Beloved Disciple Parish

Pope Leo XIV addresses Catholic faithful on the scoreboard at Rate Field, home to the Chicago White Sox, during a celebration and mass to honor his selection as Pope on June 14, 2025 in Chicago, Illinois. / Credit: Scott Olson/Getty Images

Vatican City, Jun 14, 2025 / 19:35 pm (CNA).

The following is the full text of Pope Leo XIV's address to Catholics during the “Chicago Celebrates Pope Leo XIV” event at Rate Field, the home of the Chicago White Sox baseball team, on Saturday, June 14.

My dear friends,

It’s a pleasure for me to greet all of you gathered together at White Sox Park on this great celebration as a community of faith in the Archdiocese of Chicago. A special greeting to Cardinal Cupich, to the auxiliary bishops, to all my friends who are gathered today on this: the feast of the Most Holy Trinity.

And I begin with that because the Trinity is a model of God’s love for us. God: Father, Son and Spirit. Three persons in one God live united in the depth of love, in community, sharing that communion with all of us.

So, as you gather today in this great celebration, I want to both express my gratitude to you and also [give] an encouragement to continue to build up community, friendship, as brothers and sisters in your daily lives, in your families, in your parishes, in the Archdiocese and throughout our world.

I’d like to send a special word of greeting to all the young people — those of you gathered together today, and many of you who are perhaps watching this greeting through technological means, on the Internet. As you grow up together, you may realize, especially having lived through the time of the pandemic — times of isolation, great difficulty, sometimes even difficulties in your families, or in our world today — sometimes it may be that the context of your life has not given you the opportunity to live the faith, to live as participants in a faith community, and I’d like to take this opportunity to invite each one of you to look into your own hearts, to recognize that God is present and that, perhaps in many different ways, God is reaching out to you, calling you, inviting you to know his Son Jesus Christ, through the Scriptures, perhaps through a friend or a relative, a grandparent, who might be a person of faith. But to discover how important it is for each one of us to pay attention to the presence of God in our own hearts, to that longing for love in our lives, for searching, a true searching, for finding the ways that we may be able to do something with our own lives to serve others.

And in that service to others we may find that coming together in friendship, building up community, we too can find true meaning in our lives. Moments of anxiety, of loneliness. So many people who suffer from different experiences of depression or sadness — they can discover that the love of God is truly healing, that it brings hope, and that actually, coming together as friends, as brothers and sisters, in community, in a parish, in an experience of living our faith together, we can find that the Lord’s grace, that the love of God can truly heal us, can give us the strength that we need, can be the source of that hope that we all need in our lives.

To share that message of hope with one another — in outreach, in service, in looking for ways to make our world a better place — gives true life to all of us, and is a sign of hope for the whole world.

To, once again, the young people who are gathered here, I’d like to say that you are the promise of hope for so many of us. The world looks to you as you look around yourselves and say: We need you, we want you to come together to share with us in this common mission, as Church and in society, of announcing a message of true hope and of promoting peace, promoting harmony, among all peoples.

We have to look beyond our own — if you will — egotistical ways. We have to look for ways of coming together and promoting a message of hope. Saint Augustine says to us that if we want the world to be a better place, we have to begin with ourselves, we have to begin with our own lives, our own hearts (cf Speech 311; Comment on St John’s Gospel, Homily 77).

And so, in this sense, as you gather together as a faith community, as you celebrate in the Archdiocese of Chicago, as you offer your own experience of joy and of hope, you can find out, you can discover that you, too, are indeed beacons of hope. That light, that perhaps on the horizon is not very easy to see, and yet, as we grow in our unity, as we come together in communion, we can discover that that light will grow brighter and brighter. That light which is indeed our faith in Jesus Christ. And we can become that message of hope, to promote peace and unity throughout our world.

We all live with many questions in our hearts. Saint Augustine speaks so often of our “restless” hearts and says: “Our hearts are restless until they rest in you, O God” (Confessions 1,1,1). That restlessness is not a bad thing, and we shouldn’t look for ways to put out the fire, to eliminate or even numb ourselves to the tensions that we feel, the difficulties that we experience. We should rather get in touch with our own hearts and recognise that God can work in our lives, through our lives, and through us reach out to other people.

And so I’d like to conclude this brief message to all of you with an invitation to be, indeed, that light of hope. “Hope does not disappoint,” Saint Paul tells us in his letter to the Romans (5,5). When I see each and every one of you, when I see how people gather together to celebrate their faith, I discover myself how much hope there is in the world.

