by Courtney Mares Rome, Italy, May 19, 2022 / 06:23 am John Paul II began his pontificate with the words “Be not afraid” — a phrase that the Polish pope’s biographer believes can be applied to Vatican diplomacy with Russia and China today. George Weigel, author of the bestselling biography “Witness to …

An arrow points to David DePerro in St. Peter’s Square on May 13, 1981. | Magda Gorman/Used by permission. by CNA Staff Vatican City, May 13, 2022 / 03:47 am On May 13, 1981, Mehmet Ali Ağca shot Pope John Paul II and critically injured him. The pictures of the …

In 1955, Pope Pius IX established May 1 as the Feast of St. Joseph the Worker, a day set aside to seek St. Joseph’s intercession on behalf of laborers. The date was chosen as an alternative to International Workers’ Day, to celebrate workers while avoiding association with May Day’s historical …

This article is part of an ongoing series on Pope St. John Paul II’s “Theology of the Body” (TOB). I began several months ago to explore the three “original experiences” Pope St. John Paul II pondered in his Theology of the Body. In these reflections, we saw that the original …

This article is part of an ongoing series on Pope St. John Paul II’s “Theology of the Body” (TOB).  In last month’s article, I mentioned how Pope St. John Paul II saw in the unity and distinction of our humanity as male and female a profound truth about what it …

ORIGINAL UNITY PART 2: THE SEXUAL DIFFERENCE POPE ST. JOHN PAUL II’S THEOLOGY OF THE BODY This article is part of an ongoing series on Pope St. John Paul II’s “Theology of the Body” (TOB). Last month, we began to explore the second of the “original experiences” described by Pope …

This article is a part of an ongoing series on Pope St. John Paul II’s “Theology of the Body” (TOB). Last month, I wrote about how the concept of original solitude in Pope St. John Paul II’s Theology of the Body applies to both the man and the woman in …

by Hannah Brockhaus Rome Newsroom, Aug 17, 2021 / 08:05 am A group of Catholic nuns in Kabul are safe after the capital city of Afghanistan was taken by the Taliban Aug. 15, the president of a children’s charity said Tuesday. “We are in constant contact with the sisters present …

The idea of consecrating oneself to Mary, or to “Jesus through Mary,” seems to be growing in popularity among Catholics. Why is this and what does it mean? Although Catholics throughout the centuries have been consecrating themselves to the Blessed Mother, it began to grow in popularity under the pontificate …

This article is the start of an extended series in which I will reflect on, explain, and apply Pope St. John Paul II’s “Theology of the Body” to contemporary issues. Have you heard of “Theology of the Body?” This term has gotten quite a bit of attention in Catholic circles …