WASHINGTON - On the weekend of December 13-14, the faithful will have the opportunity to support more than 21,000 elderly sisters, brothers and religious order priests. Coordinated by the National Religious Retirement Office (NRRO), the annual collection taken up by participating (arch)dioceses helps provide critical financial assistance to eligible religious institutes caring for their retired members.

For decades, women and men religious have devoted their lives to service through countless Church ministries, often for little to no pay. Today, their communities face a severe gap between the rising cost of care and the limited resources available. In 2024, religious past the age of 70 outnumbered younger religious by nearly three to one, and only 4% of communities reporting to the NRRO said they were adequately funded for retirement.

Since 1988, the Retirement Fund for Religious has been a lifeline for our aging religious, but the need remains urgent. In 2024, the collection raised $28.1 million, while annual care costs for senior religious exceeded $1 billion. The average annual cost to care for senior religious, as reported by the NRRO, is $56,600 per person, with skilled nursing averaging $96,000. The typical Social Security benefit for a religious is just $9,090—less than half that of the average lay beneficiary. This gap underscores the critical importance of the national appeal.

“For decades, the faithful service of these religious has touched countless lives, including my own,” said NRRO director John Knutsen. “Through your generosity, we can help ensure they are cared for with the dignity they so rightly deserve while also living out the values of compassion and solidarity that unite us as disciples of Jesus.”

“Supporting our aging religious is a profound opportunity to show gratitude for their lifetime of service, and we hear all throughout the year how deeply thankful they are for that support,” he continues. 

Since its inception, the collection has distributed more than $1 billion to religious institutes across the U.S., supporting day-to-day care and helping religious communities build up their retirement funds. It also funds educational programs for eldercare and long-term retirement planning. Every gift makes a difference, providing retired religious with the care and dignity they deserve.

For more information, please visit retiredreligious.org.

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VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Christ crucified and risen has tamed and transfigured death with his love, Pope Leo XIV said.

"We are saddened, of course, when a loved one leaves us," the pope said in his homily Nov. 3, during a memorial Mass for Pope Francis and the world's cardinals and bishops who died over the past year.

"We are scandalized when a human being, especially a child, a 'little one,' a fragile person, is taken away by illness or, worse, by human violence," he said during the Mass in St. Peter's Basilica.

"As Christians, we are called to carry the weight of these crosses with Christ," he said. "But we are not sad like those who have no hope, because even the most tragic death cannot prevent our Lord from welcoming our soul into his arms and transforming our mortal body, even the most disfigured, into the image of his glorious body."

The worst form of death, he said, is "violent death that kills the innocent" and leaves people "disheartened, discouraged and desperate."

"How many people, how many 'little ones,' today suffer the trauma of this frightening death because it is disfigured by sin," Pope Leo said. God the Father does not want this form of death, "and he sent his Son into the world to free us from it." 

"The love of Christ crucified and risen has transfigured death: from enemy, He has made it sister, He has tamed it," he said. And in the face of death, we do not 'grieve like the rest who have no hope,'" he said.

For this reason, Christians do not call burial places "'necropolises,' meaning 'cities of the dead,' but 'cemeteries,' which literally means 'dormitories,' places where one rests, awaiting resurrection," Pope Leo said. As the psalmist prophesies (Ps 4:9): "In peace I will lie down and fall asleep, for you alone, Lord, make me secure."

"With great affection," Pope Leo said, the Nov. 3 Mass was offered for the soul of Pope Francis, "who died after opening the Holy Door and imparting the Easter blessing to Rome and the world." Pope Francis died April 21, 2025, Easter Monday.

"Our beloved Pope Francis and our brother cardinals and bishops," he said, "have lived, witnessed and taught this new paschal hope. The Lord called them and appointed them as shepherds in his church, and through their ministry they -- to use the language of the Book of Daniel -- have led 'the many to justice.'"

"That is, they have guided them on the path of the Gospel with the wisdom that comes from Christ, who has become for us wisdom, righteousness, sanctification and redemption," Pope Leo said.

"May their souls be washed clean of every stain and may they shine like stars in the sky," he said. "And may their spiritual encouragement reach us, still pilgrims on earth, in the silence of prayer: 'for I shall again praise him, my savior and my God.'"

