicastery for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life.According to the Vatican Press Office, the 66-year-old consecrated religious previously served as superior general of the Franciscan Sisters of the Poor for nine years.She will report directly to another nun, Sister Simona Brambilla, whom Pope Francis appointed in January as prefect of the Vatican department, responsible for all matters concerning the government, discipline, studies, assets, rights, and privileges of institutes of consecrated life.Under the late Argentine pontiff, women's leadership increased significantly. According to data maintained by the Vatican on its website, the female presence increas...

Catholics praise defunding of Planned Parenthood in major congressional budget bill

Speaker of the House Rep. Mike Johnson speaks as (left to right) House Republican Conference Chair Rep. Lisa McClain, Rep. Jason Smith, Rep. Jim Jordan, Rep. Mark Green, House Majority Leader Rep. Steve Scalise, and House Majority Whip Rep. Tom Emmer listen during a news briefing after a House Republican Conference meeting with President Donald Trump at the U.S. Capitol on May 20, 2025, in Washington, D.C. / Credit: Alex Wong/Getty ImagesCNA Staff, May 22, 2025 / 13:48 pm (CNA).Catholic leaders and pro-life advocates on Thursday praised the passage of the House of Representatives' major budget bill, hailing the reconciliation package's defunding of abortion providers including Planned Parenthood. The massive spending and tax cut bill, called the "One Big Beautiful Bill Act," includes a provision that forbids Medicaid dollars from flowing to abortion providers. The ban will last for 10 years, according to the text of the bill.Federal funding will still be permitted for clin...

Our Lady of Good Counsel: All about this devotion and Pope Leo XIV's connection to it

Pope Leo XIV prays in front of the famous icon at the Shrine of the Mother of Good Counsel in Genazzano, Italy, on Saturday, May 10, 2025. / Credit: Vatican MediaCNA Staff, May 22, 2025 / 13:12 pm (CNA).Pope Leo XIV, the first pope to come from the Order of St. Augustine (OSA), made a visit very early in his pontificate to the Shrine of the Mother of Good Counsel in Genazzano, Italy, near Rome. It houses a famous image of the Virgin Mary that according to tradition appeared there under miraculous circumstances.Known by the title "Our Lady of Good Counsel" or "Mother of Good Counsel," the small image of the Virgin Mary housed in the church at Genazzano has been held dear by the Augustinians for centuries. The Midwest Augustinians, which Pope Leo led as prior provincial before his election, oversee the Province of Our Mother of Good Counsel.During his May 10 visit to the church, Leo spoke of the Virgin Mary's protection and the importance of devotion to her. He prayed at the alta...