Former U.S. Ambassador-at-Large for International Religious Freedom Sam Brownback (right) speaks to “EWTN News Nightly” anchor Mark Irons on Friday, April 11, 2025. / Credit; “EWTN News Nightly”

CNA Staff, Apr 12, 2025 / 10:00 am (CNA).

Former U.S. Ambassador-at-Large for International Religious Freedom Sam Brownback on Friday praised President Donald Trump’s choice of former U.S. Rep. Mark Walker for the position, hailing the nominee as an “excellent pick” who will advance religious liberty worldwide.

Brownback served in the religious freedom role from 2018 until 2021. He was the first Catholic to serve in that role; he was the governor of Kansas prior to the appointment and also served as a U.S. senator.

Trump announced Walker’s nomination on Thursday. Appearing on “EWTN News Nightly” on Friday night, Brownback told anchor Mark Irons that Walker brings “several real key assets” to the role.

“No. 1 is he knows the president well, and the president knows him,” Brownback said. “And that’s the key piece for the ambassador, is just that he can be out there and speaking for the president of the United States. And whenever he travels around the world, he’s speaking for the president, and people respect that.”

“No. 2, he’s been a pastor,” Brownback continued, referring to Walker’s Southern Baptist ministry. “So he really knows the issues and it’s in his heart, it’s in his DNA. This is what he is, this is what he’s about.”

“And then he’s been in Congress," he added. “So he knows the Hill. And the Hill is critically important on pushing religious freedom around the world — for people to know that you understand how the process works, you have friends where the process works and you mean what you say and you’re going to get things done. I think this is a really excellent pick for the president.”

Brownback noted that “a lot” goes into the ambassadorship position “because religious freedom has become the cornerstone human rights issues for those of us on the right.”

“And it’s an issue around which, if you can get it established in countries, you can build your other human rights — right of assembly, the right of free speech, these other things, if you can get this foundational issue set right.”

Freedom of religion, Brownback noted, is attacked “particularly by authoritarians” including the Chinese Communist Party.

“They are all about eliminating religious freedom,” he said. “To them, it’s an existential threat. To us, it’s a cornerstone human right. There really couldn’t be a bigger dichotomy, and carrying that message and pushing it around the world is what the ambassador does.”

On Thursday, after his nomination was announced, Walker said in a statement that he was “open-eyed to the bad actors and regions committing [atrocities] against people of faith.”

“Religious expression is the foundation of human rights and, whether it’s a college campus in New York or Sub-Saharan Africa, I’ll be relentless in fighting for those targeted who dare to live out their faith,” the nominee said.

Pope Francis kneels in prayer before the revered Marian icon “Salus Populi Romani” at the Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore in Rome on April 12, 2025. / Credit: Holy See Press Office

CNA Newsroom, Apr 12, 2025 / 09:20 am (CNA).

Pope Francis made a prayerful pilgrimage to the Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore on Saturday afternoon, continuing the pontiff’s gradual return to public appearances ahead of Holy Week celebrations.

The 88-year-old pope paused to pray before the venerated icon of the Virgin Mary known as “Salus Populi Romani” (“Protectress of the Roman People”), according to a Vatican statement released Saturday.

This visit marks another step in Francis’ cautious comeback to public life following his recent health challenges. The pope has been largely absent from public view since his release from Rome’s Gemelli Hospital approximately three weeks ago, where he was treated for a respiratory infection.

Saturday’s visit to the Marian basilica comes on the eve of Palm Sunday, which inaugurates Holy Week in the Catholic liturgical calendar. The Vatican has yet to confirm Francis’ participation in upcoming Easter celebrations, with officials indicating that decisions regarding his role in the Easter Triduum will be made “at the last minute.”

According to medical updates, the pontiff continues to receive respiratory therapy and motor physiotherapy, though his need for supplemental oxygen has decreased in frequency.

Cardinal Leonardo Sandri, vice dean of the College of Cardinals, is scheduled to preside over Palm Sunday Mass as Pope Francis’ delegate.

Seminarians live active lives, balancing prayer, studies, fraternity, and exercise. The Nazareth House provides seminarians with a healthy space to recreate, pray, cook, and share meals together. / Credit: Mike McCleary/University of Mary

CNA Staff, Apr 12, 2025 / 09:00 am (CNA).

