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Thousands trek through New Mexico desert to adobe church for Good Friday

CHIMAYÓ, N.M. — A unique Holy Week tradition drew thousands of Catholic pilgrims to a small adobe church in the hills of northern New Mexico, in a journey on foot through desert badlands to reach a spiritual wellspring.

For generations, people of the Upper Rio Grande Valley and beyond have walked to reach El Santuario de Chimayó to commemorate Good Friday.

Pilgrims began arriving at dawn. Some had walked through the night under a half moon, carrying glow-sticks, flashlights and walking staffs.

Some travelers are lured by an indoor well of dirt believed to have curative powers. Throughout the year, they leave behind crutches, braces and canes in acts of prayer for infirm children and others, and as evidence that miracles happen.

Easter week visitors file through an adobe archway and narrow indoor passages to find a crucified Nuestro Señor de Esquipulas at the main altar. According to local lore, the crucifix was found on the site in the early 1800s, a continent away from its analog at a basilica in the Guatemalan town of Esquipulas.

Chimayó, known for its artisan weavings and chile crops, rests high above the Rio Grande Valley and opposite the national defense laboratory at Los Alamos that sprang up in the race to develop the first atomic weapon.

The iconic adobe church at Chimayó was cast from local mud at the sunset of Spanish rule in the Americas in the early 1800s, on a site already held sacred by Native Americans.

Set amid narrow streets, curio shops and brooks that flow quickly in spring, El Santuario de Chimayó has been designated as a National Historic Landmark that includes examples of 19th century Hispanic folk art, religious frescoes and saints carved from wood known as bultos.

A separate chapel is dedicated to the Santo Niño de Atocha, a patron saint of children, travelers and those seeking liberation and a fitting figure of devotion for Chimayó pilgrims on the go.

Hundreds of children’s shoes have been left in a prayer room there by the faithful in tribute to the holy child who wears out footwear on miraculous errands. There are even tiny boots tacked to the ceiling.

Pueblo people who inhabited the Chimayó area long before Spanish settlers believed healing spirits could be found in the form of hot springs. Those springs ultimately dried up, leaving behind earth attributed with healing powers.

Photographer Miguel Gandert grew up in the Española valley below Chimayó and made the pilgrimage as a boy with his parents.

“Everybody went to Chimayó. You didn’t have to be Catholic, » said Gandert, who was among those who photographed the 1996 pilgrimage through a federal grant. “People just went there because it was a powerful, spiritual place.”

Scenes from that pilgrimage — on display at the New Mexico History Museum in Santa Fe — include children eating snow cones to keep cool, men shouldering large wooden crosses, infants swaddled in blankets, bikers in leather and weary pedestrians resting on highway guardrails to smoke.

A generation later, Good Friday pilgrims still haul crosses on the road to Chimayó. Throngs of visitors often wait hours for a turn to file into the Santuario de Chimayó to commemorate the crucifixion.

Adrian Atencio, 30, knelt and ran his hands through the well of red earth in the floor in the Santuario. Atencio, from nearby San Juan Pueblo, has been making the Good Friday trek since age 7. This time it was about the future and new beginnings.

“I have a newborn on the way. I was kind of walking for him today,” he said.

It is just one of hundreds of adobe churches anchoring a uniquely New Mexican way of life for their communities. Many are at risk of crumbling into the ground in disrepair as congregations and traditions fade.

Some pilgrims walk 20 miles (32 kilometers) from Santa Fe, while others travel for days from elsewhere. They traverse an arid landscape speckled with juniper and piñon trees and cholla cactus that finally give way to lush cottonwood trees and green pastures on the final descent into Chimayó.

Vendors sell religious trinkets, coffee and treats. State transportation workers, law enforcement agencies and other volunteers are stationed along the roadway to ensure safety from oncoming traffic, the outdoor elements and exhaustion.

The magnitude of the religious pilgrimage has few if any rivals in the U.S. Many participants say their thoughts dwell not only on Jesus Christ but on the suffering of family, friends and neighbors with prayers for relief.

“You can’t come here and not feel something,” said Dianna De Leon of Albuquerque, who was joined by her 78-year-old mother, Victoria Trujillo, who carried a weathered crucifix on one shoulder.

Trujillo has been making the journey for 51 years, except when the church closed during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“It’s a little piece of heaven — all this faith and all this hope,” she said.

