Purgatory, like heaven and hell, is a state that exists outside of our earthly experience of time. So even if there was an easy way to determine whether or not someone is currently in purgatory, we couldn't really gauge that soul's spiritual progress there in terms of months, days or years.| Catholic Review
How often we create messes in our lives—whether we’re spilling something in aisle nine, hurting someone’s feelings, or taking a step that causes issues.| Catholic Review
Rhode Islanders are celebrating Pope Leo XIV's declaration that the healing of a baby born in their state back in 2007 was indeed miraculous, and advances the sainthood cause of a 19th-century Spanish priest.| Catholic Review
Deacon Thomas P. O'Donnell started attending daily Mass more often, going to confession and eucharistic adoration and reading more about the faith. All this led to a deepening of his life.| Catholic Review
Patriarchs and heads of the churches in Jerusalem said in a joint Oct. 14 statement they "rejoice at the recent enactment of the ceasefire in Gaza, and the release of those held captive," which they hailed as "auspicious moment," noting "the work of peacebuilding has only just begun."| Catholic Review
President Donald Trump said during a meeting in Egypt on Oct. 13 that "phase two has started" of a peace deal between Israel and Hamas in response to a question from a reporter about when the next stage of negotiations would begin.| Catholic Review
The retreat, organized by the St. James vicariate for Hebrew-speaking Catholics and the Latin patriarchate's general secretariat for the youth in Galilee in collaboration with the Youth Pastoral Office of the Latin Patriarchate, brought together about 200 young people from the Arabic and Hebrew-speaking Catholic communities.| Catholic Review
The joy of Christ's resurrection can repair the widespread sadness and malaise in today's world, Pope Leo XIV said.| Catholic Review
Pope Leo XIV will issue a document on Catholic education Oct. 28, marking the 60th anniversary of the Second Vatican Council's declaration on education, a top Vatican official said.| Catholic Review
Pope Leo XIV welcomed Britain's King Charles III and Queen Camilla to the Vatican for a unique visit combining ceremonial flourishes and a historic moment of prayer in the Sistine Chapel.| Catholic Review
Pope Leo XIV thanked the Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem for supporting the Christian communities in the Holy Land, especially during the "tragic days of war."| Catholic Review
Lebanon eagerly awaits Pope Leo XIV's upcoming visit, marking his first apostolic trip abroad, Catholic clergy organizers say.| Catholic Review
Father Anthony Stoeppel, a diocesan priest of the Diocese of Tyler, Texas and professor of church management at the Catholic University of America's Busch School of Busine| Catholic Review
"Gravissimum Educationis," the Declaration on Christian Education, marks its 60th anniversary Oct. 28.| Catholic Review
The Archdiocese of San Antonio is speaking out after the GoFundMe company -- which provides a digital platform for online fundraising -- created donation pages on its behalf without the archdiocese's approval.| Catholic Review
Matthew's emphasis on forgiveness can provide us consolation and hope as we recognize our inability to live up to the tenets of the Sermon on the Mount and other moral requirements.| Catholic Review
Coffee shops associated with Catholic churches and organizations are opening around the country in order to build community and share God's love.| Catholic Review
Archbishop Thomas G. Wenski of Miami and some 25 Knights of Columbus saddled up their motorcycles to pray a rosary at the entrance of Alligator Alcatraz, the controversial migrant detention center recently opened in the Florida Everglades.| Catholic Review
Where Robby Heil, who has Down syndrome, is perhaps most known and has the biggest impact is at St. James Parish, where he serves as an extraordinary minister of holy Communion three times a week on Mondays, Tuesdays and Wednesdays.| Catholic Review
President Donald Trump announced Oct. 16 a policy proposal to increase access to in vitro fertilization, including issuing guidance urging employers to offer fertility benefits directly to their employees.| Catholic Review
"There is a way to punish without ending another human life: life-long incarceration without the possibility of parole," the Florida Conference of Catholic Bishops wrote to Gov. Ron DeSantis, urging the state's Catholic governor to stay the scheduled Oct. 14 execution of Samuel "Sammy" Smithers.| Catholic Review
This descent into emotivism and sentimentality has profound consequences for society as well as for individuals.| Catholic Review
