What began as a class assignment at John Paul II High School in Plano has grown into a nonprofit supporting North Texas firefighters. Inspired by his grandparents’ loss in the Los Angeles wildfires and motivated by a desire to turn Catholic social teaching into action, Sebastian Lee, a recent graduate of John Paul II High School, developed an idea that extended far beyond the classroom. With the help of a classmate, his brother, local fire officials, and supportive teachers, the project evolved into a registered nonprofit that is now raising funds, producing behind-the-scenes content, and building relationships with fire departments across the region.
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Ahead of the fireworks and the flag-waving, and before the barbeques, ceremonies, and parades, American Catholics approaching the 250th anniversary of U.S. independence this Fourth of July may well pause to ask: Is all this pomp truly patriotism? And further: What is patriotism in the Catholic understanding, and how can it be practiced well?
Four years after Poles welcomed millions of Ukrainians fleeing Russia’s full-scale invasion, Catholic leaders from both countries are urging their peoples not to let historical disputes undo that solidarity as disputes over World War II history inflamed relations between Poland and Ukraine.
Pope Leo XIV spent what is traditionally his weekly day off on Tuesday issuing a flurry of legislation and appointments June 30, overhauling the Vatican’s financial watchdog agency, revising the governing structure of the Vicariate of Rome, and making several appointments in the Roman Curia.
After the Cursillo Center of Dallas opened its doors about 60 years ago, a question soon arose within the community: Could the transformative spiritual formation that the center offered to individual retreatants be brought into the home — that is, into the family — too? This year marks the 50th anniversary of the center’s resounding answer: the Jornada Familiar and Jornada Juvenil retreats.
Pope Leo XIV has called on all Christians to work together toward the celebration of 2033, when the Catholic Church will mark an extraordinary Jubilee Year commemorating 2,000 years since the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ.
Pope Leo XIV’s call for unity in diversity extends beyond greater communion within the Catholic Church and includes one’s wider community, some newly appointed U.S. archbishops said.
As preparations begin for the 1,500th anniversary of the founding of Italy’s Monte Cassino, the mother abbey of Western monasticism established by St. Benedict in 529, the Benedictine Confederation has launched a new website designed to connect pilgrims, visitors, and spiritual seekers with monasteries around the world.
Pope Leo XIV’s second consistory gave cardinals from around the world an opportunity to candidly discuss issues ranging from synodality and artificial intelligence to the future of Catholic teaching on war, some participants told Catholic News Service.
Santiago Bryce has long been moved by the economic inequality he saw while living in Latin America. He knew God was calling him to create change, and the Jesuit College Preparatory School of Dallas graduate has already created a life of doing just that.