Catholic Nutshell News: Thursday 4/23/26
Topics include: Tennessee replaces ‘Pride Month’; Rededicating America to God; Pope’s last day in Equatorial Guinea; & Technology and the fragmentation of society
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Today's sources include Aleteia, EWTN News, National Catholic Register, The Pillar, CatholicVote, John Eldredge, and ChurchPOP. (Catholic Nutshell is a subscription service for faithful, hopeful, & curious Catholics willing to exercise the Catholic News Muscle)
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CatholicVote
Tennessee replaces ‘Pride Month’ with ‘Nuclear Family Month’
By Hannah Hiester, April 21, 2026
Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee, a Republican, recently signed legislation that designates June as “Nuclear Family Month” instead of “Pride Month.” The bill affirms that a family consisting of a husband, wife, and their children — whether biological, adopted, or foster — is “God’s design for familial structure and has been the bedrock of society since the creation of the world.” It also recognizes families as the foundation of Tennessee and the U.S. The bill additionally addresses the harms that incomplete families create, pointing to studies that show fatherlessness is linked to rates of higher poverty, mental health crises among children, substance abuse, youth suicide, and incarceration, among other issues. Further, the legislation rejects ideologies that promote abortion or sterilization, saying that Tennessee’s values “do not align” with those of entities like the World Health Organization or United Nations that “fight for population control.”
Religion News Service
Hegseth, Barron, & Evangelicals rededicating America to God
By Jack Jenkins, April 22, 2026
A slate of political, military, and religious leaders is scheduled to participate in a major faith-themed event on the National Mall next month, where members of President Donald Trump’s Cabinet, musical guests, and a list of mostly conservative Christian speakers plan to lead participants in “solemnly rededicating our country as One Nation under God.” The event, titled “Rededicate 250: A National Jubilee Of Prayer, Praise & Thanksgiving,” is part of a series of events and initiatives designed to celebrate the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence. Organized by the group Freedom 250 as part of a public-private partnership with the White House and other government bodies, the gathering roughly coincides with the anniversary of an order sent by then-General George Washington in 1776, seconding the Continental Congress’s call for a day of “fasting, humiliation, and prayer.”
Crux
Pope’s last day in Equatorial Guinea: A tale of tensions
By Elise Ann Allen, April 23, 2026
From the beginning of his African odyssey, one criticism of Pope Leo’s decision to visit the specific nations he toured was that his presence would lend support to their authoritarian leadership. From April 13-23, the pope visited Algeria, Cameroon, Angola, and Equatorial Guinea, with the last three notorious for dictatorial governance and rampant corruption. Pope Leo’s visit to Mongomo and Bata on Friday showcased the tension that often comes packaged with his new role as leader of the universal Church, as he sought to encourage the faithful in one of the Catholic Church’s fastest-growing regions, while also taking national leadership, some of whom are members of his own flock, to task. Leo made three separate flights in one day, traveling from Malabo – the capital city of Equatorial Guinea – to the eastern city of Mongomo, the birthplace of Nguema Mbasogo, 83, who is Catholic, and who has held office since 1982. Leo’s pointed remarks to the leaders of what is one of the most corrupt nations in the world.
The Pillar
Church in occupied Ukraine taken over by Russian Orthodox clergy
By Luke Coppen, April 20, 2026
The reported takeover of a Ukrainian Greek Catholic church by Russian Orthodox clergy on Easter Sunday was an act of “blasphemy,” Major Archbishop Sviatoslav Shevchuk has said. “This is blasphemy against the Risen Lord — the Prince of Peace! And on the feast of Easter, no less,” Shevchuk said April 16. Russian forces have occupied Tokmak, a town of around 30,000 people, since the full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. Russian authorities claim to uphold religious freedom in occupied territories, but the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church says its members, including clergy, have suffered arrests, torture, and deportation. Human rights groups have accused the occupation authorities of using the Russian Orthodox Church to supplant Christian communities that are not aligned with the Russian state. Shevchuk said, “With cynical deliberation, our church was seized on Easter; our faithful were expelled.”
Aleteia
Bishops call on Canadians to contact MPs now
By Theresa Civantos Barber, April 23, 2025
Canada’s bishops are calling on Catholics to contact their Members of Parliament before March 2027, when the country’s assisted suicide program is set to expand yet again, to cover mental illness as a sole qualifying condition. The program, “Medical Aid in Dying” (MAiD), has drawn criticism from human rights advocates across the world. Since its legalization 10 years ago, over 60,000 Canadians have died by MAiD — including more than 5% of all Canadian deaths in 2024 alone. Now Canada’s Catholic bishops are urging Canadians to speak up and contact their Members of Parliament (MPs) to prevent a serious escalation of MAiD criteria. Up to this point, eligibility for MAiD required a physical health condition, such as an illness or disability. But beginning in March 2027, Canada is planning an expansion that would allow MAiD for mental illness as a sole condition. Bill C-218, currently before Parliament, would amend the Criminal Code to prevent MAiD from being provided when mental illness is the sole underlying condition.
