Daily News

Morning must-reads

April 30

Cardinals discuss Church's challenges around the world

And the centrality of Jesus, evangelization, pushing peace

Pre-conclave, three main voting blocs of cardinals form

Reformist/'pro-Francis'; conservative; stability-focused

Abbot Donato Ogliari OSB preaches to cardinals

Exhorts them to focus on Christ, be open to Holy Spirit

Chinese diocese ‘elects’ new bishop without a pope

Highlighting ongoing dysfunction of Vatican-China deal

Rome: 10,000 attend Jubilee of People with Disabilities

Pilgrims, many in wheelchairs, come from 90 countries

Scandal: Peru cardinal attends pre-conclave meetings

Cipriani, 81 & not eligible to vote, was sanctioned by Francis

April 29

College of Cardinals meet in fifth general congregation

'About 20 cardinals,' of over 180, offered brief speeches

Cdl. Becciu renounces his participation in conclave

Withdraws himself; cardinals were frustrated by the issue

Timor-Leste: 300,000 attend requiem Mass for Francis

SE Asian nation of 1.5M is 88% Christian, 84% Catholic

Cardinal calls for continuation of Francis’s reform path

Reina: We must 'discern and order what has begun'

EPPC studies 865,727 abortion-pill users, 2017-2023

Finds 10.93% suffer at least one serious complication

Rome conclave gossip: an older, 'moderate' candidate

Mentions of Parolin, Hungary's Erdő, Marseille's Aveline

April 28

Over 200,000 attend Pope Francis’s funeral Mass

Cardinal Re, dean of College of Cardinals, presided

Francis interred at Papal Basilica of St. Mary Major

Coffin welcomed on steps by 'group of the marginalized'

Cardinals announce conclave start date of Tues, May 7

134 to take part; few not yet in Rome will arrive soon

Cdl. Burke launches novena for the Universal Church

To Our Lady of Good Counsel, from May 1 through May 9

Francis recorded video for teens at Jubilee of Teenagers

Advises, 'Learn how to listen,' especially to grandparents

FBI arrests WI judge who sheltered illegal from arrest

Dugan, a former Catholic Charities director, flouts law

April 25

Over 128,000 mourners have paid respects to Francis

Five-hour line wait; basilica closed only in pre-dawn hours

130 nations to send delegations to papal funeral

About 50 heads of state and ten monarchs will attend

Becciu claim to enter conclave is test for top cardinals

Final decision will likely fall to Cdl. Parolin, as senior-most

Cdl. Müller: Church needs next pope to be orthodox

One who seeks worldly 'applause' would be 'catastrophic'

A Francis paradox: He adopted elite points of view

Whereas people on peripheries just want to live the faith

Prof who warned on transing kids gets $1.6M settlement

He was fired after giving off-campus expert testimony

April 24

Mourners bid farewell to Francis through the night

St. Peter's Basilica closed only between 5:30-7:00AM

Rome: Cardinals converge at 2nd General Congregation

103 attend; 3rd scheduled for Thursday as more arrive

Conclave: Only 14% of voting cardinals are Italian

Those from N. America are now 9%, versus 12% in 2013

Requiem Mass for Francis celebrated at Holy Sepulchre

Cardinal Pizzaballa presided before departing for Rome

German bishops publish handout on gay blessings

Advise expressing 'appreciation' for those seeking them

Colorado: Infamous late-term abortion clinic closes

Warren Hern unsuccessfully tried to hire another killer

April 23

Pope Francis lies in state inside St. Peter's Basilica

Crowds pay final respects before Fri. 8PM coffin sealing

Healthcare assistant recalls Pope’s final day on Easter

Strappetti encouraged Francis to make visit to the Square

General Congregations of Cardinals begin in Vatican

About 60 cardinals gathered for the first, on Tuesday

Convicted Cdl. Becciu claims conclave voting right

Although Vatican list designates him as a 'non-elector'

SCOTUS appears pro-parents' rights in curriculum case

Maryland school board nixed LGBT-propaganda opt-out

Chartres pilgrimage overwhelmed by registration surge

Organizers forced to temporarily suspend registrations

April 22

Pope’s funeral Mass scheduled for Saturday, April 26

Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re will be principal celebrant

Vatican releases first photos of Francis after his death

Lying in simple wooden coffin in Santa Marta's chapel

World leaders react to announcement of pope’s death

As do top prelates, heads of other Christian communities

Vatican releases testament of Pope Francis: full text

On final wishes 'solely regarding the place of my burial'

Canonization of Bl. Carlo Acutis has been postponed

No longer on Divine Mercy Sunday, 'Jubilee of Teenagers'

N.Y. Times says State Dept. axing rel. freedom office?

