BLUEFIELDS, Nicaragua – Thousands of people living in Nicaragua’s remote northeast lost everything to the winds of Hurricane Felix, but a bishop in the affected area said the church would accompany them as they rebuild. “The winds and flooding have destroyed a lot. People will have to start with nothing. And since flooding has destroyed...Read More

Spiritual directors and social scientists sometimes summarize all human behavior under the three wants: wanting approval, wanting control and wanting to be safe. Most of our efforts on the ego level are seeking to attain one of these three wants.Read More

PITTSBURGH – At age 95, Joseph Martinelli is a regular at daily Mass at St. Colman Parish in Turtle Creek. In the parish bulletin he’s listed as pastoral assistant, just hinting at the many roles he fills.Read More

A simple soup bowl – and the person who donates or buys it – can alleviate hunger. Or it can remain empty, as do the stomachs of too many people right here in Baltimore.Read More

WASHINGTON – The number of Americans living in poverty went down slightly last year, according to the Census Bureau’s annual report, but the number of uninsured Americans rose a bit.Read More

ANNAPOLIS – Karen Wingard had never lobbied her lawmakers before, but hearing that Maryland was on the verge of legalizing same-sex marriage provoked her.Read More

VATICAN CITY – For the first time in a decade, summer tourists could make their way down steep stone steps deep into the dark, dank interior of a papal fortress and crawl into prison cells that housed countless common criminals as well as Rome’s errant elite. The 1,900-year-old Castel Sant’Angelo, which stands near the Tiber...Read More

VATICAN CITY – Eighty years ago, a persistent pope and a scientific pioneer teamed up to create Vatican Radio, launching an evangelization tool that reached virtually every corner of the globe.Read More