Catholic Nutshell News: Monday 3/2/26
Topics include: Theologian tackles Zionism versus pro-Palestine; ‘Spiral of violence’ from Iran attacks; ‘May Our Lady of Arabia watch over us all’; & What is the real number of ‘Nones’?
“Worth your weight in walnuts”
Today's sources are Crux, Graphs about Religion, Aleteia, Zeale News, OSV News, Catholic Culture, & EWTN News. (Catholic Nutshell is a subscription service for faithful, hopeful, & curious Catholics willing to exercise the Catholic News Muscle)
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Zeale News
Prominent theologian tackles issue of Zionism & pro-Palestine
By Elise Winland, March 1, 2026
Professor Gavin D’Costa, a professor at the Pontifical University of St. Thomas Aquinas in Rome, Italy, acknowledged that Arabs are “being obliterated, they’re being cleansed, they’re being moved out, they’re being persecuted in cruel and illegitimate ways. I want to say that clearly and unambiguously.” He argued that there can be no long-term solution “unless both groups accept the right of the other to share the land while ensuring safety for the other. And that’s where we’ve got into an intractable mess.” When asked whether Catholics should join the Holy Father in condemning Israel’s actions in Gaza and the West Bank, D’Costa replied, “My view is yes.” He added that papal statements on the conflict are prudential judgements rather than binding dogma, but Catholics should certainly read them and assess them. D’Costa said Catholics can entertain the Zionist position (Jews have a theological claim to the land of Israel) while also refusing to give unconditional moral support to the modern Israeli state.
Related: Church should take a ‘critical and prophetic stance’ towards polarizing rhetoric, says Spanish archbishop, CRUX, By Fionn Shiner, Mar 2, 2026
CRUX
Pope warns against ‘spiral of violence’ as US attacks Iran
By Elise Ann Allen, March 1, 2026
Pope Leo XVI urged an end to fresh violence in the Middle East on Sunday, as joint U.S.-Israeli air strikes on Iran continued into their second day. In an Angelus appeal, Pope Leo said he was following “with deep concern what is happening in the Middle East and in Iran in these dramatic hours.” “Stability and peace are not built with mutual threats nor with weapons, which sow destruction, pain, and death, but only with a reasonable, authentic, and responsible dialogue,” the pontiff said. Leo warned that the situation in Iran risked escalating into “a tragedy of enormous proportions” and urged all parties involved “to assume the moral responsibility of halting the spiral of violence before it becomes an unbridgeable chasm.” May diplomacy regain its proper role, and may the well-being of peoples, who yearn for peaceful existence founded on justice, be upheld,” he said, “and let us continue to pray for peace.”
Related: US bishops call for “every effort to prevent further escalation”, Aleteia, Kathleen N. Hattrup - 03/02/26
Aleteia
‘May Our Lady of Arabia watch over us all’
By Kathleen N. Hattrup, March 2, 2026
At the start of the conflict in Iran, the bishops of the two vicariates that oversee the Gulf countries of Arabia and more than 2 million Catholic faithful issued statements. “May Our Lady of Arabia, our mother, watch over us all.” The bishops also urged prayer and charity. “Let us remain united in faith and charity, caring especially for the elderly, the sick, and the vulnerable,” said the bishop of the Northern vicariate, Aldo Berardi, O.SS.T. “Most of all, it is a time for all of us to remain united in prayer for peace. I invite you all to pray the rosary every day for peace and reconciliation. During all Holy Masses, let us pray for peace and security of all people in this region,” said the bishop of the southern one, Paolo Martinelli, OFMCap. In 2011, the Apostolic Vicariate of Arabia was divided into two: the Vicariates of Northern Arabia (Bahrain, Qatar, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, with residence of the Bishop in Awali, Bahrain) and Southern Arabia (United Arab Emirates, Oman, and Yemen, with the residence of the Bishop in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates).