The booklet for the Mass listed the names and dates of death of Pope Francis, eight cardinals and 134 bishops who died over the past year.

Pope: Christians don't lose hope in the face of death

Pope Leo XIV prayed for deceased popes in the crypt of St. Peter's Basilica the evening of the feast of All Souls' and the following morning, Nov. 3, celebrated a memorial Mass in St. Peter's Basilica for Pope Francis and all the cardinals and bishops...

ROME (CNS) -- As Christians visit cemeteries on the feast of All Souls and remember their loved ones who have died, they do so with faith that at the end of this life they will be together again with the Lord, Pope Leo XIV said.

The pope celebrated Mass Nov. 2, the feast of All Souls, at Rome's largest cemetery, Verano, which covers more than 200 acres.

"The Lord awaits us, and when we finally meet him at the end of our earthly journey, we shall rejoice with him and with our loved ones who have gone before us," the pope told about 2,000 people who had gathered on a road among the tombs for the Mass.

"May this promise sustain us, dry our tears and raise our gaze upward toward the hope for the future that never fades," he said.

Arriving at the cemetery, he set a bouquet of white roses on one of the tombs, and at the end of the Mass he blessed the graves with holy water before leading the traditional prayer, "Eternal rest grant unto them, O Lord, and let perpetual light shine upon them." 

The pope began his homily by speaking about the loved ones buried at Verano, telling the congregation that "we continue to carry them with us in our hearts, and their memory remains always alive within us amid our daily lives"

"Often," he said, "something brings them to mind, and we recall experiences we once shared with them. Many places, even the fragrance of our homes, speak to us of those we have loved and who have gone before us, vividly maintaining their memory for us."

For those who believe that Jesus conquered death, the pope said, "it is not so much about looking back, but instead looking forward toward the goal of our journey, toward the safe harbor that God has promised us, toward the unending feast that awaits us."

"There, around the Risen Lord and our loved ones, we hope to savor the joy of the eternal banquet," he said. 

Belief in eternal life, the pope said, "is not an illusion for soothing the pain of our separation from loved ones, nor is it mere human optimism. Instead, it is the hope founded on the Resurrection of Jesus who has conquered death and opened for us the path to the fullness of life."

After the Mass, Pope Leo visited the tombs of the popes buried in the grotto under St. Peter's Basilica.

Earlier in the day, the pope led the recitation of the Angelus prayer with thousands of visitors gathered in St. Peter's Square.

He told them he would be going to the cemetery to celebrate Mass for all the faithful departed. 

"In spirit, I will visit the graves of my loved ones" -- his mother died in 1990 and his father in 1997 -- "and I will also pray for those who have no one to remember them. But our heavenly Father knows and loves each of us, and he forgets no one!"

Citing Pope Benedict XVI's encyclical on hope, Pope Leo said that "eternal life" can be thought of not as "a succession of time without end, but being so immersed in an ocean of infinite love that time, before and after no longer exist."

Such a "fullness of life and joy in Christ is what we hope for and await with all our being," Pope Leo said.

Praying for the dead, he said, is not just about remembering a loss, but it is a sign of belief that in the death and resurrection of Jesus, no one will be lost.

Pope Leo prayed, "May the familiar voice of Jesus reach us, and reach everyone, because it is the only one that comes from the future. May he call us by name, prepare a place for us, free us from that sense of helplessness that tempts us to give up on life."
 

Pope Leo prays for the dead

On the feast of All Souls, Pope Leo  celebrated a late-afternoon Mass at Rome's Verano cemetery.

VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- The lives of St. John Henry Newman and of all the saints teach Christians that "it is possible to live passionately amidst the complexity of the present without neglecting the apostolic mandate to 'shine like stars in the world,'" Pope Leo XIV said.

Celebrating Mass Nov. 1, the feast of All Saints, Pope Leo concluded the Jubilee of the World of Education and proclaimed St. Newman the 38th doctor of the church, including him among the men and women of the Christian East and West who have made decisive contributions to theology and spirituality.

Earlier in the week, Pope Leo had officially recognized St. Newman as co-patron of education along with St. Thomas Aquinas.

St. Newman was born in London Feb. 21, 1801, was ordained an Anglican priest in 1825, became Catholic in 1845 and was made a cardinal in 1879 by Pope Leo XIII. He died in 1890. 

