Europe

Catholics and non-believers alike are waiting for Pope Francis’ September 12-15 visit to Slovakia, the spokesman for the bishops’ conference told journalists on Wednesday, saying that, if given the chance, he’d ask the pontiff to focus on boosting locals in their faith.

After over 1,000 amendments to Italy’s controversial anti-homophobia bill were proposed last week, a vote on whether to pass the legislation, which has met unprecedented criticism from the Vatican, has been delayed and will likely be postponed until after the summer vacation.

Catholic bishops in Northern Ireland warned that unilateral moves by the British government to force Northern Ireland's Department of Health to introduce abortion services threaten the region's peace process.

The images of flooded villages and towns in Germany have shocked the world, prompting aid agencies in developing countries more accustomed to dealing with natural disasters to offer words of compassion and concern to one of Europe's most prosperous nations.

In 13 parishes in the Diocese of Rome, 280 volunteers over the age of 65 dedicate part of their week to visiting their older peers, helping them with shopping and getting them to doctors' appointments as well as helping with the liturgies and religious education classes at the parish.

Norwegian Bishop Erik Varden speaks of the "grief and perplexity" of Norwegians on the tenth anniversary of the extremist attacks in Oslo and the island of Utøya, which left 77 people dead and scores more wounded.

A community of Benedictine monks has vowed to continue ministering at a Spanish civil war memorial marked by a 460-foot cross despite a bill pending in parliament that would ban expressions of support for Gen. Francisco Franco's 20th-century dictatorship.

As Italian lawmakers debate whether to pass a controversial anti-homophobia bill which has met unprecedented criticism from the Vatican, Catholics are divided on the issue, with some saying a new law is desperately needed and others claiming it would only cause more problems.

European bishops called on the European Union to do more to protect religious freedom in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic as part of efforts to strengthen the bloc's role as a "global humanitarian, development, economic and peace actor."

German Catholic churches offered spiritual and financial support to survivors of devastating flooding in two regions of the country.

Emergency response and aid efforts were running in high gear after severe flooding in western and southwestern Germany toppled buildings, washed away vehicles and left at least 100 people dead.

The Catholic Church in the European Union (EU) is calling for more family-friendly policies and EU policies boosting intergenerational solidarity.

In a telegram sent on Thursday evening through the Cardinal Secretary of State Pietro Parolin, Pope Francis expresses his nearness and says he is praying.

In the coronavirus year 2020, fewer Christians left the church in Germany than in previous years, two church organizations reported on Wednesday.

In the first open debate in the Italian legislature of a controversial anti-homophobia bill following an unprecedented complaint from the Vatican on grounds of religious freedom, the bill survived two significant hurdles in the senate Tuesday and could be voted into law as early as next week.

Pope Francis congratulates Father Massimo Fusarelli, who was elected minister general of the Order of Friars Minor on Tuesday.

Members of the general chapter of the Order of Friars Minor elected Rome-born Father Massimo Fusarelli as the new minister general of the worldwide Franciscan order.

A Belarusian bishops' spokesman downplayed a police raid on Minsk's Catholic cathedral, although a prominent lay Catholic warned arrests elsewhere suggested the move could signal further police action.

With migrants and refugees continuing to arrive in Italy by sea and with others drowning in the Mediterranean while making the attempt, the Italian bishops have asked parishes throughout the country to add a special prayer for migrants to their liturgies July 11.