Pope Leo appoints Nigerian priest assessor for general affairs of the Secretariat of State

Father Anthony Onyemuche Ekpo. / Credit: Vatican MediaVatican City, Nov 19, 2025 / 14:53 pm (CNA).Pope Leo XIV on Wednesday appointed Nigerian priest Father Anthony Onyemuche Ekpo as assessor for general affairs of the Vatican Secretariat of State.Ekpo, 44, succeeds Father Roberto Campisi, who was appointed permanent observer of the Holy See to UNESCO in September. In his new role, he will be responsible for overseeing the activities of Catholic international organizations connected to the Vatican.The Nigeria-born priest first began his service with the Holy See in 2016. He worked with the Vatican's Section for General Affairs for six years between 2016 and 2023.In 2023, Pope Francis appointed him undersecretary of the Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development to assist the work of its prefect Cardinal Michael Czerny. Epko thanked his colleagues at the Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development "for their friendship and shared work over these years" and pr...

How Pope Leo XIV typically spends his day off

Pope Leo XIV. / Credit: Daniel Ibáñez/EWTN NewsACI Prensa Staff, Nov 19, 2025 / 15:23 pm (CNA).In reply to journalists' questions last night as he left Castel Gandolfo, which he now regularly visits, Pope Leo XIV described what his typical Tuesday day off is like.The pontiff shared that he does "a little reading, a little work. Every day there is correspondence, phone calls; there are some matters that are perhaps more important, more recent. A little tennis, a little swimming."A passionate tennis fan since childhood, the Holy Father in May received at the Vatican Italian tennis player Jannik Sinner, currently ranked second in the world (behind Carlos Alcaraz) and at that time was ranked first.When asked why he needs these moments of rest, Leo XIV emphasized on Nov. 19 that "to take good care of yourself, human beings… everyone, should do some activity for the body, the soul, all together.""I think it does me a lot of good. So it's a time, a break during the week that helps a l...

Outgoing Hungarian ambassador reflects on 10-year term at the Vatican

Hungary's ambassador to the Holy See Eduard Habsburg speaks to EWTN News in 2023. / Credit: Daniel Ibañez/CNAVatican City, Nov 19, 2025 / 15:53 pm (CNA).Archduke of Austria Eduard Habsburg has served as Hungary's ambassador to the Holy See since 2015 and described his post at the Vatican as "the greatest 10 years of my life."First presenting his credentials to Pope Francis on Dec. 8, 2015, Habsburg told EWTN News reporter Colm Flynn that after a decade on the job, he has "seen it all" and now wants to dedicate more time to his family, particularly his parents."I felt that 10 years is a good term. It's far longer than ambassadors usually have here," he said in the exclusive interview."I think I've seen everything you can see here, including a conclave, visits by my prime minister, exciting moments," he added. "In a way, I'm going to miss it but also family is important." Though his term at the Vatican is drawing to a close, the outgoing ambassador said he will likely contin...

Charlotte bishop grants Mass dispensation amid migrant crackdown in North Carolina

St. Patrick Cathedral in the Diocese of Charlotte, North Carolina. / Credit: Diocese of CharlotteWashington, D.C. Newsroom, Nov 19, 2025 / 16:23 pm (CNA).Bishop Michael T. Martin of the Diocese of Charlotte issued a Mass dispensation for any person who fears he or she may be subject to deportation and called for a day of prayer and fasting for migrants as immigration enforcement ramps up throughout North Carolina.The bishop published the statement on Nov. 18 telling those "who are afraid to come to church" out of fear they could be deported "are not obligated to attend Mass." These conditions, he said, are "circumstances beyond your control."Martin said the Church has always taught that the normal Sunday Mass obligation does not apply when a person cannot attend due to situations he or she does not control."I encourage you to take consolation in Jesus' refrain when the disciples were in the boat being swamped by stormy seas: 'Do not be afraid!' (Mt 14:27)," Martin added. "Your ...

New immersive Shroud of Turin museum opens in Southern California

"The Shroud of Turin: An Immersive Experience," a $5 million, 10,000-square-foot museum on the chancery campus of the Diocese of Orange in Southern California opened to visitors on Nov. 19, 2025. / Credit: Everett Johnson, Diocese of OrangeLos Angeles, California, Nov 19, 2025 / 16:53 pm (CNA)."The Shroud of Turin: An Immersive Experience," a $5 million, 10,000-square-foot museum on the chancery campus of the Diocese of Orange in Southern California, opened to visitors Wednesday.  The museum is presented by Papaian Studios in partnership with the Diocese of Orange and Othonia Inc., an international team of specialists dedicated to exploring and sharing the mystery of the Shroud of Turin.The 90-minute experience introduces visitors to the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ, with a special focus on the Shroud of Turin, which many believe to be the burial cloth of Christ.The 90-minute experience at the new Shroud of Turin museum on the chancery campus of ...

