The Pope meets with 15,000 teachers and students in St. Peter's Square in Rome for the Jubilee of the World of Education and calls on teachers to connect with the "inner selves" of their students, because without a profound encounter with them, "any educational proposal is doomed to failure."

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Catholic Youth under the Symposium of Episcopal Conferences of Africa and Madagascar (SECAM) gathered in Nairobi from 23 October to 27 October for a seminar under the theme: “Youth Apostolate and the Vision of the Church in Africa.”

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VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Pope Leo XIV encouraged an international group of young adults to reach out to their peers and invite them to be active members of a parish community rather than trying to live their faith alone.

The pope met Oct. 31 with members of the International Youth Advisory Body, a group of 20 young adults from around the world who serve three-year terms as advisers to the Dicastery for Laity, the Family and Life.

The North American members are Sally Yasmine from the Archdiocese of Montreal and Wyatt Olivas from the Diocese of Cheyenne, Wyoming.

Pope Leo had a prepared speech for the group but handed them a copy of the text rather than reading it. 

"You know that in recent years many young people have approached the faith through social media, successful programs and popular online Christian witnesses," the pope wrote. "The danger is that a faith discovered online is limited to individual experiences, which may be intellectually and emotionally reassuring, but are never 'embodied.'"

The risk, he wrote, is that those spiritual experiences "remain 'disembodied,' detached from the 'ecclesial body,'" which is the church.

Another danger, he said, is that they are not lived "alongside others in real-life situations, relationships or sharing. All too often, social media algorithms merely create a sounding board for individuals, picking up on personal preferences and tastes, and 'sending them back' magnified and enriched with appealing proposals."

In that kind of digital echo chamber, he said, "everyone remains alone with themselves, prisoners of their own inclinations and projections."

Young people are essential members of the church, the pope said, especially a church that is striving to be "synodal," listening to all members, praying and discerning together and calling on each person to contribute their talents.

"Authentic synodality leads to mission," the pope wrote. And part of that is being involved so that the church understands "how to bring the Gospel to everyone." 

"All of this requires that you, young people, have open hearts, ready to listen both to the 'inspirations' of the Spirit and the deep 'aspirations' of each person," Pope Leo wrote.

"You must look beyond appearances in order to seek the true answers that give meaning to life.  You must have hearts that are open to God's call and not engrossed in your own plans and are willing to understand and sympathize before forming judgments."

Pope Leo asked the young people particularly to help the church "hear the voices of the weak, the poor and the lonely, refugees and those who struggle to integrate into society, or to access educational opportunities."

"All too often," he said, "these voices are drowned out by the noise of the powerful, the successful and those who live in 'exclusive' realities."

Being missionary, the pope wrote, "entails freedom from fear, because the Lord loves to call us to forge new paths. In this sense, as young people, you can be leaders of creativity and courage."
 

WASHINGTON - “With the Administration signaling a severely limited continuation of this historically bipartisan program, we urge due consideration for all those who have long awaited their opportunity for relief,” said Bishop Mark J. Seitz of El Paso, chairman of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ (USCCB) Committee on Migration. Bishop Seitz’s remarks follow the Administration’s formal publication of the Presidential Determination on Refugee Admissions for Fiscal Year 2026, which allows up to 7,500 refugees to be resettled over the next year. This is the lowest ceiling since the program was created by Congress in 1980. 

At the start of this year, over 100,000 people had already undergone extensive screening by the U.S. government and were conditionally approved for refugee status in the United States, including vulnerable children and those seeking to reunify with family members. However, on the first day of his second term, President Trump signed an executive order indefinitely suspending refugee resettlement. Since then, very few refugees have been permitted to travel to the United States as exceptions to the executive order, largely consistent with recent presidential actions prioritizing Afrikaners from South Africa under Executive Order 14204. 

Bishop Seitz’s full statement follows: 

“For over 45 years, the U.S. Refugee Admissions Program has been, and continues to be, a safe and secure legal pathway for people from around the world who meet the requirements for humanitarian protection. It is a vital mechanism through which our nation can exist as a beacon of hope for those facing persecution and promote respect for the sanctity of human life. What President Reagan said in 1981 about refugee policy being ‘an important part of our past and fundamental to our national interest’ very much rings true today. With the Administration signaling a severely limited continuation of this historically bipartisan program, we urge due consideration for all those who have long awaited their opportunity for relief. We also pray for the broad, indefinite suspension of refugee admissions to be lifted, and we implore the President to make the program available to those truly in need. 

“We cannot turn a blind eye to the disparate treatment of refugees currently taking place. As exemptions are considered, it is essential that they be applied consistently and without discrimination on the basis of race, religion, or national origin, in accordance with longstanding domestic and international norms. Resettlement tainted by the perception of unjust discrimination is contrary to Catholic teaching and quintessential American values, grounded in our Constitution and refugee laws, including the equality of every person from the moment of their creation by God.”

Earlier this year, the USCCB announced that it would discontinue its role as a national resettlement agency. However, Archbishop Timothy P. Broglio, president of the USCCB, emphasized that the decision would not mean the Catholic Church would be walking away from helping refugees and others, but rather, that the USCCB would find other ways to uphold the Gospel’s call to do what we can for the least among us.

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The Vatican has announced the theme chosen by Pope Leo XIV for World Missions Day 2026: "One in Christ, united in mission." The worldwide celebration in 2026 will mark the 100th anniversary of the Day's establishment by Pope Pius XI at the suggestion of the Pontifical Society for the Propagation of the Faith.

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"He who sings, prays twice," is a quote widely attributed to St. Augustine and one that resonates deeply in the context of liturgical music. Recently, in the Diocese of Katsina, Malamawa, various choirs gathered to exchange music notes and share insights on the role of liturgical music in worship.

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Croatian President Zoran Milanović was received this morning at the Vatican's Apostolic Palace. During talks at the Secretariat of State, discussions focused on various international and regional issues, with particular attention to the Western Balkans region and regional cooperation.

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Wolfgang (d. 994) + Bishop and reformer. Born in Swabia, Germany, he studied at Reichenau under the Benedictines and at Wurzburg before serving as a teacher in the cathedral school of Trier. He soon entered the Benedictines at Einsiedeln (964) and was appointed head of the monastery school, receiving ordination in 971. He then set out with a group of monks to preach among the Magyars of Hungary, but the following year (972) was named bishop of Regensburg by Emperor Otto II (r. 973-983). As ...

Speaking with Vatican News, Regina Lynch—Executive President of the international organization Aid to the Church in Need (ACN International)—reflects on the Christians in Pakistan who embrace their suffering by saying they are nothing compared to the suffering of Christ; as well as the more than 5,500 aid projects run by her organization, and Pope Leo XIV’s words that resonate even with people of other faiths.

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Pope Leo XIV speaks extemporaneously, in English, with members of the International Youth Advisory Body. In prepared remarks consigned to the young people. the Holy Father encouraged them to focus on synodality, mission, and participation, in order to counter isolation and help the Church reach out to those in need.

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