OXFORD, England – The Catholic Church in Congo said emergency measures will remain indefinitely in place in parishes at risk of Ebola, and urged effective action against the disease by the government of President Joseph Kabila.

CAPE TOWN, South Africa – The dust had hardly settled on Catholic Relief Services' work fighting the world's worst Ebola outbreak before the team was putting together a response to the Zika virus in the West African island nation of Cape Verde.

VATICAN CITY - The Vatican is helping Catholic dioceses and agencies step up the fight against Ebola and is urging other donors to help.

NAIROBI, Kenya - The government of Sierra Leone banned public Christmas and New Year’s celebrations because they may exacerbate efforts to eradicate the Ebola virus.

NAIROBI, Kenya - Some church leaders are criticizing a British musicians’ charity group raising funds for the West African Ebola crisis, saying its new single reinforces negative stereotypes of Africa.

VATICAN CITY - More co-operation is needed between the international community and faith leaders in stemming the ongoing Ebola epidemic, said a joint communique issued by the United Nations and the World Council of Churches.

CAPE TOWN, South Africa - A Liberian bishop unable to attend the Synod of Bishops on the family has urged his fellow bishops to use their influence to help West African families in their enormous suffering caused by Ebola.

The Blood of Christ will not be offered during Mass. The Host will be placed in the hands, not on the tongue. And the faithful should not hold hands while reciting the “Our Father.”

As the ebola death toll in West Africa surpassed 3,300, North American media were reporting a single, isolated case in Dallas with minute-by-minute, 24-hour coverage. For the Caritas network the focus is on Liberia, Guinea and Sierra Leone where fragile, underfunded health care systems are faced with daily deaths and new infections. 

VATICAN CITY - Pope Francis called for prayers and concrete help for the thousands of people affected by the deadly Ebola virus.

CAPE TOWN, South Africa - Hunger and panic are spreading among people unable to work because of restrictions aimed at containing the spread of Ebola in Liberia and Sierra Leone, say church workers in West Africa.

CAPE TOWN, South Africa - Liberia's health system is in "complete shambles," a Church aid agency said, as the death of a Spanish priest brought to six the number of caregivers at a Catholic-run hospital in the capital of Monrovia who have died of Ebola in August.

LAGOS, Nigeria - In an effort to curtail the spread of Ebola, the Archdioceses of Lagos and Abuja instructed their priests to suspend all forms of physical contact during Mass, including the traditional sign of peace.

Prominent American conservative voices are criticizing the decision to bring two medical missionaries who contracted Ebola back to the United States for treatment.