We Are Our Mother of Perpetual Help Parish

Feast date: May 20

The Catholic Church honors St. Bernardine of Siena on May 20. A Franciscan friar and preacher, St. Bernardine is known as “the Apostle of Italy” for his efforts to revive the country's Catholic faith during the 15th century.

Bernardine Albizeschi was born to upper-class parents in the Italian republic of Siena during 1380. Misfortune soon entered the boy's life when he lost his mother at age three and his father four years later. His aunt Diana cared for him afterward, and taught him to seek consolation and security by trusting in God.

Even at a young age, Bernardine demonstrated a remarkable concern for the poor as an outgrowth of his love for God. Having become accustomed to fasting, he preferred at times to go without any food in order to help someone in greater need. From the ages of 11 to 17 he focused on his studies, developing the eloquence and dedication that would serve his future work as an evangelist.

Before becoming a preacher, however, Bernardine spent several years ministering to the sick and dying. He enrolled in a religious association that served at a hospital in the town of Scala, and applied himself to this work from 1397 to 1400.

During that time, a severe plague broke out in Siena, causing a crisis that would eventually lead to the young man taking charge of the entire hospital. Inside its walls, up to 20 people were dying each day from an illness that also killed many of the hospital workers. The staff was decimated and new victims were coming in constantly.

Bernardine persuaded 12 young men to help him continue the work of the hospital, which he took over for a period of four months. Although the plague did not infect him, the exhausting work left him weak and he contracted a different sickness that kept him in bed for four months.

After recovering, he spent over a year caring for his aunt Bartholomaea before her death. Then the 22-year-old Bernardine moved to a small house outside the city, where he began to discern God's will for his future through prayer and fasting.

He eventually chose to join the Franciscans of the Strict Observance in 1403, embracing an austere life focused on poverty and humility. During this time, while praying before a crucifix, Bernardine heard Christ say to him: “My son, behold me hanging upon a cross. If you love me, or desire to imitate me, be also fastened naked to your cross and follow me. Thus you will assuredly find me.”

After Bernardine was ordained a priest, his superiors commissioned him to preach as a missionary to the Italians who were falling away from their Catholic faith. The Dominican evangelist St. Vincent Ferrer, just before leaving Italy, preached a sermon in which he predicted that one of his listeners would continue his work among the Italians –  a prophecy Bernardine heard in person, and went on to fulfill.

Bernardine's personal devotion to God, which amazed even the strict Franciscans, made his preaching extremely effective. He moved his hearers to abandon their vices, turn back to God, and make peace with one another. He promoted devotion to the name of Jesus as a simple and effective means of recalling God's love at all times.

When other priests consulted him for advice, Bernardine gave them a simple rule: “In all your actions, seek in the first place the kingdom of God and his glory. Direct all you do purely to his honor. Persevere in brotherly charity, and practice first all that you desire to teach others.”

“By this means,” he said, “the Holy Spirit will be your master, and will give you such wisdom and such a tongue that no adversary will be able to stand against you.”

Bernardine's own life attested to this source of strength in the face of trials. He patiently suffered an accusation of heresy –  which Pope Martin V judged to be false – and refused to abandon his bold preaching when a nobleman threatened him with death.

But Bernardine was also widely admired throughout Italy, and he was offered the office of a bishop on three occasions. Each time, however, he turned down the position, choosing to fulfill the prediction of St. Vincent Ferrer through his missionary work. Bernardine preached throughout most of Italy several times over, and even managed to reconcile members of its warring political factions.

Later in his life, Bernardine served for five years as the Vicar General for his Franciscan order, and revived the practice of its strict rule of life. Then in 1444, forty years after he first entered religious life, Bernardine became sick while traveling. He continued to preach, but soon lost his strength and his voice.

St. Bernardine of Siena died on May 20, 1444. Only six years later, in 1450, Pope Nicholas V canonized him as a saint.

Washington, D.C. Newsroom, May 19, 2025 / 17:57 pm (CNA).

Bishop Thomas Paprocki, Bishop Kevin Rhoades, and Father Thomas Ferguson will join an advisory board for President Donald Trump’s Religious Liberty Commission, according to a statement from the White House.

The three Catholic clergymen will join San Francisco Archbishop Salvatore J. Cordileone on the Advisory Board of Religious Leaders for the commission. Two members of the Church hierarchy — Cardinal Timothy Dolan of the Archdiocese of New York and Bishop Robert Barron of the Diocese of Winona-Rochester, Minnesota — are serving on the commission itself.

