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Catholic Parishioners Pray as Haitians Face Loss of TPS Protections

By Katie Vasquez

Hundreds of Haitian Americans gathered June 27 alongside Bishop Robert Brennan at the Basilica of Our Lady of Perpetual Help in prayer and solidarity as many expressed fear over the future of hundreds of thousands of Haitians who now face possible deportation following a recent Supreme Court decision.

Haiti received Temporary Protected Status (TPS) designation in 2010 after a devastating earthquake. The designation has allowed Haitians to live and work legally in the United States for years.

Marie Yolene Jacques said conditions in Haiti remain dangerous because of ongoing gang violence.

“Back home, nothing is clear yet because, you know, we have these gangs,” Jacques said. “They are putting people away, take their house, take their property.”

Myriame Jerome said the prospect of returning to Haiti is heartbreaking.

“It’s very sad because back home it’s not safe,” Jerome said. “Where are they going to go? How are they going to get there? It’s very hurtful, painful to see.”

On June 25, the Supreme Court allowed the Trump administration to end legal protections provided through the TPS program. The decision affects approximately 350,000 Haitians who have lived and worked in the United States for decades.

Jacques said many TPS recipients have established deep roots in the country.

“They build their lives here, they have children,” she said. “They have the family here, they pay tax and I think it’s not right.”

The policy change could also have significant effects on several industries, including health care.

“We feel the heat, short staff,” Sonja said. “A lot of nurses will be off their position. The home care industry is getting a big hit.”

As many Catholic bishops warn the decision will have serious consequences, parishioners said they remain committed to their faith despite the uncertainty.

“With my Catholic faith, I remain faithful,” Sonja said. “I do remain faithful. But at the same time, realistically speaking, it is a big blow. But we will continue in prayers. Amen.”

National Eucharistic Pilgrimage Leader Reflects on Powerful Journey Across the U.S.

By Currents News

The 2026 National Eucharistic Pilgrimage has brought thousands of Catholics together in prayer, procession, and worship across the country.

Assistant Team Lead Zachary Dotson reflects on the stops that left the biggest impact, the growing devotion to the Eucharist, and the moments that made this year’s pilgrimage unforgettable.

Currents News Special: America 250-The Faith Story

As the United States celebrates 250 years of independence we’re exploring the vital role religion, and Catholics in particular, have played in the American story.
This special newscast features a look at the ways Catholics in the Diocese of Brooklyn and across the nation are marking the semiquincentennial. Highlights include:
  • The National Eucharistic Pilgrimage — One Nation Under God
Pilgrims are carrying the Blessed Sacrament across America, stopping at sites that highlight the Catholic Church’s enduring presence in the U.S.. Beginning in St. Augustine, America’s oldest Catholic city and ending in Philadelphia, the pilgrimage is serving as a powerful witness to faith, unity and hope.
  • The Country’s Consecration
For the first time in the nation’s history, the U.S. Bishops have consecrated the United States to the Sacred Heart of Jesus during its 250th year. We examine the meaning of this historic act and why the Diocese of Brooklyn joined in this spiritual milestone by entrusting the country’s future to Christ.
  • The Fight for Freedom and Faith in the Diocese of Brooklyn
Long before Brooklyn became one of America’s most vibrant Catholic communities, its shores and neighborhoods were witness to some of the defining moments of the Revolutionary War. Join us in visiting historic sites throughout the Diocese of Brooklyn, including the Brooklyn Heights promenade and the Old Stone House in Park Slope. Learn how the struggle for liberty unfolded in the diocese, making its Catholic story part of the broader American journey.

Catholic Schools Night Highlights: Collars Break Streak

By Jessica Meditz and Katie Vasquez

CONEY ISLAND — Divine intervention or not, the Collars finally broke their losing streak. 

Behind a late three-run home run by one of this year’s bobblehead honorees, Father Christopher Bethge, priests and seminarians from across Brooklyn and Queens defeated Catholic school principals and administrators 13-5 after a years-long drought at the diocese’s annual Scholars vs. Collars softball game during Catholic Schools Night at Maimonides Park on June 24. 

“That’s why you’re the bobblehead!” Father Christopher Heanue, a fellow bobblehead honoree, shouted from the dugout as Father Bethge rounded the bases. 

The annual event hosted by DeSales Media Group in partnership with the Diocese of Brooklyn brought together hundreds of students, families, and supporters to celebrate another successful year of Catholic education before the Brooklyn Cyclones took the field against the Jersey Shore BlueClaws. 

