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Vatican City, Jul 4, 2025 / 05:00 am (CNA).

Beneath a canopy of Roman pines, Americans in Rome celebrated the Fourth of July this year with something more than barbecue and fireworks: the historic election of the first pope born and raised in the United States.

“Let us celebrate the milestone of an American pope on the Fourth of July, in the spirit of friendship, freedom, and shared purpose,” said Laura Hochla, chargé d’affaires of the U.S. Embassy to the Holy See, addressing the crowd at Villa Richardson, the U.S. ambassador’s residence.

The embassy’s annual Independence Day celebration, held June 30, commemorated not only the 249th anniversary of the United States but also the 41st anniversary of formal diplomatic relations between Washington and the Holy See — ties that now find new resonance in the pontificate of Pope Leo XIV, a Chicago native.

Archbishop Paul Richard Gallagher, the Vatican secretary for relations with states, said the election of Pope Leo XIV brought the contribution of the U.S. to the Church “to another level” as he gave an overview of the history of U.S.-Vatican relations in his speech at the party.  

“I have normally as an Englishman approached the celebration of the Fourth of July and American independence with a certain degree of liberty in humor rather than in independence,” Gallagher, a Liverpool native, said. “But now that we have an American pope, I have to recalculate my remarks.”

Tracing relations back to the earliest days of the republic, Gallagher noted that the Catholic Church’s presence in America began with humble missionaries and immigrants. “Catholics were sometimes viewed with suspicion in their adopted homeland. However, as their numbers grew, so did their contribution to American society,” he said.

“The first diplomatic contact [between the United States and the papacy] dates back to 1788, when Benjamin Franklin sent to Pope Pius VI a message from George Washington. In it he said that the newly independent state saw no need to be involved in the appointment of bishops, as the American Revolution brought not only freedom for the colonies but also religious liberty,” Gallagher recounted.

The United States maintained consular relations with the Papal States beginning in 1797 and diplomatic relations with the pope from 1848 to 1867, though not at an ambassadorial level.

Diplomatic ties lapsed in 1867 when Congress passed a ban on funding relations with the Holy See — a move fueled in part by anti-Catholic sentiment in the U.S. From then on, the Vatican and U.S. relied on personal envoys for over a century, including during World War II.

It wasn’t until 1984 that President Ronald Reagan and Pope John Paul II established full diplomatic ties.

Gallagher emphasized how far the American Catholic Church has come, citing the rise of Catholics to high office — from John F. Kennedy to the current vice president — and the growing intellectual contributions of U.S. theologians including Father John Courtney Murray, whose ideas on religious liberty shaped Vatican II.

The Vatican diplomat described the new pope’s diverse family tree as “quintessentially American.” 

For many Americans gathered at Villa Richardson, the symbolism of Leo XIV’s election was deeply felt.

“The election of the first pope from the USA represents a coming of age for the American Catholic Church,” Susan Hanssen, a history professor at the embassy party, told CNA.

“A self-consciously immigrant Catholic community struggling with assimilation suddenly exploded with priestly vocations and prominent converts during the John Paul II revival. It was a fireworks display of confidence in the truth of the faith and its power to address the problems of modernity,” added Hanssen, who is currently teaching in the summer program for the University of Dallas, a Catholic university that has a Rome campus near Castel Gandolfo, the site of the pope’s summer residence.

“Pope Leo, with his embrace of Leo XIII as his patron, represents this moment of maturity,” she said.

Hamburgers, hot dogs, and a Marine color guard added American flavor to the evening. Despite the celebration, the embassy remains without a Senate-confirmed ambassador to the Holy See. President Donald Trump’s nominee, Brian Burch, was approved by the Senate Foreign Relations Committee in May but faces a procedural roadblock in the full Senate after Democrats placed a hold on several State Department nominees over concerns about foreign aid funding. 

Until the Senate acts, the embassy continues under the leadership of Hochla, who took over as chargé d’affaires in July 2024. 

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Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Jul 4, 2025 / 04:00 am (CNA).

On July 4, Americans celebrate their country’s independence — as well as the people who formed the United States into the country that it is today. Those include American saints.

Here are 11 American saints who dedicated their lives to God and those in need in the United States:

1. St. Elizabeth Ann Seton, 1774–1821

St. Elizabeth Ann Seton became the first American-born saint in 1975. Born in New York City, she married the love of her life at 19 and welcomed five children. She endured much suffering in her life, incluing the death of her husband, William, of tuberculosis after dire financial trouble. Two years later, Seton converted to Catholicism and went on to found the Sisters of Charity of St. Joseph — the first order of religious women in the U.S. She founded several schools, including the first free U.S. Catholic school. Today, she is considered the founder of the U.S. Catholic school system.

Her feast day is Jan. 4.