Leading members of the Anglican Church of England and the British government attended the Mass where he was declared a doctor of the church. The Anglican delegation was led by Archbishop Stephen Cottrell of York, currently the top-ranking prelate of the Church of England. The government delegation was led by David Lammy, deputy prime minister of the United Kingdom and secretary of state for justice.

Greeting Archbishop Cottrell publicly at the end of Mass, Pope Leo prayed that St. Newman would "accompany the journey of Christians toward full unity."

The banner used during St. Newman's canonization Mass in 2019 hung from the central balcony of St. Peter's Basilica during the Mass and his relics were placed on a table near the altar.

While St. Newman's theology, philosophy and thoughts about university education were cited in the Dicastery for the Causes of Saints' presentation at the Mass, Pope Leo chose to quote in his homily from the British saint's poem, "Lead, Kindly Light," now a popular hymn. 

"In that beautiful prayer" of St. Newman's, the pope said, "we come to realize that we are far from home, our feet are unsteady, we cannot interpret clearly the way ahead. Yet none of this impedes us, since we have found our guide" in Jesus.

"Lead, Kindly Light, amid th’encircling gloom, Lead Thou me on," the pope quoted in English while reading his homily in Italian.

Speaking to the teachers, professors and other educators gathered for the Mass in St. Peter's Square, Pope Leo said, "The task of education is precisely to offer this Kindly Light to those who might otherwise remain imprisoned by the particularly insidious shadows of pessimism and fear." 

The pope asked the educators to "reflect upon and point out to others those 'constellations' that transmit light and guidance at this present time, which is darkened by so much injustice and uncertainty."

He also encouraged them "to ensure that schools, universities and every educational context, even those that are informal or street-based, are always gateways to a civilization of dialogue and peace."

Another quote from St. Newman -- "God has created me to do Him some definite service; He has committed some work to me which He has not committed to another" -- expresses "the mystery of the dignity of every human person, and also the variety of gifts distributed by God," the pope said.

Catholic educators, he said, have an obligation not only to transmit information but also to help their students discover how much God loves them and how he has a plan for their lives.

"Life shines brightly not because we are rich, beautiful or powerful," the pope said. "Instead, it shines when we discover within ourselves the truth that we are called by God, have a vocation, have a mission, that our lives serve something greater than ourselves." 

"Every single creature has a role to play," he said. "The contribution that each person can make is uniquely valuable, and the task of educational communities is to encourage and cherish that contribution."

"At the heart of the educational journey," Pope Leo said, "we do not find abstract individuals but real people, especially those who seem to be underperforming according to the parameters of economies that exclude or even kill them. We are called to form people, so that they may shine like stars in their full dignity."

Lammy, the British government official, told Catholic News Service that he had had the "great honor and privilege" to meet Pope Leo before the Mass.

As a member of the Anglo-Catholic tradition within the Church of England, he said he believes "John Henry Newman really encapsulates the deep connections between our countries and between the Christian communities, across the Christian community."

The proclamation was "a moment of unity and reflection," Lammy said. "It's not just a religious honor, but a powerful moment of cohesion that shows how engaging in our differences can also unite us."

St. Newman's legacy, he said, "reminds us that Britain's religious story is broader than one tradition. It's been enriched by Catholic thought, courage and contribution."

In addition, the deputy prime minister said, "I think his life and his writings show how belief and reason together can guide moral leadership, diplomacy, compassion, and I think in an age of polarization, Newman's insistence on moral reflection calls us back to what truly matters, which is leadership in the cause of what is right and just, which is a principle that should shape our politics."
 

Pope Leo declares Newman doctor of the church

During a Mass in St. Peter's Square Nov. 1, feast of All Saints, Pope Leo XIV declared St. John Henry Newman to be the 38th doctor of the church.

WASHINGTON - “With the Administration signaling a severely limited continuation of this historically bipartisan program, we urge due consideration for all those who have long awaited their opportunity for relief,” said Bishop Mark J. Seitz of El Paso, chairman of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ (USCCB) Committee on Migration. Bishop Seitz’s remarks follow the Administration’s formal publication of the Presidential Determination on Refugee Admissions for Fiscal Year 2026, which allows up to 7,500 refugees to be resettled over the next year. This is the lowest ceiling since the program was created by Congress in 1980. 

