IMAGE: CNS photo/A. Bracchetti, Governatorato S.C.V. via The Metropolitan Museum of Art By Carol Zimmermann WASHINGTON (CNS) — The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York is marking the 500th anniversary of the death of Leonardo da Vinci with a painting by the artist that will draw crowds but also …

IMAGE: CNS photo/Paul Haring By Carol Glatz VATICAN CITY (CNS) — After current supplies run out, Vatican City State will no longer be selling any single-use plastic items on its tiny territory. While the European Union pledged in May to ban single-use plastic starting in 2021, the Vatican had already …

IMAGE: CNS photo/Jose Luis Gonzalez, Reuters By WASHINGTON (CNS) — The Trump administration announced the U.S. departments of Justice and Homeland Security are adopting an interim "third country rule" requiring immigrants seeking asylum at the U.S.-Mexico border to first apply for refugee status in another country. News that the rule …

IMAGE: CNS photo/Dalia Khamissy By Doreen Abi Raad BEIRUT (CNS) — The first time a band of Islamic State militants "visited" the monks, they presented the monks with a kind of suggestion, in a nonthreatening manner: "Why don’t you become a Muslim?" Already, the four monks at the ancient Syriac …

IMAGE: CNS photo/ICE, Charles Reed via Reuters By Julie Asher WASHINGTON (CNS) — Many Catholic and other faith leaders noted that the Gospel reading for July 14 — the day U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement was to carry out deportation orders for some immigrants — was the parable of the …

IMAGE: CNS photo/David Mercado, Reuters By Cindy Wooden VATICAN CITY (CNS) — Praying that Catholics would understand and act on "the inseparable bond" between love of God and love of neighbor, Pope Francis again appealed for a solution to the crisis in Venezuela. "We pray that the Lord will inspire …

IMAGE: CNS photo/courtesy Chris Cugini, Living Bread Radio By Mark Pattison WASHINGTON (CNS) — Catholics hear hymns in church, but hardly ever on the radio. Now they can augment their weekly diet of hymnody through a new audio web streaming service called Great Catholic Music. The service launched March 1, …

IMAGE: CNS photo/courtesy Chilean Presidency via Reuters By Junno Arocho Esteves VATICAN CITY (CNS) — As the Catholic Church in Chile continues to deal with the fallout of clerical sexual abuse and its cover-up, the Chilean government passed a law removing the statute of limitations on sex abuse crimes against …

IMAGE: CNS photo/Paul Haring By Cindy Wooden ROME (CNS) — The papal vicar for Rome has asked every pastor in the diocese to form a "pastoral team" of about a dozen "courageous explorers" to help launch a new neighborhood missionary outreach. "Don’t go looking for those who have shown they …

IMAGE: CNS photo/Gina Christian, catholicphilly.com By Gina Christian PHILADELPHIA (CNS) — The laity can lead the way in renewing a church wounded by the decades-long sexual abuse scandal, according to Meghan Cokeley, director of the Archdiocese of Philadelphia’s Office for the New Evangelization. Prayer, redemptive suffering, forgiveness and a deeper …