Opus Dei founder St. Josemaría Escrivá de Balaguer in Mexico in 1970. / Credit: Opus Dei/Flickr

Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Jan 14, 2025 / 15:00 pm (CNA).

Opus Dei, the nearly century-old Rome-based personal prelature, has released a lengthy response to the October 2024 book “Opus,” accusing the book of giving “a false picture of Opus Dei based on distorted facts, conspiracy theories, and outright lies.”

The book, written by journalist Gareth Gore, describes Opus Dei as “a secretive, ultra-conservative Catholic sect” that “pushed its radical agenda within the Church and around the globe, using billions of dollars siphoned from one of the world’s largest banks.”

In a comprehensive analysis of the book published on Monday, Jan. 13, the Catholic organization — which was founded in 1928 by St. Josemaría Escrivá — said it provided Gore with “broad cooperation” while he researched the work, including offering “abundant documents and materials” and “many hours openly answering questions.”

Nonetheless, the group said “not a single good deed by anyone in Opus Dei is recorded; not a single response from Opus Dei is included to the many charges leveled against Opus Dei in the book.” 

Members of Opus Dei’s worldwide communications team indicated that “when we saw the marked bias of the book and its numerous factual errors, those of us who had been in contact with Gareth Gore from the Opus Dei Communications Office decided to prepare a document” to “correct the record and to provide an essential perspective that the author has withheld from readers of the book.”

“We have tried to separate truth from falsehood; to distinguish truths, half-truths, lies, and judgments and interpretations about intentions; to clarify false narratives by giving context and additional explanations,” the team of Opus Dei’s communicators explained.

The resulting 106-page document of “clarifications and fact-checking” effectively seeks to turn lemons into lemonade by addressing in one place all the principal criticisms Opus Dei has received during its nearly century of existence.

“We offer this document with a necessary premise: respect and openness towards critical views, which can usually be helpful,” the document states. “No human institution is perfect” and “being the bearer of a Christian charism does not grant immunity from error,” the authors acknowledge.

“Like other institutions of the Catholic Church, for years we have been following a path of greater awareness of our own weaknesses, which leads to a deeper empathy with wounded people and gives us new sensitivity and light on how to carry out our mission,” the authors continue. “For these reasons, we endeavour to listen to and learn from both fair and constructive criticism, as well as criticism that is neither fair nor constructive.”

Along with the explanatory document, Opus Dei updated its website to include a section on “Additional Sources for Clarification” that addresses both old and more recent controversies surrounding the organization.

From left to right: Auxiliary Bishop of the Our Lady of the Angels Pastoral Region Matthew G. Elshoff, St. Monica pastor Father Lloyd Torgerson, and Corpus Christi pastor Monsignor Liam Kidney celebrate Mass at St. Monica Church with Corpus Christi’s surviving tabernacle next to the altar on Jan. 12, 2025. / Credit: Paul Escala

Seattle, Wash., Jan 14, 2025 / 13:30 pm (CNA).

A lone tabernacle that survived the blaze at Corpus Christi Catholic Church in Pacific Palisades has come to epitomize hope for countless families devastated by Southern California’s sweeping wildfires. Despite flames that consumed entire buildings, the metallic container — housing the Eucharist — remained nearly untouched.

“It was covered in soot but preserved,” said Paul Escala, superintendent of Catholic schools for the Archdiocese of Los Angeles. “That, to me, is a miraculous sign that even when everything is lost, Christ remains.”

At least two dozen people have died in the fires, fueled by powerful Santa Ana winds and severe drought conditions. Officials estimate thousands of homes and other structures, including churches, were destroyed or severely damaged. 

Initially, more than 100 Catholic schools throughout the archdiocese closed out of safety concerns, a figure that dropped to fewer than 20 by the following Monday, according to Escala.

Pacific Palisades and Altadena are among the hardest-hit regions. Corpus Christi Catholic Church is now reduced to rubble, and entire neighborhoods around it have been wiped out. 

St. Elizabeth School in Altadena has also seen massive disruption, prompting the archdiocese to identify “bridge locations” where displaced families can gather until rebuilding can begin.

Despite the devastation, volunteers have organized swiftly. 