A Catholic liberal arts university based in North Dakota is partnering with the Diocese of Phoenix to develop Arizona’s only Catholic seminary.

Despite now being home to more than 2 million Catholics, the Diocese of Phoenix had no seminary of its own for more than 50 years.

Nazareth Seminary is working with University of Mary’s “Mary College,” a satellite academic institution partnered with Arizona State University (ASU).

University of Mary, also known as “UMary,” has offered Catholic studies and theology courses at ASU through Mary College for more than a decade. Through the “unprecedented” partnership, Mary College classes fulfill degree requirements at the large public university.

With the new diocesan partnership, Mary College will form seminarians as they pursue degrees in Catholic studies and philosophy with Mary College.

The seminary will continue to grow as Mary College plans to launch graduate-level degrees in 2026, when the college will offer master of divinity and master of arts in theology degrees.

The first ordination class is already being formed, with 27 seminarians currently enrolled at Mary College. By spring 2026, 10 seminarians will graduate from the program with undergraduate degrees.

Scott Lefor, the director of Mary College at ASU, said the timing of the partnership was “incredibly providential.”

“The providence that seems to be behind all this is just beautiful,” he told CNA.

Mary College first came to Phoenix in 2012 after Bishop Thomas Olmsted, now retired, invited UMary president Monsignor James Shea “to bring Catholic higher education to the valley,” Lefor recalled.

As it developed its seminary program, the diocese found that UMary at ASU already had much of the groundwork for a seminarian academic program.

“What a beautiful way for that relationship to develop into serving the community in this very unique and beautiful way,” Lefor said.

When the Diocese of Phoenix reached out to UMary, the university already had “a slight majority of what we needed in place,” Lefor recalled.

UMary faculty had already designed the philosophy major to align with the Program of Priestly Formation in case a UMary philosophy student were to go on to seminary.

“We had a ton of the courses already in place. We had the facilities, we had the presence,” he said. “It was incredibly providential.”

Nazareth Seminary: a parochial model

Nazareth Seminary is designed so that seminarians are formed within the communities they will one day serve.

While traditional formation for seminarians takes eight years and involves limited direct experience with parish life, the Nazareth Seminary is based on a model of formation that prioritizes parochial interactions.

Seminarians begin with community life and general studies for the first two years. Then, the young men stay at Our Lady of Perpetual Help in Scottsdale for the third year of spiritual formation. Next, in the discipleship stage, seminarians return to full-time academics at Mary College while living in parish-based seminarian houses. Finally, for the graduate-level stage, seminarians study advanced theology while living in smaller parish houses centered on fraternity.

Seminarian houses are overseen by at least two priests who are in parish ministry and serve as mentors.

“It looks a bit closer to rectory living than we’ve had in the past with our seminaries,” Father Paul Sullivan, rector of Nazareth Seminary, told CNA.

This model ensures “more intentional, smaller communities” for the seminarians, “which hopefully brings with it deeper and more intentional friendships, accountability, and growth,” Sullivan said.

Sullivan said this structure has “brought with it so many blessings.” 

While Arizona seminarians were previously educated out of state — sometimes as far away as Ohio — Nazareth seminarians can have a closer relationship with the diocese and the people they will serve. 

Sullivan hopes the structure will provide “continued deepening of the bond between the men who will be future pastors and their own dioceses, and the communities, and the people that they will serve as well as their bishops and the priests.” 

Nazareth Seminary also presents a fuller picture of day-to-day priestly life, he observed.

“We live communal life together, priests and seminarians,” Sullivan said. 

Sullivan said he hopes this will help with discernment, enabling seminarians to “embrace” the priesthood for what it is, “in the midst of real community and real parish life that in no way is perfect but always in need of conversion and service and evangelization.” 

Lefor said that for UMary, being a Catholic university, “there’s something special about being able to engage in the seminary formation.”

“We actually have a priest who’s an alum of UMary, the Catholic studies program,” Sullivan added.

“He’s been ordained for almost two years now,” Sullivan noted. “So he’s the first one to be connected to UMary who went to seminary afterwards.”

Community on campus

ASU has a “very busy” Newman Center located at the oldest-standing Church building in the valley, Old St. Mary’s Church. 

“We’re this big Catholic compound,” Lefor said. 

The seminarians are “active participants” in the Catholic community on campus, Lefor noted. They attend classes on the ASU campus in the Mary College building, which has its own classroom and study library. But they also participate in the campus Newman Center. 

