News Briefing: Church in the World

Pope Leo said the treatment of undocumented migrants in the United States was “extremely disrespectful”. Speaking to reporters on 18 November, he called on the authorities “to look for ways of treating people humanely, treating people with the dignity that they have”. 

Bishop Michael Martin of Charlotte, North Carolina called on Catholics to “reach out to those living daily with this uncertainty and assure them of our love and care for them” after the Trump administration deployed immigration enforcement agents in the city last week. “Our faith teaches us to the aid of the poor, marginalised and most vulnerable,” he said in a statement.

The bishop called for a day of prayer and fasting, and also urged Catholics to write to their congressional representatives to “let them know that comprehensive immigration reform is long overdue, and, given that both political parties have repeatedly called for this, it is their responsibility to get it done for the common good”. He lifted the Sunday obligation for those who fear being arrested. 

Amity Presbyterian church combined its English and Swahili services so that African migrants would not worship alone. It also announced the church would host training sessions so that immigrants know their rights. Several churches prepared a warning system used on other cities to alert migrants when immigration agents are in their neighbourhoods.

Bishop Daniel Garcia of Austin, Texas, chair of the US bishops’ conference’s new Subcommittee for the Promotion of Racial Justice and Reconciliation, said its work aimed to increase understanding of the need for racial justice.  

“The church is trying to acknowledge that we need to continue to work towards some aspect of equal justice among races,” he told Our Sunday Visitor.  

“And at the same time, where there have been profound hurt and wounds, we ask how the church and its members can help to create an environment of reconciliation – to provide moments where we can acknowledge our faults and at the same time, acknowledge God’s mercy that we’re called to give to each other.”  

He urged Catholics to listen to one another, adding, “Until you walk in the shoes of someone who has experienced some kind of injustice in regards to race or inequality, you won’t understand.” 

On 15 November, marking Black Catholic History Month at Sacred Heart Church in Bowie, the Archdiocese of Washington unveiled a project seeking, “to honour those enslaved by the Catholic Church in Maryland”. The Bowie church is on property of a former plantation owned by the Jesuits in the 1700s and 1800s, and enslaved people are believed to be buried there. 

“We honour those Black Americans who died under the burden of slavery and are buried in unmarked graves,” said Auxiliary Bishop Roy Edward Campbell Jr, who blessed the graveyard.

He added that “we are doing what is right and just to those who knew no justice during their lives”. The archdiocese will publicise the history and contributions of Black Catholics on its website and fund a public monument.

Around 400 people attended a Church-sponsored street festival for marginalised people – including poor, homeless and refugees – in Australia on 19 November. The fifth annual Parramatta Street Feast, billed “A Festival of Welcome”, was based around St Patrick’s Cathedral Hall.

Bishop Vincent Long Văn Nguyễn of Parramatta – a former refugee – said he felt a deep connection with people on the margins. “This is a celebration of humanity,” he said. “In encountering each other, we encounter the Creator God.”  

The festival featured workshops and activities including friendship bracelet making, face painting and creative arts, alongside a community lunch and live performances. The initiative was inspired by Pope Francis’ World Day of the Poor and also marked the 2025 Jubilee.

Pope Leo approved the advancement of the cause of Mary Glowrey, affording her the status of “Venerable”. 

The Australian-born doctor joined the Congregation of Jesus Mary Joseph in India aged 32 and provided medical care and training for 37 years until her death in 1957. She also founded the Catholic Health Association of India, which is now India’s largest non-government healthcare network.  

Her cause for sainthood was opened in the Diocese of Guntur where she served much of her ministry.

Activist priest Fr Robert Reyes challenged clergy to “beware” of political dynasties, one of the main causes of corruption in the country, as the Philippines responds to its worst government scandal in years.

Reyes, convenor of the group Clergy for Good Governance, said the Feast of Christ the King is a call to reflect on the kingship of God and to examine the leadership of public officials.  