In this Jubilee Year of Hope, Christ, who is our hope, indeed calls all of us to come together, that we might be that true living example: the light of hope in the world today.

So I would like to invite all of you to take a moment, to open up your own hearts to God, to God’s love, to that peace which only the Lord can give us. To feel how deeply beautiful, how strong, how meaningful the love of God is in our lives. And to recognise that while we do nothing to earn God’s love, God in his own generosity continues to pour out his love upon us. And as he gives us his love, he only asks us to be generous and to share what he has given us with others.

May you indeed be blessed as you gather together for this celebration. May the Lord’s love and peace come upon each and every one of you, upon your families, and may God bless all of you, so that you might always be beacons of hope, a sign of hope and peace throughout our world.

And may the blessing of Almighty God, the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit come upon you and remain with you always. Amen.

Pope Leo XIV addresses Catholic faithful on the scoreboard at Rate Field, home to the Chicago White Sox, during a celebration and Mass to honor his selection as Pope on June 14, 2025 in Chicago, Illinois. / Credit: Scott Olson/Getty Images

Chicago, Ill., Jun 14, 2025 / 18:30 pm (CNA).

Pope Leo XIV delivered a video message June 14 to thousands of Catholics gathered in his hometown of Chicago, making a special appeal to young people to be “beacons” of Christ’s hope for others.

“You are the promise of hope for so many of us,” the pope told young people attending the “Chicago Celebrates Pope Leo XIV” event at Rate Field, the home of the Chicago White Sox baseball team.

“The world looks to you as you look around yourselves and say: We need you, we need you to come together to share with us in this common mission, as Church and in society, of announcing a message of true hope and of promoting peace, promoting harmony, among all peoples.”

The pope acknowledged some of the difficulties facing youth today, from isolation experienced during the COVID-19 pandemic to dwindling communities of faith. He invited young people gathered to look into their own hearts to see that God is present and “is reaching out to you, calling you, inviting you to know his Son Jesus Christ.”

In turn, the pope said this discovery of Christ’s love can inspire young people to serve others.

“And in that service to others we find that coming together in friendship, building up community, we too can find true meaning in our lives,” the pope said. “To share that message of hope with one another — in outreach, in service, in looking for ways to make our world a better place — gives true life to all of us, and is a sign of hope for the whole world.”

The eight-minute video message from Pope Leo XIV, who was seated and clad in white, was the first time the Chicago native has directly addressed the people of his hometown and home nation as pope.

And although he wasn’t in person to deliver it, the pope’s message made an impact on young people in attendance.

Michael Wyss, an 11-year-old student at Queen of Angels School in Chicago, said he was encouraged by the pope’s message to “stay faithful” and be a witness of Christian love to those going through hard times.

“You’ll be sharing hope with them and that hope could go on and be shared with everyone else,” said Wyss, who was in attendance with his father, Joe.

Matthew Gamboa, a 15-year-old who attends St. Viator High School in Arlington Heights, Illinois, said he was inspired by the pope’s encouragement to be “a beacon of light,” even though he might be only a high schooler.

“I too should be a part of that and continue to spread God’s message throughout our communities,” said Gamboa, who said he felt inspired to engage in more service projects and possibly lector at Mass after hearing the pope’s message.

Pope Leo XIV’s unprecedented address was also the highlight of pre-Mass programming at the afternoon celebration.

Emceed by Chicago Bulls play-by-play announcer Chuck Swirksy, the program also included musical performances by a local parish and Catholic school, as well as an original piano ballad in honor of Pope Leo called “One of Us,” written and performed by the pope’s fellow Augustinian, Brother David Marshall.

Sister Dianne Bergant, Pope Leo XIV’s former teacher, and Father John Merkelis, a fellow Augustinian and high school classmate of the pope, also shared insights into their friend during a panel discussion.

Outside the stadium, Chicago-area members of the Neocatechumenal Way celebrated the new pope with songs and dances of praise, while others tailgated in the baseball stadium parking lot. White Sox jerseys with “Da Pope” and “Pope Leo” emblazoned on the back were spotted throughout the crowds.

At the start of Mass, Chicago’s Cardinal Blase Cupich said that Pope Leo was aware of and grateful for the celebration taking place at Rate Field.

