World Press Freedom Day 2026 Celebrated Around the World

One of the annual celebrations of UNESCO is World Press Freedom Day on May 3. In 2026 the theme was “Shaping a Future of Peace.” According to UNESCO the day highlights the essential role of a free, independent, and responsible media in building peaceful and just societies.

It is intended as a reminder to governments of the need to respect their commitment to press freedom. It is also a day for reflection among media practitioners about issues of press freedom and professional ethics and the need for them to be true to their commitment.

In Rome, William J. Harry, O. Carm., the director of the Office of Communications for the Carmelite Order, stressed the need for journalists and the companies that employ them not to get caught up in skewing their reporting to garner larger audiences and more revenue. “Unfortunately, this has become a common practice, especially on American television and internet social media. What has been sacrificed is inconvenient truth in order to secure higher profits. This, of course, raises the question of the ethics of some journalists.”

UNESCO reports that press freedom is “in sharp decline everywhere.” Financing has become a major issue. One analysis shows that just 15 days of the annual global military spending would equal a full year of the investment needed to support public-interest journalism worldwide.

In Cameroon, Bishop Michael Miiabesue Bibi of the Diocese of Buea called for protection of press freedom, reminding everyone that a free and responsible media is essential for promoting peace, justice, and human dignity. In building a culture of peace, journalists are key actors said Bishop Bibi. He said “Freedom of press … should not become a cliché … and return to old forms of repression.”

“Freedom is not absolute; it is tied to the obligation of representing reality accurately and respectfully,” Bishop Bibi said, adding that journalism should be guided by a desire to foster justice and peace rather than personal or vested interests.

In Latin America and the Caribbean, an event was held bringing together journalists, media organizations, civil society actors, public institutions, and government representatives. The goal was to create some dialogue on current challenges and opportunities shaping press freedom in the region.

The UNESCO/Guillermo Cano World Press Freedom Prize for 2026 was awarded to the Sudanese Journalists Syndicate in recognition of its work defending press freedom while the ongoing conflict rages in Sudan. The ceremony was held in Paris.

A panel discussion marked World Press Freedom Day in Thailand. Jointly sponsored by UNESCO and the Foreign Correspondents’ Club of Thailand, the gathering discussed what it takes to keep reporting, why it matters, and what the future holds.

According to UNESCO’s Observatory of Killed Journalists, 14 have died so far in 2026. Since the beginning of the Observatory, 1860 journalists have lost their lives. In 2025, 96 journalists died.

9 May Optional Memorial (Obligatory Memorial in the province of Malta)

Saint George Preca was born in Valletta, Malta, on February 12, 1880. Ordained a priest in 1906, he immediately began dedicating himself to catechizing children. For this mission, he founded the Society of Christian Doctrine in 1907, known as M.U.S.E.U.M. (Magister utinam sequatur Evangelium universus mundus), for which he had to endure many insults. He dedicated his entire life to popular preaching and catechesis, and wrote a large number of books, most of which were aimed at the formation of the members of his Society. His effective apostolate was the fruit of a life of prayer and constant meditation on Sacred Scripture. His spirituality was founded on humility and meekness.

On July 21, 1918, Don Giorgio joined the Carmelite Third Order, and on July 26 of the following year, he made his profession. As a tertiary, he chose the name Franco, after Blessed Franco of Siena, and signed some of his books as Father Franco, Carmelite. In 1952, Prior General Fr. Kiliano Lynch affiliated him with the Order as a sign of recognition for having greatly promoted devotion to the Blessed Virgin of Carmel.

Don Giorgio Preca died on July 26, 1962, and Pope John Paul II declared him blessed on May 9, 2001. Pope Benedict XVI canonized him on June 3, 2007.

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8 May Optional Memorial

Because of his virtues, he was looked down upon and treated badly even by the less observant friars. He, however, bore all the annoyances and the temperament of those religious with great patience, and he practiced virtue and devoted himself to the good of the convent. Since he lived in great austerity, he was gaunt in appearance, with a pale face and sunken eyes, but with a lively and honest gaze.

He was a good example to those who came to visit him, and those who frequented him were often moved to tears by his kind words and examples.

Brother Luigi, even though he was prior, did not spare himself from work; on the contrary, he behaved like the humblest of the friars in the convent, going door to door throughout the city of Randazzo to collect alms of bread, candles, and similar items, to support the friars and do good for all. In fact, while he was begging, the poor would turn to him for alms, knowing that he would not fail to distribute the bread he himself had received.

Once, on Easter Sunday, the friars of the convent ate meat, but he wanted bread and water as usual, as attested by Friar Pietro Cubani, a companion of Blessed Luigi. He also recounted that while Blessed Luigi himself was going from farmyard to farmyard and from farmhouse to farmhouse on his usual alms round, an arrow was shot at him from the road and struck him in the forehead, leaving him bedridden for quite some time. Many asked him to reveal who had wounded him, but he never would, and instead, with great patience, he would repeat: “May God forgive him; praise be to God.”

There was a path leading to the convent of St. Michael that was rough and notorious; to eliminate the scandal and immorality that prevailed there, he purchased a plot of land and opened another road, working on it personally alongside those who, at his request, had come to help him. If Brother Luigi needed a favor for the benefit of the convent, no one would say no to him, but they were only too happy to assist him, in remembrance of the benefits they had received, for his courteous manner, and for his generous hospitality.

