Reflections on life, meaning and purpose

Israeli protesters demand resignation of PM

Antigovernment rallies in Tel Aviv died down after the Hamas attacks in October, but are gaining momentum again with thousands demanding the Prime Minister step down. Read all  

Dozens killed in new ethnic clashes in Papua New Guinea

Fresh ethnic violence erupts in the South-Pacific nation just over a month after the declaration of the state of emergency in PNG’s capital Port Moresby, following the “Black Wednesday” riots of January 10. Read all  

Curial study groups to explore themes from Synod’s first session (Vatican News)

Pope Francis has written a chirograph directing the dicasteries of the Roman Curia to create “study groups that will initiate, with a synodal method, the in-depth study of some of the themes that emerged” from the October 2023 session of the Synod on Synodality. “These study groups are to be established by mutual agreement between […]

Dates set for October Synod of Bishops (Synod of Bishops)

Pope Francis has decided that the October Synod of Bishops will take place from October 2 to October 27, the General Secretariat of the Synod has announced. The October assembly is the second session of the 16th Ordinary General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops, colloquially known as the Synod on Synodality, and officially entitled […]

Jihadists destroy Catholic mission as attacks resume in Mozambique (Fides)

After a brief pause in fighting, the Islamist insurgency in Mozambique’s Cabo Delgado province has resumed. Jihadists have occupied the village of Quissanga and destroyed the hospital, market, and Catholic mission in the town of Mazeze. “The violence against defenseless populations, the destruction of infrastructure, and insecurity are again rampant in the province of Cabo […]

Are all religions equal? A Catholic priest responds

Symbols of several of the world’s leading religions. / Credit: Shutterstock ACI Prensa Staff, Feb 19, 2024 / 07:00 am (CNA). Father Eduardo Hayen Cuarón, director of the weekly newspaper Presencia of the Diocese of Ciudad Juárez in Mexico, recently responded to the question of whether all religions are equal, good, and true. Responding on […]

The Noble Office of the American Presidency

Above: George Washington by Charles Wilson Peale (1776) February is certainly our most presidential month in these United States, featuring, as it does (in reverse chronological order) the birthdays of Washington, Lincoln, and Reagan. Moreover, this is 2024, yet another election year. Usually, the question of who will run on one side is settled, if […]

Cimabue fresco restored for St. Francis’s 800th anniversary (Artnet)

The Maestà of Assisi, by the Italian painter and mosaicist Cimabue, has been restored in preparation for the 800th anniversary of the death of St. Francis of Assisi (1181-1226). The fresco, displayed in the lower church of the Basilica of St. Francis in Assisi, is famous “not only for the depiction of the Virgin on […]