God hands Ezekiel a scroll covered front and back in "lamentation and wailing and woe" and tells him to eat it. He does - and it tasted sweet as honey in his mouth. Then he is sent to speak. The Gospel gives us the same movement: "Unless you turn and become like children, you will not enter the Kingdom of heaven... See that you do not despise one of these little ones" (Matthew 18:3, 10). The bitter word, received with humility, becomes sweet. The little ones - the children, the poor, the last - are the measure of the Kingdom. Today's news asks us to look at who the little ones are right now.

The deeper reflection on today's readings - and a daily prayer for your household - is waiting in the & Altar app and at andaltar.com. More after the news.

📰 Quick Hits

1. Colombia: 132 Dead, the Tallest Cathedral in the Americas Partially Collapsed

Yesterday morning at 7:34 a.m., a 7.4-magnitude earthquake struck western Colombia - the largest seismic event recorded in the country this century. As of Monday evening, at least 132 people were dead and more than 570 injured across multiple cities including Cali, Pereira, and Manizales. Rescue teams worked through the night pulling survivors from collapsed buildings; in Cali alone, at least 19 buildings came down entirely. In Manizales, one of the side towers of the Cathedral Basilica of Our Lady of the Rosary - the tallest neo-Gothic cathedral in the Americas, 390 feet high - collapsed and fell into the nave. Secretary of State Rubio said the US stands ready to support Colombia. Catholic Relief Services and Caritas Colombia are mobilizing. The death toll is expected to rise as rescue teams reach remote communities in Chocó.

Faith Lens for the Home: The little ones are under rubble in Pereira this morning. Ask your family: "When a disaster happens somewhere we've never been, to people we've never met, what does our faith call us to do?" Then consider giving to CRS at crs.org/colombia. Pray tonight for the families searching through rubble, for the rescue workers working without sleep, and for the community of Manizales, who lost their cathedral.

2. Fauci's Texts: "Theoretically Could Be Associated With Miscarriage"

On Monday, Republican Senators Ron Johnson and Rand Paul released a four-page text exchange from January 25, 2021, among Dr. Anthony Fauci, then-CDC Director Rochelle Walensky, and then-Surgeon General nominee Vivek Murthy. In the exchange, Fauci wrote: "Since many people have significant cytokine storm and fever after the 2nd dose, this theoretically could be associated with miscarriage in the 1st trimester." Walensky replied: "Definitely a good point, esp after dose two." Nine days later, in a public interview, Fauci said federal monitoring had found "no red flags" for vaccination during pregnancy. Newsweek notes that the same text exchange also shows all three officials stressing that there was no actual evidence of harm and that COVID itself posed serious pregnancy risks. The two things are simultaneously true: a theoretical concern was privately discussed and publicly downplayed.

Faith Lens for the Home: The Church teaches that informed consent is a matter of justice - that people have a right to know what is known and what is not known about medical interventions, especially during pregnancy. Ask your family: "What does it mean to tell the truth in public health - not just avoid lying, but actively share uncertainty? What do we owe pregnant women when the data is incomplete?" No verdict on the vaccines themselves - the question is about honesty in institutions that people trusted with their children.

3. Israel Declares Taybeh a Closed Military Zone - Meant to Protect, But the Mayor Isn't Reassured

On Sunday, Israel's military declared Taybeh - the last entirely Christian village in the West Bank - a closed military zone, barring Israeli settlers and other non-residents from entering. The stated goal is to stop the settler attacks that have burned farmland, damaged an ancient church, and terrorized residents for months. Taybeh's mayor, Suleiman Khouria, welcomed the intent but called the measure "an attempt to further tighten the noose on villagers rather than a measure to protect them" - noting that the closure also bars outside witnesses, journalists, and observers from seeing what happens inside the village. The Vulnerable People Project warned that sealing Taybeh from independent witnesses could create conditions where violence occurs with no one left to record it.

Faith Lens for the Home: We have been following Taybeh since the Bible camp in July - the children singing in a village under threat. Something is trying to protect them. Something else worries that protection may become isolation. Ask your family: "What does the Church's obligation to the Christians of the Holy Land - the 'living stones' - look like when the situation is this complicated? How do we pray for a situation where even the protective measure has a troubling dimension?" Pray for the residents of Taybeh tonight - that they are protected, and that the world keeps watching.

⛪ Family Saint Spotlight

St. Clare of Assisi - August 11

Born in 1193 to a wealthy noble family in Assisi. At 18, she heard Francis preach, left her family's home at night with nothing, and never went back. Francis cut her hair and gave her a rough habit. Her family tried to drag her home by force; she held onto the altar and would not let go. She founded the Order of Poor Ladies - later the Poor Clares - and spent 41 years in the monastery she never left. When Saracen soldiers breached the convent's walls, she carried the Blessed Sacrament to the gate, fell to her knees, and prayed. The soldiers fled. She is patron of television because on her deathbed, too ill to attend Christmas Mass at the Basilica of St. Francis, she reported seeing and hearing it as if present - which later popes called a miraculous vision of remote transmission. She received everything with humility. She became one of the most powerful women in Church history.

Ask at dinner: "Clare held onto the altar when her family tried to drag her away. Is there something our family holds onto - a practice, a conviction, a person - that we refuse to let go of even when the pressure is real? Should we?"

✋ One Simple Action

Give to Catholic Relief Services for Colombia tonight at crs.org. Even a small amount joins thousands of others doing the same thing. Then pray the Gospel's line before bed: "See that you do not despise one of these little ones." Say it over your children if you can. Say it over the children in Cali and Manizales and Taybeh. The little ones are the measure of the Kingdom. Treat them accordingly.

📚 Read More

• Colombia earthquake - 132 dead, Manizales Cathedral: CBS News (https://www.cbsnews.com/news/colombia-earthquake-western-region-evacuations/) and NCRegister (https://www.ncregister.com/cna/earthquake-in-colombia-causes-at-least-20-deaths-partial-collapse-of-neo-gothic-cathedral) and Catholic World Report (https://www.catholicworldreport.com/2026/08/10/earthquake-in-colombia-causes-at-least-20-deaths-partial-collapse-of-neo-gothic-cathedral/) and CRS response (https://www.crs.org/our-work-overseas/where-we-work/colombia)
• Fauci texts on miscarriage and COVID vaccine: The Hill (https://thehill.com/policy/healthcare/6021019-paul-johnson-release-fauci-texts/) and Newsweek (https://www.newsweek.com/fauci-texts-covid-vaccine-pregnancy-risk-12306773) and Dallas Express (https://dallasexpress.com/national/fauci-texts-reveal-miscarriage-concern-before-no-red-flags-reassurance/)
• Israel declares Taybeh closed military zone: Arab News (https://www.arabnews.com/node/2654046/middle-east) and New Arab (https://www.newarab.com/news/israel-closes-palestinian-christian-village-halt-settlers) and Christian Newswire on witness concern (https://www.christiannewswire.com/israel-declares-taybeh-the-west-banks-last-entirely-christian-village-a-closed-military-zone-barring-journalists-and-observers-as-settler-violence-peaks/)
• St. Clare of Assisi: Franciscan Media (https://www.franciscanmedia.org/saint-of-the-day/saint-clare-of-assisi/) and Catholic Culture (https://www.catholicculture.org/culture/liturgicalyear/calendar/day.cfm?date=2026-08-11)

God told Ezekiel to eat the bitter scroll, and it tasted like honey. Clare held onto the altar and would not let go. One hundred thirty-two people died in Colombia yesterday morning while the rest of us were sleeping. Taybeh is still standing, still complicated, still watched over. The little ones are the measure. See that you do not despise them.