A Chicago-area priest is on a mission to highlight the plight of families upended by the current mass deportation efforts in the United States by making a 50-day pilgrimage -- on foot -- from Chicago to New York.| Catholic Review
The current abuse of vulnerable migrants is not the legitimate exercise of national sovereignty, Pope Leo XIV said, but rather it represents a serious crime being committed or tolerated by the government.| Catholic Review
If you attend a church which blocks misfits, you're in the wrong church. Jesus welcomed misfits -- the Samaritan woman, the leper, the woman "caught in the very act" of adultery, the tax collector.| Catholic Review
Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents made five recent arrests of members of just one Baltimore parish, Sacred Heart of Jesús-Corazón de Jesus parish in Highlandtown.| Catholic Review
A surprisingly substantive film, "Springsteen: Deliver Me from Nowhere" (20th Century) is more a psychological study than a musical biography. As such, it invites those older viewers for whom it's appropriate to engage with its sometimes troubling story intellectually and emotionally rather than be passively entertained.| Catholic Review
Entrepreneur and former U.S. Marine Colby Barrett is part of the team behind "A Faith Under Siege," a film that examines attacks by Russian forces and officials on hundreds of Ukrainian faith communities, including Catholic and Protestant believers.| Catholic Review
A Catholic comedian who had multiple live show dates scheduled from October through January for a national tour announced Oct. 15 she had canceled the appearances.| Catholic Review
In parishes across the Archdiocese of Baltimore, dozens of priests are discovering just how deeply they are being upheld by the intercession of women who have pledged to pray for them.| Catholic Review
A new study on U.S. priests shows that many report satisfaction with their ministry, but trust in bishops and major superiors is still low, although improving.| Catholic Review
For four with ties to the Archdiocese of Baltimore, discernment unfolded differently, yet with the same joy – leading them to serve God in religious communities around the country.| Catholic Review
The retreat features three days of outdoor and spiritual activities at Camp Saffran, Broad Creek Memorial Scout Reservation in Harford County along the Susquehanna River.| Catholic Review
Archdiocesan Scouting officials hope to glimpse the future of the programs at an April 19-21 retreat at Walkersville Watershed in Frederick. It’s the first since the end of the COVID-19 pandemic, and Father Jim Bors, appointed last year as chaplain of the Archdiocesan Catholic Committee on Scouting Leadership, hopes it will show “that Scouting is back.”| Catholic Review
Scouting and faith were celebrated at the annual Archdiocesan Scout Mass and Presentation of Awards March 1. Boy Scouts from troops across the archdiocese were invited to St. Katharine Drexel Church to receive religious awards earned in the past year.| Catholic Review
The modern educational toolkit, of both teachers and students, now includes the use of artificial intelligence. Experts and teachers from coast-to-coast told OSV News AI is poised to transform Catholic education.| Catholic Review
The Baltimore Area Council of Scouting America held its annual volunteer recognition reception and dinner Feb. 20 in Rosedale and the Archdiocese of Baltimore came away with one of the event’s most prestigious awards: the 2024 Chartered Organization of the Year.| Catholic Review
As part of her Eagle Scout project, Rae Smolen directed the planning and fundraising, assembled workers and guided the work to transform a dilapidated space into a comfortable meeting room that houses several of the church’s most vital outreach programs, including everything from religious education to Alcoholics Anonymous sessions.| Catholic Review
It is possible that excellent marriage preparation could "work against" a couple seeking a declaration of nullity in some circumstances. But most of the time, it probably would not.| Catholic Review
The goal of the church's nullity process is to determine whether there was some problem or issue at the time of the wedding that was serious enough and of such a nature so as to prevent a true marriage from ever being contracted in the first place.| Catholic Review
When in doubt, bring it up in confession anyway. If a person does bear the guilt of a sin committed in their pre-Catholic life, the priest will be happy to grant absolution.| Catholic Review
