Father Bernie Healey

“The Catholic Church is like a thick steak, a glass of wine, and a good cigar!” G.K. Chesterton

[EWTN News @EWTNews]

This isn't something you see every day in Madrid.
Dozens of sisters from the Iesu Communio congregation filled the streets with joy and song as they went out to meet Pope Leo XIV, moving all the passersby.

This young community, dedicated to the contemplative life, Eucharistic adoration, and evangelization, was founded in 2010 and has a growing number of vocations in Spain.

Video: @AlmuMBordiu | EWTN News

[EWTN News @EWTNews]

A profound silence fell over Madrid’s usually bustling streets as Pope Leo elevated the Body and Blood of Christ during Holy Mass on Corpus Christi Sunday.

[EWTN News @EWTNews]

During the prayer vigil he presided over in Madrid, Pope Leo XIV delivered a strong and clear message to young people, speaking in one of the languages he most enjoys using: Spanish.

He urged them not to be afraid of marriage nor of starting a family.

[ROME REPORTS @romereports]

➡️Pope Leo XIV led an over 2,000-ft Corpus Christi procession with flower petals and song

More than 1.2 million worshippers, including First Communicants, nuns, priests, bishops, and cardinals, gathered to throw flower petals and colored sawdust along the path of the Eucharistic procession

[Pope Leo XIV @Pontifex]

Corpus Christi is more than just another celebration on the liturgical calendar. It is a way of returning to the heart of the faith to renew our love and fidelity to God. It is a profession of faith in the presence of the Risen Lord, who is alive and continues to walk among us, who becomes bread to satiate our hunger for life, and visits the recesses of our hearts and history, even those shrouded in darkness. #ApostolicJourney https://t.co/CFODkhPd0Q

[The Romero Trust @RomeroTrust]

We should not come to Mass because of some custom or out of curiosity, but we should be motivated to come each Sunday in order to encounter this great mystery of the presence of the Lord —St Oscar Romero, Corpus Christi 1978 #StOscarRomero

[EWTN Vatican @EWTNVatican]

This is the view of 1.2 million people from above. This is happening in Madrid, in the famous Plaza de Cibeles and its surroundings, where Pope Leo XIV will preside over the solemn Corpus Christi Mass, followed by a historic procession.

[Father Bernie Healey @FatherHealey]

https://t.co/3s0ZasxtMX

[Catholic News Agency @cnalive]

Pope Leo XIV spoke with hundreds of thousands of young people in Madrid on the first day of his six-day apostolic visit to Spain.

https://t.co/xTfvoj3jhg

[Dr Helen Fry | WWII Historian @DrHelenFry]

Please take a moment today to reflect on what they fought for:
#DDay82

[Father Bernie Healey @FatherHealey]

Mercy Musings
https://t.co/ioNv6STSyE

[Father Bernie Healey @FatherHealey]

Join us on Sunday at 10:30 am Mass for the Corpus Christi Procession to Mercy Park. "The devout participation of the faithful in the Eucharistic procession on the Solemnity of the Body and Blood of Christ is a grace from the Lord, which yearly brings joy to those who take part in it."- St. Pope John Paul II

[Father Bernie Healey @FatherHealey]

Requiescat in pace

[EWTN News @EWTNews]

In late February, Pope Leo XIV thanked Father Bruno Kant of the Diocese of Fulda in Germany for his “many years of faithful and devoted priestly service.” Kant, the oldest priest in the world at 110 years of age, passed away on the night of Friday, May 29. He had been a priest since 1950.

In an article published on his dioceseʼs website, Bishop Michael Gerber of Fulda recalled that "just a few months ago" he had "the privilege of conveying Pope Leo XIVʼs blessing to Father Bruno Kant on the occasion of his 110th birthday."

"My encounter with him left a deep impression on me. Even at his advanced age, he radiated the humility, kindness, and spiritual depth that characterized his entire priestly life. The Diocese of Fulda remembers his work and service with great gratitude," he added.

Father Guido Pasanow of the parish in Eichenzell-Löschenrod, where Kant lived until his death, said that with the priest’s death, the parish “loses a person who was fundamental to it for many years.”

“Even after retiring from active ministry, he remained a confidant, pastor, and spiritual guide deeply cherished by many parishioners. We are grateful for all that he contributed to our community,” he added.

As reported by the Catholic news outlet katholisch in November 2025, Kant, born near Danzig in what is now Poland, had aspired to become a priest since the age of 9. He was able to begin his theological studies, but the Nazi regime thwarted his plans by conscripting him for forced labor and making him a soldier.

Kant spent four years as a prisoner of war in Russia before reuniting with his family, who had fled to the West.

He was finally ordained a priest in 1950. After decades of priestly service, he considerably curtailed his activities. He stopped driving at the age of 102, according to a report published on https://t.co/3VQ6nnC1tP in November.

