WARSAW, Poland (CNS) – Church officials in Germany defended plans by the country’s bishops’ conference to allow some divorced and remarried Catholics to receive Communion, insisting they have the pope’s endorsement. “We already have our own guidelines, and the pope has now clearly signaled that certain things can be decided locally,” said Robert Eberle, spokesman […]
International News
Nuns in Syria Kidnapped by Terrorist Troops
VATICAN CITY (CNS) – The kidnapping of five Orthodox nuns from a Christian village near Damascus has shocked Syria’s Christian community and filled many Christians with fear, said Chaldean Bishop Antoine Audo of Aleppo, Syria. Speaking to Vatican Radio, Bishop Audo said the latest information is that the superior and four of the nuns belonging […]
Pope Worked as a Bouncer
VATICAN CITY (CNS) – In addition to having worked sweeping floors and running tests in a chemical laboratory as a teenager, Pope Francis revealed he also used to work as a bouncer. No longer kicking troublemakers out of clubs, he has discovered the secret to bringing people back, this time, into the church, according to […]
Pope: Purify Church By Looking Within
By Francis X. Rocca VATICAN CITY (CNS) – When the Synod of Bishops on the new evangelization met at the Vatican in October, 2012, among the top items on the agenda was the threat of militant secularism in a post-Christian West. “It is as if a tsunami of secular influence has swept across the cultural […]
Pope Stirs Controversy With Words on Economy
By Francis X. Rocca VATICAN CITY (CNS) – In enunciating the principles of Catholic social teaching, popes have long stressed the Church’s special concern for the poor and the need for state intervention to promote economic justice. Pope Benedict XVI, for instance, blamed the “logic of profit” for widespread hunger and pollution; called for a […]
Congressman Deplores Move of Embassy
A Brooklyn Congressman has criticized the Obama Administration for its plan to close the U.S. Embassy to the Holy See and to consolidate it into the larger embassy in Italy. Rep. Michael Grimm, who represents parts of Bay Ridge and all of Staten Island, said that “The Obama Administration’s plan to close the Vatican Embassy […]
Pope Praises Grandparents
By Cindy Wooden VATICAN CITY (CNS) – Just as fine wine grows stronger with age, grandparents and other elderly Catholics “have the strength to leave us a noble inheritance,” Pope Francis said at his early morning Mass. Celebrating the liturgy Nov. 19 in the chapel of his residence, Pope Francis once again denounced a cultural […]
Pope Closes Year of Faith
By Carol Glatz VATICAN CITY (CNS) – Pope Francis closed the Year of Faith by calling on people to keep Christ at the center of their lives, especially in times of trouble. “When Jesus is at the center, light shines even the darkest moments of our lives; he gives us hope,” he said in his […]
Girl in Viet Photo Spreads A Message of Forgiveness
By Nichole Golden ATLANTA (CNS) – An entire generation instantly recognizes the image of an unclothed Vietnamese girl running toward the camera in terror after a bombing at her village. Taken by Associated Press photographer Nick Ut in June, 1972, the black and white photograph became one of the most iconic pictures from the Vietnam […]
Pope and Putin Talk Primarily About Peace
By Cindy Wooden VATICAN CITY (CNS) – Peace in the Middle East, particularly the ongoing war in Syria, topped the agenda Nov. 25 as Pope Francis welcomed Russian President Vladimir Putin to the Vatican. The Russian president “conveyed the greetings of (Russian Orthodox) Patriarch Kirill, but there was not a discussion of ecumenical relations,” said […]