IMAGE: CNS photo/Max Rossi, Reuters By Carol Glatz VATICAN CITY (CNS) — No one should be afraid to turn to God with prayer, especially in times of great doubt, suffering and need, Pope Francis said. Jesus does not want people to become numb to life’s problems and "extinguish" those things …

IMAGE: CNS photo/Katie Rutter By Katie Rutter LAFAYETTE, Ind. (CNS) — Brian Duane’s maroon Subaru had already covered about 1,800 miles when he pulled into the parking lot at the Cathedral of St. Mary of the Immaculate Conception in Lafayette Dec. 4. It was Duane’s 18th stop in what would …

IMAGE: CNS photo/Tyler Orsburn By WASHINGTON (CNS) — Pro-life leaders said they were disappointed the U.S. Supreme Court declined Dec. 10 to hear appeals from Kansas and Louisiana on lower court rulings that have stopped the states from blocking Medicaid funds going to Planned Parenthood. "Complicated legal arguments don’t take …

IMAGE: CNS photo/Debbie Hill By Judith Sudilovsky BEIT SAHOUR, West Bank (CNS) — Bethlehem and the neighboring towns of Beit Jala and Beit Sahour depend economically on tourism, but traditionally have struggled with keeping visitors in the area for more than half a day. Although the hotels are fully booked …

IMAGE: CNS photo/Luisa Gonzalez, Reuters By Carol Glatz VATICAN CITY (CNS) — The Vatican praised the adoption by more than 160 nations of a key agreement on global migration, saying today’s migration challenges are better tackled together than with "isolationist" stances. The U.N. Global Compact for Safe, Orderly and Regular …

IMAGE: CNS photo/Vatican Media By Junno Arocho Esteves VATICAN CITY (CNS) — God sends his consolation to those in need of reassurance, even when they are facing death, Pope Francis said. Just like the early Christian martyrs, who sang as they marched to their deaths in the Colosseum, today’s martyrs …

IMAGE: CNS photo/EPA By Junno Arocho Esteves VATICAN CITY (CNS) — The lives of 19 religious men and women martyred during the Algerian civil war are a testament to God’s plan of love and peaceful coexistence between Christians and Muslims, Pope Francis said. In a message read Dec. 8 at …

IMAGE: CNS photo/Vatican Media By Cindy Wooden ROME (CNS) — Pope Francis made surprise visits Dec. 7 and 8 to people receiving medical care far from their homes, to a dozen intellectually challenged young people and to the staff of a major Rome newspaper. The late-afternoon visits Dec. 7 to …

IMAGE: CNS photo/Paul Haring By Cindy Wooden ROME (CNS) — In the heart of Rome, near streets of fancy shops already blinged out for Christmas shopping, Pope Francis prayed for Romans struggling to survive and for families in the city and around the world who face the same lack of …

IMAGE: (CNS photo/Gregory A. Shemitz By SAN FRANCISCO (CNS) — San Franciscans will celebrate the recently commissioned "Mass of the Americas" Dec. 8 for the feasts of the Immaculate Conception and Our Lady of Guadalupe at the archdiocese’s Cathedral of St. Mary of the Assumption. The liturgy, scheduled for 2 …