“Beware of dynasties. The Church does not have its own money – we are not a corporation – and because of that, we are vulnerable whenever we have projects,” said Reyes, referring to politicians who offer donations in exchange for favours. “Politics has become a calamity, and the calamity has a name: political dynasties,” the priest said. 

The Philippines is dominated by political clans, including the powerful families of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr and Vice President Sara Duterte. Reformers have called for laws banning political dynasties, but such legislative proposals have failed in Congress because the lawmakers themselves belong to these dynasties. 

The fight against political dynasties is one of themes of an anti-corruption rally, called the Trillion Peso March, backed by the Catholic Church and scheduled for 30 November.

Participants at an international forum hosted by the Archdiocese of Seoul urged Catholic and civil society groups to become “patient bridge-builders” on the Korean Peninsula. Archbishop Peter Chung Soon-taick spoke at “Masters of Peace and the Catholic Community”, held at Myeong-dong Cathedral 14-18 November. The forum’s theme was inspired by the late Pope Francis’ encyclical Fratelli Tutti.

The archbishop said Pope Francis likened peace to architecture and art and taught people to become “Masters of Peace” while embarking on a journey of “healing and new encounters”. He said: “Our Christian sense of mission to achieve peace is needed now more than ever.” Archbishop Giovanni Gaspari, the apostolic nuncio in Korea, said the forum’s theme “echoes the heart of the teaching of Pope Leo XIV”.

Bangladesh will see 26 priests ordained to the priesthood by the end of 2025, the highest number in a single year in local Church’s history. 

Fr Paul Gomes, rector of the Holy Spirit Major Seminary in Dhaka, said this surpasses the previous record set in 1986 when John Paul II ordained 17 deacons during his visit to the country. He warned, however, that shrinking family sizes may challenge future vocations. There are just over 400,000 Catholics among Bangladesh’s 170 million people. 

On 21 November, Bishop Gervas Rozario of Rajshahi ordained seven deacons to the priesthood including two brothers from the same family. He urged families and parishioners to support the priests through prayer, advice and financial help. 

Fr Nayan Joseph Gomes was ordained a priest of the Holy Cross congregation and his elder brother Fr Anu Joachim Gomes was ordained a diocesan priest. “Serving as an altar boy and witnessing the holiness of priests inspired me,” said Fr Nayan, crediting his aunt, a Missionary of Charity in Ethiopia, for encouraging his vocation.

The Christian village of Taybeh in the West Bank suffered a further attack by illegal Israeli settlers on 19 November. Its parish priest Fr Bashar Fawadleh reported that “the settlers destroyed one of the buildings belonging to the parish” as well as two parked cars.  “They slashed the tires, smashed the glass, the windows – everything.”

He said that “these acts of vandalism and violence are unacceptable and require firm condemnation from everyone”. Munther Isaac, a Palestinian pastor and theologian based in the West Bank, commented: “The problem isn’t ‘a few radical settlers’, it’s the system that enables, protects, and rewards this violence. There is no accountability. If Palestinians dare defend themselves, they are the ones who will be shot at.” 

The United Nations warned of a sharp rise in settler violence against Palestinians, with October 2025 showing the highest monthly count in nearly two decades. The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs recorded 264 settler attacks that month which caused casualties, property damage or both.  

Last week, a Human Rights Watch report alleged that the Israeli military’s forced displacement of tens of thousands of Palestinians in the occupied West Bank amounted to war crimes and crimes against humanity. 

Ghana’s Catholic bishops’ conference called on the government to declare a state of emergency in areas most affected by illegal mining. 

The activities demonstrate “a profound moral crisis and a spiritual challenge for the nation”, they said, describing how in 2025 more than 5,252 hectares of forest reserves were damaged by illegal mining, while 44 of the 288 forest reserves are now classified as degraded. Around 75 per cent of Ghana’s rivers are polluted, largely due to mercury and cyanide from unregulated gold mining.  

