From her experience working side-by-side with women religious, Sister Peggy Mattare, S.S.N.D., has discovered that most sisters are “workaholics.” Always putting the needs of others first, she said, many in the consecrated life don’t make time to take care of themselves. As the new wellness coordinator for the Atlantic-Midwest Province of the School Sisters of...Read More

VATICAN CITY – Israel postponed a major negotiating session with Vatican officials on questions regarding the church’s legal and financial status in the Holy Land. The Vatican expressed disappointment at yet another delay in the on-again, off-again talks, which began 15 years ago. The meeting of the joint commission on church-state issues had been scheduled...Read More

As more than 800 catechumens and candidates from the Archdiocese of Baltimore prepare to enter the Catholic Church during the Easter Vigil, April 7, Holy Saturday morning will provide an opportunity for prayer and reflection. The elect, whose February ceremonies were cancelled because of snow, will make one final preparation at 10 a.m. during Preparation...Read More

VATICAN CITY – Supporting legislation that gives legal rights to gay or heterosexual couples who are not married is a position that is not consistent with the Catholic faith, said members of the permanent council of the Italian bishops’ conference. “The faithful Christian is obliged to form his conscience” in accordance with the teaching of...Read More

VATICAN CITY – The teaching of the bishops and unity with the pope guarantee that one’s faith truly is the faith taught by Jesus to his apostles, Pope Benedict XVI said. “The true Gospel is that imparted by the bishops, who have received it in an uninterrupted chain from the apostles,” the pope said March...Read More

Baltimore artist Paul DeRemigis Jr. will be signing his newest original painting, a rendering of the restored Basilica of the National Shrine of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Baltimore, April 12.Read More

MENLO PARK, Calif. – Even though the average age of religious-order priests, sisters and brothers serving in the United States is increasing and their numbers are declining, don’t conclude religious communities are dying out, a well-known scholar said during a recent national meeting in Menlo Park. Instead, think of consecrated life as an “ongoing history”...Read More

MEXICO CITY – With protests, a pilgrimage and emphatic declarations, the Catholic Church has intensified its efforts to derail legislative proposals which would decriminalize abortion in Mexico. The issue also reignited tension between the church and Mexico’s left, and led to renewed questions over whether clergy and Catholic groups can participate in political activism in...Read More