U.S. Olympic gymnast and gold medalist Simone Biles says when she travels, she sometimes takes with her a statue of St. Sebastian, the patron saint of athletes, and she also carries a rosary her mother gave her.
International News
Missing Seminarian Found Dead in River
Law enforcement officials in Wichita announced that a body found some days earlier in the Arkansas River near one of the city’s park was the body of Brian Bergkamp, a seminarian from the Diocese of Wichita.
Mother Teresa’s Stamp
The Vatican will anticipate the canonization of Blessed Teresa of Kolkata with a special postage stamp, which will be released Sept. 2, two days before Pope Francis officially declares her a saint.
Iraqi Christians Not Sure They Will Be Able to Return Home
Iraqi Christians appear divided about whether they will be able to return home after Islamic State militants are flushed out of the battle-scarred Ninevah Plains region.
World Prepares To Honor St. Mother Teresa
At Mother Teresa’s home, the headquarters of the Missionaries of Charity, the doors are open for all, and followers and admirers come every day, visiting and praying at her tomb.
Olympic Swimmer Prays Hail Mary Before Race
Before every race, swimmer Katie Ledecky offers a prayer. “The Hail Mary is a beautiful prayer and I find that it calms me,” she told the Catholic Standard in an email interview.
Pope Says World Is at War But It Is Not Religious
An economy that focuses on the God of money, not human beings, is the foundation of terrorism, Pope Francis said. Speaking to journalists aboard his return flight from Krakow, Poland, July 31, the pope also stressed that violence exists in all religions, including Catholicism, and it cannot be pinned to one single religion.
Children Are the Victims as Bombing of Aleppo Continues
Only a small number of civilians in Aleppo, Syria, are using humanitarian corridors to flee weeks of intensive bombardment; activists say people do not trust that the routes are safe.
Commission to Study Women Deacons
Pope Francis appointed six men and six women, including U.S. scholar Phyllis Zagano, to a commission to study the issue of women deacons in the church.
Sister of St. Joseph Is Still Missing on Vacation in Austria
Two weeks after a recently retired nun from Long Island, N.Y., disappeared while vacationing alone in Europe, more than 200 people gathered to pray for her at an evening service July 20 at St. Anthony of Padua Church, East Northport, where she lived.