A Catholic priest in England reportedly warned a Liberal Democrat member of parliament in his parish that he would be refused communion should he vote in favor of the United Kingdom's controversial assisted suicide bill.

Despite this warning, Chris Coghlan voted in favor of the bill on June 20 and claimed he did so in accordance with his "conscience."

While Coghlan underscored in a Saturday op-ed that his faith is irrelevant to his parliamentary responsibilities, Father Ian Vane of St. Joseph's Catholic Church in Dorking, England, indicated that the liberal's political decisions were very much relevant to whether he could receive the Eucharist.

'Intentional euthanasia, whatever its forms or motives, is murder.'

After learning that he would be denied communion — evidently not in person, as the Observer indicated the lawmaker didn't even show up to the relevant masses — Coghlan had an ugly meltdown online, calling the priest's actions "outrageous"; accusing Fr. Vane of "completely inappropriate interference in democracy"; filing a complaint with Bishop Richard Moth, the bishop of Arundel and Brighton, who publicly campaigned against the bill; and suggesting lawmakers' faith should be publicly considered when they vote on matters of possible relevance.

"I was deeply disturbed to receive an email from my local priest four days before the vote on Kim Leadbeater's assisted dying bill saying if I voted in favour I would be 'an obstinate public sinner,'" Coghlan noted in his op-ed. "Worse, I would be complicit in a 'murderous act, which must always be forbidden and excluded.' Such a vote would, he wrote, be 'a clear contravention of the Church’s teaching, which would leave me in the position of not being able to give you holy communion, as to do so would cause scandal in the Church.'"

Coghlan suggested that the priest was in the wrong and had wrongly characterized so-called "assisted dying" as a "murderous act."

While the leftist lawmaker indicated his faith was "profoundly important" to him, he appears to have greatly misunderstood or altogether missed the church's unwavering moral stances on euthanasia and suicide.

The Catechism of the Catholic Church clearly states that "intentional euthanasia, whatever its forms or motives, is murder. It is gravely contrary to the dignity of the human person and to the respect due to the living God, his Creator."

The Catechism also states that "suicide is seriously contrary to justice, hope, and charity" and is "forbidden by the fifth commandment."

Carl Court/Getty Images

Canon 915 in the Code of Canon Law forbids the administration of communion to those who obstinately persevere "in manifest grave sin."

One year prior to becoming pope in 2005, then-Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger signed a memorandum on the Congregation for the Doctrine of Faith clarifying that:

Regarding the grave sin of abortion or euthanasia, when a person’s formal cooperation becomes manifest (understood, in the case of a Catholic politician, as his consistently campaigning and voting for permissive abortion and euthanasia laws), his Pastor should meet with him, instructing him about the Church’s teaching, informing him that he is not to present himself for Holy Communion until he brings to an end the objective situation of sin, and warning him that he will otherwise be denied the Eucharist.

In other words, Fr. Vane did exactly as expected by the church and echoed the Catholic Church's longstanding moral teaching when warning then admonishing Coghlan.

In advance of the parliamentary vote on the legislation, Bishop Moth, the recipient of Coghlan's complaint, encouraged Catholics in his diocese to "pray earnestly that the dignity of human life is respected from the moment of conception to natural death" and to urge their members of parliament to vote against the bill.

"While the proposed legislation may offer assurances of safeguards, the evidence is clear that, in those countries such as Canada and Belgium (to take just two examples) where legislation approving 'assisted dying' is in place, it takes little time before the criteria for 'assisted dying' expand, often including those living with mental illness and others who do not have a terminal diagnosis," wrote Moth.

Despite being framed as a "stringently limited, carefully monitored system of exceptions" around the time of its legalization in 2016, state-facilitated suicide is now a leading cause of death in Canada, accounting for 4.7% of all Canadian deaths last year.

As Moth indicated, so-called medical assistance in dying in Canada is not just killing moribund people, but individuals who could otherwise live for years or decades, as well as victims whose primary symptom is suicidal ideation.

After parliament voted 314 to 291 in favor of changing British law to legalize assisted suicide earlier this month, Catholic Archbishop John Sherrington, lead bishop for life issues for the Catholic Bishop's Conference, reiterated the church's opposition to the legalization of assisted suicide, noting, "We are shocked and disappointed that MPs have voted in favour of the Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill. This Bill is flawed in principle with several provisions that give us great cause for concern."