Monsignor Liam Kidney reminded parishioners at a recent Mass — held at nearby St. Monica’s Church, which is sheltering the displaced community — that “the building is not the Church. We are the Church.”

Across Southern California, Catholics have turned parish halls and school gyms into makeshift donation centers. Ascension of the Blessed Virgin Mary and St. Andrew’s in Pasadena have collected clothing, toiletries, blankets, and toys, while Loyola High School in Los Angeles converted Caruso Hall into a relief station, offering meals, showers, and spare clothing. American Martyrs School in Manhattan Beach opened additional classroom seats to children who lost their homes. 

Donations have poured in from dioceses nationwide. “Toledo, Kansas City, Richmond; you name it,” Escala noted. “People are asking how to help, offering gift cards, trucks of supplies, or even to sponsor entire classrooms. A deacon in Missouri plans to drive donated items here himself. It’s humbling.” 

The archdiocese launched a Wildfire Victims Relief Fund, while Catholic Charities USA continues to collect donations for food, clothing, and temporary housing. Escala’s office is also finalizing a scholarship program so families who lost homes or jobs can keep their children enrolled in Catholic schools.

Some communities narrowly escaped total destruction. 

In Altadena, Deacon José Luis Díaz and parishioners at Sacred Heart Church beat back approaching flames with a single garden hose. “We barely had water pressure,” Díaz told Angelus News, the archdiocese’s media outlet, “but we did whatever we could, and it worked.” 

Elsewhere, the 83-acre Mater Dolorosa Passionist Retreat Center in Sierra Madre lost its garage, hermitage, and parts of its gardens but remained partially standing. “Our faith is tested on fire,” wrote center director Father Febin Barose on social media. “We are pilgrims of hope… We will recover and be back serving you again.”

Archbishop José Gomez underscored the spirit of resilience at a special Mass on Jan. 9 at the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels. 

“Thousands of our neighbors have lost everything,” he said. “We are reminded how precious every life is, and how fragile. We must be instruments of compassion.”

Escala emphasized that many Catholics do not wait for instructions; they respond spontaneously with donations, shelter, and other relief. “They know what to do,” he said, “and they just do it.”

null / Credit: Freedom Studio/Shutterstock

CNA Staff, Jan 14, 2025 / 13:00 pm (CNA).

The Catholic bishops’ pro-life chair called for forgiveness of women who have had abortions ahead of the anniversary of Roe v. Wade, reminding the faithful that “no sin is beyond God’s unfathomable mercy.”

Jan. 22 marks the 52nd anniversary of Roe v. Wade, the landmark 1973 Supreme Court ruling that effectively legalized abortion nationwide in the United States. Though Roe v. Wade was overturned in June 2022 — leaving legal decisions about abortion to the states — its effects can still be felt across the United States.

Bishop Daniel Thomas of Toledo, Ohio, chairman of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ Committee on Pro-Life Activities, called on Catholics to observe Jan. 22 as “a day of prayer and penance.”

“As we prayerfully continue the essential work of restoring full legal protection of all preborn children and supporting parents facing difficult pregnancies, we also recognize our need for asking forgiveness and healing from the Lord for when we have given in to the culture of death,” he said in a USCCB press release. 

Thomas also offered a consoling message to the parents of children who died by abortion. 

“To the parents of children who have died by abortion, I am deeply sorry for your loss. Know that our Lord loves you as his daughters and sons no matter your actions,” Thomas said. “No sin is beyond his unfathomable mercy.” 

“Abortion inflicts deep and lasting wounds on society but more directly on individuals and families,” Thomas continued. “Many mothers and fathers may feel they have no choice except abortion. Some are pressured or coerced.” 

“No matter the circumstances of the abortion, we must recognize the often-silent grief of parents for their child and their despair of being worthy of the love and forgiveness of God and others.”

Thomas encouraged the faithful to turn to hope amid the jubilee year, centered on the theme “Pilgrims of Hope.” 

“Hope allows those who have been involved in abortion to turn to God and repent, confident that he will forgive and make them whole,” Thomas said. 