The bishops called for prosecution of the perpetrators and the rehabilitation of degraded lands. On 19 November, three illegal miners were found dead of asphyxiation after being trapped in a mining tunnel in Western Ghana. Up to 30 others were believed to be missing after parts of an abandoned mine collapsed.

Archbishop Andrew Nkea of Bamenda warned the Catholic Church in Cameroon would take extreme measures, including shutting down local institutions and organising a protest march, if an abducted priest was not released by 28 November. 

Fr John Berinyuy Tatah and his assistant were kidnapped on 15 November by gunmen claiming to be separatist fighters in Baba 1 village. When five others attempted to negotiate their release, they were also seized, though they were freed on 20 November while the priest was held for ransom. 

“The frequent kidnapping of our priests and mission personnel has pushed us to the wall and we say that this should stop with immediate effect,” Archbishop Nkea said, emphasising that “the Church never gives ransoms”. 

He set out the Church’s response in a statement: on 23 November, all Masses included the prayer of St Michael for the priest’s release, if he was not freed by 26 November all Catholic institutions in Ndop Deanery were to close, with priests removing the Blessed Sacrament and leaving tabernacles open. 

“If by Friday, 28 November 2025, Fr John is still in captivity, the archbishop, all the priests, religious and members of Christ’s lay faithful will go down to Baba 1 and march to the place where Fr John is being held,” the statement declared. 

The archbishop called on military personnel to act professionally and urged stakeholders to “dialogue and bring this crisis to an end”. He continued: “The people of the North West and South West regions have suffered enough.”

The apostolic nuncio to Cameroon and Equatorial Guinea urged universities to be sanctuaries for the promotion and protection of the rights and dignity of children. 

Archbishop José Avelino Bettencourt was speaking on 19 November at the start of a two-day international conference on the role of academia in promoting and protecting child rights. He said that too many children still face violence, exploitation, and abuse, emphasising that a true pastoral response is to “watch and take care” and affirming that all human dignity begins with the gaze placed upon the most vulnerable.  

Bettencourt set out the spiritual foundation for child protection, describing every child as a “mystery of hope” and a “living sign of the presence of God”. Citing Christ’s call to become like little children, he said that a child’s innocence and purity reflect the divine, making their protection an act of recognising God’s grace in human fragility. 

He listed a number of Church measures to protect children, and welcomed the initiative by Unicef to foster the creation of child care centres at universities. Such centres already exist in six universities in Cameroon, including the Catholic University of Central Africa.

The Symposium of Episcopal Conferences of Africa and Madagascar (Secam) said the exclusion of African civic society organisations (CSOs) – including faith-based groups – from the African Union-European Union summit held in Angola last week undermines efforts to address historical injustices such as slavery and colonialism.  

CSOs organised their own parallel summit on 19-20 November at the Catholic University of Angola, “not as an act of rebellion”, Secam said, but “as a necessary response” to that exclusion. The AU-EU meeting followed increasing calls by African governments and rights groups for Western countries to make reparations for the injustices of colonisation. 

“The AU-EU summit must not only negotiate but also listen, remember past injustices,” the statement said. “Secam is compelled to highlight the restrictions imposed on civil society organisations on the official summit process.”

Pope Leo accepted the resignation of Bishop Rafael Zornoza Boy of Cádiz and Ceuta on 22 November. He is under investigation by the Roman Rota for alleged abuse of a young seminarian in the 1990s while rector of a Spanish seminary.  Zornoza, 76, tendered his resignation to Pope Francis last year.  

In a statement the bishop said he wished to express his “sincere gratitude” to Pope Leo for his “understanding and paternal closeness” for having “allowed me to fully devote myself to the medical treatments my current state of health requires”. He added that he also thanked the Pope for letting him tend “with serenity and trust in God” to his “defence” in the light of “an unfair, false accusation which is being studied by the Church”.

