Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Dec 9, 2025 / 06:00 am (CNA).

Daughter of imprisoned Catholic activist Jimmy Lai spoke out for the first time ahead of her father’s 78th birthday. 

“As a daughter, every day I wake up and I hope that today is the day we get my dad home ... the day we get to go to Mass together, or to eat dinner around the table, things that years ago I almost took for granted,” Claire Lai said in an interview with EWTN News.

Jimmy Lai, the pro-democracy entrepreneur and human rights activist, was arrested in 2020 in Hong Kong. He underwent a trial that lasted nearly two years for allegations of colluding with foreign forces under a national security law put in effect by the communist-controlled Chinese government.

The trial ended in August, and Lai continues to wait for the verdict in prison where he faces inhumane living conditions, deteriorating health, and is denied the Eucharist, his daughter said. 

In an interview with Montse Alvarado, president and COO of EWTN News, Lai’s daughter Claire said: “We’re still waiting for a verdict, five years after he was charged. He is turning 78. We have waited a very, very long time for his cases to be resolved. We do not believe that they will be through the domestic system. Our only hope is outside, and that’s why I’m here now.”

Dec. 8 was Jimmy Lai’s 78th birthday, which falls on the feast of the Immaculate Conception. His daughter highlighted Lai’s deep devotion to the Blessed Mother. 

She said her family has tried to send him a rosary in prison, but “each attempt failed.” She said he fell down once in the shower, and “because of his waist pain he wasn’t able to get up.”

“Even some of the guards came over and tried to help him … but he couldn’t get up. So he pretended as though he had a rosary in his hand and prayed to the Blessed Mother. Then he was able to get up without pain,” Claire Lai said.

“When you’re a daughter … and you hear stories like that, you wish you could yourself physically pull him up when he is in pain like that. But you find such great comfort in the fact that Our Lady is protecting him,” she said.

Conversion to the faith

Lai said her father’s conversion to Catholicism has been a stable presence during his time in prison. 

“My father had quite an unconventional childhood. He came to Hong Kong when he was 12. He had nothing to his name, nothing in his pockets. But he was full of optimism and he had a yearning for freedom,” she said.

“It was only later on that he understood that there was something, a higher force, guiding him all along, which was why he was able to go from child laborer to a successful entrepreneur and do so almost without fear. It was later on that he understood that to be God,” she said.

Jimmy Lai converted the year of the handover of Hong Kong from the United Kingdom to China when “people were filled with doubt and with a certain amount of fear,” his daughter said. “As Our Lady has taught us, there is nothing that conquers doubt and fear except for the love of God. And that was a time when he was ready to receive it.”

“My father converted one year after I was born. Really, the only memories I have are of growing up in a very loving Catholic family,” she said.

Legal saga

Claire Lai studied law and has been involved with her father’s case and lengthy trial. “There’s an equal amount of outrage, but also it’s a privilege to be able to be there and witness it as closely as I have,” she said. 

“As someone who grew up admiring the Hong Kong legal system … it has been heartbreaking to see the rule of law break down, but even more so to see my father and his case is at the helm of it.”

The bench was “not neutral in any sense of the word,” she said. “They just grilled him repeatedly. There were gag orders that were imposed when the evidence just did not suit the narrative ... it was just so deeply unfair.”

The trial had unexplained delays that were “clearly meant so that people would forget about my father and so that it would crush his spirit,” she said. But “with the good Lord as his guide, his spirit remained just as strong.”

Prison conditions 

Lai has been in prison for five years, but “his incarceration has just deepened his faith,” his daughter said. 

“I think there isn’t anything quite as much as suffering that opens your heart to God’s love. We are so grateful that Our Lord has accompanied my father. He wakes up around midnight every night to pray,” she said.

“Before the crack of dawn, he would read the Gospel,” Lai said. “At first, he would ask the guards if they could turn on the light so that he could read … For about the first six months, they said ‘yes.’ Afterwards, they always said ‘no.’”

“The conditions he’s kept in have just gotten worse over time. They aren’t a natural byproduct of prison. In the prison cell, there is a window that leads outside that should give access to sunlight. His is deliberately blocked so that he doesn’t have access,” she said.

“He’s been denied holy Communion for over two years and got it only very, very intermittently this year,” she said. “It’s something that costs them nothing … for him to get. It costs them nothing for him to get the rosary, and it costs them nothing to turn on the light so that he can read the Gospel.”

