Attendees of Sister Thea Bowman Conference encouraged to bring ‘whole self’ to church

By Nicole Olea
WASHINGTON (OSV News) – Thirty-five years after her death, the witness of Sister Thea Bowman – a Franciscan Sister of Perpetual Adoration, scholar, cultural advocate and joyful daughter of the church – continues to inspire a growing movement calling for her canonization.

Through keynote addresses, panel conversations, music and moving testimony, attendees at the Sister Thea Bowman Conference March 29 at The Catholic University of America in Washington reflected on how her life calls every member of the church to live boldly, faithfully and freely in Christ, and how her legacy challenges Catholics today to embrace a fuller, more inclusive vision of holiness.

Redemptorist Father Maurice Nutt opened the conference with a keynote titled “Servant of God, Sister Doctor Thea Bowman, FSPA: Unapologetically and Unabashedly Faithful and Free,” echoing the name of his 2019 biography of his former teacher.

Father Nutt described Sister Thea as a woman of “holy boldness” – captivating, anointed, joyful and radically committed to truth.

Kathleen Dorsey Bellow, director of the Institute for Black Catholic Studies at Xavier University of Louisiana, gestures as she speaks during a panel discussion at the Sister Thea Bowman Conference hosted by The Catholic University of America on March 29, 2025. The all-day conference on the life and legacy of Sister Thea, a candidate for sainthood. From left to right are Javier Bustamante, director of the university’s Center for Cultural Engagement, who moderated the panel discussion; Sister Sue Ernster, president of the Franciscan Sisters of Perpetual Adoration, Sister Thea’s order; Kathleen Dorsey Bellow; and Father Michael Barth of the Missionary Servants of the Most Holy Trinity. (OSV News photo/Nicole Olea, Catholic Standard)

Born in Canton, Mississippi, Sister Thea became a Catholic as a child after being inspired by the witness of the Franciscan Sisters and the Missionary Servants of the Most Holy Trinity. At age 15, she entered religious life, becoming the only Black member of her congregation.

“Her father warned her, ‘Baby, they may not like you up there in Wisconsin,’” Father Nutt recalled. “But ever persistent, she retorted, ‘Daddy, I’m gonna make ‘em like me.’”

She would go on to earn a doctorate and teach at every academic level. Her time attending The Catholic University of America and earning a doctorate in English there, he said, was transformational – both academically and spiritually. Among her students and colleagues, Sister Thea was known for her attentiveness and empathy.

Father Nutt highlighted Sister Thea’s contributions to Catholic life during and after the Second Vatican Council. She embraced liturgical reform and integrated African American culture, music and spirituality into Catholic worship.

“She could love her friends and challenge her friends. She could love her church and challenge her church,” he said.

Diagnosed with breast cancer in 1984, Sister Thea continued traveling and speaking until her death in 1990.

“Donning her customary African garb, she would arrive in a wheelchair … but always with a joyful disposition,” Father Nutt said.

He recounted her now-famous 1989 address to the U.S. Catholic bishops, where she spoke about being both Black and Catholic, and challenged the Church to greater inclusion.

“She told the bishops she was trying to find her way back home, asking them to help her find her way back home to this Catholic Church,” Father Nutt said. “And then she invited them – yes, those bishops in all their dignity – to link arms and sing: ‘We Shall Overcome.’”

In her final days, Sister Thea was surrounded by prayer and care in her childhood home. “She died where she had been born,” Father Nutt said. “She wanted her tombstone to read: ‘I tried. I tried to love the Lord, and I tried to love them. I tried to tell their story.’”

Following the keynote, Father Nutt joined Catholic University’s president, Peter K. Kilpatrick, for a moderated conversation on Sister Thea’s enduring impact and the church’s ongoing call to racial justice and reconciliation.

Father Nutt urged Catholic institutions to move beyond symbolic gestures. “We need Black faculty – not just working in the cafeteria or sweeping the floors. We have scholars. You need more Black professors. You need Black faculty in your campus ministry, a place of welcome for Black students, to allow them to use their gifts and share with the whole university.”

During the Q&A, Sister Oralisa Martin, a theologian and former student of Sister Thea, stood to address the urgency of the moment. Founder and president of the ORACLE Religious Association based in Washington, Sister Oralisa in 1995 took private vows, accepted by the late Detroit Auxiliary Bishop Thomas J. Gumbleton.

Sister Thea, she said, “possessed a spirituality that, frankly, the church still needs to catch up to.”

Calling for collective renewal, she added, “We need a … real movement. We don’t yet know our collective power. But when we do – when we gather in the power of the Holy Spirit – we will rise.”
“Why do we want her canonized?” she asked. “Because her life – before, during, and after canonization – shows us how to be the church.”

Sister Thea was given the title “Servant of God” when her sainthood cause was officially opened in November 2018. She is one of seven Black Catholics from the United States being considered for sainthood.

Among speakers on the first panel of the conference exploring the formative role of key religious communities and institutions in shaping the spirituality and leadership of Sister Thea was Sister Sue Ernster, president of the Franciscan Sisters of Perpetual Adoration.

She reflected on Sister Thea’s entry into religious life during the 1950s and the challenges she faced as the only Black woman in a predominantly white, Midwestern community.

“She came during segregation. She wasn’t allowed to ride with the white sister taking her to Wisconsin. But the sisters made arrangements so she could,” Sister Sue said, adding that Sister Thea endured that “because she felt called to serve.”

Kathleen Dorsey Bellow, director of the Institute for Black Catholic Studies at Xavier University, the nation’s Catholic historically Black college, described Sister Thea’s influence on generations of Black Catholic leaders.

“She helped form ministers. She loved Black children and taught them, ‘Black is good. It’s God’s gift to you,’” Bellow said. “She jumped in and did all she could. And now we have to do the work.”

Father Michael Barth, the former general custodian of the Missionary Servants of the Most Holy Trinity, recounted Sister Thea’s formation at Holy Child Jesus Parish in Canton. There, he said, she experienced firsthand the power of a faith community committed to justice and solidarity.

The second panel of the conference, titled “Personal Encounters: Testimony from Students and Colleagues,” reflected on Sister Thea’s impact on individuals who knew her as a teacher, mentor and friend.

“She became my unofficial seminary,” said Mgr. Raymond East, pastor of St. Teresa of Avila Parish in Washington. He was ordained as a priest of the Archdiocese of Washington in 1981. “She helped form many of us in what I call a beloved community.”

Ronny Lancaster, who studied under Sister Thea in 1971 at Catholic University, described her as a magnetic, fearless educator.