Relatged: New York Catholic bishops issue new guidebook on making end-of-life decisions, EWTN News, By Kate Quiñones, April 22, 2026
Angelus News
LA-connected musicians win national Catholic music awards
By Mike Nelson, April 22, 2026
Three nationally known music ministers, all with ties to the Archdiocese of Los Angeles, have been honored with awards from the National Association of Pastoral Musicians (NPM). John Flaherty, longtime music director for the Los Angeles Religious Education Congress, was named the 2026 recipient of NPM’s Jubilate Deo Award for contributions to pastoral liturgy in the United States. Rodolfo (Rudy) López and Estela García-López, husband-and-wife musicians and composers originally from Los Angeles, earned the Pastoral Musician of the Year Award for their work in parish and diocesan ministries. “Liturgy is poetry and art,” Flaherty said. “It’s much more than just following rubrics; we’re called to find deeper meanings in what’s expressed in liturgy, to discover the heart of it all. There are pastoral as well as intellectual components to what we do at Mass, and when we can connect the head to the heart, we experience the transcendent.”
National Catholic Register
The Catholic Church’s response to AI — So far
By Jonah McKeown, March 27, 2026
Pope Leo XIII was known for his engagement with the profound social changes of the industrial revolution, especially through his 1891 encyclical, Rerum Novarum. Pope Leo XIV chose his papal name, in part, because of his desire to address what he has called the next “industrial revolution” — developments in the field of artificial intelligence (AI) that “pose new challenges for the defense of human dignity, justice and labor.” Reports have emerged that Pope Leo’s first encyclical of his pontificate may soon be released and will likely address the ethical challenges posed by AI. The Pontifical Academy for Life released the “Rome Call for AI Ethics” in 2020, and several major global tech companies, including Microsoft and Cisco, have since signed on to the pledge. The most in-depth guidance the Vatican has provided so far on artificial intelligence can be found in Pope Francis’ Antiqua et Nova (“old and new”). Pope Leo’s first public reference to AI came on his second full day as Pope, in a speech to the College of Cardinals. (Read the article for further developments.)
EWTN News
Bishop invites Catholics to ‘defend your faith by knowing it better’
By Diego López Colín, April 23, 2026
As part of the commemoration of the centenary of the Cristero War in Mexico, the bishop of Zacatecas, Sigifredo Noriega Barceló, urged the faithful to deepen their knowledge of their Catholic faith in order to know how to defend it. The Cristero War, also known as the “Cristiada,” was an armed conflict that erupted in 1926 after President Plutarco Elías Calles tightened the enforcement of the anticlerical articles contained in the 1917 constitution. In response, on July 31, 1926, the Mexican bishops suspended public worship throughout the country. Subsequently, the federal government responded with an intensified persecution of Catholics. Noriega explained that the Catholic Church is currently engaged in a “plan to recover the memory” of the war, with the aim of reflecting on “the significance” of the Cristiada “at that time, and the implications it holds for our own time.” The bishop recalled that many who died remained “faithful even to the point of risking their lives.” Now, 100 years later, it appears that for many Catholics “the religious principles governing our lives are not as solid.”
OSV & EWTN News, with ChurchPOP for 4/23/26
OSV News
OSV’s seasoned reporters - April 23, 2026
OSV News — information service and evangelization partner that enables dioceses to connect and boost engagement with the faithful by sharing timely, trustworthy, and accurate content about what is happening in the Church and the world.
Christians protest after Pakistani court says forced marriage of Christian girl, 13, is legal - by Aftab Alexander Mughal - Christians in Pakistan are protesting a controversial court ruling that upheld the marriage of a 13-year-old Christian girl to a 30-year-old Muslim man, a case widely known as "Maria's case." The girl's family says she was abducted and forcibly converted.
US appeals court allows Texas schools to display Ten Commandments - by Kate Scanlon - A federal appeals court on April 21 narrowly upheld a Texas law requiring public school classrooms to display the Ten Commandments. The ruling rejected arguments that the law established a religion, arguing that it "requires no religious exercise or observance."
Diocese of Peoria releases schedule of pilgrimage events for Sheen beatification - by OSV News - April 22, 2026 - The schedule begins with a nine-day novena of holy hours at 7 p.m. every evening at the Cathedral of St. Mary of the Immaculate Conception in Peoria, Illinois. “The Sheen Pilgrimage is a spiritual experience centered around prayer, reflection, and celebration,” the diocese said.
EWTN News
EWTN’s top headlines — April 23, 2026
EWTN 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.
Canary Islands bishop on migration: ‘We feel powerless’ - By Nicolás de Cárdenas - The bishops of the two Canary Islands dioceses discuss migration there from Africa, an issue likely to be addressed by Pope Leo XIV during his June visit.
German cardinal instructs priests to facilitate same-sex couple blessings - By Alexander Folz - Cardinal Reinhard Marx, who has served as archbishop of Munich and Freising in Germany since 2008, has instructed the priests and full-time pastoral staff in the archdiocese to introduce the controversial handout "Blessing Gives Strength to Love" as the basis of pastoral care.
