Lee Edwards received the VOC Truman-Reagan Medal of Freedom, at the opening of the Victims of Communism Museum in June 2022. This medal is the highest honor from the Victims of Communism Memorial Foundation, which he co-founded in 1994. / Credit: Photo courtesy of Elizabeth Spalding

CNA Staff, Dec 14, 2024 / 14:37 pm (CNA).

Author and Catholic convert Lee Edwards, one of the foremost historians of the conservative movement in America, died Thursday. He was 92. 

Edwards co-founded the Victims of Communism Memorial in Washington, D.C., authorized by Congress in 1993 and completed in 2007.

He was a distinguished fellow of conservative thought at the Heritage Foundation for about 25 years before retiring about a year ago. 

He also wrote 25 books. Among them are well-known histories of American conservatives and conservatism — and lesser-known works, including “John Paul II in Our Nation’s Capital,” the Archdiocese of Washington’s official account of the pope’s visit in October 1979. 

“He was an optimist, very much upbeat. He believed God had a plan for each of us,” his daughter, author and political scientist Elizabeth Spalding, told CNA.

Anti-communism 

The turning point in his life’s work came in 1956 when he was taking graduate classes at the Sorbonne in Paris when Hungarians, including students about his age, briefly overthrew the communist government there. 

“And for those almost two weeks, my dad thought, ‘This is it. This is it. We’re going to beat communism,’” Spalding told CNA. 

Then the Soviet Red Army invaded Hungary, crushed the revolt, and restored communist rule. The United States and its Western allies did nothing. 

“My father said, ‘Right then, I swore I would spend the rest of my life trying to defeat communism and help those fighting for their freedom,’” Spalding said. 

Edwards helped found Young Americans for Freedom in 1960 and edited its magazine, New Guard. He later served as an aide to the Republican presidential nominee in 1964, U.S. Sen. Barry Goldwater. 

In 1967, Edwards wrote a political biography of Ronald Reagan during his first term as governor of California, through which he got to spend time with Reagan and his wife Nancy. Edwards became familiar with a code term Reagan used with some of his aides — “the D.P.,” which meant “the Divine Plan.” 

Edwards updated the book after Reagan became president. It came out not long after Reagan was shot and seriously wounded in March 1981. For that edition, the publisher put a yellow border on the cover saying it was “complete through the assassination attempt,” which mortified Edwards. 

Still, Edwards got to meet Reagan in the Oval Office, and he presented Reagan with the updated version of the book. 

“President Reagan puts down the book,” Spalding told CNA, “and then looks over at Dad and says ‘Well, Lee, I’m sorry I messed up your ending.’” 

Man of the right 

Freedom and conservatism were at the center of Edwards’ outlook. 

“Mine has been a life in pursuit of liberty,” he wrote in his 2017 autobiography “Just Right.” 

Edwards wrote biographies of Reagan, Goldwater, Edwin Meese, and William F. Buckley Jr. as well as books about conservatism. 

In his 50s, Edwards earned a doctorate in political science from The Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C., with a dissertation on the origins of the Cold War. He later taught there as an adjunct professor. 

In 2017, he told an interviewer that he was about to teach a course on the 1960s, during which he planned to present what he called “both sides of the picture” — meaning not just the civil rights movement and the anti-Vietnam movement, which students often hear about, but also what he referred to as “the rise of the right” — including Goldwater and Reagan. 

Conversion 

Edwards was born Dec. 1, 1932, in Chicago but grew up in Silver Spring, Maryland. 

He was raised a Methodist. His father, a political reporter for the Chicago Tribune, was a lapsed Catholic, though he later returned to the Church. 

In college Edwards stopped going to services because he realized he didn’t believe in the resurrection of Jesus. 

But in his mid-20s, he decided he needed religion to center his life, he said, after spending a mostly fruitless time in Paris drinking too much beer and chasing too many girls. 

“For the first time in my life, I admitted that I needed someone, something, other than myself to give purpose and meaning to my life: in short, I needed God,” he wrote in an article in Crisis Magazine in January 1994. 

When he got home he tried several Protestant churches. Then one day he went to Mass at St. Peter’s on Capitol Hill. 

“I said, ‘Oh, this is something different,’” he told The Arlington Catholic Herald for a December 2017 profile. 

A Redemptorist priest at the Catholic Information Center in Washington, D.C., gave him religious instruction and eventually started getting on him to join the Church. Edwards hesitated, coming up with various objections and uncertainties before finally agreeing. 

The delay led to an unusual date to become a Catholic — not Easter time, which is the most common time to enter the Church, but Saturday, Dec. 13, 1958 — St. Lucy’s feast day. Yesterday was the 66th anniversary of his being received into the Church.

