A middle aged "frumpy" woman shows the world what beauty really is. By Christopher West  If you don’t yet know who Susan Boyle is, type her name into YouTube and watch her April 11 appearance on Britain’s Got Talent. By now, it may well be the most watched video ever posted online. A few days after the show, her performance had already been viewed o...

Pope’s Way of the Cross references perspectives from Asia By John Thavis VATICAN CITY (CNS) - This year’s meditation for Pope Benedict XVI’s Good Friday Way of the Cross has a distinctly Asian perspective, referring to Hindu scriptures, an Indian poet and Mahatma Gandhi. But the linchpin of this Eastern reflection is the passion of Jesus Christ. In that sense, it...

Pope Benedict’s words at the beginning of his trip to Africa regarding the use of condoms in preventing the spread of AIDS generated a media storm.  But the Pope’s comments are not the cause for concern that they were reported to be, argues Michael Czerny SJ.  Why is the Church’s teaching on this issue not ‘unrealistic and ineffective’, as alleged; but va...

LUANDA, Angola - Pope Benedict XVI strongly defended women’s rights and praised the many “silent heroines” of Africa who are holding families and society together. A girl watches as Pope Benedict XVI arrives to celebrate Mass at Cimangola esplanade in Luanda, Angola, March 22. Angola was the second and last stop on the pope's weeklong pastoral visit to Africa. Photo: CN...

By John Thavis VATICAN CITY (CNS) - In a letter to the world’s bishops, Pope Benedict XVI expressed regret that his lifting of the excommunications of four traditionalist bishops gave rise to a storm of protests and bitterness. Pope Benedict XVI The Pope said the controversy over Bishop Richard Williamson’s statements denying the extent of the Holocaust was “an ...

Even as the global economic crisis makes it more difficult to find a job and start a family, young Catholics are called to hold firmly to their faith in Jesus and be witnesses of hope to their peers, Pope Benedict XVI said.   Pope Benedict XVI waves as he arrives for a youth rally in New York in April 2008.Photo: CNS/Bob Roller   By Cindy Wooden VAT...

Holy Father recalls importance of angels in the life of Christ. In this double exposure, the statue of an angel at Independence Plaza in Mexico City is pictured with the nearly total lunar eclipse in 2000. Pope Benedict XVI has highlighted the important role of angels in Jesus’ life and their paramount importance in our own struggle with evil. Photo: CNS/Reuters   ...

By Cindy Wooden ROME (CNS) - If people act on God’s call to conversion, he will forgive them everything and bless them, Pope Benedict XVI said just before receiving ashes and distributing ashes to mark the beginning of Lent. Pope Benedict XVI uses holy water during an evening Ash Wednesday Mass at the Basilica of St Sabina in Rome on February 25. Photo: CNS/Vincenzo Pinto, Reute...

By John Thavis VATICAN CITY (CNS) - Pope Benedict XVI has lifted the excommunication of four bishops ordained against papal orders in 1988 by the late French Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre. French Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre, a dissenter from Vatican II reforms, is pictured in a 1967 photo. Photo: CNS The move was considered a major concession to the archbishop’s traditionalist...

On the 40th anniversary of the controversial but hugely effective Catholic evangelical Neocatechumenal Way movement, the Pope thanked and urged them to continue their work of evangelisation, but also to adhere to the Holy See’s directives.   Faithful family: A young girl holds a crucifix to be blessed by Pope Benedict XVI during a special audience with Neocatechumenal...