Spiritual Insights for Today:
Aid to the Church in Need’s latest “Persecuted and Forgotten?” report says persecution of Christians worsened in 55 percent of the countries it assessed. The report covers 18 countries between August 2024 and June 2026.
A survey found that 39 percent of Catholics have experienced racial discrimination, including 10 percent who reported discrimination within their parish community. Indigenous and Black Catholics reported such experiences at higher rates than other racial and ethnic groups.
Catholic baseball players from Milwaukee and Tampa Bay have spoken about how faith in God and the Virgin Mary supports them as they compete for their first World Series title. Separately, Los Angeles Archbishop Gomez is set to receive an award for his work in U.S. Hispanic ministry at the fall meeting of the U.S. bishops’ conference.
U.S. bishops are asking the Census Bureau to withdraw proposed changes that would count only citizens and lawful permanent residents and remove some demographic questions. The proposal is open for public comment until Nov. 2.