Coghlan claimed that after the vote, his priest "publicly announced at mass that he was indeed denying me holy communion as I had breached canon law."

'There is no in-between. Choose.'

The leftist politician continued complaining on X, writing, "It is a matter of grave public interest the extent to which religious MPs came under pressure to represent their religion and not necessarily their constituents in the assisted dying vote."

"This was utterly disrespectful to my family, my constituents including the congregation, and the democratic process. My private religion will continue to have zero direct relevance to my work as an MP representing all my constituents without fear or favour," added Coghlan.

Blaze News reached out to Fr. Vane for comment but did not immediately receive a response.

In addition to stressing that religion should effectively be neutralized in public so that Britain could "be a secular country" — par for the course in a nation where silent prayer can already result in a criminal record — Coghlan suggested that lawmakers' faith should be publicized and taken into account when relevant to parliamentary votes.

Vuk Valcic/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images

"Constituents’ [sic] absolutely should know if an MP is of faith on a conscience vote and is obliged by their faith to vote a certain way and/or is under pressure from religious authorities from their faith to do so. It is potentially a clear conflict of interest with putting their constituents first," wrote Coghlan.

The Catholic Diocese of Arundel and Brighton told the Observer in a statement, "Bishop Richard spoke to Mr. Coghlan earlier this week and has offered to meet him in person to discuss the issues and concerns raised."

While the leftist lawmaker received an outpouring of support online from secularists, he was also met with biting criticism from orthodox Christians.

Dr. Chad Pecknold, associated professor of systematic theology at the Catholic University of America, noted, "Mr. Coghlan, I've taught Christianity and Politics for many years. What you express is not a Catholic but a Liberal view that your faith should be something private. Western civilization was built upon the very public nature of Christianity. Your faith is either Liberal, and you have owned it, or your Faith is Catholic, and you have denied it. There is no in-between. Choose."

"Good work by this priest," wrote Fr. Matthew Schneider, a priest with the Legionaries of Christ and Regnum Christi. "If you are not a devout member of a Church, it should not matter if you receive Communion. If you are a devout member, your faith should penetrate your life enough to vote in accord with common good, & not for murdering the sick & disabled."

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This is true fatherhood: My dad's final act defined love and manhood

Almost 17 years ago, the Washington Post reported that a father had drowned while saving his son’s life. That man’s name was Tom Vander Woude. He was my dad.

Every Father’s Day, I reflect on what I learned from his life and death.

'It is usually pretty easy to know what is right or wrong. We are usually the ones who make it more difficult.'

In many ways, he was an ordinary man. He was born on a farm and died on a farm. He loved watermelon and ice cream. At age 22, he married his high school sweetheart, and they raised seven sons together. I am the fifth. He flew for the Navy, coached basketball, and prayed every day. Dad selflessly served God, family, and country.

My youngest brother, Joseph, was born with Down syndrome. From the moment he entered the world, Joseph and Dad were inseparable. When Joseph was a toddler, the doctors told my parents that crawling, though difficult for him, would help Joseph’s physical and mental development. Dad made makeshift elbow pads for them both and got down on his hands and knees to spend hours with Joseph crawling around the house. As Joseph got older, he went everywhere with Dad — sitting on the bench while Dad coached, attending daily Mass, riding in the truck while listening to country music, and working on the family farm.

Then one fateful day in 2008, my dad taught me something I will never forget: True fatherhood requires sacrificial love.

That day, while working on our house, Dad noticed something wrong: The top of our septic tank had collapsed, and Joseph, who was 22 years old, was nowhere to be found. Dad rushed to the tank and found Joseph struggling to keep his head above the pool of sewage. Wasting no time, Dad dove into the muck and managed to get beneath Joseph.

But realizing he couldn’t save Joseph on his own, Dad told a nearby worker, “You pull and I’ll push,” took his last breath, and descended beneath my brother to lift him above the deadly fumes.

Shortly afterward, my mom watched helplessly as the first responders treated my brother and retrieved the lifeless body of my father, the love of her life. Remarkably, Joseph survived, and he assists my mother to this day in her golden years.

