Pope Leo XIV, Eastern Orthodox patriarch signal greater unity at site where Nicene Creed was adopted 1,700 years ago



Pope Leo XIV joined Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I of Constantinople and other Eastern Orthodox bishops on Friday at the site in modern-day Turkey where their predecessors met 17 centuries earlier to affirm and codify the core tenets of the Christian faith.

This meeting of leaders on either side of the Great Schism at the place of the Nicene Creed's adoption signals another major step in what the pope weeks ago called "the path towards the reestablishment of full communion among all Christians."

'We return to this wellspring of the Christian faith in order to move forward.'

The pope made reference to the lasting significance of the Council of Nicaea in his Friday address at the archeological site of the ancient Basilica of St. Neophytos on the shore of Lake Iznik, especially the council's rejection in the 4th century of the Arian heresy.

Pope Leo said that the question of who Jesus Christ is in the lives of men and women today "is especially important for Christians, who risk reducing Jesus Christ to a kind of charismatic leader or superman, a misrepresentation that ultimately leads to sadness and confusion."

The pope noted in a separate address earlier in the day at the Cathedral of the Holy Spirit in Istanbul — where he blessed the first stone for a Catholic parish in Dallas — that the "new Arianism" attempts to reduce Christ to "a great historical figure, a wise teacher, or a prophet who fought for justice — butnothing more."

"By denying the divinity of Christ, Arius reduced him to a mere intermediary between God and humanity, ignoring the reality of the Incarnation such that the divine and the human remained irremediably separated," the pope said on the shore of Lake Iznik in the presence of the Eastern Orthodox bishops. "But if God did not become man, how can mortal creatures participate in his immortal life? What was at stake at Nicaea, and is at stake today, is our faith in the God who, in Jesus Christ, became like us to make us 'partakers of the divine nature.'"

Speaking of the creed, the pope noted that "this Christological confession of faith is of fundamental importance in the journey that Christians are making towards full communion," as it binds Christians across the world and paves the way for "ever deeper adherence to the Word of God revealed in Jesus Christ, under the guidance of the Holy Spirit, in mutual love and dialogue."

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TIZIANA FABI / Contributor, Anadolu / Contributor | Getty Images

"We are all invited to overcome the scandal of the divisions that unfortunately still exist and to nurture the desire for unity for which the Lord Jesus prayed and gave his life. The more we are reconciled, the more we Christians can bear credible witness to the Gospel of Jesus Christ, which is a proclamation of hope for all," added Pope Leo.

Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew, considered first among equals among Eastern Orthodox bishops, noted at the ecumenical service in Nicaea that he was "deeply moved" by the Christian leaders' decision to "honor through this joint pilgrimage the memory and legacy of the First Ecumenical Council held here, at Nicaea, seventeen-hundred years ago."

Emperor Constantine I called over 250 bishops — 318, according to tradition — in the year 325 to convene during the pontificate of Pope Sylvester I in the Bithynian city of Nicaea.

The council that assembled 55 miles southeast of present-day Istanbul not only dealt with various ecclesiastic matters and set a date on which to commemorate Jesus' resurrection but tackled the Arian heresy, affirming that Christ is indeed "God from God, Light from Light, true God from true God, begotten, not made, of one Being with the Father. Through him all things were made."

While similarly acknowledging the divisions that have marked many intervening centuries, the patriarch stressed that the purpose of the meeting was not simply to remember the past but to "bear living witness to the same faith expressed by the Fathers of Nicaea."

"We return to this wellspring of the Christian faith in order to move forward. We refresh ourselves at these inspired waters of rest in order to become strong for the tasks that lie ahead," said the patriarch.

Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew noted further:

The Nicene Creed acts like a seed for the whole of our Christian existence. It is a symbol not of a bare minimum; it is a symbol of the whole. Having the fervor of the faith of Nicaea burning in our hearts, "let us run the course" of Christian unity "that is set before us" (cf. Hebrews 12:1); let us "hope to the end for the grace" that is promised "at the revelation of Jesus Christ" (cf. 1 Peter 1:13); and, finally, "let us love one another, that with one mind we may confess: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, Trinity consubstantial and undivided."

The patriarch told the Agence France-Presse ahead of the meeting that his meeting with the pope was "especially significant" in light of the conflicts currently underway across the globe.

