Catholic Nutshell News: Monday 3/23/26
Topics include: Pope Leo again decries Iran war; Educational reform in Bolivia; Fr. Flanagan and sainthood; & ‘Nones’ to blame for America’s marriage crisis?
“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
Pope Leo again decries Iran war: ‘We cannot remain silent’
By Zeale News, March 22, 2026
After his weekly Angelus address in St. Peter’s Square on March 22, Pope Leo XIV again spoke up against the ongoing joint Israeli-U.S. war against Iran, calling for worldwide prayers for peace talks to recommence and decrying violence against innocent victims. “With dismay I continue to follow the situation in the Middle East, which, like other regions of the world, is torn apart by war and violence,” the Holy Father said. “We cannot remain silent in the face of the suffering of so many defenseless people who are victims of these conflicts.” The Pope’s comments came partway through a 48-hour timeline set by President Donald Trump Saturday night, when he threatened he would order strikes on Iranian power plants unless Iran commits to allowing oil to pass through the Hormuz Strait, a vital waterway through which about one-fifth of the world’s oil supply normally ships.
Related: CNN, FoxNews - Trump delays strikes on Iranian power plants after ‘very good’ talks on ending war - Monday, March 23, 2026
Related: No More Appeasement of Radical Islam - “jihadist Islam, which in many respects is a more ruthlessly determined foe than the late-bureaucratic communism of the 1970s and 1980s” - By Weigel George, December 1, 2010
CRUX
Church celebrates educational reform in Bolivia
By Eduardo Campos Lima, March 23, 2026
After almost 20 years of socialist administrations that curtailed the Catholic Church’s role in public education, Bolivia now has a pro-market president aiming to reform the Andean country’s educational system – and the Bishops’ Conference has been invited to take part in the process. President Rodrigo Paz Pereira, who took office in November 2025, announced in February that his administration would undertake a sweeping education reform in Bolivia and pledged to invest US$50 million in the process. “We have to tell the truth: Not all Bolivians have had the opportunity to receive an education, and many leave the educational system with extremely poor levels of training. To deny this is to live in a country of lies,” Paz said last month. The process will include participation from various sectors of Bolivian society connected to education, and the Catholic Church has been invited to share its views and proposals.
Aleteia
Pope: Don’t let kids think chatbots are friends
By Daniel Esparza, March 23, 2026
In a letter published March 22, 2026, Pope Leo XIV has renewed his warning about the cultural and moral risks posed by artificial intelligence — this time with a particular focus on children. Writing to Marco Girardo, director of the Italian Catholic daily Avvenire, the Pope marked the anniversary of Popotus, a weekly publication for young readers. His message was clear: In an era shaped by algorithms, childhood itself requires protection. “We must not let children come to believe they can find in chatbots their best friends or the oracle of universal knowledge,” he wrote. The concern is not merely technological but deeply human. For Leo XIV, the risk lies in a subtle reshaping of how children learn, relate, and imagine.
OSV News
Injunction for clergy ministry in Minneapolis ICE facility
By OSV News, March 22, 2026
Clergy members will now be allowed in to give spiritual care to those being detained at an Immigration and Customs Enforcement processing facility in the Twin Cities area. On March 20, U.S. District Judge Jerry Blackwell granted an injunction allowing access to the Bishop Henry Whipple Federal Building in Minneapolis, following a lawsuit filed in February by an ecumenical group of Minnesota clergy, including a Jesuit priest. The Bishop Henry Whipple Federal Building is named for Minnesota’s first Episcopal bishop. Blackwell said plaintiffs had met the burden of proof that their case is likely to succeed, and that restrictions on the religious freedom of clergy to minister cause “irreparable harm.” He also ordered both sides to meet within four days to negotiate details on access and security, and within seven days to submit a plan or, if an agreement cannot be reached, competing proposals.
EWTN News
Boys Town founder moves one step closer to sainthood
By Hannah Brockhaus, March 23, 2026
Pope Leo XIV on Monday approved the advancement of the beatification cause for Boys Town founder Father Edward J. Flanagan, declaring him “venerable.” The Irish-born priest, revered for his revolutionary approach to caring for homeless and impoverished children in the 20th century, famously said there was “no such thing as a bad boy, only bad environment, bad modeling, and bad teaching.” His life and legacy were immortalized in the 1938 movie “Boys Town,” starring Spencer Tracy, who won an Oscar for his portrayal of the priest. Thanks to his ministry to young boys in Omaha, Nebraska, Flanagan was invited to review child welfare conditions in Japan and Korea in 1947 and, the following year, in Austria and Germany. The pope declared the “heroic virtue” of Flanagan alongside four other holy men and women on March 23, including Italian Cardinal Ludovico Altieri, who died ministering to cholera patients during an epidemic in 1867.
