By Junno Arocho Esteves VATICAN CITY (CNS) — The courageous witness of those who have given their life for the Gospel is needed in a world that is often antagonistic toward its message, Pope Francis said. “We too are living in a time of martyrdom, and in the midst of …

By WASHINGTON (CNS) — Religious freedom “is foundational to our church and American society,” said Baltimore Archbishop William E. Lori in announcing a new video that explores the foundations of church teaching on religious liberty, including the Second Vatican Council document “Dignitatis Humanae.” The archbishop made the comments April 12 …

IMAGE: CNS/Nancy Wiechec By Thandiwe Konguavi EDMONTON, Alberta (CNS) — The specter of assisted suicide is leading aging people to “fear an institution that should be the last thing they should ever fear — a hospital,” said Edmonton Archbishop Richard Smith. “But the strong feeling is, ‘If I can’t speak …

IMAGE: CNS photo/courtesy of NASA By Dennis Sadowski WASHINGTON (CNS) — A wave of courses connecting branches of science with Catholic teaching is emerging in seminaries across the country. The goal is to raise “the scientific literacy of clergy,” said Doris Donnelly, retired professor of religion at John Carroll University …

IMAGE: CNS/Paul Haring By Cindy Wooden VATICAN CITY (CNS) — Before St. John Paul II arrived in Greece in 2001 there were protests by Orthodox faithful and an all-night prayer vigil by Orthodox monks on Mount Athos, praying that the pope would not come. But things have changed. “You see …

IMAGE: CNS photo/Stoyan Nenov, Reuters By VATICAN CITY (CNS) — Pope Francis asked Christians to pray for him before embarking on a one-day visit to the Greek island of Lesbos. “I will go together with my brothers,” Orthodox Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew of Constantinople and Orthodox Archbishop Ieronymos II of Athens …

IMAGE: CNS/Paul Haring By Junno Arocho Esteves VATICAN CITY (CNS) — Without a repentant heart, Christians can risk living out their faith superficially and fail to live out God’s desire for “mercy, not sacrifice,” Pope Francis said. Instead, Jesus’ love for sinners shows that the church is not “a community …

IMAGE: CNS photo/Stoyan Nenov, Reuters By Cindy Wooden VATICAN CITY (CNS) — Pope Francis’ trip to Lesbos, Greece, April 16 comes at a frightening and critical time for tens of thousands of refugees and migrants waiting and wondering where they will end up, said members of Catholic aid agencies. Maristella …

IMAGE: CNS/Reuters By WASHINGTON (CNS) — Pope Francis has appointed Archbishop Christophe Pierre, papal nuncio to Mexico since 2007, to be the new apostolic nuncio to the United States. He succeeds Archbishop Carlo Maria Vigano, who has held the post since 2011. Archbishop Vigano turned 75 in January, the age …

By Junno Arocho Esteves VATICAN CITY (CNS) — Christians must beware of a “polite” persecution that is cloaked in a disguise of “culture, modernity and progress,” Pope Francis said. Those who suffer this kind of persecution are not persecuted “for confessing Christ’s name, but for wanting to have and manifesting …