Catholic News

The Communion Project initiative hopes to repair polarization in the U.S. Church and aid the Church in offering a better and more joyful witness in a divided country, organizers said.

"Unfortunately, too often Catholics and Catholic leaders are acting more like thermometers instead of thermostats," Jonathan Lewis, mission strategy officer for the Paulist Fathers and co-director of the Communion Project, told EWTN News.

"We're reading the temperature of the room or the culture, instead of setting the temperature according to our values and the truths of the Church," he said.

"So, part of what this effort is aimed to do is to lower the temperature of division and distrust, starting with those of us Catholics who call ourselves brothers and sisters, who are a real spiritual family," Lewis said.

"As we approach any election season, there's always a need to help lower the temperature, have more thoughtful conversations, discern our Catholic values," he said.

The Catholic initiative hopes to heal toxic polarization in the Church by creating dialogue, providing resources, promoting unity through national communication methods, and by aiding local communities to create unification at their level, organizers said. Exact plans are still being formed.

"We're just beginning … and trying to share," Lewis said. "We're starting with a lot of resources" and "adapting resources that already existed."

"Then we're planning, over the next year or two years, to develop programs for dioceses and organizations and religious communities, students in Catholic schools."

The movement to start the project began in 2022 at the Paulist Fathers' general assembly.

"One of the priorities of the Paulists is to read the signs of the times, like the Second Vatican Council tells us to do, so that we can respond in a spirit-filled way," Lewis said.

At the gathering, they discussed "the realities of the United States and the Church in the United States today that we need to respond to or engage," he said. "And that's when the topic of toxic polarization emerged."

"The polarization affecting the U.S. Catholic Church is not merely a matter of policy dispute or partisan loyalty," said Father Ricky Manalo, CSP, co-director of the Communion Project. "It is a deeply spiritual and relational rupture, shaping how Catholics imagine moral life, celebrate the sacraments, interpret tradition, and remain in communion amid difference."

"Within Catholic life, polarization is more than disagreement; it is the loss of our capacity to remain in relationship, even amid difference, as one body in Christ," he said.

Inspired by Pope Francis, the group founded The Paulist Initiative on Polarization as a national partnership of Catholic leaders committed to strengthening unity across political, theological, and cultural divisions.

In 2025, the effort was renamed the Communion Project following Pope Leo XIV's public commitment to building communion in the Church.

"This is really a priority of Pope Leo," Lewis said. "In his first inaugural Mass, Pope Leo said his first great desire would be for a unified Church in communion. We really see this as an initiative that is trying to live out the message and the priority of the Holy Father."

Polarization in the U.S.

When people think of polarization, they usually first think of "left and right politics, Republicans, Democrats," Lewis said. "And certainly that's one area, but I really see polarization showing up in a lot of different ways."

"This isn't only in public life or in politics, where one might expect, it's also in the Roman Catholic Church in the United States," Lewis said.

It can come up due to division surrounding the liturgy, or cultural or generational differences, but ultimately the goal is to remind Catholics of shared beliefs and values.

The project hopes to help the faithful "see that while people might prioritize different dimensions of our Catholic social teaching, there's unity within that work, and we need to bring people together," Lewis said.

For example, the Church has a mission to protect human dignity, and "some people focus on ending the death penalty," while "other people might focus on ending abortion and the work of the pro-life movement," Lewis explained. "Even if we're working in different areas, those areas are not in conflict."

Connection through communication

The initiative's resources and formation experiences are organized around three interconnected dimensions: the head, the heart, and the hands.

The project offers a "development of resources that impact our head, meaning our knowledge and our self-awareness," and "also our hearts in terms of our prayer and discernment," Lewis said.

There are also resources that impact "our hands," which focus on "building skills and building relationships," Lewis said.

"So we want to help organizations and churches work with leaders in particular, to equip them with the resources and programming to help them make a positive impact in their local community," he said.

The resources can be found in the Communion Project's "resource library" on its website, which offers a number of options for people to independently utilize or bring to a group. It also offers gatherings and workshops to aid its cause.

