BRAINTREE, Mass. (CNS) — The Archdiocese of Boston has opened the canonization cause of an Opus Dei priest, Father Joseph Muzquiz, who established the organization in the United States and worked for many years in the greater Boston area. About 150 people, many of whom are local members of Opus Dei, attended the ceremony held […]
Continue readingWASHINGTON (CNS) — As seven Republican candidates for president prepared for a June 13 debate in New Hampshire and others waited in the wings, there were signs that religion will play as big a role in the 2012 election as it has in other recent campaigns. Many of the declared or potential candidates lined up […]
Continue readingBy: By David Gibson, Catholic News Service JOPLIN, Mo. (CNS) — A Catholic hospital in Joplin took a direct hit from a severe tornado that struck the city May 22. Within a day of the twister, 89 people were confirmed dead, with the number almost certain to rise as rescue teams searched amid the rubble […]
Continue readingSALVADOR, Brazil (CNS) — Despite intermittent rain, 70,000 people gathered in a park for the the beatification of the nun sometimes called Brazil’s Mother Teresa. Born as Maria Rita de Souza Brito Lopes Pontes in 1914, she was known to Brazilian Catholics as simply Sister Dulce, the mother of the poor. Cardinal Geraldo Majella Agnelo […]
Continue readingVATICAN CITY (CNS) — The Vatican said the killing of al-Qaida leader Osama bin Laden, a man who sowed division and hatred and who caused “innumerable” deaths, should prompt serious reflection about one’s responsibility before God, not rejoicing. The Vatican statement May 2 came the day after President Barack Obama announced that U.S. forces had […]
Continue readingLAHORE, Pakistan (CNS) — A retired archbishop said Pakistani Christians could suffer a backlash after the death of 9/11 mastermind Osama bin Laden, but it also might return balance to the nation. In India and Philippines, Catholic leaders also warned of backlash. “We are a soft target as they cannot attack America,” said retired Archbishop […]
Continue readingALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (CNS) — The archbishop of Santa Fe in a pastoral letter admonished unmarried Catholic couples who are living together, those who are not married but are in a civil union and divorced Catholics who remarry without an annulment, warning them not to receive Holy Communion. Archbishop Michael J. Sheehan said it was up […]
Continue readingWASHINGTON (CNS) — At a time when federal budget decisions “involve hard choices and much shared sacrifice,” a decision on whether to fund the Planned Parenthood Federation of America “is not one of those hard choices,” the chairman of the U.S. bishops’ Committee on Pro-Life Activities told members of Congress. Calling the federation “by far […]
Continue readingVATICAN CITY (CNS) — Pope Benedict XVI has decided the collection taken up at his Holy Thursday evening Mass will be used to help those affected by the devastating earthquake and tsunami in northeast Japan. The March 11 disaster left more than 13,000 people dead and another 13,700 unaccounted for. More than 150,000 were made […]
Continue readingNOTRE DAME, Ind. (CNS) — A Mercy nun and a laywoman who co-founded a program that is widely credited for reducing Philadelphia’s homeless population by half have been named the winners of the 2011 Laetare Medal given by the University of Notre Dame. The award, announced April 3, will be presented during the university’s 166th […]
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