Kept in solitary confinement, he faces extreme heat conditions in his small cell. “In summer, the heat can get up to … 111 degrees Fahrenheit,” she said. “To say that it’s sweltering is a massive understatement.”

“He gets heat rushes all over his body, and they last until the middle of autumn. It is outrageous, and it is torturous,” she said.

“We have typhoon seasons in Hong Kong … and the cells get wet. Almost everything in there gets wet. Once that happened, the first thing he checked was his Bible, and it was the one thing that remained dry. We’re very grateful that Our Lord and Our Lady continue to watch over him,” she said.

Lai’s health has declined rapidly while behind bars. 

“In less than a year, he lost 10 kilos … after already having lost a significant amount of weight the last few years. His nails are rotting … He has infections that last for months in spite of antibiotics. And his limbs get swollen, very red, and they’re agonizingly painful,” she said.

“My dad is not someone who complains. He doesn’t even make faces. You know that when he does, it’s very painful,” she said. “There are times when even from a distance, you can tell that he’s pale and he’s shivering.”

“Then there’s the less visible signs,” she said. “He’s diabetic, and he’s had heart issues. He had a perfectly healthy heart before he went to prison.” He has said “that every few days he would have heart palpitations and they would be disabling,” his daughter said.

Call for international involvement 

Jimmy Lai is a British citizen and his daughter said that any communication between Britain and the Chinese government should include discussion of her father. 

“He is in prison for basically standing in defense for the freedoms he first came to know as a child in Hong Kong when it was still a British embassy and for hoping that they would keep the promise made during the sign of the British Joint Declaration,” she said.

U.S. President Donald Trump has vowed to do “everything” possible to “save” Lai. A White House official told EWTN News in October that Trump spoke with Chinese President Xi Jinping about his imprisonment. 

“We are so extremely grateful to President Trump and his administration,” Claire Lai said. “They have a long, proven record of freeing the unjustly detained, and we hope that my father will follow soon.”

“We are also very, very grateful for members of the public. My father is sustained by your prayers,” she said.

She shared that Pope Leo XIV is also praying for her father during this time. In October, Lai’s wife, Teresa Lai, and his daughter met Pope Leo after a general audience. “It was such a privilege and a blessing to have an audience with our Holy Father,” Claire Lai said. 

Hope for a release 

“The government has no case,” she said. “All they’ve proven is that my father is a good man, a man who loves God, a man who loves freedom, who loves truth, and loves his family.”

If she could speak with the Chinese government, Lai said she would say to “do the only just and … only honorable thing, which is to release a 78-year-old man, my father, Jimmy Lai, against whom no case has been made.”

“Don’t let him die a martyr in these conditions, in this health. It is a stain on your history that you will never be able to wipe off,” she said.

She said she does “worry” that her father could die in prison, but she is “hopeful.”

When her father “reflected on his earlier years, he said that even before he converted and before he opened his heart to the love of God, he was always guided by him — even before he knew it,” she said. “I think that’s how he wants to be remembered, as a faithful servant of Our Lord.”

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Puebla, Mexico, Dec 9, 2025 / 05:00 am (CNA).

The story of St. Juan Diego and Our Lady of Guadalupe began with the well-known apparitions of 1531. The Indigenous visionary remained for years dedicated to the preservation and dissemination of the message of the Virgin Mary at a chapel that is still preserved and forms an essential part of the Marian complex of Tepeyac.

Next to the current Guadalupe Basilica in Mexico City is the old chapel built to house the image miraculously imprinted on St. Juan Diego’s cloak. This historical site is little known to pilgrims.

The origin of the chapel

St. Juan Diego was the Indigenous man to whom the Virgin Mary appeared from Dec. 9–12, 1531, asking him to intercede with the first archbishop of Mexico, Friar Juan de Zumárraga, that a chapel be built “on the plain of Tepeyac” as a sign of her love for all nations.

It was on his tilma (cloak) that the image of the Virgin Mary was miraculously imprinted.

After the apparitions, the archbishop ordered the construction of a small chapel to house the tilma. St. Juan Diego lived next to it for 17 years, dedicated to recounting the events and caring for the sacred image until his death in 1548.