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Bishop Evelio Menjivar: It is time to speak out against the Trump administration’s treatment of immigrants

The church remembers Christ’s suffering, death and resurrection of Jesus in a spiritual and sacramental way during Holy Week and the Easter Triduum, but some people actually experience the Passion in a tangible and personal way in their very lives. Among them are members of the immigrant and refugee communities today.

Each day this situation is getting worse and more ominous. For weeks now, the federal government has pursued a « shock and awe » campaign of aggressive threats and highly visible operations of questionable legality that go far beyond mere immigration « enforcement. »

Cardinal Robert McElroy has bluntly called this unfolding misery and injustice a « war of fear and terror, » and it is. In fact, it could be said that « this war is Christ’s Passion in us, » which is how spiritual author Caryll Houselander described the experience of the English people during World War II in her book, This War is the Passion. And as with Jesus in the Garden and after his arrest, this suffering includes not only the abuse inflicted upon migrants and refugees by the government, but the lack of noticeable support by people they considered to be friends.

Many fear this crisis will lead only to ruin, but there is one thing in our lives that is not endangered and in which we can take hope — and that is the ongoing presence of Jesus the Risen Lord among us. In that knowledge, Houselander added in her book, « we can face the war in His spirit. » This includes offering up these trials and worries to our Redeemer and also completing in ourselves what is lacking in his afflictions, as St. Paul did (Col 1:24). In the Gospel mystery of human suffering, where Jesus, the crucified one, comes to meet us and takes our adversity upon himself, « We can carry our share of the Cross as a loving work for each other to help our common redemption, » urged Houselander.

Yet, while redemptive suffering is a grace, it would be better still if these injustices and infamies did not happen at all. This is why we need to speak up as St. Óscar Romero did, and as McElroy emphasized at a recent information session on this current crisis for parish and ministerial leaders. We must stand with those at risk, his eminence said, and we cannot let the dark side of anti-immigrant animus take hold.

We must stand with those at risk and we cannot let the dark side of anti-immigrant animus take hold.

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Tragically, this onslaught is instead being met with silence by many — or even approval. To those of you who are silent or think this does not involve you, to those of you who are not troubled by this — or worse, who applaud it — particularly those who are Catholic, I ask you: Do you not see the suffering of your neighbors? Do you not realize the pain and misery and very real fear and anxiety these unjust government operations and policies are causing? Is your conscience not disturbed? How can you stay quiet? In the final teaching of his public ministry, Jesus warned that we will be judged on how we respond to others in distress (Mt 25:41-46).

These disturbing actions in violation of fundamental human rights and dignity are not only being taken against undocumented persons, gang members, and those who have committed violent crimes, but against peaceful and productive migrants and refugees across the board — which also negatively impacts their resident family members, some of whom are U.S. citizens — and against organizations like the Catholic Church that assist them. It seems that no one is safe now from arbitrary nullification of his or her protected status, visa or green card. This has left many terrified that they or their loved ones might be seized and disappear without warning.

For example, the protected status of refugees and others granted asylum has been arbitrarily terminated without any wrongdoing on their part. Visa-holders and permanent residents have had their legal authorizations revoked and then been grabbed off the street by masked government agents, held incommunicado without access to their attorneys, and imprisoned pending deportation. University scholars and others have also been refused entry or detained at the border after traveling abroad. Even U.S. citizens are viewed with suspicion or subjected to ethnic profiling based entirely on how they look or speak. Those who are naturalized citizens might be wondering if they will be targeted next, whether some pretext might be contrived for secret revocation of their naturalization.

The video of a student being accosted by masked agents after her visa was revoked without notice — apparently because of an op-ed she co-wrote years ago — is horrifying. Most egregiously, the government has now claimed the authority to unilaterally seize certain people based on mere suspicion, or because of their tattoos, and send them to a prison in El Salvador accused of human rights abuses — all without review by a court to even determine their identity. The government admits some have been wrongfully deported, but officials are fighting attempts to right these wrongs.

More than a few natural-born Americans are saying they do not recognize their country anymore, but many of us from other lands recognize all too well the terror of people being snatched by secret police and disappeared. We left our former countries precisely to get away from it. Yet, too many people are still remaining silent, perhaps out of fear, forgetting that the Holy Spirit gives us the grace of fortitude to boldly speak out for good.

When I was growing up in El Salvador, there was a man who was not afraid to speak out. His name was Óscar Romero, archbishop of San Salvador. It seems to me that we need more Óscar Romeros today. We need everyone of good will to follow his lead and demand that the government respect human dignity.