In the online library, people can find upcoming events, online courses, prayers for communion, articles, learning sessions to be used in small groups, and a Communion Project podcast.

It also has educational videos provided by outside organizations including Georgetown University, University of Notre Dame, and Boston College.

So far the podcast has included conversations with Archbishop William E. Lori of Baltimore on what happens when the faithful stop seeing one another as brothers and sisters, and University of Notre Dame's Tim O'Malley on liturgical division and what it means to live in communion with people.

The first episode featured a conversation "with Tim Busch, founder of Napa Institute, and Father James Martin from America Media, two people who speak to very different parts of the Church … but have developed a personal friendship," Lewis said.

"It was a great opportunity to put people in the same place to talk about their friendship, of their shared faith, realizing that what unites us is so much stronger than what divides us," he said.

"What matters most is gathering around a particular Eucharistic table and a particular family table and having hard conversations or sitting in discomfort, because love compels us to do hard things," Lewis said.

The initiative is only "just beginning in terms of programming and trying to share." But since starting, "there's a great interest" among local communities wanting to be involved.

"The path of healing begins not in dominating strength, but in shared vulnerability. When both Church and nation dare to move toward one another — wounded yet willing — they may discover that grace lives precisely in the places we thought were beyond repair," Manalo said.

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Pope Leo XIV welcomed Lutheran bishops from the Church of Norway for a formal Vatican audience on Aug. 26, urging Christians to seek "paths of reconciliation and fraternity" amid what he described as a "particularly turbulent period" marked by growing hostility in political and social life.

The meeting highlights deepening ecumenical ties as Norway prepares to mark the 1,000th anniversary of its Christianization. The upcoming 2030 millennium commemorates 1,000 years since the pivotal Battle of Stiklestad in 1030, where King Olav Haraldsson was martyred. His death ultimately cemented the nation's conversion to Christianity and established St. Olav as Norway's patron saint.

Norwegian Catholic leaders greeted the historic Vatican encounter with great joy. "We have excellent ecumenical relations with the Church of Norway and are pleased that the bishops have an opportunity to meet Pope Leo XIV," Bishop Fredrik Hansen of Oslo said. "We look forward to the millennium of Norway's conversion and hope this jubilee will give occasion for broad ecumenical collaboration."

Before visiting Rome, Presiding Lutheran Bishop Olav Fykse Tveit announced he would use the papal audience to invite Pope Leo XIV to the upcoming jubilee celebrations in Norway.

The pope closed the meeting by praying that Catholics and Lutherans live "ever more truly as brothers and sisters" and give "common witness to our savior, Our Lord Jesus Christ."

A petition for a special year of jubilee

To mark this national milestone, Norway's Catholic leadership, represented by Hansen and Bishop Erik Varden of Trondheim, formally petitioned Pope Leo XIV to declare a special year of jubilee for the Catholic Church in Norway running from July 29, 2030, through Aug. 3, 2031.

Explaining the significance of the dates, Varden explained that St. Olav is the centerpiece of the upcoming millennium. "29 July 2030 will mark the millennium of his martyr's death at Stiklestad; 3 August 2031 will mark the millennium of his exhumation, when his body was found incorrupt," he noted. "On that day he was proclaimed a saint not just for Norway, but for all of Christendom."

For Catholics, a jubilee year serves as a period of special grace centered on prayer, pilgrimage, and reconciliation.

Hansen highlighted that the year will allow local Catholics and international pilgrims to walk in St. Olav's footsteps while renewing their faith "in gratitude for the Christian patrimony with which Norway has been blessed." He added that the celebration will help the faithful keep "their eyes set on the Church's present and future task in this country."

A model of conversion and national identity

Speaking to EWTN News, Varden noted St. Olav's life as a compelling witness for people who feel alienated from organized religion. Rather than viewing the saint as an untouchable historical figure, Varden pointed to his personal transformation.

"What attracts us in the life of any saint is to see how grace works over time and gradually transforms a person," Varden said, describing the young king as "headstrong, ambitious, self-assured, [and] proud."

Yet Olav was "increasingly drawn into Christ's gentle mystery, fascinated by the all-reconciling love displayed in the cross," making him "a model of conversion" for modern believers. Varden also noted that at the end of Olav's life, Christ's love was "the only thing that really mattered to him."