Edwards later wrote that when he knelt at the Communion rail to receive Communion for the first time, next to him on one side “was a young Black boy in his dark blue Sunday suit and on the other an elderly white woman in a worn cloth coat and hat.” 

“Dad always said part of what he loved was the universality of the Catholic Church,” Spalding told CNA. “Everyone goes up to Jesus.”

Our Lady 

While he was working at the Heritage Foundation he was a common sight at the midday Mass at St. Joseph’s Church on Capitol Hill. 

Spalding told CNA that many people have contacted her during the past day or two to say they felt inspired by how he witnessed to his faith. 

“It’s something he didn’t talk about all the time,” she said. “It’s something he lived.” 

Edwards was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in June. As he neared the end, his daughter said, she and her father discussed what his death day might be. 

Edwards died a little before 8 a.m. Thursday, Dec. 12, the feast day of Our Lady of Guadalupe. 

That shouldn’t have surprised the family, his daughter told CNA. To try to keep warm during his declining days he used a polyester lap blanket with a mostly black background and a colorful image of — Our Lady of Guadalupe. 

Edwards’ wife of 57 years, Anne, who assisted him in all of his writings, died in November 2022. Their gravestone, designed by the sculptor of the statue in the Victims of Communism Memorial, features an image of St. John Paul II holding a crozier and the words “Be not afraid.” 

He leaves behind two daughters and 11 grandchildren. 

A funeral Mass is set for 1:30 p.m. on Thursday, Dec. 19, at St. Rita Catholic Church in Alexandria, Virginia.

null / Credit: New Africa/Shutterstock

CNA Staff, Dec 14, 2024 / 07:00 am (CNA).

It’s that time of year again!

With Christmas quickly approaching, you may still be looking for the perfect gift for people on your shopping list. We’ve compiled a list of Catholic businesses that sell unique gifts for anyone you’re shopping for this holiday season.

Abundantly Yours

Rosaries make a perfect gift for a loved one on your shopping list. Abundantly Yours has a wide range of beautiful, handmade rosaries for men, women, and children. With different themed rosaries dedicated to a variety of saints — including St. Thérèse of Lisieux, St. Padre Pio, St. John Paul II, and St. Teresa of Calcutta — you’re bound to find the perfect one for whomever you’re shopping for.

Stella & Tide

Jewelry is always a great option for any woman you’re shopping for this Christmas. Stella & Tide provides beautiful, dainty Catholic jewelry with the hope of reminding the wearer to always turn to Christ in any difficulties she might encounter. The shop has everything from necklaces to earrings to bracelets and rings. 

The Catholic Woodworker

For any man you might be shopping for, The Catholic Woodworker specializes in beautifully crafted, masculine products including rosaries, pocket rosaries, crucifixes, home altars, and more. The Italian-made wall crucifix features the medal of St. Benedict and has a beautiful metal frame and dark wood inlay.

Be a Heart

If you’re shopping for children on your list, Be A Heart has a wide variety of Catholic-inspired toys including wooden puzzles, dolls, books, and more. A fun stocking-stuffer idea are the Jesus heals bandages, which include five different designs and remind little ones that Jesus heals all, even those scrapes and scratches.

Holy Pals

Looking for a gift the whole family can enjoy? Holy Pals offers matching family Christmas pajamas, even for your furry family members! Holy Pals aims to design products that give children the opportunity to draw near to Christ and to help parents teach their children about the faith. Their Christmas PJs come in a variety of designs including Prince of Peace, Away in a Manger, O Holy Night, and more, and range in sizes from newborn to adult XXL. They even have matching pet bandanas!

Gather and Pray

The Catholic Planner from Gather and Pray is a great gift for anyone who loves being organized, writing to-do lists, and keeping track of busy schedules. This planner also serves as a liturgical planner with feasts days and holy days of obligation included as well as pages on how to do an examination of conscience, how to pray the rosary, a list of novenas with start and end dates, and daily meditations.

EWTN Religious Catalogue

The EWTN Religious Catalogue also offers a plethora of Catholic goods that would make great gifts. The Holy Family holy water font is a particularly beautiful gift featuring the Holy Family sculpted in great detail and has a deep basin for holy water. (Note: EWTN is CNA’s parent company.)

A pro-abortion activist displays abortion pills as she counter-protests during a pro-life rally on March 25, 2023, in New York City. / Credit: Kena Betancur/AFP via Getty Images

Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Dec 13, 2024 / 18:40 pm (CNA).

President-elect Donald Trump vowed he would not use his executive authority to restrict access to the abortion pill mifepristone in an interview published by Time magazine on Dec. 12.