Do you not see the suffering of your neighbors? Do you not realize the pain and misery and very real fear and anxiety these unjust government operations and policies are causing?

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In his last Sunday homily on the day before he was killed, St. Óscar Romero made a special appeal to government agents: « It is time now for you to reclaim your conscience and to obey your conscience rather than the command to sin, » he said. « We want the government to understand well that the reforms are worth nothing if they are stained with so much blood. In the name of God, then, and in the name of this suffering people, whose laments rise up each day more tumultuously toward heaven, I beg you, I beseech you, I order you in the name of God: stop the repression! »

I urge government officers and support staff in the present situation to heed these words which echo through history. It is time now for you to reclaim your conscience. What you are doing is worth nothing if it is stained with unjust cruelty. That is not what America stands for. You too can and should speak out against this terror and infliction of suffering on people. You can refuse to be involved in oppression and these grievous assaults on human rights and dignity.

True, if you do, there may be adverse personal consequences. Óscar Romero certainly paid a price for speaking against the state of siege in his country. It might even mean leaving your job, but that is better than being complicit with evil, and it will lead to something even greater. As this holy man said in his last words before his martyrdom, « If we have imbued our work with a sense of great faith, love of God, and hope for humanity, then all our endeavors will lead to the splendid crown that is the sure reward for the work of sowing truth, justice, love, and goodness on earth. »

This column originally appeared on the websites of the Catholic Standard and El Pregonero newspapers of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Washington and is used with permission.

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Pope orders renewal of academy that trains nuncios

Pope Francis has raised the status of the Vatican’s diplomatic academy to an institute of higher learning that will issue academic degrees while also strengthening its focus on evangelization.

The pope’s changes to the status of the Pontifical Ecclesiastical Academy were set out in a document signed by him and released at the Vatican April 15.

The Pontifical Ecclesiastical Academy was founded by Pope Clement XI in 1701 to prepare young priests to enter the diplomatic service of the Holy See, serving as nuncios, in the Vatican Secretariat of State and in other roles around the world.

The academy will offer its students — still all priests — degrees equivalent to a master’s and a doctorate in « diplomatic sciences. »

The papal diplomats play a vital role « in the constant effort to bring the closeness of the pope to peoples and churches, » Francis wrote. « They are the custodians of that solicitude which moves from the center to the peripheries, to make them sharers in the church’s missionary outreach, and then to lead them back to that center with their needs, reflections and aspirations. »

The priests’ training, the document said, includes studies in law, history, politics and economics, as well as languages.

But in renewing the academy, the pope said, « care shall be taken to ensure that the programs of instruction have a close connection with the ecclesiastical disciplines, the praxis of the Roman Curia, the needs of the local churches and, more broadly, with the work of evangelization, the church’s activity and its relationship with culture and human society. »

Francis already had made one important change to the academy, deciding in 2020 that every priest preparing for service in the Vatican diplomatic corps must spend a year in ministry as a missionary.

Mission experience, he had said, would be helpful « for those who in the future will be called to collaborate with the pontifical representatives and, later, could become envoys of the Holy See to nations and particular churches. »

Currently students — all already ordained priests — usually spend four years at the academy in central Rome. They earn a license in canon law from one of the pontifical universities in the city and then a doctorate in either canon law or theology. If they already hold a doctorate, then their time at the academy is only two years.

In addition to their university courses, the students study diplomacy, Vatican diplomatic relations, languages, international law, papal documents and current affairs.

Vatican diplomats represent the Holy See to individual countries around the world as well as to international organizations, such as the United Nations. But they also represent the pope to the local Catholic Church and coordinate the search for new bishops.

The document specified that « the Pontifical Ecclesiastical Academy is, to all intents and purposes, an integral part of the Secretariat of State, within which it operates and to which it is specially attached. »

Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the secretary of state, told Vatican News that the nuncios and other diplomatic personnel « are the watchful and lucid eye of the Successor of Peter on the church and the world, committed to representing the pope with a missionary spirit that knows no boundaries. »

« They not only participate in international debates, but are called to interpret and propose, in line with the church’s Christian vision, solutions that can contribute to the building of a more just and fraternal world, » the cardinal said.

