IMAGE: CNS photo/courtesy Daughters of St. Mary of Providence By Joseph Albino SYRACUSE. N.Y. (CNS) — In the nautical world, a “spar” is the straight pole used to support the sails and rigging of a ship. In the world of faith and the ministry of the Daughters of St. Mary …

IMAGE: CNS photos/files/Octavio Duran By Carol Glatz VATICAN CITY (CNS) — Pope Francis has cleared the way for the canonizations of Blesseds Paul VI and Oscar Romero. At a meeting March 6 with Cardinal Angelo Amato, prefect of the Congregation for Saints’ Causes, Pope Francis signed decrees for the causes …

IMAGE: CNS photo/Bob Roller By Mark Pattison WASHINGTON (CNS) — In the advent of Pope Francis’ fifth anniversary in the papacy, a new Pew Research poll of U.S. Catholics shows their regard of the pope is, for the first time, colored by their political leanings. The survey, released March 6, …

By Junno Arocho Esteves VATICAN CITY (CNS) — Christians must let go of resentments and forgive those who have wronged them so that they may experience God’s forgiveness, Pope Francis. This can be particularly difficult when “we carry with us a list of things that have been done to us,” …

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 …