By Katie Vasquez
Aland Etienne, a security guard, was one of four people killed in a mass shooting at 345 Park Ave. in Manhattan.
While grieving her first love, his wife Rachelle worried that losing his income would put Catholic education out of reach for their son Ralandy. That is, until concerned people and groups gathered to figure out how to cover his tuition.
Diocese of Brooklyn principals and staff joined Bishop Robert Brennan for Mass, praying for students, teachers, and a fruitful year ahead for Catholic schools.
Caritas Internationalis, a Catholic humanitarian aid organization, is warning that the ongoing famine in Gaza violates an international treaty that criminalizes genocide.
On Aug. 26, 1978 the shortest pontificate in modern history began – in just 33 days Pope John Paul I had a major impact on the faithful.
By Katie Vasquez
A moment of prayer for these Diocese of Brooklyn principals, as they prepare for a new school year.
“This, I think, is the most wonderful time of the year. I play Christmas tunes this week because it’s the new beginning,” said Superintendent of Schools for the Diocese of Brooklyn, Deacon Kevin McCormack.
Bishop Robert Brennan celebrated the mass at St Thomas Aquinas church in Flatlands, reminding the principals of their commitment to forming students body, mind, and soul.
“That’s exactly what our school leaders are about. The privilege of handing on the gospel now to another generation,” said Bishop Brennan.
As Catholic schools struggle with enrollment, Bishop Brennan is hoping relief will ease the burden. It offers a tax benefit to those who want to support Catholic education.
“The next step is that each state has to opt in, and so we’re counting here in New York state on opting in. We really do have to press on our legislators, particularly the governor, because it’s on her desk, to, to opt in. This is something that doesn’t cost the state any money,” said Bishop Brennan.
While some principals are returning to the same school.
“This is year seven for me, but every year feels like a brand new year,” said Mark Wilson, the principal at Saint Mark Catholic Academy, “It’s good to be back together with our principals, see some returning faces, see some new faces and really start things off with the bishop showing that he supports us and he’s here for us.”
Others are just beginning their journey as principals, like Tara DiRico.
“The bishop is so warm and so caring. You could tell he really cares about the school. so it’s nice to feel like we’re ready to start school,” said DiRico, principal at St Helen Catholic Academy.
And new principal Gina Auricchio already has plans for the new year.
“I’m actually hoping to improve student achievement. I’m hoping to enhance the school culture. I want to see new programs implemented. We have a lot of new technology in the classrooms this year. So, that’s just to change things around and improve the culture of the school,” said Auricchio, principal at St Athanasius Catholic Academy.
That’s why they are all looking forward to a new year full of possibilities.
“We begin with all a chance to start again. any mistake we made last year we can fix, we can have new approaches to everything. and this is just a natural renewal that happens,” said Deacon McCormack.
By Currents News
Sept. 4, 2022 — it was the day John Paul I was beatified. The Roman sky roared that morning at the beginning of the celebration.
But despite this, the faithful did not disperse. They waited to proclaim a new Blessed for the Church.
He was the 263rd pope, the last of Italian nationality to date.
His pontificate lasted only 33 days, the fourth shortest in history. However, it was long enough to earn him the nickname “The Smiling Pope.”
He presided over only four general audiences. His memory is celebrated every Aug. 26, the same day he became the successor of Peter.
He chose his name in honor of his predecessors: John XXIII and Paul VI. Regarding his successors, both Pope Saint John Paul II and Pope Benedict XVI praised him. Pope Francis, during his beatification, was also not far behind.
RELATED WATCH: Blessed John Paul I, ‘The Smiling Pope,’ Showed God’s Goodness, Pope Says
“Brothers and sisters, this is how the new Blessed lived: in the joy of the Gospel, without compromise, loving to the end,” Pope Francis said. “He embodied the poverty of the disciple, which is not only detachment from material goods, but above all overcoming the temptation to put oneself first and seek one’s own glory.”
