National News
Mass on Capitol Hill sends bishops off to lobby on immigration
WASHINGTON (CNS) -- As a half-dozen bishops celebrated Mass at a church on Capitol Hill before beginning a day of lobbying members of Congress on immigration reform, the event itself gave a sense of the many layers of effort they were undertaking.
Pentecost marks ‘life-changing power of God’s presence,’ cardinal says
The church's celebration of Pentecost highlights the "life-changing power of God's presence" believers receive through the Holy Spirit, said Washington Cardinal Donald W. Wuerl.
Spain’s ‘Camino’: Walking it takes a month, making a film five years
WASHINGTON (CNS) -- The famed 500-mile "Camino" trek from southern France to Santiago de Compostela, Spain, takes pilgrims about a month or a bit more, depending on the pace, the pilgrim's fitness, any hurts sustained along the way, sightseeing and the like.
‘God loves you,’ archbishop tells death-row inmates as he confirms them
SALEM, Ore. (CNS) -- Portland Archbishop Alexander K. Sample confirmed one of Oregon's most infamous prisoners May 28 in a heavily guarded private ceremony in the maximum security prison in Salem.
There’s an app for natural family planning, but experts urge caution
WASHINGTON (CNS) -- As new fertility monitoring apps such as Clue and Glow make news, specialists in natural family planning caution that any technological application is only as good as the expertise behind it and the comfort level of its users.
Parish reaches out to community after ‘horrific night of violence’
ISLA VISTA, Calif. (CNS) -- The pastor of St. Mary's University Parish in Isla Vista said an evening Mass May 25 for the victims left dead and those injured in a young man's killing spree May 23.
Memorial Day doesn’t stand out for those who never forget the fallen
WASHINGTON (CNS) -- Memorial Day, the traditional kickoff of summer marked by family getaways, cookouts, picnics and parades, also includes somber events the day was created for such as wreath-laying ceremonies, prayer services and visits to war memorials.
Episcopal school, Catholic school forge lifelong ties after Sandy
MANASQUAN, N.J. (CNS) -- Strengthening a relationship forged by the devastation of Hurricane Sandy, benefactors from a California Episcopal school traversed the country to visit a New Jersey Catholic school to see firsthand how their continuing outreach is helping a counterpart still recovering from the 2012 super storm.
New Jersey catechist takes on challenge to visit 1,000 churches in U.S.
TRENTON, N.J. (CNS) -- When Robert Seaman's fourth-grade religious education students challenged him to visit 500 churches, he responded, "Why not make it 1,000?"
Pa.’s same-sex marriage ruling one in a string of recent decisions
A day before a federal judge overturned Pennsylvania’s Defense of Marriage Act on May 20, a federal judge in Oregon repealed that state's constitutional marriage amendment defining marriage as between a man and a woman. With Oregon, 18 states have legalized same-sex marriage.