Commenting on his recent trip to Malta in his Wednesday audience, Pope Francis spoke about migration and evangelization, especially in a time of war.

Human suffering crosses all ethnic, racial and political borders. Efforts to alleviate it must do the same.

“I’m mystified by any group that would call itself Catholic that is attacking the Catholic Church and its ministry,” Sister Donna Markham, the president and C.E.O. of Catholic Charities USA, said.

The limbo experienced by asylum seekers waiting to be admitted to the United States and the traumatic experiences that forced them to leave their home country in the first place take a profound psychological toll.

CatholicVote, an independent political advocacy group, has filed a lawsuit seeking information about how the government and church-affiliated groups have gone about “facilitating a record surge in illegal immigration.”

Since the end of U.S. military involvement in Afghanistan, much of the world has turned its attention away from geopolitical conflicts in the region. But these issues have not disappeared.