Looking ahead to the jubilee's pastoral impact, the prelate noted that his diocese began preparations years ago, choosing to use the millennium as "an opportunity to renew our baptismal promises."

"We want to re-root ourselves in the essence of our faith," he explained, adding that he hopes visiting pilgrims will discover the "fascination and freeing power" of Nordic Christianity. He noted Norway's patrimony expressed across liturgy, literature, and architecture, which represents a "flowering of sanctity" that the Nordic Church is eager to share with the world.

This vision could also pave the way for a potential papal visit during the jubilee period.

Restoring Nidaros and looking toward 2033

Nidaros, the medieval name for present-day Trondheim, was one of northern Europe's most important Christian pilgrimage centers. The city became the focal point of devotion to St. Olav, whose shrine at Nidaros Cathedral drew pilgrims from across Scandinavia and beyond.

"The cult of St. Olav spread with great speed in the 11th century," Varden said, noting that it "nurtured apostolic efforts and the founding of churches throughout northern Europe." He sees the revival of the pilgrimage as a means of recovering that Christian heritage, calling it "an aid to rereading the Christian history of our continent" and a source of inspiration for "endeavors of new evangelization."

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Cardinal Charles Maung Bo has called on Christian legislators from around the world to "reject automated warfare" and support strong limits that keep the technology of artificial intelligence under human control.

"As representatives of the people, your mandate is clear: You must champion an immediate, binding international ban on fully autonomous lethal weapons," the cardinal and archbishop of Yangon, Myanmar, said in Assisi, Italy, on Aug. 24.

"To automate the battlefield is to lower the moral threshold for violence, stripping conflict of human conscience and turning our sons, daughters, and citizens into bloodless data points," he added.

Bo addressed lawmakers during a one-day peace summit organized by the International Catholic Legislators Network (ICLN) on Aug. 24. The summit immediately followed the group's annual meeting in Rome Aug. 20–23, which included a private audience with Pope Leo XIV.

Bo — whose country has been suffering for years under unrelenting violence, economic collapse, and dramatic humanitarian concerns — gave a strong warning about AI's "potential to amplify human conflicts and malice."

"Human conflicts alone resulted in the deaths of 135 million people in the 20th century," he said. "Now, we have a new lethal actor: AI in the hands of a few, in some countries, who perceive AI as the bride of geostrategic power games."

The cardinal sounded the alarm about "a terrifying marriage of autocratic monopolies and automated surveillance" that replaces human freedom; he urged legislators not to give in to the pressure to adopt a "There Is No Alternative (TINA) narrative."

"As lawmakers and Christians, we are called upon to embrace a different TINA: 'There Is a New Alternative.' This alternative involves human-led AI that would bring greater prosperity and ultimately lead to durable peace for all," he said.

'Christ is our model'

Acknowledging that his prognosis about AI may appear pessimistic or even dystopian, Bo recalled that the objective is to shape a society grounded in lasting peace.

"Between dystopian reaction and utopian celebration, humanity requires a guiding beacon in its journey. For men and women of faith, Christ serves as that beacon, the savior sent to remind humanity of its earthly and heavenly path," he said.

"Christ is our model," he continued. "Christ's warning in Matthew 26:52 rings across history: 'Put your sword back in its place... for all who draw the sword will die by the sword.' When you delegate lethal force to an autonomous weapon system, the concept of a 'moral agent' collapses entirely. A machine cannot possess a right intention; it cannot comprehend grief, mercy, or the sacred value of a human life. It can only execute statistical optimization."

The cardinal reminded Christian lawmakers of their responsibility to the people who elected them.

"Your faith is not a private luxury to be hidden away; it is a public covenant to build peace in a world tearing at the seams," he said.

"We live in an era uniquely troubled by global war, civic unrest, and crushing economic upheaval, but Christ calls Christian leaders to a radically different, courageous path," he added, quoting Christ's words in Matthew 5:9, that "Blessed are the peacemakers."

