IMAGE: CNS photo/Paulo Cunha, EPA By Cindy Wooden VATICAN CITY (CNS) — When then-Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger met the press in 2000 for the formal release of the so-called Third Secret of Fatima, he said he knew many people would be disappointed. Almost 16 years later, at the beginning of a …

IMAGE: CNS photo/L’Osservatore Romano via Reuters By Doreen Abi Raad BEIRUT (CNS) — Lebanese leaders in Muslim-Christian dialogue said they hoped Pope Francis’ meeting with Ahmad el-Tayeb, grand imam of al-Azhar University, would lead to new relationships. Maronite Father Fadi Daou, chairman of Adyan, a foundation for interfaith studies and …

IMAGE: CNS photo/L’Osservatore Romano By Carol Glatz VATICAN CITY (CNS) — Pray for victims of recent terrorist attacks in Syria and pray that those who sow death and destruction will change their ways, Pope Francis said in an appeal. At the end of his weekly general audience in St. Peter’s …

IMAGE: CNS/Paul Haring By Carol Glatz VATICAN CITY (CNS) — Prayer is not a magic wand that fulfills your desires, but it is what helps you keep the faith when you don’t understand God’s will, Pope Francis said. Prayer is meant to be “our daily bread, our powerful weapon and …

By Junno Arocho Esteves VATICAN CITY (CNS) — A former consultant to a pontifical commission who denied to a Vatican court that she leaked documents about the Vatican’s financial reform had admitted to sending the documents when she was first interrogated, a Vatican policeman said. Stefano DeSantis, an officer investigating …

IMAGE: CNS/Dalia Khamissy By Doreen Abi Raad HARISSA, Lebanon (CNS) — High on a summit overlooking the Mediterranean, Our Lady of Lebanon stands majestically with her arms outstretched, welcoming her children. Muslims and Christians alike come to the shrine, 16 miles north of Beirut. To Muslims, Mary is known in …

IMAGE: NS photo/Simon Caldwell By Simon Caldwell LIVERPOOL, England (CNS) — Myanmar’s first cardinal has thanked the Christians of the West for helping to bring democracy to his country. Cardinal Charles Maung Bo of Yangon said the Catholic Church was “at the forefront” of supporting the people of Myanmar, formerly …

By Carol Glatz VATICAN CITY (CNS) — Holiness doesn’t depend on superhuman powers, but rather demands a heart filled with courage, hope and grace that strives for conversion each and every day, Pope Francis said at his morning Mass. In fact, holiness is reached by taking tiny steps, like biting …

IMAGE: CNS photo/Max Rossi, Reuters By Junno Arocho Esteves VATICAN CITY (CNS) — After five years of tension and top-level silence, Pope Francis and the grand imam of one of the most important Sunni Muslim universities in the world embraced at the Vatican May 23. “The meeting is the message,” …

IMAGE: CNS photo/Christina Lee Knauss, The Catholic Miscellany By Christina Lee Knauss ST. MATTHEWS, S.C. (CNS) — For years, Matthew Quay picked up paper clips from desks and absent-mindedly straightened them while listening to discussions or presentations at work. He also carried some in his pockets to straighten during Mass …