By Cindy Wooden / Catholic News Service MADRID — Pope Benedict XVI announced this morning that he will declare St. John of Avila the 34th “doctor of the church.” The Spanish saint, who lived 1500-1569, was famed as a preacher, confessor and spiritual writer. He is best known for the works “Audi, Filia” (“Listen, Daughter”), ...read more

A university education is about more than attaining technical ability or satisfying the demand for labor, says Pope Benedict. The Holy Father reflected on the role of the university during a meeting with young professors at the Basilica of the Monastery of San Lorenzo de El Escorial. His address followed his meeting with young women ...read more

Yesterday in Madrid, Benedict XVI joined all of the World Youth Day pilgrims at the Papal Welcome Ceremony. This morning he met with a more specific audience, comprised of young women religious. During his his address at the Monastery of San Lorenzo de El Escorial, the Holy Father exhorted women religious to embrace a “Gospel ...read more

I’ve been telling you about a conversation I had with a friend. The “ProLife” conversation is probably one of the most important ones that we should be able to have. But, most of us do not have the facts or the confidence to do so. So, here’s part 4 of that conversation. But first, you ...read more

Two months before his death in 1979, Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen met Pope John Paul II in New York’s St. Patrick’s Cathedral. The two embraced, and the now Blessed John Paul II said to the legendary Catholic writer and broadcaster: “You have written and spoken well of the Lord Jesus Christ. You are a loyal ...read more

I was at an abortion debate recently and even though the pro-life speaker made it really clear that his position had to do with the fact that he believes that an unborn human being is still a human being, a human person and as such, deserves the same rights and freedoms as any other human ...read more

“Do something beautiful for God.” That’s the advice that Leonardo Defilippis received from Mother Teresa. The stage actor responded by dedicating his life to bringing the story of saints to the stage and screen through his company Saint Luke Productions. He’s told the stories of St. Maximilian Kolbe and St. Francis, as well as the ...read more

In 1858, four Sisters of St. Ann traveled from Montreal to Canada’s West Coast aboard the SS Seabird with Victoria’s first Bishop, Modeste Demers (a relative of their current Bishop!).  They made the two-month voyage via a circuitous route through the Isthmus of Panama. Their goal was to aid the Bishop in his mission to ...read more

By Cindy Wooden Catholic News Service VATICAN CITY (CNS) — Pope Benedict XVI advanced the sainthood causes of 35 candidates, including Canadian Christian Brother Adolphe Chatillon. During a meeting April 2 with Cardinal Angelo Amato, prefect of the Congregation for Saints’ Causes, the pope signed a decree recognizing that Brother Chatillon lived the Christian virtues ...read more

Last week, the Downtown Chapel in Portland, Oregon, made a special announcement:  they’re changing their parish name.  A recent degree by the Archbishop of Portland will change the Church’s patronage from St. Vincent de Paul to the Congregation of Holy Cross’ first saint, St. André Bessette. For any of you who have seen the documentary ...read more