Minneapolis Catholic school closed after shooting; leaders vow to 'rebuild' with 'hope'

People attend a vigil following a mass shooting at Annunciation Catholic School on Aug. 27, 2025, in Minneapolis. / Credit: Stephen Maturen/Getty ImagesCNA Staff, Aug 28, 2025 / 11:30 am (CNA).The leaders of the Minneapolis Catholic school where two children were shot and killed during a mass shooting incident on Wednesday say the school will remain closed for the time being as the community continues to deal with the "unfathomable" deadly incident.The shooting took place during the all-school Mass at Annunciation Church in Minneapolis on Aug. 27. The gunman, identified as 23-year-old Robin Westman, born Robert Westman, shot through the church's stained-glass windows with a rifle, killing the two children and injuring nearly 20 children and adults before taking his own life.The shooting generated global headlines and drew prayers and support from leaders including Pope Leo XIV and President Donald Trump.In a Facebook post on Wednesday evening, Annunciation Catholic School Princ...

Bankruptcy court accepts Diocese of Syracuse's $176 million abuse settlement

The Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception in Syracuse, New York, where a federal court accepted the diocese's $176 million settlement plan. / Credit: debra millet/ShutterstockCNA Staff, Aug 28, 2025 / 12:00 pm (CNA).A federal bankruptcy court has accepted the Diocese of Syracuse, New York's massive $176 million abuse settlement plan, Bishop Douglas Lucia said this week.The decision comes after a yearslong negotiation process between the diocese and victims of clergy abuse as well as between the diocese and insurers that will pay into the settlement fund.Lucia said in an Aug. 27 letter that the diocese will contribute $100 million to the fund, as diocesan leaders first announced in 2023.Fifty million dollars will come from the diocese itself, with $45 million from parishes and $5 million from "other Catholic entities" associated with the Syracuse Diocese.The remaining $76 million will be contributed by diocesan insurance companies, the bishop said.Further "nonmonetary items" in...

Pope Leo XIV urges Catholic politicians to follow the Gospel in public life

Pope Leo XIV addresses a delegation of political representatives and civic leaders from the Diocese of Créteil, France, on Aug. 28, 2025, at the Vatican. / Credit: Vatican MediaACI Prensa Staff, Aug 28, 2025 / 12:30 pm (CNA).Pope Leo XIV on Thursday encouraged Catholic politicians to live coherently as Christians and follow the Gospel, even when performing their public duties in a secular polity. During an Aug. 28 meeting with a delegation of political representatives and civic leaders from the Diocese of Créteil, France, accompanied by Bishop Dominique Blanchet, the Holy Father stated that "a more just, more human, more fraternal world" can only be "a world more imbued with the Gospel."Thus, he added, "in the face of the various deviations present in our Western societies, we can do nothing better, as Christians, than to turn to Christ and ask for his help in carrying out our responsibilities."For this reason, the pope highlighted the importance of political and social le...

Minnesota school shooting came after bishops' pleas for security went unanswered

The Minnesota state capitol in St. Paul. / Credit: Steve Heap/ShutterstockNational Catholic Register, Aug 28, 2025 / 06:00 am (CNA).After a pair of out-of-state school shootings in 2022 and 2023 shocked the nation, Minnesota's bishops implored state lawmakers to provide security funding for local nonpublic schools. Now, two years after their appeals went unheeded, tragedy has struck one of their own.On the morning of Aug. 27, a gunman opened fire during an all-school Mass at Annunciation Catholic Church in Minneapolis, killing two students, aged 10 and 8; 14 other students and three adults were injured.The tragedy comes after the Minnesota Catholic Conference (MCC), the public policy voice of Minnesota's six dioceses, made requests to state officials to extend funds for security upgrades and emergency-response training to nonpublic schools in both 2022 and 2023.The appeals, which came after deadly school shootings at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas, and at the Cove...

Catholic priest forced to leave Texas amid visa backlog and residency denial

Father Alan Sanchez with parishioners at St. Joseph Church in La Pryor, Texas. / Credit: Photo courtesy of Father Alan SanchezWashington, D.C. Newsroom, Aug 27, 2025 / 09:30 am (CNA).A Mexican-born Catholic priest who has served in the Diocese of Laredo, Texas, for nine years must leave the United States because his application for residency was denied and his religious worker visa is expiring.Father Alan Sanchez, the pastor of St. Joseph Church in La Pryor and St. Patrick Mission in Batesville, will return to his native country of Mexico on Wednesday, Aug. 27, amid the visa issues. He will be received into the Archdiocese of Monterrey in northeastern Mexico when he arrives."Originally, I was hopeful … [this would] be resolved," Sanchez told CNA."I was sad [when I got the news] because of the community I was serving," he said. "This is a very small and poor community in Texas and this was my first role as a pastor."Sanchez applied for residency two years ago but said the proces...

