Catholic News Service

Pope Francis recognized the martyrdom of an Italian missionary killed in Myanmar and seven Romanian Catholic bishops — one of whom was secretly named a cardinal by St. Paul VI — persecuted during the communist era.

Archbishop Joseph Naumann of Kansas City wrote his March 15 column in The Leaven, the archdiocesan newspaper, about a Catholic school's decision not to enroll the child of a non-Catholic same-sex married couple, noting the issue has garnered local and national media attention.

Tears flowed during a Mass for peace at St. Mary's Pro-Cathedral in Christchurch, New Zealand, March 16, one day after terrorist attacked two mosques, leaving at least 50 people dead and dozens more injured.

French Cardinal Philippe Barbarin of Lyon said Pope Francis would not accept his resignation following his conviction for covering up clerical sexual abuse, so he has decided to step aside temporarily.

The season of Lent is a time for Christians to reflect on and practice the mercy of God toward others and not waste away sitting in judgment of others, Pope Francis said.

The constant temptation and cancer of corruption is one of the most devastating illnesses to befall society, Pope Francis said.

The Vatican's tentative agreement with the government of mainland China obviously has a diplomatic component, but it was motivated by a desire to spread the Gospel and ensure the appropriate freedom of the Catholic Church, the Vatican secretary of state wrote.

Cardinal Daniel DiNardo of Galveston-Houston, president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, was taken to the hospital late March 15 after experiencing symptoms of what tests March 16 confirmed was a mild stroke, according to an archdiocesan statement.

The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops' Committee on Migration endorsed an act which would provide a pathway to citizenship for qualifying "Dreamers" and those covered by the temporary protected status and Deferred Enforced Departure programs.

In a Buddhist temple nestled in the foothills of the Himalayas, more than 7,200 miles from Davenport, Iowa, the Dalai Lama received the Pacem in Terris Peace and Freedom Award from Bishop Thomas Zinkula.

The need for Catholics in particular to engage in the nuclear disarmament debate is as crucial as it has been more than three decades because of the recent announcement by both Russia and U.S. to withdraw from the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces treaty.

A top Polish Catholic leader, named the first bishops' conference delegate for child protection, welcomed a church report on sexual abuse by clergy in his country and vowed efforts to combat it.

The Catholic Church in Germany is at a point where serious debate — including on priestly celibacy and the role of women — and openness to doing things in a new way must be encouraged, said the president of the German bishops' conference.

Republican leaders in the House are calling on House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-California, and other House Democrats "to stop blocking" a vote on the Born-Alive Abortion Survivors Protection Act.

The Archdiocese of Santiago has recommended the former rector of the cathedral be removed from the clerical state after allegations of abuse and his remarks about the church.

The chairman of the U.S. bishops' migration committee and the president and CEO of Catholic Relief Services March 13 joined Texas and Mexico bishops in opposing the U.S. policy of sending asylum-seekers back to Mexico while they wait for court proceedings.

New Zealand's Catholic bishops have expressed horror and distress at a terrorist attack in two mosques in Christchurch that saw at least 49 people killed.

One of the commissioners of the Colorado Civil Rights Commission called Jack Phillips' religious freedom a sham, a "despicable piece of rhetoric" simply meant to conceal prejudices.

Belgian Cardinal Godfried Danneels, retired archbishop of Mechelen-Brussels, died March 14 at the age of 85.

The Catholic bishops of California welcomed the March 13 decision by Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom to place a moratorium on the death penalty.