"Notice carefully that he does not bless the 'peace-lovers' or the 'peace-wishers.' He blesses the peacemakers — those who actively build bridges, enforce structural justice, and cultivate narrative empathy across bitter political and social divides," he said.

True leaders in AI regulation

Bo noted the presence of Christopher Olah, a co-founder of Anthropic and machine learning researcher, at the May presentation of Pope Leo's encyclical Magnifica Humanitas, and called it a sign that "the architects of our digital future are begging for governance. They are confessing that while they understand the code, they do not have the answers for human dignity."

"If you refuse to regulate, if you accept the myth of technological inevitability, you are abdicating your sovereign duty to the people who elected you," he said.

"In the words of St. Francis of Assisi, remember that 'all the darkness in the world cannot extinguish the light of a single candle,'" the cardinal said. "Let your governance be that candle. Stand up as true leaders. Establish binding legal guardrails, demand corporate transparency, reject the automation of human slaughter, and ensure that technology remains entirely subservient to the magnificent humanity that God has entrusted to our care."

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Pope Leo XIV has highlighted the importance of the family in preventing drug addiction in young people, saying that there is "no better defense against drugs than a good family."

The pontiff made these remarks during a private audience on Aug. 27 with participants in a conference on drug abuse, promoted by the Pontifical Commission for Latin America (CAL). According to Vatican News, the conference is being held from Aug. 25–27 and focuses on preventing drug addiction and the criminal recruitment of young people in Central and South America.

Leo will make his first apostolic journey to South America from Nov. 6–17, visiting 10 cities across Uruguay, Argentina, and Peru. He previously served as a missionary and bishop in Peru.

Families can help those suffering from drug addiction

In his address, Leo discussed the challenge of drug addiction in young people and its consequences for the family.

"Today, we bear witness to the pain of many broken families, whether due to drug use, violence, the criminal recruitment of a child, poverty, or the lack of opportunities that push people to the margins of society," Leo explained.

To solve this, the pope said, would require reemphasizing the family as the "domestic church."

"St. John Paul II asked us to make the Church 'the home and school of communion.'"

"The family, which the Second Vatican Council rightly called the 'domestic church,' is the place where life is nurtured, cared for, and planned. There is no better defense against drugs than a good family," Leo said.

Inspiration by Pope Francis

According to Vatican News, the conference drew inspiration from the actions of Jorge Mario Bergoglio, who would later become Pope Francis. As the former archbishop of Buenos Aires, Argentina, he supported the project "Familia Grande del Hogar de Cristo," a network of community centers that supports people battling drug addiction and social vulnerability.

Shortly after being elected pope in 2013, Francis traveled to Brazil for that year's World Youth Day. During a visit to a hospital in Rio de Janeiro, he sharply criticized drug traffickers as "dealers of death."

"How many 'dealers of death' there are that follow the logic of power and money at any cost," Francis lamented in his address. He would echo those sentiments again in a general audience in June 2024, calling drug traffickers "murderers."

Leo cited Francis in his address, reminding those present that Jesus wants the Church "to touch human misery, to touch the suffering flesh of others."

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A communications conference in Rome in 2027 will explore how Catholic journalists and media professionals can help foster a climate of trust.

The convocation for "Nurturing Unity Through Communication" will be hosted by the Pontifical University of the Holy Cross in Rome from Feb. 2–4, 2027. Typically held every two years, it will be the 15th edition of the Professional Seminar for Church Communications Offices.

The event is being organized in collaboration with the Vatican's Dicastery for Communication and is expected to draw over 500 participants, including Catholic communications professionals from dioceses, religious orders, and episcopal conferences.

Conference sponsors also include EWTN News, Rome Reports, and the Pontifical Mission Societies.

According to the event website, the gathering will invite participants to reflect "on the role of institutional communication as a path toward fostering unity and concord both within and beyond the Church."

The seminar is also inspired by Pope Leo XIV's call for Catholic media professionals to strive for peace in their work.

"Addressing communicators in his first public audience as pope, Leo XIV reminded them: 'Peace begins with each one of us: with the way we look at others, listen to others, speak about others; and, in this sense, the way we communicate is of fundamental importance: We must say 'no' to the war of words and images; we must reject the paradigm of war.'"