Rhoades, the bishop of Fort Wayne-South Bend, Indiana, chairs the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops’ Committee on Religious Liberty. Paprocki, the bishop of Springfield, Illinois, played a major role in the bishops’ “Fortnight for Freedom” religious liberty campaign during the 2010s, according to the White House. 

Neither Paprocki nor Rhoades could be reached for comment by the time of publication.

Ferguson, who is a parish priest at Good Shepherd Catholic Church in Alexandria, Virginia, also has a doctorate in government and authored “Catholic and American: The Political Theology of John Courtney Murray,” which focused on religious liberty and Catholicism in the United States.

“We’re looking forward … to the celebration of the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence next year,” Ferguson told CNA in an interview, saying he hopes the commission can assist in “pointing out … just how important religious communities like the Catholic Church are to our society.”

Ferguson said the inclusion of Catholic clergy on the commission “is extremely welcomed by our Church,” adding: “It really puts us all in a forum where we can do the important work of educating people.”

One element on which Ferguson hopes to focus is insurance mandates for services that “violate our conscience” on issues such as contraception, sterilization, and transgender drugs and surgeries: “All of these things that we would find morally objectionable, we must be vigilant [against].”

He said he is also concerned about “where this country is going in terms of in vitro fertilization [IVF]” and noted that there are some politicians who “refer to themselves of pro-life legislators [despite] being advocates for IVF.”

“You also need to be protective of human life … created through IVF,” Ferguson said, recalling the millions of human embryos destroyed through the IVF process.

Ferguson discussed a new law in Washington state that will lead to the arrest of priests if they do not report child abuse they learn about during the sacrament of reconciliation, which would violate the “absolute sense of secrecy [of a] … sacramental confession.”

“That’s an area,” he said, where “we can be very consistent in teaching, explaining and clarifying for people: ‘This is how we freely exercise our religion in terms of the First Amendment.’” 

The Religious Liberty Commission

In addition to the advisory board consisting of religious clergy, the White House also created an advisory board made up of legal experts and another of lay leaders. These boards will assist the commission in developing its final report.

The commission and its advisory boards include members of various religions, including Catholicism, Orthodoxy, Protestantism, Islam, and Judaism.

The report will outline the current threats to religious freedom in the United States and provide strategies on how to ensure legal protections when rights are under attack. It will also lay out the foundation of religious liberty in the United States and issue guidance on how to increase awareness of the historically peaceful religious pluralism within the country. 

Some of the commission’s key focus areas include conscience protections, free speech for religious bodies, institutional autonomy, attacks on houses of worship, parental rights in education, and school choice.

Trump established the commission on May 1 through an executive order, which coincided with the National Day of Prayer.

CNA Staff, May 19, 2025 / 17:25 pm (CNA).

President Donald Trump said Monday that following a two-hour phone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin, Russia and Ukraine will “immediately” begin ceasefire negotiations, with the Vatican possibly hosting the talks. 

“Negotiations between Russia and Ukraine will begin immediately. I have so informed President Volodymyr Zelenskyy of Ukraine; Ursula von der Leyen, president of the European Commission; President Emmanuel Macron of France; Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni of Italy; Chancellor Friedrich Merz of Germany; and President Alexander Stubb of Finland, during a call with me, immediately after the call with President Putin,” Trump wrote. 

“The Vatican, as represented by the pope, has stated that it would be very interested in hosting the negotiations. Let the process begin!” he concluded. 

Writing on social media, Trump said the “tone and spirit of the conversation” with Putin were “excellent.”

The Vatican did not immediately reply to a request for comment on Trump’s remarks. Last Friday, however, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the Vatican secretary of state, told reporters that “the pope plans to make the Vatican, the Holy See, available for a direct meeting between the two sides.”

Zelenskyy said at a press conference Monday that he wants the meeting to happen as soon as possible and that it could be hosted by Turkey, the Vatican, or Switzerland, the BBC reported. Meloni on Monday expressed support for the Vatican’s possible hosting of the meeting. 

In the 10 days since his election on May 8, Leo has appeared to take a more pro-Ukraine stance in the Russia-Ukraine conflict than his immediate predecessor Pope Francis, first by speaking to Zelenskyy by phone in the first hours of his papacy, then meeting the leader for a private audience the same day of his inaugural Mass.

