Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary Parish

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CNA Staff, Mar 28, 2025 / 11:00 am (CNA).

A Texas Catholic charity group that sued the federal government this month over budget cuts says it will drop its lawsuit as payments from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) resume. 

Catholic Charities Fort Worth sued the agency at the beginning of March after the Trump administration froze tens of millions of dollars in grants for refugee services in Texas. 

Earlier this month the government said it was conducting a “program integrity review” of the Catholic charity. Last week the government said it had paid out more than $47 million to the charity after completing the review. 

In a “joint status report” filed earlier this week, the charity and the government said HHS has made continuous payments to the Catholic group since March 17 following the conclusion of the review. 

“As a result of [the government’s] representations and action, [the Catholic charity] will move to dismiss this case on or before April 2, 2025,” the filing said. 

The document noted that the charity would only dismiss the lawsuit so long as the group’s funding requests “continue to be paid in the normal course up until that date.”

The lawsuit’s pending dismissal will bring to an end just one of several suits filed in the wake of the major budget and funding cuts the Trump administration has enacted since January. The White House said the cuts were meant to bring federal policy and spending in line with the administration’s agenda.

The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) sued the Trump administration in February over what the bishops said was an unlawful suspension of funding for refugee programs in the United States.

The State Department earlier this month canceled two multimillion-dollar refugee resettlement contracts with the USCCB, directing the bishops to “stop all work on the program[s] and not incur any new costs” and “cancel as many outstanding obligations as possible.” The bishops’ lawsuit is still playing out in federal court. 

Several other groups have sued the government over the funding freezes, arguing that the White House engaged in an overreach of its executive power in ending the large amounts of federal payouts.

Lawsuits have also been filed over other Trump White House policies. Multiple religious groups last month sued the administration over its policy allowing immigration officers to arrest suspected illegal immigrants in houses of worship and other “sensitive locations.”

The flag of the European Union flying in Rome. / Credit: Bohumil Petrik/CNA

ACI Prensa Staff, Mar 28, 2025 / 10:30 am (CNA).

The bishops of the Commission of the Bishops’ Conferences of the European Union (COMECE) held their spring assembly this week in Italy, a meeting in which they considered the European Union’s vocation in the face of current challenges.

From Nemi, a town outside Rome where the meeting took place behind closed doors March 26-27, COMECE secretary-general Father Manuel Barrios spoke with ACI Prensa, CNA’s Spanish-language news partner, and explained the foundations of the mission.

The European Union, a project for peace with Christian roots

“The innate vocation of the European Union is to guarantee peace on the continent and in the world,” the Spanish priest said, noting that the EU was born as a project of reconciliation after the Second World War, so its mission is also to “defend and promote human rights, freedom, democracy, and the dignity of the person,” essential principles enshrined in its founding treaties.

Barrios also emphasized that Europe was evangelized and has Christian roots, a legacy that defines its identity. However, he warned that secularization is advancing strongly and that these values ​​are being eclipsed:

“With secularization, human beings distance themselves not only from transcendence but also from themselves, because the two are linked. We are in a time of rethinking many things, including the way human beings understand themselves,” he noted.

Values ​​eclipsed by secularization

While he acknowledged that many of the principles that inspire the European Union are currently upheld, he regrets that their origins are often lost sight of: “We are forgetting their Christian roots.”

For Barrios, this loss of awareness is, in some cases, intentional: “These values ​​are eclipsed because there is no awareness of them, and sometimes because people don’t want to be aware of them.”

Barrios emphasized that the values ​​that shaped the EU are not just a political construct but part of Europe’s cultural identity. “The European Union was not born solely from a geographical delimitation,” he pointed out.

