We Are Our Mother of Perpetual Help Parish

Archbishop Timothy Broglio speaks at Mass on Dec. 3, 2023. / Credit: The Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception

Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Oct 22, 2025 / 18:04 pm (CNA).

The Archdiocese for the Military Services, USA, expressed concern that the U.S. Army is not adequately addressing its discontent with canceled religious contracts, which the archdiocese said is straining its ability to minister to Catholics in the armed forces.

This month, the Army canceled all contracts for three roles: coordinators of religious education (CRE), Catholic pastoral life coordinators (CPLC), and musicians. The contract terminations affected Catholics and those of other faiths.

CREs served as catechists trained by the archdiocese to assist the priests in religious education in the military chapels. The archdiocese also trained CPLCs who offered administrative support such as liturgy coordination, assistance with sacramental record documentation, and weekly bulletin preparation. Contracts also included musicians, usually pianists who played music during Mass.

Military Services Archbishop Timothy Broglio sent a letter to Congress on Oct. 17 saying Army officials assured him that religious affairs specialists (RAS) and directors of religious education (DREs) — federal employees — would accommodate the needs of the archdiocese amid the canceled contracts but that he believes this is not possible.

Neither an RAS nor a DRE is a trained catechist, he explained, and neither are properly trained or qualified to perform the roles of people who served in the canceled contracts. There is no requirement for a DRE to be Catholic or for an RAS to have any faith.

In response to the archdiocesan complaint, an Army spokesperson told CNA it would reexamine its contract support for RASs and DREs “to mitigate any potential impact during this period.“

Archdiocese: Response is ‘wholly inadequate’

Elizabeth A. Tomlin, a lawyer for the archdiocese, told CNA that the Army’s response is “wholly inadequate” and “demonstrates the spokesperson’s total lack of understanding of the issue.”

“Merely eight DREs across the entire Army are Catholics, so most DREs are not qualified to direct Catholic religious education,” Tomlin said.

“[RASs] are soldiers, [usually] anywhere from private first class to staff sergeant in rank,” she explained. “There is no requirement whatsoever for RASs to be Catholic or have any training in catechesis or catechetical methodology that could possibly equip them to coordinate religious education.”

Tomlin rejected the Army’s assertion that people in these positions could fulfill the work of the CREs, CPLCs, or musicians.

“Without meeting the basic requirement of a catechist, namely, to be a confirmed Catholic, these people are not qualified to be involved in Catholic religious education programs whatsoever,” she said.

Tomlin said the only way to have music during Mass is if someone volunteers.

“It is factually inaccurate that DREs or RASs are fulfilling the duties of CREs, CPLCs, or liturgical musicians,” Tomlin said.

‘No knowledge of our faith’

Jena Swanson — who worked as a Catholic CRE at Fort Drum from August 2024 until her contract was canceled on March 31, 2025 — told CNA she agrees with the archdiocese’s assessment that those employees cannot fulfill the roles of those whose contracts were canceled.

She said she helped facilitate religious education classes, Bible studies, sacrament preparation classes, and retreats, and collected sacramental records, among a variety of other tasks. She said she mostly worked independently of the DRE because that employee did not have much knowledge about the Catholic faith.

“The DRE is not guaranteed to be Catholic depending on the installation military families are stationed at,” Swanson said. “In our 13 years of military family life (my husband is active duty Army), we’ve experienced one Catholic DRE and only for two years.”

She said in her experience, RASs “are as helpful as they can be” but often “have no knowledge of our faith.”

Swanson said the Catholic community at Fort Drum “was thrown into a bit of chaos” once her contract ended. Some weeks there were no teachers for religious education, families did not know whom to direct questions to, and weekly Mass attendance dropped about 50%.

“Our families want answers and want to continue coming to our parish, but if these options are not open it will drastically affect attendance and faith formation,” Swanson said.

Nicolás Maduro, president of Venezuela. / Credit: Venezuelan Presidential Press

Caracas, Venezuela, Oct 22, 2025 / 17:34 pm (CNA).

Nicolás Maduro, president of Venezuela, accused Cardinal Baltazar Porras of conspiring to prevent the canonization of Venezuela’s first male saint, José Gregorio Hernández.

“There were many people who conspired from the highest [levels of the] Curia against José Gregorio,” Maduro said on an Oct. 20 television program.

