Pakistan's decision to shut down a federal ministry charged with safeguarding the rights of the nation's religious minorities has renewed fears that conditions for minorities will worsen.

Pope Benedict XVI blamed persistent world hunger on selfish and profit-driven economic models.

More than 1,400 people have been killed since the regime of Bashar al-Assad began its brutal clampdown on dissent in Syria.

A referendum in Italy has spotlighted an emerging social justice issue: access to safe water as a basic human right.

Cardinal Angelo Scola's appointment as archbishop of Milan prompts some to wonder about Cardinal Scola's "papabile" rating.

Catholic bishops of the North and Central America cited "those searching for work, asylum-seekers, refugees and victims of human trafficking.”