To face this trend, the priest singled out the need for the personal witness of laypeople in Europe as well as “the witness of the Church and of ecclesial communities.“ He also emphasized the need for a new evangelization as well as “knowing how to dialogue with contemporary culture,“ a task he believes remains to be done despite being “foundational in Europe.“

Rearmament: ‘It’s legitimate for Europe to think about its security’

Regarding plans for rearmament in Europe, a topic Barrios indicated was part of the meeting’s agenda, he explained that the bishops’ position is that it is “correct, licit, and legitimate for Europe to think about its defense and security, especially in a world as turbulent as ours, with so much uncertainty.”

However, he pointed out that “we must not forget that the ultimate goal is peace and that this is Europe’s vocation. So, ‘yes’ to defense, but without losing sight of the fundamental human desire, which is the desire for peace.”

The priest also emphasized working with European institutions to “make the voice of the Church heard in Europe” in the face of challenges such as competitiveness, conflict, sustainability, and migration.

COMECE’s spring assembly brought together bishops, political leaders, and experts as well as representatives of the Vatican, including Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin and Archbishop Richard Gallagher, secretary for relations with states.

Also attending was an observer from Ukraine (a non-EU member), members of the Greek Catholic Church, former Italian prime ministers Mario Monti and Paolo Gentiloni, and the EU ambassador to the Holy See, Martin Selmayr.

“The beauty of these meetings is that we hear the voices of different sensibilities and different concerns. The war in Ukraine, for example, is perceived very differently in Spain or here in Italy, in Lithuania, in Poland, and in other countries closer to [Ukraine]. So it’s also very good to listen to each other and see the different concerns,” Barrios noted.

Concluding pilgrimage of hope

The meeting concluded with a pilgrimage to the Holy Door of St. Peter’s and with a Mass in the basilica. Barrios expressed his enthusiasm for the pilgrimage: “The message of hope is very important in this time we are living in, because there is so much despair, so much uncertainty, and it is necessary to make it clear that our hope as Christians is founded on Jesus Christ.”

“Also in Europe, which has an aging population, and where the future often seems bleak, we as Christians must propose the good proclamation of the Gospel,” he said.

For Barrios, the holy year can bear many fruits, even with Pope Francis ailing. “Despite this situation, the Church continues to powerfully proclaim her message and continues to count on the successor of Peter,” he said.

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

Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin (right) meets with Polish President Andrzej Duda on March 28, 2025, at the Vatican.  / Credit: Vatican Media

CNA Newsroom, Mar 28, 2025 / 09:40 am (CNA).

Pope Francis continues to show gradual improvement as he recovers from bilateral pneumonia at his residence in Casa Santa Marta, according to an update provided Friday by Holy See Press Office Director Matteo Bruni.

The pontiff’s health remains stable, and his respiratory function, mobility, and speech have improved.

While still requiring supplemental oxygen, he has been able to reduce the high-flow oxygen therapy during daytime hours with a slight reduction also occurring overnight.

Blood tests conducted Wednesday indicate all hematological parameters are within normal range.

“The pope’s daily schedule includes physiotherapy sessions, which are helping improve his voice usage, along with periods of prayer, rest, and limited work,” Bruni said.

All dicasteries of the Roman Curia continue to send documents to inform him of ongoing activities.

ACI Stampa, CNA’s Italian-language news partner, reported that Pope Francis concelebrates Mass daily in the chapel of Casa Santa Marta.

As with previous Sundays during his recovery, the Holy See Press Office will release this weekend’s Angelus reflection in writing.

The Holy Father has been informed about the recent earthquake in Myanmar and is praying for the victims.

In a sign that Vatican business continues despite the pope’s convalescence, the Holy See announced Friday that Pope Francis had appointed Archbishop Giovanni Cesare Pagazzi as the new archivist and librarian of the Holy Roman Church.

Pagazzi, elevated to archbishop of Belcastro in November 2023, previously served as secretary of the Dicastery for Culture and Education.

The 58-year-old prelate holds a doctorate in theology from the Pontifical Gregorian University and has taught at numerous theological institutions across Italy.

