News/International

Neighbors and friends of the relatives of Egyptian men said to be killed in Libya attend Mass at a church south of Cairo Feb. 16 and pray in front of a banner with pictures of the victims. Egyptian jets bombed Islamic State targets in Libya Feb. 16, a day after the group there released a video showing what is said to be the beheading of 21 Egyptian Christians.

Pope seeks prayers for Egyptians beheaded by Islamic State

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VATICAN CITY - Pope Francis called for prayers for the Egyptian Christians beheaded by Islamic State militants in Libya and asked that God recognize these men killed for their faith.

A Coptic Christian woman cries during a prayer service at a church in Cairo May 8.

Coptic Christians increasingly feel endangered in Libya and Egypt

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CAIRO - The gruesome video released by militants from the Islamic State showing the beheading of 21 Egyptian Copts in Libya has focused the world’s attention on the plight of Christians there and the government’s ability to respond.

Families of the 27 Egyptian Coptic Christians workers kidnapped in the Libyan city of Sirte, hold pictures of their kidnapped relatives in front of the U.N. office in Cairo January 19, 2015.

Pope Francis condemns Islamic State’s executions of Christians in Libya

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VATICAN CITY - Pope Francis on Monday (Feb. 16) denounced the brutal slayings of 21 Coptic Christians in Libya by militants linked to the Islamic State, saying “they were assassinated just for being Christian.”

Some Christians object to the abortion link to vaccines, but it's a connection that is both clouded and complicated.

Vaccines and abortion? The links are cloudy and complicated

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WASHINGTON - With measles outbreaks in 14 states and health authorities imploring parents to weigh the minimal risks of vaccines against the ravages of preventable disease, some Christians are raising an objection of a completely different sort: the abortion connection.

Sister Dorothy Stang is seen on the right. In this Feb. 15, 2005, file photo (background), inhabitants of Anapu, Brazil, gather for a Mass to honor U.S.-born Sr. Dorothy Stang, a member of the Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur who was murdered by ranchers three days earlier. In the 10 years since her murder, land reform risks have not decreased, said one of the coordinators of the Brazilian bishops' Pastoral Land Commission.

Sr. Dorothy Stang died fighting for Brazil’s landless; 10 years later, not much has changed

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PARA, Brazil - On Feb. 12, 2005, two hired gunmen killed Sr. Dorothy Stang, 73, as she read aloud from the Bible in a remote settlement just off the Trans-Amazonian Highway.

Displaced Iraqi Yezidi children greet Catholic Relief Service workers and a delegation of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, led by Bishop Oscar Cantu during a visit to Shariah Collective, Iraq, Jan. 17.

Education a priority for church agencies aiding displaced Iraqis

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SHARIAH COLLECTIVE, Iraq - Young children happily sing songs in Kurdish and Arabic, play interactive games, learn to count and how to read and write under a big colorful tent. Meanwhile, teens and pre-teens study more serious subjects.

Irish Archbishop Diarmuid Martin of Dublin, center, talks with Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle of Manila, Philippines, before the morning session of the extraordinary Synod of Bishops on the family at the Vatican Oct. 9.

Dublin archbishop appalled by delay in applying child safety guidelines

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DUBLIN - Archbishop Diarmuid Martin of Dublin said he would seek assurances from religious congregations operating in his diocese that they are rigidly following child protection guidelines after a fresh round of audits raised serious concerns.

Ezo owl chicks sit in a tree just after leaving their nest on Hokkaido Island, Japan, June 11, 2014. Pope Francis plans to issue an encyclical on the environment later this year.

Anticipation building for papal encyclical on environment

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WASHINGTON - The much-anticipated encyclical by Pope Francis on the environment, expected sometime this spring or early summer, is generating a lot of buzz in Washington and elsewhere.

A sailor from the Greek Coast Guard monitors the Mediterranean Sea for undocumented migrants Sept. 24, 2014

Pope calls for solidarity with migrants after deadly sea crossing

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VATICAN CITY - Pope Francis once again urged solidarity with migrants who risk their lives crossing the Mediterranean Sea for Europe, and assured prayers for the victims of a deadly crossing in early February.

Jordan's Queen Rania holds a picture of First Lt. Muath al-Kasasbeh, executed Jordanian pilot, during a Feb. 6 march in Amman. As Jordan steps up airstrikes on Islamic State targets in Syria to avenge the murder, Catholic and other leaders are hoping tha t the tragedy can still yield good for the future.

Jordanians hope death of pilot, U.S. aid worker, can still yield good

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AMMAN, Jordan - As Jordan steps up airstrikes on Islamic State targets in Syria to avenge the murder of its pilot, Catholic and other leaders are hoping that the tragedy can still yield good for the future.

Tribal fighters take part in an intensive security deployment against Islamic State militants in Haditha, Iraq. A Chaldean archbishop has called for U.S. and British troops on the ground to help defeat the Islamic State.

Iraq needs U.S. boots on the ground

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LONDON - A Chaldean Catholic archbishop called for the redeployment of American and British troops in Iraq to prevent the “genocide” of Christians and other minorities by Islamic State militants.

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