2025

Students from Annunciation Catholic School in Minneapolis, Minnesota are back on campus following a fatal shooting that occurred earlier this school year – one artist is creating a special message of hope just for them as they return to class.

The suspect connected to the murder of Christian conservative activist Charlie Kirk has been formally charged. Now church pastors in Utah are addressing what occurred in their state from the pulpit.

A new initiative has been launched by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops – it’s aimed at tackling the mental health crisis and helping the faithful around the country address related concerns.

Chalk Artist Supports Annunciation Catholic School Students in Aftermath of Minneapolis Shooting

By Currents News

In the shadows of dawn, Rachel Kvanbeck is already on hands and knees — her fingers chalked with purpose.

“I got here about 6:30 this morning,” she told Currents News on one earl morning. “Just know that there’s still light. I think there’s just so much darkness in the world, and especially here that all these kids and families have seen.”

By the time the sun is up over the Annunciation School, the artist’s message will be ready to greet students by the doors.

“A future filled with hope,” she said, “very right for the moment.”

As of Tuesday, Sept. 16 they’re back on campus grounds — a first in three weeks.

“I can only imagine what they’re coming back to, knowing what happened here, and seeing the things they saw that they should never have seen,” Kvanbeck said. “I heard the sirens that day. I live about a mile away from here.”

“I hope it brings some smiles today.”

Adorning the school from the rear, the front and the sides, sidewalks too are now chalked by Annunciation’s neighbors.

“They walk by our houses every day coming and going to school,” said Tiffany Tomlin, one resident who lives near the school.

Kurtz and Krysy Winden, two locals, added their wishes onto the pavement.

“They know they have this giant community around them supporting them,” Winden said of the students.

“Coming back today and this week, they can be with their friends, be with their teachers, be with the people who love them,” artist Kvanback explained.

Guiding the dawn of Annunciation’s new era are these words, written in chalk: “The future is filled with hope.”

Palestinians Are Living in ‘Unacceptable’ Conditions, Pope Says

By Carol Glatz and Currents News

VATICAN CITY (CNS) — As tens of thousands of Palestinians were fleeing their homes as Israel launched a major new ground offensive in Gaza City, Pope Leo XIV expressed his “profound closeness to the Palestinian people in Gaza.”

They “continue to live in fear and survive in unacceptable conditions, forced once again to leave their lands,” he said to applause at the end of his weekly general audience in St. Peter’s Square Sept. 17.

“Before the Almighty Lord who commanded, ‘Thou shalt not kill,’ and in the presence of all of human history, every person always has an inviolable dignity to be respected and protected,” he said.

The pope renewed his appeal “for a ceasefire, the release of hostages, a negotiated diplomatic solution and full respect for international humanitarian law” while inviting everyone to join him “in heartfelt prayer that a dawn of peace and justice may soon arise.”

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had said the long-planned operation to occupy Gaza City was aimed at Hamas’ “last major stronghold.” Heavy airstrikes hit portions of the city Sept. 16 as Israeli troops began a gradual push from the outskirts.

While many parts of Gaza City were already destroyed during the war in 2023, about a million Palestinians had still returned to their homes, often in the rubble or in bombed-out buildings, according to the BBC.

The Israel Defense Forces estimated 350,000 people had fled the city by Sept. 16, and more than half a million remain, the BBC reported. People were told to head south to a coastal part of the Gaza Strip.

Meanwhile, the U.N. Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory determined that Israel is responsible for the commission of genocide in Gaza.

“It is clear that there is an intent to destroy the Palestinians in Gaza through acts that meet the criteria set forth in the Genocide Convention,” said Navi Pillay, commission chair, Sept. 16.

Danny Meron, Israel’s Ambassador to the U.N. in Geneva, rejected the commission’s findings, saying the report “falsely accuses Israel of genocidal intent,” which cannot be substantiated, and it “promotes a narrative serving Hamas and its supporters in attempting to delegitimize and demonize the state of Israel.”

The report urged Israel and all countries to fulfil their obligations under international law “to end the genocide” and punish those responsible.

Dream Come True: Catholic School Student Battling Cancer Throws First Pitch at Long Island Ball Game

By Currents News

Payton McDaniel, a Catholic school student battling cancer got to live out his dream at Fairfield Properties Ballpark, throwing the first pitch at the Long Island Ducks baseball game on Sept. 11.

The student at St. Patrick School in Bay Shore, Long Island is battling leukemia.

To help in his fight, the Anne v. Graziani Fund, which brings uplifting experiences to cancer patients, organized the pitch.

The nonprofit says Payton’s strength and faith are a testament to the values they aim to uplift.

