As fans prepare to watch the Rams take on the Cincinnati Bengals in the Super Bowl at Los Angeles’ SoFi Stadium on Sunday, Feb. 13 at 6:30 p.m., Catholic viewers may not realize how much their fellow believers have been involved in the history and success of American football.

Pope Francis was among those showing their support for retired Pope Benedict XVI, sending his predecessor “a beautiful letter,” according to the former pope’s secretary.

In the days leading up to the Feb. 13 Super Bowl, which is scheduled to kick off at 6:30 p.m., in Inglewood’s new SoFi Stadium, local authorities have warned of coming sting operations and criminal penalties associated with sex trafficking.

Archbishop José H. Gomez of Los Angeles and Archbishop Dennis M. Schnurr of Cincinnati are rooting for their home team in Super Bowl LVI, but they also have placed a friendly wager on the outcome of the Feb. 13 showdown between the Rams and the Bengals.

The Pregnant Workers Fairness Act has cleared all the hurdles and awaits a final vote in the Senate in the coming weeks.

Pope Francis has accepted the resignation of Archbishop Joseph E. Kurtz of Louisville, Kentucky, and appointed as his successor Bishop Shelton J. Fabre of Houma-Thibodaux in southeastern Louisiana.

The head of the Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors said retired Pope Benedict’s “witness and profound honesty should galvanize all of us to defend survivors of abuse and to protect all those entrusted to our care.”

The major archbishop of the Ukrainian Catholic Church reiterated concerns of some of his Baltic neighbors, saying that Ukraine might be on the front lines of a Russian threat, but the threat extends beyond Ukraine.

The Vatican’s English translation of the letter retired Pope Benedict XVI published Feb. 8 in response to the independent report on the handling of sexual abuse allegations in the German Archdiocese of Munich and Freising from 1945 to 2019.

Retired Pope Benedict XVI has never attempted to hide what is true, no matter how painful recognizing reality might be, said Jesuit Father Federico Lombardi.