Our Sunday Visitor's 2024 Catholics of the Year
(OSV News) -- By the time December rolls around each year, it feels like the past 12 months have seen it all. In particular for 2024, they saw tens of thousands of people kneeling in Lucas Oil Stadium; the doors of Notre Dame Cathedral reopened; a history-making election; another Roman synod; and, always, too much war and strife.
Looking back at the year, editors at OSV, in their longstanding tradition of shining a light on exemplary signs of faith, have named the following 10 individuals Catholics of the Year for 2024.
Exiled Bishop Rolando Álvarez of Matagalpa, Nicaragua, for being the steadfast hero of Catholic resistance to the Ortega regime
Bishop Rolando Álvarez of Matagalpa, Nicaragua, was sentenced to 26 years in prison on Feb. 10, 2023, as he refused to board a flight to the United States with other exiled clergy and laity from Nicaragua. For almost a year behind bars -- until Jan. 14, 2024, when he was released from prison and exiled to the Vatican -- he gave the bloody Nicaraguan regime of Daniel Ortega and the world a lesson. During his time of imprisonment, Bishop Álvarez remained close to the cross, exemplifying a steadfast pastor refusing to abandon his people and a humble servant of the Lord. Though he was honored with international awards for his unwavering commitment to religious freedom, for speaking truth to power, and for bearing witness to the inviolable nature of human dignity, Bishop Álvarez remained out of the spotlight for the year, most probably to protect the rapidly shrinking group of clergy and religious who were still allowed to stay in Nicaragua, and who are undergoing constant and brutal persecution. Bishop Álvarez is one of the greatest unbroken bishops of the century, and a true modern witness to the humble suffering of Jesus Christ.
Caitlin Clark, for combining Catholic faith with women's athletic excellence
Caitlin Clark -- University of Iowa basketball legend, historically accurate shooter, WNBA Rookie of the Year, blossoming professional superstar -- is TIME's Athlete of the Year. But Clark, who recently finished her first season for the Indiana Fever, rightly ranks among OSV's 2024 Catholics of the Year. An openly practicing Catholic with a lifetime of Catholic education in her hometown of Des Moines, Iowa, Clark is one of the most scrutinized athletes in the U.S. She's endured numerous personal attacks and cheap shots from her adversaries on and off the court. But at a time when many people think "strength" means hitting back twice as hard, Clark shows that authentic strength imitates Christ. She has responded to injustice by infusing positive energy on her teammates and coaching staff. She doesn't speak ill of her detractors. In interviews, she takes full responsibility for her mistakes. Clark also makes clear that her public stance against racism and call for the sports world to better honor Black athletes, comes out of nothing less than deep personal conviction. Without a doubt, Caitlin Clark is a 2024 All-Star Catholic.
Kimberly Henkel, for raising awareness of foster care as a pro-life issue
Part of being pro-life is caring for children of parents who have chosen life -- perhaps by default -- without being able to consistently nurture it. More than half-a-million children pass through the foster system every year in the U.S., and Catholics lag behind evangelicals in mounting an organized response. Kimberly Henkel, together with her husband, Greg, founded Springs of Love to close that gap. The organization -- a sister apostolate to the infertility ministry Springs in the Desert -- provides practical support to Catholic families that have opened themselves to caring for vulnerable children, entering an often-chaotic system in order to do so. Springs of Love teams pray, make meals and provide other material and emotional support to families struggling to care for children overwhelmingly suffering from trauma. More than half of resource families withdraw within a year, but studies show that 90% continue to foster when supported by a care team in their community. Henkel is also active in raising awareness surrounding foster parenting, connecting Catholic foster families with one another and encouraging parishes to partner with Springs of Love.
Bob Newhart, for his public witness to faith through his lasting marriage
Few in Hollywood are able to achieve what award-winning comedy icon Bob Newhart accomplished: a fruitful and lasting 60-year marriage. As we know well, the pressures and temptations associated with celebrity often break up marriages, and for his marital longevity, Newhart -- who died in 2024 -- wasn't shy about crediting his Catholic faith. And I think that same faith should be recognized for what made him a legend, too. Newhart didn't wear his religion on his sleeve, but his faith was a lived reality, which made him an outlier personally. Professionally, too: Newhart's trademark dry-wit humor didn't demean or offend, and his routines were characteristically clean -- something for which he was quite proud. It seems he even saw his profession as something of a vocation: "God has an incredible sense of humor, an unimaginable sense of humor. Just look around." In an environment, industry and era where religious virtues and values were tested and cast aside, Newhart made a career out of knowing their worth. And he still made audiences laugh for decades.