At the start of this year, over 100,000 people had already undergone extensive screening by the U.S. government and were conditionally approved for refugee status in the United States, including vulnerable children and those seeking to reunify with family members. However, on the first day of his second term, President Trump signed an executive order indefinitely suspending refugee resettlement. Since then, very few refugees have been permitted to travel to the United States as exceptions to the executive order, largely consistent with recent presidential actions prioritizing Afrikaners from South Africa under Executive Order 14204. 

Bishop Seitz’s full statement follows: 

“For over 45 years, the U.S. Refugee Admissions Program has been, and continues to be, a safe and secure legal pathway for people from around the world who meet the requirements for humanitarian protection. It is a vital mechanism through which our nation can exist as a beacon of hope for those facing persecution and promote respect for the sanctity of human life. What President Reagan said in 1981 about refugee policy being ‘an important part of our past and fundamental to our national interest’ very much rings true today. With the Administration signaling a severely limited continuation of this historically bipartisan program, we urge due consideration for all those who have long awaited their opportunity for relief. We also pray for the broad, indefinite suspension of refugee admissions to be lifted, and we implore the President to make the program available to those truly in need. 

“We cannot turn a blind eye to the disparate treatment of refugees currently taking place. As exemptions are considered, it is essential that they be applied consistently and without discrimination on the basis of race, religion, or national origin, in accordance with longstanding domestic and international norms. Resettlement tainted by the perception of unjust discrimination is contrary to Catholic teaching and quintessential American values, grounded in our Constitution and refugee laws, including the equality of every person from the moment of their creation by God.”

Earlier this year, the USCCB announced that it would discontinue its role as a national resettlement agency. However, Archbishop Timothy P. Broglio, president of the USCCB, emphasized that the decision would not mean the Catholic Church would be walking away from helping refugees and others, but rather, that the USCCB would find other ways to uphold the Gospel’s call to do what we can for the least among us.

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VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Pope Leo XIV encouraged an international group of young adults to reach out to their peers and invite them to be active members of a parish community rather than trying to live their faith alone.

The pope met Oct. 31 with members of the International Youth Advisory Body, a group of 20 young adults from around the world who serve three-year terms as advisers to the Dicastery for Laity, the Family and Life.

The North American members are Sally Yasmine from the Archdiocese of Montreal and Wyatt Olivas from the Diocese of Cheyenne, Wyoming.

Pope Leo had a prepared speech for the group but handed them a copy of the text rather than reading it. 

"You know that in recent years many young people have approached the faith through social media, successful programs and popular online Christian witnesses," the pope wrote. "The danger is that a faith discovered online is limited to individual experiences, which may be intellectually and emotionally reassuring, but are never 'embodied.'"

The risk, he wrote, is that those spiritual experiences "remain 'disembodied,' detached from the 'ecclesial body,'" which is the church.

Another danger, he said, is that they are not lived "alongside others in real-life situations, relationships or sharing. All too often, social media algorithms merely create a sounding board for individuals, picking up on personal preferences and tastes, and 'sending them back' magnified and enriched with appealing proposals."

In that kind of digital echo chamber, he said, "everyone remains alone with themselves, prisoners of their own inclinations and projections."

Young people are essential members of the church, the pope said, especially a church that is striving to be "synodal," listening to all members, praying and discerning together and calling on each person to contribute their talents.

"Authentic synodality leads to mission," the pope wrote. And part of that is being involved so that the church understands "how to bring the Gospel to everyone." 

"All of this requires that you, young people, have open hearts, ready to listen both to the 'inspirations' of the Spirit and the deep 'aspirations' of each person," Pope Leo wrote.

"You must look beyond appearances in order to seek the true answers that give meaning to life.  You must have hearts that are open to God's call and not engrossed in your own plans and are willing to understand and sympathize before forming judgments."

Pope Leo asked the young people particularly to help the church "hear the voices of the weak, the poor and the lonely, refugees and those who struggle to integrate into society, or to access educational opportunities."

"All too often," he said, "these voices are drowned out by the noise of the powerful, the successful and those who live in 'exclusive' realities."

Being missionary, the pope wrote, "entails freedom from fear, because the Lord loves to call us to forge new paths. In this sense, as young people, you can be leaders of creativity and courage."
 

VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Young people must take control of technology and "humanize" online spaces to be friendly, creative places -- not isolated echo chambers, forms of addiction or ways to escape, Pope Leo XIV said.

"Instead of being tourists on the web, be prophets in the digital world!" he told thousands of students gathered in the Paul VI Audience Hall Oct. 30.

"How wonderful it would be if one day your generation were remembered as the 'generation plus,'" he told the mostly Gen-Z crowd to applause, "remembered for the extra drive you brought to the church and the world."

The pope's meeting with students, including seminarians, was part of the Oct. 27-Nov. 1 Jubilee of the World of Education. The week of jubilee events included a papal Mass and audiences with educators as well as students and staff at Rome's pontifical universities.

Pope Leo shook hands and chatted with the excited throngs of students lined up behind wooden barricades outside the audience hall and in the hall's large atrium before the start of the meeting. 

"I have been looking forward to this moment with great excitement," he said in his address on stage, because it "reminds me of the years when I taught mathematics to lively young people like you." The U.S. pope earned a degree in mathematics at Villanova University in Pennsylvania in 1977 and was a substitute and summer school teacher for math and physics at St. Rita High School in the Ashburn neighborhood of Chicago in the 1980s. 

Education, he said, is "one of the most beautiful and powerful tools for changing the world."

But it requires everyone, including students, to form alliances and work together, he said, highlighting the importance of the Global Compact on Education, launched by Pope Francis in 2019.

The compact represents "an alliance of all those who, in various ways, work in the field of education and culture, to engage younger generations in universal fraternity," Pope Leo said.

Students "are not just recipients of education, but its protagonists," he said.

"You are called to be truth-speakers and peacemakers, people who stand by their word and are builders of peace," he told the students. "Involve your peers in the search for truth and the cultivation of peace, expressing these two passions with your lives, your words and your daily actions."

Among the new challenges that require a joint commitment in the global compact is digital education, the pope said.

"There are enormous opportunities for study and communication" in the digital world, he said. "But, do not let the algorithm write your story! Be the authors yourselves; use technology wisely, but do not let technology use you." 

When it comes to artificial intelligence, he added, "it is not enough to be 'intelligent' in virtual reality; we must also treat one another humanely, nurturing emotional, spiritual, social and ecological intelligence."

"Therefore, I say to you: learn to humanize the digital, building it as a space of fraternity and creativity -- not a cage where you lock yourselves in, not an addiction or an escape," he said. 

Pope Leo held up St. Carlo Acutis as a "timely example" of a young person "who did not become a slave to the internet, but rather used it skillfully for good" and as a tool for evangelization.

Another new challenge young people had proposed for the compact is getting help "in our education of the interior life," the pope said, because "having a great deal of knowledge is not enough if we do not know who we are or what the meaning of life is."

Young people may experience "that feeling of emptiness or restlessness that does not leave you in peace," he said, or "episodes of distress, violence, bullying," oppression or isolation.

"I think that behind this suffering lies also a void created by a society that has forgotten how to form the spiritual dimension of the human person, focusing only on the technical, social or moral aspects of life," he said.

However, he said, "our desire for the infinite is a compass that tells us: 'Do not settle -- you are made for something greater'; 'do not simply get along, but live.'"

A good role model, he said, is St. Pier Giorgio Frassati, who aimed for "the heights" by living with faith in God. 

"Have the courage to live life to the fullest. Do not settle for appearances or fads; a life stifled by fleeting pleasures will never satisfy us," Pope Leo told the young people. "Instead, let each of you say in your heart: 'I dream of more, Lord; I long for something greater; inspire me!'"

"Keep striving 'toward the heights,' lighting the beacon of hope in the dark hours of history," he said.

The third challenge the pope gave the young people is to be peacemakers.

"We must disarm hearts, renouncing all violence and vulgarity," with "an education for peace that is disarmed and disarming," he said.

"A disarming and disarmed education creates equality and growth for all, recognizing the equal dignity of every young person, without ever dividing young people between the privileged few who have access to expensive schools and the many who do not have access to education," the pope said.

"I invite you to be peacemakers first and foremost where you live -- in your families, at school, in sports and among your friends -- reaching out to those who come from other cultures," he said.