A church building is a sacred space that is open to the public by its very nature. The faithful fundamentally have a right to join in the prayer conducted in a church building since it is, in a sense, their spiritual home.| Catholic Review
In anticipation of the celebration Oct. 19 of World Mission Sunday, the Vatican's missionary news agency shared statistics about the Catholic population, church personnel and the works they are engaged in.| Catholic Review
The U.S. Catholic bishops have appointed veteran journalist Carol Glatz to head up their Rome-based news bureau, succeeding Cindy Wooden, another longtime journalist.| Catholic Review
For Syrian Archbishop Jacques Mourad of Homs, who was held captive by the Islamic State group for five months in 2015, receiving an award named after St. John Paul II was a hopeful reminder of the late pontiff's efforts to advance peace and dialogue in uncertain times.| Catholic Review
Welcoming a group of Holy Year pilgrims from Russia, Pope Leo XIV did not mention their country's war on Ukraine, but he prayed that the pilgrims would let "the fire of Christian love" be kindled in their lives so it would warm "even the coldest and hardest of hearts."| Catholic Review
Pope Leo XIV traveled 23 miles by car to board the "Bel Espoir" sailboat and speak to the crew about peacemaking.| Catholic Review
The official state visit of Britain's King Charles III and Queen Camilla to Pope Leo XIV and the Vatican will focus on ecumenism and ecology, Vatican officials said Oct. 17.| Catholic Review
Pope Leo XIV expressed solidarity with the immigrant community in the U.S. and urged the church to be a united voice on their behalf in an Oct. 8 private audience with immigration advocates.| Catholic Review
Missouri's Catholic bishops are urging lawmakers and policymakers at every level of government to work toward lasting solutions to the challenges and opportunities brought by immigrants and immigration to this country.| Catholic Review
A dialogue at Georgetown University drew attention to the crucial role of community organizing in the Latino community and how it can serve to reinvigorate the voice of people in politics, both in local-level issues and broader political movements.| Catholic Review
Immigrant priests, seminarians and religious in the U.S. are among those impacted by immigration enforcement policy, advocates and analysts told OSV News.| Catholic Review
Amid growing concern about the impact of the Trump administration's rollback of a policy that prohibited immigration enforcement in sensitive locations, the U.S. Catholic bishops have offered their support to a lawsuit challenging the policy change.| Catholic Review
As the sun set over the international border a small cadre of Catholic bishops processed toward Mexico. Flanked by priests, religious brothers and sisters, laity and immigration advocates, the U.S. prelates walked along Main Street in San Luis Oct. 12.| Catholic Review
I was thinking about how often people share with me their reasons for leaving a particular parish.| Catholic Review
Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen is remembered as one of the most influential and innovative evangelists in American history. Once dubbed "God's microphone," Sheen announced God's truth in a nonconfrontational, yet no less life-giving, manner to untold millions through radio, print and television.| Catholic Review
Besides the rite of major exorcism, the church also has several "minor exorcisms" in her treasury of prayers. A minor exorcism is a prayer for protection against and deliverance from evil spirits which can be prayed by any priest in scenarios other than demonic possession.| Catholic Review
Sometimes, you even plant unintentionally, by the way you live your life. If you live like a follower of Jesus, that should show in what you do and say. By being kind and not adding to the divisiveness we experience today, you can be an example for others on how to treat our fellow humans.| Catholic Review
"Dilexi Te" manifests both Pope Leo's recognition that we need to grow in unity and subtly illustrates a means to bring such unity to a fractured church, something he has spoken of from the earliest days of his pontificate.| Catholic Review
Anyone who has had a loved one diagnosed with cancer knows how painful and scary it is. Yet, in that moment and throughout my four years in Rome, the Holy Spirit placed a resounding message in my heart: God will provide.| Catholic Review
In a call to refocus on the heart of Catholic worship, British Cardinal Arthur Roche, head of the Vatican’s liturgy office, urged believers to embrace the wonder of the Eucharist and model their lives on humility and love.| Catholic Review
