News
Ban on religion forced Albanians to pray in secret: one woman’s story
TIRANA, Albania (CNS) -- Almost every evening at 6, the sounds of the organ resonate in the brick Catholic church on Kavaja Street. The hymns may vary, but the organist, Maria Dhimitri, is always the same. It has been that way for nearly 23 years and could have been double that, Dhimitri said in a recent interview, if it had not been for a brutally enforced ban on religion in her country in southeastern Europe from 1967 to 1990.
A new constitutional amendment? Even if it fails, it may work
WASHINGTON (CNS) -- The process to amend the U.S. Constitution can be a long and winding road that may have no end. Just ask those who have been working for the Human Life Amendment since shortly after abortion was legalized in 1973. Though it failed in 1983, pro-lifers who have backed a constitutional amendment to overturn the Supreme Court's 1973 decision in Roe v. Wade have seen in the succeeding years a string of successes that partially achieve the amendment's aims.
Archdiocese drops subpoena for White House records in HHS case
NEW YORK (CNS) — The Archdiocese of New York has dropped its legal demand that the Obama administration provide documents from the White House staff related to the church’s lawsuit against the government’s insurance mandate for birth control coverage. Reuters reported that the archdiocese filed a notice with the U.S. District Court April 22 dropping […]
As Scots weigh independence, church won’t tell Catholics how to vote
GLENELG, Scotland (CNS) — At the center of this isolated seaside community, overlooked by shadowy mountains on the nearby Isle of Skye, local fishing folk tap their feet as traditional music echoes from the village inn. The BBC broadcasts in Gaelic here, and most youngsters have never been to Edinburgh, the Scottish capital 125 miles […]
Preach the Gospel with courage, humility, pope says at Mass
VATICAN CITY (CNS) — Christians should pray for great courage and great humility as they respond to the call of Jesus to share his Gospel with the world, Pope Francis said. Preaching the Good News must be done with “humility, service, charity, fraternal love,” the pope said April 25 during his homily at a morning […]
Archbishop at Red Mass: Traditional marriage is ‘best for children’
MIAMI (CNS) -- Traditional marriage is "best for children" and efforts to legalize same-sex marriage will "open a Pandora's Box of unforeseen and, to be sure, unintended consequences," Archbishop Thomas G. Wenski said during the annual Red Mass. Delivering the homily at the April 23 Mass, Archbishop Wenski said the growing movement in support of same-sex marriage would "redefine marriage for all as existing solely for the gratification of two consenting adults" rather than for the creation of life.
Human evolution: Science, faith explore the mysterious emergence of man
VATICAN CITY (CNS) — Evolutionary science is still grappling with understanding how the human species, with its unique capacities for language, culture, abstract reasoning and spirituality, may have emerged from a pre-ape ancestor. While the Catechism of the Catholic Church teaches that God, “in a plan of sheer goodness freely created man to make him […]
Pope Francis’ first encyclical might be out this year, says spokesman
VATICAN CITY (CNS) — Pope Francis may publish his first encyclical this year, the Vatican spokesman said. Jesuit Father Federico Lombardi said he “would not exclude” the possibility of the publication of the pope’s first encyclical “within this year,” Vatican Radio reported. The spokesman told reporters April 25 that retired Pope Benedict XVI had already […]
Brazil’s security officials coordinate safety for World Youth Day
SAO PAULO (CNS) — Security officials at all levels are coordinating to make sure World Youth Day is secure for pilgrims, including foreign visitors. World Youth Day’s Local Organizing Committee has released details of a contingency plan to be used July 23-28, when the international event takes place in Rio de Janeiro. Brazil’s federal police […]
Vatican official says July trip to Brazil being tailored to new pope
VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Visiting Rio de Janeiro, the chief organizer of papal trips confirmed Pope Francis will participate in the key events of World Youth Day July 23-28 and he said other parts of the papal trip are being tailor-made for the new pope. Alberto Gasbarri, the Vatican official who has worked on organizing papal trips since the pontificate of Blessed John Paul II, said, "We had a program fixed between October and November of last year, but a little detail changed -- we have a new pope."