Hamas says it has delivered a “positive response” to mediators regarding a U.S.-backed proposal for a ceasefire and hostage release in Gaza.

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Pope Leo XIV encourages the Augustinian Sisters Servants of Jesus and Mary, to be patient during difficulties, brave in their educational mission, and to persevere in following Christ.

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Pope Leo appoints Thibault Verny, Archbishop of Chambéry and Bishop of Maurienne and Tarentaise to succeed Cardinal Seán Patrick O’Malley as the president of the Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors. In France, Archbishop Verny was responsible for the fight against child abuse within the Episcopal Conference.

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Pope Leo XIV welcomes young people and teachers from Northern Europe, urging them to listen to God’s call and continue their journey of discipleship.

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CNA Staff, Jul 4, 2025 / 15:29 pm (CNA).

Bishop Robert Barron on July 4 urged a federal court to strike down a Washington state law that would force priests to violate the seal of confession, telling the court that the law is “manifestly” disrespectful of the ancient and vital Church practice.

Barron, the bishop of Winona-Rochester, Minnesota, and a member of the White House Religious Liberty Commission, made the argument in a proposed amicus brief filed in U.S. district court in Washington state.

The filing comes on behalf of the bishops of Washington state, who in May sued the state government over its new mandatory reporting law that requires priests to report child abuse learned during the sacrament of confession or face jail time and fines.

The law has drawn criticism from religious liberty advocates who say it unjustly targets Catholics. The Department of Justice and a coalition of Orthodox churches have also sued the state government over the rule.

The Confraternity of Catholic Clergy, representing over 500 Roman Catholic priests and deacons from the U.S., Australia, and the United Kingdom, last month issued a statement defending the inviolability of the seal of confession, arguing against laws like Washington state’s and pointing out that child protection “can be lawfully and morally done without violating religious liberty.”

Barron’s brief stressed to the court what it described as the “oft-misunderstood theological underpinnings of the seal of confession.”

“Few religious practices are more misunderstood than the sacred seal of confession in the Catholic Church,” the bishop wrote in the document.

Since Catholics believe that penitents who seek the sacrament of confession are “speaking to and hearing from the Lord himself” via the priest, then “absolutely nothing ought to stand in the way of a sinner who seeks this font of grace,” Barron wrote.

“If a penitent is aware the priest might (let alone must) share with others what was given in the most sacred confidence, he or she would be reluctant indeed to ever approach confession,” he said.

The bishop argued that the state law is “manifestly premised on a disrespect for the confessional seal,” in part because it explicitly exempts clergy from an otherwise broad exception for privileged communications.

The law violates long-standing precedent on religious freedom, the bishop wrote, as well as established legal rules regarding religious neutrality.

Barron urged the court to grant an injunction against the law barring it from being enforced. The law is scheduled to take effect July 27.

A hearing for the lawsuit is scheduled for July 14.

CNA Staff, Jul 4, 2025 / 12:00 pm (CNA).

Andrea Picciotti-Bayer is the 2025 recipient of the Religious Freedom Impact Award, the Religious Freedom Institute (RFI) announced July 2.

The Religious Freedom Impact Award honors leaders who demonstrate “consistent, effective, and innovative leadership in advancing religious freedom” through law, policy, or culture. It will be presented at the RFI Annual Dinner on Nov. 6 in Washington, D.C. 

Picciotti-Bayer is an accomplished attorney, policy expert, political commentator, and mother who has spent her career defending the conscience rights and religious liberty of individuals and institutions, particularly in the areas of education, parental rights, and health care.

A Catholic mother of 10, Picciotti-Bayer told CNA that she sees God’s hand in her life and credits him with her success, saying Christians, especially young women navigating careers and motherhood, should trust that “we can never outdo God in generosity.” 

She said motherhood has played a vital role in informing her work. 

“Having children made me a better lawyer,” she told CNA. “It allowed me to understand firsthand the concerns of parents fighting for their ability to raise their children according to their consciences.” 

After more than a decade focused on raising her children, she returned to the legal world “ready to roll up my sleeves.” 

Picciotti-Bayer is the director of the Conscience Project, where she works with intellectuals and legal scholars to craft public arguments and file amicus briefs in significant religious freedom cases at the appellate level as well as at the U.S. Supreme Court. 

She fights against government overreach, helping individuals and institutions to exercise their faith without unjust interference.

“Andrea Picciotti-Bayer is a tenacious advocate for religious Americans threatened by government intrusion into their public and private lives,” said Religious Freedom Institute President David Trimble. “Her voice brings clarity to the confusion that so often surrounds some of the most charged religious freedom conflicts in American law and culture today.”