“Some priests, like Baltazar Porras, dedicated their lives to conspiring against José Gregorio Hernández. I say this by name: Baltazar Porras dedicated his entire life to ensuring that José Gregorio would not [be declared a saint], but Baltazar Porras has been defeated by God, by the people, and today José Gregorio is a saint despite you [Porras] and your people,” said the president, who did not attend the canonization ceremony at the Vatican.

On Oct. 19, along with Venezuelan nun Carmen Rendiles and five others, Hernández, known as the “doctor of the poor,” was canonized by Pope Leo XIV.

Those close to Porras told ACI Prensa, CNA’s Spanish-language news partner, that the cardinal will not respond to Maduro’s accusations.

Maduro holds the leadership of Venezuela’s government but is accused, nationally and internationally, of committing fraud in the 2024 presidential election, in which he was allegedly reelected for a third six-year term.

The controversial Venezuelan leader is facing accusations of drug trafficking and terrorism by the U.S. government, which accuses him of heading a criminal organization known as the Cartel de los Soles.

In addition, the U.S. State Department has offered a $50 million reward “for information leading to the arrest or conviction” of the socialist leader. It is the largest reward offered for the capture of a criminal in the history of the United States.

Maduro’s verbal attack on the archbishop emeritus of Caracas is part of a long history of abuses and threats by the socialist government against the Catholic Church in Venezuela, a practice that appears to be intensifying with the canonization of the country’s first two saints.

The socialist leader’s reaction comes after Porras called last week for the release of all political prisoners in Venezuela, who currently number more than 800, according to the organization Foro Penal.

“We live in a morally unacceptable situation; the decline in the exercise of civil liberties, the growth of poverty, militarization as a form of government that incites violence and introduces it as part of daily life, corruption and the lack of autonomy of public institutions, and the disrespect for the will of the people create a panorama that does not contribute to peaceful coexistence or to overcoming the structural shortcomings of society,” Porras said at an event held at the Pontifical Lateran University in Rome.

At the same event, Venezuelan Vatican journalist Edgar Beltrán was assaulted by businessman Ricardo Cisneros, a member of the Venezuelan government delegation.

During the event, Beltrán’s interview with the Vatican’s substitute for the Secretariat of State, Archbishop Edgar Robinson Peña Parra, was forcibly interrupted by Cisneros after the prelate was asked about the Maduro government’s “apparent politicization” of the canonizations, according to Catholic news outlet The Pillar.

Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin offered a Mass of thanksgiving on Oct. 20 for the canonization of the first two Venezuelan saints, during which he also denounced the existence of “unjust imprisonment” and “oppression” in the country.

Shortly before the canonization Mass on Oct. 19, Porras expressed his “deep joy” and described the event as a “historic moment” for all of Venezuela.

“I give thanks to God for allowing me to share it with all of you,” the archbishop emeritus said at the time.

This story was first published by ACI Prensa, CNA’s Spanish-language news partner. It has been translated and adapted by CNA.

Bishop Edward Malesic addresses the First Friday Club of Cleveland on Feb. 10, 2022. / Credit: Diocese of Cleveland

CNA Staff, Oct 22, 2025 / 17:04 pm (CNA).

The Diocese of Cleveland has confirmed that the Vatican granted permission for the celebration of the Traditional Latin Mass (TLM) at two diocesan churches for an additional two years. 

The extension applies to St. Mary’s Church in Akron and St. Stephen’s in Cleveland, both of which, according to the Catholic Herald, had previously been granted limited approval to continue celebrating the extraordinary form of the Roman rite. 

At both parishes, diocesan priests say the Masses, rather than priests from the Priestly Fraternity of St. Peter or the Institute of Christ the King Sovereign Priest, as sometimes occurs in other dioceses.

In an email to CNA, Nancy Fishburn, executive director of communications for the Diocese of Cleveland, said: “The Holy See granted a two-year extension of permission for the two remaining diocesan celebrations of the Latin Mass within the Diocese of Cleveland.” 

Pope Francis’ 2021 motu proprio Traditionis Custodes has restricted the use of the pre-Vatican II Mass by requiring Vatican approval for its celebration in parish churches, placing oversight directly under the Holy See. Bishops must now obtain authorization from the Vatican to permit the older form of the Roman rite in their dioceses.

It is unclear when Cleveland Bishop Edward C. Malesic requested the extension. Fishburn told CNA she had no further information.  

The extension of the TLM in Cleveland comes even as other dioceses are seeing its cancellation. 

