“I’ll pray for thee from my pistachio tree”
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Our Sunday Visitor
Pope Leo hopeful Ukraine, Russia negotiations bear fruit
By Junno Arocho Esteves, September 7, 2026
“I hope that the efforts undertaken in these days to resume negotiations will bear concrete fruit and open space for diplomacy,” he said. Pope Leo XIV once again appealed for peace in Ukraine and prayed that U.S.-led negotiation efforts would finally bring an end to the death and destruction caused by the conflict now in its fourth year. “I renew my appeal to put an end to the violence, to stop the destruction and to open hearts to dialogue and peace,” the pope said Sept. 6 after leading pilgrims gathered in St. Peter’s Square in praying the Angelus. In his appeal, Pope Leo said he followed news of the violent attacks in Ukraine “with a sorrowful heart,” while lamenting the “deaths of innocent people.” Both countries temporarily halted strikes when U.S. envoys Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff arrived in Moscow Sept. 5 for talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin and the following day with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
Zeale
Mother’s mission for orphaned children in memory of adopted son
By Elizabeth Ervin, September 5, 2026
After her adopted son died 19 days after heart surgery, a mother drew on her faith to found a nonprofit that provides medical care and adoption assistance to orphaned and abandoned children. Founded by Lisa Murphy in 2016, the Christian organization Open Hearts for Orphans has helped more than 170 families adopt children with special needs from 27 countries, according to a report published by Atlantic Avenue Magazine. Murphy shares the work with two other adoptive mothers who lost young daughters with heart conditions — Ann Bartlinski, the organization’s director of medical intervention, and Mary Sammons, its director of adoption programs. Open Hearts for Orphans grew out of Murphy’s adoption of Daniel, a 2-year-old boy from China whose severe heart condition improved temporarily with medication, but he later died just days after open-heart surgery in 2010. The organization described Daniel as its “real founder.”
EWTN News
The quiet celebration of Mother Mary’s birth, nativity
By EWTN News Staff, September 8, 2026
The Catholic Church celebrates the birth of the Blessed Virgin Mary on its traditional fixed date of Sept. 8, nine months after the Dec. 8 celebration of her immaculate conception as the child of Sts. Joachim and Anne. The Bible does not directly record the circumstances of the Virgin Mary’s infancy and early life, but some of the earliest Christian writers cite other documents, legends, and traditions describing her birth. These accounts are not included in the canon of Scripture and thus lack authority, but they reflect some of the Church’s traditional beliefs about Mary's birth. One such non-Scriptural source is the early second-century “Protoevangelium of James,” an infancy gospel offering pious legends about Mary that nevertheless affirms some of the Church's earliest teachings on the Blessed Mother.
Related: Leo XIV: Mary’s Simple Presence — and Her Son Within Her — Moves All of History, Angela Ambrogetti/EWTN News/ACI Stampa, Vatican, September 8, 2026
CBCP News
Congregations join in ‘shared elder care’ as members age
By CBCP News, September 7, 2026
Catholic religious congregations in the Philippines pledged Saturday to develop shared elder-care programs after a survey highlighted growing pressure to care for aging members. The 233 consecrated women and men representing 159 congregations said the findings underscored the need for closer cooperation as members age and resources decline. In a statement issued at the close of the second convention of the Conference of Major Superiors in the Philippines, the religious leaders pledged to care for aging members “with dignity through sustainable care, caregiver formation, shared resources, and inter-congregational initiatives.” The survey found that about 70% of members in 45 women’s congregations are 50 or older, while nearly 48% are over 60. About 24% are at least 70. Sister Thu Do of the Congregation of the Lovers of the Holy Cross of Hanoi presented the findings Thursday during the convention in Zamboanga City.
Related: Our Daughter Left Everything to Follow Christ. Then It Was Our Turn to Let Go - Terry Polakovic, September 7, 2026 – National Catholic Register
UCA News
Lawyer for Chinese underground church flees to Taiwan
By UCA News reporter, September 7, 2026
A Beijing lawyer who represented an underground church in China has landed safely in Taiwan and been granted temporary accommodation amid a crackdown on unofficial worship, which has resulted in the detention of eight pastors from the Zion Church. Wang Xiahong, also known as Ruth Wang, fled mainland China with her two children on Sept. 2 amid increased government pressure related to her legal work with detained Zion Church leaders known as the Zion 8, ChinaAid said in a statement. The Zion 8 initially faced charges of “illegal use of information networks” under the “Online Code of Conduct for Religious Professionals” after they were detained in a broader crackdown last October. But authorities have since upgraded the charges to include fraud and illegal business operations tied to their ministry and the sale of online religious courses. The church has rejected the allegations.
