St. Mary's Church

Durante la noche del 7 y la madrugada del 8 de diciembre, las casas y calles de Colombia se iluminan con miles de velas multicolores, un evento que es conocido como la Noche de las Velitas en honor a la Inmaculada Concepción.

CNA Staff, Dec 7, 2025 / 06:00 am (CNA).

A little over a year ago, Father Matthew Gonzalez, a priest in the Archdiocese of Newark, New Jersey, had the idea to create a group for boys in grades eight to 12 that focuses on vocations and what it means to be a Catholic man in today’s world.

“The Lord has placed a strong desire for vocations on my heart. I am convinced the Lord is still calling young men today,” Gonzalez told CNA.

“A few years ago, I brought several of our parish young men to the Quo Vadis summer camp, a weeklong experience focused on authentic Christian manhood. They came home with a hunger for more — more faith, more fraternity, more service. That experience planted the seed,” he explained.

Soon afterward, Gonzalez started the Sons of Thunder, which takes its name from Mark 3:17, where Jesus gave that nickname to the apostles James and John. The group meets once a month at St. Bartholomew Church in Scotch Plains, New Jersey, and currently has 12 members who come together for prayer and fellowship.

Each monthly meeting starts with one of the boys leading evening prayer and another one handling the readings. Then the group watches a video from the Knights of Columbus called “Into the Breach,” a series on authentic masculinity that explores topics such as the importance of prayer and how to become a leader. A discussion follows the video.

Gonzalez shared that the aim of the group is to inspire the boys to model themselves after the ultimate Catholic man — Jesus.

“Every meeting always includes three pillars: prayer, faith formation, and fun. We pray together, learn together, and build brotherhood together,” he said.

The group also frequently visits the local seminary and takes part in community service projects.

“We’ve done a garden project in the rectory backyard, organized service for the needy and for religious communities, and held a beach cleanup day. Serving others is central to our mission,” Gonzalez said.

Another central focus of the group is to introduce the boys to the priesthood.

“People often say we have a vocations crisis. I don’t believe that. There is no crisis in vocations — the Lord is still calling, just as he always has. What we are facing is a crisis of meaning and purpose in our culture, and this affects young people deeply,” Gonzalez said.

“Sons of Thunder exists to help restore a sense of identity as Christian men, of purpose, and of mission. When young men know who they are and what they’re made for, they can hear the Lord’s call more clearly.”

Gonzalez recently started a new assignment as rector of the Cathedral Basilica of the Sacred Heart in Newark, so the Sons of Thunder will look slightly different going forward. The group’s lay leader, who has helped Gonzalez run the group since its creation, will now be taking over the responsibilities of running the group.   

“As I begin my new mission as the rector of the Cathedral Basilica of the Sacred Heart in Newark, I’m spending time learning the heartbeat of this parish family. But I absolutely hope to expand youth ministry here, and one way to do that is by beginning a new chapter of Sons of Thunder,” Gonzalez said. “I want the young men of this community to experience what our first group experienced.”

For members who are currently in the group, were previously in the group, or will join one day, Gonzalez said his “greatest hope is that they learn the faith is worth living — even when it demands sacrifice and self-gift. And at the heart of it all is relationship: a relationship with God and the relationships they build with one another. If they leave knowing they are loved by God and made for greatness, the mission of Sons of Thunder is fulfilled.”

En este Segundo Domingo de Adviento, el Evangelio nos interpela radicalmente a través de la voz de Juan el Bautista: «Arrepiéntanse, porque ya está cerca el Reino de los cielos» (Lc 3, 4). El mensaje es claro: Dios nos está llamando a la conversión.

Este domingo 7 de diciembre celebramos el Segundo Domingo de Adviento 2025. Vamos a encender la segunda vela de la Corona de Adviento como signo de que seguimos preparándonos para recibir a Jesús con el corazón reconciliado en esta Navidad.

El actor estadounidense Chris Pratt está filmando actualmente un documental sobre la Necrópolis Vaticana, que se encuentra debajo de la Ciudad del Vaticano y contiene tumbas que datan del siglo I al IV d.C.

Al concluir el Concierto con los Pobres en el Vaticano, en el que participó el conocido cantante canadiense Michael Bublé, el Papa León XIV aseguró que “la música puede elevar nuestra alma” y nos recuerda que “somos hijos amados de Dios”.

Ann Arbor, Michigan, Dec 6, 2025 / 15:30 pm (CNA).

Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, the Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem, expressed cautious hope for peace in Gaza, calling on people of the region to combat hatred and “think differently” about each other. 

Pizzaballa, whose authority extends over Latin Catholics in Israel, Palestine, Jordan, and Cyprus, also holds the office of grand prior of the Order of the Holy Sepulchre. He began a four-day pastoral visit to metro Detroit on Dec. 4, celebrating Mass with the Chaldean community at St. Thomas Chaldean Catholic Church in West Bloomfield, Michigan. Detroit Archbishop Edward J. Weisenburger and Chaldean Bishop Francis Y. Kalabat joined him. Throughout the visit, the cardinal offered a sober yet grounded message of hope for Christians in the Holy Land.

At a press conference on Dec. 5, Weisenburger welcomed the cardinal and praised his efforts to promote a “just and lasting peace” in Gaza. Asked by CNA what hope remains for Holy Land Christians amid what he had described as some of the worst devastation in decades, Pizzaballa cautioned against equating hope with immediate political solutions.

“Hope is a complicated word,” he said. “You must not confuse hope with a political solution, which will not arrive soon, not in Gaza, the Holy Land, or the Palestinian-Israeli conflict. If you put your hope in this, you will be frustrated.” He emphasized that both political and religious institutions must work to nurture hope.

“Hope,” the cardinal continued, “is a word that cannot remain alone. It has to put roots in something else,” namely, faith and desire. He added, “There needs to be a desire for it to be realized. A second consideration is that if institutions fail, we need people to think differently, to act differently, both Israelis and Palestinians. This may not resolve all the problems, but it says to people, ‘All is not lost.’”

Christians represent only about 1% of Gaza’s population—roughly 500 people—and about 2% of the population in both Israel and the West Bank, where there are about 190,000 and 45,000 Christians, respectively. Many continue to emigrate, raising fears about the future of Christianity in the region. Gaza has only one Catholic parish, for example.

The patriarch described the increasingly dire conditions in Gaza since the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas terrorist attack on Israel. Most infrastructure—homes, hospitals, and schools—has been reduced to rubble, he said, leaving families in tents as winter approaches and food remains scarce. During a visit after Hamas and Israel concluded a ceasefire this fall, he brought food, including chicken, to Christians sheltering at the Holy Family parish compound. “It was the first meat they had seen in nine months,” he said. Although food enters Gaza, much of it ends up in markets, where many have no cash to purchase it, he said.

Despite the devastation, sacramental life continues. Hosting some 500 displaced Gazans, the parish has school activities and daily liturgies, including Mass, Vespers, the Rosary, and Eucharistic Adoration. First Communions and even a wedding have taken place. The parish’s sacramental life has emboldened solidarity among those taking shelter at the church, but has been a spiritual aid, Pizzaballa said. 

“Every time I speak with them, I never hear a word of anger; never,” Pizzaballa said. “And one person, I can’t even say the name, he was the director of the hospital. One evening, in Gaza, between the bombs falling not far from the compound, he said, 'You know, bishop, we Christians have a problem. Amidst all the violence, we are not able to hate them.'”

While Israel and Hamas agreed to a ceasefire on Oct. 9, Pizzaballa said Gazans are only now emerging from “survival mode.” He said, “They ask, ‘What do we do now? When will rebuilding start? What governance will there be? Who will decide? What about our children?’ There was no emotional space for these questions before, but now they are coming out.”

Weisenburger acknowledged the complexity of the situation, saying it cannot be “simplified into sound bites.” He reflected on the human cost of the war: “Too many of those bombs that killed some 70,000 people, wiped their homes from the face of the earth, and destroyed their cities, schools, and hospitals, were from us. I think we in America must accept some responsibility for rebuilding.” He expressed gratitude for the cardinal’s message of hope, adding that generous Detroiters had already pledged about $500,000 for needs in the Holy Land. “By doing something, we can nurture hope,” he said.

In his homily at the Chaldean community Mass, Pizzaballa compared Isaiah’s vision of restoration with present-day devastation in the Middle East, including the suffering of Chaldeans in Iraq at the hands of ISIS. He stressed the Church’s mission of fostering peace. Regarding the Hamas attack, he said, “We have to say this very clearly: it is not acceptable at all.” He added, however, that Israel’s “retaliation, what happened after in Gaza, is an even more difficult answer.” He emphasized, “We are not against Israel,” while insisting that “The situation will never change as long as the Palestinians are not recognized as people with their dignity and a right of self-determination.”