When asked by Time whether he was “committed to making sure that the [Food and Drug Administration (FDA)] does not strip their ability to access abortion pills,” Trump said “that would be my commitment — yeah, it’s always been my commitment.”

The FDA first approved mifepristone to be used in chemical abortions in 2000. Under current law, the drug is approved to abort an unborn child up to 10 weeks’ gestation, at which point the child has a fetal heartbeat, early brain activity, and partially developed eyes, lips, and nostrils.

Mifepristone kills the child by blocking the hormone progesterone, which cuts off the child’s supply of oxygen and nutrients. A second pill, misoprostol, is taken between 24 to 48 hours after mifepristone to induce contractions meant to expel the child’s body from the mother, essentially inducing labor.

Chemical abortions account for about half of the abortions in the United States every year.

Before Trump committed to maintaining access to the abortion pill, the president-elect went back and forth with the Time reporter, stating that the issue is complex “because you have other people that, you know, they feel strongly both ways, really strongly both ways, and those are the things that are dividing up the country.”

The pledge is a blow to pro-life activists who had urged Trump to use the FDA’s power to enforce a Comstock Act prohibition on the delivery of “obscene” and “vile” products through the mail — which includes the delivery of anything designed to produce an abortion. 

Trump, who moderated his position on abortion during the 2024 presidential election, has said the states should determine their own policies on abortion. He said during the campaign that he would not sign a national abortion ban if elected.

Alternatively, Trump has praised the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade and allow states to restrict abortion and has vowed to free pro-life activists who have been imprisoned for violating the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances (FACE) Act. He has also said he would consider a ban on federal funding for pro-abortion groups internationally and has vowed to protect religious freedom.

Catholic Charities of the Diocese of Superior, which has programs for the disabled, elderly, and impoverished, argued caring for those in need is part of its religious mission. / Credit: Catholic Charities Bureau

CNA Staff, Dec 13, 2024 / 18:20 pm (CNA).

The U.S. Supreme Court on Friday agreed to hear a case brought by Catholic Charities of the Diocese of Superior in Wisconsin after the Wisconsin Supreme Court in March ruled the agency ineligible for a religious tax exemption because Catholic Charities’ service to the poor and those in need was not “typical” religious activity. 

The Catholic Charities agency, which operates under the purview of the Diocese of Superior and has programs for the disabled, elderly, and impoverished, has argued that caring for those in need is part of its religious mission as a Catholic organization.

The Wisconsin Supreme Court had in March, however, ruled 4-3 that Catholic Charities’ activities are not “typical” religious activities because Catholic Charities serves and employs non-Catholics, does not “attempt to imbue program participants with the Catholic faith,” and that its services to the poor and those in need could also be provided by secular organizations. 

As a result of the ruling, Catholic Charities remains mandated to pay into Wisconsin’s unemployment system, which it has paid into ever since Wisconsin’s tax exemption for organizations “operated primarily for religious purposes” was introduced in 1972.

In August, Catholic Charities of the Diocese of Superior appealed the Wisconsin ruling to the U.S. Supreme Court. The high court will now decide whether a state violates the First Amendment’s religion clauses by denying a religious organization an otherwise available tax exemption because the organization does not meet the state’s criteria for religious behavior. 

An amicus brief filed by the Wisconsin Catholic Conference (WCC) explained that the Church views service to the poor as a religious activity because it is a core tenet of the faith and a command from Christ, distinguishing this command from simple philanthropy and explaining that Christian charity is about “looking at others through the very eyes of Jesus” and “seeing Jesus in the face of the poor.” 

The Catholic Church sees this duty as “inherently religious” because it expresses love for Christ, each other, and those they help, the WCC said. Quoting Pope Benedict XVI in Deus Caritas Est, the WCC stated that the Church “cannot neglect the service of charity any more than she can neglect the sacraments and the Word.”

“Catholic Charities Bureau is on the front lines bringing love, healing, and hope to the most vulnerable members of our community,” said Bishop James Powers, bishop of the Diocese of Superior, in a Friday statement. 

“We pray the court recognizes that this work of improving the human condition is our answer to Christ’s call to serve those in need.”

Becket, the public-interest law firm representing the Catholic Charities agency, said the state of Wisconsin is “trying to make sure no good deed goes unpunished.”

“Penalizing Catholic Charities for serving Catholics and non-Catholics alike is ridiculous and wrong,” said Eric Rassbach, vice president and senior counsel at Becket. 

“We are confident the Supreme Court will reject the Wisconsin Supreme Court’s absurd ruling.” 

null / Credit: Djavan Rodriguez|Shutterstock

Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Dec 13, 2024 / 17:45 pm (CNA).