Leo also called for negotiations for a “just and lasting peace” in Ukraine in his first two Regina Caeli messages on May 11 and May 18, and one of his early audiences was with the head of the Greek Ukrainian Catholic Church, Archbishop Sviatoslav Shevchuk.

As a bishop in Peru in 2022, then-Bishop Robert Prevost also made explicit reference to Russia’s invasion, calling it “imperialist in nature,” while Francis avoided such language in his peace appeals and had even called for Ukraine to raise the white flag. Francis appointed Cardinal Matteo Zuppi as his peace envoy to Ukraine.

Washington, D.C. Newsroom, May 19, 2025 / 16:42 pm (CNA).

The Diocese of Wilmington, Delaware, and politicians from both major political parties are urging the country to pray for former president Joe Biden after he was diagnosed with prostate cancer.

Biden’s office announced on Sunday that the former president was diagnosed last week with an “aggressive form” of prostate cancer that has spread to his bones, stating that doctors found a prostate nodule after Biden experienced “increasing urinary symptoms.”

“While this represents a more aggressive form of the disease, the cancer appears to be hormone-sensitive, which allows for effective management,” the statement added. “The president and his family are reviewing treatment options with his physicians.”

The news was met with overwhelming support and calls for prayers, including from the Diocese of Wilmington, the diocese to which the country’s second Catholic president belongs.

“As Catholics, we are called to carry out Christ’s charge to ‘heal the sick’ by caring for those who are ill and accompanying them in their time of suffering through prayers of intercession,” Robert G. Krebs, the communications director for the diocese, said in a statement.

“The Church believes in the life-giving presence of Christ, the physician of souls and bodies, and wishes the former president a rapid return to health,” he said.

On Monday, Biden posted a message on X that included a picture of himself with his wife, former first lady Jill Biden, thanking the public for their support.

“Cancer touches us all,” Biden said on X. “Like so many of you, Jill and I have learned that we are strongest in the broken places. Thank you for lifting us up with love and support.”

Politicians offer prayers, best wishes

President Donald Trump, who ran against Biden twice, expressed sadness about the news in a post on his social media platform Truth Social.

“Melania and I are saddened to hear about Joe Biden’s recent medical diagnosis,” Trump wrote. “We extend our warmest and best wishes to Jill and the family, and we wish Joe a fast and successful recovery.”

Vice President JD Vance, the second Catholic vice president after Biden, told reporters that “we wish the best for the former president’s health” but also expressed concerns that he believes the prior administration did not provide “accurate information about what he was actually dealing with” during his presidency.

Former vice president Kamala Harris, who served under Biden, said in a post on X that she and her husband, Doug, are keeping Biden “and their entire family in our hearts and prayers during this time.” 

“Joe is a fighter — and I know he will face this challenge with the same strength, resilience, and optimism that have always defined his life and leadership,” she said. “We are hopeful for a full and speedy recovery.”

Rep. Nancy Pelosi, the former speaker of the House and a fellow Catholic, said she and her husband, Paul, “join millions across the country and around the world praying for him to have strength and a swift recovery in the battle against cancer” in a post on X.

Current House Speaker Mike Johnson also said on X that he and his family “will be joining the countless others who are praying for the former president in the wake of his diagnosis.”

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said on X that he is “praying for President Biden and the entire Biden family,” and Senate Majority Leader Thom Tillis said he and his wife, Susan, “are saddened to hear about President Biden’s prostate cancer diagnosis and are praying for his full recovery.”

St. Louis, Mo., May 19, 2025 / 16:07 pm (CNA).

A mile-wide tornado tore through the northern part of St. Louis on Friday, causing over $1.6 billion in damage and leaving at least five people dead, including a woman who was killed when the steeple of a Christian church collapsed on her. 

A tornado believed to have attained EF-3 intensity touched down just southwest of the St. Louis Forest Park and traveled northeast through the densely populated city for over 20 miles, downing mature trees, ripping off roofs, and leaving collapsed buildings in its wake. 

Much of the destruction — other than damage to the many stately mansions near Forest Park — affected the poorest parts of the city. Among more than 5,000 damaged buildings, at least 12 schools were hit, as was the St. Louis Zoo; tens of thousands of people in the region lost power.  

The twister was part of a massive outbreak sequence on May 18 that also spawned tornadoes in Kentucky, killing at least 19 people in that state and leveling the small town of London, about 80 miles south of Lexington. Several more deaths from tornadoes were also reported in Virginia and in southeastern Missouri.

