Catholic News

ACERRA, Italy — Pope Leo XIV will spend Saturday morning in Acerra, Italy — one of three "corners" of the so-called "triangle of death" and the epicenter of a dramatic health and environmental crisis caused by the local Mafia's illegal disposal of toxic waste.

To mark the anniversary of Laudato Si', Pope Francis' encyclical on care for creation, Leo will meet May 23 with the community of Acerra and the surrounding area, including those who have prematurely lost loved ones due to the pollution.

"The pope's visit certainly represents a moment of great courage and strength for a population that often feels alone in the face of a problem of enormous proportions," local attorney Valentina Centonze told EWTN News.

Centonze, who monitors compliance to judicial decontamination orders for the area, said: "No one can imagine resolving this situation on their own. The Holy Father's closeness to our land is therefore a source of comfort and support but also a warning to the authorities, urging them to fully understand the suffering of this people and to deploy all necessary means to seriously address the issue."

The Land of Fires

Acerra and the surrounding roughly 400 square miles — dubbed the "Land of Fires" ("Terra dei Fuochi" in Italian) — lie just northeast of the city of Naples, about 140 miles south of Rome.

The territory has a higher-than-average incidence of cancerous tumors and congenital malformations, which studies have linked to the dumping of millions of tons of toxic waste from northern Italian factories — at the hands of organized crime groups like the Camorra clans — and garbage fires that released highly toxic dioxins and PCBs into the air and food chain of the highly-agricultural region.

"We are in southern Italy, a region historically plagued by social problems, unemployment, crime, and a fragile economy. Added to this is the environmental disaster, which has caused illness and death," Bishop Antonio Di Donna, bishop of Acerra since 2013, told EWTN News.

"The greatest challenge," he said, "is coping with a precarious situation, especially from a health perspective. We are dealing with families marked by bereavement, with young people and children who fall ill and die. This is an additional burden on top of an already difficult situation."

During his roughly three-hour visit to Acerra, Pope Leo will visit the cathedral, where he will address bishops, priests, and religious alongside families who have lost loved ones or are currently suffering from illnesses related to the environmental crisis.

"We were deeply committed to ensuring that he could offer them a word of comfort," the bishop said.

Afterward, the pontiff will make his way to the city's main square, where he will address mayors and residents from across the territory before leaving by helicopter to return to Rome.

"I hope that the pope's visit will provide further impetus to keep the issue in the spotlight and to strengthen our commitment," Di Donna added.

A poisoned land

Angelo Venturato, whose daughter Maria Venturato died in 2016 at the age of 25 from a rare leg tumor, will be among the crowd in the cathedral on May 23.

"After Maria's death, I fell ill too: I had a tumor, fortunately benign," Venturato told EWTN News. "But without faith, I wouldn't be here today. Faith helped me not to shut myself away in my grief. It gave me the strength to keep bringing smiles to others."

"The positive thing today is that people have become aware of what happened in Acerra. There are associations, volunteer groups, mothers, and citizens who work every day to defend the area. We know this land has been poisoned, but we won't give up," he said.

Following his daughter's death, Venturato formed an association to help others living through the same thing he and his family experienced.

The name, "Se Allunghi la Mano Troverai la Mia," ("If you reach out, you will find my hand") was inspired by his daughter, who encouraged him with the phrase before she died.

"Today, we provide free transportation to help sick people get to hospitals and treatment centers, especially cancer patients and children. We never leave anyone alone: We accompany them, wait with them during their treatments, and take them home," Venturato said.

Acerra's diocesan Catholic charity, Caritas, is also supporting the local community with free diagnostic tests and other general and pediatric medical care in addition to psychiatric support and general financial assistance. It also runs a community center and a day center for at-risk youth.

"In this region, people are even more afraid of getting sick. They feel this fear deeply, and sometimes they're even afraid to get checked," Caritas Director Vincenzo Castaldo told EWTN News. "They often tell us: 'It's better not to know; we're going to die anyway.' It's hard to hear those words."