On that tragic day, I lost my role model and dad, but I learned a profound lesson about sacrifice. Habitual small acts of service prepare you for acts of heroism.

Dad often said, “It is usually pretty easy to know what is right or wrong. We are usually the ones who make it more difficult.”

For Dad, doing the right thing meant performing quiet acts of service and sacrifice for others. To save money for our college tuition, he would only buy older cars. When furloughed from the airlines, he worked as a laborer at a horse farm to pay the bills. When a family of 12 moved to the area, my dad offered for them to stay in our already-full farmhouse while they looked for a house; then he co-signed their mortgage. When the local Catholic parish was founded, my parents volunteered as sacristans and altar server coordinators.

Because of my dad’s courageous example of service and sacrifice, the local Catholic diocese is considering opening his cause for canonization.

The Catholic Church, through a lengthy and detailed process, can solemnly declare that individuals who lived a heroically virtuous life are saints with God in heaven. In 2017, Pope Francis added a new path to sainthood for those who lay down their lives out of love for others. If my dad’s life and death fit these criteria, his story may inspire fathers, husbands, and all people for years to come.

Dad’s untimely death was tragic. To this day, I miss his smile and guidance. I am grateful for the profound impact he had on me in his short life, not only as a man but as a father and a husband. His joy, his determination, his dedication to his family, his quiet strength, and his deep faith are just a few things that motivate me to be the best version of myself.

Every day, and especially on Father’s Day, I hope and pray that I can be like my dad.

Apple preaches a gospel of inclusion — but proves Christianity isn't included

According to some, Christianity is in vogue.

A recent New York Times article, for example, called attention to the fact that “necklaces with cross pendants are appearing with renewed prevalence” on “red carpets, on social media, at protests by high-ranking Democrats and in the White House.”

To make fun of the practice is nothing short of sacrilege.

But even celebrities donning cross necklaces are not enough to convince mainstream television producers that the world’s largest religious group deserves the same basic respect as any other religion or worldview.

Episode six of the popular Apple TV+ show “Your Friends & Neighbors” shamelessly depicts characters desecrating the Eucharist — what Catholics believe is the very body of Christ – inside a Catholic church. The depiction reeks of intolerance and insult toward Catholicism, and it has no place being produced and promoted by Apple, a company that claims diversity and inclusion as core values.

The least Apple should do is issue a formal apology to viewers. Even better, the company should retract the episode in keeping with its tolerance policies.

Catholic or not, viewers can tell that the scene in question bears little relevance to the show’s plot, making it nothing more than a mean-spirited and targeted attempt to mock Catholicism. In the scene, two main characters break into a Catholic church, steal consecrated hosts from the tabernacle, eat them as snacks, and profane the Eucharist before engaging in sexual activity in the pews.

Despite how Apple inappropriately portrays it, the Eucharist is far from a mere piece of bread or meaningless cup of wine.

Catholics believe that it is the body, soul, and divinity of Jesus Christ himself. The practice of receiving communion was instituted by Christ at the Last Supper, and since then, receiving his body at Mass is “the source and summit of the Christian life.”

To make fun of the practice is nothing short of sacrilege.

sedmak/iStock/Getty Images Plus

What’s more, Apple’s affront comes at a time when Catholics are in a celebratory and hopeful frame of mind following the recent election of our new pope, Leo XIV.

It is also deeply disturbing that Apple would go so far as to break its own commitment to “a North Star of dignity, respect, and opportunity for everyone,” as its mission statement reads. The company claims its values “create a culture of collaboration where different experiences, backgrounds, and perspectives come together to make something magical and meaningful. ... We’re not all the same. And that remains one of our greatest strengths.”

But promoting content that degrades the Catholic faith directly violates this principle. It also directly contradicts Apple CEO Tim Cook’s self-proclaimed “reverence for religious freedom.” Cook explained in a 2015 opinion editorial that “Apple is open. Open to everyone, regardless of where they come from, what they look like, how they worship or who they love.”

Unfortunately, Apple’s blasphemy is part of a nationwide targeting of Catholicism that has permeated our culture, even while influencers adorn themselves in Christian jewelry.

