Nation & World

Sue Kohl, Msgr. Liam Kidney and Paola Sessarego during a visit to the site of Corpus Christi Church in Pacific Palisades, Calif., in Dec. 2025. Behind them are multiple rebuilt homes under construction following the devastating fires. Tens of thousands of people were impacted after the Pacific Palisades and Eaton blazes began Jan. 7, 2025. (OSV News photo/Reese Cuevas, Angelus)
A year after LA wildfires, parishes hit hard by the blaze look to rebuild community
Man sitting on bench overlooking water
How to get more comfortable with being less comfortable
Pope Leo XIV meets relatives of victims of the Crans-Montana bar fire at the Vatican Jan. 15, 2026. The New Year's night fire claimed the lives of 40 people and injured 116 in the Swiss resort tragedy. The pontiff was "deeply moved and shocked" to meet the families. (OSV News photo/Simone Risoluti, Vatican Media)
Pope Leo comforts families of victims of Swiss Crans-Montana tragic bar fire
A hunter's moon rises behind a statue of St. Francis of Assisi on the grounds of the National Shrine of Our Lady of Champion in Champion, Wis., Oct 8, 2022. (OSV News photo/Sam Lucero, CNS)
Pope sets Jubilee to mark 800th year since St. Francis' death; saint's body to be displayed
Augustinian Father Tom McCarthy is pictured in an undated photo. Father McCarthy was elected prior provincial of the Chicago-based Province of Our Mother of Good Counsel Dec. 22, 2025, in a vote by 73 friars from the Midwest, Canada and the Chulacanas Vicariate of northern Peru, according to the province secretary. (OSV News photo/courtesy Midwest Augustinians)
Prior provincial-elect of Midwest Augustinians looks to growth and the 'Leo effect'
Pope Leo XIV joins Orthodox Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew and other Christian leaders for an ecumenical prayer service in Iznik, Turkey, Nov. 28, 2025. The gathering marked the 1,700th anniversary of the Council of Nicaea, convened in 325 A.D., which produced the Nicene Creed and defined foundational Christian doctrine. (CNS photo/Lola Gomez)
For Pope Leo XIV, Christian unity is not just an ideal, but an imperative
Archbishop Paul S. Coakley of Oklahoma City, president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, and the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr., are pictured in a combination photo. Marking Martin Luther King Jr. Day Jan. 19, Archbishop Coakley urged Catholics to reflect on how they are called to be "drum majors for justice" in their own communities, drawing on the Civil Rights leader's words and the Church's Gospel mission in a Jan. 13, 2026, statement released by the USCCB. (OSV News photo/Bob roller/LBJ Library)
USCCB president exhorts faithful to heed MLK's call to be 'a drum major for justice'
Matt Stommes works with his twin daughters, Etta and Esme, at at Annunciation Catholic School in Minneapolis Jan. 10, 2026, for FletcherFest in honor of Fletcher Merkel, who died in an Aug. 27, 2025, shooting during an all-school Mass at Annunciation Church in south Minneapolis. The event featured food, games and socializing as people celebrated Fletcher's life. (OSV News photo/Dave Hrbacek, The Catholic Spirit)
FletcherFest celebrates young legacy of student killed in shooting at all-school Mass
Archbishop Mor Anthimos Jack Yakoub, the Syriac Orthodox patriarchal vicar for Jerusalem, Jordan and the Holy Land, stands in front of the restored ancient altar in the Syriac Orthodox Patriarchal Monastery of St. Mark in Jerusalem Jan. 11, 2026, after an intensive two-year restoration process. (OSV News photo/Debbie Hill)
Historic altar at St. Mark's monastery in Jerusalem unveiled for first time in 350 years
Pope Leo XIV greets a mother and child as he baptizes 20 children in the Sistine Chapel at the Vatican Jan. 11, 2026, the feast of the Baptism of the Lord. (OSV News photo/Simone Risoluti, Vatican Media)
Parents can't wait for children to choose baptism, says pope, baptizing 20 infants in Sistine Chapel
Biblical king David, voice of Phil Wickham as an adult, is pictured in a scene from the animated film "David." The OSV News classification is A-I – general patronage. The Motion Picture Association rating is PG -- parental guidance suggested. Some material may not be suitable for children. (OSV News photo/Angel Studios)
Movie Review: David
Pope Leo XIV greets visitors in St. Peter's Square at the Vatican as they gather to pray the Angelus, Jan. 11, 2026. (CNS photo/Vatican Media)
Baptism provides light in darkness, gateway to heaven, pope says
Religious leaders, including Father Dale Korogi, pastor of Ascension Catholic Church in Minneapolis, next to a broadcast speaker, attend an interfaith news conference in Minneapolis Jan. 8, 2026, at the scene of the fatal shooting of Renee Nicole Good by a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent. The 37-year-old woman was shot in her car Jan. 7, according to local and federal officials. (OSV News photo/Tim Evans, Reuters)
Minneapolis Catholic leaders speak out about community fear after ICE-involved shooting