After he passed from this life, his body was placed in a coffin beneath the main altar of the church, enclosed by an iron grille; and many venerated and invoked him, especially those suffering from quartan fever, who were healed. These things were said then, and are still repeated today.

(Fr. Simonelli, Blessed Luigi Rabatà, Rome, 1968, pp. 74–76)

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Promise of the Spirit, Love Among Us,
Love Within Us (John 14:15-21)

• pdf Celebrating At Home - Sixth Sunday of Easter [PDF](3.07 MB)
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• pdf Celebrando en Familia - Sexto Domingo de Pascua(815 KB)
• pdf Celebrando in Casa - VI Domenica di Pasqua(797 KB)
• pdf Comemorando em família - Sexto Domingo de Páscoa(774 KB)

Elective Chapter Held in Carmelite Monastery of Carmel of Mary, Star of the Sea in Tanay, Philippines

Carmel of Mary, Star of the Sea, of the Diocese of Antipolo, Rizal, Philippines, held its 9th Canonical Election of the Prioress on February 19, 2026. Following the celebration of the Votive Mass of the Holy Spirit, the election was presided over by the Most Rev. Ruperto C. Santos, D.D., the bishop of Antipolo.

The elections of the other officials followed on February 24, 2026.

The community will celebrate the Silver Anniversary of its foundation in 2001 on November 11 this year. The Silver Anniversary of the dedication of its chapel will be celebrated on December 15, 2027. As the first and only foundation of teh Stella Maris Federation of the Carmelite Nuns in the Philippines, the monastery is the fruit of the union of the member monasteries.

The nuns elected to leadership roles are:

Prioress | Priora | Priora:
Sr Maria Esperanza of the Immaculate Heart of Mary Ceclio, O. Carm.

1st Councilor | 1ª Consejera | 1ª Consigliera:
Sr Maria Wilma of Jesus Crucified Galang, O. Carm.

2nd Councilor | 2ª Consejera | 2ª Consigliera:
Sr Maryver of the Cross Mabanta, O. Carm.

3rd Councilor | 3ª Consejera | 3ª Consigliera:
Sr Maria Alma Jesusa of the Divine Mercy Santos, O. Carm.

4th Councilor | 4ª Consejera | 4ª Consigliera:
Sr Maria Rebecca of the Sacred Heart of Jesus Valdez, O. Carm.

Treasurer | Ecónoma | Economa:
Sr Mary Grace of the Crucified and Risen Jesus Bruno, O. Carm.

Formator | Formadora | Formatrice:
Sr Maria Rebecca of the Sacred Heart of Jesus Valdez, O. Carm.

Sacristan | Sacristana | Sacrestana:
Sr Mary Therese Katherine of Jesus Balane, O. Carm.

May 5th | Memorial

Angelus is thought to have been one of the first Carmelites to return to Sicily from Mount Carmel and, according to a long-standing tradition, he was murdered in Licata during the first half of the 13th century.

The cult of Saint Angelus spread throughout the Order and among ordinary lay people. Angelus and St Albert of Trapani are considered the "fathers" of the Order because they were the first two saints to have a cult in the Order.

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Between 1625 and 1627, a “trial” was held in Licata on the miracles attributed to the Carmelite Saint Angelus, whose martyrdom, according to hagiographic tradition, was said to have occurred in the very town overlooking the Sicilian Channel. A detailed study of the proceedings of the trial can be found in the book Miracula et Benefitia: Malattia, Thaumaturgia e devozione a Licata e in Sicilia nella prima età moderna by Marco Papasidero, published by Edizioni Carmelitane.

The Commissariat of Catalonia was established in 1932. Almost immediately difficuties began. In February 1934 the Carmelite church was desecrated. In October Communist guards were placed at the door of the priory to prevent the religious from leaving. In June 1936 the mayor forbade religious from teaching in the schools and working in hospitals. Shortly thereafter, a Carmelite was stoned while walking on the street. The only newspaper to defend the religious was closed down on July 18th. The following day churches and monasteries were pillaged, ransacked, and burned. On July 20, the Feast of St. Elijah, the community disbanded.

The story of the Carmelites during this time and a biography of many of the martyred Catalonian Carmelites can be found in the book Profiles in Holiness I by Redemptus M. Valabek, O. Carm., published by Edizioni Carmelitane.

Read more on the lives of these martyrs ....

Fr. Desiderio García Martínez, O. Carm., the prior general, has the following schedule planned for the month of May 2026:

May 4-8, 2026: Chapter of the Dutch Province
May 18-24, 2026: Provincial Chapter of East Indonesia
May 27-29, 2026: Assembly of the Union of General Superiors
May 30-31, 2026: Meeting of the TOC-Castellina and Florence Family

Jesus, Our Way, Truth and Life (Jn 14:1-12)

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Carmelite Represents Malta at Meeting of European Religious Leaders

Religious leaders from across Europe gathered in Croatia this past week for the biannual conference of Major Superiors, organized by the Union of the European Conferences of Major Superiors (UCESM). Representatives from numerous countries came together to reflect on the current realities and future direction of religious life in Europe. Among the participants, are Carmelite prior provincial of the Maltese province, Charles Mallia, member of the executive committee. He is representing Malta.

The conference hopes to foster dialogue, shared learning, and collaboration on key issues shaping religious communities today, particularly within the European context. Discussions focus on both emerging challenges and practical aspects concerning the governance and mission of UCESM.

Four themes, guiding the reflections, were covered in thematic sessions: safeguarding in religious communities, the digital world: challenges and tensions, youth culture and engagement, and interculturality in religious life.