Signs Of the Times

Kevin Donaldo Ramírez, 29, of Honduras describes himself as an environmental activist, just like his hero Berta Cáceres, a defender of indigenous rights and lands who was murdered in March.When he heard the news of her death, “I cried,” he says. “They killed Berta, but it was lik

In yet another sign of his strong stance against human trafficking, Pope Francis made a surprise visit to 20 women who have been rescued from sexual slavery. The pope met with the women on Aug. 12 at a refugee center in Rome, the Pope John XXIII community, which houses people rescued from prost

Archbishop William E. Lori of Baltimore called a federal Department of Justice report cataloging systemic abuses by Baltimore's police "sobering and distressing.” In a statement released on Aug. 10, the archbishop called it “an affirmation of those in our community who have long

The Evangelical Lutheran Church of America on Aug. 10 approved "Declaration on the Way: Church, Ministry and Eucharist," a document that tracks progress over 50 years of Lutheran-Catholic dialogue and maps remaining steps to full unity. • Pope Francis hosted 21 Syrian refugees at the

Terrorists want to make peace-loving Christians and Muslims believe that it is impossible for them to live side by side; it is up to Christians and Muslims to prove them wrong, said Cardinal Jean-Louis Tauran of France. The cardinal, president of the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue, w

“It’s not true, it’s not right, it’s not just to say that Islam is terrorist,” Pope Francis said on the plane from Krakow to Rome on July 31. • On July 25, the leader of Egypt’s Coptic Christian Church warned of increased attacks on Christians—37 sectar

Muslims and Catholics joined in Friday prayers at the mosque in the Normandy town where an elderly priest was slain on July 26. The killing of 85-year-old Rev. Jacques Hamel as he celebrated morning Mass sent shockwaves around France and deeply touched many among the nation’s five million Musl

A small independent Catholic college in Escondido, Calif., has joined the opponents of a state law that would ban discrimination against lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender students by depriving colleges of state and federal student-aid funds. The president of John Paul the Great University, Derr