Patricia Penelton, a longtime volunteer at St. Louis’ Centennial Christian Church — who was reportedly at the church bagging lunches to distribute after the storm — was killed when the bell tower and roof of the 121-year-old church collapsed in the tornado. Penelton was an active member of the church who started an initiative to provide free meals to neighborhood kids and to the homeless. 

“She died in her beloved church, doing what she loved,” her daughter, Alexis Dennard, said in an interview with the St. Louis Post-Dispatch on Saturday. “She left this Earth in service to others. What better testament to God and her discipleship is there?”

A father of seven and a food truck owner, Juan Baltazar, was also killed when a large tree crushed his truck. Authorities have not publicly named the other casualties.

The Cathedral Basilica of St. Louis, located in the hard-hit Central West End, lost power on Friday. St. Matthew the Apostle Parish and St. Josephine Bakhita Parish are also located near the tornado’s path.

Archdiocesan spokeswoman Lisa Shea told CNA that damage is still being assessed. Pastors have been asked to hold a second collection at Masses next weekend, with the collected funds going to Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of St. Louis (CCSTL). 

CCSTL is currently accepting donations to help more than 750 individuals and families who have reached out through the Catholic Charities website seeking support. Catholic Charities says it is mobilizing emergency resources to provide critical services, including temporary housing, food, counseling, and long-term recovery assistance for those affected.

“We are seeing a heartbreaking level of need, and our ministry is here to respond with urgency and compassion,” said Jared Bryson, president and CEO of Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of St. Louis, in a statement. 

“Requests for help are pouring in — and we are doing everything we can to meet each one with dignity, care, and concrete support … This is the mission of Catholic Charities — to be a visible sign of Christ’s love and mercy in moments of great need. We are committed to walking alongside our neighbors as they recover and rebuild.”

Washington, D.C. Newsroom, May 19, 2025 / 15:04 pm (CNA).

The Archdiocese of Chicago will host a celebration at Rate Field, the home of the Chicago White Sox, on June 14 to honor Pope Leo XIV, according to a statement released by the archdiocese. 

The public is invited to attend the upcoming “once-in-a-lifetime celebration of the election of Pope Leo XIV, the first pope born and raised in the Chicago area.”

“Pope Leo XIV’s message of peace, unity, and the key to a meaningful life have touched hearts across the globe,” the archdiocese said. “This celebration is an extraordinary opportunity for people from the city and beyond to come together in shared pride for one of our own.”

While there was initial speculation as to which Chicago baseball team the new pope is a fan of, Pope Leo XIV’s brother, John Prevost, told local television station WGN that the pontiff was “always a Sox fan.” Subsequently, a 20-year-old video surfaced of then-Father Robert Prevost attending a 2005 World Series game between the White Sox and the Houston Astros.

The program at the White Sox stadium will feature music, film, testimonials, and prayer and will conclude with a Mass. 

The event will “celebrate [Pope Leo’s] election,” said Cardinal Blase Cupich, archbishop of Chicago, who added that all those interested in attending should keep an eye out as “more details will be announced in the coming week.”

On Sunday, May 18, Archbishop Edward J. Weisenburger celebrated Mass at St. Moses the Black in Detroit, gathering with members of the local Catholic community. Following the liturgy, attendees were invited to a Detroit-themed reception featuring live music and regional food. The event brought together parishioners, clergy, and guests for an afternoon of worship and fellowship in the city.

CNA Staff, May 19, 2025 / 14:34 pm (CNA).

A 36-minute video purporting to show Pope Leo XIV reading a statement denouncing colonialism and praising Captain Ibrahim Traoré, the 37-year-old leader of Burkina Faso, has garnered nearly a million views on YouTube as of Monday. 

Claim: Pope Leo XIV is shown seated in the Paul VI Audience Hall reading from a paper. In an apparent response to a purported speech from Ibrahim Traoré, Pope Leo XIV appears to address the Catholic Church’s historical entanglement with colonialism and acknowledge its past failures to stand with the oppressed and speak out against economic exploitation and political interference in Africa. 

The “pope” then addresses ongoing injustices, including the plunder of Africa’s resources, the theft of cultural memory, the denial of sovereignty, and the crisis of migration, affirming Africa’s vital role as a “beacon of faith” and calling for a new era of justice, reconciliation, and partnership.

CNA finds: The video is entirely fake and admits as much in its own description on YouTube — but that hasn’t stopped thousands of viewers from being misled. 

