VATICAN CITY (CNS) – Almost every papal trip abroad is a complex mix of the religious and political, and that will be especially true of Pope Francis’ Nov. 28-30 visit to Turkey. Given the country’s crucial geographic position straddling Europe and Asia, its historic importance for both Christianity and Islam and the wars now raging […]
International News
Pope Encourages New Idealism for Europe
By Cindy Wooden STRASBOURG, France (CNS) – The project of European unity and cooperation, ensuring peace on the continent and helping others find peace as well, requires a real commitment to dialogue and respect for others, Pope Francis said. While the pope did not specifically mention the current conflict between Ukraine and Russia, both members […]
Challenges in Feeding the World’s Hungry
ST. PAUL, Minn. (CNS) – With projections putting the planet’s population at 9 billion by 2050, the question of how to feed them is taking on ever-greater importance. But at the “Faith, Food & the Environment” symposium Nov. 5-7 in St. Paul, held at the University of St. Thomas and sponsored by more than a […]
Pulling Heartstrings: Hand Puppets Bring Healing
By Barb Fraze BEIRUT (CNS) – Syrian children who have seen their houses bombed and family members killed are using string, glue, socks, beads and other odds and ends to help put their lives back together. Counselors, teachers and volunteers are being trained to help the children process their trauma through the use of puppets. […]
Historians Explore Shakespeare’s Catholic Sympathies
STRATFORD-UPON-AVON, England (CNS) – When the latest production of William Shakespeare’s play “Love’s Labor’s Lost” opened in the recently refurbished Royal Shakespeare Theater, it attempted to draw new meaning from the Bard’s eternal lines. A similar task is being pursued by historians and researchers amid claims that Shakespeare was a secret Catholic at a time […]
Vatican Issues Guides For Bishops’ Retirements
By Cindy Wooden VATICAN CITY (CNS) – While all bishops offer to resign at age 75, those who are not cardinals and are working in the Roman Curia – including as presidents of pontifical councils – automatically end their service on their 75th birthdays, said a new document from Pope Francis. The ministry of a […]
Irish Archbishop Knocks Reports That Criticized Francis’ Approach
By Michael Kelly DUBLIN (CNS) – Archbishop Diarmuid Martin of Dublin decried comments from clerics and others who said Pope Francis caused confusion in his calls for an open discussion on how the Church should reach out to those who are marginalized, hurt and wounded in their lives during the recent Synod of Bishops on […]
Fleeing Iraqi Christians Live in a Park Tent
by Dale Gavlak AINKAWA, Iraq (CNS) – The last thing Abu Sabah ever pictured in his life was being homeless and living in a tent in a park somewhere. But that is exactly what he and his family are experiencing in this Christian enclave outside of Irbil, the capital of the Kurdistan area of northern […]
Cardinal Burke Receives New Vatican Post
VATICAN CITY (CNS) – Pope Francis removed U.S. Cardinal Raymond L. Burke, 66, as head of the Vatican’s highest court and named him to a largely ceremonial post for a chivalric religious order. Cardinal Burke, formerly prefect of the Apostolic Signature, will now serve as cardinal patron of the Knights and Dames of Malta. The […]
Filipinos Still Mourn, One Year After Typhoon
by Simone Orendain TACLOBAN, Philippines (CNS) – The sun was fierce over the field of dried grass and clumps of earth marked with 3,000 small white crosses. Priests in white vestments walked along the rows of graves, sprinkling streams of holy water from plastic bottles. The blessing was part of the Catholic community’s remembrance of […]