The Catholic Sun

Pope Francis' first encyclical, "Lumen Fidei" ("The Light of Faith"), is a celebration of Christian faith as the guiding light of a "successful and fruitful life."

Presenting Pope Francis' new encyclical and acknowledging how much of it was prepared by retired Pope Benedict XVI, top Vatican officials hailed it as a unique expression of the development of papal teaching and unity in faith.

Pope Francis signed a decree clearing the way for the canonization of Blessed John Paul II.

The Catholic Sun won first place for reporting on religious liberty and second place for www.catholicsun.org, among eight other honors during the June 19-21 Catholic Media Conference.

The final rules issued by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services implementing its mandate that employers provide coverage of contraceptives do not eliminate "the need to continue defending our rights in Congress and the courts," said New York Cardinal Timothy M. Dolan in a July 3 statement.

They were Poles, Austrians, Germans, Czechs, Italians, Irish -- especially Irish -- and they had one thing in common. They were Catholics, many of them new immigrants but loyal Americans.

The hearts of Sacred Heart parishioners are heavy right now. Their pastor, Claretian Father Daryl Olds, suffered a massive stroke June 19. Two weeks later, he remains in intensive care in stable, but critical condition.

As the people of central Arizona mourned the deaths June 30 of 19 firefighters from the Granite Mountain Hotshots, hundreds of other firefighters battled the still-uncontrolled blaze that threatened the small towns of Yarnell and Peeples Valley.

Don't let sin and temptation be a trap -- flee from evil and don't look back, Pope Francis said. Sometimes "the only answer is to flee and not be embarrassed about fleeing. Recognize that we are weak and we have to run away" from harmful sins, he said July 2 during his morning Mass in the Domus Sanctae Marthae.

As far as Fr. Raul Lopez can tell, the Yarnell Hill fire lines have not reached St. Mary Mediatrix Mission. Yet. The state of the Shrine of St. Joseph is unknown.