WFUV Continues Operations Despite Federal Funding Cuts

By Katie Vasquez and Wandy Felicita Ortiz

In July, the U.S. Senate approved a request from the White House to rescind $9 billion in previously appropriated funds for international aid programs and public broadcasting.

This followed an executive order signed in May by President Donald Trump, which called for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting and other government agencies to cease federal funding for organizations such as NPR and PBS.

WFUV, an NPR public radio station based at Fordham University in the Bronx, is just one of the media organizations that have been impacted by the decision to roll back the already promised federal funding.

The New York radio station is losing $500,000, which accounts for 7% of its nearly $7 million budget. Additionally, the station is now tasked with covering additional fees like music licensing, previously covered by NPR. The added costs could raise the total financial impact to around $900,000.

This summer, WFUV has been intensifying its fundraising efforts to fill those gaps, with a particular focus on increasing listener contributions through a membership drive where listeners can pledge a one-time donation or become a WFUV “sustaining member” by donating a set amount monthly.

WFUV’s General Manager, Chuck Singleton, estimates that the station has raised $270,000 to date through the drive. While he says that WFUV is not currently at risk of shutting down, the legislative move has created significant setbacks for the station and the people it serves. The station had to eliminate five jobs, about 12% of their staff, as a result of the cuts.

“The unfortunate thing is, I don’t think there was a lot of time spent thinking about the consequences for stations across the United States with this legislation,” Singleton said.

When it comes to WFUV, those consequences are widely felt — musically, spiritually, and even professionally.

Through its operations, the station aims to follow Fordham University‘s Jesuit mission centered on intellectual development, service, and justice.

“Fordham University makes a great home for us, and it’s supportive in a number of directions,” Singleton told The Tablet. “There are components of our mission that are less apparent to listeners and supporters.”

In the past, funding from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting has helped WFUV connect with listeners and showcase up-and-coming artists from underserved communities, “which we see as being a great fit with Fordham’s mission, to provide that service to pull people forward,” Singleton explained.

Behind the mic, the funding would also help support up to 40 Fordham students who are holding long-term paid internships at the station. Working in every department, they get hands-on experience that sets them up for a career in broadcasting.

But without adequate funding, the opportunity for more Fordham students to get their foot in the door is dwindling.

The risk of losing programming created by staff and students is what makes Carol Frisch Villeneuve, a longtime WFUV listener, sure of what she needs to do: renew her membership status amid the budget cuts.

“Our listeners, our members, are concerned with the loss of this funding and its impact on our station and all of the stations in the area,” Singleton told The Tablet. “And people are stepping up and saying, ‘I want to help.’ ”

If you would like to help, you can visit WFUV‘s website and donate.

Catholic News Headlines for Tuesday 9/16/2025

WFUV, the public radio station at Fordham University, is facing major federal funding cuts but remains committed to its mission while continuing to provide hands-on experience for students.

Campus ministries across the United States are reporting a rise in Mass attendance following the shooting of conservative activist Charlie Kirk.

A Catholic school student who is battling leukemia lived out his dream by throwing the first pitch at a Long Island Ducks baseball game.

St. Francis de Sales Parish in Belle Harbor, Queens blessed its Catholic Youth Organization athletes during a special Mass, marking the start of a new sports season in the Diocese of Brooklyn.

Blessing of the Athletes: Mass Celebrates Catholic Youth Organization in the Diocese of Brooklyn

By Currents News

A new season began for young athletes in the Diocese of Brooklyn, and St. Francis de Sales Parish in Belle Harbor, Queens helped their all-stars gain a home field advantage.

The young athletes wore their uniforms and gathered around their pastor, Father William Sweeney, to receive a special blessing during the parish’s Catholic Youth Organization (CYO) Mass.

The CYO program emphasizes the athlete while promoting participation and sportsmanship.

During the Mass, a blessing was requested for the athletes and their families.

TONIGHT AT 7: Fordham University’s WFUV Faces Federal Funding Cuts

By Katie Vasquez

WFUV, an NPR public radio station based at Fordham University in the Bronx, is just one of the media organizations impacted by the Trump administration’s decision to roll back $9 billion in previously appropriated funds for international aid programs and public broadcasting.

The station is sharing how it plans to keep meeting its Catholic mission, even with a decrease in funding.

Great Irish Fair Celebrates Culture, Heritage While Promoting Unity in Brooklyn

By Currents News and Ed Wilkinson

WINDSOR TERRACE – Traditions can be broken, even at the Great Irish Fair.

