News
Christians must not compromise Christ’s truth, pope says
CASTEL GANDOLFO, Italy (CNS) — Marking the feast of the martyrdom of St. John the Baptist, Pope Benedict XVI said Christians must not bow to the pressure of the powerful who demand a denial of Christ or of the truth He taught. “The truth is the truth and there is no compromise,” the pope said […]
Patriarch says people need to repent for pollution
ISTANBUL (CNS) — Praying for the protection of the environment includes asking God’s forgiveness for the small or serious ways each individual contributes to pollution, said the Ecumenical Orthodox patriarch of Constantinople. , the Istanbul-based spiritual leader of the world’s Orthodox and a longtime promoter of Christian ecology, issued a message on the environment Aug. […]
Appeals panel OKs federal funding of embryonic stem-cell research
WASHINGTON (CNS) — A three-judge federal appeals panel has affirmed a lower court ruling that the U.S. government can fund embryonic stem-cell research despite a federal ban on funding any research that harms or destroys human embryos. Chief Judge David B. Sentelle of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia said the […]
Court blocks state immigration provisions; ICE agents sue government
WASHINGTON (CNS) — The Atlanta-based 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals blocked parts of Alabama’s and Georgia’s immigration-related laws, but allowed both states to keep their so-called “show me your papers” provisions. The same week, 10 employees of Immigration and Customs Enforcement sued the Obama administration over a program launched Aug. 15 to defer deportation […]
Despite drought, wineries expect good grapes for altar wines
DURANGO, Iowa (CNS) — As summer winds down, vineyards across Iowa are now harvesting this year’s “fruit of the vine.” Despite the worst drought in recent memory, growers foresee a good crop, mostly because grape vines can thrive without much moisture. The chance that some of these locally grown grapes will provide the altar wine […]
Altar bread prices could rise due to Midwest drought
GREENVILLE, R.I. (CNS) — Manufacturers of altar bread are preparing to face rising costs of wheat flour as grain prices fluctuate in the wake of a severe drought that continues to plague the Midwest and Western Canada. But they expect to pass along only a minimal price increase to their customers. In Clyde, Mo., Benedictine […]
Residences of Syrian archbishops in Aleppo ransacked
VATICAN CITY (CNS) — Fighting in Aleppo, Syria, has not spared the residences of the local Melkite and Maronite Catholic archbishops, according to the Vatican’s Fides news agency. The residence of Melkite Archbishop Jean-Clement Jeanbart was ransacked during clashes Aug. 23. The archbishop and several priests who live in the building had fled a few […]
California archbishop apologizes after drunken driving arrest
OAKLAND, Calif. (CNS) — Archbishop Salvatore J. Cordileone, to be installed in October as archbishop of San Francisco, was arrested in San Diego early Aug. 26 for driving under the influence. The archbishop, a San Diego native, had his mother in the car. In an Aug. 27 statement issued from the Diocese of Oakland, which […]
After college acceptance, next challenge for many is paying tuition
WASHINGTON (CNS) — After finally being accepted into college, the only headaches left for students are how to fit a dorm room into a car for move-in day — and how to afford that tuition. On June 29, Congress voted to keep the interest rate for Stafford federal student loans at 3.4 percent; it would […]
Message from girl’s first Communion balloon returned 11 year later
EDGEWOOD, Iowa (CNS) — In 2001, Abbie Steger, then in second grade, took part in a tradition that has been going on for decades at St. Mark Church in Edgewood. On the Sunday after Easter, the small, tightknit parish’s first Communion class stands on a lawn outside the church and releases balloons. The colorful spheres […]