A papal diplomat is called not only to be an expert in negotiation, but also « a witness of faith, committed to overcoming cultural, political and ideological barriers and building bridges of peace and justice, » the cardinal said. « This approach enables the church to develop concrete paths for peace, for freedom of religion for every believer and for order among nations, always having in mind Christ’s mission and the good of all humanity. »

In addition to nuncios who are or became cardinals, five popes were alumni of the academy: Popes Clement XIII, Leo XII, Leo XIII, Benedict XV and Paul VI.

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Sister, Catholics join in Holy Week pleas to free men deported to El Salvador prison

Dominican Sr. Carol Gilbert said there wasn’t a better place this year than in front of the White House to illustrate Holy Week readings, which start with the injustice that visited an innocent man, one wrongfully imprisoned at the hands of the powerful. And she wasn’t solely referring to Jesus in the Gospels. 

Gilbert, a well-known stalwart against nuclear weapons and violence, joined other Catholics and members of various faiths for a Holy Week vigil April 14 in the park in front of the White House to support the wife and children of deported Maryland resident Kilmar Abrego Garcia with prayers, as the two men who could free her husband, but refuse to do so, were meeting yards away. 

Abrego was not just deported to his native El Salvador in early March following an « administrative error » by the Trump administration, but he also ended up with other migrants in the notorious Terrorism Confinement Center, or CECOT, prison there. NBC News, citing court filings, reported that Abrego had never been criminally charged in El Salvador or the U.S. « I think this case, Kilmar’s case, is really important because this man has done nothing » to merit imprisonment, Gilbert told Global Sisters Report.

Gilbert, who has served time in prison for her nonviolent beliefs and actions, listened as pastors and other people of faith lamented modern-day injustices, including Abrego’s, and talked about what Holy Week had to say about those unjustly imprisoned as Jesus was. 

« This is the lesson that we should learn from Holy Week, that when we look upon the face of Kilmar … and all the people who suffer unjust persecution, when we look on their faces, we should see the face of the suffering Christ, » said Pastor Michael Vanacore, of Pilgrim Church United Church of Christ in Wheaton, Maryland. « For every single soul that they send to that hellhole [prison] in El Salvador, we, in the United States, are putting another nail in Jesus’ body. »

After a lawsuit seeking Abrego’s freedom, the U.S. Supreme Court told the Trump administration April 10 it had to « facilitate » the man’s return but President Donald Trump shifted the responsibility to El Salvador’s president Nayib Bukele, whom he met at the White House as the vigil was taking place. Bukele said he couldn’t « smuggle a terrorist » back into the U.S., referring to Abrego. 

A group gathered outside the building that houses the Salvadoran embassy in Washington a few hours later used the word « terrorist » against Bukele chanting: « Bukele Fascista, vos sos el terrorista, » or « Fascist Bukele, you are the terrorist. »

Gilbert said before the vigil began, authorities had closed the part of the park closest to the White House, perhaps so that those inside wouldn’t hear the prayers of the people of faith gathered nearby.

« Trump has the possibility of saying, ‘Bring this man back to our country. Bring this man back.’ And he won’t even address it, » Gilbert lamented. « We came out here to pray. This was a prayer service and we were removed. And look how far back we have to be from the White House because of the fear that exists when truth is spoken through prayer or through signs or through witness or through anything. »

She also briefly attended the gathering outside the embassy, calling out « Kilmar, Kilmar » on the busy road that faces the embassy, as cars drove by in the direction of the White House. Activists nearby railed against Bukele for not speaking up for Salvadoran immigrants in the U.S. during his White House visit. They also built a makeshift prison out of cardboard to call attention to abuses they say are taking place inside the « terrorism center » called CECOT — including many stories similar to Abrego’s, of deported migrants sent there even before Trump took office.

In early January, Salvadoran mothers spoke with National Catholic Reporter warning others about their sons’ wrongful imprisonment after they were deported from the U.S. during the Biden administration. Like Abrego, they were sent straight to prison by Bukele’s government once they landed in El Salvador. Several mothers said their children lacked a criminal record.

Abrego’s case, however, has garnered international attention in no small part because Jennifer Vasquez Sura, Abrego’s wife, has been tirelessly seeking support to free her husband and has received help from groups that organized the vigil and other events, including Congregation Action Network, CASA, as well as other faith-based organizations.

