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On Friday morning, July 31, Pope Leo received Patti Smith, the singer-songwriter, poet, and artist, widely recognized as the 'Godmother of Punk' for her pioneering fusion of rock and poetry that shaped the punk movement. Like the Pope she is originally from Chicago. Earlier this year, on May 8, marking the first anniversary of Pope Leo XIV's election to the papacy, Smith inaugurated the Holy See's... Read More

The new Chief Executive of the Cardinal Hume Centre, George O'Neill, has sent the following letter to new Prime Minister, Andy Burnham MP, responding to his commitment to end rough sleeping: Dear Prime Minister, Welcome to Westminster. For forty years the Cardinal Hume Centre has worked alongside young people, children and families facing homelessness. Last year, just a short walk from Downing S... Read More

Priests Against Genocide IRL-UK, part of an international network spanning 62 countries and comprising more than 2,500 Catholic priests, bishops and cardinals, today issued an open letter to the Irish Taoiseach, Tánaiste and the Governor of the Central Bank of Ireland (CBI), demanding urgent action to stop the CBI from transferring approval of the 2026 Israel Bonds prospectus to any EU member sta... Read More

Deacon Mark Paine writes: The Archbishop of Canterbury's address to the General Synod on affirming neurodiversity deserves a wide hearing beyond the Church of England. While addressed to the Anglican Communion, its challenge reaches every Christian Church, including our own. Her message was a simple but profound one. Neurodivergent people are not simply to be accommodated or included; they have gi... Read More

The Hope Border Institute and the Diocese of El Paso, led by Bishop Mark Seitz, announced yesterday an expansion of humanitarian support for migrants and asylum seekers in Ciudad Juárez through the Border Refugee Assistance Fund. Working in partnership with Jesuit Refugee Service Mexico and Derechos Humanos Integrales en Acción (DHIA), the initiative will provide emergency shelter, health care, ... Read More

Gospel of 31 July 2026 Luke 14:25-33 At that time: Great crowds accompanied Jesus, and he turned and said to them, 'If anyone comes to me and does not hate his own father and mother, and wife and children, and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be my disciple. Whoever does not bear his own cross and come after me cannot be my disciple. For which of you, desiring to build a... Read More

In a brief interview with American broadcaster NBC yesterday, after the Peace Concert with Andrea Bocelli and the international children's choir at Castel Gandolfo, Pope Leo highlighted the importance of immigration to the history of the United States, and said he hoped to visit the country of his birth in the next couple of years. Asked what he thought of being the first American Pope, Pope Leo ... Read More

Amid growing concern for the survival of Christianity in Iraq, the country's bishops are set to assess a new scheme helping Christian families who fled jihadist terror to return. Chaldean Archbishop Bashar Warda of Erbil told Aid to the Church in Need (ACN) that the country's bishops will be meeting next month to discuss the government plan aimed at encouraging Christians to come back to Iraq. The... Read More

Reimagining the Post-Conflict State by Eric Budd, Bloomsbury Books. At a time when conflict is causing such misery in the Middle East and Africa, what does it take to ensure that peace - if it comes - is durable, and not just a series of temporary ceasefires? Eric Budd looks at peace agreements in Rwanda, Northern Ireland, the Philippines, Sri Lanka and Bosnia. He suggests an imposed peace - one f... Read More

Archbishop John Sherrington, Archbishop of Liverpool and Lead Bishop for Life Issues for the Catholic Bishops' Conference of England and Wales, has welcomed Prime Minister Andy Burnham's call for palliative care services to be properly funded. The Prime Minister has stated that palliative care and social care funding need to be "fixed" so that vulnerable people can have "peace of mind" about the c... Read More

A statement by Mary Robinson, Graça Machel, Helen Clark and Hina Jilani following their visit to the Middle East, 11-16 July 2026. We have just concluded a visit to the West Bank, Israel, Jordan and Lebanon. From all that we have witnessed and heard, our inescapable conclusion is that the government of Prime Minister Netanyahu, and in particular Ministers Smotrich and Ben-Gvir, aim to make Pales... Read More

Many people keep journals to record events, process emotions, or understand life's challenges. For St Ignatius of Loyola, journaling served a deeper purpose. It became a way for him to listen attentively to God. Ignatius' Spiritual Diary, written in 1544 and 1545, is one of the most personal spiritual documents we have. Instead of listing daily events, he wrote about his inner experiences as he tr... Read More

Who are the new Catholics and what is their background? The recent rise in adults baptised or received into the Catholic Church has been analysed in a new survey by three leading academic researchers. Their findings were presented by Professor Francis Davis at a seminar hosted by Word on Fire at the recent We Believe festival, and at an earlier workshop organised by the Wessex Research seminar. Th... Read More

Gospel of 30 July 2026 Matthew 13:47-53 At that time: Jesus said to the crowd, 'Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a net that was thrown into the sea and gathered fish of every kind. When it was full, men drew it ashore and sat down and sorted the good into vessels but threw away the bad. So it will be at the end of the age. The angels will come out and separate the evil from the righteous and t... Read More