Prince of Peace Parish

CNA Staff, Jan 23, 2025 / 06:00 am (CNA).

With tens of thousands of pro-life Americans gathering for the 52nd annual March for Life in Washington, D.C., on Friday, EWTN will provide live coverage of the event. 

The national pro-life event marks the anniversary of Roe v. Wade, drawing together thousands to protest abortion and advocate for life. This year’s theme is “Every Life: Why We March.”

Thursday: March for Life prayer vigil 

5 p.m. ET: EWTN’s National March for Life coverage kicks off before the march with a night of prayer at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception. The National Prayer Vigil for Life is held annually on the eve of the March for Life, bringing thousands of pilgrims across the nation together to pray for an end to abortion. At 5 p.m. ET, EWTN will stream the opening Mass and Holy Hour of the National Prayer Vigil for Life as pro-lifers pray and prepare for the upcoming march.

Friday: March for Life 

8 a.m. ET: The all-night prayer vigil will conclude with the closing Mass of the National Prayer Vigil for Life at the shrine, televised live by EWTN. 

9:30 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. ET: EWTN will air coverage of the March for Life, featuring speakers including Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, Rep. Chris Smith from New Jersey, and Live Action President Lila Rose. 

Professional surfer and author of “Soul Surfer” Bethany Hamilton is also set to speak as well as abortion survivor Josiah Presley and former abortionist turned pro-life obstetrician Dr. Catherine Wheeler. 

Toledo Bishop Daniel Thomas — chair of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ Committee on Pro-Life Activities — is also set to speak at the event as well as Archbishop Joseph Naumann of Kansas City, Kansas. 

The March for Life pre-rally concert will begin at 11 a.m. followed by the rally at noon. The march will begin at 1 p.m. at the rally point near the Washington Monument and conclude at the U.S. Capitol. 

4 p.m. ET: EWTN will broadcast the second annual “Life Fest Mass,” sponsored by the Sisters of Life and the Knights of Columbus as part of the Life Fest Rally. The Life Fest Rally begins the evening before the March with live music from Matt Maher and other Christian bands. The Mass will be celebrated by Monsignor James Shea and Archbishop William Lori of Baltimore. 

8 p.m. ET: EWTN will livestream the Walk for Life West Coast prayer vigil and Mass, which opens the Walk for Life West Coast coverage. Bishop Oscar Cantú will celebrate Mass at St. Dominic’s Catholic Church in San Francisco, and Sister Bethany Madonna of the Sisters of Life will give a reflection during Eucharistic adoration. 

Saturday: Walk for Life West Coast

2:30 p.m. ET: The 21st annual Walk for Life West Coast will begin with a rally followed by the walk. EWTN will livestream coverage of the walk. Father Mark Mary, MFVA, and Brother John Therese Marie, MFVA, will report from the walk, speaking to participants.

As dozens of religious sisters meet in Rome as part of the Jubilee for Communications, Linda Hilton, Chair of the Conrad N. Hilton Foundation, describes her charitable organization’s efforts to provide financial support for Catholic sisters in their missions to serve the causes of peace, justice, and education.

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Pope Francis thanks Italy’s Inspectorate for Public Security for Vatican City – charged with maintaining security in and around St Peter’s Square—and invites them to take advantage of the Holy Doors at St Peter’s and the other papal basilicas.

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The President of the US Bishops’ Conference says that President Trump’s new measures on migration, the death penalty, and the environment are "deeply troubling", while praising his initiatives on gender issues. In a separate statement, the chairman of the bishops' Committee on Migration says that “national self-interest does not justify policies with consequences that are contrary to the moral law”.

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Pope Francis receives presidents and directors of Italy's Automobile Club, in which he thanks them for their service to citizens and efforts to promote safety on the road, but also calls for renewed efforts in education in schools and to embrace sustainability.

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Meeting with the delegation, the Pope challenged them to help individuals and communities live the Jubilee Year with a spirit of prayer and compassion.