Cardinal Seán O'Malley, for his tireless advocacy of victim-survivors
After explosive 2002 reports of priestly sexual abuse against minors in the church (and subsequent coverups), the Archdiocese of Boston became a smoldering ground zero from which wreckage reverberations spread throughout the country, roiling the American church. In 2003, St. John Paul II sent into that city's detritus of shaken faith and raised fists a quiet Capuchin Franciscan friar and bishop, Seán Patrick O'Malley, who possessed a singular gift for hearing and compassionately responding to abuse victims. Putting a devastated archdiocese back together required much listening, and large and small acts of daily presence, demonstrating the bishop's fidelity to, and oneness with, so many who felt angry and betrayed by the faith. In addition to his work domestically, for 10 years, Cardinal O'Malley has served as president of the Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors, making no secret of the fact that Rome's slow-gear, deliberative approach to grave matters has at times left him feeling frustrated. As he retires at age 80, Cardinal O'Malley's steadfastness to the people he serves and to the victims of the church he loves so patiently, is an example to us all.
Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, for his leadership of the church in the Holy Land
"We are willing to help, even me personally," Cardinal Pizzaballa, the Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem, told reporters as he condemned the Hamas attacks of Oct. 7, 2023, and offered himself in exchange for the hostages. Now, more than a year into the Israel-Hamas war, Cardinal Pizzaballa continues to be a tireless advocate for peace. A champion for Christians, the cardinal has raised his voice in defense of all who have suffered directly or indirectly because of the conflict -- Palestinians and Israelis alike. Cardinal Pizzaballa's insistence that Christians have a unique role to play in the region because we have "the freedom to connect with everyone" makes me proud to be a Catholic. The cardinal's hope for peace is grounded in his faith in Jesus Christ, but that faith isn't merely a theory for him. He lives it day in and day out, doing everything he can to keep the memory of Christ in the Holy Land.
Jason Shanks, for his leadership in the successful execution of the National Eucharistic Congress
At the National Eucharistic Congress in July, nearly everyone responsible for the event's success was acknowledged on or from the stage, with one notable exception: Jason Shanks. As one of the original members of the executive team of the National Eucharistic Revival, I had often doubted that the congress would succeed. That changed when Jason took a leave of absence from his position as president of the OSV Institute to make what was looking increasingly impossible happen. Even today, after Jason became the new president of the National Eucharistic Congress in August, few of those who attended the event know his name. That lack of recognition is itself a testament to Jason's humble leadership, which placed the success of the congress ahead of personal reward in order to ignite a fire for the Eucharist in the heart of 60,000 pilgrims -- and in the heart of the church in the United States.
Philippe Villeneuve, for leaning on his faith during the restoration of Notre Dame Cathedral
To watch the flames engulf Notre Dame Cathedral in April 2019 was a thing of heartbreak. Heartbreak turned to joy in December 2024, however, when Notre Dame Cathedral reopened to the public after five intense years of rebuilding and restoration. So many are to thank for the effort that returned the cathedral of Our Lady to its people -- but among the most worthy of praise is chief architect Philippe Villenueve, who recently spoke in an interview of his devotion to the Virgin Mary. "I never stopped feeling support coming from up there," he told EWTN's Colm Flynn in December. "I don't think this project would have been possible otherwise, and I think that's what gave me the strength and determination to move forward." It was Villeneuve who suggested the feast of the Immaculate Conception as the date for the reopening, he told the Los Angeles Times, adding that restoring Notre Dame wasn't "about restoring a building" but rather "about restoring the heart of France."
Pastoral agents in the Diocese of Raleigh, for their pastoral ministry to farmworkers
"God loves you. You are not alone. Keep at it." That was the message that a parish volunteer brings to farmworkers who spend their days working under the blazing sun in the fields of North Carolina to help produce the fruit and vegetables that arrive at many tables in this country. And that is what pastoral agents in the Diocese of Raleigh try to show the migrant farmworkers in the diocese. The workers -- primarily men coming from Mexico on temporary work visas -- are far away from their families for about seven months a year, can often face harsh conditions and unfair treatment, and live at camps in remote parts of counties that do not have Catholic churches around for several miles. The pastoral agents, which include diocesan and religious order priests, missionaries and parish volunteers, work together to help in any way they can: organizing Masses, sharing the word of God, providing a hot meal, listening to them and praying together. The bishop of Raleigh has described this type of accompaniment and pastoral care as an act of humanity that reminds the workers of their God-given dignity.
30 Perpetual Pilgrims, for walking a combined 6,500 miles over 27 states with the Eucharist
Wearing backpacks, sunscreen and serious sneakers, 30 young adult Catholics spent 60 days over May, June and July traveling across the nation with the Blessed Sacrament in what has been hailed as "the largest Eucharistic procession in history" to the National Eucharistic Congress. Between their four routes, these "perpetual pilgrims" carried out the logistics of the National Eucharistic Pilgrimage, logging more than 6,500 miles on foot in processions and in adoration inside four vans-turned-mobile tabernacles, making 551 stops over 27 states in 65 dioceses. More than 250,000 Catholics joined them for Masses, processions, Holy Hours and other events, providing their meals and lodging along the way. When the pilgrims ceremoniously entered Lucas Oil Stadium July 17, the crowd roared in appreciation, a striking contrast to their long stretches of silent prayer over those eight weeks. As they accompanied the Eucharistic Lord, he worked on their hearts and showed him his love in new ways, including through conversions and miracles they witnessed on the road.