Holy Spirit inspires creativity, simplicity in evangelization, pope saysDecember 6, 2023 VATICAN CITY (CNS) — Christians must rely more on the Holy Spirit than on their own plans and strategies if they hope to fulfill their mission to share the good news of God's love and of salvation in Christ, Pope Francis said. The pope began his weekly general audience Dec. 6 explaining to the crowd that he once again asked […]Answer Advent call for vigilance with charity, confession, pope suggestsDecember 5, 2023 VATICAN CITY (CNS) — The Advent call for "vigilance" does not mean staying awake and watchful out of fear, but rather out of a longing for the coming of the Lord, Pope Francis wrote. Sometimes people think of vigilance "as an attitude motivated by fear of impending doom, as if a meteorite were about to plunge from the sky," he […]Humanity must build alliances supporting peace, creation, pope saysDecember 4, 2023 VATICAN CITY (CNS) — The world needs people to build alliances that are not against others, but are in favor of everyone, Pope Francis told faith leaders at the U.N. Climate Change Conference being held in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. "It is important that religions, without falling into the trap of syncretism, set a good example by working together: not […]Programs of Pastoral Support and Solidarity Possible Through Parishioner GenerosityDecember 4, 2023 WASHINGTON – During their recently-concluded committee and subcommittee meetings in Baltimore, programs of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) awarded over $10 million given by supporters to its national collections to support pastoral and social ministries in the United States and in three regions overseas where the Church is desperately poor, persecuted or too small to support its […]Pope calls world leaders to end divisions to fight climate changeDecember 2, 2023 VATICAN CITY (CNS) — The future of humanity depends on what people choose now, Pope Francis said in his message to global leaders at the World Climate Action Summit of the U.N. Climate Change Conference. "Are we working for a culture of life or a culture of death?" he asked in his message. "To all of you I make this […]Holy ink: Tattoo culture shows faith is not skin deep, sociologist saysDecember 1, 2023 BOGOTÁ, Colombia (CNS) — The Catholic Church cannot measure people's engagement with religion only by looking at church attendance, but also must observe how they express religious sentiments outside of church — even on their own bodies, a Jesuit priest said. "It's important to understand tattoos in order to understand one of the many ways in which people practice religion," […]Pope asks theologians to help 'de-masculinize' the churchNovember 30, 2023 VATICAN CITY (CNS) — Asking pardon for speaking plainly, Pope Francis told members of the International Theological Commission that "one of the great sins we have had is 'masculinizing' the church," which also can be seen by the fact that only five of the commission members are women. The pope, who appoints the 28 members of the commission, said the […]Pope, still suffering from the flu, urges prayers for peace at audienceNovember 29, 2023 VATICAN CITY (CNS) — With a soft and raspy voice, Pope Francis began his weekly general audience by making the sign of the cross and explaining that "I'm still not well with this flu, and my voice isn't great," so he would have an aide read his catechesis and greetings. The gathering, in the Vatican's Paul VI Audience Hall Nov. […]Conference puts pope's call for 'outgoing theology' into actionNovember 29, 2023 BOGOTÁ, Colombia (CNS) — Theologians, social scientists, historians and artists, including an Indigenous Mexican rapper, met in Bogotá to discuss how religion is represented in popular culture today. Pope Francis "says that new theology cannot be a dialogue between theologians because that is self-referential, rather it must be an interdisciplinary dialogue," Emilce Cuda, president of the Pontifical Commission for Latin […]COP 28: U.S. Bishops Call for International Climate Policies that Promote JusticeNovember 29, 2023 WASHINGTON – The United Nations will convene their annual meeting on climate, COP28, on November 30. In advance of the meeting, Archbishop Borys Gudziak of the Ukrainian Catholic Archeparchy of Philadelphia, chairman of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ (USCCB) Committee on Domestic Justice and Human Development, and Bishop A. Elias Zaidan of the Maronite Eparchy of Our Lady of Lebanon, chairman […]