Pope Francis prayed with then met with victims of clergy sex abuse today. Here's the text of his homily -- Pope asks forgiveness for "sins of omission." Francis: "The courage that you and others have shown by speaking up, by telling the truth, was a service of love, since for us it shed light on a terrible darkness in the life of the Church."
According to the Catholic News Service Twitter feed, the Mass as 'very moving' and the meeting lasted three hours.
Pope urges complete ban on producing, using land mines
Oppido Mamertina, Italy -- Church parade past Mafia home a challenge to Pope Francis
Iraq -- Catholic aid groups scramble to help Iraqi Christians -- "You name it they need it," aid worker says.
Commentary: Pope Francis just expertly trolled his critics by Elizabeth Stoker Bruenig
Nuns fight against child labor in Vietnam by Joachim Pham and 
Global Sisters Report, which is devoted to covering the mission and ministry of Catholic women religious. It offers news, commentary and reflections on spirituality and theology.
Netanyahu says he's shocked over Palestinian teen's 'abhorrent' murder
El Paso, Texas -- Bishop Mark Seitz speaks on ABC's "This Week" on immigration crisis
Manila, Philippines -- Politician at center of pork barrel scandal seeks asylum with church.
Argentina -- Two retired army officers were sentenced to life imprisonment on Friday, for the murder of a Catholic bishop during Argentina's 1976-1983 military dictatorship. Documents in the trial included two letters from the Vatican archives provided by Pope Francis.
Chaldean Patriarch Louis Raphael I Sako: Christian exodus from Iraq accelerates. Pushes for a political solution with aid of western states, Iran, Turkey, Qatar and Saudi Arabia
Newark, N.J. -- Catholic schools fight to keep doors open as future dims
Looking for a little inspiration to begin your day? NCR's sister publication, Celebration, gives you two options, both based on the Scripture readings of the day:
Daily Bread is a series of short reflections written by four authors who meet regularly to share the readings. Daily Bread is intended to help daily preachers and others who pray from the assigned Scriptures each day to orient themselves to the Living Word addressed to the church in the world. It's a great way to begin the day.
Pencil Preaching is a blog in which Celebration editor Pat Marrin combines Scripture and sketching to reflect on the Word.
