Central and South America

Catholics who work at the border of Peru, Bolivia and Chile met May 23-25 in Arica, Chile – a small city in the north of the country – to reflect on the reality of migrants in the region.

Mexico’s Supreme Court upheld a norm that requires state-level health secretariats to provide access to abortion in the case of rape and incest.

Hundreds of people gathered in this tiny Andean village for the burial of the remains of 50 victims of a brutal massacre committed by Peruvian soldiers in 1985.

With two of its parishes under siege by police, the Archdiocese of Managua demanded that the Nicaraguan government of Daniel Ortega call off the harassment of the church.

Bishop Rolando José Álvarez Lagos of Matagalpa, Nicaragua, started a hunger strike May 19. He said he would have only water and electrolytes until police stop the harassment -- including harassment of his parents and family.

As the government of Nicaragua continues to tighten its control over anything and anyone it considers part of the opposition, including the leadership of the Catholic Church, the bishops said that they will continue to denounce “the social structures of sin.”

With the consent of Pope Francis, the Vatican authorized its preliminary investigation into whether an Argentine military officer, kidnapped and allegedly killed by a Marxist group in the 1970s, was a martyr.

On Tuesday, the Catholic Church in Chile will unveil a documentary on the country’s migration crisis in the hopes of garnering support for the thousands of people arriving in the country fleeing violence and persecution.

An audit ordered by the Vatican into the Archdiocese of Buenos Aires has revealed irregularities in the sales of church assets, with properties being disposed of controversially. The audit said no crimes were committed.

Greg Jones has a clear idea when his life changed. It was not in 1998, when he went to prison, or 2007, when he was paroled on a manslaughter charge.

After a prominent Jesuit priest was accused of sexually abusing a girl, Chilean President Gabriel Boric announced he is contemplating opening a nationwide investigation into the Catholic Church.

After a group of Discalced Carmelites in Northern Argentina sued their archbishop and a Vatican envoy for “gender violence,” the country’s other Carmelites sent a letter to the president of the bishops’ conference saying that ecclesial communion is “a priority.”

A report approved by Nicaragua's national assembly proposes toughening the penalties for "undermining national integrity" and could mean the eventual prosecution of priests and other civil society leaders for alleged involvement and support for protests.

In a letter to Pope Francis for their 120th Plenary Assembly, Argentina's Bishops express their closeness to the Argentine Pope and praise his 'untiring courage and tenacity' in working peace between Russia and Ukraine.

In a statement May 3, the Jesuit province in Chile said, "a complaint was received April 29 from an adult woman against Jesuit Father Felipe Berríos for acts of sexual connotation. Such events would have occurred when the complainant was a minor."

Cardinal Baltazar Porras of Mérida celebrated Sunday Mass for parishioners at St. Katharine Drexel Catholic Church west of Fort Lauderdale. He brought with him the relics of Blessed José Gregorio that were placed for veneration at the front of the church.

Communities affected by mining -- and church people working with them -- draw strength from spiritualties that center on protecting what Pope Francis calls "our common home," according to members of the Churches and Mining Network, who met here April 24-28.

Brazil saw an exponential increase in deaths linked to land disputes in 2021, according to a report published by the country’s Catholic bishops.

Conflict is brewing in a northern archdiocese of Argentina, where a group of cloistered nuns have made a formal allegation against the bishop for “gender violence”; at the same time, the Vatican has warned the nuns against promoting an alleged Marian apparition.

In Honduras, a local bishop is calling for an “authentic peace” after claiming the Central American nation is “tormented” by violence related to organized crime and war.