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Families tell pope their concerns during lunch in Bethlehem
Five families -- including one Muslim family -- ate with Pope Francis and discussed issues facing the Palestinian community, including land confiscation, imprisonment, displacement from their homes and the situation of people trapped by the embargo of the Gaza Strip.
Pope urges Palestinian refugees to look to future
BETHLEHEM, West Bank (CNS) -- "I understand what you are telling me and the message you are giving me," he said. "Don't ever allow the past to determine your life, always look forward. But do and act and strive for the things you want," Pope Francis told children at the Dehiyshe Refugee Camp.
On last morning in Holy Land, pope reaches out to Muslims, Jews
JERUSALEM (CNS) -- Pope Francis toured the Dome of the Rock on the Temple Mount, sacred to Muslims as the place from which Mohammed ascended to heaven, and addressed Muslim leaders as "brothers" -- rather than "friends," as indicated in his prepared text.
Pope invites Israeli, Palestinian leaders to Rome to pray for peace
JERUSALEM (CNS) -- Pope Francis arrived in Israel on the last leg of a May 24-26 trip to Jordan, the Palestinian territories and the West Bank. In addition to praying at Jerusalem's Wailing Wall he also prayed unexpectedly at the separation wall on the West Bank.
Fifty years later, pope and patriarch meet again in Jerusalem
JERUSALEM (CNS) -- Half a century after a historic encounter between their predecessors, Pope Francis and Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew met at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. Earlier they signed a declaration calling for "communion in legitimate diversity" between the Catholic and Orthodox churches.
Archbishop Ryan, after dominating a talented Catholic League, wins softball crown
The Ragdolls beat Lansdale Catholic 5-0 to win the championship May 22. They had dedicated their season to their coach who died in February from cancer, and they are convinced he was the source of heavenly tears that deluged the victory celebration.
Vatican abuse prosecutor: More must be done to punish negligent bishops
U.S. Father Robert W. Oliver, promoter of justice in the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, said the church does have "procedures to deal with bishops who are negligent in supervision. It is a crime." However, he said more work needs to be done on the procedures. "Sexual abuse of children is an area that most people would prefer not to hear about; we've been forced to look at it," he said.
U.N. board urges Vatican to punish bishops who mishandle abuse claims
VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- The U.N. Committee Against Torture urged the Vatican to impose "meaningful sanctions" on any church authority who fails to follow church law in dealing with allegations of sexual abuse and asked that church officials worldwide be required to report abuse allegations to local police.
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.
Why the pope is on Twitter but not Facebook
Pope Francis is not joining Facebook despite efforts from Facebook representatives who recently visited the Vatican to argue that the leader of the world’s largest Christian church should have a profile on the world’s largest social network.