By Katie Vasquez
Pope Leo XIV is sending a message to men and women religious: remain rooted in your charism, but also stay alert to the signs of the times.
One religious sister will have no problem keeping up with that advice. Her journey to her vocation put her on some interesting tracks as a student athlete at St. John’s University.
By Katie Vasquez and Paula Katinas
JAMAICA — Jacqueline Gallagher, a middle-distance runner for the St. John’s University Women’s Track Team from 2016 to 2020, would always take a few moments before one of her races to say a prayer.
These days, she’s still praying and she’s still running — but now, she’s running toward the Lord.
Gallagher, 27, is preparing for her big day on Aug. 11 when she will profess her first vows to join the Dominican Sisters of St. Cecilia, a religious community of nuns in Nashville, Tennessee.
It’s a major step in a seven-year-long process that began when she entered the convent in 2022 — two years after graduating from St. John’s — and will reach its conclusion four years from now when she professes her final vows.
Upon professing her first vows, Gallagher will take the name Sister Veronica Mae.
Her family is excited for her and will be in Nashville to see her life-changing moment.
“My whole immediate family will be there,” said her mom, Pat Gallagher. “But she was also able to invite aunts, uncles, and close friends, so she’s going to have quite a crowd.”
Jacqueline’s immediate family by itself constitutes quite a crowd. She is one of nine children — five boys and four girls — born to Pat and John Gallagher.
Jacqueline was busy with her preparations and was unable to be interviewed for this article. However, in letters she sent to her fraternal twin Therese Gallagher, she has expressed the joy she is feeling as she prepares for her new life.
“Vows are less than a month away,” she wrote in a letter home on July 13. “It’s kind of hard to take in the immensity of it, you know? The Father freely chooses. Who can cancel his choice? No one!”
Jacqueline was raised in Belle Harbor and grew up attending Mass at St. Francis de Sales Church. She and her eight siblings also went to St. Francis de Sales Catholic Academy. She attended Bishop Kearney High School, where she ran track, specializing in middle-distance events such as the 800-meter and the mile.
Upon graduation in 2016, she was offered an athletic scholarship from St. John’s University in Jamaica and enrolled there. Therese also received an athletic scholarship to St. John’s and was a member of the track team, competing as a middle-distance runner.
In her junior year, Jacqueline posted three Top 10 finishes in mile-long races at track meets. As a senior, she posted a season-best time of 5:22.06 in the mile at the Penn 8-Team Select meet and recorded a personal best time of 10:57.91 in the 3,000-meter race at the Metropolitan Indoor Championships.
She majored in biology and had planned to become a pediatrician, but she started volunteering for the Sisters of Life — performing babysitting chores for new mothers — and Pat thinks that might have planted a seed and cemented a desire to serve God by helping women and children.
RELATED: Aspiring U.S. Intelligence Officer Finds Her New Faith at St. John’s
Jacqueline learned about the Dominican Sisters of St. Cecilia from a family friend, and after making a few visits, she decided that this was the place where she belonged. Pat and John weren’t a bit surprised when Jacqueline came to them and told them she wanted to enter a convent.
“She always took her faith seriously,” Pat recalled. “Even when she was a child, she would stay after the Mass and was never in a hurry to leave church.
“She would sit there and say a prayer.”
John recalled that Jacqueline always had a maturity about her.
“And whenever we go to see her now, she’s like a therapist. She has a lot of wisdom. And she really has a deep understanding of human nature,” he said. “It’s a blessing.”
In another letter to Therese, written on May 27, Jacqueline expressed her gratitude for having her family, friends, and fellow Dominican sisters in her life.
“The Lord has been so faithful these past years and months. He has given you, mom, dad, the siblings, my sisters, my friends, and all those I hold dear — He has given them to me and me to them,” she wrote. “Most of all, he has given me his son and he has given me to Jesus. I really have it all!”
Therese, who teaches religion and coaches the girls’ track and field team at Xaverian High School in Bay Ridge, said her twin has always made her proud.
“She’s been a role model for me,” said Therese, who is 12 minutes younger.
“I look up to her in terms of her faith. In today’s culture, it’s tough to make those kinds of decisions where you’re going to put all your trust in God,” Therese added. “It might not show up in the way that you would want in terms of worldly things. Just seeing her answer God’s call has helped me grow in my own faith.”
Therese can’t wait to see Jacqueline take her big step.
“It’ll be like watching my twin walk down the aisle and give her life to Jesus,” she said. “I’m really excited.”
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.
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.
RELATED: Elected Officials, Families Gather to Mourn Minneapolis School Shooting Victims
“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.”
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.
RELATED: Pope Leo XIV Pleads With Israel and Hamas To End Violence in Gaza
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.
RELATED: Calls From Pope to Gaza Church Bring ‘Great Joy,’ Says Parish Priest
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.
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.
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.
RELATED: Fordham, Notre Dame Look To Support Foreign Students Amid Trump Visa Crackdown
“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.
RELATED: Fordham University Works to Keep 280-Year-Old American Elm Tree Healthy
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.
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.
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.
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.