“This Jan. 22 and beyond, we need to be reassured that Jesus himself, who is the source of our hope, was first wounded for our offenses and suffered for every sin of ours, including abortion.”

Thomas invited families suffering from wounds due to abortion to “seek support” from the Church’s various ministries, such as the healing ministry Project Rachel. Project Rachel offers grief support after losing a child by abortion. Many other resources exist for those facing unplanned pregnancies, including local crisis pregnancy centers and maternity homes for pregnant women and women with young children. 

Thomas also invited those who are Catholic to seek out the sacrament of reconciliation. 

“Jesus greatly desires our repentant hearts and invites us into an encounter with him. For Catholics, the sacrament of reconciliation is always available for those seeking God’s forgiveness, hope, and peace.” 

The bishop called on Catholics everywhere to pray for those suffering from the wounds of abortion. 

“Please join me in praying that God will fill the hearts of mothers and fathers suffering the emotional and psychological wounds from abortion with the hope of forgiveness that only he can give,” Thomas said.

VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- While calling himself an "old man" and saying he never expected to be pope this long, Pope Francis said he still has dreams for the future.

"We must not stumble upon tomorrow, we must build it, and we all have the responsibility to do so in a way that responds to the project of God, which is none other than the happiness of mankind, the centrality of mankind, without excluding anyone," the 88-year-old pope wrote in his autobiography. 

"Hope: The Autobiography" was written with the Italian editor Carlo Musso beginning in 2019. The book was released Jan. 14 in its original Italian and in 17 other languages in about 100 countries. Random House published the book in the United States, and Penguin Random House Canada released it in Canada.

The original plan, Musso said, was for the book to be released after Pope Francis' death. But Mondadori, the Italian publisher coordinating the release, said the pope decided in August that it should be published at the beginning of the Holy Year 2025, which has hope as its central theme.

In several chapters of the book, Pope Francis directly addresses readers, including when he quotes St. John Paul II's words during the Jubilee 2000: "Do not be afraid. Open wide the doors for Christ!"

"If one day you are overcome by fears and worries," he told readers, "think of that episode in the Gospel of John, at the marriage at Cana (John 2:1– 12), and say to yourselves: The best wine has yet to be served."

"Be sure of it: The deepest, happiest, most beautiful reality for us, for those we love, has yet to come," he continued. "Even if some statistic tells you the opposite, even if tiredness weakens your powers, never lose this hope that cannot be beaten." 

Much of the book contains familiar stories of Pope Francis' past, his childhood and relationship with his grandmother Rosa, his vocation and ministry as a Jesuit, his service as archbishop of Buenos Aires, Argentina, and his election as pope in 2013.

Pope Francis acknowledged that he has made mistakes during his pontificate, usually because of his impatience, but he defends some of his most controversial decisions, including expanding the possibilities for divorced and civilly remarried Catholics to return to the sacraments and, more recently, to authorize the blessing of same-sex or cohabiting couples.

He wrote about both of those decisions in the larger context of how the church should reach out to and welcome everyone.

"All are invited. Everyone," he wrote. "And so: Everyone inside. Good and bad, young and old, healthy and sick. For this is the Lord's plan."

"It is our task as pastors to take others by the hand, to accompany them, to help them to discern, and not to exclude them," the pope wrote. "And to pardon: to treat others with the same mercy that the Lord reserves for us."

In late 2023, the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith published, with the pope's approval, "Fiducia Supplicans" ("Supplicating Trust"), on "the pastoral meaning of blessings."

The declaration said that priests can give brief, spontaneous, non-sacramental, non-liturgical blessings to individuals who are in irregular situations or part of a same-sex couple "without officially validating their status" or blessing their union.

In "Hope," Pope Francis again said: "It is the people who are blessed, not the relationships." 

The blessing, he wrote, is a sign that the church wants to accompany everyone and that it does not exclude anyone because of "one situation or one condition."

"Everyone in the Church is invited, including people who are divorced, including people who are homosexual, including people who are transgender," the pope wrote.

As for his decision in the 2016 exhortation, "Amoris Laetitia" ("The Joy of Love") to open a possibility for some divorced and civilly remarried people to have access to the sacraments, Pope Francis said that decision "made some people throw their arms up in horror."