Cardinal Blase Cupich of the Archdiocese of Chicago in a letter published this week in the archdiocesan newspaper urged Catholics to stand while receiving holy Communion and not make gestures that draw attention to oneself.

In the letter, published in the Chicago Catholic, Cupich said “the norm established by [the] Holy See for the universal Church and approved by the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops is for the faithful to process together as an expression of their coming forward as the body of Christ and to receive holy Communion standing.”

The cardinal goes on to state that “nothing should be done to impede any of these processions” and that “disrupting this moment only diminishes this powerful symbolic expression, by which the faithful in processing together express their faith that they are called to become the very Body of Christ they receive.”

“Certainly reverence can and should be expressed by bowing before the reception of holy Communion, but no one should engage in a gesture that calls attention to oneself or disrupts the flow of the procession,” he added. “That would be contrary to the norms and tradition of the Church, which all the faithful are urged to respect and observe.”

The letter does not directly state what specific gestures draw “attention to oneself.” CNA reached out to the archdiocese to request clarification but did not receive a response by the time of publication. 

Although the guidelines issued by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) state that receiving Communion while standing is the norm, a person cannot be denied Communion because he or she is kneeling. 

“The norm for reception of holy Communion in the dioceses of the United States is standing. Communicants should not be denied holy Communion because they kneel,” according to the General Instruction of the Roman Missal. “Rather, such instances should be addressed pastorally, by providing the faithful with proper catechesis on the reasons for this norm.”

The matter is also addressed in the 2004 Vatican document Redemptionis Sacramentum, which was issued by the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments under St. John Paul II’s papacy.

The Vatican document states that Catholics “should receive Communion kneeling or standing” and that it is “not licit to deny holy Communion” based on whether a person “wishes to receive the Eucharist kneeling or standing.”

In his letter, Cupich wrote that “we all have benefited from the renewal of the Church ushered in by the Second Vatican Council.” 

“By recognizing this relationship between how we worship and what we believe, the bishops at the council made clear that the renewal of the liturgy in the life of the Church is central to the mission of proclaiming the Gospel,” the cardinal added. “It would be a mistake to reduce the renewal to a mere updating of our liturgy to fit the times we live in, as if it were a kind of liturgical facelift. We need the restoration of the liturgy because it gives us the capacity to proclaim Christ to the world.”

“The law of praying establishes the law of believing is our tradition,” Cupich wrote. “When the bishops took up the task of restoring the liturgy six decades ago, they reminded us that this ancient principle enjoys a privileged place in the Church’s tradition. It should continue to guide us in every age.”

For centuries before the Second Vatican Council, which concluded in 1965, the norm within the Latin rite was to receive Communion on the tongue while kneeling. The council’s Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy, Sacrosanctum Concilium, promulgated in 1963, did not make any changes to this norm.

Rather, in response to bishops permitting Communion in the hand while standing, the Sacred Congregation for Divine Worship issued the document Memoriale Domini in 1969 to permit the practice in some circumstances but emphasized that bishops must “avoid any risk of lack of respect or of false opinions with regard to the blessed Eucharist and to avoid any other ill effects that may follow” when allowing Communion in the hand.

Pilgrims attend Mass celebrated by Pope Francis in St. Peter’s Basilica Dec. 12, 2022, to mark the feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe, patroness of the Americas and the unborn. / Credit: Vatican Media

CNA Staff, Dec 13, 2024 / 17:15 pm (CNA).

Archbishop Salvatore Cordileone of San Francisco is launching a project to increase devotion to Our Lady of Guadalupe in response to Pope Francis’ call to prepare and pray as the 500th anniversary of the Guadalupe apparition approaches.

Cordileone told EWTN’s Raymond Arroyo on “The World Over with Raymond Arroyo” of his goal of “informing people of this call of Pope Francis,” which he said is “largely unknown” to English-speaking Catholics.

To that end, the archbishop is promoting Project Guadalupe 2031, an initiative to help families enthrone Our Lady of Guadalupe in their homes. Through a new “Mass of the Americas,” which will be celebrated across the country, he also hopes to encourage a devotion to Our Lady.

Cordileone is also drawing attention to a nine-year intercontinental novena, called for by Pope Francis in 2022, that anticipates the fifth centennial of the apparition of Our Lady of Guadalupe in 2031.

“We want to promote awareness of this and invite people into this novena to instill greater devotion to Our Lady because she’s the one who always leads us to the encounter with her son,” Cordileone told Arroyo. 

“We’ve planned celebrations of the Mass of the Americas that I commissioned six years ago to bring the popular music Mexican people sing to honor Our Lady of Guadalupe into the sacred music tradition of the Church,” Cordileone said. 