The clinic was founded "to provide a free opportunity, to simplify access to care, and to offer a sense of closeness — a comforting touch from the Church in matters of health, a presence that helps people recognize their problems and face them," he explained.

Di Donna drew attention to the more than 50 sites across Italy designated "contaminated sites" — in Italy, "there are many 'lands of fires,'" he said.

The Diocese of Acerra is one of about 10 dioceses in the area that for over 30 years have "heard the cry of the earth and of the poor," the bishop said. "We have embarked on a journey focused first and foremost on raising awareness: against pollution and for the care of creation."

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"It was an adventure that will remain etched in my memory for a long time," said young Frenchman Maël Le Lagadec in describing his feat of carrying a wooden cross to the summit of Aneto Peak in the Pyrenees mountains in Spain after the original one had been knocked down.

The landscape architecture student hiked upward for 14 hours, carrying on his back a 77-pound walnut cross that he had sculpted following the disappearance of the iron cross that had crowned the summit since 1951.

After covering over 17 miles and ascending 6,230 feet with the help of a friend, the 18-year-old managed to reach the highest peak in the Pyrenees, situated at an elevation of 9,840 feet.

Instagram post

Following a report by a group of mountaineers last April, the Spanish Civil Guard confirmed that the original 10-foot cross, weighing 220 pounds, had been toppled and thrown down the slope.

The original cross was installed at the summit of Aneto 75 years ago by a hiking club from Catalonia. Subsequently, the Mountaineers of Aragón also placed an image of the Virgin of the Pillar (the patroness of Spain) and a carving of St. Martial, the patron saint of Benasque, the valley within the Aragonese region where the peak is located inside the Posets-Maladeta Nature Park.

This symbol of faith, situated atop Spain's second-highest peak, has been the subject of controversy and various acts of vandalism. In 1999, it was torn from its base by a storm, and more recently, in 2018, it was found painted yellow, a color associated with the Catalan independence movement.

The mayor of the town of Benasque, Manuel Mora, applauded the initiative and stated that the wooden cross would remain until the original is restored. A group called "Movement Towards a Secular State" denounced the installation of the new cross, however, and urged that disciplinary proceedings be opened against Le Lagadec.

For his part, Le Lagadec took to social media to call for an end to the "degradation of this type of heritage," having documented the entire process from the creation of the cross to its installation atop Aneto.

He also recounted that he had the help of several people who encouraged him throughout the entire ascent, recalling a woman who lent him her hiking stick during the most difficult sections.

"Upon reaching the summit, I still struggled to fully grasp what I had just accomplished," he wrote in one of his posts, calling his feat "an extraordinary human and athletic adventure, culminating in the installation of the cross at the very summit."

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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In a message to Villanova's Class of 2026, Pope Leo XIV called on graduates to remain faithful to the Augustinian values of "veritas, unitas, caritas (truth, unity, charity)" throughout their lives.

"The world beyond Villanova is waiting for you, sometimes with open arms, and sometimes with truly dangerous intent. You will have the challenge and the opportunity to make a big difference, if you carry with you those Augustinian values of veritas, unitas, caritas," Leo, a graduate of the Class of 1977, said in a written message read at Villanova's May 19 commencement ceremony.

"This being the 250th anniversary of the United States of America, I would invite you to recall in a special way the guiding principles of the foundations of our nation: 'We hold these truths to be self-evident: that all [people] are created equal; that they are endowed by our Creator with certain inalienable rights, and among those are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness,'" the pope said.

"May the graduates of 2026 always be faithful to the guiding light that has been so important for these 250 years," Leo said. "Congratulations, and please know that I send all of you my apostolic blessing."

Benedictine College condemns antisemitic leaflet, promises disciplinary action

Benedictine College in Atchison, Kansas, condemned the distribution of antisemitic leaflets across its campus in late April following a conference on Nostra Aetate, the Vatican II document on non-Christian religions, hosted by the Coalition of Catholics Against Antisemitism.

