The chairmen of two committees of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, joined by the president of Catholic Relief Services, urged members of Congress to increase international humanitarian and development aid.

Bishops A. Elias Zaidan and Mark Seitz, joined by Sean Callahan, presented members of Congress with a detailed request for funding increases for 23 different programs. For example, the USCCB and CRS requested $265 million for the McGovern-Dole agricultural program, and $937 million for the Millennium Challenge Account.

Overall, the bishops and CRS requested $30.2 billion for the 23 programs—$2.6 billion higher than what the Biden administration requested.

The bishops and CRS made their request on April 23, a day on which the national debt stood at $34,581,882,240,753.07.

A divided Supreme Court heard oral arguments in Moyle v. United States.

A 1986 federal law mandates that hospitals that receive Medicare funds provide emergency care to patients—and the Biden administration has interpreted emergency care to include some abortions. Citing the 1986 law, the administration has challenged an Idaho law that protects almost all unborn children from abortion.

“Pride is a potent poison: a single drop is enough to spoil an entire life filled with goodness,” Pope Francis tweeted on April 24. “A person may have performed a mountain of good deeds, but if we did them only to exalt ourselves, then we cannot call ourselves virtuous.”

Archbishop Gabriele Caccia, apostolic nuncio and Permanent Observer of the Holy See to the United Nations, decried sexual violence in war as he addressed a UN Security Council discussion on the topic.

Lamenting “the deplorable increase in the systematic use of sexual violence in armed conflict by both State and non-State actors alike,” Archbishop Caccia said that “it is important to emphasize that the full, equal and meaningful participation of women in conflict prevention and resolution increases the chances of achieving sustainable peace.”

Pope Francis received Chuck Robbins, the chairman and CEO of Cisco, on April 24, after the head of the digital technology conglomerate signed the Rome Call for AI Ethics.

The Rome Call, which dates from 2020, was first signed by leaders of the Pontifical Academy for Life, Microsoft, IBM, and the UN Food and Agriculture Organization, and later signed by Jewish and Muslim representatives.

“The Rome Call principles align with Cisco’s core belief that technology must be built on a foundation of trust at the highest levels in order to power an inclusive future for all,” said Robbins.

Archbishop Vincenzo Paglia, president of the Pontifical Academy for Life, said that “we are very pleased that Cisco has joined the Rome Call because it is a company that plays a crucial role as a technology partner for the adoption and implementation of artificial intelligence by offering expertise in infrastructure, security and protection of AI data and systems.”

In a lengthy interview with Robert Cetera of L’Osservatore Romano, Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, OFM, the Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem, reflected on 200 days of war.

“When we met in Gaza in November for a long conversation 30 days after the beginning of the war, we certainly did not think we would find ourselves here again after 200 days, and without a possible solution to the conflict,” the prelate said.

“I have lived in this land for 34 years. It is now my land and I have seen so much between wars, intifada, and clashes, but I have no doubt: this is the most difficult trial we have had to face,” he continued. “The uncertainty now is about how much longer this war will last, and even more, what will happen after because you see one thing is certain. Nothing will ever be like before. “

In another televised interview—his first with at US network—Pope Francis has renewed his call for peace in Ukraine and in Gaza, and has dismissed as “foolish” peole who do not believe in the urgency of climate change.

In an interview with Norah O’Donnell of CBS, timed for broadcast before World Children’s Day, the Pope spoke about the suffering of children in war zones. “Those kids don’t know how to smile,” he said ruefully. “That’s really very serious.”

Questioned about Catholics who have left the Church, the Pope said: “If in this parish, the priest doesn’t seem welcoming, I understand; but go and look.” He said that there is “always a place” where Catholics will be welcome.

CBS broadcast excerpts from the interview on April 24. A more extended conversation—covering more controversial issues—will air later in May.

Pope Francis met on April 25 with members of Italian Catholic Action, and encouraged them to adopt a “culture of the embrace.”

In his remarks to the group the Pope asked them to “bear witness to everyone that the way of the embrace is the way of life.” He spoke of “first the missing embrace, then the embrace that saves, and third the embrace that changes life.”

Questioned whether the reforms begun by Pope Francis will endure, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the Vatican Secretary of State, said: “Precisely because it is the action of the Spirit, there can be no turning around.”

Cardinal Parolin offered that thought at a press conference introducing a new book about Vatican controversies by the journalist Ignazio Ingrao. In that book the author writes of “irreversible processes” of reform begun in this pontificate.

America’s fertility rate has hit an all-time low.

New data from the federal government show a rate of 1.62 births per woman in 2023. That figure, a 2% decline from the previous year, is the lowest ever recorded.

The number of births in 2023 also dropped 2% from the previous year, The 3.59 million births were the fewest since 1979.

The birth rate in the US has been declining 1 to 2% consistently over the past decade. The fertility rate is now well under the “replacement rate” of 2.1 children per woman.