The end of the beatification ceremony made this clear. After the storm, the umbrellas disappeared and the sun flooded St. Peter’s Square. The atmosphere felt like a new blessed pope was “born” in the Catholic Church.
By Katie Vasquez
With just a week before classes begin, Diocese of Brooklyn principals and staff joined Bishop Robert Brennan for Mass at St. Thomas Aquinas Church in Flatlands — praying for students, teachers, and a fruitful year ahead.
A Connecticut teacher has gone to federal court to contest a directive by her bosses to remove a crucifix from her classroom.
Catholics around the world are getting ready for the canonization of Blessed Carlo Acutis – including in Assisi, where a statue of the soon-to-be saint was unveiled.
Pope Leo XIV is continuing to pray for peace in Ukraine. He also sent a letter to president Volodymyr Zelenskyy as the country marks the anniversary of its independence.
By Katie Vasquez
Marisol Arroyo-Castro, who taught at DiLoreto Elementary & Middle School in New Britain, Conn., has gone to federal court to contest a directive by her bosses to remove a crucifix from her classroom.
Arroyo-Castro’s lawsuit, filed in a Connecticut federal court, claims that by ordering her to remove the crucifix, school district officials ignored religious freedom protections set out in the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution.
By Katie Vasquez and Bill Miller
PROSPECT HEIGHTS — A junior high school teacher and the Connecticut school where she worked are locked in a legal battle over her refusal to remove a crucifix from her classroom.
Lawyers for Marisol Arroyo-Castro, who taught seventh grade, have sued the Consolidated School District of New Britain, her employer since 2004.
Arroyo-Castro’s lawsuit, filed in a Connecticut federal court, claims that by ordering her to remove the crucifix, school district officials ignored religious freedom protections set out in the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution.
Specifically, according to the lawsuit, that order violated the First Amendment’s “Free Exercise” clause, which protects a person’s right to freely practice religion, without interference from a government entity like a public school district.
“To me, it’s like telling me to take down the picture of my father or the picture of my grandson,” Arroyo-Castro, a lifelong Catholic, told The Tablet on Aug. 11. “The crucifix has always been a part of my life and my family.”
In a statement to The Tablet on Aug. 13, officials for the school district said that they tried to accommodate the teacher’s religious faith while also respecting the diverse religious beliefs of the students and the Constitution.
The statement added, however, that “From the start, this teacher has insisted on displaying a crucifix on a classroom wall, visible to children in class, during instructional time.”
RELATED: Wisconsin Supreme Court Says Order Against Pro-Life Advocate Violated First Amendment
The statement provided a comment from Tony Gasper, the school district’s superintendent, who said their “responsibility as a public school district is to provide a learning environment that respects the rights and beliefs of all students,”
“We will continue to follow legal guidance throughout this process and remain committed to upholding both the law and the values of inclusion, neutrality, and respect for all,” he continued.
Arroyo-Castro said that she was shocked when the vice principal at her former employer, DiLoreto Elementary & Middle School, sought a meeting in December.
He reported complaints about the crucifix came from two people whom he declined to name. The vice principal told Arroyo-Castro to remove the crucifix, which had been displayed near her desk for a decade.
She said that she asked why, and he responded that its presence violated the Constitution.
“I’ve never read that,” she continued. “And he said, ‘It’s the law. It’s just the law.’ ”
The district, in its response to the lawsuit, countered that the posting of a religious symbol, like a crucifix, violates the First Amendment’s “Establishment Clause,” which prohibits governments from showing preferences for one religion over others.
Arroyo-Castro said the vice principal told her that refusing the order would be insubordination, which could bring consequences, like losing her job.
She complied at first and repositioned the crucifix out of sight, below a tabletop. But that grieved her.
“I mean, here he is on that cross,” Arroyo-Castro said, “and after all the things that he has done for me, here I am betraying him, putting him in a hidden place where nobody can see him.”
Arroyo-Castro said she went home and wept all night.
