Amid the suffering due to a devastating economic crisis and a global pandemic, the beatification of José Gregorio Hernández, affectionately known as the "doctor of the poor," is a testament of the faith and hope of the people of Venezuela, Pope Francis said.

Pope Francis approved a new set of laws that require Vatican officials and employees to sign a declaration stating they have not been and are not suspected of committing crimes, including money laundering, corruption or exploitation of minors.

While Bishop-designate Christian Carlassare already has forgiven his attackers, he said finding the truth about why he was shot in the legs at his home in Rumbek, South Sudan, will help achieve reconciliation.

A Catholic bishop from eastern Ukraine said tensions remain high despite an announced withdrawal of Russian forces.

CLEVELAND (CNS) -- As the guilty verdicts were read April 20 in the trial of a white former Minneapolis police officer in the death of George Floyd, Reynold Verret, president of Xavier University of Louisiana, "could hear the rumble of a collective exhalation" across the New Orleans campus.

To choose not to participate personally in Mass when we are capable of doing so is to deprive ourselves of the immeasurable spiritual graces that can be received only by active participation with others in the Mass.  

The intimate presence of Christ in the Eucharist as a Person who feeds us with what seems like bread and wine—what Catholics call transubstantiation—is that convokes us to become Christ’s Body.

ROME (CNS) -- Members of the Catholic Church, especially religious working in health care and schools, have an important opportunity and duty to educate people about COVID-19 and to counter resistance to vaccinations, said an expert on the Vatican's COVID-19 commission.

The John Paul I Vatican Foundation announced the recovery of a collection of the late pope's writings.

Meditation is more than just a method of stress relief for the body, it is a way of encountering Christ in one's soul, Pope Francis said.

Los obispos de la Conferencia Católica de Arizona (ACC) agradecen que un importante proyecto de ley provida (SB1457) fué promulgado hoy como ley por el gobernador Doug Ducey.

The Bishops of the Arizona Catholic Conference (ACC) are grateful that an important pro-life bill (SB 1457) was signed into law today by Governor Doug Ducey. 

MADISON, Wis. (CNS) -- The Wisconsin Department of Justice is opening a statewide investigation of abuse by clergy and faith leaders within the state's five dioceses.

PHILADELPHIA (CNS) -- Philadelphia's soaring rates of homicide and gun violence have deep-rooted causes that can only be solved with a combination of spirituality and concrete action, said several Philadelphia priests.

COVID-19 pandemic in the United States -- the faster spread of the coronavirus among those detained in facilities for immigration violations.

OXFORD, England (CNS) -- Polish Cardinal Stefan Wyszynski, scheduled to be beatified Sept. 12, was ready to seek agreements in a Christian spirit, but also firmly believed "certain boundaries could not be crossed," said a leading theologian and political scientist.

El padre Edwin Román celebró recientemente una misa por la familia del estudiante universitario Álvaro Gómez, asesinado hace tres años en manifestaciones contra el gobierno de Nicaragua.

CIUDAD DE MÉXICO (CNS) – El arzobispo Franco Coppola, embajador pontificio en México, viajó recientemente a un pueblo asediado por cárteles de drogas para reiterar el compromiso de la Iglesia de servir a poblaciones que sufren violencia. 

NEW DELHI (CNS) -- As COVID-19 continues to claim thousands of lives daily in India, some Catholic leaders have called on the federal government to deploy the military to deal with the crisis before it worsens.

WASHINGTON (CNS) -- As Catholic colleges grapple with how to reopen in the fall, many are already saying they will require their students to be vaccinated for COVID-19 and some schools are also mandating that staff members be vaccinated.