OSV News
The Epstein files and the desecration of the sacred
By Junno Arocho Esteves & Paulina Guzik, February 24, 2026
Despite Epstein having a photo in his office of himself and co-conspirator Ghislaine Maxwell greeting St. John Paul II at what appeared to be a public audience, the files revealed Epstein’s disdain for anything or anyone associated with the Catholic Church. Among the many revelations were that Steve Bannon, a former White House chief strategist during President Donald Trump’s first term, and Epstein discussed strategies to undermine the late Pope Francis. “The weaponization of information is a classic resource for a dirty war in the public sphere,” said Father Jordi Pujol, associate professor of media ethics and law at the School of Church Communications at Rome’s Pontifical University of the Holy Cross. “It’s a nasty turn of a ‘shame culture,’ which in social media has also gained volume and pervasiveness,” he said. Father Hans Zollner, Institute of Anthropology at the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome, “These were girls who were trafficked … longing for real love and understanding — and what they found was hell.”
EWTN News
Students pray for Notre Dame’s Catholic identity after dispute
By Abby Strelow, February 28, 2026
After Ostermann withdrew from the position earlier this week, the student organizers turned a planned protest event into a prayer vigil offered “in thanksgiving and support for Notre Dame’s Catholic mission.” A group of about 150 students, community members, faculty, and priests from the Congregation of Holy Cross met on the south quad of campus, where they were greeted by students Luke Woodyard and Gabe Ortner, the event’s organizers. The event was co-sponsored by the major Catholic clubs on campus: Right to Life, Militia Immaculata, Children of Mary, the Knights of Columbus, and Students for Child-Oriented Policy. “If we came here with a bunch of protests, it would make us seem like we weren’t grateful for the university listening to us,” he added. “And we really are. We praise [President] Father [Robert] Dowd for any impact that he had on Ostermann withdrawing, and we pray for the future of Notre Dame.”
PIME Asia News
Spices and pistachios: Unbroken thread between Tel Aviv & Tehran
By Giuseppe Caffulli, March 2, 2026
In the alleys of Levinsky Market, in the trendy Florentin neighbourhood in southern Tel Aviv, spices tell a story that crosses borders, overcomes revolutions, and circumvents sanctions. Among the most sought-after products are Iranian pistachios, considered among the best in the world for their aroma and texture. Spices tell a story that starts in Tehran, passes through the Caucasus, transits through Dubai, and still ends up on Israeli tables thanks to the stubbornness of chefs and traders of Jewish origin who have never stopped chasing the scents of their childhood. Since 1979, there has been a total ban on direct trade between Israel and Iran. So, as with many “sensitive” goods, spices travel under other flags: they leave Iran, transit through Georgia or the Emirates, and arrive in Israel from formally different production areas. This is not smuggling, but a “creative,” sometimes unscrupulous, use of regulatory loopholes.
Graphs about Religion
Who is telling the truth about the real number of ‘Nones’?
By Ryan Burge, February 26, 2026
Here’s what six different surveys all basically agree on—the share of Americans who are non-religious has been increasing over the last fifteen years. That’s just undeniable, no matter what instrument you look at. But here’s where they disagree: the actual percentage of nones in the United States. And these differences aren’t small, either. Estimates of the share of nones in 2024 range from 22% by Gallup to 34% by the Cooperative Election Study. The number of nones in the United States ranges from 74 to 115 million, with widely varying estimates of the actual share of non-religious Americans. In two surveys (NPORS and GSS), education predicts being a “None.” In two others (CES and Nationscape), education predicts being religious. My simple regression analysis of the impact of education on non-religion confirms this fundamental disagreement between the datasets.
The Pillar
German bishops to ask Rome to permit lay homilies
By Luke Coppen, February 27, 2026
The German bishops will formally ask the Vatican to permit lay preaching at Masses, the new conference chairman, Bishop Heiner Wilmer, announced Thursday. According to Church law, homilies at Mass are “reserved to a priest or deacon,” but lay people can receive permission to preach in a church or oratory, “if necessity requires it in certain circumstances or it seems advantageous in particular cases.” A document called on Germany’s bishops to “draw up a particular norm and obtain permission for this from the Holy See, according to which the homily can also be taken over in Eucharistic celebrations on Sundays and feast days by theologically and spiritually qualified faithful commissioned by the bishop.” The resolution noted that it was already a “long-standing practice” in German dioceses. In March 2023, Cardinal Arthur Roche, from the Vatican’s Dicastery for Divine Worship, wrote to the German conference, rejecting arguments in favor of lay preaching at Masses.