Sister Thea, he said, was a rare combination of joy and power, preparation and presence. She could disarm students with a smile – then break into song mid-lecture to drive a point home. “She made you feel OK. That was the power of her presence,” he said.

The final panel of the day examined how Sister Thea Bowman’s life offers a model for holiness and a call to recognize the witness of Black Catholics in the church.

“We always need more saints,” said Washington Auxiliary Bishop Roy E. Campbell Jr.. “Sister Thea’s life shows us this. She opened her heart, her mind, and her soul to the faith. She prayed with every fiber of her being. And she loved – with joy and boldness.”

Panelist Jeannine Marino, secretary for pastoral ministry and social concerns for the Archdiocese of Washington, concluded with a call to action: “We can do our part by continuing to tell Sister Thea’s story, promoting her holiness, and praying for her cause. Every effort counts.”

(Nicole Olea writes for the Catholic Standard, the news outlet of the Archdiocese of Washington.)

Briefs

Pope Francis meets briefly with U.S. Vice President JD Vance, and his translator, in the papal residence, the Domus Sanctae Marthae, at the Vatican April 20, 2025. Pope Francis, formerly Argentine Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio, died April 21, 2025, at age 88. (CNS photo/Vatican Media)

NATION
WASHINGTON (OSV News) – President Donald Trump, officials in his administration, and other U.S. political leaders issued statements expressing condolences for Pope Francis after the pontiff’s death April 21 at age 88. “Rest in Peace Pope Francis!” Trump wrote on his social media platform Truth Social. “May God Bless him and all who loved him!” Trump also ordered flags be flown at half-staff in memory of Pope Francis at public buildings, military posts, naval stations and ships, and embassies. The pontiff’s death followed his stay in Rome’s Gemelli hospital earlier this year while he recovered from respiratory infections. The day before his death, Pope Francis gave his Easter blessing “urbi et orbi” (to the city of Rome and the world). He also held a meeting with U.S. Vice President JD Vance, a Catholic, who also shared his condolences over the social media platform X on April 21. Former President Joe Biden, the nation’s second Catholic president, said on X: “Pope Francis will be remembered as one of the most consequential leaders of our time and I am better for having known him.” Pope Francis made his first – and only – trip in his life to the United States in September 2015.

DENVER (OSV News) – Organizers of the 2025 National Eucharistic Pilgrimage announced April 10 that public events are posted and registration is open for stops along the Drexel Route. The route begins May 18 in Indianapolis and spans over 3,300 miles to Los Angeles, arriving June 22. Eight young adult “perpetual pilgrims” will accompany the Eucharist through 10 states, 20 dioceses, and four Eastern Catholic eparchies, with events centered on prayer, Eucharistic adoration, and hope and healing. Named for St. Katharine Drexel, the pilgrimage aligns with the church’s 2025 Jubilee Year of Hope and offers a plenary indulgence to participants. Stops include a Missouri school founded by St. Katharine Drexel, a Tulsa hospice and a Texas prison. Special events will also honor victims of national tragedies. Organizers are anticipating over 10,000 attendees at the concluding Corpus Christi celebration in Los Angeles. Registration is free but required for most events. “We’re excited about continuing to start the fire of evangelization and mission that’s been so much of the heart of the Eucharistic Revival, this encounter and mission,” said Bishop Andrew H. Cozzens of Crookston, Minnesota, chairman of National Eucharistic Congress Inc., which is based in Denver.

WORLD
LOURDES, France (OSV News) – A 72nd miracle has been confirmed at the Sanctuary of Our Lady of Lourdes in France, with the announcement bringing joy after a recitation of the rosary on the April 16 feast day of St. Bernadette Soubirous. The miracle involves Antonietta Raco, an Italian woman who suffered from Primary Lateral Sclerosis (PLS), a severe motor neuron disease. In 2009, during her pilgrimage to Lourdes, she experienced a miraculous healing after bathing in the waters of the sanctuary’s pools. Raco began moving independently, with symptoms of PLS disappearing entirely. Bishop Vincenzo Carmine Orofino of Tursi-Lagonegro officially declared the healing a miracle after extensive medical investigation. The International Medical Committee of Lourdes confirmed the healing as scientifically unexplained. This miracle comes just months after the 71st miracle, involving a British soldier from World War I. Lourdes, a site of pilgrimage for millions, has a rigorous process for recognizing miracles, and has over 7,000 reported cases of healing.

KYIV, Ukraine (OSV News) – Catholic and other religious leaders are condemning a Palm Sunday attack by Russia on a Ukrainian city that killed 34 – including two children – and injured 119. Two ballistic missiles launched by Russia earlier that same day struck the center of Sumy, a city in northeastern Ukraine located some 15 miles from the Russian border. “When we celebrate the feast of life, the enemy wishes to inflict its feast of death on us,” said Major Archbishop Sviatoslav Shevchuk, head of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church, in an April 13 statement. The Ukrainian Council of Churches and Religious Organizations, the largest organization of religious leaders in Ukraine, also condemned the strikes, which took place amid both the Jewish holiday of Passover (April 12-20, 2025) and the Christian observance of Holy Week. Multiple world leaders also deplored the Palm Sunday attack. Ukraine President Voldymyr Zelenskyy called for a global response to the strikes, which followed a similar April 4 attack by Russia on a playground in his hometown of Kryvyi Rih. Nine children were among the 19 killed in that strike. “It is crucial that the world does not stay silent or indifferent,” said Zelenskyy in an April 13 post on X.cal Survey’s estimates. In neighboring Thailand, Bangkok city authorities said so far six people had been found dead, 26 injured and 47 were still missing, according to The Guardian. The tremor, followed by a 6.4 magnitude aftershock, caused buildings to collapse, including a historic bridge in the region. The earthquake’s impact was felt across neighboring countries, including Thailand and Bangladesh. Pope Francis expressed his sorrow, offering prayers for the victims and emergency responders in Myanmar and Thailand. Meanwhile, relief efforts are hindered by Myanmar’s ongoing civil war, with few resources reaching affected areas. Catholic churches in Mandalay and beyond were also damaged, with St. Michael’s Church among the hardest hit. In some regions, local communities are organizing relief efforts as state response remains limited.