The conference will include plenary and parallel sessions covering topics ranging from social media to encouraging diversity rather than promoting division in the Church through media.

EWTN Chairman and CEO Michael Warsaw will speak on the topic "Leading Through Digital Disruption: Building Community in a Changing Media Landscape." EWTN Vice President and Chief Global Officer Andreas Thonhauser, meanwhile, will moderate a discussion of "AI and Magnifica Humanitas: Reflections One Year On."

Registration for the conference is open until Dec. 1 and can be made through the Pontifical University of the Holy Cross by clicking here.

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Since the fourth century, Christians have revered St. Monica, the mother of Church Father St. Augustine, as a woman of unwavering faith in God.

In an interview with EWTN News reporter Valentina Di Donato, two Augustinian priests living in Rome explained why the woman they refer to as their "grandmother" continues to be a source of hope and inspiration, especially for Catholic wives and mothers.

Augustinian Father Angelo Di Berardino, who has worked and lived at the Augustinian International College of Santa Monica in Rome for 50 years, said St. Monica had a great interior strength that influenced all members of her family.

"Respecting her husband, she was able to convert him," Di Berardino told EWTN News. "Then, she was a strong woman to educate her three children, especially Augustine."

"I think she was so strong in her life, in her prayer, that she had a great influence on the great theologian Augustine," he added.

According to Augustinian Father Edward Daleng Daniang, vice regent of the Prefecture of the Pontifical Household and former general counsellor and procurator general of the Order of St. Augustine, St. Monica is the saint to turn to for spouses who feel alone in their desire to create a Christian family home.

"St. Monica did not have it easy with her husband Patrick," he said. "She tried to win him with her love, with her patience and endurance and tolerance and, above all, bringing her husband to God through prayer."

Describing the ancient saint as a "living example" of a mother who does not give up on her children, Daniang said those struggling with their children can have hope that their prayers, and tears, are never wasted.

"St. Monica was struggling with her son St. Augustine who wandered away from home," he said. "He left Monica, his mother, to come to Italy in those days and Monica did not give up."

"He left the faith which she tried to transmit to him but she did not give up," he emphasized.

Following her son to Italy, Daniang said her main intention of leaving Africa was not to bring her son back home but to lead her son to Jesus Christ for the salvation of his soul.

"St. Monica stands as someone who led her husband to God, to Christ, and also brought her son St. Augustine to Christ," he said.

"That's bringing the unity of family together," he added.

This story was first published on Aug. 27, 2025, and has been updated.

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When a deadly shooting devastated Annunciation Catholic School in Minneapolis on Aug. 27, 2025, a neighboring Catholic parish quietly provided support to the school, opening its doors for the parish school's needs.

Now, Our Lady of Grace is memorializing that connection in a fresco by Minnesota-based artist Mark Balma.

Balma is in the process of painting two large frescoes at the altar of Our Lady of Grace. On the right, already finished, is an image of Mary and the angel at the Annunciation. Green and blue ribbons painted in the bottom-right corner pay tribute to the school and the community.

"In the centuries-old tradition of Catholic sacred art, images have always carried more than beauty — they carry the prayers, memories, and stories of the communities who create and encounter them," Rámond Mitchell, director of liturgy for Our Lady of Grace, told EWTN News.

"Sacred art has a unique ability to hold memory, communicate faith, and invite people into prayer," Mitchell continued.

"Because our two communities had walked so closely with one another through such a difficult time, we wanted to create a lasting remembrance within our own sacred space as a reminder of the people we accompanied, the lives that were forever changed, and the hope and faith that sustained us," Mitchell said.

Meaning of the ribbons

Balma painted blue-and-green ribbons onto a vase within his Annunciation fresco as a tribute to the community of Annunciation Church and School.

Mitchell explained how blue-and-green ribbons were an important symbol to the community after the shooting.

"Following the shooting, people throughout the surrounding community tied blue-and-green ribbons to doors, trees, lampposts, fences, and other places as a visible sign of solidarity and remembrance," Mitchell said.