Zenit
Bill against religious conversions in Goa, India withdrawn
By ZENIT Staff, September 2, 2026
The Goa government has withdrawn the controversial bill, which aimed to criminalize certain religious conversions, from the local parliament’s agenda after objections from some MPs in the ruling coalition and criticism from opposition parties. The withdrawal represents a setback for a measure that the government had presented as an effort to prevent religious conversions obtained through force, coercion, undue influence, enticement, fraudulent means or marriage. Concerns had been raised that broadly worded restrictions on conversion could be used to interfere with the freedom to embrace, practice and share one’s faith. Among its most severe provisions were penalties that could include life imprisonment and a minimum fine of 50,000 rupees for those convicted of conversion. It also provided for compensation of up to 500,000 rupees for those identified as victims.
The Pillar
Steady drumbeat of new bishops under the Vatican-China deal
By Ed. Condon, September 72 2026
Both the Vatican and the CCP appear to have settled for an unhappy present while pressing, or praying, for future victory. On Monday, August 31, the most recent in a growing list of bishops selected and installed under the norms of the 2018 agreement with the Chinese government on episcopal appointments. Bishop Paul Liu Honggang was consecrated Aug. 31 and installed as the new head of the Diocese of Datong, which had gone more than three-quarters of a century without a publicly acknowledged leader. The latest in a growing queue of relatively smooth episcopal appointments for the Chinese mainland, since the election of Pope Leo XIV last year, after years of dysfunction, with mainland authorities choosing and installing bishops without reference, or even prior notice, to the Vatican, the 2018 Vatican-China deal appears to be working, at least at the technical level. Candidates are selected internally via the state-sponsored Chinese Patriotic Catholic Association, submitted to Rome for approval and then installed and announced on a schedule coordinated between Beijing and the Vatican.
Crux
Body of war criminal Mladic lies in state at Orthodox church in Serbia
By Dusan Stojanovic, Jovana Gec, September 7, 2026
The body of Ratko Mladic, the Bosnian Serb commander who died while serving a life sentence for war crimes, lay in state on Monday as Serbia defied European Union warnings against allowing public homage to the man found guilty in the continent’s first case of genocide since World War II. Thousands of mourners arrived early at the small Serbian Orthodox Church of St. Luke in Belgrade to honor Mladic, who is still viewed as a hero by many Serbs. Pro-government media in Serbia reported that Mladic will receive full military honors while the head of the Serbian Orthodox Church, Patriarch Porfirije, will lead the funeral service. Serbia is a candidate nation for European Union membership and has faced strong criticism for honoring Mladic after his death. Marta Kos, the commissioner for the bloc, canceled a visit to Serbia in protest, arguing that “the glorification surrounding his death is incompatible with the values on which the EU path is built.”
Keep informed - 9/8/26 news for Catholics
Snippets: Pulpit, EWTN, & Aleteia
BIG PULPIT
Tito Edwards’ Catholic blogger site: September 8, 2026
The Big Pulpit website is an intelligent news aggregator offering insights and analysis on the Catholic Church worldwide. Here are Chief Editor Tito Edwards’ top recommendations for today.
Why Did Vatican II Declare Religious Freedom? – Rory Fox at Catholic Stand Magazine
German Bishops Terrified By Potential Loss Of Tax Revenues – Complicit Clergy
No Contact: Why Families Are Breaking Apart & What It Takes to Repair Them – Noelle Mering
The Unraveling of America’s Healthcare System – Dave Griffey at Daffey Thoughts
EWTN News
EWTN’s top headlines — September 8, 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.
Mother Teresa documentary premieres in Kolkata on her feast day - By EWTN News Staff - “Mother Teresa – Prophet of Compassion” premiered Sept. 5 in Kolkata, India, drawing more than 200 people, including dozens of Missionaries of Charity (MC) nuns and novices.
Thousands attend annual pro-life March For Life UK event in London - By Elliot Hartley - The march comes amid an ongoing debate over abortion law in England, Scotland and Wales, with pro-life campaigners calling for greater restrictions on abortion.
Accused killer of Kansas priest declared not competent at murder trial - By Daniel Payne - Gary Hermesch was declared incompetent to stand trial in Nemaha County Court on Sept. 3. Hermesch had been charged with first-degree murder in the April 3, 2025 shooting death of Father Arul Carasala in the small city of Seneca.
Aleteia
Aleteia’s global network reports for September 8, 2026
Aleteia (aleteia.org) is an online publication distributed in six languages (English, French, Spanish, Polish, Portuguese, and Slovenian). Launched in 2013, it is one of the world’s leading news websites with content free from ideological influences.
