News
Poor, marginalized to get VIP seating at Vatican charity concert
For an upcoming Vatican charity concert, Rome's immigrants, poor, elderly and marginalized will be getting front-row VIP treatment, while benefactors will be seated in the back.
Being Christian is service, not ‘makeup’ for a pretty soul, pope says
"To be Christian is to do what Jesus did -- serve," he said in a homily April 30 during Mass in the chapel of his residence, the Domus Sanctae Marthae.
Divided Christians honor martyrs by fidelity, seeking unity, pope says
The witness of modern martyrs, "victims of persecution and violence simply because of the faith they profess," is a bond among Christians that is stronger than anything still dividing them, the pope said.
Couple’s ancestors ministered to lepers, hanged for witchcraft
The roots of Jerry Nurss' family tree are tangled up in the infamous Salem witch trials. But his wife, Pat, shares her bloodline with a saint. The Oil City, Pennsylvania, couple -- who will celebrate their 55th wedding anniversary in August -- quip that their disparate backgrounds have kept them together all these years.
Pope names new commission to implement reform of Vatican media
Pope Francis has set up a five-person committee -- which includes Irish Msgr. Paul Tighe -- to find ways to implement recommendations for streamlining and modernizing the Vatican's many communications structures.
Seeking a soul mate: Scientists, leaders pin hopes on pope’s encyclical
Even though previous popes have spoken strongly against harming the earth and its inhabitants, one world renowned atmospheric scientist said it is going to be Pope Francis "to save the day."
Today’s teaching on the family
See the daily excerpt from the preparatory catechesis for the 2015 World Meeting of Families, “Love is Our Mission: The Family Fully Alive.”
Forum outlines strategies to end extreme poverty worldwide
With extreme poverty having been cut in half over the last generation -- and the Millennium Development Goals target of poverty halving having been achieved five years ahead of the 2015 deadline -- veterans of the global war on poverty believe it is possible that extreme poverty can be wiped out in the next 15 years.
Belgian bishop: Ruling against archbishop could spur claims for damages
A Belgian bishop said the president of the bishops' conference urged Catholics to respect a court judgment against him for failing to act on allegations of abuse.
Church workers in contested Sudanese border region launch peace efforts
Catholic workers in the contested region of Abyei say the world has lost interest in the unresolved border feud between Sudan and South Sudan, so they are launching new efforts to make peace between the two ethnic groups that claim the isolated region.