The flyer was distributed by a group called "Coalition of Catholics Against Jewish Supremacy" and accused Benedictine College theology professor Matthew Ramage of "blasphemy."

"The college is proud that our students took the initiative to remove these anonymous flyers from cars in campus parking lots, and we are also proud that our student groups were the first to respond to the attacks," the college said in a statement, praising the Latin Mass Society for speaking out and expressing "its disgust and utter disappointment at the content" of the leaflet.

"Questions are now being raised about repercussions," the college said. "Any student who is found to be involved in conduct that violates the Student Code of Conduct is subject to the college's student disciplinary procedures, but this process is confidential to protect students."

Liberty University student challenges Supreme Court on taxpayer funding for religious studies

Liberty University student Bethany Hall is challenging a decades-old Supreme Court precedent limiting the use of taxpayer-funded scholarships for students in religious studies programs.

Hall is suing Virginia officials for blocking her from using a $5,000 per year scholarship she received through the Virginia Tuition Assistance Grant program to pay for her degree in youth ministries, considered a vocational religious degree. Majors that "prepare individuals for the professional practice of religious vocations" disqualify students from receiving the public funds, according to the state program.

After a panel of the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled against her on May 13, Hall's case is one step closer to the Supreme Court, according to a May 19 report. 

"It's just quite simply wrong and very sad that our Supreme Court made that decision back then," Hall said. "Because whether you agree with Christianity or a different religion or not, it's not up to the court to determine if I get to receive a scholarship paid for by taxpayer dollars."

Canadian university launches 'Pope Francis Institute'

St. Jerome's University in Ontario, Canada, announced it is opening an institute dedicated to the legacy of Pope Francis.

"To honor Pope Francis on the first anniversary of his death, St. Jerome's University is announcing the creation of a new hub for learning, dialogue, and leadership formation," the university said in a press release. "The Pope Francis Institute will be the world's first initiative of its kind dedicated to advancing the legacy of the late pontiff."

The Pope Francis Institute will officially launch with a public event sometime during the 2026-2027 academic year, according to the release.

The institute will host programs "rooted in the spirituality of Francis and the educational tradition of his Jesuit order," including public lectures, retreats, professional development, and research.

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Loyola University Maryland received a $500,000 grant from the Aspen Institute to facilitate community projects and dialogue aimed at strengthening "social trust" among groups historically divided by race and income.

The grant, awarded to the Jesuit university on May 19, is part of the Aspen Institute's Trust in Practice Award grants, which are sponsored by the insurance company Allstate. Loyola is one of 11 recipients of the grant.

According to a news release by Loyola, the grant will establish a program called "Rooted in Trust," which will build on its York Road Community Day program. Its stated goal is to build trust across racial, generational, and socioeconomic divides.

The grant funds a two-year project through April 2028 that begins with several months of community dialogue and listening sessions between people from the east side and from the west side of York Road in North Baltimore, which the news release said was historically divided.

The west side of the divide has a higher white population and higher income, while the east side has a higher Black population and lower income, which is rooted in 1930s efforts to segregate the communities, according to a 2020 article in The Johns Hopkins Newsletter.

According to the Loyola news release, the dialogue sessions will help develop a plan for five greening and public space activation community projects. It's not yet clear what the specific projects will be.

Each project will have one co-lead from the west side and one from the east side. The project site will have signs that explain the history and the culture of the area.

"The Rooted in Trust Program will start with community dialogues in order to understand how historic divides have shaped relationships, access, and use of space," said Gia Grier McGinnis, Loyola executive director of the neighborhood resilience and community engagement.

"Then, through intergenerational environmental stewardship and placemaking activities, we hope deeper connections can form — both among people who might not otherwise interact and with spaces they reimagine together," she said. "We are honored that the Aspen Institute and Allstate have given us this incredible opportunity, and we look forward to sharing what we learn with others across Baltimore and across the country."

