News
Villa Maria Academy High School to graduate 103 seniors
Villa Maria Academy High School, 370 Old Lincoln Highway in Malvern, will graduate 103 seniors at a baccalaureate Mass and graduation ceremony on Saturday, June 1, at 11 a.m. at St. Elizabeth Church, 120 St. Elizabeth Drive, Uwchlan. The valedictorian is Mary Elizabeth Shea. The salutatorian is Cailey Megan Bice. The main celebrant and homilist […]
Courageously evangelizing with help of Holy Spirit leads to joy, Pope Francis says
VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Selfishness only brings sadness and bitterness, while stepping outside of oneself to evangelize is the ultimate "pick me up" and source of joy, Pope Francis said. "Let's live the Gospel with humility and courage. Give witness to the newness, hope and joy that the Lord brings to your life," the pope said May 22 at his weekly general audience.
Vermont now ‘death state’ with doctor-assisted suicide law, bishop says
WASHINGTON (CNS) — Now that Vermont allows “doctor-prescribed suicide,” the “magnificent landscape of this state, which echoes life from its majestic mountains to its powerful waterways, no longer is reflected in the laws which govern the Green Mountain State,” said the head of the statewide Diocese of Burlington. “Vermont is now identified as one of […]
Peter Claver leader elected to post in international organization
NEW ORLEANS (CNS) -- The supreme knight of the Knights of Peter Claver has been elected to an international post in an umbrella group for men's Catholic fraternal organizations. Fredron DeKarlos Blackmon, who also serves as CEO of the Knights, was elected deputy president of the International Alliance of Catholic Knights, which includes 15 fraternal organizations working in 27 countries.
Memorial Mass honors ‘countless sacrifices’ made by those in military
WASHINGTON (CNS) -- "We give thanks for countless sacrifices and we pray for the families who still suffer the ravages of war. Those scars do not fade easily," said Archbishop Timothy M. Broglio of the Archdiocese for the Military Services, at a May 19 memorial Mass honoring the nation's war dead and those "wounded warriors" injured in the line of duty.
Guatemalan court annuls conviction of former dictator
GUATEMALA CITY (CNS) -- Guatemala's highest court annulled the conviction of a former dictator found guilty of genocide and crimes against humanity. The constitutional court threw out the May 10 ruling against Gen. Efrain Rios Montt, 86, who had been sentenced to 80 years in prison for crimes carried out in 1982, when he allegedly initiated a policy of extermination of Mayans for their ties to Marxist guerrillas. The ruling was seen as historic in a country known for its impunity.
At Pentecost vigil, pope shares personal stories of his faith
VATICAN CITY (CNS) — With humor and passion, Pope Francis shared highlights of his personal faith journey and explained some key points of his teaching to an enthusiastic crowd of representatives from Catholic lay movements. Celebrating a vigil on the eve of Pentecost with an estimated 200,000 people singing, chanting and waving their groups’ banners, […]
Vatican denies pope performed public exorcism
VATICAN CITY (CNS) — When Pope Francis solemnly laid both hands on the head of a young man in a wheelchair and prayed intently over him for several minutes, he was not performing an exorcism, said the Vatican spokesman. The young man, who was among dozens of people in wheelchairs greeted by the pope at […]
Struggle for power in church is sin, pope says at Mass
VATICAN CITY (CNS) — Careerism and a drive to seek power in the church are sins as old as the church itself, Pope Francis told a group of employees from Vatican Radio and from the Vatican’s office for pilgrims and tourists. Commenting on the day’s Gospel passage — Mark 9:30-37 — the pope said that […]
Chaldean patriarch warns surge in Iraqi violence will divide country
BEIRUT (CNS) — The patriarch of the Chaldean Catholic Church in Baghdad denounced a recent series of car bombings and shootings in Iraqi cities that left at least 54 people dead and dozens more injured. Patriarch Louis Sako, told Catholic News Service in an email May 20 that the current violence is between minority Sunni […]