A fan of the White Sox, the pope attended a World Series game at the stadium in 2005 when he was prior general of the Augustinian Order, and recently donned the ball club’s trademark black hat for a photo op outside of St. Peter’s Basilica. White Sox senior vice president Brooks Boyer, a Catholic and former Notre Dame basketball player, also took the opportunity at the Chicago event to publicly invite the South Side native to come back to Rate Field and throw out a ceremonial first pitch.

The Vatican has not indicated that Pope Leo has any plans to visit the United States. When Lester Holt of NBC News asked Leo at a May 12 Vatican audience if he would come to the U.S. soon, the pope responded: “I don’t think so.”

Nonethless, the pope’s sports fan credentials may help him connect with young people in his homeland and beyond.

During his video message the pope also encouraged the youth of Chicago and the whole world to grapple with the “restlessness” they might experience, just like St. Augustine did.

“That restlessness is not a bad thing, and we shouldn’t look for ways to put out the fire, to eliminate or even numb ourselves to the tensions that we feel, the difficulties that we experience,” he said. “We should rather get in touch with our own hearts and recognize that God can work in our lives, through our lives, and through us reach out to other people.”

Before concluding by imparting his apostolic blessing via video, the pope invited those gathered to “take a moment” and open their own hearts to God’s love, “to that peace which only the Lord can give us.”

“To recognize that while we do nothing to earn God’s love, God in his own generosity continues to pour out his love upon us. And as he gives us his love, he only asks us to be generous and to share what he has given with us to others.”

A Brooklyn Park police officer looks on while guarding the entrance to a neighborhood on June 14, 2025 in Brooklyn Park, Minnesota. / Credit: Stephen Maturen/Getty Images

CNA Staff, Jun 14, 2025 / 15:16 pm (CNA).

Catholic leaders in Minnesota responded with prayers and calls for peace following what authorities said were the politically motivated shootings of state lawmakers that left two dead.

Former Minnesota House Speaker Melissa Hortman and her husband Mark were shot and killed early on Saturday in Brooklyn Park, Minnesota. State Sen. John Hoffman and his wife Yvette were also shot early on Saturday in their home in Champlin, with both reportedly expected to survive after surgery.

Authorities said they engaged the suspect at Hortman's home, but the alleged killer was able to escape on foot. Police reportedly discovered a list of possible additional targets in the suspect's car, including state Gov. Tim Walz and U.S. Rep. Ilhan Omar.

A manhunt for the killer was still underway on Saturday afternoon.

'We must do everything in our power to regain a sense of civility'

On Saturday, Saint Paul and Minneapolis Archbishop Bernard Hebda in a statement called on "all people of goodwill to join me in prayer for the repose of the souls of Minnesota House Speaker-Emerita Melissa Hortman and her husband, along with prayers of recovery for Senator John Hoffman and his wife."

"I also ask you to pray for the members of law enforcement who are putting themselves at risk hunting down the person, or people, who inflicted this violence and terrorized communities," the archbishop said. "There is absolutely no reason for someone to commit such senseless violence on anyone, particularly those who are involved in public service."

Hebda described Hortman as "an honorable public servant" who met regularly with the Catholic bishops of the state.

"Although we disagreed on some issues, we worked collaboratively to find common ground on others in pursuit of the common good," he said.

Hoffman, meanwhile, "is always generous with his time, as well, meeting with the bishops whenever they are at the Capitol. He is a strong advocate for the most vulnerable, and Minnesota continues to need his leadership."

"At this time of fear and uncertainty, we need to rely even more on our loving God and that begins with prayer – both privately and communally," the archbishop said.

Also on Saturday, Jason Adkins, the executive director of the Minnesota Catholic Conference, said he was "deeply saddened and angered" by the shootings and killings, describing Hortman as a collaborative lawmaker and Hoffman as "a champion of vulnerable people" and "a friend."

"Resorting to violence in public life is never acceptable and begets more violence," he said. "Unfortunately, we, as a society, have increasingly embraced violence as a means of solving problems because we have lost a sense of the dignity of every human person created in the image and likeness of God."

"Until we recover a deeper sense of our common humanity and fraternity, we will continue to see the collapse of both civic discourse and the ability of our political process to mediate conflict and achieve the common good," Adkins said.

In a statement on Saturday, Gov. Tim Walz said: “We are not a country that settles our differences at gunpoint."

"We have demonstrated again and again in our state that it is possible to peacefully disagree, that our state is strengthened by civil public debate. We must stand united against all forms of violence – and I call on everyone to join me in that commitment," he said.