MANAGUA, Nicaragua (OSV News) – In Nicaragua, Catholics celebrated Palm Sunday under intense government scrutiny, as police and paramilitaries surrounded Managua’s cathedral and restricted Holy Week activities to church grounds. The regime of Daniel Ortega and Rosario Murillo has banned public religious processions for the third straight year – allowing exceptions only for clergy aligned with the government. Cardinal Leopoldo Brenes of Managua led Mass inside the cathedral, focusing his homily on forgiveness despite the visible intimidation. Meanwhile, exiled Bishop Silvio Báez assured the faithful online that the government “cannot prevent the crucified one from revealing his victory” through acts of justice and solidarity. Church leaders report increasing harassment: clergy are monitored, muzzled, and even spied on during Mass. Some priests now avoid preaching altogether to evade arrest. Over 220 religious have been exiled or blocked from returning. Despite the crackdown, observers say the regime remains fearful of the church’s moral authority – and the enduring faith of the Nicaraguan people.

US bishops support bill easing immigrant religious workers’ path to permanent residency

By Kate Scanlon
WASHINGTON (OSV News) – The U.S. bishops on April 10 told congressional lawmakers they support bipartisan legislation that would ease some immigration restrictions on religious workers from other countries, allowing them to stay in the U.S. while they wait for permanent residency.

The legislation, titled the Religious Workforce Protection Act, was introduced in the Senate by Sens. Susan Collins, R-Maine, Tim Kaine, D-Va., and Jim Risch, R-Idaho, and in the House by Reps. Mike Carey, R-Ohio, and Richard Neal, D-Mass.

If signed into law, it would permit religious workers already in the U.S. on temporary R-1 status with pending EB-4 applications to stay in the U.S. while waiting for permanent residency, Collins’ office said. All five of those members are Catholic.

“When Maine parishes where I attend mass started losing their priests, I saw this issue creating a real crisis in our state,” Collins said in an April 8 statement. “Recently, three Catholic parishes in rural Maine – Saint Agatha, Bucksport, and Greenville – were left without priests for months because their R-1 visas expired while their EB-4 applications were still pending.”

Father Charles Gnanapragasam, a priest from India, chats with well-wishers following a “Keep Our Priests” rosary rally at St. Mary Church in East Islip, N.Y., April 29, 2024. The U.S. bishops on April 10, 2025, told congressional lawmakers they support bipartisan legislation, the Religious Workforce Protection Act, that would ease some immigration restrictions on religious workers from other countries, allowing them to stay in the U.S. while they wait for permanent residency. (OSV News photo/Gregory A. Shemitz)

The National Study of Catholic Priests – released in 2022 by The Catholic University of America’s Catholic Project – indicated 24% of priests serving in the U.S. are foreign-born. A majority of these were ordained outside the U.S., while others are foreign-born priests who came to the U.S. as seminarians, were ordained in the U.S. and are also subject to visa renewals.

“Our bill would help religious workers of all faith traditions continue to live and serve here in the United States while their applications for permanent residency are being fully processed,” Collins said. “Many Mainers and Americans cannot imagine their lives without the sense of community and services their local religious organizations provide – with this legislation, I hope they never have to.”
Kaine likewise said in a statement, “I first started hearing about churches losing trusted priests through my Parish, St. Elizabeth’s in Richmond, where we have had priests who were immigrants, and often have visiting priests, some of whom are immigrants as well.”

“But as it turns out, this problem is not unique to Virginia – it’s impacting religious congregations of many faiths, all across the country,” he said.

Bishops Mark J. Seitz of El Paso, Texas, Barry C. Knestout of Richmond, Virginia, James T. Ruggieri of Portland, Maine, and Earl K. Fernandes of Columbus, Ohio, were among the religious leaders who offered statements of support for the bill in press releases from Collins and Kaine’s offices, alongside representatives of evangelical Christian, Muslim, Jewish, and Hindu organizations.

In an April 10 letter to members of Congress, Archbishop Timothy P. Broglio, president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops and head of the U.S. Archdiocese for the Military Services, as well as Bishop Seitz, who is chairman of the USCCB’s Committee on Migration, urged lawmakers to pass the legislation to “to ensure communities across our nation can continue to enjoy the essential contributions of foreign-born religious workers who lawfully entered the United States on a nonimmigrant religious worker (R-1) visa.”

They said that there are many Catholic priests, women religious, and laypersons working in Catholic ministries in that category.

“Some parishes, especially those in rural or isolated areas, would go without regular access to the sacraments, if not for these religious workers,” the bishops said. “Additionally, dioceses with large immigrant populations rely on foreign-born religious workers for their linguistic and cultural expertise. We would not be able to serve our diverse flocks, which reflect the rich tapestry of our society overall, without the faithful men and women who come to serve through the Religious Worker Visa Program.”
They said, “Simply put, an increasing number of American families will be unable to practice the basic tenets of their faith if this situation is not addressed soon. Likewise, hospitals will go without chaplains, schools will go without teachers, and seminaries will go without instructors.”

The bishops urged lawmakers to cosponsor “this vital measure and to work toward its immediate passage, thereby furthering the free exercise of religion in our country for the benefit of all Americans.”

(Kate Scanlon is a national reporter for OSV News covering Washington. Follow her on X @kgscanlon.)

What are the 14 traditional Stations of the Cross?

By D.D. Emmons
(OSV News) – Permanently affixed, the 14 stations adorn parishes around the world. They are visible reminders of the last hours of Christ on earth, but, moreover, the Way of the Cross is symbolic of our lifelong journey filled with difficulties and marked with personal crosses. Unlike the followers of Christ on that Good Friday, we know that the 14th station is not the end, that death does not win; rather, in his sacrifice, we find the sure knowledge of eternal life.

Some of the 14 traditional stations are not found in the Gospels but have been passed down through tradition:

First Station: Jesus is condemned to death (Mk 15:6-15).
Second Station: Jesus carries his cross (Jn 19:15-17).
Third Station: Jesus falls the first time.
Fourth Station: Jesus meets his mother.
Fifth Station: Simon the Cyrene is made to bear the cross (Mk 15:21).
Sixth Station: Veronica wipes the face of Jesus.
Seventh Station: Jesus falls the second time.
Eighth Station: Jesus meets the women of Jerusalem (Lk 23:27-31).
Ninth Station: Jesus falls a third time.
Tenth Station: Jesus is stripped of his garments (Mt 27:35, Lk 23:34).
Eleventh Station: Jesus is nailed to the cross (Lk 23:33-43).
Twelfth Station: Jesus dies on the cross (Lk 23:44-46).
Thirteenth Station: Jesus is taken down from the cross (Jn 19: 38).
Fourteenth Station: Jesus is laid in the tomb (Jn 19: 38-42).

An image of the Stations of the Cross at the Pope John Paul II Cultural Center in Washington shows the sixth station, “Veronica wipes the face of Jesus.” (OSV News photo/Bob Roller)

While the three falls of Jesus are not found in the Gospels, it is likely that he fell from the weight of the cross beam, which typically weighed more than 100 pounds, and because of his weakened condition from the scourging. That Jesus met his mother as he struggled along is most probable since she was always near him; finally, that some brave Christian stepped out of the crowd to wipe the blood, spit and sweat from his face also is likely.