Representatives from Catholic groups such as the Franciscan Action Network, Justice Team for Sisters of Mercy of the Americas and Catholic Workers also participated in the vigil, some carrying posters with quotes or images of Salvadoran St. Óscar Romero. Prince George’s County State’s Attorney Aisha Braveboy also attended and told Abrego’s wife that « no matter where he is in the world, [Abrego] is still a resident of Prince George’s County, » and said the federal government is at fault. « They have to make it right. »

U.S. Sen. Chris Van Hollen, D-Maryland, said he will travel to El Salvador to check on Abrego since he was not given the chance to speak with Bukele about freeing him during his U.S. visit. But the vigil reminded those gathered that there were other immigrants deported along with Abrego, who share in his terrible fate at the CECOT prison though they are not Salvadorans. They include Venezuelans: Andry José Hernández Romero, a makeup artist; Arturo Suárez-Trejo, a singer; and Neri José Alvarado Borges, a baker.

« They and every single one of the people detained and deported to that prison, they are the ones whom a Salvadoran priest and martyr, [Jesuit Fr.] Ignacio Ellacuria called the crucified peoples of the world, » said Vanacore, the pastor. « And the only response during Holy Week is to take him down from the cross. Bring Kilmar home. »

Joelle Novey, a Jewish participant at the vigil, told those gathered that when human beings are held unjustly in captivity, « the injustice is so grotesque that God gets involved. »

She spoke of shaving people’s heads, as Bukele’s government has done, taking the wrongly imprisoned far away from home and loved ones, and scoffing at judges who have ruled that they be freed, and said that « this violence disgusts and enrages the God who intends all of us only for honor and dignity and the gentlest touch. »

Biblical accounts tell of the time when pharaohs imprisoned people unjustly, she said, and reminded them to look at the Book of Exodus.

« Let me remind you how this story ends every time: the plagues don’t just come down on Pharaoh but on everyone in the sick society that enables this terrible wrong, » she said. « The water turns to blood for Pharaoh and also for everyone who stood aside and said ‘I don’t look like an Israelite so that would never happen to me.’ « 

Scripture talks about those who keep their heads down, close their eyes, and keep on with their lives, ignoring the plight of the innocent, she added.

« The diseases, the swarms of insects, they don’t just come for Pharoah, and they will come all of us, too, everyone who stands back and stays quiet and enables the tyrants right here in Washington, D.C., who are now straight up spitting in the face of God, seeing what we will do about it, » Novey said.

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Eric Stoner challenges corporate injustice, authoritarianism and global chaos

On April 5, an estimated 3 million people marched in « Hands Off! » events, protesting every aspect of the Trump administration’s policies. More than 1,300 demonstrations were held around the U.S., covering all 50 states, organizers said. 

 « Contrary to what a lot of people see or think, there is more protest and resistance to Trump than you see or read in the mainstream media, » says Eric Stoner, editor of WagingNonviolence.org

People are indeed taking to the streets and resisting Donald Trump’s corporate injustice, rising authoritarianism and global chaos.

This week on « The Nonviolent Jesus Podcast, » I speak with my friend Eric Stoner, founding editor of WagingNonviolence.org, an independent nonprofit media platform that covers social movements and grassroots activism around the world on all issues of justice, disarmament and creation. Since 2009, it has published original reporting on nonviolent action from contributors throughout the world. 

Eric and friends started this clearinghouse of nonviolent movements in the 2000s from scratch. Today, Eric says, the site regularly draws more than 100,000 readers a month, looking for news about people power movements that you will never hear on the mainstream media. 

I ask Eric about the growing resistance to rising authoritarianism and oligarchy, as well as stories of grassroots movements from around the world, and his own changing understanding of nonviolence. « Boycotting is the most important tool in protesting, » he says, « hands down. » 

Covering the world from the perspective of nonviolence actually gives him hope, he tells me, because so many people are struggling hard for positive social change.

Listen to the episode here.

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Pope Francis appears at Palm Sunday Mass at St. Peter’s Square

 More than 250,000 palm and olive branches and more than 20,000 pilgrims filled St. Peter’s Square for Palm Sunday at the Vatican — and finally, as the Mass concluded, Pope Francis was there, too. 

The 88-year-old pontiff, recovering from double pneumonia after a five-week hospitalization, arrived just after the final blessing, making his way from St. Peter’s Basilica into the square. 

« Have a good Palm Sunday, have a good Holy Week, » said the pope, speaking over applause and the cheers of the crowd. 

