News & Commentary

Conclave: First ballot fails to elect pope

As expected, the 133 cardinals who entered the Sistine Chapel May 7 failed to elect the next pope on their first ballot.
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Marileidy Paulino of the Dominican Republic rings the Olympic bell.

Olympic bell will ring inside newly rebuilt Notre Dame Cathedral during every Mass

During the Paris Olympic Games, track and field champions rang the bronze bell located close to the finish line at Saint-Denis' Stade de France. In December, that same bell will ring in the newly reopened Notre Dame Cathedral during the ...
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Migrants seeking asylum in the U.S. walk into a temporary humanitarian respite center run by Catholic Charities of the Rio Grande Valley.

New study on Catholic attitudes on migrants, immigration and refugees

The Center for Applied Research in the Apostolate (CARA), affiliated with Georgetown University, last month published a study on Catholic attitudes toward immigration, migrants, and refugees.
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President Joe Biden, first lady Jill Biden, Democratic presidential candidate and Vice President Kamala Harris and second gentleman Doug Emhoff greet each other on stage during Day 1 of the Democratic National Convention in Chicago Aug. 19, 2024.

Biden passes torch to Harris on the Democratic National Convention’s opening night

President Joe Biden both sought to cement his own legacy and pass the torch to Vice President Kamala Harris as the Democratic Party's standard-bearer during his address at the opening night of the Democratic National Convention.
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Pope Francis plans to travel Sept. 2-13 to Indonesia, Papua New Guinea, Timor-Leste and Singapore. It will be the 45th foreign trip of his pontificate and his longest trip, both in terms of distance and days away from Rome.

Pope to visit Asia, Oceania in September

Pope Francis' trip to Asia and Oceania in September will be a trip of religious, economic and social contrasts.
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A drone view shows a bridge submerged by the flooded La Plata River in Toa Baja, Puerto Rico, in the aftermath of Hurricane Ernesto Aug.14, 2024. Archbishop Roberto O. Gonzalez Nieves of San Juan suspended Masses and pastoral activities Aug. 13 and 14 as Ernesto battered Puerto Rico, leaving hundreds of thousands without power. (OSV News photo/Ricardo Arduengo, Reuters)

Prayers, power grid repairs follow Ernesto hitting Puerto Rico, US Virgin Islands

(OSV News) — Prayers and power grid repairs are underway in Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands, as Hurricane Ernesto roared through the Caribbean. Ernesto struck Puerto Rico late Aug. 13 as a tropical storm, then strengthened into a ...
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Worshippers pray during a Mass at the Basilica San Jose de Flores in Buenos Aires, Argentina, March 6, 2023, where Pope Francis used to attend Mass during his childhood. (OSV News photo/Agustin Marcarian, Reuters)

How to celebrate holy days of obligation

(OSV News) — It’s part of human nature to set aside certain days to mark events or to honor people. On a personal level we celebrate birthdays and anniversaries. On a secular level we celebrate the founding of our country, ...
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