Articles by Courtney Mares
Pope Francis hears confessions at Roman parish: God lifts us up when we hit ‘rock bottom’
Mar 17, 2023 / 12:30 pmIn the presence of eucharistic adoration, the pope presided over a Lenten penitential service on March 17 to open “24 Hours for the Lord.”
Signs of hope and renewal amid the dramatic decline of the Catholic Church in Ireland
Mar 17, 2023 / 08:32 amFather Owen Gorman remembers when Masses in Ireland were so crowded on Sundays that people had to sit on the steps outside the church.
Catholic gap year program in Ireland prepares young people for lifelong mission
Mar 15, 2023 / 13:42 pmA new gap year program gives young people the opportunity to spend one year living in Ireland in an intentional Catholic community.
Vatican-China deal ‘not the best deal possible,’ top Holy See diplomat says
Mar 14, 2023 / 08:54 amArchbishop Paul Richard Gallagher said that negotiations are underway to make the the Vatican-China deal “work better.”
Pope Francis: Gender ideology is ‘one of the most dangerous ideological colonizations’ today
Mar 11, 2023 / 05:20 am“Why is it dangerous? Because it blurs differences and the value of men and women,” the pope said.
Pope Francis says imprisonment of Nicaraguan bishop reminds him of Hitler’s dictatorship
Mar 10, 2023 / 08:00 amPope Francis also speaks about Russia's “imperial” agenda, his thoughts on retirement, and Benedict XVI's funeral in a new round of interviews.
Pope Francis discusses revising priestly celibacy in new interview
Mar 10, 2023 / 05:45 amMarried priests are common in the Eastern Catholic Church, the pope noted, while the discipline of priestly celibacy is a “temporary prescription” in the Western Church.
Pope Francis meets with two Nigerian girls who were kidnapped by Boko Haram
Mar 8, 2023 / 11:45 amThe women, who both saw members of their families murdered by Boko Haram, met with the pope at the end of his general audience March 8.
Pope Francis: There is no option to be passive Catholics when it comes to evangelization
Mar 8, 2023 / 05:00 am“Every baptized person … whatever his position in the Church or level of education in the faith, is an active subject of evangelization,” the pope said.
Rupnik concelebrated Mass in a basilica in Rome despite restrictions
Mar 7, 2023 / 11:12 amFather Marko Rupnik concelebrated Mass at a basilica in Rome on Sunday despite restrictions prohibiting “any public ministerial and sacramental activity.”
Pope Francis adds Hollerich and four other cardinals to his council of advisers
Mar 7, 2023 / 06:45 amThe Vatican announced March 7 the nine members of the pope’s Council of Cardinals tasked with assisting the pope “in the governance of the universal Church.”
Pope Francis, Biden commend ‘peacemaker’ Bishop O’Connell as memorial services begin
Mar 2, 2023 / 13:27 pmThe messages came at the start of memorial services for the late Los Angeles auxiliary bishop, who was murdered in his Hacienda Heights home Feb. 18.
Pope Francis: The devil uses ‘three widespread and dangerous temptations’ to divide us
Feb 26, 2023 / 06:15 amThe pope also offered advice for how to overcome temptations using the Word of God.
Nigeria’s newest cardinal: Presidential election will ‘either make or break Nigeria’
Feb 23, 2023 / 13:30 pmWith Nigeria’s escalating violence, a lot is at stake in the presidential election this week in Africa’s most populous country, according Cardinal Peter Ebere Okpaleke.
Catholic priest from Ukraine gives Pope Francis cross made out of war rubble
Feb 23, 2023 / 04:45 amThe Catholic priest and his team have worked tirelessly to provide food, shelter, protection, and health and psychological support to 3 million people in Ukraine.
Ukrainian Catholics to livestream Stations of the Cross from bomb shelter on Friday
Feb 22, 2023 / 09:35 amThe online prayer event on the first Friday of Lent at 8 p.m. Kyiv time will tell the personal stories of victims of war as they relate to Christ’s passion.
Pope Francis asks Pontifical Academy for Life to study ethics of emerging technologies
Feb 20, 2023 / 10:00 amThe rapid acceleration of new technologies can produce significant consequences for human life and the environment Pope Francis said Feb. 20.
Pope Francis encourages filmmakers to ‘reawaken wonder’
Feb 20, 2023 / 06:10 amA good movie has the power to inspire wonder and to evangelize by reflecting the beauty of God’s creation, Pope Francis told filmmakers at the Vatican.
UPDATE: Murder investigation underway in shooting death of LA Auxiliary Bishop O’Connell
Feb 19, 2023 / 13:47 pmBishop David G. O’Connell, known affectionately as “Bishop Dave,” was shot in the torso on Feb. 18. He was pronounced dead at the scene.
Pope Francis: God asks us to love beyond ‘the logic of self-interest’
Feb 19, 2023 / 06:30 amThe pope reflected on what it means to “love your enemies” in his Sunday Angelus address.