Daughter of Charity Sr. Oanh Tran cleans up her hair styling station at the Fr. Virgil Cordano Center June 10, 2026, in Santa Barbara, California. (GSR photo/ Rhina Guidos)

With haircuts and healthcare, Catholic nun ministers to Santa Barbara's poor

News

In her cosmetology and health ministry, Daughter of Charity Sr. Oanh Tran restores clients' dignity, cutting like a surgeon through matted hair, washing and sometimes mending their feet, and listening to their stories.

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Editors' Choice

The uncovered facade of the Basilica of Our Lady of the Rosary is seen with mosaics by Fr. Marko Rupnik at the Sanctuary of Our Lady of Lourdes in southwestern France in April 2023. (OSV News photo/courtesy Greg Erlandson)

In Focus

Lourdes bans Society of St. Pius X Masses, covers Rupnik art ahead of pope's visit

Two recent decisions by French Bishop Jean-Marc Micas have positioned the Marian shrine at Lourdes as a microcosm for church issues ahead of the pope's visit there at the end of September.

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#1
San Antonio priest laicized, excommunicated after calling Popes Francis and Leo 'usurpers'

A priest of the Archdiocese of San Antonio who was "found guilty of schism" has been removed from the clerical state and excommunicated, according to the archbishop of the archdiocese.

BySimone Orendain, OSV News
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#2
Pope Leo names 3 Notre Dame-affiliated experts to advise major Vatican office

The first U.S.-born pope on Tuesday tapped three experts from U.S. institutions to advise the Catholic Church's central office dedicated to promoting social justice. All three are affiliated with the University of Notre Dame.

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#3
Former SSPX member says unity with Catholicism means more than valid ordinations

Louis Massett recounts his formative years and experiences as a young adult immersed in the world of the Society of St. Pius X in the new autobiography Traddyland: The Memoir of a Radical Traditional Catholic.

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#4
They built careers and their own lives. The call to the priesthood came later.

#5
Amy-Jill Levine elected first Jewish president of Catholic Biblical Association

#6
Women recall behind-the-scenes work for Archbishop Sheen, ahead of beatification

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Pope Leo XIV greets people attending the Meeting for Friendship Among Peoples, hosted by the Catholic lay movement, Communion and Liberation, in Rimini, Italy, Aug. 22, 2026. (CNS/Vatican Media)

Pope Leo once impersonated a Blues Brother. Now, he's met the real thing.

Renowned saxophonist "Blue Lou" Marini, who was part of the Blues Brothers band, gave Pope Leo XIV a pair of Ray-Ban sunglasses similar to a pair Leo sported as a young seminarian, when he was dressed up as a member of the Blues Brothers. 

Pope Leo XIV greets visitors and pilgrims during his weekly general audience in St. Peter's Basilica at the Vatican Aug. 19, 2026. (CNS/Vatican Media)
Vatican News

Pope Leo calls sacred music 'a treasure of profound value'

"Indeed, singing and playing a musical instrument are acts of prayer," the pontiff said. "Music thus fosters our unity in praising God and opens our hearts to be fashioned by his grace."

ByCarol Glatz, Catholic News Service
Pope Leo XIV receives a bouquet of flowers from a woman during a meeting with people experiencing illness or disabilities and those receiving support from Caritas in the city's cathedral in Rimini, Italy, Aug. 22, 2026. (CNS/Vatican Media)
Vatican News

Catholic culture of love can counter the lies of hatred, power, Pope Leo says

The pontiff picked up on the same appeal Pope John Paul II made 44 years ago: to tirelessly bring forth a civilization born of truth and love in a world seriously threatened by selfishness and indifference to others' suffering.

ByCarol Glatz, Catholic News Service
Pope Leo XIV, flanked by Captains Regent Alice Mina, left, and Vladimiro Selva, waves to faithful from the balcony of Palazzo Pubblico (City Hall) during his visit to San Marino Aug. 22, 2026. (AP/Andrew Medichini)
Vatican News

Pope Leo praises San Marino as model of freedom and common good

Using the micro state as an example, the pontiff argued that small political communities can offer lessons in public service and social cohesion at a time of growing division and distrust.

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EarthBeat

A woman prays as people work together to search for their loved ones amid debris in La Guaira, Venezuela, July 20, 2026, following the aftermath of the June 24 earthquakes. (OSV News/Reuters/Gaby Oraa)

Venezuelan archbishop says hope endures as church rebuilds from catastrophic quakes

One priest told Valencia's archbishop: "We cannot go rescue people; we do not have the machinery, and we do not know how to rescue those who might be under the rubble. But we can, and we do know how to console people."

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Amid extreme heat trend, Gonzaga University secures law to cool Spokane renters

"I didn't realize how many people were just sweating it out miserable in Spokane because it is so common to just not have any air conditioning in the [rental] unit," said one student who helped promote the ordinance.

ByBrian Roewe

Conversion of heart needed to end wars, heal Earth, pope says

War and environmental destruction are not just political failures, but symptoms of a deep moral crisis in the human heart, Pope Leo XIV said in his message for the 2026 World Day of Prayer for Creation.

ByJunno Arocho Esteves, OSV News

Colombia: Bogotá archdiocese launches 'spiritual first aid' mission to quake-hit cities

Dozens of clergy from the Archdiocese of Bogotá embarked on a five-day pastoral mission to cities in Colombia devastated by the Aug. 10 earthquake.

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Culture

Fr. Stanley Rother is seen in an image from the documentary "American Martyr: The Stanley Rother Story," which is scheduled to be released in theaters nationwide Aug. 25-27. Rother was martyred in 1981 and beatified in 2017. (OSV News/Archdiocese of Oklahoma City)

Review: "American Martyr: The Stanley Rother Story"

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Cam Obi, a music producer and musician who has worked with some of the biggest names in hip-hop and R&B, converted to Catholicism at the Easter Vigil. He was baptized at Prince of Peace Catholic Church in Albuquerque, New Mexico. (Courtesy of Cam Obi)

Grammy-winning rap music producer Cam Obi on his conversion to Catholicism

The producer, rapper, husband and father has been on a spiritual journey for several years, culminating in his conversion to Catholicism this year at the Easter Vigil. 

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Daughter of Charity Sr. Oanh Tran cleans up her hair styling station at the Fr. Virgil Cordano Center June 10, 2026, in Santa Barbara, California. (GSR photo/ Rhina Guidos)

With haircuts and healthcare, Catholic nun ministers to Santa Barbara's poor

In her cosmetology and health ministry, Daughter of Charity Sr. Oanh Tran restores clients' dignity, cutting like a surgeon through matted hair, washing and sometimes mending their feet, and listening to their stories.

ByRhina Guidos
Light shines upon a church pew in a dimly lit church interior. (Unsplash/Josh Applegate)
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When liturgy welcomes us — and when it doesn't

Sr. Jane Marie Bradish was invited to address a local parish group. The topic? Inclusion and exclusion as experienced in liturgy. "Don't jump to conclusions," she writes. "This was not liturgical bashing."

By
Three envelopes with a flower and two leaves (Unsplash/Razvan Dumitrasconiu)
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21st Sunday in Ordinary Time: Three invitations

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