Composed by Frank La Rocca, Mass of the Americas is a liturgy of unity with Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception, patroness of the United States, and Our Lady of Guadalupe, patroness of Mexico and all the Americas.

Cordileone recalled an archdiocesan celebration as the spark for the idea. 

“This all was born from six years ago: Dec. 8 was on a Saturday, and we had an archdiocesan-wide celebration of Our Lady Guadalupe on the solemnity of the Immaculate Conception,” Cordileone recalled. 

“So I thought, we all love Our Lady no matter which side of the border we live on, what language we speak, what culture we come from,” the archbishop said. “So we need to look to Our Lady as the mother who unites us all into one family of God.” 

“It’s a Mass of unity,” Cordileone explained, noting that celebrations of the special Mass will be celebrated in different venues across the U.S. The culmination of this will be a celebration of the Mass on the memorial of Our Lady of the Rosary on Oct. 7, 2025, at the Basílica de Santa María de Guadalupe (Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe) in Tepeyac outside of Mexico City. 

The shrine was built at the site of the Blessed Virgin Mary’s appearance to St. Juan Diego in 1531, which led to the conversion of several millions of Aztecs. The shrine is home to the famous miraculous image of Our Lady of Guadalupe. 

The Mass of the Americas will be sung by a festival choir, featuring hundreds of singers from across the United States and led by Richard Carrillo of the University of Nebraska. Carrillo, 41, first conducted the Mass of the Americas as part of his doctoral dissertation for Miami’s prestigious Frost School of Music.

Carrillo shared about the importance of Our Lady in his life in an interview with the National Catholic Register, CNA’s sister news partner. 

Carrillo, who is of mixed Indigenous and Mexican ancestry, recalls his grandmother singing “La Guadalupana” to him when he was a young boy. 

“When I first heard the lullaby my grandmother sang to me raised into sacred music for the Mass of the Americas, I was so moved I wept,” Carrillo said. “I know Mimi continues to pray for me, with the intercession of Our Lady of Guadalupe, from heaven.”

Carrillo credits Our Lady for his own Catholic faith. 

“It’s hard to not find her responsible for my faith and the strong faith of my family that preceded me for generations,” Carrillo said. “I have deep roots in both Mexican Indigenous and Hispanic backgrounds. It was Our Lady of Guadalupe’s original apparition that first brought my ancient ancestors to their faith — and a faith that has been passed down for nearly 500 years to this present day.” 

The festival choir will be open to people of a variety of skill levels, with the more challenging parts sung by a smaller chamber choir.  

“One of the beauties of the Mass of the Americas is that it is accessible for average singers,” Carrillo said. “If someone just loves to sing, they will be able to sing the majority of the Mass of the Americas in Mexico, and if someone is a more trained singer (has a degree in music or is a professional musician) they may be asked if they would be willing to learn two additional songs.” 

The choir itself will contribute to the ideal of unity, drawing on hundreds of voices from the Americas.

“But my hope is that we can truly put together a true cross-section of musicians from all parts of the country, from the big cathedrals and the small parish choirs to even singular cantors from smaller churches, to represent the United States in this historic celebration of the 500th anniversary of Our Lady of Guadalupe,” Carrillo said.

Anticipating the 500th anniversary of Guadalupe

In preparation for the anniversary, the Benedict XVI Institute is inviting families to enthrone an image of Our Lady of Guadalupe in their homes.

The goal? One hundred thousand “home enthronements” in the next three years.

The Benedict XVI Institute’s Project Guadalupe 2031 will offer free materials for families who wish to have an image of Our Lady of Guadalupe in their homes, including instructions for devotion.

The institute has commissioned a new painting by San Francisco artist Bernadette Carstensen as well as a new “Litany for Our Lady of Guadalupe and the American Saints” by the institute’s poet-in-residence James Matthew Wilson. 

“This is another part of our effort to raise awareness of the nine-year novena to enthrone that image of Our Lady of Guadalupe because that is the pivotal moment of introducing Christ into this hemisphere, and we are all a part of it,” Cordileone said.  

Cordileone shared the inspiration for this, noting that Our Lady “brought her son” to the Americas through the apparition. 

“She brought him here to us, so she’s our connection to her son,” the archbishop said. “So we enthrone her in our homes as a reminder of what she has done for us in giving birth to her son, and she continues to give birth to her son for us to lead us into that saving encounter with him.”

Michael P. Warsaw, chairman and CEO of EWTN Global Catholic Network, presents the 2024 Mother Angelica Award to Curtis and Michaelann Martin, co-founders of the Fellowship of Catholic University Students, on Dec. 12, 2024. / EWTN

CNA Staff, Dec 13, 2024 / 13:50 pm (CNA).

