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Catholic News Agency
‘Mary on the Mantel’? Think ‘Elf on the Shelf’, but Catholic
by Mary Farrow Denver Newsroom, Dec 1, 2020 / 02:55 pm MT (CNA).- For the past 16 years, Elf on the Shelf has become a tradition, both hated and loved, for families in the days leading up to Christmas. Based on a book and accompanying doll, the elf is a …
March for Life gears up for pandemic conditions
CNA Staff, Nov 30, 2020 / 03:05 pm MT (CNA).- With the annual March for Life scheduled to occur in January, how different might it look from previous years due to the ongoing pandemic? The 48th annual March for Life is scheduled to take place on Jan. 29, 2021, on …
Diocese of Pittsburgh announces its third round of parish mergers
CNA Staff, Nov 30, 2020 / 06:08 pm MT (CNA).- The Diocese of Pittsburgh has announced that it will initiate its third round of parish mergers early next year, reducing its current 107 parishes to 81. The mergers will take effect January 4, creating 14 groupings of parishes from 40 …
Pope Francis names new bishop of scandal-ridden Buffalo diocese
Vatican City, Dec 1, 2020 / 05:45 am MT (CNA).- Pope Francis Tuesday appointed Bishop Michael Fisher, an auxiliary of Washington, to be the next bishop of the scandal-ridden Diocese of Buffalo, New York. Fisher, 62, will take over leadership of Buffalo as the diocese faces a new lawsuit from …
Pope Francis tells Orthodox leader: I am confident we will achieve full unity
Vatican City, Nov 30, 2020 / 06:30 am MT (CNA).- Pope Francis told the Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople Monday that he is confident that Catholics and Orthodox Christians will attain full communion. In a message to Bartholomew I on the Feast of St. Andrew, Pope Francis praised the Ecumenical Patriarchate’s …
Advent at Home: How Catholics are preparing for a season of joy – even in 2020
by Mary Farrow Denver Newsroom, Nov 28, 2020 / 04:35 pm MT (CNA).- Wry jokes and memes about the decided awfulness of the year 2020 – with the pandemic, ensuing lockdowns and economic distress, as well as civil unrest in a turbulent election year – are well known to just …
Pope Francis: ‘Advent is the season for remembering the closeness of God’
by Courtney Mares Vatican City, Nov 29, 2020 / 05:40 am MT (CNA).- On the first Sunday of Advent, Pope Francis recommended a traditional Advent prayer to invite God to draw close during this new liturgical year. “Advent is the season for remembering the closeness of God who came down …
Pope Francis to new cardinals: May the cross and resurrection always be your goal
Vatican City, Nov 28, 2020 / 10:30 am MT (CNA).- Pope Francis created 13 new cardinals Saturday, urging them to remain vigilant lest they lose sight of their goal of the cross and resurrection. “All of us love Jesus, all of us want to follow him, yet we must always …
Supreme Court overturns NY church restrictions, Brooklyn bishop says religion ‘essential’ during pandemic
CNA Staff, Nov 26, 2020 / 01:23 pm MT (CNA).- The Supreme Court said Wednesday night that NY state restrictions during the coronavirus pandemic are a violation of the First Amendment’s protection of free religious exercise. After the ruling the Bishop of Brooklyn, whose diocese was a plaintiff in the …
Ransomware attack cripples St. Louis archdiocesan websites
CNA Staff, Nov 25, 2020 / 02:00 pm MT (CNA).- A ransomware attack crippled the websites of the Archdiocese of St. Louis last week, but data has not been compromised by the attack, the archdiocese told CNA. Several archdiocesan affiliated sites have been taken offline in response to the attack. …