A Virgin for the ‘completely forgotten’

In an interview with ACI Prensa, CNA’s Spanish-language news partner, Father José de Jesús Aguilar of the Archdiocese of Mexico explained that at that time, Tepeyac — the place where the Virgin appeared and asked for her “sacred little house” to be built — was a valley on the outskirts of the city.

He noted that this request from the Virgin had a profound meaning, since many Indigenous people lived outside the urban center and “felt completely forgotten, without rights, or anything.”

The priest pointed out that the Mother of God wanted a place there as a gesture of closeness to those who “lived on the social and geographical margins.”

St. Juan Diego: Protector and herald of the faith

Aguilar emphasized that St. Juan Diego was the first to spread devotion to Our Lady of Guadalupe. “He recounted what had happened in his own words, and in this way, the news spread more and more, until it finally became very well known among the people,” he noted.

Aguilar said that the visionary of the Virgin Mary received pilgrims at that chapel and therefore requested permission to build his house next to it. Although the house no longer exists, a cross marks the site where it once stood.

According to the priest, St. Juan Diego died and was buried right there, after dedicating 17 years to caring for the image of the Virgin Mary.

From the chapel to the Old Parish Church of the Indians

The original chapel made of adobe was modified over time. Due to the growing devotion, in 1649, what is now known as the Old Parish Church of the Indians was built.

Inside the church, a wall from the first chapel is preserved, the exact spot where the tilma remained on display for more than 100 years before being moved to the new basilica in April 1709. That edifice is now known as the Old Basilica since the construction of the modern basilica was completed in 1976.

A message that resonated

Aguilar explained that the choice of Juan Diego as her messenger was no coincidence. He commented that the Virgin Mary “chose an Indigenous man to speak to the Indigenous people.”

In addition to sharing the same language, St. Juan Diego could recount details of the apparitions: “whether it was hot or cold, how the little birds sang that day, exactly where she first appeared, what the Virgin’s face looked like.”

The priest added that St. Juan Diego also faithfully conveyed the message that the Virgin entrusted to him: “Do not be afraid, am I not here, I who am your mother?”

These words — recorded in the Nican Mopohua — were spoken when the visionary was worried about his uncle Juan Bernardino’s serious illness. The Virgin assured him that he had been miraculously healed.

This message, the priest noted, remains the message of Our Lady of Guadalupe for her people, “so that anyone facing death, fear, unemployment, or a difficult situation can hear these words and have the certainty that things will work out for the best. 

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

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VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Pope Leo XIV reiterated the importance of dialogue and his hopes for a just and lasting peace in the region.

"In addition, the questions of prisoners of war and the need to assure the return of Ukrainian children to their families were also discussed," the Vatican press office said in a communique released after the meeting Dec. 9.

The two leaders held their closed-door meeting in the morning at the papal villa in Castel Gandolfo, southeast of Rome; the meeting lasted about 30 minutes.

"During the cordial talks, which focused on the war in Ukraine, the Holy Father reiterated the need for the continuation of dialogue and expressed his urgent desire that the current diplomatic initiatives bring about a just and lasting peace," the Vatican communique said. 

During an exchange of gifts, Zelenskyy gave Pope Leo a handmade, traditional Ukrainian-style Nativity scene, according to Vatican News.

Ukraine's ambassador to the Holy See, Andrii Yurash, was part of the five-person delegation and said, "It was a wonderful meeting, very sincere and peaceful," reported Vatican News.

On X, the social media platform, Zelenskyy expressed his appreciation for the support of the pope and the Holy See with its "ongoing humanitarian assistance and the readiness to expand humanitarian missions."

"During today's audience with His Holiness, I thanked him for his constant prayers for Ukraine and for the Ukrainian people, as well as for his calls for a just peace," the president wrote.

He said he told the pope "about diplomatic efforts with the United States to achieve peace," and "we discussed further actions and the Vatican's mediation aimed at returning our children abducted by Russia."

President Zelenskyy also invited the pope to visit Ukraine, saying it "would be a powerful signal of support for our people."

The meeting with the pope came after Zelenskyy met British, French and German leaders in London Dec. 8 to bolster support for Ukraine and increase economic pressure on Russian President Vladímir Putin to put an end to the war on his neighbor.

