The 2025 Annual Disclosure for Peter’s Pence shows that offerings made to the Holy Father sustained his service to the universal Church and supported projects of direct assistance in 74 countries.

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Addressing representatives of the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople in Rome, Pope Leo XIV says all Christians are called to be credible witnesses at this time of war and polarization, and also expresses his hope that all Christians will work together to celebrate the Year 2033, commemorating two thousand years of the Lord's Redemption.

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VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- With bishops leading the way, every Christian should help build unity in the Church and the world by putting Christ at the center and drawing others near while being attentive to their needs, Pope Leo XIV said.

"Communion within the Church is not built by clinging rigidly to one’s own position, but by seeking, in all hearts, points of encounter in the truth, in whose light alone each person becomes a means of growth for another," he said during his homily at Mass on the feast of Sts. Peter and Paul June 29.

"It is important for us today to look to these two saints -- Peter and Paul -- to understand how we, in turn, can be apostles and builders of unity, and generous servants of the truth in charity," he said. 

The feast day celebration in St. Peter's Basilica included the traditional blessing of the pallium, the woolen band adorned with crosses that the heads of archdioceses wear around their shoulders over their Mass vestments and symbolizes an archbishop's unity with the pope and his authority and responsibility to care for the flock the pope entrusted to him.

The pallium, Pope Leo said, expresses "the commitment of every shepherd -- and also of every Christian -- to take upon their shoulders the brothers and sisters entrusted to them, like so many lambs of the Lord's flock, and to sacrifice their energy, time, effort and even their lives for them. They do so in order that the Gospel may reach everyone, and the whole world may find in it harmony and concord." 

According to the Vatican, 35 archbishops from 19 countries who were named over the past 12 months received the palliums. Four of them were from the United States: Archbishop Mark S. Rivituso of Mobile, Alabama; Archbishop Ronald A. Hicks of New York; Archbishop James R. Golka of Denver; and Archbishop James F. Checchio of New Orleans.

The pope blessed the palliums after his homily and after they were brought up from the crypt above the tomb of St. Peter. Each archbishop, wearing red vestments, then approached Pope Leo by the altar and knelt as the pope placed the pallium over their shoulders. Each shared an embrace with the pope and a few words.

In his homily, the pope reflected on Sts. Peter and Paul -- two very different saints who were martyred on different days and yet share the same feast day.

Pope Leo called them "two pillars of the Church," who provide important examples for today's bishops and all Christians.

St. Peter knew how to "acknowledge his mistakes and repent, without becoming discouraged and without failing in his mission to proclaim the Gospel and gather Christ's flock, even unto martyrdom," the pope said.

When a controversial issue threatened to divide the community, he said, St. Peter listened to his brothers and made a decision, guided by the Holy Spirit, that preserved communion and ushered in a new era for the entire People of God. 

St. Peter holding the keys represents his "faithful and patient concern for unity," he said, because a key doesn't break down a door, rather it "opens and closes them by finding the proper levers within and guiding their movements, so that locks may release, bolts withdraw, and doors turn freely on their hinges, thereby joining rooms together and transforming many isolated spaces into one welcoming home."

"In this light, we can interpret the mission entrusted by the Lord to Peter and his successors for the benefit of the entire holy People of God. It is a mission to listen, with his help, to the voice of each person; to discern inspirations; to guide the way; to correct errors; to instruct, encourage, exhort and accompany our brothers and sisters so that, docile to the action of the same Spirit, they may cooperate in the salvation of one another and of all humanity," he said.

St. Peter's example, therefore, "is an invitation to every Christian to become a builder of unity, placing God at the center of one’s life and drawing close to one’s brothers and sisters, attentive to their circumstances and needs," he said, so that God's message "might be fully proclaimed."

St. Paul, whose symbols are the book and the sword, is the "tireless herald of the Good News," he said.

The symbols represent the word of God being capable of penetrating and transforming even the hardest of hearts, as was seen with St. Paul's conversion, who was led away from violence and onto "the path of love," he said.

St. Augustine said, "God took the persecutor of the Church and made him a messenger of peace. He forgave him all his sins and placed him in a ministry where he could forgive the sins of others," Pope Leo added.

"Let us pray to Sts. Peter and Paul that they may sustain us on our journey of communion in the footsteps of the Savior," he said.

