Father Wissam Akiki became the first married man to be ordained a priest for the U.S. Maronite Catholic Church on Feb. 27 at St. Raymond’s Maronite Cathedral in St. Louis, Mo. • Thousands lined up at the Yarmouk Palestinian refugee camp near Damascus on Feb. 24 in hope of receiving one of

A cease-fire that seemed to offer a chance for a peaceful resolution to months-long conflict in the world’s newest nation, South Sudan, has unraveled. Intermittent fighting has continued since the cease-fire agreement was signed on Jan. 23. But now in Malakal, a key city in an oil-producing re

“The church in the United States has a moral and ethical imperative to protect human dignity and must address the problem of mass incarceration in our nation,” the leaders of Christian Churches Together in the U.S.A. said in a statement issued on Feb. 7 in Newark, N.J. The coalition incl

Cardinal Kasper says church could in very specific cases tolerate a second union.

Pope Francis announced on Feb. 24 the creation of a new financial structure to coordinate and oversee the finances of the Holy See and Vatican City State. This was the latest move in the effort to reform the scandal-prone Vatican Bank and other financial institutions in Rome. The announcement comes

Cardinal Jorge Urosa Savino of Caracas told Venezuelan television on Feb. 20 that the church is willing to help establish peace, but reminded the government of its duty to rein in armed groups that are violently disrupting peaceful demonstrations. • Noting the proposed death penalty for the 20-