Joseph “Joe” Swiss Jr., a leading figure in evangelization in the Archdiocese of Baltimore who was known for his embrace of new technologies in spreading the Gospel and his passion for welcoming adults to the Catholic faith, died Sept. 18. He was 77.| Catholic Review
A funeral Mass will be offered Oct. 17 for Sister Maureen Stout in Aston, Pa. A member of the Sisters of St. Francis of Philadelphia for 65 years, Sister Maureen died Oct. 13. She was 86.| Catholic Review
This year’s Life is Beautiful Mass Oct. 19 will honor two women who have spent their lives helping others live theirs.| Catholic Review
This year, 12 men – ages 18 to 35 – have been accepted as seminarians for the archdiocese, including one from Colombia and another from Western Maryland. In total, 60 men are now preparing for the priesthood – up from 28 in formation in 2007 and 52 in 2020. Within the next three years, 22 priests are expected to be ordained.| Catholic Review
A federal bankruptcy judge has approved two property transactions by the Archdiocese of Baltimore, applauding the church and a committee representing abuse survivors for resolving their disputes through negotiation as part of ongoing bankruptcy proceedings Oct. 14 in Baltimore.| Catholic Review
Three months after Cardinal Víctor Manuel Fernández said the Vatican had identified the judges who would form the tribunal in the canonical trial against Slovenian Father Marko Rupnik on charges of spiritual and sexual abuse, the judges were formally nominated.| Catholic Review
Archbishop Gabriele G. Caccia, the Holy See's U.N. permanent observer, shared his thoughts in a statement he delivered Oct. 13 at the U.N. General Assembly's Second Committee Debate on sustainable development.| Catholic Review
Making the first state visit of his papacy, Pope Leo XIV met Italian President Sergio Mattarella and spoke of common concerns, including war, migration, ecology and Italy's declining birthrate.| Catholic Review
In separate videos recorded in English, Spanish and Italian, Pope Leo XIV urged every Catholic parish around the globe to observe World Mission Sunday Oct. 19 and take up the annual collection that supports Catholic missionary work.| Catholic Review
Power, possessions and rank do not satisfy the deep desire for real meaning in life, Pope Leo XIV said.| Catholic Review
During a private audience with Pope Leo XIV, Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva invited the pope to the upcoming U.N. Climate Change Conference, being held for the first time in the heart of the Amazon region.| Catholic Review
At the Red Mass celebrated on the day before the Supreme Court's new term, Washington Cardinal Robert W. McElroy emphasized that "men and women of the law are architects of hope by reason of their vocation."| Catholic Review
Court documents show that a New Jersey man arrested Oct. 5 outside of St. Matthew's Cathedral just hours before the start of the annual Red Mass had a "fully functional" arsenal of explosives that he threatened to detonate.| Catholic Review
The Supreme Court heard oral arguments Oct. 7 in Chiles v. Salazar, a First Amendment challenge to a Colorado law banning professional counseling services that practice "conversion therapy" for minors, efforts intended to change a minor's gender identity that differs from the young person's biological sex or to change their sexual orientation.| Catholic Review
U.S. Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas discussed topics including originalism and his own Catholic faith during remarks Sept. 25 at The Catholic University of America Columbus School of Law.| Catholic Review
Graduate-level and college-level enrollment at Catholic seminaries in the U.S. were down significantly in the 2024-2025 academic year, while high school seminary enrollment has held steady, according to statistics released by the Center for Applied Research in the Apostolate at Georgetown University in its Fall 2025 CARA Report.| Catholic Review
For members of religious orders, obedience is "an act of love" and a powerful witness to the world of how gestures of selflessness are needed to build true community, Pope Leo said.| Catholic Review
The Archdiocese of Baltimore has been blessed with a significant increase in the number of men and women stepping forward to answer the call to religious life. Joining Catholic Review Radio talk about is Father Stephen Roth, Director of Vocations and Associate Vicar for Clergy for the Archdiocese of Baltimore.| Catholic Review
Diocesan bishops and vocations directors are largely satisfied with their seminaries' formation programs -- but some gaps remain between clergy and mental health professionals as to the role of ongoing psychological services in assessing candidates' readiness for ordination, according to a new report.| Catholic Review
