By Carol Zimmermann WASHINGTON (CNS) — Many religious leaders viewed President Donald Trump’s executive order on religious freedom, which he signed in a White House Rose Garden ceremony May 4, as a step in the right direction. In the ceremony for National Day of Prayer prior to signing the executive …

By WASHINGTON (CNS) — President Donald Trump will visit the Vatican and meet with Pope Francis May 24 as part of his first foreign trip as president. White House officials said the visit will be part of a trip that will include stops in Israel and Saudi Arabia before Trump …

IMAGE: CNS photo/L’Osservatore Romano via EPA By Carol Glatz VATICAN CITY (CNS) — Pope Francis advanced the sainthood causes of Wisconsin-born Capuchin Father Solanus Casey, five religious, four laypeople and two cardinals, including Vietnamese Cardinal Francois Nguyen Van Thuan. The pope approved the decrees during an audience May 4 with …

By Cindy Wooden VATICAN CITY (CNS) — Shortly after Pope Francis met privately with Myanmar’s de facto leader, Aung San Suu Kyi, the Holy See and Myanmar announced they were establishing full diplomatic relations. The Vatican announced May 4 that the pope would appoint a nuncio to the southeast Asian …

IMAGE: CNS photo/Julien Warnand, EPA By Simon Caldwell MANCHESTER, England (CNS) — A group of psychiatric care centers run by a Catholic religious order in Belgium has announced it will permit doctors to undertake the euthanasia of “nonterminal” mentally ill patients on its premises. In a nine-page document, the Brothers …

IMAGE: CNS/Paul Haring By Junno Arocho Esteves VATICAN CITY (CNS) — Just as it had been for centuries, Egypt can be a sign of hope for those who long for peace, Pope Francis said. During his weekly general audience May 3, the pope reflected on his recent visit to Egypt …

IMAGE: CNS photo/Paul Jeffrey By Paul Jeffrey WAU, South Sudan (CNS) — Rita Williams slept under a tree beside St. Mary Catholic Cathedral, her three hungry children beside her. Around them, as many as 16,000 other displaced people filled the cathedral compound, hoping the church would keep them safe as …

IMAGE: CNS photo/Jennifer Willems, The By Jennifer Willems PEORIA, Ill. (CNS) — After riding bicycles a little more than 340 miles over five days, three young priests of the Diocese of Peoria sailed across the Indiana state line April 28, bringing Priests Pedaling for Prayers to a close. “It does …

IMAGE: CNS photo/courtesy Irish Jesuit Communications By Susan Gately DUBLIN (CNS) — When Jesuit Father John Sullivan is beatified May 13, two archbishops — one Catholic and one Anglican — will present the solemn petition asking that the priest be declared “a blessed.” That is unusual, but Father Sullivan’s life …

IMAGE: CNS photo/courtesy Diocese of Tyler By Mark Pattison WASHINGTON (CNS) — In the insurance world, extreme weather events such as tornadoes are often referred to as “acts of God.” But in the small Texas town of Emory, about 50 miles northwest of Tyler and 70 miles east of Dallas, …