The United Nations Children's Fund appeals for an end to the violence in the Middle East and unimpeded humanitarian access to assist over 1.2 million displaced children in Iran and Lebanon. The humanitarian organization warns that a generation of children is being pulled deeper into crisis and paying a devastating price.

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“Children with disabilities deserve the same care, respect and opportunities as every other child in society. Serving them has revealed the meaning of my vocation and the joy of ministering to others,” said Sr. Rosemary Ombay, the assistant director of Siuyu Rehabilitation Centre.

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Israel's defence minister says it will take control of a large part of southern Lebanon.

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WASHINGTON - Today, the inaugural meeting was held for the Evangelical-Catholic Dialogue on Immigration (ECDI), an ecumenical undertaking of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) and National Association of Evangelicals (NAE). 

The ECDI is being co-chaired by Bishop Brendan J. Cahill, chairman of the USCCB’s Committee on Migration, and Reverend Walter Kim, president of the NAE. In addition to the co-chairs, the ECDI is comprised of five members from each tradition, as well as organizational observers. 

The initiative builds on a long history of collaboration between the USCCB and NAE, including a joint report released one year ago on the possible impacts of a policy of mass deportation on Christian families living in the United States. Since the release of that report, Catholic and evangelical leaders have grappled with many of the same pastoral challenges related to ongoing immigration enforcement efforts, such as an increase in fear and anxiety among members of their congregations. The USCCB and NAE have both addressed these issues separately.   

In describing the effort, Bishop Cahill stated: 

“I view the ECDI as a means of growing in Christian unity with our evangelical brothers and sisters, while also furthering our shared goal of bringing the message of the Gospel to bear on one of the most pressing issues of our time. Whatever theological differences exist between us, Catholics and evangelicals across our country are navigating many of the same complex realities—political and social—and the issue of immigration is an important example. Together, we place our hope in Jesus Christ, and we seek to live out his teaching in relation to this challenging topic. 

“Our Holy Father, Pope Leo XIV, has emphasized dialogue as the key to peace, understanding, and fraternity, especially between different faith traditions. In seeking to live that out through the ECDI, I am deeply grateful to my co-chair, Reverend Kim, for his leadership and willingness to collaborate in this way and for the commitment of all those participating.”

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Ahead of Pope Leo XIV’s Apostolic Journey to Monaco, Archbishop Dominique-Marie David tells Vatican News about the spiritual fragilities of the small country where wealth often conceals deep “loneliness” and a “crisis of the meaning of life.”

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The General Secretariat of the Synod publishes the Final Reports of Study Group No. 2, 'To hear the cry of the poor and the earth,' and that of the Symposium of Episcopal Conferences of Africa and Madagascar (SECAM) Commission on 'the pastoral challenge of polygamy.'

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24 March marks the National Day of Remembrance of Poles Who Saved Jews Under German Occupation, linked to the murder of the Ulma family and the Jews they sheltered. Denounced to the Germans, the family was killed on 24 March 1944 in Markowa.

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Abbot and miracle worker, called "the Wise." Born in Capua, Italy, he became a monk in Monte Cassino and was called to the attention of a Princess Aloara of the region. When she built a new convent in Capua, Alder became the director of the religious in the established house. He performed many miracles in this capacity. Aldemar was reassigned by his abbot to Monte Cassino, a move that angered the princess. As a result, Aldemar went to Boiana, Italy, where a companion involved in the ...

Addressing a UN meeting, the Holy See condemns racism, warns of emerging digital biases, and calls for policies grounded in the equal dignity of every person.

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VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Pope Leo XIV advanced the sainthood cause of Father Edward Flanagan, the Irish-born founder of a pioneering home for at-risk boys in the United States, recognizing that he lived the Christian virtues heroically.

The Vatican announced March 23 that the pope authorized the Dicastery for the Causes of Saints to promulgate the decree, a key step on the path to sainthood.

Born in 1886 in Ballymoe, Ireland, Father Flanagan immigrated to the United States, first moving to New York. He contracted double pneumonia during his first year of seminary and due to "weak lungs," doctors told him he would have to leave for at least a year, according to the Father Flanagan League Society of Devotion website. 

He moved to Omaha to live with his brother, who was also a priest and his sister, who was his housekeeper. He was ordained a priest for the Diocese of Omaha. Initially working with men who were experiencing homelessness, Father Flanagan became convinced that the roots of homelessness often began in childhood and could be addressed early in life.

“There are no bad boys,” he said. “There is only bad environment, bad training, bad example, bad thinking.”

In 1917, he founded Boys Town near Omaha, Nebraska, creating a community for orphaned and at-risk boys that broke with the traditional model of reform schools and orphanages. The village included its own student-run government and civic structures, along with nationally recognized music and sports programs.

Father Flanagan was also known for his forward-looking commitment to racial and religious inclusion. He welcomed Jewish and Black youths at a time of widespread segregation, drawing threats from the Ku Klux Klan, and insisted that boys of different faiths be free to pray according to their traditions.

During World War II, he opposed the internment of Japanese Americans and provided housing for nearly 200 displaced Japanese-Americans at Boys Town. 

Father Flanagan died in 1948 in Berlin. Today, Boys Town now welcomes girls, and it has expanded across the states, including in Florida, Iowa and New York.

His work gained national attention in the 1938 film “Boys Town,” with Spencer Tracy winning an Academy Award for his portrayal of the priest.

In the same Vatican announcement, Pope Leo XIV also recognized the heroic virtues of Father Henri Caffarel, founder of the Équipes Notre-Dame movement; Sister Barbara Stanislava Samulowska, a member of the Daughters of Charity of St. Vincent de Paul; Spanish Sister Maria of Bethlehem of the Heart of Jesus Romero Algarín, a member of the Congregation of the Handmaids of the Divine Heart; and Giuseppe Castagnetti, a 20th century Italian layman and father.

The pope also approved a decree recognizing "the offering of life" of Cardinal Ludovico Altieri, a 19th-century bishop of Albano, Italy. The "offering of life" (oblatio vitae) category indicates a candidate who heroically offered his life out of loving service to others. He died in 1867 after coming to the aid of his parishioners, administering the sacraments and running emergency care during a severe cholera epidemic in Albano. 

The Catholic Church recognizes several paths in sainthood causes. Most commonly, a candidate is declared “venerable” after the recognition that a Servant of God heroically lived a life of Christian virtues. A miracle attributed to the candidate's intercession is normally required for beatification, with a second miracle needed for canonization. 

Martyrs, those killed out of hatred for the faith, may be beatified without a miracle.

The third, less common way, is called an equivalent or equipollent canonization: when there is evidence of strong devotion among the faithful to a holy man or woman, the pope can waive a lengthy formal canonical investigation and can authorize their veneration as saints.

In 2017, Pope Francis introduced a new, fourth pathway to sainthood, known as the “offering of life,” recognizing those who freely gave their lives for others; it also requires a miracle for beatification.