The Catholic Sun

CIUDAD JUÁREZ ― Even though Spanish is not Sr. Caritas Wendt’s primary language, she was able to experience a sense of the Universal Church when she made a pilgrimage to Ciudad Juárez for the last stop on Pope Francis’ Feb. 12-17 apostolic visit to Mexico.

Waves of priests from the Emerald Isle began arriving in 'State 48' in 1946 with more than 100 priests trading in verdant fields for the scorching Arizona sun over the years.

"Mercy is what moves us toward God, while justice makes us tremble in his sight," Pope Benedict said.

Eighth-grader Stephanie Hamrick was nervous when she was called upon to counsel a peer who was pregnant through the pro-life organization she volunteers with, Voces Unidas por la Vida. “She was very open to what we had to say to her,” recalls Hamrick a student and parishioner at St. Timothy in Mesa. “We showed her her ultrasound and she wanted to keep her baby. Seeing the ultrasound changed her perspective on abortion, and knowing it’s a real person inside of them, it changes their minds and hearts. I was really happy to help her.”

Pope Francis set three dates for the canonization of five saints later this year including Mother Teresa, a 'gaucho priest' and a young Mexican martyr.

Bachelor and doctorate-level nursing programs are launching soon in the Diocese of Phoenix at Saint Xavier University and College of St. Scholastica, respectively.

GILBERT – While most people are asleep at 3 o’clock in the morning, St. Anne Parish in Gilbert opened its doors to those night owls seeking refuge in the Lord through Adoration and the sacrament of Reconciliation. The parish was one of several throughout the Diocese of Phoenix — at least one in each deanery — participating in the worldwide “24 Hours for the Lord” initiative March 4-5.

Pope Francis is the first pontiff from the Americas and the chapel where he offers daily Mass is the first building in the Vatican designed by an American.

Loving service also involves placing the gifts God has given one at the service of the community so it can grow, Pope Francis said.

Super funny and squeaky clean, the Laugh4Hope comedy night fundraiser returns for a third year, but in a new venue.