World News
Doctrine is renewed with roots firmly planted in magisterium, pope says
Church teaching is neither "rigid and closed in on itself," nor an "ideology" that changes with the seasons, Pope Francis said in a Jan. 30 address to the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith.
Holy Land Catholic leaders: Trump peace plan needed Palestinian input
In a Jan. 29 statement, the Assembly of the Catholic Ordinaries of the Holy Land said that the initiative "will bring no solution but rather will create more tensions and probably more violence and bloodshed."
On abuse-scandal efforts, German bishops urge patience
Ten years since the first revelations of clergy sexual abuse emerged, bishops are working to put in place binding policies on investigation, intervention and prevention across all the country's dioceses.
Political polarization in church a topic for U.S. bishops, pope
How angry rhetoric and political divisions seep into church life was discussed by Pope Francis and American bishops in Rome. They also discussed youth ministry, evangelization and suicide.
As coronavirus spreads in Asia, churches get vigilant
Mainland China, Hong Kong, Taiwan and Thailand are the worst affected by the virus' spread. The Diocese of Hong Kong asks priests and eucharistic ministers to wear surgical masks while distributing Communion.
God’s word brings light to life’s dark corners, pope says at Mass
God's saving word doesn't seek pristine and safe places to reside but instead goes out to brighten people's lives, Pope Francis said on the church's first Sunday of the Word of God, Jan. 26.
Remembering Holocaust is ‘a duty,’ pope says
On the 75th anniversary of the liberation of the Auschwitz concentration camp, remembering the millions who died in the Holocaust is a call for the world today not to repeat the atrocities of the past, Pope Francis said.
Abuse happens within women’s orders too, cardinal says
Sexual abuse and the abuse of authority are occurring among religious sisters, said a top Vatican cardinal. "This phenomenon," he said, "has remained more hidden, but it's coming out; it must come out."
Pope, VP Pence meet at the Vatican
Pope Francis and U.S. Vice President Mike Pence met privately for nearly an hour Jan. 24. Pence, who was raised Catholic but became an evangelical Christian, introduced his family and exchanged gifts with the pope.
New martyrs include religious priests, 20th century laity
Pope Francis recognized 13 people killed in the 20th century "in hatred of the faith," clearing the way for their beatification, from civil war-ravaged Guatemala and Spain.