Polish president meets Cardinal Parolin

In diplomatic developments, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the Vatican secretary of state, received Polish President Andrzej Duda in a cordial meeting Friday morning. 

The talks, which included Monsignor Mirosław Wachowski, undersecretary for Relations with States, took place on the eve of the 20th anniversary of St. John Paul II’s death and near the millennium of the coronation of Poland’s first king, Bolesław Chrobry.

According to the Vatican press office, the Friday discussion covered topics of mutual interest before focusing on international affairs, particularly the ongoing war in Ukraine and broader concerns about European security and peace.

Parolin will also be celebrating the anniversary Mass for St. John Paul II on the date of the anniversary, April 2.

No decisions have been announced regarding the pope’s participation in upcoming Easter celebrations or the canonization of Blessed Carlo Acutis. The next official update on the pope’s condition is expected Tuesday morning.

Lost at sea for 95 days, fisherman Máximo “Gatón” Napa says Jesus Christ literally came to his rescue. / Credit: Courtesy of “EWTN Noticias”/Screenshot

Lima Newsroom, Mar 28, 2025 / 08:00 am (CNA).

“I want everyone to know that God is great. God is beautiful. God wants us all to pray, to have love in our hearts, to help each other,” said Máximo Napa Castro — known as “Gatón” — a Peruvian fisherman who never lost his faith while being stranded at sea for 95 days until he was finally rescued off the coast of Ecuador.

Napa shared with “EWTN Noticias,” the Spanish-language edition of EWTN News, his dramatic story, which made headlines around the world, but now in a more personal way, beginning with admitting that he has never read the Bible, which he now wants to do as soon as he has some money since he lost his boat, his means for making a living. 

Upbringing

“Gatón” (“Big Cat”) — as his friends call him because he could no longer be called “Gatito“ (“Little Cat“), as his mother affectionately called him when he was little — comes from a family of humble origins who worked the land growing corn and cotton, something he simply didn’t like to do.

One day, when he was 13, his father told him to go with a relative who was a fisherman. And that day everything changed.

“I loved it. I’ve been in love with the sea ever since. I love the sea. I converse with the sea,” he said, “but before heading out, I kneel. I go with you, my beautiful Father. Your will, always. I never stopped asking [God] to take me out and bring me back. Never, never. And praying for my children, for my mother.”

Napa now lives in Pisco, about four hours by car south of Lima, but on Dec. 7, 2024, he set out for sea from Marcona, three hours further south, where he began a saga he perhaps never imagined.

Stranded

Before setting out to sea on the eve of the solemnity of the Immaculate Conception, Napa called his mother and asked for her blessing. “Never in my life did I think this would happen to me, because I’m used to [the sea], and I go out alone.”

The first few days, already about 60 miles out, he made a good catch and filled seven sacks with fish, hoping to make a good amount of money. On Dec. 17, he decided to return, but the engine wouldn’t start, and so he prepared for the worst, with food available for about a month.

“My God,” I said, “ugh. And at that moment, I began to ration my provisions, my water. One day I would eat, the next day I wouldn’t.”

He watched as he gradually drifted further away, until he was 150 miles from the mainland, and by the time New Year’s Day came around, he ran out of food. “And I knelt in the boat. I said, ‘Whatever may happen…’ But I believe in you. I’m going to get through this. I have to keep my mind focused, not despair, and remain calm.”

In January, while already drinking rainwater, his supplies ran out completely: “I had nothing. That’s when I started eating cockroaches,” yet he didn’t stop praying.

“I woke up praying. I slept praying. For almost two months, I don’t think I felt his presence. I thought, ‘Have you abandoned me? Why?’ And I cried, as you might expect. I cried a lot, because I knew the situation I was in.”

In February, he again experienced the Lord’s presence with him. Around the 10th, he began eating the birds that swooped down on his boat. On the 20th, he managed to keep going with the fish that “he had given me. I told him, ‘I know you sent me this fish. Thank you, Father.’”