- YouTubeyoutu.be

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Violent attacks against Christians spike in Europe; France leading the way with anti-Christian hate crimes: Report



Christians are brutally persecuted the world over. According to the watchdog group Open Doors, over 380 million Christians suffer high levels of persecution and discrimination for their faith, and over 4,476 were killed for their faith in 2024 alone.

While the top 10 worst countries for Christians are all in Africa, Asia, and the Indian subcontinent — Nigeria, for instance, saw over 300 Christian schoolchildren abducted during a raid by bandits on Friday — Christians are also subjected to violent attacks, discrimination, and state suppression in supposedly civilized Western nations.

'15 incidents featured satanic symbols or references.'

The U.S. and Canada have together, for instance, seen thousands of acts of hostility against churches in recent years.

Across the Atlantic, a British court handed a grieving father a criminal sentence last year for praying silently near the abortion clinic that killed his unborn son. In France, Christians were reportedly arrested at gunpoint for peacefully protesting the mockery of their faith during the 2024 Olympics opening ceremony. In Spain, a maniac broke into a monastery in November 2024, savagely attacking several people and fatally bludgeoning a Franciscan monk. Farther afield, an Islamic terrorist stabbed an Assyrian bishop on April 15, 2024, in an Australian church.

The Observatory on Intolerance and Discrimination Against Christians in Europe, a Vienna-based watchdog group, recently revealed that violent attacks on Christians spiked in Europe and the U.K. last year.

The watchdog noted in its annual report that a total of 2,211 anti-Christian hate crimes were documented by European governments and civil society organizations in 2024.

OIDAC hinted that the actual number of hate crimes may be much higher, as surveys indicate they are grossly underreported. In Poland, for example, nearly 50% of Catholic priests surveyed indicated that they were met with aggression sometime in the past year, yet over 80% failed to report such incidents.

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Photo by VALERY HACHE/AFP via Getty Images.

Nevertheless, OIDAC indicated that this reflects a general decrease over 2023 — a year when there were 2,444 reported hate crimes. The decrease is partly the result of a dip in recorded incidents in France but largely the result of "lower figures reported by U.K. police, which noted a change in methodology in its official report," the report reads.

Of the 516 anti-Christian hate crimes independently recorded by OIDAC last year, the most frequent form of violence was vandalism, at 50% of reported incidents, followed by arson attacks, 15%; desecration, 13%; physical assaults, 7.5%; theft of religious objects, 5.5%; and threats, accounting for 4% of incidents. These figures do not account for burglaries at religious sites, of which there were nearly 900 additional recorded cases.

While reported anti-Christian hate crimes have generally decreased, the number of personal attacks — including assault, harassment, and threats — "rose from 232 in 2023 to 274 in 2024."

The watchdog indicated on the basis of police and civil society data that the top five European nations most affected by anti-Christian hate crimes last year were, in descending order, France, Britain, Germany, Austria, and Spain.

Among the incidents highlighted in the worst-rated country, France, were the destruction of historic Church of the Immaculate Conception in Saint-Omer by an arsonist on Sept. 2, 2024, and the March 11, 2024, vandalism of a church and desecration of the cemetery in the village Clermont-d'Excideuil, where "Isa will break the cross" and "Submit to Islam" were spray-painted on graves, the war memorial, and the church door.

Since many of the offenders have not been apprehended, the watchdog group could not say definitively what is driving this trend. However, among the 93 cases OIDAC documented wherein the perpetrators' motives or affiliations could be established, "the most common were linked to radical Islamist ideology (35), radical left-wing ideology (19), radical right-wing ideology (7), and other political motives (11). Additionally, 15 incidents featured satanic symbols or references."

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Packed churches, skyrocketing conversions: Is New York undergoing a Catholic renaissance?



The years-long trend of American de-Christianization recently came to an end, with the Christian share of the U.S. population stabilizing at roughly six in ten Americans, according to Pew Research Center data. Of the 62% of adults who now identify as Christians, 40% are Protestants, 19% are Catholics, and 3% belong to other Christian denominations.

There are signs in multiple jurisdictions pointing to something greater than a mere stabilization under way — at least where the Catholic Church is concerned.

