By Carol Glatz Catholic News Service VATICAN CITY — Jesuit Father Federico Lombardi, Vatican spokesman, said an Italian newspaper’s claims about the pope’s health were “entirely unfounded.” After checking with the pope himself and other sources, Father Lombardi told reporters “the pope enjoys good health” and that the unsubstantiated news report …

By Carol Glatz Catholic News Service VATICAN CITY (CNS) — Observers told the Synod of Bishops on the family to discourage Christian women from marrying Muslim men, urge priests not to tell women to return to abusive husbands, share the truth of church teaching about marriage, and embrace single mothers …

Catholic News Service NEW ORLEANS — More than 100 religious leaders across the state of Louisiana filed an amicus brief Oct. 19 with the Louisiana Supreme Court in hopes of sparing the life of a convicted murderer. The religious leaders who signed the brief “have a substantial interest in ensuring …

By Junno Arocho Esteves Catholic News Service While church doctrine must stay unchanged, an Australian archbishop expressed his hope that the Synod of Bishops will the lead the church to a genuine pastoral approach using a new language of mercy toward families, particularly those in difficult situations. Speaking at a …

By Elise Harris CNA/EWTN News On Sunday Pope Francis canonized four new saints, whose greatest legacy he said was their tireless imitation of Jesus in humble service to others, which is something each of us are asked to emulate. “The men and women canonized today unfailingly served their brothers and …

CNA/EWTN News After years of both direct and indirect remarks on the subject, German Cardinal Reinhard Marx issued his most direct statement yet in favor of offering Communion to the divorced-and-remarried. In an Oct. 14 address to his fellow bishops from around the world, gathered at the Synod in Rome, he said …

By Cindy Wooden Catholic News Service VATICAN CITY — Chicago Archbishop Blase J. Cupich told reporters that something his mother once said might give the Synod of Bishops a way to balance the need to affirm church teaching while reaching out to those who are struggling. The archbishop said Oct. …

By Junno Arocho Esteves Catholic News Service Members of the Synod of Bishops trust the Holy Spirit and Pope Francis’ guidance in confronting issues facing today’s families, said Archbishop Stanislaw Gadecki of Poznan. “An atmosphere of fear does not exist because we believe in the Holy Spirit. We also believe …

Catholic News Agency In the South American nation of Colombia – where an estimated 70 percent of the population identifies as Catholic – it is not unusual to encounter Catholic priests at a cathedral, or perhaps at a religious school or hospital. Seeing scores of priests at a shopping mall, …

By Nicole Pellicano Catholic News Service VATICAN CITY — The Vatican opened the “Gift of Mercy,” a shelter for homeless men, just a few hundred yards away from St. Peter’s Square. Housed in a Jesuit-owned building, the shelter was created by and is run with funds from the papal almoner, who …