Bishop Stephen E. Blaire of Stockton, Calif., described in detail the financial situation of the diocese in two recent letters to parishioners that were read during weekend Masses. The most recent letter, read during weekend Masses on Sept. 7 and 8, announced the diocese’s plans to consider fi
Writing in one of Italy’s major secular newspapers, Pope Francis called for a “sincere and rigorous dialogue” between the church and nonbelievers as an “intimate and indispensable expression” of Christian love. An “open and unprejudiced dialogue” between Chr
Avid readers of U.S. News & World Report’s annual rankings of colleges and universities will find the names of dozens of Catholic schools on the lists. The University of Notre Dame, in South Bend, Ind., is the top-ranked national Catholic institution, placing 18th. Georgetown University, i
An international panel of cardinals charged in April with preparing recommendations for the pope on reforming the Curia will issue their report and meet with Pope Francis on Oct. 1-3. • According to reports from the Sudan Catholic Radio Network in September, the Sudanese air force continues to
U.S. and Russian negotiators hammered out a deal on the cataloging, securing and disposal of Syria’s 1,000 tons of chemical weapons on Sept. 14, side-stepping a confrontation with the regime of President Bashar al-Assad that could have ended with a U.S. missile strike. The question now is whet