VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- The world cannot recover from the health and economic crises of the COVID-19 pandemic and tackle climate change without debt relief for the world's poorest countries, said the secretary-general of Caritas Internationalis.
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VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Agreeing with German Cardinal Reinhard Marx that Catholic leaders cannot adopt an "ostrich policy" in the face of the clerical sexual abuse crisis, Pope Francis still told the cardinal that he would not accept his resignation as head of the Archdiocese of Munich and Freising.
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VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Promoting employment is a key part of promoting and protecting human dignity, especially the dignity of young men and women, Pope Francis said. "It is a problem of dignity," the pope said June 5 during a meeting with young people and representatives commemorating the 25th anniversary of the "Progetto Policoro," an initiative of the Italian bishops' conference that helps young people find employment.
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VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- The new series of laws and provisions set out in the revised section on crimes and penalties in the Code of Canon Law will help the Catholic Church in its efforts at safeguarding, said two canon lawyers.
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VANCOUVER, British Columbia (CNS) -- Archbishop J. Michael Miller of Vancouver announced a plan to offer increased support and transparency to First Nations people in the wake of the discovery of an unmarked burial site near a former residential school in Kamloops, British Columbia.
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VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- The United States added Vatican City State to its list of countries that conform to international standards regarding the verification of the identity of persons conducting financial transactions through its institutions, including the so-called Vatican bank.
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ROME (CNS) -- As COVID-19 restrictions continue to ease in Italy, the country's bishops are hoping a new tourism initiative will attract would-be pilgrims. One way the June 1-Sept. 17 initiative, "Ora viene il bello" ("Now comes the beautiful"), hopes to draw pilgrims is by granting a plenary indulgence to those who visit one of Italy's many shrines.
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VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- The remains of St. Peter may have been and possibly still could be buried in catacombs under the Mausoleum of St. Helena after being moved from the Vatican hillside during anti-Christian persecutions in the third century, according to a paper published recently by three Italian researchers.
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VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- While intellectually difficult to understand, the mystery of the Holy Trinity is understood in one's heart as the revelation of God's love for all men and women, Pope Francis said.
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VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- The World Health Assembly adopted a resolution to formalize the participation of the Holy See in the World Health Organization as a nonmember state observer. The annual assembly, which is the decision-making body of WHO, held its sessions online and at its headquarters in Geneva May 24-31.
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TORONTO (CNS) -- The international scientific body governing stem cell research is abandoning the absolute 14-day limit on culturing human embryos in the laboratory, putting pressure on Canada's law prohibiting the practice.
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The recent arrest of a Vatican-approved bishop, priests and seminarians in north-central China came as a shocking development, if not surprising, as religious persecution in the communist-led country has continued to intensify under President Xi Jinping.
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VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Reaching the finish line of a monthlong rosary marathon, Pope Francis again turned to Mary, asking her to untie specific knots that have individuals and the whole world tangled in suffering and difficulty, either because of the COVID-19 pandemic or people's selfish reactions to it.
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VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Pope Francis named English Archbishop Arthur Roche to lead the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Sacraments, the Vatican said. The 71-year-old archbishop succeeds Guinean Cardinal Robert Sarah, 75, who led the congregation from 2014 until his Feb. 20 resignation.
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MANCHESTER, England (CNS) -- Burglars have stolen a set of golden rosary beads that once belonged to Mary, Queen of Scots. The beads are said to have been carried by Mary, the Catholic first cousin once removed of the Protestant Queen Elizabeth I of England, when Mary was sent to her execution at Fotheringhay Castle in 1587.
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JERUSALEM (CNS) -- Archbishop Pierbattista Pizzaballa, Latin patriarch of Jerusalem, requested that the May 30 Mass collections from all parishes in the diocese be donated in their entirety to Gaza's Holy Family Parish as a sign of solidarity following airstrikes from Israel.
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VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Pope Francis has ordered the minor seminary that is located inside the Vatican and currently at the center of a criminal sex abuse trial to move to a new location in Rome before classes begin in the fall.
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VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- To help lead the world's Catholics along a journey of intensified action in caring for creation, Pope Francis asked everyone to join a new global grassroots movement to create a more inclusive, fraternal, peaceful and sustainable world.
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CNA Staff, May 23, 2021 / 12:45 pm (CNA). Pope Francis said Sunday that the cannonball that wounded Ignatius of Loyola 500 years ago not only changed the saint's life but also the course of the world.