ROME (CNS) -- Pope Leo XIV's recognition of St. John Henry Newman as a "doctor of the church" will be an ecumenical celebration, a sign of esteem for the excellence and ongoing relevance of his teaching, first as an Anglican and then as a Roman Catholic, said a key figure in preparing the declaration.

Anglican Archbishop Stephen Cottrell of York, currently the ranking prelate of the Church of England, was scheduled to lead an Anglican delegation to the formal proclamation Nov. 1 by Pope Leo of St. Newman as a doctor of the church.

Father George Bowen, a priest of the London Oratory and postulator, or official promoter, of St. Newman being named a doctor of the church, spoke with journalists about the process and its implications Oct. 30.

Becoming only the 38th doctor of the church, Father Bowen said, "is not about being intelligent. It's not about being bright. It's about saying something timeless about the church's teaching, putting into words something eminent, something that stands out."

Father Bowen oversaw the compilation and submission to the Vatican of the 600-page "positio" or position paper outlining why St. Newman should be recognized as a doctor of the church. The process began almost immediately after St. Newman's canonization in 2019 and includes letters of support from bishops' conferences and individual bishops -- including many Anglicans, the priest said.

St. Newman was born in London Feb. 21, 1801, was ordained an Anglican priest, became Catholic in 1845, was made a cardinal in 1879 by Pope Leo XIII. He died in 1890. 

"Newman's journey really began as a nominal Christian, baptized Christian who suddenly found faith in the Church of England through the influence of schoolteachers," Father Bowen said. "For all of his life, he was very conscious that half his life was spent in the Church of England. And this was something that was immensely important to him," and "he always recognized as a Catholic that he brought with him all that he had learned about Christ" as an Anglican.

"So, Newman is a big ecumenical figure in the sense that he owes his faith to his upbringing in the Church of England," the priest said. In fact, later in life, St. Newman republished the works he had written as an Anglican with new prefaces and some notes, "but basically saying, 'I'm proud of all this stuff.'"

Anglican Father William Lamb, vicar of the University Church of St. Mary the Virgin at Oxford, where St. Newman had served as vicar from 1828 to 1843, was at the Vatican for the saint's canonization and returned for the proclamation as doctor of the church.

"No one can stand at the altar or preach from the pulpit from which he preached and be unaware of his legacy," he told Catholic News Service Oct. 30.

"In recognizing St. John Henry Newman as a doctor of the universal church," Father Lamb said, "Pope Leo has made a significant and gracious ecumenical gesture in acknowledging the influence of this Anglican patrimony."

After the visit of Britain's King Charles III, which included prayer with the pope in the Sistine Chapel, the Anglican priest said, "I continue to pray for positive ecumenical relations and an ever-greater commitment to seek the gift of unity in a world which is so often fractured and estranged." 

St. Newman and the "Oxford Movement" within Anglicanism "have shaped the life and spirituality of the University Church in many ways," Father Lamb said. "Every Sunday when we celebrate the Eucharist, we use a chalice that Newman gave to St. Mary's when he was the vicar."

But the saint's legacy also is broader and continues to impact the university, he said.

"Newman contributed to the reform of the tutorial system, one of the hallmarks of an Oxford education, when he was a tutor at Oriel College," Father Lamb said. "We celebrate not only his legacy as a theologian but also his contribution to the world of higher education. His 'Idea of a University' remains a key point of reference for the debate about both the value and the future of higher education."

VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- At a time when so many people and the planet are suffering, the world's religions need to come together to promote truth, compassion, reconciliation, justice and peace, Pope Leo XIV said.

"Today we are called upon to rekindle that hope in our world, devastated by war and our degraded natural environment," the pope said Oct. 29 during his weekly general audience in St. Peter's Square.

"Let us collaborate, because if we are united, everything is possible. Let us ensure that nothing divides us," he said, addressing the many representatives of Christianity, Judaism, Islam, Hinduism, Jainism, Sikhism, Buddhism and other religions that were present at the audience.

Many of the leaders had been in Rome for a meeting of religions for peace sponsored by the Community of Sant'Egidio and a series of events, including a nighttime celebration Oct. 28, marking the 60th anniversary of "Nostra Aetate," the Second Vatican Council's declaration on relations with Judaism, Islam and other world religions. 

In fact, Pope Leo set aside his ongoing series of audience talks on the Jubilee theme, "Jesus Christ our Hope," to dedicate the Oct. 29 audience to "Nostra Aetate," which was promulgated 60 years ago: Oct. 28, 1965.