Despite this, even harder days came, and he began to complain to the Lord because the fish in his sacks had also spoiled, and he had to throw everything away. “I tossed overboard my entire catch, almost 800 kilos (about 1,765 pounds) that I had, more than 30,000 soles worth (about $7,000),” money with which he also wanted to buy something for his mother.

Napa promised to turn back to God if he saved him. “I’ve used drugs. And sometimes because of the drugs, I became very distant from my family. Since I live alone, fishing alone. And I never could. I never could... But I wanted to for my children, my brother, they were feeling bad” about his situation.

By early March, the situation seemed hopeless. “There was no more water, no more food, no more rain. March 11 came. I was already at the end, I was having trouble breathing. I was struggling. I had thrown myself onto my deck. Then I felt something hit my boat. What was happening? But then I looked, and it was a tortoise. Incredible.”

Napa took the tortoise, grabbed his knife, apologized to the creature, cut it open, and drank its blood, “and then I felt like my life was being restored. But throughout the whole process I was going through, I felt like he [God] was the one doing all of that.”

The rescue

The Peruvian fisherman was holding out in his boat, already exhausted, and suddenly he saw a helicopter, and there, he assured, he also saw Jesus. “And that’s when I started to see Wilson (the helicopter’s co-pilot). But when I saw Wilson like that, he was right next to Jesus’ face, looking at me.”

The day before, on March 10, Napa had said to God: “I know you’re going to take me away in a helicopter or a small plane. And when I saw the helicopter… you did it. And Wilson later said to me: Why were you pointing like that? Because I wanted you to turn around and see him. Jesus was right next to your cheek.”

“I saw him clearly. I saw his whites and his beautiful face. And I told him, ‘You did it, you did it. You, you did it.’ And I fell back and cried. I thanked him. Let the whole world hear this. I’m taking time to recuperate. I want to do it with all the love God gave me,” he shared emotionally.

Napa was then transferred to the Ecuadorian tuna fishing boat that had launched the helicopter, where everyone touched him in amazement and repeated: “It’s a miracle.” From there, he was able to make a video call to speak with his daughter and tell her he was still alive.

The next day, the fishing boat captain told him that the ship wasn’t supposed to pass the place it had gone to rescue Napa on March 11, and that the helicopter hadn’t been launched the previous two days, only on the 11th, and that everything had fallen into place for his rescue, including a dream the captain had about his mother, who asked him to “go out” and look around to see what was there.

When the helicopter was sent out to look for fish the panel detected many birds in one location, which usually indicates an abundance of fish, but it wasn’t that but Napa’s boat. “So Julio, the captain, is also convinced that it was all a chain of events and that God did it.”

Napa also said he has always prayed at the end of the day, to thank God for life and for putting food on the table for him. ”Thank you, Father, for being with me.” He added that in the medical checkups he’s had, everything appears normal: “I don’t have anything, I don’t have diabetes,” which he said the doctors can’t explain.

“Now we don’t know if cockroach, bird, or tortoise blood can cure diabetics,” he joked.

Reactions from his siblings

Flor Napa Castro, Napa’s sister, told the Spanish-language edition of EWTN News that “my brother hasn’t been a saint, and sometimes people ask why, why did he choose him? Truly, God always, I don’t know, suddenly sees his good heart, because he’s always had a good heart for everyone, not just for his family, for anyone who approached him. He always came, they came to ask, and he didn’t hesitate. He’d put his hand in his pocket right there, if he had food, he’d give it to them. He’s always been a very kind person. Maybe that’s why God chose him.”

For Alberto, Napa’s brother, surviving 95 days at sea demonstrates “the courage he has had to go through this entire journey. For me, he is a warrior as a person, because I believe few people can make it through that journey and survive. But I also want to thank the great Lord who has always held him close and never abandoned him, nor has he ever lost his faith.”

Napa had already survived other shipwrecks, including a fire when one of his sons was 13, from which both emerged safely. Despite everything, he confesses that he wants to return to the sea, where he finds the Lord.

