World News
Seven decades later, remembering monks massacred by Nazis
Seventy years ago Sept. 1, Nazi SS troops burst into the Certosa di Farneta, a Carthusian monastery in the central Italian region of Tuscany, and seized at gunpoint six monks and six lay brothers.
Peres: Pope Francis is only leader respected enough to end today’s wars
Former Israeli President Shimon Peres asked Pope Francis to head a parallel United Nations called the "United Religions" to counter religious extremism in the world today.
Iraqi Christian woman details how militants kidnapped her 3-year-old
Christina Khider Abada was seated beside her mother, Ayda Abada, on a bus in the Syriac Christian town of Qaraqosh, Iraq, when captors from the Islamic State snatched her and took her away. Amnesty International says the terrorists abducted the village's girls and young women.
Pope: Iraq’s persecuted Christians are true, bold witnesses of Christ
Iraqi Christians are true and courageous witnesses of Christ's message of hope, forgiveness and love, Pope Francis said.
First wave of Iraqis, some of whom helped U.S., feel trapped in Jordan
Iraqi refugees who fled sectarian violence following the 2003-U.S.-led invasion are fearful they could fall between the cracks as aid agencies scramble to help fresh arrivals escaping Islamic State brutality.
Scottish archbishops urge Catholics to vote in independence referendum
Scotland's archbishops have encouraged Catholics to vote in the forthcoming referendum on independence -- and to pay attention to the issue of religious freedom.
Latest papal push for peace spans a century, at least
During World War I Pope Benedict XV was roundly ignored and criticized for trying to end that war. He established a tradition of efforts to make peace for subsequent popes, including his namesake Pope Benedict XVI and Pope Francis.
Just-war theory reemerges in light of Islamic State and past Iraqi wars
Catholic scholars are following Pope Francis' lead in debating the use of force in the region. Should the U.S. go in alone or with a coalition of nations? Is the U.N. the "competent authority" in this matter? Does the Pottery Barn rule -- "you break it, you bought it" -- apply to Iraq today?
Middle East patriarchs meet diplomats, call for wiping out terrorists
Catholic and Orthodox patriarchs of the Middle East denounced attacks on Christians and lamented the indifference of Islamic authorities and the international community. The prelates called on the world's major powers to deprive extremist groups of resources by compelling countries financing them to stop their support.
Force alone cannot stop ‘religious cleansing’ in Mideast
Economic and military intervention will be needed to protect the Christian and other minority communities of the Middle East, said the Franciscan custodian of sites in the Holy Land. But their survival will depend on the courage of the region's inhabitants to love and protect one another.