Catholic News Service

Pope Francis said that unless there is a serious new wave of COVID-19 infections in Iraq, he has every intention of visiting the country in early March. "I am the pastor of people who are suffering," Pope Francis told Catholic News Service Feb. 1.

"The Eucharist unites and strengthens us in our efforts to secure justice for the unborn, and to create a culture wherein every human life is cherished, nurtured and protected from the moment of conception until natural death," said Archbishop Lori, chairman-elect of the U.S. bishops' Committee on Pro-Life Activities.

"In Spain, there is a saying, 'Por la plata baila el mono' — 'Monkeys will dance for money.' It is a saying that is clear," Pope Francis told the Roman Rota, a tribunal handling mostly marriage cases, Jan. 29.

Cardinal Louis Sako said Pope Francis' March trip to Iraq is still on and that the pope plans to meet personally with Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, leader of the country's Shiite Muslim majority.

A new national protocol for responding to historical child sexual abuse and any new allegations in the Catholic Church in Australia will be more compassionate and just, said Archbishop Mark Coleridge, head of the Australian Catholic Bishops' Conference.

The World Food Program released a statement saying executive director David M. Beasley "voiced specific fears about famine looming in several countries at the same time as COVID-19 is ravaging communities around the globe."

Stating that Brazil's federal government denied the pandemic and appeared to sabotage public health, 380 Brazilian Christian leaders filed an impeachment request against President Jair Bolsonaro.

Praying with Scripture is not meant to be a mindless repetition of biblical quotes but instead is a gift that is meant to be accepted in people's hearts, Pope Francis said.

As a journalist, Franciscan Fr. Jack Wintz covered stories that explored human nature and inspired Catholics nationwide.

Thousands attended the 17th Annual Walk for Life West Coast in San Francisco Jan. 23 despite the pandemic.

Indian Jesuit Fr. Stan Swamy marked 100 days in prison with a letter highlighting the cases of poor people languishing in jail who begin their trials without even knowing their criminal charges.

“No Catholic in good conscience can favor abortion," San Francisco Archbishop Salvatore J. Cordileone said Jan. 21 in response to comments by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-California, during a Jan. 18 episode of a podcast hosted by Hillary Clinton.

The chairman of the U.S. bishops' pro-life committee called it "deeply disturbing and tragic" that any U.S. president would mark the Jan. 22 anniversary of the Roe decision that legalized abortion by praising it and committing to codifying it in law.

In his written homily for the Sunday of the Word of God, the pope underlined the importance of making time each day for reading even just a brief passage of the Bible, particularly the Gospels, where God's Word continues to say, "Do not be afraid, I am with you. I am at your side and I will always be there."

Climate change is a global problem that requires the commitment and collective response of all humanity, said Cardinal Pietro Parolin, Vatican secretary of state.

It is important that "Green New Deal" efforts respect diverse cultures and economic policies, and avoid imposing a "uniform" model, said Archbishop Paul R. Gallagher, the Vatican's foreign minister.

An internally displaced Syrian sits outside his tent at a camp in the countryside near Aleppo Jan. 20, 2021. Several Mideast church leaders have signed on to a letter urging U.S. President Joe Biden to end sanctions against Syria. (CNS photo/Mahmoud Hassano, Reuters)

The leaders of two U.S. bishops' committees applauded President Joe Biden's executive order reversing a policy of the previous administration that excluded unauthorized immigrants from the census count.

Long before she burst into the public spotlight delivering her inauguration poem, Amanda Gorman got a standing ovation from fellow parishioners of St. Brigid Church in Los Angeles for reciting a poem she wrote about the parish.

Citing "too much antagonism and competition" as well as an obvious "risk of severe injustices" in the distribution of COVID-19 vaccines, the Pontifical Academy for Life called for international cooperation in setting up vaccine production sites around the world.