Saint Joseph Catholic Church

From the Gospel of the Fifth Sunday of Lent, Year A: Martha said to Jesus, "Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died. But even now I know that whatever you ask of God, He will give you." Jesus said to her, "Your brother will rise." Martha said to him, "I know he will rise, in the resurrection on the last day." Jesus told her, "I am the resurrection and the life; whoever believes in me, even if he dies, will live, and everyone who lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?" She said to him, "Yes, Lord. I have come to believe that you are the Christ, the Son of God, the one who is coming into the world." (John 11: 21-27)

cna

feature

feature

Archbishop John Sherrington of Liverpool, the lead bishop for life issues of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of England and Wales, lamented a House of Lords vote that decriminalized abortion to the moment of birth.

“This move is likely to lead to more late-term abortions putting pregnant women and their babies at risk,” he said. “Many women could likely also face even greater risks of isolation, coercion, and pressure.”

“This is a truly tragic moment for our nation,” added Archbishop John Wilson of Southwark. “How can this frightening legislation, which, following Royal Assent, will permit the abortion of children right up until the moment of birth for any reason, have any place in a civilized society?

In 1967, Parliament passed the Abortion Act, which has permitted abortion through the 28th week of pregnancy.

307,117 Germans formally left the Catholic Church in 2025, down slightly from the previous year’s figure of 321,659 and down significantly from the 2022 figure of 522,821.

The Mass attendance rate increased slightly, from 6.6% in 2024 to 6.8% in 2025. The number of baptisms and weddings declined; the number of confirmations and First Communions rose slightly.

The chairman of the Kenya Conference of Catholic Bishops called upon political leaders to refrain from disrespectful speech.

“The children listening to you are shocked,” Archbishop Maurice Muhatia Makumba said on March 19. “The young people listening to you are traumatized because, in you, they see the collapse of their aspirations for leadership. The adults listening to you are embarrassed. You are a poor representation of our generation, and we are struggling to identify with you.”

Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the Secretary of State of His Holiness, sent a message in Pope Leo’s name to the 17th International Forum for Information on the Safeguard of Nature.

In the message, Cardinal Parolin wrote that Pope Leo encourages “sustainable development research projects.”

“Ecological responsibility is not fulfilled by technical data alone,” the Pope cautioned. “Such data are necessary, but not sufficient. What is needed is an education that engages the mind, the heart, and the hands; new habits, communal lifestyles, and virtuous practices.”

The Diocese of Richmond, Virginia, is preparing to receive a record number of converts into the Church at Easter. The number of new converts (900) is up 38% from last year.

Preaching at a Mass celebrated in the Philippine House of Representatives, Bishop Jose Colin Bagaforo of Kidapawan told lawmakers that “we must not live by lies.”

“Even if telling the truth is difficult, even if it is embarrassing, even if it costs us something—it is always better than a lie,” he said.