OTTAWA – The run-up to a general election in Nigeria has triggered concerns about growing violence and an increase in Christian persecution, said the national director of Nigeria’s Pontifical Mission Society.

VATICAN – Proclaiming the Gospel is not the same thing as proselytism and often means simply being a neighbor and friend to someone while living an authentically Christian life, Pope Francis said.

LAGOS, Nigeria – Nigeria's Catholic bishops called on voters to prepare to cast their ballots in upcoming elections by reflecting, fasting and praying on how best the country's future can be served.

KINSHASA, Congo – Some Catholic bishops from Congo have endorsed the disputed election of Felix Tshisekedi as president, despite continuing criticisms from other church leaders.

HARARE, Zimbabwe – The Zimbabwe bishops' justice and peace commission is collecting information on violence and human rights abuses in dioceses across the country.

Canada’s bishops have listened for years as frustrated Church leaders in the developing world decry Canadian companies for acting as if the worker codes and human rights mandated by Canadian law become optional when operating abroad.

PANAMA CITY – If there was a common denominator, aside from the Christian faith, that united most pilgrims heading to the opening Mass for World Youth Day 2019 in Panama, it was that each person, in his or her own way, faced a challenge back home.

HARARE, Zimbabwe – As political protests in Zimbabwe have turned violent and even fatal, reportedly leaving at least 12 people dead, the bishops of the country have called for peaceful resolutions to the crisis.

KINSHASA – Catholic church leaders in Congo have questioned the official outcome of the Dec. 30 elections, saying the officially published results "do not correspond with the data collected" by the church's 40,000 observers.

ROME – Migrants rescued from the Mediterranean were taken to shore in Malta Jan. 9 after being kept at sea while European nations argued over who was responsible for them.

After years of lobbying by a small community of Catholic sisters from eastern Canada, the world’s largest producer of potash is abandoning mining operations in territory south of Morocco.

A new international agreement that covers all dimensions of international migration that will be signed in Morocco, Dec. 10-11 represents the alternative to fear, says Canadian Jesuit Fr. Michael Czerny.

VATICAN – Responding to the deaths of tens of thousands of children from AIDS and AIDS-related illnesses, the Vatican brought together physicians and representatives of drug companies and humanitarian agencies to strategize ways to improve care for children and adolescents who are HIV-positive.

OTTAWA – Pro-life advocates are outraged following an announcement that Canada will grant $8 million to Marie Stopes International (MSI), the world’s largest abortion and abortifacient drug provider which is under investigation in two African nations for illegal activity.

NAIROBI, Kenya – Although official reports say Mill Hill Father Cosmas Omboto Ondari was caught in the crossfire of government and opposition forces, the local bishop says Father Ondari was killed by government soldiers.