Since 2020, more than 500 Catholic churches have suffered physical attacks and vandalism including acts of arson, spray-painting and graffiti of satanic messages, rocks and bricks thrown through windows, and statues destroyed. Likewise, in 2024, Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer released a video of herself placing a Dorito chip on Canadian journalist Liz Plank’s tongue as if to mimic a Catholic priest administering communion. After pushback from offended Catholics, Whitmer issued an apology.

Now, faithful Catholics are calling on Apple to remove its blasphemous episode of “Your Friends & Neighbors” from its platform and return to its guiding principle of diversity and tolerance for all perspectives, including the practices of Catholicism.

We hope that Catholics will no longer have to endure such discriminatory and hateful content when they watch shows meant to entertain and enlighten viewers of all backgrounds.

'True or false?!' NFL player demands answers after priest is accused of viewing occult-themed porn on parish computer

NFL player Jake McQuaide stood up during a church service and demanded answers following accusations that a priest looked at pornography on a parish computer.

Local reports said a whistleblower came forward with troubling allegations about a laptop "located in the parish office operated by a priest."

A churchgoer from Our Lady of the Visitation in Green Township, Ohio, told WKEF-TV that the whistleblower sent him and his wife "disturbing images" in March that came directly from the laptop.

'Did the priest use our parish computer to look at pornography?'

Thumbnails to "porn sites" and "links to virtual reality role-playing sites involving sexual assault, rape, and occult themes" were found on the laptop, according to parishioner Todd Zureick, who filed a formal complaint with the archdiocese in April.

The accusations prompted a visit to Our Lady of the Visitation from Jason Williams, chancellor of the Cincinnati Archdiocese. During Mass on Saturday, Williams read a letter from Archbishop Robert Casey regarding investigations into the claims.

"Several concerns have been brought to the attention of the archdiocese. These have been investigated, and no wrongdoing — either criminally or ecclesiastically — has been substantiated. … Consequently, like gossip, the spreading of rumors is sinful, and we should all work to overcome this tendency of our fallen human nature," the letter stated.

It was at that point that former Miami Dolphins player McQuaide spoke up, and the moment was captured on video during the church's livestream.

"Please take a second. We want to put these rumors to rest. Can you answer this for me … fact or fiction?" McQuaide is heard saying on video.

"This is not the time for this," Williams appeared to reply from the alter.

"I'm sorry, sir, this is the time and the place. I will stand up,” McQuaide insisted. "Did the priest use our parish computer to look at pornography? … True or false?!"

Unsatisfied with the chancellor, and as other parishioners approached him, McQuaide persisted.

"You can look at pornography at your house, but you cannot do it here."

The football player claimed he had seen the images in question and felt it was indeed the time to raise the issue.

By this point, police who were already at the parish approached the two-time Pro Bowl player. One officer grabbed McQuaide by the wrist and took him down the aisle.

Blaze News reached out to Green Township Police to learn why they were there in the first place.

Photo by Amy Lemus/NurPhoto via Getty Images

"Officers were present at the service at the request of the church," Captain Mitch Hill told Blaze News.

Officers were there for "general security," Hill continued, adding that church operators were "concerned about disruptions."

Furthermore, WKEF reported that officers were hired by the church to handle disruptions that were "anticipated."

Regarding whether or not McQuaide was trespassed or barred from the property, Hill explained to Blaze News that the football player "was not charged with a crime" and the removal was "temporary and the church permitted him to return."

Allegations against the priest have not affected his standing in the church; the archdiocese said he is still "in good standing" with no investigations being conducted. According to the letter, the priest in question will soon go on a "previously planned sabbatical" beginning in July.

As for possible crimes, Green Township police told WCPO-TV that they were "not provided any complaints from parishioners."

Captain Hill added that "absent an aggravating factor," viewing pornography in and of itself would not be considered illegal, nor would it be cause for a criminal investigation.

The Archdiocese of Cincinnati told WKEF the priest "did not use a parish-owned computer to view pornography."

The Archdiocese of Cincinnati did not respond to Blaze News' request for comment.

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Amy Coney Barrett’s recusal leaves religious liberty twisting in the wind

The U.S. Supreme Court’s 4-4 deadlock last week left intact the Oklahoma Supreme Court’s ruling against St. Isidore of Seville Catholic Virtual School — a failure of constitutional courage and a setback for educational freedom.

