World News
World needs stories of truth, peace, inspiration, pope says
With fake news becoming ever sophisticated, people need wisdom, courage and patience to discern constructive stories, Pope Francis said Jan. 24, the feast of St. Francis de Sales, patron saint of journalists.
Priest appeals for more shelters for volcano evacuees in Philippines
Father Jerome Secillano of Manila called for shelters to accommodate the thousands still holed up in a crowded relief center after the Taal eruption, which began on Jan. 12, displaced some 149,000 residents.
Development for all is a moral duty, pope tells leaders at Davos
In a Jan. 21 message to participants in the World Economic Forum, Pope Francis said that the human person, "rather than the mere pursuit of power or profit," must be "at the very center of public policy."
Pope hopes Berlin summit will lead to peace in Libya
The multinational talks, convened on Jan. 19, have sought to broker a peace deal between the prime minister and rebel leaders in the war-torn north African nation.
Gratitude to God should expand hearts, lead to hospitality, pope says
Welcoming an ecumenical pilgrimage from Finland on Jan. 17, Pope Francis said that all Christians are called "to witness to the good news in the midst of their daily life."
As Dutch parishes close, some Catholics just quit going to church
Empty pews have left half of the Netherlands' Catholic parishes shuttered, with Polish and other minority communities sustaining churches where the faith remains vibrant.
Germany’s synodal assembly a step to rebuilding church’s credibility
After decades of clerical abuse, the "dissatisfaction of many believers" is the starting point for the first national consultation since a 1971-1975 synod at Wurzburg on Second Vatican Council reforms.
No breaking seal of confession for abusers, church insists
The president of the Australian Catholic Bishops' Conference is the latest of the country's senior clerics to oppose legislation that would jail priests for failing to report confessions of child sexual abuse to the police.
U.S. bishops hear pope on pro-life, transgender issues
Protecting human life is the "preeminent priority" and human rights issue, Pope Francis told a group of midwestern bishops. He also discussed other issues including the expected Vatican report on Theodore McCarrick.
‘Marxist communism’ returning to Spain, cardinal warns
Prelates asked Catholics to pray as Spain was entering a "grave moment" with a socialist leader in which "democracy is substituted ... by authoritarianism ... incompatible with democracy."