Wildfires

The priest hand-picked by Pope Francis to chair the Feb. 21-24 summit on clerical sexual abuse at the Vatican has thrust the Canadian model for protecting minors into the spotlight as Church leaders from around the world prepare for the unprecedented meeting.

PANAMA CITY – Jesus is a God of now, Pope Francis told a crowd of more than 600,000 young people at World Youth Day in Panama.

Twenty-two religious orders have signed a letter questioning the wisdom of withholding funds from Development and Peace and expressing dismay over the extended investigation into 52 of the organization’s 180 partners around the world.

HARARE, Zimbabwe – The Zimbabwe bishops' justice and peace commission is collecting information on violence and human rights abuses in dioceses across the country.

YANGON, Myanmar – A controversial China-funded dam project in Myanmar must be stopped, said Cardinal Charles Maung Bo of Yangon, noting that the affected river is the country's most sacred symbol.

Packing up after a pilgrimage, you sort through the souvenirs you’ll bring home. They are reminders of friends made, marvels witnessed and lessons discovered along the way.

VATICAN – An Austrian priest under canonical investigation stepped down as an official at the Vatican Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith in an effort "to limit the damage already done to the congregation and to his community," the doctrinal office said.

VATICAN – Unity and fidelity are indispensable cornerstones of Christian marriage, Pope Francis said.

ISLAMABAD – Pakistan's Supreme Court upheld its acquittal of a Pakistani Catholic woman sentenced to hang for blasphemy.

NEW YORK – Since Gov. Andrew Cuomo signed New York's new expansive abortion measure into law Jan. 22, the anniversary of Roe v. Wade, some Catholics have called for the governor, who is Catholic, to be excommunicated.