Pope Leo XIV addresses members of the diplomatic corps accredited to the Vatican at the Apostolic Palace at the Vatican Jan. 9, 2026. (CNS photo/Vatican Media)
Pope delivers fierce defense of the unborn in address to diplomatic corps
Cardinals Pablo Virgilio Siongco David of Kalookan, Philippines; Stephen Brislin of Johannesburg, South Africa; and Luis José Rueda Aparicio of Bogotá, Colombia, participate in a news conference at the Vatican Jan. 8, 2026. The cardinals reflected on the meaning and outcomes of the extraordinary consistory that had just concluded. (CNS photo/Lola Gomez)
Cardinals leave consistory with a clear vision from pontiff: 'A Church that cares' 
Pope Leo XIV gives his homily during Mass for the feast of the Epiphany in St. Peter’s Basilica at the Vatican Jan. 6, 2026, after closing the Holy Door to mark the official end of the Holy Year. (CNS photo/Lola Gomez)
Christians must resist allure of power, serve humanity, pope says at end of Holy Year
Polish pilgrims from Torun: from left, Iwona, Wioletta and Kasia, are seen on a Jan. 6, 2026 photograph on St. Peter's Square, at the conclusion of the Jubilee Year of Hope. What really visibly stayed with the faithful after the Jan. 6 Epiphany Mass was Pope Leo's urge to keep the church alive. "If we do not reduce our churches to monuments, if our communities are homes, if we stand united and resist the flattery and seduction of those in power, then we will be the generation of a new dawn," the pope said.
As jubilee year ends, the faithful heed Pope Leo's call to keep the church alive
Young Catholics react Jan. 1, 2026, at the SEEK26 conference at the Gaylord Texan in Grapevine, Texas. oung Catholics and attendees of all ages were invited to embrace the conference's theme inspired by St. Pier Giorgio Frassati: "To the Heights," This year SEEK the Jan. 1-5 conference was being held in Denver, Columbus, Ohio, in addition to Fort Worth. (OSV News photo/Juan Guajardo, courtesy North Texas Catholic)
SEEK 2026 summons youth to draw close to Christ, discover his plan for their lives
People hold Venezuelan flags as Venezuelans living in Colombia demonstrate in front of of the Minor Basilica of Our Lady of Lourdes in Bogota Jan. 4, 2026, for a democratic transition, after the U.S. launched strikes on Venezuela, capturing its President Nicolas Maduro and his wife Cilia Flores. (OSV News photo/Sergio Acero, Reuters)
Pope Leo, bishops react to US capture of Maduro with concern for Venezuela
Indiana Hoosiers running back Roman Hemby (1) runs to score a touchdown against Alabama Crimson Tide defensive lineman London Simmons (90) in the second half of the 2026 Rose Bowl and quarterfinal game of the College Football Playoff on New Year's Day at Rose Bowl Stadium in Pasadena, Calif. The Hoosiers defeated Alabama 38-3. (OSV News photo/Mandatory Credit: (OSV News photo/Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images via Reuters)
Indiana University running back carries Catholic values with him into playoffs
A Catholic family is pictured in a file photo sharing a laugh at their farm in Epworth, Iowa. (OSV News photo/Bob Roller)
Tips to strengthen your domestic church in 2026
Jeff Helgeson poses with Bernard Hebda, who is holding the crosier Helgeson found in a scrapyard, during their May 30, 2025, meeting at the Archdiocesan Catholic Center in St. Paul. Finding the crosier has drawn Helgeson into a journey back to the Catholic Church of his youth. (OSV News photo/courtesy Paul Lovino)
Wisconsin man's Catholic faith revived after finding bishop's crosier in scrapyard
A project of the Holy Trinity Church, under preparation since fall 2024, in the central Czech Republic's industrial town of Neratovice is seen on an undated photo of the project. The Archdiocese of Prague has welcomed pre-Christmas plans to build a major new parish church using 3D printing technology, after architects insisted the method would slash costs and offer exceptional decorative and acoustic possibilities. (OSV News photo/courtesy Holy Trinity parish)
Czech archdiocese welcomes pioneering '3D church'
Participants of the Taizé community meeting are seen in front of Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris on an undated photograph. More than 10,000 young Christians from across Europe joined thousands of young French people in Paris Dec. 28-Jan. 1, 2025, to take part in the European meeting of the Taizé community, which is held every year in a different European city around the New Year. (OSV News photo/courtesy Taizé community)
Ten thousand young Christians gather in Paris for Taizé's European New Year meeting
Schoolchildren from St. Mary's Catholic School in Papiri, Nigeria, arrive at the Niger State Government House Dec. 8, 2025, after being freed from captivity following their abduction by gunmen Nov. 21. (OSV News photo/Marvellous Durowaiye, Reuters)
From Nigeria to Belarus, 2025 marks a grim year for religious freedom
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