The front door of 212 E. 141st Place, the childhood home of Pope Leo XIV, in Dolton, Illinois. / Credit: EWTN News

CNA Staff, Jun 14, 2025 / 09:00 am (CNA).

A small home in Dolton, Illinois, was on the market for $199,000 until a former inhabitant of the house became the pope. Now the humble 1,050-square-foot home just south of Chicago could go for more than a million dollars.

The three-bedroom brick structure with a spacious backyard was home to Pope Leo XIV — then Robert Prevost — during the pontiff’s childhood. Now, 212 E. 141st Place has become a piece of papal history as the home of the first-ever American pope. 

A private auction for the home, which is being held online, will close bidding on June 18.

Pope Leo’s childhood home is marked by a rosary hanging on the red door as well as a crowd of visitors in the yard. The home is only a 15-minute walk from the parish that the pope attended, the former St. Mary of the Assumption, which has since fallen into disrepair. 

The Cape Cod-style home, built in 1949, sold in May 2024 for $66,000. Leo’s family had owned the home for about 40 years, from the year Leo was born in 1955 up to his time as a missionary in Peru in 1996.

Officer Latonya Ruffin, who has been stationed in front of the house to keep an eye on the property, said it’s “an honor to do this.” 

“It’s an honor just to be here,” Ruffin told “EWTN News In Depth” reporter Mark Irons. “People come out, and they love him. They love this man.”

Peter Kamish, a Catholic from Chicago visiting the pope’s childhood home, said that he is “proud” to know that the first American pope came from the city.  

“I’m very proud of it,” he said, expressing hope that “maybe, the pope will come to Chicago.”

The current owner of the property, a real estate investor not related to the pope, had initially listed the home for just under $200,000. But when the new pope was announced to the world, the owner and his real estate agent withdrew the property from its public listing. 

The owner’s agent, a realtor named Steve Budzik, said he believes the home will sell at a very high price point. 

“I’ve talked to a lot of people every time I’m at the property, and everybody has pretty much told me that they think it will sell for over a million dollars,” Budzik said.

But what will happen to the home of Pope Leo XIV after it is sold? 

The village of Dolton is interested in turning it into a historic site. According to Budzik, the Archdiocese of Chicago is working with the village as well. Dolton officials say they could acquire the property by eminent domain if auction negotiations fall through.

“I think making it a museum would be very nice for Dolton,” Ruffin said.

When asked if the Vatican was interested, Budzik’s reply was brief.

“No comment,” he said. 

In the same week that the auction will conclude — and the fate of Leo’s historic home will be decided — a celebration will kick off at Rate Field in Chicago to honor Pope Leo. 

At the event at the Chicago White Sox’s home stadium, Pope Leo, a lifelong White Sox fan, is set to deliver a “special video message” on June 14 to the world’s youth.

Deacons gather in St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome in February. The number of deacons in the U.S. has declined year over year, according to a recent report, June 13, 2025. / Credit: Daniel Ibáñez/CNA

Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Jun 14, 2025 / 08:00 am (CNA).

The number of ordinations of permanent deacons in the United States has decreased by nearly 200 from 2023 to 2024, according to a recent survey.

The Center for Applied Research in the Apostolate (CARA) at Georgetown University published the survey results in its 2025 report “A Portrait of the Permanent Diaconate in 2024.” 

According to the report, 587 men were ordained to the permanent diaconate in 2023, but in 2024, the number fell to 393.

The report was created in collaboration with the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops’ (USCCB) Committee on Clergy, Consecrated Life, and Vocations.

The study surveyed ordained permanent deacons who intend to remain deacons, excluding transitional deacons (those who will be ordained to the priesthood).

Conducted from February to May 2025, the survey received responses from 138 archdioceses/dioceses and two archeparchies with bishops and eparchs that belong to the USCCB and maintain an active office of deacons.

The overall response rate was 76%, with a higher response rate among archdioceses/dioceses (78%) than archeparchies/eparchies (22%). 

“With the release of this survey, I ask for continued prayers for deacons and for an increase in vocations to the permanent diaconate within the United States,” said Bishop Earl Boyea of Lansing, Michigan, chairman of the USCCB Committee on Clergy, Consecrated Life, and Vocations.  

