World News

Pope, writing in secular newspaper, urges dialogue with nonbelievers

VATICAN CITY (CNS) — Writing in one of Italy’s major secular newspapers, Pope Francis called for a “sincere and rigorous dialogue” between the church and nonbelievers as an “intimate and indispensable expression” of Christian love. The pope’s words appeared in a 2,600-word letter published in the Sept. 11 edition of the Rome daily La Repubblica, […]

Education, jobs, electricity: Syrians discuss why they fled to Turkey

ISTANBUL (CNS) — In the small front room of an apartment in a middle-class district of Istanbul, five young men, some with university degrees or halfway there, talked about why they fled their homes in Syria. One of them had arrived from Syria that evening, another more than a year ago, and the rest within […]

Pope hears officials’ input on reforming Vatican bureaucracy

VATICAN CITY (CNS) — Pope Francis met with Vatican officials Sept. 10 to hear their questions and suggestions about his ongoing reform of the Vatican bureaucracy. The Vatican spokesman, Jesuit Father Federico Lombardi, said the meeting lasted nearly three hours and, except for a brief greeting by the pope, was devoted to remarks by the […]

Congolese bishop says he hopes international pressure helps his country

NAIROBI, Kenya (CNS) -- A bishop from eastern Congo said people in the area continue to suffer from an ongoing government-rebel conflict, and he hoped pressure from the international community would help relieve the situation. Bishop Willy Ngumbi Ngengele of Kindu, Congo, told Catholic News Service in Nairobi that people in and around North Kivu and Goma were the worst hit.

Christians, Muslims join Pope Francis in praying for peace in Syria

JERUSALEM (CNS) -- At the Church of All Nations at the Garden of Gethsemane, the stone that traditionally has represented Jesus' agony was scattered with notes in different languages -- all asking for peace in Syria. Christian leaders of the Holy Land gathered there Sept. 7, as Christians and Muslims all over the world prayed with Pope Francis for Syria.

Vatican’s new top diplomat ready to ramp up network for peace

VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- A veteran diplomat, the Vatican's new secretary of state, plans to put the church's vast global diplomatic network into high gear as champions for peace. Archbishop Pietro Parolin said Pope Francis has already injected a new impetus into the Vatican's Secretariat of State structure and given a new push for church-led diplomacy.

Vatican’s U.N. nuncio calls military strikes on Syria ‘unjustified’

NEW YORK (CNS) -- Military strikes on Syria are unjustified and will create a far larger humanitarian disaster for people already suffering from hunger, displacement and critical lack of medical care, said the Vatican nuncio to the United Nations. Archbishop Francis A. Chullikatt urged, instead, that world leaders work toward a "cessation of violence, not an escalation of violence" in Syria during a Mass Sept. 7 at St. Patrick's Cathedral in New York.

Aid agencies fear increase in Syrian refugees if U.S. launches strikes

ISTANBUL (CNS) -- Tanil Kahiaian, a refugee from the Syrian city of Aleppo, said he is doing what he can for the others fleeing his country. He, his wife and two children escaped the Syrian war almost a year ago, and since he has watched "tens of thousands" pour into neighboring Turkey as he did. "It is so difficult for me to see this, their poverty. I am donating clothes from my work," Kahiaian told Catholic News Service Sept. 8 from near his home in Istanbul's Kumkapi district.

Thousands flock to Rome armed with power of prayer in fight for peace

VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- For the thousands of people who turned out for a solemn vigil in St. Peter's Square, the power of prayer and hopes for peace are still mightier than the world's weapons and wars. "Instead of using hatred, we are using prayer because it's the only thing that can bring calm and peace to everything," Michele Di Stadio, 20, told Catholic News Service.

Praying for peace in Syria, pope calls selfishness the cause of war

VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Leading a crowd in prayer for peace in Syria, Pope Francis said that war is ultimately caused by selfishness, which can be overcome only though expressions of fraternity and never with violence. "Leave behind the self-interest that hardens your heart, overcome the indifference that makes your heart insensitive towards others, conquer your deadly reasoning, and open yourself to dialogue and reconciliation," the pope said Sept. 7 before an estimated 100,000 people in St. Peter's Square.