Courtney Mares

Courtney Mares

Courtney Mares is a Rome Correspondent for Catholic News Agency. A graduate of Harvard University, she has reported from news bureaus on three continents and was awarded the Gardner Fellowship for her work with North Korean refugees. She is the author of “Blessed Carlo Acutis: A Saint in Sneakers” (Ignatius, 2023), https://ignatius.com/carlo-acutis-sscap/.

Articles by Courtney Mares

Taiwan’s ambassador to Vatican highlights partnership in charity and peace

Oct 10, 2024 / 12:50 pm

Ambassador Matthew Lee emphasized the importance of the Vatican-Taiwan partnership, particularly in promoting peace and religious freedom, in an interview.

Film composer Hans Zimmer to conduct Vatican concert for poor and homeless

Oct 10, 2024 / 09:15 am

The legendary composer will take center stage at the Vatican’s “Concert with the Poor” on Dec. 7 in the Paul VI Hall.

PHOTOS: Vatican to unveil restored baldacchino in St. Peter’s Basilica on Oct. 27

Oct 9, 2024 / 14:35 pm

Journalists donned hard hats on Tuesday to get a sneak peek of the nearly finished restorations, climbing the scaffolding to the top of the 94-foot-tall canopy.

Catholic bishops from mainland China and Taiwan in dialogue at Synod on Synodality

Oct 8, 2024 / 13:30 pm

Bishop Norbert Pu is the Catholic Church’s first bishop born in Taiwan and is a delegate in the nearly monthlong synod assembly.

Women deacons off the table? Synod delegate claims ‘some women sense a call to priesthood’

Oct 7, 2024 / 13:45 pm

“I think we have to look at the question very much from … the Spirit. ‘Is the Spirit calling women?’” said Sister Mary Theresa Barron, OLA.

Pope Francis prays rosary for peace on eve of first anniversary of Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack

Oct 6, 2024 / 13:10 pm

On the eve of the one-year anniversary of the Hamas attack on Israel, the pope implored Our Lady, Queen of Peace, to “dispel the dark clouds of evil.”

Pope Francis urges married couples to ‘be open to life’

Oct 6, 2024 / 10:43 am

In his Sunday Angelus address, the Holy Father asked couples to reflect on whether their married life is fully open to the gift of children.

Pope Francis names 21 new cardinals, including archbishops of Tehran and Toronto

Oct 6, 2024 / 07:41 am

Since his election in 2013, Pope Francis has created 142 cardinals from 70 countries at nine consistories.

Pope Francis opens Synod on Synodality assembly with warning against personal ‘agendas’

Oct 2, 2024 / 12:17 pm

The second session of the 16th Ordinary Synod of Bishops, running from Oct. 2–27, marks a critical phase in the Church’s global synodal process.

Pope Francis calls for global day of prayer, fasting amid escalating conflict in Holy Land

Oct 2, 2024 / 06:49 am

The pope’s surprise announcement comes the morning after Iran launched hundreds of missiles toward Israel.

Decoding the Synod on Synodality: CNA’s essential terminology guide

Oct 1, 2024 / 13:05 pm

As the Catholic Church kicks off the second session of the Synod on Synodality this week, it’s helpful to understand some key terms and concepts.

Pope Francis lauds Belgian king who chose to abdicate rather than sign abortion law

Sep 28, 2024 / 14:15 pm

The pope also expressed hope that the sainthood cause for King Baudouin, who ruled as King of the Belgians from 1951 until 1993, will advance.

Pope Francis in Belgium: ‘Crisis of faith’ in the West requires a return to the Gospel

Sep 28, 2024 / 12:45 pm

The pope addressed more than 2,500 priests, deacons, religious sisters, seminarians, catechists, and bishops gathered inside the National Basilica of the Sacred Heart.

Pope Francis urges professors to ‘seek the truth’ in visit to 600-year-old Belgian university

Sep 27, 2024 / 14:00 pm

The pope addressed academics at KU Leuven, a Belgian Catholic research university, on Friday afternoon to mark the 600th anniversary of its founding.

PHOTOS: Pope Francis meets king and queen of Belgium at Laeken Castle

Sep 27, 2024 / 10:55 am

King Philippe ascended the Belgian throne in 2013 and holds the title “Rex Catholicissimus,” or “(Most) Catholic Majesty.” 

In Belgium, Pope Francis says ‘Church should be ashamed’ of clerical abuse

Sep 27, 2024 / 09:11 am

Speaking before approximately 300 dignitaries, the pope remarked that child abuse is “a scourge that the Church is tackling resolutely and firmly.”

What you need to know about part 2 of the Synod on Synodality

Sep 21, 2024 / 07:00 am

The second Vatican assembly for the global Synod on Synodality will kick off in October, bringing together clerics and laity alike for a month of discussions.

St. Januarius’ blood liquefies in Naples on his feast day

Sep 19, 2024 / 10:40 am

The archbishop of Naples recalled that Sept. 19 marks the anniversary of St. Januarius’ martyrdom more than 1,700 years ago.

Pope Francis says the Catholic Church is ‘more alive’ outside of Europe

Sep 18, 2024 / 08:54 am

In his first general audience since returning from the longest international trip of his pontificate, the pope expressed gratitude to God for his experiences.

Pope Francis tells young people to prioritize the Eucharist like Carlo Acutis

Sep 17, 2024 / 12:52 pm

“As Blessed Carlo Acutis said, the Eucharist is the highway to heaven,” the pope wrote in his message for diocesan World Youth Days published on Sept. 17.