The tie lets stand a decision that discriminates against faith-based institutions by denying them the same public charter school opportunities extended to secular organizations. It rests on a misguided reading of the First Amendment’s Establishment Clause and ignores the protections guaranteed by the Free Exercise clause.

Families deserve more than crumbling bureaucracies and ideological indoctrination. They need real alternatives — the kind private and parochial schools have offered for generations.

Plaintiffs, including the Oklahoma Statewide Charter School Board, made a compelling case: Excluding St. Isidore solely because of its Catholic identity violates the Constitution.

In Carson v. Makin (2022), the Supreme Court ruled that states cannot deny religious organizations access to public benefits otherwise available to all. Charter schools, while publicly funded, operate independently and serve as laboratories of innovation. St. Isidore committed to meeting Oklahoma’s curriculum standards and serving any student who applied. Its disqualification stemmed from one reason alone: its religious mission.

That’s religious discrimination, plain and simple.

The Oklahoma Supreme Court misread the Establishment Clause, and the U.S. Supreme Court failed to correct the error. The clause doesn’t forbid religious organizations to participate in public programs. It forbids the state to establish an official religion — not from offering families the freedom to choose a Catholic education within a public framework.

St. Isidore wouldn’t force anyone to adhere to Catholic doctrine. It would simply give parents another option — one grounded in a Judeo-Christian worldview and committed to academic excellence. Banning that option undermines pluralism and silences voices that have historically delivered high standards and moral clarity in American education.

Meanwhile, public education in the United States teeters toward collapse. Students trail their peers globally. In some districts, basic literacy remains out of reach. Families deserve more than crumbling bureaucracies and ideological indoctrination. They need real alternatives — the kind private and parochial schools have offered for generations.

Faith-based schools routinely outperform their government-run counterparts. Instead of blocking them from public charter programs, states should welcome their success and harness their model. Innovation doesn’t threaten the system. It might save it.

Oklahoma Attorney General Gentner Drummond, despite claiming to be a Republican, sided with liberal secularists in opposing St. Isidore. His legal brief warned of “chaos” and raised alarm over hypothetical funding for “radical Islamic schools” — a tired slippery-slope argument that ignores the core issue of equal treatment under the law.

Bill Clark/CQ-Roll Call Inc. via Getty Images

Drummond abandoned conservative principles like school choice and religious liberty. Instead, he backed those who place rigid interpretations of church-state separation above fairness. His stance helped fuel the Supreme Court’s deadlock and undercut Oklahoma families seeking diverse educational options.

The Supreme Court’s failure to resolve this question, due in part to Justice Amy Coney Barrett’s recusal, leaves a constitutional gray area: Can states bar religious organizations from public programs that remain open to everyone else?

Parents deserve the right to choose schools that reflect their values — whether religious or secular. By excluding St. Isidore, the state has effectively declared that faith-based institutions are second-class citizens. That’s not just bad policy. It’s a dangerous precedent in a nation founded on religious liberty.

The founders never intended to wall off religion from public life. They saw the Christian faith and Judeo-Christian values as cornerstones of strong, free societies. Most early American schools were church-run. Today, the pendulum has swung too far to the left. Progressive bureaucrats attack the very moral foundations that made America successful in the first place.

If we want to make America great again, we need to reclaim those values and push back against the cultural nonsense that sidelines faith.

If we want to reverse the decline of American education, we need more choices — not fewer. This fight isn’t over. Oklahoma will keep defending parental rights and religious freedom. The St. Isidore case remains unfinished business — and we intend to finish it. Faith-based schools must have the freedom to educate our children without unconstitutional restrictions.

Trump judge kills Biden requirement that employers accommodate workers' efforts to abort their unborn children

A federal judge killed a controversial Biden Equal Employment Opportunity Commission rule and guidance on Wednesday that both required employers to provide paid leave and other accommodations to employees seeking abortion and restricted their ability to take adverse employment actions against employees' who demanded such accommodations.

U.S. District Judge David Joseph of the Western District of Louisiana, a Trump appointee, ruled that the EEOC "exceeded its statutory authority" when implementing the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act and, "in doing so, both unlawfully expropriated the authority of Congress and encroached upon the sovereignty of the Plaintiff States [Louisiana and Mississippi] under basic principles of federalism."

The ruling was in response to consolidated litigation.

