Catholic News Service

Just like billions of people throughout the world, "the church was not prepared" for the coronavirus pandemic, said Archbishop Christophe Pierre, the Vatican nuncio to the United States, in a May 6 interview with Catholic News Service.

Catholic aid agencies helping the displaced in northern Iraq say they are reaching those in need as the COVID-19 situation slowly improves there.

The Vatican announced that due to the coronavirus pandemic, several beatifications scheduled for May and June will be postponed, including the beatification of a mentor and friend of St. John Paul II.

Belgium's Brothers of Charity have cut ties with their 15 homes for psychiatric patients after the Vatican stripped the institutions of their Catholic status because euthanasia was permitted on their premises.

Just like those who failed to recognize Jesus' divinity, Christians can fall prey to "prejudiced attitudes" that ultimately become stumbling blocks to faith, Pope Francis said.

A group of U.S. bishops expressed sorrow over disparities in infection and death rates among African Americans in U.S. communities.

Praying for families around the world who have been restricted to their homes because of the COVID-19 pandemic, Pope Francis included mention of victims of domestic violence.

On the feast of St. Joseph the Worker, the Center for Migration Studies of New York released a new report highlighting the role of 19.8 million immigrant laborers who work in "essential critical infrastructure" in the U.S. during the coronavirus pandemic.

Citing mounting concerns over the financial impact of clergy sex abuse settlements and the coronavirus pandemic, the Archdiocese of New Orleans filed for Chapter 11 reorganization of the finances of its administrative offices May 1 in U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana.

Pope Francis has expanded the ranks of the top members of the College of Cardinals, naming as "cardinal bishops" Cardinal Beniamino Stella, prefect of the Congregation for Clergy, and Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle, prefect of the Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples.

With a statue of St. Joseph, mallet in hand, placed near the altar, Pope Francis dedicated his morning Mass May 1 to workers, especially those paid unjustly or virtually enslaved.

With the coronavirus pandemic forcing many countries to dig mass graves for countless victims, Pope Francis offered his daily morning Mass for the deceased who remain unknown.

For the Catholic Worker's meal center in LA, known as the Hippie Kitchen, meeting the increased need while preventing the spread of coronavirus has meant improvising — both in how it provides its services and how it prevents the spread of the virus.

Four U.S. Catholic bishops called on government officials to consider the role and plight of U.S. migrant farmworkers during the coronavirus pandemic and made recommendations that include free testing and care should the workers test positive for COVID-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus.

The Catholic Church has become Germany's first institution to agree to fixed and binding rules for investigating sexual abuse cases.

Pope Francis asked Christians to join their love for the church with a caring concern for civil society, particularly at this time of the coronavirus pandemic.

Fra' Giacomo Dalla Torre, who led the Knights of Malta following a tumultuous period of internal tensions and rocky relations with the Vatican, died at the age of 75, the order announced.

Like children who usually speak without sugarcoating their words, Christians must be simple yet concrete when acknowledging their sins, Pope Francis said.

The Catholic Church in the Archdiocese of Indianapolis is "greening." So are the dioceses of Stockton, California; Joliet, Illinois; and others across the United States.

Pope Francis approved the establishment of the John Paul I Vatican Foundation to preserve and promote the writings, thinking, example and study of "the smiling pope."