Trump urges Iranian patriots to ‘seize this moment’ and ‘take back your country’; Trump grieves deaths of three US servicemen in Operation Epic Fury; Trump: ‘I got Khamenei first, ‘Tried to kill me twice’; Iranians around the world celebrate after strikes on key targets; Pope Leo appeals for peace, advocates ‘reasonable dialogue’; Head of US bishops echoes Pope appeal for renewed dialogue; Brazilian bishop cracks down on Latin Mass; Norwegian bishop defends young Christians desire for tradition, ritual; March marks the month of St. Joseph, Guardian of the Redeemer; and more —
President Trump’s video update on Operation Epic Fury (March 1)
Trump: US Central Command (CENTCOM) shared news that three U.S. service members had been killed in action, and five others had been seriously wounded.
Watch @WhiteHouse
Trump first address to nation about strikes on Iran (Feb. 28)
‘I call upon all Iranian patriots who yearn for freedom to seize this moment, to be brave,” he said. “Be bold, be heroic, and take back your country. America is with you.’
Watch @realDonaldTrump
Trump: I Got Khamenei First, Tried to Kill Me Twice
President Donald Trump said Sunday that he struck Iran’s leadership before Ayatollah Ali Khamenei could succeed in another attempt on his life.
“I got him before he got me. They tried twice. Well, I got him first,” Trump said in an interview with ABC News.
The president’s remarks come amid escalating U.S. military action against Iran and renewed scrutiny of Tehran’s alleged efforts to target him during the 2024 campaign.
Read more at NEWSMAX
Exiled Shah: The military will side with us, and we have a plan of action and a transition plan
See/watch @RealClearPolitics
Iranians celebrate after strikes on key targets of their nation
Watch @pinger_liang
Iranians, Israelis, Americans celebrating together
Watch @MarioNawfal
Report: Neville Singham funding protests against Iran attack
See @pinger_liang
‘Hands Off Iran’ paid protests
Watch @WallStreetApes
Iranian Dem on CNN: Iran attacks bigger than party lines — about global freedom
Watch @RapidResponse47
Why A Dead Ayatollah Won’t Lead To World War 3 – opinion by Rebecca L Heinrichs
Operation Epic Fury is underway, and the so-called Supreme Leader of Iran, Ayatollah Khamenei, is dead. Despite the histrionics from the Left and right-wing podcasters who warned about Trump initiating a military attack: there will be no World War 3. The myth of inevitable and uncontrolled escalation has once again been busted. The United States has agency and can decide on its terms when to initiate a military campaign with clearly defined and achievable military and political objectives.
The United States and Israel, together, are carrying out a sophisticated, multi-pronged military campaign. President Trump laid out U.S. objectives. Because the Iranian regime refused to end its ideologically motivated hostilities against the United States and its allies, and would not eliminate its dangerous nuclear missile program, the United States will eliminate the threats posed by the Islamic Republic. Operation Epic Fury will: “raze” the regime’s missile industry, “annihilate” the Iranian navy, hit Iranian nuclear facilities, and “ensure that the region’s terrorist proxies can no longer destabilize the region or the world and attack our forces.”
And while Epic Fury is overwhelming the regime’s ability to respond, Iran’s backers, China and Russia, are not coming to its rescue.
Read more at the Daily Wire
Pope appeals for peace in Middle East and Iran, advocates ‘reasonable dialogue’
Watch @MLJHaynes
Social media pushback on the Pontiff’s appeal
See @Fair_and_Biased
Archbishop Coakley echoes Pope Leo XIV’s appeal for renewed dialogue amid rising tensions in the Middle East
As reports emerge regarding the escalation of hostilities in the Middle East, Archbishop Paul S. Coakley, president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, urgently called upon the United States, Iran, and the broader international community to return to dialogue and pursue every avenue toward a just and lasting peace.
Echoing the heartfelt appeal of Pope Leo XIV to halt the spiral of violence before it becomes “an unbridgeable chasm,” Archbishop Coakley emphasized the critical need for restraint and for all parties to take concrete steps to end the conflict, work for peace and protect innocent lives. His full statement follows:
“The growing conflict risks spiraling into a wider regional war. As the Holy Father has warned, we are faced with the possibility of a tragedy of immense proportions. My brother bishops and I unite our voice with our Holy Father and make the heartfelt appeal to all parties involved for diplomacy to regain its proper role. We ask for a halt to the spiral of violence, and a return to multilateral diplomatic engagement that seeks to uphold the ‘well-being of peoples, who yearn for peaceful existence founded on justice.’ All nations, international bodies, and partners committed to peace must exert every effort to prevent further escalation.
Read more at USCCB
UK, France, Germany ready to assist US
Read more @zerohedge
Gulf states join US in opposing Iran
See @KassyAkiva
Ilhan Omar: ‘US loves to strike Muslim countries during Ramadan’
See @IlhanMN
Gas prices: Costs creep up close to $3 per gallon to begin March
The national average price for regular gas rose to $2.984 per gallon on Sunday to begin March.
The new pricing marks a five-cent increase from a week ago and slightly over an 11-cent rise since the beginning of February, when gas was $2.87 per gallon. With the current military conflict between Iran and the United States and Tehran retaliating by closing the Strait of Hormuz to navigation, considered one of the world’s most important oil export routes, gas prices are expected to increase further. However, even before the current hostilities, fuel costs have been steadily rising, increasing nearly twenty cents since dropping to $2.79 per gallon on Jan. 12.
The recent increase in gas prices was attributed to severe winter weather across the country over the past month. Snowstorms in January and February disrupted oil refinery operations and production, affecting pricing.
“The winter storm that wreaked havoc on most of the nation has led to supply disruptions and pushed up the national average for a gallon of regular gasoline to $2.87,” according to AAA. “Below-freezing temperatures and lingering snow have disrupted some crude production and refinery operations, while gasoline demand increased pre-storm as drivers filled up their tanks ahead of the severe winter weather.”
Gas prices are still lower than a year ago, even amid the current surge, according to AAA.
Read more at the Washington Examiner
Brazilian archbishop declares schism, excommunicates Catholics attending TLM
The Archbishop of Maceió in Brazil has declared that any Catholic in the diocese who attends a unauthorized Traditional Latin Mass will incur an excommunication, for the canonical crime of schism.
In a Feb.11 statement posted on the archdiocesan Facebook page, Archbishop Carlos Alberto Breis Pereira, OFM, declared that in his diocese, participation in an “old rite Mass in another location [to the single approved location and time] will be considered an act of public schism, resulting in automatic excommunication.”
The bishop’s decree is the most assertive episcopal action aimed at enforcing the norms of Traditionis custodes, Pope Francis’ 2023 motu proprio restricting use of the Extraordinary Form, to be reported so far.
Breis Pereira’s decision is an application of canon law previously unseen in contemporary diocesan governance, and is likely to be challenged for validity at the level of the Holy See.
Read more at The Pillar
Norwegian Bishop Erik Varden defends young Christians desire for tradition, ritual
Read @father_rmv
The month of March is dedicated to Saint Joseph
See @RosaryMum
The Angelus of St. Joseph
The Angelus of Saint Joseph is a devotional prayer modeled after the traditional Marian Angelus. It honors St. Joseph’s role in the Incarnation by using scriptural passages from his perspective, typically focusing on the angel’s message to him in a dream. It is often recited during March but also throughout the year.
See @father_rmv
