Catholic News Service

Catholic News Service

VATICAN – Despite the chill and gusts of wind in St. Peter's Square, Pope Francis welcomed the beginning of spring with an impromptu lesson about gardening and how to grow into being better Christians.
VATICAN – If the Catholic Church at every level – and governments, too – would listen to young people and give them a voice in decision-making, they could unleash great potential, said two African young adults.
VATICAN – For its debut at the "Biennale di Venezia" International Architecture Exhibition, the Vatican commissioned 10 renowned architects from around the world to turn a small wooded plot on an island in the Venetian lagoon into a spiritual-artistic pilgrimage of chapels.
BOGOTA, Colombia – Bishops in Colombia are calling on officials, parishes and the international community to increase efforts to help Venezuelan migrants, who are leaving their country at the rate of at least 50,000 people per month.
SAN GIOVANNI ROTONDO, Italy – Many people admire St. Padre Pio, but too few imitate him, especially in his care for the weak, the sick and those who modern culture treats as disposable, Pope Francis said during Mass at Padre Pio's shrine.
WASHINGTON – Authorities in Florida's Miami-Dade area said at least six people have died but the number could rise as they search through the rubble of a pedestrian bridge that collapsed March 15 near Florida International University.
MANILA, Philippines – Several Philippine Catholic leaders criticized President Rodrigo Duterte's decision that he was withdrawing the country from the International Criminal Court, which is investigating his international war on drugs.
VATICAN – Sitting in a small circle with Pope Francis in the papal library, five bishops of Pakistan felt like they were having a family discussion, including about their problems, said Archbishop Joseph Arshad of Islamabad-Rawalpindi.
VATICAN – A Vatican tribunal found Archbishop Anthony S. Apuron of Agana, Guam, guilty of some of the accusations made against him, accusations which included the sexual abuse of minors.
UNITED NATIONS – Mely Lenario quietly described her harrowing journey from ambitious, naive rural girl trafficked to hopeless, drug-fueled urban prostitute, through slow rehabilitation to a new life as an outreach worker.