LONDON -- Police halted a Good Friday service after a complaint that pandemic regulations were not being met, leading the parish priest to complain that officers had "brutally exceeded their powers."

VATICAN CITY -- As Pope Francis presided over the Liturgy of the Lord's Passion, the preacher of the papal household called on bishops and all Catholics to examine their consciences for ways they may be harming the unity of the Catholic Church.

VATICAN CITY -- The coronavirus is not some form of divine punishment but a tragic event that, like all suffering in one's life, is used by God to awaken humanity, said the preacher of the papal household.

The annual Good Friday procession through downtown Toronto streets is another victim of the COVID-19 pandemic.

ROME, Italy – India's Catholic bishops have strongly condemned a violent police disruption of a Good Friday service at a small parish in the south of the country.