Read moreHONG KONG (CNS) -- Authorities in northern China have arrested a Vatican-appointed Catholic bishop, his seven priests and 10 seminarians in what is seen as part of a renewed crackdown on the underground Catholic Church in the communist country.
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ROME (CNS) -- Welcoming the Italian bishops' decision to begin planning a national synod, Pope Francis told them that it must begin at the grassroots with "the smallest parish, the smallest diocesan institution."
Read moreVATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Do not let a complex organizational hierarchy stifle creativity, hamper decision-making and impede serving its actual purpose, Pope Francis told the Vatican's communications office.
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For nine years, Randa Aweis battled kidney disease, urgently in need of a transplant. In mid-May, a donor was found for the 58-year-old mother of six, a Catholic Palestinian who lives in Jerusalem.
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BERLIN (CNS) -- Catholics around the world have their eyes on Germany as it works for change through its "Synodal Path," which is debating the issues of power, sexual morality, priestly life and the role of women in the church.
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VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Remembering the gift of unity brought by the Holy Spirit on Pentecost, Pope Francis called on Christians to pray for countries in turmoil, including Colombia. Addressing pilgrims gathered in St. Peter's Square May 23, the pope expressed his concern for the South American country, "which continues to be worrying."
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VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- After going so long without in-person learning and face-to-face contact with others, young people now should be more discerning and judicious concerning their time online, Pope Francis told students.
Read moreVATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Pope Francis has recognized the martyrdom of Sister Agustina Rivas Lopez, a member of the Congregation of Our Lady of Charity of the Good Shepherd, who was killed by guerrillas in Peru in 1990.
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VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- The Holy Spirit's gift of comfort and solace is meant to unite all men and women and not take sides with any ideology, Pope Francis said on Pentecost. Celebrating Mass May 23 at the main altar in St. Peter's Basilica, the pope said those who listen to the Holy Spirit are not "concerned with conservatives and progressives, traditionalists and innovators, right and left."
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MEXICO CITY (CNS) -- Mexican church officials previously "covered up" cases of clerical sexual abuse, a situation the Vatican ambassador to Mexico said has changed as Catholic leaders increasingly follow a zero-tolerance policy promoted by Pope Francis.
Read moreVATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Nations of the world must work together to solve the key global crises of migration and climate change, which are questions of justice that can no longer be ignored, Pope Francis told diplomats.
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VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Approving the revision of the entire process of the Synod of Bishops, Pope Francis has asked that it begin with serious, widespread consultations with laypeople on the diocesan level.
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Three Red Cross nurses are to be beatified as martyrs in Spain, 85 years after they were raped and shot while caring for wounded Civil War soldiers, having refused to renounce their Catholic faith. "These martyrs were not linked to either side -- the Red Cross went wherever it was summoned, regardless of who was in control," said Bishop Jesús Fernández González of Astorga. "Nor did they carry weapons, or use even words to attack anyone. They were simply moved by human compassion and Christian charity, knowing the risks and dangers when signing up as volunteers."
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ROME (CNS) -- After an octogenarian priest was swindled out of more than $450,000 over a two-year period and threatened when he stopped giving the "family" money, the Diocese of Padua, Italy, launched a continuing formation program for priests focused on financial accountability and avoiding scams.
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VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Those who overcome distractions or obstacles when praying learn the value of perseverance in times of trial, Pope Francis said. "True progress in spiritual life does not consist in multiplying ecstasies, but in being able to persevere in difficult times," the pope said May 19 during his weekly general audience.
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VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- The revised section of the Code of Canon Law dealing with crimes and penalties, including those related to clerical sexual abuse, should be ready for publication before the end of summer, said the secretary of the Pontifical Council for Legislative Texts.
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VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- The annual diocesan celebration of World Youth Day is an important event that emphasizes the role young people play in the Catholic Church, the Vatican said. In a document published by the Dicastery for Laity, the Family and Life May 18, the Vatican issued a set of pastoral guidelines for local WYD celebrations "to ensure that younger generations feel that they are at the center of the church's attention and pastoral concern."
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FRANKFURT, Germany (CNS) -- Germany's Third Ecumenical Convention concluded in Frankfurt May 16 with an open-air church service on the bank of the River Main. With the city's skyline of office towers providing the backdrop, some 400 people attended the service, including German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier.
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VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Abuse against a minor is a kind of "psychological murder" that can destroy the victim's childhood, Pope Francis told an Italian association active in the fight against child abuse and online child pornography.
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