“They hang out at the Newman Center,” Lefor said. “They’re meeting — quite literally — the future leaders of their diocese, their peers.” 

Nazareth House has been up and running for some years in its first, “propaedeutic” stage, as the seminarian program is being built up around a group of seminarians that recently started taking classes at Mary College. 

“I teach some of the guys in my own class, and they’re just phenomenal young men,” Lefor said. “They love the Lord. They want to serve the local dioceses. And there’s just something healthy about them being able to be present in it and know the people — so I think it’s a great blessing.”

null / Credit: Harvepino/Shutterstock

Vatican City, Apr 12, 2025 / 08:00 am (CNA).

The Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development has announced the theme chosen by Pope Francis for the 2025 World Day of Prayer for the Care of Creation, held annually on Sept. 1: “Seeds of Peace and Hope.”

The day is part of the Season of Creation, an ecumenical initiative that takes place Sept. 1 to Oct. 4. This 2025 edition takes on a special character as it coincides with the Jubilee Year of Hope and the 10th anniversary of the encyclical Laudato Si’, the Holy Father’s magisterial text on the care of our common home.

According to a Vatican statement, this year’s theme reflects the urgency of working “to create the conditions for peace, a lasting peace built together that inspires hope.”

“The metaphor of the seed indicates the need for long-term commitment,” the fruit of concrete actions and a profound ecological conversion, according to the statement.

The biblical reference text chosen for this edition is Isaiah 32:14-18, which directly links justice, peace, and harmony with creation: “Then justice will dwell in the wilderness, and righteousness abide in the fruitful field. … My people will abide in a peaceful habitation, in secure dwellings, and in quiet resting places.”

The statement also emphasizes that, as Pope Francis and his predecessors have emphasized, “there is a close link between peace and care for creation.”

In fact, it quotes the messages for the World Day of Peace in 1990 and 2010, from St. John Paul II and Pope Benedict XVI, respectively, which warned of the destructive consequences of war on nature.

“The connection between war and violence, on the one hand, and the degradation of the common home and the waste of resources (destruction and armaments), on the other, is very close,” the press release reads.

This story was first published by ACI Prensa, CNA’s Spanish-language news partner. It has been translated and adapted by CNA.

The exterior of St. Barnabas Cathedral in Nottingham. / Credit: Diocese of Nottingham/Luke Potter

Nottingham, England, Apr 12, 2025 / 07:00 am (CNA).

A new project, the Restoring Pugin Project, aimed at restoring the original design of a popular English cathedral, is seeking to attract people to encounter “a representation of the glory of God.” 

Nottingham’s St. Barnabas Cathedral has been awarded a 1.69 million-pound (approximately $2.2 million) grant from the National Lottery Heritage Fund as part of its 2.3 million-pound (approximately $3 million) Restoring Pugin Project, which is a conservation program aimed at restoring Pugin’s original decorative scheme in the cathedral.

Having previously received funding for the Restoring Pugin Project from the National Lottery, the latest substantial grant will enable significant work to be done on the project and to reach a far wider audience.

Augustus Pugin was known as the father of the Victorian Gothic Revival, an iconic style of medieval architecture. Pugin, who famously worked on iconic English buildings such as London’s “Big Ben” and the Houses of Parliament, considered St. Barnabas Cathedral in Nottingham his masterpiece.

Built in 1841, the cathedral is ranked as a Grade II* listed building, which, according to Historic England, is one of three ranks given to “particularly important buildings of more than special interest.” Around 5.8% of listed buildings are Grade II*.

The cathedral is a particularly important building of more than special interest to people in the U.K. and beyond.

There are hopes that the restoration work will help develop further the cathedral’s profile within Nottingham as a place of welcome and fellowship. This was underlined by Bishop of Nottingham Patrick McKinney, who shared his desire for the project to “attract more and more people of all ages and backgrounds, especially local people” to the cathedral. McKinney also said he hopes Nottingham’s “Catholic churches become ever more outward facing.”

The project will also offer a number of opportunities for heritage training and skills development for people of all ages as the project aims to restore the cathedral’s east end to its former glory. Creative ideas to engage people include an innovative video game, Pugin’s Revival; new information panels; touch screens; audio visual materials; and a virtual reality experience.