Immigrant rights advocate Mercy Sister JoAnn Persch, 91, dies

Sister of Mercy JoAnn Persch, a longtime immigrant rights advocate, died on Nov. 14, 2025, at age 91. / Credit: Kathleen Murphy/CNAWashington, D.C. Newsroom, Nov 19, 2025 / 17:48 pm (CNA).Longtime immigrant rights advocate Sister JoAnn Persch died on Nov. 14 at age 91.Two weeks before her death, Persch attempted to bring Communion to detainees at the Broadview, Illinois, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) facility where for decades the Sisters of Mercy ministered to migrants and refugees. Officials denied her entry.Auxiliary Bishop Jose María García-Maldonado with eight spiritual leaders including Sister JoAnn Persch, left, attempt to bring Communion to detainees at the Broadview, Illinois, facility and were not admitted Nov. 1, 2025. Credit: Bryan Sebastian, courtesy of Coalition for Spiritual and Public LeadershipPersch and Sister Pat Murphy were founding members of the Su Casa Catholic Worker House in Chicago, serving refugees from Central America who were surviv...

Faith leaders file suit to distribute Communion at ICE facility

Police vehicles surround the Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility on Oct. 31, 2025, in Broadview, Illinois. / Credit: Jamie Kelter Davis/Getty ImagesLong Island, New York, Nov 19, 2025 / 18:38 pm (CNA).A coalition of Catholic faith leaders filed suit Nov. 19 to seek access to the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) facility in Broadview, Illinois, where clergy have been denied entry to distribute Communion.The complaint alleged that ICE's refusal to allow clergy to pray with detainees or offer Communion violates the First Amendment, the Religious Freedom Restoration Act, and the Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act. Catholic spiritual leaders attempted to bring Communion to detainees at the ICE facility Nov. 1 after making formal requests to the Department of Homeland Security and ICE, and officials denied entry."Despite the long history of religious access to the Broadview detention center established through the persistence and per...

Pope Leo XIV encourages stronger climate actions

The United Nations Climate Change Conference is taking place in Belém, Brazil, Nov. 6-21, 2025. / Credit: Raimundo Pacco/COP30ACI Prensa Staff, Nov 18, 2025 / 16:26 pm (CNA).Pope Leo XIV said "stronger climate actions will create stronger and fairer economic systems" in a video message to the local Churches of the Global South gathered at the Amazonian Museum in Belém, Brazil, for the United Nations climate conference (COP30).The Holy Father greeted the representatives of bishops' conferences from Latin America, the Caribbean, Africa, and Asia on Nov. 17, joining "the prophetic voice of my brother cardinals who have taken part in COP30, telling the world with words and gestures that the Amazon region remains a living symbol of creation with an urgent need for care."COP30, which Belém is hosting, brings together a diverse group of leaders and scientists from around the world in an event that, according to the United Nations, aims to "discuss the priority measures needed to addre...

Pope Leo XIV says missionaries 'become a presence everywhere of the whole Church'

Pope Leo XIV waves to the crowd at the Vatican general audience on Oct. 25, 2025. / Credit: Daniel Ibáñez/EWTN NewsACI Prensa Staff, Nov 18, 2025 / 18:26 pm (CNA).In an audience with members of the diplomatic service at the papal missions, Pope Leo XIV emphasized that they have been chosen to "become a presence everywhere of the whole Church and, in particular, of the pastoral solicitude of the pope, who presides over it in charity."Within the context of the Jubilee of Hope, the Holy Father recalled that the holy year is "a providential opportunity to rediscover and deepen the beauty of our vocation, that is, our common call to holiness, which commits us each day to be witnesses of Christ, the living hope for the world."Reflecting on the missionaries' service of "carrying the redeeming word of the Gospel to the ends of the earth," the pope pointed out that the great missionaries remind us that inculturation is not a superficial matter, "because it springs from the desire to ded...

3 things to know about the 2 papal basilicas dedicated to St. Peter and St. Paul in Rome

"Sts. Peter and Paul," Altar of St. Catherine (1465), Schwabach, Germany. Artist unknown. / Credit: Public domainVatican City, Nov 18, 2025 / 05:00 am (CNA).Nov. 18 is celebrated in the Catholic Church as the feast day of the Dedication of the Basilicas of Sts. Peter and Paul. Here are three things to know about the historical, architectural, and spiritual significance of these two papal basilicas:1. Historical significance of the Nov. 18 feast day In the fourth century, the world's first Christian Roman emperor, Constantine, commissioned the construction of two separate basilicas over the burial sites of St. Peter and St. Paul to enable the public veneration of the two great apostles, martyrs, and evangelizers of Rome.After Christianity was legalized in the Roman Empire following the Edict of Milan issued by Constantine in 313, construction of the first Basilica of St. Peter began in 319 and was consecrated by Pope Sylvester on Nov. 18, 326. Historical records indica...