Consecrated men and women, who abandon themselves "like children into the arms of the Father," spread "the 'fresh air' of authentic love throughout the world," he said in his homily during Mass in St. Peter's Square Oct. 9, marking the Jubilee of Consecrated Life.| Catholic Review
A prayerful nature walk, reflecting on the gift of our environment, is a great way to honor the Season of Creation.| Catholic Review
Because "true knowledge of God is realized in a life transformed by love," the Catholic Church needs theologians whose pursuit of understanding is framed by care for the real concerns of modern men and women, Pope Leo XIV said.| Catholic Review
Arnold Schwarzenegger told reporters he knows that people get "pumped up" spiritually at Mass, but he wishes he could go to Mass at least once and hear a homily on what Catholics can and should do to reduce pollution.| Catholic Review
A Sept. 18 webinar held by the Maryknoll Office of Global Concern addressed the climate priorities of the peoples of the Global South, especially those of the Amazon region and the Guaraní Aquifer region -- located beneath the surface of Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay and Uruguay. It's the largest known aquifer system in the world.| Catholic Review
The USA East Province of the Society of Jesus flipped the switch this summer on two solar energy projects that will provide clean energy in Maryland.| Catholic Review
Bishop Daniel E. Thomas of Toledo, Ohio, chair of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops' Committee on Pro-life Activities, spoke with OSV News Oct. 1, the first day of Respect Life Month, about maintaining hope in a culture with a widespread disregard for human life and why abortion remains the preeminent issue in the "moral hierarchy" of life.| Catholic Review
Spain's socialist government is pushing for regional "blacklists" of doctors who object to performing abortions, sparking backlash from medical and Catholic leaders.| Catholic Review
The Food and Drug Administration recently approved a new generic form of mifepristone -- a pill commonly, but not exclusively, used for early abortion -- drawing criticism from pro-life advocates. It marks the second time a Trump administration has approved a generic form of the pill.| Catholic Review
Getting old is part of the wonder of creation and is a sign of hope, Pope Leo XIV said.| Catholic Review
A Catholic health care system in California is being sued for its refusal to perform an abortion on a woman who twice experienced miscarriage, with the plaintiff alleging the hospital's religious directives endangered her life while failing to meet the proper "standard of care" for her condition.| Catholic Review
Greeting a pilgrimage of labor union leaders from Chicago, Pope Leo XIV thanked them for helping "to create a society where all can flourish."| Catholic Review
Pope Leo XIV sent a letter commending the work of Catholic Charities USA, the domestic charitable arm of the Catholic Church in the U.S., to mark its 115th annual gathering Oct. 6-9 in San Juan.| Catholic Review
Religious freedom is "a cornerstone of any just society" and contributes to building peace, Pope Leo XIV said.| Catholic Review
The words of "Dilexi Te" ("I Have Loved You") -- the apostolic exhortation on love for the poor released by the Vatican Oct. 9 -- come from the pen of two pontiffs, Pope Francis and Pope Leo XIV.| Catholic Review
Consecrated men and women can wake up the world, being small beacons of light pointing the way to God's plan of peace and salvation for humanity, Pope Leo XIV said.| Catholic Review
Journalists can help stop those who seek to create divisions through "the ancient art of lying" and ruling by dividing, Pope Leo XIV said.| Catholic Review
More than 50 years after graduating from Archbishop Curley High School, Joe Citro is still finding new ways to cheer from the sidelines. He and his wife, Arleen, will cut the ribbon Oct. 18 on The Citro Pavilion – a $500,000 gift that blends Curley’s proud past with its digital future.| Catholic Review
Catholicism cannot complement liberalism; it can only critique it. Catholicism is not liberalism's ally, but its rival. This is because the political, legal and regulatory structures in the U.S. are built upon the foundation of a false moral anthropology.| Catholic Review
A person who willingly abandons their spouse for sinful reasons is probably not a Catholic who takes the faith seriously enough to be swayed by their pastor's admonishments or to be concerned about the sacramental consequences of their actions.| Catholic Review