Restoring Pugin Project Manager Jane Hellings spoke to CNA about the plans for the project to help the cathedral connect with local people and build faith.

“We call it soft evangelization,” Hellings said. “It’s definitely a place of living faith. It’s very much a representation of the glory of God. We’re working with refugees and migrants, pupils who have special educational needs and disabilities. The video game will be rolled out to schools as part of the careers pack, which includes ideas about how to pursue a career in heritage.”

2025 is a significant year, as it marks 175 years since Nottingham’s large Catholic church designed by Pugin was elevated to cathedral status. 

Hellings, who is hoping to engage over 20,000 people in the project, outlined her hopes for people to access faith in a unique way. She said: “A lot of those [visitors] will be coming in to light a candle, [to be] peaceful for a little minute. And others are coming to see what’s on in the cathedral and what has happened, and why [Catholics] do things a certain way — why people bend their knees and bow their heads. Just actually sitting quietly in a separate space helps people to think.”

The Diocese of Nottingham and the cathedral community have been enthused by the National Lottery grant.

“This grant will enable Nottingham’s cathedral to become ever more engaged with the wider population of this city,” McKinney said, adding his hope that visitors will experience a “living faith and peace in the midst of the city and also as a sign of hope in these difficult times we are living through.”

The Friends of Nottingham Cathedral, whose mission involves promoting the mission and ministry of the cathedral in the diocese and in the wider community, encouraged people to visit Pugin’s “masterpiece.”

“The cathedral is one of Nottingham’s best-kept secrets, and Pugin regarded it as his masterpiece,” said Ron Lynch, chair of the Friends of Nottingham Cathedral.

“We’d like more people to come along and find out more about the heritage of this fantastic building, but also to share in the tranquillity that it offers in a busy city center,” he said.

Sophie Andreae, architectural historian and vice chair of the Patrimony Committee of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of England and Wales, paid tribute to the achievement of the Diocese of Nottingham in securing the grant. 

“This is the first major National Lottery Heritage Fund award for a Catholic cathedral in recent years,” Andreae noted in a statement. “The conservation program to restore Pugin’s original decorative scheme will be transformational. Both the Heritage Fund and the Diocese of Nottingham are to be congratulated for their vision and determination to take this project forward.”

Pope Francis greets visitors at his general audience at the Vatican, Wednesday, Feb. 12, 2025. / Credit: Vatican Media

CNA Newsroom, Apr 12, 2025 / 05:34 am (CNA).

Pope Francis encouraged university students linked to Opus Dei to share “the Gospel of Jesus Christ, dead and risen” with everyone during this jubilee year in a message to participants of an international congress in Rome.

In a Spanish-language letter released by the Holy See on Saturday, the pope greeted young people attending the International UNIV Congress 2025, which is taking place in Rome from April 12–20 during Holy Week.

“The International UNIV Congress that you are holding in Rome brings you together these days in the celebration of a double jubilee event: Holy Year 2025 and the centenary of the priestly ordination of St. Josemaría Escrivá,” the pope wrote in the letter dated April 8.

The Holy Father noted these occasions offer “many reasons to give thanks to God and to continue walking with enthusiasm in faith, diligent in charity, and persevering in hope.”

The pope said he joins in the students’ joy and accompanies them with his prayer, “asking the Lord that this time of pilgrimage and fraternal encounter may impel you to bring to everyone the Gospel of Jesus Christ, dead and risen, as an announcement of the hope that fulfills promises, leads to glory, and, founded on love, does not disappoint.”

He concluded by asking for prayers and imparting his blessing: “May Jesus bless you and Holy Virgin care for you. And I ask you, please, do not forget to pray for me.”

The UNIV Congress began in 1968, inspired by St. Josemaría Escrivá, founder of Opus Dei. According to information from the organization, Escrivá “dreamed of an international meeting of university students from five continents who would ask themselves big questions” to help improve the world.

Each year, students participate in this experience during Holy Week in Rome, where they can “listen to experts and join problem-solving forums as well as attend the Easter Triduum ceremonies” and meet with the prelate of Opus Dei, Monsignor Fernando Ocáriz.

Photo illustration. / Credit: yougoigo/Shutterstock

Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Apr 11, 2025 / 17:46 pm (CNA).

