(OSV News) — Poland’s church is seeking the beatification of a young lay missionary, who was stabbed to death in a bungled robbery shortly after starting work with Catholic nuns at a children’s home in Bolivia in 2017. “In five years as a volunteer, she discovered her calling to spread the Gospel — and it gave her a sense of happiness and fulfillment, of being in God’s hands,” explained Father Pawel Wróbel, postulator in the missionary’s sainthood cause. “Her life and example can show young people it’s possible to find your place in the church, despite what’s said today, sharing your God-given ..read more

WASHINGTON (OSV News) — Final regulations for the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act will grant workers protections for time off and other job accommodations for pregnancy-related medical conditions like miscarriage, stillbirth and lactation — but also for abortion, which was opposed by many of the bill’s supporters. The regulations govern the implementation of the bipartisan legislation passed by Congress and signed into law by President Joe Biden in December 2022, and went into effect the following June. The law prohibits employment practices that discriminate against making reasonable accommodat ..read more

(OSV News) — The Catholic Church’s charismatic renewal is a movement of the Holy Spirit to “bring about a church that is on fire” with God’s love, the new head of the Holy See’s official charismatic body told OSV News. “The Catholic charismatic renewal … is a deeply personal, life-giving, ongoing, transforming encounter with the Trinity — God the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Often it’s (a particular encounter) with the person of Jesus,” said Auxiliary Bishop Peter L. Smith of Portland, Oregon. “And then from there, the empowering of the Holy Spirit … in a radically new way transforms (the) lif ..read more

(OSV News) — An assault on a Texas priest — along with recent incidents at Catholic churches in the U.S. and Canada — highlights the need for parishes to implement more robust security measures, experts told OSV News. On April 10, Father Tony Neusch, rector of St. Mary’s Catholic Cathedral in Amarillo, Texas, was pepper-sprayed while hearing confessions. In a Facebook post that same day, Father Neusch wrote that “someone dealing with mental health issues” had attacked him. He said he did “not require medical attention,” adding that police had been notified. No arrests have yet been made in the ..read more

WASHINGTON (OSV News) — En el marco de la Conferencia de Inmigración “Respondiendo a las Realidades Cambiantes en la Frontera de los Estados Unidos y Más Allá”, llevada a cabo el pasado 11 de abril en la Universidad Católica de América en Washington D.C.; Peter K. Kilpatrick, presidente de esta institución educativa sostuvo una conversación con monseñor Mark J. Seitz, obispo de El Paso, Texas. El obispo inició este panel de discusión hablando de cómo es la vida en esta región de frontera a donde llegó hace 11 años, tiempo en el que ha asumido una persistente lucha para defender y abogar por lo ..read more

By Colleen Rowan WHEELING, W.Va. (OSV News) — Never underestimate what one small act of compassion can do. That was Antonia Sobocki’s message to the faithful gathered for Mass at the Cathedral of St. Joseph in Wheeling April 7. She was there to represent LOUDfence, a campaign of awareness and support for victims of abuse which began in a small, rural English church and has now spread across the globe with its message of healing. The Diocese of Wheeling-Charleston became the first diocese in the U.S. to participate in LOUDfence, which began with Mass that morning celebrated by Bishop Mark E. Br ..read more

By Our Sunday Visitor Editorial Board Five years ago, the world watched in collective heartbreak as flames engulfed the iconic Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris. Parisians openly wept in the streets. The bells of French churches rang in mournful solidarity, calling the people of France to pray for the nation’s beloved cathedral. The April 15, 2019, tragedy transcended borders, uniting the world in a shared sense of loss. For the Catholic Church, Notre Dame is, first and foremost, a place of worship. However, the cathedral also stands as a monument to the church’s indelible and unrivaled contributi ..read more

NAPLES, Fla. (OSV News) — Inspired by the enthusiasm and innate wisdom of his 12-year-old son, Antony Barone Kolenc is filling a critical void in the reading material for middle grade students that is exciting, compelling, faith-based and life-changing. “Mainstream publishing is being fed to our teens today and is not promoting the kinds of Christian values that most Christian families I know want their kids to internalize,” Kolenc said. “As Catholic parents, we’re all about religion and marriage and life issues and that can be countercultural for our kids. I can only hope that at an important ..read more

(OSV News) — A new Vatican declaration on human dignity presents “clarity” in charity, amid “so much confusion,” the chair of the U.S. bishops’ pro-life committee told OSV News. “It is … reaffirming the teachings of the church, especially on issues that can never change as regards teaching on the sanctity of life,” said Bishop Michael F. Burbidge of Arlington, Virginia, chair of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ Committee on Pro-Life Activities, adding he “very much appreciated and welcomed the document.” “Dignitas Infinita,” released April 8 by the Vatican’s Dicastery for the Doctrine ..read more

WASHINGTON (OSV News) — After former President Donald Trump, the presumptive Republican presidential nominee, issued a statement April 8 arguing abortion should be left to individual states to legislate — and declining to back federal restrictions sought by pro-life activists blaming them for GOP electoral defeats — several Republican elected officials and candidates backed his position, despite calling for similar restrictions in the past. Meanwhile, President Joe Biden issued a new proposal aimed at some student debt relief, and two governors from different parties joined together to promote ..read more