The president of the Spanish Episcopal Conference described the surge of 60,000 Moroccans into Ceuta, a Spanish city of 84,000, as an “invasion.”

“Biopolitics is key in the current world power structure,” Archbishop Luis Argüello of Valladolid said in a social media post. “Life is played with, and people—their dreams, hunger, sexuality, and data—are used in favor of profit and power.

“Migrations are part of this strategy,” he added. “The Ceuta invasion is a test. Demography is a weapon.”

The general counsel of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB), joined by officials of the Catholic Health Association of the United States and Catholic Charities USA, criticized aspects of the Trump administration’s interim Medicaid regulations.

Referring to the regulations (the interim final rule with comment, or IFC), general counsel William Quinn and the other signatories wrote:

We are troubled by the extent to which certain portions of the IFC are contrary to the statute, and by the significantly increased administrative burden the IFC will impose on providers. But most of all, we are profoundly concerned that requirements of the IFC will result in coverage loss for eligible individuals who rely on Medicaid to address their health care needs and to achieve their highest possible degree of self-sufficiency.

The signatories discussed their concerns in a 13-page letter to Mehmet Oz, administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. The letter, dated July 31, was posted on the USCCB website this week.

L’Osservatore Romano devoted the most prominent front-page article in its August 7 edition to the work of Albertus Gregory Tan, a 36-year-old Indonesian man who has raised funds to build 219 churches and chapels in remote villages.

The Vatican newspaper reported:

Gregory insists that the greatest achievement is not measured in bricks, concrete, or impressive statistics; as he states, “buildings are merely the visible result,” whereas the true mission “is to build up people, bring hope, strengthen faith, and remind those on the margins that they are not forgotten.”

Vatican News, the news agency of the Vatican’s Dicastery for Communication, published a laudatory review of Christopher Nolan’s film The Odyssey.

Andrea Monda, editor-in-chief of L’Osservatore Romano, wrote that the film director “has taken on an immense challenge and has succeeded in handling Homer’s masterpiece, even while reshaping it.”

“Fatalism and freedom, superstition and reason, conscience, psychology, power and diplomacy—all these themes are woven into Nolan’s three-hour film, which takes on Homer’s monumental epic with confidence, fully aware that a story like this will always remain compelling and deeply moving,” added Monda, who taught at a classical high school before becoming the newspaper’s editor-in-chief.

The Dicastery for Culture and Education announced the Catholic Universities Art Triennial (ART CUT), a series of art exhibitions at universities around the world.

The series, whose theme is “Exercises in Empathy,” is scheduled to begin on August 27 at the Pontifical Catholic University of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The triennial will conclude in February 2028.

“The concept of empathy offers the First Contemporary Art Triennial of Catholic Universities a fruitful opportunity to bring aesthetics and ethics into dialogue while also inviting every field of knowledge into interdisciplinary conversation,” said Cardinal José Tolentino de Mendonça, the dicastery’s prefect. “It draws us closer to one another through the demanding, patient, yet deeply rewarding practice of mutual recognition.”

The chief curator of the series is Nuno Crespo, dean of the School of the Arts at the Catholic University of Portugal.

President Claudia Sheinbaum of Mexico received the Secretary of State of His Holiness on August 5 and afterwards praised Pope Leo XIV’s humanitarian vision.

“We discussed topics such as Pope Leo XIV’s first encyclical, Magnifica Humanitas, in which he asserts that the development of artificial intelligence must be guided by ethical criteria, human dignity, justice, and shared responsibility, with the aim that its benefits contribute to the well-being of peoples,” President Sheinbaum said following her meeting with Cardinal Pietro Parolin.

“The Pope’s calls for peace, fraternity, and closeness to the most vulnerable represent a humanitarian vision, indispensable at a time when the world needs to strengthen dialogue, solidarity, and cooperation among nations,” President Sheinbaum added.

The Vatican City State unveiled a new coin set, the first of Pope Leo XIV’s pontificate.

On higher denominations, the Pope’s portrait appears for the first time since 2014. On lower denominations, the papal coat of arms appears, as was customary under Pope Francis.

In this Year of Saint Francis, the €5 bimetallic coin also portrays the saint’s spoliation.

The Holy See Press Office announced the logo and motto of Pope Leo XIV’s upcoming apostolic journey to France (September 25-28).

The logo features a cross, pointed arch, and dove within a round stained-glass window; the trip’s motto is “that the world may have life” (cf. Jn 6:51).

The secretary of the Dicastery for Evangelization told members of the World Catholic Association for Communication (SIGNIS) that “Catholic communicators are first and foremost disciples before being influencers.”

Addressing participants in SIGNIS World Congress 2026, which is taking place in Kigali, Rwanda, Archbishop Fortunatus Nwachukwu said that “today, the nations, the ‘panta ta ethne’ of the Lord’s mandate [Mt. 28:18-20], gather also on Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, and the countless platforms that did not exist only a generation ago.”

“If these platforms are now where people search for truth, meaning, and belonging, then they are also where the Church’s communicators must also stand—not to chase attention, but to bear witness with wisdom and love,” said Archbishop Nwachukwu.

The Church in Cuba is distributing humanitarian aid recently granted by the State Department to Catholic Relief Services.

“As a Church, we are fully aware that we cannot reach everyone, and this is a reality that causes us great sorrow,” said Bishop Juan de Dios Hernández Ruiz, S.J., of Pinar del Río. “If you do not receive assistance, it does not mean that you are not in need, but rather that there are others whose situation is even more critical.”