After a deadly outbreak of violence around his parish in the Central African Republic’s capital of Bangui, Moses Otii Alir, a Comboni priest, expressed the hope that Pope Francis’ planned visit would open people’s hearts to God’s love and “renew the face of this beautif

It was one of the more absurd moments of America’s Cuba policy.In 2011, as the Communist island began drilling for what may be billions of barrels of oil off its northern coast, a legitimate fear gripped the United States. That was the specter of an oil spill, a BP-style disaster choking the F

China’s government, after enforcing a one-child policy since 1980 to combat a population that appeared to be growing out of control, announced on Oct. 29 that it will now allow families to have a total of two children. The policy has caused significant demographic issues—there are 116 to

Rainfall in late October helped disperse the choking haze overhanging several regions of Indonesia severely affected by forest and peat fires. But much more rain is needed to help put out the massive fires, Luhut Panjaitan, coordinating minister of Politics, Law and Security, told reporters. “

Pope Francis had strong words on Oct. 30 for Catholic priests and bishops who “defamed” the assassinated archbishop of San Salvador, Oscar Romero. Going off script during a meeting with 500 pilgrims from El Salvador, Pope Francis said, “The martyrdom of Archbishop Romero was not fu

Catholic bishops from five continents issued a challenge to U.N. delegates who will meet in Paris in December to discuss the international framework on climate change, calling for “a just and legally binding climate agreement” to emerge from the negotiations. The bishops and cardinals is