Picciotti-Bayer began her career in the Civil Rights Division of the U.S. Department of Justice, where she served as a trial and appellate attorney. 

She later advised the Catholic Association and worked as a strategic consultant for the Institute for Human Ecology at The Catholic University of America, authoring amicus briefs in pivotal religious freedom and free speech cases before the U.S. Supreme Court and federal appellate courts.

Beyond the courtroom, Picciotti-Bayer is a prominent voice in the media, serving as a legal analyst for EWTN News and a weekly guest on “Ave Maria in the Afternoon.” She also writes a column for the National Catholic Register, CNA’s sister news partner, and has been published in multiple other news outlets. 

Her impactful journalism recently earned her the 2025 Catholic Media Association Award for Best Coverage of Religious Liberty Issues.

For Freedom, Christ Has Set Us Free! What will you do with your freedom? In the Church calendar of saints, July 4th celebrates Pier Giorgio Frassatti  who died on July 4th, 1925.  A young Italian man, Frassatti developed a deep...

Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Jul 4, 2025 / 07:00 am (CNA).

Here’s a roundup of Catholic world news from the past week that you might have missed:

Pope appoints Pizzaballa and Mathieu to Vatican’s interreligious dialogue office

Pope Leo XIV on July 3 appointed two prominent cardinals, Pierbattista Pizzaballa, Latin patriarch of Jerusalem, and Dominique Mathieu, archbishop of Tehran, Iran, to the Vatican’s Dicastery for Interreligious Dialogue, according to ACI MENA, CNA’s Arabic-language news partner.

Their appointment comes amid a broad reshuffle that also brought in cardinals from Japan and Canada as well as bishops and experts with experience in fostering relations among faiths. The two newly named members are already active in Vatican circles: Pizzaballa also serves in the Eastern Churches and Christian unity offices, while Mathieu is part of the Dicastery for the Causes of Saints.

Pope Leo turns attention to St. Augustine’s Algerian roots

In a personal reflection on his Augustinian roots, Pope Leo XIV this week expressed his heartfelt desire to visit Algeria, homeland of St. Augustine of Hippo, whose writings profoundly shaped Christian thought, ACI MENA reported.

Speaking of Augustine as a spiritual father, the pope shone a spotlight on the saint’s birthplace in Tagaste (modern-day Souk Ahras) and the historic church that bears his name in the coastal city of Annaba.

The Church of St. Augustine, completed in the early 20th century on a hill overlooking the ruins of ancient Hippo, remains a symbol of North Africa’s rich Christian heritage. Recently restored with the help of the Algerian government and international partners, the church combines diverse architectural styles and houses a monastery, school, and library.

Palestinian churches urge global action against Israeli violations

Christian leaders in Palestine issued a strong call this week for churches worldwide to speak out against what they described as systematic violations by Israeli authorities against Palestinians, particularly Christians, ACI MENA reported.

They lamented in a statement the increasing attacks on Christian clergy and property, citing incidents such as vandalism, harassment, and denial of worship permits during Easter. The statement also drew attention to recent strikes on sacred sites in Gaza and threats to church assets in Jerusalem over disputed tax claims. “What Christians here are facing is no longer an exception but a growing pattern of targeted oppression,” the committee warned, calling on global churches to exercise moral leadership and uphold human dignity.

Parish in DRC closed after tabernacle desecrated, hosts burned 

St. Francis of Assisi Luano Parish in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) has been closed down after a June 30 incident in which vandals broke into the building, desecrated the altar, and set all of the consecrated hosts on fire, according to a report by ACI Africa, CNA’s news partner in Africa.

The vandals also “emptied the cupboard, taking liturgical vestments, the altar cross, the processional cross, the altar cloth, the mixer, drums, microphones, [and] liturgical books,” according to Father Emmanuel Mumba, vicar general of the Congolese Metropolitan See. “Prayer can no longer be organized in an environment or in a church that has been desecrated. It is the archbishop, who must come to celebrate the Mass here, in order to open the church for worship,” he added.

Togo bishops condemn police brutality after 7 killed in protest against government 

The Episcopal Conference of Togo (CET) issued a condemnation of police brutality after seven people were killed during a protest against the country’s President Faure Gnassingbé following constitutional changes that could extend his rule indefinitely. 

“Having followed with deep concern, distress, and sadness the painful events that marked the days of June 26, 27, and 28, in light of acts of unprecedented gravity, we strongly condemn these unacceptable and intolerable acts of violence, regardless of their origin, perpetrators, or justification,” they said in the statement shared with ACI Africa on July 2.

