WASHINGTON— Timothy Cardinal Dolan, Archbishop of New York and Co-Chair of the USCCB’s dialogue with the National Council of Synagogues, praised Pope Francis’ recent announcement regarding the opening of the Vatican Archives from the wartime pontificate of Pope Pius XII. “I am grateful to His Holiness for taking this welcome step and allowing scholars to examine the records of Pope Pius XII’s pontificate during the Second World War,” commented Cardinal Dolan. “Along with our Jewish partners and colleagues, I have previously called for access to these files. Today, we look forward to the 2020 opening of the Archives.” In...

WASHINGTON—Cardinal Daniel DiNardo, Archbishop of Galveston-Houston and the President of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops has sent a letter to the Most Reverend Gregory John Mansour, Bishop of the Eparchy of Saint Maron of Brooklyn, following the tragic plane crash yesterday. Bishop Mansour serves as the chairman of the board of Catholic Relief Services. Of the 157 lives lost, four were employees of Catholic Relief Services. The full letter is below: Dear Bishop Mansour, It was with great sadness that I learned of the deaths of four of our esteemed colleagues from Catholic Relief Services who were...

WASHINGTON—The publishing division of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops has recently made available a revised translation of the rite for blessing the holy oils, entitled the Order of Blessing the Oil of Catechumens and of the Sick and of Consecrating the Chrism. The book is used at the Chrism Mass, which is one of the highlights of the year in a diocese, normally held on Holy Thursday morning or on an earlier day of Holy Week. At that Mass the bishop, surrounded by a great number of clergy, religious, and faithful, blesses new holy oils for the coming...

WASHINGTON—After tornadoes killed more than 20 people in Lee County, Alabama, and caused destruction in Georgia and surrounding states over the weekend, Daniel Cardinal DiNardo, Archbishop of Galveston-Houston and President of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, and Bishop Frank Dewane of Venice, FL, Chairman of the Committee on Domestic Justice and Human Development, expressed sorrow for those in mourning and encouraged hope and generous support at the beginning of the Lenten season. The full statement follows: “It is with heavy hearts that we continue to learn about the destruction in Alabama and Georgia from tornadoes over the weekend....

WASHINGTON— Pope Francis has appointed the Reverend Monsignor Alejandro D. Aclan as Auxiliary Bishop of Los Angeles. The Pope has also accepted the resignation of Bishop Armando Xavier Ochoa from the pastoral governance of the Diocese of Fresno and appointed as Bishop of that same See the Most Reverend Joseph V. Brennan, up until now Auxiliary Bishop of Los Angeles. Bishop Ochoa has reached the retirement age for bishops of 75. The Pope has also named Bishop David Talley as Bishop of the Diocese of Memphis. The appointments and resignation were publicized in Washington on March 5, 2019, by...

WASHINGTON–Ecumenical and interfaith leaders renewed their call to urge Congress to repeal a change to the Internal Revenue Code that will imminently tax nonprofit organizations—including houses of worship—for the cost of parking and transit benefits they provide to their employees. Section 512(a)(7) has been commonly referred to as the “parking lot tax”. Leadership from a variety of nonprofits, religious and educational institutions, and houses of worship sent a letter to the House Ways and Means Committee Chairman and Ranking Member asking for Congressional action to address this concern. The letter states, in part: “This provision effectively creates an income...