Faith, family lighten load for triathlete who travels with a lot of gear
IMAGE: CNS photo/courtesy ITU via Catholic Review By Paul McMullen BALTIMORE (CNS) — World-class triathlete Katie Hursey Zaferes travels with a custom bicycle and enough workout gear to outfit an entire aerobics class. How does she lighten her load? With liberal doses of faith and family. When Zaferes, 27, competes …
Checking in: Pope invites Syrian refugees to lunch
IMAGE: CNS photo/L’Osservatore Romano via Reuters By Cindy Wooden VATICAN CITY (CNS) — At a luncheon that was part reunion and part progress report, Pope Francis invited 21 Syrian refugees to join him at the Vatican Aug. 11. The pope’s lunch guests included the 12 refugees — three married couples …
Unlocking forgiveness: Vatican tribunal promotes pardon
IMAGE: CNS photo/L’Osservatore Romano via Reuters By Cindy Wooden VATICAN CITY (CNS) — The Apostolic Penitentiary has nothing to do with a jail cell and everything to do with ensuring repentant sinners experience God’s mercy. Established in the 12th century when penitential pilgrimages to Rome began to bring thousands of …
The Hickey Sacerdotal Family
There are several instances of biological brothers becoming priests for the Archdiocese of Cincinnati, but in the late 19th century, an extraordinary instance came from the family of Patrick and Johanna Hickey. Five of their sons became priests for the Archdiocese and one daughter became a Sister of Notre Dame …
U.N. Refugee Olympic team: ‘The victory scream of all refugees’
IMAGE: CNS photo/Toru Hanai, Reuters By Lise Alves RIO DE JANEIRO (CNS) — Glued to the improvised screen set up on the patio of the Caritas house, the refugees yelled and they cried. But most of all, they cheered. They cheered for their two Congolese colleagues, Popole Misenga, 24, and …
Pope pays ‘private’ visit to convents outside Rome
By Cindy Wooden VATICAN CITY (CNS) — Pope Francis “snuck” out of the Vatican Aug. 9 for a drive, a walk in the woods and lunch with an Italian bishop at a small convent. Long after the pope had returned to the Vatican from two small towns near Rieti — …
Mercy received must be mercy shared, pope says at audience
IMAGE: CNS photo/Max Rossi, Reuters By Cindy Wooden VATICAN CITY (CNS) — God’s mercy is infectious and must be shared with others, Pope Francis said. Mercy is “a journey that departs from the heart to arrive at the hands,” the pope said Aug. 10 at his weekly general audience. In …
Cincinnati NET Ministries appoints new director
Change is coming to NET Ministries in Cincinnati — the first NET Ministries hub in the United States. Ryan Lopez, who with wife Catherine, coordinated the local NET office, is departing to take a leadership position with the Minnesota-based Laboure Society, a ministry designed to assist people who want to discern …
Islamic State might get ousted, but Christians still worry about safety
IMAGE: CNS photo/Stephanie Lecocq, EPA By Dale Gavlak AINKAWA, Iraq (CNS) — Iraqi Christians appear divided about whether they will be able to return home after Islamic State militants are flushed out of the battle-scarred Ninevah Plains region. They say their safety must be guaranteed at all costs. “If the …
Kolkata gears up for celebrations of ‘St. Teresa’
IMAGE: CNS photo/Piyal Adhikary, EPA By Saadia Azim KOLKATA, India (CNS) — A group of young independent photographers are busy clicking away, taking photos of the “City of Joy.” Their photos, part of the crowdsourced “Sainthood Project,” will be displayed in several locations in Rome in early September, to coincide …