Head of Swiss abbey resigns in connection with abuse report

Abbot Jean César Scarcella, CRA, has resigned as abbot of the territorial abbey of Saint-Maurice in Switzerland in connection with an abuse report, according to CNA Deutsch, CNA’s German-language news partner. The Holy See confirmed that Pope Leo XIV has accepted the resignation.

Scarcella’s resignation came after the publication of a sexual abuse report that documented at least 67 cases of sexualized violence in the period from 1960 to 2024. Scarcella had previously resigned temporarily in November 2023 after sexual harassment allegations were made against him, but the Vatican never found any proof of misconduct.

German Catholics protest against ‘child protection congress’ 

Approximately 900 people demonstrated in Hanover, Germany, against a “child protection congress” of the AfD (Alternative for Germany) party in the Lower Saxony state Parliament — including representatives of the Catholic Church, according to CNA Deutsch. At the event, the right-wing AfD party called for the protection of children from “early sexualization” and from unilateral “gender propaganda.”

“Hanover is colorful, diverse, democratic, and open. We want to preserve this for our children. We do not allow so-called ‘concerned citizens’ to pursue their right-wing extremist goals under the guise of the alleged care for our children,” the Catholic Church in Hanover said in a statement.

Pope Leo has a dialogue with children participating in the Vatican's summer camp who gathered with him yesterday in the Paul VI Hall. With them also a group of around 300 young students from Ukraine, hosted in Italy by Caritas for the summer.

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Washington D.C., Jul 4, 2025 / 06:00 am (CNA).

Ahead of the celebration of Independence Day, Edward Furton, publications director for The National Catholic Bioethics Center, spoke in a lecture in the nation’s capital about the country’s founders and their desire for a republic open to all faiths but one in which no citizen would be compelled to profess any particular religious doctrine.

In a presentation titled “Natural Religion and the American Founding” at the Catholic Information Center, Furton referenced James J. Walsh’s book “Scholasticism in the Colonial Colleges” to discuss church and state separation and how the Declaration of Independence is “the founding truth of the United States” and should be “at the center of American public life.”

Furton, who received his doctoral degree in philosophy from The Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C., highlighted the founders’ general, important distinction between two paths to religious truth: faith and reason.

“The truths of faith were indeed meant to be separated from public life,” Furton said in reference to the consensus position of America’s Founding Fathers, as “they were a cause of deep divisions,” Furton said, referencing the religious establishment differences among and clashes within the 13 colonies.

On the other hand, Furton affirmed, “the truths of reason were not to be separated. They were to be the source of our national unity.”

Among the colonial colleges, Furton said, the problem of sectarianism was largely solved by emphasizing “natural religion, a conviction that certain theological and moral truths can be known independently of supernatural revelation.”

Ultimately, Furton said, each college-educated founder ended up adding “his own faith to what they had learned in the college without any contradiction to his own beliefs.”

“Faith is added to reason just as grace is added to nature,” Furton said. “So this distinction between faith and reason is the key to understanding the proper place of religion within American public life.”

Furton continued: “Supernatural religion begins with faith … every proposition in Christian doctrine carries with it this note of belief in supernatural revealing, supernatural truth. Also, what is believed transcends rational understanding. So the various doctrines of the Trinity, for example, are taken on faith, and they transcend human reason.”

In contrast, Furton said, “natural religion … begins with the world around us, as it’s experienced by the senses, and seeks to understand nature on its own terms, independently of faith. Historically … the two approaches have been considered compatible and complementary.”

The founders aimed to develop “a republic that would be open to all religious faiths, but one in which no citizen would be compelled to profess any particular religious doctrine.”

“There would be complete freedom of religious expression among all sects, but unity would be forged under the rationally known truths of natural religion.” People were free to “profess their doctrines in private lives, in their private life, in their homes, in their churches, but none was allowed to join these supernatural beliefs to the federal government.”

“The Declaration of Independence was the first test of this approach, and it was successful. So the American founding rests on a commitment to religious truth that can be known by reason.”

Concluding his presentation, Furton said “religious truths that are agreeable to reason cannot be ruled out preemptively. The argument that the First Amendment obliges to privatize these truths is based on a misunderstanding between the distinction of faith and reason.”

“The same distinction between faith and reason tells us that the true line of separation today between church and state is: All religious claims that transcend reason must be separated from public life, but all those that are within the range of reason may remain,” Furton asserted.