Bifolio from a "Choir Book," Spanish, 1400-1450. (Michael Centore)

New 'Painted Pages' exhibit at University of St. Joseph beautifies prayer

Culture

When does the artistic process cross over into prayer? This small, but well-curated exhibit featuring manuscripts from the "golden age" of handmade books obliterates distinctions between calligraphy and visual art.

The Latest

Five ancient and medieval saints who can speak to our modern world

Vanessa R. Corcoran

Pope: Opioid crisis, cruelty toward migrants are new social ills

Carol Glatz, Catholic News Service

Catholic nuns combat psychological toll of climate change on rural Kenyan communities

Editors' Choice

Socorro Cassaro holds up a picture of Augustinian Fr. Robert Prevost with a group of young people at Our Lady of Montserrat Parish in Trujillo, Peru. Prevost, the future Pope Leo XIV, served as parochial administrator of the parish from 1992 to 1999. (NCR photo/Justin McLellan)

In Focus

Prevost's Peru was a Vatican II laboratory of church renewal

In 1980s and 1990s Peru, amid post-Vatican II renewal and an Augustinian spirituality of communion, a young Fr. Robert Prevost learned how to construct the participatory church he now champions from Rome.

Support journalism that matters. 

Your donation to NCR keeps independent Vatican news accessible to all. 

Donate Now

Most Read Stories

#1
Archbishop Broglio: Army's cancellation of religious support contracts harms Catholics

He assured the faithful of the military archdiocese that he "will pursue all legal options to address this grave misstep."

ByOSV News
The Washington Capitol is pictured in Olympia April 11, 2020. Washington state's government and its Catholic bishops reached an agreement Oct. 10 in a lawsuit over the state's mandatory reporter law they said could force priests to violate the seal of confession. (OSV News Reuters/Jason Redmond)

#2
Washington state cuts mandate for priests to break confessional seal

 One supporter of the law, a member of the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, or SNAP, called the court decision "a betrayal."

ByRyan Di Corpo
Pope Leo XIV greets Cardinal Blase Cupich of Chicago during an audience at the Vatican Oct. 9 with a pilgrimage of labor union leaders from Chicago. (CNS/Vatican Media)
Vatican News

#3
In sign of confidence, Chicago Cardinal Cupich named to Vatican governing commission

The nomination comes as Pope Leo begins to name appointments in key Vatican positions after months of quiet discernment following his election to the papacy in May. 

ByJustin McLellan

#4
Who will be the next president of the US bishops' conference?

#5
King Charles III's visit to Vatican marks a historic step in path of unity between two churches

#6
Editorial: Pope Leo delivers breathtakingly bold salvo on wealth, elitism and poverty

Opinion

While out of sync with lay Catholics, conservative young priests are future of US church

Your letters: Mischaracterization of Bishop Barron and 'Dilexi te'

Thirteen men being ordained to the priesthood during a May 25, 2024, Mass at the Cathedral of St. Paul in St. Paul, Minn., lie prostrate during the litany of saints. (OSV News file/The Catholic Spirit/Dave Hrbacek)

While out of sync with lay Catholics, conservative young priests are future of US church

As older progressive priests retire or die, younger conservative priests will have a profound impact on parish life. A new study of U.S. priests gives us data on which to reflect as the church faces its future.

Religious freedom behind bars: A constitutional crisis

Letters (not) from Leo: Progressive efforts to claim Pope Leo misunderstand his mission

The Metropolitan Detention Center is shown Tuesday, Sept. 2, 2025, in Los Angeles. (AP/Damian Dovarganes)

Snapshot of an immigrant justice vigil from the LA Catholic Worker

Guest Voices

Manuel was looking for his wife, who had been taken by ICE to the Los Angeles federal building. But immigrants arrested in Southern California don't have due process or visitation rights, so Manuel couldn't visit her.

Vatican

Pope Leo XIV holds a decorated piece of textile during a gathering of popular movements as part of their Jubilee in the Paul VI Audience Hall at the Vatican Oct. 23, 2025. (CNS/Vatican Media)

Pope: Opioid crisis, cruelty toward migrants are new social ills

"States have the right and the duty to protect their borders, but this should be balanced by the moral obligation to provide refuge," Leo said. It's one of many "new" social ills he addressed in a major five-page speech.

Pope, British king share historic prayer in Sistine Chapel

Pope Leo XIV welcomed Britain's King Charles III and Queen Camilla to the Vatican for a unique visit combining ceremonial flourishes and a historic moment of prayer in the Sistine Chapel.

ByCindy Wooden, Catholic News Service

History will be made when King Charles III prays with Pope Leo XIV. A future may be as well.

The moment is a milestone in reconciliation between Roman Catholics and Anglicans, in which the British monarchy has played a key role.
 
ByCatherine Pepinster, Religion News Service

Vatican will return dozens of artifacts to Indigenous groups in Canada as gesture of reconciliation

The Vatican is expected to soon announce that it will return a few dozen artifacts to Indigenous communities in Canada as part of its reckoning with the Catholic Church's troubled role in helping suppress Indigenous culture in the Americas, officials said Wednesday.

ByNicole Winfield, Associated Press

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT

The Leo Chronicles

The Leo Chronicles: Punchline

Pope Leo meets with coalition of survivors of clergy abuse

Pope gives Venezuela reason to celebrate by canonizing beloved 'doctor of the poor'

EarthBeat

A farmer in Turkana County, Kenya, shows crops grown on his land. Sisters of Mercy operate a skills training center and health center in the area, providing practical skills and hope for people affected by drought.(Gitonga Njeru)

Catholic nuns combat psychological toll of climate change on rural Kenyan communities

 The sisters' work had always been about care. But the climate crisis demanded a new approach. They were not just feeding bodies; they were nourishing souls. 