Southern Poverty Law Center indicted for fraudulently paying informants inside extremist groups - By Tessa Gervasini - The Southern Poverty Law Center labeled some traditionalist Catholic groups as hate groups over views related to gender, sexuality, and marriage. No Catholic groups were mentioned in the indictment.
ChurchPOP Trending
ChurchPOP provides fun, informative, and authentically Catholic news and culture - April 23, 2026
“We publish inspiring daily stories, fun and shareable faith-centered infographics, prayers, Church history, and more.”
Job Hunting or Struggling at Work? Try This Powerful Novena to Saint Joseph the Worker - Are you in need of employment or any other work-related issue? Turn to Saint Joseph the Worker, a powerful intercessor for workers and the unemployed.
12 Catholic Ways to Comfort a Grieving Loved One After Someone Dies - What helped you the most during a time of grief? The Church offers concrete ways to care for the soul of the deceased and lovingly support those who are grieving. Here are 12 ways to do so.
Vietnam POW Secretly Made Rosaries from Bread in Prison Camp, Risking Punishment - “It was a rosary made out of bread. One of the older guys was Catholic, and that’s what he did—he made rosaries.” - Former POW in Vietnam
Nutshell reflections for 4/23/26:
USCCB Daily Reflection - VIDEO - April 23, 2026
Thursday of the Third Week of Easter
Church Life Journal
Technology and the fragmentation of society
By Colin Miller, April 23, 2026
Intensive use of technology, and especially digital technology, makes it more difficult to be a Christian. There is a widespread myth that the only “moral” or “spiritual” questions about technology concern how we use it. On the contrary, it is no longer possible to use technology without it using us: tool use always habituates us to being particular kinds of people. In our day, the use of technology shapes our character in a way contrary to the formation demanded by the Gospel. While it is true that technology reorganizes each of us morally and spiritually, it has also reorganized and continues to reorganize society from top to bottom, again in ways harmful to the Church. Coming to an adequate grasp of our current situation requires that we first give a minimal account of key characteristics of healthy communities. For the last 200 years, increasingly, food, medicine, childcare, transportation, tools, entertainment, education, clothing, eldercare, housing, and the like have come to be provided outside families, neighborhoods, cities, and parishes.
National Catholic Register
Why Catholic media matters
By Andrea M. Picciotti-Bayer, April 22, 2026
Mainstream media was quick to highlight recent friction between President Donald Trump and Pope Leo XIV through a partisan lens. What was missing from their reporting was not better sourcing or airtime, but a framework that takes seriously both the responsibilities of political leadership and the prophetic role of the Church. That is precisely what Catholic media exists to provide. And why it matters. We are heirs to a remarkable tradition. The Church has always recognized every new medium as an opportunity to proclaim the Gospel. No one grasped this more instinctively than Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen, whose beatification is set for Sept. 24, 2026. Once dubbed “God’s microphone,” Archbishop Sheen proclaimed God’s truth to untold millions through radio, print, and television. That tradition is alive and well. This is not a romantic abstraction. Catholic media saves souls. Authoritarian regimes know it. That is precisely why, when governments seek to crush a people’s spirit, they always target the Church’s means of communication.
Providence
Truman’s Decision to Intervene in Greece and Turkey in 1947
By Richard Allen Hyde, April 21, 2026
On March 12, 1947, President Truman asked Congress in person for assistance to Greece and Turkey to preserve their systems of democratic governance and territorial integrity from the threat of Soviet communism. Clark Clifford‘s memoirs, Counsel to the President, wrote: “For most members of Congress, this was not so much a historic occasion as another unfortunate foreign problem to confront when what voters really wanted was housing, jobs, and meat.” The news was not welcome, but not unexpected either. Congress approved his request for $400 million two months later, on May 22, 1947. This became the basis of a bipartisan American foreign policy for decades to come, not just a declaration of principles but an allocation of capital. Congress and the President worked acrimoniously and yet effectively. The Marshall Plan soon appropriated a much greater sum for the aid of Europe. The country was no less divided over a wide variety of issues than it is today.
Wild at Heart
What hope feels like
By John Eldredge, April 23, 2026
We know that all creation is groaning in labor pains even until now; and not only that, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, we also groan within ourselves as we wait for adoption, the redemption of our bodies. For in hope we were saved. Now hope that sees for itself is not hope. For who hopes for what one sees? But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait with endurance. (Romans 8:22–25) Amazing. Paul is passing along to us the secret of the sojourning heart. We live in hope, and he says hoping is waiting. And groaning. When was the last time you heard that in a sermon or the title of a new book? You, Too, Can Groan Inwardly While You Wait Eagerly! Everything I’ve seen lately offers a sure-fire way to “get what you want.” How to be a success at work. How to be a success at love. How to succeed in work and love at the same time. Things are different now. Now I wonder, what am I still arranging for? I should like to let it go too.
Image of peanuts by Nicole Köhler, from Pixabay
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