EWTN Global Catholic Network presented the 2024 Mother Angelica Award to Curtis and Michaelann Martin, co-founders of the Fellowship of Catholic University Students (FOCUS), an organization recognized as one of the most influential forces for Catholic evangelization in the United States today.

EWTN Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Michael Warsaw presented the award to the Martins during a televised ceremony Dec. 12, the 44th anniversary of the founding of the network. (Note: EWTN is CNA’s parent company.)

The Mother Angelica Award honors people who, like the foundress of EWTN, have been witnesses to God’s providence in all they have done in service to the Church and who, by their lives and service, have advanced the cause of the new evangelization.

“Curtis and Michaelann Martin are true witnesses to God’s providence in the way they have faithfully responded to his call,” Warsaw said. “Their passion for the new evangelization, especially in reaching young people on college campuses, is a testament to the enduring power of God’s grace in their lives.” 

“Just as Mother Angelica dedicated her life to bringing souls closer to Christ, the Martins have done the same, and in doing so, they have transformed countless lives.”

Curtis Martin actually announced FOCUS’ founding in 1997 on an episode of “Mother Angelica Live.” Since its founding with just two missionaries at a single campus, FOCUS has since reshaped Catholic campus ministry on more than 200 U.S. and international college campuses.

The apostolate forms and sends young adult missionaries to run campus ministry on college campuses. More than 50,000 FOCUS alumni currently serve in parishes and communities across the world, and more than 1,000 people have entered seminary or religious life after a FOCUS encounter. 

FOCUS also organizes the annual young adult conference “SEEK,” which brought 24,000 attendees to this year’s conference in St. Louis. The next SEEK conferences will take place from Jan. 1–5, 2025, in Salt Lake City and Jan. 2–5, 2025, in Washington, D.C.

Michaelann Martin called the award “a humbling honor for both of us” but noted that “this is not about us.” 

“We are grateful to Mother Angelica for her example of faith and courage, and to EWTN for continuing her work of evangelization,” she said. “But this is not about us. It is about the countless missionaries who have given their lives to this work and the students whose lives are being transformed by the Gospel.”

Previous winners of the Mother Angelica Award include the Archbishop Emeritus of Philadelphia Charles J. Chaput, OFMCap, and former New Orleans Saints wide receiver and football coach Danny Abramowicz. 

The full award ceremony, including tributes from those whose lives have been touched by the Martins, will re-air Dec. 14 at 3 p.m. ET as well as be available for viewing on demand at www.ondemand.ewtn.com.

Father Augustus Taylor. / Credit: Diocese of Steubenville

CNA Staff, Dec 13, 2024 / 13:20 pm (CNA).

Father Gus Taylor, a U.S. priest who was key in several prominent 20th-century Black Catholic initiatives, passed away last month at 85. 

Taylor died in Los Angeles from unspecified causes on Nov. 5, the Black Catholic Messenger reported on Thursday. His funeral was scheduled for Friday afternoon at Holy Name of Jesus Church in Jefferson Park. 

Born in 1940 in Lexington, Kentucky, Taylor attended Catholic schools in Cincinnati, according to a biography at the National Black Catholic Clergy Caucus. He graduated from the Athenaeum of Ohio and was ordained in Steubenville, Ohio, on Dec. 10, 1966, becoming the first Black priest ordained for that diocese. 

In 1969 he had a hand in laying the groundwork for the Institute for Black Catholic Studies at Xavier University of Louisiana, having reportedly sketched out a vision of the program on a paper napkin at a restaurant.

That program allows Black Catholic leaders to “share Black Catholic viewpoints among ourselves and with the hierarchy, pastors, and religious women and men ministering in African American communities.” 

In 1969 Taylor founded “what was reportedly the nation’s first Office of Black Catholic Ministries, in the Diocese of Pittsburgh,” according to the Messenger. That office was also used by nearby dioceses including Steubenville and Wheeling. 

Among the parishes at which he served were St. Brigid-St. Benedict the Moor Church in Pittsburgh and St. Brigid Catholic Church in the Archdiocese of Los Angeles. 

In his retirement, he was listed on the leadership council of the Los Angeles-based Empowerment Congress, which seeks to promote “active participation in public life, community service, and the political process to promote social justice locally and globally, while employing empathy, ethics, values, and a sense of social responsibility.”

Taylor was the eldest of seven children, including a surviving brother Father David Taylor, a priest who has served for more than 40 years in the Diocese of Pittsburgh.