Only 3 birthdays are celebrated on the Church’s calendar - 09/03/26 - The Church celebrates saints’ feast days throughout the liturgical year, and the date generally marks the day the saint died and entered into eternity. The Church does celebrate three nativities in the liturgy: Jesus’ birth (December 25); Mary’s birth (September 8); and John the Baptist’s birth (June 24)
Carlo Acutis’ mother: Testimonies arrive almost daily - 09/08/26 - One year after Carlo Acutis was canonized by Pope Leo XIV, his mother, Antonia Salzano, reflects on the impact of his sainthood and the testimonies received. “Since Carlo’s death, we’ve received many signs, as well as testimonies of miracles and conversions.”
Instead of asking ‘How are you?’ try this instead - 09/07/26 - This Suicide Prevention Month, a small change in how we check in with someone could open the door to a conversation that really matters. How to recognize when someone may be struggling, and where to find help. One part of prevention is something considerably less clinical: connection.
September 8, 2026 - USCCB Daily Mass Readings
You can listen HERE - or read HERE:
Feast of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary
Today’s Catholic commentary:
Dominica
What do nuns do every day?
By Br. Roland Wakefield, O.P., September 3, 2026
Few things are quite so mysterious as the life of a Catholic nun. We know nuns wear special clothes and live in a monastery, but what exactly do they do every day? In Joy Within His House, Sister Mary Magdalene of the Immaculate Conception, O.P., answers just that question as she shares some of the joys, routines, and oddities of living as a cloistered Dominican nun. But this book is not just for religious brothers and sisters. Sister Mary Magdalene is keen to show how monastic wisdom matters to all Catholics. Throughout the Church’s history, monasteries have always been centers of Catholic learning and spirituality. As monks and nuns drink from the streams of divine grace and wisdom, they bear spiritual fruit, which they hand on to the world. Sister Mary Magdalene demonstrates this tradition perfectly in her book. She writes, “But lay people can and should also carve out a ‘sacred space’ for prayer, a place where you can be alone to encounter the Word, free from worldly distractions.
Missio Dei Catholic
God’s true intention for the Sabbath - to save life
By Ana Luque, September 6, 2026
In Sept. 7’s Gospel reading, Jesus went to the synagogue to teach. Coincidentally, there was a man with a withered hand there, as were the Pharisees. Though the word withered might mean “dry” today, back then it meant someone was paralyzed or deformed, impoverishing them and making them rely on others for charity. Simply put, they were constantly discriminated against. So, the Pharisees, eager to find a way to accuse Jesus of something, watched on “to see if he would cure on the sabbath.” If He did, they would then blame Him for breaking God’s law. St. Luke also notes that Jesus knew their thoughts and quickly realized their intentions. “I ask you, is it lawful to do good on the sabbath rather than to do evil, to save life rather than to destroy it?” To save life. That is God’s true intention for the Sabbath! To save. To save us.
The Obscure, Forgotten, and Undiscovered
Catholic Phil Lamantia: Poet of the ‘Beat Generation’
By James K. Hanna, September 4, 2026
Philip Lamantia (1927-2005), a poet of the Beat Generation literary movement—and so much more. Philip’s life and art are fodder for a long-form essay, actually many essays. Much has been written about this complex character, but there are angles yet to be explored—not only angles, but angels. To wit, Jack Kerouac concluded his famous 1958 New York Post interview with Mike Wallace by saying as he departed, “You must meet my friend Philip Lamantia. He was knocked off a bench by an angel last week.” Lamantia was the first poet to read (after being introduced by emcee Rexroth) at the famous 6 Gallery reading in 1955. The reading where Ginsberg read “Howl.” He and Kerouac, fellow Catholics, were close friends then, when Kerouac was studying Buddhist doctrine. They spent hours discussing religion, with Kerouac later writing that Lamantia “really dented my brain with his enthusiastic, passionate and brilliant expositions of the Universal Orthodoxy.”
Catholic Stand
A pinched nerve in the Body of Christ
By Nathan Krupa, September 8, 2026
June’s “Unity Forum” in Augusta, GA, gathered leaders and laypeople from many Christian denominations to discuss the scandal of division within the Body of Christ and look with hope toward Christian unity. The charismatic, ecumenical Alleluia Community hosted the forum. This year’s conference focused on the writings and life’s work of Fr. Peter Hocken (d. 2017), a British theologian and member of the Theology Commission of Catholic Charismatic Renewal. Author of more than 17 books on the Charismatic Renewal and the ecumenical movement, Fr. Hocken sought to understand the various outpourings of the Holy Spirit during the 20th Century. About a year ago, I pinched a nerve in my back after an unfortunate jiu-jitsu accident. My physician explained that the technical term for injuries obtained while trying to learn a combat sport at age 47 is “stupidity.” This pinched nerve is an image for disunity in the body of Christ. I can’t always feel my toes, but they are still my toes.
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