Hundreds honor memory of Father Hesburgh, celebrate a life well lived
Ryan Leahy of Chicago walked up to an employee on the snow-covered campus of the University of Notre Dame March 3 and asked her to take a photo of him and his family members in front of the school's iconic gold dome.
Vatican security always on high alert, chief says after IS threats
The head of Vatican security said Islamic State militants have threatened the Vatican, but there are no indications of any planned attack.
Phoenix priest in Rome named ‘Chaplain to His Holiness,’ monsignor
A Phoenix priest working for the charitable arm of the Holy Father and assisting with the Church’s humanitarian work around the globe, got the surprise of his life.
Homeless man of deep faith given funeral, burial in Vatican City
A homeless man who faithfully attended Mass at a church inside Vatican City for decades was buried in a Vatican cemetery after it was discovered he had died and was left unidentified in a hospital morgue.
Patriarchs’ Lenten messages focus on struggles of Mideast Christians
The Middle East is suffering a "Way of the Cross" that is the greatest tragedy since World War II, Melkite Catholic Patriarch Gregoire III Laham said in a Lenten message about suffering.
Return with tears to God’s loving embrace during Lent, pope says
Lent is a journey of purification and penance, a movement that should bring one tearfully back to the loving arms of the merciful Father, Pope Francis said at an Ash Wednesday Mass that began with a procession on Rome's Aventine Hill.
Pope urges cardinals to go in search of the lost, bring them in
The Catholic Church cannot call itself church if it is a "closed caste" where the sick, the wounded and sinners are shunned, Pope Francis told the 20 new cardinals he created.
Catholics urged to remember ‘common good’ in vaccine debate
A nationwide measles outbreak that began at an amusement park in Southern California has fostered an ongoing debate about people's social obligation to have themselves and their children vaccinated against measles, mumps and rubella and other diseases.
Decade after assassination of Sister Dorothy Stang, work remains risky
In the 10 years since U.S.-born Sr. Dorothy Stang was killed by ranchers in the Amazon, the risks have not decreased with 106 people assassinated due to land conflicts in Para state alone, said one of the coordinators of the Brazilian bishops' Pastoral Land Commission.
St. Vincent de Paul program aids ex-prisoners’ re-entry into society
Many prisoners, once released, are poorly equipped to shake off the conditions that led them to commit the crimes which put them in jail in the first place. A two-year-old program in five states is changing that.
