Pope Francis accepts offertory gifts from indigenous people as he celebrates the concluding Mass of the Synod of Bishops for the Amazon at the Vatican in this Oct. 27, 2019, file photo.

Pope Francis sets up commission to study women deacons

VATICAN CITY -- Pope Francis has established a new "Study Commission on the Female Diaconate" as a follow-up to a previous group that studied the history of women deacons in the New Testament and the early Christian communities.

Pope Francis leads a prayer service in an empty St. Peter's Square at the Vatican March 27, 2020. "What we are living now is a place of 'metanoia' (conversion), and we have the chance to begin," Pope Francis said in an interview about the COVID-19 pandemic, published April 8.

Pandemic is prime time for conversion, Pope Francis says in interview

VATICAN CITY -- The COVID-19 quarantines, lockdowns and stay-at-home orders are the perfect opportunity for conversion: for individuals, for the church and for governments, Pope Francis said in an interview.

Rembrandt’s Christ and Mary Magdalene at the Tomb (1638).

God's Word on Sunday: A hurting world needs this good news

Resurrection of the Lord, April 12 (Year A) Acts 10:34a, 37-43; Psalm 118; Colossians 3:1-4; John 20:1-18

When is good news truly good news? When it comes at the right time, giving people hope and comfort.

Mary Marrocco: This is an opportunity to really listen

Mary Marrocco: This is an opportunity to really listen

A young woman told me how she almost took her own life at 21. Not because she had no friends or family (she knew she did) but because she felt alone in her pain, isolated in the anguish she had carried so long, and convinced nobody could hear.

A man wears a protective mask during Mass at the Church of the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem's Old City March 1, 2020. With Holy Week celebrations closed to the public due to the coronavirus pandemic, Pope Francis postponed the traditional Good Friday collection for the Holy Land to September, the Vatican announced April 2.

Pope Francis moves Good Friday collection for Holy Land to September

VATICAN CITY -- With Holy Week celebrations closed to the public due to the coronavirus pandemic, Pope Francis postponed the traditional Good Friday collection for the Holy Land to September.

A chalice is seen at a Catholic church in Bangkok Nov. 12, 2019, ahead of Pope Francis' visit. The Congregation for Divine Worship and the Sacraments has approved a special "Mass in the Time of Pandemic" during the COVID-19 crisis.

Vatican approves special 'Mass in the Time of Pandemic'

VATICAN CITY -- The Congregation for Divine Worship and the Sacraments has approved a special "Mass in the Time of Pandemic" to plead for God's mercy and gift of strength in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic.

People collect clean drinking water from a tanker sent by government authorities as part of measures to help prevent the spread of the coronavirus in San Jose, Costa Rica, March 14, 2020. The Vatican said defending the right to clean water is part of the Catholic Church's promotion of the common good.

Vatican publishes document on right to water access

VATICAN CITY -- Access to clean water is an essential human right that must be defended and protected, the Vatican Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development said in a new document.

Cardinal Angelo De Donatis, papal vicar of Rome, smiles during a reception after a consistory at the Vatican in this 2018 file photo. Cardinal De Donatis was hospitalized March 30, 2020, after testing positive for the COVID-19 virus, the diocese announced.

Cardinal vicar of Rome hospitalized after testing positive for COVID-19

ROME -- Cardinal Angelo De Donatis, the papal vicar for Rome, was hospitalized after testing positive for the COVID-19 virus, the Diocese of Rome announced.

Christ enters Jerusalem, an etching by F.P. Massau, 1849.

God's Word on Sunday: Can we rise to the spiritual challenge?

Passion (Palm) Sunday, April 5 (Year A) Isaiah 50:4-7; Psalm 22; Philippians 2:6-11; Mathew 26:14-27:66

Every age calls forth prophets and teachers to guide and encourage humanity.

George and Randa Sabat and their four children pray at home during the coronavirus lockdown of Bethlehem. Family prayer is just one spiritual exercise to enhance this Lenten journey, says Fr. Yaw Acheampong.

Fr. Yaw Acheampong: Facing challenges opens us up to hope

As Christians, we have been on our Lenten journey since Ash Wednesday. This year, it is a journey with unique challenges.

Pope Francis leads a prayer service in an empty St. Peter's Square at the Vatican March 27, 2020. At the conclusion of the service the pope held the Eucharist as he gave an extraordinary blessing "urbi et orbi" (to the city and the world). The service was livestreamed in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic.

Pope Francis gives world extraordinary blessing amid COVID-19 crisis

VATICAN CITY -- The worldwide coronavirus pandemic is not God's judgment on humanity, but God's call on people to judge what is most important to them and resolve to act accordingly from now on, Pope Francis said.

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