“I came back in the morning,” she recalled. “And I said, ‘I let you down, but I’m going to fix that by putting [the crucifix] back where it was.’ ”
And she did.
School district officials responded by suspending her without pay for two days.
Next, they removed her from teaching and reassigned her to curriculum development in the district’s administration building.
Arroyo-Castro said she had no experience in that field, and she prefers teaching.
Lawyers from the Plano, Texas-based First Liberty Institute, a nonprofit legal services firm that specializes in religious freedom cases, are handling the lawsuit.
Arroyo-Castro’s lawyer, Keisha Russell, told The Tablet that the lawsuit points out that other symbols, such as superhero characters and professional sports teams, appear at teachers’ stations throughout the school.
She said the lawsuit’s claims have precedence based on Kennedy v. Bremerton School District (2022), in which the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in favor of a football coach in Washington State, Joe Kennedy, who was fired for leading post-game prayers.
RELATED: Football Coach Fired, Then Reinstated, for Praying on Field Resigns
She added that the two clauses of the First Amendment are meant to complement each other, not to use one to “bludgeon” the other.
Court hearings and an attempted mediation continued through July, but with no resolution. Arroyo-Castro said she hoped a federal judge would issue a ruling clearing her way back into the classroom before teachers report for the new school year on Aug. 19.
School district officials, meanwhile, said in their statement that they, too, are eager for a court ruling.
“While we regret the spectacle that this situation has caused, we look forward to a ruling from the court,” the statement read. “Meanwhile, the district will continue to focus on providing an effective learning environment in which all students and staff feel respected and valued.”
This Currents News special explores the remarkable story of Blessed Carlo Acutis, the tech-savvy teen soon to become the first millennial saint.
Carlo will be canonized in Rome on September 7, 2025, but his impact is already felt deeply across the Diocese of Brooklyn and throughout the world.
Meet a few of the people who have been inspired by Carlo’s faith and legacy:
Join Currents News anchor Christine Persichette to pray with the Diocese of Brooklyn for those suffering due to armed conflict.
By The Tablet and Currents News
Aug. 22 marks the Feast of the Queenship of Mary.
Pope Leo XIV is requesting that prayers be offered on that day for the end of the war around the world.
“While our world continues to be wounded by wars in the Holy Land, in Ukraine and in many other regions of the world,” he said, “I ask all the faithful to spend Aug. 22 in fasting and prayer, asking the Lord to grant us peace and justice and to dry the tears of those who suffer because of the armed conflicts underway.”
“May Mary, queen of peace, intercede so that people would find the path of peace,” he prayed.
RELATED READ: USCCB Calls for Special Collection for Catholic Aid Groups in Gaza
The night before his audience, as he was greeting people who gathered outside the Villa Barberini in Castel Gandolfo, Pope Leo told reporters the new diplomatic moves aimed at ending Russia’s war on Ukraine are a reason for hope, but much remains to be done.
“There is hope. We still have to work hard, pray hard and seek the way forward,” the pope told reporters late Aug. 19 as he prepared to leave the villa and return to the Vatican.
Encountering the pope the day after U.S. President Donald Trump met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and a delegation of European leaders, the reporters asked Pope Leo if he had heard from any of the leaders.
RELATED WATCH: Pope Leo XIV Condemns War in Ukraine and Gaza
“I hear from some of them from time to time,” the pope said, but he did not respond to a journalist who asked if he speaks with Trump.
Pope Leo, who marked the 100th day of his papacy Aug. 16, also was asked how that was going.
It has been “a blessing from God,” he said. “I receive so much. I really believe in the Lord’s grace, and I am so thankful for the reception I have received.”
Ending his short, second stay at Castel Gandolfo, Pope Leo said he would return. “It’s a grace to be here.”
Pope Leo XIV asked Catholics to observe Aug. 22 as a day of prayer and fasting for peace and justice, particularly in Ukraine and in the Holy Land.
PRAYER