WASHINGTON—Cardinal Daniel DiNardo, President of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB), has issued the following statement in response to explosions on Palm Sunday at two Coptic Christian churches in Egypt that have killed at least 40 and injured at least 100: “In the early hours of Palm Sunday, …

IMAGE: CNS/Paul Haring By Carol Glatz VATICAN CITY (CNS) — Jesus does not ask that people only contemplate his image, but that they also recognize and love him concretely in all people who suffer like he did, Pope Francis said. Jesus is “present in our many brothers and sisters who …

IMAGE: CNS photo/Stephen Brashear, Northwest Catholic By Anna Weaver SHORELINE, Wash. (CNS) — Among Mary Larson’s Shoreline living-room pictures is a small photo of a man with furrowed eyebrows and a full white beard. His name is James, but when Larson knew him, he was better known as “The Professor.” …

By Rhina Guidos WASHINGTON (CNS) — Throughout the U.S., cities, states, places of worship, university campuses and religious communities have been publicly declaring themselves as places of “sanctuary” for migrants, particularly for those who have voiced fears and worries about stepped-up deportation efforts from the Immigration and Customs Enforcement, known …

IMAGE: CNS photo/Ford Williams, U.S. Navy handout via Reuters By WASHINGTON (CNS) — Two prominent Catholic leaders in Syria criticized the U.S. missile strikes against their nation, wondering why they occurred before investigations into the origins of chemical attacks reported April 4. But U.S. President Donald Trump said Syrian President …

IMAGE: CNS photo/L’Osservatore Romano, handout By Cindy Wooden VATICAN CITY (CNS) — A Catholic approach to development aims at helping people achieve both physical and spiritual well-being and promotes both individual responsibility and community ties, Pope Francis said. A development that is “fully human” recognizes that being a person means …

IMAGE: CNS photo/Javier Etxezarreta, EPA By Cindy Wooden VATICAN CITY (CNS) — The defense of the life, dignity and human rights of migrants and refugees must come before any other question when enacting migration policies, Pope Francis said. “The defense of human beings knows no limits,” the pope said in …

By Junno Arocho Esteves VATICAN CITY (CNS) — Pope Francis strongly condemned a shocking chemical attack in Syria that left some 70 people, including at least 10 children, dead. “We are horrified by the latest events in Syria. I strongly deplore the unacceptable massacre that took place yesterday in the …

IMAGE: CNS photo/L’Osservatore Romano By Carol Glatz VATICAN CITY (CNS) — Before he was elected Pope Benedict XVI, Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger once wrote that he was grateful for being born on a day that fell during the church’s most intense liturgical season. Born and baptized on April 16, 1927, which …

By Mark Pattison Editor’s Note: This CNS backgrounder was first posted Aug. 4, 2014, to mark the 100th anniversary of the beginning of World War I. We are reposting it today, because April 6 marks the 100th anniversary of the United States’ entrance into the war. On April 2, 1917, …