Saint Joseph Catholic Church

During his Palm Sunday homily, Pope Leo XIV preached, “Brothers and sisters, this is our God: Jesus, King of Peace, who rejects war, whom no one can use to justify war. He does not listen to the prayers of those who wage war, but rejects them, saying: ‘Even though you make many prayers, I will not listen: your hands are full of blood’ (Is 1:15).”

Asked by a reporter about the Pope’s words, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt responded:

I think our nation was a nation founded 250 years ago, almost, on Judeo-Christian values, and we’ve seen presidents, we’ve seen the leaders of the Department of War and we’ve seen our troops go to prayer during the most turbulent times in our nation’s history, and I don’t think there’s anything wrong with our military leaders or with the president calling on the American people to pray for our service members in those who are serving our country overseas.

In fact, I think it’s a noble thing to do, and if you talk to many service members, they’ll tell you they appreciate the prayers and support from the Commander in Chief and from his Cabinet.

In an 8-1 decision, the United States Supreme Court struck down the State of Colorado’s ban on attempts by licensed counselors to change the perceived sexual orientation or gender identity of minors.

“The First Amendment is no word game,” Justice Neil Gorsuch wrote in his majority opinion. “And the rights it protects cannot be renamed away or their protections nullified.”

The attorney for the Christian counselor who challenged the law said, “Kids deserve real help affirming that their bodies are not a mistake and that they are wonderfully made. The U.S. Supreme Court’s decision today is a significant win for free speech, common sense, and families desperate to help their children.”

The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, joined by the Colorado Catholic Conference and the Catholic University of America, filed a friend-of-the-court brief in support of the counselor who challenged the ban.

Major Archbishop Sviatoslav Shevchuk marked the fifteenth anniversary of his enthronement as head of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church.

The prayer service took place on March 29 in the Patriarchal Cathedral of the Resurrection of Christ in Kyiv. The apostolic nuncio, as well as representatives of the Latin-rite Ukrainian hierarchy and the Orthodox Church of Ukraine, were present for the occasion.

Addressing a UN meeting on refugees in Europe, a Vatican diplomat praised the European Union for extending until March 2027 its temporary protection of Ukrainian refugees.

“Becoming a refugee is never a choice,” said Archbishop Ettore Balestrero, apostolic nuncio and Permanent Observer to the United Nations and other international organizations in Geneva, Switzerland. “The right to life must be prioritized, and the principle of non-refoulement must be upheld. No person in need of protection should die at sea or at land borders due to withheld, delayed, or conditional assistance.”

Archbishop Balestrero added:

The Holy See supports efforts to develop more predictable, route-based responses, including strengthened search-and-rescue coordination. However, such an approach must also address the root causes of forced displacement, so that no one is compelled to leave his or her home due to a well founded fear of persecution.

The chairman of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of India’s Office for Environment and Climate Change welcomed the Indian government’s climate targets for 2035.

“I commend the government’s updated climate commitments as they build on the success of surpassing renewable energy targets ahead of time and commit to increasing carbon sinks through expanded forest and tree cover,” said Bishop Allwyn D’Silva, a retired Mumbai auxiliary bishop. He told UCA News:

As a faith-based leader, I believe in ecological stewardship, sustainable living, and development that is anchored in the sanctity of the deep web of interconnectedness between the Creator, nature, and human beings. This relationship has been disrupted, placing us on the brink of a planetary crisis.

HarperCollins announced the upcoming publication of Communion: Finding My Way Back to Faith, a book by US Vice President JD Vance on his Christian faith, including his conversion to Catholicism.

“To summarize this book: I’m a Christian, and I became a Christian because I believe that Jesus Christ’s teachings are true,” Vice President Vance said. “But I didn’t always think that, and by sharing my journey I might be helpful to others—Catholic, Protestant, or otherwise—who are seeking reconciliation with God.”

The United States Commission on International Religious Freedom published a report on attacks on Christians by Islamist terrorists in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

The report, released on March 30, focuses on the Allied Democratic Forces, an Islamist rebel group.

Speaking with journalists as he concluded his weekly visit to Castel Gandolfo, Pope Leo said, “I’m told that President Trump recently stated that he would like to end the war.”

“Hopefully he’s looking for an ‘off-ramp,’” the Pope continued. “Hopefully he’s looking for a way to decrease the amount of violence, of bombing, which would be a significant contribution to removing the hatred that’s being created and that’s increasing constantly in the Middle East and elsewhere.”

The Pontiff urged world leaders to “come back to the table, to dialogue. Let’s look for solutions to problems, let’s look for ways to reduce the amount of violence that we’re promoting, that peace—especially at Easter—might reign in our hearts.”

Speaking with the French news channel CNews, Cardinal Robert Sarah said, “I understand that the Pope is concerned about this liturgical unity. It is not a place for battle. We have made it a place of battle, of combat. That is how we destroy the liturgy.”

Cardinal Sarah, who served as the prefect of the Congregation (now Dicastery) for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments from 2014 until 2021, added that “the Church is nothing without God.”

“God must truly be placed at the center of our existence, at the center of our life, at the centre of our concerns,” he said. “If we detach the Church from this mission … the Church is useless.”

The Pope’s April 2026 prayer intention, disseminated by the Pope’s Worldwide Prayer Network, is “let us pray together for priests going through moments of crisis in their vocation, that they may find the accompaniment they need and that communities may support them with understanding and prayer.”