U.S. & World News

Experts: Vatican declaration on blessings walks a fine line on marriage, pastoral care

A new declaration from the Vatican on pastoral blessings does not change the Catholic Church's teaching on marriage, Catholic experts told OSV News, but seeks to extend the Church's accompaniment to those in irregular situations.

An iconic cockerel is once again watching over Notre Dame in Paris on top of its cross

A new version of an iconic cockerel, or rooster, is once again watching over Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris, symbolizing resilience amid destruction after a devastating April 2019 fire. It was installed Dec. 16 atop Notre Dame spire's cross.

Catholic climate activists concerned COP28’s modest steps will fall short

As COP28, the United Nations' Climate Change Conference, closed its multinational gathering in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, on Dec. 13, participants congratulated one another upon reaching an agreement they declared signals the "beginning of the end" for fossil fuels.

Celebrating the Incarnation, remember Bethlehem, too, pope says

When St. Francis of Assisi staged the first Nativity scene 800 years ago, he did so to remind people of the powerful, awe-inspiring truth that God became human in Jesus, Pope Francis said.

Doctrinal dicastery explains how, when gay couples can be blessed

A Catholic priest can bless a gay or other unmarried couple as long as it is not a formal liturgical blessing and does not give the impression that the Catholic Church is blessing the union as if it were a marriage, the Vatican doctrinal office said.

Nairobi Archdiocese launches a dairy factory to boost food security

Against growing concerns about millions of people going hungry worldwide, the Archdiocese of Nairobi launched a milk processing plant Nov. 16 to help local communities in central Kenya fight food insecurity and malnutrition.

Pope says he’ll be buried outside the Vatican, is simplifying funeral

Pope Francis said he has decided to be buried in Rome's Basilica of St. Mary Major instead of in St. Peter's Basilica at the Vatican and that he has simplified the rites for a papal funeral.

Supreme Court agrees to review legal challenge to abortion pill

The U.S. Supreme Court said Dec. 13 it would take up a case concerning the abortion pill, the first major case involving abortion on its docket since the high court overturned its previous abortion precedent last year.

Synod’s call to form Catholics as ‘digital missionaries’ is paradigm shift, say experts

The word "missionary" can conjure up in the Catholic mind a vision of saintly figures traveling to distant lands and enduring heroic hardships to spread the good news of Jesus Christ.

Message of Guadalupe based in simplicity, not ideology, pope says

The iconic image of Our Lady of Guadalupe, which has become a cultural and spiritual symbol for Latin America, cannot be used to promote any kind of ideology, but must maintain its message of simple love, Pope Francis said.

Priest: Gaza Christians suffer much as Israeli strikes on strip continue but aren’t losing hope

As the humanitarian crisis escalates in Gaza -- amid tens of thousands of Palestinians gathered near Gaza's border with Egypt, attempting to flee, and a health care system on the verge of collapsing -- a Gaza priest warned that Christians in Gaza are suffering a lot.

Our Lady of Guadalupe is ‘mother of all mothers,’ bishop says on her feast day

Our Lady of Guadalupe is "the mother of all mothers -- a loving bridge between worlds and peoples who unifies through her maternal embrace," the U.S. bishops' migration chairman said in a statement issued on the Dec. 12 Marian feast.
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