Catholic News Service

The Diocese of Oakland, which serves two California counties in the East Bay area, published Feb. 18 a list of priests, deacons and religious brothers who have worked in the diocese and been credibly accused of abuse, dating back to the diocese's founding in 1962.

The U.S. Supreme Court agreed to hear oral arguments in April about the Trump administration's push to add a citizenship question to the 2020 census and its decision will come just in the nick of time, since the Census Bureau needs to begin printing forms for the every-10 years-questionnaire this summer.

The Diocese of Brooklyn Feb. 15 released a list of clergy credibly accused of sexually abusing a minor, saying that the 108 names on the list represent less than 5 percent of clergy who have served in the diocese in its 166-year history.

Former Wheeling-Charleston Bishop Michael Bransfield's name has been removed from the gymnasium at Central Catholic High School in Wheeling.

A Catholic bishop in the Philippines said his government's controversial war on drugs is really a war against the country's poor.

Pope Francis has lifted the canonical penalties imposed 34 years ago on Father Ernesto Cardenal, 94, the Nicaraguan poet and former member of the Sandinista government.

The accusations surrounding former U.S. Cardinal Theodore McCarrick have been hanging over dioceses where he served since last year.

The Vatican's removal from the priesthood of Theodore McCarrick "is a clear signal that abuse will not be tolerated," said the president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops Feb. 16.

Pope Francis has confirmed the removal from the priesthood of Theodore McCarrick, the 88-year-old former cardinal and archbishop of Washington.

At a funeral Mass in Washington for former U.S. Rep. John Dingell, former President Bill Clinton said the Democratic congressman should be remembered as "a world-class doer."

Catholic bishops voiced opposition just after President Donald Trump's Feb. 15 declaration of a national emergency so he can order construction of a barrier along parts of the border.

Even if Christians struggle to recognize him with his "torn clothes (and) dirty feet," Jesus is present in the migrants and refugees who seek safety and a dignified life in a new land, Pope Francis said.

Italian Archbishop Luigi Ventura, 74, a Vatican diplomat who once served in Canada, Chile and western Africa, is under investigation by police in Paris for allegedly sexually assaulting a city official.

Virginia's two Catholic bishops, Arlington Bishop Michael Burbidge and Richmond Bishop Barry Knestout, released lists Feb. 13 of the clergy credibly accused of child sex abuse in their respective dioceses.

Catholic Extension honored Bishop Curtis Guillory of Beaumont with its third annual Spirit of Francis Award for his "faith, hope, vision, great compassion and love," his leadership, and his commitment to the Catholic Church and the diverse faith community of southeast Texas.

Sustainable development in rural areas is key to making poverty and hunger a thing of the past, Pope Francis said.

A report by an independent investigator into the Archdiocese of Louisville's handling of clergy sexual abuse in the course of 80-plus years begins as a story of failure followed by what the report calls "a sea change."

Dioceses in the state of New Jersey made public Feb. 13 the names of priests whom they said had been "credibly accused" of sexual abuse of minors, and one of the names is former U.S. Cardinal Theodore McCarrick.

The Field Hospital: By launching a "Year of Awakening," the Diocese of Metuchen, New Jersey, said it aims to renew and awaken the faith" in each and every heart" and begin a new "great wave of evangelization" in all of the four-county diocese's parishes and institutions.

An independent investigation into the much-discussed encounter that went viral between Catholic high school students, a Native American tribal leader and members of another protest group on the Lincoln Memorial grounds in Washington in January found no evidence that the students of Kentucky's Covington Catholic High School issued "offensive or racist statements.