Catholic-Church

ICE Bans Prayer Outside Broadview Detention Center

| Importance: 9/10

Federal officials told faith leaders gathered outside the Broadview ICE detention center in Illinois that ’there is no more prayer in front of building or inside the building because this is the state and it’s not [of a] religious background.’ The directive marked the third time …

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Pope Leo XIV Calls for ICE to Allow Clergy Access to Detained Migrants

| Importance: 9/10

Pope Leo XIV issued a direct challenge to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement on November 4, 2025, calling on ICE authorities to allow pastoral workers and clergy to minister to detained migrants. Speaking from Castel Gandolfo, the papal summer residence, Pope Leo XIV stated he “would …

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Pope Leo XIV: Inhuman Treatment of Immigrants 'Not Pro-Life'

| Importance: 9/10

Pope Leo XIV delivered a powerful critique of American political hypocrisy on October 1, 2025, declaring that support for harsh immigration enforcement is fundamentally incompatible with pro-life values. Speaking in the context of the controversy surrounding Senator Dick Durbin receiving an award …

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Cardinal Robert Prevost Elected Pope Leo XIV - First American Pope

| Importance: 9/10

Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost of Chicago was elected the 267th Pope of the Catholic Church on May 8, 2025, taking the name Leo XIV and becoming the first American pontiff in the Church’s 2,000-year history. The 69-year-old Augustinian missionary was elected on the fourth ballot by 133 …

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Pope Francis Dies at 88, Hours After Meeting VP Vance

| Importance: 8/10

Pope Francis, the 266th Pope of the Catholic Church, died at age 88 on April 21, 2025, less than 24 hours after meeting with Vice President JD Vance on Easter Sunday. The Argentine-born pontiff, who had led the Catholic Church since 2013, had been hospitalized for pneumonia for five weeks before …

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VP Vance Meets Pope Francis on Easter Sunday in Final Papal Encounter

| Importance: 7/10

Vice President JD Vance met with Pope Francis at the Vatican on Easter Sunday, April 20, 2025, in what would tragically become one of the Pope’s final official acts before his death the following day. The meeting, which took place during the holiest day of the Christian calendar, saw the …

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Opus Dei: Canonical Recognition and Unique Ecclesiastical Status

| Importance: 7/10

Contrary to the original description, Opus Dei received its foundational canonical recognition in 1950 under Pope Pius XII as a secular institute. In 1982, Pope John Paul II established it as the first personal prelature through the apostolic constitution Ut sit, giving it a unique autonomous status …

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