Abel Camasca, a journalist for the Spanish-language edition of EWTN News, contributed to this article.

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

St. Hedwig Cathedral in Berlin, Germany. / Credit: Cedric BLN via Wikimedia Commons (public domain).

CNA Deutsch, Mar 28, 2025 / 07:00 am (CNA).

For the first time, fewer than 20 million Catholics live in Germany, according to the 2024 Church statistics published by the German Bishops’ Conference (DBK) on Thursday, March 27. Although the downward trend has slowed compared with the previous year, it is noticeable.

The total number of Catholics in Germany is 19,769,237, of which only 6.6% — just over 1.3 million Catholics — practice their faith and regularly attend Mass on Sundays. Last year, there were 20,345,872 Catholics living in Germany. 

With a population of 83.6 million, Catholics now make up less than a quarter of the population. Less than 2% of the population are attending Mass.

In 2024, the Church recorded more than 321,000 resignations (a formal process of leaving the Church by declaration after which the person pays no church tax and is provided a letter of excommunication), compared with only about 6,600 new members and readmissions. In addition, the DBK reported about 116,000 baptisms (the previous year there were more than 131,000) but also almost 213,000 burials.

In five dioceses, the percentage of Mass-goers is in the double digits. The smallest German diocese, Görlitz, leads the field, with 14.4% of Catholics attending Sunday Mass. Two other eastern German dioceses — Dresden-Meissen and Erfurt — also have double digits, as do the two Bavarian dioceses of Eichstätt and Regensburg.

The weakest dioceses in terms of Sunday Mass attendance are Aachen and Trier, each with only 4.5% of Catholics coming to church.

This story was first published by CNA Deutsch, CNA’s German-language news partner, and has been translated and adapted by CNA.

Catholic actor Jonathan Roumie, known for his role as Jesus Christ in “The Chosen,” speaks with CNA during a press junket interview on March 19, 2025, in Dallas at the Season 5 premiere of “The Chosen: Last Supper.” / Credit: EWTN screenshot/Francesca Fenton/CNA

CNA Staff, Mar 28, 2025 / 06:00 am (CNA).

Season 5 of the hit series “The Chosen” has officially been released in theaters across the country.

“The Chosen: Last Supper” focuses on the events of Holy Week, starting with Jesus’ triumphal entry into Jerusalem and ending with Judas’ betrayal in the Garden of Gethsamene. 

Part 1 of Season 5 was released in theaters on March 28, with Part 2 coming on April 4 and Part 3 on April 11. 

Actor Jonathan Roumie, who portrays Jesus in the series, shared about his experience portraying historic events such as the Last Supper and the washing of the feet, especially as a Catholic who celebrates these moments every year during the Triduum.

“For me, it was living out liturgy,” he told CNA in a March 19 press junket interview at the premiere of Season 5 in Dallas. “I try to best replicate a level of authenticity for those scenes based on my experience of the liturgy.”

Speaking about these beautiful moments in salvation history, he said: “It’s going to be stunningly beautiful for people to see. And we sort of present it in a very unique way, but in a way that is super powerful.” 

He added: “I hope it lands the way it felt when we did it because there were moments where many of us were just kind of like wiping away the tears from our eyes right after the scene, or during the scene. It’s really truly beautiful.” 

The release of the new season comes during Lent, culminating in the Triduum and the celebration of Easter. Roumie hopes that Season 5 will provide viewers  “a more vibrant and saturated experience of Holy Week, a more vivid experience of Holy Week, that they can see and feel.” 

Roumie explained that during this time where we are reading about these important moments of Holy Week in Mass each week, viewers will now get to see “a full production of what this moment looked like. I don’t know if anybody has ever covered it in the detail that we have and I think for me it was so important to bring everything that I had to it, especially as a Catholic.”

