ROME - Australian Cardinal George Pell expects the upcoming Synod on the Family in October will uphold traditional Church teaching.

TORONTO - Dynamic Women of Faith and the Archdiocese of Toronto are joining together to initiate fellowship groups for mothers in parishes across the Greater Toronto Area.

VATICAN CITY - The dignity of human life, family, marriage and sexuality are "urgent" issues that "cannot be silenced or ignored for fear" of threatening ecumenical achievements, said Pope Francis during an audience with Archbishop Antje Jackelen of Uppsala, Sweden.

WASHINGTON - The questions raised by U.S. Supreme Court justices as they considered April 28 whether they should rule that same-sex marriage should be made legal nationwide covered a gamut of rights concerns — religious, equal protection, states' ability to enact their own laws.

As the U.S. Supreme Court prepares to hear arguments on April 28 that could wind up legalizing gay marriage nationwide, dozens of Christian leaders have issued a call to civil authorities to preserve “the unique meaning of marriage in the law” — but also to “protect the rights of those with differing views of marriage.”

DUBLIN - Catholic bishops have not made any decision on whether priests should decline to perform civil aspects of weddings if a May 22 referendum on same-sex marriage is passed.

OTTAWA - With legalized euthanasia looming large over the House of Commons, a Tory backbencher has tabled a motion to affirm the right of free votes on matters of conscience.

“Are you an engineer?” I ask, pointing to the slim, shiny ring on his pinky finger.

“No,” he replies. “This is my promise ring.”

VATICAN CITY - Hope is the first act of resistance to evil, Pope Francis told the people of Naples as he pleaded for respect for the dignity of immigrants, jobs for the unemployed and the conversion of the city's notorious mafia families.

OTTAWA - The Conservative government is pressing ahead with its controversial Zero Tolerance for Barbaric Cultural Practices Act, Bill S-7, voting March 12 to limit the time for debate.

ST. ALBERT, ALTA. - Divorce statistics aside, Christians still see marriage as a tremendous gift in their lives.

WASHINGTON - The new movie Fifty Shades of Grey is "a direct assault on Christian marriage and on the moral and spiritual strength of God's people," Cincinnati's archbishop told pastors in his archdiocese.

Pope Francis is hardly the first Catholic to express dismay over long, expensive, bureaucratic processes laid out for people seeking annulment of a mistaken, failed marriage. But in most of Canada, annulments are available at no cost and canon lawyers from coast to coast have been working on making the process faster and less bureaucratic.

For most people marriage, a family — hearth and home — are the keys to a meaningful, successful life. But what if you can’t afford it? What if our economy, our society, is increasingly reserving marriage for a privileged few? What if the gap between rich and poor includes a marriage gap?

NAIROBI, Kenya - International rights groups, churches and activists are escalating campaigns against female genital mutilation now that a new practice has emerged in which girls are checking into hospitals to have the procedure.