Loading...
Loading...
Click here if you don’t see subscription options

Catholic Relief Services was coordinating closely with Caritas Oceania agencies in an emergency response in Vanuatu, a remote island nation in the South Pacific devastated by Cyclone Pam on March 15. • As Kuwaiti legislators debated a law banning any new church construction, Sheikh Abdul Aziz bin Abdullah, the Grand Mufti of Saudi Arabia, said on March 17 that it was actually “necessary to destroy all the churches” of the Arabian Peninsula because of an edict that only Islam could be practiced in the region. • The Presbyterian Church (USA) joined most other American mainline Protestant churches, approving same-sex marriage on March 17. • On March 20, Pope Francis accepted the decision of Cardinal Keith O’Brien of Scotland, who resigned in 2013 after admitting to sexual misconduct, to renounce all “duties and privileges” associated with being a cardinal. • Melkite Patriarch Grégoire III Laham, speaking in Damascus on March 16, rejected calls for an international military intervention in Syria as “reckless” and urged Pope Francis and Christians to “promote a concrete and realistic road map” to peace for the beleaguered nation.

Comments are automatically closed two weeks after an article's initial publication. See our comments policy for more.

The latest from america

The conclave that begins next Wednesday to elect a successor for Pope Francis is the first in 46 ½ years for which the Vatican hasn’t ordered a set of cassocks from the two best-known papal tailors.
Papabile: How do conclave watchers come up with their lists of the next pope—and should we trust them?
Inside the VaticanMay 01, 2025
The people of God see the bishop of Rome as a teacher, but they also unquestionably see him as a father.
J.D. Long GarcíaMay 01, 2025
Since the death of Pope Francis, lists of his possible successors have proliferated on social media and in newspapers. Should you trust them?
Colleen DulleMay 01, 2025