The chalice was handcrafted primarily with wood from a refugee boat that landed upon the beaches of Lampedusa.

“The Affordable Care Act for all of its flaws was a movement in favor of comprehensive health care,” Bishop Robert McElroy said.

The yearbook tracks the Catholic population, both by a head count of the baptized in each country and as a percentage of the world's population.

The group called it “antithetical to the Gospel of Jesus Christ.”

John Paul liked scrambled eggs on bacon for breakfast. Benedict spent his free time playing the piano, reading, listening to classical music.

On the same day the bishops decided to establish a permanent committee on religious liberty, they agreed to extend the work of an ad hoc committee on immigration.