No. Sec'y of State Rubio calls draft document 'fake news'

April 21

Pope Francis dies on Easter Monday morning, age 88

At Casa Santa Marta; no details yet on funeral arrangements

Cdl. Farrell, as Camerlengo, is chief exec of interregnum

Within a maximum of 20 days the conclave must begin

Pope Francis’s ‘Urbi et Orbi’ for Easter 2025: full text

Was read by archbishop; Francis was present, blessed crowd

USCCB publishes Q&A on immigrant registration

On requirements and penalties for failure to do so

Vatican forbids removing names from baptism registers

Reception of sacrament is a 'foundational historical fact'

Many U.S. dioceses see sharp growth in converts

Philly archdiocese & Allentown diocese at 10-year highs

April 17

UK high court rules 'woman' is defined by biological sex

Unanimous verdict; the Scottish gov't argued otherwise

Detroit archdiocese: Parishes must halt TLMs by July 1

Bishop will identify four non-parish locations for them

Cardinal Parolin, VP Vance to meet in Rome on Good Fri.

Vance also to meet with Italian Prime Minister Meloni

Nicaraguan regime again bans Holy Week processions

Police told to prevent any public manifestation of faith

Thieving Milwaukee priest had atypical clerical support

And got only probation after multiple thefts from parish

Philippines town reenacts Christ and Mary’s encounter

With intricately carved and movable wooden statues

April 16

Nonprofit promotes stories of priests' virtue, courage

To restore confidence in priesthood & inspire vocations

Fed. judge declines to halt immigration-raid policy

Lack of standing; won't reinstate 'sensitive locations'

Cameroon diocese issues ‘urgent alert’ on trafficking

Ongoing crises have increased vulnerability, incidence

Guttmacher: U.S. abortions rose 1%, 2023 to 2024

Not including 'self-managed' use of abortion pills at home

Maryland: Pastors ceremonially 'bless' abortion clinic

Led by a Baptist 'minister' and Yale Divinity School grad

French artist James Tissot painted Holy Week scenes

His 'The Dead Appear in the Temple' depicts Mt. 27:51-53

April 15

Jerusalem Patriarch on Palm Sunday: ‘We are not afraid’

Holy City is the place of 'a love that saves and overcomes'

20,000 celebrate Palm Sun. in Iraq’s ‘City of Hosanna’

Spirited procession: hymns, prayers, traditional attire

Dicastery for Clergy tightens rules for Mass stipends

Allows 'collective intentions' only under strict conditions

India: Delhi police bar Way of the Cross procession

Cite 'law and order, traffic concerns'; archdiocese shocked

Normandy: Benedictine monks reviving ancient abbey

Saint-Wandrille preserved Latin liturgy, Gregorian chant

Pope declares Spanish architect Antoni Gaudí venerable

Vatican opened cause in 2003 after years of lay advocacy

April 14

France to welcome 10,384 adult catechumens on Sat.

Young adults now constitute largest share of its converts

Is Islam's presence in Europe rousing Christian identity?

Renewal afoot even in bastions of secular progressivism

U.S. bishops push Religious Workforce Protection Act

For foreign-born religious to wait in U.S. for green cards

Univ. of Mary & Diocese of Phoenix launch seminary

Phoenix hasn't had its own seminary in over 50 years

Netherlands: 9,958 reported euthanasia deaths in '24

Gov't mulls option for anyone over age 74, without illness

Gaudí expert: His faith deepened during basilica work

He attempted Lenten fast, prompting bishop to intervene

April 11

Cardinals tout book on vocations and sexual orientation

On integrating affections & feelings; Pope writes preface

Vatican grants 14 New York churches delay on mergers

Amid Buffalo bishop's effort to buoy diocesan finances

DDF prefect's ‘sex change’ remarks raise questions

Critic rues 'retreat from relative clarity of Dignitas Infinita'

Ukrainian Catholics rebut U.S. rel. freedom commission

Say new law isn't restrictive but is necessary safeguard

Ill. bishops drop opposition to homeschooling red tape

Bill would impose onerous regulations on families

Australia's two party leaders both identify as Catholic

Citizens, 20% of whom are Catholic, go to polls May 3

April 10

Vatican financial watchdog: Suspicious reports drop

'Only' 79 such reports in 2024, down from 123 in 2023

Former Jerusalem Patriarch fears Gaza annexation

Calls expelling Palestinians from home 'violence, sacrilege'

Priest of only Catholic parish in Gaza calls for peace

And thanks Cardinal Pizzaballa for his 'constant help'

Bismarck ND boasts booming Catholic community

Transplants drawn to great schools, dynamic culture

Colo. bishops urge veto of foul abortion funding bill

State gov't claims it will save money via 'averted births'

600+ Notre Dame students call for campus porn filter

Petition asks new president Dowd; Jenkins rejected similar