In the Diocese of Knoxville last week, Bishop Mark Beckman informed the TLM community in an Oct. 14 letter that “by Jan. 1, 2026, every Latin Mass in the diocese will be celebrated using the 2002 Roman Missal ensuring consistency with the Church’s approved liturgical books while preserving the beauty and reverence you cherish.”

Beckman wrote that he had consulted with the three pastors in the diocese who currently celebrate the TLM, assuring parishioners that the transition away from the extraordinary form was “being handled with utmost pastoral sensitivity and care, honoring both your devotion to the sacred liturgy and the Church’s living tradition.” 

In the Diocese of Charlotte, North Carolina, meanwhile, Bishop Michael Martin said in September that the TLM would cease at four parishes and would only be permitted at one chapel beginning Oct. 2.

Brian Williams, a leader of the TLM community in Charlotte, spoke with CNA in September.

“Why is going to the Latin Mass a bad thing? It’s no different from the Ordinariate, or Byzantine, or any other rite. It’s all still Catholic,” he said. 

Williams said he and other members of the TLM community are still hopeful that Pope Leo’s pontificate will be more welcoming of the TLM and that things can change, citing a post on X on Sept. 29 showing a priest at the St. Michael’s chapel in St. Peter’s Basilica saying the Mass in the extraordinary form, as well as the recent granting of an exemption to the restrictions imposed by Traditionis Custodes in the San Angelo Diocese in Texas, the first exemption granted under the pontificate of Pope Leo XIV.

Crosses stand in a row at the Wounded Knee Memorial in South Dakota. / Credit: Von Roenn/Shutterstock

Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Oct 22, 2025 / 15:24 pm (CNA).

Rapid City, South Dakota, Bishop Scott E. Bullock and South Dakota Jesuit leaders criticized U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth for honoring U.S. soldiers who carried out an 1890 assault on a Lakota reservation near the Wounded Knee Creek.

“Those who died at Wounded Knee are sacred,” the joint statement read.

“Jesus stands with all who suffer and die at the hands of others,” the statement added. “Those who committed the violence are also sacred; for this reason, Jesus offers them mercy and healing. Yet the acts themselves were grave evils and cannot be honored.”

On Dec. 29, 1890, U.S. soldiers killed nearly 300 Lakota people in an assault now known as the “Wounded Knee Massacre” or the “Battle of Wounded Knee” in South Dakota. Most of the Lakota killed were civilians, including unarmed women and children, and 31 American soldiers were killed.

After a review, Hegseth announced last month that 20 U.S. soldiers awarded the Medal of Honor for actions at Wounded Creek will retain those honors. The Medal of Honor is the nation’s highest military honor, awarded by Congress for risk of life in combat beyond the call of duty. A review panel commissioned by former Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin recommended they retain their honors in October 2024.

“That panel concluded that these brave soldiers should, in fact, rightfully keep their medals for actions in 1890,” Hegseth said in a Sept. 25 post on X.

Hegseth criticized Lloyd for not issuing a final decision on the inquiry last year, saying “he was more interested in being politically correct than historically correct.”

“We’re making it clear — without hesitation — that the soldiers who fought in the Battle of Wounded Knee in 1890 will keep their medals, and we’re making it clear that they deserve those medals,” Hegseth said. “This decision is now final and their place in our nation’s history is no longer up for debate. We salute their memory, we honor their service, and we will never forget what they did.”

Bishop, Jesuits call for ‘prayerful correctness’

Bullock, whose diocese serves western South Dakota where the assault took place, was joined in his statement by the De Smet Jesuit Community of West River, South Dakota.

They said their opposition to the Medals of Honor is not rooted in “political correctness,” as Hegseth called it, but rather in “prayerful correctness, grounded in truth, conscience, and compassion.”

Bullock and the Jesuits said soldiers massacred civilians: “This was not a battle. To recognize these acts as honorable is to distort history itself.”

“We acknowledge the government’s intent to honor its troops, yet we reject any narrative that erases the humanity of the victims or glorifies acts of violence,” they said.

The statement said as Catholics and followers of Christ, “we proclaim the infinite dignity of every human life. We confess that humanity — capable of love and goodness — is also capable of terrible evil.” It added that the Crucifixion and Resurrection “reveal that true victory comes not through killing but through suffering love, mercy, and truth.”

“If we deny our part in history, we deepen the harm,” they said. “We cannot lie about the past without perpetuating injustice and moral blindness. Even if we are not personally responsible for Wounded Knee, we bear a moral responsibility to remember and speak the truth.”

