Thirty years ago I was in Nicaragua as Daniel Ortega’s first presidency was approaching its best-before date. Apart from a trip to the Holy Land, it was the most inspirational trip of my life because of the people I met, the hardships they endured at the hands of the Americans, and the hopes and dreams that filled their hearts.

SANTIAGO, Chile – Teresa Correa, a mother of four and a member of the Catholic parish in the Chilean capital's upscale Las Condes neighborhood, has lost some of her confidence in the Catholic Church.

VATICAN – Pope Francis wished a happy 90th birthday to the "father of liberation theology" and thanked him for his contributions to the Catholic Church and his love for the poor.

VATICAN – Pope Francis sent condolences to Guatemala after a horrific volcanic eruption left more than 60 people dead.

WASHINGTON – A surprising item appears in a proposal requesting donations on behalf of a Jesuit-run radio station in Honduras: bullet-proof glass for the front office.

VATICAN – Every bishop in Chile offered his resignation to Pope Francis after a three-day meeting at the Vatican to discuss the clerical sexual abuse scandal.

MEXICO CITY – A Nicaraguan bishop urged the country's embattled president to "reconsider" his repression tactics as the country convulses with protests against corruption and authoritarian rule and the Catholic Church tries to play the role of mediator.

CARACAS, Venezuela – A jail riot and fire that killed 68 people in Venezuela's deadliest tragedy in decades could have been prevented, according to the Venezuelan bishops' conference.

LIMA, Peru – Less than two months after Pope Francis spoke out about environmental destruction in the Amazon basin during a visit to Peru, bishops from Latin America and the Caribbean have issued a pastoral letter calling the region's Catholics to an "integral ecological conversion."

Early in the morning, Sely Teruel walks along hilly, cloud-covered mountains and dusty slopes to get to her school in Sánta Barbara, Honduras, during the week. She lives in one of the surrounding villages so the trek to and from school is about an hour each way. 

In a letter to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops president Bishop Doug Crosby has accused Canadian mining companies of “unethical, unjust and irresponsible ways of mining” in Latin America.

LIMA, Peru – When Pope Francis visits Colombia in September, he will take his message of mercy and reconciliation to Cartagena, a city that still bears scars of its painful history as a slave port. And he will walk the streets where another Jesuit, St. Peter Claver, put that message into practice four centuries ago.

CONCEPCION, Chile – Three years ago the Church in Chile launched “Lavandería 21,” a new work inclusion project for people with Downs syndrome, whose results today far exceed what was hoped.

ROME, Italy – Pope Francis is headed to Colombia this summer, and one of the nation's leading bishops believes the visit will be a chance for progress for many countries in the region.

MEXICO CITY – Catholics working with the thousands of migrants transiting Mexico in their attempts to reach the United States said a border barricade will fail to dissuade those desperately fleeing countries in Central America with some of the highest homicide rates on earth.