Here is a roundup of Catholic world news that you might have missed this week:

Traffickers pose as Christian missionaries to entrap victims, Thai-Phillippine law enforcement says

Human traffickers have begun posing as Christian missionaries or pilgrims in order to pass airport controls, Philippine and Thai police reported after a recent investigation, according to a report from Agenzia Fides on Wednesday. 

Law enforcement recently stopped two young women, 23 and 25 years old, from being trafficked to Thailand by an older woman who claimed they were Christian missionaries. After noticing inconsistencies in their documents, airport officials detained the women, who said they were  “volunteers belonging to the Catholic Church for missionary work in Thailand.”

Upon investigation, they discovered the older woman to be an organizer of a trafficking network that smuggles women to Thailand. The young women accompanying her had been allegedly “seduced” by the prospect of a teaching job, then pulled into a criminal network of prostitution. 

Italy to welcome 700 Afghan refugees forced to flee after disastrous 2021 U.S. pullout 

Seven hundred Afghan refugees will soon be welcomed in Italy after an agreement was forged between Italy’s Ministries of Interior and Foreign Affairs and various associations including the Community of Sant’Egido, according to a Vatican News report. 

“For Afghans, who were forced to flee their country in great distress after the mass exodus from Kabul in August 2021 and who have been forgotten by the international community while waiting to be resettled, this is finally a sign of hope,” the community’s president, Marco Impagliazzo, stated in a press release announcing the agreement, which came about as part of its “humanitarian corridors” initiative. 

New German coalition government retains crucial religious freedom initiative 

Germany’s new coalition government has opted to preserve a crucial religious freedom initiative in its foreign policy.

The Union-SPD coalition confirmed this week that the Federal Government Commissioner for Worldwide Religious Freedom would remain a viable position within its government, despite earlier calls to eliminate it, reported CNA Deutsch, CNA’s German-language news partner.

President Dirk Bingener of the Catholic aid organization Missio welcomed the news, describing it as “a positive signal for persecuted Christians and members of other religions whose human rights to freely practice their faith are violated.”

Catholic community in Bahrain takes up prayer and fasting together

As Easter approaches, the Catholic community in Bahrain is actively engaging in a spiritually enriching Lenten season filled with prayer and fasting, according to ACI MENA, CNA’s Arabic-language news partner. 

Father Charbel Rizk, a key figure for the Arabic-speaking Catholic community, has been explaining the intricate details of the Mass to deepen the faithful’s understanding and spirituality. In collaboration with the parish in Sharjah, United Arab Emirates, a series of lectures titled “Fasting and Hope” was organized, featuring prominent clergy such as Father Majid Moussa and Father George Abi Saad.

The sessions, available on Facebook and Zoom, encourage participation in the sacrament of reconciliation and include home-based evangelical nights, culminating in the blessings of the Eucharist.

Annual feast honoring St. Quryaqos in Iraq revives community spirit

The ruins of Mar Quryaqos Monastery in Baghdeda (Qaraqosh), Iraq, hosted celebrations for its feast during the sixth Sunday of Lent. Local Christians, dressed in traditional attire, gathered to honor St. Quryaqos, the spiritual protector of Baghdeda, with prayers, candle lighting, and the sharing of traditional foods, ACI MENA reported. 

The event, known locally as “Shira Mar Qarayaqos,” marked a vibrant revival of community spirit and religious heritage, notably attended by expatriates reconnecting with their roots after decades abroad.

Uganda bishops praise ‘significant drop’ in HIV infections and related deaths

Members of the Uganda Episcopal Conference are lauding the recent drop in HIV infections and related deaths, attributing the positive trend to success of treatment and prevention centers, according to ACI Africa.

“We are cognizant of the significant drop in new HIV infections and AIDS-related deaths in the country in the past decade, partly attributed to the extensive rollout of HIV treatment and prevention services,” the bishops stated.

Although latest numbers are much lower, they continued, the situation remains concerning, with approximately 1,292,407 Ugandans currently living with HIV and about 730 new infections occurring per week. “As a Church, we are committed to creating awareness and providing health services for our people through our pastoral work,” the bishops said.

Catholic activists urge Kenya Red Cross to proceed with conference on family values amid backlash 

Catholic activists with CitizenGo Africa have issued an urgent plea to Kenya’s Red Cross to ignore calls to cancel its five-day Pan African conference on family values, which is set to take place in Nairobi starting May 12. 