2. St. John Neumann, 1811–1860

St. John Neumann is the first male U.S. citizen to become a saint. Originally from Bohemia —known today as the Czech Republic — he traveled to New York City to be ordained a priest. At the time, he was one of only 36 priests serving 200,000 Catholics in the New York area. He joined the Redemptorists at age 29 and became the first member to profess vows in the U.S. Neumann served as a missionary and, later, as the fourth bishop of Philadelphia. He founded the first diocesan Catholic school system in the United States, which grew from two to 100 under his care. He was canonized in 1977.

His feast day is Jan. 5.

3. St. Kateri Tekakwitha, 1656–1680

St. Kateria Tekakwitha, also known as the “Lily of the Mohawks,” became the first Native American saint in 2012. She was raised in Auriesville, New York, by her uncle, a Mohawk chief, after her parents died from a smallpox epidemic. After encountering Jesuit priests in her village, she converted to Catholicism at 19. Her relatives and the village attempted to punish her for her beliefs. She later ran away to Montreal, where she could practice her faith and live out her life as a consecrated virgin.

Her feast day is July 14.

4. St. Katharine Drexel, 1858–1955

A Philadelphia heiress raised by devout parents who opened their home to the poor, St. Katharine Drexel dedicated her wealth and her life to serving Native Americans and African Americans. She founded the Sisters of the Blessed Sacrament for Indians and Colored People. Her work included starting schools in 13 states for African Americans as well as 40 mission centers and 23 rural schools. She also established 50 missions for Native Americans. Together with her order, she founded New Orleans’ Xavier University, the only historically Black U.S. Catholic college. She was canonized a saint in 2000.

Her feast day is March 3.

5. St. Rose Philippine Duchesne, 1769–1852

St. Rose Philippine Duchesne served as a missionary to Native Americans. Born in France, she joined the Visitation nuns at 19 before being forced to leave during the French Revolution. Ten years later, she joined the Society of the Sacred Heart. She came to America in 1818, when she traveled to the Louisiana Territory to minister to Native Americans. She later started the first free school for girls west of the Mississippi River and the first Catholic school for Native Americans. She was declared a saint in 1988.

Her feast day is Nov. 18.

6. St. Isaac Jogues, 1607–1646

A Jesuit priest from France, Jogues served as a missionary to the Native peoples in “New France” and became one of the North American martyrs. When he and his companions traveled to Iroquois country in 1641, they were tortured and imprisoned by the Mohawks. He survived and even baptized some of the Native Americans before he escaped back to France. He felt called to return, even though he knew he might not survive a second time. He was killed with a tomahawk in Auriesville, New York. He was canonized a saint in 1930.

His feast day is Oct. 19.

7. St. Frances Xavier Cabrini, 1850–1917

A missionary from Italy, St. Frances Cabrini founded the Missionary Sisters of the Sacred Heart of Jesus. When she first traveled to New York City, she discovered that the house she had planned to turn into an orphanage was unavailable. When the archbishop advised her to return to Italy, she refused. Instead, she founded orphanages, hospitals, convents, and schools, many of which served Italian immigrants. She became the first U.S. citizen to be canonized a saint in 1946.

Her feast day is Nov. 13.

8. St. Théodore Guérin, 1798–1856

A missionary from France, St. Théodore Guérin founded the Sisters of Providence of Saint Mary-of-the-Woods. At 25, she first joined the Sisters of Providence of Ruillé-sur-Loir before leading a group of sisters to Indiana in 1840. There, she opened a convent and the first girls’ boarding school in that state. Even as her health failed her, she continued to open schools throughout Indiana and Illinois while facing anti-Catholic sentiment. She was canonized a saint in 2006.

Her feast day is Oct. 3.

9. St. Damien de Veuster of Molokai, 1840–1889

Originally from Belgium, St. Damien de Veuster dedicated his life as a missionary to those with leprosy in Molokai, Hawaii. At 19, he joined the Congregation of the Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary. He then volunteered to serve those with leprosy who were quarantined on the island of Molokai. He spent his time building schools, churches, and hospitals. After contracting and dying from leprosy himself, he was declared a saint in 2009.

His feast day is May 10.

10. St. Marianne Cope, 1838–1918

Born in Germany, St. Marianne Cope joined the Sisters of the Third Order of St. Francis in Syracuse, New York, before serving multiple times as the novice mistress of her congregation and the superior of St. Joseph’s Hospital. She later offered to go to Hawaii to serve those with leprosy. The Franciscan Sisters of Syracuse, led by Cope, joined St. Damien in Molokai. A former teacher and principal, Cope focused on education. She also brought joy and inspired the women there by gifting them with bright scarves and dresses. She was canonized a saint in 2012.

Her feast day is Jan. 23.

11. St. Junípero Serra, 1713–1784

St. Junípero Serra served as the founder of the Spanish missions in California. Originally from Spain, he joined the Franciscans before becoming a missionary. He served those in Mexico before going to California, where he founded nine of the 21 Spanish missions and taught the Native Americans various trades. He became the first saint canonized on U.S. soil in 2015.

His feast day is July 1.

This article was first published on July 2, 2022, and has been updated.

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