Whether they are dealing with war, development, the economy or environmental concerns, bureaucrats and diplomats must always remember that the lives of real children, women and men are at stake, Pope Francis told the United Nations. Helping to celebrate the organization’s 70th anniversary, Pop

In the face of rising religious persecution of people on the grounds of faith or belief, over 100 parliamentarians from almost 50 countries met in New York City on Sept. 18 and 19 to discuss ways to advance freedom of religion or belief. The event was cosponsored by the International Panel of Parlia

The leadership of the Catholic Church in the United States has introduced its first mobile application, called “USA Catholic Church.” Designed to draw Catholics closer to their faith by providing access to church information on all screens and devices, this is the only app that brings to

People discover their worth when they discover their true identity as created in God’s image and called to an eternal destiny with him, said Cardinal Seán P. O’Malley, O.F.M.Cap., archbishop of Boston and chairman of the Committee on Pro-Life Activities of the U.S. Conference of Catholi

Pope Francis named Brother Guy Consolmagno, a Jesuit from the United States, to be the new director of the Vatican Observatory on Sept. 18. • The Archdiocese of Cincinnati is one of the latest U.S. dioceses to heed the call of Pope Francis, announcing that annulment fees would be eliminated eff

Seeking to create awareness about poverty in the United States and to stand in solidarity with Pope Francis’ commitment to the poor, Catholic Charities USA has launched a new national campaign. Donna Markham, a Dominican sister, discussed the effort on Sept. 10 in her first address as presiden

Religious leaders from different faith traditions urged President Obama in a letter on Sept. 10 to continue to permit government-funded faith groups to employ people with like beliefs. Their request comes less than a month after a coalition of religious and secular organizations sent the president a

Pope Francis’ reformed rules for marriage annulment cases, making the process simpler, quicker and less expensive, respond to calls that bishops from around the world have been making since before the 1980 meeting of the Synod of Bishops on the family convoked by St. John Paul II. With the new

British parliamentarians on Sept. 11 soundly rejected a right-to-die bill that would have allowed people with less than six months to live to end their lives legally. Only 118 members of Parliament voted in favor of the bill; 330 voted against it. The bill had faced strong opposition from vario

As Israeli students began their second week of classes on Sept. 6, thousands of students and teachers from Christian schools converged in front of the Prime Minister Bibi Netanyahu’s office to protest government budget cuts to their schools. • During his homily on Sept. 10, Pope Francis s