The evening recognized over 100 eighth-grade valedictorians and salutatorians from Catholic schools in the Diocese of Brooklyn, as well as students honored for their contributions to The Tablet Jr. 

Among those honored was St. Ephrem valedictorian Amir Alkhoury, who said the recognition reflected the hard work he put in throughout elementary school before heading to Xaverian High School this fall. 

“It feels great to be accomplished with your hard work,” Amir said. 

“I’m honored. I always studied really hard because I wanted the title of valedictorian, so it means a lot,” said Mara, who will also attend Xaverian High School. 

“My brother goes there, and I love it,” she continued. “The community and the kids all seem really nice.” 

Deacon Kevin McCormack, superintendent of Diocese of Brooklyn schools, said Catholic Schools Night is a great celebration.  

“We’re here at Maimonides Park, we’re just having fun. It’s hot dogs, it’s outside, it’s Brooklyn and Queens,” he said. “We have all the top scholars in each class come down … their parents can really get excited about it. It’s a special day.” 

St. Ephrem Catholic Academy Principal Michael Phillips, playing in his third Scholars vs. Collars game, said one of his favorite moments each year comes after the game when he congratulates his graduating students before they begin high school. 

“I get to give them a handshake and a hug and tell them goodbye one last time,” Phillips said. “Our valedictorian and salutatorian are both amazing young boys who are going to do amazing things now that they’re going into high school.  

“I’m going to miss them, but I know that they’re going to do amazing things because of the education they got in Catholic school.” 

Father Christopher Heanue, pastor of St. Joan of Arc Parish in Jackson Heights, said the event is about far more than the final score. 

Since arriving at the parish last fall, Heanue has championed Catholic education, helping to raise more than $200,000 for scholarships at St. Joan of Arc Catholic School. 

RELATED: With Suitcase Yet Unpacked in Queens, New Pastor Father Christopher Heanue Raises $208,000 for St. Joan of Arc School Scholarships

“I’ve been so lucky this year at St. Joan of Arc with being assigned there and doing all the work that we’ve done in the school,” he continued. “I’m really honored to be asked to be on the bobblehead.” 

Bishop Robert Brennan said the celebration reflects the collective effort behind Catholic education throughout Brooklyn and Queens. 

“It’s the hard work the students do, the faculty do, the administration does. We’re celebrating all the families,” Bishop Brennan said. “Coney Island is part of the iconic scene of Brooklyn. We bring our identities as a Catholic family to this Brooklyn icon.”

Catholic News Headlines for Thursday 6/25/26   

Priests reclaimed bragging rights over Catholic school educators at the annual Collars vs. Scholars game. It was all part of Catholic Schools Night, honoring the top eighth-grade students from the Diocese of Brooklyn.

Thousands of people have already secured tickets to Archbishop Fulton Sheen’s beatification in St. Louis in September.

At the latest stop of the National Eucharistic Pilgrimage, Faithful attended a sacred music concert and learned about the Shroud of Turin during their journey.

The Belle Harbor community honored a devoted crossing guard who retired after 47 years of helping generations of children safely get to school.

Pulse of the Parish: Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal

By Christine Persichette

Every Sunday morning at Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal Church, parishioners are greeted at the doors with a warm welcome.

Inside, young adults serve throughout the 10:30 a.m. Mass. They open the doors for worshippers, serve at the altar, proclaim the readings, and help take up the collection.

Helping coordinate it all from the back of the church is 72-year-old Mary Macchiaroli.

“I think it’s time when we need at a certain age to pass the torch,” Macchiaroli said. “They’re the future of the Church.”

For Macchiaroli, the mission is deeply personal.

A parishioner since she was 6 years old, she received her sacraments at Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal, was married there, and spent 36 years serving as the parish’s director of religious education.

When she retired in 2025, she could have stepped away from ministry. Instead, she approached the parish’s new pastor, Father Michael Falci, and asked if she could continue serving by leading the parish’s young adult ministry.

His answer was immediate.

“Absolutely, and it’s a big help because she is, as you would say, the pulse of the parish — she’s the heartbeat,” Father Falci said. “She’s the one who knows the goings and comings, the history, because she has that institutional knowledge. That’s so important in a parish — to understand how things were and where we can go.”

Despite the decades separating their ages, Macchiaroli has formed close relationships with the young adults she mentors.