‘Jesus’ passion becomes compassion whenever we hold out our hand to those who feel they cannot go on, when we lift up those who have fallen, when we embrace those who are discouraged.’
—Pope Francis

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The Vatican had refused to comment before today (April 13) on whether the pontiff would be able to participate in any of the Vatican’s Holy Week celebrations, the most sacred period of the year for Christians. 

Throughout the past week, however, Francis has made surprise appearances in public, leading many Vatican officials to believe the pope would participate in the Palm Sunday liturgy in some capacity. 

Cloudy skies, intermittent wind and light rain at the start of the Mass seemed to cast a shadow over that possibility. Yet as the Mass neared its end, the sun had arrived. and soon thereafter, the pope followed

Francis appeared without nasal tubes, which he has been using for oxygen supply. He took time to greet the cardinals — many of whom had not seen the pope since his March 23 return to the Vatican — along with other Vatican officials in attendance.

The pope also greeted some of the diplomats present at the Mass and passed out pieces of candy to several small children in attendance, though he spent the most time with a group of religious sisters who appeared overjoyed by the pope’s presence. 

Following his public appearance at the outdoor Mass, the Vatican released a video showing Francis praying inside St. Peter’s Basilica, including at the tombs of St. Peter and St. Pope Pius X. 

The Palm Sunday Mass, which marks the start of Holy Week, was concelebrated by some 36 cardinals, 30 bishops and more than 300 priests. 

Argentine Cardinal Leonardo Sandri, the vice dean of the College of Cardinals, presided over the nearly two-hour liturgy and read the pope’s prepared homily, which reflected on the figure of Simon of Cyrene. 

Simon, a mere passerby, was forced by Roman authorities to carry the cross of Jesus en route to his crucifixion. 

« When we think of what Simon did for Jesus, we should also think of what Jesus did for Simon — what he did for me, for you, for each of us: he redeemed the world, » read the pope’s message. 

« The cross of wood that Simon of Cyrene bore is the cross of Christ, who himself bore the sins of all humanity. He bore them for love of us, in obedience to the Father; » he continued. « He suffered with us and for us. In this unexpected and astonishing way, Simon of Cyrene becomes part of the history of salvation, in which no one is a stranger, no one a foreigner. » 

The witness of Simon, said the pope, is that Jesus comes to encounter everyone in every situation that they might find themselves in life. 

« Jesus’ passion becomes compassion whenever we hold out our hand to those who feel they cannot go on, when we lift up those who have fallen, when we embrace those who are discouraged, » Francis said. 

« Brothers and sisters, » the pope continued, « in order to experience this great miracle of mercy, let us decide how we are meant to carry our own cross during this Holy Week: if not on our shoulders, in our hearts. » 

The Vatican’s Holy Week liturgies will continue on Holy Thursday, with the Chrism Mass in St. Peter’s Basilica, leading into the Easter ​​Triduum. 

The National Catholic Reporter’s Rome Bureau is made possible in part by the generosity of Joan and Bob McGrath. 

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American pastor abducted at gunpoint in South Africa while preaching

A pastor was abducted by armed and masked men as he was preaching a sermon before a congregation in South Africa’s Eastern Cape province, police said April 11.

Four men broke into the Fellowship Baptist church in Motherwell Township on April 10, stole two cellphones from members of the congregation and took away the pastor in his own truck, said police, who have initiated an investigation into abduction and armed robbery.

Local media named the victim as Josh Sullivan, 45, from the U.S. state of Tennessee, but police would not confirm the identification.

According to the Fellowship Baptist church blog, Sullivan, who described himself as a « church-planting missionary, » his wife Meagan and two children arrived in South Africa in November 2018 to run the Motherwell branch.

An image showing Sullivan preaching behind a pulpit was uploaded on X by a user going by the name of Tom Hatley. Sullivan identifies a man with the same name as his childhood and training pastor on his own blog. Hatley claimed that he was posting on Sullivan’s wife’s behalf and prayed for a safe return.

A Maryville, Tennessee, woman by the name Tonya Rinker, who lists Sullivan as her son in her profile, expressed heartbreak on Facebook and asked for prayers for her son, daughter-in-law and grandkids, adding that the American embassy in South Africa was working on finding him.

Police spokesperson Captain Andre Beetge confirmed in a statement that the stolen truck, a silver Toyota Fortuner, was found abandoned in Motherwell a short while after the incident.

Additionally, the police Anti-Gang Unit has now taken over the investigation that was opened by the South African Police Service in Motherwell.