The event, “Promoting and Protecting Family Values in Challenging Times,” faced backlash from members of the LGBTQ community within the Red Cross, according to a report from ACI Africa on Thursday.

“The real goal of these foreign-funded activist groups is to impose LGBTQ and gender ideologies on Africa,” the petition states, adding: “This conference is a space for Africans to affirm what we know to be true: that faithful, committed, monogamous relationships are the best model for raising children and building strong communities. And we have the right to speak, gather, and defend these values without fear or shame.”

Jimmy Lai and other demonstrators were convicted in 2021 of taking part in what the Hong Kong government argued was an “unauthorized assembly” at Victoria Park in Hong Kong’s Causeway Bay neighborhood. / Credit: 美国之音莉雅, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Apr 11, 2025 / 16:58 pm (CNA).

The Lynde and Harry Bradley Foundation announced that Catholic human rights activist and political prisoner Jimmy Lai will be an honorary recipient of a 2025 Bradley Prize for being an “inspiration to all who value freedom.”

Lai is the founder of the pro-democracy newspaper Apple Daily and a human rights activist who chose to stay in Hong Kong and risk imprisonment to fight for freedom against the Chinese Communist Party.

The foundation said Lai “is a courageous advocate for democracy and freedom of the press, whose powerful criticisms of Beijing’s control over Hong Kong have made him a target of Chinese authorities.”

“He is currently in prison, where he has spent more than four years in solitary confinement. He faces the possibility of life in prison if convicted under the draconian national security law Beijing imposed on Hong Kong in 2020,” the foundation’s announcement said.

Rick Graber, president of the Bradley Foundation, said in a statement: “Jimmy’s extraordinary courage and deeply held beliefs in journalistic integrity, human dignity, and democracy are an inspiration to all who value freedom.”

“His advocacy against oppressive, authoritarian rule put him at risk,” Graber continued. “Yet instead of fleeing Hong Kong under increasing pressure by the Chinese communist regime to silence his views, he stayed and continued to advocate for truth and transparency.”

“His sacrifice serves as a beacon of hope for those fighting against tyranny, and we are proud to award him with an honorary Bradley Prize.” 

The foundation stated that the prize is given “to individuals whose extraordinary work exemplifies the foundation’s mission to restore, strengthen, and protect the principles and institutions of American exceptionalism and honors the ideals of the Western tradition.”

Jimmy Lai’s son Sebastien Lai will receive the award on his behalf at the Bradley Prizes ceremony on May 29 at DAR Constitution Hall in Washington, D.C.

In a statement to the foundation, Sebastien Lai said: “Our family is deeply grateful for this honor of my father from the Bradley Foundation. He is to us most importantly a husband, father, and grandfather, but he has earned his place as a hero in the hearts of many around the world.”

“The Bradley Prize is a testament to his commitment to truth and freedom, made evident in his tremendous self-sacrifice,” Sebastien continued. “From a tiny prison cell in Hong Kong, he continues to stand strong against the world’s largest and most powerful totalitarian regime.” 

“Thank you for reminding the world that his cause is not lost — good people must now fight for his freedom as he fought for theirs,” Sebastien concluded.

A sign outside the Internal Revenue Service building in downtown Washington, D.C. / Credit: Rob Crandall/Shutterstock

CNA Staff, Apr 11, 2025 / 16:23 pm (CNA).

A federal bill proposed this week would affirm that nonprofits and charities are not receiving federal “financial assistance” simply by being granted a tax-exempt status.

The Safeguarding Charity Act, introduced by Florida Rep. Greg Steube, would order that the term “federal financial assistance” in the U.S. code “shall not include any exemption from federal income tax.’’

The two-page bill would further direct that the government could not retroactively deem nonprofit groups as having received federal “assistance” prior to the bill’s passage.

Steube in a press release said the measure “is about protecting churches, religious schools, and charities from federal overreach.”

Oklahoma Sen. James Lankford introduced a companion bill in the U.S. Senate on Thursday. Lankford argued that tax-exempt organizations “should not live in fear of federal control every day because courts want to redefine the meaning of tax-exempt status.”

“We should be focused on enabling the work of these organizations — not burdening them with unnecessary and costly federal requirements,” he said.

The bill was previously introduced last year, though it ultimately stalled without passage.