Estimated numbers of U.S. deacons 

Since the report did not have a 100% response rate, CARA cannot confirm the exact number of deacons, but it estimated that there were about 20,212 permanent deacons in the U.S. in 2024. This includes approximately 20,022 in the Latin rite and 189 in the Eastern rite. 

CARA estimated that about 11,503 permanent deacons were in active ministry in 2024. Including those that did not respond, it is estimated that there are a total of 13,864 active deacons.

During 2024, 393 permanent deacons were ordained, 545 deacons retired from active ministry, and another 361 deacons passed away. 

CARA reported that there “are not enough new permanent deacons being ordained to make up for the numbers who are retiring from active ministry and dying each year.”

Of the respondents, the Archdiocese of Chicago had the highest number of permanent deacons (848). The others with the largest numbers included the archdioceses of Atlanta (385), New York (369), San Antonio (361), and Galveston-Houston (316). 

The Diocese of Rapid City, South Dakota, had the lowest total number of permanent deacons in 2024 with 43. The others with the fewest deacons were the Diocese of Lexington, Kentucky (77), the Diocese of Duluth, Minnesota (63), the Diocese of Bismarck, North Dakota (94), and the Diocese of Tulsa, Oklahoma (105). 

Characteristics of U.S. deacons

The report found that the large majority of active deacons are currently married (93%). A small number are widowers (4%), and even fewer have never been married (2%).

Almost all of the active deacons (96%) reported that they are at least 50 years old: 18% are in their 50s, 41% are in their 60s, and 38% are 70 or older.

Nearly all responding dioceses and eparchies (96%) have a minimum age of acceptance into permanent diaconate, which on average is 32 years old. Three in five (58%) have a mandatory age for retirement, which is 75 years old on average.

The study found that most active deacons are non-Hispanic and white (74%). The rest of the respondents reported to be Hispanic or Latino (20%), Asian or Pacific Islander (3%), or Black (2%). 

More than half (66%) of active permanent deacons have a college degree, 15% of whom also hold a graduate degree in a field related to religion or ministry. About 16% of the deacons had only a high school diploma or GED.

Among permanent deacons who are financially compensated for ministry, 10% are entrusted with the pastoral care of one or more parishes. About 24% work in other parish ministerial positions including religious education or youth ministry, and 18% work in non-ministerial parish positions such as administration, business, or finance.

Academic and post-ordination programs

Almost all of the responding dioceses and eparchies (98%) have a director of the diaconate or a person with a similar title to oversee the ministry — 43% of whom are employed full time.

Nine in 10 dioceses and eparchies (92%) have an active ministry formation program for their deacons. Of these, 27% offer a program in Spanish. Of those that do not have a formation program, 30% are planning to begin one in the next two years.

The majority of the responding dioceses and eparchies (90%) require deacons to take part in post-ordination formation, requiring a median of 20 hours annually. Specifically, 91% of Latin-rite dioceses require continued formation, but none of the Eastern-rite eparchies do.

Fernando Moscardó (center) and his friend Patricia (far left) meet with Pope Leo XIV and Bishop Mikel Garciandía of Palencia (right) after the Holy Father’s general audience on Wednesday, June 11, 2025. / Credit: Vatican Media

Vatican City, Jun 14, 2025 / 07:00 am (CNA).

Following the June 11 general audience, Pope Leo XIV spoke with young people who have embarked on a “spiritual revolution” to restore Europe’s soul.

Fernando Moscardó, 22, coordinates the initiative, titled “Rome ‘25-the Way of St. James ‘27-Jerusalem ‘33,” which aims to tell the world that “another Europe is possible” through pilgrimages, evangelization, and healing.

Shortly after meeting with the Holy Father in St. Peter’s Square, the young Spanish medical student told ACI Prensa, CNA’s Spanish-language news partner, that the meeting “was awesome.”

“It was an overwhelming experience, filled with great joy, both for him and for us at that moment. To give [information on] this project to the vicar of Christ on earth, well, imagine, it’s something spectacular,” he emphasized.

Moscardó, along with his classmate Patricia and the bishop of Palencia, Mikel Garciandía, were able to explain the initiative to the Holy Father, which aims to open up a pathway to faith and hope for a new European generation in view of the Jubilee of the Redemption, which will be celebrated in 2033.

During the month of June, local pilgrimages are being held throughout Europe, culminating on Aug. 1 with the proclamation of a “Manifesto of the Young Christians of Europe” in St. Mary’s Basilica in Trastevere, Rome.

