The Month of July 2026
My Friends,
Magnificent Humanity
In the brief time since he began his service as Pastor of the Universal Church, Pope Leo has been outspoken about the potential of artificial intelligence (AI), and also about its possible pitfalls. In his recently published first encyclical, Magnifica Humanitas (Magnificent Humanity), our Holy Father speaks about AI at length and in depth. He begins by grounding his thinking in a consideration of what it means to be a human person. The following is just a taste of the insight he proposes:
“Created for relationship, every human person is planned and willed by God to enter into communion with him, with others and with creation. Human dignity does not depend on a person’s abilities, wealth or position in life, nor on the right or wrong choices made; instead, it is a gift that precedes and transcends each person, endowed by God as an expression of his unfailing love. For this reason, the human person always remains the ‘way for the Church’ and the heart of every authentic path of integral human development.
“The value of persons, however, does not depend on what they achieve or produce. There are rights that apply to everyone simply by virtue of being human, and no human power can legitimately deny or arbitrarily limit them.
“No sin, failure, humiliation or exclusion can diminish the profound value of a human life that God has willed and called into being.
“For a Christian, going beyond the narrow confines of one’s own interests and committing oneself, within the limits of one’s ability, to the common good is a non-negotiable value, as is the promotion of life.
“Educating people about the use of AI, then, involves teaching them to decide when and for what purpose it ought not to be used. The speed and ease with which answers or summaries can be obtained risk extinguishing the desire to ask questions, which is a process that bears fruit only over time. As Plato wrote, the deepest and most important things are learned only after much time and effort, by engaging in discussion with others, ‘striking upon’ ideas and experiences together like flint until the spark of understanding is kindled within us.
“The digital culture multiplies connections and offers new opportunities for interaction; yet, the human heart retains an irrevocable need for genuine closeness. I invite everyone to cherish places and times where physical presence remains crucial, such as shared meals, Christian community gatherings, time spent with the lonely, and serving the poor. These are signs of a humanity that continues to believe that every person’s body is a dwelling place of God and a temple of the Holy Spirit. It is precisely this covenant between glory and fragility that becomes the criterion for evaluating the anthropological models offered by contemporary culture.”
A year of jubilee
The Year of Our Lord 2026 marks an extraordinary milestone for the Church of St. Louis. We celebrate the 200th anniversary of the founding, in 1826, of the Diocese of St. Louis.
When the Diocese of St. Louis was founded, it included the State of Missouri, the western half of Illinois, and all American territory west of the Mississippi River and north of the State of Louisiana! From it some twenty other arch/dioceses were eventually established, including what is now the Archdiocese of Chicago!
This Jubilee Year is a time for thanksgiving for grace abounding. May God continue to prosper, in us, and through us, the good work He has accomplished, to the glory of His name, and for the upbuilding of His holy people.
The principal celebration of the 200th Anniversary Jubilee will be a Mass of Thanksgiving celebrated in the Cathedral Basilica on July 18th at 10:00 AM. Cardinal Timothy Dolan, native son of St. Louis, and well-known Church historian, will be the homilist. All are invited and welcome to attend.
Commemorative prayer cards celebrating the Jubilee Year are available at the church entrances. They are yours for the taking.
There is a dedicated website with complete information on the Bicentennial Jubilee of the Archdiocese. It is worth a visit, at: https://archstl200.org/
A Saint in the making
The late Archbishop Fulton Sheen is considered by many to be the greatest preacher the Catholic Church in the United States has known. He was born in Peoria, Illinois, and, as a young priest served in the Diocese of Peoria. Later, for many years, he led the global missionary outreach of the Society for the Propagation of the Faith. His earthly remains are entombed in the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception in Peoria.
Archbishop Sheen is soon to be beatified, as the last step, before he is canonized a saint. The beatification will be celebrated in St. Louis, on September 24th, at the Dome at America’s Center. Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle, the head of the Vatican Congregation for Evangelization, as the delegate of Pope Leo XIV, will preside at the celebration. Complete details about attending the Beatification Mass are available at: https://www.celebratesheen.com/.
“You did it for me”
Each year the Archdiocesan Annual Catholic Appeal funds people programs that serve over one half million children, women and men in our metropolitan community. People of all faiths, and of no faith, benefit.
There are two goals set for us and for all by the Archdiocesan Appeal leadership. One is calculated according to a standard formula. Our formula goal is $7,350.00. The other goal is a challenge to meet the total of our gifts to the 2025 Annual Catholic Appeal last year. Our challenge goal is $32,647.00. As of 26 June 2026 your gifts total $34,656 .00.
If you have not yet had chance to do so, please make your gift, using the gift card mailed to you in April, before 14 August 2026. Should you need a replacement gift card, they are available from the rectory office. Online gifts can also be made at: Donate – 2026 ACA Campaign | 2026 ACA Campaign.
For the Annual Catholic Appeal each year I ask that you be as generous to God, and the works of God, as God has been generous to you. Your gift, then, will be the right one. I am grateful. Archbishop Rozanski is grateful. All those who benefit from your generosity are most grateful.
Deepening Faith
Because of the Fourth of July holiday weekend, our St. John’s Faith Enrichment Group will meet this month on July 12th in the church hall, following the 10:00 o’clock Mass. The gathered group reflects the diversity of our members.
The life and impact of soon-to-be-beatified Archbishop Fulton Sheen is the springboard for continuing conversation this month. The meeting usually lasts about one hour. Light refreshments are served. All are welcome.
In Brief
This Fourth of July, as we observe Independence Day, and the semiquincentennial – 250th anniversary – of the founding of our nation, we pray with thanksgiving for the freedom we enjoy here, and for the blessings that we count. We are mindful that we have not always been our best selves. We recommit ourselves, individually and all together, to the cause of justice and peace. And we renew our resolve to promote the dignity of each person and respect for every human life. So may it be! So be it! We pray.
We share the joy of Sarah and Charles Clements on the birth, 11 June 2026, of the second son, Caleb. Big brother Charlie loves his baby brother too. Caleb is proof-positive, in flesh and blood, of the age-old intuition of the Church at “love creates life”. Thanks be to God!
It was welcome news that Father Andrew Kirschmann, SJ, has been named Provincial Superior of the Jesuit Fathers Central and Southern Province. He is an immensely gifted young priest, and his leadership will be a blessing to the Jesuit community. We count him a son of the Pro-Cathedral family. Father Drew’s parents, Dick and Mary, were long-time Pro-Cathedral parishioners, and his brother, Phil, was chair of our parish council in my early days as pastor.
We keep in prayer Margaret Czapla, Dan Prater, Paul Hogan, Cardinal Justin Rigali and all who are ill, together with their loved ones and caregivers. May God give them strength, grace, and peace.
Faithfully,
Monsignor Delaney