Catholic News Service

Lai, 73, has donated millions of dollars to Catholic causes and has been the biggest financial backer of Cardinal Joseph Zen Ze-kiun, retired archbishop of Hong Kong. He was among nine activists in court April 16 who earlier were found guilty of charges relating to pro-democracy demonstrations in the Chinese territory.

Recent decisions by leading financial institutions and the world's leading economies to ease the debt burden of the world's poorest nations will help those countries respond to the economic crisis caused by the coronavirus pandemic, the executive director of Jubilee USA said.

California's Catholic bishops "remain committed to the complete resumption of indoor worship in a responsible and safe manner," said an April 13 statement.

In a video message sent April 15 to the general assembly of the Brazilian bishops' conference, the Pope Francis encouraged the bishops to give hope and charity "especially to those most in need so that they may smile again."

In response to recent kidnappings of clergy and religious in Haiti and growing anarchy in the Caribbean nation, Catholic schools, churches and other entities called for a national strike April 15.

A novel fundraising approach to restore one of the most iconic monuments in the world, Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris, enables donors to have a piece of history.

Msgr. Kieran Harrington, vicar of communications for the Diocese of Brooklyn, New York, has been named national director of the Pontifical Mission Societies in the United States.

The apostolic nuncio to Mexico urged the country's bishops to "look reality in the eye" as the country's non-Catholic population increases and Mexicans increasingly identify as nonreligious.

Three priests associated with a minor seminary located in the Vatican testified that they neither witnessed nor were informed of suspected cases of sexual abuse occurring at the school.

Germany's lower house of Parliament is considering replacing state payments to the nation's two largest churches. The Catholic and Protestant churches received combined state benefits of more than $650 million in 2020.

A report released April 14 by the Catholic Labor Network reveals that wage theft is rampant in the construction industry in the District of Columbia.

Without prayer, everything crumbles and any initiatives for church reform will just be proposals by some group and not the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, Pope Francis said.

Fr. John P. Beal, professor of canon law at the Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C., said in his talk that past abuse scandals in the U.S. showed "how lack of transparency in church governance allowed these lapses in accountability to go unrecognized and unaddressed for decades."

Despite COVID-19 restrictions and various challenges posed by continuous volcanic eruptions and ashfall on St. Vincent and the Grenadines and neighboring islands, dioceses in the West Indies have rallied to the aid of those affected by La Soufrière volcano.

Catholic bishops in Kenya are urging the government to shelve plans to close two refugee camps in the north, which host refugees who fled civil war and famine in Somalia and South Sudan.

"This new case is a reflection of the collapse of the security apparatus of the state and the country. No one seems to be safe anymore," Redemptorist Fr. Renold Antoine told Fides on April 12.

Increasing vocations to the priesthood, improving the way laypeople and priests work together and ensuring that service, not power, motivates the request for ordination are all possible outcomes of a major symposium being planned by the Vatican in February 2022.

President Joe Biden signed an executive order April 9 announcing the formation of a commission to look into possible reforms to the Supreme Court, including expansions and term limits.

Australian Cardinal Edward I. Cassidy, a longtime Vatican diplomat and former president of the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity, died April 10 at the age of 96 in Newcastle, Australia.

Like the disciples, who experienced Jesus' divine mercy after the resurrection, all Christians are called to become missionaries, sharing the Gospel of God's love and mercy with others, Pope Francis said.