According to Moscardó, Pope Leo XIV assured them that he “would follow it closely.” They also invited him to participate in the signing of the manifesto.

“Just as we invite all young people and all those who empathize with and are close to young people and who truly dream of this new generation,” Moscardó said.

He also stated that, when the meeting with the pontiff ended, “it was hard for us to realize what we had just experienced, it was hard for us to bring our feet back to earth, we couldn’t believe it.”

“We know this is just another step along the way, that this doesn’t mean everything is done; on the contrary, everything remains to be done, especially knowing that we now have the Holy Father’s watchful eye,” Moscardó indicated.

“We are under even more pressure, if possible,” the young man continued, “to ensure everything goes perfectly and for this manifesto to truly be the united voice of young Christians who seek with the thirst of Christ this new generation.”

The organizers are working on a website to provide all the necessary information about the activities as well as on their social media channels, which will be called J2R2033 (Journey to Redemption 2033). 

After the audience with Pope Leo XIV, they met with the organizers of the Jubilee of Hope in preparation for Aug. 1, when the manifesto will be signed.

“In the afternoon, we had another meeting at St. Mary’s in Trastevere to begin finalizing details for this great celebration in which we wish to proclaim this united voice of Europe, calling for a new generation with soul and centered anew in Christ,” he concluded.

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

The McCoppin family (from left): Alyssa, Courteney, James, Rhys, and Kelly, poses for a photo after entering the Catholic Church at the Easter Vigil on April 8, 2023, at Sacred Heart Church in Manassas. / Credit: Photo courtesy of the McCoppin family

Locust Grove, Virginia, Jun 14, 2025 / 06:00 am (CNA).

High school can be tough, but on rare occasions it can be a place of grace. It was for the McCoppin family, and especially for eldest daughter Kelly, who just graduated from Saint John Paul the Great High School in Potomac Shores, Virginia. 

According to Kelly’s mother, Courteney McCoppin, Kelly started out attending public school but due to a variety of social factors, coupled with the deaths of two grandparents, she sank into depression.

“Her freshman year in public school was just awful. She was spiraling,” Courteney said. “I knew we had to get her out.”

A friend recommended Saint John Paul the Great Catholic High School, which is led by the Dominican Sisters of St. Cecilia. Courteney remembers going to the website and being so impressed that she quickly signed up for a tour.

“It was a beacon of light,” she said. They enrolled Kelly and that summer she tried out for cheerleading. The opportunity for a fresh start was exciting, but there were still some reservations about the Catholic environment. 

“Kelly said to me, ‘What if I become Catholic?’” Courteney shared with The Arlington Catholic Herald. “At the time, I was still in a position of being anti-Catholic. My mom, who had died, was Jewish and my dad was agnostic. Both became atheists later in life.”

Courtney’s father-in-law, on the other hand, had been Catholic. Before he passed away, he used every opportunity he could to teach the children about the faith.

“Every night when we would visit, our grandpa would pray with us,” Kelly said. “He taught us the Our Father and Hail Mary. My sister Alyssa was the one who would pray the rosary with him and go to Mass with him.”

As Kelly started her first year at Saint John Paul the Great, Courteney said she didn’t care if her daughter became Catholic. In her mind, anything was better than what they had left behind. As soon as Kelly got to Saint John Paul the Great she became interested in the faith. 

“It was in my human persons class when we were studying Aquinas. It was his causation argument that really confirmed everything for me,” Kelly said. 

“It was the logical explanation.” 

She began to go to the chapel, meet with Father Christopher F. Tipton, the school’s chaplain, and attend “Evenings with Jesus” events at the school. She then asked her family if they could start going to Mass on Sundays.

“While Kelly was opening up to the faith I was on my own journey,” Courteney said. “I read her human person textbook as well as the book, ‘A Song for Nagasaki’ [by Paul Glynn]. I felt a strong connection to the author and I just got swept up.”

That December, on the last Sunday before Christmas, the family agreed to go to church at Sacred Heart Catholic Church in Manassas. They’ve continued attending since. 

“Everything just fell into place,” Courteney said. “That January in 2023 the parish set up an RCIA program customized for our whole family. We entered into the Church at the Easter Vigil, April 8, 2023. I was baptized and confirmed with Kelly, Alyssa, and our son, Rhys. My husband, James, was confirmed because he was already baptized.”

The McCoppin family is grateful for the role Saint John Paul the Great High School played in their faith journey, especially Kelly, who just graduated in May. 