Late evening sun illuminates rock formations at the Garden of the Gods in Colorado Springs, Colo., July 23, 2020. (OSV News/Bob Roller)

More than 230 pilgrimages across the US mark 10 years of Laudato Si'

Catholics across America have committed themselves to spiritual expeditions not on the well-worn pilgrimage routes of Europe, but in their own communities.

ByKimberley Heatherington, OSV News
A file photo shows a Zimbabwean man walking through his drought-affected corn field outside Harare. Drought and other environmental disasters attributed to climate change are affecting the world's most vulnerable communities, according to Catholic and other Christian groups that took part in a March 20 event with members of Congress in Washington to discuss "the moral imperative" of supporting these vulnerable communities. (OSV News photo/Reuters/Philimon Bulawayo)

Tackle ecological debt, protect biodiversity and change hearts, says Vatican diplomat

The Holy See's diplomat to the United Nations has called for three key priorities in addressing the global crises of poverty, conflict and climate change.

ByGina Christian, OSV News
Solar panels are seen from the roof of the Paul VI audience hall at the Vatican in this November 2008 photo. (CNS/Reuters/Tony Gentile)
Vatican News

Vatican pledges to cut greenhouse gas emissions by 28%

The Holy See said it will cut its emissions within the Vatican City State by at least 28% by 2035 compared to 2011 levels.  

ByBrian Roewe

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT

Jane Goodall saw nature as a spiritual sanctuary

Vatican News

Brazilian leader praises papal document on poverty, invites pope to COP30

Sisters turning 25 acres in Kenya into a model for mixed farming

Culture

Bifolio from a "Choir Book," Spanish, 1400-1450. (Michael Centore)

New 'Painted Pages' exhibit at University of St. Joseph beautifies prayer

When does the artistic process cross over into prayer? This small, but well-curated exhibit featuring manuscripts from the "golden age" of handmade books obliterates distinctions between calligraphy and visual art.

A drone view shows the ruins of a church and buildings in the village of Marinka (Maryinka) in the Russian-controlled Donetsk region of Ukraine May 15, 2025. The village was destroyed during the ongoing Russia-Ukraine conflict. (OSV News/Reuters/Alexander Ermochenko)

Filmmakers tell story of Ukraine's persecuted Christians 'hunted' by Russia

Directed by Ukrainian filmmaker Yaroslav Lodygin, the documentary features on-the-ground, often intensely emotional interviews with Ukrainian Christians from a number of denominations who have been systematically persecuted by Russian occupiers.

ByGina Christian, OSV News
"Mr. Scorsese," Rebecca Miller's five-part documentary out now on Apple TV+, traces the famed director's career exploration of blasphemy and salvation, devotion and rejection, sin and grace. (Apple TV+)

For 'Mr. Scorsese,' faith — like cinema — is unfinished business

"Mr. Scorsese," Rebecca Miller's five-part documentary out now on Apple TV+, traces the famed director's career exploration of blasphemy and salvation, devotion and rejection, sin and grace.

ByJose Solís
(Unsplash/Aaron Burden)
Book Reviews

The Catholicity of Julia Cameron's 'The Artist's Way'

Julia Cameron's The Artist's Way: A Spiritual Path to Higher Creativity, first published in 1992, has sold over 5 million copies. Catholic creatives say the book and its spirituality have been transformative.

ByJean P. Kelly

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT

Book Reviews

New book demythologizes Mary, emphasizes her political and ecclesial role

Jelly Roll's Vatican performance offers hope to those impacted by addiction

Book Reviews

Q&A with 'Red Scare' author Clay Risen on McCarthyism and modern America

Sisters of the Good Shepherd from all provinces — Mid-North America, Central South and New York-Toronto — gather in St. Louis, Missouri, during their regional meeting in October 2024. (Courtesy of Monique Tarabeh)
Columns

The grace of coming together as Sisters of the Good Shepherd

Horizons - Across our communities, the word "restructuring" has taken root. At first, it might have sounded administrative or organizational, but for us, it has become something sacred, writes Monique Tarabeh.

A farmer in Turkana County, Kenya, shows crops grown on his land. Sisters of Mercy operate a skills training center and health center in the area, providing practical skills and hope for people affected by drought.(Gitonga Njeru)

Catholic nuns combat psychological toll of climate change on rural Kenyan communities

 The sisters' work had always been about care. But the climate crisis demanded a new approach. They were not just feeding bodies; they were nourishing souls. 

By
Sr. Mary Ojonugwa Unwuchola interacts with survivors at the International Market Camp for internally displaced people in Makurdi, Benue State, Nigeria. Unwuchola listens to survivors' concerns, prays with them, offers encouragement, and spends time with them, giving them hope for a better tomorrow. (John Chukwu)

Sisters help survivors of Nigeria's farmer-herder conflict reclaim spiritual lives

In camps in Benue State, Sr. Mary Ojonugwa Unwuchola and other Nigerian sisters console displaced survivors grieving lost loved ones and lost homes. She does not offer easy answers, but presence, prayer and acts of care.

By
Religious Sisters of Charity Sr. Edidiong Etim, prison chaplain, talks with inmates at the Kirikiri Correctional Facilities in Lagos, Nigeria. The Religious Sisters of Charity teach inmates how to produce creams, candles, perfume and liquid soap as part of their ministry to help them reintegrate into society upon release. (Courtesy of Edidiong Etim)

Sisters in Nigeria empower inmates through hands-on vocation training

The prison ministry of the Religious Sisters of Charity in Lagos has provided tools to help people reintegrate into society. 

By

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT

Listen to the cries of the marginalized and the earth to transform the system

Q & A with Sr. Debra Sciano, former state district attorney, now president-elect of LCWR

Nigerian Catholics bring comfort and care to displaced survivors of violence