The stations entered church devotion as Christians who could not visit Jerusalem began to erect local replicas of the holy sites based on information from people who had been to the city, such as the crusaders. Initially there was no continuity or standardization among these structures; some included as many as 37 stops, others as few as seven. Finally, in 1731, Pope Clement XII established the number of stations as 14.

In 1991, Pope St. John Paul II introduced a version of this devotion based entirely on the Scriptures. All 14 stations and the accompanying meditations can be found in the Bible. The Scriptural Stations are an alternative to the traditional Way of the Cross.

(D.D. Emmons writes from Pennsylvania.)

Simple Holy Week customs transcend cultures, continents

By Lorene Hanley Duquin
(OSV News) – From baking sweet breads to blessing baskets, Holy Week is full of long-standing traditions that transcend cultures and continents. The following list includes a quick overview of family favorites.
– Palm crosses: From medieval times, people have believed that blessed palms formed into the shape of a cross would protect them from danger. The easiest way to make a cross from blessed palms is to cut two pieces of the palm, arrange in the shape of a cross, put a thumbtack in the middle, and attach the cross to a doorway or a bulletin board. Check the Internet for directions on how to braid or weave palms into more decorative crosses.

A woman holds a palm frond cross during Palm Sunday Mass outside St. Mary’s Chapel at the National Shrine Grotto of Our Lady of Lourdes in Emmitsburg, Md., April 2, 2023. (OSV News photo/Bob Roller)

– Housecleaning: In many cultures the Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday of Holy Week are designated as days for vigorous housecleaning in preparation for Easter. This custom probably evolved from the Jewish custom of ritual cleaning before Passover.

– Coloring eggs: Decorating eggs was a pagan symbol of rebirth at springtime for the Romans, Greeks, Egyptians, Persians and even the Chinese. Christians adopted the colored egg as a symbol of new life which comes with the Resurrection.

– Easter lilies: The tradition of buying Easter lilies during Holy Week for use as decorations in homes and churches came into practice in the 1800s. The white flower is a symbol of purity and new life that heralds the resurrection of Jesus.

– Visiting churches: The custom of visiting several churches to say a prayer on Holy Thursday was a tradition that evolved from the practice of making pilgrimages to holy places.

– Sweet breads: In many cultures, Holy Week was traditionally a time for baking sweet breads, cakes and pastries that would be served on Easter Sunday.

– Blessing of Easter baskets: In many cultures, families bring food that will be eaten on Easter Sunday to church in a basket for a special blessing on Holy Saturday.

– New clothes: From the time of the early Christians, the newly baptized wore white garments made from new linen. In medieval times, it became a tradition for people to wear new clothes on Easter Sunday, symbolizing the “new life” that comes with the Resurrection. In some places it was believed that bad luck would come to those who could afford new Easter clothes but refused to buy them.

– Holy Water blessings: Some families bring holy water containers to Mass on Easter so they can bring home some Easter water, which is blessed during the Easter Vigil, to bless their homes.

Many people and families also participate in the full cycle of Triduum liturgies, from Holy Thursday to Easter Sunday, walking with the Lord through his passion, death and resurrection. However you mark Holy Week, intentionally set it apart from the other 51 weeks of the year, because this one is truly special.

(Lorene Hanley Duquin is a Catholic author and lecturer who has worked in parishes and on a diocesan level.)

Briefs

NATION
INDIANAPOLIS (OSV News) – An investigation by the Archdiocese of Indianapolis into an alleged Eucharistic miracle at an Indiana parish has indicated that “natural, not miraculous causes” resulted in a host displaying a red discoloration, the archdiocese said in a March 24 statement sent to OSV News. “A biochemical analysis of a host from St. Anthony Catholic Church in Morris, Ind., that was displaying red discoloration revealed the presence of a common bacteria found on all humans,” the statement said. “No presence of human blood was discovered.” The March 24 statement confirmed that the host had “fallen out of a Mass kit used at the parish, and when it was discovered, red spots were present. Following policy established by the Holy See, the host was submitted for professional, biochemical analysis at a local laboratory,” it said. “The results indicate the presence of fungus and three different species of bacteria, all of which are commonly found on human hands.” Catholics believe that upon their consecration at Mass, bread and wine become Jesus Christ – body, blood, soul and divinity – while still retaining the appearances of bread and wine. The church conducts scientific investigations into alleged miraculous changes to the appearances of the Eucharist, such as manifesting as truly blood and human tissue. The archdiocese’s March 24 statement added, “Throughout the history of the Catholic Church, there have been well-documented miracles and apparitions, and each has been thoroughly and carefully reviewed.”

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (OSV News) – A 30-year-old man believed to be homeless was arrested and charged with the commission of an act of terrorism following a threat he allegedly emailed to a music minister at St. Louis Catholic Church in Memphis, Tennessee, claiming he wanted to “butcher” people in the church with a machete. Zachary Liberto is currently being held at the Shelby County Jail on a $200,100 bond. A hearing date is pending. In Tennessee, the crime is a Class A felony and a conviction can result in a prison sentence of 15 to 60 years. On March 20, Memphis police said Liberto had been in “a verbal altercation” at the church with a music minister that involved Liberto allegedly throwing trash into the baptismal font. The criminal charge stems from an email Liberto allegedly sent later. It stated, “I need a video of (one of the pastors) getting slapped by you in 24 hours before I butcher people in that church with a machete.” Rick Ouellette, a spokesperson with the Diocese of Memphis, said the incident occurred “after school and work hours.” He added that St. Louis “has a solid safety and security plan in place, as do our 46 parishes and 13 schools in West Tennessee.”

VATICAN
VATICAN CITY (CNS) – The number of Catholics and permanent deacons in the world rose in 2023, while the number of seminarians, priests, men and women in religious orders, and baptisms all declined, according to Vatican statistics. However, the Vatican’s Statistical Yearbook of the Church said, 9.1 million people received their first Communion in 2023, up from 8.68 million people the previous year, and almost 7.7 million people were confirmed, up from 7.4 million people in 2022. At the end of 2023, the number of Catholics in the world reached 1.405 billion, up 1.15% from 1.389 billion Catholics at the end of 2022, according to the Vatican’s Central Office of Church Statistics, which publishes the yearbook. The Vatican published its statistical yearbook offering data “on the life and activity of the church in the world in 2023” at the end of March. Catholics represented about 17.8% of the global population at the end of 2023, it said. The highest proportion is in the Americas with 64.2% of its population being baptized Catholic. Europe follows with 39.6% and Oceania with 25.9%. In Africa, 19.8% of the population is Catholic and the lowest proportion of Catholics by continent is Asia with 3.3%. While the number of Catholics is increasing, the administration of the sacrament of baptism has continued to decrease worldwide, according to the yearbook.

