Paulist Fr. René Costanza, president of the Paulist Fathers, greets parishioners in Grand Rapids, Michigan, in 2024. (Courtesy of Paulist Fathers)

Q&A: Fr. Constanza reelected to lead Paulist Fathers, who hope to allay US polarization

News

NCR interviews Fr. René Constanza, whose reelection as president of the Paulist Fathers comes at a moment of both continuity and challenge for one of the most distinctly American Catholic orders.

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Pope renews 'heartfelt appeal' for 'immediate ceasefire' in Russia-Ukraine war

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Bishops urge prudence, prayer, invoke Guadalupe's protection as violence erupts in Mexico

Junno Arocho Esteves, OSV News

Editors' Choice

Archbishop Ronald Hicks looks on as priests enter the sanctuary to receive Communion during his installation Mass as the new archbishop of New York at St. Patrick's Cathedral in New York City Feb. 6, 2026. (OSV News/Gregory A. Shemitz)

In Focus

From declining finances to clergy polarization: Inside Hicks' inherited NYC challenges

Behind gestures toward accountability lies a quieter crisis that New York Archbishop Hicks just inherited: uncertainty about long-term solvency, uneven communication with clergy, and increasing ideological polarization.

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Steam comes from a coal-fired power station in Emalahleni, South Africa, Oct. 11, 2021. (AP/Themba Hadebe, file)

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Fr. Davide Pagliarani, center, superior general of the traditionalist Society of St. Pius X is pictured during the society's general chapter in Econe, Switzerland July 12, 2018. With him are Bishop Alfonso de la Galarreta, left, and Fr. Christian Bouchacourt. (CNS/Courtesy fsspx.news)

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'God does not need papers': Cardinals spend Ash Wednesday with ICE detainees, their families

Cardinal Blase Cupich led a Mass in Chicago, which was attended by relatives of those who have been detained or deported. Cardinal Joseph Tobin celebrated Masses inside an ICE detention center in Newark, New Jersey. 

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Mocking Trump is easy, but it isn't a political strategy

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U.S. bishops gather for Mass at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary in Baltimore in a November 2024 file photo. (OSV News/Catholic Review/Kevin J. Parks)

A video of a bishop denouncing ICE inspired me — then I found it was AI

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Not only had I just revealed myself as a rube to my staff (and my Gen X embarrassment was palpable), but I was bereft with disillusionment. I had really — really — wanted that reel to be real.

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For Lent, give up the jeremiad

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FanDuel, DraftKings and other online gambling apps are displayed on a phone in San Francisco, Sept. 26, 2022. (AP photo/Jeff Chiu, File)

Pope Leo condemned the scourge of gambling. Some US Catholics beat him there.

NCR Voices

Pope Leo XIV condemned the "scourge of gambling" in a speech late last year. His words followed warnings in the United States, where Catholic leaders have spoken out about the dangers of online gambling.

Vatican

Pope renews 'heartfelt appeal' for 'immediate ceasefire' in Russia-Ukraine war

Pope Leo XIV has renewed his "heartfelt appeal" for an "immediate ceasefire" in Russia's war against Ukraine and again urged dialogue "be strengthened to pave the way toward peace."

Pope Leo XIV gives his homily during Ash Wednesday Mass at the Basilica of Santa Sabina in Rome Feb. 18. In a closed-door dialogue with clergy from the Diocese of Rome Feb. 19, the pope urged priests to not to use artificial intelligence to write their homilies or to seek "likes" on social media platforms like TikTok. (CNS/Lola Gomez)

Pope Leo tells priests not to use AI to write homilies or seek likes on TikTok

 "To give a true homily is to share faith," and artificial intelligence "will never be able to share faith," the pope said.

ByCourtney Mares, OSV News

Vatican expands visitor experience at St. Peter's Basilica to mark 400th anniversary

The Vatican is marking the 400th anniversary of the consecration of St. Peter's Basilica with a host of visitor-friendly initiatives, including expanding access to its spectacular terrace and its snack bar in the shadow of Michelangelo's great dome.

ByNicole Winfield, Associated Press
Fr. Davide Pagliarani, center, superior general of the traditionalist Society of St. Pius X is pictured during the society's general chapter in Econe, Switzerland July 12, 2018. With him are Bishop Alfonso de la Galarreta, left, and Fr. Christian Bouchacourt. (CNS/Courtesy fsspx.news)

Traditionalist Catholic group doubles down on illicit consecrations, setting course for potential schism

Despite a Vatican offer of renewed theological dialogue, the Society of St. Pius X says it will consecrate bishops without papal approval, presenting the pope with a major test of church unity.

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EarthBeat

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Delight in the simple, abundant gifts all around you

Could it be that this was what God was asking of me: to take stock in the simple, abundant gifts all around me, delight in them like a child and find myself delighting in the Holy One right in front of me?

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In Lenten reflection, US bishops call Catholics to ecological conversion and action

"Indifference and distance from one another have led to devastating consequences for God's creation, including the poor. The conversion that we need is both metaphorical and physical," the prelates wrote.

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Fasting is one of the oldest Catholic traditions, and is honored by most faiths as a way that leads to spiritual enlightenment and discipline. (OSV News illustration/CNS file, Emily Thompson)
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As Abrahamic faiths fast, let us consider food ethics

What is shared between three Abrahamic traditions — Islam, Christianity and Judaism — is the idea that food is never just simply food.

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New book on trans athletes emphasizes human dignity

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'Midwinter Break' portrays the complicated beauty in the sacrament of marriage

"Midwinter Break," based on the novel of the same title, is a quiet film about a long marriage between a Catholic woman and secular man, where love and tension both dwell.

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Several people sit on a couch with a Black little girl. A woman stands, holding a baby.

The enduring beauty and message of 'Champagne,' a short film that challenges the heart

Simoa Barros writes on a lesser-known animated flick from the late Michael Sporn that tells of a young Black girl who navigates her world in living color.

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Plus, sisters throughout Americas attend leadership training, and US sisters call out Trump's racist videos against the Obamas and the inhumane treatment of immigrants.

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The first temptation of Christ, depicted in a psalter from circa 1222 (Wikimedia Commons)
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