Catholic Leaders Question Iran War, Pope Leo Meets Tehran Archbishop, New Vatican Prefect Named, Measles Vaccine Guidance and Midwest Storm Faith Stories

Hello, I'm Maggie Murray of OSV News, and this is your OSV newscast for Thursday, March

12, 2026. Let's catch you up on the Catholic News of the day. Here we go.

As fighting between the United States, Israel and Iran continues, several U.S. Catholic

bishops are raising moral concerns about the conflict. Warning, it may not meet the Catholic

Church's criteria for a just war. Since the start of the war, church leaders have pointed

to the church's long-standing teaching that armed conflict must meet strict moral conditions

in order to be considered legitimate. Cardinal Robert McAroy of Washington has been among

the most direct critics. He said the current conflict fails to meet the just war standard

and is therefore morally illegitimate. Bishop Anthony Taylor of Little Rock, Arkansas,

has made similar arguments. Also outlining the church's traditional criteria used to evaluate

whether military force can be morally justified. The Trump administration has defended the

joint U.S. Israeli strikes on Iran as necessary to counter threats from Iran. But Cardinal

McAroy said the church's just war teaching reflects an abiding resistance to war rooted

in Christ's call to discipleship. He added that the moral questions raised by the conflict

point to a broader need for dialogue and moral renewal within the United States.

With the Vatican, Pope Leo XIV has met privately with the Catholic Archbishop of Tehran after

the prelet was evacuated from Iran amid escalating military strikes. The Pope met March 11th

with Cardinal Dominique Matthew, the Franciscan Archbishop of Tehran and Isfahan. The Belgian

born Cardinal had arrived in Rome three days earlier as part of the evacuation of the Italian

Embassy in Tehran, where the Archdiocese is headquartered. The meeting came the same day

Pope Leo publicly renewed his appeal for peace during his general audience in St. Peter Square.

Addressing the faithful, the Pope asked Catholics to continue praying for peace in Iran and

across the Middle East, particularly for civilians caught in the violence, including children.

The conflict now in its second week has expanded beyond Iran and into southern Lebanon. Cardinal

Matthew's whereabouts had been unknown for several days after U.S. and Israeli strikes on February

28th killed Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Khamenei and other officials. In a message to a Belgian

Catholic news outlet, the Cardinal said he left Iran not without regret and sorrow for the country's

Christian community. Pope Leo XIV has appointed a new leader for the Vatican office responsible for

the Pope's charitable outreach around the world. The Vatican announced March 12th that Spanish

Augustinian Bishop Luis Mareen De San Martín will become the prefect of the

Dicastry for the service of charity. The appointment means Bishop Mareen will oversee charitable works

carried out in the name of the Pope, including distributing aid to those in need and responding

to disasters. With the new role, Pope Leo also granted him the rank of Archbishop. Archbishop

Mareen succeeds Cardinal Conrad Krayewski, who has served for more than a decade as people

all manner. Cardinal Krayewski will now return to his native Poland as the Metropolitan Archbishop

of Lutz. The Pope and new Archbishop share a long connection. Archbishop Mareen lived in the same

Augustinian community in Rome as the future Pope Leo, then Father Robert Prevost, when he served as

prior general of the order. Reflecting on the Pope's leadership after his election, Mareen said he

believes Leo is the right person to guide the Church at this moment.

As measles cases increase across the United States, a Catholic physician in Deakin is reminding

families that the Church supports vaccination to protect children and communities. Dr. Timothy

Flanagan, an infectious disease specialist with Brown Medicine and a permanent Deakin in the

diocese of Providence, Rhode Island, said Catholics should remain vigilant as the illness spreads.

According to federal health data, the U.S. has already recorded more than 1000 measles cases

in 2026, making it one of the three worst years for the disease since 2000. Health experts warn

measles is among the most contagious diseases and can be particularly dangerous for babies and

young children. However, the measles' mumps and rebella vaccine, commonly known as the MMR

vaccine, is highly effective. When both doses are received, it is about 97% effective at preventing

measles. Church teaching has also addressed the issue. In 2017, the Pontifical Academy for Life

issued updated moral guidance stating that Catholic parents should vaccinate their children for the

good of their families and the wider community. Across parts of the Midwest, Catholic communities are

beginning to recover after severe storms and tornadoes left destruction in their wake. At least

eight people were killed after storms swept through several states between March 6th and March 10th,

with millions more still under tornado warnings as of March 11th. In Canca-Kee, Illinois,

Bishop McNamara Catholic School asked for prayers for families affected by the storms.

School officials said many families in the area, including those connected to the school,

suffered damage or the loss of their homes and belongings. Yet amid the destruction,

some signs of hope emerged. The school's newly built chapel, located at the center of its building,

remained untouched even though water entered other parts of the structure through the roof.

In Three Rivers, Michigan, students at Immaculate Conception School also experienced the

storm's danger firsthand. During a tornado alert, March 6th students sheltered in place inside

the school. While waiting out the storm, they prayed and sang the hymn, this little light of mine

together in the dark.

In Three Rivers, Michigan, students at Immaculate Conception School also experienced the storm's danger