VATICAN CITY (CNS) –As Pope Francis continues his convalescence, the Vatican published a full calendar of Holy Week and Easter liturgies with no indication of who would preside or be the main celebrant. The list of Masses and other liturgies, released by the master of papal liturgical ceremonies March 27, said only that the services would be celebrated by the “Pontifical Chapel,” which includes the pope, the cardinals residing in Rome and top Vatican officials. Asked about Pope Francis’ role in the celebrations, the Vatican press office responded that “it will be necessary to see the improvements in the pope’s health in the coming weeks to assess his possible presence, and on what terms, at the rites of Holy Week.”

People stand near the site of a collapsed building in Bangkok, Thailand, March 28, 2025, that collapsed after a strong earthquake struck central Myanmar, earthquake monitoring services said. The 7.7 magnitude quake rocked Myanmar and neighboring Thailand, killing at least 150 people and injuring more than 700. It destroyed buildings, a bridge and a dam and left hundreds missing. (OSV News photo/Ann Wang, Reuters)

WORLD
KINSHASA, Congo (OSV News) – Catholic religious sisters in Congo have become the latest victims of violence as the country grapples with ongoing conflict tied to mineral resources. On March 18, the Missionary Sisters of Santo Domingo in Kinshasa was targeted by attackers who broke into the congregation’s residence, stealing money, phones and computers. The attack highlights the growing dangers faced by religious groups in Congo, where poverty and perceptions of wealth make church leaders prime targets. Cardinal Fridolin Ambongo Besungu of Kinshasa condemned the attack and urged religious communities to stay vigilant while remaining hopeful. This incident follows a string of similar attacks on women religious, including kidnappings and murders. The violence coincides with rising tensions in the east, where M23, or Movement 23, rebels are making gains. The Catholic and Protestant churches have been engaged in shuttle diplomacy, promoting peace efforts despite growing opposition from the government. Church leaders, including Msgr. Donatien Nshole Babula, secretary general of Congo’s bishops’ conference, face increasing backlash for their peace efforts.

MANDALAY, Myanmar (OSV News) – A powerful 7.7 magnitude earthquake struck Myanmar’s Mandalay-Sagaing region March 28, causing widespread destruction and a rising death toll. As of March 29, at least 1,000 people had died in Myanmar, with hundreds more missing. The death toll may surpass 10,000 according to U.S. Geological Survey’s estimates. In neighboring Thailand, Bangkok city authorities said so far six people had been found dead, 26 injured and 47 were still missing, according to The Guardian. The tremor, followed by a 6.4 magnitude aftershock, caused buildings to collapse, including a historic bridge in the region. The earthquake’s impact was felt across neighboring countries, including Thailand and Bangladesh. Pope Francis expressed his sorrow, offering prayers for the victims and emergency responders in Myanmar and Thailand. Meanwhile, relief efforts are hindered by Myanmar’s ongoing civil war, with few resources reaching affected areas. Catholic churches in Mandalay and beyond were also damaged, with St. Michael’s Church among the hardest hit. In some regions, local communities are organizing relief efforts as state response remains limited.

10 million Christians in US at risk of mass deportation, says Catholic-Evangelical report

By Kate Scanlon

WASHINGTON (OSV News) – A joint report between organizations affiliated with different Christian churches found that a significant share of people impacted by the Trump administration’s pursuit of what it has called “the largest deportation in U.S. history,” are Christian.

The report, a joint project of the National Association of Evangelicals, the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ Migration and Refugee Services, the Center for the Study of Global Christianity at Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary, and World Relief, found many of those vulnerable to deportation themselves — or those who have a family member vulnerable to deportation — are Christians.

Agents with the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detain a man after conducting a raid at the Cedar Run apartment complex in Denver Feb. 5, 2025. (OSV News photo/Kevin Mohatt, Reuters)

“One cannot help but ponder what our country and our lives would be like, if the same sort of restrictions and enforcement actions being contemplated today were imposed on those coming from places like Ireland, Germany, Poland, Italy and elsewhere by the boat full,” Bishop Mark J. Seitz of El Paso, Texas, told reporters in a press call about the report.

“You know, it’s amazing how U.S. history repeats itself, and I don’t think many of us would suggest that the way that our immigrant ancestors were treated in many cases would be a model to be followed today,” he said.

Catholic social teaching on immigration balances three interrelated principles — the right of persons to migrate in order to sustain their lives and those of their families, the right of a country to regulate its borders and control immigration, and a nation’s duty to regulate its borders with justice and mercy.

While the individual Christian organizations behind the report may support or oppose particular policies according to their beliefs, participants explained, they share a common goal of seeking to understand not only how mass deportations would impact the U.S., but also their faith communities and Christians as a whole.

According to demographic data as of the end of 2024, the report found, more than 10 million Christians living in the U.S. would be vulnerable to deportation under Trump administration policies implemented in 2025.

Christians account for approximately 80% of all of those at risk of deportation. The Christians most at risk of deportation are Catholics, 61% of the total.

At the same time, about 7 million Christians who are U.S. citizens live in the same household as someone at risk of deportation.

Overall, the report found, about one out of every 12 Christians in the U.S. — including one out of 18 evangelicals and about one out of five Catholics — are either vulnerable to deportation themselves or could see a family member deported, barring law or policy changes.

Walter Kim, president of the National Association of Evangelicals, pointed to a recent Lifeway Research study showing that while evangelicals have been a consistent voting bloc supporting Trump during his three presidential campaigns, most support deporting individuals who have been convicted of violent crimes, but support programs to help refugees and policies aimed at keeping families together.

“Now, sometimes it’s thought that many evangelicals are supportive of this, but in fact, most evangelical Christians do not want to see deportation on this scale, of immigrants who have not been convicted of violent crimes, who are members of our churches whose deportations would result in families being separated,” Kim said.

Stephanie Gonzalez, a teacher at a Christian school in Southern California whose parents, 55-year-old Gladys and 59-year-old Nelson Gonzalez, who have no criminal record, were recently deported to Colombia after more than 35 years in the U.S. Gonzalez said when they arrived in the U.S., they sought to follow the law, but “my parents became victims of immigration fraud and dealt with several fraudulent lawyers who took advantage of them.”

