Good Shepherd Catholic Parish - Miami, FL

Cardinal Dominique Joseph Mathieu, the Archbishop of Tehran-Isfahan of the Latins, speaks to Vatican Media about the conflict that has erupted between Israel and the country in which he lives, noting, “I am confronted with displaced persons, the wounded, the dead. In both nations, there are many victims. It is an aerial war that has forced many to leave their homes and move to safer areas inland.”

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The Secretary General of the Synod travels to Istanbul, Turkey, to present the implementation phase of the Synod during the meeting of the General Secretaries of the Bishops' Conferences of Europe (CCEE). At the Phanar, the Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople addresses the participants with an appeal for dialogue in an era marked by "fear, and violence."

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Pope Leo XIV commemorates today the anniversary of his priestly ordination in the Chapel of Saint Monica, which overlooks Piazza del Sant’Uffizio in the Vatican, and which was assigned to him as his titular church when he became a cardinal in 2023.

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Pope Leo XIV receives members of a Foundation and choir marking the 500th anniversary of the birth of the great composer and organist, Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina whose music continues to nourish the Church and the liturgy today.

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In 1939, Pius XII issued his famous appeal by radio as the world stood on the brink of the Second World War. The Pope’s words, which went unheard at the time, were echoed today by Leo XIV at the end of the General Audience, to call for peace in the face of the current climate of tension and violence.

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VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- The world must resist the allure of modern weapons which threaten to give conflicts a ferocity surpassing that of previous wars, Pope Leo XIV said.

"The heart of the church is torn apart from the cries that arise from places of war," he said at the conclusion of his general audience in St. Peter's Square June 18. "In particular from Ukraine, from Iran, from Israel, from Gaza."

"We must not become accustomed to war," the pope said. "Rather, we must push against the allure of powerful and sophisticated weapons as a temptation."

Quoting the Second Vatican Council's Pastoral Constitution on the Church in the Modern World ("Gaudium et Spes"), Pope Leo said that in modern-day warfare "scientific weapons of all kinds are used," and consequently "its atrocity threatens to lead the combatants to a barbarity far greater than that of past times."

"Therefore, in the name of human dignity and international law, I repeat to those responsible that which Pope Francis used to say: 'War is always a defeat,'" the pope said. And, quoting another of his predecessors, Pope Pius XII, he added: "Nothing is lost with peace. All can be lost with war."

Pope Leo's message came a few days after he expressed deep concern over the "seriously deteriorating" situation in the Middle East shortly after Israeli airstrikes were carried out on nuclear sites in Iran and retaliatory drone attacks on Israel were launched June 13.

"No one should ever threaten the existence of another," the pope had said during an audience with pilgrims in Rome for the Holy Year 2025 June 14. While it is right to hope for a world "free from the nuclear threat," he said, "it is the duty of all nations to support the cause of peace, taking paths of reconciliation and promoting solutions that ensure security and dignity for all."

Cardinal Pietro Parolin, Vatican secretary of state, told the Italian news agency ANSA June 17 that the Holy See is advocating for nuclear disarmament and has prepared a document on the immorality of not only the use but the possession of nuclear arms -- a notion previously expressed by the late Pope Francis.

WASHINGTON - The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) commemorates  Religious Freedom Week from June 22–29. This year’s theme, “Witnesses to Hope,” builds on the annual report released earlier this year by the Conference’s Committee for Religious Liberty that highlights the impact of political polarization on religious freedom. In addition to issues such as mandates for in vitro fertilization, and threats to Catholic ministries serving migrants, Religious Freedom Week also highlights crucial policy positions such as parental choice in education during a time when the faithful are urged to contact their Senators to express support for educational choice in the Senate’s budget reconciliation bill.

The USCCB’s Committee for Religious Liberty, in collaboration with the Secretariat of Catholic Education and Our Sunday Visitor Institute, hosted a religious liberty essay contest. The top essays from the competition will be published during Religious Freedom Week.

Through prayer, education, and public action during Religious Freedom Week, the faithful can promote the essential right of religious freedom for Catholics and those of all faiths. For the latest information from the USCCB’s Committee for Religious Liberty, please visit the Religious Liberty webpage and sign up for the First Freedom News monthly newsletter.

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As the situation in the Middle East deteriorates further, Caritas Jerusalem continues to provide emergency medical aid in Gaza and food assistance in the West Bank, according to its director, Anton Asfar.

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Israeli Maoz Inon and Palestinian Aziz Abu Sarah are peace activists known for their joint efforts to promote reconciliation and coexistence between their peoples. Their meeting with Pope Leo XIV in May 2025 followed that with Pope Francis in 2024 at the “Arena of Peace” event in Verona, where they received his embrace and encouragement to continue to dedicate their lives to building bridges

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Warning that the “atrocity” of modern scientific weapons risks leading combatants “to barbarism far greater than in the past,” Pope Leo XIV reminds world leaders that “war is always a defeat” and “nothing is lost with peace; everything can be lost with war.”

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