IMAGE: CNS photo/EPA By Junno Arocho Esteves VATICAN CITY (CNS) — As extraordinary as the apparitions at Fatima, Portugal, nearly 100 years ago were, the sanctity of the shepherd children did not hinge on their having seen Mary, a cardinal said. “The apparition of the Virgin Mary was an occasion, …

IMAGE: CNS photo/EPA By Junno Arocho Esteves VATICAN CITY (CNS) — As extraordinary as the apparitions at Fatima, Portugal, nearly 100 years ago were, the sanctity of the shepherd children did not hinge on their having seen Mary, a cardinal said. “The apparition of the Virgin Mary was an occasion, …

IMAGE: CNS By Cindy Wooden VATICAN CITY (CNS) — Pope Francis and cardinals present in Rome will formally approve the canonizations of two of the children who saw Mary in Fatima, a large group of Brazilian martyrs, three child martyrs from Mexico and two priests. The Vatican announced April 11 …

IMAGE: CNS By Cindy Wooden VATICAN CITY (CNS) — Pope Francis and cardinals present in Rome will formally approve the canonizations of two of the children who saw Mary in Fatima, a large group of Brazilian martyrs, three child martyrs from Mexico and two priests. The Vatican announced April 11 …

By WASHINGTON (CNS) — Three bishops, in a joint letter to the measure’s sponsor, voiced their support of the Child Welfare Provider Inclusion Act, which would permit social service agencies to refuse on religious grounds to provide adoption or foster services for households headed by same-sex couples. The bishops, who …

By WASHINGTON (CNS) — Three bishops, in a joint letter to the measure’s sponsor, voiced their support of the Child Welfare Provider Inclusion Act, which would permit social service agencies to refuse on religious grounds to provide adoption or foster services for households headed by same-sex couples. The bishops, who …

IMAGE: CNS photo/courtesy John E. Kozar By Mark Pattison WASHINGTON (CNS) — The next few months will determine whether Iraqi Christians can return to their homes in areas where Islamic State had been routed, according to Msgr. John E. Kozar, international president of the Catholic Near East Welfare Association. Msgr. …

By Cindy Wooden VATICAN CITY (CNS) — A French biblical scholar not only wrote the meditations to guide Pope Francis’ 2017 celebration of the Via Crucis at Rome’s Colosseum, she also designed her own set of Bible-based Stations of the Cross. Pope Francis asked Anne-Marie Pelletier to share her reflections …

IMAGE: CNS photo/Barbara Fraser By Barbara J. Fraser HUARAZ, Peru (CNS) — A grim-faced Pontius Pilate stares straight ahead, while Jesus, bound with rope, stands beside him, head down. Jesus turns a tortured face heavenward as he falls for the first time under the weight of a stone cross. Mary …

By Carol Glatz VATICAN CITY (CNS) — Despite recent and repeated terrorist attacks against Egypt’s minority Christian communities, Pope Francis will not cancel his visit to Egypt. “The pope’s trip to Egypt proceeds as scheduled,” Greg Burke, Vatican spokesman, told Catholic News Service by email April 10. The pope is …