Beetge would not provide details about the victim but said that if a ransom was demanded, the case would be handed over to the Hawks — a specialized police unit that investigates organized crime, economic crime, corruption and other serious crimes.

« As I understand, there has been no ransom raised, » said Beetge, urging anyone with information to come forward.

As they await Sullivan’s safe return, supporters flocked to the pastor’s personal blog site and other social media platforms to offer their well-wishes.

« We are now praying that you delivered from these evil men, » a poster named Richard Stockton said on the church website. « Praying the Holy Spirit well work on their hearts and be saved. And release you!!! »

Another supporter called Kody Moore said Josh was a « faithful brother doing much to make Christ known in Africa. »

« Please pray for Josh to be brought home safely and especially his family during this absolutely terrible time. May Christ be magnified, » he tweeted on X.

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Federal judge sides with Trump on immigration enforcement in houses of worship

A federal judge on Friday, April 11, sided with the Trump administration in allowing immigration agents to conduct enforcement operations at houses of worship despite a lawsuit filed by religious groups over the new policy.

U.S. District Judge Dabney Friedrich in Washington refused to grant a preliminary injunction to the plaintiffs, more than two dozen Christian and Jewish groups representing millions of Americans.

She found that only a handful of immigration enforcement actions have been conducted in or around churches or other houses of worship and that the evidence doesn’t show « that places of worship are being singled out as special targets. »

The groups argued the policy violated the right to practice their religion. Since President Donald Trump took office in January, attendance has declined significantly, with some areas showing double-digit percentage drops, they said.

The judge, though, found that the groups had not shown their drops were definitively linked to the church policy specifically, as opposed to broader increased actions by Immigration and Customs Enforcement or other agencies.

« That evidence suggests that congregants are staying home to avoid encountering ICE in their own neighborhoods, not because churches or synagogues are locations of elevated risk, » wrote Friedrich, who was appointed by the Republican president during his first term.

That means that simply reversing the policy on houses of worship wouldn’t necessarily mean immigrants would return to church, she found.

On Jan. 20, his first day back in office, Trump’s administration rescinded a Department of Homeland Security policy limiting where migrant arrests could happen. Its new policy said field agents using « common sense » and « discretion » can conduct immigration enforcement operations at houses of worship without a supervisor’s approval.

Plaintiffs’ attorneys claimed the new Homeland Security directive departs from the government’s 30-year-old policy against staging immigration enforcement operations in « protected areas » or « sensitive locations. »

In February, a federal judge in Maryland ruled against the Trump administration in a similar case brought by a coalition of Quakers and other religious groups. U.S. District Judge Theodore Chang’s order in that case was limited to those plaintiffs.

A judge in Colorado sided with the administration in another lawsuit over the reversal of a similar policy that had limited immigration arrests at schools.

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Vatican heads into a Holy Week of surprises with Pope Francis

Soon after Pope Francis made his surprise appearance at the end of an April 8 Jubilee Mass for health care workers, the Vatican announced that the pontiff had also gone to confession in St. Peter’s Basilica that morning.

One fellow journalist joked to me that perhaps the pope — fresh off a five-week hospitalization where he twice nearly lost his life — was repenting for ignoring his doctor’s request that he avoid large crowds that could jeopardize his recovery from double pneumonia.

It wasn’t the pope’s appearance at the outdoor Mass that necessarily raised eyebrows, but rather concern over the number of people reaching out to touch him during his first public outing since returning home to the Vatican.

When photos emerged afterward of the 88-year-old pontiff individually greeting pilgrims, more alarm bells were sounded over the possibility that some interaction could threaten his already weakened immune system, as the doctors had warned prior to the pope’s hospital release.

Still, others argue that Francis is a pope of the people who is energized by being able to be among his flock and that at this moment, there is no greater medicine to aid his recovery efforts.

Following the Sunday surprise, Dr. Sergio Alfieri, the surgeon who led the pope’s medical team at Rome’s Gemelli Hospital, put it bluntly: « He decides. He is the pope. »

In an interview with Italian TV channel TG1, Alfieri also didn’t rule out that the pope could « give us other surprises » in the near future. 

Just a few days later, on April 9, Francis held an unexpected meeting with Great Britain’s King Charles III and Queen Camilla during their visit to Rome. Although the royals had originally planned to meet the pope, Buckingham Palace announced earlier this month that the meeting would be postponed for a future visit to allow for the pope’s recovery. And yet, there they were in the pope’s Vatican guesthouse exchanging gifts. Another surprise.