"In the fresco, the ribbons are tied around a water jug beside Mary. We wanted the ribbons to feel integrated into the scene rather than separate from it," Mitchell continued. "The water jug is an ordinary object, much like the ordinary details of daily life that surrounded Mary when the angel appeared to her."

"In that way, the ribbons become part of an ordinary moment that has been transformed by the presence of God and a reminder of the Annunciation community and of the sacredness of their lives and stories," Mitchell continued.

Balma, who was in the Twin Cities at the time of the shooting, was asked to "find a way to honor the Annunciation community."

"This tragedy really touched me and I prayed for guidance at how to best honor the children and families," Balma told EWTN News.

"As a painter I try to find within Scriptures a word or concept that might help me unlock a vision to reveal a fresh way to transform the words into images," Balma said. "For instance in the Annunciation fresco, the line 'I am the handmaid of the Lord' became the focal point of the imagery."

"My concept for the Annunciation fresco is different than most historical depictions. They usually place an older-looking Mary in a room or cloister visited by Gabriel and the Holy Spirit," Balma said. "As I studied the Scriptures, I found no reference to her being in a room."

Balma pointed out that at the time of the Annunciation, Mary "was not that much older than the children" of Annunciation School.

"I imagined the 14-year-old Mary as carrying on her daily chores like going to the well for water," Balma said. "So full of beautiful symbolism, the water vase then became the place I could attach the ribbons that were placed in the community in remembrance of the children."

"Water is healing, and tying the ribbons around the vase seemed to be the heartfelt way to honor the children," Balma said.

Sister communities

The community at Our Lady of Grace stepped up after the shooting; it was a tragedy that struck them deeply.

"Annunciation is not far from Our Lady of Grace, and there have long been many connections between our two communities," Mitchell said. "Some of our parishioners attended Annunciation themselves, while others have children or grandchildren who attended the school. Our teachers knew teachers there, and some members of our parish community were neighbors or friends of students, staff, and families affected by the shooting."

"Because of those relationships, the tragedy was felt very deeply at Our Lady of Grace," Mitchell said. "In the aftermath, our parish and school community was able to offer a place of safety, hospitality, prayer, and support. Our campus became a place where members of the Annunciation community could simply be together when so much of their world had been disrupted."

The principal of Annunciation was present at the live painting session when Balma painted the ribbons into the fresco, which was a particularly significant moment, Mitchell said.

"Having members of the Annunciation community participate in and witness the creation of the work has made the memorial even more meaningful," Mitchell said.

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An alleged "Eucharistic manifestation" has drawn the attention of the faithful in Guatemala, where a consecrated host reportedly remained intact inside a glass of water, bearing apparent stains of what "could be blood."

While the event has captured the attention of the Catholic community in the country, the Church has urged the faithful to exercise "prudence and restraint."

A consecrated host that reportedly failed to dissolve

The Niño Dios (Child God) Cathedral of the Diocese of Santa Rosa de Lima announced in a statement that the occurrence took place on July 30 during a Mass for Eucharistic Missionary Week held at a private school in Cuilapa, a city located approximately 40 miles southeast of Guatemala City.

According to the statement, during Communion, the priest celebrating the Mass noticed that one of the young people who had received the Eucharist "was taking the sacred host out of his mouth; he quickly approached him and was able to prevent him from discarding it on the floor."

"Following the guidelines for such cases, the priest placed the sacred host in a glass vessel containing water in the rectory chapel," the statement explained.

The intention was for the host to dissolve naturally. However, according to the statement, "the following Thursday [Aug. 13], while cleaning the chapel, a parish volunteer noticed that the host had not dissolved and bore red stains that could be blood."

The discovery was reported to the parish priest, who questioned and took a statement from the volunteer who had noticed the situation. Subsequently, the matter was reported to Bishop José Cayetano Parra Novo of the Diocese of Santa Rosa de Lima.

'Prudence and restraint'

The cathedral explicitly urged the faithful to exercise "prudence and restraint."

"Throughout history, the Church has received testimony regarding the real and substantial presence of Jesus Christ in the Eucharist, under this unique form of manifestation," the cathedral noted in its statement, cautioning that such cases "have been neither common nor easy to discern; therefore, they cannot be called miracles until a full investigation, which must be carried out and will take time, is concluded."