National Catholic Register
St. Joseph’s cloak, belt, and staff are venerated today
By Joseph Pronechen, March 22, 2026
St. Joseph’s sacred cloak, also called a tunic or mantle, is in Rome, only a little more than two miles from St. Peter’s Basilica. This treasured artifact of St. Joseph has been in the Basilica of Sant’Anastasia, on the Palatine Hill, for more than 1,600 years. At the time, Sant’Anastasia, built at the beginning of the fourth century, was one of the earliest churches in the Eternal City. History credits St. Jerome, one of the early Church Fathers and Doctors of the Church, for bringing this mantle of St. Joseph from the Holy Land to this church, where it has remained ever since. This 17th-century reliquary actually holds and displays two precious relics — St. Joseph's cloak and another major relic: part of the Virgin Mary’s veil. Normally, people can see the relic twice a year on the Solemnity of St. Joseph on March 19 and again on May 1, the feast of St. Joseph the Worker.
Graphs about Religion
Are the ‘Nones’ to blame for America’s marriage crisis?
By Ryan Burge, March 23, 2026
According to the Heritage Foundation report entitled Saving America by Saving the Family: A Foundation for the Next 250 Years, people aren’t walking down the aisle that much anymore, and that’s pretty much bad for everyone. The report points to studies which find that church-going couples have a divorce rate that is 50% lower than those who don’t go to a house of worship on a regular basis. Every major religion in the United States encourages parishioners to find a partner, get married, and have children. In 1972, the share of respondents who had never been married was a shockingly low 15%. In 2024, 33% of men had never been married compared to 29% of women. in 1972, the average person’s first marriage happened right around 23 years old. Today, it’s about 28 years old. In 2024, about 43% of the non-religious had never been married compared to 27% of Catholics.
The Pillar
Portugal pro-life march attacked
By Filipe d’Avillez, March 22, 2026
A demonstrator threw a Molotov cocktail at participants in a pro-life march in Lisbon, Portugal on Saturday. The device failed to ignite when it landed among the crowd, but caused widespread fear and shock among the men, women and children who had just finished listening to speeches outside the nation’s Parliament building, as the event drew to an end. The suspect was spotted by pro-life demonstrators and immobilized before on-duty officers who were present at the scene intervened and placed him under arrest. He was taken to the hospital for examination, and remains in custody, according to a police statement. Police told organizers of the March for Life that the suspect, 39, belongs to a group of activists who are known to have caused similar disturbances at other demonstrations in the past. This is the first time a pro-life event in Portugal has been met with violence. No motive was presented for the failed attack.
EWTN, UCA, and CW News for 3/23/26
EWTN News
EWTN’s top headlines — March 23, 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.
Catholic bishops demand repeal of India state’s anti-conversion bill - By Anto Akkara - Catholic bishops in India’s Maharashtra state are calling a newly passed anti-conversion bill — the 13th such law in India — an unjustified interference in the Church’s sacramental practice. “Far from safeguarding religious freedom, this law, in its present form, effectively undermines the very right it claims to protect.”
‘Thirst of their souls’ is awakening a new generation of catechumens in France, priest says - By Almudena Martínez-Bordiú - Young people in France are tired of the “superficiality” of the world and are looking for serious answers, which they are finding in the Catholic Church, according to Father Gian Strapazzon.
Faith-based summer camp restores hope for kids of fallen heroes - By Francesca Pollio Fenton - LifeCampUSA is a summer program for middle-schoolers who have lost fathers in military service, law enforcement, or as first responders. LifeCampUSA offers their summer camp program in several different states across the United States including Colorado, Montana, South Dakota, Minnesota, and Wisconsin.
UCA News
The Union of Catholic Asian World News - 3/23/26
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
Breaking the silence on reproductive health among Islamabad’s teens - By Anee Muskan - March 23, 2026 -The unprecedented development marks a significant shift in this Islamic nation, where such discussions remain largely taboo. For many educators, however, the issue is less about taboo — or controversy — and more about necessity.
Gender inequality in water access slows progress in Asia-Pacific: UN - By Umar Manzoor Shah - March 23, 2026 - Drawing evidence from across the Asia-Pacific region, the report shows In rural and peri-urban areas, women and girls remain the primary water collectors. This role limits their access to education, reduces income opportunities, and exposes them to health and safety risks.
Cambodia has a drinking problem — and it’s out of control - By Terry Friel - March 20, 2026 - The Buddhist nation is facing a worsening drinking crisis — especially rampant underage binge drinking — that is stoking mental health and social problems, such as domestic violence, that the country is not equipped to deal with.
