World News
Teach the faith, expose extremism, Vatican official asks Arab leaders
"Extremism, with its violent tendencies, is incompatible with true religious ethics," said Comboni Father Miguel Angel Ayuso Guixot, secretary of the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue.
Church leaders condemn new vandalism at two Christian sites in Jerusalem
Several anti-Christian slogans in Hebrew were discovered scrawled along the walls of the Benedictine Dormition Abbey monastery and the neighboring Greek Orthodox seminary, both located on Mount Zion next to the walls of the Old City.
Teaching on theology of the body unifies Christians, American says in U.K.
Christopher West said the lessons of St. John Paul II were providing answers to a growing number of Catholics, Anglicans and other Christians concerned about "gender confusion" in the West.
Mercy brings Austrian cardinal, Texas death row inmate together
Devotion to divine mercy spurred an Austrian cardinal to correspond with a death row inmate in Texas; Cardinal Christoph Schonborn of Vienna said he was shocked at the idea that Richard Masterson could be put to death Jan. 20.
In visit to synagogue, pope affirms peace and dialogue
The Catholic Church recognizes that God has not revoked his covenant with the Jewish people, Pope Francis said, adding the Holocaust teaches the need "to intervene quickly in defense of human dignity and peace."
Anglican leaders sanction U.S. Episcopalians, under pressure from Africans
Because of the U.S. Episcopal Church's moves to allow same-sex marriage, Anglican leaders in Britain voted to suspend Episcopalians from representation in the Anglican Communion for three years.
Politics of mercy: Pope knows ‘welcoming the stranger’ is controversial
No good deed is as politically charged today as care for migrants, particularly if he or she is a Muslim. To overcome fear and fulfill the Christian obligation of welcome, "the first step is to get to know each other."
Pope to teens: Don’t fall for hate, fearmongers; find nice friends
"Be brave and go against the tide, be friends of Jesus, who is the prince of peace," he said in a written message for the Jubilee of Mercy for Young People, scheduled to be celebrated in Rome and dioceses around the world April 23-25.
Do me a favor? Pope phones theologian for help at Lent
Pope Francis calling his cellphone caught Servite Father Ermes Ronchi by surprise. He accepted the pope's invitation to preach a week-long Lenten reflection for himself and top Vatican officials.
Oasis of mercy: Caring for those with HIV in Mexico’s Yucatan
Nothing about this dwelling on the edge of a rural suburb would suggest that its work is on the cutting edge of the battle against HIV in Yucatan, the Mexican state that has the highest incidence of new cases among a section of the population.