This week started off with a bang with the launch of the National Eucharistic Pilgrimage and the pope’s interview on CBS television, and it just kept rolling with news about sainthood causes (Carlo!), farm bills and ongoing persecution in Belarus. OSV News also broke the news that the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ are suing a federal agency over the inclusion of abortion in the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act. Catch up on the biggest stories below, and be sure to watch your local Catholic news source and our social media for even more from OSV News.
Megan Marley
Digital Editor
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National Eucharistic Pilgrimage journeys begin on Pentecost, inviting torrents of grace on US
The National Eucharistic Pilgrimage routes trace what organizers call “a sign of the cross over the nation,” as pilgrims traverse a combined 6,500 miles across 27 states and 65 dioceses, through small towns, large cities and rural countryside — often on foot, always with the Eucharist — until they converge in Indianapolis for the July 17-21 National Eucharistic Congress.
Northern pilgrimage begins with a call to holiness and an intimate walk in the woods with Jesus
National Eucharistic Pilgrimage’s southern route starts with joyful witness amid Mass, processions
National pilgrimage launches with 1,000 following the Eucharist across the Golden Gate Bridge
National Eucharistic Pilgrimage’s eastern route kicks off: ‘We walk together as the body of Christ’
‘The King is coming!’ Pilgrims journey with the Eucharist through God’s Northwoods cathedral
ON LOCATION: The day after the launch of the National Eucharistic Pilgrimage, the Marian Route drew pilgrims from near and far for a 12-mile procession between two towns in Minnesota’s Northwoods.
Carlo Acutis’ canonization news leaves U.S. devotees ‘over the moon’ with joy
On May 23, Pope Francis formally recognized a second miracle attributed to the intercession of Blessed Carlo Acutis, clearing the way for him to be formally recognized as a saint of the Catholic Church. News that the Italian teen could soon be canonized – the first from the “millennial” generation – has enthralled his devotees in the U.S.
In a joint letter, victims of sex abuse urge Polish bishops’ conference to act as its president is accused of alleged negligence
On May 20, a letter was published that Polish abuse victims sent to all members of the Permanent Council of the Polish bishops’ conference May 13, asking to suspend Archbishop Tadeusz Wojda from his duties as president of the Polish bishops’ conference “pending investigation of the alleged negligence.”
‘All gifts from God’: Crowds, connection, conversion mark national pilgrimage’s first week
WEEK ONE ROUNDUP: In their first week, pilgrims on the National Eucharistic Pilgrimage have faced blisters, a busted toe and thunderstorms, but those “hiccups” along the routes are “all gifts from God,” said Jack Krebs, a perpetual pilgrim on the pilgrimage’s St. Junipero Serra Route.
Military pilgrimage to Lourdes is ‘experience of fraternity,’ military bishop says
Nearly 15,000 military personnel from some 40 countries will gather at the French Marian sanctuary in Lourdes May 24-26 for the International Military Pilgrimage.
Rise in religious persecution fueled in part by authoritarianism, says US watchdog agency
An increase in religious persecution around the globe was fueled in part by a rise in authoritarianism, according to a recent annual report. But religious freedom concerns did not only present themselves in nations under authoritarian regimes, the report said. One such case was the arrest of a Catholic woman in England for her silent prayer outside an abortion clinic.
US bishops to decide whether to affirm opening the cause for Marian visionary Adele Brise
On the agenda for the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ Spring Plenary Assembly June 12-14, the U.S. bishops will hold a consultation on a petition to open the cause for canonization of Adele Brise, to whom the Blessed Virgin Mary is believed to have appeared in northeast Wisconsin in 1859.
Harrison Butker and St. John Paul II on the dignity and vocation of women
GUEST COLUMN: There is little needed to set fire to the world of online Catholics — and last week’s commencement speech from Kansas City Chiefs kicker Harrison Butker to an audience of Benedictine College graduates seemed to riddle Catholic social media with fractures.
Despite social changes, France is still deeply rooted in Christianity, sociologist says
Specializing in the relationship between democracy and religion, Philippe Portier, a French academic professor and political scientist, is not surprised that secularized France is so interested in rebuilding Notre Dame Cathedral in the nation’s capital. “The interest aroused in France by the restoration of Notre Dame is very telling,” he said.
New York upholds abortion coverage mandate; Albany Diocese to appeal to US Supreme Court
The Diocese of Albany, New York, said May 21 it planned to appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court after New York’s highest court ruled the Empire State can continue to require companies with health insurance plans to cover what it called medically necessary abortions.
Gaza parish community example of ‘steadfast faith,’ cardinal says
Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, the Latin patriarch of Jerusalem, described the small resilient community of the Holy Family Parish compound in Gaza City as one with “steadfast faith,” amid horrific destruction and constant bombardment following his return from a four-day pastoral visit during Pentecost.
Cerrato: Understanding Pope Francis, women and holy orders
GUEST COLUMN: Deacon Dominic Cerrato, a member of the most recent commission that studied women and the diaconate, responds to Pope Francis’s comments on women and the sacrament of Holy Orders during the recent 60 Minutes interview.