The first focus of the landmark document "was toward the Jewish world," the pope said. "For the first time in the history of the church, a doctrinal treatise on the Jewish roots of Christianity was to take shape, which on a biblical and theological level would represent a point of no return."

While much has been achieved in Jewish-Catholic dialogue over the past six decades, he said, "we cannot deny that there have been misunderstandings, difficulties and conflicts in this period, but these have never prevented the dialogue from continuing."

"Even today, we must not allow political circumstances and the injustices of some to divert us from friendship, especially since we have achieved so much so far," he said.

Quoting "Nostra Aetate," the Catholic Church, "mindful of the patrimony she shares with the Jews and moved not by political reasons but by the Gospel's spiritual love, decries hatred, persecutions, displays of antisemitism, directed against Jews at any time and by anyone," he said to applause.

"Since then, all my predecessors have condemned antisemitism with clear words," Pope Leo said. "And so I too confirm that the church does not tolerate antisemitism and fights against it, on the basis of the Gospel itself," which was also followed by applause.

"The spirit of 'Nostra Aetate' continues to illuminate the path of the church," which recognizes that all religions can reflect "a ray of that Truth which enlightens all men," he said, citing the document.

Today, more than ever, he said, all of the world's religions need to act together. "Our world needs our unity, our friendship and our collaboration."

"Each one of our religions can contribute to alleviating human suffering and taking care of our common home, our planet Earth," he said. "Our respective traditions teach truth, compassion, reconciliation, justice and peace. We must reaffirm service to humanity at all times." 

In addition to remaining "vigilant against the abuse of the name of God, of religion and of dialogue itself, as well as against the dangers posed by religious fundamentalism and extremism," he said, "we must also face the responsible development of artificial intelligence."

If AI is intended to be "an alternative to humans, it can gravely violate their infinite dignity and neutralize their fundamental responsibilities," the pope said. "Our traditions have an immense contribution to make to the humanization of technology and therefore to inspire its regulation, to protect fundamental human rights."

"The declaration invites all Catholics -- bishops, clergy, consecrated persons and lay faithful -- to involve themselves sincerely in dialogue and in collaboration with the followers of other religions, recognizing and promoting all that is good, true and holy in their traditions," Pope Leo said.

"'Nostra Aetate' reminds us that true dialogue is rooted in love, the only foundation of peace, justice and reconciliation, whereas it firmly rejects every form of discrimination or persecution, affirming the equal dignity of every human being," he said.

"We must restore hope to our personal lives, our families, our neighborhoods, our schools, our villages, our countries and our world," he said. "This hope is based on our religious convictions, on the conviction that a new world is possible."

Concluding his remarks, Pope Leo then led a moment of silent prayer since "prayer has the power to transform our attitudes, our thoughts, our words and our actions."

Pope Leo: A world without division is possible!

A look at Pope Leo's general audience Oct. 29, 2025. (CNS video/Robert Duncan)

WASHINGTON – As Hurricane Melissa continues its devastating course through the Caribbean, Archbishop Timothy P. Broglio, president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, urged Catholics to pray for and support the people and communities impacted by the Category 5 hurricane.

“Hurricane Melissa, one of the strongest Atlantic hurricanes in history, has made landfall in Jamaica, had an impact in Haiti, and prompted the evacuation of hundreds of thousands in Cuba. As Hurricane Melissa affects the Caribbean region, families face severe risk of flooding, landslides, displacement, and infrastructure damage with little resources to respond. Our brothers and sisters in small island nations like Jamaica, Cuba, and Haiti are the most vulnerable to the impact of such strong storms, often intensified by a warming climate. The Church accompanies, through prayer and action, all people who are suffering. I urge Catholics and all people of good will to join me in praying for the safety and protection of everyone, especially first responders, in these devastated areas. Let us stand in solidarity by supporting the efforts of organizations already on the ground such as Caritas Haiti, Caritas Cuba, and Caritas Antilles, as well as Catholic Relief Services, who are supplying essential, direct services and accompaniment to those in need.”

Catholics and all people of good will can support the urgent and ongoing relief efforts, and long-term recovery work of Catholic Relief Services, the official international aid organization of the Catholic Church in the United States.

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