The New York Post recently found that multiple New York City Catholic parishes have not only seen a spike in conversions but their churches routinely fill to the brim. That's likely good news for the Archdiocese of New York, which was found in a recent Catholic World Report analysis to have been among the 10 least fruitful dioceses in 2023 in terms of baptism, conversion, seminarian, and wedding rates.

'We've got a real booming thing happening here.'

Fr. Jonah Teller, the Dominican parochial vicar at Saint Joseph's in Greenwich Village, told the Post that the number of catechumens enrolled in his parish's Order of Christian Initiation of Adults for the purposes of conversion has tripled since 2024, with around 130 people signing up.

Over on the Upper East Side, St. Vincent Ferrer has seen its numbers double since last year, jumping to 90 catechumens. The Basilica of St. Patrick's Old Cathedral has reportedly also seen its numbers double, ballooning to around 100 people. The Diocese of Brooklyn doubled its 2023 numbers last year when it welcomed 538 adults into the faith and expects the numbers to remain high again this year.

Attendance in New York City reportedly skyrocketed in the wake of the assassination of Charlie Kirk, who was apparently attending mass with his Catholic wife, Erika, and their children.

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"We're out of space and exploring adding more masses," Fr. Daniel Ray, a Catholic Legionary priest in Manhattan, told the Post. "We've got a real booming thing happening here, and it's not because of some marketing campaign."

While a number of catechumens cited Kirk's assassination as part of what drove them to the Catholic Church, others cited a a desire for a life- and family-strengthening relationship with God; a desire to partake in the joy observed in certain devout Catholics; a desire for community; a desire for "guardrails"; and a desire for anchorage and meaning in a chaotic world where politics has become a substitute for faith.

"My generation is watching things fall apart," Kiegan Lenihan, a catechumen in the OCIA at St. Joseph's told the Post. "When things all seem to be going wrong in greater society, maybe organized religion isn’t that bad."

Lenihan, a 28-year-old software engineer, spent a portion of his youth reading the works of atheist intellectuals such as Christopher Hitchens and Richard Dawkins. After experiencing an anxiety-induced crisis at school, he apparently sought out something of greater substance, devouring the works of Marcus Aurelius. He found that his life still lacked greater meaning despite achieving material success.

'The Catholic Church is a place of sanity.'

"I realized on paper, I had everything I wanted, but I had no fulfillment in my soul," said Lenihan, who remedied the problem by turning to Christ.

Liz Flynn, a 35-year-old Brooklyn carpenter who is in OCIA at Old St. Patrick's, previously sought relief for her anxiety and depression in self-help books and dabbled in "pseudo spiritualism."

After finding a book about God's unconditional love for his children in a gift shop during a road-trip stop at Cracker Barrel, she began praying the rosary and developed an appreciation for Catholicism.

"I'm happier and calmer than I've ever been," Flynn told the Post. "Prayer has made an enormous impact on my life."

New York City is hardly the only diocese enjoying an explosion in conversions.

The National Catholic Register reported in April that numerous dioceses across the country were seeing substantial increases in conversions. For instance:

  • the Diocese of Cleveland was on track to have 812 converts at Easter 2025 — 50% more than in 2024 and about 75% more than in 2023;
  • the Diocese of San Angelo, Texas, expected 56% more converts in 2025 (607) than in 2024 (388);
  • the Diocese of Marquette, Michigan, was expected to see a year-over-year doubling of conversions;
  • the Diocese of Springfield, Illinois, was expected to see a 59% year-over-year increase;
  • the Diocese of Grand Island, Nebraska, was set for a 45% increase;
  • the Diocese of Steubenville, Ohio, was expecting a 39% increase in converts; and
  • the Archdiocese of Los Angeles noted a 44% increase in adult converts.

Besides the Holy Spirit, the conversions were attributed to the National Eucharistic Revival, immigration, and evangelization.

Pueblo Bishop Stephen Berg told the Register that people are flocking to the church because it stands as a bulwark against the madness of the age.

"I think the perception of the Catholic Church is changing," said Bishop Berg. "In a world of insanity, I think that people are noticing that the Catholic Church is a place of sanity."

"For 2,000 years, you know, through a lot of turbulent times — and the Church has been through turbulent times — we still stand as the consistent teacher of the faith of Christ," continued Berg. "The people are intrigued by that."

As of March, 20% of Americans described themselves as Catholics, putting the number of Catholic adults at around 53 million nationwide.