Susan Hanssen, a history professor at the University of Dallas (a Catholic institution), told CNA Wounded Knee “was a complex historical event” that had “many conflicting narratives.” She said military records show conflicting accusations, investigations, and personal rivalries among military officers.

She said, with historical events, there is not always “easy moral clarity.” 

She said the events “cannot simply be viewed as an unprovoked massacre, racially motivated against all Native Americans indiscriminately.”

Hanssen expressed concern that the effort to revoke the honors for soldiers at Wounded Knee is part of an ongoing effort to target “American and Western culture,” which includes destroying statues of Christopher Columbus and attacks on George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, and Abraham Lincoln, among others.

“It is perfectly reasonable for the United States government to refuse to revoke Medals of Honor from over a hundred years ago,” she added.

No Medals of Honor have been revoked for any reason in more than a century. The only time medals were revoked was in 1917, when Congress commissioned a comprehensive review of Medal of Honor recipients and revoked more than 900.

Former library transformed into the Steve and Kathy McShane STEM Innovation Center, complete with 3D Anatomage Table

Chicago Cardinal Blase Cupich (meeting with Pope Leo XIV at the Vatican on Oct. 9, 2025) issued a video with a message of support for immigrants on Oct. 21, 2025. / Credit: Daniel Ibañez/EWTN News

Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Oct 22, 2025 / 13:14 pm (CNA).

In a new video, Cardinal Blase Cupich of Chicago has once again pledged his support for undocumented migrants.

“Let me be clear: The Church stands with migrants,” Cupich said in a video message on Oct. 21. Citing family separation and “communities shaken by immigration raids and detentions,” he said ongoing deportation efforts in Chicago “wound the soul of our city.”

Cupich emphasized that “in the enforcement of the law, it is essential that we respect the dignity of every human being,” and noted parishes and schools in the archdiocese will neither turn away migrants seeking aid nor “be silent when dignity is denied.”

He continued: “I want to say something directly to those immigrants without documents: Most of you have been here for years, you have worked hard, you have raised families, you have contributed to this nation, you have earned our respect.”

“As the archbishop of Chicago, I will insist that you be treated with dignity,” he stated, concluding: “Americans should not forget that we all come from immigrant families. You are our brothers and sisters. We stand with you. God bless you all.” 

The video message comes amid the “One Church One Family” initiative spearheaded by the western Jesuits to hold national days of prayer and public witness for migrants on Oct. 22 and Nov. 13, the feast of St. Frances Xavier Cabrini, patron of migrants. 

The initiative calls on dioceses, parishes, schools, religious communities, and other Catholic institutions to host and promote “public actions that lift up the dignity of migrants,” such as “a vigil in front of a detention center, a prayer service at a place where migrants were publicly detained, or a rosary accompanying people who are going to immigration court hearings.” 

The initiative’s website includes, along with other resources, instructions on how to organize and implement a vigil, prayer service, or march in support of migrants, which includes a welcome letter from Bishop Mark Seitz of El Paso, Texas.

“As Catholics and people of deep faith, we reject the culture of fear and silence that dehumanizes, and we choose instead to stand with migrants,” the initiative’s website reads. “Together, our voices will send a powerful message in defense of the dignity of our neighbors, family members, fellow parishioners, classmates, co-workers, and friends.”

Cupich was appointed by Pope Leo XIV to the Pontifical Commission for Vatican City State on Oct. 15. It is unclear whether the post will entail a relocation to the Holy City.

During a visit on Oct. 9, Leo expressed his “appreciation” to Chicago leaders, including Cupich, for their “welcome of immigrants and refugees.” This came shortly after the controversy surrounding Cupich’s attempt to honor Illinois pro-abortion Sen. Dick Durbin with a lifetime achievement award for his work with immigrants.

The Wisconsin State Capitol in Madison, Wisconsin. / Credit: Wikideas1, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons

CNA Staff, Oct 22, 2025 / 12:44 pm (CNA).

The state of Wisconsin is attempting to eliminate a tax exemption for religious organizations after it failed at the U.S. Supreme Court earlier this year when trying to block a Catholic charity from claiming that tax break.

The Supreme Court in June unanimously ruled that the state violated the First Amendment when it denied a tax exemption to the Diocese of Superior’s Catholic Charities Bureau. The state had argued that the group’s charitable undertakings were not “primarily” religious and thus failed to qualify for the tax break.

