World News

With focus on Gaza, Islamists can kill at will in Iraq, Anglican cleric says

Some Christian leaders working in Iraq feel that brutal Islamist militants are literally getting away with murder, now that the world's attention is focused on Gaza's increasingly desperate situation.

Desperation of people in Gaza spurs violence, church leaders say

Israeli and Hamas leaders should use binoculars so they could see that "most of your victims are innocent people," said Honduran Cardinal Oscar Rodriguez Maradiaga, president of Caritas Internationalis, adding that reconciliation requires recognizing each other as human beings.

Meeting 200 Pentecostals, Pope Francis talks of unity

VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- His voice breaking with emotion, Giovanni Traettino, a Pentecostal pastor in southern Italy and longtime friend of Pope Francis, welcomed the pope, who said he knows people were shocked that he would make a special trip to visit a group of Pentecostals, "but I went to visit my friends."

High in the Andes, Peruvian artisans create sacred art

Freddy Cerna is about the same height as the statue he carves from Italian Carrara marble. His backward baseball cap and buggy protective goggles are a sharp contrast to the delicate face he perfects with his carving tools. The statue of Mary, her hands folded in prayer, stares back at him.

Pope, visiting Albania Sept. 21, will meet officials, children

After a quick flight over Italy and the Adriatic Sea, Pope Francis will make an 11-hour visit to Albania Sept. 21, making time to meet with the nation's leaders and bishops, but also spending time with disadvantaged children and other people assisted by Catholic charitable organizations.

AIDS activists praise progress, warn about lingering danger of HIV

Catholic AIDS activists said they are encouraged by the steady progress being made against HIV, but warned against complacency.

Campaign against human trafficking must focus on victims, speakers say

Estimates of the number of people around the world who are victims of human trafficking are rising, partly because globalization has made it easier to move people and partly because governments, churches and international organizations are better at recognizing the phenomenon, a U.S. government official said.

Ukraine crisis shows the danger of manipulating truth, chaplain says

Propaganda and fear were the sparks that ignited the conflict in eastern Ukraine, a conflict that has become a real war, said a Jesuit military chaplain.

In El Salvador, Americans see firsthand legacy of murdered Jesuits

Standing at the edge of the garden where six Jesuit priests were killed in 1989, Echol Nix is clear about the message he is taking home with him to the United States.

Pope Francis reveals top 10 secrets to happiness

VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Slowing down, being generous and fighting for peace are part of Pope Francis' secret recipe for happiness -- see the full list.