Keeping with a long tradition, a delegation from the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople, led by Orthodox Metropolitan Emmanuel Adamakis of Chalcedon, was present at the Mass.

The pope and the Orthodox metropolitan embraced behind the altar during the exchange of the sign of peace, and they descended the stairs below the main altar to pray at St. Peter's tomb after Mass ended.

Before processing out of the basilica, the pope also stood a few moments in prayer before the dark bronze statue of St. Peter, which is clothed on his feast day with ornate vestments and a jeweled tiara. 

Sts. Peter and Paul understood and proclaimed the Gospel with their own distinctive voice, Pope Leo said before praying the Angelus with those gathered in St. Peter's Square.

Their stark differences do not make them adversaries, he said, on the contrary, "they became the symbol of the many other diversities that the one Spirit unites into a single whole."

"The patron saints of the Church of Rome experienced the challenges of communion; they knew it, served it, and proclaimed it as a sacrament of divine life," the pope said. "Their witness has contributed decisively to ensuring that the Christian presence in history is directed not toward dominion, but toward service, unity and reconciliation."

Discover More About St. Peter with Journey with the Saints Peter, who was also known as Simon Peter of Cephas, is considered the first Pope. Despite his papacy, Peter had humble beginnings and became one of the Twelve Apostles of Jesus. He was ordained by Jesus in the "Rock of My Church" written in Matthew 16:17-18, which says, "Jesus replied, 'Simon son of Jonah, you are a blessed man! Because it was no human agency that revealed this to you but my Father in heaven. So I now say to you: You ...

The writings of St. Irenaeus entitle him to a high place among the fathers of the Church, for they not only laid the foundations of Christian theology but, by exposing and refuting the errors of the gnostics, they delivered the Catholic Faith from the real danger of the doctrines of those heretics. He was probably born about the year 125, in one of those maritime provinces of Asia Minor where the memory of the apostles was still cherished and where Christians were numerous. He was most ...

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VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Opening the first day of his second consistory with cardinals from around the world, Pope Leo XIV condemned war as "never blessed by God" while urging the Church's leaders to embrace a style of listening and collaboration.

The June 26 gathering marked the opening of a two-day meeting focused on the implementation of the Synod on Synodality, the pope's first encyclical, "Magnifica Humanitas,", and the Church's mission in a rapidly changing world.

Celebrating Mass in St. Peter's Basilica before the working sessions began June 26, Pope Leo said the unity of the human family "takes precedence over individual peoples and states" and described peace as "a duty of justice."

"Therefore, war is never worthy of humanity, and it is never blessed by God, because, even if we are equipped with high-tech weapons, the Creator has endowed us with intelligence and free will to resolve conflicts as human beings and not as beasts," he said in his homily.

The remarks further developed one of the central themes of "Magnifica Humanitas," released in May, in which the pope called the traditional just-war theory "now outdated" in an age shaped by advanced weapons systems and artificial intelligence.

Developed through the writings of St. Augustine and St. Thomas Aquinas, just-war theory has long held that military force can be morally justified only under strict conditions, including self-defense, legitimate authority, proportionality and the exhaustion of peaceful alternatives. The teaching has resurfaced in recent debates surrounding conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East.

Quoting his encyclical, Pope Leo said the Church must continue working toward a "civilization of love," offering an alternative to ideological division, violence and instability because "the Church is never partial, since she is for everyone."

Addressing the 178 cardinals who attended the June consistory, the pope said in his introductory remarks after the Mass that  "none of us is untouched by the many forms of conflict, domination and division that run through our societies today."

He also asked the cardinals to help him discern how the themes of "Magnifica Humanitas" are being received in local churches around the world.

"I am especially interested in hearing how these pages resonate in your churches, what questions they raise, what perspectives they open and what steps they suggest," he said, adding that an encyclical continues its life only when it is "received, interpreted and embodied in the concrete life of the churches."

Following the closed-door morning session, the Vatican released a summary, saying that each of the ten working groups of cardinals spoke of "suffering experienced by men and women living through this period of profound social transformation."

A consistent theme throughout the first day was the growing polarization around the world and a deepening distrust of institutions and democracy, trends that have fueled political tension and violence and have been exacerbated by the spread of misinformation. The Vatican summary also said the cardinals spoke of religious violence in many parts of the world, citing the rise of antisemitism, as well as the rise of loneliness.