“This was just the beginning of the nightmare that my parents faced when it came to attorneys and a flawed immigration system,” Gonzalez said.

Bishop Seitz and Gonzalez both raised the point that separating families contradicts Christians’ interest in protecting strong family units.

“The separation of families is heartbreaking, and I believe the separation breaks the Lord’s heart,” Gonzalez said.

The report, titled “One Part of the Body,” is a reference to the biblical teaching that Christians form one body, composed of distinct but interdependent parts, Matthew Soerens, vice president of advocacy and policy at World Relief, one of the largest evangelical ministries serving refugees and other immigrants, said on the call.

“When one part of the body suffers, we are all to suffer together, just as a hand cannot go about its business unaffected if a foot is in debilitating, debilitating pain,” he said. “With that biblical principle in mind, we set out to understand and quantify with this report how the Trump administration’s proposals for the largest deportation in U.S. history could impact the church in the United States. Immigrants from various countries form integral parts of the body of Christ in the U.S.”

(Kate Scanlon is a national reporter for OSV News covering Washington. Follow her on X @kgscanlon.)

A drowned toddler was near death. Then his parents began the Blessed McGivney novena

By Simone Orendain

(OSV News) — An Arizona couple whose toddler survived a drowning incident March 2 is attributing his miraculous recovery to intercessions from Blessed Michael McGivney, founder of the Knights of Columbus, along with a multitude of saints and what they count as thousands of prayers from across the country and the world.

Caitlin and Wesley Robinson of suburban Phoenix told OSV News that at the hospital, doctors tried CPR for 52 minutes to revive their 15-month-old son, Vincent, who had a barely detectable, intermittent pulse since before he arrived. His father said he found their baby face down at the bottom of the family hot tub, which was not turned on.

The Robinsons said once the toddler was stable, Vincent was placed on oxygen, IV pain killers, paralytics and other sedatives. But he was not out of danger.

“Sunday (March 2), Monday, Tuesday we were preparing ourselves for a funeral, really. And so it was three days on our knees and just praying incessantly,” explained Caitlin Robinson.

The Catholic couple has eight children between ages 12 years and 15 months — all of them are named after saints who, Caitlin said, have special significance to the family. Caitlin, now expecting a ninth child, said they started praying for all of these saints’ and others’ intercession before God.

Caitlin shared they also prayed for the intercession of the departed who are not saints, but whose faith lives have had prominence in the church. Among them was the late Cardinal George Pell of Sydney, whom the Robinsons had met through a family friend, Father Joseph Hamilton, who was a secretary to the cardinal.

The cardinal spent 404 days in prison — most of it in solitary confinement — on a charge of child sexual abuse alleged to have occurred in the 1990s, but his conviction was thrown out by Australia’s High Court. Its seven justices unanimously concluded “a significant possibility that an innocent person has been convicted” based on weak evidence. Cardinal Pell credited his faith — and decision to forgive his accusers — for helping him survive the ordeal, which he chronicled in a diary, while affirming the abuse crisis was a “spiritual and moral cancer” resulting from the church too often not following the teachings of Jesus Christ. At 81, he suffered a heart attack and died Jan. 10, 2023, in Rome after a hip replacement surgery.

The Robinsons prayed for Cardinal Pell’s intercession and requested prayers from Father Hamilton, who said he would ask Sydney Archbishop Anthony Fisher to also pray for Vincent.

When Vincent was rushed to the hospital, Wesley Robinson immediately contacted his wife’s brother, Father Dan Connealy, based at a parish in Flagstaff, Arizona, two hours north of Phoenix.

Father Connealy told OSV News he was in shock and had an anxious drive to the Phoenix hospital, trying to steel himself for the funeral Mass that he was certain he would be offering for his baby nephew. But instead, he spent the rest of that first day at Vincent’s beside with the family and friends praying. Father Connealy asked his sister if he could contact as wide a network as possible of friends and clergy to pray for Vincent, to which Caitlin Robinson replied yes.

“It was really beautiful … a vulnerable moment where it’s like you can’t really process things. Her instinct was like, ‘Just get as many people praying as you can,'” said Father Connealy.

Among the people he contacted was a Connecticut-based priest friend, whose sister is Vincent’s godmother. The friend sent a first-class relic of Blessed Michael McGivney, founder of the Knights of Columbus, whose parish was St. Mary’s Church in New Haven, where his body is entombed.

Still, Caitlin Robinson was preparing herself for the worst. She said, “I was just so certain that I knew it was God’s will that we were going to lose our child and I’m ashamed that I didn’t trust more.”

But she held fast to a Catholic classic that she read in the hospital about trusting in God’s providence.

“We don’t actually ask God enough and so when we received the relic of Blessed McGivney I said, ‘OK, I’m just going to ask for total and complete healing, and I don’t think it’s going to work, but I’m going to ask for it and I trust,” said Caitlin.

15-month old Vincent Robinson is carried in the arms of the Phoenix Police officer who first arrived at the Robinsons’ home on the morning Vincent’s father found him March 2 face-down at the bottom of the family’s hot tub that was not turned on, in Phoenix March 26, 2025. The family told OSV News the child was near death when they began praying a novena March 5 to Blessed Michael McGivney with his relic. The child was completely recovered and discharged from the hospital by the novena’s conclusion. (OSV News photo / Photo courtesy of Phoenix Fire Department)

The family said the relic, along with a novena prayer, which they and a sizable network of family, friends and parishioners prayed immediately, arrived on the third day of Vincent’s hospitalization. It was Ash Wednesday. They placed the relic on the comatose boy’s chest.

By that evening, doctors said the toddler was no longer in the “end of life” stage. The couple said doctors called his turnaround “remarkable.”

Caitlin said they placed the relic on a different part of Vincent’s body each day of the novena. And each day something remarkable happened. She read from a list that she documented, recounting: an MRI that showed clear images of undamaged organs; the removal of daytime oxygen and the feeding tube without needing to reinstate either; no more fluid in the lungs; Vincent being moved from the pediatric intensive care unit to the regular floor; early on getting up, walking and lifting things; being able to eat regular food and swallowing on his own; and finally, being discharged on the ninth day.

All along the family also sought the intercession of whoever was the saint of the day, and prayed with other relics of saints that started flooding in as the call for prayers spread.

Caitlin Robinson said that on the Tuesday after the drowning, the first responders left a manila envelope at the nurses’ station that the couple did not open until they took Vincent home. Inside was a packet for making funeral arrangements.

Wesley Robinson, a 39-year-old mergers and acquisitions attorney, said he had never prayed “so intensely in my life” and that his prayer life changed after this experience.

