Barr is scheduled to receive the Christifideles Laici award, which is named for St. John Paul II’s post-synodal exhortation. The award is given “in honor and gratitude for fidelity to the church, exemplary selfless and steadfast service in the Lord’s vineyard.”

Pope Francis began a series of general audience talks Aug. 5 about the principles of Catholic social teaching that can help the world recover from the pandemic and move forward in a way that is better for human beings and for the environment.

In a Sept. 11 ruling, former Col. Inocente Orlando Montano, 77, was found to have planned and ordered the murders of the five Jesuits priests — all Spanish nationals — Nov. 16, 1989, at their residence on the Central American University campus.

The Catholic Church in Lebanon plays a leading role in shaping public opinion in that troubled country because it is free and speaks the truth, Cardinal Bechara Rai, Maronite patriarch, told an internet audience Sept. 10.

Food insecurity has a profound effect on single parent families, especially during a pandemic.

“Every tragic death brings with it great pain. But when it snatches (the lives of) five adolescents and a young mother, it is immense, unbearable without God’s help,” he told members of the victims’ families Sept. 12.