“I think John Paul the Great is the best school in the country and the bioethics program is so beautiful,” Kelly said. “We have so many incredible opportunities and the teachers care so much.” 

Kelly plans to attend Franciscan University in Steubenville, Ohio, this fall with the intent of studying Spanish and nursing. 

This story was first published by The Arlington Catholic Herald on June 5, 2025. It has been adapted by CNA and is reprinted here with permission.

Volunteers and staff with Catholic Charities of the Rio Grande Valley assist Latin American and Haitian migrants at a migrant shelter in McAllen, Texas. / Credit: Peter Pinedo/CNA

Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Jun 13, 2025 / 18:09 pm (CNA).

The U.S. House Committee on Homeland Security and Subcommittee on Oversight, Investigations, and Accountability have announced the launch of an investigation into more than 200 nongovernmental organizations (NGOs), including two major Catholic nonprofits, that provided taxpayer-funded services to migrants during the Biden administration. 

Catholic Charities USA and the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) are among those named in the investigation. According to a June 11 press release, the probe will investigate whether the NGOs “used taxpayer dollars to facilitate illegal activity” by migrants who entered the U.S. during the Biden administration.

All the NGOs named in the investigation have been sent a letter requesting that they fill out a survey. The letter also expresses concern that some of the NGOs continue to actively advise “illegal aliens on how to avoid and impede law enforcement officials, which can only be seen as an attempt to undermine the work of the federal government.”

“The chairmen request each NGO complete a survey that includes questions on the government grants, contracts, and disbursements they have received; any lawsuits against the U.S. federal government they are petitioning; amicus briefs they have filed in any lawsuit brought against the U.S. federal government; any legal service, translation service, transportation, housing, sheltering, or any other form of assistance provided to illegal immigrants or unaccompanied alien children since January 2021; and more,” the press release stated. 

USCCB spokesperson Chieko Noguchi told CNA that “we have received the questionnaire and will respond.” 

“For over 45 years the USCCB has entered into agreements with the federal government to serve groups of people specifically authorized by the federal government to receive assistance,” Noguchi said. She added that “this included refugees, people granted asylum, unaccompanied children, victims of human trafficking, and Afghans who assisted the U.S. military abroad.” 

The investigation comes after the USCCB announced in April that it would not renew its cooperative agreements with the federal government on migration and refugee services, which had been ongoing for nearly half of a century. The USCCB began phasing out its programs shortly after.

The Biden administration provided the USCCB with more than $100 million annually, which the bishops allocated to affiliated Catholic nongovernmental organizations, according to the USCCB’s audited financial statements. In recent years, federal funding covered more than 95% of the bishops’ spending on the programs.

Other non-Catholic NGOs named as subjects of the probe include the Council on American-Islamic Relations, the Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights (CHIRLA), and the Haitian Bridge Alliance.

Mother Carmen Rendiles and Dr. José Gregorio Hernández are scheduled to be proclaimed Venezuela’s first saints on Oct. 19, 2025. / Credit: Courtesy of Mother Carmen of Venezuela/public domain

Vatican City, Jun 13, 2025 / 17:39 pm (CNA).

Pope Leo XIV will canonize seven blesseds on Oct. 19, including two Venezuelans: José Gregorio Hernández Cisneros, considered the “doctor of the poor,” and María del Carmen Rendiles Martínez, a nun and founder of the Sister Slaves of Jesus.

The canonizations were confirmed by the Holy See Press Office on June 13 following the decision by the pope during the first consistory of his pontificate.

In addition to Hernández and Rendiles, who are highly venerated in Latin America, the blesseds who will be proclaimed saints in October are: Ignazio Choukrallah Maloyan, an Armenian bishop and martyr killed in 1915 during the Ottoman genocide; Peter To Rot, a lay catechist from Papua New Guinea, martyred during the Japanese occupation in World War II; Vincenza Maria Poloni, founder of the Congregation of the Sisters of Mercy of Verona; Maria Troncatti, an Italian Salesian missionary known for her work among the Shuar Indigenous people of Ecuador; and Bartolo Longo, an Italian lawyer, former Satanic priest converted to Catholicism, promoter of the recitation of the rosary, and founder of the Shrine of Our Lady of the Rosary of Pompeii.

This consistory, held in the Vatican’s Apostolic Palace, was originally convened by Pope Francis at the end of February while he was hospitalized, although no specific date was set at the time.

