WASHINGTON – The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ (USCCB) Committee on Clergy, Consecrated Life and Vocations has released its annual survey, A Portrait of the Permanent Diaconate in 2025: A Study for the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops. Since 2005, the Center for Applied Research in the Apostolate (CARA) at Georgetown University has conducted this survey, which provides important statistics and forecasting trends on the state of the permanent diaconate in the Church in the United States. 

“Deacons continue to bring a spirit of renewal and encouragement to the missionary ministry of the Church through their service in the liturgy and works of charity expressed in everyday life,” said Archbishop Ronald A. Hicks, chairman of the USCCB’s Committee on Clergy, Consecrated Life and Vocations. “With nearly 15,000 active deacons in ministry in 2025, the permanent diaconate plays a vital role in bringing the Gospel to life through their witness as icons of Christ the Servant. With their primary duty of service in the Church being to proclaim the Gospel, preach, and perform charitable works, deacons serve a unique and vital ministry in the life of the Church. This annual survey is an opportunity for our faithful to recognize the work of the diaconate, pray for our deacons, and also discern if they are called to such ministry themselves.” 

The survey utilized contact information from the National Association of Diaconate Directors (NADD) and was sent to the Office of the Permanent Diaconate in the Latin and Eastern Rite (arch)dioceses and eparchies. In total, CARA received responses from 143 of the 185 (arch)dioceses/eparchies whose bishops are members of the USCCB and have an active Office of Deacons, for a 77% response rate. 

The full survey conducted by CARA may be accessed here. 

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WASHINGTON – In marking the anniversary of the Supreme Court of the United States’ ruling in Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization, Bishop Daniel Thomas, chairman of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ Committee on Pro-Life Activities asks for the intercession of the Sacred Heart of Jesus in building a culture of life.

“The victory of the Dobbs decision risks being undone by the massive influx of abortion pills,” said Bishop Thomas. “While the Dobbs decision gave states the freedom to pass pro-life laws and protect preborn children, these laws are now being undermined.” He continued, “The Food and Drug Administration, a government agency responsible for protecting public health, has enabled a nationwide mail-order abortion industry by allowing abortion pills to be prescribed in telemed appointments and sold both at neighborhood pharmacies and online, circumventing state laws that protect life in the womb.”

Bishop Thomas then invited the faithful to unite in prayer and action: “What can we do to help protect women and babies from the evil of abortion pills? First, pray for women who are deceived by the abortion industry. Second, share the facts about abortion pills with your friends (see one-pager). Third, take action to help protect women and babies from these dangerous drugs by sending a message to your pharmacy or to pharmaceutical companies that produce these drugs. From mid-August through the end of October, Respect Life Month, the USCCB Committee on Pro-Life Activities will be inviting Catholics to unite in prayer and action. Please sign up and join us at https://www.respectlife.org.”

Read Bishop Thomas’ full statement here for more information and to sign up for the prayer and action campaign.

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Keir Starmer resigns as British Prime Minister and leader of the Labour Party after accepting that he had lost the support of his party to lead the country into the next general election.

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Amid the rubble and suffering of a population exhausted by war, the Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem and the Greek Orthodox Patriarch begin meeting with clergy, religious communities, local Christian families, and people affected by the humanitarian crisis in the Gaza Strip.

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Thomas More was born in London on February 7, 1478. His father, Sir John More, was a lawyer and judge who rose to prominence during the reign of Edward IV. His connections and wealth would help his son, Thomas, rise in station as a young man. Thomas' mother was Agnes Graunger, the first wife of John More. John would have four wives during his life, but they each died, leaving John as a widower. Thomas had two brothers and three sisters, but three of his siblings died within a year of their ...

St. Aloysius was born in Castiglione, Italy. The first words St. Aloysius spoke were the Holy Names of Jesus and Mary. He was destined for the military by his father (who was in service to Philip II), but by the age of 9 Aloysius had decided on a religious life, and made a vow of perpetual virginity. To safeguard himself from possible temptation, he would keep his eyes persistently downcast in the presence of women. St. Charles Borromeo gave him his first Holy Communion. A kidney disease ...

Martyr of Japan. A native of Korea, he was brought to Japan in 1591 as a prisoner of war and was subsequently converted to Christianity. Entering the Jesuits, he studied at the Jesuit seminary of Arima and worked for three decades as a catechist in both Japan and China. Seized during the persecution of the Church, he was burned alive at Nagasaki with Blessed Francis Pacheco. He was beatified in 1867.

WASHINGTON - “I commend President Trump and President Pezeshkian for taking the vitally important step of signing a memorandum of understanding aimed at ending hostilities between the United States and Iran and advancing deeper dialogue for lasting peace in the region,” 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: 

“I commend President Trump and President Pezeshkian for taking the vitally important step of signing a memorandum of understanding aimed at ending hostilities between the United States and Iran and advancing deeper dialogue for lasting peace in the region. Preventing further proliferation of nuclear weapons is critically important for avoiding a dangerous escalation of conflict in the Middle East. Echoing our Holy Father Pope Leo XIV’s expression of hope, I call on all parties to engage in good faith, and pray that ‘this agreement may help strengthen mutual trust, security and stability in the Middle East, promoting paths of dialogue and cooperation among peoples.’ 

“I call on the United States, Iran, and Israel to now also prioritize an end to the fighting in Lebanon. The disarming of Hezbollah is necessary for peace and development in Lebanon. Over one million people have been internally displaced, including 400,000 children, and thousands have fled to neighboring Syria, potentially adding to the region’s instability. If the fighting and humanitarian catastrophe continue in Lebanon, I fear that peace across the wider Middle East will remain unreachable.  

“Let us pray that the Holy Spirit, creator and vivifier, may breathe wisdom, compassion, and perseverance into the minds and hearts of the negotiators, so that peace in the region may finally become a reality.”   

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St. Romuald was born at Ravenna about the year 956. In spite of an infinite desire for virtue and sanctity, his early life was wasted in the service of the world and its pleasures. Then one day, obliged by his father, Sergius, to be present at a duel fought by him, he beheld him slay his adversary. The crime made such an impression upon him that he determined to expiate it for forty days, as though it were entirely his own. For this purpose he retired to a Benedictine monastery of St. ...

St. Gregory Barbarigo was born in 1625, of a very old and distinguished Venetian family. A brilliant student, he embraced a diplomatic career and accompanied the Venetian Ambassador, Contarini, to the Congress of Munster in 1648. Then he became a priest and was soon thereafter consecrated as the first Bishop of Bergamo by Pope Alexander VII. Later on he was elevated to the rank of Cardinal and also given authority over the diocese of Padua. He guided his flock with pastoral wisdom and deep ...