The actor shared that he even flew his spiritual director out to be with him as they shot the Last Supper and the Garden of Gethsamene. 

“I just wanted to be armed with as much spiritual firepower as possible,” he said. “He’s a priest so he said Mass for me that day. I felt prayed up, put it that way, before entering into the scene.”

Roumie is now preparing himself for another incredibly important scene — the Crucifixion, which will be shown in Season 6. 

The actor shared that he recently received the script and while Roumie has been traveling, he has been trying to read “different source material” regarding the Passion.

He has also been studying the Shroud of Turin in order to learn more about “the crucifixion techniques and what Jesus actually would’ve went through.”

“Learning from the markings on that shroud, what the crucifixion physically looked like and what I now have to prepare for mentally and spiritually to recreate — I’m not looking forward to it, but I’m confident that the Lord will bring me through it one way or another, and hopefully I’ll continue to learn more and fall deeper in love with Jesus as a result.”

Pope Francis gives an extraordianry urbi et orbi blessing in St. Peter's Square, March 27, 2020. / Credit: Vatican Media

Vatican City, Mar 27, 2025 / 19:00 pm (CNA).

Pope Francis’ historic “Statio Orbis” blessing during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic remains relevant for the Church as it did five years ago. Before an empty and rain-covered St. Peter’s Square, Pope Francis held Eucharistic adoration and gave an extraordinary urbi et orbi blessing, praying for the world during the coronavirus pandemic.

The Holy Hour on March 27, 2020, included a reading from the Gospel and a meditation by Pope Francis, who spoke about faith and trust in God during a time when people fear for their lives, as did the disciples when their boat was caught in a violent storm.

During the special moment of prayer on March 27, 2020, the Holy Father spoke about faith amid crisis — “Why are you afraid? Have you no faith?”

These powerful words were a papal refrain throughout his 2020 address before an empty St. Peter’s Square.

“‘Why are you afraid? Have you no faith?’ Lord, your word this evening strikes us and regards us, all of us. In this world, that you love more than we do, we have gone ahead at breakneck speed, feeling powerful and able to do anything. Greedy for profit, we let ourselves get caught up in things and lured away by haste,” he prayed.

Pope Francis implored people to believe in God’s presence during the time of COVID-19 when he spoke of Jesus’ reaction to the cry of the disciples: “Teacher, do you not care if we perish?” recorded in chapter 4 of St. Mark’s Gospel.

The pandemic’s impact on the life of the Church is yet to be fully researched and understood.

Recent studies from around the world suggest a decline in Church attendance in some regions. A new Pew study shows thousands of people have chosen to leave behind the religion of their childhood in some of the traditionally Catholic countries such as Italy and Spain.

At the same time, the study acknowledges the report’s figures “are not necessarily representative of the entire world’s population.”

A growing Church

While religious belief and practice may seem to be weakening in some parts of the world, the Holy Father’s “Statio Orbis” prayer five years ago can still resonate with millions of people of faith who trust and hope in God’s presence in times of world suffering and hardship.

According to the Vatican’s 2025 Annuario Pontificio, the Catholic Church has grown worldwide after the COVID-19 pandemic, with the highest growth recorded in Africa.

Between 2022 and 2023, the global Catholic population has grown from approximately 1.39 billion Catholics to 1.406 billion in the last two years. In Africa alone, the Catholic population increased by 3.31%, from 272 million in 2022 to 281 million in 2023. 

As Pope Francis said on this day five years ago: “You ask us not to be afraid. Yet our faith is weak and we are fearful. But you, Lord, will not leave us at the mercy of the storm. Tell us again: ‘Do not be afraid’ (Mt 28:5). And we, together with Peter, ‘cast all our anxieties onto you, for you care about us’ (cf. 1 Pt 5:7).”

SBA Pro-Life America President Marjorie Dannenfelser speaks in front of the Capitol on March 27, 2025, in Washington, D.C. “This movement is completely unified in its first priority, and that is to defund big abortion in this reconciliation bill,” she said. / Credit: Tessa Gervasini/CNA

Washington D.C., Mar 27, 2025 / 18:30 pm (CNA).

