VATICAN CITY – Employers who make business deals that threaten people's livelihood commit a sin that robs men, women and their families of their dignity, Pope Francis said.

For millennia, people have gazed into the night sky and wondered, “Are we alone?”

VATICAN CITY – When a child-protection advocate resigned from a papal advisory board in early March, she did so because of growing frustration with persistent resistance and a "toxic" sense of superiority from some in the Roman Curia.

TIGRE, Argentina – The Polish pope, St. John Paul II, made nine visits to his country of birth, the first in 1979, less than a year after his election.

ROME, Italy – Hundreds of musicians and pastors from around the world have signed a document urging parishes and publishers should take care to develop the Church’s rich musical traditions, not discard them.

Third Sunday of Lent, March 19 (Year A) Exodus 17:3-7; Psalm 95; Romans 5:1-2, 5-8; John 4:5-42

Doubt and fear are very powerful negative forces. All hope, joy, peace and faith flee before them.

All things considered, I believe that I grew up with a relatively healthy concept of God.

VATICAN CITY – Women and men from around the globe gathered for an event inside Vatican City that celebrated and encouraged the need for women's voices to be heard in the church and in the world.

VATICAN CITY – In a newly-released interview Pope Francis discussed the shortage of vocations to the priesthood, saying the first response must be prayer. He also mentioned working with youth, the low birthrate, and the ordination of married men.

VATICAN CITY – Catholic activist Sister Simone Campbell has suggested that senior clergy at the Vatican are more preoccupied with power than confronting issues that affect the faithful, like clerical sexual abuse.