The first case was brought by the states of Louisiana and Mississippi, both of which passed near-total abortion bans in the wake of the U.S. Supreme Court's 2022 Dobbs decision, on May 13, 2024. The states argued that the Biden regulation violated the Administrative Procedure Act and the Constitution.

The second case was filed later that month by the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty on behalf of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, the Catholic University of America, and two Catholic dioceses. The plaintiffs argued that the rule not only exceeded congressional authority but required them to knowingly violate their sincerely held beliefs about the "moral evil" of abortion by abetting their employees' efforts to kill their unborn children.

Timothy Broglio, president of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, noted in an op-ed last May that the original PWFA passed in 2022 was cause for celebration as its "purpose was laudable and obvious: to expand protections for pregnant women in the workplace."

'States have many legitimate interests in regulating abortion, including "respect for and preservation of prenatal life at all stages of development."'

Broglio noted, however, that the Biden EEOC "subverted the law's noble goal by turning it into an abortion-accommodation mandate. That is unjust and illegal."

Louisiana and Mississippi similarly suggested the PWFA had been hijacked, noting the Biden EEOC's "Final Rule not only runs roughshod over the PWFA's text, but also runs afoul of Dobbs."

Guy Edward Bartkus. Image Source: FBI. American Reproductive Centers. Photo by GABRIEL OSORIO/AFP via Getty Images

"There, the Supreme Court expressly recognized that the States have many legitimate interests in regulating abortion, including 'respect for and preservation of prenatal life at all stages of development,'" the states said in their original complaint. "But the Final Rule contravenes Dobbs by requiring the Plaintiff States to accommodate the very types of abortions that they have chosen, in their sovereign capacities, to proscribe — or else face federal lawsuits for money damages and injunctive relief."

In June, Judge Joseph consolidated the cases and enjoined the EEOC from enforcing its abortion mandate against the Catholic plaintiffs as well as employers located in the two red states.

Joseph torpedoed the abortion accommodation and ordered that any implementing regulations or guidance requiring or suggesting to employees that they are required to provide employees with accommodation for purely elective abortions "are also hereby VACATED and immediately without effect."

Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murrill celebrated the ruling, calling it a "win for Louisiana and for life!"

"This court's decision to deny workers reasonable accommodations for abortion-related needs is part of a broader attack on women's rights and reproductive freedom," said Inimai Chettiar, president of A Better Balance, a liberal activist group that previously opposed President Donald Trump's Supreme Court nominees and championed the passage of the regulation. "This court's sudden decision to rewrite those regulations upends workers' and employers' understanding of and reliance on settled precedent."

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Together, pope and patriarch return to Nicaea on 1,700th anniversary of defining moment in Christendom

Seventeen centuries ago, bishops from around the known world gathered in Nicaea to affirm and codify the core tenets of the Christian faith. Now, as the anniversary of that defining moment in Christendom approaches, leaders on either side of the Great Schism are preparing to return, drawing East and West closer and renewing hope in the promise of Christian unity.

In the year 325, Emperor Constantine I called over 250 bishops — 318, according to tradition — to convene during the pontificate of Pope Sylvester I in the Bithynian city of Nicaea, 55 miles southeast of present-day Istanbul. It was the largest gathering of bishops in the church's history up until that time.

While the council would ultimately address a number of practical and ecclesiastic matters, it prioritized tackling the Arian heresy, which entailed a rebuke and an affirmation of the divinity of Christ — "God from God, light from light, True God from True God, begotten, not made, of the same substance as the Father, by Whom all things were made" — and setting the date on which to commemorate Jesus' resurrection.

This dogmatic council was of critical importance both then to the unified church and now to Catholics, Orthodox, Anglicans, and other Protestants, perhaps most notably for its production of the Nicene Creed — a statement of faith, mutually held as authoritative, that predates both the Chalcedonian schism and the Great Schism.

Pope Leo XIV and Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I of Constantinople are making a joint trip to the place where their predecessors met 17 centuries earlier. While various obstacles some figured to be insurmountable still stand in the way of full reunification, the meeting of the Christian leaders on this particular anniversary and the anniversary itself have sparked renewed interest in Christian unity and the ground that the faithful share in common.

Of popes and plans

Prior to his passing, Pope Francis proposed celebrating the 1,700th anniversary with Orthodox leaders in a Nov. 30 letter to Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I of Constantinople, who previously indicated a joint trip was expected to happen in late May.

