As the trial of Boston Marathon bombing defendant Dzhokhar Tsarnaev went to the jury April 6, the Catholic bishops of Massachusetts released a statement reiterating the church's teaching on the death penalty.If convicted, Tsarnaev could be sentenced to death or to life without the possibility of

More than 1,000 people packed into a tent in a refugee camp in Irbil, Iraq, for the Easter vigil Mass celebrated by Italian Cardinal Fernando Filoni, former nuncio to Iraq and Pope Francis' personal representative to those forced to flee the fury of Islamic State militants.The cardinal, who brou

The president of the Kenyan bishops' conference called on Easter worshippers to commit themselves to praying for peace and security in their homeland after militants attacked a college campus days earlier.Cardinal John Njue of Nairobi also condemned the April 2 attack by the Somalia-based al-Sha

Nigerian prelates hailed the country's presidential election as a success for democracy and urged President-elect Muhammadu Buhari to make good governance, security and peace top priorities.The church leaders also said that while the election was largely peaceful, Nigerians must be patient as th

Reconciliation between the Catholic and Orthodox churches is urgently needed, said Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew of Constantinople in an extensive interview with a prominent Jesuit journal.Due to great suffering and injustice around the world, "today, perhaps even more than 50 years ago, the

Two U.S. senators have sponsored joint resolutions to try to block two new laws in the District of Columbia that they say prevent religious institutions, pro-life groups and individuals from operating within their own belief systems.Sponsored by Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, and co-sponsored by Sen. James