To protect innocent civilians from the harmful effects of weapons of war, “international humanitarian law remains an essential safety measure not to be weakened,” a Vatican official has said. Archbishop Silvano Tomasi, Vatican representative to UN agencies in Geneva, focused on the responsibility to protect civilian populations from harmful weapons in an address to a conference reviewing t...

The four day visit of Pope Benedict XVI to his homeland which concluded on Sunday was surprising in many ways, but paradoxically for factors that by now have become almost routine in this particular pontificate. Above all, while the happiness of visiting his native land was certainly part of the experience for him, at a personal level, there was a clear sense of purpose and method to the Holy F...

Benedict XVI expresses 'deep concern' for east Africans caught in worst drought in 60 years.   A woman holds her baby outside a tent serving as a medical clinic established by the African Union peacekeeping operation in in Mogadishu, Somalia, on 16 July. Photo: CNS.   Pope Benedict XVI urged the international community to deliver urgent humanitarian aid to ...

People can abuse reason when they demand proof from God: Pope By Carol Glatz Catholic News Service VATICAN CITY - While empirical science has done much to further progress, subjecting God and His truth to scientific scrutiny represents an incorrect and despotic use of human reason, Pope Benedict XVI said. Pope Benedict XVI presents the Ratzinger Prize to Cistercian Fr Maximil...

By John Thavis Catholic News Service VATICAN CITY - Pope Benedict XVI said the Eucharist is the heart of Church life and an “antidote” to the increasingly individualistic global culture. Addressing pilgrims on 26 June, the feast of Corpus Christi, which commemorates the institution of the Eucharist, the Pope said the Eucharist was like the “pulsing heart” that gives...

VATICAN CITY (CNS) - Pope Benedict XVI said that the Book of Psalms from the Old Testament is a timeless and powerful “prayer book” that teaches Christians how to communicate with God. This is a page from the Book of Psalms of The Saint John's Bible, a full-color reproduction of the first handwritten illuminated Bible to be created in 500 years. The book was produced by the ...

By Jane Adolphe Analysis NEW YORK (Zenit.org) - Author Nancy Goldstein misses the point in her criticism of the Pope in her discussion of the debate occurring at the United Nations over the drafting of the Political Declaration on HIV and AIDS. People wave near a poster of Pope Benedict XVI and Cameroon’s President Paul Biya in Yaounde, Cameroon on 17 March 2009. Making his firs...

By Bridget Spinks Perth Archbishop Barry Hickey’s letter of resignation which he presented to the Holy Father on his 75th birthday has been accepted in principle by the Holy Father nunc pro tunc (now for then) to take effect once his successor is announced.    “The Pope has indicated to me he wants me to stay on until my successor is announced,” Archbishop...

WASHINGTON (CNS) - Move over, Spider-Man. Here come some new comic book heroes. Among this new breed of heroes are Pope Benedict XVI, St Paul and Old Testament figure Judith. They are the stars of comic books done in a style older generations never saw in the comic book rack at the neighbourhood drugstore growing up. The genre is called manga, a Japanese genre of cartoons and comic books, a...

Q: In talking with friends about the beatification of Pope John Paul II, I have found a degree of scepticism including among Catholics. They say the Church has rushed through the whole process due to popular pressure. How can I answer them? Polish Cardinal Stanislaw Dziwisz, who served as personal secretary to Blessed Pope John Paul II, prays at the new tomb of the late Polish pontiff i...