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.
The Resurrection: Mere attraction to truth is not enough - by Dr. Jeff Mirus - There is a dramatic difference between being convinced of the institutional benefits of the Catholic Church, and a compelling reason to believe that all this was actually started and has been conserved by God Himself, in the Person of Jesus Christ, true God and true man. The Resurrection is more than a mere motive of credibility. It is a reality check. It demands a change of life.
The Ten Popes of the Second Century - Lives of the Popes (Podcast) - Little is known about many of the popes of the second century. Several of them were martyrs. They had to deal with different heresies that made their way to Rome, and there was also a controversy over the correct date of Easter. This episode covers popes #5-#14: Sts. Evaristus, Alexander I, Sixtus I, Telesphorus, Hyginus, Pius I, Anicetus, Soter, Eleutherius, and Victor I.
Tolkien’s Darkest Tale, w/ Aaron Irber - The Catholic Culture Podcast - The darkest, and perhaps most underrated, story J.R.R. Tolkien ever wrote was the tale of Túrin Turambar, a great man of the First Age of Middle-Earth, whose life was ruined by the curse of Morgoth (Tolkien’s Satan-figure) and by his own pride. The tale, which resembles a Greek tragedy, was given its longest and most satisfying version in the posthumously published book The Children of Hurin.
Nutshell reflections for 3/23/26:
USCCB Daily Reflection AUDIO - March 23, 2026
Monday of the Fifth Week of Lent
Word on Fire
Materialism Is the opiate of the masses
By Dr. Richard Clements, March 20, 2026
After referring to religion as the opiate of the masses, Karl Marx went on to say, “The abolition of religion as the illusory happiness of the people is the demand for their real happiness. To call on them to give up their illusions about their condition is to call on them to give up a condition that requires illusions.” Marx believed that people’s “real” happiness lay exclusively in this earthly life, in the satisfaction of their economic needs. Modern-day materialists continue to argue against religion as an “illusion” or “delusion.” Materialism, as a world view, is even more common today than it was in the middle of the nineteenth century, when Marx was writing his most influential works. But one can make a convincing argument that it is materialism, rather than religion, that is the true “opiate of the masses” (or, perhaps to update the metaphor, the “opioid of the masses”), in that it is materialism, not religion, that prevents people from seeing the universe and human life as they really are.
Dominicana
Bach: Musician … and theologian?
By Br. John Metilly, O.P., March 21, 2026
One of my professors once quipped that Bach might be the greatest theologian who ever lived. Although I probably wouldn’t bet money on the truth of that claim, I do think that Bach’s music is full of theological significance. One of his most famous pieces of sacred music is the Johannes-Passion—a musical dramatization of the Passion narrative according to St. John. The text and music of Bach’s Johannes-Passion serve as a musical lectio divina that provides deep theological insight into the Passion. This Lenten season, as in every Lenten season, to live the Passion of Christ in our own lives is the task at hand. Therefore gaze unceasingly upon him! He, the Lord, the true Son of God! He who maintained his serenity throughout his Passion will also make us, even in the greatest humiliation, remain transfigured!
Caeli
Holding two desires in one heart
By Victoria Cardona, March 19, 2026
There are times when I catch myself dreaming about two very different lives. One is living quietly and contemplatively, devoted entirely to Christ through a life of celibacy that feels like a spiritual marriage. The other is a life full of busyness and family chaos, falling in love, raising children, and sharing the daily joys and struggles of married life with an earthly spouse. That is when I realize that both desires live in my heart at the same time. I’ve begun to notice that this tension is a gift, rather than a problem. In Gaudium et Spes, we are reminded that the “joys and the hopes, the griefs and the anxieties of the men of this age … are the joys and the hopes, the griefs and the anxieties of the followers of Christ” (No. 1). Even when they seem conflicting, our desires are part of the human experience that God uses to call us to himself.
Bishop Barron Reflections
The terrible enthusiasm of a mob
By Bishop Robert Barron, March 23, 2026
Friends, our Gospel today tells about the woman that the scribes and Pharisees caught in adultery. Imagine where they were standing when they caught her in the very act. The voyeurism and perversion of these men! Then they come en masse, in the terrible enthusiasm of a mob, and they present the case to Jesus. Now what does Jesus do in the face of this violent mob? First, he writes on the ground. The mysterious writing might indicate the listing of the sins of each person in the group. And then he says, “Let the one among you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her.” He forces them to turn their accusing glance inward, where it belongs. This story, like all the stories in the Gospels, is a foreshadowing of the great story toward which we are tending. Jesus will be put to death by a mob bent on scapegoating violence.
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