"Sexual sins tend to cause more of an outcry from some people," he wrote. "But they are really not the most serious (sins). They are human sins, of the flesh. The most serious, on the contrary, are the sins that have more 'angelicity,' that dress themselves in another guise: pride, hatred, falsehood, fraud, abuse of power."

"Homosexuality is not a crime, it is a human fact," the pope wrote. LGBTQ+ people "are not 'children of a lesser god.' God the Father loves them with the same unconditional love, He loves them as they are, and He accompanies them in the same way that He does with all of us: being close by, merciful, and tender."

Pope Francis also discusses his health and asserts again that he has never thought of resigning, although like his predecessors he had prepared a letter early in his pontificate offering his resignation "in the event of impediment for medical reasons."

"At the beginning of my papacy I had the feeling that it would be brief: no more than three or four years," he wrote. "I never imagined that I would write four encyclicals, and all those letters, documents, apostolic exhortations, nor that I would have made all those journeys to more than sixty countries."

But, he said, "the reality is, quite simply, that I am old." 

Pope Francis wrote that he will be pope as "long as God wishes," and repeated his plan to be buried in Rome's Basilica of St. Mary Major and not in St. Peter's Basilica as most modern popes are.

"The Vatican is the home of my last service, not my eternal home," he wrote. His burial site is "in the room where they now keep the candelabra, close to the Regina della Pace (Mary, Queen of Peace) from whom I have always sought help, and whose embrace I have felt more than a hundred times during the course of my papacy. They have confirmed that all is ready."

"Though I know that He has already given me many blessings," Pope Francis wrote, "I ask the Lord for just one more: Look after me, let it happen whenever You wish, but, as You know, I'm not very brave when it comes to physical pain -- so, please, don't make me suffer too much."
 

The Amerigo Vespucci Italian naval ship. / Credit: Superchilum, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

CNA Staff, Jan 13, 2025 / 17:15 pm (CNA).

The Amerigo Vespucci, an Italian naval ship named after the 15th-century explorer that inspired the name “America,” has been designated a 2025 Jubilee church.

Devout Catholic and pro-life advocate Congressman Chris Smith will be honored at the 2025 National Catholic Prayer Breakfast held in Washington, D.C., on Feb. 28. / Credit: Photo courtesy of the office of Rep. Chris Smith

Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Jan 13, 2025 / 15:20 pm (CNA).

Devout Catholic and pro-life advocate Congressman Chris Smith will be honored at this year’s National Catholic Prayer Breakfast held in Washington, D.C.

The New Jersey representative will receive the organization’s annual Christifideles Laici Award at the 20th National Catholic Prayer Breakfast on Feb. 28. Previous recipients of the award include religious freedom advocate Jimmy Lai; legal scholar Helen M. Alvaré; attorney and policy expert Mary Rice Hasson; and former U.S. Attorney General William Barr.

The Christifideles Laici Award was founded in 2019 by the National Catholic Prayer Breakfast to highlight the “good works” of those in service of the Church, according to the organization’s website. The award itself is an original work commissioned by the organization from the classical artist Isaac Dell and is inscribed with the words “In Honor and Gratitude for Fidelity to the Church, Exemplary Selfless and Steadfast Service in the Lord’s Vinyard.”

Smith is currently in his 22nd term in the U.S. House of Representatives for New Jersey’s 4th Congressional District, serves on the House Committee on Foreign Affairs, and has been a tireless defender of those suffering from religious persecution and human trafficking.

A staunch advocate of the pro-life cause, Smith is among the confirmed speakers at the March for Life this year along with Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and Live Action Founder Lila Rose.

Late last year, Smith told CNA in an interview following a Mass celebrated in the U.S. Capitol that he and his wife, Marie, share a particular devotion to Our Lady of Guadalupe and that his office “places all of our pro-life and human rights work under her mantle.” 

“I do a lot on the human rights issue,” he said at the time, “and every bit of it, we turn to her and pray, you know, and ask her for guidance.” 

Smith told CNA he has a life-sized replica of the tilma of Our Lady of Guadalupe hanging in his office. “I’m amazed at how many people I meet — because I meet with diplomats all the time because of my human rights work and my committee assignments — they always take note of [the tilma].”