“I feel like this is a gift and it would be a shame if we waste this opportunity for us and our kids and our community,” he said. Robinson said he wouldn’t necessarily call it “a wake up call,” but reflected miracles serve to “kind of re-energize a community or a person; to kind of re-energize their faith.”

“The reality of the church triumphant has never been so clear to us that God actually listens to our prayers like in real time,” said Caitlin, 39, referring to the Catholic concept of the church in heaven where the saints who have triumphed with Christ over evil intercede for the church on Earth, so they too can be close to Christ like they are forever.

“We should all be calling on Christ and the saints and the angels,” Caitlin said. She added, “Like I said, intellectually we know this, but to feel it in this way, it’s just amazing.”

(Simone Orendain writes for OSV News from Chicago.)

Biblical tales old and new

By Kurt Jensen
(OSV News) – Vintage biblical epics sprout like daffodils during Lent, which began with Ash Wednesday on March 5.

But one of the most visible of those re-blooming buds over the years, Cecil B. DeMille’s 1956 “The Ten Commandments,” is taking Easter weekend off this year. It’s still available on streaming platforms after being an ABC-TV staple of Holy Week and Passover for more than half a century, beginning in 1973.

The acting is over the top, but that’s the fun. Who wants to see nuance from Yul Brynner as Ramses II, Charlton Heston as Moses, Anne Baxter as Nefertari, and Edward G. Robinson as Dathan snarling, “Where’s your Messiah now?”

Classic! Quotable! And when Heston spreads his arms wide to part the thundering Red Sea – what more could you want?

Like “The Ten Commandments,” Scripture-based epics with big-name actors are mostly a thing of the past – think Gregory Peck and Susan Hayward in in 1951’s “David and Bathsheba” and Victor Mature and Hedy Lamarr in 1949’s “Samson and Delilah” as well as Jeffrey Hunter as Jesus in 1961’s “King of Kings.”
One of the last big-screen attempts, Richard Gere in “King David” in 1985, was a notorious bomb. Mel Gibson’s 2004 “The Passion of the Christ” inspired many but also stirred controversy.

Jamie Ward portrays Christ in a scene from the movie “The Last Supper,” in theaters beginning March 14, 2025. The OSV News classification is A-III – adults. The Motion Picture Association rating is PG-13 – parents strongly cautioned. Some material may be inappropriate for children under 13. (OSV News photo/Pinnacle Peak)

Yet the TV series “The Chosen,” with Jonathan Roumie as Jesus, has been a long-running success since its 2017 pilot and first season two years later. The newest episodes, dealing with the Last Supper, will have a three-part theatrical release beginning March 28.

Two other new productions downplay epic elements to focus on intimate narratives. They also take on the challenge of inserting non-Biblical elements to flesh out the scriptural accounts.

The directors of both “House of David,” a miniseries on Amazon Prime that will become available on Feb. 27, and “The Last Supper” (Pinnacle Peak), in theaters beginning March 14, put great effort into making their settings realistic and developing three-dimensional characterizations.

Mauro Borrelli, an Italian Catholic and former altar server, began to paint at age 7, instructed by a monk, and studied classical painting at the Academy of Fine Arts in Venice. His art design for movies has included “Batman Forever” (1995) and Tim Burton’s “Planet of the Apes” in 2001.

His recreation of events surrounding the Last Supper, a gathering of such significance that it’s described in all four Gospels, has Jamie Ward as Jesus, Robert Knepper as Judas and James Oliver Wheatley as St. Peter.

Of the script, co-written with John Collins, Borrelli told OSV News, “I don’t know that you can really improve Scripture, but you could add something.”

He enjoyed filling in spare details: “What did these people eat? Who served? I wanted to be accurate. I didn’t want it to be an interpretation.”

The film is told from the standpoint of Peter who, in a moment of weakness, denied ever knowing Jesus. “As a human being, we can’t always think that we’re strong,” Borrelli commented.

As for the portrayal of Jesus, “I wanted to keep him on a pedestal. I didn’t want to humanize him too much,” he said. Having Jesus manifest “a spiritual aura all the time,” Borrelli thought, kept the story faithful to the Gospel narratives.

Judas “is much weaker” than Peter, he observed, “and sensitive, intelligent. But he was being targeted by Satan.” Peter “overcomes his struggle, but Judas does not.”

Reflecting on the institution of the Eucharist, Borrelli commented, “’This is my body, this is my blood.’ You hear it (at Mass) all the time. But so familiar, It loses its meaning, you know?”

So he felt he had to make a direct connection in the script. By doing so, he gained a new insight into the meaning of Jesus’ words.

“Jesus’ blood now is replacing that lamb’s blood (of Passover). Here Jesus came to pay all the debts (for human sin) with his sacrifice. I never really realized that before. A payment for the full debt. It was a revelation for me.”

The story of David, the shepherd boy and future king of Israel who slew the Philistine giant Goliath, takes up only one chapter of the First Book of Samuel. Its staying power is built on David’s strong faith while Goliath is not only taunting David but also flouting God’s authority.

David, a country lad and unheralded warrior, needed only one stone in his sling to kill the giant. The story is so familiar that it’s often regarded as material most easily appreciated by children – almost all of whom can likely relate to the tale of an underdog standing up to a mocking bully.

There have been three film versions, notably one from 1960 in which Orson Welles played King Saul, David’s father-in-law who united the Hebrew tribes into a single nation, as sort of a hammy King Lear.
It’s one of the Bible stories that makes an easy transition to film, with a substantial cast, prophecies, kings, hard-charging desert battle scenes with javelins and shields, and the “six cubits and a span,” i.e., nine-foot, nine-inch, Goliath of Gath – terrifying to Saul and his army, but not to David.

Michael Iskander, of late a cast member of the Broadway musical “Kimberly Akimbo,” is the brooding David anointed by the prophet Samuel (Stephen Lang). Israeli actor Ali Suliman is Saul and six-foot, eight-inch bodybuilder-turned-actor Martyn Ford, through special effects, towers even higher as Goliath.
The series avoids anything that can be described as a reference to contemporary Middle East politics and stays focused on one boy’s challenge.

Showrunner Jon Irwin, who co-directed with Jon Gunn, told OSV News he regards the biblical David as similar to the fictional Luke Skywalker, Frodo Baggins and Harry Potter – all of them underestimated before they were heroes. Early on, David is told, “You have the heart of a lion.”

Quite a bit of attention went into Goliath’s appearance, Irwin said. “What would a giant have to look like to have an army frozen in fear for 40 days?” he asked. Fortunately, he said, Ford’s appearance “really is unbeatable.”