“She’s a wonderful lady,” said Sonny Kwiatkowski. “She helped my family a lot through the struggles, and I made a new best friend right there. She’s a really amazing person.”

His sister, Lara Kwiatkowski, said Macchiaroli takes a genuine interest in the lives of the parish’s young people.

“She’s always asking us about what’s going on in our lives with school,” Lara Kwiatkowski said. “If one of us gets principal’s list, she’ll make sure that it’s posted there, so she really tries to be involved with everything in our lives.”

Macchiaroli said her faith is what motivates her to continue serving.

“My faith is everything in my life,” she said. “I thank God I have what I had, because I wouldn’t get through anything without it. We’ve all gone through deaths, sickness, people you’ve lost, challenges, but my faith is the only thing that keeps me going.”

While she hopes to pass that faith on to the next generation, she said the experience has been equally rewarding for her.

“I think it’s important to mentor the teens and the youth,” Macchiaroli said. “It’s part of my life, and I feel the more you give, the more you get back.”

Week after week, Macchiaroli continues greeting parishioners by name, encouraging young adults, and helping ensure they have a place to serve.

For Father Falci and the parish community, she remains the heartbeat of Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal.

Catholic News Headlines for Wednesday 6/24/26

A recent study reveals that only 15% of children raised Catholic continue practicing as adults – it also determined what you should do to successfully pass on the faith to your kids.

June 24 marks the anniversary of a major victory in the pro-life fight: on this day in 2022, Roe v. Wade was overturned by the U.S. Supreme Court.

The National Eucharistic Pilgrimage, which is celebrating America’s 250th anniversary, is now in Maine where faithful are celebrating the feast of St. John the Baptist.

Sandy Ground’s Legacy Lives On Through Faith, Family, and History

By Jessica Easthope

For one descendant of Staten Island’s historic Sandy Ground community, preserving the story of the nation’s oldest continuously inhabited free black settlement begins with family.

“My grandmother wrote the Sandy Ground Memories in 2005,” the descendant said. “That’s really where I got a lot of my history to get the full genealogy to the first ancestor that came here, which was Francis Jackson and John Jackson. That’s how I know my history.”

That history stretches back to the early 1800s, when Sandy Ground became home to free black families who built successful lives through the region’s thriving oyster and clamming industries.

“If we go back to the early 1800s, there was this booming waterway industry, booming commercial industry for watermen, oystermen, clammers,” the descendant explained. “We’re seeing that all in the Eastern Shore. That’s where the majority of Sandy Grounders came from.”

The community once teemed with life.

“Turtles. Pheasants. Frogs. Birds. Insects. Trees. Plains. Whatever. Nothing like it was.”

More importantly, Sandy Ground represented a diverse community that offered a vision of what America could become.

“There were indigenous people. There were white people. There were black people. This was a sample set of what America should be now.”

“The ideal of America, where you could be judged on your character, who you are, not what you look like.”

At a time when black Americans faced slavery and widespread oppression, Sandy Ground stood apart.

“This was a resilient community that at a time where black people were being oppressed, enslaved, your ancestors were here owning their own boats, having a lucrative business. They were doing things that were unheard of throughout the country.”

The descendant believes that legacy deserves wider recognition.

“Black history is American history.”

“When you talk about Sandy Ground, I think about liberation, I think about freedom.”

The community’s founders, they said, were never seeking recognition.

“Black people weren’t seen. They were seen as property, less than. I don’t think the original settlers of Sandy Ground were in it for fame or, ‘Oh, look at us.’ It was looking for their part of the American dream.”

“Because if it weren’t for them, we wouldn’t be here.”

For the descendants who continue preserving Sandy Ground’s history today, faith remains inseparable from that mission.

“What’s here that you can’t feel from AI? Love and God and faith.”

“We can’t separate the faith from the existence of the community. And that’s why Rossville AME Zion is such a big deal to us.”

Preserving that legacy requires ongoing work, whether through fundraising, grants, or community support.

“What are we doing? All that we can, using our resources the best way we know how to, whether that’s trying to apply for grants, whether that’s fundraising.”

Despite concerns about the future, the descendant remains hopeful.

“I think my biggest fear is that it becomes, ‘Do you remember Sandy Ground?’ That we die out. That Sandy Ground just becomes like a folk tale.”

But that, they insist, will not happen.

“Sandy Ground is still making history. Rossville AME Zion is still making history. Oh my. We’re going to continue.”

“You don’t give up on God. He don’t give up on you. And he’s given us this. So we’re not giving up.”