“I find there’s such devotion, particularly with the Latin Americans who come in — they look at [the tilma] and it’s instant,” he said. “And so this is, of course, a celebration of her, [and] the whole story of Juan Diego, and the whole story of, you know, 8 to 9 million people converting from human sacrifice and worshipping gods is such an amazing story of conversion and repair of souls.”

The New York State Capitol in Albany, New York. / Credit: Beyond My Ken, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

CNA Staff, Jan 13, 2025 / 14:50 pm (CNA).

New York’s Catholic bishops are supporting a proposal from Democratic Gov. Kathy Hochul to increase the state’s child tax credit — an effort to address New York’s stubbornly high child poverty rate, which has exceeded the national average for over a decade.

In an announcement last week, Hochul proposed an annual tax credit of up to $1,000 per child under age 4 and up to $500 per child from 4 through 16, roughly doubling the average credit disbursed by the state to families from $472 to $943. The existing state credit provides up to $330 per child.

Kristen Curran, director of government relations for the New York State Catholic Conference, expressed support on behalf of the state’s Catholic bishops for the proposal, saying it would provide “important relief” to an estimated 1.6 million families.

“For more than 20 years, the New York State Catholic Conference has championed the issue of child tax credits. This initiative is a powerful way to walk with moms in need, support working families, and help lift children out of poverty,” Curran said in a Jan. 7 statement.

“Working class families will be better positioned to navigate the cost-of-living crisis and provide for their children. It is critical that the child tax credit apply to babies, starting at birth. We are glad to see that coverage as part of this proposal.”

In 2022, the latest year figures are available, the child poverty rate in New York was nearly 19% — a figure that exceeds the national average and has since 2011. The figure is also at least six percentage points higher than any state it borders and ranks New York in the top 10 nationwide for child poverty, according to the state comptroller. 

Curran urged lawmakers to pass the increased child tax credit, framing it as a vital step toward strengthening the community and state.

“Now more than ever, it is imperative that we address the affordability crisis to help parents as they raise their children. We urge all lawmakers to support this initiative,” she concluded.

“When we join together to lift up the most vulnerable, we are strengthened as a community and as a state. The governor can count on the strong support of the New York State Catholic Conference for this pro-family proposal.”

At the federal level, the current child tax credit allows parents and guardians to claim their dependent children on their tax forms, granting a tax break of up to $2,000. Up to $1,600 of that credit may be “refundable,” meaning taxpayers can receive cash payments for the credit.

A bipartisan effort to increase the tax credit from the current refundable amount of $1,600 to $2,000 per child in 2025 failed to pass the Senate in August. The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) has been a staunch advocate for the bill’s passage, sending a message ahead of the vote encouraging the faithful to urge senators to vote in favor of the measure.

The 2021 American Rescue Plan briefly expanded the credit to $3,600 and made it fully refundable; that law also allowed parents to claim half of the refundable sum in advance monthly payments. Those new rules expired after that year.

The Dominican House of Studies has a bell in its Washington, D.C., priory for the first time in 120 years. / Credit: Photo courtesy of the Dominican House of Studies

Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Jan 13, 2025 / 14:20 pm (CNA).

The Priory of the Immaculate Conception at the Dominican House of Studies in Washington, D.C., celebrated an exciting new addition this past weekend.

One hundred and 20 years after its founding in 1905, the Dominican House of Studies finally has a bell for its tower.

The friars celebrated the blessing of their new bell on Sunday morning in the Academic Courtyard of the priory. A Mass for the Baptism of the Lord followed the blessing, according to the priory’s website.

The roughly 980-pound bell was cast in 1929 in Watervliet, New York, by the Meneely Bell Foundry, according to Father Gregory Schnakenberg, OP, and is set to be installed in the coming weeks.

“Whether friars thought it unnecessary (we do live across the street from one of the most beautiful bell carillons in America) or we simply lacked the resources, today we dedicated our new bell,” Father Patrick Mary Briscoe, OP, wrote in a post on Instagram. 

