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News/International

Pope Francis meets President Tran Dai Quang of Vietnam during a private audience at the Vatican Nov. 23.

Pope welcomes Vietnamese president to Vatican

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VATICAN CITY – As the Vatican and Vietnam continue discussions aimed at establishing full diplomatic relations, Pope Francis welcomed President Tran Dai Quang to the Vatican Nov. 23.

File photo of the Paris climate conference from December 2015. Development and Peace said the the United Nations Climate Change Conference in Marrakech, which concluded Nov. 18, failed to address the needs of small farmers.

U.N. climate conference misses mark for small farmers, says D&P

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OTTAWA – The United Nations Climate Change Conference in Marrakech failed to address the needs of small farmers, said a representative from the Canadian Catholic Organization for Development and Peace.

The United nations is preparing to begin talks to ban nuclear weapons in March, but the end result is uncertain.

Upcoming U.N. talks to abolish nuclear weapons face uncertain future

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WASHINGTON – The United Nations is preparing to embark on talks to ban nuclear weapons.

Koji Nakamura, earthquake and volcano observations division director of the Japan Meteorological Agency, points at a map showing earthquake information during a news conference in Tokyo Nov. 22.

New quake, tsunami spotlight Japanese bishops' anti-nuclear stance

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TOKYO – A strong subsea earthquake triggered a tsunami alert along Japan's northeastern Pacific coast at dawn Nov. 22, sending residents running for high ground and unleashing a brief nuclear drama in an unwelcome reminder of the disaster in the same area five years ago.

Mayor John Hamilton of Bloomington, Indiana says the name change to Columbus Day and Good Friday would “better reflect cultural sensitivity in the workplace.”

Indiana mayor draws criticism for renaming Good Friday

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INDIANAPOLIS – Critics say an Indiana mayor's decision to rename the city's Good Friday holiday in the name of inclusivity ended up marginalizing Christians.

An Iraqi soldier guards St. Barbara Church Oct. 30 after it was recaptured from Islamic State militants in Qaraqosh. Similarly, in the town of Bashiqa, north of Mosul, the Mar Korkeis church was reopened after two years under Islamic State control.

Christianity returns to the towns of Iraq's Nineveh Plain

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MOSUL, IRAQ – Two years after the sound of church bells was replaced by the sound of explosives in Bashiqa, Iraq, just north of Mosul, Christians are again celebrating Mass after forcing the Islamic State out of their homeland.

On Nov 22, the Vatican announced a Mary-focused theme for the World Youth Day gathering in Panama 2019.

After Krakow, Mary at heart of next World Youth Day gathering

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VATICAN CITY – On Tuesday the Vatican announced the themes for the next three World Youth Day encounters, which are focused on Mary and form the basis of a spiritual journey culminating in the next global encounter in Panama in 2019.

New York Cardinal Timothy M. Dolan, chariman of the U.S. bishops' Committee on Pro-Life Activities, called for increased efforts to stop legalized physician-assisted suicide

U.S. Cardinal urges stronger effort to stop physician-assisted suicide

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WASHINGTON – The chairman of the U.S. bishops' Committee on Pro-Life Activities has called for increased efforts and "renewed vigor" to stop legalized physician-assisted suicide after the practice was approved by voters in Colorado and the District of Columbia City Council.

A man kneels in prayer during Mass at St. Famille Church in Kigali April 6, one day ahead of the commemoration of the 20th anniversary of the Rwandan genocide. An estimated 1 million people were murdered in acts of ethnic violence.

Rwandan bishops apologize for role in 1994 genocide

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Roman Catholic bishops in Rwanda have issued an apology for the role played by individual clergy and church members in the 1994 genocide in which nearly 1 million ethnic Tutsis and Hutus were killed.

Refugees and migrants hold a banner and shout slogans Nov. 11 as they walk toward the Croatian border in Belgrade, Serbia. English Cardinal Vincent Nichols said some British media stirred up xenophobic sentiments against migrants and refugees.

British cardinal: some media foster 'climate of fear' against migrants

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LONDON – Cardinal Vincent Nichols of Westminster said some British media were stirring up xenophobic sentiments against migrants and refugees.

Fr. Alejandro León, who has lived in the Middle East for more than 13 years, including the last five in Syria, said that being in the war-torn country during the war is “ a sign of mercy and the love of God.”

Promoting reconciliation and forgiveness, Salesians remain in Syria

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DAMASCUS – Fr. Alejandro León is a Salesian missionary who has lived more than 13 years in the Middle East, and in Syria since 2011 – precisely when its civil war began. He has said that being there during the war is “ a sign of mercy and the love of God,” even though it involves risking his own life and often being close to death.

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