French President Emmanuel Macron's office said the London meeting aimed "to continue joint work on the U.S. plan in order to complement it with European contributions, in close coordination with Ukraine," according to the Associated Press.

Zelenskyy also met Dec. 8 with Mark Rutte, secretary-general of NATO, António Costa, president of the European Council, and Ursula von der Leyen, president of the European Commission, at Rutte's official residence in Brussels.

According to a statement published Dec. 9 on Zelenskyy's official website, president.gov.ua, those leaders "discussed diplomatic work with the U.S. side aimed at achieving a dignified and guaranteed peace" based on a peace process that is "clearly focused on safeguarding its sovereignty and national interests."

"The parties agreed that the framework must clearly specify a date for Ukraine's accession to the European Union," the statement said.

Von der Leyen posted on X that the "EU remains ironclad in its support for Ukraine," adding that "Ukraine's security must be guaranteed, in the long term, as a first line of defence for our Union." 

After meeting with European leaders, Zelenskyy was set to share with the United States an update to the original peace plan U.S. President Donald Trump had proposed, which many observers saw as more favorable to Russia.

Zelenskyy told reporters on WhatsApp the new plan removed eight "obvious anti-Ukrainian points" or conditions; however, there was still no consensus on giving up Ukrainian territory to Russia, which the U.S. plan considers necessary for peace, but Ukraine and Europe have opposed.

Zelenskyy's meetings in Western Europe reflect his and other leaders' desire to include Europe in the U.S. peace plan, something the U.S. did not do.

Speaking to reporters on the papal plane from Lebanon to Rome Dec. 2, Pope Leo said, "It is clear that, on the one hand, the president of the United States thinks he can promote a peace plan that he would like to implement and that, at least initially, did not involve Europe."

"However, Europe's presence is actually important, and that initial proposal was modified partly because of what Europe was saying," he said.

"Specifically, I think Italy's role could be very important," he said, "because of Italy's ability to act as an intermediary in a conflict between different parties: Ukraine, Russia, obviously, the United States…."

"I would suggest that the Holy See could also encourage this type of mediation and that we seek together a solution that could truly offer peace, a just peace, in this case in Ukraine," the pope had said.

Zelenskyy was meeting with Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni Dec. 9 after his meeting with Pope Leo.

It was the third time Pope Leo and the Ukrainian president sat down together: the first time was briefly after the pope's installation Mass at the Vatican May 18, and then for 30-minute closed-door talks July 9 at the papal villa in Castel Gandolfo.

CNA Staff, Dec 9, 2025 / 04:00 am (CNA).

Many are familiar with the story of St. Juan Diego, whose feast is celebrated on Dec. 9 in the worldwide Church. However, the story of the Franciscan friar who baptized this beloved saint is less well known.

In 1521, Spanish conquistador Hernán Cortes defeated the Aztec empire, tore down the pagan temples, and in their place built Catholic churches. Franciscans were the first missionaries to arrive in the region and began their work sharing the Gospel with the native people in 1524.

One of the first three Franciscan missionaries to arrive in Mexico was Brother Pedro de Gante, also known as Pieter van der Moere. Originally from Ghent, Flanders (present-day Belgium), Gante was trained in the choral style of the low countries — Netherlands, Belgium, and Luxembourg. He took this musical foundation to Mexico where he trained the Indigenous singers who worked at the cathedral in Mexico City.

Gante believed that education and religion should be natural parts to one’s everyday life. He studied the native language of the Indigenous people and was able to teach them in their own dialect as well as Spanish.

During this time, Juan Diego — who was a member of the Chichimecas but lived in the region that was part of a vast Aztec empire — and his wife began to attend Mass at the Church of St. Diego. In 1525, at the age of 50, he and his wife were baptized by Gante and took new names: Juan Diego and Maria Lucia. The two are considered one of the first native couples to be baptized in Mexico.

In 1526, Gante founded San José de los Naturales to teach Indigenous boys reading, writing, music, and the Catholic faith. The school also taught them Spanish artisanal skills, which led to many painters and sculptors helping adorn the many churches that were built.

The friar published “Christian Doctrine in the Mexican Language” in Nahuatl, the Aztec language, in 1528.

Gante was never ordained a priest and remained a brother his entire life, dying on April 19, 1572, in Mexico City. 

This story was first published on Dec. 9, 2023, and has been updated.

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