Close consideration also was paid to the sling and the stone, in order to make it believable that such a weapon was all it took to kill Goliath. A specialist in ancient warfare was called in to make sure the stone was flung with enough realistic force so that it “embedded itself in his brow, and he fell on his face to the ground.” (1 Sm: 17:49)
Irwin, an Alabama Protestant who has co-directed other faith-based fare, including 2020’s “I Still Believe” and “Jesus Revolution” (2023), said he had “wanted to tell this story since I was 16 years old” when, during a family trip to the Holy Land, he visited King David’s tomb in Jerusalem.

The production, financed by Amazon MGM Studios, has the resources “to really do it justice.” He calls it “a testament” to earlier biblical epics, but not one that owes anything to other film versions of the David and Goliath story: After all, “There’s not really a definitive (screen) version of that event.”

Like most scriptural tales, the passage in First Samuel is a spare account, requiring some elaboration and a lot of non-biblical dialogue. Irwin said the goal was to “do the story that justified the events that are on the page. It’s a love letter to the source material.”

He points out that the psalms of the mature David “are the most relatable words you’ve ever seen. A man wrestling with himself and his feelings, frustrations and regret.”

(Kurt Jensen is a guest reviewer for OSV News.)

Lenten food ‘doesn’t mean boring,’ says Catholic chef

By Gina Christian
(OSV News) – While the season of Lent is marked by fasting and abstinence, cooking for a hungry family in this season of prayer and penance “doesn’t mean boring or ‘fish all the time,’” a Catholic chef told OSV News.

Catholics fast and abstain from meat on Ash Wednesday and Good Friday, and forego meat on all the Fridays of Lent as well. In the Latin Catholic Church, those norms are obligatory for the faithful ages 18 through 59.

Members of the 23 Eastern Catholic churches observe their own particular restrictions during Lent, more commonly known among those churches as the Great Fast.

A gourmet crab cake prepared by certified executive chef Jim Churches, president of the American Culinary Federation’s Michigan Chefs de Cuisine Association and a member of St. Patrick Parish in Brighton, Mich., is seen in this undated photo. Churches told OSV News that with planning, flexibility and creativity, Lenten meals can engage the entire family and every palate. (OSV News photo/Courtesy of Jim Churches)

But discipline and deliciousness aren’t necessarily mutually exclusive, said certified executive chef Jim Churches, president of the American Culinary Federation’s Michigan Chefs de Cuisine Association and a member of St. Patrick Parish in Brighton, Michigan.

Churches – who also offers culinary instruction through Homeschool Connections, a national Catholic homeschooling course provider – said the key to Lenten cooking is to “plan ahead.”

“When you don’t think about it until it’s Friday, it’s a knee-jerk reaction of, ‘What do we have around the house?’” he said.

Instead, he advised, “take the time throughout the year to write a note” about family favorites – such as “mac and cheese, or pizza” – that can be enjoyed “without the meat component,” and cook the meatless versions on a regular basis.

“You can nail it down, and have the kids excited about it,” he said. “Get their input. And then they start to say, ‘This is really good.’”

Ditching meat – and dairy, and fish – all year long is something the nonprofit PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals) is hoping Christians and others will embrace.

PETA’s Christian outreach division, LAMBS (an acronym for “least among my brothers and sisters”), has issued a “40 Days of Lentils” challenge, inviting faithful to adopt a vegan lifestyle for both spiritual and ecological benefits.

The campaign includes vegan starter and creation care kits and cites numerous scriptural references to animals – with the organization noting that while Jesus is recorded in the Gospels as eating fish (and likely lamb, at least during Passover), he “would be horrified by today’s factory-farming practices.”

Although he doesn’t eschew meat, Churches admitted, “My body tells me sometimes, ‘You’ve had too much meat,’ and you just don’t crave it; you want something light.”

For millions worldwide, going meatless and eating light aren’t choices, but necessities – something Catholic Relief Services, the official humanitarian agency of the U.S. Catholic bishops, highlights in its annual Lenten Rice Bowl initiative.

Now in its 50th year, the campaign invites participants to prayerfully eat simple, meatless meals and donate savings toward CRS’s humanitarian and development projects, with 25% of the funds benefiting local hunger relief efforts and 75% assisting those in a number of low-income nations.

As part of Rice Bowl, CRS provides meatless recipes from the areas it serves, among them egg sauce with boiled yams from Nigeria, black bean soup from Guatemala, dahl (a lentil-based dish) from Bangladesh and crispy pancakes from Vietnam.

Churches told OSV News that some of his Lenten favorites are Polish pierogi – boiled or fried unleavened dough dumplings filled with vegetables (and, outside of Lent, meat) – as well as “really creative salads” with “strawberries, goat cheese and candied nuts.”

He describes his cooking style as “very cheese-forward and butter-forward,” heavily incorporating dairy in the style of classic French cuisine.

But even on a tight budget with limited room for dairy, Lenten meals can be flavorful and interesting, Churches said.

“You can buy dried gnocchi (Italian dumplings made of flour or potato starch), which is very inexpensive but very filling,” he explained. “You can make that with a white or red sauce … keep some of the pasta water to help thicken up your sauce a little bit, and throw your vegetables in there.”

Of course, fish and seafood are still staples of Lent, said Churches, noting the fish fry he started at his parish five years ago.

“One of our top sellers is the bang-bang shrimp,” he said, describing a popular recipe for fried shrimp in a spicy, sweet chili sauce with a mayonnaise base.

That recipe and Churches’ other signature Lenten dishes are a far cry from those listed in a late-19th century “Cookery Book for Fasting and Abstinence Days” by an author simply known as “P.O.P.”

The volume – released in London by Burns and Oates, and in the U.S. by the New York Catholic Publication Society – features instructions for eel soups and pie, as well as anchovy toast and imitation mutton broth, dishes the author hoped would offset the “monotony” of faithful’s Lenten fare.

Yet the main ingredient for Lenten cooking isn’t something found in a grocery store, said Churches.
“When you gather around the table, it’s a nourishing experience; a family-driven thing,” he said. “It’s all about family connection.”

Certified executive chef Jim Churches, president of the American Culinary Federation’s Michigan Chefs de Cuisine Association and a member of St. Patrick Parish in Brighton, Mich., is seen in this undated photo. Churches told OSV News that with planning, flexibility and creativity, Lenten meals can engage the entire family and every palate. (OSV News photo/Courtesy of Jim Churches)

(Gina Christian is a multimedia reporter for OSV News. Follow her on X @GinaJesseReina.)