Iowa Catholic Conference Newsletter, Oct. 24, 2025

Federal shutdown affects SNAP

SNAP benefits are scheduled to be delayed in November while the government shutdown continues. Iowa Health and Human Services has been directed by Gov. Reynolds to convene regular calls with Iowa’s food banks and review the state’s food insecurity response plan used during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Des Moines Catholic Charities Executive Director Mike Sheehy spoke at a news conference sponsored by DMARC on Oct. 23, saying he expects an increase in demand at its food pantry in November.

The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, commonly known as SNAP, provides food benefits for low-income families and is federally funded through the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food and Nutrition Service. Approximately 131,000 households in Iowa are eligible for SNAP benefits, which cost $45 million per month. 

For now, the state continues to fund the special nutrition program for Women, Infants and Children (WIC), which is also affected by the shutdown.

Individuals who receive SNAP should retain their cards even throughout the shutdown. You can visit hhs.iowa.gov/snap to sign up for updates.

Pope Leo XIV: ‘Defeating hunger is the path to peace’

Pope Leo XIV recently visited the headquarters of the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) in Rome to mark World Food Day and the 80th anniversary of the organization’s founding. In his address he reaffirms the Holy See’s closeness to the institution and calls for a shared global commitment to end hunger and malnutrition.

 According to Vatican News, the pope said, “We cannot be content with proclaiming values; we must embody them … Slogans do not lift people from misery. We must place the human person above profit and guarantee food security, access to resources, and sustainable rural development.”

The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops’ (USCCB) Secretariat of Justice and Peace is offering new resources to help unpack the message of Dilexi Te, the pope’s recent exhortation to be attentive to the needs of others. Resources include a webpage, a four-page reflection guide and a prayer card inspired by Dilexi Te.

Iowa immigration law sent back to federal district court

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit has upheld an injunction blocking Iowa’s SF 2340. The appeals court sent it back to federal district court for future consideration of the extent of the injunction.

The law would have made it a crime for certain immigrants to live in Iowa, even if they are now authorized to be in the United States. It made it an aggravated misdemeanor for a person who has been previously denied admission or deported from the U.S. to be in Iowa.

This would also have allowed local officials to handle arrests and deportations, even though immigration law is handled by federal authorities in order to ensure a consistent national policy. The Iowa Catholic Conference opposed the bill before passage in 2024.

Expanding IVF is not the answer

The Trump Administration recently announced a two-part initiative that will expand access to in vitro fertilization (IVF). The government will partner with the pharmaceutical company that makes a particular fertility drug, Gonal-F, and discounts will be provided.  The other part of the plan is to address the underlying problems of infertility.

The bishops’ grassroots pro-life organization is asking us to send a message to President Trump, asking him to reconsider the government plan that expands the practice of IVF and to focus on other assisted reproductive technologies that respect life. Here’s the link with a sample message: https://www.votervoice.net/NCHLA/Campaigns/130951/Respond

To be clear, every human life is created and born in the image and likeness of God and should be loved by all.

However, IVF is a process that has immense moral and ethical implications that should be taken into consideration.  It destroys life in the process of trying to manufacture life. It opens the door to eugenic practices, encourages surrogacy, reduces the marital act to a laboratory procedure and puts millions of human beings “on ice.”

There are alternative reproductive technologies, called Restorative Reproductive Medicine, that don’t commodify and destroy human life in its nascent stages. The other part of the government’s plan, which addresses the actual problems of infertility, should be the focus.

Archbishop Broglio writes on cancellation of religious support contracts

Archbishop Timothy P. Broglio, Archbishop for the Military Services, USA, and President of the USCCB, has issued a pastoral letter concerning the U.S. Army's decision to cancel all religious support contracts for Army chapels, including those for religious educators, administrators, and musicians, placing an insurmountable restriction on the free exercise of religion. The letter is also being sent to all members of Congress.

Archbishop Broglio said, in part, “For decades, contracted CREs, CPLCs, and musicians have served the faith communities at military chapels … In canceling these contracts, the Army over-burdens Catholic chaplains, harms chapel communities, and impedes the constitutional guarantee of the free exercise of religion especially for Catholics.”