Pope Leo’s Holy Thursday homily: ‘In this dark hour of history,’ do not shy away from your mission

Pope Leo’s Holy Thursday homily: ‘In this dark hour of history,’ do not shy away from your mission

by Josephine Peterson, Catholic News Service April 2, 2026

Pope Leo XVI washes the feet of clergymen as he celebrates the Holy Thursday Mass of the Lord's Supper in the Basilica of St. John Lateran at the Vatican April 2, 2026. (OSV News photo/Vincenzo Livieri, Reuters)

ROME (CNS) — God doesn’t exist to grant victories or to be useful by providing wealth or power, Pope Leo XIV said.

Through Jesus, he serves humanity by offering himself in a way that transforms human hearts so that they may then be inspired to love others unconditionally, in turn, he said in his homily during Mass of the Lord’s Supper in the Basilica of St. John Lateran.

“Jesus purifies not only our image of God — from the idolatry and blasphemy that have distorted it — but also our image of humanity,” he said April 2, Holy Thursday. “For we tend to consider ourselves powerful when we dominate, victorious when we destroy our equals, great when we are feared.”

However, he said, “Christ offers us the example of self-giving, service and love” so that humankind can learn how to love according to what true love is.

 

Roundtable: Catholic women react to the Vatican’s report on women’s leadership

by Inside the Vatican and Jesuitical April 2, 202

In March 2026, the Vatican’s doctrine office released its final report on women’s participation in the life and leadership of the Catholic Church. The report brings to a close the two-year work of Study Group 5, which, as part of the Synod on Synodality, was tasked with studying women’s ministries and leadership. In this special roundtable conversation, editors at America magazine discuss the report’s content and proposals, and ask if the document changes the status quo for women in the Catholic Church.

Featuring:

• Ashley McKinless, executive editor and co-host of the “Jesuitical” podcast
• Kerry Weber, executive editor
• Colleen Dulle, Vatican correspondent and co-host of the “Inside the Vatican” podcast
• Molly Cahill, associate editor

Chapters:

• 0:00 The Vatican’s final report on women and ministry
• 4:23 Women’s reactions to the report
• 11:28 New ministries for women?
• 20:05 The horizons and limits of women’s authority
• 30:30 Will women be involved in decision-making?

Pope Leo's Holy Thursday marks return to pre-Francis era practice

 

Vatican News

Vatican

Pope Leo's Holy Thursday marks return to pre-Francis era practice

Justin McLellan  ncr

Your letters: Praying for Trump, birthright citizenship and César Chávez

 

April 3, 2026

Your letters: Praying for Trump, birthright citizenship and César Chávez

NCR Staff

Short Take

What Pete Hegseth could learn from meditating on Christ’s Passion

by J.D. Long García April 1, 2026

U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth speaks to senior military leaders at Marine Corps Base Quantico in Virginia Sept. 30, 2025. Credit: OSV News photo/Andrew Harnik, pool via Reuters

If Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth has secrets, his Christian faith isn’t among them. One of his tattoos quotes Matthew’s Gospel: “Do not think that I have come to bring peace to the earth; I have not come to bring peace, but a sword” (Mt 10:34). 

His faith has drawn renewed scrutiny since the United States and Israel jointly bombed Iran four weeks ago. He often quotes Scripture during the monthly evangelical worship services he hosts at the Pentagon and to eulogize soldiers who died in the ongoing war. 

The Passion of Jesus Christ is a drama with many episodes.

 

Preaching the Seven Last Words

The Passion of Jesus Christ is a drama with many episodes.

Rita Ferrone

April 1, 2026

Liturgy

Please email comments to letters@commonwealmagazine.org.

A crucifix is displayed during the Good Friday Liturgy of the Lord’s Passion in St. Peter’s Basilica at the Vatican April 10, 2020. (CNS photo/Vatican Media).

The following meditations on the Seven Last Words of Christ were delivered at the Cathedral of Saint Matthew the Apostle in Washington D.C. on Good Friday, 2025. Each meditation was followed by a musical interlude sung by the choir. 

Preaching on the Seven Last Words is not part of the Good Friday liturgy. It has instead been traditionally part of the Three Hours Devotion on Good Friday, a practice begun in Lima by the Peruvian Jesuit Alonso Mesia (1665–1732), a man deeply respected for his charity, humility, and learning. It was greeted with such joy that it spread to other parts of the world and has been adapted in various forms over the centuries.

The Passion of Jesus Christ is a drama with many episodes. Each of them offers us a window into the mystery we celebrate on this day, this Friday we call “good.”

Many of the episodes, truth to tell, are terrible. The machinations of the authorities, the betrayal by Judas, Peter’s denial, the disciples who ran away, the cruelty of the crowd, the soldiers who mocked and beat Jesus and put him to a shameful death. For every bright spot, like the women who persisted when everyone else ran away, there are a dozen teeth-grinding disappointments.

You might have thought the followers of Jesus would want to erase this story. Yet the early Church preserved it all and did not shrink from the recollection. Rather, they found in the Passion the essential narrative of Jesus, the one who, as John the Evangelist tells us, “always loved his own in the world, and loved them to the end.” 

On Good Friday, remember the inherent dignity of those in prison

 

Guest Voices

Opinion

On Good Friday, remember the inherent dignity of those in prison

Daniel P. Horan  ncr

Vatican, Notre Dame launch academic alliance to find solutions to ecological crises

 

Vatican, Notre Dame launch academic alliance to find solutions to ecological crises

Catherine M. Odell  ncr