More than 300 pro-life activists from 39 different states gathered on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., on March 27 to advocate for the defunding of “Big Abortion” and Planned Parenthood. 

Earlier this week, a letter from more than 150 pro-life groups from all 50 states was sent to members of Congress urging them to “stop the flow of American tax dollars toward the abortion industry” through a reconciliation bill.

The action comes after the announcement that the Trump administration plans to freeze millions of federal taxpayer dollars funding abortion and transgender services.  

Half of the activists on the Hill were students from across the nation, while the other half were women, men, and children of all different ages and demographics. Kelsey Pritchard, communications director for SBA Pro-Life America, told CNA that a few-months-old baby was their youngest supporter at the events.

Some of the attendees also joined various members of Congress and advocates from pro-life organizations at a press conference outside the Capitol highlighting the importance of the issue and the need to act now. 

Reps. Andy Biggs, R-Arizona; Mary Miller, R-Illinois; and Chris Smith, R-New Jersey, along with Sen. Tommy Tuberville, R-Alabama, all shared their support for the initiative. 

“American taxpayers should never be forced to pay for the murder of innocent babies. But that’s exactly what Congress has allowed to happen,” Biggs said. “In 2022-2023, during the Biden-Harris regime, Planned Parenthood received nearly $700 million in taxpayer funding.”

Miller said today is a “historic opportunity” to “defend life in America.”

Milled shared her support by announcing legislation she introduced “to require ultrasounds to be performed on women and girls seeking abortions,” she said, “because 90% of women change their minds after they see the baby for the first time.” 

“Today is a great day to stand for life,” Tuberville said.

“One of our government’s basic duties is to defend life, not destroy it,” he continued. “I’m proud to be here today and look forward to working with my colleagues to defund Planned Parenthood and stand up for life and the American taxpayers.”

Kristen Hawkins, president of Students for Life Action, called the day a “historic moment,” as “the pro-life movement stands unified behind one single message, defund the entire abortion industry, defund the longtime standard bearer of Planned Parenthood once and for all.”

Hawkins explained that next steps will include rallies across more than 100 cities to “tell President Trump and our legislative players here on Capitol Hill, in our state capitals, that it’s very clear what they must do next. Defund your political enemies, invest in lifesaving, life-affirming medical care.”

Marjorie Dannenfelser, the president of SBA Pro-Life America, said: “I can tell you one thing, this movement is completely unified in its first priority, and that is to defund big abortion in this reconciliation bill, hopefully by Memorial Day.”

“But until then, we’ve got a lot of work to do,” she continued. “We’re going to go back to those halls in Congress and defund big abortion.”

Dannenfelser told CNA that right now is a hopeful time in the movement to defund Planned Parenthood. 

“There’s a lot of momentum and a lot more conversation,” she said. “There’s a lot more desire to land somewhere post Dobbs. It is very important right now. The policy itself is the most important thing, but it’s also good for the pro-life movement to get some points on the board after some tough losses.”

Pope Francis presides at Palm Sunday Mass at the Vatican on March 24, 2024. / Credit: Vatican Media

Vatican City, Mar 27, 2025 / 18:00 pm (CNA).

The Vatican has published the official calendar of liturgical celebrations planned for Holy Week, but it has not clarified whether Pope Francis will preside.

The pontiff was discharged on Sunday after spending 38 days in the hospital with double pneumonia, but doctors have prescribed complete rest for at least two months. It is expected that he will be able to resume his full schedule by the end of May.

The Holy See Press Office indicated that it will be necessary to monitor “the improvement of the pope’s health in the coming weeks to assess his possible presence, and under what conditions, at the Holy Week rites.”

