VATICAN CITY - With more than 100,000 dead and millions displaced in a brutal civil war, Pope Francis has made repeated pleas for peace in Syria. But more than just call for peace he has taken steps to bring an end to the violence.

VATICAN CITY - When Father Fabian Baez booked his trip to Rome, he didn't have an appointment to meet with the pope, so he gave himself ample time in the Eternal City to be able to arrange some way to see him.

Someone asked me recently, “After the Year of Faith, what will be the Church’s theme in 2014? How does the Pope designate a theme for the year?”

“What’s wrong with you?” the young woman asks her co-worker, Joe. She’s been trying to convey a message from their boss, but Joe seems to be on another planet.

Anyone familiar with the life and writings of Simone Weil will, I am sure, agree that she was a woman of exceptional faith. She was also a woman with an unwavering commitment to the poor. But, and this may seem anomalous, she was also exceptional and unwavering in a certain resistance she had towards the institutional Church. During her lifetime she longed for daily Eucharist, even as she resisted baptism and membership in the Church. Why?

Second Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year A) Jan. 19 (Isaiah 49:3, 5-6; Psalm 40; 1 Corinthians 1:1-3; John 1:29-34)

Human vision is often very shortsighted. We fail to see the big picture and fall victim to tunnel vision. It is then very easy to become caught up in our own struggles and problems or focus our energies on immediate benefits. The word of God spoken to the enigmatic Servant in Isaiah was both a shock and a challenge. In the omitted verse, the Servant protested that his life had been unfruitful and wasted in useless things. Rather than backing off or allowing him some slack, God raised the bar. The Servant had been called even before his birth so there was no “escape.” Merely restoring Israel to God was too small a task — God had far grander things in mind.

VATICAN CITY - Baptism isn't just some formal ritual, it profoundly changes people, giving them unwavering hope and the strength to forgive and love others, Pope Francis said.

RIO DE JANEIRO - Pope Francis has pledged a donation of almost $5 million to help pay part of the debt incurred by the Archdiocese of Rio de Janeiro for World Youth Day, said the Local Organizing Committee.

VATICAN CITY - Pope Francis has decided to limit the honor of "monsignor" among diocesan priests and grant it from now on only to those at least 65 years of age.

VATICAN CITY - Pope Francis said he has ordered a revision of what he called outdated Vatican norms on the relations between religious orders and local bishops, in order to promote greater appreciation of the orders' distinctive missions.