Each year at the fair, the master of ceremonies ends the official awards ceremony with the singing of his original Ballad of the Great Irish Fair. But as the formalities at the 44th annual fair were coming to an end on Sept. 13 on the grounds of Holy Name Parish, Park Slope, Jim O’Dea instead broke into a rendition of “A Nation Once Again,” which looks forward to a united Ireland.

The change of direction was made to honor Great Irish Fair Chief Brehon Niall Murphy, a Belfast lawyer and civil rights activist who has been working for years to protect the victims of political strife and to reimagine a union of the Irish Republic with British-controlled Northern Ireland.

Murphy, who said that a game plan calling for one Ireland where the Irish people will determine what will be the future of Ireland is underway, added that he accepted the honor of being chief brehon on behalf of all victims of government-induced violence in his homeland.

He said he was impressed by the comments of the honorees at this year’s Great Irish Fair, and the sentiments expressed “will live with me for the rest of my life.”

Fourteen people received awards for their contributions to the Irish-American community.

Genna Cottingham, a junior at Villanova University and a life-long parishioner of Holy Name of Jesus Parish in Windsor Terrace, reigned over the fair as the Colleen Queen. She expressed her thanks to her parents, Kathleen and Martin Cottingham, Jr., who recently stepped down as director of the fair after 17 years at the helm.

A member of the Buckley School of Irish Dance, Genna has performed many times at the Great Irish Fair.

A new tradition began when an award in memory of Martin Cottingham, Sr., was announced and presented to Martin, Jr. The elder Cottingham, who died a little more than a year ago, was heralded as one of the biggest cheerleaders of the Great Irish Fair, to which he dedicated many hours of volunteer time.

The day began with a 9 a.m. Mass at Holy Name celebrated by Bishop Robert Brennan. Among the concelebrants were three diocesan priests who were among the honorees: Msgr. James Keely, Father James Cunningham, and Father Christopher Heanue, who is the director of the diocesan Irish Apostolate. Also honored was Sister Helen Kearney, CSJ, former president of the Sisters of St. Joseph, Brentwood.

Bishop Brennan noted the celebration was taking place one day before the feast of the Exaltation of the Cross. Bishop Brennan said, “The reality of the cross is all around us. But the Lord reassured us that the cross is not the final answer.”

Instead, he said the Church takes consolation in the Resurrection of Jesus and “we take courage from his victory which will be ours.”

He added that the Irish celebrate “cultural roots and pass them on so that they can bear good fruits.”

Bishop Brennan also thanked the Irish-American Builders Society organizing committee for earmarking the proceeds of the fair to Catholic Schools in Brooklyn and Queens.

Following the liturgy and presentation of awards, Irish music and dancing rounded out the day-long schedule.

Two different stages hosted the sounds of The Brooklyn Bards, The Prodicals, the Canny Brothers Band, Slainte, the Susan and Gerard Band, and Trad Seisiun.

There were also performances by the Buckley School of Irish Dance and the O’Malley Irish Dance Academy.

Catholics in the Diocese of Brooklyn Turn to God To End Violence in the World During Day of Prayer

By Currents News

In a solemn Mass at the Co-Cathedral of St. Joseph in Brooklyn, Bishop Robert Brennan called on Catholics to dedicate time to prayer for peace, emphasizing its profound power in a world rife with violence and division.

“The world needs your prayers. Our city, our community needs your prayers,” Bishop Brennan said. “In a time when prayer is sometimes mocked for being just an empty expression of emotion, St. John Chrysostom reminds us that it’s far more powerful.”

The Mass on the Feast of Our Lady of Sorrow Mass marked a time to ask for God’s help in ending violence in New York City and around the world.

Parishioners at the Mass reflected on local and international crises unfolding — like those in Ukraine, where Russian forces have claimed advances in several parts of the war-torn nation.

Russia has also launched joint military drills with Belarus, apparently to test the readiness of their armed forces.

In response, President Donald Trump urged NATO countries to collectively refrain from purchasing Russian oil, heightening geopolitical tensions.

Prayers extended to the Holy Land as well, where Israeli strikes targeted high-rise buildings in Gaza City on Sept. 14, with officials claiming the structures were used by Hamas militants. The attacks forced residents to evacuate hurriedly, grabbing belongings just moments before the impacts.

On Sept. 15 U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio met with Israeli leaders to discuss pathways to ending the ongoing war.

Meanwhile, Catholics in the Diocese of Brooklyn are doing their part in prayer.

“Jesus the risen Lord is present among us — especially present among us when we gather in prayer,” Bishop Brennan said. “We ask Him to make of us instruments, agents of peace and reconciliation in the world.”
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