Archbishop Diego Ravelli, papal master of ceremonies, announced the planned Holy Week schedule, which will begin on Palm Sunday, April 13, with Mass in St. Peter’s Square at 10 a.m. local time, commemorating Jesus’ triumphant entry into Jerusalem.

On Thursday, April 17, the chrism Mass is scheduled in St. Peter’s Basilica at 9:30 a.m., during which the holy oils will be blessed and priests will renew their priestly vows. In previous years, Pope Francis has traveled from the Vatican to a prison in Rome to commemorate the Lord’s Supper, in remembrance of the Last Supper and the institution of the Eucharist, during which he would wash the feet of 12 people.

The following day, Good Friday, the Catholic Church celebrates the passion of the Lord in St. Peter’s Basilica at 5 p.m. In previous years, Pope Francis has participated in the services at St. Peter’s Basilica, but the homily has typically been given by the preacher of the papal household, currently Franciscan Capuchin Father Roberto Pasolini. This is the only day of the year on which there is no consecration as a sign of mourning for the passion of Jesus.

At 9:15 p.m., the traditional Way of the Cross will take place in Rome’s Colosseum, where the 14 stations of the Passion are meditated upon, from Jesus’ condemnation to death to his burial, in one of the most widely followed ceremonies by the faithful in Rome. Last year, the Holy Father, suffering from bronchitis, was unable to attend this event, whose tradition reflects the persecution suffered by early Christians under the Roman Empire.

On Holy Saturday, April 19, the Easter Vigil will be celebrated in St. Peter’s Basilica. In the past, St. John Paul II usually celebrated the Easter Vigil on Holy Saturday in the Vatican around 10 p.m., but in the final years of his pontificate, it began to be celebrated a few hours earlier. This year, the ceremony will begin at 7:30 p.m. in the atrium of St. Peter’s Basilica with the brief ceremony of lighting the fire and blessing the paschal candle.

The following day, Easter Sunday, April 20, the Catholic Church will celebrate the day of the Lord’s resurrection with a Mass in St. Peter’s Square at 10:30 a.m. Following this, the solemn urbi et orbi blessing will be imparted to the city of Rome and the entire world.

One week after Easter, on the second Sunday of Easter or Divine Mercy Sunday, a special Mass will be celebrated in St. Peter’s Square at 10:30 a.m. During this ceremony, the canonization of Blessed Carlo Acutis, the young Italian millennial known as the “cyber apostle of the Eucharist,” is scheduled to take place.

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

A relic of Blessed Carlo Acutis, a fragment of his pericardium, visits the U.S. at Holy Family Parish in Queens, New York, on April 6, 2022. / Credit: Photo courtesy DeSales Media

Vatican City, Mar 27, 2025 / 16:25 pm (CNA).

Italian prosecutors are investigating the illegal online sale of alleged relics of Blessed Carlo Acutis, who will be declared the first millennial saint next month. 

The investigation by the Perugia Public Prosecutor’s Office was prompted by a complaint by the bishop of Assisi, the city where Acutis’ tomb is located for public veneration.

“On the internet, there is a marketplace for relics concerning various saints, such as our St. Francis, complete with a price list. Something impossible to accept,” Bishop Domenico Sorrentino of Assisi-Nocera Umbra-Gualdo Tadino said in a statement on March 26.

Sorrentino filed a formal complaint with Italian authorities after learning of an internet auction of an alleged first-class relic of Acutis’ hair, which sold online for 2,000 euros by an anonymous user.

“We do not know whether the relics are real or fake,” the bishop said. “But if it were also all fabricated, if there was deception, we would be not only in the midst of a fraud but also of an insult to religious belief.”

According to canon law of the Catholic Church, the sale of first- and second-class relics is strictly forbidden. Relics can only be given away by their owners, and some very significant relics, such as a heart, arm, etc., cannot be given away without the permission of the Vatican. 

Acutis’ canonization Mass is scheduled to take place in St. Peter’s Square on April 27 during the Church’s Jubilee of Teenagers.