AMSTERDAM – Dutch church leaders have signed a petition against the "exploitation of Christianity" by populist politicians in upcoming parliamentary elections, as the Catholic bishops' conference urged voters to back parties "contributing to the common good."

KINSHASA, Congo – Congo's bishops criticized continued obstruction of a church-brokered peace accord and urged citizens not to blame Catholics for the deadlock.

NEW DELHI – Police in India's Kerala state arrested a 48-year-old priest and charged him with rape of a minor after a teen girl in his parish delivered a baby.

BEIRUT – The Melkite Catholic Church resumed its Synod of Bishops after nearly an eight-month interruption.

MEXICO CITY – A priest in the southern Mexican state of Oaxaca has been sentenced to 16 years and 6 months in prison for sexual abuse, marking the first ever conviction of a Catholic clergyman for such a crimes in the country.

MANILA, Philippines – Expressing concern about thousands of deaths in the nation's so-called "war on drugs," the president of the Philippine bishops' conference has sought courage from a deceased cardinal whose influence helped overthrow a dictator in the mid-1980s.

SYDNEY – Australia's five archbishops said they would consider asking the Vatican for clarification on concerns raised in a government inquiry into sexual abuse of children in the church.

SYDNEY – Five Australian archbishops testified before a government commission on child sexual abuse, reiterating apologies and taking responsibility for actions that occurred before they were church leaders.

AGANA, Guam – U.S. Cardinal Raymond L. Burke, accompanied by an official from the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith and three canon lawyers, spent two days in Guam interviewing witnesses and alleged victims in a clerical sexual abuse case against Archbishop Anthony S. Apuron of Agana.

WASHINGTON – In a Feb. 16 statement, U.S. Catholic Church leaders said they were encouraged that President Donald Trump may be considering an executive order to protect religious freedom and said they would be grateful if he would move forward with the pledge that his administration would "do everything in its power to defend and protect religious liberty."