Catholic News Service

A true apostle is one who continues to be a courageous and joyful evangelizer even in the face of persecution and certain death, Pope Francis said.

U.S. Sens. Benjamin Cardin and Christopher Van Hollen, both Maryland Democrats, joined Archbishop William E. Lori of Baltimore and other local faith leaders to call for increased federal funding to strengthen security at religious sites amid a recent rise in anti-Semitic attacks.

As swarms of desert locusts continued to advance in Kenya, Catholic leaders urged local communities to use all means possible to fight the herbivorous insects — even cooking them.

Archbishop Eamon Martin of Armagh, Northern Ireland, has welcomed a new political agreement that restores the suspended democratic institutions set up as part of the peace process in Northern Ireland.

In asking to be baptized, Jesus exemplifies the Christian calling to follow along the path of humility and meekness rather than strutting about and being a showoff, Pope Francis said.

Theodore McCarrick, the former cardinal who was laicized by the Vatican in 2019 after numerous claims of abuse by him were substantiated, moved Jan. 3 from the Capuchin Franciscan friary in Kansas where he had been living since late 2018.

The French bishops' permanent council has approved a recommendation to remove gender references for parents on baptismal certificates.

Most Christians would agree it is wrong to hate someone, but it is also wrong to be indifferent, which is a camouflaged form of hatred, Pope Francis said.

Spanish church leaders voiced concern for their country's future after the government pledged to legalize euthanasia, secularize education and strip the church of "improper assets."

Bishop Gerhard Feige of Magdeburg voiced skepticism about a recent proposal by German theologians for Catholics and Protestants to reciprocally open access to Communion.

People cannot call themselves Christians if they sow the seeds of war, Pope Francis said.

"A 'tried' Christian can certainly become closer to those who suffer and make his or her heart open and sensitive in solidarity with others," the pope said Jan. 8 during his weekly general audience.

CNN reached an undisclosed settlement Jan. 7 with Nick Sandmann, a Kentucky Catholic high school student who sued the cable news outlet for defamation over its coverage of an incident that occurred after last year's March for Life.

At least one person has died and one Catholic Church was destroyed by the latest of a series of earthquakes to rock Puerto Rico.

Hours after Iran launched more than a dozen ballistic missiles at two Iraqi bases, Archbishop Jose H. Gomez, president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, issued a statement calling for urgent prayers "that our world's leaders will pursue dialogue and seek peace."

Bishop Alexander Pyone Cho has called for dialogue among all parties as violence escalates in Myanmar's Rakhine state.

The Chinese government has targeted unregistered Catholic and Protestant churches with a new expansion of rules and regulations governing religious organizations.

Cardinal Timothy M. Dolan of New York and Bishop Nicholas DiMarzio of Brooklyn joined about 25,000 New Yorkers who took to the streets for a Jan. 5 "Solidarity March" in protest of anti-Semitism.

The tweet early Jan. 3 from Bishop Richard F. Stika of Knoxville, Tennessee, asked for prayers. It wasn't an unusual request from a church leader. Still, its significance stems from its context and its timing: a few hours after the overnight killing of Iran's top military leader, Maj. Gen. Qassem Soleimani, in a U.S. drone strike in Baghdad.

As some of the worst wildfires in Australian history rage across four states, thousands of people in affected areas in New South Wales and Victoria continue to be evacuated to safety.