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July 18, 2013
MANCHESTER, England - Britain's two leading archbishops said the new same-sex marriage law represented "a watershed in English law and heralds a profound social change."
VATICAN CITY - Pope Francis joined French World Youth Day pilgrims in mourning the death of 21-year-old Sophie Moriniere, a member of a Paris WYD group, who was killed July 17 in a road accident in French Guiana.
MEXICO CITY - A pilgrimage to World Youth Day took a detour through prison for a Mexican preschool teacher after an inadvertent brush with the illegal drug trade.
Seventeenth Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year C) July 28 (Genesis 18:20-32; Psalm 138; Colossians 2:12-14; Luke 11:1-13)
July 19, 2013
WASHINGTON - Despite weeks of testimony and evidence and 17 months of national debate about what factors led to the shooting death of 17-year-old Trayvon Martin in Sanford, Fla., at the end of the trial July 13, it became apparent that broader issues would not go away with the verdict of acquittal.
SAO PAULO - For thousands of young people, the week preceding World Youth Day was their first experience meeting Catholics of other nations and cultures.
July 20, 2013
NEW YORK - Movies involving demonic possession and Catholic faith practices always are an uncomfortable mix, as in "The Conjuring" (Warner Bros.).
WASHINGTON - One of the self-styled lay exorcists who was called in for both "The Amityville Horror" and the house-haunting that served as the basis for the new movie "The Conjuring" said it is critical to take stock of "the importance of faith" in such situations.
NEW YORK - Those "retired and extremely dangerous" (RED) secret agents are back on the case in "RED 2" (Summit), a lively sequel to the 2010 film based on the graphic novels by Warren Ellis and Cully Hamner.
July 21, 2013
RIO DE JANEIRO - The week before Pope Francis was due to visit, Franciscan friars and sisters were excitedly preparing the Hospital of St. Francis of Assisi, setting up a refurbished chapel where the pope will pray and rehearsing a hymn they will sing for him.
JUNDIAI, Brazil - Pope Francis' visit to Aparecida July 24 has a special meaning for two families who have been asked to provide the wine Pope Francis will use at Mass and a luncheon.
VATICAN CITY - Pope Francis paid a personal visit to retired Pope Benedict XVI, informing him about the final details for World Youth Day in Rio de Janeiro and asking him to pray for Pope Francis and for the pilgrims who will gather in Rio July 23-28.
July 22, 2013
ABOARD THE PAPAL FLIGHT TO BRAZIL - With economic hard times as an excuse not to hire young people, the world risks tossing them aside and endangers its own future, Pope Francis said.
VATICAN CITY - Pope Francis has named a new commission to investigate current accounting practices among all Vatican offices and bodies and to help devise new strategies for greater fiscal responsibility and transparency.
RIO DE JANEIRO - Hundreds of thousands of cheering people welcomed Pope Francis to Brazil July 22 as he made the first international trip of his pontificate to his native region of Latin America.
How fitting: we set off on our journey to Rio on the Feast of St. Bonaventure, literally “bona aventura” or good adventure. That’s what World Youth Day is: an adventure in faith. I wonder if that’s what the disciples were thinking as they made their way down from Galilee to Jerusalem with Jesus for that fateful Passover.
July 23, 2013
RIO DE JANEIRO - Pope Francis returned to his native Latin America July 22, asking for open hearts, even after the irrepressible crowds made it clear he had them.
MANCHESTER, England - The birth of the royal prince is a "source of joy" for people around the world, said the president of the English and Welsh bishops' conference.
RIO DE JANEIRO - The dream of trying to see Pope Francis up close ended at a police barricade for 74-year-old Odaleia Bastos.
VANCOUVER, British Columbia - A priest who escaped from Syria is now helping other Christian refugees flee oppression and resettle in cities in British Columbia.