The body of Father Jules Bontone Nkaa Yulu, “killed shortly after mediating a conflict in a nearby village, was found headless on a road regularly used by locals,” according to the report. “The province of Maï-Ndombe has been plagued by insecurity for over three years due to the activities of the Mobondo militia, in the conflict between the Yaka and Teke communities.”

“Churches and mosques should be centers of compassion, peace, and love,” said Archbishop Joseph Arshad of Rawalpindi-Islamabad. The shared practices of prayer, fasting, and almsgiving, he added, are “a powerful testament to the fact that faith is not a source of division but rather a means of mercy, solidarity, and unity.”

Islam is the official religion of the South Asian nation of 257 million (map), the fifth most populous in the world. 95% of Pakistan’s people are Muslim, 2% are Christian, and 1% are Hindu.

Cardinal Polycarp Pengo, one of Africa’s leading prelates during the late twentieth and early twenty-first centuries, died on February 19 at the age of 81.

The General Secretariat of the Synod announced the establishment of an Eastern Canonical Commission to propose revisions to the Code of Canons of the Eastern Churches in light of the synod on synodality.

The Vatican newspaper marked the World Day of Social Justice by publishing four economists’ reflections on Dilexi Te, Pope Leo XIV’s apostolic exhortation on love for the poor.

A Franciscan friar who oversees 18 schools in the Holy Land described continued widespread suffering in Gaza, four months after the signing of the Gaza peace plan.

Pope Leo XIV fielded questions from four priests of the Diocese of Rome during his February 19 meeting with them in Paul VI Audience Hall. In addressing one of the questions, he urged priests to avoid AI in preparing homilies.

“Among the issues we have considered are our concern for the poor and vulnerable, the dignity and rights of indigenous peoples, the painful scourge of human trafficking and narco-culture, the growing polarization that wounds public discourse and weakens social cohesion, and, in particular, the extreme vulnerability of migrants who live, travel through, and seek a future in our countries,” the bishops said in a joint statement at the conclusion of their February 15-17 gathering.

“We invite civil authorities to promote policies that safeguard the lives, rights, and dignity of migrants,” the bishops continued. “We recognize the responsibility of States to regulate migration and ensure the common good; however, we reiterate that all legislation must place at its center the inalienable dignity of the human person and the respect that person deserves.”

Born in 1956 and ordained a priest in 1984, Bishop Emmanuel Shaleta was named the Chaldean Catholic bishop of Toronto in 2015 and the bishop of the Eparchy of Saint Peter the Apostle of San Diego in 2017.

“You may be undocumented in the eyes of the state, but you were hand-crafted by the Creator of the universe,” Cardinal Cupich said. “Your worth does not come from a visa or a permit; it comes from the breath of God inside you.”

He added:

Today many of you live in fear of being marked and tracked, careful about names, identities, and lists. But today, you step forward freely to receive this mark, the sign of the cross. This mark is more permanent than any government identity or record. It is a seal that says you belong to Jesus Christ.

It is a reminder that you are citizens of a homeland that has no borders. It is a declaration that no matter what laws change, no matter what politicians say, and no matter what uncertainties you face, you are children of God.