Catholic Nutshell News: Wednesday 3/25/26
Topics include: Prayers for peace plan; DOJ blocking abortion pill challenges; Concerns over Marian document; & Polygamy study group urges ‘genuine conversion’
“Here was an almond tree in bloom before me”
Today's sources are the CRUX, National Catholic Register, Vatican News, The Pillar, Aleteia, and EWTN News. (Catholic Nutshell is a subscription service for faithful, hopeful, & curious Catholics willing to exercise the Catholic News Muscle)
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CRUX
With peace plan in the works, Pope Leo XIV renews call for cease-fire
By Crux Now Staff, March 25, 2026
The Pentagon ordered about 2,000 soldiers from the U.S. Army’s 82nd Airborne Division to begin moving to the Middle East on Tuesday, a move apparently designed to afford Trump more military flexibility as the peace plan comes into diplomatic play. Early reports concerning the terms of the peace plan said it was delivered to Iranian leadership by Pakistan, but those reports contained scant detail. Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif issued a brief statement on social media Tuesday evening, saying his country “stands ready and honored to be the host to facilitate meaningful and conclusive talks for a comprehensive settlement of the ongoing conflict.” Pakistan shares a border with Iran, and like Iran, has a large Shiite Muslim population (though the vast majority of Pakistani Muslims are Sunni). Pakistan has also cultivated a strategic and commercial relationship with Trump. Leo XIV, the first U.S.-born pope, has called repeatedly for a cease-fire.
OSV News
Trump DOJ efforts to block abortion pill challenges
By Kate Scanlon, March 24, 2026
Marjorie Dannenfelser, president of Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America, told OSV News, “It’s inexcusable that the Trump-Vance DOJ is actively litigating against pro-life states just trying to enforce their laws.” The Trump administration has asked multiple judges to pause several state lawsuits seeking to roll back Biden administration-era eased restrictions on mifepristone, a drug commonly, but not exclusively, used for first-trimester abortion, prompting frustration from pro-life advocates who support those challenges. The U.S. Department of Justice, during the second Trump administration, has moved to dismiss a series of state lawsuits — notably from Louisiana, Missouri, and Florida — seeking to end a Food and Drug Administration policy implemented during the Biden administration that permits mifepristone to be distributed by mail. The states have argued the policy undermines their own state laws, among other objections.
National Catholic Register
Theologians press Vatican with concerns over Marian document
By Edward Pentin, March 24, 2026
Members of the Theological Commission of the International Marian Association, an international group of leading theologians and Mariologists, have written to Cardinal Victor Fernández, asking him to respond to their detailed criticisms of a Vatican doctrinal note published last November that diminished some long-established devotional Marian titles. In a letter dated March 19, the group said the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith (DDF) hasn’t replied to their Dec. 8 lengthy commentary regarding Mater Populi Fidelis (Mother of the Faithful People). The document’s diminution of the Marian titles drew considerable criticism from Mariologists, who were concerned that it adopts a minimalist view of the Blessed Virgin Mary and her role in salvation. Some praised it as a clarifying and ecumenically unifying move, recentering Marian language clearly on Christ, while others were concerned it could lessen popular devotion to her and risk ending new Marian dogmas.
CatholicVote/Zeale
Young adults want personalized news, not traditional media outlets
By Hannah Hiester, March 24, 2026
A recent study of young adults’ news consumption revealed that Gen Z is not disengaged from the news but rather is backing away from traditional journalism and news websites in favor of social media and a more personal, emotional approach to information. The Reuters Institute’s Digital News Report surveyed young adults aged 18-24 and found that they “consume a plethora of media and information” in a variety of ways. A decade ago, young adults in the same age group said their main news source was publishers’ apps and online news websites, while some got their news from Facebook. Now, young people’s primary news source is social media, and they often gravitate toward audiovisual formats such as TikTok, Instagram, and YouTube. Young adults were more likely to say they pay attention to news creators on social media than to follow traditional news brands (51% vs 39%), a shift toward a more tailored, subjective approach to the news that was less pronounced among older demographics.
EWTN News
70% of Catholics who skipped confession in the past year want to go
By Amira Abuzeid, March 25, 2026
This Lent, a new study finds that two-thirds of Catholics who have not attended confession in the last year say they are open to going. According to “The Catholic Pulse Report: The Confession Study,” which surveyed 1,500 Catholics in the U.S. who attend Mass “at least occasionally,” 67% of respondents who have not been to confession in the past year said they are open to returning, and half of those said they would like to go more often. The study, conducted by the Vinea Research Group, a Catholic nonprofit, found that only 20% of Catholics go to confession regularly (defined as four or more times in the past year), while 12% have gone one to three times in the past year. Of those who go to confession regularly, 83% say they go to receive God’s mercy and forgiveness. Of those who have not gone in the past year, 75% say mercy is the primary reason they would go back.
