“We hope to highlight the importance of prayer as a reasonable and efficacious response to the violence that has touched too many communities in our nation.”

To promote Catholic social teaching and ensure appropriate assistance to vulnerable people—especially victims of war, refugees and the sick—Pope Francis has established a new Vatican office. In a letter initiated by him and published by the Vatican on Aug. 31, the pope said the new Dicas

A judge in California ruled on Aug. 26 that a group of doctors could continue a court challenge to the state’s new assisted-suicide law but that the law would not be put on hold while they did so. • While hailing a peace agreement that ended 50 years of civil conflict in Colombia, Pope Fr

Louis Sako called for Muslims to "show the real face of Islam."

Water lapped at the heels of the Rev. Michael Galea, the still steady rain a constant reminder of Mother Nature’s unfinished business. Father Galea, pastor at Holy Rosary Church in St. Amant, La., estimated that as many as 90 percent of his parishioners had been affected in some way during the

In a meeting with Polish Jesuits, Pope Francis worried that too many seminaries teach a rigid list of rules that make it difficult or impossible for priests to respond to the real-life situations of those who come to them seeking guidance. “Some priestly formation programs run the risk of educ

Thousands of children trying to escape gang violence and poverty in Central America have made their way to the United States this year—and there is no sign that the flow is letting up, the U.N. children’s agency said in a report released on Aug. 23. In the first six months of 2016, Unice

Responding to inquiries from the A.C.L.U. and other groups, the nonprofit Catholic organization SSM Health agreed to provide birth control pills at the 26 clinics inside Walgreens stores in the St. Louis area that it began operating on Aug. 25. • On Aug. 26, France’s top administrative co

U.S. Catholic leaders and some of Iran’s top religious figures issued a joint declaration that calls for the end of weapons of mass destruction and of terrorism and of assigning blame for terrorist acts to an entire religion. “Christianity and Islam share a commitment to love and respect

The Evangelical Lutheran Church of America on Aug. 10 approved "Declaration on the Way: Church, Ministry and Eucharist," a document that tracks progress over 50 years of Lutheran-Catholic dialogue and maps remaining steps to full unity. • Pope Francis hosted 21 Syrian refugees at the