With violent crime rising in a number of U.S. cities, Chicago’s Cardinal Blase Cupich is urging Catholics to consider how they might contribute to a more just and peaceful society.

Pope Francis “is continuing his planned treatment and rehabilitation, which will allow him to return to the Vatican as soon as possible.”

The Haitian people are resourceful enough and resilient enough to find Haitian solutions to Haitian problems, if allowed to do so.

Given all the challenges facing the Catholic Church in our country, we are far overdue for a moment in which the bishops, clergy, religious and lay faithful of our country can discern together how to be the people of God in our time and place.

One way through grief is service. And as many of us know, from the tips of our fingers through the depths of our hearts to the bottom of our wallets, there are many ways to serve.

“You go through a lot of emotions visiting a plantation, walking in the same steps as your ancestors,” said Angela Wilson, a descendent. “It can be eerie. It can be exhilarating.”

Pope Francis continues to make progress after his operation but will remain in hospital for to “optimize in the best way possible the medical and rehabilitation therapy.”

The pope looked well and spoke strongly one week after surgery, reports Gerard O’Connell. In addition to thanking people for their prayers, he called for universal health care and condemned violence in Haiti.

Pope Francis continues to make progress in his post-surgery recovery and celebrated Mass in a private chapel on Friday. America’s Vatican correspondent, Gerard O'Connell, reports.

The best essays in 'The God Beat' are quietly reflective, deeply informed, subjective but not solipsistic.