The Wisconsin Supreme Court had earlier ruled against the Catholic charity before the U.S. Supreme Court reversed that decision. But in an Oct. 21 press release, the religious liberty legal group Becket said that the state government is now asking the state Supreme Court to “eliminate the exemption entirely.”

“Rather than following the Supreme Court’s ruling, Wisconsin officials are now trying to avoid it by attacking the religious exemption itself,” the group said. 

The tax exemption directs that organizations “operated primarily for religious purposes” can be exempt from paying into the state’s unemployment system. In a brief to the state Supreme Court, state officials said the tax exemption itself is “discriminatory” and that ending the policy would “avoid collateral damage to Wisconsin workers” while satisfying the U.S. Supreme Court’s order. 

State officials did not respond to requests for comment from CNA on Oct. 22. Nick Reaves, a senior attorney with Becket, told CNA that eliminating the tax exemption would “just replace one unconstitutional rule after another.” 

Reaves said the U.S. Supreme Court justices in their ruling “clearly contemplated extending the benefit to Catholic Charities” rather than eliminating the benefit altogether. 

“If you eliminate the exemption, it doesn’t solve the constitutional problem, because the state has something like 40 other exemptions for secular groups,” he said. Union groups and organizations that do work in prisons are among the entities that have access to the exemption, he said.

“The First Amendment prohibits favoring secular activity over religious activity” in such cases, he said. “Our view is Wisconsin just can’t eliminate the exemption.”

Reaves said the Catholic charity has a high likelihood of getting its case before the Supreme Court again. “The chance of getting a hearing at the Supreme Court is low, initially,” he said. “But they’re much more likely to take a case again if the lower court gets it wrong again.”

“Obviously the Wisconsin Supreme Court will weigh in on this first,” he said. “We’re hoping our arguments are persuasive there.”

In its filing, meanwhile, Becket said Wisconsin’s “animus” toward the Catholic charity group is “anything but subtle.” 

“The only constitutional approach is to grant Catholic Charities an exemption, as the U.S. Supreme Court’s order requires,” the filing said.

Altar servers attend a training session in the Diocese of Palayamkottai in June 2025. / Credit: Photo courtesy of Bishop Iruthayaraj Foundation

Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Oct 22, 2025 / 12:03 pm (CNA).

The Diocese of Palayamkottai in India launched its first altar server training program, teaching 1,570 children across five parishes more about the sacred role. 

With the support of the Diocese of Columbus, Ohio, the Diocese of Palayamkottai created a program for altar servers to build awareness of their role; to instill reverence, discipline, and good behavior; and to deepen their spiritual growth.

“The altar servers’ training has proven to be a landmark initiative,” the Diocese of Palyamkottai wrote in a letter thanking the Diocese of Columbus. “It has not only strengthened the children’s faith and discipline but has also made parish liturgies more prayerful and meaningful for the wider community.”

The Diocese of Palayamkottai in southern India encompasses the Tirunelveli, Thoothukudi, and Tenkasi districts with a Catholic population of nearly 138,500. The diocese provides education to more than 65,000 children through 108 diocesan schools and schools managed by religious congregations.

About 75% of the Catholic population in the diocese are landless laborers, 15% are small farmers, and nearly 80% of families live on just two euros a day. Despite the majority of the faithful coming from economically and socially disadvantaged backgrounds, the diocese said the Catholic population is deeply dedicated to its faith and dedicated to advancing the mission of the Church.

Faith formation in the diocese and in schools follows the Christian Life Commission (CLC), coordinating Bible, catechetical, and liturgical ministries. The diocese carries out vacation Bible schools, seminars for catechists, and liturgical ministries focused on the Eucharist and sacraments.

With help and guidance from the Diocese of Columbus, the Diocese of Palayamkottai began a program in June to help altar servers better understand the importance of their duties and rediscover the sacredness of their calling. The initiative includes audiovisual presentations, demonstrations, printed guides, and group discussions for the altar servers, often referred to as “little angels” in the area.

The altar servers told the diocese they have “become more prayerful” through the training. One child shared that he “began organizing altar server meetings in his parish.” Another said he “now serves with devotion,” having realized the importance of the role.

By working together, the Diocese of Palayamkottai and the Diocese of Columbus made the “milestone” project possible. “With great hope, the diocese assures that such collaboration will continue in forming young faithful and advancing the mission of the Church,” the Diocese of Palayamkottai wrote.