Saint Joseph Catholic Church

Following an hour-long papal audience with the leaders of the Ecclesial Conference of the Amazon, a Brazilian bishop who was present said that Pope Leo is “not in a hurry” to change Church discipline regarding ministry there—a likely reference to the priestly ordination of married men.

Auxiliary Bishop Zenildo Lima of Manaus, Brazil, spoke of “the Pope’s openness in commenting on the needs and ministerial steps for the Church in the Amazon. With great serenity, the Pope stated that he is not in a hurry with the processes, but prefers more solid, well-defined paths.”

The bishop said that the Pope urged the leaders of the ecclesial conference “not to be in a hurry to try to structure things,” since “certain situations manifest themselves much more as charisms of the Holy Spirit.”

Magnus Brunner, the European Commission’s Commissioner for Internal Affairs and Migration (or “migration czar”) met with Pope Leo XIV.

“I was grateful for the opportunity to discuss the well-being of Christians in Europe and around the world,” said Brunner. “We also touched upon Europe’s approach to migration, firmly grounded in its values. Brunner also thanked the Pope for his “guidance and enduring commitment to peace and dialogue.”

In an interview with Vatican News, Brunner distinguished legal immigration, “which we need and support,” from illegal immigration, which he linked to smuggling and human trafficking. Criticizing the EU’s oversight of migration in the 2010s as lackadaisical, Brunner said that “we must restore to the people of Europe the feeling that we are once again in control of what happens in Europe.”

Pope Leo XIV thanked participants in an annual interreligious peace conference for “coming here to pray for peace and for showing the world just how important prayer is.”

“Gathered here today, we express not only our firm desire for peace, but also our conviction that prayer is a powerful force for reconciliation,” Pope Leo said at the conference. “Those who practice religion without prayer run the risk of misusing it, even to the point of killing.”

The Community of Sant’Egidio has organized the conference each year since Pope St. John Paul II’s world day of prayer in Assisi in 1986. The theme of this year’s conference, the 39th, was “Daring Peace.”

The Roman Martyrology commemorates today St. Quentin, martyr (d. 287), a Roman, descended from a senatorial family. Full of zeal for the kingdom of Jesus Christ, he left his country, and, attended by St. Lucian of Beauvais, made his way to Gaul. They preached the faith together in that country till they reached Amiens in Picardy, where they parted. St. Quentin was seized, thrown into prison, and loaded with chains. He was condemned to the most barbarous torture. His body was pierced with two iron wires from the neck to the thighs, and iron nails were thrust under his nails, and in his flesh in many places, particularly into his skull; and lastly, his head was cut off.

The Roman Martyrology includes in today's commemorations:

The Roman Martyrology (2004) commemorates today St. Narcissus of Jerusalem (99-215) who was consecrated Bishop of Jerusalem about the year 180. He was already an old man, and God attested his merits by many miracles. The holy bishop had many false accusations against him, but the truth prevailed. He decided to use this as an opportunity to pursue a life of solitude, and he withdrew secretly into the desert for a time. Then Narcissus returned to Jerusalem and resumed his office. He died in extreme old age, bishop to the last.

The Church celebrates the Feast of the Apostles Saints Simon and Jude. Their names occur together in the Canon of the Mass and are also celebrated on the same day. They may be paired together because they both preached the Gospel in Mesopotamia and Persia where it is said they had both been sent, but in actual fact we know nothing for certain about them beyond what is told us of their being called as Apostles in the New Testament. St. Jude is the author of the short Epistle which forms part of the New Testament.

The Roman Martyrology commemorates St. Evaristus, one of the first popes and the successor of St. Clement. Pope Evaristus governed the Church from 97 to about 107. He was buried at the Vatican.

Gospel Excerpt, Luke 18:9-14: Jesus addressed this parable: "Two people went up to the temple area to pray; one was a Pharisee and the other was a tax collector. The Pharisee took up his position and spoke this prayer to himself, ‘O God, I thank you that I am not like the rest of humanity--greedy, dishonest, adulterous--or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week, and I pay tithes on my whole income.' But the tax collector stood off at a distance and would not even raise his eyes to heaven but beat his breast and prayed, ‘O God, be merciful to me a sinner.' I tell you, the latter went home justified, not the former; for whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and the one who humbles himself will be exalted.

Today in Wales is the feast of the Six Welsh Martyrs and their Companions. The Welsh Martyrs are the priests Philip Evans and John Lloyd, John Jones, David Lewis, John Roberts, and the teacher Richard Gwyn, and 34 English companions who were executed for their Faith during the Catholic persecution in England and Wales from 1535-1679. The former feast of the Forty Holy Martyrs of England and Wales is now celebrated together with all the 284 canonized or beatified martyrs of the English Reformation for the Feast of the English Martyrs on May 4.