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In a message to the 2025 World Economic Forum taking place in Davos, Pope Francis calls for the ethical and responsible use of artificial intelligence, which must help human beings for the good of all, and never violate human dignity for the sake of efficiency.

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Another government attack on ecclesiastical structures in the diocese located in the northern part of the Central American country. Thirty seminarians have been removed.

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CNA Staff, Jan 22, 2025 / 17:45 pm (CNA).

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) under President Donald Trump this week rescinded Biden-era guidelines that previously required Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents to seek their superior’s approval before arresting people at or near “sensitive locations” such as churches, hospitals, or schools.

The “sensitive locations” policy began in 2011 with a memo from then-ICE director John Morton. It precluded 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 Biden administration later issued an expanded definition of “sensitive locations,” which added places like playgrounds, homeless shelters, emergency response centers, and domestic violence shelters.

The order was signed by Acting Homeland Security Secretary Benjamine Huffman, who is serving as head of the agency pending the confirmation of South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem.

“This action empowers the brave men and women in CBP [Customs and Border Protection] and ICE to enforce our immigration laws and catch criminal aliens — including murders [sic] and rapists — who have illegally come into our country,” a DHS spokesperson said Jan. 21.

“Criminals will no longer be able to hide in America’s schools and churches to avoid arrest. The Trump administration will not tie the hands of our brave law enforcement and instead trusts them to use common sense.”

The possibility of the policy change had been telegraphed in December, when three unnamed sources stated that Trump planned to change the policy as soon as his first day in office as part of his broader immigration agenda. Trump on Monday signed a series of executive orders on immigration, including several that put into motion his campaign promises to close the border to asylum seekers and to carry out mass deportations of people residing in the U.S. illegally — a plan numerous Catholic leaders have criticized as unjust. 

Catholic and other Christian leaders had spoken out with “grave concern” over Trump’s plans to end the “sensitive locations” policy. The Catholic bishops of Arizona in December argued that raids at “sensitive locations” like churches would violate basic human rights, including religious freedom and the right to family unity, and undermine societal stability by discouraging undocumented immigrants from seeking essential services.

Commenting on the then-prospective change, 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 in December 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.”

Lima Newsroom, Jan 22, 2025 / 17:15 pm (CNA).

The Sodality of Christian Life has reported that between May 2016 and December 2024 it provided reparations to 83 people who were victims of sexual, psychological, and power abuse through out-of-court settlements.

According to the report published Tuesday on its website, of the total number of cases given reparations, 15 were for the sexual abuse of minors between ages 11 and 17, 18 were for the sexual abuse of adults, and 50 were for other types of abuse.

The document was initially presented on Jan. 15 to the members of the general assembly of the apostolate held in Aparecida, Brazil.

The text indicates that the greatest number of cases that were given reparations were for abuse committed in the 1990s and 2000s, with 39 cases in the first period and 29 in the second.

The report also indicates that the reparations to which the victims agreed consist of academic and therapeutic support and financial compensation, and that the total amount is $5,348,000.

Of this amount, $336,000 was used for therapy and $5,012,000 for compensation.

In its report, the Sodalitium Christianae Vitae (SCV, by its Latin acronym) reiterates its request for forgiveness and affirms that “it is an institutional duty to take concrete actions to repair the damage caused, beyond what civil or canonical justice may determine.”

“Reparation aims to be an act of justice that seeks to contribute to the person who has experienced some type of abuse by a member or former member of the Sodalitium being able to heal the wound that his or her dignity suffered,” the report states.

On Monday, the SCV confirmed that it was dissolved by the decision of Pope Francis.

According to the Infovaticana portal, the dissolution decree “refers to the immorality of the founder, Luis Fernando Figari, as an indication of the nonexistence of a founding charism and, therefore, the lack of ecclesial legitimacy for the permanence of the institution.”

Figari was expelled from the SCV by Pope Francis in August 2024. The Holy See had already sanctioned him in 2017 and prohibited him from having contact with any member of this society after it was proven that he committed sexual and power abuse.

The full text of the dissolution decree is not yet known.

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