Latest Roman Catholicism News
In annual religious pilgrimage, Panamanians crawl to reach the Black Christ of Portobelo
PORTOBELO, Panama (AP) — At dawn, pilgrims like Ernesto Troya undertook the hardest stretch of their journey to reach the statue of the Black Christ of Portobelo in Panama. Moved by faith, they crawled for several hours along the street toward the image of the saint. It is one of...
Hundreds mourn Catholic priest and Indigenous peace activist killed in southern Mexico
SAN ANDRES LARRAINZAR, Mexico (AP) — Hundreds gathered Monday to mourn Catholic priest Marcelo Pérez, an activist for Indigenous peoples and farm laborers who was killed in the southern Mexico state of Chiapas. It was a killing that many say was a tragedy foretold, in a state...
Catholic priest and Indigenous activist Pérez killed by 2 gunmen in southern Mexico
TAPACHULA, Mexico (AP) — Catholic priest Marcelo Pérez, an activist for Indigenous peoples and farm laborers in southern Mexico, was killed on Sunday. The prosecutors' office in the city of San Cristóbal de las Casas, in the state of Chiapas, said the religious leader was shot...
Japan's beloved former Empress Michiko marks her 90th birthday as she recovers from a broken leg
TOKYO (AP) — Japan’s beloved former Empress Michiko received greetings from her relatives and palace officials to celebrate her 90th birthday Sunday as she steadily recovers from a broken leg, officials said. Michiko is the first commoner to become empress in modern Japanese...
What to know about the Los Angeles Catholic Church's $880M settlement with sexual abuse victims
LOS ANGELES (AP) — The Archdiocese of Los Angeles has agreed to pay $880 million to hundreds of victims of clergy sexual abuse dating back decades. The settlement with 1,353 people who allege that they were abused by local Catholic priests is the largest single child sex abuse...
Archdiocese of Los Angeles agrees to pay $880 million to victims of clergy sexual abuse
LOS ANGELES (AP) — The Archdiocese of Los Angeles has agreed to pay $880 million to victims of clergy sexual abuse dating back decades, in what an attorney said was the largest single child sex abuse settlement with a Catholic archdiocese, it was announced Wednesday. After the...
Pope names 21 new cardinals, significantly increasing the pool who will one day elect his successor
ROME (AP) — Pope Francis named 21 new cardinals Sunday, significantly increasing the size of the College of Cardinals and further cementing his mark on the group of prelates who will one day elect his successor. They include a man who will be the oldest cardinal — Monsignor...
This German church is the tallest in the world. Until Spain's La Sagrada Familia is done, anyway
ULM, Germany (AP) — The Ulmer Münster in southern Germany is the world's tallest church. For now, anyway. The Gothic-style Lutheran church's reign — begun in May 31, 1890 — could end in 2025, when La Sagrada Familia Basilica's “Tower of Jesus Christ” in Spain is set to be...
Catholic reform debate launched by Pope Francis leans away from ordained roles for women
ROME (AP) — Debate was leaning away from allowing women to take on ordained roles in the Catholic Church as the second phase of Pope Francis’ reform project opened Wednesday with an agenda topped by calls for women to take up more positions of responsibility Francis presided...
Facing more clergy abuse lawsuits, Vermont's Catholic Church files for bankruptcy
Vermont’s Catholic church has filed for bankruptcy protection as it faces more than 30 lawsuits alleging child sex abuse by clergy decades ago, according to a filing in federal bankruptcy court. Since 2006, the Roman Catholic Diocese of Burlington, the state's only diocese, has...