Loyola will lead the program that will include three other partners: the Govans-Boundary United Methodist Church; the York Road Partnership, which has more than 30 member organizations; and the York Road Improvement District.

"Rooted in Trust builds upon Loyola's long-standing, place-based community development efforts in the Greater Govans and York Road corridor neighborhoods, which emphasize community-university collaboration and partnership," Deb Cady Melzer, Loyola vice president of student development, said in a statement.

"We are incredibly grateful to the Aspen Institute and Allstate for this transformational award, which empowers Loyola and our neighbors to continue this important work," she said.

The Aspen Institute launched the Trust in Practice Awards initiative in October 2025 with a $5 million donation from Allstate. According to a news release, the initiative is to fund community organizations that support civic engagement, volunteering, and bridging differences with intergenerational participants.

"In today's interconnected world, trust among people is a key part of what strengthens our communities and country," Dan Porterfield, Aspen Institute president and CEO, said in a statement at the time.

"The Trust in Practice Awards are an example of our joint commitment to building and sustaining trust across communities and among individuals of all backgrounds and beliefs," he said. "We are grateful to Allstate for their leadership and partnership in this important effort."

It was launched in response to Allstate research that found 41% of people said they generally trust other Americans.

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EWTN Global Catholic Network will open a new office in Stockholm, the network announced May 21. As part of the expansion, EWTN will extend its Swedish services to reach Scandinavian and northern European audiences.

The move comes amid growth of the Catholic Church in Sweden. The nation, which historically restricted religious freedom, has 130,000 registered Catholics.

The Stockholm office will produce news from the Vatican along with devotional and catechetical content for local audiences and beyond.

"EWTN's mission has always been to bring the truth and beauty of the Catholic faith to people wherever they are," said Michael P. Warsaw, chairman of the board and CEO of EWTN.

Founded by Mother Angelica 45 years ago, EWTN is the largest Catholic media organization in the world. EWTN is the parent company of EWTN News.

"The opening of our Stockholm office is an important step in serving a growing Catholic community in Sweden driven by immigration and conversions," Warsaw said. "For EWTN, the Catholic Church in Sweden represents a dynamic and expanding audience for faithful Catholic media and local-language evangelization."

EWTN looks to reach the growing online audience in Sweden, where 93% of people go online daily, according to a 2025 report by the Swedish Internet Foundation.

"EWTN Sweden is built for the way people in Sweden live and consume media today," said Ulf Silfverling, director of EWTN Sweden. "Through EWTN.se and our media channels, we want to provide faithful, accessible, and relevant Catholic content that speaks to Swedish audiences in their own language and context."

"This office represents more than a new location; it is a commitment to Scandinavia, Sweden, and its growing community of faithful as EWTN continues to work on reaching every home and every heart," said Andreas Thonhauser, chief global officer of EWTN.

"By producing native Swedish content and collaborating more closely with Catholics in the region, EWTN can help deepen the faith and connect northern Europe more fully with the life of the universal Church," Thonhauser added.

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Catholic Charities USA brought its traveling "People of Hope Museum" to Capitol Hill for its annual advocacy day, inviting members of Congress to see firsthand how its ministries impact both those who serve and those they serve.

"We're anxious to get them to visit this," Luz Tavarez, vice president for government relations at Catholic Charities USA (CCUSA), told EWTN News. Tavarez was among 21 diocesan officials who participated in CCUSA's annual "Hill Day" on May 19-20 to lobby Congress on housing, food insecurities, and other poverty-related issues.

CCUSA's mobile museum is scheduled to be parked on the National Mall in front of the Capitol through May 22.

"What's really amazing about the People of Hope Museum is that it's a firsthand account of how we see Jesus in the people we serve," she said. "So, I really hope that they do get down here. We have invited every single one of them to come, so we'll see."