On Dec. 5, the cardinal visited fellow Franciscans at St. Bonaventure Monastery and prayed at the tomb of Blessed Solanus Casey. He received a first-class relic of Blessed Solanus to bring to Jerusalem. The Chaldean community also presented him with relics of four Chaldean martyrs. The next day, he visited Sacred Heart Seminary and spoke with seminarians and faculty.

About 500 people attended the Dec. 5 fundraising dinner held at St. John’s Resort, the former seminary campus dedicated to charitable hospitality. Weisenburger said the resort’s owner, the Pulte Family Charitable Foundation, donates 100% of its net profits for such events to charity.

Pilgrimages to Holy Land to resume

Holy Land Christians continue to feel the economic repercussions of the war, particularly in Bethlehem, which is located in the West Bank area of Jordan that is administered by Israel and where tourism has plummeted. Author and filmmaker Steve Ray, who has led more than 200 pilgrimages, plans to guide a group of over 50 pilgrims from Dec. 28 to Jan. 6. 

“I’ve heard that 70% to 80% of the revenue of Christians comes from pilgrims. To have all the tour buses parked for two years is financially devastating,” he said. On the question of safety, he added, “Social media blows things way out of proportion. No pilgrims have ever been hurt. We are not concerned.” He plans four more pilgrimages in 2026, including one for Ave Maria University students.

Concluding his sweep through Detroit, Pizzaballa is set to celebrate Mass at the Shrine of the Little Flower, which treasures the relics of St. Therese de Lisieux.

CNA Staff, Dec 6, 2025 / 14:30 pm (CNA).

The Archdiocese of Philadelphia is mobilizing Catholics this Advent to pray the St. Andrew Christmas Novena prayer 15 times daily for a single intention: the reconciliation of the 83% of baptized Catholics in the archdiocese who no longer participate in the sacramental life of the Church.

The “St. Andrew Novena for the 83%,” organized by the archdiocese’s Office for the New Evangelization, is running from Nov. 30 through Dec. 24. Participants are asked to recite the traditional prayer 15 times each day while praying specifically for the grace of reconciliation for loved ones currently disconnected from the faith.

“The novena is an opportunity for practicing Catholics to pray intentionally for their loved ones who are currently disconnected from their Catholic faith. It’s also an opportunity to pray in communion with hundreds of fellow Catholics who share the same heartfelt desire for the ‘homecoming’ of their loved ones,” Meghan Cokeley, director of the Office for the New Evangelization, said to Philadelphia’s archdiocesan paper this week.

Cokeley said the idea came to her as she prayed during Eucharistic adoration. “I wasn’t looking for it and it filled me with a lot of joy, so I thought that perhaps it was Jesus who was asking for this.”

She emphasized Advent’s special grace for reconciliation and St. Andrew the Apostle’s role as a “fisher of men.” “By joining our prayer with the saint, we are asking him to ‘go fishing’ for our loved ones and catch them for Jesus,” Cokeley said.

More than 400 people have already signed up, submitting initials of family members and friends. Everyone who registers receives a secure link to the full list, allowing them to pray for all individuals by their initials.

The initiative is part of the archdiocese’s broader “Trust and Hope” campaign to adjust to changing realities and bring about “parish renewal” in the Church in the Pennsylvania Archdiocese. 

Cokeley noted the widespread sorrow many feel over loved ones away from the Church. “In my travels around the archdiocese, I often hear from people who ache on behalf of their loved ones who are away from the Church. I sense that it is a widespread and shared sorrow for many,” she said.

“Time spent in prayer is the most fruitful investment of one’s life,” Cokeley added.

Here is the full prayer (which is also available in Spanish on the website): “Hail and blessed be the hour and moment in which the Son of God was born of the most pure Virgin Mary, at midnight, in Bethlehem, in the piercing cold. In that hour vouchsafe, I beseech Thee, O my God, to hear my prayer and grant my desires through the merits of Our Savior Jesus Christ, and of his blessed Mother. Amen.”

Michael Bublé calificó su encuentro con el Papa León XIV como “uno de los momentos más grandes de mi vida”, y añadió que espera que su ejemplo anime a más personas a hablar abiertamente de su fe.

El Papa León XIV aseguró que “Peregrinos de esperanza”, el lema del Año Jubilar 2025, “¡no es un eslogan que dentro de un mes pasará! Es un programa de vida”.