News/International

University of Phoenix Stadium in Glendale, Ariz., seen Jan. 21, is readied for Super Bowl XLIX, the Feb. 1 match between the Seattle Seahawks and the New England Patriots. Catholic Charities of Arizona is preparing to serve an increased number of sex-tra fficking victims arrested by local police in the days surrounding Super Bowl Sunday.

Increase in sex trafficking expected during Super Bowl, golf tournaments

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PHOENIX - Catholic Charities of Arizona is preparing to serve an increased number of sex-trafficking victims arrested by local police in the days surrounding Super Bowl Sunday.

Victor Alcantara, a religion teacher at St. John Paul the Great Catholic High School in Dumfries, Va., hands a test in 2014 to Myles Sherman, a Baptist who says the Catholic high school has enriched his faith.

Non-Catholics choose Catholic schools for values, not just academics

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ARLINGTON, Va. - When Felicia and Ethan Carr began searching for a high school for their eldest son, they wanted a school with a top-notch college preparatory program.

But the Carrs, who are Baptist, sought something else as well.

Linda Del Rio holds a football signed by members of the Denver Broncos, outside St. Peter's Square at the Vatican Oct. 20. Del Rio was in town to attend a Vatican sports meeting and present the football to Pope Francis.

What’s God got to do with football devotion? Plenty

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Did God lift Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson’s overtime pass into the end zone in the conference final, rewarding the prayerful Christian player with a championship victory and a trip to the Super Bowl?

Millions of Americans may think so.

French troops lead a disarmament operation in Bangui, Central African Republic in February during what has been called a humanitarian crisis. The country's church leaders emphasized the "need for healing from the trauma people have experienced," said Bishop Richard E. Pates of Des Moines, Iowa, who visited South Sudan and the Central African Republic July 10-21.

Church in Central African Republic readies plans for papal visit

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OXFORD, England - Pope Francis plans to visit the Central African Republic late this year in an effort to end two years of intercommunal violence, the vice president of the country's bishops' conference confirmed.

Pro-life supporters pray in the hallway outside U.S. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell's legislative office on Capitol Hill in Washington Jan. 22. Later that day tens of thousands planned to participate in this year's March for Life on the 42nd anni versary of the Supreme Court's 1973 Roe v. Wade decision that legalized abortion virutally on demand.

Republicans abandon anti-abortion bill

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Abortion opponents marking the huge annual March for Life in Washington Jan. 22 and anticipating legislative gains by a Republican-dominated Congress were thrown into disarray after GOP leaders unexpectedly withdrew an anti-abortion bill that had been seen as a done deal.

Members of the Missionaries of Charity pray during the opening Mass of the National Prayer Vigil for Life at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in Washington Jan. 21. The all-night vigil is held before the annual March for Life, which this year marked the 42nd anniversary of the Supreme Court's Roe v. Wade decision that legalized abortion across the nation.

Boston cardinal: 'We shall overcome' in fight against abortion

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WASHINGTON - Evoking a phrase long associated with the civil rights movement, Cardinal Sean P. O'Malley of Boston told an overflow crowd in Washington that "we shall overcome" in the fight against abortion.

U.S. Vice President Joe Biden and House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, look on as President Barack Obama delivers his State of the Union address in front of the U.S. Congress on Capitol Hill in Washington Jan. 20. During his address, Obama mentioned his s hift in policy toward Cuba, quoting Pope Francis, who said diplomacy is the work of "small steps."

State of the Union speech hits on numerous social justice themes

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WASHINGTON - In his Jan. 20 State of the Union address, President Barack Obama hit on numerous themes that resonated with Catholic advocates for social justice issues.

Paralegal Maria Alejandra McKee addresses the audience at St. John the Evangelist Church in Riverhead, N.Y., Jan. 18 during an information session on immigration reform based on President Barack Obama's executive actions. A group of Catholic leaders urge d fellow Catholics in Congress to set aside partisan bickering and support the U.S. bishops' efforts on behalf of comprehensive immigration reform, calling it a sanctity of life issue and an important step in building a culture of life.

U.S. Catholic leaders say immigration reform is also ‘pro-life’

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More than 100 U.S. Roman Catholic leaders are using this week’s annual march against legal abortion to press anti-abortion House members to pass immigration reform, saying they should see it as another “pro-life” issue.

The Irish prime minister told parliament Jan. 20 that his government has no plan to hold a vote to repeal a blasphemy law before next year’s election.

Irish government says no referendum on blasphemy before election

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DUBLIN - The Irish government will not hold a national referendum to remove the offense of blasphemy from the country's constitution.

Sheikh Saliou Mbacke, the coordinator of Interfaith Action for Peace in Africa, said that although he strongly condemns the attacks on churches in Niger, cartooning a revered figure was an act of provocation that could not be justified by freedom of expression.

Churches in Niger and other former French colonies torched over Charlie Hebdo cartoons

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NAIROBI, Kenya - Cartoon depictions of the Prophet Muhammad are proving costly for Christians in majority-Muslim countries in Africa.

People fleeing Boko Haram violence in the northeast region of Nigeria cook food at a camp for internally displaced people in Yola Jan. 13.

Nigerian bishop calls for Western intervention to stop Boko Haram

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ROME - Underlining the failure of the Nigerian government to stop the violent rampage of Boko Haram, a Catholic bishop has called for Western military intervention.

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