The Pillar
Polygamy study group urges ‘genuine conversion’ before baptism
By Edgar Beltrán, March 24, 2026
A Vatican polygamy study group, composed of members of the Symposium of Episcopal Conferences of Africa and Madagascar, recommended that the Church cannot baptize men in polygamous unions. “The African family is built on covenant… At the heart of this family, the child represents a priceless treasure, a divine blessing. The child perpetuates the lineage name while also helping to strengthen present life. Having numerous descendants is a gift from God.” The report says that marriage had both a communal and religious dimension, involving “extended families and [inscribing] the union within a sacred order.” However, even in polygamous societies, “the symbolic ideal often remained monogamous: the first wife held a unique status, while the others occupied a secondary position.” The report compares this to the Old Testament, in which polygamy is legally tolerated. The report added that the missionaries in Africa historically fought against polygamy because they saw it as a form of enslavement of women.
Aleteia
Holy See refines guidelines on animal-to-human transplants
By I.Media, March 25, 2026
In light of recent scientific advances, the Holy See affirms that there is no theological obstacle to xenotransplantation — that is, the transplantation of an organ from one species to another — as long as certain ethical principles are strictly observed. Scientific and ethical guidelines on this technique, which is still in the experimental stage, were presented in the document “Perspectives on Xenotransplantation” by the Pontifical Academy for Life on March 24, 2026. The Pontifical Academy for Life produced the 90-page document with the participation of 14 specialists from five countries. It’s an update of a previous document by the Academy published in 2001, at the initiative of Pope John Paul II, who had supported this technique in a letter published in 2000. At the time, the Academy had determined that xenotransplantation was “morally legitimate” only if the transplanted organ did not alter “the psychological or genetic identity of the person who receives it.”
Zenit
Largest statue of Jesus in the Middle East is being built in Lebanon
By ZENIT Staff, March 24, 2026
In the eastern reaches of Lebanon, where the Bekaa Valley stretches toward a tense and often volatile border with Syria, a striking new silhouette is beginning to redefine the horizon. High on Jabal al-Salib, near the predominantly Christian town of Al-Qaa, a monumental statue of Christ with outstretched arms is taking shape—an image both familiar in Christian iconography and newly charged with meaning in a region marked by conflict. The project, conceived as recently as August 2025 and launched within weeks thanks to local initiative and private patronage, has advanced with unusual determination given the circumstances. On March 14, 2026, workers reached a symbolic milestone: the installation of the statue’s head. Images of the operation, rapidly circulated online, have drawn attention far beyond Lebanon, resonating with Christian audiences worldwide who recognize in the figure an echo of Rio de Janeiro’s Christ the Redeemer—now reinterpreted in a Middle Eastern key.
From Loop & EWTN to Pillar Post for 3/25/26
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TRUMP: IRAN HAS AGREED 'TO NEVER HAVE A NUCLEAR WEAPON' - President Donald Trump yesterday said Iran has agreed never to develop a nuclear weapon. Iran has also announced it will allow “non-hostile” ships to pass through the Strait of Hormuz. The Pentagon, meanwhile, is reportedly preparing to deploy 3,000 more troops to the Middle East. READ
ISRAEL PLANS TO OCCUPY SOUTHERN LEBANON - Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said yesterday that Israel plans to occupy southern Lebanon up to the Litani River — roughly a tenth of the country. Katz said Israeli forces would control key crossings, destroy infrastructure used by Hezbollah, and prevent local residents from returning home amid a widening conflict that has displaced more than 1.2 million people. READ
PRIESTS GIVE THEIR LIVES SAVING ALTAR BOY FROM DROWNING - Two Catholic priests in Ecuador lost their lives March 13 after jumping into action to save an altar boy who was caught in strong waves during a Lenten retreat. Father Alfonso Avilés Pérez, 60, and Father Pedro Anzoátegui, 43, brought the boy to safety, but were overtaken by the current, prompting tributes from Church leaders who said the two clerics “reacted as a shepherd would” in giving their lives. READ
EWTN News
EWTN’s top headlines — March 25, 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.
Pope Leo XIV explains why the priesthood is reserved to men - By Victoria Cardiel - Pope Leo XIV on Wednesday said priestly ministry in the Catholic Church, entrusted only to men, is understood in light of apostolic succession and called for priests who are “ardent with evangelical charity” and “courageous missionaries.”
Pope Leo hails 250th anniversary of 3 Slovak dioceses carved from the Habsburgs - By Bohumil Petrík - This year marks the 250th anniversary of three dioceses in Slovakia, then part of the Hungarian monarchy: Banská Bystrica, Rožňava, and Spiš. The three dioceses were officially established on March 13, 1776, carved out of the vast territory of the Archdiocese of Esztergom.
Luxembourg’s Cardinal Hollerich says women’s ordination essential to Church’s future - By Alexander Folz - While calling for patience with other cultures who may see the ordination debate as an “artificial problem,” Hollerich cited what he asserted was widespread support for women’s ordination in his parishes.
