WASHINGTON (CNS) -- There is no mistaking that through the centuries, papal documents and the reflections of saints and the words of Catholic theologians show a deep commitment to appreciating and protecting Earth and all its inhabitants.           ...
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           Q. I am a 20-year-old Catholic from the United Kingdom who happened to stumble on your "Ask a Priest" page, and I am hoping that you can answer my question. I have always heard that usury is a sin, but I'm not sure exactly what usury is....
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WASHINGTON (CNS) -- The extensive vetting process that all refugees undergo before arriving in the United States "screens out any possible threat of terrorism," said the executive director of the U.S. bishops' Migration and Refugee Services.    "We believe the risk is nil and certain...
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ROME (CNS) -- If a pilgrim walking to Rome for a Holy Year fell mortally ill far from home or a poor tenant farmer died working in a field or an unidentifiable victim of murder was found, a group of courageous Christians buried these anonymous or forgotten dead with dignity.    Found...
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WASHINGTON (CNS) -- Americans hold a variety of diverse opinions on a number of political issues. Sometimes, they veer to opposite ends of the political spectrum.    But the one thing that not only bridges those gaps but brings them closer together is parenthood.    Th...
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By Father Kenneth Doyle Catholic News ServiceQ. At Mass recently, after listening intently to the words of consecration, our 4-year-old granddaughter whispered to my wife, "Is wine really blood?" How would you answer her question? Also, would your answer be different for a 7-year-old, a teenager or...
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Backgrounder. WASHINGTON (CNS) -- President Barack Obama may have denied the permit for construction of the Keystone XL pipeline to carry tar sands oil from Alberta in western Canada to U.S. Gulf Coast refineries, but Nebraskans Susan and Jim Dunavan aren't so sure the $8-billion project is dead y...
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Backgrounder. VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- For a spiritual leader who denounces a world divided by walls, a church shuttered by cliques and hearts hardened to compassion, opening wide the Holy Door for the Year of Mercy will be a significant and symbolic moment for Pope Francis. In Catholic tradition, th...
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VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Because God always keeps open the door of his mercy and offer of salvation to everyone, the doors of every church and every Christian heart must never be closed to others, Pope Francis said. All over the world, individual Christians and the whole church must be seen as "the ho...
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Q. Are priests allowed to edit the scriptural readings at Mass? Recently our priest, when reading a Gospel about marriage, cut off the verses that say, "Whoever divorces his wife and marries another, commits adultery against her; and if she divorces her husband and marries another, she commits adul...
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