The LOOP

The Monday Loop - September 15, 2025

VANCE TO HOST 'THE CHARLIE KIRK SHOW'

Vice President JD Vance will host “The Charlie Kirk Show” today, honoring his slain friend, Charlie Kirk, who was assassinated last week. Vance said the program will stream at noon EDT on Rumble.

BURCH VISITS POPE, DISCUSSES KIRK'S DEATH

Ambassador to the Holy See Brian Burch presented his diplomatic credentials to Pope Leo XIV Saturday, gifting a Chicago birthday cake to celebrate the Pope's 70th birthday. He also raised the news of Kirk's assassination, which the Pope met with prayers and a call against violence. Burch described the meeting “as extraordinarily friendly, like talking to a friend back home in Chicago.”

KIRK'S SUSPECTED KILLER INVOKES THE FIFTH AMENDMENT

Utah Gov. Spencer Cox said yesterday that the man suspected of assassinating Charlie Kirk has invoked his Fifth Amendment rights. He said the suspect, Tyler Robinson, has a boyfriend who is “transitioning from male to female,” and he has been “very cooperative with authorities,” unlike Robinson.

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ERIKA KIRK SPARKS LARGE MOVEMENT

"Requests to join and start Turning Point USA chapters at high schools and universities across the United States skyrocketed following Erika Kirk’s speech after the assassination of her husband," Breitbart reported.

THE STORY BEHIND CHRISTENDOM'S BOTAFUMERIO

Christendom College is home to a replica of the famous Botafumeiro of Santiago de Compostela—the world’s largest censer. Learn the story behind this magnificent piece, its deep Catholic symbolism, and see it in action at Christendom’s Christ the King Chapel.

LONDON MARCH HONORS KIRK

Tens of thousands joined Saturday's "Unite the Kingdom" rally in London, honoring Kirk with banners and tributes. Organizer Tommy Robinson praised Kirk and called the march a stand for free speech and British culture. Elon Musk also appeared via video, condemning the Left as "the party of murder."

MEET THE ARTISTS WHO PORTRAYED ST CARLO'S MARIAN VISION

Siblings George Capps and Polly Capps Paule painted St. Carlo Acutis as a child in a mystical encounter with the Blessed Mother, using sacred art to evangelize through beauty. In an interview with CatholicVote, George shared the story behind his painting “The Consecration of Carlo Acutis."

PONTIFF MARKS FEAST OF THE HOLY CROSS

In his Sunday Angelus for the celebration of the Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross, Pope Leo said that the Gospel reading, which recounts Jesus’ meeting with Nicodemus, helps explain the significance of the feast to the modern Christian.

POPE HAILS CARMELITE MARTYRS

Pope Leo joined the faithful Saturday in celebrating the canonization of the 16 Carmelite nuns of Compiègne, whose execution during the French Revolution became a symbol of Christian forgiveness and the hope of reconciliation of faith and nation.

NOT TO BE MISSED

Here are the stories we couldn’t fit in today’s LOOP: • California female athletes filed suit after a male student was allowed to change in the girls’ locker room. • Annunciation shooting victim Sophia Forchas' family calls her upgraded condition a “miracle” and urges prayers. • A UN expert is urging the government to protect parents’ rights to shield their children from gender ideology.

GOOD MEN: NOT ROCKET SCIENCE

Countless articles, conversations, books, and posts argue about masculinity: why it's indispensable, what's real, what's false, how this, how that. But Roman Emperor Marcus Aurelius wrote: “Waste no more time arguing what a good man should be. Be one.” Perhaps he has a point.

CATHOLIC 101

What is eutrapelia? It's the Christian virtue of good, honest enjoyment — having fun and engaging in true leisure. Now, who doesn't want to be a master in this virtue? Here, Br. Ambrose Power, O.P., tells us how to get our daily dose.

SAINT OF THE DAY

Today, the Church celebrates the feast day of Our Lady of Sorrows, which commemorates the seven sorrows of Mary tied to her Son’s salvific mission. The feast's origins date back to the 13th century, when a province of Cologne observed the feast day in expiation for the sins of the heretical group known as the Hussites.

DAILY PSALM

"Blessed be the Lord, for he has heard my prayer." (Psalm 28)

DAILY READINGS

Today's Mass readings.

TIRED OF MEANINGLESS STANDARDIZED TESTS?

Classic Learning Test (CLT) offers exams that complement, not compromise, your Catholic education. The CLT “really tests for this understanding of truth, goodness, and beauty” — Bishop James Conley