The Pillar
Pillar Stories for Tuesday, 3/25/26
The Pillar offers a news summary and a capsule take on Catholic News. Here are news stories from the past week in the Pillar Post:
The Chaldean Catholic Church lost its patriarch this month, with the sudden and unexpected resignation of Cardinal Louis Raphael Sako March 10. After Easter, Chaldean bishops are expected to gather in Baghdad — assuming the war allows them to — to elect a new patriarch for the sui iuris Eastern Catholic Church.
Since he was elected pontiff last year, Pope Leo XIV has made exactly one papal trip: an already-scheduled trip to Turkey last November, to which the pontiff added a three-day add-on to Lebanon. There has been a lot of speculation about when he will come to the U.S., and when he will visit South America, especially Peru, where he spent decades in ministry.
A Belgian bishop said he intends to start ordaining married men to the priesthood by 2028, in a move seemingly intended to pressure Pope Leo XIV on the issue of married clergy. For now, the bishop says simply that the training for these future married priests will be “discreet” and away from the media spotlight.
Nutshell reflections for 3/25/26:
USCCB Daily Reflection Audio - March 25, 2026
Solemnity of the Annunciation of the Lord
Crisis Magazine
Here’s how save La Grande Trappe Monastery from closing
By John Horvat II, March 25, 2026
The seriousness of the crisis of aging monks and nuns, now left with places once made for flourishing establishments, with no one to replace them, was recently made dramatically clear when the monks of La Trappe Abbey in Normandy announced that they may leave their monastery in 2028. The shock was so great that Pope Leo XIV held a confidential meeting with the abbot immediately after the announcement. It is a storied monastery that has housed monks for 900 years. If the monks of La Grande Trappe wish to see their abbey revived, there is no need for “long discernment.” They must embrace their tradition in all its awesome and splendorous rigor, as they did before. What will attract the young Gen Zers now converting is an appeal to the sublimity of religious life, not an “emphasis on individuality.” It is time to return to the all-consuming love of God and the Blessed Mother that makes all things possible.
CBCPNEWS
Fidelity to God often invites division and resistance
By CBCP News, March 21, 2026
Seminarians must learn to embrace life’s challenges, not avoid them, as part of their spiritual formation, a Catholic bishop said Saturday. Speaking at the opening Mass of this year’s “Kapatiran,” a gathering of theology seminarians, Bishop Reynaldo Evangelista of Imus said true formation requires accepting difficulties as a path to growth and discipleship. “Formation is not about avoiding the cross. It is about learning how to carry the cross with Christ,” Evangelista said in his homily at St. John Marie Vianney Parish Church. He urged seminarians to listen deeply to God through prayer, silence, and reflection, even amid distractions, conflicting opinions, and challenges within the Church and society. The bishop stressed that seminarians must stand for truth, even when misunderstood, cautioning that fidelity to God often invites division and resistance.
Aleteia
Today is the feast day of St. Dismas, the ‘good thief’
By Philip Kosloski, March 25, 2026
While March 25 is celebrated in the Roman Rite as the day of the Annunciation to the Blessed Virgin Mary, the Roman liturgy also has a tradition of listing a variety of “extra” saints on each day of the year. The Roman Martyrology lists every saint that the Roman Church recognizes, even if they are not given precedence on a particular day. Probably the best-known criminal-turned-saint in the Catholic Church is St. Dismas. He was the “good” or “penitent” thief crucified alongside Jesus, and was promised Heaven by Jesus Christ himself. These words of Jesus Christ led the early Christian community to believe the “good thief” repented of his crimes and entered Heaven later that day. This automatically made him a saint, as a saint is more loosely defined as anyone enjoying the beatific vision in Heaven. He remains one of the few individuals in the entire Bible who was promised by God himself entry into Heaven.
Catholic Exchange
An X-Ray into the angelic world
By Julio John Orvananos Archer, March 25, 2025
Presently, we live in a world where confusion is the stamp of reality. This dislocation of being disfigures the nature and essence of everything it touches, especially the collective understanding of the eternal truths. Amongst the many divine concepts injured by popular error, few are more damaging to the soul than the misunderstanding of the angelic world, because, in the same manner in which a bad Mariology leads to a bad Christology, a bad Angelology leads to heresy, heresy leads to apostasy, and apostasy leads to Satanism. The word “Angel” derives from the Greek angelos, meaning “messenger.” Thus, as their office suggests, they are the ambassadors of God to men. The angels are pure intellect, created before time to execute God’s Word. As such, they are superior to the laws of matter and completely unrestricted by space or time. Atop the material universe, further up the scale, stands mankind. Humans have the blessing of existence, a spirit, a means of reproduction, and, most importantly, intelligence and will.
Image of Almonds by Monfocus from Pixabay
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