Read & Reflect

Moroccan archbishop says surprise Ceuta crossing reflects complex landscape

An estimated 80,000 people flooded across the border from Morocco to Ceuta, a Spanish exclave in Morocco, in a matter of hours on July 30, overwhelming the city of just under 83,000 inhabitants.It is not entirely clear what caused the mass border crossing. The vast majority of the undocumented migra...

Sheriff: Baltimore deacon arrest was part of ‘Takedown’ TV effort

A Baltimore deacon charged with sexually soliciting a minor was discovered in a partnership between local sheriffs and a streaming predator investigation television program.Kenneth Goedeke. Credit: Harford County Sheriff’s Office. Subscribe now“We heard that there are rumors that Chris Hansen of ‘Ta...

Italian bishops cancel Masonic funerals

Two Italian bishops have intervened in the last week to cancel funerals for senior Freemasons scheduled to be held in Catholic churches. The interventions are the latest in a series of moves by bishops around the world to reinforce the Church’s centuries-old opposition to Freemasonry and its canonic...

‘In the ocean, you can see the beauty of God’

It’s lunch time on a summer Monday, and yet another group of foreigners is putting on wetsuits at one of the many surfing schools that dot the Praia Grande beach on the coastline of Sintra, Portugal. A lot of European groups come to ride the waves in Portugal’s surfing hotspot. But there is somethin...

Germany sees increase in adult baptisms amid overall baptism decline

Adult baptisms in Germany rose significantly last year, while overall baptism numbers dropped, the German bishops’ conference said this month.Cathedral of the Holy Trinity, Dresden. Credit: Diego Grandi / Alamy.Subscribe nowThere were 2,650 adults and young adults baptized in Germany in 2025, accord...

Fr. Maurice, the news, and going mufti

Hey everybody,Two things can be true at once.Take Tibet.Tibetan people have a litany of legitimate grievances against the Chinese Communist Party, and Beijing’s human rights record in Tibet is deeply troubling, especially where freedom of religion, culture, speech, and conscience are concerned. Ther...

In complex dispute, Armenian bishop faces criminal trial

The head of the Armenian Apostolic Church faced a courtroom last week, as Catholicos Karekin II faces obstruction of justice charges alongside five other Armenian bishops, as the latest in a long-running and complex dispute between Armenian Apostolic prelates and Armenia’s prime minister.Catholicos...

[Daily Rosary Meditations] Fasting

7 things to know about St. Clare of Assisi, the patron saint of television

On Aug. 11, the Catholic Church celebrates St. Clare of Assisi, one of the most beloved saints of the Middle Ages. Best known as the founder of the Poor Clares and a close friend of St. Francis of Assisi, Clareʼs life was marked by radical trust in God, profound Eucharistic devotion, and remarkable...

Pope Leo XIV appoints new members to Vatican’s Council for the Economy

Pope Leo XIV on Aug. 11 named eight new members, including four laypeople, to the Council for the Economy, the body that oversees the administrative and financial structures and activities of the Roman Curia and institutions connected to the Holy See.The council also approves the annual budget and t...

Pope Leo XIV expresses sorrow for the victims of earthquake in Colombia

Amid the devastation of a 7.4-magnitude earthquake that struck western Colombia on Aug. 10, Pope Leo XIV has sent his condolences to all victims of the disaster and assured them of his closeness.In a telegram dated Aug. 11 and signed by Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the pope expressed...