Demonstrators in support of Israel gather to denounce antisemitism and call for the release of Israeli hostages on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., on Nov. 14, 2023. / Credit: ROBERTO SCHMIDT/AFP via Getty Images

CNA Staff, Dec 13, 2024 / 12:20 pm (CNA).

Amid rising antisemitism incidents in the United States, the U.S. bishops are collaborating with a Jewish advocacy group to offer Catholics a manual of terms geared to help them recognize anti-Jewish hate. 

The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) along with the American Jewish Committee (AJC) released on Wednesday “Translate Hate: The Catholic Edition,” a glossary designed to identify antisemitism in order to combat it. 

The glossary is an updated project from the original “Translate Hate,” first released in 2019, featuring additions of Catholic commentary by the USCCB.  

“Sadly, we are currently witnessing a tragic rise in antisemitic incidents both globally and here in the United States, a painful reminder that our work is not done,” Bishop Joseph Bambera of Scranton, Pennsylvania, chairman of the USCCB Committee on Ecumenical and Interreligious Affairs, said in an announcement this week.

“This project is but one example of the fruits of our collaboration that we hope will have wide-ranging impact as Catholics and Jews continue building bridges and combat antisemitism together,” the bishop said.

Antisemitism is a growing problem in the U.S. and beyond. Incidents of antisemitic harassment, vandalism, and assault skyrocketed in 2023 in the U.S., most of them following the Oct. 7, 2023, terrorist attack in which Hamas murdered more than 1,200 men, women, and children.

The glossary offers examples of various types of antisemitism, ranging from Holocaust denial and distortion to vitriolic anti-Israel hostility. Antisemitism, the guide noted, also includes “medieval blood libel claims” as well as “present-day conspiracy theories about Jewish control of the world economy.”

“In order to combat antisemitism we must first understand it,” the glossary says. “And that means we must define it in all its forms and expressions, in ways both painfully evident and obscure.”

Rabbi Noam Marans, AJC director of interreligious affairs, called the project “groundbreaking” for Catholic-Jewish relations. 

“USCCB’s allyship and leadership in confronting antisemitism as a threat not only to the Jewish people but also to civilized society more broadly is a key part of the national whole-of-society approach we need to combat anti-Jewish hate,” Marans said in a statement.

“As Catholics and Jews, we are jointly motivated to combat antisemitism and all forms of hate by our shared belief in human beings as created ‘b’tzelem Elohim,’ in the image of God (Genesis 1:27),” Marans said. “The persecution of even one of us is the persecution of all of us.” 

The glossary follows the working definition of antisemitism by the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA), which names it as “a certain perception of Jews, which may be expressed as hatred toward Jews.” 

“Antisemitism frequently charges Jews with conspiring to harm humanity, and it is often used to blame Jews for ‘why things go wrong,’” the glossary says. “It is expressed in speech, writing, visual forms, and action, and employs sinister stereotypes and negative character traits.”

The guide also points to instances in which the Jewish people have been blamed for various disasters, from the medieval Black Death to 9/11 to COVID-19.

Bambera in announcing the guide denounced the “insidious tradition of anti-Judaism” that predominated in the Christian world before Vatican II.

“Anti-Judaism compares the faith of Israel to other religions as defective, inferior, and/or rejected by God,” the bishop said, noting that Christian anti-Judaism laid the groundwork for the rise of antisemitism.

The glossary also denounces the “deicide” charge against the Jewish people, in which Jews were labeled as “Christ-killers,” an early Christian misreading of the Gospel that blamed all Jews for Jesus’ death. 

“The Catholic Church ever keeps in mind that Jesus, his mother, Mary, and the apostles all were Jewish,” the guide notes. “The Church teaches that the Jewish people remain dear to God, whose gifts and calling are irrevocable.” 

“It is our shared responsibility to continue to combat the scourge that is antisemitism,” Bambera said this week, noting that “the scourge of antisemitism remains a troubling reality that seems to be only growing.” 

“Observing this alarming trend, the bishops of the committee remain committed to standing shoulder to shoulder with our Jewish brothers and sisters to combat this evil,” Bambera continued.

Both Bambera and Marans referenced the historic 1965 Vatican II document Nostra Aetate (“In Our Time”) that condemned antisemitism and defined the Church’s approach to the Jewish people.

“As we prepare to mark the 60th anniversary of Nostra Aetate, it is more important than ever to renew our commitment to stand with our Jewish brothers and sisters against all forms of antisemitism,” Bambera said.

Groups of migrants wait outside the Migrant Resource Center to receive food from the San Antonio Catholic Charities on Sept. 19, 2022, in San Antonio, Texas. / Credit: Jordan Vonderhaar/Getty Images

CNA Staff, Dec 13, 2024 / 09:30 am (CNA).

