Pope Leo XIV told pilgrims today that “God favors smallness, a sign of his discreet love, by which he leaves us free to accept or reject him.”

At the conclusion of his Sunday Angelus address, delivered today at Liberty Square in Castel Gandolfo, Pope Leo XIV expressed gratitude to the town’s residents, greeted various groups of pilgrims, and renewed his appeal for peace.

“A review of all parish accounts extending back to 2019 has determined that over $630,000.00 [449,118 U.S. dollars] has been taken from the parish accounts through the issuing of irregular cheques,” Archbishop Michael Mulhall said in a letter to local Franciscans.

“I’m going to shoot up this school and kill [the governor’s] children and a few nuns,” the post stated.

Beatrice Guarrera reported that a year later, “fighting has not ceased, nor has the humanitarian emergency in Gaza.” A year after he was injured in the attack, Father Gabriel Romanelli, I.V.E., the parish’s pastor, said that “Gaza’s roads are destroyed,” that diesel costs $13 per liter, and that gasoline costs $27 per liter.

“80% of the infrastructure remains destroyed; this involves not just buildings, but also water and electricity networks,” added Auxiliary Bishop William Shomali of Jerusalem. “Many schools and universities no longer exist.”

This fall, the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem plans to reopen the Gaza parish school for 1,000 students. Bishop Shomali said that “the children will at least not be left on the streets. It is important that they return to their studies, to try to slowly bring them back to normality and attempt to overcome the trauma of war.”

“According to the petition, more than 800 incidents of violence against Christians were documented in 2025, while 285 incidents were reported during the first six months of 2026,” Catholic Connect, a website of the Conference of Catholic Bishops of India, reported.

The prelate’s petition called for “preventive policing through practical and enforceable court directions, strict accountability for vigilante violence, fair application of criminal law so that victims are not criminalized, and enhanced protection for Christian communities.”

Today marks the liturgical memorial of St. Camillus de Lellis (1550-1641) in the United States; the saint is commemorated on July 14 on the General Roman Calendar.

Archbishop Paul Richard Gallagher, the Holy See’s Secretary for Relations with States and International Organizations, began a four-day visit to Ukraine on July 17. Archbishop Gallagher is Pope Leo’s special envoy for the celebration of the 35th anniversary of the renewal of the structures of the Latin-rite Church in Ukraine.

“A distinction must be made between for-profit activities, such as certain guesthouses for pilgrims and institutions with a strictly religious, educational or social purpose,” Bishop Shomali said in an interview.

“If an agreement were reached regarding for-profit activities, it is likely that the Churches would only be required to pay the tax in the future, without retroactive effect,” he continued. “As for schools, hospitals, social centers and purely religious institutions, the Churches hope that they will continue to benefit from [the] traditional exemption.”

According to a UISG statement, Sister Roxanne Schares, S.S.N.D., the group’s executive secretary, “emphasized the daily contribution of Catholic sisters in some of the most fragile contexts around the world, acting as a prophetic presence and voice and accompanying migrants, refugees, trafficked persons, and communities affected by violent conflict, poverty, and discrimination.”