Jonah McKeown

Jonah McKeown is a staff writer and podcast producer for Catholic News Agency. He holds a Master’s Degree from the University of Missouri School of Journalism and has worked as a writer, as a producer for public radio, and as a videographer. He is based in St. Louis.

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Articles by Jonah McKeown

Panelists (from left) Rev. Dr. Jack Sullivan Jr., Debra Milke, and Randal Padgett at an Oct. 23, 2023, Catholic Mobilizing Network event at Xavier University’s Bellarmine Chapel in Cincinnati. Credit: Catholic Mobilizing Network

Catholic anti-death penalty group hosts discussion featuring death row exonerees

Oct 24, 2023 / 17:30 pm

Catholic Mobilizing Network hosted the Oct. 23 event at Xavier University in Cincinnati in partnership with other anti-death penalty organizations.

Pope Francis arrived in the Democratic Republic of Congo on Jan. 31, 2023. The streets of the pope’s five-mile drive from the N’Dolo Airport to the presidential residence were lined with thousands of locals who cheered and waved flags. Credit: Vatican Media

Vatican statistics: Africa had biggest increase in Catholics, while numbers fell in Europe

Oct 24, 2023 / 10:18 am

Catholics in the world numbered 1,375,852,000 people at the end of 2021, with an overall increase of 16.2 million compared with the previous year.

Father Björn Lundberg, center, with the tour group he led to the Holy Land in front of the Wedding Church at Cana. Credit: Bernardo Gonzalez

U.S. pilgrims count their blessings, pray for peace after escaping Holy Land

Oct 19, 2023 / 12:30 pm

One pilgrimage group from the Diocese of Arlington, Virginia, made their way back to the U.S. through Jordan after the outbreak of war in the Holy Land.

Florida attorney general seeks to block pro-abortion measure from 2024 ballot

Oct 17, 2023 / 16:40 pm

Attorney General Ashley Moody claims the measure “does not satisfy the legal requirements for ballot placement.”

Israel unleashed an attack in the northern Gaza Strip on Oct. 12, 2023, in Gaza City, Gaza. Credit: Ahmad Hasaballah/Getty Images

U.S. bishops urge faithful to join in day of prayer and fasting for peace in Holy Land

Oct 16, 2023 / 16:52 pm

The Latin Catholic patriarch of Jerusalem, Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, last week urged Catholics to devote Oct. 17 to prayer.

Catholic Relief Services calls for ‘immediate humanitarian access’ to Gaza Strip

Oct 16, 2023 / 14:45 pm

The charity group on Saturday asked for aid access “before a dire humanitarian situation becomes a catastrophe.”

Catholic pilgrims on the Katy Trail Pilgrimage walk the route on Oct. 9, 2023. Jonah McKeown/CNA

Catholic pilgrimage group walks and prays the Katy Trail

Oct 14, 2023 / 06:00 am

Spanning almost the entire width of Missouri, the 240-mile trail, a state park, passes by many Catholic churches and beautiful areas.

The cross, preceding the Blessed Sacrament, passes by during a Eucharistic procession on the streets of New York City on Oct. 10, 2023. Credit: Jeffrey Bruno

PHOTOS: Eucharistic procession passes through the heart of New York City

Oct 11, 2023 / 13:35 pm

The monstrance was carried through busy streets with dozens of priests, nuns, and laypeople following after attending Mass at St. Patrick’s Cathedral.

Belgian bishop: ‘Euthanasia is not necessarily an evil as such’

Oct 9, 2023 / 08:53 am

Bishop Johan Bonny of Antwerp, Belgium, said the Church’s teaching that euthanasia is an intrinsic evil is “too simple an answer.”

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak leaves following his speech during the final day of the Conservative Party Conference on Oct. 4, 2023, in Manchester, England. Credit: Christopher Furlong/Getty Images

British prime minister says traditional understanding of gender is ‘common sense’

Oct 5, 2023 / 14:00 pm

British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak made the comments about gender at a speech at the Conservative (Tory) Party’s annual gathering on Oct. 4.

A young alpha male wolf (Canis lupus), looks for food in the Finnish taiga in Hukkajarvi area, Eastern Finland near Russian border, on July 5, 2023. Credit: OLIVIER MORIN/AFP via Getty Images

Did St. Francis really tame a savage wolf? A look at the legend

Oct 4, 2023 / 04:00 am

A historic church sits on the spot where, as the story goes, St. Francis of Assisi made a pact with a hungry wolf who was terrorizing the town of Gubbio, Italy.

Vandalism of a pro-life display outside St. Paul Catholic Church in Fenton, Missouri, on Oct. 3, 2023. Katherine Burns

Pro-life display vandalized at St. Louis County parish

Oct 3, 2023 / 17:55 pm

The display was on the grounds of St. Paul Catholic Church, a large parish with a school located in the suburb of Fenton, about 20 minutes outside of St. Louis.

Biden administration’s strategy fails with court’s restoration of Idaho abortion ban

Oct 3, 2023 / 16:15 pm

The U.S. Department of Justice had filed a lawsuit on Aug. 2, 2022, against Idaho seeking to block its abortion ban.

National Eucharistic Congress opens ‘perpetual pilgrim’ application process

Oct 3, 2023 / 09:40 am

The two-month National Eucharistic Pilgrimage in summer 2024 will consist of four cross-country Eucharistic processions and a total of 6,500 miles.

The exterior of the new St. Isidore's Catholic Student Center at Kansas State University. Credit: Jacob Bentzinger

Rebuild and elevate: New Catholic center at Kansas State aims to bring students to God

Oct 2, 2023 / 17:15 pm

The new St. Isidore’s Catholic Student Center, a $20 million project, opened this year and its beauty is drawing both regulars and newcomers alike.

Bishop-elect Raimo Ramón Goyarrola Belda of Helsinki, left, and Archbishop Julio Murat, apostolic nuncio to the Nordic countries. Credit: Catholic Information Centre, Diocese of Helsinki

Spanish Opus Dei priest announced as new Helsinki bishop

Sep 29, 2023 / 17:45 pm

Father Raimo Ramón Goyarrola Belda, a priest of the Personal Prelature of Opus Dei, was appointed by Pope Francis to be the new bishop of Helsinki, Finland.