Christian correspondent
Christian desk
Grace Whitfield is The Gold Standard's Christian correspondent. Whitfield covers parishes, university campuses and houses of faith, and reports the church as ordinary news, open to every reader.
26 Sep 2026: Leo XIV meets French Episcopal Conference bishops at Saint Bernadette auditorium, Shrine of Our Lady of Lourdes. Marian hinge between Paris Friday and Metz Monday. Life motto; survivors’ pastoral note. Vatican bollettino 7 Aug.
Pope Leo XIV’s first France apostolic journey 25–28 Sep 2026. Motto John 6:51. Paris Élysée/UNESCO/Notre-Dame; Lourdes bishops; Metz peace and interreligious. Survivors’ private meeting prepared with survivors. Vatican bollettino 7 Aug.
On Sunday in St Peter's Square, Pope Leo XIV named one debt that doesn't imprison anyone: mutual love. Monday evening in Genazzano he asked Our Lady of Good Counsel for aid to make courageous and wise decisions. Between the two, an appeal for Ukraine and a golden rose.
ITC document Caring for Our Common Home published 2 Sep 2026 with Leo XIV authorisation. Sin against creation and the Creator. Situated anthropocentrism. Eucharist as ecological school. Vatican News.
Pope Leo XIV General Audience 2 Sep 2026 begins Gaudium et Spes catechesis. Church serves humanity, unmasks contradictions. GS 1–10. Vatican News. Gospel as news.
St Mary’s Upper Coomera grew Alpha from six leaders to 18, about 40 people. Hong Kong cathedral’s teen Alpha began 23 August. Complementary to RCIA. Named parishes, named people already on the record.
Church of the Highlands opened about 4,120 square metres at 1601 Leon Smith Parkway on 30 August. 1,200 seats. Highlands Haven for the first time at Oxford. Ribbon-cutting Saturday. Services at 8:00, 9:30, and 11:00.
Elder Patrick Kearon dedicated the Phnom Penh Cambodia Temple on 30 August 2026. It is the 222nd temple of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. About 924 square metres on 1.3 hectares.
On 29 August Pope Leo XIV’s Mutua Concordia gave Eastern synods an orderly way to restore communion. The Pope stays guarantor.
Washington named nearly two billion dollars for faith-based health and disaster partners, the largest such global-health allocation in more than twenty years. World Vision and Compassion are on the sheet.
The eighth National Church Life Survey is open through October. Twenty-one denominations are in. Late congregations can still sign the sheet.
