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People near San Jose, Bolivia, march to defend Mother Earth Sept. 27, 2019.

Bishop calls for 'preferential option for the Amazon'

VATICAN CITY -- As tropical forests fall victim to loggers, miners and ranchers, the Catholic Church must take sides to defend the Amazon region and its people, said a bishop whose Bolivian diocese has been ravaged by fire this year.

Sister Priscilla Soloman, a member of the Ojibway people and of the Sisters of St. Joseph of Sault Ste. Marie in Ontario, Canada, and Alessandro Martire, a lawyer for the Lakota Sioux, participate in an indigenous prayer at the Jesuit General Curia in Rome Oct. 17, 2019. Both participated in a meeting of indigenous peoples from North America and South America that was a side event to the Synod of Bishops for the Amazon.

After meeting indigenous vow to stand with Pope Francis

VATICAN CITY -- Pope Francis and members of the Synod of Bishops for the Amazon repeatedly vowed to support, defend and accompany the region's indigenous people.

Brazilian scientist Carlos Afonso Nobre speaks at news briefing following a session of the Synod of Bishops for the Amazon at the Vatican Oct. 9, 2019.

Synod development proposals raise questions about indigenous rights

VATICAN CITY -- Proposals for Amazonian development made by well-known observers at the Synod of Bishops for the Amazon could conflict with the expectations of indigenous people unless they are included in decision-making, some synod participants said.

Father Justino Sarmento Rezende, an expert in indigenous spirituality from Brazil, speaks at a news conference to discuss the Synod of Bishops for the Amazon at the Vatican Oct. 17, 2019.

Celibacy is a gift, not an obstacle, indigenous priest says

VATICAN CITY -- While indigenous cultures may have difficulty accepting the concept of celibacy, indigenous candidates for the priesthood are more than capable of understanding that it is a gift from God, said an indigenous priest from Brazil.

Rodney Bordeaux, president of the Rosebud Sioux Tribe, Rita Means, tribal council representative of the same tribe, and Sister Priscilla Solomon, a member of the Ojibway people and of the Sisters of St. Joseph of Sault Ste. Marie, attend a news conference with a delegation of indigenous leaders from North America in Rome Oct. 17, 2019. Members of the delegation spoke about their own challenges and connections to indigenous people from South America who are meeting at the Synod of Bishops for the Amazon.

North American indigenous support Amazonian indigenous at synod

ROME -- As the Synod of Bishops for the Amazon heard pleas to defend the rights of the region's indigenous people and of the land they hold sacred, indigenous leaders from Canada and the United States came to Rome to support them.

Cardinal Angelo Becciu, prefect of the Congregation for Saints' Causes, is pictured after being made a cardinal by Pope Francis during a consistory in St. Peter's Basilica at the Vatican June 2018.

Raid on Vatican offices connected to financial investigation

VATICAN CITY (CNA) -- The recent raid of Vatican offices is connected to an investigation into charges that Vatican money financed the development of luxury properties in London, and led to a windfall for the Vatican’s investment managers, according to an Oct. 14 report from Financial Times.

A Warao indigenous girl smiles April 2, 2019, in Boa Vista, Brazil. Existing formation programs are not preparing priests and other pastoral workers to be leaders in a church with an Amazonian and indigenous face, according to bishops participating in the Synod of Bishops for the Amazon.

Hope, not hollow words, are needed, synod participant says

VATICAN CITY -- Indigenous people are hoping that the Synod of Bishops for the Amazon will awaken the world's conscience to their plight and not simply offer them lip service, an indigenous participant told Pope Francis.

His face painted red with urucum, a man participates in a march by indigenous people through the streets of Atalaia do Norte in Brazil's Amazon region March 27, 2019. Existing formation programs are not preparing priests and other pastoral workers to be leaders in a church with an Amazonian and indigenous face, according to bishops participating in the Synod of Bishops for the Amazon.

Inadequate formation a factor in lack of vocations, bishops say at synod

VATICAN CITY -- Existing formation programs are not preparing priests and other pastoral workers to be leaders in a church with an Amazonian and indigenous face, according to bishops participating in the synod for the Amazon.

A woman holds a malnourished child at a hospital in Sanaa, Yemen, Oct. 6, 2018. Resolving the global crises of world hunger and malnutrition demands a shift away from a distorted approach to food and toward healthier lifestyles and just economic practices, Pope Francis said in an Oct. 16 message.

Pope Francis laments world marked by hunger

VATICAN CITY -- Resolving the global crises of world hunger and malnutrition demands a shift away from a distorted approach to food and toward healthier lifestyles and just economic practices, Pope Francis said.

Cardinal Sean P. O'Malley of Boston and an unidentified priest arrive for a session of the Synod of Bishops for the Amazon at the Vatican Oct. 15, 2019.

U.S. bishops: Synod not a 'referendum' on celibacy

VATICAN CITY -- The Synod of Bishops for the Amazon is not a "referendum" on priestly celibacy; it is looking for ways to provide for the sacramental life and formation of the people there, U.S. Cardinal Sean P. O'Malley of Boston said.

An altar server prays during Mass in St. Ignatius, Guyana.

Indigenous culture can enrich liturgy, bishop says

VATICAN CITY -- Proposals at the Synod of Bishops for the Amazon for indigenous- or Amazonian-rite ceremonies are meant to enhance and enrich the liturgy with cultural signs and gestures, not change what is essential for Catholics, a bishop said.

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