WASHINGTON – Pursuing a master of divinity degree “certainly isn’t the path to riches in this world, but it’s something I really like to do,” said Joe Kolar, a graduate student at the University of Notre Dame in Indiana.Read More

St. Brigid, Canton, will host a special Mass Feb. 4 for the Ladies Ancient Order of Hibernians to celebrate the Irish saint for which the 153-year-old parish was named. About 100 members of the LAOH from 12 different Maryland divisions are expected to flock to the special 1:30 p.m. Mass in honor of St. Brigid’s...Read More

For the last decade St. Ignatius, Hickory, has had a vision for expansion in a rapidly growing parish and community. In 2001 the parish’s new church, positioned on the property so the old church would still be prominent, was dedicated and in late spring of this year the $7.5 million loan will be paid off....Read More

WASHINGTON – With an unflappable trust in God, six Franciscan friars set out on foot one morning from Roanoke, Va., on a trek that would take them 300 miles through the Virginia countryside to Washington.Read More

LONDON – Britain’s Catholic bishops have said a proposed European Union equality directive could force Christians to act against their consciences.Read More

WASHINGTON – Despite the fact abortion has been legal throughout the United States for 34 years, there are “reasons for rejoicing,” primarily because of lower abortion rates and increased public opposition to abortion, said Cardinal Justin Rigali of Philadelphia. Cardinal Rigali, chairman of the U.S. bishops’ Committee on Pro-Life Activities, was principal celebrant and homilist...Read More

CAPE TOWN, South Africa – Africa’s Catholic bishops need a structure to enable them to speak and act as one unit, said Archbishop John Olorunfemi Onaiyekan of Abuja, Nigeria, president of the Symposium of Episcopal Conferences of Africa and Madagascar. “The time is ripe for this, not only because of the many challenges Africa faces,...Read More

MEXICO CITY - An alleged drug-cartel gunman implicated in the 1993 murder of Cardinal Juan Posadas Ocampo of Guadalajara, Mexico, has been sentenced to 11 years in prison after being found guilty of weapons-related offenses.Read More