“This made me cry!! What I’ve been waiting for a pope to say all my life!! Gives me hope for the world,” reads one user’s comment, amid hundreds more expressing similar sentiment. 

In reality, however, a disclaimer in the video’s description, posted by the channel Pan-African Dreams, explicitly describes the video as “a work of fiction inspired by the life of Ibrahim Traoré.”

“While some elements are based on real events, the situations and dialogues described are entirely imaginary and do not reflect any actual events. Any resemblance to real-life facts is purely coincidental,” the disclaimer says. 

A YouTube-required label on the video also notes that it contains “Altered or synthetic content: Sound or visuals were significantly edited or digitally generated.”

The video is by no means the first AI-generated, fake video of the newly elected Pope Leo to make the rounds online. (The pope himself, in a May 12 address to the media, has already emphasized the responsibility and discernment needed by all people, of all ages, in the use of artificial intelligence.)

In addition, this isn’t the first fake, propagandizing video to surface online specifically glorifying Traoré. In fact, posts recently circulated on social media claim to share a song released by jailed R&B singer R. Kelly in support of Traoré and his regime, AFP Fact-Check reported.

The young military leader, who came to power in 2022 following a coup, has been accused by observers of benefiting from propaganda specifically produced by Russia, possibly because of a connection to the infamous Russian mercenary organization the Wagner Group.  

The verdict: The video is fake and not to be taken seriously. That doesn’t mean Pope Leo will never address the topics raised in the video, such as colonialism and Catholicism in Africa, however — he just hasn’t yet.

We rate this claim false.

Rome Newsroom, May 19, 2025 / 14:04 pm (CNA).

Pope Leo XIV met with faith leaders at the Vatican on Monday, emphasizing his commitment to continue Pope Francis’ legacy on synodality in relation to ecumenical dialogue with other churches and religions.

Inviting representatives of other Christian churches, ecclessial communities, and other religions who attended his Sunday inauguration Mass to the Apostolic Palace for a private audience, the Holy Father stated his desire to continue the Church’s “ecumenical journey and interreligious dialogue” following the legacy of his predecessors St. John XXIII and Pope Francis. 

“Synodality and ecumenism are closely linked,” he said. “I wish to assure you of my intention to continue Pope Francis’ commitment to promoting the synodal character of the Catholic Church and to developing new and concrete forms for an ever more intense synodality in the ecumenical field.”

“Today is the time for dialogue and for building bridges,” he added. “Therefore I am happy and grateful for the presence of the representatives of other religious traditions, who share the search for God and his will, which is always and only the will of love and life for men and women and for all creatures.”

Expressing his particular fraternal affection for the Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I of Constantinople, Orthodox Patriarch Theophilos III of Jerusalem, and Assyrian Patriarch Mar Awa III in the meeting, Leo XIV highlighted the need for Christian unity in light of the 1,700th anniversary of the First Ecumenical Council of Nicaea to be celebrated on May 20.

“That council represents a fundamental stage in the development of the Creed shared by all the Churches and ecclesial communities,” the Holy Father said. “While we are on the path towards the reestablishment of full communion among all Christians, we recognize that this unity can only be unity in faith.” 

“As bishop of Rome, I consider one of my primary duties to seek the reestablishment of full and visible communion among all those who profess the same faith in God the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit,” he added. 

During the audience, Pope Leo reiterated the importance of a dialogue and fraternity — founded upon the shared belief in one God — with Jews and Muslims in order to achieve peace.

“Even in these difficult times, marked by conflicts and misunderstandings, it is necessary to continue with enthusiasm this very precious dialogue of ours,” he said.

“This approach, based on mutual respect and freedom of conscience, represents a solid basis for building bridges between our communities,” he added.

Toward the end of the audience, the pontiff reiterated his calls for peace and the need for leaders of all faith traditions to be united, “through the testimony of our brotherhood,” for the good of humanity.

“In a world wounded by violence and conflict, each of the communities represented here brings its own contribution of wisdom, compassion, and commitment to the good of humanity and the protection of our common home,” Pope Leo said.

“I am convinced that, if we are in agreement and free from ideological and political conditioning, we can be effective in saying ‘no’ to war and ‘yes’ to peace, ‘no’ to the arms race and ‘yes’ to disarmament, ‘no’ to an economy that impoverishes peoples and the Earth and ‘yes’ to integral development,” the Holy Father concluded.