BREAKING: At least 2 dead after mass shooting at Minneapolis Catholic church

null / Credit: CNACNA Staff, Aug 27, 2025 / 10:41 am (CNA).At least two victims are reportedly dead, with multiple injuries reported, after a mass shooting incident at a Minneapolis Catholic church and school. A massive police presence descended on Annunciation Church in Minneapolis on Wednesday morning, with emergency responders having initiated a "mass casualty response" in response to a shooting incident. The K-8 Annunciation Catholic School is located next to the parish.The active crime log on the city's website showed dozens of responses to a "shooting" near the parish on Wednesday morning. Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz on Wednesday confirmed the shooting, saying he had been briefed on the incident. Media reports said at least two individuals had been killed at the shooting, with numerous injuries reported.President Donald Trump, meanwhile, said he had been briefed on the incident and the White House would "continue to monitor this terrible situation." 'The White House will cont...

LIVE UPDATES: Shooting at Annunciation Catholic School in Minneapolis

Parents await news of their children after a reported mass shooting at Annunciation Church on Wednesday, Aug. 27, 2025, in Minneapolis. / Credit: Richard Tsong-Taatarii/Star Tribune via APCNA Staff, Aug 27, 2025 / 11:13 am (CNA).Authorities and media reports on Wednesday morning said a mass shooting had taken place at a Catholic parish and school in Minneapolis, one that police were reportedly treating as a "mass casualty" incident.The local crime watch outlet Minnesota Crime said on Wednesday morning that police reported 20 victims of an "active shooter" at the site of Annunciation Church in Minneapolis, with emergency responders having initiated a "mass casualty response." Annunciation Catholic School is located next to the parish.Follow here for live updates.

Vocation directors conference kicks off to help those 'forming healthy and holy priests'

Monsignor Stephen Rossetti is the keynote speaker at the 2025 National Conference of Diocesan Vocation Directors conference. / Credit: Photo courtesy of Monsignor Stephen RossettiWashington, D.C. Newsroom, Aug 26, 2025 / 17:27 pm (CNA).This week hundreds of vocation directors, staff, and collaborators are gathering to draw closer to Christ, grow in brotherhood, and learn best practices for creating a culture of vocations at the annual National Conference of Diocesan Vocation Directors (NCDVD).Every year members of the NCDVD organization travel from across the United States and from at least 10 different countries to gather for what many describe as "one of the highlights of their year." They not only receive spiritual renewal and practical knowledge but also enjoy activities and community with brother priests.The NCDVD is a fraternity of vocation directors who provide one another support as they help guide men discerning priesthood. The organization encourages priests to collab...

New initiative seeks to help families 'reclaim' the Sabbath

null / Credit: maxim ibragimov/ShutterstockWashington, D.C. Newsroom, Aug 26, 2025 / 13:53 pm (CNA).The Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis announced a new initiative that will "meet families where they are" as it helps them reclaim the Sabbath as a day dedicated to prayer and rest. The initiative, "Reclaiming Sundays: Recover Sunday as a Day for the Lord and Family," includes both a video series and an online print edition that will "share ideas for building lasting habits to anchor our weeks in a joyful, prayerful, and restful observance of Sunday," Archbishop Bernard Hebda said in a video announcing the initiative.The print guide called "Guide to Reclaiming Sundays for the Lord" lays out monthly themes and practical suggestions for families to begin this September and through August 2026. The guide kicks off with its first month focused solely on "Prayer" but includes months dedicated to a number of other topics including "Screen-free Sundays" and "Music and Pr...

Texas attorney general orders schools unaffected by lawsuit to display Ten Commandments

The Ten Commandments outside the Texas state capitol building. / Credit: BLundin via Flickr (CC BY-NC-ND 2.0)Houston, Texas, Aug 25, 2025 / 17:57 pm (CNA).Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton has directed public schools across the state not enjoined by ongoing litigation to comply with Senate Bill 10 (SB 10), a new law requiring the display of the Ten Commandments in every public school classroom. A federal court ruling last week temporarily blocked its enforcement in nearly a dozen independent school districts (ISDs) across the state."Schools not enjoined by ongoing litigation must abide by [SB 10] and display the Ten Commandments," Paxton said in his directive, issued on Aug. 24.On Aug. 20, U.S. District Judge Fred Biery issued a preliminary injunction after 16 families sued 11 Texas school districts, arguing the law violates the First Amendment's separation of church and state. The federal ruling halts the law's implementation, set to begin Sept. 1, in school district...