And on April 10, Francis popped over to St. Peter’s Basilica to view some new construction projects. Again, more surprises.

Holy Week is the busiest time of year in the liturgical calendar, and it is intensified this year by an influx of pilgrims visiting Rome for the 2025 Jubilee. And as the Vatican prepares for the flurry of activity, there’s a mix of anxiety and excitement about what lies ahead.

The Holy See Press Office said this week it was still premature to announce anything about the pope’s plans for next week. But from Palm Sunday (April 13) to Easter Sunday (April 20), there are six major liturgical celebrations, all of which normally involve the pope.

Even so, there is already precedent for modification. In fact, during the last five years, there have been a number of adjustments, beginning in 2020 with the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to scaled-back liturgies without crowds and the cancellation of some events.

In 2022, when the pope began experiencing mobility issues due to a torn knee ligament, he no longer participated in the long processions at the start of the liturgies and senior Vatican cardinals presided over the Masses with Francis, in a wheelchair, as the celebrant.

During the past two years, Francis has opted not to attend the outdoor Via Crucis (« Way of the Cross ») procession at Rome’s Colosseum and to instead watch the video feed from his Vatican residence due to the cold weather.

Once again, speculation is mounting about what to expect.

During the long liturgies of Palm Sunday or the Easter Vigil, will the pope arrive to bless the palms and the Easter candle and then leave? Will the traditional urbi et orbi (« to the city and the world ») blessing take place from the loggia of St. Peter’s Basilica and to what extent will the pope speak or participate? These are all questions that are swirling but with answers that are likely only to be provided in real time.

But with all eyes on the Vatican during Holy Week, Francis will be keenly aware that beyond the spiritual realm, there is also a political reality that can’t be ignored. For two months running, there have been endless rumors about a possible papal resignation and conjecture about an imminent conclave.

In 2023, after a hospitalization for bronchitis, Francis was released just days before the start of Holy Week. Similar to now, there was no shortage of those ready to prematurely pronounce him dead.

Not only did Francis participate in the liturgies, but he capped Easter Sunday off by a particularly rousing 30-minute ride in the popemobile, going not just around St. Peter’s Square but all the way up the via della Conciliazione, the main road leading up to the Vatican. 

As I took in the scene, enjoying a bird’s-eye view atop Bernini’s colonnade that overlooks St. Peter’s Square, it seemed evident to me the pope was making a point that he was back.

So this Easter, in addition to the usual proclamations of « He is risen, » don’t be surprised to find other symbolic gestures from the pontiff that make it clear that — in the words of Alfieri — « he is the pope. »

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Pope Francis meets privately with King Charles and Queen Camilla during his Vatican convalescence

Pope Francis met privately with King Charles III and Queen Camilla today (April 9) at the Vatican during the royal couple’s four-day state visit to Italy and on the occasion of their 20th wedding anniversary, the Vatican announced.

It was the first known meeting since the pope’s return to the Vatican after five weeks in the hospital for life-threatening double pneumonia. Francis had planned to have an audience with Charles, but the official state visit to the Vatican was postponed due to the pope’s health.

The pope issued a new invitation for a private audience, but it was subject to his health and only confirmed April 9. The midafternoon visit lasted about 20 minutes and included a private exchange of gifts. Discussions continue about a future visit by the monarch to the Vatican.

The Vatican statement said the pope wished Charles and Camilla a happy anniversary, and the king and queen in return wished the pope a speedy recovery. Buckingham Palace said « their majesties were delighted the pope was well enough to host them, and to have had the opportunity to share their best wishes in person. »

The royal couple previously saw Francis during an April 2017 visit to the Vatican. King Charles, then Prince of Wales, also met Pope Francis during the 2019 canonization of St. John Henry Newman.

The pope has been convalescing at the Vatican since March 23 and made an appearance to the faithful in St. Peter’s Square on Sunday. He was pushed in a wheelchair, wearing nasal tubes for supplemental oxygen, and wished the crowd a good Sunday from the front of the altar before being greeted by participants in the Mass, some of whom leaned to kiss his hands.

During the Italian trip, King Charles and Queen Camilla also marked their 20th wedding anniversary, which was to include a state dinner April 9 hosted by President Sergio Mattarella at the Quirinale palace.

Charles was on his first trip abroad this year after being taken to hospital over side effects related to his ongoing cancer treatment.

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