EWTN, UCA, and CW News for 3/2/26
EWTN News
EWTN’s top headlines — March 2, 2026
EWTN News provides reliable, free, up-to-the-minute news affecting the Universal Church, emphasizing the words of the Holy Father and the activities of the Holy See, and is available to anyone with internet access.
Czech Catholics are crowdfunding their priests’ salaries - By Bohumil Petrík - As state contributions wind down toward a 2030 cutoff, the Archdiocese of Olomouc is turning to crowdfunding, investments, and parish co-responsibility to keep its priests paid. More than 6,100 donors in the Archdiocese of Olomouc in the Czech Republic have contributed to priests’ salaries.
Catholic Church in Spain creates department for relations with Islam - By Nicolás de Cárdenas - Spain’s growing Muslim population has led that country’s bishops’ conference to address concurrent pastoral challenges. The Spanish Bishops’ Conference (CEE, by its Spanish acronym) has approved the creation of a department for relations with Islam.
Reverse migration: Catholic shelters in Mexico serve repatriated migrants and foreigners who remain - By Diego López Colín - In Mexico’s cities bordering the U.S., migration numbers have changed. Where there was once a constant flow of people traveling in caravans, today the numbers have slowed to “a trickle.” However, Catholic shelters point out that, far from disappearing, migration has a new face.
UCA News
The Union of Catholic Asian World News - 3/2/26
UCA News (UCAN) is the leading independent Catholic media service from Asia, with a convergent media approach that couples traditional journalistic practices with multimedia and social media
Central Asia’s and the Caucasus’ “neighbours” face war in Iran - by Vladimir Rozanskij - The conflict in the Middle East also involves the former Soviet republics, which historically have close ties with Tehran. Strong emotions in Baku over the killing of Khamenei, who was of Azerbaijani origin. Azerbaijan, which also has relations with Israel, is a crossroads for the evacuation of foreign citizens from Iran. From Kazakhstan, Tokaev aligns himself with the Arab countries but calls for a “peaceful solution.”
Mission beyond the ‘boundaries of despair’ in Myanmar - by Fr Kurt Pala - From Myitkyina, a testimonial comes from Father Kurt Pala, a Philippine priest of the Missionaries of St. Columban, who has been ministering in a country disfigured by war for more than five years, where ”the poor and the earth [. . .] have taught me to pray while waiting for peace, to trust in God every moment of life, to share the last cup of rice with a neighbor, and to find joy in the small things”
Chinese movies flop during this year’s Lunar New Year break - by Andrea Ferrario - The holiday season ended with a 40 per cent decline, an eight-year low despite the all-time record of four million screenings. Many theatres were left empty, especially in smaller cities, due to high ticket prices, competition from short videos and online series, and a saturation of patriotic productions. Meanwhile, in Japan, the country’s movie industry was experiencing an exceptional boom.
Catholic World News
CatholicCulture.org from Trinity Communications
Catholic World News (CWN) is an independent Catholic news service staffed by lay Catholic journalists, dedicated to providing accurate global news from a distinctly Catholic perspective.
Immigration, enforcement, and Catholics - James Kalb, March 2, 2026 - Effectively, open borders are a bad idea. That’s true whether they result from explicit policy or from failure to enforce the law effectively. The world's population outside the United States is 8 billion. Of that number, it appears that about a billion and a quarter would like to emigrate from their home countries
Church kidnappings plague Nigeria as clerics declare nation a “failed state” - A wave of terror has swept through central Nigeria, marked by a series of brazen kidnappings and killings. The most recent incident occurred on February 6, when gunmen abducted nine teenage worshippers during a night vigil at St. John of the Cross Catholic Church in the Utonkon district. Bishop Michael Ekwoyi Apochi of the Otukpo Catholic Diocese said, “It is something we witness every day.”
