News
New Mexico bishop to visit Trooper parish
Bishop Ricardo Ramirez, C.S.B., bishop of the Diocese of Las Cruces, New Mexico, will be the celebrant at a Mass in English and Spanish at 7 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 19, at Visitation B.V.M. Church in Trooper, Montgomery County. He will preach on the theme “Welcoming the Stranger.”
Separated and divorced Catholics get retreat day in Malvern
Valentine’s Day may be fun for those in a relationship but it is also a time of remembering broken promises, dreams and lives for many others. Malvern Retreat House offers a day of reflection for them on Feb. 12.
Author of book on parish revitalization coming to Media parish
Tom Corcoran will offer his insights into the renewal of his Baltimore parish during a seminar at St. Mary Magdalen Parish Feb. 20.
Archbishop Chaput named to Vatican council
Pope Francis appointed the archbishop a member of the Pontifical Council for the Laity Feb. 6. He is the only American member of the council.
‘Unjust’ criticism won’t force Vatican to drop treaty, spokesman says
VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- The Vatican said it would continue to adhere to the Convention on the Rights of the Child and give an attentive response to the U.N. committee monitoring adherence to the treaty, despite what it views as unfair criticism and suggestions from the committee that would violate church teaching.
Pope says relativistic ideas of marriage lead to divorce
VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Pope Francis said contemporary ideas of marriage as an arrangement defined by personal needs promote a mentality of divorce, and he called for better preparation of engaged couples as well as ministry to Catholics whose marriages have failed.
New study on abortion rate doesn’t tie drop to new state restrictions
WASHINGTON (CNS) -- Almost two weeks after the national March for Life rally in Washington, the Guttmacher Institute reported a 13 percent drop in national abortion rates from 2008 to 2011 -- making for the lowest rate since 1973 when abortion on demand was legalized in the U.S.
From tarps to steel roofs: Filipinos move to transitional shelters
TANAUAN, Philippines (CNS) -- Two-week-old Jesse Awa did not seem to mind the sound of loud hammering and saw blades cutting through wood as he slept peacefully, snuggled in his mother's arms. Just a few feet away, carpenters worked under a hot midday sun constructing a new home, albeit temporary, for his family.
Syrians fleeing to Jordan say Homs residents starving from lack of food
MAFRAQ, Jordan (CNS) -- Syrians fleeing to neighboring Jordan from the besieged central city of Homs said some people there are starving to death for lack of food. "People are dying of hunger especially, babies and young children," said Um Mohamed, the mother of four children, who fled with her family to this northern Jordanian town in mid-2013.
USCCB initiative fosters young leaders for church’s social justice work
WASHINGTON (CNS) -- Nearly 70 students from Catholic colleges worldwide came to Washington for the Catholic Social Ministry Gathering's Youth Leaders Initiative. Both the annual gathering, held this year Feb. 2-5, and the initiative are projects of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops. Six agencies of the USCCB sponsor the gathering with 15 other Catholic organizations.