By Hannah Brockhaus Rome Newsroom, Dec 23, 2022 / 08:00 am It’s a well-known origin story: how the young and wealthy Francis of Assisi freely abandoned his noble patrimony to serve Christ’s Church as a poor, itinerant preacher. One of the world’s most beloved saints, the founder of the Franciscan order …

Father Arthur (Art) J. Espelage, OFM, 78, passed away Dec. 9 at Riverside Hospital in Columbus, Ohio, where he was receiving Hospice Care. Born on Aug. 13, 1944, in Cincinnati, Father Art was one of six children of Arthur Sr. and Antoinette. He attended St. Bonaventure School in Cincinnati. With …

On Oct. 4, Roman Catholics celebrate the feast of St. Francis of Assisi, the Italian deacon who brought renewal to the Church through his decision to follow Jesus’ words as literally as possible. In a January 2010 general audience, Pope Benedict XVI recalled this “giant of holiness” as a “great …

by Courtney Mares Assisi, Italy, Dec 17, 2021 / 15:17 pm Saint Francis’ hometown of Assisi has once again been illuminated with Giotto’s frescoes this Christmas season. The frescoes from the interior of the Basilica of St. Francis are being projected each night onto the town’s churches from Dec. 8 …

by CNA Staff Greccio, Italy, Dec 17, 2021 / 04:00 am In 2019, Pope Francis issued an apostolic letter on the meaning and importance of the Christmas nativity scene. He signed the document, Admirabile signum (“Enchanting image”), on Dec. 1 that year, at the Shrine of the Nativity in Greccio, a hilltown in the …

by Hannah Brockhaus Rome Newsroom, Jul 13, 2021 / 13:00 pm The Order of Friars Minor announced Tuesday the election of Rome-native Fr. Massimo Fusarelli to be their newest minister general. Fusarelli, 58, was elected by the order for a term of six years. The election was confirmed by Cardinal …

by Courtney Mares Rome Newsroom, Dec 9, 2020 / 01:00 pm MT (CNA).- Assisi unveiled a nativity scene Tuesday made of 50 figurines of shepherds, angels, and barn animals with a new addition this year: a life-size figure of a nurse in scrubs wearing a mask. The diocese said that …

by Courtney Mares Rome Newsroom, Nov 23, 2020 / 07:05 am MT (CNA).- Franciscan friar Mauro Gambetti was ordained a bishop Sunday afternoon in Assisi less than a week before he will become a cardinal. At 55 years old, Gambetti will be the third youngest member of the College of …

By Courtney Mares Rome Newsroom, Oct 7, 2020 / 11:50 am MT (CNA).- Ahead of Carlo Acutis’ beatification this week, people who knew the young computer programmer shared their memories of his love for the poor. “With his savings, he bought sleeping bags for homeless people and in the evening …

Vatican City, Oct 4, 2020 / 04:17 am MT (CNA).- Pope Francis presented his vision for overcoming the world’s growing divisions, laid bare by the coronavirus crisis, in his new encyclical Fratelli Tutti, published Sunday. In the letter, released Oct. 4, the pope urged people of good will to promote …