Pope Francis noted in his letter to the patriarch that the Catholic Church's "dialogue with the Orthodox Church has been and continues to be particularly fruitful," yet acknowledged that the "ultimate goal of dialogue, full communion among all Christians, sharing in the one Eucharistic chalice, has not yet been realized with our Orthodox brother and sisters," which "is not surprising, for divisions dating back a millennium, cannot be resolved within a few decades."

'It is good whenever the pope and the patriarch meet.'

Prior to heading back to Toronto from Rome, where he participated in the conclave that elected the new pope, Archbishop Emeritus Thomas Cardinal Collins told Blaze News, "The 1700th anniversary of the Council of Nicaea is most important for all Christians, because it was there that the bishops clarified the basic Christian faith in the divinity of Christ. The Nicene Creed, from this council and the next one, in Constantinople a few years later, is still the basic expression of our faith in the Trinity."

First Council of Nicaea. Found in the collection of Saint Sophia Cathedral, Kiev. Photo by Fine Art Images/Heritage Images/Getty Images

"The division of East and West that occurred much later in 1054 is most unfortunate and has impeded the spread of the gospel," continued Collins. "But the churches of East and West, while having different theological and liturgical styles, recognize one another's apostolic succession and, with a few issues still in dispute, basically agree on doctrine as well. One thing that divides us is historical memories, but increased cooperation has brought some healing there."

'The remembrance of that important event will surely strengthen the bonds that already exist.'

Cardinal Collins noted further that "it is good whenever the pope and the patriarch meet. All Christians, facing so many external dangers, need to work together. The anniversary of Nicaea, which occurred long before the division of East and West, is a perfect opportunity to deepen our knowledge and love for one another, but especially Jesus. The closer we are to Him, the closer we will be to one another."

Pope Francis, then evidently of a similar mind, told Patriarch Bartholomew I that the anniversary would be "another opportunity to bear witness to the growing communion that already exists among all who are baptized in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit."

"This anniversary will concern not only the ancient Sees that took part actively in the Council, but all Christians who continue to profess their faith in the words of the Nicene-Constantinopolitan Creed," wrote Pope Francis. "The remembrance of that important event will surely strengthen the bonds that already exist and encourage all Churches to a renewed witness in today's world."

The interest in a joint trip was evidently mutual.

During a March address in Harbiye, Turkey, Patriarch Bartholomew underscored his desire for a joint celebration of the anniversary, reported the Orthodox Times. He also emphasized the importance of the Council of Nicaea.

"The Council of Nicaea stands as a landmark in the formation of the Church's doctrinal identity and remains the model for addressing doctrinal and canonical challenges on an ecumenical level," said Patriarch Bartholomew.

Photo by Vatican Media via Vatican Pool/Getty Images

Their plans hit a major snag the following month.

Pope Francis died hours after Easter Sunday — the first time the Catholic and Orthodox Churches had celebrated Easter on the same day in eight years.

"He was due to come to our country, and together we would go to Nicaea, where the First Ecumenical Council was convened, to honor the memory of the Holy Fathers and exchange thoughts and wishes for the future of Christianity," Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew said in the wake of Pope Francis' passing. "All of this, of course, was canceled — or rather postponed."

'We are preparing it.'

"I believe that his successor will come, and we will go together to Nicaea to send a message of unity, love, brotherhood, and shared path toward the future of Christianity," added the patriarch.

It would not be clear for several days whom the papal conclave would elect as Francis' successor and whether he would have a similar interest in an East-West convention in Nicaea on the anniversary of the council.

The Chicagoan steps up to the plate

Various leaders in the Christian East welcomed the new bishop of Rome following his May 8 election.

Patriarch Bartholomew of Constantinople, among them, expressed hope that Pope Leo XIV will "be a dear brother and collaborator ... for the rapprochement of our churches, for the unity of the whole Christian family, and for the benefit of humankind," reported Vatican News.

Days later, Pope Leo XVI reportedly stated, "The meeting with Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew will take place; we are preparing it."

When asked about the significance of the joint trip, the likelihood of East-West reunification, and Orthodox interest in such reunification, Fr. Barnabas Powell, a parish priest in the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America speaking on his own behalf, told Blaze News, "There is simply no way one can be faithful to Christ and not long for the unity of all Christians."

