Articles by Courtney Mares
Pope Francis encourages filmmakers to ‘reawaken wonder’
Feb 20, 2023 / 06:10 amA good movie has the power to inspire wonder and to evangelize by reflecting the beauty of God’s creation, Pope Francis told filmmakers at the Vatican.
UPDATE: Murder investigation underway in shooting death of LA Auxiliary Bishop O’Connell
Feb 19, 2023 / 13:47 pmBishop David G. O’Connell, known affectionately as “Bishop Dave,” was shot in the torso on Feb. 18. He was pronounced dead at the scene.
Pope Francis: God asks us to love beyond ‘the logic of self-interest’
Feb 19, 2023 / 06:30 amThe pope reflected on what it means to “love your enemies” in his Sunday Angelus address.
LA Auxiliary Bishop David O’Connell shot and killed
Feb 18, 2023 / 23:08 pmAuxiliary Bishop David O'Connell, 69, was a native of Ireland who had worked with the poor in the South Los Angeles area for 45 years.
Pope Francis: Bring the Gospel into the world without becoming worldly
Feb 15, 2023 / 06:10 am“For the Church, falling into worldliness is the worst thing that can happen,” the pope said.
Beatification date announced for married couple with seven children martyred by Nazis
Feb 15, 2023 / 04:00 amThe entire Ulma family, including one newborn baby, will be beatified in Markowa, Poland.
Nigeria’s newest cardinal shares secret behind the highest Mass attendance in the world
Feb 14, 2023 / 13:00 pmCardinal Peter Ebere Okpaleke said Nigerian society as a whole has “a traditional worldview” that recognizes the presence of God in life and society.
Pope Francis asks Virgin Mary to intercede for Nicaragua after bishop sentenced to 26 years in prison
Feb 12, 2023 / 08:20 am“The news from Nicaragua has grieved me a great deal,” the pope said.
Pope Francis urges support for earthquake victims in Turkey and Syria
Feb 12, 2023 / 06:10 amPope Francis prayed Sunday for the people of Turkey and Syria who are suffering after devastating earthquakes killed more than 28,000 people.
European Catholics debate final outcome of Synod on Synodality assembly in Prague
Feb 9, 2023 / 09:45 amEuropean Catholics debated Thursday the contents of a final document that will influence the discussions of the Synod of Bishops at the Vatican in the fall.
Cardinal Grech at European assembly: ‘The synod is not there to destroy Catholic identity’
Feb 9, 2023 / 09:15 amIn a homily in Prague Feb. 9, Grech noted that some have wrongly understood the synod as “a battle of the conservatives against the liberals.”
Germany’s Synodal Way leaders push women’s ordination during European bishops’ synodal assembly
Feb 8, 2023 / 11:10 amIrme Stetter-Karp, the president of the lay Central Committee of German Catholics (ZdK), addressed delegates in the meeting in Prague on Feb. 8.
Synod on Synodality: Europe’s Continental Assembly in Prague discusses tensions in the Church
Feb 7, 2023 / 15:55 pmTwo hundred delegates are meeting this week in the capital of the Czech Republic for the last stage of regional discussions in the Synod on Synodality.
Pope Francis’ in-flight press conference: God accompanies people with same-sex attraction
Feb 5, 2023 / 12:00 pmThe pope also answered questions about tensions within the Church and spoke about his desire to go to India next year.
Pope at Mass in South Sudan: In the name of Jesus, lay down the weapons of hatred
Feb 5, 2023 / 05:00 amPope Francis urged Christians in the war-torn South Sudan to make a decisive contribution to changing history by refusing to repay evil with evil.
Pope Francis to priests in Congo: Bring people Jesus, who ‘heals the wounds of every heart’
Feb 2, 2023 / 10:30 amSpeaking in Our Lady of Congo Cathedral in Kinshasa on Feb. 2, the pope encouraged priests and religious to continue to bring the Congolese people Jesus.
Pope Francis ‘left without words’ after children’s shocking stories of violence in eastern Congo
Feb 1, 2023 / 13:07 pmThe moving encounter with the pope provided a potent reminder of the horrors taking place in eastern Congo.
Cardinal Zen hospitalized in Hong Kong after returning from Benedict XVI’s funeral
Feb 1, 2023 / 09:02 amThe 91-year-old cardinal wrote on his blog on Jan. 31 that he is receiving treatment in the hospital after experiencing difficulty breathing.
Pope Francis meets with refugees from Congo and South Sudan before flight to Africa
Jan 31, 2023 / 06:15 amAmong the refugees who met with the pope was Bidong, who spent much of his childhood in a refugee camp in Ethiopia after fleeing the war in his home of South Sudan.
Pope Francis entrusts trip to Congo and South Sudan to Blessed Virgin Mary
Jan 30, 2023 / 12:00 pmThe pope departs Rome on Tuesday morning for the capital city of Kinshasa in the Democratic Republic of Congo, a country home to more than 52 million Catholics.