The cathedral also announced that the host is being reserved "in a special place and will not be on public display," while Parra Novo is providing "guidelines for the necessary discernment and to enable a study of this possible Eucharistic manifestation" of the Real Presence.

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.

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Comments by Israel's ambassador to the Holy See, Yaron Sideman, about the West Bank town of Taybeh have drawn attention among local Church leaders after he condemned the violence there but disputed accounts of its seriousness.

Speaking at the Meeting for Friendship Among Peoples in Rimini, Italy, Sideman said that "any act of violence against anyone is unacceptable" and that those responsible should be dealt with according to the law. However, he added that the situation in Taybeh had been "described in far more serious terms than it actually is."

Sideman maintained that Israel is governed by the rule of law and guarantees religious freedom. He also assured pilgrims that visiting the holy sites is safe and encouraged them to return to the Holy Land.

The Observatory for the Christian Presence in the Holy Land said the ambassador's characterization was inconsistent with the documented pattern of attacks and incursions affecting Taybeh — the last town in the West Bank with an entirely Christian population.

The incidents have been documented by the local Church and town institutions and followed by diplomatic missions, international media, and human rights organizations.

In July 2025, patriarchs and heads of churches in Jerusalem visited Taybeh alongside diplomats and representatives from more than 20 countries following an escalation of attacks against the town and its religious sites.

Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, the Latin patriarch of Jerusalem, warned at the time that the violence was leading some Christians to consider leaving the West Bank.

The World Council of Churches reported in August 2026 that Taybeh had received more than 50 diplomatic visits over the previous year, in addition to continued media attention. The organization highlighted residents' concerns about attacks, incursions, and the effects of the violence on their daily lives.

Father Bashar Fawadleh, the Latin Patriarchate's parish priest in Taybeh and head of the Observatory for the Christian Presence in the Holy Land, said the issue was not a series of isolated incidents but an accumulating reality affecting residents' security, access to their land and livelihoods, and ability to remain in the town. He stressed that condemnations of the attacks must be followed by protection, accountability, and concrete measures to prevent their recurrence.

On Aug. 9, Israeli military authorities declared Taybeh closed to Israeli nonresidents. The military said the measure followed what it described as "violent attacks by Israelis" in the area and was intended to protect residents and maintain public order.

For local Christians, the official measure underscored the gap between the level of danger recognized by authorities on the ground and the ambassador's assessment of the situation.

Christians in Taybeh are therefore repeating their invitation: "Come and see." They are calling on visitors to meet the town's families, farmers, and young people, listen to their testimonies, and witness firsthand the conditions affecting the Christian community, its land, and its property.

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During his visit to Russia, Archbishop Paul Richard Gallagher, the Vatican secretary for relations with states and international organizations, reaffirmed the Holy See's position that the conflict with Ukraine "cannot be resolved by military means."

The archbishop made the remarks during a press conference following his Aug. 25 meeting in Moscow with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov.

As the Vatican Secretariat of State reported Tuesday on X, the men discussed "topics of mutual interest and current international issues, with particular attention to the war in Ukraine and prospects for peace."

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During the event, Gallagher stated that "the Holy See's position is clear: The conflict cannot be resolved by military means," adding that "it is essential to create the conditions for a political and diplomatic process."

"To be clear: This war must end," he said, noting that "it is urgent and necessary to end the hostilities and plan future relations so as not to remain prisoners of the wrongs of the past."

He stated that "any concrete result in the humanitarian sphere will contribute to alleviating suffering and help restore a minimum level of trust between the parties to the conflict."

Lavrov expressed appreciation for the Holy See's openness to dialogue with Russia and its commitment to peace, Vatican media reported. He also agreed with his Vatican counterpart on the need to step up cooperation on humanitarian issues.

On Aug. 26, Gallagher was scheduled to meet with Yuri Ushakov, foreign policy adviser to Russian President Vladimir Putin.

The Vatican representative will return to the Vatican on Aug. 28.

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.

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