The incoming presidential administration reportedly plans to end a long-standing U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) policy requiring ICE agents to seek their superior’s approval before arresting people at “sensitive locations” such as churches, hospitals, or schools.

A Dec. 11 NBC News story, citing three unnamed sources, reported that President-elect Donald Trump plans to rescind the policy, which has been in place since 2011 and was expanded in late 2021 under the Biden administration, possibly as soon as his first day in office.

Trump has frequently touted a planned program of mass deportations of illegal immigrants, a plan that bishops and other Catholic leaders have criticized as inhumane.

The “sensitive locations” policy began in 2011 with a memo from then-ICE director John Morton, which precludes ICE agents from carrying out immigration enforcement actions in locations like hospitals, places of worship, schools, or during events such as weddings or parades unless there is an urgent need, such as a person who poses an imminent threat, or if the agents have sought higher approval to do so.

The prospective new policy follows a recommendation in the influential document “Mandate for Leadership: The Conservative Promise,” also known as Project 2025, in a section overseen by Ken Cuccinelli, a Catholic and former U.S. Department of Homeland Security official in Trump’s first administration.

The document calls for the elimination of policies that prohibit ICE personnel from operating in “sensitive locations,” arguing instead that the agency should rely on “the good judgment of officers in the field to avoid inappropriate situations.”

Striking a balance

The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) has spoken frequently to urge the government to reform the immigration system with “fair and humane treatment” of immigrants. 

CNA reached out to the USCCB for comment on the prospective “sensitive location” policy change but did not hear back by publication time. 

The Catholic Legal Immigration Network, Inc. (CLINIC) a group launched by the U.S. bishops in 1988 to support community-based immigration programs and represent low-income migrants, said it is “deeply concerned about any changes that would undermine the safety and well-being of immigrants and their families.”

“Sensitive locations — such as houses of worship, schools, and hospitals — are sanctuaries where individuals seek solace, education, and critical care without fear of intimidation or detention,” Anna Gallagher, CLINIC’s executive director, said in a statement to CNA.

“This policy has long recognized the importance of these spaces for fostering trust and community stability. Rescinding it would not only disrupt families and communities but could also deter individuals from accessing essential services, such as education and health care, or practicing their faith freely … We call for the preservation of protections at sensitive locations to ensure immigrants and their families can live without fear and fulfill their basic needs, including the practice of religion.”

Several immigration policy experts CNA spoke with were mixed on the idea of ending the “sensitive locations” policy. 

Paul Hunker, a Catholic and immigration attorney who previously served as ICE’s chief counsel in Dallas, described Morton’s original 2011 memo that created the policy as “a very reasonable way to look at things” and “a very fine memo that strikes the right balance.”

He pointed out that even if a person in the country illegally sought to tie ICE’s hands by taking refuge in one of the “sensitive areas” — like a church — the memo still allows ICE to take action if there is a threat to the public or if a superior officer thinks it is appropriate to do so.

According to Hunker, rescinding the policy is likely “a bad idea” because rescinding it is, in his view, a fear-based tactic that could keep undocumented people away from faith-based organizations, like the Catholic Church, that could help them.

“We want people, whether they’re undocumented or not, to go to church, right? And I think this could scare people and deter people from going … I think this is part of the government’s effort to scare people so they’ll leave and self-deport,” he opined to CNA. 

Despite the impending change, Hunker said he thinks it is unlikely that ICE will begin carrying out large-scale arrests at houses of worship. 

“ICE officers are generally reasonable people, so I don’t think you’re going to see [officers] barging into Mass at 9:00,” Hunker said.

But, he added, “I think they’re trying to make people think it could happen; scare them.”

Jessica Vaughan, director of policy studies for the Center for Immigration Studies, a D.C.-based group that favors lower immigration numbers, similarly opined that a rescinding of the policy will not necessarily lead to ICE operations at Mass or in schools but would rather remove what she sees as a constriction on ICE caused by an “overly broad” definition of “sensitive area” put forth under President Joe Biden.

The Biden administration’s expanded definition of “sensitive area” added places like playgrounds, homeless shelters, emergency response centers, and domestic violence shelters. 

“[The policy change] is mainly going to remove some of the unreasonable restrictions that the Biden administration put onto ICE and send a message to individuals who want to try to flee from ICE that they have fewer places to hide,” Vaughan told CNA. 

Addressing the idea that the policy change could be intended to cause fear, Vaughan said it is better to “gain voluntary compliance” with immigration law than to punish people for violating it. 

“Ultimately, that is a more humane way to achieve the goal of encouraging legal immigration and discouraging illegal immigration,” she said.