World News

EWTN News Nightly Tyler VanderWeele talks about his appointment to the Pontifical Academy for Social Sciences on “EWTN News Nightly” on Feb. 17, 2026. Pope Leo XIV’s recent appointee to the Pontifical Academy for Social Sciences, Tyler J. VanderWeele, is a Harvard University professor of epidemiology. ... read more

The pontiff said he must be free to denounce injustice amid today’s challenges. Pope Leo XIV meets with members of the association Pro Petri Sede at the Vatican on Feb. 18, 2026. | Credit: Vatican Media Pope Leo XIV said the successor of Peter must retain “complete freedom to speak ... read more

A private association of lay faithful that serves students in Spain will begin the cause for the canonization of its founder, a Jesuit priest. Portrait of Jesuit Father Ángel Ayala, founder of the Catholic Association of Propagandists. | Credit: ACdP The Catholic Association of Propagandists (who propagate, or spread, the ... read more

In Green ‘Selling Online’ DIFFICULT MORAL QUESTIONS: When online marketplaces support abortion, does selling goods there amount to sinful cooperation — or can such participation be morally permissible under certain conditions? ... read more

The St. Raphael Academy community in Pawtucket has joined other area high schools in mourning the deadly tragedy that rocked a series of hockey games underway Feb. 16 at a local arena, where a group of its players were gathered to play. ... read more

Why do so many people make an extra effort to get to church on Ash Wednesday — the first of Lent's 40 days — when it is not a holy day of obligation, and they are not required to receive ashes? ... read more

The Holy See "will not participate" in President Donald Trump's "Board of Peace" for Gaza, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the Vatican's secretary of state, said Feb. 17, citing "points that leave us somewhat perplexed." ... read more

‘Even now, says the LORD, return to me with your whole heart’ (Joel 2:12). COMMENTARY: To live Lent well begins with a desire to go with Jesus into the desert and return profoundly changed. ... read more

Danupol Noodam A young teen absorbed in her phone. 'In stepping back from digital excess, we reclaim interior silence, deepen relationships, and rediscover God’s presence in daily life,' the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines said. ... read more

Onet Papal assistant Angelo Gugel was known to be Pope John Paul II's right hand man. COMMENTARY: He was a quiet man who sought no attention and knew he was serving a saint. May he rest in peace. ... read more

by Fr. Dwight Longenecker After my talk at a parish mission, one of the women came up looking a bit flustered. “Father, can I ask you a question?” “Sure.” “I was at Mass yesterday and the priest said in his homily that the story of Jonah and the whale is a fable.” “Yes?” “I was ... read more

Almost one in three pregnancies in the United Kingdom now ends in abortion, according to recently released statistics. “Last month, after a mysterious eighteen-month delay, the U.K. government finally published the 2023 abortion figures for England and Wales,” Philippa Stroud, a member of the House of Lords, wrote in an article. “When adding ... read more

The Diocese of Youngstown, Ohio, is preparing to receive 282 converts into the Church at Easter, up 47% from last year, and the highest number since 2014. In 2021, 138 converts were received into the Church in the eastern Ohio diocese. ... read more

The US bishops’ Committee for Religious Liberty issued its 2026 annual report, “The State of Religious Liberty in the United States.” The report, released on February 17, identified “six areas of critical concern—threats and opportunities—for religious liberty in 2026”: Political and anti-religious violence Unjust terms and conditions on federal grants, and unreliability ... read more

The US bishops’ Committee for Religious Liberty issued its 2026 annual report, “The State of Religious Liberty in the United States.” The report, released on February 17, identified “six areas of critical concern—threats and opportunities—for religious liberty in 2026”: Political and anti-religious violence Unjust terms and conditions on federal grants, and unreliability ... read more