“Over the last few years, he has refrained from celebrating holy Mass with the congregation on Wednesday evenings. However, he continued visiting the sick for as long as he was able. Now, that is no longer possible for him.”

On that occasion, Kant said: “I expect to die every day. I am not far from it.” In his final years, he spent his days solving Sudokus, watching television, reading newspapers, and, of course, praying.

“Praying keeps me young,” he said.

https://t.co/TSmhtpuF9T

[Catholic Arena @CatholicArena]

Irish American Fr. John McGovern offering Mass at the beaches of Normandy in the days after D-Day

[EWTN News @EWTNews]

On the night of June 5, the 2026 National Eucharistic Pilgrimage arrived in Washington, D.C., bringing Christ present in the Eucharist to the heart of the nation during America’s 250th anniversary year.

Traveling more than 2,000 miles over six weeks, the pilgrimage brings the Eucharist through cities and communities across America, accompanied by nine young adult Perpetual Pilgrims and thousands of participants along the route. Father Charles Trullols, Director of the Catholic Information Center, accompanied the Eucharist across the Arlington Memorial Bridge—a powerful symbol of national unity and reconciliation—reflecting the pilgrimage’s theme, “One Nation Under God.” The crossing marked a profound moment of bringing Jesus Christ, the Prince of Peace, into the heart of the nation’s capital.

The pilgrimage vehicle then arrived on the National Mall, where Father Trullols carried the Eucharist alongside the nine Perpetual Pilgrims for a symbolic blessing of the nation, overlooking the Washington Monument and the U.S. Capitol.

This is more than a journey. It is a public testimony of devotion, revival, and the enduring presence of Christ in the Eucharist.

[EWTN Vatican @EWTNVatican]

Pope Leo XIV has arrived in Madrid. The King and Queen of Spain welcomed him with full honors upon his arrival. Queen Letizia wore white, exercising the Privilege of the White (Privilège du Blanc), a ceremonial honor reserved for Catholic royal houses during audiences with the Pontiff.

Welcome to the land of Mary, dear Holy Father!

[Catholic News Agency @cnalive]

A Catholic diocese and a pregnancy center in Illinois are asking a federal appeals court to strike down a state law that they say would force them to hire workers who disagree with their religious and pro-life missions.

https://t.co/ovenJVXEvb

[Catholic News Agency @cnalive]

The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) International Justice and Peace Committee released a statement reiterating the Holy Father’s call to limit the use of artificial intelligence (AI) in war.

https://t.co/66bXbavVTD

[EWTN Vatican @EWTNVatican]

Today we celebrate the Memorial of Saint Boniface (June 5), who shocked a pagan crowd when he struck down a massive oak tree dedicated to Thor. Expecting the god’s wrath, they watched in amazement as nothing happened. The moment became a turning point, leading many Hessians to embrace the Christian faith.

St. Boniface, Apostle of Germany, pray for us.

[EWTN News @EWTNews]

At the Wednesday general audience at the Vatican on June 3, Pope Leo XIV called Catholics to be open to an “encounter with God by rediscovering the signs and symbols of the sacred liturgy.”

“We need to let ourselves be educated by the rites of the liturgy, tending to the beauty of our celebrations with a delicate hand and without arbitrariness,” Leo said to the faithful.

Leoʼs remarks were part of his catechesis on the liturgy, focusing on the Second Vatican Councilʼs document Sacrosanctum Concilium. In his remarks, the pope explained the councilʼs teaching about participation in the liturgy through its signs and symbols.

“In the liturgy, we are invited to participate — body, mind, and heart — and enter into a dimension inhabited by the Holy Spirit. In order to enter into this dimension, the liturgy is woven with signs and symbols that have a performative and transformative dimension,” Leo said.

He also called on Catholics to recall the meaning of the various gestures associated with the liturgy, such as the sign of peace and kneeling before the Blessed Sacrament. He explained that these symbols and signs are not arbitrary gestures, but are important for helping Catholics experience “the presence of God through Jesus Christ.”

“The rites of the Christian liturgy are not an outward covering of the sacramental mystery or a set of arbitrary ceremonies,” Leo said. “Rather, they are the ecclesial mediation through which the divine gift reaches us. Through the sacred rite, we are thus formed in listening to the Word of God, in thanksgiving and adoration, in fraternal sharing, and in ecclesial communion.”

In an appeal at the end of the general audience, Leo invited Catholics to bear public witness to the mystery of the Eucharist during the upcoming eucharistic processions for the Solemnity of Corpus Christi.

“The processions with the Blessed Sacrament that take place in the streets of many towns are an expression of popular eucharistic piety; in this regard, I encourage you to keep alive this beautiful manifestation of public witness to the faith,” Leo said.

He also gave a special greeting to priests serving in the Middle East amid continuing armed conflicts in the region.

https://t.co/Bv8mpI81sV