WASHINGTON (CNS) – The chairman of the U.S. bishops’ Committee on Migration June 1 criticized the Trump administration for “forcibly separating children from their mothers and fathers” at the U.S.-Mexico border. Such a policy “is ineffective to the goals of deterrence and safety and contrary to our Catholic values,” said Bishop Joe S. Vasquez of
VATICAN CITY (CNS) — Pope Francis asked Catholics to recognize and be thankful for the undeserved gift of the Holy Spirit they received with the sacrament of confirmation. “It is a gift to be cherished with care” and to follow with docility, “letting oneself be molded like wax from the burning love” of the Holy
VATICAN CITY (CNS) — Loving wealth destroys the soul, and cheating people of their just wages and benefits is a mortal sin, Pope Francis said. Jesus did not mince words when he said, “Woe to you who are rich,” after listing the Beatitudes as written according to St. Luke, the pope said in a morning
HONOLULU (CNS) — Paul and Rose Utes, members of Sacred Heart Parish in Pahoa, had to leave their home when lava from the Kilauea eruptions moved into their section of the Leilani Estates subdivision in Puna on the Big Island. At the time they heard the mandatory evacuation order, the couple, who own Black Rock
VATICAN CITY (CNS) — A life of holiness isn’t defined by having visions or performing extraordinary feats of devotion, but by living with the hope of salvation promised by Christ, Pope Francis said. While the call to live like a Christian is “the same as saying to live ‘like a saint,’” it does not mean
PANAMA CITY (CNS) — The Church of Christ the Redeemer was built with Panama’s hot and humid weather in mind. There are no walls on the building. Its tall round roof is supported by cement columns spread far apart so that a good amount of breeze can make its way down the church’s aisles. But
VATICAN CITY (CNS) — Without its feminine dimension, the Catholic Church risks becoming an old boys club and incapable of love, Pope Francis said. The church must “remain female” and “have this attitude of a wife and mother” who nurtures her children, the pope said in his homily May 21 during a morning Mass commemorating
VATICAN CITY (CNS) — Everyone who has received the sacrament of confirmation has received the gift of the Holy Spirit, who guides them and gives them the strength to follow God’s will, Pope Francis said. “Every one of us has the Spirit within us. The Spirit is in our heart, our soul,” the pope said
VATICAN CITY (CNS) — Catholics who participate in the World Meeting of Families in Dublin in August or pray with their families during the Aug. 21-26 event can receive a plenary indulgence, the Vatican announced. An indulgence is a remission of the temporal punishment a person is due for sins that have been forgiven. The
VATICAN CITY (CNS) — The most desolate places in the world in need of Christ are where people are indifferent, even hostile to God and his love, Pope Francis said. The church’s mission is to bring the faith to the ends of the earth, he said, especially to these “extreme peripheries,” and to use the
