News/International

A church employee at St. Mary Catholic Church in Alexandria, Va., prepares an urn burial at the parish's cemetery in this 2017 file photo.

Catholic officials: Green burial laws might not respect bodies

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VANCOUVER, British Columbia -- When archdiocesan Catholic Cemeteries director Peter Nobes first heard composting might emerge as an eco-friendly burial alternative, he thought it was a crazy idea.

People in Khartoum, Sudan, ride on the train Aug. 17, 2019, to join the celebrations of the signing of the Sudan's new power-sharing agreement. Catholic bishops in South Sudan praised the recent peace agreement for neighboring Sudan, which has experienced political turmoil since April.

South Sudan's bishops praise peace agreement

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NAIROBI, Kenya -- Catholic bishops in South Sudan praised the recent peace agreement for neighboring Sudan, which has experienced political turmoil since April, when the military ousted Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir.

Language learning app adds Latin course

Language learning app adds Latin course

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ROME, Italy (CNA) - Duolingo, the popular free language learning website and app, has launched a Latin course to help its users say “salve” to Latin fluency.

Archbishop Anthony Fisher of Sydney gives the homily as Australian bishops concelebrate Mass at the Basilica of St. Mary Major in Rome June 25, 2019. The Australian government is preparing to introduce the country's first religious freedom laws, but senior Catholic clerics are concerned they may not go far enough.

Australians fear laws won't give enough protection for religious freedom

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SYDNEY -- The Australian government is preparing to introduce the country's first religious freedom laws, but some senior Catholic clerics are concerned they may not go far enough.

A member of the police bomb squad unit examines the site of a May 13, 2018, explosion outside Santa Maria Catholic Church in Surabaya, Indonesia. Ucanews.com reported Aug. 27 that arrests were made in East Java and that all those arrested were members of the Islamic State-affiliated group Jamaah Ansharut Daulah.

Indonesian police arrest suspects linked to 2018 church bombings

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JAKARTA, Indonesia -- Indonesian police have arrested six terrorist suspects, two of whom have been linked to last year's bombings at three churches in Surabaya, the country's second-largest city.

The Chinese national flag flies in front of a Catholic church in the village of Huangtugang, Hebei province, China, Sept. 30, 2018.

Two Chinese bishops consecrated after Vatican-China deal

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VATICAN CITY -- The ordination of Bishop Anthony Yao Shun of Jining in China's Inner Mongolia autonomous region was the first episcopal ordination in the country following the provisional agreement signed in 2018 between China and the Vatican.

Lebanese Cardinal Bechara Rai, patriarch of the Maronite Catholic Church, and Syriac Catholic Patriarch Ignace Joseph III Younan share Christmas greetings Dec. 24, 2018, in Bkerke, Lebanon. To support the faithful and encourage them to stay in their homeland, the Syriac Catholic Church has reestablished a diocese for the Kurdistan region of Iraq.

Syriac Catholic Church reestablishes diocese in northern Iraq

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BERUIT -- To support the faithful and encourage them to stay in their homeland, the Syriac Catholic Church has reestablished a diocese for the Kurdistan region of Iraq.

Catholics pray for an end to abortion during a June 15, 2019, procession and rally outside Planned Parenthood's new location in Charlotte, N.C. The facility is larger than its previous location and is located in a historically African American neighborhood of Charlotte. Pro-life groups, grassroots organizations and churches have united in opposition to the new location.

Catholic teens rally to protest new abortion facility

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CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- As Planned Parenthood prepares to open Charlotte's newest abortion facility this summer, pro-life groups are responding by organizing prayer rallies and sidewalk vigils in front of the facility, and by generating awareness of abortion among local Catholics.

Australian Cardinal George Pell is surrounded by police as he leaves the Melbourne Magistrates Court in Australia, Oct. 6, 2017. An Australian appeals court Aug. 21, 2019, upheld the conviction of Cardinal Pell on five counts of sexually assaulting two choirboys more than two decades ago.

Cardinal Pell to appeal to Australian High Court

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CANBERRA, Australia (CNA) - Cardinal George Pell will appeal his conviction to the Australian High Court, following the decision last week by the Court of Appeal in Victoria to uphold his conviction for child sexual abuse.

Firefighters near Robore, Bolivia, walk where wildfires have destroyed the forest Aug. 19, 2019.

Amazon wildfires point to need for upcoming synod, Bolivian bishop says

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LIMA, Peru -- Wildfires raging in Bolivia and Brazil underscore the urgency of the Synod of Bishops for the Amazon that Pope Francis has called for October, said Bishop Eugenio Coter of the apostolic vicariate of Pando in northern Bolivia.

The Pennsylvania statehouse is seen from the State Street bridge in Harrisburg.

Pennsylvania authorities arrest priest accused of stealing more than $98,000

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WASHINGTON -- Authorities have arrested a 56-year-old priest from the Archdiocese of Philadelphia who is facing accusations that he stole more than $98,000 from a parish and used some of it to finance what the archdiocese says were "personal expenses of an inappropriate nature."

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