Greg Baylor, a lawyer with the religious liberty law firm Alliance Defending Freedom, pointed to two recent district court rulings — Buettner-Hartsoe v. Baltimore Lutheran High School and E.H. v. Valley Christian Academy — that held that private schools were subject to federal Title IX regulations because of their tax-exempt status.

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the 4th Circuit ultimately overturned the ruling in the Lutheran school case. “Incorporating the plain meaning of that phrase, does tax-exempt status constitute accepting federal financial aid, help, or support? We think not,” the court ruled at the time.

ADF had last year filed a brief in support of the school, arguing that defining tax exemption as federal assistance would have “significant ramifications for private nonprofit institutions across the country.”

“If tax-exempt status itself constituted federal financial assistance, then churches, mosques, synagogues, temples, and other houses of worship across the country would automatically be swept into a host of new regulatory obligations because of their tax-exempt status, whether or not they request that status,” ADF said in its briefing.

Baylor pointed out that “no federal agency has ever attempted to force an organization to comply with a statute triggered by the receipt of federal financial assistance on the ground that it was tax exempt.”

Still, he said, if the “financial assistance” interpretation were widely embraced, “hundreds of thousands of tax-exempt organizations will be unexpectedly subject to burdensome federal statutes and regulations.”

These organizations would “incur substantial compliance costs and could potentially lose their tax-exempt status if they are found to have violated any of the relevant statutes,” he said.

null / Credit: Andy via Flickr (CC BY-NC 2.0)

Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Apr 11, 2025 / 15:52 pm (CNA).

The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) and Jubilee USA Network this week sent a letter to President Donald Trump urging him to pursue global debt relief initiatives that will economically serve both developing countries and the United States. 

In the letter, Bishop Abdallah Elias Zaidan, the chairman of the USCCB’s Committee on International Justice and Peace, and Eric LeCompte, the executive director at Jubilee USA Network, argued that “building on the successes” of relief initiatives introduced by Trump during his first term could lower global debt. 

Jubilee USA Network on its website describes itself as “a coalition of religious, development, and advocacy groups” and “works on debt, tax, trade, and transparency policies that help end poverty.”

The letter stated the president previously “expanded and introduced new global debt relief initiatives … while also leading the world in creating crisis response policies that ameliorated the suffering of billions of people in the United States and around the world.”

“As you know, debt relief and restructuring make effective economic and security policies, strengthening our country’s global moral leadership,” the leaders wrote. “These policies, which cost us little, contribute significantly to the stability of our trading partners, reduce food and fuel prices here at home, and support American jobs and exports.”

The statement follows the start of Turn Debt into Hope, a campaign initiated at the beginning of 2025 by Jubilee USA and international aid organizations with the aim of continuing St. John Paul II’s 2000 Jubilee mission of debt relief for the world’s poorest countries. 

Zaidan and LeCompte quoted Pope Francis, who in December wrote that he “urge[d] the international community to work toward forgiving foreign [debt] existing between the North and South of this world. This is an appeal for solidarity, but above all for justice.”

The letter reported that developing nations spend on average more than 40% of their revenue on debt payments. The leaders also highlighted that nearly 800 million people worldwide face hunger and 700 million live in “extreme poverty.” 

In order to help find a solution, Zaidan and LeCompte said their organizations “stand ready to work” with the president on the central priorities of U.S. policy: “debt crises, ensuring global market stability, and fostering efforts to strengthen our country’s trade access, safety, and prosperity.”

Zaidan and LeCompte said with the president’s help they “can maximize global trade dynamics that will benefit U.S. businesses and workers by restructuring global debt … by creating the debt reduction processes that Pope Francis is promoting for Jubilee 2025.” 

They said this process “can cut debts to sustainable levels and thus allow developing countries to reduce poverty.”

“To effectively do this, developing countries’ debt payments should be suspended while debt reduction schemes are developed,” they said, arguing that the move would not only benefit “the 73 poorest countries” but also “middle income countries,” including America’s trading partners, allies, and U.S. product consumers.

The statement said these efforts will “cost the U.S. taxpayer very little yet maximize global American leadership.”

“Simply stated, the world needs strong American leadership on debt relief and financial architecture reform.”

“This will foster the global stability that enhances America’s trade partnerships — bolstering U.S. imports and exports in the developing world, protecting our taxpayers, pension savings, and consumers, and making America safer, wealthier, and stronger,” the leaders said.