By Junno Arocho Esteves VATICAN CITY (CNS) — Christians distracted from the path set out by Jesus can turn into decrepit “spiritual mummies,” Pope Francis said at his morning Mass. Spiritual mummies stray from the path of Christian life by choosing to stand still “not doing evil, but not doing …

IMAGE: CNS/Auxiliary Bishop F. Richard Spencer By Paul Haring VATICAN CITY (CNS) — Pope Francis receives countless gifts, but most do not require anything in return. However, at his audience with members of the military April 30, the pope received a small gift with a tradition — and obligation — …

IMAGE: CNS photo/Stephanie Pilick, EPA By Gaby Maniscalco VATICAN CITY (CNS) — Pope Francis will welcome several thousand homeless and vulnerable people from all over Europe when they make a pilgrimage to Rome in November. European organizations that help the homeless are invited to participate in the European Festival of …

IMAGE: CNS photo/Paul Mcerlane, EPA By Michael Kelly DUBLIN (CNS) — Northern Ireland’s Catholic bishops urged Massgoers to support candidates opposed to legalizing abortion in elections to the region’s power-sharing assembly May 5. In a wide-ranging pastoral statement ahead of the polls, the bishops also urged Catholics to lobby lawmakers …

IMAGE: CNS files By NEW YORK (CNS) — Jesuit Father Daniel Berrigan, an early critic of U.S. military intervention in Vietnam who for years challenged the country’s reliance on military might, died April 30. He was 94. The author of several books of poetry and one of the first Catholic …

IMAGE: CNS/Paul Haring By Cindy Wooden VATICAN CITY (CNS) — For peace in the family, community and nation, people need to recognize their faults and ask forgiveness, Pope Francis told thousands of pilgrims, including hundreds of soldiers, sailors and police officers from around the world. “In your families, in the …

IMAGE: CNS/Paul Haring By Gaby Maniscalco ROME (CNS) — The Trevi Fountain, a Rome landmark, was lit up in red April 29 in a graphic commemoration of the thousands of modern Christians martyred for their faith. The event was sponsored by the Catholic charity Aid to the Church in Need, …

IMAGE: CNS photo/Gregory A. Shemitz By Daphnie Vega UNITED NATIONS (CNS) — While religious freedom in much of the Middle East is under siege and the civil war in Syria seems to have no end in sight, Carl Anderson, CEO of the Knights of Columbus, and others called the United …

IMAGE: CNS/Paul Haring By Carol Glatz VATICAN CITY (CNS) — Moral and ethical concerns must guide medical research so it will always be at the service of protecting human life and dignity, Pope Francis said. In that way, education and research can strive “to serve higher values, such as solidarity, …

By Junno Arocho Esteves VATICAN CITY (CNS) — Italian authorities arrested six suspects who allegedly received orders from the Islamic State terrorist group to attack the Vatican and the Israeli embassy in Rome. The arrests made in Lombardy and Piedmont April 28 were the result of a joint operation coordinated …