VATICAN CITY – Pope Benedict XVI urged the Iraqi leadership to work for the swift formation of a stable government and to protect the Christian minority in the country still torn by violence.Read More

Once, the most dreaded question was, “Will you be my bridesmaid?” After all, only a good friend would buy an unflattering, expensive, formal dress, wear it once in front of everyone and then never wear it again.Read More

diplomatic maneuvering between the Holy See and Muslim leaders has taken several striking turns in recent weeks, the Vatican’s strategic purpose in this conversation has been clear since Pope Benedict XVI’s 2006 Christmas address to the Roman Curia. There, while reflecting on his September 2006 Regensburg Lecture and his December 2006 visit to Turkey, the...Read More

CHICAGO - As temperatures climbed and most schools closed for the summer, church leaders called on their congregations to step forward and protect young people from the violence that often seems pervasive in Chicago.Read More

WASHINGTON – Although Florida Gov. Charlie Crist vetoed a bill that would have required women to have an ultrasound before a first-trimester abortion, similar legislation is having more success in other states.Read More

TUCSON, Ariz. – Eucharistic justice calls everyone “to see ourselves and all others in the same light in which the Father sees us,” said Atlanta Archbishop Wilton D. Gregory in remarks prepared for the Southwest Liturgical Conference study week in Tucson.Read More

My first Baltimore Christmas has been delightful, days of prayer and celebrations – overflowing congregations at the Basilica of the Assumption for the Christmas Vigil Mass and the Midnight Mass at our Cathedral of Mary Our Queen. Monsignors Hobbs and Armstrong and their staffs offered us all glowing examples of what solemn liturgies can do...Read More

CAPE TOWN, South Africa – The sound of vuvuzelas made for a sleepless night for Rustenburg’s bishop as soccer fans watched, then celebrated the U.S.-England tie, and a Detroit-born priest now working in rural South Africa cheered the U.S. performance.Read More