May 10, 2026 // National

News Briefs: May 10, 2026

OSV NEWS

OSV News photo/Mario Tomassetti, Vatican Media
Pope Leo XIV greets Kerry Alys Robinson, president and CEO of Catholic Charities USA, as he meets with the agency’s directors on Monday, May 4, in the Consistory Hall of the Apostolic Palace at the Vatican. Pope Leo encouraged their work as the need for food and basic services rises across the United States. Robinson said the meeting left delegates “deeply moved and confirmed in our commitment to serve poor and vulnerable people of all backgrounds … to bring merciful love and aid to people who need it the most, wherever they are suffering.” The pope praised Catholic Charities’ efforts to “seek to find solutions to inhumane situations.”

National Shrine Planned to Honor Venerable Augustus Tolton in Illinois

QUINCY, Illinois (OSV News) — The first publicly recognized Black Catholic priest in the United States, who already has 40 potential miracles attributed to his intercession being investigated, is now getting his own national shrine in western Illinois, where he grew up and once served. On Wednesday, April 29, the Diocese of Springfield, Illinois, announced plans for a national shrine for Venerable Augustus (Augustine) Tolton (1854-97), one of the “saintly seven,” referring to the group of African Americans recognized as “servant of God” or “venerable” who have active sainthood causes. The diocese launched a fundraising campaign for the renovation of a long-dormant church on the site where Father Tolton, who was regarded in his day as the first African American priest of the country, celebrated his first Mass in the U.S. after his ordination in Rome in 1886.

Patron Saints Named for World Youth Day 2027

SEOUL, South Korea (OSV News) — Organizers in Seoul have named five patron saints for World Youth Day 2027, highlighting themes of truth, peace and love at the heart of the global event. The saints include Pope St. John Paul II, founder of World Youth Day; St. Andrew Kim Taegon and companions; St. Frances Xavier Cabrini, patron of immigrants; St. Josephine Bakhita, linked to victims of human trafficking; and St. Carlo Acutis, known for evangelizing online. Organizers said the saints reflect modern challenges like persecution, migration and social struggle, making them fitting guides for young pilgrims. Their selection followed consultations with youth and pastoral leaders, along with committee discernment. Cardinal Kevin Farrell, the Irish-born American prefect of the Dicastery for the Laity, Family and Life, said patron saints play a key role in WYD preparation, encouraging young people to respond generously to God’s call. Archbishop Peter Soon-Taick Chung of Seoul, president of the organizing committee, expressed hope the saints will inspire youth to deepen their faith and see holiness as attainable today. The official website for World Youth Day 2027 (wydseoul.org/en) was updated with biographical information on each saint. Organizers also launched an interactive site, titled “Meet Your Patron Saint,” where users can take a short quiz to match with one of the five saints. Learn more about World Youth Day at diocesefwsb.org/wyd.

Vatican Releases Document on ‘Integral Ecology’ in Family Life

ROME (Vatican News) — The Vatican has released new guidance encouraging families to take a leading role in caring for creation and human life. A 79-page document published jointly by the Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development and the Dicastery for Laity, Family and Life draws on the principles of Pope Francis’ papal documents Amoris Laetitia and Laudato Si’. “Family values are the fruitful soil from which all of society grows. In order to care properly for our common home and for all people, families must be the model,” Cardinal Michael Czerny and Cardinal Kevin Farrell wrote in a new release promoting the document, which was announced on Monday, April 27. The text outlines practical steps for families, Church groups and individuals, including ecological lifestyles and solidarity with the poor. “It is precisely families, as the building blocks of society, which can become the engine of this profound cultural change,” says the document, which is available for free in five languages on the official websites of both dicasteries.

Supreme Court Stops Court Ruling that Blocked Abortion Pill Distribution by Mail

WASHINGTON, D.C. (OSV News) — The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday, May 4, temporarily blocked an appeals court ruling that sought to pause a federal policy permitting mifepristone, sometimes called the abortion pill, to be dispensed through the mail. An administrative stay issued by Justice Samuel Alito blocked a temporary injunction that was issued on May 1 by the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals until at least 5 p.m. EDT on May 11. Alito directed Louisiana to respond by May 7. The stay in effect restores permission for the drug’s distribution by mail. Previously, the 5th Circuit granted Louisiana’s request to temporarily pause the Food and Drug Administration’s policy permitting mifepristone — a drug commonly, but not exclusively, used for abortion up to 10 weeks’ gestation — to be mailed into the state despite its own laws restricting abortion. Danco Laboratories, one of the pharmaceutical companies that manufactures the drug, promptly appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court, asking it to block that injunction. The Catholic Church teaches that all human life is sacred from conception to natural death, and as such, opposes direct abortion and the use of any medication, such as mifepristone, to take human lives.

Archdiocese of New York Proposes $800 Million Abuse Settlement

NEW YORK (OSV News) — The Archdiocese of New York has proposed an $800 million settlement to resolve some 1,300 abuse claims involving clergy and staff brought under lookback laws in that state. If accepted, the settlement would cap a five-year legal battle that has seen the archdiocese sell off property, while taking insurance giant Chubb to court over coverage for the claims. In a May 1 statement, Archbishop Ronald A. Hicks of New York said the archdiocese and the Plaintiff’s Liaison Committee, the body representing “a majority of victim-survivors,” had been “working hard for several months to reach agreement.” He did not disclose the proposed settlement amount, which The New York Times published on April 30, citing a letter plaintiff attorneys Jeff Anderson and Trusha Goffe had emailed to their clients. The newspaper quoted the document, a copy of which it had obtained, with attorneys advising each claimant would receive $250,000, and urging them to unanimously accept the offer. Archbishop Hicks said in his message that “although much work remains to be done before a settlement can be finalized and consummated, I am cautiously optimistic about the path we are on.”

Pope Appoints Bishops in Several U.S. Dioceses

WASHINGTON, D.C. (OSV News) — On Friday, May 1, Pope Leo XIV accepted the resignation of two bishops and appointed their replacements. He also appointed two new auxiliary bishops for the Archdiocese of Washington. Cardinal Christophe Pierre, apostolic nuncio to the United States, announced the moves, which included the pope naming a new bishop for the Diocese of Laredo, Texas, and accepting the resignation of Bishop James A. Tamayo, who has led the diocese from its 2000 inception, and named as his successor Father John Jairo Gomez, vicar general of the Diocese of Tyler, Texas. Also on May 1, Pope Leo accepted the resignation of Bishop Mark E. Brennan of Wheeling-Charleston, West Virginia, and named as his successor Auxiliary Bishop Evelio Menjivar-Ayala of Washington. Bishop Brennan, 79, has headed the Diocese of Wheeling-Charleston as its ninth bishop since his installation on August 22, 2019. Two auxiliary bishops for the Archdiocese of Washington were also appointed, and Pope Leo accepted the resignation of Auxiliary Bishop Roy E. Campbell Jr. of Washington. Father Gary R. Studniewski, who is pastor of the Shrine of the Most Blessed Sacrament in Washington, and Father Robert P. Boxie III, who is a chaplain at Howard University in Washington, were named auxiliary bishops by Pope Leo.