The U.S. bishops have given the green light to hold the 11th National Eucharistic Congress in the summer of 2029, in a Nov. 12 vote on the final public day of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ Fall Plenary Assembly.

The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops is on solid financial footing, having restructured some operations while weathering the end of key federal refugee resettlement contracts — but changes in resource allocations may be on the horizon, said the conference’s budget chair.

The faithful can expect a new edition of the Liturgy of the Hours by Easter 2027, according to Bishop Steven J. Lopes, chairman of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ Committee on Divine Worship who made the announcement Nov. 11, during the bishops’ fall meeting.

Six months later, Pope Leo XIV’s election already proved historically significant: the first U.S.-born pope, the first Augustinian, and the first pope born after World War II.

As reports spread that U.S. President Donald Trump appealed directly to China’s Xi Jinping to free jailed Hong Kong media tycoon Jimmy Lai when they met in South Korea Oct. 30, American theologian George Weigel told OSV News that Lai “is a non-violent, deeply committed defender of not simply his rights to free speech, but to those of the people of Hong Kong” and that his “witness to human dignity and to basic human rights is an expression of his Catholic faith.”

A key procedural vote in the Senate signaled the beginning of a funding deal that may bring about the end of the longest federal government shutdown in U.S. history. But Catholic groups expressed concerns that the potential deal leaves the matter of health insurance subsidies to a future vote with an uncertain outcome and just as premiums are skyrocketing.

As the U.S. marks its 250th anniversary next year, the U.S. bishops will consecrate the nation to the Sacred Heart of Jesus.

Jesus did not appear to a woman in Dozulé, France, in the 1970s, and the messages she claimed to receive, including about Jesus’ second coming, are misleading and twist central Christian teachings, said the prefect of the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith.

Being a Christian means recognizing every person as a brother or sister and always being ready to lend a helping hand, Pope Leo XIV said.

Catholic bishops in the Caribbean are calling for dialogue, cooperation and calm amid rising geopolitical tensions that have seen a U.S. military buildup in the region.