By Cindy Wooden VATICAN CITY (CNS) — Pope Francis’ exhortation on the family should prompt discussion and even debate, but accusing him and others of heresy is completely out of place, said German Cardinal Walter Kasper. “A heresy is a tenacious disagreement with formal dogma. The doctrine of the indissolubility …

IMAGE: CNS photo/Jorge Duenes, Reuters By Mark Pattison WASHINGTON (CNS) — The last government shutdown — well, threatened shutdown, anyway — seems so long ago. The nine-hour “funding lapse” of Feb. 9, like the three-day shutdown that began Jan. 20, hinged on how Congress was going to address the Deferred …

IMAGE: CNS photo/Rhina Guidos By Rhina Guidos WASHINGTON (CNS) — Hair clippers and brushes are the tools 34-year-old Rudy Romero uses to carry out his mission to help the poor and homeless. For the past four years, he has rushed three times a week or so from his day job …

IMAGE: CNS/Paul Haring By Cindy Wooden VATICAN CITY (CNS) — Salvation in Christ is a gift of God that cannot be earned by human efforts alone, and it is not simply some kind of interior transformation, but touches the way Christians live in the world and relate to others, said …

IMAGE: CNS photo/pool, Susan Walsh via Reuters By Carol Zimmermann WASHINGTON (CNS) — President Donald Trump and congressional leaders paid tribute to the Rev. Billy Graham Feb. 28 in a brief ceremony before the public could pay respects to the evangelist while he lies in honor at the U.S. Capitol …

IMAGE: CNS photo/courtesy Catholic Charities of Oregon By Katie Scott PORTLAND, Ore. (CNS) — “I want my dad to stay with me.” “We are not giving up. We keep going.” The words of first- and second-generation immigrant students in Portland are written across bold self-portraits, conveying fear and courage during …

IMAGE: CNS photo/Debbie Hill By Judith Sudilovsky JERUSALEM (CNS) — Christian leaders in the Holy Land announced they would reopen the Church of the Holy Sepulcher Feb. 28 after the Israeli government has set up a negotiating team to resolve a municipal dispute over property taxes. The heads of Christian …

IMAGE: CNS photo/Bob Roller By Rhina Guidos WASHINGTON (CNS) — Dozens of Catholics, including men and women religious, were arrested in the rotunda of a Senate office building in Washington Feb. 27 as they called on lawmakers to help young adults brought to the U.S. as minors without documents obtain …

IMAGE: CNS photo/courtesy Nuseibeh family By Judith Sudilovsky JERUSALEM (CNS) — Jerusalem’s most famous Christian church, shared by three denominations, is unlocked each morning by a Muslim. Since the seventh century, the family of Wajeeh Nuseibeh, 69, has handed down the responsibility of opening the door of the Church of …

IMAGE: CNS photo/Bob Kohout, Catholic Voice By Mike May OMAHA, Neb. (CNS) — Every Wednesday morning, Bo roams the halls at St. James-Seton School in Omaha. But he’s not a student ducking class — he’s a golden retriever/Labrador mix eager to offer a friendly greeting to everyone he meets. As …