Pope Leo presided over Mass on August 29, 2026, at the Church of Maria Santissima del Lago in Castel Gandolfo—near his summer residence and place where he goes regularly on Tuesday (his day off). In his homily on that day, the Holy Father reflected on the beauty of “simple gestures” of devotion. He stressed that believing in God can become a pathway toward peace in a world that dismisses forgiveness as being naïve.

The World Day of Migrants and Refuges can be traced to an action undertaken by Pope Saint Pius X a few months before the outbreak of World War I. The Holy Father was deeply moved by the plight of millions of Italians who had migrated abroad, particularly to North and South America, since the beginning of the twentieth century. A few months later his successor, Pope Benedict XV instituted the Day of the Migrant to support pastoral outreach, particularly for Italian immigrants.

On August 11, 2026, Pope Leo released his Message for the 112th World Day of Migrants and Refugees, which the Church observes on September 27, 2026. Deborah Castellano Lubov, who writes for Vatican News, notes that a major theme of this year’s message is “Even one of these children,” which is taken from the Gospel of Matthew. Pope Leo admonishes his readers that the cries of the displaced should appeal to the conscience of all of us.

On September 24, 2015, Pope Francis visited a joint session of Congress and gave an address to the Senators and members of the House of Representatives. I think it gives us perspective on events taking place today. Let me start by quoting some remarks Pope Francis said to the Senators and Representatives gathered on that memorable Thursday:

On Tuesday, July 28, 2026, I attended a Mass of Solidarity at Our Lady of Sorrows Church in Takoma Park. Cardinal Chibly Langlois of Les Cayes, Haiti, served as principal celebrant, joined by Archbishop Thomas G. Wenski of Miani, Florida, Archbishop Roert G. Casey of Cincinnati, Ohio, and Bishop Jacques Fabre-Jeune, C.S., of Charleston, South Carolina, and ten priests.

This week in our series of great Americans, we are looking at our first-citizen saint who was the subject of a movie in 2024 (Cabrini).

On July 1, we celebrated the memorial of Saint Junipero Serra, whom Matthew Bunson lists as one of five heroes of American Catholicism. One of the objectives for the visit of Pope Francis to the United States in 2015 was the canonization of Junipero Serra.

Last week we looked at the life of Charles Carroll of Carrollton who was the only Catholic signer of the Declaration of Independence. This we're looking at his cousin John Carroll who would become the first Archbishop of Baltimore.

As we celebrate the two hundred and fiftieth anniversary of adoption and signing of the Declaration of Independence, I thought that I would devote several columns to individual Catholics who have had a profound impact in our nation’s history. Today I want to look at Charles Carroll of Carrolton (1737-1832), the last surviving signer of the Declaration of Independence and the only Catholic to do so.

Recently a parishioner asked me what an annulment was. He was interested in pursuing it but was concerned if he were successful in obtaining an annulment, that his children be considered illegitimate. I promised to do some research on this question. I found a good explanation of this topic on the website of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops. Here you are:

Last week we celebrated Father’s Day. I thought that it might be interesting to write a column about the origin of this national observance, which is held on the third Sunday of June in the United States of America.

I want to call your attention to a resource guide published by the Archdiocese of Washington. This document is entitled “End of Life Issues: A Pastoral Resource from the Archdiocese of Washington. “It has been designed to present some important information about end-of-life care, the many options for funerals and burials in our region, and some grief resources.