By Cindy Wooden Catholic News Service ANKARA, Turkey — Pope Leo XIV began his first papal trip speaking of dialogue, peace and thanksgiving — referring to both the holiday and his own gratitude. On the plane to Turkey Nov. 27, he wished a Happy Thanksgiving to the Americans among the 80 journalists traveling with him […]
Pope Leo’s Middle East trip to focus on dialogue, peace
By Cindy WoodenCatholic News Service VATICAN CITY — Commemorating the 1,700th anniversary of the Council of Nicaea and its Creed, as well as reaffirming hopes for peace in the Middle East, Pope Leo XIV will travel to Turkey and Lebanon Nov. 27-Dec. 2. The Vatican released the itinerary for Pope Leo’s first foreign trip Oct. […]
Pope’s decrees pave way for Papua New Guinea’s first saint
By Justin McLellan Catholic News Service VATICAN CITY — Pope Francis has cleared the way for the canonizations of three blesseds: an Armenian Catholic archbishop martyred during the Armenian genocide, a lay catechist from Papua New Guinea killed during World War II and a Venezuelan religious sister who dedicated her life to education and the […]
U.S. Catholics urged to aid, pray for quake victims in Turkey, Syria
By OSV News WASHINGTON — Reacting to “heartbreaking scenes” of death and destruction in Turkey and Syria, the chairman of the U.S. bishops’ international policy committee urged U.S. Catholics and all people of goodwill to pray for the victims of the 7.8 magnitude earthquake that rocked the two countries Feb. 6 and to give generously […]
Christians upset at Turkey’s Hagia Sophia mosque move
By Dale Gavlak Catholic News Service AMMAN, Jordan — Catholics and other Christians are upset by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s conversion of Hagia Sophia, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, into a functioning mosque where Muslim Friday prayers were recited recently. Many observers see the controversial move as part of Erdogan’s bigger attempt to reenact […]