RELATED: Not Francis 2.0: Why Pope Leo XIV is a problem for the 'woke' agenda

Photo (left): Abdulhamid Hosbas/Anadolu via Getty Images; Photo (right): Simone Risoluti - Vatican Media via Vatican Pool/Getty Images

"We Orthodox pray for the unity of the churches in every service. Our Archbishop [Elpidophoros of America] has proven by his prayers and actions that he longs for unity," said Fr. Powell. "But unity isn't merely accepting certain propositional proposals. St. Paul said the Church is the bride of Christ, and this profound witness of the identity of the Church is ontologically connected to the mystery of relationship and love. This means we must work to know one another and not merely know about one another."

"This is hard work in light of the tragic centuries we have been apart. But just because something is difficult doesn't mean we shouldn't try," added Fr. Powell.

The Greek Orthodox priest expressed optimism about the joint trip to Nicaea, noting that as the "first Nicaea showed us that we are to gather together to struggle and dialogue through our challenges, so this is the normal Christian discipline for us today."

'I'm not in the odds-making business, but there is certainly justified hope.'

The Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America notes on its website that the "anniversary celebration brings together Orthodox, Catholics, and Protestants to reflect on the enduring significance of Nicaea, fostering conciliarity, dialogue, prayer, and a renewed commitment to the pursuit of Christian unity, echoing the spirit of the first ecumenical council."

Monsignor Roger Landry, national director of the Pontifical Mission Societies in the United States, told Blaze News that over the past six decades, popes and the patriarchs of Constantinople have been regularly "meeting, praying, and slowly working for restored communion, as have the churches they lead."

Msgr. Landry suggested that "there's no question" that one of Pope Leo XIV's top priorities, "as we celebrate the 1700th anniversary of the Council of Nicaea and move toward the 1000th anniversary of the lamentable split between East and West in 1054, will be to take whatever steps, big or small, that will help the church breathe with both lungs again in communion" — a reference to Pope St. John Paul II's 1995 metaphor of the Western and Eastern churches as two lungs.

Echoing Cardinal Collins and Fr. Powell, Msgr. Landry noted that there remain various obstacles in the way of restoration of full communion — including the date of Easter, the role of the pope, the Filioque controversy, the sacrament of marriage, the respect for the legitimate autonomy of the Eastern churches — but there is nevertheless "a mutual desire for that communion and a mutual humble dependence on God to reveal the path forward."

"I'm not in the odds-making business, but there is certainly justified hope because the issues that divide us are small in comparison to the faith, sacraments, life, and calling that unite us," Msgr. Landry told Blaze News. "We are moving together in the right direction."

In the meantime, he suggested that the ongoing separation "is a scandal that hinders the witness Christians are called to give of God."

Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew's joint trip to Nicaea with Pope Leo XIV is hardly the only celebration of the anniversary that has brought East and West together.

Earlier this month in Freehold, New Jersey, hierarchs, clergy, seminarians, and faithful from Eastern and Western traditions — including elements of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the USA, the Serbian Orthodox Church, the Orthodox Church in America, the Greek Orthodox Metropolis of New Jersey, the Byzantine Catholic Eparchy of Passaic, the St. Thomas Syro-Malabar Eparchy, and the Roman Catholic Diocese of Brooklyn — participated in an ecumenical prayer service "testifying to the unifying power of the Nicene Creed and the enduring vision of the Council Fathers."

Similar celebrations have been held elsewhere across the world.

The Catholic Church's International Theological Commission stated in a recent publication concerning the Council of Nicaea and the 1,700th anniversary:

The celebration of the 1,700th anniversary of the Council of Nicaea is a pressing invitation to the Church to rediscover the treasure entrusted to her and to draw from it so as to share it with joy, with a new impetus, indeed in a "new stage of evangelisation." To proclaim Jesus our Salvation on the basis of the faith expressed at Nicaea, as professed in the Nicene-Constantinople symbol, is first of all to allow ourselves to be amazed by the immensity of Christ, so that all may be amazed, to rekindle the fire of our love for the Lord Jesus, so that all may burn with love for him. Nothing and no one is more beautiful, more life-giving, more necessary than he is."

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