The group met with about 60 offices, Tavarez said, including members of the House and Senate.

Four members addressed CCUSA, including Rep. Jim McGovern, D-Massachusetts, Rep. James Clyburn, D-South Carolina, Rep. Mike Lawler, R-New York, and Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine.

"All of those members challenged us to just continue to hit the ground educating members of the important work that we do," Tavarez said. "I think there's a recognition on both sides of the aisle of how critical the work that Catholic Charities around the country, the work that we do, is. But again, our goal was just really to ensure that government funding, government appropriations, is reaching the most vulnerable."

Tavarez highlighted the recently-passed farm bill and housing issues as areas where they found bipartisan support among members. She said the group did not experience much pushback but that the challenge lay in educating members "on how our Catholic faith is translated into the policy positions we take, and that's just consistent on both sides of the aisle."

The lobbying day came a week after Democratic senators pressed Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Secretary Scott Turner over missing data on homelessness and the Trump administration's planned cuts to federal funding for homelessness.

"It's important to understand that not everyone understands the work that we do," she said. "And for some people, Catholic Charities means just one thing, you know, perhaps it's working with immigrants. For other people, Catholic Charities is just the local food pantries. And there is some intersection there."

"What is beautiful about 'Hill Day' in my view is that Catholic Charities, of course, is not a political or partisan entity," CCUSA CEO Kerry Alys Robinson told EWTN News. "It is a social ministry of the Church, and it encompasses the full political spectrum."

"Elected officials across the aisle all understand just how important Catholic Charities is to their constituents in their districts and in their states," she said. "So I think judging from all reports, the meetings went very, very well, and our diocesan directors are especially happy to be here."

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VATICAN CITY — Pope Leo XIV told leaders of international associations of the faithful, ecclesial movements, and new communities Thursday that governance in the Church must never become a vehicle for prestige or personal power but must serve communion and the spiritual good of the faithful.

Speaking May 21 in the Synod Hall to participants in a meeting promoted by the Dicastery for the Laity, the Family, and Life, the pope reflected on the theme of governance in ecclesial communities and the responsibility of those who lead them.

"In every social entity there exists a need for suitable people and structures to guide and coordinate communal life," Pope Leo said. "At its root, the term 'to govern' refers to the action of 'holding the helm,' of 'steering a ship.' It is, therefore, a matter of providing a sure direction, so that the community may be a place of growth for the people who belong to it."

The pope said Church governance cannot be reduced to administrative efficiency or coordination.

"However, in the Church, governance does not arise simply from the need to coordinate the religious needs of its members," he said. "The Church was established by Christ as a lasting sign of his universal salvific will and is the place, willed by God, where all people, in every age, may receive the fruits of redemption and experience the new life that Christ has given us."

For that reason, he said, governance in the Church "is never merely technical" but "has a salvific orientation in itself," directed toward "the spiritual good of the faithful."

Addressing leaders of lay associations and movements, Pope Leo said governance is generally entrusted to laypeople and "expresses participation in the royal 'munus' of Christ received in baptism." He emphasized that such leadership is "placed at the service of other faithful and of the life of the association" and should be the fruit of free elections understood as an act of communal discernment.

"If, as we have said, governance is a particular gift of the Holy Spirit, which the members of a community recognize as present in some of their brethren in the faith, at least three consequences derive from this," the pope said.

The first, he said, is that governance must be "for the benefit of all," serving the community, the association, and the whole Church. "Governance, therefore, can never be exploited for personal interests or worldly forms of prestige and power," he said.

The second consequence, Pope Leo continued, is that governance "can never be imposed from above but must be a gift recognizable within the community and freely accepted," which is why "free elections" are important.

The third, he said, is that the governance of an association, "like every charism," remains subject to the discernment of pastors, who are responsible for safeguarding "the authenticity and orderly use of charisms."