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Bishop raises hell after woke priest allows homosexual ABC broadcaster to receive Eucharist beside his 'husband'



Bishop Joseph Strickland, the cleric removed from his office in Tyler, Texas, in 2023 by the late Pope Francis, urged his colleagues gathered on Wednesday for the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops' plenary assembly to address the matter of a woke priest's apparent willingness to run afoul of the church's custom and to turn a hallowed Catholic ceremony into a non-straight spectacle.

Gio Benitez, a homosexual ABC News correspondent who is "married" to a man, apparently decided after Pope Francis' passing last year to make his way back to the Catholic Church. Benitez, who was allegedly baptized in secret at the age of 15, was confirmed at St. Paul the Apostle's Church in New York City on Nov. 8.

'Here we are talking about doctrine.'

"My Confirmation Mass was a very small gathering of family and friends who have quietly been with me on this journey," Benitez wrote on Instagram. "I found the Ark of the Covenant in my heart, stored there by the one who created me… exactly as I am."

The ABC News correspondent also received holy communion from the church's woke pastor, Rev. Eric Andrews, at the highly publicized mass where LGBT activist Fr. James Martin was a concelebrant and where Benitez's "husband" served as his sponsor.

Blaze News reached out to Rev. Andrews for comment, but did not receive a response.

While the Catholic Church holds that homosexual acts are "acts of grave depravity," "intrinsically disordered," "contrary to the natural law," and "can under no circumstances" be approved, the Catechism states that homosexual persons must nevertheless "be accepted with respect, compassion, and sensitivity."

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Bishop Joseph Strickland. Photo by Craig F. Walker/Boston Globe via Getty Images

The church has also made clear that Catholics with same-sex attraction who are chaste can "participate fully in the spiritual and sacramental life of the Catholic faith community."

However, those who regularly engage in sexual activity or are partners in a committed homosexual relationship that includes regular sexual relations are not to receive holy communion or serve in public ministries.

"Receiving the sacrament is the ultimate expression of our Catholic faith, an intensely personal matter between communicant and priest," wrote the late and posthumously exonerated Cardinal George Pell. "It's not a question of refusing homosexuals or someone who is homosexually oriented. The rule is basically the same for everyone."

"If a person is actually engaged in — by public admission, at any given time — a practice contrary to Church teaching in a serious matter, then that person is not entitled to receive Holy Communion," continued Pell. "This would apply, for example, to a married person openly living in adultery. Similarly, persons who openly declare themselves active homosexuals take a position which makes it impossible for them to receive Holy Communion."

During a USCCB discussion of doctrine on Wednesday, Bishop Strickland raised the matter of Benitez's highly publicized reception of holy communion while flanked by his "husband."

"I don't know how many of us have seen on the social media priests and others gathered, celebrating the confirmation of a man living with a man openly," said Strickland. "It just needs to be addressed. Father James Martin once again involved. Great pictures of all of them smiling."

Bishop Strickland and Martin have traded barbs over the years, largely around Martin's subversive LGBT activism and apparent efforts to liberalize the Catholic Church's stance on such matters.

Martin — who shared an article titled "Gio Benitez, Openly Gay ABC Anchor, Joins the Catholic Church" on social media this week with the caption "Happy to be a part of your journey!" — has made no secret of his activism. For instance, he took issue with the Supreme Court's June 2025 decision to let parents opt their children out of lessons featuring LGBT propaganda and insinuated that homosexual persons aren't really bound by church teaching.

"Here we are talking about doctrine," continued Strickland. "I just thought I need to raise that issue. I know it's not part of any agenda, but this body gathered, we need to address it."

The panel, focused on updated ethical and religious directives for Catholic health care services, did not take up Strickland's concern.

The Catholic Herald noted that Strickland's tenure as bishop of Tyler was "marked by a reputation for directness, a strong emphasis on Eucharistic devotion, and a willingness to challenge trends in the wider Church that he believed risked undermining the clarity of Catholic teaching."

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New head of US Catholic Bishops said he would deny communion to pro-abortion politicians



Archbishop Paul S. Coakley is not in favor of giving politicians preferential treatment.

Coakley, archbishop of Oklahoma City, was elected as the next president of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops in a secret ballot on Tuesday and will serve a three-year term as president.

