Pope Leo XIV is warning human traffickers that they will face God’s wrath for exploiting the desperation of migrants. Leo urged Friday they stop and repent during his final day in this epicenter of the African migration route to Europe. Leo wrapped up his weeklong trip to Spain in the Canary Islands. The Spanish archipelago is closer to Africa than the Iberian Peninsula and was a key point of entry for migrants who make the perilous Atlantic crossing from West Africa. He is fulfilling a wish of Pope Francis to visit the islands to commemorate the thousands of lives lost at sea. He is also drawing attention to the Catholic Church’s biblically-mandated mantra to “welcome the stranger.”
Steven Spielberg's new film “Disclosure Day” explores extraterrestrial life and its impact on religion. UFOs, now also called UAPs, are gaining mainstream attention. The Pentagon released UFO files in May, sparking public curiosity. Former President Barack Obama set off a media frenzy by suggesting aliens exist in an interview. Some believe extraterrestrial life could challenge religious beliefs, while others see it as beneficial. Some Catholic figures — such as Vice President JD Vance and Monsignor Stephen Rossetti — view UFOs as demonic, though the Catholic Church remains open to the idea of alien life. Theologians and historians note that interest in otherworldly beings dates back centuries.
U.S. Catholic bishops have consecrated the nation to the Sacred Heart of Jesus, marking the country's 250th anniversary. The ceremony took place Thursday in Orlando with bishops and worshippers kneeling before relics of St. Mary Margaret Alacoque. Her visions inspired the devotion. The service celebrated the nation's history and acknowledged its failures, including slavery and racism. Earlier in the day, the bishops approved minor revisions to policies on responding to sexual abuse, maintaining a ban on priests found to have abused children. Some bishops wanted a delay for broader feedback, but they were outvoted.
A bishop venerates relics of the 17th century St. Mary Margaret Alacoque, a French nun whose reports of visions of Jesus has led to the modern devotion of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, in front of the Basilica of the National Shrine of Mary, Queen of the Universe in Orlando, Fla., before a service Thursday, June 11, 2026, in which U.S. Catholic bishops consecrated the United States to the Sacred Heart upon the nation's 250th anniversary. (AP Photo/Peter Smith)
U.S. Catholic bishops are seated at the Basilica of the National Shrine of Mary, Queen of the Universe in Orlando, Fla., for a service Thursday, June 11, 2026, consecrating the United States to the Sacred Heart upon the nation's 250th anniversary. (AP Photo/Peter Smith)
A box containing relics of the 17th century St. Mary Margaret Alacoque, a French nun whose reports of visions of Jesus has led to the modern devotion of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, stands Thursday in front of the Basilica of the National Shrine of Mary, Queen of the Universe in Orlando, Fla., before a service in which U.S. Catholic bishops consecrated the United States to the Sacred Heart upon the nation's 250th anniversary. (AP Photo/Peter Smith)
Members of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops gather for their spring meeting on Thursday, June 11, 2026 in Orlando, Fla. (AP Photo/Peter Smith)
The Pentagon’s recent revision to its list of Christian religions has reignited a long-standing debate about whether The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is a Christian denomination. Latter-day Saints identify as Christian. But some core beliefs, particularly involving the Trinity, differ from Catholic and mainline Protestant denominations. Utah's U.S. Senators Mike Lee and John Curtis, both Republicans and Latter-day Saints, challenged the Pentagon’s exclusion of their faith from its list of Christian religions. The Pentagon removed the Christian label from 20 traditions, including Catholic and Lutheran, and stated the new rubric is not meant to question any faith’s legitimacy.
Pope Leo XIV is honoring two of Barcelona’s most sacred monuments. On Wednesday he is celebrating a noontime prayer at a mountain-top abbey and an evening Mass at the famed Sagrada Familia Basilica. Wednesday marks the centenary of the death of Antoni Gaudí, the architect who designed the Sagrada Familia. Leo is in Spain on a weeklong visit. His reception has highlighted how Spain still has plenty of faithful Catholics after the country of 50 million experienced a religious crisis following its 20th-century dictatorship. Onlookers have turned out in droves to welcome the American pope.
BARCELONA, Spain (AP) — The Sagrada Familia basilica features sandcastle-like spires, stone carved to look like lush flora, a kaleidoscopic in…