The pope also cited several qualities he said must mark Church governance: "mutual listening, shared responsibility, transparency, fraternal closeness, and communal discernment."

Leaders of ecclesial movements, he said, have a delicate task. They must both preserve "the memory of a living heritage" and exercise a "prophetic" role by listening to present pastoral needs and responding to "the new challenges and to the cultural, social, and spiritual sensibilities of our time."

"Indeed, only in this way can one be a Christian, a disciple and a missionary in today's society and Church," Pope Leo said.

He placed particular emphasis on communion, warning against the temptation for ecclesial groups to close in on themselves.

"Those who exercise a mission of leadership in the Church must learn to listen to and welcome different opinions, different cultural and spiritual orientations, and different personal temperaments, always seeking to preserve, especially in necessary and often difficult decisions, the greater good of communion," he said.

"This requires a witness of meekness, detachment, and selfless love for one's brothers and sisters and for the community, which serves as an example to everyone," the pope added.

Pope Leo warned that some groups can become self-referential.

"At times we find groups who close themselves up and think that their specific reality is the only one, or that it is the Church, but the Church is all of us, it is much more!" he said. "And so our movements must truly endeavor to live in communion with the entire Church, at diocesan level."

The bishop, he said, is "a very important figure of reference," adding that groups must seek communion with the Church both locally and universally.

The pope concluded by thanking the associations and movements for their service, calling them "an inestimable gift to the Church."

"There is great richness among you: so many well-formed people and so many fine evangelizers; so many young people and diverse vocations to the priesthood and married life," he said. "The variety of charisms, gifts, and methods of apostolate developed over the years allows you to be present in the fields of culture, art, social life and work, bringing the light of the Gospel everywhere."

This story was first published by ACI Stampa, the Italian-language sister service of EWTN News. It has been translated and adapted by EWTN News English.

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Pakistan's Catholic bishops have ended their "ad limina" visit to the Vatican with a formal invitation to Pope Leo XIV to visit the country, a move they and Christian activists hope will boost interfaith harmony and highlight minority concerns.

Bishop Samson Shukardin of Hyderabad, president of the Catholic Bishops' Conference of Pakistan, extended the invitation during a papal audience on May 15, according to UCA News.

Pope Leo XIV responded positively to the invitation and expressed a desire to visit Pakistan in the future, the outlet reported.

Shukardin said the bishops returned from the "ad limina" visit with renewed hope for the church in Pakistan.

"The challenges we have in Pakistan are first how to evangelize the Church and also reach other people. A big challenge is that our people are still illiterate but strong in faith; they are poor but very hardworking. Many of our people are not receiving equal rights," he said in a video shared on May 16 on Catholic TV.

"We have a big problem regarding blasphemy cases and forced conversions. Sometimes our Church is rejected and persecuted because we are not doing what others expect. Our Church is going through difficulties, but we are hopeful that one day we will receive equal rights in Pakistan."

According to the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan, religious minorities in the country, including Christians and Ahmadis, continued to face persecution and discrimination in 2025.

The commission's annual report highlighted persistent cases of forced conversion and underage marriages involving Hindu and Christian girls in Punjab and Sindh provinces, exposing failures in enforcing child marriage laws.

Mary James Gill, a Christian politician, former lawmaker, and executive director of the Center for Law and Justice, said Christians continue to face social and economic marginalization along with challenges related to religious freedom and interfaith relations.

"Eighty percent of Christians in Pakistan live below the poverty line. The reasons are linked more to caste-based structures than religion itself. A papal visit can bring attention to these issues," she told EWTN News on May 19.

Gill said the Vatican holds moral and diplomatic influence that could help amplify the concerns of marginalized communities.

"Pakistan as a state gives weight and respect to Vatican recommendations and to figures such as the archbishop of Canterbury. A papal visit could increase visibility for Christian concerns and resonate with expectations from the community. It would also be a positive gesture because Christian political leadership in Pakistan often remains divided," she said.