'I think in many cases it becomes the right decision and the only choice.'

Coakley has set a strong precedent for supporting the denial of communion to certain politicians that dates back more than a decade.

Most recently, in 2022, Coakley spoke in support of Archbishop Salvatore Joseph Cordileone of San Francisco. As reported by Life News, Cordileone decided to withhold communion from Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) at the time after she backed the Democrats as they blocked a vote on a bill to stop infanticide at least 80 times.

As Pelosi's district encompasses San Francisco, Cordileone informed Pelosi she would be denied communion following her repeated dismissal of the archbishop, who attempted to speak with her about supporting "grave evil."

Coakley supported the decision, saying, "I applaud the courage of Archbishop Cordileone and his leadership in taking this difficult step. Let us continue to pray for Abp. Cordileone, priests of the Archdiocese of San Francisco, Speaker Pelosi, for the protection of the unborn, and for the conversion of hearts and minds."

The new USCCB president has remained consistent, and the proof is showcased in an interview he gave in 2014.

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— (@)

After Coakley said that many Catholic politicians have been at the forefront of "fostering so-called abortion rights," he was asked about denying them communion due to the "severity" of their support for abortion.

Coakley replied, "I think one has to determine yet at what point it can be determined that they have come to that state of obstinate refusal to desist from that condition of manifest, grave sin."

He told Life Site News, "I think we have an obligation as bishops, as pastors, to try to work with them to bring them to a change of heart and refusing them communion would be, not the first, but more than likely, the last stage in a serious [sic] of steps."

The outlet then clarified, asking if it was something he would rule out or not.

"Oh, absolutely not," Coakley reiterated. "I think it is something that Canon Law sanctions and that I think many bishops find themselves with no other choice but to make that decision. I think in many cases it becomes the right decision and the only choice."

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VATICAN - 2022/06/29: US House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi (R), with her husband, Paul Pelosi (C), attend a Holy Mass for the Solemnity of Saints Peter and Paul lead by Pope Francis in St. Peter's Basilica. (Photo by Stefano Costantino/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)

Upon accepting his new role, Coakley wrote a statement on X about being "put out into deep waters" in his new position.

"Once again, the Lord is inviting me," he wrote. "Please pray that I may be a faithful steward and a wise servant of unity and communion with our Holy Father, Pope Leo, and with my brother bishops."

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'May the Prince of Peace have mercy on us': Vance prays at site of Christ's death and resurrection



Vice President JD Vance visited the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem with his wife, Usha, on Thursday, attending a private Mass and praying at the site of Jesus Christ's crucifixion and empty tomb.

Vance, a convert to Catholicism whose wife is a Hindu, visited all of the sites within the sprawling basilica, including Golgotha, the "place of the skull" where Jesus was crucified; the Stone of Anointing, which is believed to be the limestone slab where Jesus' body was prepared for burial; and the Holy Sepulchre, Joseph of Arimathea's monument where Christ's body was interred prior to his resurrection.

'I think we're on a very good pathway.'

In addition to thanking the Franciscan monks who celebrated a private Mass for his family and for those Americans working for peace, Vance expressed gratitude to the Catholic, Greek, and Armenian priests who have long cared for the holy place, stating, "What an amazing blessing to have visited the site of Christ's death and resurrection."

Following an 4th-century investigation into the whereabouts of the site where Christ was crucified and buried, the Roman emperor Constantine settled on the current location — which had long been venerated by the early Christians — to erect a basilica.

Since Hadrian previously had the location strategically covered with pagan temples, Constantine had the pagan shrines toppled to make room for a basilica where the Church of the Holy Sepulchre — largely an 11th-century crusader reconstruction — now stands despite fires, Muslim attacks, and earthquakes.

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Photo by NATHAN HOWARD/POOL/AFP via Getty Images

At the Stone of Anointing, a bishop provided Vance on Thursday with a red pillow on which to kneel, and so he did, making the sign of the cross, placing his hand on the limestone slab, and bowing his head in silent prayer, according to a White House press report.

After Vance and his wife headed to the empty tomb, a bishop told the White House press pool that he was lighting two candles from the flame at the Holy Sepulchre to send back to the White House.

At one point during the tour of the church, Vance joked to a bishop, "You guys have been protecting me from bumping my head. You could join the Secret Service."