Briscoe also revealed in the post that the new bell has been named after St. Gabriel and is inscribed with the words “I sing to the honor of St. Gabriel the Archangel, who announced the Word of God to the Immaculate Virgin Mary.”

“During the blessing ceremony, Father Gregory pointed out that we need the bell today more than ever, to call us out of our distractions and summon us to prayer and contemplation,” Briscoe recalled, adding: “I couldn’t agree more! Bells are evangelizers, calling us all to the joy and hope that the Gospel alone brings.”

The Dominican House of Studies’ next major project will be the restoration of its St. Catherine of Siena and St. Rose of Lima altars, which are both located in the main chapel. 

Knights of Columbus process with the new Knights of Columbus Sacred Heart Pilgrim Icon during a Mass and Sacred Heart Holy Hour at St. Mary Church in New Haven, Connecticut, Jan. 3, 2025. / Credit: Paul Haring

CNA Staff, Jan 13, 2025 / 12:20 pm (CNA).

For more than 45 years, the Knights of Columbus Pilgrim Icon Program has brought sacred images to Catholic parishes around the world for prayer and devotion. On Jan. 3, the Knights launched a new Pilgrim Icon of the Sacred Heart of Jesus program during a Holy Hour at St. Mary Church in New Haven, Connecticut.

During the Holy Hour, an icon depicting the image of the Sacred Heart of Jesus painted by Pompeo Batoni in 1767 was displayed. This reproduction of the original image is one of more than 300 icons, each bearing the apostolic blessing of Pope Francis, that are now traveling around the world as part of the Knights’ Pilgrim Icon Program.

The original image is currently venerated in the Church of the Gesú in Rome.

The prayer service to launch the new icon included readings from Scripture and reflections from Pope Francis on the Sacred Heart as well as the Divine Mercy Chaplet, prayers to the Sacred Heart, and time for prayer and adoration of the Blessed Sacrament.

The launch of the new icon program coincides with the release of Pope Francis’ fourth encyclical, Delixit Nos, which is devoted to the Sacred Heart of Jesus.

“In many ways, Dilexit Nos can serve as a mission statement for the Knights of Columbus in today’s world,” said Supreme Knight Patrick Kelly in a press release. “The pope observes that we live in a fragmented and divided society, but the heart of Christ is a unifying center. It is the source of truth and goodness that we all need.”

Kelly met with Pope Francis in a private audience on Dec. 20, 2024. During their meeting, Kelly presented the Holy Father with an icon and booklet for the Sacred Heart Holy Hour and shared updates on notable activities of the Knights of Columbus in the past year. 

Both the Knights’ new Pilgrim Icon Program and the Holy Father’s encyclical coincide with the Catholic Church’s commemoration of the 350th anniversary of the visions of the Sacred Heart of Jesus to St. Margaret Mary Alacoque, the French nun who received the 12 promises of the Sacred Heart and the First Friday devotions. 

Founder of the Knights of Columbus Blessed Michael McGivney had a deep devotion to the Sacred Heart. The McGivney family had a devotional plaque of the Sacred Heart in their home that is still in the Knights’ possession. Additionally, it was discovered that McGivney was buried with a cloth image of the Sacred Heart when his body was exhumed in 1981.

The Knights’ Pilgrim Icon Program has allowed more than 23 million people to honor Our Lord, Our Lady, and the saints through 191,000 prayer services featuring icons including Our Lady of Guadalupe, the Holy Family, and St. Joseph. The Sacred Heart of Jesus icon is the 20th icon venerated through the program since 1979.

Kelly has called upon the Knights to “bring reproductions of this beloved image to parishes around the world and invite their families — and all families — to consecrate their homes and themselves to the Sacred Heart.”

The beatification cause of Sister Clare Crockett, an inspirational young Irish religious sister who died in 2016, formally opened Jan. 12, 2025, with a ceremony at the Cathedral of Alcalá de Henares in Madrid, Spain. / Credit: Courtesy of Servants of the Home of the Mother

Vatican City, Jan 13, 2025 / 11:50 am (CNA).

Crockett, who died in a 2016 earthquake in Ecuador at the age of 33, is now titled “servant of God,” the first step in the Catholic Church’s path to sainthood.