Catholic News Service

Catholic leaders in Kenya are appealing for humanitarian support in regions where landslides and floods have displaced thousands, as the country battles increasing cases of the coronavirus.

To mark his name day, the feast of St. George, Pope Francis gave the gift of medical supplies to several countries reeling from the coronavirus pandemic.

Pope Francis prayed for families struggling economically during the COVID-19 pandemic and for the conversion of loan sharks who prey on them.

The U.S. Department of Education said federal financial relief for coronavirus for higher education is meant for U.S. citizens, prompting protests from students enrolled in colleges and universities under the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, or DACA.

Celebrating Earth Day, which fell during the "Easter season of renewal, let us pledge to love and esteem the beautiful gift of the earth, our common home, and to care for all members of our human family," he said during his livestreamed weekly general audience from the Vatican.

Catholic members of the Interfaith Immigration Coalition, a group of 55 national, faith-based organizations, joined an April 21 statement accusing the president of using a "dog whistle" against immigrants.

Only the humble submission of each individual to the Holy Spirit can bring harmony to communities suffering from division, Pope Francis said.

The Mexican bishops' conference has issued ethical guidelines as the COVID-19 crisis worsens in Mexico and medical staff are potentially forced to make life-and-death decisions on which patients receive treatment, and which ones are denied access to equipment like ventilators.

Pope Francis has agreed with a recommendation by the Dicastery for Laity, the Family and Life to postpone by one year the next gatherings of the World Meeting of Families and World Youth Day.

As the world slowly recovers from the COVID-19 pandemic, there is a risk it will be struck by an even worse virus — that of selfish indifference, Pope Francis said.

As the Italian government makes plans for a gradual return to normality after the COVID-19 pandemic, representatives of the country's bishops' conference are meeting with the Ministry of Internal Affairs to discuss a resumption of public Masses and, especially, of funerals.

Pope Francis said he was praying for expectant mothers who may be anxious or worried about giving birth during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The country's supply of fruit and vegetables and other staples such as meats and dairy produced by the labor of farmworkers — many of them migrants — remains steady thanks to those essential workers. Yet many of them toil without basic protections, their supporters say.

As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to spread in Congo, the country's Catholic bishops are insisting on measures to also fight Ebola, the deadly epidemic that has made a surprise return.

Retired Pope Benedict XVI "is well," although the coronavirus pandemic restrictions mean he will receive no visitors April 16, his 93rd birthday.

Pope Francis created a new commission that will confront the challenges the world is facing in battling the coronavirus pandemic and what it will inevitably face in its aftermath, the Vatican announced.

Pope Francis offered prayers for elderly people living alone or in retirement homes who are living in fear of contracting the coronavirus and dying alone.

Looking for a way to provide both spiritual and physical care on Easter, a group of Italian doctors received their bishop's permission to distribute Communion to those infected by the coronavirus.

As the coronavirus pandemic has swept across the country, churches have been forced to follow states' stay-in-place guidelines, which some see as an infringement of their religious freedom.

Local journalism outlets, including diocesan newspapers, are being touted as vital information sources during the COVID-19 pandemic worthy of being included in a new round of federal emergency aid.