Two to three monasteries and convents close each month in France as their congregations shrink due to a continued lack of vocations, according to a survey by the Catholic daily La Croix. 

The number of Religious in France has fallen from 66,500 in 2000 to 40,000 in 2010 and 22,000 in 2023. Projections expect 9,000 by 2040. Of the present total, 18,000 are apostolic (14,000 women, 4,000 men) and 4,000 are contemplative (3,000 women, 1,000 men). There are currently 320 active abbeys, convents and priories in France, 280 of which are run by women and 40 by men. 

“Ageing has always been a challenge, but it wasn’t a problem as long as there were vocations,” said Béatrix Bréauté, who advises religious communities. Several congregations, especially female communities that flourished in France in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, have welcomed members from the Global South to bolster their shrinking ranks. 

There was a 26 per cent increase of foreign religious in France between 2015 and 2023. About 42 per cent of superiors of religious congregations elected last year came from abroad. “In most cases, these foreign nuns don’t save the community,” sociologist Isabelle Jonveaux said. “They simply help the sisters die within their own community.”

The synodal committee of the German Catholic Church met for the fifth and final time in Fulda on 21-22 November, where it approved the statutes for the synodal conference – a national structure consisting of bishops and lay leaders – by a unanimous vote.  

“All participants want the synodal conference in our country to happen,” said Bishop Georg Bätzing of Limburg, who heads both the bishops’ conference and the synodal committee. 

Referring to the bishops’ meeting with members of the Roman Curia last week, he said the Vatican was constructively involved in the development of the statutes, not least because these could also be used as an example for other parts of the Church.

The Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith issued a document defending monogamy. Una Caro, published on 25 November, responds to a request from African bishops for guidance on their pastoral response to people in polygamous situations.  Citing secular poets and philosophers as well as Church teaching, it also warns against “polyamory” in Western cultures.

Pope Leo appointed three new members to the Dicastery for Eastern Churches, including the prefect of the Dicastery for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments Cardinal Arthur Roche.

Cardinal Konrad Krajewski denied that the Vatican snubbed a group of 48 transgender activists by neglecting to seat them at a table with Pope Leo at the Jubilee Lunch for the Poor. At previous luncheons, two of the activists had sat next to Pope Francis. The trans women were not given seats at the head table at this year’s lunch on 16 November.

Krajewski, the papal almoner, said seats at the head table had been given to poor guests who attended a Mass beforehand, which the activists had not. Krajewski emphasised that the trans women, who attended the event alongside 1,300 other guests including migrants, and homeless and disabled people, were welcome “because they’re an integral part of the Church”. 

Alessa Nobile, one of the 48, said Pope Leo XIV had smiled when she handed him a letter during the lunch. She told Italian reporters, “I ask Leo not to go backwards on rights.”  

In 2022, Nobile met Pope Francis, who befriended her, urging her to tell her story to confront prejudice and reminding her that “in the eyes of God, we are all His children”. Nobile said Francis ensured she had a front row seat at papal audiences, and also gave her a handwritten letter affirming God’s unconditional love, a gesture Nobile described as “unrepeatable”.

A conference on missionary cinema and the “unexplored richness” of missionary film footage met at the Palazzo de Propaganda Fide in Rome on 20 November. 

Hidden in the archives of many religious congregations and ecclesiastical institutions around the world lies audio-visual material produced by missionaries since the early decades of the twentieth century. The event presented the essay collection Cinema and Mission: Audiovisual Sources and the History of Catholic Missions, which called for efforts to preserve this fragile, scattered and endangered heritage.  

“The missionaries who took up the camera,” said Archbishop SamueleSangalli, adjunct secretary of the Dicastery for Evangelisation, “left us not only images, but visions:visions of faith, hope, and fraternity.”  The essays mention of the films of Xaverians, Salesians and Canadian Jesuitsand document the missionary work of Sisters of the Sacred Heart in Congo.

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