Throughout both his homily and  opening address, Pope Leo repeatedly returned to the importance of listening. Known for his style of attentive listening and collaboration before his election, Pope Leo told the cardinals  the papacy "cannot be lived in isolation."

"It needs your experience, your pastoral wisdom and your knowledge of the Churches and peoples entrusted to your care," he said. "I need your support: strong, explicit and public."

The pope encouraged frank discussion during the consistory's working sessions and said he welcomed honest disagreement offered in a spirit of communion.

"I need your freedom, your candor and your loyalty," he said. "Sincere counsel is always an act of communion."

He also emphasized that the cardinals had gathered not simply to discuss the Church itself.

"We are not here first and foremost to reflect on the Church's internal life," he said.

Instead, he said, the themes before the consistory all point toward a single question: "How can we help our churches today proclaim the Gospel with greater fidelity, freedom and credibility?"

Many groups discussed loneliness experienced by both the elderly and the young, contributing to increasing rates of suicide and drug use. Some cardinals aired concerns about the societal impact of secularism.

"They noted that a growing weariness and the absence of a shared horizon of truth have made it increasingly difficult for people to recognize the dignity of others and to build authentic relationships," the Vatican summary said.

The Holy See reported that some cardinals said the Church should respond to growing social divisions by serving as a welcoming mother, acknowledging its own shortcomings and standing alongside those who suffer. They identified synodality, charity, solidarity, education, popular piety and efforts to promote peace and dialogue as hopeful signs for the Church and the world.

WASHINGTON - This week, the Trump Administration ultimately prevailed in a court challenge to its decision to end temporary protected status (TPS) for Haiti and Syria. Bishop Brendan J. Cahill, chairman of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ (USCCB) Committee on Migration, issued the following statement in response: 

“Revoking the legal status of hundreds of thousands of people residing in our country creates a moral crisis when returning to their country of origin is not a safe or reasonable option. If we are truly to affirm the God-given dignity of every human person, we as a nation cannot turn a blind eye to such an injustice and the impossible choices it will create for families and communities. 

“Even if the Administration determines TPS is no longer warranted, deferred enforced departure remains a tool available to the President, and we urge him to exercise right judgement in this way. Forcibly sending families to dire conditions is a legacy all leaders should seek to avoid. To that end, my brother bishops and I also continue to call upon Congress to act—to meet this moment with the moral fortitude that is so desperately needed.”

The USCCB’s Committee on Migration has encouraged recent bipartisan efforts in Congress to pass legislation that would require the Secretary of Homeland Security to extend Haiti’s TPS designation. In January, Bishop Cahill was also joined by his fellow chairman in calling on the Administration to extend TPS for Haitians.

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Carthusian monk and bishop, defender of papal authority. Anthelm was born in 1107 in a castle near Chambery, in Savoy, France. He was ordained a priest and visited the Carthusian Charterhouse at Portes, where he entered the Order at the age of thirty. Two years later, in 1139, he was appointed abbot of Le Grande Chartreuse, which had been damaged. Anthelm made the monastery a worthy motherhouse of the Carthusians, constructing a defensive wall and an aqueduct. As minister-general, Anthelm also ...

WASHINGTON – “As rescue efforts are underway, I urge the international community to mobilize in support of the Venezuelan people, and to send the necessary humanitarian assistance to alleviate their suffering,” said Bishop A. Elias Zaidan, chairman of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ Committee on International Justice and Peace.

Bishop Zaidan’s statement follows:

“In the wake of the devastating earthquakes that have impacted Venezuela, causing significant loss of life and severe destruction, I offer the prayers and solidarity of the Church in the United States to our sisters and brothers affected by this tragedy.

“As rescue efforts are underway, I urge the international community to mobilize in support of the Venezuelan people, and to send the necessary humanitarian assistance to alleviate their suffering. Catholic Relief Services, the international relief agency of the Church in the United States, and its partner Caritas Venezuela, are already responding and assessing needs at this early stage. We understand the U.S. government is readying an initial response and appreciate their partnership in responding to this natural disaster. 

“Let us all join in prayer that Our Lady of Coromoto, patroness of Venezuela, will comfort and protect her children and that compassionate international assistance will arrive swiftly.”

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