The Cross is the doorway to communion with God - Carl E. Olson from The Dispatch - The first words of God to Abram (or at least the first words recorded) are a call to faith and action: “Go forth from the land of your kinfolk…” In a culture in which one’s extended family was the core of one’s social and religious life, this was a call to a completely new life — immense trust, especially since Abram would likely never return to see his father’s household and his homeland.
Nutshell reflections for 3/2/26:
USCCB Daily Reflection AUDIO - March 2, 2026
Monday of the Second Week of Lent
Word on Fire
The real cause of contempt for the innocent
By Mark Bradford, March 2, 2026
What is it about children that can incite such fear? “… he sent and killed all the children in and around Bethlehem who were two years old or under” (Matt 2:13–18). In Herod’s case, we know it was the threat of competition—a new ruler of Israel. But what about the seventy-three million abortions that take place worldwide every year? Is there a similar motive—that is, a fear of competition? Maybe. Research has shown that there are overlapping reasons women choose abortion—like unintended pregnancy, economic circumstances, a child interfering with a mother’s life goals, and others. So, yes, competition is involved—an infant’s demand for attention and care shifts one’s focus from themselves to another. But there must be something deeper. There is something so unnatural about a mother killing her child. The hellish agents of evil have contempt for human life, filled with envy and resentment toward the human capacity to reproduce the divine image. They use whatever influence they can have on the hearts and minds of vulnerable persons to move them to destroy the life they carry within them.
Dominicana
Already-but-not-yet
By Br. Finbar Kantor, O.P., February 26, 2026
In two days, my classmates and I will be back on the floor as the Litany of Saints is sung over our prostrate bodies. Our time spent on the floor, listening to the Church pray for our sanctification, will be among the last moments of our pre-clerical life. Soon afterwards, the bishop will pray over us and, like dead men come back to life, we will arise and step forward to be ordained as deacons. This will mark the beginning of what some have jokingly referred to as “the longest year of my life”—the transitional diaconate. The “already-but-not-yet” of clerical life, when a man preparing for the priesthood enters into Holy Orders but still stands outside the Order of the Presbyterate. The transitional deacon feels this tension of the already-but-not-yet and longs to participate more fully in Christ’s ministry in the world as a priest. Focusing solely on this “not-yet” and losing sight of the “already” would make us blind to the grace that God is pouring out upon us, here and now.
Caeli
Three shy, noisy, ill-dressed teenagers
By James K. Hanna, March 2, 2026
Malcolm Cowley, James Light, and Kenneth Burke were classmates at Pittsburgh’s Peabody High School in the early twentieth century, giants in their work in fields of prose, theater, and rhetoric. Three shy, noisy, ill-dressed teens who went on to rock the world of arts and letters. Pittsburgh’s storied Peabody High School educated students for 100 years, graduating its final class in 2011. Cowley, Light, and Burke left Peabody in 1915 and embarked on stellar careers, with Cowley taking to literature, Light to the stage, and Burke to the scholarly study of rhetoric. Cowley went from Peabody to Harvard and edited the college’s literary magazine. He began as a literary critic, editor, and talent scout for publishers, advocating for writers like F. Scott Fitzgerald and Gertrude Stein. Light would direct, produce, and promote stage productions on Broadway until his death in 1964 at age 69. Burke became one of the dominant scholars of rhetoric, affecting the way many Americans wrote.
Bishop Barron Reflections
Natural moral excellences transfigured by God through love
By Bishop Robert Barron, March 2, 2026
Friends, in today’s Gospel, Jesus charges us to be merciful and to stop judging others. But we cannot perform such behaviors on our own strength; we need God’s assistance. The perfection that he urges—which includes a radical love of enemies, the practice of nonviolence in the face of aggression, the refusal to judge one’s brothers and sisters, and an embrace of poverty, meekness, and simplicity of heart—is not desirable or even possible within a natural framework. The form of life outlined in the Sermon on the Mount would strike Aristotle as excessive and irrational—and that is just the point. Its viability and beauty will emerge only when one’s mind, will, and body have been invaded and elevated by the love that God is. This is not to say that the natural moral excellences perceived by Aristotle are invalidated by grace; the invasion of the sacred does not overwhelm or undermine the secular. But it does indeed transfigure it. This transfiguration is the effect of love, working its way through the moral self.
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