Photo by NATHAN HOWARD/POOL/AFP via Getty Images

Theophilos III, the patriarch of the Orthodox Church of Jerusalem, was among the Christian clergymen who greeted and accompanied the vice president.

According to the Jerusalem Patriarchate, Theophilos III "conveyed his respectful greetings to President Donald J. Trump and expressed his heartfelt appreciation for the efforts of the United States administration, under President Trump’s leadership, to bring about a ceasefire in Gaza and to alleviate the suffering of the innocent."

Days prior to his visit to the church, Vance told reporters, "I hope to go to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, which Christians believe is the site that Jesus Christ was crucified in. And I know that Christians have many titles for Jesus Christ, and one of them is the Prince of Peace. ... I'd ask all people of faith, in particular my fellow Christians, to pray that the Prince of Peace can continue to work a miracle in this region in the world."

After his visit to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, Vance stated, "May the Prince of Peace have mercy on us, and bless our efforts for peace."

Keen on maintaining the fragile peace brokered by President Donald Trump in Gaza, Vance said on Thursday before leaving Israel that he was "insulted" by the 25-24 vote in the Knesset to annex the West Bank, stressing it was a "political stunt with no practical significance."

Despite the provocative vote, Vance thanked the Israeli government for hosting him and underscored, "I think we're on a very good pathway."

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LA Dodgers pitcher Blake Treinen puts Christian faith front and center ahead of World Series: 'Make heaven crowded'



Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Blake Treinen is putting his Christianity front and center yet again.

Treinen is part of a pitching staff that, along with star Clayton Kershaw, has stood up for religious freedoms in the face of disturbing times in California.

'Every single one of us have been given a gift ...'

When a transgender-promoting, anti-Christian activist group was invited to Dodger Stadium in 2023, Treinen accused the group of "mocking the religious habits of nuns" and "mocking what [Catholics] hold most deeply."

Now, ahead of the Dodgers' second straight trip to the World Series, Treinen made it clear how important his Christian faith is in his life.

"I think my family's name is great in the eyes of God, but in the eyes of the world, nobody really knew the Treinens," the pitcher told CBN Sports.

"I don't really care if they do," he continued. "I want them to see Christ's greatness and what he's accomplished in my career."

Treinen said he wanted to see everyone go to heaven while also expressing care for others, saying, "I don't want to see any of my teammates or anybody in the stands or anybody in this world face the alternative."

"How do we make heaven crowded?" Treinen asked. "That's really my goal."

"Every single one of us have been given a gift, and our way of repaying it to the Lord is how do we honor Him with that gift?" he concluded. "When I am welcomed into the gates of heaven, I want to hear 'job well done, good and faithful servant.'"

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Teammate Kershaw, meanwhile, stood out for his own religious fervor earlier this season when the Dodgers celebrated gay Pride Night.

While Kershaw took issue with the same event as Treinen in 2023, on Pride Night this June, the pitcher participated in wearing his team's rainbow-themed cap — but added a caveat.

"Gen 9:12-16," Kershaw's hat read. The player had written a Bible passage next to the Pride logo.

In the King James Bible, the passage states the following:

And God said, This is the token of the covenant which I make between me and you and every living creature that is with you, for perpetual generations: I do set my bow in the cloud, and it shall be for a token of a covenant between me and the earth. And it shall come to pass, when I bring a cloud over the earth, that the bow shall be seen in the cloud: and I will remember my covenant, which is between me and you and every living creature of all flesh; and the waters shall no more become a flood to destroy all flesh. And the bow shall be in the cloud; and I will look upon it, that I may remember the everlasting covenant between God and every living creature of all flesh that is upon the earth.

The Dodgers have been mired in controversy all year as the team seemingly battles the ethics of a far-left California setting with its generally conservative baseball fan base.

Also in June, an activist singer purposely sang the national anthem in Spanish at a Dodgers game to protest against the deportation of illegal immigrants who are Hispanic.

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There were also reports in June of Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents using Dodgers property as a staging area; the team and ICE gave conflicting reports on the matter.

Furthermore, in July, the Dodgers were hit with an anti-discrimination lawsuit over alleged diversity hiring initiatives.

Lastly, a Make-A-Wish foundation executive resigned in October after being caught on camera threatening to call ICE on a Dodgers fan at a playoff game against the Milwaukee Brewers.

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