News/International
COX'S BAZAR, Bangladesh – Bangladesh is bracing for a massive humanitarian crisis because of a lack of food, sanitation, medicines and even basic housing following the exodus of as many as 350,000 Rohingya Muslims from Myanmar, fleeing violence in which at least 1,000 were killed in just two weeks.
Irma weakens at it heads north, but leaves path of destruction
By Catholic News ServiceMIAMI – A weakened Hurricane Irma churned in Florida after ripping through southern portions of the state and the Caribbean islands, flooding cities, knocking out power to millions, destroying homes and businesses and killing more than 20 people.
Bruised, not broken: Pope encourages Colombians to pursue peace
By Cindy Wooden, Catholic News ServiceCARTAGENA, Colombia – Pope Francis said he had no magic words or special recipes for Colombians seeking peace, but rather he wanted to listen to them, learn from them and travel a bit of the road with them.
Pope says he hopes Trump reconsiders DACA decision
By Cindy Wooden, Catholic News ServiceABOARD THE PAPAL FLIGHT FROM COLOMBIA – Politicians who call themselves pro-life must be pro-family and not enact policies that divide families and rob young people of a future, Pope Francis said. Flying from Colombia back to Rome late Sept. 10, Pope Francis was asked about U.S. President Donald Trump's decision to end the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, which allowed some 800,000 young people brought to the United States illegally as children to stay in the country, working or going to school.
At final Mass in Colombia, Pope calls for change of culture
By David Agren, Catholic News ServiceCARTAGENA, Colombia - Pope Francis capped a five-day trip to Colombia with a call for culture change in a country attempting to pursue a path of peace and reconciliation after decades of armed conflict and centuries of social exclusion.
In Cartagena, Pope prays for Venezuela, denounces modern slavery
By Cindy Wooden, Catholic News ServiceCARTAGENA, Colombia - At the Church of St. Peter Claver, a saint venerated throughout the Americas as a champion of human rights, Pope Francis offered special prayers for Venezuela and its people suffering in the midst of a huge political and economic crisis.
Be brave in finding new ways to live, share the faith, Pope says
By Cindy Wooden, Catholic News ServiceMEDELLIN, Colombia - In a city many think of as being synonymous with new directions for the Catholic Church, Pope Francis told Colombian Catholics faith is not measured by how well they follow rules, but by the depth of their prayer life and the degree to which it pushes them to share the Gospel.
On 'sacred ground' of suffering, Pope prays for reconciliation
By Cindy Wooden, Catholic News ServiceVILLAVICENCIO, Colombia - In a raw, honest prayer service where victims and perpetrators of violence stood under the gaze of a bomb-damaged crucifix, Pope Francis urged Colombians to summon the courage to make peace.
Be the first to take a step for peace, Pope says at Mass with victims
By Cindy Wooden, Catholic News ServiceVILLAVICENCIO, Colombia - If just one victim of Colombia's civil war forgives his or her aggressor, it can set off a chain reaction of hope for reconciliation and peace, Pope Francis said.
Church leaders pray for victims of quake
By Catholic News ServiceCARTAGENA, Colombia - Church leaders prayed for Mexicans and Guatemalans affected by the magnitude 8.2 earthquake that struck the Pacific Coast.
Defend life, equality, unity, Pope tells Colombians
By Cindy Wooden, Catholic News ServiceBOGOTA, Colombia - Consolidating peace in Colombia will mean overcoming "the darkness" of inequality and a lack of respect for human life, Pope Francis said.