The Society of St. Pius X (SSPX), whose members are known as “Lefebvrians,” rejected the recent excommunications decreed by the Vatican after consecrating four bishops without papal authorization on July 1 and asserted that the sanctions imposed are “objectively unjust and invalid.” In a letter addressed to Pope Leo XIV, released on July 3, Father…

PHILADELPHIA — Pope Leo XIV said he was “honored” to accept the 2026 Liberty Medal from the National Constitution Center (NCC) in livestreamed remarks delivered for the ceremony in Philadelphia on July 3. “I am honored to accept the Liberty Medal of the National Constitution Center in this year that marks the 250th anniversary of…

The Vatican this week issued a decree declaring that the bishops involved in the traditionalist Society of St. Pius X’s illicit consecrations have incurred automatic excommunication and that the group is in schism with the Church. The illicit ordinations occurred in Écône, Switzerland, on July 2 after Pope Leo XIV had urged the group to…

Pope Leo XIV celebrated the contributions of Catholics and immigrants to the United States in an open letter to Americans for the country’s 250th anniversary. The letter, dated June 25 and released by the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops on Friday, also highlighted the principles of religious freedom and the right to life. Unknown block…

Pakistani Christians are mourning the death of a 61-year-old Catholic accused of blasphemy who died in custody after months of deteriorating health, renewing concerns over the treatment of vulnerable prisoners and the misuse of Pakistanʼs blasphemy laws. Amir Peter, the younger brother of Capuchin Father Henry Paul, parish priest of St. Francis Church in Lahore,…

Peter’s Pence, the Holy See’s fund that gathers donations for the pope’s charitable works and the needs of the universal Church, closed 2025 with an income of 57.6 million euros ($65.8 million) and expenses of 59.8 million euros ($68.3 million). The Vatican attributes the 2.2-million-euro ($2.5 million) deficit to currency exchange rate fluctuations, according to…