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Cardinal Jose Tolentino de Mendonça, prefect of the Dicastery for Culture and Education, on Thursday criticized AI deepfakes as a threat to human encounter.

Speaking at a conference on AI in Rome on May 21, Mendonça warned of the dangers of AI, saying that it can "have painful consequences on the destiny of individuals."

"When a deepfake lends a person's face to words they have never spoken ... it is the very grammar of the human encounter that is altered," Mendonça said. "Technology that exploits our need for relationship ... can not only have painful consequences on the destiny of individuals, but it can also damage the social, cultural, and political fabric of societies."

Preserving humanity in the age of AI

Coming a few days before of the release of Pope Leo XIV's Magnifica Humanitas, which will treat moral and social questions related to AI, the theme of the conference was "Preserving Human Voices and Faces."

Organized by the Dicastery for Communication and held at the Pontifical Urban University, the conference brought together professors, journalists, and engineers who offered insights into the risks AI poses to authentic human experiences.

Mendonça, citing the pope's message for the 60th World Day of Social Communications, clarified that the goal "lies not in stopping digital innovation but in guiding it."

Paolo Ruffini, prefect of the Dicastery for Communication, added: "The greatest danger consists in passively accepting the idea that knowledge no longer belongs to us."

Magnifica Humanitas: Keeping the human at the center

Some of the conference panelists expressed their hopes for Leo's upcoming encyclical on AI.

One of those was Bishop Paul Tighe, secretary of the Section of Culture of the Dicastery for Culture and Education. Speaking to EWTN News on the sidelines, Tighe gave his impressions about what the pope intends to contribute with this document.

"I think the pope is doing two things: First, he will be offering perspectives that enable people to reflect and think critically about AI and its role in society. Second, he is initiating a dialogue," Tighe told EWTN News. "He wants to create an environment where all the various people who have a part in the development of AI are attentive to keeping the human at the center."

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The Supreme Court on May 21 rejected an attempt by the state of Alabama to execute a convicted murderer whose low IQ may render him intellectually disabled and thus protected from capital punishment by the U.S. Constitution.

The court in an unsigned order dismissed an appeal from Alabama after the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled in favor of Joseph Clifton Smith, with the appeals court holding that Smith's low-70s IQ put him close enough to the threshold of an intellectually disability to render his death sentence unconstitutional.

The court heard oral arguments in the case in December 2025. The case had followed a twisting path through the federal court system; the 11th Circuit first ruled in Smith's favor in 2023, after which the Supreme Court in 2024 vacated that decision and ordered the appeals court to consider it again.

A second review by the lower court, with another favorable ruling for Smith, again brought the case before the Supreme Court last year; the high court's May 21 ruling brought the case to an end.

The latest ruling represents a potential precedent in how the Supreme Court considers certain cases of capital punishment. The court ruled in the 2002 case Atkins v. Virginia that executing people with intellectual disabilities violated the Constitution's Eighth Amendment, which prohibits "cruel and unusual punishment."

The justices did not define "intellectual disability" in that case, though it cited expert opinion that "an IQ between 70 and 75 or lower" is "typically considered the cutoff" in some definitions.

Theresa Farnan, philosopher on the Ethics and Public Policy Committee of the National Catholic Partnership on Disability, told EWTN News in April that Smith's death sentence was "clearly a borderline case." Smith was convicted in the brutal 1997 slaying of Durk Van Dam.

"It's obvious to me he could not grasp the gravity of his crimes," Farnan said of Smith. "In cases like these, the burden on us as a society is even more pronounced to be radically pro-life."

The Catholic Church in recent decades has come out increasingly against the death penalty, with multiple popes arguing that modern penal systems have rendered capital punishment inadmissible in many if not most cases.

Pope Leo XIV in particular has spoken out several times against the death penalty in just the first year of his pontificate, arguing that "human life is to be respected" and that support for capital punishment is incompatible with a pro-life philosophy.

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