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Hello, I'm Gina Christian, and you're listening to our OSV Newscast for Wednesday, June 24th, 2026, the feast of the nativity of St. John the Baptist, the cousin and forerunner of Jesus. You can read more about St. John's Nativity in the first chapter of St. Luke's Gospel. And a very happy birthday to one of my very favorite saints. Now let's catch you up on the Catholic News of the Day. Here we go. Well, today's also the fourth anniversary of the U.S. Supreme Court decision that overturned its previous rulings broadly legalizing abortion. And the nation's Catholic bishops and pro-life leaders are now pointing to abortion pills as one of the key challenges to protecting unborn children. On this day, back in 2022, the Supreme Court ruled in the case of Dobbs versus Jackson Women's Health Organization. That case involved a Mississippi law banning abortion after 15 weeks, and the state directly challenged the High Court's previous abortion-related precedents in Roe v. Wade and Planned Parenthood v. Casey. The Supreme Court ultimately overturned its prior rulings, undoing nearly a half century of its own precedent that held abortion to be a constitutional right. In a statement marking the Dobbs anniversary, Bishop Daniel Thomas of Toledo, Ohio, who chairs the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops Committee on Pro-Life Activities, said the victory of the Dobbs decision risks being undone by the massive influx of abortion pills. He called on the intercession of the Sacred Heart of Jesus in building a culture of life. Louisiana has challenged an FDA policy issued by the Biden administration, which permitted Mifepristone, a pill commonly used for abortion, to be distributed by mail. The Trump administration has so far left that regulation in place, causing frustration from pro-life groups, and it's also sought to block state challenges such as Louisiana's. More than 80 pro-life groups addressed a letter published yesterday to Acting Attorney General Todd Blanch, saying, We respectfully urge you to settle Louisiana versus the FDA and the Department of Justice's defense of the mail order abortion drug regime. The $15 to $25 admission price is due to substantial costs in planning and holding the event at a national level venue. That's according to Bishop Louis Tilka of Peoria, Illinois. The popular scholarly Archbishop Sheen, who was a 20th-century pioneer of Catholic media, will be beatified on September 24th at the Dome at America Center in St. Louis. Bishop Tilka, whose diocese has oversight of the Archbishop Sheen Saint Hood Cause, explained to me that the Dome, which is located in the Archdiocese of St. Louis, was chosen for the event to enable as many of the faithful to share in the occasion. Bishop Tilke told me, we could have done this event in our cathedral, where there would have been 800 people, but we're trying to maximize people's participation. We want people to be there, and to do all of that, there are certainly significant costs that we are taking on. Bishop Tilke stressed that the ticketing fees were not equivalent to paying to attend a liturgy. That's a practice strictly forbidden by canon law, which is the church's main administrative code. Rather, the tickets reflect the practical realities of hosting a major event. And those said Bishop Tilke are just not free. German lay Catholic groups are vowing to press forward with demands to preach at Mass, directly defying a Vatican rejection of the proposal. The Vatican's Dicastery for Divine Worship announced yesterday that it denied a request by the German Bishops Conference to allow commissioned lay faithful to deliver homilies under exceptional circumstances. Cardinal Arthur Roche informed the bishops that reserving the homily for priests or deacons is a liturgical requirement and not just a disciplinary rule. Despite the ruling, Irme Stettekop, head of the Central Committee of German Catholics, said lay associations expect Germany's bishops to strengthen their arguments to Rome. The Catholic Women's Association of Germany also criticized the decision, arguing it excludes women from key ministries. The dispute stems from Germany's controversial synodal way reform process. The Vatican said the homily is intrinsically tied to the ordained priesthood, but the German bishops cite a severe priest shortage as a pressing pastoral need. In response, Cardinal Roach said those situations were temporary and did not constitute what he called such an emergency or a genuine pastoral necessity that would justify a departure from a norm so closely linked to the nature of the liturgical act. Catholic leaders in Sudan are renewing calls to end violence against civilians after the killing of Father Yuhanna Alamine, a priest serving in the diocese of El Obaid. Father Alamine was shot and killed on June 19th in Cauda in the Nuba Mountains, along with two others, just as he was preparing to evacuate because of worsening security. Bishop Yunan Tombe Trilekukuandale praised the priest's dedicated pastoral service and said armed men had looted the church and relief supplies before returning the next morning and killing him. Father Peter Suleiman Bolis condemned the attack and urged authorities to stop the bloodshed of innocent people. Aid to the Church in Need said Father Alamine chose to remain with his community despite growing dangers. His death comes a year after another diocesan priest, Father Luca Jomo, was killed amid conflict in Darfur. Church leaders and humanitarian agencies warned that violence is escalating across Kordofan, where civilians face growing insecurity, displacement, and shortages of essential services. The United Nations has also warned that an expected offensive around El Obaid could lead to further civilian suffering and possible international crimes. And finally, participation in the Eucharist transforms believers into the body of Christ and offers a remedy to the divisions affecting families and communities. That's what Pope Leo XIV said during his weekly general audience today, which was his final general audience until August 5th. The Pope also encouraged young people to use the downtime of summer vacation to attend Mass, go to confession frequently, reflect on scripture, undertake spiritual retreats and pilgrimages, and spend time with loved ones. In remarks to his Polish-speaking visitors, the Pope said, Vacation is a time for rest and to seek signs of God in the beauty of creation. Pope Leo also asked people to pray for students so that they may choose wisely the schools and universities they'll attend and discern with prudence their vocation. And that's your OSV Newscast for today. I'm Gina Christian. Check out the show notes for a link to our website where you can find the stories in this episode. As always, please make sure to subscribe to this podcast. Give us a follow on social media and bookmark osvnews.com. A shout out to our listeners in the U.S., Canada, and all over the world. Australia, Ireland, Malta, Trinidad, and Tobago, we see you checking in. Thanks so much for listening and God bless.

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