"We told the Holy Father that we are afraid because we are forgetting our language; it is being extinguished because we are asphyxiated by the models of development that come from outside that do not respect life."

The fund was created in the wake of the Thomas Fire that struck Ventura and Santa Barbara counties in 2017-18.

The pastoral care of Hispanic families and immigrants, accompaniment of youth and young adults, and leadership development were the top priorities that Hispanic ministry leaders of seven dioceses, including the Archdiocese of Washington, addressed Oct. 5 at The Catholic University of America.

Catholics joined an array of faith communities, human rights groups, clergy, refugees and refugee resettlement agencies gathered outside the U.S. Capitol Oct. 15 protesting deep cuts to the refugee admissions program.

The Synod of Bishops for the Amazon is not a "referendum" on priestly celibacy; it is looking for ways to provide for the sacramental life and formation of the people there, U.S. Cardinal Sean P. O'Malley of Boston said.

Anitalia Pijachi, an indigenous woman from the Amazonian town of Leticia, Colombia, came to the Synod of Bishops for the Amazon bringing a message from the elders of her people to Pope Francis, an elder of the Catholic Church.