At that meeting with cardinals, Leo XIV also decreed that Blessed Pier Giorgio Frassati would also be canonized along with Blessed Carlo Acutis on Sept. 7. This will be the first canonization ceremony presided over by the new pontiff.

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

Blessed Pier Giorgio Frassati, who died at the age of 24 in 1925, is beloved by many Catholic young people today for his enthusiastic witness to holiness that reaches “to the heights.” / Credit: Public domain

Vatican City, Jun 13, 2025 / 17:09 pm (CNA).

The Vatican has recognized two miracles attributed to Blessed Pier Giorgio Frassati’s intercession that make possible his canonization on Sept. 7. The most recent miracle involved the healing of an American seminarian.

Frassati, who died at the age of 24 in 1925, is beloved by many Catholic young people today for his enthusiastic witness to holiness that reaches “to the heights.”

The young man from the northern Italian city of Turin was an avid mountaineer and Third Order Dominican known for his charitable outreach.

Pope Leo XIV will canonize Blessed Pier Giorgio Frassati together with Blessed Carlo Acutis on Sept. 7 as the first new saints declared in his pontificate.

The miracle

Pope Francis recognized the miraculous healing in a decree on Nov. 25, 2024, of a seminarian of the Archdiocese of Los Angeles who was ordained a priest in June 2023.

Father Juan Gutierrez, 38, then a seminarian at St. John’s Seminary in Camarillo, California, tore his Achilles tendon while playing basketball with other seminarians in 2017. 

Concerned about the long and painful recovery and expenses, Gutierrez headed for the seminary chapel the day after getting an MRI “with a heavy heart.” 

As he prayed, Gutierrez felt inspired to make a novena to Frassati. A few days into the novena, Gutierrez went into the chapel to pray when nobody was there. As he prayed, he recalled feeling an unusual sensation around his injured foot.

“I was praying, and I started to feel a sensation of heat around the area of my injury. And I honestly thought that maybe something was catching on fire, underneath the pews,” Gutierrez recalled at a press conference on Dec. 16, 2024, at St. John the Baptist Parish in Los Angeles County, where he now serves as an associate pastor. 

The seminarian remembered from his experiences with the charismatic renewal movement that heat can be associated with healing from God. He found himself gazing at the tabernacle, weeping. 

“That event touched me deeply,” Gutierrez said.

He was not only touched spiritually, but he was also healed physically. Incredibly, he was able to walk normally again and no longer needed a brace.

Monsignor Robert Sarno, a former official of the Vatican Dicastery for the Causes of Saints who served as the archiepiscopal delegate in the diocesan process in Los Angeles that examined the healing, told CNA that when Gutierrez went to the orthopedic surgeon a week later, “the orthopedic surgeon, after seeing the MRI and conducting physical investigations, said to him, ‘You must have someone in heaven who likes you.’”

Gutierrez was able to immediately resume playing the sports that he loved without any difficulties. The healing was verified by a diocesan inquiry and the examination of the Dicastery for the Causes of Saints’ medical board, theologians, and the cardinals and bishops.

Sarno noted that it is fitting that a young man playing basketball received the healing given that Frassati was known for his love of sport and outdoor activities.

‘To the heights’ of holiness

Born on Holy Saturday, April 6, 1901, Frassati was the son of the founder and director of the Italian newspaper La Stampa.

At the age of 17, he joined the St. Vincent de Paul Society and dedicated much of his spare time to taking care of the poor, the homeless, and the sick as well as demobilized servicemen returning from World War I.

Frassati was also involved in the Apostleship of Prayer and Catholic Action. He obtained permission to receive daily Communion.

On a photograph of what would be his last climb, Frassati wrote the phrase, “Verso L’Alto,” which means “to the heights.” This phrase has become a motto for Catholics inspired by Frassati to strive for the summit of eternal life with Christ.

Frassati died of polio on July 4, 1925. His doctors later speculated that the young man had caught polio while serving the sick.

Pope John Paul II, who beatified Frassati in 1990, called him a “man of the Eight Beatitudes,” describing him as “entirely immersed in the mystery of God and totally dedicated to the constant service of his neighbor.”

For Gutierrez, his healing is a reminder “that prayer works.” 

“The saints can help us to pray for our needs and that there is somebody listening to our prayers,” he said. “God is always listening to our prayers.”

A version of this story was originally published on Nov. 24, 2024, and was updated on June 13, 2025.